"Have you heard the rumors?" said Junyoung.
"Yeah. It's such a waste. He was really preparing for his album to drop," said Eunji sinking into the bench beside Kiyoung.
"Do you think he'll push the release to a later date or something?" asked Minchan.
"If that happens, we might not be able to perform with him," said Junyoung.
"What if he changes the whole concept?" asked Kiyoung.
"What do you think, Chahye?" asked Eunji.

Chahye was busy doing stretchings in front of the mirror and wasn't really paying much attention to their conversation. Thinking about the disappointment Dean might be going through also put a deep cut into Chahye's heart. She doesn't understand why she's feeling like that but she was and it was bothering her. She feels so bad for Dean. And even though she hasn't seen him or talked to him yet, it's as if she feels the same hurt he must be feeling. She wanted to erase the thought from her head and that's why she was already preparing before their choreographer arrived.

"Chahye?" asked Eunji again.
"I don't know. I... I think we should leave him alone first and wait," said Chahye as she turned around to look at her fellow dancers.
"Aren't you even worried about him?" asked Minhwan.
"I... I am," said Chahye avoiding their eyes.
"I hope the guy's all right," said Junyoung standing up and approached Chahye. "We better do our best and show Dean we're here to support him no matter what."
"This isn't really a big problem for idols, as far as I know," said Minhwan. "But knowing how Dean puts all of his heart into his songs, he must be really hurt right now."
"I agree. Poor guy," said Kiyoung.
"What exactly do people get from spreading rumors and unreleased songs though? Can't they at least respect the artist and their plans?" said Eunji slightly raising her voice.
"We would never know," sighed Kiyoung.

Just then, the door to the studio opened. The dancers didn't give much attention about it since they're all pretty used to people coming in and out. But Chahye saw the reflection of the people peeking inside. She immediately turned around and called them.

"Jusen. Camper. Triple x. Chekparren. What are you guys doing here?" she asked in a soft voice as she approached them. Good thing Eunji and Minchan didn't turn around to look. If they would, they're all dead.
"Chahye... We need you," said Camper in a pleading tone.
"For what?" she asked as she stood in front of the door.
"It's Dean. We need you. He needs you," said Chekparren.
"Huh?! Why?!" she said almost in worry.
"Come with us," said Jusen reaching for her arm and pulling her to follow them.
"Wait. Where are you taking me?!" she said in surprise getting dragged out of the studio.
Eunji, unfortunately, turns around and saw Chahye's body disappear from inside the studio. 2xxx! caught her eyes. "We're borrowing Chahye!" he said. "But she might not come back. Thanks!" he shouted as he followed the others upstairs.
"What?! Wait!" Eunji said chasing after them only to not see them out of the foruth floor's hall. "Where did they take her?!"

~

The boys said Dean's been locking himself inside his studio and turned down their invite to have lunch with them, which he never does. Food lightens up his mood and it was the first time he said no. Jusen even said that he's been shouting and crying since that morning, even throwing stuff everywhere in the studio before forcing them to get out. He has never been that mad according to Camper. They tried to make Millic come and try to talk hto him but he was too occupied at the moment and couldn't run to the studio quickly.

"You're the only who could calm him down, other than Millic," said Jusen.
"I tried to talk to him but he didn't even look like he was listening," said 2xxx!.
"And what makes you think I could calm him down?!" said Chahye in disbelief.
"Because he loves you. He's bound to calm down when you smile at him," said Jusen.
"What?! Let me just inform you guys, that I, even though I have a nice smile, I still manage to annoy him at times," said Chahye pushing through them to go.
"Chahye, please?!" said Chekparren pulling her back near the door. "If you don't succeed then we don't know what to do anymore."
"The other person we know that could slap him back into reality is Keith Ape," said 2xxx!.
"And we really can't ask the guy to come back here and actually punch Dean to get his nerves back, you know," said Jusen.
"But... I can't... I don't know how to do this," said Chahye.
"You don't have to say anything. Just get in there," said Camper.

Jusen took a pair of keys and put one into the locked door. Just then, they heard a loud groan coming from inside and something hard came crashing onto the door. "That has got to be the stapler or something," said Camper when they all took a step back.

