“Wow, you guys are brilliant.” Minhee said as Baekhyun and Chen returned to their seats. Baekhyun felt his cheeks burn but smiled none the less as Chanyeol subtly re-clasped their hands. “Now I know that you all don’t want to hear me rambling on, but please bear with me while I explain a few things.” Minhee shuffled a few papers on her lap, checking that she had all of the boy’s attention before continuing. “As you are aware, we will be selecting one, perhaps two of you to be a part of our company and join into a new group. Before making our decision we will not only be hearing a solo performance but we will want a pair performance, a group ballad and a group dance track as well as observing you while you train with some of our vocal coaches and choreographers. I know that it sounds very scary and intense right now but just be yourselves and do your best. So first up will be the solo performances. You will have an hour of vocal training every day for the week commencing this Monday and you will perform this Friday. You will select a song to sing from a hat at random and there are no changes. I will go through the paired and group performances at a later date. Is that all clear?” 12 heads bobbed in assent and Minhee smiled. Baekhyun felt his head spinning slightly; it was just so much information to process. He calmed a little as Chanyeol trailed lines across the back of his hand with his finger, lightly grazing his skin. “So, how about a quick tour and we can get to selecting your songs, okay?” The small blonde woman popped off of her chair and sped out of the room in a flurry of eagerness as the baffled boys tried to follow.

Chanyeol pulled Baekhyun into his side by his waist and pulled him along. Baekhyun tried to take in his surroundings but they were just moving about so fast that it was difficult to take in. He got the impression of crystalline glass, crisp whites, cold metals and warm woods. Door after glass door, corridor after monotonous corridor. The entire place seemed like it was one hallway curved into a circle that gave the impression of a large space but was really just taking you past the same points again and again.  Eventually they reached another room, similar to the first but larger and with all four walls mirrored. The same honey toned wood was underfoot and there was a bar running around the middle of the walls. It was clearly a dance studio. Minhee sat on the only chair and pulled a rounded, black bowler hat from under it, gesturing to the floor.

Chanyeol plopped down onto the wood, tugging Baekhyun down with him. The other boys followed suit and flopped onto the floor. Baekhyun could feel a harsh ache run up his leg, deep unsettling warmth streaming uncomfortably through his muscles. His eyebrows pulled together at the feeling and his teeth clenched.

“Are you okay Baekie?” Chanyeol whispered into his ear. Baekhyun looked up with a smile at the younger, “It’s nothing Channie.” Chanyeol glances over his body and his eyes seemed to round in recognition as he saw the odd angle Baekhyun had his leg out at. His large warm hands wrapped lightly around Baekhyun’s ankle and lifted it into his lap so that it was resting comfortably.

“When did you last take your painkillers?” He asked, looking worried. Baekhyun sighed; he had hoped Chanyeol wouldn’t notice, it was only a little pain after all.

“I don’t know, about six hours ago or something?” Baekhyun mumbled. Chanyeol pouted and his ankle softly.

“As soon as we get home you’re taking them.” He warned, pointing a finger at Baekhyun’s nose. Baekhyun grinned and nodded, letting his fringe flop into his eyes. Baekhyun heard a shuffling noise to his right and looked over to see Kyungsoo crawling over to him, much to the pouting annoyance of Kai. Baekhyun chuckled at Kai’s grumpy face but looked to Kyungsoo none the less. “You okay Baek?” Kyungsoo asked. “I saw you looking pained.” Baekhyun sighed again for the umpteenth time.

“It’s fine Kyung-ah, go back to Kai.” Baekhyun said with a light shove to his best friends shoulder. Kyungsoo glared playfully at him before doing as he was told. As Kyungsoo reached Kai’s side Minhee clapped her hands together to get their attention. It seemed to be a habit of hers.

“Right, if you could come up one at a time to get your songs, Kris you can start.” All of the boys took it in turns going up to get their songs, not allowed to open their slips of paper until everyone had a song. Baekhyun was the last to go up but smiled as Minhee called for him. He pushed onto his feet and walked over to Minhee, trying to hide his slight limo due to his lack of painkillers. He reached into the hat and pulled out the last remaining slip of crisp, white paper with a gentle bow. He turned, thinking that his limp had gone unnoticed until he felt a small hand wrap around his wrist. He turned back to Minhee with a slight frown and one quirked eyebrow.

“Are you sure your leg is okay?” She asked with concern. Baekhyun bowed fully this time with a smile. “It’s fine, thank you.” With that he waddled back over to Chanyeol and slid down onto the floor. He didn’t like how everyone worried so much, it really was a lot better and he didn’t like being pitied. It made him feel weak and there was nothing he disliked more than feeling helpless. He pushed those thoughts from his head as he wondered what song he had selected. The wait was killing him and he was practically humming in anticipation. Chanyeol beside him was not much better and was twitching slightly as he frantically morphed his fingers in and out of Baekhyun’s.

“Okay on the count of three you can look at your songs. One…” He really wanted to know, count faster. “Two…” Come on. He needed to know now. “Three!”

His fingers quickly worked to unfold the smooth paper to reveal the neat, black, cursive writing within:

Ailee – Heaven

­It was a girl’s song….and he loved it! There was something so powerful yet beautiful about that song. He just wasn’t sure if it would suit his voice. No, he would make it work, he had to. He slipped his fingers around Chanyeol’s slender wrist and brought it to him so that he could see what he had gotten. Chanyeol’s paper read, Simon D- Cheerz. Baekhyun looked up with a grin to see Chanyeol’s extreme, pearly white smile.

“Ah Channie, it’s perfect for you!” He exclaimed, poking his boyfriend’s cheek playfully.

“What about you Baek?” Chanyeol asked, trying to peek at Baekhyun’s paper. Baekhyun held the paper away out of Chanyeol’s reach. Well, it wasn’t really out of Chanyeol’s reach given the length of the younger’s arms but Chanyeol didn’t try to get the paper. He instead spread his fingers across Baekhyun’s sides and tickled him. Baekhyun could feel himself crumpling in laughter, convulsing in a ball and pushing away from his attacker who promptly plucked the paper from his hand with a grin.

Chanyeol glanced over the song before raising one eyebrow. “You got a girl’s song?” Chanyeol didn’t hold back his grin. “Should I call you Baekhee?” Baekhyun hoisted himself up from where he had crumpled onto the floor and pushed Chanyeol over with a, “Yah!” While pulling his paper back. What was wrong with a girl’s song? 

a/n: sorry it's so short :( But look at the chapter number..eh? ;) okay yeah just me then. Anyway I am sorry I have been slow to update lately and I will try to get better.