I woke up to something tickling my cheek, and a second later, I was awake enough to realize that it had been a light kiss. I opened my eyes a little, but it was still dark. Then I heard a quiet whisper.

"Hey, Kyuhyun," said a quiet voice that I recognized as Ryeowook's. "We're all going out to work. We'll be back later on - "

My eyes snapped open at that, and I forgot all sleepiness.

Everyone's leaving? They're leaving me alone in the dorm while they all go to work?

I sat up. "You're going to work?"

"Yeah. Your breakfast is on the table, so eat it when you feel like getting up, okay?" said Ryeowook. He started petting the top of my head as if I were a young boy. I opened my mouth to try to say something, but he spoke again. "I made you something for lunch and dinner, too. I had to put it in the fridge because I didn't want it to go bad, the weather's getting hot, and oh, Kyuhyun, don't worry about the electricity bill and turn on the air conditioning if it gets too warm in here, okay? And don't worry about doing the dishes and just leave them in the sink. I'm going to do them after I get back from work, so just - "

"Wait, wait," I said, cutting him off. "Where are you going?"

"Work," Ryeowook repeated.

I nodded impatiently and pulled the blanket away from myself. "I heard that. Where, though?"

"Um - " said Ryeowook. He finally climbed off my bed. "We're going to practice for a few hours, then we split up for individual activities until late at night."

I frowned. "You're at practice? For what?"

"For the new album, because - " began Ryeowook, but as he spoke, the door to the room opened and Eunhyuk's head poked inside.

"Hey, Kim Ryeowook, what's taking you so long? We're running late," he whispered, then when he saw me sitting up on my bed, he widened his eyes and strode into the room. He then pulled Ryeowook away from the bed.

"You woke him up?" demanded Eunhyuk loudly. "You said you'd just say one sentence to him!"

"I did, but then he - he woke up!" said Ryeowook defensively.

"We all got ready in complete silence to make sure Kyuhyun wasn't awakened and you - " said Eunhyuk, looking like he could start punching my best friend, so I got up from my bed and stood between them.

"No, no, I'm glad he woke me up," I said calmly to Eunhyuk. "I want to come. Can you wait for me to get dressed?"

Eunhyuk gawked at me. "What?" he said like he couldn't believe what he was hearing, then he walked out of the room, yelling, "Seunghwan hyung, Kyuhyun's being ridiculous!"

I heard the voices, which had been completely silent until now, rise until there was the constant, familiar morning buzz that I remembered. A smile crept up on my face. Finally - it felt like home. I was about to walk out of the room and into the living room when suddenly, Ryeowook was in front of me, blocking my way. Then without even saying anything, he turned me around to face the bed again, then he started rubbing circles on my back with the palm of his hand. I turned my head to look at Ryeowook, perplexed as to why he seemed to be confusing me for a child.

"Kyuhyun, I think you should get more rest," he said worriedly, pulling my arm around his shoulders to sit me back down on the bed, but I resisted.

"Ryeowook, I'm fine," I said with a small laugh.

"I know, and I'm so, so proud. Words can't even say how proud and thankful I am for that. But I just want to make sure you stay that way," he said worriedly.

I sighed and pulled his hand away from my back.

"Look, Ryeowook, I wasn't in the hospital because I was sick, I was in it because - because - " I shuddered as the word 'accident' cross my head, and I felt tears in my eyes again. After all this time, it was still terrible. I closed my eyes for a moment to collect myself, and spoke when I had. "Anyway, it wasn't because I was weak to start with. I'm all healthy now."

"Don't lie, you used to collapse all over the place," retorted Ryeowook, trying to push my shoulders down onto my bed again.

"I collapsed once in my entire life, and that was the day of the entrance exam. It was mental more than physical, and it really - "

As I was defending myself, the door opened, revealing just the manager hyung at first, then many heads poking inside in interest.

"Hyung, I want to come with you," I said. "I'll join you for practice, and - "

But he cut me off. "No," he said.

I was taken aback.

"Why - why not? I'm still Super Junior, hyung, I - "

"No. It's just because I won't be able to bring you back here until really late at the end of the day, Kyuhyun."

"That's okay, hyung," I said with a smile. "I don't mind. I missed this."

"But - "

"I'll be okay, I promise," I begged.

Seunghwan hyung hesitated.

"What did the doctor say?" asked Seunghwan hyung finally.

