Chapter Text
As soon as they were out of their fan's sight, they rushed backstage in a blur of flashing staff badges and echoing footsteps. Managers called out instructions over the noise, stylists hurried forward with towels and makeup kits, and the air felt thick with sweat, hairspray, and leftover adrenaline. They changed their clothes quickly, wiped the sweat off their body and face, and fixed their hair to look presentable again before the next cue.
Their group, Eclipse, had just turned one year old today, and as a thanks for the overwhelming support the fans had given them, they made this concert happen. It had only been a year since their debut, yet they had already sold millions of albums. The streams on their songs were unimaginably high for a rookie group, and their social engagement was strong enough to make everything feel surreal. Aside from their hard work, it was the fans who made it possible.
They made their dreams come true.
But dreams didn't always look ethereal behind the curtain.
"You were late on the second chorus"
Jungwon didn't even have to look to know who it was.
"I wasn't late. You moved too early" Sunoo fired back, eyes so sharp, it could cut.
"It's on the beat" Sunghoon replied, trying to sound calm, but the firmness in his voice was impossible to ignore.
"Then maybe your count is off."
It went on and it probably would keep going until they were called back on stage. But the staff moved around them like it was background noise. A stylist squeezed between them to fix Sunghoon's collar. A manager shouted for a five-minute warning. No one flinched. The argument wasn't particularly loud....but it was sharp, precise, familiar. A choreography mistake so small the audience would never notice, yet big enough for the two of them to dissect like it was life or death.
At this point, their arguments had become part of Eclipse's backstage soundtrack...right next to the buzz of hair dryers and the rustling of costume racks.
The members barely looked up.
"Second chorus again?" Jake muttered while sipping water.
"Again" Ni-ki replied, unfazed.
It wasn't like they hadn't tried to fix it. They had stepped in months ago, subtle at first. Seating arrangements carefully planned so Sunoo and Sunghoon ended up next to each other during team meeting. Vlog pairings that conveniently pushed them into the same frame. Even a so-called "compulsory vacation trip" they made them believe the company requested when in reality, the members had chipped in for it themselves.
There was one memorable attempt where they convinced their manager to quietly tell the pair to "date the tension out" . It lasted twelve minutes before they started debating over what to order in front of the waiter. They ended up getting kicked out of the restaurant. And if anyone ever wondered how they knew that, let's just say they accidentally reserved a table at the exact same place.
¯_(ツ)_/¯
Thank goodness they were fully covered that time.
After that, they pretty much just stopped expecting for miracles. Because despite the sharp words and bruised egos, there was an unspoken rule between the two of them. They never hit harder than the other could handle.
It was messy, petty, and sometimes even cruel. But it was balanced. And as long as it stayed balanced, everyone remained unbothered.
Jungwon watched it all...the rushing, the laughter, the petty bickering that never truly escalated. The chaos, the familiarity, the strange balance of it.
Chaotic. Loud. Imperfect.
"Alright, everyone...we're on standby for the next performance. Two minutes and I want everyone in position."
Yep, Jungwon loved all of it.
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After they successfully wrapped up the concert and attended the small celebration thrown for the day well spent, they headed straight to their van. As memorable as the day had been, it had drained every last drop of energy from them. All they wanted now was the quiet comfort of their own rooms. So when Sunoo had reached the van, it was not really surprising that most of the members had already claimed their seats, half-asleep before the doors even closed.
With left two seats, right next to each other.
"Tsk, you've got to be kidding me" the older one muttered.
"And me... come on, guys. Aren't we all tired right now?" Sunoo shot back, dramatically dropping into the seat anyway. For the first time that night, he actually agreed with Sunghoon, for the sake of his own sanity, of course.
" You know this person can't keep his mouth shut whenever he's near me. All he does is judge me. Sitting beside him is like driving with my grandma "
"Can't blame her" Sunghoon replied smoothly.
"There's a lot to say about you."
A loud gasp escaped from Sunoo. "Wow... that's a big talk coming from you, hypocrite. Let me remind you that just last week our group has been the talk of the town because you can't plan a date for shit."
