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“That’s good enough guys, we’ll keep practicing tomorrow” Hanbin announces just as they finish the dance for Dumb & Dumber, they’re all tired and looking forward to a long sleep in the comfort of their own bed but some of them feel like they need to practice more. Some of them being Chanwoo, of course.

He knows that none of them have any ill feelings toward him, but he has them toward himself for being slower than the others and not as good. They’ve practiced for years and he’s been a trainee for almost one year, that’s nothing in comparison to the others. So it’s no surprise that it takes him longer to get the choreography, but it makes him feel like even more of an outcast, makes it even more obvious that he wasn’t a part of the original team, like he’s an extra. He hates that feeling.

And so he grabs his own phone and goes to plug it in, the others are already packing up their stuff but he pays them no mind. He presses play and then Dumb & Dumber’s back on, playing loudly in the speakers and temporarily deafening the others who weren’t expecting the onslaught of sound, “yah, what are you doing?” Jinhwan complains as he covers his ears and goes to lower the volume a little bit.

“Practicing,” Chanwoo answers while going to his position and getting ready to dance his part, “we can see that, but why?” Jiwon says and when Chanwoo glances at him he’s got a deep frown on his face, like he doesn’t know if he should be proud of his dedication or worried.

Chanwoo pauses his movements and lets the music play in the background, “because there’s still some things that I need to polish, but don’t worry, I’m not gonna pass out or anything, I’ll only stay for an hour or two” Jiwon’s frown deepens but he doesn’t say anything, he just nods and leaves his water bottle in the corner of the room for Chanwoo to use when his own runs out.

They head out of the practice room, all except for Hanbin who lingers in the doorway, “don’t stay too long” he says and then he’s closing the door, most people would probably see him as pretty cold but Chanwoo knows that he cares, that he worries but isn’t the best at showing his feeling without making it awkward or feeling like he has to defend himself.

Chanwoo continues to practice, he practices long hours but takes his breaks when needed, he’s smart enough to know that he shouldn’t exhaust himself too much to the point of passing out. He finishes off his water bottle and is grateful for the one Jiwon left behind, he spends about two hours dancing before he deems it good enough and pauses the music. He packs his stuff in his bag and closes the door after him when he leaves. It’s only when he’s on his way to the subway that he realizes that he doesn’t have his jacket with him, which means that he doesn’t have his card with him, meaning that he won’t be able to get on the train and get home. He groans and mentally kicks himself for not checking the practice room one last time before exiting, because as soon as the door closes it’s locked, and you won’t be able to get in without the card that the leader has. And is Chanwoo the leader? Far from it. So he has no choice  but to walk home, thankfully it’s not that cold though, and only about twenty minutes if he hurries.

He’s not afraid of being all alone in the big city or afraid of the dark, what scares him though is the loud calls and shouts coming from behind him. It sounds like a group of guys, probably extremely drunk judging by their slurred speech, and it sounds like at least five different voices. Chanwoo hurries his pace a bit in hope that the sounds will diminish, but they don’t, they aren’t getting louder either but he’s still scared. He cuts off from the main road to take a smaller path through the backyard of an apartment complex, in hopes to lose the men behind him. But when he decided to relax he hears them again, a little louder this time and they’re definitely shouting things no kid should here.

He’s sure that they’re following him now and he quickens his pace even more now, he’s starting to get real scared because even though he’s walking faster than he thought he’d be there’s still about fifteen minutes left until he’s back at the dorm. And what if the guys decide to start running after him, will he be able to outrun them?

In the midst of his distress he digs through his pockets for his phone, his hands feel clammy and a little slippery but he manages to fish it up from his pocket. He types in the wrong code at least three times before he finally gets it right, since he’s walking so fast it’s hard to focus on what he’s pressing and where he’s walking but he manages to open up his contacts and press the most recently called name. Which just happens to be his leader.

