It was one of the few days where most of the members had absolutely no schedule. They were all scattered and decided to have some of their own me time, some decided to relax in the dorm, some went back  home and a few were in China; Yixing doing his activities and Tao was back home with his family, resting and recovering from the injuries that has accumulated from their strenuous schedule.

Sehun was sprawled on his bed, watching random dance videos online on his laptop as he heard his phone buzz on his bedside table. He stretched like cat from his position before sitting up and grabbed his phone lazily; the screen was lit with a preview of the text he received. He unlocked the phone with his thumbprint and opened the text, he smiled seeing that it was from Tao – his best friend, brother, soul mate or whatever you want to call their relationship – they never labeled it as they feel like their relationship is above any existing labels, they’re just really close and are each others’ support, nothing more needs to be explained.

Sehun opened the text happily, not knowing that the contents of it would change his day, and probably his whole life as well. As he read the text, he felt as if the whole world had stopped and that he had lost the ability to process anything, not even the words displayed on the phone as he read it over and over again.

“Sehun ah, I just wanted you to hear this from me before anyone else tells you or before you see in online. My father has posted a letter online about his feeling of me being in Exo, being in SM. You know he’s been against it for a while now and you know the reason is mainly because of how my injuries have gotten worse…I guess this is his final straw. You know I don’t want to leave. You know how much I love the stage, our members, and our fans...but I don’t know what to do right now. My father won’t listen to me. He’s strong headed and I’m stuck in between my family and my work. I just want you to hear this from me and not from anyone else. I’m really sorry. I hope you won’t hate me or my family. I haven’t told any of the members yet either…I don’t know what to say to them. I’m scared and I’m just really...really sorry. I’m sorry Sehun-ah.”

Sehun lost the strength in his arm as the words sunk in, Tao’s father is making him leave Exo, Tao will no longer be an Exo member, he is losing his best friend...he sighed shakily as he leaned back against the headboard, running his fingers through his hair in frustration as he sighs again. As he sat on his bed blinking and staring at no particular spot on his bedroom wall, he faintly noticed his phone buzzing and coming to life again. After a while, as if on auto-pilot he grabbed the phone and unlocked it, trying to control his breathing, not knowing what to expect. It was another text from Tao.

“I know you’ve read my previous text, and its been 30 minutes since you read it...I should probably give you time to process it all and not be pushy but I just really do not want to lose you. I hope you can understand.”

Sehun looked at the time on his phone and was shocked that he had zoned out for that long, he quickly dialed Tao’s number. He didn’t know what to say, he didn’t know how to voice out his feelings right now but he does know that no matter what, he will support Tao. He of all people knows how much Tao has suffered over the years, not just physically but how emotionally and mentally drained he was as well. Sehun gulped slowly as he heard the dial tone, praying that Tao would pick up quick. After the fifth ring, he heard silence on the other line, he pulled the phone away form his ear, quickly looking at it to check whether the line was cut or not; it wasn’t, Tao was just being quiet on the other end and so was he. But as he paid close attention to the silence, thinking of what he wanted to say, he heard the faint sound of Tao’s erratic breathing, slowly getting more stable before he took a deep breath.

“S-Sehun ah..I’m sorry…I really..”

“Hyung,” Sehun said firmly, they were both surprised at Sehun’s choice of word and tone as he rarely ever called Tao hyung unless it was on broadcast  and the usual teasing and nonchalance in his voice was gone as well, “I understand where you’re coming from with all of this and I want to thank you for telling me first. I’m just still shocked so I don’t really know what to say or how to respond to this but I just want you to know that I won’t ever hate you. Just know that.” There was a moment of silence after before he heard Tao sighing in relief and mumbled a nearly inaudible “Thank you Sehun-ah...”

Sehun clears his throat before moving on, “have you talked to the other members about this?”

“…no. I don’t know what to say.”

“Hyung they all know about your condition and how your family has been feeling.  It should be okay. It’s better for you to tell them first...“

“I’m scared Sehun-ah. Everyone has gone through so much the past two year. I know they’ll hate me...and the fans-”

“Hyung hold on,” Sehun interjected as he heard a commotion in the common area of the dorm and sounds of rushed footsteps heading towards his room, and just as he expected, the room to his door burst open to a perplexed looking Junmyeon.

“Sehun have you heard about Tao? Are you okay? Do you know about this?” Junmyeon questioned quickly as he walked towards his bed, only noticing that Sehun has his phone up against his ear, “who are you on the phone with? Is that Tao? I’ve been trying to call him. Give that to me.”

Junmyeon grabbed the phone away and quickly barked at it “Huang Zitao don’t you dare drop this call or so help me God I will go to China the first flight available to hunt you down and tie you up so we can talk about this.” Junmyeon took the silence on the line as a sign of cooperation and pursed his lips tightly before speaking up again. “Are you okay? You’re alright, right?” he looked around the room that has now filled up with a few of the other members who just knew about the news and heard Junmyeon’s fuss in Sehun’s room, he nodded slowly and sat on the bed, “Tao I’m gonna put this call on speaker phone okay? Kyungsoo, Chanyeol and Baekhyun are here as well. I’m sure they want to know what’s going on as well.”

He slowly lowered the phone and put it on loudspeaker as the others shuffle around, forming a circle around the phone, nervously exchanging glances with each other.

“Um..I-I guess everyone has seen t-the post?” Tao said slowly, voice shaky. After hearing sounds of acknowledgement from the members he continued on, “I’ve told Junmyeon hyung before about how my dad feels about me being in Exo, I don’t know if the rest of the members know about this but my parents have been very worried about my health and they’ve wanted me to stop for a while now, especially after all my injuries and I guess this recent comeback and activity plan that’s made up was his final straw before he decided to put a stop to it all. I honestly do not want to stop. I love being on the stage…and all the members have taken care and treated me well…I’m just really sorry it’s come to this. there's just so much misery behind this glamourous job. I didn’t know how to tell you…my dad has been talking about this the moment he got me back home. I wanted to tell you from the start but I was scared..”

“Tao ya..” Kyungsoo said softly, “it’s okay, we know.”

“No hyung, I don’t want to hurt the members and the fan anymore…first Kris and then Luhan gege left it was hard for  everyone, I know it, I experienced it too…I didn’t want to cause more pain..”

“Seeing you hurt and blaming yourself when you couldn’t perform was more hurtful Tao,” Junmyeon answered.

That night they spent hours on the phone, talking about absolutely everything they've kept in, discussing the past, present and future but mostly just praying for a better tomorrow. They promised to keep in touch no matter what happened, no matter what restrictions are put on them, no matter how they have to act in front of the media and public, they promised to be brothers in private. 

AN: Might continue depends on the outcome of all the 'discussions' they're doing. But as for now, this is it. I choose to believe in Exo, to believe in Tao. He loves the stage, he loves the members, he loves the fans. But he's stuck between his family and his health vs his passion & work. And honestly, I just want him to be healthy and happy. We all know what's happened over the years, how he's been in and out of the hospital. Let's just pray for the best and respect his decision no matter what. Let's keep supporting them. K+L+M 사랑하자!