Donghae took big strides down the corridor and knocked on a bright pink door. Without waiting for a response, he turned the knob and stuck his head through the door. “Is Yuri here? Hey, come on out for a second will you?”

“Yeah, sure.” Yuri stood up and made her way over, careful not to stop on anyone (you never know, with so many of them put in the same room together). She had anticipated this visit, knowing Donghae. The boy had always been particularly worried for the Jonghyun-Hyoyeon pair ever since he had learnt of their plight when he first entered the school. He had a heart of gold, Donghae. She remembered when he first came; no one bothered about what the Witch did anymore, it was almost an everyday occurrence and even the siblings were used to it. She remembered the big fuss he kicked up about it, and how he would spend the little pocket money he had as a kid to buy bandages and candy for the siblings, how he would nurse their injuries with utmost care, as if he knew what they were going through. Yuri has asked him about it before, but he never really replied, just saying that he just liked doing good deeds.

The duo left without the other girls noticing. The two of them were so close, they were almost siblings and everyone in the company was used to them running off by themselves. This seemed like another such occurrence, nothing out of the ordinary. Even though they had all witnessed the terror at the rehearsal, no one really thought much about it and it was soon forgotten.

The two of them walked along in comfortable silence. Neither had anything to say - or rather, they both didn’t know what to say -and were immersed in their own thoughts. After all, they had all believed that the madness would stop as time passed but Hyoyeon was already in her teens and, if anything, it grew.  

Donghae pushed open the door to the training room when the music inside stopped. ”Hey Jjong, we need to talk.”

“Oh hey hyung! Uh… Talk about what?” Jonghyun turned to face him, leaving Minho who was struggling to stay on his knuckle unattended. The younger boy collapsed with a groan and glared at the intruder.

Donghae ignored him and replied, “The Witch. I thought it was a good idea to let Hyo stay here considering how she is now officially out of reach of the Witch, but now, I’m not so sure. I mean, if we are going to all star in the musical together, won’t the two of them have to meet every rehearsal?”

Jonghyun sighed. The Witch. That’s all that had been on his mind the past few days. He had also realised the same thing as the elder, but he couldn’t think of anything he could do to change things.

“I guess so. But if it happens at rehearsals, can’t the Chairman stop her? Like issue a warning or sue her or something for torturing his trainee?” He stopped when he saw the grim look on Donghae and Yuri’s faces. Yeah, that’s going to work only if he finds out, and there’s no way Hyo’s going to create trouble for anyone by telling about it. “Maybe it’s still better this way though. At least we can keep an eye out for her. You know, interfere if the need arises.”

The three of them became silent, and you could hear the babbling of the other four boys, who have no idea about the severity of the discussion between them. All three knew that it was useless. They have stuck with Hyoyeon until three years ago, and during their time together, the Witch had shown her true colors countless times, but they never managed to stop her even once. The woman was just too powerful.

The worst thing was, neither of them knew why this was happening. No one did. They used to believe that it was because Jonghyun and Hyoyeon’s mom used to be a rival that Mrs. Kwon couldn’t beat. Even Hyoyeon believed that. After all, it was the only plausible explanation. But as time went on, it was obvious that it wasn’t the only reason. They didn’t know if Hyoyeon was aware of it, but all three have observed that Hyoyeon was put through torture a million times worse than that of her brother’s.

“I don’t know about you guys, but I think that the way she handled the incident during the rehearsal, punishing Hyo in front of so many outsiders? It’s too much. This time, it’s war.”

Just then, the door opened, revealing a bright-eyed Eunhyuk. Wow, Yesung hyung must have done a great job, being able to cheer the recently moody boy up like that, thought Donghae. “Uh, Jonghyun? Look who I met in the lobby!”

The door opened wider, and standing there was Lee Joon. He grinned idiotically at his friends and ex-schoolmates and waved. Prancing in, he did a twirl and a pirouette before landing on his , his legs crossed perfectly.

“Can’t you ever walk in like a normal person, Joon?” whined Yuri.

“Shut up. I AM normal.” Joon put on his best hurt puppy look. Which quickly turned back into a grin.“Anyway, I’m here because I have GREAT NEWS for you. I spoke to stage directors and your Chairman too, and you know what?”

The three teens just stared at the overexcited boy.

“DRUMROLL PLEASE!”

Everyone stared at the overexcited boy.

“Okay, okay, geez, you guys are no fun!” Joon pouted. “I GOT THE PART BACK FOR HYO!”

Silence.

“Uh, what part?” asked Donghae meekly. The rest nodded. They was having a hard time following the hyperactive boy’s train of thought.

Well, all of them except Eunhyuk. “YOU MEAN THE THEATRE PART?” He yelled. This was great news! Wasn’t Hyoyeon upset that she had lost the opportunity to star at Seoul National Theatre?

Enlightenment dawned on the three friends. That’s it! “Oh Joon! That’s brilliant!”

“Yeah, brilliant my foot. Why are you trying so hard for her anyway. She’s here with me now, away from you, can’t you just give me a fair chance? And what’s this about a theatrical piece? ” Onew muttered under his breath.Taemin glanced sidewards at his hyung. Ha! Lovesick buddy.

“I know, just call me, Mr Perfect.” Joon announced dramatically, adding to the flames in Onew’s heart. “There’s just one teensy problem, though.”

“What is it?” asked everyone simultaneously.

“Weeeell… if Hyo’s going to take part in the play, then she can’t do the musical. Rehearsal timings clash so unless she learns how to split herself into two physically, I don’t see how she can be in both.”

It took a moment for Donghae, Jonghyun and Yuri to process the information and, when they finally did, they burst into relief. If Hyoyeon’s not going to be in the musical, she won’t have to face Mrs. Kwon. It was the perfect scenario. They reached out to hug the ballerino, who was startled since his friends never seemed to enjoy hugging him much.

“Let’s go break the good news to Hyo!”

“Uh, guys, what about the musi-”

“It’s all fine, it’s all fine. Hurry up let’s go find her, we’ll fill you in on the way!”

Author's Note: Hey guys, sorry for neglecting this fic! I know it's been ages since I last updated, and I think the story's moving really slowly, but I have no idea how to speed it up. Any suggestions? Do feel free to comment in the comments down below! Also, thanks for staying subscribed to this and reading this fic, it means so much! Thanks also to all the new subscribers who subscribed even though I haven't updated in a long time. Love you all!