Work Text:
The first time Dongho saw him was at the audition.
Him being a scrawny kid with dark brown hair and a huge red sweatshirt, who was fidgeting in his seat as he waited for his audition to happen.
Dongho watched from across the room. He didn't fidget. His parents had trained him not to.
But then they're calling this other boy in— Lee Minsoo, apparently— and Dongho can see the way his eyes light up as he walks into the audition room, and even though he knows that they're fighting to get in, he still hopes that Minsoo makes the cut.
And then 10 minutes later, Minsoo's walking out with his head held high and Dongho can't help but feel happy for him, even if his own chances are tighter now.
"...Dongho? We need to discuss your application."
Minsoo pauses in the lobby, glancing back to see who the staff are talking to.
There's a boy (is he in middle school? he looks too tall, but also too young to be in high school) and he seems to be hiding behind his hair, and only seems to shrink in on himself more as the staff comes to talk to him.
"You left out your family name, and we also need a parent or guardian's phone number..."
The boy— Dongho?— looks up for a second, and Minsoo averts his eyes, pushing the lobby door open.
It's not really his problem.
Still, he hopes that Dongho makes it in.
———
Minsoo sighs, thumping his head against the practice room mirrors. There's supposed to be another trainee. And they're late.
"Where the hell... first fucking day..."
The clock reads 5 pm. They were supposed to start practicing together at 3:30.
Minsoo pulls his phone out and groans. He doubts this other trainee is going to show up any time soon. Might as well game for a while.
It's easy for him to get pulled into his game, bright colors and emblems shining across the screen.
And then he hears someone talking in the hallway.
"...don't worry about it, Minsoo-ssi won't be too upset. Besides, it's only your first day, so just try to make it on time from now on."
"...alright."
The door to the practice room swings open and Minsoo puts his phone down as the trainee manager walks in, the other trainee behind him.
Minsoo gets to his feet and looks up. His eyes meet Dongho's— well, his one eye that isn't covered by his bangs— and whatever anger he had felt drains away.
"Hello! It's nice to meet you, I'm Minsoo!"
Dongho freezes up for a moment, eyes wide. "I- hi. I'm Dongho..."
Minsoo grins, and Dongho can't help but give a small smile in return.
"Well... it's just us for now, so we might as well be friends," Minsoo decides.
Dongho just nods. He must be smiling; his cheeks hurt just a bit.
It'll be nice to have a friend.
———
"C'mon, hyung, my mom will love you," Minsoo says excitedly.
"...you didn't ask her yet?"
"Nah. She's more likely to say yes if you're there, too."
Dongho sighs a bit, grabbing onto his backpack strap a bit tighter.
Then Minsoo's pulling him up a side road and turning into a driveway and up to a front door and he simply barges inside.
"Mom, I'm home! My friend Dongho's here too, he's training with me. Would he be able to stay here for a while? His parents are out of the country for a few months."
Mrs. Lee pokes her head out of the kitchen, black hair pulled back in a braid. She frowns at Minsoo for a moment, and then sees Dongho. Her expression softens.
"...as usual, this is very last minute, Minsoo. He's welcome to stay, though. Why don't you go show him the guest room, since it's next to your room?"
Minsoo grins and gives a well-hidden thumbs up to Dongho. "Sure thing, Mom! Thank you!" Then he's grabbing Dongho's hand and pulling him upstairs and down a hallway and then-
"My room's on the right, and yours is on the left. We're gonna be sharing a bathroom— sorry about that. The other ones are en-suites, and my brother hates when I go in his room— but you can take a shower or whatever before dinner if you want to!"
"Thanks, Minsoo," Dongho says quietly. "You... really didn't need to..."
"Aish, hyung. What kind of a friend would I be if I didn't let you stay with me?"
"Ah... well, thank you. I... I think I'm going to go shower, if that's ok..."
"Sure thing! I'll leave some extra pillows on the bed, and there's a set of navy towels in the bathroom you can use." Minsoo smiles and runs off in search of pillows.