"Hyung, you were there two weeks ago. He cleared me for normal activities," I reminded him.

"But he said to avoid strenuous activities," he said.

"Just watching the team working is not strenuous activity, hyung, he just meant don't try to body-build," I sighed.

He bit his lip for a second, then he nodded slowly. "Okay," he said reluctantly.

I beamed, and he smiled a little, too.

"But eat breakfast."

"Aren't you running late?" I asked with a wrinkled frown.

"Doesn't matter. Eat," he said. I nodded, and I walked out of the room and into the kitchen with Ryeowook's unnecessary support and Seunghwan hyung's careful, "Take it easy, Kyuhyun."

I ate with everyone standing around the table, watching. And it made me so uncomfortable that I just shoving everything down as fast as I could. "Take it easy," said the manager hyung again worriedly.

"I don't want to slow us down," I said with my mouth full of food, still barely even chewing before wolfing it down.

"It's okay if we're a couple minutes late. Just take it easy," he said.

I nodded, but I continued eating at the same pace.

When I was finally finished, I barely took a few seconds to get fully dressed, in order not to slow the team down more than I already had, and I rushed out of the bedroom to Kangin's tall, muscular body blocking the door.

"Um," I said awkwardly, and as I stopped, Kangin suddenly turned his back on me and knelt on the floor.

"Uh - " I said, unsure of what to do.

"Get on my back. I'll carry you downstairs," he said.

I widened my eyes. "Why?"

"I thought you couldn't do stairs."

"No, it's okay, do you know how many stairs I did the day I was discharged? You wouldn't believe - "

I said, but then I stopped myself and smiled. I was so glad I was close enough with this hyung for him to offer to carry me on his back. And why shouldn't I just take him up on the offer?

"Okay, fine," I said, feigning relunctance. I climbed on his back carefully. As soon as I did, Kangin got to his feet without so much as even a grunt, and I wrapped my arms tightly around his shoulders, hiding a smile all the while.

Kangin didn't let me down from his back until we all reached the two vans where the 14 of us would cram into. When we did, I tightened my arms around Kangin's shoulders for a moment when his footsteps stopped.

"Thanks. Are you tired?" I asked.

Kangin laughed. "Do you know how little you weigh right now? You're like a feather."

He bent down carefully again to put me down, and I climbed off his back with a playful, "Thanks."

"Hey, do you need help getting in the van?" asked Ryeowook as soon as my feet touched the ground. He held out his hand to help me to step inside, and I took it without even thinking.

I ended up between Henry, that new kid, and Ryeowook. As soon as the van started moving, though, Henry inched away from me and leaned away, but Ryeowook grabbed my hand and put it on his knee.

"I'd missed this," said Ryeowook with a smile. "I'm so happy that you're healthy again."

"Me too," I said. I reached up at Ryeowook's face to brush away a loose eyelash. Soon, though, I felt Henry's stinging stare from behind me, and I looked at him. I smiled a little, trying to relieve the tension, but Henry merely looked scared before looking out the window. Deciding that I needed to talk to him, I turned to Ryeowook.

"Does he know our names?"

Ryeowook shook his head. "I don't know. He's barely said a word since he's been here."

I widened my eyes. "Not even hello?"

"Not even hello."

My mouth dropped open, and I turned to Henry and stared until he looked back at me.

"Hey," I said.

He quickly looked away, but didn't say anything. But I could almost see his cheeks swell up in fear and nervousness. I raised my eyebrows at Ryeowook. "I see what you mean," I said.

"I know, it's actually quite frustrating," said Donghae, turning his head from the seat in front of ours to speak, and to make clear that he was overhearing our conversation. I turned to Henry again.

"Hello," I said clearly.

He stole another glance at me as if he didn't know what to say.

"Hello," I said again, then I pointed at Henry in an attempt to cue a greeting from him. When I didn't get one, I got my body language more involved.

"Hello," I said again with my hand waving this time, then I pointed to him again. He stared uncertainly for a second before finally, finally opening his mouth.

"Hello," he mumbled in Korean. I beamed in approval; his Korean accent was really quite good. I next tried to introduce myself.

"I'm Kyuhyun," I said. I pointed to myself. "Kyuhyun."

He turned uncertainly to look at me. "Kyuhyun?"

I don't know what I was expecting, but I was somehow shocked at the fact that he hadn't attached the 'hyung' honorific at the end. And I heard Ryeowook chuckling from beside me. I shook my head to correct both myself and him. "No, Kyuhyun hyung."