It rings for a long time and Chanwoo’s afraid he won’t pick up but just before it reaches voice mail he does and Chanwoo’s never been this grateful to hear Hanbin’s voice, “hyung!” he whisper shouts hurriedly into the phone while taking a turn into some unknown alley. “Hyung, there’s someone…” he cuts off his sentence when he hears a voice from behind him, “hey you, why don’t you come back with me to my place” the man slurs while he leans against the wall a bit away from Chanwoo, he’s far away but Chanwoo can still see the bulking muscles under his shirt, that man will without any doubt be able to take Chanwoo even in his drunken state.

“No thank you” he calls back before he sprints off, he presses the phone to his ear again and shouts, “hyung, there’s some guy, he’s scary” he’s a little out of breath but Hanbin can still hear him clearly.

“What, aren’t you taking the train?” he questions and Chanwoo hears how his voice rises in distress, “I forgot my card so I’m walking, or, more like running.”

“Okay, where are you?” Chanwoo can hear rustling in the background and Hanbin is without a doubt getting ready to head out, “I don’t... hold on” he searches the walls for any sign and find one a few meters away, he rattles off the name to Hanbin and makes his way over.

“Hey! Don’t run from me!” The man is back now and this time he’s not alone, there’s three guys behind him and Chanwoo is frozen in fear, he doesn’t stop to answer, instead he just runs for his life. “Hyung, there’s four guys! They're following me” he cries into the phone and Hanbin swears, Chanwoo hears a car door closing and he knows that Hanbin will be there in only a few minutes, but he’s scared less and so very lonely. There’s tears building up in his eyes and he’s ashamed but he can’t stop them, they roll down his cheeks as he keeps running. He heads into an alley on his left where he sees a dumpster, it smells bad and he guesses it’s a popular place to pee at by drunken idiots but he hides there anyway, hidden by the dumpster he can hear the guys run straight past the alley and he breathes a sigh of relief. They’re not following him anymore but he’s so very afraid that he’s shaking.

“Chanwoo, you there!” comes Hanbin’s voice through the phone and Chanwoo cries in relief, “I’m here, hyung” he whispers and Hanbin breathes deeply, “are you okay?!” he asks hurriedly and Chanwoo nods because physically he’s just fine, mentally, he doesn’t know. His thoughts are a bit jumbled at the moment.

“Y-yeah, hyung, I’m alright” he mumbles shakily, he hears a car pull up from outside the alley but he’s afraid to go and check, in case the guys are still there. “Where are you? I’m here now” Hanbin says through the phone and at the same time as Chanwoo hears a car door shut through the phone there’s also one that echoes through the alley. So he carefully comes out of hiding from behind the dumpster and walks out.

As soon as he sees Hanbin he runs towards him, the tears fall again but he’s so relieved that he doesn’t even care. He buries his face in the crook of Hanbin’s neck and sobs, Hanbin’s arms come and surround him and he’s shushing him and hugging him tightly. “Shh, it’s alright, I’ve got you. Are you hurt?” he’s rubbing Chanwoo’s back and keeping him warm and Chanwoo’s never felt more at home, “n-no, I’m okay” he gets out in between his sobs and Hanbin only hugs him tighter.

“Hyung, I was so scared” he mumbles and Hanbin carefully removes him from his neck to grab at his cheeks, he leans his forehead against Chanwoo’s and breathes deeply, “I know, I was too. You’re never walking home at this hour alone again, you hear me?” Hanbin says and he sounds so serious and so scared that all Chanwoo can do is nod. “I want to go home now” he snivels and wipes at his cheeks with his sleeves and Hanbin grabs his hand, “let’s go” he guides the shaken boy into the front seat of the car and turns up the heater as soon as he’s in.

Chanwoo’s more scared than cold but he’s grateful because it helps stop his shaking at least a little bit, Hanbin starts the car and then they’re off. They pass the gang of guys on their way and Chanwoo covers his face with his hands, Hanbin reaches over and grabs at one of his hands; the rules of 3 and 9 on the steering wheel completely forgotten, but Chanwoo needs the comfort and so does Hanbin.

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