Jason’s POV

As JB and I entered into the main Pledis building, my attention was immediately drawn to the opening double doors to the CEO’s office, followed by the two sobbing women who I recognized as the hairstylist and makeup artist for the company. I turned and watched them go, wanting to say something but JB placed his hand on my shoulder and shook his head ‘no.’ I quietly nodded then approached the receptionist’s desk, who allowed us entrance into his office. When we stepped inside we were greeted by an emotionless CEO sitting behind his desk, staring and watching us intently as if trying to figure out our next move. As soon as I saw the look on his face I knew it was all over. He definitely knew about us and what we were doing with his crew and artists behind the scenes. JB and I were about to be in big trouble, weren’t we?

The two of us stopped in front of his desk. He immediately glanced up at me and narrowed his eyes before scoffing. He gave both me and JB a look of betrayal. “After all I’ve done for the both of you, this is how you repay me?”

JB was about to step forward but I raised my arm, preventing him from doing so. I stared intently at the CEO. “Why don’t you tell us what we’re guilty of doing first before we play the blame game?”

“Are you joking me? I built both of your careers and yet you have the audacity to go behind my back, steal my artists, my crew members, my dance studio… everything in hopes of forming a comeback for DREAM?”

“I built my own career. You guys only made money off of me and successfully kicked me out of the country when you decided you were done with me. As for JB, you’re lucky to have a man like him on your team, but enough is enough. You’ve only ever walked all over him, exploiting him. You promised him that you’d move him up from road manager to producer; that was several years ago and he is still doing the same thing! Tell me, bossman. Do you even plan on moving him up? Who can blame him for going behind your back to not only pursue his dream, but to help others pursue theirs as well?”

He shook his head. “The China office kicked you out because you were an arrogant little punk that got a big head, always causing trouble.”

“Say what you want; it doesn’t make it true just because the words came out of your mouth. I know the truth and that’s all that matters.”

“Why did you come here?” He gave me a suspicious look. “Why did you come crawling to the Korea office, begging for a job?”

“For DREAM. Your guidance mislead one of the greatest groups to sweep the nation into destruction. I came here to fix your mistake.” I replied.

He laughed. “You’ve done nothing but waste your time here. The rights to DREAM, 2DREAM, Aron and Minhyun all belong to Pledis and I’ll never let you touch them. Stop now before you cause any more damage. You’ve already cost several of your dancers and the styling team their jobs. Oh, and did I mention Choi Ren’s internship?”

I stared at him with wide eyes as he mentioned the last part. Of course it pained my heart to know that my dance crew had lost their contracts with Pledis, but I also personally knew how important this internship was to Ren. I clenched my fists at my sides. “Leave him out of this.”

“He is a part of this, therefore, I cannot leave him untouched. You thought I wouldn’t find out about his involvement? I spoke with everyone. It might be worthwhile to note that not everyone you tried to rip out from under me are trustworthy people. A few of them mentioned his name. Choi Ren was a person that I thought I could trust; it turns out he’s just like the rest of you. I gave him a shot in the dark when JR asked me to take him in. I thought just because he handled the members of DREAM so well when dozens of other stylists couldn’t, that he was something special and someone worthy of being on the team. Out of all of you, he has by far shown the most shocking transformation against me. He had everyone fooled, even me with his determined and friendly personality. To find out that he was the one that started this movement… He’s finished.”

“What do you want for us to do?” JB suddenly spoke up.

The CEO scoffed. “Isn’t it obvious? I want for you two to give it up. DREAM will never make a comeback, not if I have anything to do with it. Kang Baekho is out. It’s time for the world to move on without him.”

“We can’t do that. Baekho’s voice needs to be heard!” JB exclaimed.

I narrowed my eyes. “And if we don’t?”

“You will be seeing us in court. In order for a comeback to be possible, you have to hold the rights to DREAM. You have nothing.”

“We have Kang Baekho.” I replied.

He laughed. “Like I said, you have nothing.”

“He will come back and he will be greater than before.” JB stated as a fact with determination in his voice.

“I seriously doubt it. I want both of your resignations on my desk by tomorrow.” He replied, slamming his fist down on his desk. JB paused for a moment before reaching into his suit pocket and pulling out a long white envelope, placing it on his desk. I glared at the CEO before reaching into my own pocket and slamming it down next to JB’s. He gave us both a startled look, not having expected for us to give it to him today. I took a step backward and folded my arms across my chest.

“Since that issue has been resolved, let’s move on to the next problem, shall we? We want DREAM, but you don’t. Since DREAM has disbanded, you have no use for those rights in which you hold, so why not get rid of them?” I asked.

“Are you asking to buy them from me?”

I cocked my head to the side. “I thought Korean was my second language, not yours.”

“They’re not for sale.”

“How much do you want for them?” I determinedly asked.

“You don’t have enough money in this world to be able to afford them.”

I laughed, amused. “Try me.”

He paused for a brief moment before shaking his head. “Even if I were to sell you the rights to DREAM, Aron Kwak and Hwang Minhyun are both signed underneath my label. If you want to buy DREAM, you have to buy them as well. But you will be expected to pay their contract termination fees, which is quite a hefty fine. Are you still ever so confident now?”

“I am confident that I will successfully rip them from this company.” I replied.

“And where will they go?”

“They can sign under me.” JB replied. The CEO laughed in response.

“You? You’re a nobody; you don’t know what it takes to run a company nor do you have the funds.”

“It’s his dream to become a producer and run his own company, and it’s a wise dream at that. I believe JB has what it takes to be successful. I know a good investment when I see one just as I notice talent when I see it as well.” I patted JB on the shoulder. “Your loss will be our gain.”

The CEO scoffed. “Have you even asked them what they wanted? Are you certain they want to leave Pledis to go to a no-name label such as yours?”

I narrowed my eyes at him. “I am Chinese megastar Fu Long Fei. How’s that for a name for you?”

“Your name isn’t big enough.” He spat.

“But combined with Kang Baekho’s it ought to be.” I replied. “Kang Baekho has already signed with JB. And I’m sure this is just the start of great things to come. You can kick all of us down, but I guarantee you we’ll stand back up ten times stronger.”

“So you intend to pay 2DREAM’s cancellation fees, the rights to DREAM’s name, and buy all of the crew whose careers you’ve ended early because of your foolish little ambitions?”

“That’s right.” I replied.

“Are you crazy?”

I smirked. “That’s not the first, nor is that the last time I’m going to be asked that.” I replied, taking a pen from off his desk and snatching a page from his memo pad. I scribbled down a large number and slammed the paper down in front of him. I raised a brow. “Will this take care of it?”

He glanced down at the number I had written and then immediately glanced up at me with wide eyes. “You can buy Pledis with this amount! How in the world-”

I laughed. “No thanks. I’ll have to pass. As for how, you don’t need to know. All that you do need to know is that I am not one for you to look down upon. Not now, not ever. JB is included. He is my boss, as well as business partner from this moment onwards.”

