"And a one...and a two... and a three.. start."

Hoon’s P.O.V-
I heard someone clear their throat and opened my eyes to see Twelve or whatever their name is, standing in front of me. They had anger in their eyes which made me raise my eyebrows. “Lee Chi Hoon. I think we should talk.” The one I guessed was their leader took a step forward and crossed his arms. Deciding to spare Hyemi from all the drama I knew was coming as well as sparing the children in front of me the utter humiliation I would put them in, I got up and followed them out. When we made it to an empty practice room I sat down and waited for them to talk. “Look. You seem like a nice guy. You must have at least some good in you if Dino likes you that much. The thing is I won’t stand to see you insult us like that. We work too hard and have been through too much pain and have worked so hard to get to where we are to have you talk about us like that in front of others!” He was raising his voice and was honestly pissing me off. Annoyed with his talking, I raised my hand to shut him up. It worked. “First off… freedom of speech. Secondly, don’t talk like that. It’s bull. You don’t know what pain is. You don’t work hard. All of that.. it is just a lie.” I seemed to have struck a nerve since one of them grabbed me by my shirt and lifted me off the seat. I could see the one who supposedly admired me staring at me with sadness in his heart. It reminded me of her… I quickly looked away which they seemed to have noticed but simply shook it away. “Look Hoon. You may be a talented dancer but that is no need to have such a big ego. Trust me it makes you look like an . Pretending to be better than everyone.. it’s annoying. So what? You know what pain is? You know what hard work is? And if you are going to insult us take off this damn mask! It’s pissing me off.” He let me go and reached for my mask but I swiftly grabbed his hand and bent it, making him hiss in pain. I rolled my eyes and pushed him away. “I never said I knew what pain is. Or what hard work is. However I know someone who does. And you all… what you call pain and hard work isn’t even close. And as for my ego… well unlike you all I couldn’t care less what people thought about me. I never said I was better than anyone. I didn’t even say I was better than you. You all simply jumped to conclusions.” They were about to say something else when my phone vibrated. I raised a finger to tell them to wait and took it out, checking the text. When I saw it I couldn’t help but smile. So she found one already. I put my phone back into my pocket and started to walk away when I remembered something. “Please don’t ever try and touch me again. You could hurt yourself. Oh and you.” I turned around and pointed to the one with long hair. He seemed taken aback by the sudden confrontation. “Don’t ever sing that song again… It wasn’t for you.” He seemed confused which made me roll my eyes and start to walk again when someone grabbed my hand. Annoyed, I turned to see Dino.. staring at me with those eyes. I cleared my throat and looked away from him. “Hoon.. please don’t think of us like that. I… I really admire you. You are my inspiration.. I don’t want you to hate us..” I felt somewhat bad… he actually seemed pretty innocent. I was going to speak when the door opened and an angry Hyemi walked in. “Yah. Lee Chi Hoon. How dare you speak to them like that. Apologize now. You think she would want you to treat others like this?” I stared at her with a look I rarely give. “I am only returning the favor.” After saying that I left the room.
Hyemi’s P.O.V-
After he left I took a deep breath. The poor boys were all looking defeated and Dino looked like his whole world was crashing down. Sighing, I raised up my bag and smiled softly. “I brought snacks in case this would happen.” I quickly sat them all down and passed the food around. Each one of them smiled a bit but still looked defeated. “Please… don’t hate Hoon so much. He has been through alot and is still going through a lot. He knows you all work hard to get where you are now… as well as how much you would have had to give up. It’s just… he… he doesn’t think of it as pain. I’m sorry.. I can’t really explain much since it isn’t my place to do so. I just ask that you give him another chance. He doesn’t have many friends at this school… infact I think I am his only friend. Even for me… in the beginning he treated me the same. I know it may seem impossible but it is quite easy to become his friend. And once you do… it is like he is a completely different person. He becomes compassionate and kind to you. He has already given up so much in his life… all of his dreams.. his friends… he has already given up on life. It’s quite sad..” By now they were all paying close attention. “Why did you even want to be friends with him?” I smiled at their adorable leaders frown. He looked like a puppy. “Honestly… I was attracted to him. It wasn’t his looks that attracted me but more how he viewed everything. It was pretty refreshing. In a way I want to help him get back on track. He tells himself each day that this is what he wants in life but… it isn’t. I want to help him realize it.” Dino scooted over to me and smiled. “Noona… you are so nice...I would gladly be Hoon’s friend!” I grinned at the cute maknae before ruffling his hair. “Really?? You promised so no backing out!” I held a threatening finger at him before laughing. Everyone else seemed pretty unsure so I made them by saying they had to since I bought snacks. Hehehehe blackmail. We were all walking when we saw Hoon standing at the end of the hall. He seemed to be staring at a flyer that was posted. I was about to call him when he grabbed it and crumpled it up before throwing it in the trash and walking away. Sighing, I walked towards the bucket and grabbed it, unfolding it. It was a singing competition. There would be idol judges. That boy…. I shook my head before putting the paper back up and turning to the others. “Well hopefully your first day wasn’t too bad. I’ll see you tomorrow okay? Bye!” I bowed towards them before waving and walking off into the other direction. I knew they would need to go the other way to leave the school, and in the process end up running into Hoon.