Quietly, Dongho pushes open the door. It's nicer than he was expecting, all the colours muted and neutral aside from navy accents, and he can tell the bed's soft. Softer than he's used to at hostels, anyway.
For once, he doesn't feel out of place. It's weird.
Is that what a friend does?
———
"So your uncle's rich?"
"Soo-yah, Jeongmin-ssi is not my uncle. He's a family friend."
Minsoo frowns. "He sure looks like your uncle."
"...I'll take that as a compliment," Dongho sighs. "Come on, you said something about bubble tea?"
"Boba! Yes! And then we can watch the buskers to see if anyone's good enough for the company," Minsoo says excitedly.
Dongho just smiles, letting Minsoo drag him down the street. His hair flops in his eyes a bit— it always does, but it's just started annoying him now— and he blows it out of his face impatiently.
It doesn't bother him that it's just him and Minsoo at the company. They're friends. They don't really need anyone else in that sense, but when it comes to groupmates-
"Look at that kid! The one with the guitar!"
Dongho nearly rolls his eyes, not bothering to mention that they're supposed to be a group that dances, and looks to where Minsoo's pointing.
Sure enough, there's a scrawny middle-schooler there, a polished wooden guitar in his hands, and he's beaming as he strums a song on it. He's got good vocals, too.
"We need to tell him about the audition," Minsoo pleads, shaking Dongho's arm.
"...I'll admit, he's a good singer. Do you want to go tell him?"
Minsoo frowns. "We're supposed to be recruiting as a team, hyung. If I'm coming, you're coming too." And with that, Minsoo drags Dongho over to watch the guitarist.
They end up watching for a while, until the kid starts packing his guitar and microphone away, and then Minsoo's rushing to say hello and once again pulling Dongho along with him.
"Hello! You're a great singer!"
The kid looks up, shocked. A tiny plush chicken keychain dangles from his guitar case. "Oh! Thank you!"
Minsoo rummages through his pocket for a moment, finally pulling out an information card for High Class. "I'm Lee Minsoo, and I'm a trainee at High Class! We're having auditions in a couple of weeks. It'd be great if you tried out!"
The kid's eyes widen. He accepts the card. "My name's Kim Daehyun. Is... he also a trainee?"
"Who? Oh, yeah, that's Dongho. C'mon, introduce yourself."
Dongho shakes his head a bit, but smiles as Minsoo pushes him forward. "I'm Kang Dongho," he says, extending his hand. "It's nice to meet you."
Daehyun hesitates for a second, but he shakes Dongho's hand. "It's nice to meet you too, Dongho... ssi? hyung?"
"Hyung's fine," Dongho says, smiling. "It's what Minsoo calls me."
"Is he younger than me?"
"I'm in high school, so no, I think you're the youngest here," Minsoo replies quickly.
"So you're both my hyungs!" Daehyun beams at them, slinging his guitar case over his shoulder. "That's great! I don't have many friends older than me, they're mostly my age."
"Well, I'm sure we'll be able to be great friends if you try out," Minsoo says. "There... aren't many people coming, so..."
Daehyun perks up a bit, eyes wide and hopeful. "I'll be there! What's the date?"
Minsoo just grins, and pulls his phone out— Daehyun follows suit. They exchange numbers, and somehow Dongho ends up handing his number over, too, and then Daehyun's in a groupchat with them.
They're getting boba tea— all three of them, Dongho and Minsoo and Daehyun— when it first hits Dongho that Minsoo isn't giving up on Daehyun. They both know that the CEO's asked them to recommend trainees— apparently, they have "an eye for talent"— and the moment Minsoo mentions Daehyun's name, he'll get accepted to the company.
Dongho knows it's not the case. But it still feels like Minsoo's trying to replace him.
———
"A new trainee's arriving this afternoon, Ahn Jaewon. Oh- you recommended him, Dongho?"
"Yes, I did." Dongho gives a polite nod to their Manager— Manager Choi, who's been at the company since he and Minsoo were accepted and somehow hasn't gotten tired of them— and he sits back down.
