Gaia

01: Water

AN: Hello, lovelies!  Please enjoy this chapter.  Comment, vote, let me know what you think!

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Jimin always felt that the best dreams involved flying. Not in an airplane or a helicopter, but by his own will. There was nothing quite as exhilarating as flinging himself off the side of a building, plummeting toward the ground, then swooping upward as if on wings.

Sometimes, he found that trying to take off from the ground took a lot of unnecessary effort. It was a dream, after all. Shouldn't he just be able to blast off like a Saturn rocket? Instead, it usually took a running start and a lot of ridiculous arm flapping before he'd get airborne.

Leaping from skyscrapers like a base-jumper was much easier.

That night, he winged his way over a vast ocean, dipping and wheeling like a sea bird. He didn't care for the oily darkness of the water below as it stretched into eternity in front of him. It rolled and crashed, becoming increasingly violent the further he traveled.

More concerning than that was the way it kept getting closer to him, as if he couldn't keep himself aloft. It wasn't that he couldn't keep his grip on the sky, though; the ocean was literally rising to meet him. He couldn't ascend fast enough and, with a gasp, he felt himself suddenly engulfed in the cold, dark depths of the sea.

Normally, if he'd ended up underwater during a dream, he'd had no issues breathing.  This time, however, he felt water rush up his nose and into his mouth, instantly choking him.  Deprived of air, he thrashed in the water as he sank rapidly, being pulled down by some power greater than his own. Something tight wrapped around his body, squeezing painfully, forcing the last bubbles from his lungs. A darker blackness started to spot his vision as he struggled to get free from whatever had him. Before he blacked out completely, he thought he heard a deep, echoing voice, like someone speaking in a drippy cavern, bidding him to die.

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Hoseok nearly lunged across the space between their beds when he heard Jimin's scream breaking the silence of the night. Kneeling on the edge of the mattress, he grabbed the younger's shoulders, shaking him quickly and calling his name.

"Hey!" the rapper yelped when the smaller man's hand collided with the side of his face, nearly knocking him off the bed. Jimin was flailing in his sleep as if trying to fight something. He kept yelling but the words made no sense. Hoseok grappled at his arms again, trying to keep his roommate from doing any more damage.

The door to their room was shoved open hard enough that it banged into the wall. "What the hell is all this noise?! It's three in the morning! I've got to be up in an hour to start on breakfast and you're in here having a rave!" Seokjin, his sleep-ruffled black hair sticking up at odd angles, burst in and flicked the light on.

"He won't wake up," Hobi replied, not bothering to hide the frantic tone in his voice.  He finally managing to pin Jimin's hands down after suffering two more blows to his face and chest. "Just started screaming.  Help me wake him up!"

Their hyung vaulted onto the bed on the opposite side of Hoseok, staring down at the whimpering and yelping Jimin still trapped in sleep. He tried slapping Jimin lightly on the cheek a few times, then shook him as best he could while Hoseok was still holding his arms down.

"Throw water on him!" Taehyung called helpfully from the doorway. Yoongi peered sleepily over his shoulder. His usually stoic face held a hint of concern as he watched Jimin behaving like one possessed, thrashing in Hoseok's grip.

"Move!"

Taehyung was unceremoniously yanked out of the doorway as Namjoon shoved his way into the room. His shirt was on backwards, his fleece pants inside out. He had apparently gotten dressed in a hurry, and probably in the dark.