It had been a little over 2 years since their debut and they were finally getting a little recognition after the release of their new mini album, The Most Beautiful Moment In Life, Part 1. They were enjoying themselves together after moving to a better dorm and they had the time of their lives on stage with their fans. It finally feels like they made it after all the backlash they received after their debut. Critics poked at their lack of singing abilities but their words never brought them down. They took those harsh comments as ways to better themselves and they have come a long way ever since their debut.

But what hurt the most weren’t the hate from critics. It was the hate from their own fans.

The tall male uploaded the new episode of his eating broadcast to their blog and immediately, comments started flooding the video. A sense of happiness washed over him at the increasing number of views and comments but once he actually scrolled through the comments, it all came crashing down.

“Oh, it’s just Jin. Where are the other members?”

“I hate his lame jokes”

“All he does is eat. Does he ever work?”

“Seokjin, please stop this series. It’s boring”

He didn’t want to read anymore but his fingers did the scrolling automatically, his face becoming darker with each comment. There were a few comments that were positive and they definitely brought his spirit back up but when his eyes stopped at a certain comment made 25 seconds ago, his heart dropped.

“Kim Seokjin, please leave BTS”

He sighed and shut his laptop, a feeling of dread creeping up behind the male. He could take the hate from the public but the fact that fans of his own group were asking him to leave and telling him that he doesn’t deserve the spotlight as much as the other members do, it hurt. With a sigh, he got up and made his way out the apartment door.

* * *

“I think I’ll stop the broadcasts,” he said solemnly, his eyes trained on the ground as his fingers lined the rim of his glass. Silence ensued and he couldn’t help but risk a glance up at his friend. The eyes that met his were dark and unreadable and he looked away, afraid to see the utter disappointment hidden behind the blank facade.

“I can’t persuade you to do something you don’t want to,” his friend got up and gave him a firm pat on his shoulder. “Do what you love and don’t mind what they say,” with that, Namjoon left the room, leaving the male to his thoughts.

Do what you love.

He loved singing, he loved dancing. He wasn’t all that good at them but one would be lying if they said that he didn’t improve over the past few years. He worked hard in making himself better too, spending hours in the practice room each and every day. He came home feeling utterly exhausted but that didn’t stop him from waking up early the next day to once again practise and practise.

Don’t mind what they say.

They called him lame. His jokes were funny to him, who cares if others never laughed along? They say that he’s all looks and no talent. He had the looks, no doubt but he never used it to get out of practices or to slack off. He worked as hard as the others but he received so much more hate. Why was that?

A sound of frustration left his lips and it made him wince. No, he was not going to be weak and let all the comments make him fall into a whirl of failure. He got up and made his way to the practice room where his friends were waiting for him.

They looked up at him once he entered the room, conversations dying down slowly. Each of them shot him a smile as genuine as smiles can get and J-hope got up from his place on the floor, tugging the male to sit beside him.

“We’ll start practice again in 5,” Namjoon hollered and he was answered with a chorus of okays.

Taehyung who was seated beside him started going off with a dumb story as he usually does, eliciting laughs from his friends and Jin couldn’t help but smile at how warm these boys made him feel. He wasn’t going to let them down. If he was going to pull through all the hate, it would be for them, for him. For BTS.

That day, practice was forgotten and the 5 minutes of free time stretched into hours of idle talk, reminiscing over memories from their trainee days with each other. Days like these were not many but were indeed necessary. It kept them sane and proved that they were human, they have their limits.

That day was the day Kim Seokjin vowed to be strong and be himself for himself and his friends who have come to be his family.