"Well... that's all I have to tell you about. Again, Jaewon's going to be here sometime this afternoon, so be prepared to welcome him. That'll probably be before three or so, which is— oh. He could be here any minute. I'll leave you to your own business now."
Dongho gets up and starts going through the motions of getting the coffee machine to work. He can tell that Minsoo's glaring at him. He has a pretty good idea as to why.
Daehyun's working on homework now, sitting on the cushioned bench with his earbuds in. He's pretty much oblivious to what Minsoo and Dongho are doing.
Minsoo crosses his arms and stares. "...can we talk for a second?"
Dongho just shrugs, following Minsoo out of the break room.
"...so you felt like you needed to get your own trainee?"
"Aish, Minsoo-yah, you know that's not-"
"No, I know that's what it is. You've been jealous of Daehyun since I scouted him, so now you're trying to get back at me!"
"Quit yelling. You're going to get Manager Choi dragged into this."
"I don't care! You're acting like a child, and-"
"Oh, I'm acting like a child? You're the one getting upset about me scouting someone, how about you just-"
"Uhm.. e-excuse me?"
Dongho and Minsoo turn. A small kid with messy black hair stares back.
"Hello, Jaewon-ah. I'm sorry I haven't kept in touch since inviting you to that audition."
"Ah! No, no, it's-it's fine, hyung, really! I uh... I don't know where the practice room is..." Jaewon's shoulders seem to shrink a bit at the admission.
Dongho just nods. "That's fine. We're hanging out in the break room right now, but we'll start practice in an hour. Do you want coffee?"
"Coffee sounds nice..."
Minsoo watches as Jaewon— small, wearing a huge hoodie and clutching onto his backpack strap for dear life— follows after Dongho. He's not sure how to feel about Jaewon.
However it is, he knows one thing for sure: something is straining his friendship with Dongho.
———
It's a relief to get back to their dressing room after their debut performance.
Minsoo crashes onto the cushioned bench, groaning loudly. "That was exhausting."
Wordlessly, Dongho sits down next to him and rests Minsoo's head on his thigh. "Mhm. We've got an earlier performance slot tomorrow.
Minsoo groans again, seemingly melting into the bench. Dongho laughs tiredly, starting to work his fingers through the hairspray in Minsoo's hair.
"...are you two dating?" Daehyun says suddenly.
"What?" Minsoo sits up abruptly. "No?!"
"Oh. I just... thought..."
Dongho laughs again. "No, Daehyun-ah. Minsoo and I have been friends for..."
"Holy shit, I've known you for ten years."
Daehyun's eyes widen, and in the corner, Jaewon— Wyld? They're the same person, now. The scandal made sure of that— looks up from his phone with a similarly surprised expression.
"You were 15 when we first met. No wonder you were so short," Dongho says.
Minsoo's wacking his shoulder in an instant, and Daehyun laughs.
Dongho loves when it's like this, when they're all laughing and joking— Jaewon used to join in with them. Right before debut. Not anymore, though— and they all feel like they're friends. It's perfect like this.
———
Minsoo leans back in his computer chair— a huge red gaming chair, one that Dongho's never understood the need for— and sighs, sipping at his boba. "...y'know, I wish we could've just debuted as a duo. Or a trio."
Dongho, sitting on Minsoo's bed, looks up in alarm. "MAYHEM's a four-person group, though?"
"Oh come on, hyung. Wyld really isn't part of MAYHEM, he—"
"What the hell, Minsoo. You can't just say that because he's not here!"
"It's the truth, though," Minsoo says blankly. "We don't need a womanizing fuckboy in the group. He just drags the whole team down."
Dongho stares at Minsoo for a second. Then he stands up from the bed and turns to leave.
"You're leaving because I told you the truth about your favorite trainee?"
"I've told you to quit saying that," Dongho says, spinning around to face Minsoo. "I can't believe you're still mad about it."
"About what? The fact that you scouted a trainee who wasn't even at the skill level we needed to debut— we had to spend 6 extra years training because of him, Dongho— and it was all because you were jealous of me scouting Dae!"
