Late one night in the dorm, after all their schedules were done for the day, Kihyun sits cross-legged in front of a Christmas tree, pulling ornaments out of the crate. He hands them to Changkyun, pointing out where to put each of them. The youngest dutifully obeys him, making word puns every so often, which cause Kihyun to cackle with his hyena laugh all the while. 

Minhyuk and Jooheon play around with the extra garland and tinsel, running around the living room with the multicolored decoration. Their raucous laughter annoys Hyungwon slightly, causing him to shoot them a half-lidded glare as they make it impossible for him to nap. Hoseok mumbles something under his breath, snuggling closer to the skinny boy beside him. Hyungwon flashes a small smile to him, and rests his head atop Hoseok’s. 

Hyunwoo watches his family with a proud smile, finding it hard to believe how far they've all come since they were trainees. He sips the hot cocoa in his mug, his eyes pausing on Kihyun as the pink-haired boy stands with a star in his hand. 

“Hyung,” Kihyun says as he slides an arm around Hyunwoo’s waist, “care to do the honors?” Hyunwoo murmurs an “mm” as he takes the star from Kihyun’s hand, trading his drink for the star.

The others pause, watching as their father places the shining, glittering star on the top of the tree and plugging it in. Minhyuk moves to turn off the lights, and then returns to hug Jooheon from behind and resting his chin on the younger’s shoulder. They can't help but stare at the shining star in the darkness, each one incredibly happy with where they are and their lives. 

Each of them finds themselves sending up silent prayers of thanks for what they have, knowing that not every idol group could be as lucky as them. They’re more than a band, more than just another idol group… They are a family.