"Real mature, Sunoo-ya" Sunghoon said, leaning back in his seat. "Keep bringing up my dating life and I'll assume you're actually jealous."
"And why would I be?"
"Because no one's pursuing you. I mean...with that attitude of yours, I'd be surprised if anyone tried "
''With the attitude of mine?" Sunoo scoffed, actually offended. "Have you met you? Your attitude stinks like a dead rat soaked in spoiled milk."
A beat of silence followed.
From the back, Ni-ki slowly lowered his headphones. "Why would you describe it like that?"
Jake physically grimaced, "that was..unnecessarily detailed"
"Hyung, I was about to sleep" Jungwon groaned, "now I can smell it"
Sunghoon blinked once, then turned to Sunoo, eyes narrowing slightly, a faint smirk tugging at his lips.
"You're funny, Sunoo-ya... I thought I was the one who couldn't keep my mouth shut around you. But here you are. And that description? really? I think you're just talking about yourself."
He tilted his head slightly. "Though you might want to make it worst.. Maybe say... your attitude smells like a septic tank and a sewer had a toxic love child. That would suit you better.”
A few members shook their heads, exaggerated grimaces plastered across their faces , not because Sunoo and Sunghoon were still arguing, but because the imagery was deeply offensive to their senses.
In the end, they still ended up sitting quietly beside each other, mostly because the van was already moving and no one was giving up their seat. There was also an unspoken rule when it came to their arguments and that is all members must be awake, unless they wanted a repeat of the Jay incident.
It hadn't been dramatic, Jay didn't give a speech about teamwork or unity stuff like that. He simply handed them each a butter knife and said flatly "If you two don't want to sleep, then fight with this instead. Some of us actually do , I want it! So either stab each other quietly or shut up! "
They shut up, in an instant.
So no arguing when the members were tired...
..........ಠ◡ಠ
Unless it was something serious, Sunoo had made that rule very clear in his mind but damn, did he want to pick on the older one right now. Especially after Sunghoon had so casually angled his phone earlier , just enough for Sunoo to catch a glimpse of the screen.
| I love you!💗💗
I love you more |
He guessed that was the older's subtle way of saying, 'I'm in a good relationship and you dont' . As if that proved anything.
All Sunoo did was roll his eyes.
Like that would somehow erase last week’s leaked argument between Sunghoon and his girlfriend.
Even though they were in a group, Park Sunghoon had chosen to make his relationship public. A lot of fans were disappointed by the news ( sunoo didn't quite understand cause personally, he would've preferred people be shocked by a miracle first ).
Anyways, what the guy didn't make it public is his on and off cycle with his girlfriend, this is not just because Sunoo hates the older, and even if he didn't , he can still say that what Sunghoon have with the woman is definitely toxic.
They are cute if you see them while you are scrolling in your timeline, classic highschool sweetheart able to survive the chaotic world of showbiz, soft stares, matching caption, anniversary posts.
But behind the scenes?
Sunoo had seen enough... And he couldn't believe he was thinking this, but sometimes, just a little bit, when he watched Sunghoon stare at his phone with that unreadable expression after another fight , he felt pity. Especially when their fight is just so nonsensical, not that Sunoo actually cares, but yep, it was...bullshit.
The most recent one , last week's ... had been the worst. The one where they were spotted arguing outside and someone recorded it. Thankfully, their voices weren't audible. If they had been, Sunoo was sure they wouldn't be making public appearances until next year.
And the reason? She was jealous, was about Sunghoon and Jake. Sunoo almost scoffed again, of all things to fight about... it was that.
Pure. Absolute. Bullshit.
"Why are you rolling your eyes over there?" Sunghoon's irritated whisper immediately brought his thoughts to a halt and made him realize he had been unconsciously rolling his eyes.
Well, can you blame him?
"your existence, that's why " he whispered back and immediately pulled out his wired earphones, wanting to signal that he was not in the mood to talk and would prefer to pretend they were not in each other's space right now.
Now that Sunoo thinks about it, it's probably a good thing they aren't friends. If they were, Sunghoon would most likely be single by now.