Heechul joined us two hours later, accompanied by all three managers. They gathered us, and told us the news that I had been given that morning.

"A new manager, Jinsoo hyung, was just hired for you guys," said the manager hyung, and the members looked around at each other. "So we'll sort through who he's going to care for now. Youngjun's boys are staying with him, but the new manager is taking one of mine and two of Minsung's. So can I get who I care for right now over here?" he asked, stepping away from the large group to set us apart. I followed him to the corner of the room, as did Donghae, Siwon, Leeteuk, and Kangin. I bit my lip and just prayed that I wouldn't have to be the one to leave.

"So, does anyone want to go under Jinsoo's care?" he asked. We looked around, but no one spoke. "Would anyone mind?" he asked. No one spoke again, and the manager hyung sighed.

"Kyuhyun, you've been with him the shortest," said Kangin. "Since we're more used to having Seunghwan hyung as our manager, it makes sense for Kyuhyun to be the one to move managers."

I paled, but I wasn't in the position to argue with him. I looked up at the manager hyung with pleading eyes. The manager hyung looked into my eyes and looked perturbed. He hesitated, and I understood his position; in all honesty, Kangin's argument made sense. If he were to insist on keeping me, the favouritism would be too obvious. After a while, the manager hyung looked at me apologetically.

"Kyuhyun."

"No, please, please," I said, panicked, turning my head towards Kangin. "Please, sunbaenim. Please let me stay with Seunghwan hyung."

"We all want to stay with him," said Leeteuk, shaking his head. "But the situation - "

"Please," I begged, reaching over to hold Leeteuk's hand.

"Why?" asked Leeteuk. I inhaled, planning to explain to him that he was the only person on the team who fully understood what I had gone through and what I was still going through, but I couldn't say it; then I would be telling Leeteuk that I had confided in all of his shortcomings to the manager hyung. Leeteuk waited for a few seconds, then he took his hand out of my grasp and made the decision for me. He looked at the manager hyung. "Kyuhyun will be the one to leave."

I looked at the manager hyung, alarmed. "No, I won't," I said, without even understanding what I was saying. I saw all four of the hyungs look bothered.

"Cho Kyuhyun!" said Donghae with a frown. I looked at him.

"Hyung, please, please let me stay with him," I said, looking at Donghae. The manager hyung looked as uncomfortable as I had ever seen him, but the four hyungs were clearly annoyed. The manager hyung sighed and looked at me.

"Kyuhyun - "

"Hyung, you're giving me away again?" I asked, tears welling up in my eyes. The manager hyung shook his head.

"It won't be like last time. We all had our hands full last time. The new manager will have just three members to take care of, so he'll be able to dedicate more time to you."

"Hyung, please. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. Please, don't," I said, this time grabbing the manager hyung's arm.

"Sorry for what?" he asked, not even looking at me.

"For everything rude I've ever said to you. For everything I've done wrong. Please. Please, sir. Let me stay with you."

"Kyuhyun, it just makes sense," said the manager hyung with a pained expression on his face. He saw the tears welled up in my eyes, then he sighed and pulled me aside, away from the other four hyungs.

When we were out of their earshot, I started talking again. "Hyung, you know how much I need you," I said, starting to getting on my knees. "Please. I'm so sorry. I promise I won't be so hard to deal with anymore."

The manager hyung sighed and pulled me up before I could get on my knees. "Get a grip. It's not like you'll never see me again. You can still talk to me whenever you want. I'm even going to be moving into the dorm, so you'll see me all the time."

"Hyung, why are you so eager to get rid of me?" I asked, pained.

"Damn it, Kyuhyun. You know I want to keep you," he said, shaking me by my shoulders.

"This isn't fair," I said, shaking my head. The manager hyung looked into my eyes.

"It's also not fair that you were beaten instead of Ryeowook last night. It's not fair that you guys made one mistake so far in your comeback and the backlash was so big. It's not fair that you guys got a pay cut for that one mistake. But it happens."

I closed my eyes and sighed. I was about to accept it, but then I looked at the manager hyung again. Just one more time. "Please," I whispered. The manager hyung sighed and swore. After a moment, he looked at me again.

"Your hyungs aren't going to be pleased with you if you keep insisting on staying," he said.

"They're not pleased with me anyway," I said, looking up.

The manager hyung bit his lip, then turning his back on me, rejoined the four hyungs. I followed him a few feet behind, and I also joined the group, my head down.

"Okay. Kyuhyun will be going to Jinsoo, unless one of the four of you wants to hear him out and let him stay with me," said the manager hyung. I felt the tears that had welled up in my eyes finally start to fall, but I kept my head lowered to hide my tears. However, the tears were falling steadily to the floor, and it wasn't possible to hide them.