"...just because we trained for 6 years after Jaewon joined doesn't mean it was just him who needed more time to train."
Minsoo stands up, fuming. "Are you trying to say I needed another 6 years?"
Dongho frowns, pinching his brow. "Why do you always take everything so personally, god." He turns to leave again.
"Fine. Just leave, rich kid. Go back to your fancy apartment and complain to daddy about your stupid groupmates..."
Dongho spins around, and he doesn't even realize his hand's raised until Minsoo scrambles back, eyes wide and terrified and absolutely furious.
"What the fuck? Were you going to slap me?"
"Soo, Minsoo, no, no I wasn't— my mom, she-"
"Get out. I don't want to see your stupid fucking face for the rest of the week."
Dongho stares, horrified, and Minsoo stares back, furious.
"I said get out."
Dongho can only manage to nod, hands shaking furiously, and he shoves them in his pockets after he's slipped his shoes on.
The hallway outside Minsoo's apartment is cold and empty and quiet.
They were supposed to go to a new store over the weekend. Some gaming store. It makes Minsoo happy, so Dongho had said yes.
Now Dongho's got nothing. More than likely, Minsoo's going to call Daehyun and they'll go to the store and an arcade, probably. Dongho sees no point in calling Jaewon. He's successfully cut himself off from the rest of them.
Dongho's hands won't stop shaking. He's glad his car has an autopilot feature.
———
MAYHEM may be a group, Dongho realizes, but they're not exactly friends. Not anymore.
It's painfully obvious in the dorm. Minsoo wanted to room with Daehyun, but Daehyun wanted to room with Jaewon, and Dongho just wanted to room with someone who wasn't Minsoo, but the maknaes come first, and so now he's stuck with Minsoo.
They were friends. Once.
Now they're just coworkers, really. Minsoo's friends with Daehyun, and Daehyun's trying to be friends with Jaewon— Dongho's not sure what his relationship is with either of the younger two. Daehyun's just like a little brother, but Jaewon... Dongho's really not sure about Jaewon.
"Oh, come on, that was easy! Stop being a dumbass and pick up the pace!"
Dongho just sighs, putting on his headphones. There's no point in asking Minsoo to quiet down. He figured that out within a week of moving in.
He misses Minsoo. It's stupid to say, especially when they share a room, but he misses Minsoo. He misses the way they'd joke around and learn girl group choreography and get boba tea together and—
they don't do that anymore. Can't do that anymore.
Because Minsoo hates him. Hates the fact that he doesn't hate Jaewon, hates that Dongho looked like he was about to slap him.
Dongho wishes they never fought.
He wishes he had his friend back.
Minsoo groans, smacking his desk. Behind him, Dongho doesn't even flinch.
What did he mean about his mom? Did she hit him?
His hand hesitates on his mouse for a moment. He wants to ask. But it's not the kind of thing he can just ask, he knows that.
Still, he wishes they were friends. Dongho's not so defensive over Jaewon anymore— Minsoo's not sure whether to be happy about that or not, though. Who is fighting for Jaewon now?— and maybe, if they'd just talk about something that isn't work for once, they could be friends again.
It's all Dongho seems to talk to him about now. Schedules or choreography or song demos or upcoming promotions.
He's tired of it.
Surely Dongho wants to talk about something else. Right?
After all, Minsoo knows he's not just a slave to the company. He's Dongho. He likes cats and loves to dance and sing— the company makes him rap. Surely, he doesn't like that— and he is (was) Minsoo's friend.
Minsoo's mouse hesitates on the screen for a moment. He knows it's late, and that his yelling keeps Dongho up. But... just one more game would be fine, wouldn't it?
He exits anyway.
———
The van's quiet on the drive home. Daehyun and Jaewon are asleep in the back row, and Dongho can see all the suitcases stacked in the trunk. Next to him, Minsoo stares out the window.
The jet lag hasn't hit yet for either of them.
Dongho, too, turns to stare out his window. The scenery passes by quickly on the highway. It's rather numbing to watch.
His phone buzzes in his pocket. Surprisingly, it's Minsoo texting him.
