it happens during practice.

 

their comeback is fast approaching, their new choreography is already completed and learned. the practice session is merely for memorization, to commit the dance to memory in order to perform flawlessly for their loving fans. it had been going well so far, all 6 of them hitting each beat with ease, all in perfect sync with one another.

 

that is, until eunji falls.

 

she lands hard on her ankle. whether its due to her shoes or it being a simple mistake jiwon doesn’t know. all she knows is she’s right behind eunji when it happens, seeing her as precise as ever before suddenly dropping. she sees the entire thing. it makes her heart sink.

 

just as synchronized as before, the remaining 5 members freeze. jiwon only halts for a split second before lunging over to eunji. 

 

her leader instincts automatically kick in. “one of you, go get a manager!” she barks. she doesn’t bother to look around to see them go, only listening to the frantic footsteps and squeaking of the door. she refuses to keep her eyes off eunji. she’s the leader and one of her members is hurt so she must take the responsibility to look after her.

 

(at least, that’s what jiwon tells herself. she knows her serious front is tempered by the feelings for eunji she has but refuses to admit.)

 

she hears the door open once more and turns her head slightly, eyes flashing towards the door for seconds at a time before zipping back to eunji. she spots yoorim holding the door open as a group of staff members pour into the room. 

 

the manager puts his hand reassuringly on jiwon’s shoulder. “we’ll take her to the doctor. you should rest.”

 

“no.” jiwon shrugs off his hand. “im not resting. im coming with her.”

 

“we can’t have you worrying about this,” he replies. “the comeback is stressful enough as is.”

 

“i don't care.” she argues. “im the leader and it’s my job to be worried.”

 

“jiwon, you need to stay.” he says sternly. the manager walks out without another word before she can say anything else, while two other staff members follow while carefully holding eunji. as jiwon watches them go, she can't stop herself from crying.

 

she kicks the wall, frustrated. both her leader persona and her troublesome heart are furious she can’t be looking after eunji right now. but, of course, her worry drowns out her anger: will eunji be okay? will the injury be so bad that she can never dance again? if so, then what if she has to quit? what will eunji do if her dreams are crushed? what will jiwon do without eunji by her side?

 

not only is she worried for eunji, but herself too.

 

at this point, she’s sobbing, curled up on the practice room floor in a ball of despair. truthfully, she’s shocked she’s even been able to hold in her tears for this long. 

 

she hears footsteps approach. “hey, it’s alright.” sihyeon calmly attempts to console her. “i’m sure we’ll still be able to have a comeback.”

 

jiwon snaps. “you think i give a about the comeback right now?”

 

sihyeon opens to speak again but ultimately says nothing. she curls herself around jiwon and hugs her tightly as the leader begins to sob even harder. she feels the other members join in and hug her as well.

 

however, no matter how much the members whisper to her that it’s going to be okay, jiwon’s cries refuse to cease.

___

 

since the moment they got back to the dorm, jiwon has been waiting for eunji.

 

it’s been hours now, of jiwon staring blankly at the door, like a dog waiting for its owner to come home. it hasn’t all been staring, though; jiwon’s mind has been racing the whole time and if she thinks on what might happen to eunji she begins to cry.

 

the members have been periodically checking on her to see if she’s okay. she isn't, but says so anyways. no one believes her.

 

eventually, yiren comes to sit by her. she doesn’t say anything, just rests her head against jiwon’s shoulder. despite the silence, jiwon gets the message: im here for you. yiren’s a professional at communicating with no words; when you’re in a country whose language you don’t speak fluently you get good at that.

 

jiwon feels slightly lighter at yiren’s support but the anxiety still looms over her.

 

a few moments later they hear the door click. jiwon shoots up immediately and opens the door. she’s met with a concerned eunji, holding the door frame in order to keep her weight off of her foot.

 

jiwon can’t stop herself from pulling eunji into a hug. eunji hugs her back, hands clutching tightly to jiwon’s shirt. she can tell eunji is using her as support to keep her standing. jiwon uses eunji as support too; though rather than anything physical, its for her pounding heart. 

 

“im so glad you’re okay.” jiwon sobs into eunji’s shoulder.

 

“you don’t need to be so dramatic.” eunji laughs, embarrassed at how jiwon is clinging to her. “i’ll just have to be extra careful during practice.”

 

“practice?” jiwon pulls back to stare concerned at eunji. “who said you would be practicing?”

 

“management said i had to because they can’t postpone the comeback. it’s more important anyways.” 