Dino’s P.O.V-
While we were walking we saw Hoon. He looked so peaceful just walking. Somehow even his walk was graceful and balanced. We were all walking in pure silence until we heard music in the distance. There was an older man with a nearly broken guitar, singing his heart out. It wasn’t that good to be honest… and he wasn’t attracting much customers. We all got pretty nervous when Hoon suddenly stopped in front of him and turned to watch. I hope he doesn’t do anything… I mean since he hates singing and all. To our surprise he pulled out his wallet and dropped some money into the small bin. He was even clapping along to the broken keys. After a bit we saw him walk into a convenience store and then return with bags of food. He placed all the food in front of the man and took his jacket off so the man could sit on it instead of the dirty floor. While the man was eating happily, Hoon grabbed his guitar and actually began tuning it. He is full of surprises huh… Coups started walking towards the peaceful duo with a rather strange expression. When we reached them I began to take note of the old man. His clothes were really dirty and he was too skinny. He was homeless… When they finally noticed us they only ignored us. Hoon had just finished tuning the guitar and strung it gently, exposing a beautiful tune. His eyes turned into slight crescent shapes so I presume he was smiling. He finally got up and was cleaning up the empty cartons of food from the man. He went to throw it away before coming back and pulling out his wallet, giving the man some more money. “Make sure you eat more. You’re too skinny. I’ll visit you often to tune your guitar when needed.” The old man was about to get up to give him his jacket back but Hoon only motioned him to sit back down. “You keep it. It suits you more than me.” The old man smiled warmly at him who smiled back. He bowed respectfully to him before grabbing his bag and walking away from us. We were still recovering from the scene we had just witnessed. How strange… I was the first to run after him. “Wow! Hoon that was so cool!” I gave him a thumbs up but he only stared at me with a blank expression and kept walking. “Lee Chi Hoon. I must say I was wrong about you. I guess you do have a heart. That was pretty cool what you did back there. Why did you do it? It didn’t seem your style.” Coups seemed to still be unfavorable of him. That was obvious. Hoon stopped walking and turned to face him. “Let me ask you something.. did you think he was good. Be honest.” We all turned to our leader who shook his head slowly. “Then why did you stop to listen to him?” It is true that we stopped for him but that wasn’t the only reason. “I.. I don’t know?” Hoon took a deep breath before turning to point at the man who was up and singing again. “His face. You can tell he enjoys it. He has so much passion in him. He obviously knows he is singing off-key but he still sings. Why? Passion. I admire him for that… and yet all these rich people walk past.. not noticing it.” I felt somewhat guilty and soon ran over to the man and dropped some money into his container. When I came back to them, Hoon was looking at me with yet another blank look. He then turned and started walking away. Startled, we walked by him once more. “What are you doing? Don’t you have anything important to do? You are idols after all.” The last part was bitter and honestly bugged me as well as everyone else. “I thought we could hang out!” Minghao smiled softly at the boy who simply shook his head. “I don’t hang out with people. Besides I have work.” He left us all alone before walking into a pretty packed cafe. There were girls giggling and pointing at him. In the end we decided to stay a while. Of course that caused fans to swarm around us and ask for out autograph. In that moment, Hoon came back in black pants, a white shirt, and a black apron. He looked good… Girls started to swoon over him and went back to their seats where he would meet them. He was working hard that is for sure and he was even being kind to the girls. At least he has manners. The door opened and a nerdy looking girl I recognized from the academy walked in. Automatically, people stared at her and cringed. She had pretty damaged hair and had acne on her face. Her nose was a bit big and she stuck out like a sore thumb. She was about to walk to an empty corner of the cafe when Hoon turned to look at her. “Ah.. you’re back!” He walked up to her and bowed slightly. He then turned to his side and held his hand out for her. Hesitantly, she grabbed it and was led to the table where he pulled out her chair and sat her down. You could tell the other girls were jealous by how some ate their food or sipped their drinks. He left to go prepare her a drink behind the counter and I couldn’t help but admire his concentration. He brewed the coffee so carefully and precise. He then returned to her and placed it in front of her before pulling up a chair and sitting next to her.
