There was a bit of a buzz in the common room today. Apparently a new member was coming all the way from America. Now that's determination, Wen Junhui, or Jun for short, thought to himself. He himself had come from China. But America was just...so far away. It was on a whole other continent. This kid was probably some super tough, outgoing dude, he decided. 
Finally, the member was brought to the company. The others gathered around to welcome him.
"This is Joshua Hong. His Korean name is Hong Jisoo," the manager introduced.
"Nice to meet you all," Joshua/Jisoo said. His voice was incredibly soft and gentle. In fact, his entire stature was small and timid. The others greeted him, giving him pats on the back, asking him about America. Jun waited in the back. No use getting all caught up in the hubbub right away. Unfortunately, he never got the chance to speak alone with Joshua (the name he preferred calling him) as the other English-speaking member, Vernon, was stuck to him like glue. Jun figured they were probably around the same age too, with similar interests. He sighed. Well, maybe another time.
One day, Jun decided to check out the closed off room where cam #9 was situated in. He entered, hearing no sounds coming from it, only to see Joshua sitting quietly in the room, tapping away on the computer, his eyes fixated on the screen. His guitar was on his lap. Jun wasn't sure if he was interrupting when Joshua looked up.
"Oh, Jun, right?" Jun nodded. "You're welcome to sit here." Joshua patted the chair next to him. 
Jun smiled, sitting down. "You're really quiet. I don't think I've heard you speak more than two sentences at a time," Jun commented. Joshua grinned sheepishly.
"Actually, my Korean isn't very good. I only spoke it with my parents and relatives, so I can barely read or write it." 
Jun laughed. "Looks like we're in the same boat then. I'm Chinese, by the way."
Joshua's eyes widened. "No way, seriously? You looked like a Korean member!"
Jun laughed again. "Well, I've been here for a while." He glanced at Joshua's computer. "What're you doing?"
"Oh, just browsing around. I'm trying to improve my vocal skills before they test me at the end of the month." 
Oh, that. Jun knew how nerve wracking that test was. If he didn't meet expectations, he'd be sent back. Jun squeezed Joshua's shoulder lightly. It was so slender, he realized.
"You'll do fine. Don't worry."
Joshua smiled warmly up at Jun. What a nice smile, Jun thought. Joshua had really been nothing like he'd expected. Gentle, subdued, small...not too mention probably really young, as he looked about Vernon's age. 
"By the way, how old are you exactly? I don't think I caught that."
"Oh, me? I'm 17."
Oops.
"What, seriously? You're older than me! I'm 16!"
Now Joshua was taken aback. 
"I guess appearances can be deceiving, huh?" He remarked, amused.
"Yeah, geez. I thought you were like 14 or 15." 
Joshua playfully hit Jun. "As if my parents would let me leave America that young. But hey, maybe this'll come in handy when I'm in, like, my 30s or something."
Jun found that he was super comfortable around Joshua. It was nice, to be able to talk to someone who he could relate to like this. There was another Chinese member, MingMing, who he was also close to. But somehow, Joshua  gave off this vibe that made people drawn to him. For one, if Joshua wasn't alone, he was almost always seen with Vernon, who would usually mess around with him. Jun, too, liked playing around with Joshua. The guy never got upset. It was like if sweetness was a human, it'd be him. He never raised his voice either. 
The day of the evaluation test finally came, and while he didn't show it like some of the other members had in the past, Jun could see that Joshua was anxious, constantly fidgeting and humming to himself. He pat Joshua's back and ruffled his hair. 
"You got this, hyung," he reassured Joshua. Calling him hyung was still slightly odd to Jun. Joshua had insisted at first that he didn't have to, but Jun didn't want to be rude. Joshua smiled shakily at Jun.
"Thanks," he said in a voice no higher than a whisper. Jun wanted to say a lot of things, but instead just ruffled Joshua's hair one more time, and watched gloomily as he left to get his skills tested out.
After a wired 10 minutes or so (though it felt much, much longer), Joshua returned. A few members gave him consoling pats and encouraging words. He hadn't realized at first, but Jun'd been biting his fingernails. Okay, so maybe Jun was just a tad bit worried. They waited, uneasy, for the results. And then-
"You've passed."
Those words were enough to lift the mood of the room by 500%. Everyone gave sighs of relief. Joshua had already become one of them, and him leaving would've hurt them all just as much as him. Joshua turned to the others, his eyes sparkling, his face the picture of joy.
"Thank you so much," he said, trying to remain calm. 
"Good for you, dude!"
"Yeah, if you left I'd be really bummed out."
"Yay, American-hyung is staying!"
Jun smiled. He was really happy for him. Eventually, the others retreated, and Jun found that he and Joshua were left alone. 
"I'm glad," Jun finally said. "You belong with us, after all."
Joshua flashed that same sincere, elated smile. "Thanks, Jun. The same goes for you." His eyes looked like there were fireworks going off in them.
Jun was surprised to feel his heartbeat racing at an unnatural pace. "Th-thanks, haha," he replied lamely, trying not to let his breathing give him away. Joshua grinned and opened up his laptop, typing away. 
And just like that, their days together as a band began.