[Ren's POV]

                Over the next couple days, I managed to get the next lot of lyrics in my head. Now, it was getting the emotions right. This was when I actually had to start rehearsing with Chen instead of Kris. Even though Chen and I are good friends, it was so awkward being alone together.

                "How'd you learn to control your voice so well?" he asked.

                "My vocal teacher was the same as yours," I said. "So, just as you do, I guess."

                "Yeah, but you picked up faster," said Chen. "I noticed when Crescere debuted, you clearly were more mature in experience."

                "Well, not by much," I mumbled, half-heartedly. "Hey, Jongdae-ah...why did you ask me this favour?"

                Chen suddenly met my eyes. His eyes softened completely, revealing the angel behind the troll. It was almost eerie.

                "Was it to make Kimi jealous?" I asked, straightforwardly.

                Chen sighed lightly before answering. "Yes..."

                I then sighed. I wasn't sure whether I should feel flattered or upset.

                "Here's the thing," Chen started. "Sehun really likes her. He won't admit it, but the day Kimi came by to try and get Tao to up to her, Sehun kept trying to stand up for her. I figured if I managed to make her more jealous, Sehun will have more reason to up to her. And as her leader, I thought you might like a piece of the action. But I wasn't lying about Liyin Noona; she's recovered but I still want to sing this with her. I didn't know another song I could have sung with you."

                In a way, it sounded like he was trying to be playful with me. But I wasn't sure if he knew that he was helping me a lot too.

                "What's the deal with you two anyway?" asked Chen. "I mean, we all know she's a jealous little brat but...why is it still going?"

                I shrugged. "I didn't think I'd have to mother her so much. Honestly, since we debuted I haven't had the time to think about it properly. I guess, being with Oppa has made me realise how much I'm actually giving up to be with him. Not like I had much to begin with."

                "You're not thinking of quitting, are you?" asked Chen.

                "Of course not! I just wished she'd be more mature about it," I said. "Look, I'm her leader, but not her mother! There's only so much I can say!"

                "Then say it!" exclaimed Chen. "She's away from home, the same as you. Yeah, maybe she has a home to go back to, but she's not going back for a long while and she hasn't been back since debut either. One way or another, she'd be off track a little. She needs someone to keep her on track. Her problem was letting that person be you; but now, she realises you are the only person, but she doesn't trust you enough because you've been with Kris Hyung this whole time!"

                "Not the whole time!" I exclaimed. "And why are you yelling at me?"

                "I'm not! I'm sorry," Chen sighed. "It's just...I know you're a tough chick. I just can't get my head around the fact that you're being so soft with Kimi. Look, we all know the day will come where you two will take things more serious. Don't you think it'd be better if you parted in peace with your members?"

                I always pictured EXO and Crescere still living on even after we got married. But Chen was right about Kimi.

                I sighed in agreement. "Since when did you become such a smart ?"

                Chen shrugged playfully. "I have my ways."

*

[Kris' POV]

                I wasn't sure if I was being of great help, but since I found myself in that situation, I thought I'd go for it.

                On my way to the studio to spy on Ren and Chen, I passed by the girls' change room where Kimi was just coming out of. She had gotten dressed into her training gear but she looked rather miserable.

                "Oh, Kimi-ah," I called.

                "Oh, Oppa...are you here for rehearsal?" she asked softly.

                "Aniya, I thought I'd spy on Ren and Chen to see if they're doing well," I said, honestly. "Oh, you guys have rehearsals after, don't you?"

                "Ne, in about half an hour," said Kimi. "I thought I'd get a head start. The Unnies keep telling me I'm going wrong on the same spot, so I thought I'd practice that."

                "Well, that's good," I said. "You're dedicated."

                "Oh yeah? I doubt the Unnies think so."

                Her face dropped again. It felt a little funny looking down on her tiny figure, so I turned her around and sat her down on the seats next to the change room entrance. I sat next to her, but she looked back at me, utterly bewildered.

                "Oppa, what are you doing?"

                "Don't worry, I'm not gonna hurt you," I said. "Tell me; what do the Unnies say?"

                Kimi realised very quickly that I was going to try and give her a talk. She looked like she was trying to get out of it as fast as she could. She kept turning her head away from me and looked down the hallway.

                "Just that I should practice the part I keep getting wrong," she said simply.

                "Outside of work," I added.

                I kept my focus firmly fixed on her to show her that I wasn't letting her go. She looked more and more intimidated. But it got me thinking; how did Ren overlook this?

                "It's not just the Unnies," Kimi then grumbled. "It's the dongsaengs too."

                "Oh?"

                "They're ones to talk but. They don't understand."

                "What don't they understand?"

                "They think I don't work hard. I trained the longest in singing. That was my major. I wanted to be a ballad singer. But my vocal trainer said I'd make a better performing idol. I thought it was OK."

                "And you're doing really well," I said. "You can still sing. You just have to scope out the places to sing."

                "But Ren Unnie got there first," said Kimi. "I wanted to be on Immortal Songs but they didn't even look at me. Even though I debuted through S.M. Rookies and CFs, everyone looks at Unnie first. It's not like I'm that far behind. She's just older."

                I kind of understood where she was coming from. It is pretty hard to try and be popular in the shadow of another member. But I get why all the Crescere members were so frustrated by her. S.M Rookies and the limited CFs Kimi has contributed in are her only achievements. Since debuting, she hasn't really done anything that isn't Crescere related.