"Kyuhyun hyung," he repeated back quietly.

"Yeah," I said, impressed. "And you?" I asked, pointing to him.

He stayed silent and perplexed, not having understood.

"Henry," I said. I pointed to myself again. "I'm Kyuhyun - " then I pointed to him - "Henry."

I saw his head nodding and mouth quietly to himself, "I'm Henry."

Surprised by his quick progress, I put my hand on his shoulder in a warm, encouraging gesture. "You're getting there," I said, although I knew he wouldn't understand it.

He smiled back awkwardly, but then he grabbed my wrist with his hand and pulled it away from my shoulder coldly and released it only when it was over my own lap.

I was shocked for a second, then I wasn't sure what to feel. I was just trying to be nice, and a friend when he clearly didn't have one, and he was refusing it? Because why? Because he didn't respect me? Because he was still angry about last night? Because he didn't like me?

I glared at him for a moment, too, then feeling Ryeowook's hand squeeze mine, calmed down.

"Fine," I whispered, then I faced front again, not to look at him for the rest of the trip to the office.

They had the dance to the point that I had trouble believing that they had only been practicing for a couple of days. They were almost beyond the stage of polishing up. I hadn't seen them be this picky about everything from making sure that they were all perfectly in line or so perfectly disciplined with the height that they would lift their feet or their arms, or the speed of their movements. And their formations were so perfect that even just watching from here, I knew where I was supposed to be. They had left an empty spot in the choreography so that I could join them later.

What surprised me was Henry's role in this song; he wasn't singing or even joining the rest of the team for most of the dance. He was, in fact, a violinist who would play during the dance break.

When Henry's solo ended, the manager hyung, who was seated next to me with a pile of paperwork, turned to me.

"How is he?"

Not having quite forgiven Henry for what happened earlier on in the van, I tried to look as unimpressed as possible. "He's not as good as my sister."

Seunghwan hyung chuckled before turning back to his paperwork.

"Well, I think he's amazing," he said. "His singing is really good, too."

I shrugged and hoped to look nonchalant, and continued to watch with my arms crossed. I watched them practicing for another hour or so, then I stood up from my chair as they were about to begin the next run through.

"Can I join you this time?" I asked.

There were worried murmurs from around the room, but I ignored them all and took my place, filling the gap that had been present between the members all that time. I was dying to join them again, and although I didn't know if I could dance yet, I could at least practice now so that I would have an easier time remembering the formation.

"Take it easy, Kyuhyun," I heard from the manager hyung for what felt like the hundredth time today. I turned my head to look at him.

"I am. I just want to remember the formation. I'm not even dancing," I said.

He didn't say anything and continued to watch me worriedly. Then when I faced front again with the rest of the team, he spoke again. "Just - take it easy," he repeated. I looked at his worried face through the mirror.

"Yes, sir," I said with a reassuring smile.

And then I just ignored him as I finally stood among the team, and feeling like I finally, finally was fully part of it.

Practice was over in a couple hours, and although I hadn't been doing any dance except trying to find my spot throughout the song, I was just as sweaty and tired as everyone else as we made our way downstairs. As everyone scrambled into different vans to begin their schedules for the day, Seunghwan hyung pulled me aside.

"Kyuhyun, do you want to stay at the office with Henry until I can pick you up later at night?" asked Seunghwan hyung apologetically.

"No," I said without even thinking about the suggestion.

"Then - then do you want to take a cab back to the dorm?"

"No, I want to go wherever you're going," I clarified.

He looked uncertain. "I'm going to be taking care of Jungsu on a variety shoot today."

"Okay. That's fun," I said.

"Kyuhyun, aren't you tired?"

I shrugged. "I'll be okay."

He sighed. "Okay. Just let me know whenever you're tired and I'll do whatever it is I need to do."

"Yes, sir," I said, starting to be irritated by all the over-protectiveness. I ignored him and climbed on the van and took the seat next to Leeteuk, who had been leaning his head back on the headrest with his eyes closed in exhaustion. "Hi, hyung," I said.

Leeteuk opened his eyes and stared at me. "What's up?"

"I'm going with you today to your variety show shoot."

"Why?"

"For moral support," I said matter-of-factly.

Leeteuk chuckled, then patted the top of my head. "Thanks, Kyuhyun."

