Word Count: 2800 

A ghost-quiet silence is penetrating his with thoughts swamped mind, his over-blushed cheek pressed against the car's freezing glass as a drawn out yawn escapes the tip of his lips.

— Sleep.That's all Baekhyun longs for at this very moment. A ton of required sleep he missed thanks to all his crimped and busy schedule. When he dreamed of becoming an idol, he didn't imagine his life to be this chaotic. All his blooming mind wanted was to do the thing he loves the most for a living; singing. He's has already been passionate about singing with the age of 10 years, and since then he has watched those famous idols perform on stage – his raven orbs shinning just as brightly as the stars on the night sky as he watched them sing in total euphoria.

Euphoria.

That's what he imagined he would feel when becoming an idol, but sadly, he had never considered the dark side of it. All the hours of training, all the starving in order to stay 'in shape', all the eyes watching his every move and in particular, the worse part not seeing his family for years.

Not to forget, losing himself along the fame and all the responsibilities. His soul's dark walls are cracked by an invisible force, which seems to be trying to violate everyone's expectations of him into these cracks deep inside of him.

He may haven't realized yet, but every time he acts like the society wants him to, his own personality fades more and more — and it seems like one day he's going to be nothing more than an empty shell, a puppet controlled by people he doesn't even know — one day he's going to lose himself on the path he's currently walking on.

But this path is already set to stone, his feet already one with its rigid asphalt – he's already used to all the training and the unwanted attention he receives day for day. There's no running away, no possible escape. He chose the music, and the music just happen to come with this heavy burden.

Sometimes we just have to make sacrifices in order to fulfill our biggest dreams. That's how life works after all.

He presses his cheek closer against the freezing glass, his heavy eyelids fluttering open in exhaustion. He is really in the need of a good, long nap, but unfortunately he can't fall asleep in a moving vehicle.

His eyes glide towards his right side, straight right into Jongdae and Minseok's faces, whose eyes are already closed tightly, their heads leaned against their seatheads as their hard breaths swim in Baekhyun's ears.

Only unfortunate for him, because his group members already seem to be deep entangled in the comfortable walls of their dreamland.

Somewhere he wishes to be now.

☆ ☆ ☆

No matter how tired Baekhyun feels nor how exhausted he seems to be, performing on stage, in front of dozen of their anticipated fans always manages to fill him with the same euphoria he used to feel whenever watching those celebrities on Tv.

Performing was and still is one of the many things, giving him hope whenever he is on the edge of giving up — the only reason why he hasn't quit on being an idol yet. It may sound arrogant but it feels like he was made to be an idol, to dance and sing in front of all those people watching him with burnished eyes and wide smiles on their peaceful faces.

He just loves seeing people enjoy their music and those wide smiles he receives when performing — he simply loves being the reason for the rush of euphoria the fans feel for this, maybe short, but meaningful moment.

"Another amazing performance guys," Jongdae mutters, ripping the red-haired male from his thoughts into blurred walls of reality. He smiles at his friend before drifting his eyes back to the screen where a new girl group seem to be performing their debut song at this very moment.

And somehow, seeing those talented, hardworking girls, perform their debut song manages to pull him back into one of the most difficult times of his life. He can still taste the saltiness of his tears on his tongue, the crimson of his eyeballs and all the tattooed bruises on his legs, an aftermath of the devastating training.

It was not only a hard time for him, but also his beloved group members. The training was so hard, that they sometimes had gotten no sleep for days.

However, even though the exhaustion was visible on their faces and bodies they had to look like they were feeling great on stage – they had to perform with a perfect smile and a ton of makeup covering the aftermath of the intense training.

"The One is a great song to perform, our fans seem to like it as well,"Minseok now voices, Baekhyun blinking a few times in order to force himself out of the trance.

"Ya, it's already in the top 10 charts. We can be proud."

"We should be Min," Jongdae mumbles before both take a quick glance at Baekhyun, who seems to be concentrated on the performance, spacing out like usual. "You too, Baek."

Blinking another time, he forces his eyes from the screen, staring into his friends' concerned faces. Me too? He thinks, not really knowing what the conversation is about.

"I know it has been not that easy for you lately, but you're okay,right?" Minseok asks, pushing one of his purple strands out of his face. A smile curves up on Baekhyun's lips, a rush of heat running through his body before warming up his heart.

He despises knowing how much his best friends and group members seem to worry for his well-being whilst all he does is to space out, running from a conversation every time it seems to be approaching him.

He's a horrible friend.

"I'm fine guys. Please don't worry about me," he breathes through the light smile on his lips.

"You're currently the most famous member of our group. I can imagine how much of a burden it is for you, Baek. Please don't overwork yourself and take a nap, we're here for you."

"That's not it-"

"You're doing a great job, Baek. We're proud of you," Now it's Minseok's voice ripping his words in two, warming up his heart even more. You're doing a great job. We're proud of you. Feeling how a tear escapes his drained eyes, he begins to panic, trying to wipe the tear from his face when he suddenly finds himself in the arms of his best friends.

Those are only words, but somehow his soul seemed to have been waiting for those certain words the entire time. A heavy stone removed from his heart, his stiff posture begins to fade. Peace overcoming his system as his friends arms seem to let him forget how frazzled he actually is —their very presence calming the ne