Minsoo
Minsoo
hi
since you're the only other one awake do you wanna get dinner?
we haven't really talked in a while
Dongho
Sure?
I don't see why not.
We don't have any food at the dorm, so we'll have to order either way.
Minsoo
ah
good point (_ _|||)
Dongho
You can pick where. I don't care.
Minsoo
alright
we'll have to sneak
i don't think manager choi wants us going out
Dongho smiles a bit at Minsoo's message. It feels like something other idols talk about— sneaking out of the trainee dorms to go out to eat, or hiding from the managers. MAYHEM never got that.
When they do get to the dorm, Daehyun and Jaewon are quick to drag their bags into the dorm and go to bed.
Minsoo and Dongho, on the other hand, drag their bags into their room and, precisely 25 minutes later, are making their way downtown to some burger place Minsoo found.
There's no line. A few of the booths have people dining in them, but apparently not enough for Minsoo to want to stay at the restaurant. Dongho doesn't complain though, and they get their food to go.
Maybe it is nicer to eat at a park.
The sun's still up a bit, and there are strands of lights hanging from tree to tree. The grass is soft, they can see the river— it's nice.
Minsoo takes a huge bite of his burger— Dongho worries for a second that he's going to choke— and swallows, eyes meeting Dongho's. "So... I think we need to talk."
"...about what?"
"The... you know," Minsoo explains, hands gesturing wildly. "What... what happened?"
Dongho frowns. "I'm going to guess you're talking about our... disagreement, for lack of a better word. I-"
"Fight works, you know"
"-...as I was saying, I think you're able to figure out why I reacted the way I did." Dongho unwraps his burger and takes a bite, trying not to make eye contact with Minsoo.
"...is that why you didn't want to go to America?"
Dongho shrugs. "Partly. Doesn't really matter now. That's in the past."
"Hyung..."
"...are we going to discuss the other part of this disagreement?"
"...'m sorry for saying Jaewon's not skilled."
Dongho sighs. "That's not it. I meant the whole thing about you thinking Jaewon's my favorite."
"Oh."
"Minsoo, I know that... me scouting Jaewon without you made you upset. I'll admit, I was somewhat in the wrong there. He had what MAYHEM needed, though."
Minsoo frowns, sipping his drink. "I guess he does... I just... I don't like that you're letting him off the hook for the scandals..."
"...I'm not "letting him off the hook," Minsoo," Dongho interjects. "You remember what he was like before debut, right? He hasn't changed."
"Well, he clearly has changed. You've seen what he's like-"
"What the media makes him out to be." Dongho taps a nervous rhythm on his knee. "I... never told you why we got a dorm, did I..."
Minsoo's head shoots up, eyes firey. "What did Jaewon do?"
"He didn't do anything. Someone broke into his apartment and took a photo of him sleeping. The police wouldn't believe him, so he had to come to me."
"What?!"
"...he told me the scandals were all misunderstandings. Apparently, CEO Park makes him apologize for them because it's "his fault" for getting in those situations..."
"That's...."
Dongho shrugs. "I get it if you don't want to believe what Jaewon told me, but it's what I believe. And even before he told me I was... suspicious about the whole "Wyld" situation."
"...I guess I understand that," Minsoo admits begrudgingly. "But why are you telling me? 's not like we can do anything about it."
"I guess not... we can at least be... nicer to Jaewon?"
"...it won't hurt anything."
Dongho nods a bit and steals one of Minsoo's fries.
It's stupid and silly and it's the kind of thing Dongho used to do when they were friends.
Minsoo just laughs. There's still a lot to fix, but maybe they're on the right track now.
"You know the rule, hyung, if you steal my fries, I get to steal yours!"
"...I could never forget the rule."
It's so, so small, but Minsoo feels oddly touched. It doesn't feel like a Dongho-thing to remember silly things like that, stupid joke rules made up during late night fast food outings.
But he remembered.
Minsoo can hardly complain when Dongho takes more fries from his basket. He's just happy to have his Dongho back.