"Anything for our leader hyung," I said with a smile. However, Leeteuk stared at me in apparent surprise for a moment before reaching for my hand. And he made sure that his warm hand was holding mine for the entire trip there.

Leeteuk was being rushed onto the set before as soon as we stepped inside, leaving me and the manager hyung alone together. And for the first time, I saw what the manager hyung saw when we were on stage. He was busy putting together what he thought Leeteuk might need during the show, from a packed lunch and a water bottle to speaking to the producer about Leeteuk's script to make sure Leeteuk's plans for the show would flow smoothly.

As he scrambled to put a change of clothes for Leeteuk close by, his phone rang. He hurriedly pushed the change of clothes into my arms for a moment before reaching into his pocket and answering it with a tired, "Hello?"

His demeanor changed as soon as he heard who was on the other line. He suddenly stood up straight and stopped his busy steps.

"Yes, sir, what is it?" he said nervously. He listened, and eventually, a small frown formed on his face.

"But I'm with Jungsu on set. I can't go now."

He sighed and put his hand to his forehead. "You want me to leave him alone here?"

He shook his head.

"I know he's experienced, but you never know what's going to happen."

He listened, then he sighed. "Yes, sir. I can try, but I really don't feel comfortable leaving Jungsu here alone."

He bit his lip and closed his eyes. "Yes, I still want my job," he said into the phone quietly.

And then the person on the other line yelled so loudly that even among the hustle and bustle of backstage, I could still clearly the hear the words, "Then do your damn job right."

Seunghwan hyung wordlessly flipped his phone closed and ran a tired, concerned hand over his face. And as much as I understood most of the situation, I nudged him a little with my elbow.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

He sighed. "The representative wants me at the office to take care of some paperwork that I hadn't done last week," he admitted. "But I'm here with you boys now and I - " He shook his head, with embarrassment at having realized that he was venting to the maknae of the team. "You don't have to know."

I was lost as to what to tell him for a moment, then an idea popped into my head.

"Hyung, you can go and take care of it. I'll stay here and take care of Jungsu hyung," I urged.

He stared at me like I was crazy. "What?"

"I can be Jungsu hyung's manager today. You take care of what you need to at the office, hyung."

He looked at me skeptically. "You're not a manager, Kyuhyun."

"I know, but I've watched you work for a year," I said. "And I might as well make myself useful when I'm here, right? And I don't want you losing your job."

He hesitated, but then soon nodded, evidently having decided that he wanted his job after all. "Okay. Then I give you permission to yell at him if he does something wrong, okay?"

I suppressed a laugh. "That I can do."

"If he needs anything - just - just ask one of the other managers here," said Seunghwan hyung. "And call me. If something big happens, just - just call me."

"Nothing's going to happen, hyung," I said.

"I'm going to be back in one hour, okay?" he said.

"I know. Drive safely," I said with an encouraging smile.

He squeezed my shoulder with a genuine, "Thanks, Kyuhyun," then he ran out of the set, leaving me to watch Leeteuk on my own.

Although I'd offered to be Leeteuk's manager for an hour, it was only to put Seunghwan hyung more at peace. I had no idea what I was supposed to do, and I eventually found myself a chair to watch the recording, more or less as an audience member instead of fulfilling any duties as a manager.

I just watched mindlessly as Leeteuk made joke after joke on the stage. And as funny as he was, I couldn't manage to laugh - in fact, as time went on, a frown formed on my face. And I stayed like that until some time later, when a break was called for the cast. I finally snapped out of the trance and instead got up from the chair with the water bottle that Seunghwan hyung had ready for Leeteuk. I started walking towards my leader to give it to him, but when he saw me, he got up from his spot on stage and rushed towards me.

"Stay sitting," he said hastily.

"No, I'm supposed to be your manager today," I said with a bitter smile. I uncapped the water and gave it to him.

He took the water bottle from me and started drinking from it.

"How am I doing?" he asked with a smile.

I paused. I wanted to say he was doing great - because he was being so funny, but I just couldn't say the words.

When I stayed silent, with my brows furrows for a little while, Leeteuk put his hand on my shoulder.

"What's wrong?" he asked quietly.

I stayed silent for a few moments more, trying to decide how to phrase the answer.

"Hyung, you're being really funny, but - " I sighed, looking into Leeteuk's perplexed face. "But it makes me feel a bit... a bit uncomfortable."

