Ten always felt like he was intruding on the relationship Taeyong and Jaehyun had built, and despite all they did to make him feel otherwise, he was still insecure. It didn’t help that Taeyong had recently been giving all his attention Jaehyun alone. Ten would never admit aloud he was jealous, but he couldn’t help that feeling inside. This didn’t mean he felt malicious towards Jaehyun, in fact he was happy that the younger was being loved, however he wanted some of that love too. Was that so wrong? For a while, Ten had been distancing himself from the two; although they would spare him the odd worrying glance, neither made the effort to console him, and that made Ten feel worthless. Many nights were spent, crying himself to sleep hoping that no one would hear the muffled sobs, while also hoping someone would notice his pain. Multiple times Ten thought about quitting the relationship and trying to forget them, but each thought went as quickly as they came, feeling weak to the smiles and gaze of the two.

After the debut of NCT U with The 7^th Sense, the group didn’t go any further with comebacks for NCT Dream and NCT 127 taking priority. This separated Ten further from his partners even more than they already seemed to be. Lucky, he was too preoccupied with Hit The Stage, he was unable to feel the distance as much as he thought he would. Maybe this was also due to the fact he was getting praise from his partners (and the members) on how well he was doing, so he felt a part of them again. But all good things come to end, and sadly this did too, the success of Cherry Bomb taking them further apart than thought possible. Ten had never felt more alone, spending most of his time on SNS trying to distract himself. Everywhere he looked, he was met with photos of Jaeyong ‘The Power Couple’, or #LeeFamily, Jaeyong with their ‘love child’ Mark. The surgery for his knee came as a blessing in disguise, using this time to break away without it looking like he was ignoring the two. Over his period alone, he thought of all the ways he could break up with them that would bring the least heartbreak, but he couldn’t help but wonder whether the others would even feel broken over the split like he was guaranteed to be. By the time he came back, he had two letters neatly written with an apology, however the commotion that the two caused over him, tending to his every need, made him forget his plan. Ten had quickly disposed of the letters and felt guilty about even writing them.

Ten felt their love story would end there, and they would all live happily ever after; nothing lasts forever. Taeyong and Jaehyun slipped back into their own little bubble. Ten found refuge in Johnny, one of the only people in the group who knew how he was feeling, but Johnny was also in NCT 127, so he couldn’t be there for Ten as much as he wanted to be. Yukhei, or Lucas, was Ten’s saving grace. The two spent most of their time together, where there was Ten, there was Lucas and vice versa. He finally had someone to lean on other than Johnny and he felt relieved. Although Lucas was younger than him and gave off a childish aura, he was very mature when he needed to be, showing Ten a side of him that was rarely seen. Lucas and Ten had each other, and Ten no longer felt alone.

Unbeknownst to Ten, two people were feeling very jealous of the interactions between the two. Jaehyun and Taeyong were confused as to why Ten was spending all his time with Lucas, both immediately assuming the worst. The demeanour of the two changed drastically, but the only ones who faced their wrath were the other members of NCT 127. With the preparations for NCT 2018 drawing near, Jaehyun and Taeyong tried to squeeze in as much time with Ten as possible, but it was like the gods were against them. When Ten was available, they both had their own obligations and when they were free, Ten had his own priorities.

NCT 2018 provided lots of opportunities for Ten, doing modelling here and there. When he heard he was getting his own duet with another member, he was excited. Part of him hoped that it would be with Lucas, as the young rapper was improving rapidly and had great potential. But another part of him also hoped it would be with Taeyong or Jaehyun. Although it seemed like he was preoccupied with Lucas, he missed the two deeply and wished he could spend more time with them. But he understood the duties of an idol, especially Taeyong since he was the leader of all NCT. Learning that his duet was with Taeyong, Ten felt ecstatic and he couldn’t wait. Even though Jaehyun wasn’t involved, he thought the duet would bring him closer to the two he’d been disconnected from.

On the other hand, Taeyong was both ecstatic and nervous. He felt blessed that he could be closer to one of his boyfriends, but at the same time, he was wondering what it would be like to be with Ten after all this time. Taeyong couldn’t remember the last time he was with Ten alone, and this made him aware of how far they’d grown apart. After hearing he would duet with Ten, he took refuge in his shared room with Johnny, only allowing Jaehyun to talk to him. On the other side of the door, Ten felt like Taeyong was trying to avoid him, and it made his heart hurt. He didn’t know that Taeyong and Jaehyun were only trying to come up with a plan to make it up to Ten for abandoning him. Ten considered asking to do the duet with someone else or suggesting that Jaehyun should do it with Taeyong instead, but both Lucas and Johnny convinced him not to.

Ten didn’t know how this was going to go, but he was willing to try. He just hoped everything would be all right in the end.