JB glanced at me with a surprised look on his face. To be honest, we hadn’t actually discussed the details about working together, but I practically decided for him that I would be working under him. It’s not like he would deny me. Everyone loved little ol’ Jason, didn’t they? I was that darn adorable. Heh. JB smiled then nodded silently. The CEO glanced back down at the number then back up at me. “Is this a real offer?”

I smiled. “Do you accept our proposal?”

“I will draw up the cancellation forms. The documents handing over all rights to 2DREAM and DREAM will be handed over to you shortly.” He replied.

“We will return with Aron and Minhyun and bring the official transaction document with us.” JB slightly bowed. The CEO suddenly rose from his chair and bowed deeply towards the both of us. I mentally scoffed. Oh, the power of money. How despicable it truly was. One moment he was cursing at us and the next he was thanking us. Some people really didn’t have any shame, did they? Well, whatever. At least it worked in our favor.

“Included in that number is the cost of your silence on the matter. We will release to the public when we are ready that the rights and ownership of 2DREAM and DREAM have been transferred and shifted in our favor.” I said. He nodded.

“Of course.”

“If the media or press catches one word of what was spoken here today, I’ll know who to come looking for.” I threatened then slightly bowed in return and threw my arm over JB’s shoulders as we turned and left the office. As we climbed down the stairs of the Pledis building JB pulled away from me and got down on his hands and knees, thanking me. I began to scratch the back of my head nervously as I watched a grown man sob at my feet. “I can never thank you enough for what you did for me in there, Jason!”

“I cost you your job… Come on, don’t be like this.” I glanced away.

“I wanted to quit anyways, but never had the courage to do so!” He replied. I knelt down and placed my hands on his shoulders, helping him stand back up since he wasn’t going to do so on his own. “Did you really mean it when you said you have faith in me and my future company?”

I smirked. “Of course, man. I’ll get you there. If you let me help, that is.”

“Of course! But… why are you doing all of this? Helping Aron, Minhyun, Baekho, Ren, even me? What’s in it for you?”

I smiled, looking up into the blue cloudy skies. “I’ve always been a fan of DREAM since day one. From the moment I found out about their split, I knew I wanted to help them. Besides, I like you guys. You guys all accepted me and my strange ways even though there were times where I’m sure you all wanted to kill me. That kind of patience deserves a reward, don’t y’think?”

“But still…”

“All I’ve ever wanted was a place where I belonged. And I’ve finally found it. You guys taught me that there really are good people left in this world.”

JB patted me on the shoulder. “You’re one of them.”

I smiled. “Stop it, you’re embarrassing me.” I nervously replied. “But I was serious when I made that offer. I intend to buy 2DREAM and DREAM and bring them over to your side. I intend to help you build your company from the ground up.”

“But the cost is so-”

I cut him off. “The investment cost is miniscule to the profit I am projecting that we will make with the return of DREAM. Pledis didn’t know a good thing when they had it. They didn’t have confidence or patience in one of their artists and that decision will ultimately cost them a fortune. They think they’re the winners in this, but we are. Besides, you’re not just gaining a legendary team, but you’re gaining a hero in the process. 2DREAM and DREAM’s fans will follow them to your company. Not only that, but Baekho is about to make history once he reveals his condition. We’re going to experience a great increase in fans when a hidden community suddenly steps forward because they’ll finally have an idol they can relate to that represents them as a whole. What’s not to love about any of that?”

JB gave me a stunned look. “To think all of this time I’ve misjudged you.”

“Heh. I might play around, but I’m not completely inept.” I replied.

JB smiled. “Let’s go tell them the news.”

I nodded. “Yes sir, boss.” I said. JB smiled then laughed as we returned back to the van. On the drive back home, the two of us talked business. I shared with him everything I knew about marketing and numbers while he shared with me his infinite wisdom that came from experience of working with Pledis. He had learned quite a bit of useful information back when he was in university as well as from working underneath the CEO and watching him make the decisions that impacted Pledis. There was not a doubt in my mind that our plan couldn’t be successful. By the time we had arrived, I had already discussed with him about renting him out a building for his company because, after all, he couldn’t have legendary trio DREAM signed to him and have no place for them to meet and discuss business, now could he? JB was beyond grateful, but truthfully, I was grateful to him for giving me the chance to continue to help everyone. But now it was time for the moment of truth for Aron and Minhyun. Truthfully, I didn’t know how well they were going to take it, if they were going to take it well at all. I could only hope that my predictions were right and they’d actually want to sign under JB.

When we arrived back at the mansion, Aron, Minhyun and Ren were all three sitting at the table eating breakfast. Aron had been spoon feeding Minhyun, who was eating rather slowly. As we entered, I could feel JB eyeing them. Oh, come on, JB. You’re not that much older than me. Don’t be an old fart. Obviously those two are doing the dirty behind closed doors… Heh. JB took a seat in front of Minhyun and beside Aron who sat at the end of the table while I sat across from Ren.

“Everyone, we have an important announcement to make.” JB stated, grabbing everyone’s attention. Aron placed his spoon back down on Minhyun’s plate and faced us.

“What is it?” Aron asked.

“As of this morning, Jason and I no longer work for Pledis.”

Everyone’s eyes went wide with shock. Minhyun placed both of his hands on the table and leaned forward. “What???”

“Yep, fired.” I replied.

“But… why?” Ren asked.

JB glanced my way. “Do you want to tell them, or should I?”

I smiled. “I have such a way with words. I should tell them.” I replied then turned to face all three of them. “The truth of the matter is, everyone was fired.”

“What???” Minhyun exclaimed, sounding much like a broken record that kept repeating itself.

“Everyone that was involved in the comeback of DREAM has lost their job.” I stated. Ren suddenly grew pale.

“Does that mean… me too?” He shakily pointed at himself. I solemnly nodded. Ren went silent and shifted his gaze down into his plate on the table. He placed both hands on the sides of his forehead, leaning on his elbows.

“Woah, wait a minute. What DREAM comeback?” Aron suddenly asked.

I sighed. “I really wanted to keep this a secret from you, but it seems you guys were destined to find out anyways. All this time I haven’t been preparing you for a 2DREAM comeback, but a DREAM comeback. The choreography that you have been busy slaving away trying to perfect, the song that you unknowingly recorded for me, it’s all part of DREAM’s big return.”

“How can this be…? DREAM’s not having a comeback…” Minhyun replied.

JB smiled. “You can… if you want to, that is.” Both Aron and Minhyun exchanged shocked looks.

“How can it be possible? Pledis will never allow this! Besides, Baekho’s out.” Minhyun paused then gasped. “Does Baekho know about this?”

I shook my head. “Nope. And I prefer to keep it that way. I expect for you guys to keep completely silent on the matter. Baekho cannot know about this.”

Aron slammed his fist down on the table loudly. “Someone needs to start making some sense around here!”

“Okay, look. Baekho has received treatment and as far as he is concerned, he’s working on his own comeback-”

“Baekho’s coming back?” Minhyun asked, shocked.

Aron scoffed. “Alone? Typical.”

I narrowed my eyes. “I wasn’t done yet, ladies. Yes, he’s coming back. BUT, I wanted to make his comeback special for him by having you guys show up to perform with him as DREAM once again. He will still perform his own solo song, but the choreography he is learning at the moment is the same that you have been learning all along. It is our biggest hope that you guys can reunite once again. What we want to know is this: are you in?”