                "Hoobae," I sighed. "Job offers don't come to you. You have to chase them. Most of the time, they will neglect you. But they don't accept you if you don't chase. Everyone knows you worked hard to become an idol, but the hard work doesn't stop there. But it's good you're working on it now. You just gotta keep it up for everything else."

                "There's nothing else for me now," said Kimi. "Ren Unnie's on singing shows, Jaekyung Unnie's on dancing shows, Saerom and Hyoim are DJ-ing, and Ruby's on variety shows and dramas."

                "You can always do that too," I said. "There's no harm if two members are doing the same thing. Like you said, Saerom and Hyoim are DJ-ing together. Why don't you work on your CFs like you used to?"

                "I realise they're getting overrated," Kimi groaned. "That's how I was introduced. Now I wanna do something different. But I hate hosting and I'm not tall enough to be a model."

                This kid had a way with her words. But at the end of each remark was a complaint. I managed to let it go at first, but now, I had to find out what Ren was lacking as far as discipline.

                "OK," I heaved. "You realise where I'm tryna get at, don't you?"

                "Ne...and I appreciate it, Sunbaenim. I really do. But I'm only doing what I can."

                "Well, now, I'm gonna come off in a completely different direction," I breathed. "It's not enough!"

                Kimi's expression finally exploded. She looked at me in horror and probably was about to cry.

                "It is possible to work at becoming better," I continued. "That's what Ren's doing; improving herself to get better. But you're not doing the same, that's why you're falling further and further behind. She may be the main vocalist, but it's possible to be known for a different reason. Your voice can still be heard, but you're getting less parts becase you're not improving. You're just the same as you were when you debuted; same as your dancing. Miyoung-ah, you can dye your hair as many colours as you like and change your concepts back and forth but that will not help you improve!"

                No doubt, the multiple hair colour changes she's gone through were inspired by Sehun. I was hoping their being together was what Chen was working on with Ren.

                "Look, I like watching you guys perform," I said. "And boy groups will always look at you guys. But they won't look at you specifically unless you stand up for yourself and your image. Being the face of the group doesn't mean you get let off. People may like you better for different reasons, but it won't benefit you too many times more than once. And I'm sure your Unnies have explained this to you multiple times. No one is asking you to do this for them. Do it for yourself! Many groups don't make it to debut because of line up changes and people bailing. If you keep at it, you'll be the next to be cut, even if you've already debuted! You know S.M.'s reputation; it's ruthless! Work at it!"

                I was actually surprised Kimi hadn't cried yet. She just kept listening attentively. I guess she had no choice but to do so, since I was the senior and the Oppa.

                "And...maybe..." I hesitated. "We're shooting a magazine cover in a few weeks. Maybe I can ask if they'll let you be another leading female."

                Kimi's face lit up. "You'd do that for me?"

                "Just this once," I said, quickly. "In the meantime, and afterward, you're on your own."

                "That's OK," Kimi said, happily. "Thank you, Oppa!"

                Leaping toward me, she swung her arms around my neck and was practically sitting on my lap. She was easy to hold onto because she was a lot smaller than Ren. It was nice to see her happy, but I was doubtful if everything else I said went into her mind as well.

                "Hyung?" Chen's voice called from a short distance.

                "Kimi-ah," Ren's voice called as well. "How long have you been here?"

                Kimi let go of me and stood up happily. "Oh, has it been half an hour already?"

                "No, we heard voices," said Ren. "We just came out to see who it was. Oppa, what are you doing here?"

                "I was about to spy on you, but I bumped into this Little One on the way," I said, standing up and patting Kimi on the head.

                "Kris Oppa said he'd get me a magazine photoshoot!" Kimi exclaimed, gleefully.

                "I said I'd put in a word, I can't promise the job," I said, glumly.

                "I know, I know, but thank you! No one's ever done that before!"

                "Yeah, because they have no reason to," Ren said, looking at me.

                "It's OK, it's the least I can do to help," I said.

                "Yeah, Unnie," Kimi pouted. "Have faith in him!"

                "Don't make it a habit though," Ren said in a firm tone. "You have to start looking for stuff on your own!"

                "I will, I will! Man, let me off for once!" said Kimi.

                "I have been. Now it's time to stop," said Ren. "Anyway, my voice is getting stuffed. Let's just practice now. Where are the others?"

                "Oh, they're coming."

                "All right then...good job," Chen said, patting Ren on the shoulder. "I will see you tomorrow. Hyung, you hungry?"

                "Yep," I piped. "Let's go. I'll call you later, babe."

                "Bye..."

*

[Ren's POV]

                The two of us watched the two of them walk out of the corridors. Kimi was still smiling brightly.

                "I hope his words were well taken," I said.

                "Oh, they were," said Kimi. "Hey, Unnie, would they hire a model for sitting purposes?"

                "Why?" I asked, slowly.

                "I'm too short to stand. And I don't think I'll grow anymore."

                I couldn't be entirely convinced that this attitude was going to last, and I was a little doubtful of the way Kris came around to her. But I had to admit, this was the most enthusiastic I've seen her about her career and it was also the first time she had thought so much into it.

                "So, should go practice a bit first?" she asked me.

                "Um...I guess," I said. "Let me get changed first."

                I watched Kimi skip to the rehearsal studio. I continued standing there for a good minute, attempting to absorb what had just happened.

                "Maybe she would've done better in a co-ed group," I muttered to myself.

i'm soooo sorry for not updating!!!
it's been a crazy couple weeks ><"
But i think i know how im gonna end this~
it might be a long fic, but it'll be good ^^