She carefully pinned up her long bangs with a bobby pin, so that they wouldn't get in her way during her group's performance. The bright lights of the waiting room reflected off of her pale, peaked face. After glancing around the room to ensure that everyone else was preoccupied with their own preparations, she reached inside her duffel bag and grabbed a large metal bucket. She stole one more glance of the room before creeping out with the bucket clutched in her hands.

--

"Group D from Seoul Arts Academy is scheduled to perform next. I repeat, Group D from Seoul Arts Academy is scheduled to perform next." The male voice reverberated throughout Building F of Busan Center for Arts over the PA system.

Ryeowook finished running through the routine after the announcement. He quickly surveyed the room to take a head-count and frowned when he couldn't locate his cousin. He took out his cell phone and called her, but immediately ended the call when he heard her ringtone coming from her duffel bag. "Has anyone seen my cousin? It's our turn to perform and she's not here."

The other three dancers shook their heads in response. "Maybe she went to the bathroom," Jea offered as an explanation. "Shall I go check?"

"Is there enough time?" Joon worried as he glanced at the clock in the room.

Ryeowook's heart sank, knowing that they had to be at the auditorium now or risk disqualification. "No, there isn't. We need to go now."

The other three exchanged worried looks with each other. After a moment of silence, Amber said in a lifeless voice, "Then we'd better get going." The group slowly trooped out of the waiting room and to the auditorium with a cloud of despair hanging over them.

The air crackled with nervous energy as the group got closer and closer to their destination. Joon repeatedly looked over his shoulder as he walked, fervently hoping she would magically appear behind them and reassure them all that everything was OK. Ryeowook's mouth was set in a firm line, but otherwise, his face betrayed no emotion.

Just before they entered the auditorium, Jea said in a small voice, "Maybe she's waiting for us here. She must've heard the announcement. It was broadcast throughout the entire building."

"Let's hope so." Ryeowook sighed as he pushed open the large metal door.

"You guys ready?" A lone figure leaning against a wall turned her head once she heard the clang of the opening door.

Jea rushed to her and enveloped her in a giant hug. "You're here! We're saved!"

Ryeowook let out a small sigh of relief and lightly admonished, "You had us worried! Why'd you run off without us?"

"No reason," she quickly replied, waving a hand as if to brush away his words.

Ryeowook raised an eyebrow at her evasive response, but decided against pushing for details. "Let me hold onto those for you," he offered when her charcoal gray mittens caught his eye. She visibly stiffened and reluctantly peeled them off, exposing her bloodless, dry, cracked hands. Everyone gasped as the horrible sight and Ryeowook felt his blood boil. "What did you do to yourself?" His voice shook with anger as he grasped her hands, feeling every crack and line of the mangled palms.

She looked down at the floor, unable to look him in the eye, and answered, "It's nothing. I'll tell you later. We need to get ready now."

"No!" Her head snapped back up and when Ryeowook's disappointed eyes met hers, she knew she had to come clean now.

Taking a deep breath, she launched into her explanation, fervently hoping that her cousin would understand. "My hands would always slip out from under me whenever I practiced the sub-routine and after awhile, they started hurting a lot. So for the past two weeks, I've been icing my hands so that they become immune to pain. I know it wasn't the best option, but I didn't want to let down our group and our chances of winning."

Jea and Amber hugged the younger girl, who kept staring down at the floor, afraid to look at Ryeowook. "Sweetie, you didn't have to do that," Jea reprimanded in a sad, gentle tone.

"I could've changed the routine," Joon added, his heart breaking every time he looked at her hands, feeling guilty that it was his choreography that caused this.

"But then we can't win."

"Your health is more important," Amber countered gently.

"I just couldn't let you all down. Not when everyone had worked so hard."

One of the stagehands approached the group and told them, "You're up now. Places please."

The girls broke apart and they all assumed their positions. Joon kept an eye on her, worried that even with the brutal ice treatment, she might still fall. He cursed himself for not insisting on changing the routine as soon as she'd shown signs of having trouble with it. Once they reached the sub-routine, he held his breath every time they had to perform a difficult twist or a complicated flip. However, she landed with ease after each one, which brought on a great feeling of relief. Knowing that the hardest part of the performance was over, Joon put all of his energy into finishing the dance and the group nailed down the rest of the choreography perfectly.

The five dancers held each other's hands and bowed simultaneously to the applauding audience. After a few seconds, the stagehands pulled the curtains closed and the stage manager came up to them. "Would you like to wait in the audience or your room until the results are announced?"

"We'll head back to our room first. Thank you," Ryeowook answered cordially as he bowed slightly. He beckoned for the others to follow him and they streamed out of the room so the next group could prepare.

Once they were back in their waiting room, Ryeowook shut the door after them before turning to his cousin. He hadn't said anything to her after her revelation, so she braced herself for the worst.

"How could you be so STUPID and hurt yourself like this?! In all of my years of dance, I've never known anyone to act so IDIOTICALLY and right before a competition, you even DARED to continue harming yourself! I know now that you ran off before our performance to ice your hands some more. I just can't BELIEVE you!" Ryeowook raged at her, his eyes blazing with fury and the veins in his hands popping.

