As Tao left the practice room late at night, he couldn't help but feel an overwhelming sense of dread come over him. Kris had left over a month ago and rumors were surfacing all over the internet about him and EXO as a whole. Tao, Luhan and Lay had been pushed especially to fill the gap that their missing Chinese member had created and they were beginning to feel the pressure.

Tao felt almost betrayed by Kris; he just left without a word. There really was no consoling him. Luhan had become angry with the sudden pressure put on him and Lay just became more and more of a .jpg. The night was colder than usual and it didn't feel like summer anymore. The days following Kris' departure were hell for the EXO members. Constant photos and interviews, media stories and just plain bugging the members for answers. The problem was, no one had answers and Tao was getting extremely frustrated.

Kris hadn't said a word as to why he left, he didn't say goodbye, he just left. Tao hated him for that; he thought Kris loved him. He thought, if Kris really did love him, then why did he leave without a goodbye? Why did he go and not say he would come back for Tao? He had been there for so long and to just leave like that seemed like a giant you to Tao. Everything he thought being an idol was going to be wasn't happening. He was hurting in so many ways. 

This dream wasn't turning out like Tao expected and the only thing he could think of doing was going to someone who knew more about what was happening than he did, Kim Heechul. He asked the sunbae to pick him up from the studio to which Heechul's reply was: "But i'm in the middle of watching a drama!" Despite that, Heechul did indeed bring Tao over to his apartment and lazily made tea for the younger.

"So..." Heechul said awkwardly, not entirely comfortable with the situation at hand.

"So, gege...hyung...I need your help." Tao said rather straightforward.

"Yeah, I get that, but considering I don't really know you that well, I don't know what you want. What? You're lonely? Tired? Need a blankie because I'm not the guy to go for if you want consoling or sweetness to be honest, you're better off being with someone like......who in...Donghae! Yeah, Donghae!" Heechul said, nodding enthuastically at the suggestion.

"No, I want to know more about whar happened with Geng ge." Tao said.

"H-Hannie?" Heechul mumbled, shocked to hear about him. "Why do you want to know?"

"Because...he left, and I heard it was because he was hurt...but why really did he leave? You're always honest, so I'm asking you."

"Hannie...well...Hannie was really the sweetest and nicest guy ever...and I ing hate SM for what they did to him, but they pay me so I can't do but talk . But, uh, anyway...Hannie, forever, since he got to Korea was treated like . He was kicked around, and from what he told me, he was put in like a 13 year contract, and was fined for stupid and was always in trouble for stuff he didn't even deserve to get in trouble for. Plus, he would get sick because they overworked him." Heechul said, beginning to get rather worked up about the issue.

"The most bull thing is, Hannie didn't say a damn thing! He didn't! He was sick, and he had serious medical problems but he didn't say anything for 6 years! Even before we debuted he was trash to SM! I ing hated that I never saw it, but..to answer your question...he was really hurting, in so many ways...I saw this thing he did. It's called Youth: The Best of Times, and he explains everything. He never told me that he was suicidal, or that he would constantly be in and out the hospital because he always showed up to practice. But, uh...yeah, SM." Heechul finished, wiping his eyes. "Why did you have to get me all pissy? I was having fun watching Heebum stare at the TV." he grumbled, crossing his arms.

Tao just nodded and thanked Heechul for the information and went home to EXO's dorm, so apparently SM did this to everyone...well every Chinese member. Maybe...maybe Kris didn't leave for a selfish reason, and maybe Tao himself was holding on to a dream that could kill him just like it almost did Hangeng. Maybe he should just let go as well. He had think this through. Kris left and was popular, but it was because no one had done that in SM since Hangeng, and it was a huge media sensation. Tao had to wait, he didn't want everything to crash down around him. He was already injured to the point of not being able to walk, so he had to heal. 

He would wait, he would wait and get back to Kris, he wanted to see him again and he wanted to apologize for being so cruel to him over the time they spent apart. Kris deserved that.