"Why?" asked Leeteuk, his face full of deep concern.

"Because - because hyung, you look like a fool up there," I said, perhaps too honestly. "But in reality, hyung, you're such a charismatic leader. I hate that you look like that on the show, hyung."

Leeteuk smiled sadly. "The fans say the same thing," he said quietly. "But if I do this silly act, and if I stand out from the cast, and if one more person who's watching becomes more interested in Super Junior - I'm okay with that. The team's more important than - than me, you know?"

I averted my gaze away from Leeteuk's eyes. I just couldn't look him in the eyes anymore. I was just so thankful, and my respect for Leeteuk had doubled once more.

"Yes, hyung," I said finally.

"That's all I can do," said Leeteuk with a sigh. Then he took my face between his hands. "Are you okay with that?"

I nodded, then I pulled him into a hug. "I love you," I said genuinely.

Leeteuk hugged back. "Please don't be upset."

"I'm not," I managed. "I - just - I love you."

We let go of each other, and Leeteuk smoothed the top of my head with his hand.

"I love you too," he said, then with an affectionate rub of my cheek, he made his way to the stage again, his steps significantly heavier than before.

"Your cake's right there," said Seunghwan hyung, glancing at me through the rearview mirror and pointing to a white, cardboard box beside him. Seunghwan hyung was driving me, Leeteuk and Henry back to the dorm after the shoot was over.

I frowned as I reached it. "Cake?"

"You asked for one last night," he said. "I know it's small, but I didn't want to get one that was too big if it were going to be just you eating it. The fork should be in the box."

I laughed, finally remembering. "I was joking!"

Seunghwan hyung shrugged and continued driving as Leeteuk looked over and spoke jealously. "I think I can smell the chocolate from here."

Seunghwan hyung looked at him pointedly. "If I catch any of you besides Kyuhyun eating it, just know that I won't let it slide. It's promotions soon, and - "

"I know, hyung. I was just - commenting," said Leeteuk sadly.

"I'm sorry," I said apologetically. I hadn't meant to rub into everyone's face my privileges, for lack of a better word.

"I don't care," said Leeteuk. "But try to eat as much as you can here so that the other members aren't tempted."

I nodded, and reluctantly, with stares from both Leeteuk and Henry, started eating the cake alone.

I didn't finish it though; it didn't taste nearly as good as it would have if I were allowed to share it with the other members, or if it weren't for the fact that Leeteuk and Henry were both staring hungrily without even trying to hide the stares. I closed the box before I was through even a quarter of the small cake. As soon as I entered the dorm, I put the cake down on the kitchen table, and after a long day, I stumbled into the bedroom after Leeteuk and Henry before falling asleep right away.

My eyes snapped open in the middle of the night at having heard some loud sounds coming from the kitchen. Was - was this - was this yelling?

"What's going on?" aske Ryeowook groggily from beside me.

"I don't know," I said. I tried to fall back asleep, but then heard the yelling again. And soon, curiosity had gotten the better of me. "I'll pretend I need water or something and check it out," I whispered to Ryeowook.

"Sure," he said, but he was clearly less interested than I was; even before I got myself out of the blankets and stepped on the floor over Henry's blankets, I heard his soft snoring again.

I opened the bedroom door as quietly as possible, but as soon as I did, the yelling had continued. I tiptoed to the kitchen, where the source of the noise seemed to be, and to my shock, I saw Seunghwan hyung looking angrier than ever, holding a broom his his hand.

And when I took a closer look at the kitchen to try to identify the source of the problem when I saw something almost so comical that I almost started laughing.

Henry was sitting at the kitchen table with my cake box open and a fork in his hand. It also looked like his mouth was full, although I wasn't sure if his cheeks were always that chubby.

"Um," I said quietly.

Seunghwan hyung glanced at me standing in the hallway, half in the darkness. He then shot me a meaningful look. "Go to your room."

I stayed where I was, though, and when it was clear to him that I wasn't going to, Seunghwan hyung decided to ignore me. He strode into the kitchen, grabbed Henry by the arm and pulled him out of the chair and into he living room.

"Hyung, you're doing this because you caught him eat some cake?" I said, trying to make him realize how ridiculous the situation was.

"He knows the rules," he responded. "He knows the rules and he decided to break them."