“I’m in.” Aron immediately replied. Minhyun nodded.

“Absolutely.”

I smiled. “Ah, that’s a relief. Now quit Pledis.” I replied, receiving crazy looks from both of them. “In order for this to happen, it requires you cancelling your contracts with the company.”

“Are you crazy? We can’t afford that!” Minhyun exclaimed.

“Yes, but that’s another story. And you leave that to us. Anyways, as I was saying, Pledis will only allow the reformation of DREAM and refrain from slapping us with a giant lawsuit if you cancel your contracts with them. As you know, it’s always been JB’s dream to produce and run his own label. Like I’ve always said, when one door closes, another one opens and now that he’s been let go from Pledis, he’s been given the opportunity to grow and achieve this dream.”

“With the cancellation of your contracts with Pledis, I humbly ask that you sign with me.” JB asked, bowing his head down to both of them. Minhyun and Aron both exchanged uneasy looks.

I smirked. “He already has legendary idol singer Kang Baekho signed under his label.” I proudly folded my arms across my chest. Shnookums was my boy; I considered myself both a fan and a personal friend of Kang Baekho’s now. Minhyun stared at JB with wide eyes.

“Is this true? Is Baekho really signed underneath your label?” He asked. JB nodded. Minhyun smiled. “Then he must really have faith and believe in you to have taken such a bold step. Truthfully… Aron and I have a secret of our own. Together we had always planned to leave Pledis if they refused to accept Baekho back in. The two of us wanted to reunite DREAM ever since the day it disbanded. To hear that you guys have all been working behind the scenes to reunite us… it’s amazing. I’m really glad you guys would do something like this for us.”

Ren sadly glanced up from the table. “Don’t take my silence the wrong way… I’m really happy for you guys… But…” His voice trailed off. “I’m sorry, I-I have to go to the school now.” He quickly took that moment to run off. I watched as he hurriedly ran through the front door with his head held down low. The inside of my heart was aching for him. It was all our fault. He was so close to finishing that internship and because of our stupid mistake of contacting Inkigayo, it cost all of us our jobs. Everything, all that hell we put him through, it all amounted to nothing now, didn’t it? I tried to save him when bossman brought his name up. But he was right. Ren was initially the first one to have started this movement. He was involved too deep and had caused too deep a scar against Pledis. Ren… don’t give up. Don’t lose faith in any of us. We’re all in this together, and together we’ll find a way to fix this and make things right again. We’ll get you that degree you’ve been toiling for so long to achieve. We’ll help you realize your dream.

“If it’s you, JB, I’ll gladly sign. You haven’t led us wrong yet. If Baekho trusts you, I trust you.” Aron replied. I still kept my gaze focused on the open front door behind me. I glanced back at JB.

“Will you draw up the document? I need to talk with Ren.” I asked. JB nodded and I quickly leapt out of my chair and dashed through the front door in hopes of catching him. As I passed through the front gate I spotted Ren already several yards ahead of me, running with his briefcase tucked underneath his arm. I immediately chased after him. It didn’t take long for me to catch up to him, after all, I was a seasoned runner. Ren seemed utterly shocked and lost when I stopped him. He glanced off to the side, refusing to make eye contact with me. “Hey, look at me.”

Ren quietly shifted his gaze up from the ground and looked at me with his two large brown orbs that looked utterly defeated and hopeless. “Jason… what do I do? What am I supposed to do now? I know… I know I said that I was ready to risk everything to help Baekho succeed, but… I didn’t… I didn’t see this coming… I was so close to finishing…” I could tell that he was on the verge of crying. I reached forward and wrapped my arm around his neck, pulling him into my right shoulder. As soon as he hit my shoulder he began to tremble. I patted him on the back in a soothing pattern.

“Cry if you need to…” I replied as my own heart strings were greatly being tugged on by Ren’s reaction to this whole mess. I pursed my lips together and glanced up into the blue sky. I felt useless. JB and I had messed up big. I came into this knowing that eventually everything would blow up in our faces, but I had never really taken the time to realize how this would affect people like Ren, who was just an honest, hardworking guy trying to graduate college while helping those around him too. I felt terrible… “I’m sorry… All I ever wanted to do was help…”

“I don’t want to cry… I do too much of that already. Besides, what’s done is done. Crying won’t change anything… It’s not your fault… It would have happened anyways…” Despite his words I could hear Ren’s voice starting to crack as he suppressed his tears. He wanted to cry, but he was just too darn stubborn to do so.

“I’m so, so sorry, Ren. I didn’t mean for this to happen…”

Ren nodded. “What am I supposed to do now…? I finally had the courage to tell my parents about my degree and being so close to graduation and now… Now I must be a fool in their eyes… I’m so stupid. I should have never told them.”

“Ren, you’re not… you’re not stupid… Don’t say that…” My voice trailed off. I was at a loss of words. I genuinely felt so apologetic and remorseful towards Ren over costing him his scholarship that it physically hurt.

“Everything… it’s gone… Everything I worked so hard for… it’s vanished…” Ren’s voice trailed off in disbelief. I wrapped my arms around him and shakily hugged him.

“If there’s something I’ve always believed in, it’s that the past is what it is: the past. The past… it can be painful, and it’s oftentimes so strong that it can destroy our future, if we choose to let it. Ren… I’ll make this right again. But in order to do that, you have to move forward with me and live life for what tomorrow has to offer, not for today or yesterday has taken away. Okay? Can you do that with me? I only want to do this if you’re by my side; this is a team effort. I’m sure Minhyun, Aron, even Baekho feels the same way. We need you, Ren. You’re the person that makes all of us as a group, a team, a family complete.”

Ren slowly pulled away from my shoulder and glanced up at me. “Do you really mean that?”

“Think of the reason why you held on for so long. You said it yourself; Aron, Minhyun and Baekho all tried to make your life miserable, but you held on for the sake of your internship. And somewhere in between, I’m sure you forgot all about it, didn’t you…? You became blind sighted by your friendship with both of them and your love and support for watching Baekho grow into the greater person he is today. Everything that you’ve done… you can’t fully say that you did it all for the sake of a flimsy piece of paper, can you?”

Ren furrowed his brows in sadness. “I didn’t… I did it all for them… You’re right. Somewhere along the way, I completely forgot about that internship… All that mattered to me was them.”

I placed my hands on both of his shoulders. “Everything will be okay in the end. If it’s not okay, then that must mean that it’s not the end, right? I mean, think about Baekho. When he lost his hearing, he thought it was the end of the world, but it wasn’t. It’s nearly the start to something even greater for him. Trust me, the same applies to you. Losing the internship with Pledis isn’t the end, but the start for something bigger and better headed your way. Starting over might not be easy, but giving up… you absolutely cannot do that! Understand? Start over with me and JB and DREAM. You’ll always have a spot on our team and in our hearts.”

Ren sniffled and slowly smiled. “What would any of us had ever done without you…? Thank you, Jason.”

“Hmm? For what?”