———
Minsoo stretches out his back and groans, muscles stiff after sitting for so long. One of the downsides of being the first to get hair and makeup done.
Now all he can do is sit and play mobile games (he prefers to play on his PC) and wait for the others to finish up.
It's probably bad for his neck to hold his phone the way he does, but Minsoo doesn't really care too much. As long as he can dance well, it's fine.
Finally, there's the screech of a chair sliding across the floor, and Dongho walks over to the plush bench Minsoo's sitting on.
"Move over a bit, Soo-yah."
Minsoo pouts, but does what Dongho asked anyway.
Dongho sits with his legs up on the cushions, leaning against the armrest, and Minsoo's quick to sit between his legs and lay back against Dongho.
"Is that better? You've got terrible posture when you're playing on your phone," Dongho says quietly.
"Mhm. You're warm."
Dongho laughs a bit, hooking his chin over Minsoo's shoulder. "...how does this game work again?"
Minsoo pauses the round and turns to glare at Dongho. "Didn't I explain this to you yesterday?"
"I like hearing you talk about games. You get all excited, it's cute." Dongho smiles a bit, then turns his eyes back to the phone in Minsoo's hands. "How does that game work?"
"...aish... well, it's a rhythm game."
"Mhm."
"And you have to tap for every note— those slidey-things are for longer notes."
"And you have to tap notes with your other hand?"
"Sometimes, yeah."
Minsoo's silently glad no behind-the-scenes video is being filmed. It's already hard enough to ignore Daehyun glancing at them.
———
The front door slams shut.
Dongho and Minsoo both look up, expecting only Daehyun to walk down the hallway. It's barely 10— much too early for Jaewon to be coming home.
But he's got Jaewon with him— a very distraught Jaewon sobbing into his shoulder.
Dongho stands up, concerned. "Daehyun-ah? What's going on?"
Daehyun frowns, one hand combing soothingly through Jaewon's hair. "They're fake. Hyung, the scandals are fake."
Minsoo also frowns a bit.
Dongho just nods. "...alright then. Is... Jaewon ok?"
Daehyun frowns more. "...I'll explain later. Someone's probably posted it on Dispatch already, if you really want to know."
Minsoo opens his mouth to say something, but then the bathroom door slams shut. He shuts his mouth.
"...I don't like it, but maybe we should look at Dispatch," Dongho says quietly.
"...Dongho... if this was bad enough to make Jaewon cry..."
Minsoo doesn't need to finish his sentence. Dongho's already opened his phone, staring at the hundreds of notifications from fans.
"Well... it's not exactly clear what happened... but no matter what it's... it's bad."
Dongho sinks back into his chair, eyes stuck staring at his phone. Minsoo leans over, trying to see what it is that's that bad, and-
oh.
MAYHEM's Wyld Drugged at Paradise Nightclub? EXCLUSIVE...
Wyld's Scandals FAKED? Wyld Reveals All in a Drunk Confession...
MAYHEM's Wyld Assaulted at Paradise Nightclub: Photos and More...
MAYHEM's Daehyun Drugged Wyld, Caught on Video?
Wyld and Daehyun FIGHT at Paradise Nightclub?
Are Wyld's Scandals Real? Daehyun Shares the Truth Outside Paradise...
"We need to check on Jaewon," Minsoo insists. "We can't just leave this to Dae-"
"...you stay here. I'll see if he wants help."
Dongho stands again and goes to knock on the bathroom door. It takes a couple of minutes, but Daehyun pokes his head out.
"...you're gonna ask if I need help, aren't you."
"I was."
Daehyun nods, a tight smile on his face. "Can you grab some clothes for Jaewon? Get one of my hoodies... that'd be good..."
"Of course. Is... he ok?"
"...he just needs to sleep, I think."
Dongho just nods. Minsoo's still sitting at the table.
It's a small relief to hear Jaewon quietly mumbling something when he hands the clothing to Daehyun— Dongho can't quite tell what he's talking about, but he's just happy to hear that Jaewon isn't crying anymore.
The bathroom door closes again. The dorm's silent again.