"Well, now we have a chance of winning!" she argued back hotly. "Everything went perfectly just now. We're basically guaranteed a spot on the podium."

"You don't know that! The other groups might've had amazing dancers or the judges might not have even liked our style. Besides, winning doesn't matter! Do you know what you did to your hands by icing them for so long?! They're so numb that the nerves in them might not even work anymore!" Ryeowook wanted to shake her for being so pig-headed and stubborn. If she lost the use of her hands, he'd never forgive himself for not watching over her better. He knew these next words would rip her apart, but there was no other option. "We're going to see Dr. Yoon tomorrow and if he agrees with me, you're going to have to leave the dance team.

"Please, Ryeowook, don't do this!" She stared at her cousin pleadingly. He couldn't do this to her. He knew how much dancing meant to her. There was no way he was going to boot her off of the team after she had sacrificed near about everything for it.

"Ryeowook, maybe you should rethink this," Amber reasoned with her classmate.

"I'm sure her hands aren't that badly injured," Jea added soothingly.

Ryeowook's expression turned stony as he shook his head. "The dance team will not have people who are so careless and irresponsible. You're going to stay here and think about what you've done until they announce the winners. We'll wait for you  in the auditorium." He quickly turned around, opened the door, and waited for the other three to leave the room before marching out without a backwards glance.

She glared at the closing door and when she heard it click shut, all of the tears that she had been holding back streamed down her face as she weakly sank down into one of the couches in the room.

Joon kept glancing back at the waiting room as they walked further and further away from it. He couldn't help feeling worried about her, especially after that big blowout with Ryeowook. "Um, don't you think you were a bit harsh on her?" Joon asked the captain tentatively.

"I know what I'm doing," Ryeowook answered in an expressionless voice as he continued walking in long strides down the hallway. "If she doesn't learn now, she'll never learn."

Joon bit his lip nervously, not used to this side of Ryeowook. Jea and Amber sidled next to him, and Jea whispered, "Go back and comfort her."

"We'll cover for you," Amber added in a low undertone.

Joon smiled gratefully as he quickly turned back. When he reached the waiting room, he took a deep breath before opening the door. "Hey."

"You didn't have to come back and lecture me some more, Ryeowook. I get it. I'm an idiot. Now leave me alone."

"It's me."

She sat up and saw Joon standing at the entrance. She scowled before turning away and saying bitterly, "Ryeowook sent you back."

"No, I came of my own free will," Joon answered carefully as he walked over to the couch. She refused to look at him and kept her head down, feeling a sense of defiance towards Ryeowook. Joon sighed, unsure of how to proceed now that he was actually with her. "I wish you had told me that you were having a hard time. There's nothing wrong with asking for help. All of us are here for you."

After a few moments of silence, she spoke softly, "I only wanted to do my best and help the group." She finally stood up and faced him as she said in a serious tone, " I want to prove to everyone that I'm capable enough to truly be part of the dance team. That I got in because I'm skilled enough to be dancing with the elite of our school. I know that people think I only got in because Ryeowook is my cousin, but I want to prove them wrong."

He didn't know what made him do it, but suddenly, his arms were circled around her and her petite frame was pressed against his broad chest. "Don't ever doubt yourself. You are so much more than you give yourself credit for. I've seen how hard you work whenever we practiced together and the amount of drive that you have is something I admire. So please don't ever hurt yourself, even if you have good intentions. It's not worth it."

Despite the situation, she felt herself being lifted up by the overwhelming feeling of happiness inside of her. Joon was a good friend. So was Ki Kwang. She regretted pushing him away. She only hoped that she'd get the chance to apologize to him and hopefully bring him back into her life.

--

Ki Kwang was nervously pacing outside of Building F. His group had already won first place in their category. The Jo twins, Bora, and Soyeon had taken off to celebrate their win while Ki Kwang offered to stay behind and inform Ryeowook of the good news.

With each step he took, Ki Kwang's agitation grew as he continued thinking about her. What was she hiding? Why was she so evasive? It worried him to think that she'd been so deprived of human trust that she'd locked herself up as a result. The one day when she had burst into tears was the only time he'd ever seen any true emotion from her. He hated himself for possibly causing her even more pain that day. Ki Kwang had tried to apologize to her multiple times, but each attempt had ended in failure and rejection.

If there was anyone who needed a friend, it was her. Ki Kwang promised himself that if she ever gave him the chance to meet the real her, he would take it in a heartbeat. And this time, he wouldn't mess up.

Ki Kwang's thoughts were interrupted by a cheery greeting from Taecyeon. "What're you doing out here?" the tall dancer asked as he climbed up the short steps to the door of the building.

"Just waiting for Ryeowook's category to finish, so I can tell him our group won. I'm also going home with Joon, since we have to get off at the same train stop," Ki Kwang explained, pasting a smile on his face in order to mask his earlier agitation.