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It was hard trying to find time for Doyoung to spend with Taeil, his favourite hyung, in between their heavily-filled schedules and the complicated concept of the group he is in. Taeil had only promoted in one song, Without You, and it wasn’t a song that they would usually promote with on music broadcast and while Doyoung had himself promoted in both song and mostly in the unit that did the actual title song for music broadcast, it was hard trying to juggle between promotions and finding time to spend with the older male.
So when NCT U had their promotion wrapped up, Doyoung is certainly very glad for the free time they can finally have. It wasn’t that he had disliked the heavy schedules – the waking up at 5am to get their make-up done for the day’s schedule, or the never-ending trips between the broadcasting station and radio station and to their dorm or even the sleepless nights when they have to practice their routine for a special stage or the sorts. Doyoung wouldn’t complain, given that debuting had always been his dreams and now that he has finally achieved what he had dreamt of all these while, there is no way he would want for anything else. But this free time would only mean that he gets to spend more time relaxing and being with the rest as well as with Taeil, whom he wants to often spend most of his time with. And after all, Doyoung is only a human. And there’s only that much he can take as someone with the ability to feel exhausted after a long day.
His management, unfortunately, had other plans. It’s not all fun and games when they’ve been given a talk about the new unit called NCT127 and how the company’s respondent had told them to work hard for the next few weeks for they might have a chance to debut under that unit. Without words, he and many others, his brothers of different blood and parental figure, all go through the very same routine of long hour practices. It’s tiring but for some others, especially the ones much like Johnny, Hansol, Yuta and even the rest who have yet to taste the feeling of a debuted stage, strived as hard than ever for the opportunity. Besides, regardless of who gets to debut later or not, they still have one another by the end of the day and that they all got each other’s back.
“Are you tired?” a voice caught Doyoung off by surprise albeit how soft and how tired the other person’s voice had sounded, much like the owner’s current condition when Doyoung draws his attention to the older male before him.
“Taeil hyung”, Doyoung called the owner of the voice with a tired smile as he had wiped the beads of sweat that clung to his forehead after the hard routine practice from before with the rest of the other members. “I’m alright. Are you tired?”
Taeil shook his head with a smile still plastered before he offered the water bottle in hand to the orange-haired male. Doyoung took the bottle, taking huge gulps from it before returning it back to its owner. “Practice is as usual. It’s nothing compared to before though”, Taeil remarked with a soft chuckle.
“We had it worst”, Doyoung chuckled darkly, almost laced with sarcasm but none directed to the older male.
“Hang in there. If we’re lucky, we’ll be on stage together again”, Taeil encouraged the younger male with a pat to his back before they returned back to their practices as their dance instructor had called them to go through the whole routine again. The dance practice ended hours later, somewhere around 3am, as the two male had their limbs tangled to one another and had passed out from exhaustion the moment they had reached their dorms and while they waited for their turn to shower.
-
Doyoung had his head turned as if like a rabbit had been caught on headlights to the direction of the company’s respondent when the elder had called out for a few members among the rest of them. Taeil included. The orange-haired male is surprised, terrified even, for whatever reason the few seven members had been called for. It got Doyoung curling his toes and fingers in nervousness as if he had been the one who was called. There were mumbles and exchange of thoughts among the rest of the other members as well but none of which lasted long enough for them to be curious when the members who had been called came back.
Taeyong was the first to speak, stating how the members that had been called out were going to debut in the NCT127 unit. There were cheers that followed after along with strings of congratulations from one member to another. Doyoung does not missed the hinted looks of regret and sorry on Taeyong’s face when the other member which had yet gotten their debut had congratulated him. The other members and trainees tell him it’s okay, that it was alright that he had gotten the chance to debut twice and had tried to move on to the topic of how Yuta, Donghyuck and Sicheng had finally gotten the ‘golden ticket’ of debuting. Donghyuck, reading the situation, had tried to make the situation less tensed and awkward by remarking that he had gotten himself a stage name now – Haechan. The rest then joined in, making remarks about how it had sounded like a cartoon character’s name and what their concept would be. Hansol had jinxed them saying that their concept would turned out to be something involving fire and them having bad hairstyles or some sort. While all that is happening, Doyoung’s eyes never left Taeil and how the other male did the same. Taeil is going to debut without Doyoung, whether he had liked it or not, the other male had to carry the role as one of the main vocalist this time round.