Minsoo's chair scrapes across the floor as he stands up, starting to rummage through the kitchen for something.
"...are you looking for something?"
He shrugs, still digging through the cabinets. "Figured Jaewon might want something to eat, so..."
"Good, good... Dae's just trying to get him to sleep for now, but I'm sure he'll appreciate it."
"We've got soup? Is that good?"
Dongho tries to smile. "Yeah, that's good..."
Minsoo nods stiffly and starts to go through the motions of warming up the food. Dongho, on the other hand, continues to scroll through Twitter, still looking for what the truth of the situation might be.
It's hard, though. Apparently, having Wyld himself get assaulted or drugged or being the victim of the press is big news, and seemingly everyone has something to say about it.
A lot of people are supporting Jaewon. Dongho hates that that's surprising. He sighs, setting his phone down.
Daehyun's talking to Jaewon about something, his voice muffled by the bathroom door. But then the door opens and Daehyun's leading Jaewon over to their room, toweling his hair dry.
"C'mon, hyung, you should get to bed, it's late."
Jaewon flaps his sweater paws a bit and yawns. "M'kay... you're gonna stay, right?"
"Of course."
Minsoo looks up from the stove, two bowls of soup on the counter next to him. Dongho pats his shoulder. "...I'll bring the food to them, ok?"
"...ok. I'll just... I'll go get ready for bed..."
Minsoo trudges off to his and Dongho's room, and Dongho knows he'll probably start gaming soon.
When he does push open the door to Jaewon and Daehyun's room, he finds the maknaes curled up in Daehyun's bunk. Jaewon looks up sleepily, and smiles when he sees Dongho.
"Minsoo thought you might be hungry..."
Jaewon nods, curling closer to Daehyun, and Daehyun just smiles while taking the bowls from Dongho. "Thank you, hyung."
"No problem. Sleep well, ok?"
Daehyun gives a thumbs up and Jaewon just hums a bit. Dongho's quick to leave their room.
When he does close their bedroom door, he stands in the silence of the hallway.
It's not normally silent like this.
Minsoo's normally gaming.
Why isn't he?
Their door's closed. Is he asleep?
Dongho hesitates, but heads to turn the lights off.
Everyone's fine. Minsoo's fine. Daehyun's fine. Jaewon'll be fine in the morning.
It's fine.
He sighs, twisting the handle to his and Minsoo's room.
No, it's really not fine.
Minsoo's curled up on the floor and he's pulling at his hair and very clearly is not okay.
Dongho pushes the door shut again, hurrying to kneel next to Minsoo. "Soo? Soo, look at me, ok?"
Minsoo shakes his head, curling in on himself more. He's breathing too fast, fingers digging into his scalp.
"Hey, hey, breathe. I've got you. We're going to be fine, Minsoo."
"'s my fault," Minsoo gasps. "Should have noticed. I... I should have known."
Dongho rubs his back carefully. "It's not your fault. I promise."
"'m the leader. I-I'm supposed to look out for the others. I didn't. I didn't look out and look where we are now- Park's gonna be pissed, hyung, he's gonna be so mad and it's all my fault, and-"
"'s going to be okay, Minsoo. We're going to be fine." Dongho does his best to scoop Minsoo into his lap, and the leader's quick to bury his head in Dongho's shoulder. Carefully, Dongho holds Minsoo's hands and traces circles across the soft skin. "You can hear me breathing, yeah? Just match that for now, ok? That's all you need to do."
Minsoo nods shakily, but tries regardless. Dongho works on gently trying to pull Minsoo's hands out of his hair. His nails are longer than usual, Dongho realizes, staring at the flecks of red stuck under Minsoo's fingernails.
Dongho doesn't think about why, but he presses a kiss to the crown of Minsoo's head, still gently tracing patterns onto his hands.
Minsoo takes a deep, shuddering breath, and-
he's crying.
"it's ok, Soo. I'm here. Don't worry.
Dongho pretends not to notice the tears rolling down his own face.
———
The sun's just rising when Dongho walks into the kitchen. Aside from Jeongmin, he's the first one awake.
