Changkyun shuffles awkwardly from foot to foot, hovering at the doorway of the living room to his new home. He isn’t sure if he should go in, if he should leave… Just what the hell is he supposed to do??

When he’d gotten the call from one of the producers, he hadn’t been told there’d be cameras. He hadn’t known he’d be joining the show tonight. God, he isn’t prepared for this. And, obviously, the other trainees—his fellow trainees—aren’t either.

He knows they’re talking about him, but their voices are low and he can’t tell what they’re saying from here. But, he doesn’t know if it’s okay for him to go in. Sure, he lives here now, but he can’t very well just be traipsing in… The others seem to hate him enough as is, and the last thing he wants or needs is for them to find more reasons to hate him.

“Come sit in the living room with us.”

Changkyun watches in delayed surprise as one of the others, Kihyun, walks passed him without glancing in his direction. His heart beats wildly for a second too soon, though he can’t tell why. He takes a deep breath, regaining some control of his faculties despite his stress, and goes to do as the older had said.

After walking into the room, the others slowly begin to drift out of the room. Eventually, only Yoonho, one of the other rappers, is left with him, and they sit in silence for an interminable amount of time.

Finally, he breaks the silence with small talk and explaining the situation. Though Changkyun appreciates his bluntness, it doesn’t make it all the easier to deal with. It’s hard enough being dragged into all this with no warning, it’s a whole other to be coming in like this, so soon after an elimination.

“So… I can’t really welcome you,” Yoonho tells him finally. While admittedly these aren’t the words Changkyun had been hoping for, he’s glad that the other is at least speaking to him, much less with such honesty. “I can’t… and I’m being honest with you. I’m still trying to control myself, even now.”

“I’m sure if I were you,” Changkyun says softly, eyes on the ceiling as he’s finding it very hard to meet the man’s eyes, “I couldn’t be welcoming, either. I completely understand how you feel.” He falls silent once more, hoping for this to be enough. Yoonho goes on to attempt at finding some feeble upside to all this, but Changkyun can only mutter a lame, “I’m honored you feel this way,” before Yoonho leaves the room, as well.

Changkyun sits there for… well, he isn’t sure how long. The cameras have left to watch what the other trainees are doing, clearly having had enough of this awkward, oppressive atmosphere. Changkyun feels as if he’s in some stranger’s home right now, and not his own. He begins to wonder if he should even bother unpacking, as he’s sure the others are gunning to get him out during the next mission.

“Here.”

The newcomer glances up in surprise, finding Kihyun standing over him. He’s holding out a mug of something hot and steaming, and Changkyun mumbles a thank-you as he takes it. He sips at it, pleasantly surprised to find it’s hot cocoa and not tea. He drinks a bit more, sighing deeply at the warmth spreading through his body. Kihyun in a breath through his teeth and sits next to him on the bed, leaning forward to rest his arms against his knees.

“Where’s your stuff?” Kihyun asks, his gaze remaining on the floor.

“I… I’m not sure,” Changkyun mumbles. “I wasn’t exactly prepared to move in when they called me tonight…”

“What’s that mean?”

Changkyun hesitates to answer, intimidated by the harsh tone in the older’s voice. He knows the man doesn’t really mean anything by it, judging by how Kihyun visibly winces at his own tone, but it doesn’t make it any easier to bear.

“I was just told to come and eat with you guys,” Changkyun answers, his lips anxiously as he delves into his story. “I didn’t know cameras were going to be there, or that I was officially joining the show tonight.” Changkyun watches the back of the man’s head as he nods, and a small hand comes up to scratch the back of his pale neck.

“This situation is ,” Kihyun grumbles, standing up from the bed. He gestures towards the lone mattress against the nearby wall, finally looking Changkyun in the face. “That’s your bed, and you can put your clothes over there once you have them.” He then points towards the dresser on the far wall, his dark eyes flickering with an unreadable light. “I’d suggest you talk to a producer about getting your clothes,” he adds as an afterthought. “That way you’ll have something for the next episode, at least.”

“Thank you,” Changkyun says, trying to show in his voice just how thankful he truly is for the older’s help. Kihyun ‘hmmphs’ under his breath, and then turns on his heel and walks from the room. He pauses at the doorway, his hand coming up to rest against the doorway.

“I’m not saying this’ll be anytime soon,” Kihyun tells him, his eyes once again refusing to glance in the younger’s direction, “but we’ll warm up to you. We just… We suffered a hard loss when Minkyun was eliminated, and it feels like a slap in the face to have you join right after. It makes the loss of our friends from before feel like they meant nothing. It just… It makes us question just why we joined this company in the first place when they do like this that shows they don’t care about us. So, just give it time.”

And, with that, he walks out of the living room, leaving Changkyun to his own devices. The younger stares down at the mug in his hands, swirling around the liquid. He’s indescribably thankful for Kihyun in this moment, if for nothing more than to have said actual, full sentences to him instead of those clipped statements everyone else had used.

Give them time, Changkyun muses silently, pressing his lips together anxiously. Okay. If that’s what it’ll take, then that’s fine. I’ll give them time… He glances towards the doorway, the way Kihyun had gone, and the slightest of smiles plays its way across his lips. As a viewer, he’d always thought Kihyun was kinda cute, but in person he proves to be quite the eye candy… If nothing else comes out of this, at least he got to interact with such an attractive man.