”Sit with me today?”

Taehyun smiled at Jinwoo as he hooked his arm onto his hyung’s as they boarded the airplane. He didn’t even look back at Minho. He didn’t want to. Things had been so awkward since that last message he had sent last weeks, it was hard to put an act as if nothing was wrong. Unlike the other, he couldn’t easily be completely nonchalant about it. Not that he hadn’t tried. But when he had even the other members had noticed and asked him what was wrong. To which he had told them everything was fine and he was just tired because of their busy schedule.  A believable excuse. Even their leader hadn’t asked twice about it.

Now you won’t even talk to me?

He blinked twice, staring down at the words on his phone. Was it really him? Not able to overcome his curiosity, Taehyun stretched his neck and looked over at the seat where he knew Minho would be sitting with his fellow rapper. For a split second their eyes met and then he quickly turned around, feeling his cheeks burn at his own stupidity. Damn his curiosity, and damn Minho for suddenly dropping a bomb like that. Thankfully they didn’t sit next to each other, and the schedule in Japan meant that there would be little time to talk apart from when on stage. And on stage was always different. They could interact as a part of the performance without actually interacting. Most of it was scripted after all.

Reaching for his phone, Taehyun stared at the phone and slid deeper down in his seat. Fingers moved to start typing up an answer, but whenever he wrote more than two words he would erase it and let out a sigh deep enough for Jinwoo to look up from his computer game. What would it matter if he replied? It wouldn’t reach till their plane landed down at Haneda anyway, and by then maybe his feelings had changed? Two hours and maybe his feelings would change? Maybe he would catch the rapper’s eyes as they got off the plane and feel bad again about his last message? To not even get a reply had been harsh, and even if he hated to admit it even to himself, he had cried over it. When they finally seemed to take one step forward, they would take two steps backwards again. Or more correctly: Minho would take three steps backwards, turn his back and run into hiding for a few days. Every time it happened it would hurt a little bit more.

Will you make it in time then?

In the end he had sent it, not sure when Minho would be able to check his phone for messages. At the airport? Most likely. But there was no time for them to talk through it. It was probably best that way. The less they could talk before their performance, the easier it would be to concentrate and act as if nothing had happened. Yeah, that was definitively the best way to go at it.

As soon as the plane touched down in Japan Taehyun found his phone again and turned off flight mode on his phone. And as soon as he did that a slight vibration notified him of a new message:

I will try.

”Sit with me today?”

Minho’s eyes widened at the magnae’s sudden words, but didn’t say anything. Of course he would choose a different seating pattern than they normally did. Normally they would sit together, hands touching when people didn’t look at them. Some times they would talk all the way, and sometimes Minho would pretend to be tired and fall asleep. When actually it was just an excuse to lean against the other for a good two hours without explaining or defending his actions to himself or the other.

Dumping down in the seat next to Seunghoon, he instantly plugged in his earphones and turned the volume up. Better make it clear from the start he didn’t feel like talking. How could one guy make him so confused and frustrated? And still… Taehyun was right in being mad. Minho knew he had been a bit too harsh on the other, that his own confusion had caused the younger man pain. He knew all that, he knew it all so damn well, but that wasn’t enough for him to change. So why should he reach out and try to change when it wouldn’t work? Looking up from his phone his eyes fell on the seat he knew Taehyun would be sitting in. It wouldn’t work changing, but perhaps this one was worth at least trying?

Now you won’t even talk to me?

Before he knew it the message was sent and the rapper growled inwardly. That wasn’t what he had meant to say. It had been about the twentieth attempt to write out a decent message for the other the flight attendant had announced over the speaker system that they would be taking off in not too long and asked to kindly put their phones on flight mode. He had panicked and now he had sent a message that sounded too harsh to the other.

A sudden movement caught his eyes, he looked up and those familiar dark eyes caught his glance. So he had read it. The look only lasted for a few seconds, but it left Minho uneasy for the rest of the flight. To let someone get this much power over him… since when had Song Minho been this weak? Twitching in his seat he wished for a brief second he hadn’t even come to this company, but it was only for a second. After two failures, he had been given the chance to debut. He had received the recognition he so much desired and met four people he could actually feel comfortable with.  Three people. Nothing was comfortable with the group magnae, just very, very confusing and hard on him.

Will you make it in time then?

Minho’s eyes bulged as he looked down on his phone and he dropped in the floor in surprise. The plane had barely even touched the ground yet and now this? His gaze flickered in direction of the familiar back head one row in front of him and then back at his phone. There wasn’t even time to think about it, there was only one answer. Actually there were three, and sadly he could not give the younger man the answer he truly wanted. But this should be plenty?

I will try.

Author's note: So after request I tried to add a second chapter to this fic! I'm not sure it turned out the way I want it to or what direction it is headed in, but I tried. Hope you enjoy it!