“Before you came along, I was the rock that Aron, Minhyun, Baekho and even my kids leaned on. With so many people leaning on me, I had no one to lean on myself. I’m human too… I’m not perfect. I don’t always have the answer or the right thing to say… Sometimes I needed advice too… And then you showed up and you changed everything. All of them are learning to lean on you from time to time too. Even I find myself leaning on you too… Granted, you’re not perfect- you’re far from it, but you try. If there’s something you don’t understand, you try to understand. If there’s something broken, you try to fix it. You take the time and effort and I just wanted you to know that it doesn’t go unappreciated. Even though you brought craziness into our lives, we wouldn’t know what to do without you. You helping 2DREAM, Baekho, JB, even me… You’ve been an amazing hyung to all of us. If my internship falls through, then I will lean on you for help. Is that okay…?” Ren shyly asked. I smiled widely.

“Uh. That’d be awesome. Give me a hug, you!!!” I exclaimed then happily squeezed him. “Are you sure you have to love Baekho?”

“Jason.” Ren jokingly warned.

“Heh. Go to class. I don’t want to add you being late as another reason to my list of being remorseful towards you. Trust me, I can already fill a book.” I replied and watched as Ren nodded. Before turning his back to me, he smiled and waved goodbye. I smiled and waved back as I watched him run off down the sidewalk and eventually disappear. As I watched, I felt a huge wave of relief wash over me. Ren was going to be fine after all. I didn’t have to worry about him anymore, right? It was true when I said that I had a list of reasons why I felt sorry towards him. This wasn’t the first time I had accidentally screwed him over, and knowing how accident prone I was, I knew it probably wouldn’t be the last. I had never done these terrible things to him on purpose or vengefully; it was just the luck of the draw. Regardless, I wasn’t a complete . I knew whenever I messed things up for others and whenever I did, I tried to fix them or make things right again. Ren’s list just so happened to be longer. But I was glad, no, relieved when he said he would come to me for help in the future. It didn’t matter if he wasn’t a part of DREAM or 2DREAM. Ren was an up and coming stylist and I saw potential with him. Of course I’d want to snatch him up, not just because he was my friend, but because I also saw greatness in him as well. Although everything seemed like a giant mess right now, in due time everything would fall back in place. That’s the way fate has always worked and that’s the way fate always will work. We just all have to be patient.

Ren’s POV

Despite my best efforts and how fast I ran, I still arrived late to work. When I entered my classroom, my students were already all inside, waiting for me to arrive. When I did enter, my mind was still in complete shambles over the news I had heard this morning that I didn’t even notice that one of my students, Suri, was missing. My mind was still focused on the Pledis situation. I was happy for everyone, I truly was, but… I just couldn’t shake the feeling of complete loss away. I hated feeling this way. I felt like I was being selfish. After all, reuniting DREAM was what we had all set out to do, wasn’t it? I had told myself to be ready for something like this to happen. In fact, it was something I was counting on. But still, I didn’t exactly expect for it to actually happen. No, Ren. You shouldn’t feel like this. You should be grateful for the experiences you gained during your time with Pledis and DREAM… I am. I am grateful for all those experiences. If it weren’t for Pledis, I would have never met any of them. I would have never met Aron, Minhyun, JB, Jason or even Baekho, who I was already certain was the love of my life. I wouldn’t have met any of them and we’d all be complete strangers. I had to be grateful towards Pledis even though I didn’t accomplish what I originally set out to do with their company. Still, something came out of working with them, didn’t it? A lifelong allegiance and friendship. It was like Jason said, it wasn’t the end of the world, right? Even if my internship didn’t go through with Pledis, I could always turn to one of them. They had endless amounts of connections, didn’t they? Wasn’t that how I initially got my internship with Pledis? Through connections? I had to change my way of thinking. I had to cheer up, if not for me, then at least for my kids who could sense my downward mood.

As I passed through the aisles of desks, I accidentally bumped into a few. A few of my students asked if I was okay and I simply nodded. Dammit, Ren… pull yourself together. You can’t work like this. You have a job to do. Focus on the job you already have. You made a promise and a commitment to each and every one of your students. Stop thinking about the internship and graduation that could have been… Dammit! Even after Jason attempted to cheer me up, I still felt depressed. It wasn’t easy to just decide to be happy. I was frustrated. I felt dejected and hopeless. I felt… absolutely rotten for feeling this way. Dammit, I was so close… Why? Why did we have to get caught so early? If Pledis would have just found out a month later, I’d already have my internship completed and my diploma in my grasp.

I lifelessly sat down at my desk in the front of my room and dug my face into my palms, leaning my elbows on the surface and completely forgetting about the twenty four individuals sitting at the back of the room. As much as I wanted to try to focus, I couldn’t seem to do it. I was aware that I was being completely unprofessional, but for once I didn’t know what to do.

THUD!

I jumped as one of my students slammed their palm against the surface of my desk to grasp my attention. I looked up and out of my palms and glanced at her with wide eyes, waiting for her to explain herself. She rose her hands and began to sign away.

“Teacher Choi, is there no class today?”

I slowly sat back and raised my hands. “We’re here, aren’t we? Of course there’s class.” I signed half-heartedly. She paused, a bit startled by my response. I immediately regretted my sarcasm. I knew it was an immature move to take my depression out on my student. “I’m sorry.” I apologized.

“Teacher Choi, something is wrong, isn’t it?”

I faintly smiled at her. “Everything is fine. I’ll get started now.” I replied, about to stand up when she slammed her palm down on the table again.

“You might be able to fool hearing people, but you can’t fool people like us who spend our entire lives in silence, studying other people’s facial expressions to understand how they’re feeling because we couldn’t hear them if they told us anyways. Something is wrong.”

I nervously laughed. Of course. I should have known better than to think I could get away with hiding my emotions in front of my kids. They could read me like a book. “It seems I’ve lost my way a bit and I don’t know how to find it again.”

“Lost?” She asked then paused for a moment before her face lit up. “Isn’t getting lost a perquisite for finding yourself?”

I froze, stunned by her remark just now. “What?”

She smiled confidently. “Getting lost is never really a waste, is it? I think it teaches us where we really need to be. Things might not work out the way we planned, but I like to think that it happens just the way it’s meant to be. So whatever happened… maybe it wasn’t the right place for you to be? If that’s the case, find another place to be or make one for yourself.” She replied. I thought back to JB starting his own record label company through Jason’s help and how Jason had offered to help me. Thinking back on her words, I thought about the possibility of her being right. Pledis wasn’t the right fit for me, was it? I had thought this several times before in the past. I didn’t agree with how they treated their artists. If I had actually completed my internship there, the CEO would have given me a spot on his team as a stylist and I would have become a permanent employee of Pledis. Was that something that I really wanted for myself? No… not at all. If that was the case, maybe losing the internship with Pledis was a blessing in disguise. I would have never gotten the courage to get up and leave the place that helped me get my foot in the door into the fashion industry. If I had stayed, I wouldn’t be able to continue to help Baekho or any of the others.

