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a/n:  the Myunggyu Version~ ^^

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Myungsoo looked at his reflection, eyes dark and sweat dripping down his face. He was panting as he finished practicing their new dance routine for the nth time. He never took a break until he was dead tired and his soul departed from his body in exhaustion. He needed to be perfect, he can’t make a single mistake if he wanted everyone to respect him.

The door suddenly opened and in came people having an argument. He bowed at them in acknowledgement and stayed quiet. He knew that the argument was about him, it was always about him, so he chose not to add fuel to the fire.

“I am not renewing my contract if this good for nothing pretty face stays!” Woohyun, his leader, shouted at his manager. “He doesn’t belong in the group and he doesn’t even have any talents!” Woohyun shouted more and it hurts to hear such insults.

“He had been working hard to meet everyone’s expectations, and had improved over the years.” Their manager argued.

“That is not enough! It’s either you keep him or us.” Woohyun gritted his teeth and the silence dawned on everyone as Woohyun posed a very difficult question.

Woohyun then walked out of the practice room, leaving a sighing manager who looked at Myungsoo with a pained smile. Myungsoo nodded and took his things.

He just couldn’t figure out why his bandmates hated him. He wasn’t one of the original members and was added in after the group debuted but that wasn’t enough reason to be hated on. He was gifted with a beautiful face but his voice and dancing skills weren’t that commendable. That pushed him to work harder than necessary and he did his best to not burden the group.

Infinite has been a household name and critics has been praising the idol group because of their visual, noting the vocals of the groups as a bonus. Myungsoo was signed on as product endorsers and as an actor, and he gave the credit back to Infinte. Yet instead of Infinite liking him like he hope they’d do, Infinite hated him, especially Woohyun.

He looked at the empty dorm and sighed to himself, was it hard to like him? Maybe hardwork isn’t enough and he just became popular because he was handsome, and he hated himself for being born attractive.

He took out his duffel bag and stuffed his black clothes inside and hurriedly entered his car. He sent a message to his manager and drove off, he has decided to leave rather than Infinite to disband, he loved the group that much to sacrifice his hard work.

He found himself driving to a city of off Seoul, and the signs read that he was approaching Gyeonggi-do. He wasn’t sure of what the city could offer him but it was better than Seoul.

He checked into a hotel and sighed, was his decision the best?  He wasn’t sure if it was but would he rather continue his idol life knowing that the fake smiles that he was receiving as a member of a band. He closed his eyes and prepared himself as the news of his departure hit the country.

In the next few days, he had heard of the news of Jonghyun and Key’s break up, he had seen it coming when he caught his leader pushing Key on a wall in a bar once and he just felt it was good that they broke up now rather than later, his sunbae whom he looked up to deserved someone better.

He walked around town and a sound so pure caught his attention. It was from a small music store and he had instant attraction to the place. Guitars have been his passion and the store hold such masterpieces of the said instrument. But as he ventured further inside, he heard the voices of kids and a soulful one that he thought to be an instructor. He passed by a window and saw the source of the sound, it was indeed a music class.

The kids were merely eight, and they were learning Arirang, a song embedded in every Korean’s heart. A small smile appeared on his face as he listened to the voices, pure and innocent and then his eyes rested on the man who was smiling brightly as he taught the kids the melody.

When the class ended, the bubbly kids waved goodbye to their instructor and left the room. Myungsoo stepped aside to let the kids ran to their parents and thanking the instructor that they called Sunggyu and walking out of the store. Myungsoo coughed a bit and then walked towards the instructor who was cleaning the score sheets he used for the class.

“How may I help you?” The instructor asked and got a surprise to see an idol enter his studio. “Oh, a celebrity, how may I help you?” he asked and flashed a smile.

“I… Do you teach songs?” Myungsoo asked and the instructor raised a brow, how peculiar the question sounded.

“If you are pertaining to vocal lessons, well yes, I teach kids to sing.” He replied with a hearty laugh.

“Do you think you could teach me then?” Myungsoo asked and the instructor raised his brows further up and looked at the idol in a questioning gaze.

“Your company could pay renowned vocal coaches for that.” He replied and Myungsoo sighed.

“I quit the agency, I am practically unemployed person.” Myungsoo confessed and the instructor nodded and sat on the bench.

“I am Sunggyu and if you are unemployed, how can you afford the fees?” Sunggyu asked and Myungsoo sighed.

“I am going to find a job.” Myungsoo shrugged and it made Sunggyu laugh.

“You are pretty good with guitars right?”” Sunggyu asked and Myungsoo nodded. “I could ask our manager to get you into part time.” Sunggyu smiled at him and then pressed some keys and Myungsoo instantly recognized it.

“41 days.” Myungsoo uttered and Sunggyu nodded. “It’s one of my favorites.” Myungsoo smiled bitterly.

“Really?” Sunggyu asked and Myungsoo nodded.

“Woohyun hyung composed it and the first time I heard it, I got attached.” Myungsoo revealed and SUnggyu’s eyes twitch a little but it was noticed by the idol.

“Woohyun?” He asked and Myungsoo nodded.

“Infinite’s leader.” Myungsoo said and Sunggyu only nodded.

Silence took over them, awkward and thick, until Sunggyu’s hands dance along the keys and an unfamiliar song hit Myungsoo’s ears. It was a beautiful song, off pain and longing, of undeserving love. Myungsoo can relate to it, maybe not in terms of love for another person, but with the rejection of people despite his hard work.

He hadn’t noticed when it happened but Sunggyu stopped playing and he felt the instructor’s palm on his face, and he saw his sincere smile and his reassuring gaze as he heard the most sincere sentence in his entire idol life.

“I’ll help you.”

And Myungsoo let out the tears that he had kept for so long and the pain that chained his heart. In that moment, the man in front of him wasn’t judging or criticizing him, this man was trying to help him; and he felt his heart lighten up a bit.

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a/n: it will be an angsty start~  anyway, I hope I can write this faster. Also, I know that it is a risky story, combining three different pairs so I hope you’ll be patient with me. Each pair would be different and I would try to give each pair a spotlight of their own~

so please stay with me. Thank you