"Good morning, young master. Your manager called already, the company wants to speak with you and the others later today."
Dongho, getting a cup of coffee, nods. "I'll let the others know. Once they're awake, of course."
Boba nuzzles against his leg, purring. Dongho smiles and pats his head. It's nice having Jeongmin and Boba back. Even if the reason for their return is the semi-collapse of High Class.
Jaewon's happy, though. He's happy and they're all in a dorm— well, Jeongmin's apartment, but he's happy to have them— and for once there aren't as many secrets between them.
In the still silence of the apartment, Dongho hears a door— it must be Daehyun and Jaewon's door, his and Minsoo's is already open— and Daehyun comes walking down the hallway, yawning, with Jaewon following behind him and clinging to his back.
"G'morning, hyung," Daehyun yawns. "...Minsoo's still sleeping?"
Dongho nods, still petting Boba. "Yeah, he stayed up late gaming. Knew we were probably going to have meetings, but he still stayed up..."
"Mhm... that's Minsoo..." Jaewon blinks sleepily, cuddling Daehyun, but then frowns. "We have meetings?"
"Yeah... probably meeting XR's CEO and talking about anything he wants to change with the group."
Daehyun cheers quietly, and Jaewon just hums.
Boba pads over to nuzzle against Jaewon's leg, and Dongho watches, smiling. Then he sighs. "...I'm going to go wake up Minsoo."
"Good luck," Jaewon calls.
"..you'll need it," Daehyun continues.
Dongho gives a thumbs-up as he walks back to his room, chuckling to himself.
The room's dim, light filtering in through the curtains, and Dongho smiles at the sight of Minsoo still curled up in the blankets. Carefully, he sits on the edge of the bed and combs his hand through Minsoo's hair.
"C'mon, Soo, it's time to wake up."
Minsoo groans, sticking his face deeper in the pile of pillows. "...no."
"Soo... c'mon, Boba's already bugging people for headpats."
"...warm."
"...fair enough." Dongho makes no move to leave, instead sliding closer to Minsoo and continuing to play with his hair.
For a while, it's quiet and calm and honestly, Dongho wishes they could stay like that for longer.
But then Minsoo peeks his head up, eyes glaring at Dongho. "What's your motive here, Dongie?"
"...I'll stop playing with your hair, if that's what you want."
"...no. Please continue."
Dongho laughs, but continues playing with Minsoo's hair. "You need to get up eventually, Soo."
"...fine. I'm stealing one of your hoodies, then."
"You don't have to ask."
Minsoo grins, rolls out of bed, and runs over to Dongho's side of the closet to grab a hoodie.
Dongho just laughs a bit. "I'll be in the kitchen."
"And I'll be stealing all your clothing."
———
The energy on stage is electric. The crowd's cheering, lights are flashing— it's everything Dongho and Minsoo have ever wanted.
Daehyun's draped over Jaewon's shoulder on their end of the stage, and their smiles are contagious.
Dongho's happy to see that they're happy.
On Dongho and Minsoo's side of the stage, it's just as celebratory.
Fans are waving their lightsticks and recording.
Minsoo doesn't say anything, but he squeezes Dongho's hand. He can feel the smooth metal of Dongho's ring— and he's got a matching one on his hand— and Dongho squeezes his hand in return.
"C'mon, final bows," Dongho mutters, just out of range of the mics.
Minsoo grins, following Dongho happily to center stage. Jaewon reaches out to grab his hand, and together they take their last bow of the night.
Cheering's still ringing in their ears as the lights fall and the lift in the stage lowers them down.
Daehyun pulls Jaewon closer and, despite Minsoo's protests of "no PDA backstage," kisses him on the cheek.
Minsoo fake-gags— much to Daehyun's amusement— and turns to Dongho. "Are you gonna kiss me or what?"
Dongho just laughs, wrapping his arms around Minsoo. "I love you too, Soo."
"I'd hope you love me, we're literally engaged..."
"Shut up." Dongho kisses Minsoo on the lips and Minsoo does, in fact, shut up.