Hoon’s P.O.V-
You could tell she was nervous which made me chuckle. How cute. I put my hand into my apron pocket and pulled out a small box before handing it to her. She looked at me with such confused eyes it made me smile. She was innocent and pure. Just like her. She was beautiful. People just couldn’t see it. When she opened it, she gasped at the necklace inside. It was a small rose. The color matched her face at the moment. I was actually grinning at how she was stuttering. I got up and grabbed the necklace from her before walking behind her and placing it over her. I bent down slightly to put it on her and once I did, I gathered her hair and pulled it up, letting the necklace drop to her neck. I walked back to her front and held up a thumbs up. “Wow…. beautiful.” She was so red. It was so cute! “T-Thank you Hoon.. but I can’t accept this…” I frowned at her before kneeling down on one knee in front of her. I could hear whispering around but brushed it off. “Why? Do you not like it?” She quickly shook her head which made me smile. “Good. But you have to keep it. I already bought it and there was no refunds.” I smirked at her which she couldn’t see obviously. In the end she nodded and I left her to go attend other customers. That is when I noticed the only people I hadn’t served were them. I sighed and walked up to them with a rather annoyed expression. “What do you want?” Their so-called leader scoffed at me and folded his arms. “What? Can’t we come here?” I brought my hand up to my forehead and began rubbing it. “I meant what do you want to order.” He seemed a bit embarrassed about his mistake and it honestly made me smile a bit. In the end they asked for coffee. I took a deep breath and was starting to make their drinks when I heard my phone ringing. … I can’t answer my phone during work. I slightly cursed the boys sitting ahead. It wouldn’t be a problem making one simple coffee but thirteen?! The moment I finished serving them I told my boss I had to take an important call. He scolded me for a bit before letting me go. I quickly walked out and opened my phone.
1 Missed Call- Hospital
My heart slightly dropped and I quickly called them back. “H-Hello? I received a call earlier but wasn’t able to answer it. Yes… my name is Lee Chi Hoon. Of course.” I was put on hold and couldn’t help but be nervous. Finally, they spoke to me. When they told me what was up… I felt my whole world crashing down. “How much?...” When I heard my answer I felt tears build up inside of me. Slowly, I hung up and held my head down. How could this happen…. I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself down before walking back into the cafe. The idols called me over but I was still in shock so I didn’t respond until the third time they called. Slowly, I walked up to them and quietly asked what they wanted. I didn’t want to seem so weak but… “...Are you okay? You’re eyes are a bit red..” They were all staring at me with those eyes. I felt pressure build up inside of me and knew I was going to break down. I needed to get out of here. Unknowingly, a tear dropped down. I slightly froze before quickly walking to the back of the cafe and changing. Once I gathered my stuff I told my boss I was having a sick day and needed to get home. Worried I was going to get his customers sick, he let me go. I practically ran out of there and the first place I went was back to the school. It would be too late to go there anyways. All the lights from the school were off so it was pretty dark. I walked to my practice room and shut the door before letting my body fall to the floor, crying. It isn’t fair…. I was banging my fist on the floor when I heard someone clear their throat. So they followed me… “Hoon… you’ll hurt yourself so stop it..” Before I could even respond Hyemi pushed through them and rushed by my side. She pulled me into a hug and I let it all out. It hurts so much. I was crying into her arms and she was rubbing my back softly. “Hoon… what happened?” After a couple more minutes of crying I finally composed myself. I looked at the boys in the corner but then sighed and asked them to leave. Thankfully they understood and followed through with my wish. “The hospital called..” She gave me a look that urged me to go on. “She needs two surgeries. One for her legs and the other for . They think she is showing symptoms of lung cancer. She is going to die if she doesn’t get the surgery..” I looked at the ground and let some more tears escape. How could this happen to you.. I heard Hyemi slightly gasp before she pulled me into another hug. “I need to pay $43,335 for the operations and the physical therapy.” Her eyes were watering but she was trying her best not to cry. She needed to stay strong for me… “I only have about a couple thousand… but nothing close to that amount. Hyemi… what am I going to do?”