I ran my fingers through my bangs. I couldn’t believe how foolish I had been over allowing myself to be upset over losing my internship. My student was right. Pledis wasn’t the right place for me to be. The right place… that was on JB and Jason’s team, wasn’t it? By DREAM’s side… that was where I was meant to be. I needed them and they all needed me. If there was one thing I was ever certain of in my life besides Baekho, it was that I needed all of those people in my life. I smiled down at my student and thanked her. “You’re right. You’re absolutely right.”

“Of course I’m right!” She smirked then returned to her seat. I watched her as she walked back. It was at that moment that I noticed Suri wasn’t sitting at her desk behind her. I paused for a moment. Was she not here? Did she slip out of the room without me noticing earlier?

“Has anyone seen Suri?” I asked my students. They all shook their heads. I don’t know why, but a sudden feeling of dread and anxiety washed over me. For now I had no choice but to ignore it and carry on with today’s lessons. As time went on, the day seemed to drag heavily. During the lunch period I made my way over to the teachers’ office room and sat down at my desk, opening my drawer and flipping through my files. I pulled out Suri’s folder and opened it, punching in her home phone number on my desk phone. It rang several times before someone finally picked up.

“Hello?” The sound of an unfamiliar man’s voice answered. His voice was different from the one that I was accustomed to hearing whenever I called her house. This voice definitely wasn’t her father’s. So that had to mean that this was the new boyfriend of her mother’s that Suri had mentioned.

“This is Choi Ren-”

“Who?”

“Suri’s homeroom teacher.”

“What do you want?” He asked rather bluntly. I paused for a moment, taken aback by his rude behavior.

“I’m calling to ask why she hasn’t shown up to class today.”

He scoffed. “Is that what teachers do these days? Call whenever a student skips a day?”

“Pardon me?” I asked, holding the phone away from my ear and staring at it in disbelief. How could someone be so rude to a person they had never even met before? It wasn’t like I was a total and complete stranger. I was a teacher, for heaven’s sakes. I was a trustworthy individual who was genuinely concerned about his student, who was missing.

“Look, Suri’s not coming in today. She’s sick.”

The sinking feeling in the bottom of my stomach was telling me to know better than to believe his story. “Did you not just say a moment ago that she was skipping?”

He paused. “Yeah, that’s what I meant.”

Something was wrong here. “Can I speak to her mother?” I asked, realizing that I wasn’t going to get any accurate information out of him.

“It’s the middle of the day. Her mother’s at work.”

“When can I expect Suri to be back in class?”

“Whenever she goes back.”

By now my heart was pounding inside of my chest. “Is she okay?”

He laughed. “What, you want to talk to her? That might be a problem, buddy. She’s a mute.”

“I’m well aware of my student’s capabilities. That’s not what I was asking though. I’m asking if she’s okay.”

“What, you don’t believe me?”

I angrily pursed my lips together and raised a brow. “Is it so hard to answer a simple question? I’m worried about the well-being of my student.”

“Don’t be. I’m sure you’ve got plenty of better things to do than worry about some irresponsible brat. She’s not coming in today. End of story.” He replied then abruptly hung up the phone. As the line went dead I brought my hand over my lips. My arms were trembling with fear over the strange, unusual phone call that just took place. Something was wrong. Something was definitely not normal. He wasn’t answering any of my questions and dodged them. He was even playing the defensive route and acting like I was attacking him when I clearly wasn’t. All I wanted to know was if she was okay, but he couldn’t answer me. The teacher at the desk beside me who noticed my panic tapped me on the shoulder and signed to me.

“Is everything alright?” He asked.

“I just had a very strange phone call. I’m not sure if I should call the police or leave it alone.” I signed back.

“Police? Is it that serious?”

“What do you do when you suspect another adult of taking advantage of your student?” I hesitantly asked. He looked at me with wide, shocked eyes. He paused for a moment before signing back to me.

“Is it a parent?”

“No. He’s dating my student’s mother…”

He thought for a moment. “Are you absolutely sure something is going on inside of that house?”

I shook my head. “I don’t know anything, that’s the thing. My student tried to tell me something about him but seemed uncomfortable actually addressing the subject and changed her mind.”

He gave me a look of disappointment. “I’m sorry, but without proof or evidence, there’s nothing you can do about it.”

“That’s what I was afraid of…” I replied, shifting my gaze down into my desk. My co-worker was right. There was literally nothing I could do. I couldn’t call the police just based off of pure suspicion. What if it turned out to be nothing? But then again, what if it actually turned out to be something? I hoped that wasn’t the case. Not only was she underage, but she was also deaf. How messed up did a person have to be to do something terrible not only to a child, but someone who was unable to speak up and defend herself? Unfortunately, this wouldn’t be the first or the last time something like this would happen. Quite a significant number of child abusers targeted deaf children; why not? They were the perfect target. They couldn’t say anything. Society tended to shun and ignore them. They were quite literally stuck in a world that would rather pretend that they didn’t exist. And who was there to stand up for them? Not many.

I pursed my lips together and remained staring at my desk. I had to do something…

Minhyun’s POV

Towards the evening Aron, Jason, JB and I all made our way down to the Pledis building to officially sign our termination contracts. To be honest, I had been wondering when this day would come. Since the moment Baekho was in the hospital after that horrible accident, Aron and I were prepared, no, more like ready, to leave Pledis. The things we did were all done because the company controlled us. Neither one of us wanted to form 2DREAM more than the other. Deep in our hearts, we knew better than that. We wanted Baekho back. We wanted to be our original trio. But we had to wait. There was no way Baekho could have returned to the stage without a hearing aid. Now that he had one, I was more than certain that he was gearing up and getting ready for his big return. I had to admit, I was shocked when Jason revealed to us that he had really been training us for a DREAM comeback instead of a 2DREAM one. Although he had tricked us, I was glad that he did. I had given my all to learning the routine that he had been teaching us. If I had known from the start that we were to perform the song with Baekho, I might not have tried as hard; the entire time I would probably be doubting myself and the fact that Baekho would come back to us. According to Jason, Baekho was the only one in the dark now about DREAM’s comeback. If what Ren said was true about him missing us, then this performance that everyone had been working hard on to produce would probably be a great surprise and mean the world to him. If that was the case, Aron and I were more than willing and ready to leave the company.

As we stepped into the CEO’s office, JB placed an official document on his desk. He looked it over before glancing up at us. “Are you sure this is what you want?”

I slightly bowed. “Yes sir.”

“You’re giving everything up for Kang Baekho?” He asked in disbelief. “There’s no way he can be successful. He can’t even-”

Aron cut him off. “He can and he will.”

The CEO scoffed. “Since when did this happen? The two of you were never fond of him and now everyone is his cheerleaders?” He replied, referring back on Baekho’s snobbish reputation in the industry. Since I hadn’t met with Baekho in a little over half a year, it was impossible for me to know how much he had changed, if he even did. But if he had Ren by his side this entire time, there wasn’t a doubt in my mind that he did change.

“We trained together since we were kids. We practiced, recorded and performed on stage for over three years and rose to the top together. A bond like that, no matter what happens, is impossible to sever. You might have been able to separate us but there’s one thing you can never do: tear us apart.” I replied.

