Snippet of when Seulki first joined BTS and how her insecurities took a toll
A/N: Mentions and descriptions of anorexia, may be triggering.
Seulki kept her head down, not able to look anyone in the eyes. Jimin placed his hand on her knee, frowning at how pronounced the bone felt in his hand. He squeezed it gently, treating her like a porcelain doll. "S, talk to us. Let us help. Please." Seulki took a shaky breath, bringing her eyes to meet with her members. She told them everything; from the comments from the fans, the comments she overheard from her stylist, to their manager bringing the pamphlets over. They were all almost in tears as she told them everything, upset that she had been going through this on her own. Jimin took her small hand in his, lacing their fingers together.
"Seulki. . . why didn't you tell us sooner?" Taehyung said, looking down trying not to let his tears falls. This wasn't about them right now; their maknae needed them. She shrugged her shoulders, looking back down to her plate. "I didn't want to burden you. You're all already so stressed." Yoongi scoffed, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms. "You're just as stressed as we are, S. Probably more with all this other shit going on." Seulki shrugged her shoulders again, not really sure what more to say. Hoseok sighed, looking at his dejected members. "Why don't we start by eating a little today? If you flood your system you're going to get sick." He picked up her plate, placing more than half the food on the others plates, his included.
She let a small smile take over her face. "I-I can try." Hoseok smiled lovingly, grateful she wasn't opposed to trying. Everyone ate in silence for a few minutes, eyes trained on Seulki and making sure she was actually swallowing the food. "This is really good, oppa." She said to Jin as she took another bite and he smiled. "It's all for you, princess." She smiled a little brighter and that night, she ate a meal for the first time in months and finished it. The next morning Jin had made sure to pack her some fruit and a protein shake. "You're going to diet the right way." He told her and she didn't argue, grateful that they weren't going to stuff her full of food.
It took a while and it didn't go without fights, mainly with Jin on some days. But none of the members ever let Seulki feel like she was alone. Yoongi was the first one to shut down any negative comments about her body, immediately calling the person out for not being a true fan. He had her stylist replaced with another one who he was grateful was supportive of her, sometimes even more than they were. Her new stylist always made sure she had something to eat and drink before doing anything. Even if it was just a few pieces of fruit and some water, the stylist would hum happily. Yoongi had noticed how her stylist would work on her clothes to accent all her best features and cover up the ones she wasn't comfortable with. Yoongi was happy when he saw a little more life back in his younger members eyes and took notice that she was smiling a lot more than the past few months.
Jimin had made it a goal to take her out to eat at least once a week, if they could find the time to her favorite dessert place. It was her reward for working so hard that week on herself along with their busy schedule. If they couldn't manage to go out, he would buy her favorite snack from the convenience store down the street and bring it home for her. He made sure to eat everything on his plate so he could motivate her to eat her own. And just like she had supported him with her little sticky notes every now and then when he was struggling with his body image, he left them for her. Literally everywhere. In her bag. On her bed. On her clothes, on her mirror, on her makeup. On her shoes. And he would never get tired of the big smile on her face when she would see them and read them.
Jin had stuck true to his word of letting her continue to diet, but safely. He wouldn't make their meals to fattening, but enough for all of them to get enough nutrients. He made sure that she was eating 3 meals a day and snacks in between if it could be managed. Of course, they fought and argued over it sometimes, but he never let his anger and annoyance get the best of him. Namjoon and Hoseok always made sure to hype her up, not matter what. Even if she had just rolled out of bed they were complimenting something about her. Jungkook and Taehyung had taken turns going to the gym with her; making sure she wasn't over-exercising or over-exerting herself.
Seulki got better, little by little. She knew it wasn't going to be an easy feat, but she knew she could always turn and rely on her members. And she always did if she felt it was becoming to much again and they were always there to help her through it and not fall down the dark hole again. She loved them more than family and her heart warmed every day she got to wake up and be a part of such a loving and supporting group. And in turn, she helped Jungkook write a song about the members. They are the babies of the group and have been practically raised by the others since they started. While she had no interest in singing with him on it, it was his solo track, she helped a lot with the lyrics to encapsulate how grateful she was to all the members and the first time they heard they all had tears in their eyes, Yoongi included.
"You all made me a better version of myself." Seulki said, smiling at her tearful members. "You made me begin."