 

“dancing on your ankle is just going to make it worse. you can’t be practicing.” jiwon asserts.

 

“i’ll be fine as long as i’m careful, don't worry” eunji takes jiwon’s hand in attempts to comfort her, while her other still hangs on her shirt. jiwon attempts to protest further but she’s unable to say anything. no matter how worried she is, it's impossible for her to argue with eunji.

 

eunji’s hand holds onto hers as if her life depends on it; her grip is so hard that jiwon feels as if her bones could break. when she senses the trembling through eunji’s fingers, she gives the hand a small squeeze.

 

eunji looks up at her with wide eyes and gives her a sad smile.

 

jiwon doesn’t sleep that night because of it.

___

 

jiwon can’t keep her eyes off eunji for the entirety of practice.

 

she’s supposed to be keeping track of herself in the mirror, fixing slight mistakes and perfecting expressions. but instead she uses the mirror as a means to sneak glances at her injured member.

 

eunji’s top half is sharp and calculated. they haven’t been practicing for very long but her torso moves as if she’s been performing the song for years. it’s not surprising; she’s the main dancer, after all.

 

her legs are for – the most part – the same story. the way she moves hides her injury well, but jiwon can see the slight way her legs shake when she places her foot down. the older girl can see the way pain and frustration paints the younger’s face. eunji isn’t moving how she wants to.

 

she stumbles slightly when they’re switching positions. jiwon’s heart stops. she makes a mistake of her own in turn and nearly bumps into yoorim in the process.

 

once the music stops, yoorim immediately breaks the silence again. “how about a break?” she stares sympathetically at jiwon and glances at eunji. jiwon can tell yoorim is aware she’s unfocused.

 

“i second that.” serim weakly replies, already laying on the ground. the other five members eventually descend as well. 

 

eunji scoots (thank god, if she stood up she’d scold her endlessly) over to where jiwon sits, placing her head onto jiwon’s lap. normally, jiwon would be embarrassed at the proximity but her worry trumps any other emotion she’s feeling. 

 

“you okay?” eunji stares up at jiwon with glistening eyes. “you seem out of it today.”

 

jiwon glances at eunji’s ankle. “im worried about you.”

 

eunji gives her a sympathetic smile. “you don't need to worry about me, i’d participate in this comeback even if i was dying.”

 

“don’t say things like that.” jiwon scolds. “your health is important too, you need to take care of yourself.”

 

“you should take care of yourself too!” eunji whines in retaliation. “i saw you make that mistake, i don't want you losing focus because of me.”

 

“sorry, i’ll keep focused next time” is jiwon’s reply, but she knows eunji will make her lose focus again. she couldn’t keep her eyes off eunji if she tried.

 

before their break ends, she takes eunji’s hand and kisses it, an action she knows makes eunji embarrassed. though rather than a cute gesture she uses for teasing, it now feels much more intimate. in the tension of the practice room the kiss becomes a confession.

 

i love you and i won’t let anything bad happen to you. that’s what she means when she places her lips on the top of eunji’s hand.

 

and by how eunji’s face blooms crimson, she seems to get the memo.

 

____

 

eunji can’t bear it for any longer.

 

after the music stops again, she asks the girls if she could go to the bathroom, an inconspicuous excuse to get out of the practice room. when she decides she’s far enough away, she slumps against the walls of the hallway and lets loose the tears she’s been holding.

 

her ankle feels like it’s on fire. of course eunji has been trying her best to mask her injury, but with each minute of practice it gets progressively harder and harder to dance. despite her pain, however, she attempts to compose herself in order to get back to practice.

 

she can’t let jiwon find out, after all. she’s stressed enough about it as is.

____

 

jiwon didn’t think it could get any worse.

 

practice had been going smoothly, with the girls stopping frequently to lessen the strain on eunji’s ankle. she had been doing so well, her injury essentially invisible while dancing.

 

and yet, amidst the pressure of the music video filming, eunji suddenly can’t take it anymore. she collapses. the staff sit her down immediately.

 

eunji still remains strong. she insists that she’s fine, that she can keep going. her tears well up, betraying her true condition, but she refuses to let them leave her eyes. 

 

jiwon, though, is crying buckets.

 

the moment she trips, jiwon stops dancing and rushes to her. her leader persona kicks in once more as she barks orders to the staff around her. a staff member gives up their chair at once, and jiwon is the one to help eunji into it.

