Not even three weeks after the nightmare incident, the girls were out celebrating. Their album had just come out the day prior, and music show promotions would be starting within the next couple days. They wanted to enjoy their last couple nights of freedom before they would have to begin waking up at two in the morning for pre-recordings.

Minji was happy to see all the smiling faces but noticed one was missing. Yoohyeon. Since the incident in the dorm, it was like there was something dark hanging over her. She wasn’t the same vibrant and bright girl that Minji remembered. The younger girl had distanced herself from everyone. Not enough for them to worry or pry, but enough that she wouldn’t have to talk about whatever was going on with her. Whatever she had seen in that nightmare.

Minji slipped out of the dorm and tried to think of places Yoohyeon would be at this time of night. She spent the next hour looking everywhere. Bars, clubs, parks, anywhere she could think of. When she was about to give up and head back, she thought she would try the company building just in case. Sure enough, she walked in and found the light of their practice room was switched on and there was movement inside.

It was one in the morning and Yoohyeon was in the practice room. From the looks of it, Minji guessed she had been in there for a while. She was drenched in sweat. The older girl paused outside the door and just watched as Yoohyeon danced. She had always been one of the group’s best dancers. Her movements were so graceful and fluid, and Minji felt almost hypnotized watching. Nobody could execute the choreography in the special way Yoohyeon was able to. Minji did believe that sometimes Yoohyeon’s unique style was her favorite of them all.

She abruptly snapped out of her trance when midway through the dance, Yoohyeon collapsed to the floor. Without hesitation, she ran in and slid down next to her fallen member. “Yoohyeon, are you okay?”

The younger girl just kept panting. She crawled over to the nearby trash can and threw up. Minji watched in horror as she pushed aside the trash can and sat with her back against a wall. The eldest slowly approached and gently sat next to her.

“Yoohyeon, how long have you been here? Practicing?”

“Five hours.”

A sharp pain stabbed through Minji’s heart. Earlier in the day, the girls had all practiced as a group for eight hours already. “By yourself?”

Yoohyeon dropped her head into her hands. “I didn’t want to hold you guys back. I’ve never been the strongest dancer or singer... I feel like I’m a disappointment. Everyone else is always so good, and I’m letting you guys and our fans down when I hold the group back. Sometimes I wonder if you guys could have had a first win by now if I wasn’t here.”

Minji gently lifted Yoohyeon’s chin so they were eye-to-eye. “You could never be a disappointment to us, Yooh. We would be nowhere without you. I would be nowhere without you. You are always so sweet to me, and knowing I have you has already made my life so much better. I wish you would have told me about how you were feeling, so I could tell you that you are already enough without having to overwork yourself like this.”

She gestured to the trash can, and her voice shook. “I can’t... I hate seeing you like this. You deserve better, Yooh. It hurts to know you’ve been in here torturing yourself for no reason. We could have helped you.”

Minji gently took one of Yoohyeon’s hands and gave it a soft squeeze. “I could have helped you.”

“You always take care of everyone else. I didn’t want to be a burden. I just... Losing you has always been my worst fear.”

The older girl released Yoohyeon’s hand and instead pulled her into a comforting hug. “I take care of you guys not because I have to, but because I want to. I love you all, of course I want to make sure you’re all happy and healthy. It’s not a burden for me, Yooh. I love you. Do you hear me? You are so special, I love you.”

Yoohyeon closed her eyes and melted into the warm and familiar embrace. “I love you too, Minji. My nightmare... I’ve been having the same one every night. For two months. I usually wake up before the bad part, but I know what’s supposed to come. Even back when I was a trainee, I knew not everyone would like us or support us. I read things and I’ve seen things. People threatening to hurt us. I’m sure you’ve seen some of it too.”

Minji just nodded quietly. “I try not to pay attention to any of it. The threats are always empty and if I let it bother me, I’d become paranoid.”

“My dream is that one of these days, the threats won’t be empty. Someone comes here to hurt me and because you care so much, you protect me and get hurt instead. Every time, I have to watch as you sacrifice everything for me. I can’t... I can’t do anything to stop it or save you.”

The older girl’s heart shattered. Because Yoohyeon was right. Minji would give anything to protect her, or any of the girls. If it really came down to it, she would gladly lay down her life to save one of her members. The reality hit close to home for her.

“You don’t need to worry about that, Yooh. Nothing is going to happen to any of us.”

Yoohyeon’s voice came out as a choked whisper. “You can’t say that. You don’t know that for sure.”

It reminded Minji of the days when Yoohyeon had first arrived at the company and just been the shy and scared little girl who everyone wanted to protect. Even Yubin, a younger member, always wanted to take care of her. The only person Minji had ever really seen Yoohyeon take a protective role with was Gahyeon.

“I do know it. Because nothing could ever hurt any of us as long as we have each other. And I’m sure I speak for all of the girls when I say this, but all of us are here for you and care about you. I promise. Nothing bad will happen to me. Or you. We’re all safe and we’re all happy. And we’ll stay that way.”

One look at the younger girl told Minji she was not convinced, but she figured Yoohyeon would start to feel better about things as time passed. The eldest could see the exhaustion radiating off her body though, and made a mental note to make sure Yoohyeon wasn’t left practicing alone and overworking herself. The last thing she wanted was for Yoohyeon to collapse in the dead middle of the night and have no one to help her or make sure she’s okay. She didn’t even want to think about the fact that this was probably not the first time it had happened.

She directed a soft gaze at the younger girl and allowed Yoohyeon’s head to slide down so it was resting on her lap. “You must be tired, Yooh. Get some sleep. We’ll talk more tomorrow, okay?”

Yoohyeon just gave her a tired nod and drifted off to sleep on the older girl’s lap. Minji sang a soft lullaby as a tear rolled down her cheek. It hurt her so much to think how many other nights the girls had been sleeping peacefully while Yoohyeon was here, working herself until failure because she thought she was the team’s weak link. She laid a hand on Yoohyeon’s arm and gave it a soft squeeze, and slowly her hair.

The next morning, Yoohyeon woke in Minji’s lap. Just like they had been the night before. The older girl had fallen asleep too, much to Yoohyeon’s relief. She didn’t want her to stay up because of her.

She got a pillow and a blanket from the lobby of the company building and returned. Gently, she laid Minji down and slid the pillow underneath her head. The younger girl then unfolded the blanket and carefully covered Minji. She made a promise to herself that while the older girl was caring for everyone else, Yoohyeon would be the one to take care of her. From now on, she vowed to protect Minji.

She left and quietly flicked the lights off. As she turned around, she had a smile on her face. It was the first night in two months that she slept without having any nightmares.