"What's wrong with him? he never cried before. Now he's always crying," said Leeteuk with a small frown.

"Kyuhyun, you're not a child anymore. Crying's not going to get what you want," said Kangin, clearly annoyed. "And you can't cry when there's a vocal practice going on. How are you planning on singing?"

"I'm so sorry," I said quietly, bowing to Kangin, wiping my tears quickly. "I'm just - "

"Even if you really want it, you should have had more respect and let the hyungs decide instead of showing tears," said Kangin. I bowed again, but the tears didn't stop. The manager hyung was the only person on the team who was willing to listen to everything I had to say with infinite patience and empathy. He was the only person to understand how much I was going through. But what could I say?

"I'm sorry," I said again through my tears, still looking only at the floor. "I'll do what you say." I bowed again while wiping my eyes. When they dried sufficiently, I finally looked up at the manager hyung.

"Sir, may I be excused from practice for a few minutes? I - I just need to get cleaned up," I said, covering as much of my face as I could with one hand.

"I think you all need a lunch break," said the manager hyung, also looking disappointed. I bowed to the group before rushing out of the practice room and into the bathroom as the rest of the team headed to the cafeteria.

After I finally finished crying in the bathroom, I went back to the practice room for my textbooks, but the manager hyung was still there. I bowed a little, and he looked at me and sighed.

"I'll see if I can talk someone else into going with Jinsoo," he said. I looked at him, still feeling injusticed.

"Why didn't you do that earlier?" I asked. The manager hyung didn't say anything, and I sighed. "Hyung, if you don't want to take care of me, it's fine. I thought you understood what I was going through, but you clearly don't. Otherwise, you wouldn't have given me away so easily."

"Kyuhyun, don't talk like that," said the manager hyung, clenching his fists.

"Sorry," I said half-heartedly, then I sat down on the floor, ignoring the pain that followed.

The manager hyung made a face of utmost frustration at my attitude. "Kyuhyun, you're more trouble than you're worth," he said with a sigh.

My jaw dropped open, and I felt as if I were slapped in the face. How could he say that? I just stared at him with my mouth open, then I felt tears filling my eyes again. I could't believe what he was saying; I just spent half an hour crying in the bathroom because I didn't want to lose him as my manager, and he'd rather I wasn't here?

"Then you should have just let me quit the team when I said I would," I said quietly, then I got up, grasping at my chest, which was hurting physically.

The manager hyung looked flustered at my response, then spoke.

"Okay. Okay, Kyuhyun. I'm sorry. That's not what I meant," he said, then he tried pulling me into a hug, but I pushed him away.

"Hyung, you don't have to do things you don't want to," I said, my hand still on my aching chest. Then I looked at him and gave a small nod. "I still admire you for doing everything you've done for me, but I don't want you to take care of me if I'm so much trouble. I know I haven't been the easiest to deal with, and the last thing I want to do is to inconvenience you." There was a long silence.

"I'd be lying if I said you weren't a challenge to manage for," said the manager hyung.

I nodded, trying to hide my disappointment. "Okay. Then I really don't mind - "

"But I enjoy the challenge," said the manager hyung with a tiny smile. "I'll see what I can do."

A smile finally formed on my face, then after thanking him, I bowed again and left the practice room for lunch.

I brought my lunch upstairs to the practice room so that I could study while I was eating; I put my hand on the door handle of the practice and was about to turn the door handle when I saw Leeteuk and Donghae standing in the middle of the room through the window, talking to each other. Not wanting to disturb their conversation, I opened the door a crack as quietly as I could. It took me a few moments to realize that Donghae was crying, and for a moment, I didn't know what to do. I was caught between closing the door again to leave them alone to their conversation and walking into the room for the textbook that I so dearly needed, and in that, I just stayed frozen in the hallway with the door open a crack. I was about to walk inside when I saw Leeteuk pulling Donghae into a huge hug, and Donghae starting to cry into Leeteuk's shirt, returning the hug.

"It's okay. He's going to get better," Leeteuk was saying, Donghae's head.

"Hyung, weren't you listening? The doctors said he only had a few weeks," said Donghae, still sobbing.

"They're wrong. Don't lose hope," said Leeteuk, wiping Donghae's tears for him. "Your father's stronger than they think. Don't worry. You trust me, right?" He then hugged Donghae tighter and started rubbing his back.

Donghae nodded. "I trust you, more than anyone else, hyung," he said, then he wiped his tears on Leeteuk's shirt and smiled a little. "Hyung, you're right. You have to be right."

"We know your father. He'll never leave his baby son alone," said Leeteuk. He then stood there, comforting Donghae in a hug for a long time. I quietly closed the practice room door again, my heart feeling like it had been torn into pieces, and feeling like my problems with the managers were totally insignificant.