Doyoung pulled Taeil aside while the others were still buzzing with their congratulations and teasing conversation. Doyoung spoke out first, “Congratulations, hyung”. Doyoung tried to sound as sincere as possible. No, he wasn’t jealous of the other mal, because he thinks the older male had deserved it even more than the orange-haired vocalist does. He knows the other male had practiced as hard as he did, if not harder, with the long vocal lessons the other male puts extra effort for. Doyoung is simply sad that his hyung is going to spend lesser time with him from now on and really, Doyoung tries not to be selfish.
“I wished we could debut together again” Taeil reassured Doyoung, knowing how the other male had felt as the older male reached out to have his fingers intertwined with Doyoung’s.
“I wished so too, hyung”, Doyoung mumbled in reply, letting his sadness get the best out of him before Taeil had pulled him in an embrace.
“Just because I’m promoting later, it doesn’t mean we can’t spend time together”, Taeil reassured the younger vocalist again as he rubbed soothingly against Doyoung’s back.
“Promise me?” Doyoung pulled away and held his pinkie finger out.
“Promise”, Taeil smiled at the other male as he links their pinkies together.
-
The last night Doyoung gets to spend with Taeil before the older male moves out to a temporary dorm is hard and sad for the orange-haired vocalist. There will be no more sneaking into Taeil’s shared room and going under Taeil’s covers and joining the older male in bed. There will be no one he could tangle awkward limbs with and no one to snuggle up to for warmth after tonight. It’s even harder for Doyoung because he had grew so accustomed to his nightly routine that once Taeil leaves after tonight, he would have to grow into an odd routine of not finding himself awake to seeing Taeil’s face in the morning. Even worst, there will be no more of one of those midnight rants when Doyoung has too much to say and no one to hear him out but the older male. And it will be that way for weeks, months even until NCT127 has their promotion wrapped up.
It’s selfish, Doyoung thinks, as he wrapped his arms around Taeil’s petite waist, drawing the male closer than the usual. Doyoung shifted all his attention to the older male, taking in every outline and feature of Taeil as the older male laughed. Doyoung’s frown and arched brows followed after the older male’s laughter.
“It’s not like I’ll be gone forever, Doyoung-ah”, Taeil smiled, carefully brushing Doyoung’s bangs away from his eyes.
“But anything more than a week is long. Who knows how many months you’ll be gone”, Doyoung frowned even more as he remarked with upset laced in his tone as he inwardly takes back his prior joy of how NCT U’s promotion had ended.
“You’re being childish”, Taeil remarked, more of teasing the other male than reprimanding and it had earned him a pout from Doyoung.
“Yeah, I am childish. I am selfish too. But it’s because I won’t be seeing you anymore”, Doyoung stated, curling a fist as he tugs the back of Taeil’s shirt under the covers they share.
“And I am selfish too. I don’t really want to leave you behind. But you know I can’t bring you along or anything”, Taeil spoke, sounding sincerely sad as the older male moved his arms to settle them around Doyoung’s waist.
Doyoung frowned because he knows what that not everything could falter in the way they want things to go. He frowned even more than before if that was possible after understanding so before he moved his hand to push the corner of Taeil’s lips into a smile.
“Just promise me something”, the younger male spoke out, gazing at Taeil with a proper eye-contact.
“What is it?” Taeil asked and waits for the latter to respond.
“Promise me that you would call. And that you won’t forget me… while I die in desolation at home”, Doyoung mumbled.
“You’re so dramatic. But I promised.” Taeil chuckled, leaning to press a light peck to Doyoung’s forehead.
“You promised. Remember to call or I’ll find ways to see you in person.” Doyoung playfully warned the older male.
“Promise”, Taeil started trailing his fingers against Doyoung’s back.
“Sing me to sleep for the last time? I always like hearing your voice”, Doyoung mumbled between yawns as sleepiness starts to seep for the younger male.
Taeil hummed softly in response and immediately began to sing softly to the tune of Justin Bieber’s Propose, luring the other male to sleep. After a while when the younger male is fast asleep, Taeil pulled the cover closer to the both of them, making sure it’s doing its job by keeping both the male warm for the rest of the night before the older male falls asleep too, letting the night pass. The next morning, Doyoung’s usual routine falls out as he wakes up to an empty, unmade bed and a note from Taeil.
“Sorry I couldn’t say goodbye. I didn’t want to wake you up. See you in a few months. Don’t miss me too much. – Taeil”