"But how do you know he understood? I mean, he doesn't even understand - "

"Because I used a damn interpretor to lay down the ground rules with him when he moved in!" shouted Seunghwan hyung. "He knows that he's not allowed to eat except what he's given permission to eat!"

I shook my head and walked closer to Seunghwan hyung.

"No, but hyung, I said he could have it," I lied, taking his arm gently and tugging him away from Henry. However, he didn't buy it.

"Don't lie to me, Cho Kyuhyun, I was with you the entire day," he said, shaking in anger.

"I saw him eating it earlier and I didn't stop him! I may as well have told him it was okay, hyung, I - "

"You saw him eating it and you didn't think to tell me?"

I widened my eyes at the anger in his voice, but I let out a nervous laugh, trying to diffuse the situation.

"Hyung, it's not a big deal! It's a piece of cake!" I yelled.

"I don't care! Henry! NOW!"

Henry approached the wall, the tears already streaming down his baby face, and the manager hyung lifted the broom even before Henry's hands touched the wall. And then without thinking, I rushed towards Henry and wrapped my arms around his waist from behind. The broom barely touched me before losing momentum and stopping; the manager hyung had - thankfully - been able to stop before it had made contact with me.

"Cho Kyuhyun, what do you think you're doing?"

"Stop," I pleaded. "Stop. If you're going to hit him, hit me too."

"Cho Kyuhyun, don't make me angry now, I don't want to hit you," he said, his voice shaking.

"If you think beating me would do anything to me anymore, you must be delusional, hyung, I've been through much more than beatings, and it doesn't scare me anymore."

"Then step the hell aside and - "

"Henry's not going to go through the same!" I yelled.

"CHO KYUHYUN, STOP TALKING BACK AND LEARN YOUR PLACE!"

I stopped and stared, shocked into silence.

But as I took a few steps backwards, I heard sniffling - and they weren't coming from Henry. I looked around, confused, and to my surprise, I saw Ryeowook standing in the dark hallway behind me, crying with his head down.

"Ryeo - Ryeowook?" I said. As I said the name, Seunghwan hyung looked to the hallway to confirm that indeed, Ryeowook had wandered out of the bedroom and was now standing with his head down to hide his tears.

"KIM RYEOWOOK! WHY THE HELL ARE YOU CRYING?" shouted Seunghwan hyung, throwing his hands up in the air. And finally, Ryeowook spoke.

"Hyu - hyung, p - please don't get a - angry at Kyu - Kyuhyun, hyung, I - "

"Damn it, Kim Ryeowook, we told you to not to cry anymore!" shouted Seunghwan hyung, sounding exasperated. He dropped the broom and gripped Ryeowook's shoulders. "Kim Ryeowook, look at me. Look at me."

I saw Ryeowook lifting up his tear-strung eyelashes up to look into Seunghwan hyung's eyes. "You're an adult and a public figure now, and you can't just cry whenever you want anymore! You promised everyone you would never cry anymore if Kyuhyun got better!"

He dropped his head again, probably in shame this time, but a split second later, Ryeowook had embraced Seunghwan hyung in a hug, flustering him greatly.

"Kim - Kim Ryeowook, get - get off, just - stop crying and - " stuttered the manager hyung, but Ryeowook continued to hold Seunghwan hyung.

"Henry, come here," I said, taking the petrified Henry's arm and having him step away from the wall. "Come here. You won't do it again. So just go back to bed."

Henry looked at me uncertainly, making me take him by the shoulders and walk him to our bedroom. He laid down in Leeteuk's bed and buried his head in the pillow.

And as soon as I saw that Henry was starting to collect himself, I made my way back to the common area to check up on Seunghwan hyung and Ryeowook - to make sure that they wouldn't fight even more. But to my pleasant surprise, what I saw was Seunghwan hyung hugging Ryeowook back and patting Ryeowook's head quickly and repeating, "Okay, okay. I'll let it go. Just stop crying, Ryeowook," over and over.

"Okay, Ryeowook," I said, pulling him away from Seunghwan hyung. He finally let go and when he saw my face, he gave me a tearful smile. "Back to bed," I said. Ryeowook nodded, and I faced the manager hyung, who looked so, so, so tired.

"I'm sorry," I said apologetically with a small bow, starting to back away from him with Ryeowook's shoulders in my hands.

He didn't accept the apology as he sighed and turned his back on me.

"I don't know why I even bother trying," he muttered, then he flopped himself down on the couch, his head shaking into the cushion.