"Hyunseung, you really need to relax. It won't turn out like the others." Yoseob said emphatically, bending forward to try and touch the toe of his sneaker. He exhaled in the process and suppressed the urge to grin when he succeeded in the stretch. Only the tips of his fingers managed to touch the leather shoe, but it was better than yesterday's stretching at least. Beside him, Hyunseung was progressing through the stretches much faster, far more lithe than Yoseob.

"I don't have your unending faith in things, Yoseob," the dancer said quietly as he gripped the toe of his shoe with his right hand.

"You know, your voice gets deeper when you talk softer. Is it like that when you sing, too?"

Hyunseung smirked and shook his head, switching to the other side. While he was still a little uncomfortable around his hyper acquaintance, he was slowly getting used to how quickly Yoseob's train of thought could switch tracks. Of course, the sugar highs didn't help that much.

"How come you don't talk to anybody else?"

Confused by the change of topic, Hyunseung stopped mid-stretch and looked at him. Sometimes it really surprised him how much Yoseob noticed. His hyperactivity and short attention span made it seem as if he were oblivious to most of the things that went on around him. Yet he noticed that Hyunseung was fairly antisocial, which begged the question... Just how much did Yoseob really notice about those he interacted with? And why was he so concerned about Hyunseung?

"I talk to other people," he mumbled, frowning at the boy beside him.

Yoseob snorted and shook his head, switching to stretch with his other leg. "Yeah, your parents, the managers and instructors. You don't talk to any of the other trainees, hyung."

"I talk to you."

"I don't count."

Hyunseung grinned, entirely amused. "There's a first."

"Seungie-hyung..." Yoseob frowned at him disapprovingly.

"I talk to Kikwang, too."

"Hyunseung, you've said a total of maybe five words to him since I introduced you two!"

Sighing, the older boy stopped doing his stretches and sat back, leaning on his hands. "Why does it matter who I do and don't talk to?"

"I think it'd just make it difficult for you to debut as a solo artist," Yoseob tried to continue doing his stretches, but when he realized the conversation was becoming serious and that he had Hyunseung's full attention, he abandoned his stretches, too. "Solo artists don't get to place certain roles on other people. You take it all on yourself. Doing well with your singing and dancing is all on you. Now, we both know how good you are at both of those, but being an artist isn't just about singing and dancing anymore. You don't just perform on stages all the time. You have to be able to hold your own during interviews and on variety shows, too. A lot of how you make yourself known to potential fans is through variety and radio."

A group of trainees passed by out in the hall, chatting noisily. No one thought to look in the open door of the practice room and see who was sitting there. They just walked right on by, talking and laughing. Yoseob glanced toward the door briefly, pointedly, before looking back at Hyunseung.

"I think you've got a lot of talent, and you could go really far," he started slowly, and took a deep breath before plowing on with, "But you've got to try and accept more people than just me. What happens if they put you in a group?"

"You say it as if I'm definitely debuting under this company," Hyunseung arched an eyebrow skeptically.

"Who's to say you won't?" Yoseob shot back with a frown, and crossed his legs beneath him. "You really have no faith in yourself, do you? Or other people for that matter. Hyung, so long as you think like that, you're going to make everything in life harder for yourself. Why do you keep training if you don't think you'll ever debut? Why are you even here?"

As Kikwang's voice traveled loudly down the hallway and into the practice room, Yoseob got to his feet and cleared his throat. In seconds he was smiling as though the conversation had been about rainbows and cookies. "Time for lunch!"

Hyunseung stared up at him a moment before shaking his head and chuckling to himself. Leave it to Yoseob... Clambering to his feet, he grabbed his bag and slung it over his shoulder just as Yoseob's usual trio of pals came in. Kikwang smiled and waved at him, then pulled a face as Yoseob bounced right past him and made a beeling for Doojoon. Hyunseung bit back a smirk; Yoseob's crush was so obvious it was like he was walking around with a flashing neon sign plastered to his forehead.

The third boy with them was quiet and had his eyes glued to a notebook, scribbling in it with almost furious speed. This was the third time Hyunseung had ever seen Yong Junhyung up close, and he'd had that notebook every time. He doubted the guy had ever even noticed his presence.

"You're ice cold, Seobie," Doojoon smiled indulgently at the shorter boy searching through all of his pockets. Turning his attention onto Hyunseung, he brought a hand up in a brief wave. "Hey Hyunseung."

Swallowing a little uncomfortably, Hyunseung tried to smile back. He managed a slight grimace and reluctant wave before he scurried out of the room.

Yoseob stopped his er search as the dancer left, glancing after him with a concerned frown before looking up at Doojoon. "We have a problem."

"Oh no.. He's got that look again." Kikwang groaned and waved his hands in front of him quickly. "No. Whatever it is, no. I"m not helping you meddle. Not this time."

Doojoon laughed and shook his head. "Meddle? Yoseob?"

Kikwang threw his best friend a suspicious look, ready to pout and flee at the slightest provocation. "You don't know him like I do. He's a total meddler. Yah, what'd you and Hyunseung talk about?"

"Why do you assume it's him?" Yoseob asked, hedging with an overly innocent look on his face.

"Seobie..."

The warning note in his friend's voice had Yoseob sighing heavily in resignation. "Fine, it's him," he admitted, and hurried on to explain and justify his reasons when Kikwang opened his mouth to object. "He's been rejected twice already and this is his third company! I was thinking maybe if we all team up and get him to be more friendly-"

"He's totally antisocial, Yoseob! I get that you like the guy, but there's no way we can bring him out of his shell!" Kikwang shook his head frantically. "No way am I getting involved in this. Have you heard the rumors about him?!"

Yoseob stood up a little taller and glared at the younger boy. "Unlike some people, I don't listen to rumors when I have my own mind and am perfectly capable of making my own decisions. I don't follow along like a sheep."

"I'm not a sheep!"

"Then quit acting like one!"

"You-"

"Both of you, cut it out!" Doojoon snapped, and the sternness in his voice had even Junhyung stopping to pay attention. The rapper looked on with interest as Doojoon took a step closer to the two friends, looking very much like he meant business. "I don't want to hear another word about any rumors. And I definitely don't want to hear the two of you insulting each other like that! Yoseob, you can't make someone do what you want to do if they don't agree with it. There's no sense in getting all keyed up just because Kikwang doesn't want to help you into someone else's life."

Kikwang grinned smugly at Yoseob and opened his mouth to rub it in.

"And you, Kikwang," Doojoon turned his attention onto the shorter of the two, effectively ruining the smugness. "Since when did you become the type to make a judgement on someone you haven't tried to get to know? What happens if you two are placed together for debut? I don't give two s if you've already debuted as a solo artist. The company can still decide not to keep you that way. Are you going to freeze him out if you're in the same group, too? I can just imagine the fans' reactions to that."

Both boys effectively chastised, he exhaled sharply and stepped back, hands on his hips. "Now if you two are finished being ridiculous, can we go to lunch?"

Junhyung sighed and closed his notebook, walking lazily between the three to head for the hallway. "I don't see why you're all worked up. Who's antisocial and why is it so important that you all have to fight about it?"

His friends stared after him, nonplussed. Finally, Yoseob looked up at Doojoon. "Did he seriously just ask that?"

Doojoon nodded. "Uh-huh," he frowned and tilted his head to one side. "He didn't even notice Hyunseung was here did he?"