Moments like this

(09.06.2017)

Jonghyun slowly opened his eyes. It took him some time to adjust since total darkness was filling the room. Then, he tried to locate where these strange noises where coming from. He had been hearing them for quite a while now. It didn't take him long to realise that these weird noises were, in fact, coming from Minki, his roommate.

"Minki?" He tried to reach out for his sleeping friend without getting a response in return.

"Hey, Minki?" He tried once again but it didn't seem like Minki would wake up anytime soon from the nightmare he was probably having right now.

Jonghyun felt around for his phone and once he managed to find it, he some light. Then, he went to Minki's bedside with tiny steps, careful not to wake him up.

"Minki." Jonghyun had bent over now and whispered his friend's name close to his ear, hoping it would calm the younger down. But unfortunately, he didn't have any luck.

The leader rubbed over his eyes with his free hand and sighed. He was tired but he couldn't leave Minki like that. The maknae seemed to be dreaming about something really bad after all. And it hurt Jonghyun seeing this boy so vulnerable in front of him.

After putting down his phone (but leaving the light on), Jonghyun started lightly shaking Minki's shoulders with both of his hands. Suddenly, Minki's eyes fluttered open and he jolted forward. Jonghyun let out a suprised "woah" and stared at an equally startled Minki.

Jonghyun was the first one to get back to his senses. He asked Minki if he was alright now, concern lingering in his voice. It took him by suprise though when suddenly some tears escaped Minki's eyes. Neither was Minki expecting those tears as he let out a "huh?" and quickly wiped over his eyes.

Without saying anything further, Jonghyun sat down beside Minki and put his arms around the younger boy's body. Minki let his head fall onto Jonghyun's shoulder and tried to calm down.

"Did you have a bad dream?" Jonghyun asked while rubbing Minki's back with one hand.

"Yeah. It was really weird."

"Wanna tell me about it?"

Minki smiled. Jonghyun was always so caring. Then, he started talking about his dream while Jonghyun listened with complete attention. With each sentence Jonghyun's eyes grew bigger. He couldn't believe what worries this boy was having without him knowing.

Minki had dreamed that Jonghyun, Minhyun, Dongho and him had entered a survival show. He had no idea where Aron was in this though. The reason for entering this show was that Nu'est had failed as a group and this was supposedly their last chance. And Minki had felt awful throughout the whole dream. He and his fellow groupmembers, who usually got along very well, barely talked while filming this show. He had felt so alone and scared. Especially since all the Nu'est members were gaining popularity with each passing day except for him. Minki had felt like he was lacking too much even though he was trying his best. And now, he was scared that such a situation might occur in the future as well, this time for real.

Jonghyun didn't know what to say. Not much time had passed since their debut but he always worried about Nu'est's popularity and success as well. This was his job as a leader after all. He had to face every consequence and obstacle. But he didn't want to make his friends feel uneasy so he always kept such thoughts to himself. Little did he know that their youngest member, who usually was the most cheerful amongst them, had been hiding his true feelings. It made him feel terrible.

The maknae must have felt Jonghyun's mood shift because he lifted his head from his shoulder and stared at Jonghyun's face, observing his features. Their faces were so close that their noses were almost touching and Minki could feel Jonghyun's steady breath on his face. A fuzzy feeling errupted in his stomach but he tried to ignore it. With shaky hands he cupped Jonghyun's face.

"I'm sorry for making you feel uncomfortable."

Jonghyun shook his head.

"Don't be. I'm glad you told me."

He took Minki's hands from his face and hold them firmly on his lap. Then, he gave Minki a smile. And Minki blushed. He actually blushed so he quickly took the blankets and hid himself under them. Jonghyun chuckled, turned off the light of his phone and lay next to Minki's body. The younger cuddled close to him, enjoying the leader's warmth.

-

Minki couldn't hold back a light chuckle. This memory was still so vivid as if it had happened only yesterday, when in fact this incident had occured four years ago. And it was unbelievable that he had actually foreshadowed the future with that dream. He sighed. Did Jonghyun remember that? Did he even think of Minki? The maknae tossed around in his bed in one of the Produce 101 dorms which he shared with other trainees.

They would film the third elimination in just a few days. And Minki knew... He knew that there was a big possibility for his elimination. He awaited it. But he was happy that the other members would make it. He wanted all the members together but if this was not possible he was actually glad that he was the member who wouldn't make it instead another.

It would be a lie though if he said he wasn't sad. Because he was, he was truly sad. His heart hurt a lot. Not only because of the elimination but also because things changed. Minki missed how close he used to be with the Nu'est members. He still was, obviously, but everyone was so busy with training that they barely talked. Jonghyun would always send encouraging smiles once he spotted Minki and Minki would wave back in return. Such small gestures were what made him keep going.

Minki actually knew that Jonghyun thought about him, probably more than he should. It was Jonghyun after all, the most caring leader. And that was the reason why Minki didn't want to cry anymore. He didn't want to upset Jonghyun. Because seeing Jonghyun not smiling was far worse than not being happy himself. Jonghyun's happiness mattered more to him.

The next morning when Minki entered the room where they ate their meals he spotted Jonghyun standing alone and stretching his arms while a small yawn escaped his mouth. Minki couldn't help but smile at that. Then, he just rushed up to him and hugged him from behind. This startled Jonghyun but as soon as he realised that it was Minki, he turned around and hugged the younger boy back. In this moment, neither of them cared if another trainee was watching or if any cameras were recording.

Both of them had missed this. Both of them had missed being close to one another. And both of them were scared of the eliminations. Would they be seperated forever?

Author's note: .. Brb, I'm crying TT I can't be the only one getting all emotional because of Ren, right??? A lot of my favorites were already eliminated and I know for sure a few more will get eliminated in tomorrow's episode (well, today's episode now haha)... But I'm unsure about Ren. Like, he has to make it. Jr and Ren can't be seperated, at least not yet! >< I've been thinking for a while now that Ren won't make it to the top11 but I want him to get at least to episode 11. I'm just not ready for a seperation. Produce 101 has turned me into an emotional mess tbh. But I love these trainees, like all of them, so so much <3 And I will miss them, again, so so much after the final episode airs next week :((