 

their manager asks someone to get ice. jiwon volunteers immediately; she’s sure her panic would move her faster than any of the staff could. she gets praised for being a good leader, but jiwon knows that’s not the main reason she’s nervous. by the time she gets back with the ice, eunji has already been transferred backstage. she was laying down now, with a blanket supporting her head and another draped over her body. her ankles, however, remained visible.

 

tears had already been flowing down her face, but when she bursts through the door and sees eunji, jiwon can’t stop herself from crying harder. 

 

eunji cups the leader’s face with her hands when jiwon kneels next to her. jiwon can see eunji’s thumb turn dark when she wipes her tears. she figures her makeup has been ruined and she most likely looks disheveled, but eunji stares at her lovingly regardless. 

 

eunji’s makeup remains pristine. it makes jiwon realize how strong she really is.

 

“im sorry.” jiwon chokes out. 

 

“haven’t i said you don't need to apologize?” eunji laughs in attempt to lighten the mood. “i’ll still be with you in the comeback, don’t worry.” 

 

jiwon’s heart twists at eunji’s words; her worry is again attributed to the wrong cause. is it not obvious, how her heart beats for eunji? the way jiwon naturally gravitates towards her, the gestures too touchy to be considered just friendly, the way she can’t stop herself from fussing over her; was it not enough? the only reason she’s ever been anxious because she cares about eunji more than anything.

 

it's in that moment she decides.

 

jiwon pauses to look around the room. she heard their manager leave to talk with the directors earlier, but checks just in case. when she finally confirms they are alone, jiwon lifts eunji’s head up (carefully, as not to disturb her lower body) and finally kisses eunji like she’s been wanting to for months. 

 

the kiss is soft and slow. careful too, almost as if jiwon fears she’ll hurt eunji by mistake. neither of them mind; it feels like magic regardless.

 

after jiwon pulls away, she takes eunji’s hands in hers. she kisses them, much like she did in the practice room, except this time she intends to give eunji a real confession.

 

“i don't care about the comeback, i care about you.”

 

eunji pulls her hands away and covers her face in embarrassment, but it’s not enough to hide the blush spreading across her face. 

 

jiwon tries to move eunji’s hands away but fails. “come on, im sorry.” jiwon laughs. she figures eunji understands her now, she’s always been shy with these sorts of things. “please look at me.”

 

eunji’s hands then move from her face in favor of holding jiwon’s. “don’t ever apologize for that. i love you too.” her voice wavers and she glances away; its a clumsy confession but jiwon’s heart soars regardless.

 

however, despite kissing the love of her life and having her feelings returned, jiwon’s nerves aren’t cured yet. “i know they’re gonna make you go back out there. please promise me you won’t get hurt again.”

 

it’s now eunji’s turn to kiss jiwon. jiwon blushes deeply in return. 

 

“i promise.”

 

____

 

their long awaited showcase finally arrives. 

 

jiwon is nervous. though, her nerves are finally away from eunji (well, for the most part at least) and are focused on the performance itself. their practice had been going smoothly since the music video filming, mostly since it was just to keep it fresh in their memory but partially because eunji had been more careful with her ankle this time around. though jiwon would be lying if she said she wasn’t still a little nervous. 

 

eunji spots jiwon’s troubled expression and holds her hand in support. it melts jiwon’s nerves (and simultaneously, her heart.)

 

thankfully, the showcase is a huge success. the performances were flawless and the fans seem to be thrilled for what’s to come. most importantly though, eunji participated without any issues. 

 

eunji bounds over to jiwon once the showcase is over, flashing her signature bright smile. “i made it through no problem! are you proud of me?”

 

jiwon lets out a sigh. “im more relieved than anything. how’s your ankle?”

 

eunji winces slightly at the mention of her injury. “it hurts. just a little bit though.”

 

“well then,” jiwon says, with a mischievous look in her eye. she moves one arm around eunji’s back and her other arm under her knees, proceeding to lift the younger girl up in order to carry her. “how’s this?”

 

eunji looks at her frantically. “a-are you sure? im not too heavy?” she’s stuttering and her face is flushed red, but she wraps her arms around jiwon’s neck regardless.

 

“it’s fine.” jiwon assures as she quickly glances around. she takes the chance to kiss eunji’s forehead when she believes no one is looking. 

 

she carries eunji all the way back to the waiting room. serim comments that she looks like a prince carrying a princess. jiwon figures she is eunji’s prince, in a sense.

 

she’d walk to the end of the earth for eunji, after all.