“Even still, you’d risk everything to go a no-name label?”

I smiled. “If you can’t trust the people you’re working for, maybe you don’t belong there.” I said, glancing over at both Jason and JB. Jason sheepishly smirked then shifted his gaze down to the ground as he folded his arms across his chest. JB smiled back at me. “We trust them. You know why? Because they’ve been there for all of us through thick and thin. We can’t say the same for you.”

“So you’re blaming Pledis’ decision for kicking out Kang Baekho?” He asked.

“Of course not.” Aron said. “We’re blaming you. A company is only as great as its leader.”

He gave Aron a dirty look. “Is that so? Then maybe I’m not at a loss losing the two of you.” He replied then shoved two pieces of paper forward on his desk. I glanced down at them and realized that they were the cancellation documents used to terminate contracts with artists. I shared a moment with Aron as the two of us briefly prepared to walk away from the company that had built and brought us together. For so long, the two of us had considered Pledis like a second home. To leave it once and for all… it felt strange. After we signed our names on those papers, we could never come in here again. No longer could we walk the halls or join together in the dance studio, where DREAM had built so many memories that I cherished. Leaving Pledis was like breaking up with them. It hurt. But it was no longer a good fit for us. They weren’t planning on taking Baekho back even though 2DREAM never had as many fans as the original group did when it was just the three of us. We weren’t as popular without Baekho. DREAM was in demand, but there were no future plans of coming back together, at least not under this company. To break away from our contracts didn’t mean doing so for ourselves or Baekho, but for our fans who were waiting for all of us to return.

JB stepped forward and placed a hand on each of our shoulders. “Remember, it’s not the end. It’s only the beginning.”

Jason smirked. “Never be afraid of starting over.”

I glanced at Aron and he gave me a reassuring smile back before nodding. I nodded back at him and reached for a pen on the CEO’s desk, scribbling my name down quickly on the signature line. I handed the pen over to Aron which he took and signed his own name down on his contract cancellation form. As soon as he had finished, the CEO bitterly snatched the documents away from us. Jason stepped in between us and placed the document that JB had drawn up earlier in the day down on his desk. The CEO looked it over it and then signed his name down on the line. Jason pulled out his iPad and walked around the desk, stopping by his side. He showed him the image of the transaction where he had deposited a rather large sum of money in Pledis’ bank account. My eyes widened in shock as I read the number. Aron dryly laughed then rolled his eyes, glancing up into the ceiling.

“And yet he still bugs me about the money from the restaurant that night.” He mumbled.

I nudged him in the elbow with a smile. “Stop it.” I said as Jason coyly glanced up from behind his iPad and shot Aron an amused smirk in return before shifting his attention back over to the CEO. That was the Jason we knew. He could pretend to be the rich, business-savvy person that he was, but in reality we knew differently. In reality he was nothing but an overgrown child. Regardless, that overgrown child ended up helping us out in the least expected ways. Who would have thought that a person like Jason was capable of doing any of this? To think when he first arrived, I wanted him out of the house and out of our lives. But then I got to know the little weirdo and he grew not just on me, but on all of us. He became my best friend. I had already thought he was an admirable person just by judging all that he had been through, but like always, he never failed to surprise us with even more. All this time he had been working on and preparing us for a DREAM comeback; hell, he was even risking his name, reputation and his own money just to make sure it happened. It was just unbelievable. He wasn’t real. People like Jason just didn’t exist… but I’m glad he did. There was nothing more that I wanted in this world than to reunite with Baekho and thanks to him, we might actually have a shot of doing it.

The CEO stood up from his desk and outstretched his hand to both me and Aron. We both shook his hand and he slightly bowed. “It appears this is where we say our goodbyes.”

“Yes.” I replied.

“Despite the outcome, we thank you for your hard work and effort and all that you’ve brought to the company through your time with us.” He replied, being the professional that he was.

I forced a smile on my lips. “And we thank you for all that you’ve done for us up until this point. We’ll never forget the place that got us where we are today. Thank you for everything.”

“May you find happiness and success wherever you end up.” Although his words were kind, they were spoken with bitterness in his tone. The four of us bowed and then excused ourselves from his office. As we left the building and made our way over towards the van, I stopped and glanced at JB as a sudden thought occurred to me.

“I just realized this; does this mean we have to move out of the mansion?” As I said this Aron stopped in his tracks and then slapped his palm on his face as the thought occurred to him as well. JB laughed.

“Don’t worry. I included it in the terms and conditions of the contract. The price of the house was included in the lump sum that Jason handed over.” JB replied. I shifted my gaze over to Jason.

“Did you save all of China in your past life? How in the world does someone have that kind of money?” I had known that he had a bit of money to his name when he confided in me about wanting to hire the private investigator, but I had no idea to what extent that he was this rich.

Jason smirked. “Why? Do you want to marry me?”

I scoffed. “As if!”

“I’ll marry you.” Aron replied. Jason’s face brightened with joy as he spread his arms wide and hugged him.

“ARON!”

Jason pouted. “If I told you guys about my money at first, you would have hated me.”

I laughed. “Jason, Jason, Jason… Silly Jason… I hate you now!” I said then lunged at him. Jason quickly dodged my attack and hid behind Aron.

“But seriously, like I said before, that money came from reaching the top as an idol and then making wise investments. I’ve been saving it all this time for a worthy cause and I finally found one. I’ve always supported your music, even back before we met. If I can help the reformation of DREAM not just be a dream, but a reality, then it’s totally worth it. Besides, it means all of us get to stay together, right?”

I paused then gave him a serious look. “You… Is that why you did all of this?”

“Hmm?” Jason asked.

“To keep all of us together?”

Jason sheepishly smiled. “You guys have finally given me a place to call ‘home.’ You, Aron, Ren, JB… If this is what it takes to keep all of us together, then it’s the least I can do.”

I threw my right arm over his shoulder and rubbed my hand through his hair. “You idiot. You’ll always be one of us. We’re all one big dysfunctional family. It doesn’t matter what path we take in the future. People that are meant to be together will find their way back into each other’s lives. To be honest, until I met you, I never believed in fate. Meeting you was like a godsend from heaven, even though we couldn’t see it at first. All we saw was some annoying, overed troll that got on everyone’s nerves. But looking back at everything and the turn of events, I believe you came into our lives for a purpose, which was to help us come together again.”

Jason began fanning his face like Mrs. Korea. “I’m going to cry.”

I chuckled. “Thank you for coming into our lives, Jason.”

Jason glanced up at me from his side. “Thank you for coming into mine. Heh.”

Baekho’s POV

I sat in front of my mirror inside my room. Now that I found myself completely alone for the first time since receiving the hearing aid, I was curious about my ability to sing. It had been a long time since I had last sung. I was half and half. Part of me wanted nothing more than to sing and the other part was terrified. What if I didn’t sound the same? Was my hearing loss really going to affect my singing? I thought back to the time before I hadn’t received the hearing aid and had tried to sing. I remember how heart breaking and devastating it was to be singing and not be able to hear the sound of my own voice escaping my mouth. For something that I had spent my whole life perfecting and to suddenly have it gone and taken away… there wasn’t a scarier feeling in the world besides the fear of being able to hear again and still not be able to sing. I placed my hand on my chest and over my heart, feeling my own heart beat that was shaking. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Believe in yourself, Baekho. If everyone else around you has faith in you, you owe it to them to show them the reason why. You can do this. Just have faith.