Hyemi’s P.O.V-
By now he was back to normal. His voice was steady and his eyes emotionless. However.. he still seemed desperate. “Hoonie… Just listen to me okay? That contest… the prize is $10,000. You should go for it… I know how you feel about singing but this is a fast way to get money!” Hoon frowned at me as I spoke. “No. I won’t do that.. I’ll sell everything I have and drop out of school to work.” He stood up to leave but I quickly grabbed his hand. “Hoon… please. Just think of her.. this is the fastest way to help her. I am sure she would understand if you participated!” He didn’t look at me but sighed a sad sigh. “I am thinking of her..”
Vernon’s P.O.V-
We were all standing outside, waiting for them to come out. We had no clue why the cold-hearted boy was crying like that. It made me sad though. In that moment the door opened and Hoon walked out of the room, walking straight past us without even giving us another look. I went into the practice room to see Hyemi staring at me with sad eyes. None of us knew what had occurred but it was pretty obvious that the girl didn’t want to speak about it anymore. So we all just walked her out of the school building. She slightly bowed to us before heading her way, leaving us to wonder what the hell just happened. When we made it to the dorm we were all pretty exhausted but still had to practice for our next song. We practiced for a couple hours and then took a break. While most of us were catching our breath, Hoshi got up and walked up to the mirror before dancing. I recognized the dance to be Hoon’s choreo. He really is talented. Even Hoshi doesn’t pull it off like he does. Soon enough we all got washed up and collapsed onto our beds, letting sleep consume us.
Junghan’s P.O.V-
And of course we were late for our second day of school. I guess we were all too tired. For me.. I couldn’t sleep. I kept thinking about what Hoon said to me. What song was he talking about? When did he hear me sing? So many questions were running through my head at that moment. When we made it to the academy, we heard whispering all around. What was everyone talking about? We walked into a crowded room to see a group of four guys sitting right beside Hoon and goofing off while he had his hood up and was sleeping against the wall. So he does have friends? We spotted Hyemi and called her over. She came over grinning and wishing us a good morning which we gladly returned. “Noona who are they? What is going on??” Vernon signalled towards the group of five. She motioned us to sit down which we obliged. “They are his old friends. I guess they transferred here today. Rumor has it they came here to get him back into their band.” We all looked around in confusion. He was in a band? “Didn’t think he would be in a band but I guess I can see it. He did seem pretty good at the guitar the other day.” Hyemi smiled at my comment before shaking her head. “Oh he wasn’t on the guitar. He was the singer.” I nearly choked on my spit. Lee Chi Hoon, the boy who despises singing, was the singer?! “I suppose it IS pretty surprising. But trust me… he is a very talented singer. Don’t tell him I told you but he actually loves singing. It was always his dream to become a singer as a kid.. but of course that changed.” I noticed her getting quiet towards the end and was going to say something but a teacher walked in and posted what looked like a sign-up sheet online. Some students walked up and signed their names before walking away. Me and the rest of them walked up to the sheet and scanned it. So it’s a singing contest huh? Winner gets… $10,000?! Wow.. The highest number of people per team was six. Great. We can just get into our teams. After we signed up we heard whispering and turned to see Hoon and the other guys walking up to us. He grabbed a pen and signed their names down. Their band was called Oblivion. Cool name… “Hoon good luck. We will be giving it our all. We won’t lose to you guys.” We all grinned at the boys who grinned back at us, that is..except Hoon. “Good luck to you as well… but I am sorry… I refuse to lose.”