Jusen turned the key and the knob and it worked. He pulled Chahye closer to him while he slowly pushed the door open. He looked at Chahye and they both nodded.

Chahye slowly moved her head inside the room, looking around. "D-Dean?" she hummed softly. The next scene surprised her as she took a small step inside.

Camper was right. The stapler was what Dean threw last. There were pads of paper everywhere on the floor. The carpet was curled at the edges and the couch pillows were disarray, one of them under the computer table as well. His pens were on the floor as well. A coffee cup was right beside the garbage bin, its lid almost a meter away. And there was Dean, leaning in front of the computer, his hands gripping on the table's edges, his head hung low. He wasn't wearing his favorite jacket. It was actually sprawled beside the couch. He must have thrown it earlier. He was just in his jeans and a white shirt.

"D-Dean...?" Chahye called out once more, this time a bit louder.

And Dean heard him.

He slowly turned his head and Chahye immediately saw the glare in his eyes. It scared her. She wanted to step back and turn around but she felt glued to the floor as he was now fully standing across her.

"Who told you to come here?!" he asked with a raised voice which Chahye was finding hard to tell if he was mad that she's there or because someone invaded his space.
"I... I was just... I just wanted...to see you," she said with trembling lips. She put a hand behind her back and tried to signal the boys to follow her inside. But Dean suddenly walked towards her and grabbed her other arm making her gasp, pulling her fully inside the room. With his other hand, he pushed the door closed. He let him go and Chahye stood in the middle of the disastrous room.
"You wanted to see how ed up I am right now?! Well, here you go!" shouted Dean with his arms wide open.
"Dean..." said Chahye softly, trying her best to look at him straight.
"You must have heard about it, huh?! And you wanted to see if I was devastated," said Dean with a shaking voice.
"No... I didn't... I just..." she tried to say.
"ARE YOU HERE TO LAUGH AT ME?!" he asked raising his voice, grabbing the notebook on the table and throwing it across the room.
Chahye froze. For a minute there, she thought he would throw it at her. But he threw it to the other direction, towards the couches. "Dean..." she said bravely taking a step closer to him.

She saw the mixed emotions in his eyes. Anger. Sadness. Disappointment. Surrender. It hurt her to see him like that, like a drill slowly working its way across her heart. It hurt that way. Seeing him at his lowest made her want to hug him, to tell him that it was going to be all right.

Dean was breathing hard and pursing his lips as he tried his best not to cry again. He saw Chahye step towards him, her hands slightly spread out to reach him. He stood up straight, his head leaned back a little as he could look at her. Her face was light and pale and it suddenly melted his heart. How was he able to shout at her like that? He watched her take another step closer, her right hand reaching for his left. He heard her say his name softly.

Suddenly, a tear escaped Dean's left eye. "Please tell me... you're not here to laugh at me... To... To tell me how pathetic I am," he said as he sniffed.

Chahye was now holding his hand and she looked up to meet his teary eyes. "No, Dean. I'm not here for that," she said, squeezing his hand.

Dean pulled his hand away from Chahye's. Even though it surprised her, she just let him be. But suddenly, Dean stooped low and wrapped his arms around her shoulders, crying. He buried his face into her neck and wailed, releasing all the hurt, all the anger, all the disappointment and fear. He never cried in front of his friends. But seeing Chahye made him feel better. And knowing that she was there for him made him more emotional. He just had to let it all out.

Chahye was surprised by his actions and felt her heart beat faster. But somehow, she wasn't breathing fast like how she usually gets. Instead, though involuntarily, she lifted her arms and softly put it against his back. She started with patting lightly until she started rubbing her hands against his back. Dean tightened his embrace and Chahye hugged him back tight as well, burying her face onto her his shoulder. He cried so hard she felt her neck and shoulder already getting damp. But she didn't care. All that mattered was that Dean was in her arms.

"Everything's going to be fine, ami," said Chahye softly, her voice vibrating thorugh Dean's neck.

"So this is what it feels like to comfort people," thought Chahye as she knew this was the first time she ever did it. And she wasn't regretting that Dean was experiencing it from her.