I opened my eyes and stared at my reflection. I slowly parted my lips and began to hum old verses that I used to warm up to behind the curtain back before going on stage with DREAM. I stared at my reflection with wide eyes. As I progressed higher up the scale of notes I was in shock as my hearing device was able to register the change in notes. I placed both of my hands over my chest and leaned forward as my breathing grew heavy. I was in a state of disbelief. I was doing it. I was hearing the changes in the register of my own voice. I began to tremble. The dream of really standing back on stage and performing… it wasn’t just a dream anymore. It was another chance at being the person I was meant to be in the place that I belonged.

I sat back up and shifted my gaze up into the ceiling. I couldn’t believe it… Ren, I did it. I can hear myself as I sing. I can hear actual notes. I can hear… Tears filled the corners of my eyes. I smiled and laughed a bit at myself for being so over-emotional. I loved this feeling. I felt so… free. I was free from all of the negative emotions I had been harboring over my shoulders for so long. All those feelings of self-doubt and self-consciousness… I didn’t have to feel them anymore. I could still sing. I still had it in me. I truly had another chance to shine. I glanced over at my open doorframe as my hearing aid had picked up on the sound of the front door to my house opening. It felt amazing that I could actually pick up on small sounds again. I shot to my feet and ran down the hall in excitement; Ren, I have to show you what I can do! I dashed down the stairs and made it to the bottom just as Ren had finished removing his shoes. He tiredly glanced up at me. When he spotted the unusual cheerfulness on my face a small smile spread across his lips.

“What’s got you in such a good mood?” He asked. I wasn’t sure if I was imagining things or not, but I could have sworn he sounded a bit down. I almost wanted to ask him to repeat himself to make sure I hadn’t heard wrong but the thought of doing so was embarrassing to me. Here I was about to show him how much I had advanced… I didn’t want to seem like a hypocrite. I let it slide.

I folded my arms across my chest and arrogantly held my head up high. “Choi Ren.” I called out to him. Ren looked at me with a questioning look on his face. “I want to show you something.” I proudly declared.

Ren tiredly walked past me into the living room and placed his leather briefcase down on the couch. “I’m sorry, but can it wait till later?” He quietly replied. I paused. So I wasn’t imagining things. Ren really was down. If that was the case, then I felt like it was my duty to cheer him up. I hurried over towards him and grabbed him by both shoulders from behind, pushing him forward and towards my piano.

“It’ll only take a few minutes. I want you to hear something.” I replied then forced Ren to sit down on the bench in front of the grand piano in the living room. Ren complied and sat staring at me as I took a seat down next to him. “What am I to you?” I suddenly asked him.

“Huh?” Ren asked, confused.

“When you think of ‘Kang Baekho,’ what comes to mind?” I asked with a smile.

Ren glanced down in his lap. “Hmm… a star.”

I smirked. “Really?” I asked, secretly happy to hear him say such a thing about me. I was used to receiving compliments in my life, but to hear them from him made my day so much better. “Would you call yourself my fan?”

Ren laughed. “What ridiculousness is this? I’m your boyfriend.”

I waved my hands at him. “Besides that.”

“Tcht.”

“Answer the question!”

“Fine then! Yes, I’m your biggest fan, your number one fan!” Ren huffed, trying to play along with me. I grinned widely.

“Is that so?”

“Baekho.” Ren warned.

“Aren’t you going to ask me what you are to me?” I asked, throwing Ren off guard. He paused for a moment then glanced back up at me, placing his index finger on his bottom lip.

“What am I to Kang Baekho?”

I leaned into him and placed a kiss on his forehead. “My VVIP.” As I said this Ren froze for a moment before pulling back. He had turned several shades of red and tried to hide it by turning his head in the opposite direction. I smiled as I caught a glimpse of this. “Since you’re an important person to me, shall I give you a first glance at Kang Baekho’s comeback?”

Ren suddenly turned back to stare me straight in the eyes. “Are you serious? Are you going to sing for me?” He asked, pointing at himself. I nodded.

“Pick a song.”

Ren paused. His face lit up for a brief moment before shifting back down into a frown. “No… this isn’t good.”

I tilted my head to the side. “What is it?”

Ren gave me an embarrassed look. “Right now I’m in such a state of shock that you would want to sing for me that no song comes to mind… Can you surprise me?” He sheepishly asked. I thought for a moment then smiled back at him.

“You said you teach English at school?” I asked. Ren nodded. I turned my attention back over towards my piano and took a couple seconds to myself before pressing my fingers down on the keys, beginning to play a soft, calming melody. Ren watched me quietly as I continued to play Lasse Lindh’s ‘Come on Through.’ I began to sing.

“It ain’t so easy, to love you true

Account of all the rattlesnakes and all that makes you blue,

But it’s worth it, I, I love the thrill.

Come, come, come,

C’mon through, c’mon you, come dig right into my heart.

What is the body if not a place?

Where you store all anger and happiness and pain.

But it’s worth it, I love the thrill.

Come, come, come,

C’mon through, c’mon you, come dig right into my heart.

C’mon through, c’mon through, c’mon you, come dig right into my heart.”

I played through the last of the melody and came to a gradual stop. As I finished I noticed that Ren was looking down quietly into his lap. I pulled my hands away from the piano and turned to him on the bench. It was at this moment that I realized that his shoulders were trembling. He silently rose his hands and placed them over his mouth before turning his head and trying to look away from me. Now alarmed, I placed my hand on his left shoulder and called out to him. “Ren…? What’s wrong? What’s the matter?”

Ren silently shook his head. As his head turned I could see tear drops trickle onto his pants. I suddenly felt terrible. I had only wanted to show him what I could do after living in silence for so long and not having the courage to sing. I was proud that I could sing again and I wanted to show it to him in hopes that he would be happy for me. I hadn’t imagined that he would cry. I mentally scoffed. Right, why wouldn’t Ren cry? You’ve only ever made Ren cry several times before. What makes this any different? As I was about to say something Ren suddenly spoke up. “I-I’m sorry… I had a rough day and… that song… it was beautiful and… I’m sorry, I ruined everything. You were only trying to be romantic and I screwed everything up with my stupid emotions!” He replied, being down on himself.

I shook my head. “Ren, if I can’t handle you at your worst then I sure as hell don’t deserve you at your best.”

Ren sniffled. “Why did you choose that song…?” He suddenly asked.

I smiled warmly at him. “Because it’s what you did to me. You crazy, crazy stylist. When we first met and you told me I wasn’t your type, it set me off. I didn’t realize it till much later but I found myself wanting to prove you wrong. Even though there were numerous times where I pushed you away, you managed to dig a hole right into my heart.”

A small, sad smile crept upon Ren’s lips before quickly disappearing. “I’m not a stylist. And I won’t be one for a long time, it seems.”

“What?”

Ren took a deep breath and then exhaled. “I lost my internship today.” He replied.

I stared at him with wide eyes. “What happened?!” I exclaimed. So that was why he was so down when he first came in.

He smiled again. “I can’t tell you.”

“I’m sorry, Ren… that really . Dammit.” I replied, feeling at a loss for him. I knew how much this internship meant to him. He had put up with so much of the nonsense that Aron, Minhyun and I had thrown at him… he didn’t deserve this. He didn’t deserve any of it. Ren had the patience of a saint to have gone through what he did. This didn’t seem right. Something had to be done about it-

“It was worth it though. That’s all I can tell you.”

I turned back to him, wondering what he meant by that. “What?”

“It’s ok… I was down about it, but I realized after talking to Jason and my students that everything will fall into place. The stars will fall into alignment in due time. Now wasn’t my time… but it’ll get there. And with its arrival will come bigger and greater things.”

“You think so?” I asked, still unsure about the whole situation.

Ren nodded. “That’s what I’m telling myself to keep me from being down.” He forced a smile on his face. “Everything will be fine. I’ll persevere. I’m Choi Ren!” He exclaimed. I laughed at him before rubbing my hand on top of his head.

“That’s right. You’re indestructible.”

“I’m strong, but I wouldn’t say indestructible.” Ren replied. “I have moments like today… several moments, really, where even I don’t know what to do anymore.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

Ren pursed his lips together. “Baekho… I’m worried about one of my kids… She’s one of my deaf students that has always been picked on. It seems like I put an end to the bullying at school, but it appears to be a different story going on at home. Everything seems strange. She was afraid to talk about it to me after class the other day even though she was the one who brought up the subject. She missed class today and when I called her home, the mother’s boyfriend answered and sounded extremely defensive and I kept catching him in his web of lies…  I’m worried that he might be hurting her or taking advantage of her. But I… I have no proof. There’s no evidence. She won’t even tell me what’s going on. Baekho… what am I supposed to do? I can’t even call the police.”

“What are you supposed to do?” I asked.

“As her teacher? Watch over her and guide her. Baekho, don’t you get it? The friends and teachers that these students have at that school, that’s all they have. Society won’t even look in their general direction. As her teacher, it’s my responsibility to protect her if something is wrong, because who else will?”

I paused. I finally understood where Ren was coming from after having gone through losing a major part of my hearing. I knew what he meant when he said that society ignored us. The moment Pledis found out about my ears, they kicked me to the curb. They didn’t want to deal with me. They didn’t have the patience to wait on me and see if things got better. They completely turned their backs on me. And it hurt like a pain no other. Although I could understand why Ren would want to protect her, I was at a loss of ideas as to what he could do to actually help her. If there was no evidence and the girl wouldn’t talk, there was nothing he really could do. “Ren-”

“Should I check it out? Should I go over there and-”

“And do what?” I asked, furious that such a thought would come across his head. “What if he is hurting her? He might be dangerous. Then what?”

Ren shifted his gaze down into his lap. “I know, but-”

“Don’t you ever go there!!!” I snapped. “Don’t you ever go there alone!”

He stared up at me with big eyes. “Baekho…”

“If something happened to you, I don’t know what I’d do. I’d lose my mind. Don’t you get it? You’re the piece of me that keeps everything together. If I were to lose you, everything would fall apart. You said that when you think of me, you think of a star. But in reality, it’s me who sees you as a star. You’re my ‘North Star.’ You came in and guided me when everything was dark and scary and I thought I had lost my way. You’re my star, Ren. You’re supposed to always shine bright and guide me so that I never become lost again but how can you do that if your light fades away and disappears?! Call me selfish. It doesn’t matter. All that matters is that I need you and I just want you to be safe.”

“B-Baekho…” Ren’s voice trailed off. He slowly reached forward and placed his left hand on my right shoulder. “I’m sorry. You’re right; it was a foolish thought of mine. It could be dangerous and there’s not much I can do…”

“Do you remember the time that robber broke into DREAM’s mansion?” I asked. Ren nodded. “You were the only one brave and crazy enough to handle it, but even still, I wish you hadn’t. Although I never admitted it back then, I’m admitting it now. I was terrified when you went in there alone with nothing but a golf club. It was fortunate that you didn’t get hurt. All sorts of scenarios went through my head of what could have happened but didn’t. I didn’t care about any of the items that he stole; everything inside that house is replaceable, but you’re not. Ren, I’ve traveled the entire world so I know what I’m talking about when I say this: there is no one else out there like you. And I’m not ready to give you up… we’ve only just begun…”

Ren pulled his other arm around me and embraced me. “I’m sorry for worrying you. I’ll be more careful in the future. I promise. Baekho, I think you know this by now, but I’m not going anywhere. You can try as hard as you want but you’ll never be able to get rid of me.”

“I know you won’t purposely leave… but if you continue to be as reckless as you are now, who knows what could accidentally happen… Believe me when I say this, Ren. Accidents happen.” I said, referring to the accident that cost me my hearing.

“I promise you, Baekho. I won’t go there. I will wait for her to return to class again and then ask her about it, okay? I’m sorry I worried you.” Ren replied, trying his best to reassure me.

“I love you, Ren. I’m sorry I snapped at you…” I replied, feeling deeply apologetic.

“It’s fine. I love you too, Baekho.” Ren replied, rubbing me on my back. “And I’m so damn proud of you for what you did today… Your voice… it was beautiful. Thank you for giving me my own private concert. It means the world to me that I’m special enough to be Kang Baekho’s VVIP and get the privilege of being the first to hear him after his long hiatus from the stage.”

I wrapped my arms around him as well. “I can sing to you every day.” I said, squeezing him tightly before he pulled away.

“Really?”

“You’re my VVIP, aren’t you? That means you get special privileges ordinary fans don’t get.” I replied, lowering my voice and hoping he would catch onto my drift. Luckily he did. A naughty smirk spread across Ren’s lips.

“Do I?” He said, slowly starting to stand up from the bench. I stood up with him and we both made eye contact briefly before he started dashing up the stairs, heading up towards my bedroom. I laughed then chased after him. This guy… Choi Ren… I didn’t know what I’d do without him. He was my hope. He was my reassurance that all things in this world, no matter how dark and grim they became, would eventually be alright. He helped me to feel better about my life when I thought that I had nothing left to show for it. He introduced me into a world full of fascinating people and transformed me into a better person. He taught me that it’s okay to be different, that it’s our differences that make us unique. My hearing loss… I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world. Without it, I would have never woken up from that terrible façade of mine where I thought I was the best and indestructible. I’m not Kang Baekho, an untouchable idol. I’m Kang Baekho, an ordinary citizen that has been lucky enough to have lived out part of my dream once and blessed enough to be given a second chance at it again. Without my hearing loss, I would have never gotten as close to the person who quite literally saved my life. We wouldn’t have as deep a connection as we do now, where I need him so much not just because of his advice and knowledge, but because of his heart. Because of Ren, I finally know what love really is.

Love… it’s the best feeling in the world.