A/N: I absolutely needed to get this out. Sorry or any spelling errors, ill fix them later on.

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Tick tock. Tick tock. Tick tock.

There was no time left. The clock seemed to taunt him as they were in the room together. 

Jonghyun looks nervously around the room, seeing that everyone else was still getting their makeup applied.

The main vocalist alternated from tangling his fingers together to running the pads of his fingers through his newly bleached hair.

His foot made a stuttered rhythm as the sole of his shoe continued to tap against the tile of the dressing room.

it had been much too long. Why did it feel like he was debuting alone?

Jonghyun's head snapped to the side when he felt a large hand on his shoulder. Onew grinned towards his band mate, the smile speaking volumes of encouragement and pride for the younger man.

Jonghyun could only offer a weak smile back towards the leader, seeing that the nerves in his stomach had increased with the countdown of the time to the performance.

Onew was called over to the makeup counter again. The leader grinned again before squeezing Jonghyun's shoulder and heading back to the counter.

Jonghyun's foot continued to tap against the floor, the beats of their comeback ((his comeback right now)) echoing in the almost silent room.

Jjong's eyes had met the tile below his feet, his eyebrows furrowing in worrying for the performance. Only a few more hours and he would be able to perform again. 

Another one of his band mates appeared in front of him, this time a round face and dark brown hair met Jonghyun's vision.

"Hyung....can I sit next to you?" Taemin smiled a he ran a hair through his styled bangs.

Jonghyun mirrored the maknae's smile and he chuckled, "Of course you can Tae."

Taemin half bowed in thanks before sitting on Jonghyun's left side. The lead vocalist's arm immediately moved to accommodate for the maknae and his arm wrapped securely around the other's shoulders.

Taemin leaned his head on his hyung's shoulder in an effort to comfort him, Taemin could feel the tension in Jonghyun's body. 

"It'll be fine, you'll be great. And I can finally give my voice a bit a break, huh hyung?" Taemin encouraged and joked with Jonghyun, trying to get the older to smile genuinely and laugh before they went on stage.

Jonghyun smiled and his arm tightened around Taemin's shoulder. "Yeah, you had to take all my parts right maknae?" Jonghyun teased back, moving Taemin's body in a mock-shove.

"Yup! And my voice was silky smooth hyung...but I can't replace you." The sentiment hung in the air, not awkwardly, but instead it succeeded in warming Jonghyun's heart.

Their conversation was interrupted when Jonghyun felt a hand pat the small of his back, and Jjong craned his head to see "frog face".

"Hey hyung, how you holding up?" Minho smiled, it would have come across as teasing if Minho had smirked instead of offering a smile.

Jonghyun took his bottom lip between his teeth. "Uh...not too good actually, nervous as usual." 

Minho responded by sitting in a chair in front of the pair and rolling his eyes. "We all know that you'll be fine, and we believe that. You should start thinking that too, Jjong hyung." 

Jonghyun nodded in response, his face still ridden with worry as his foot now traced patterns into the tile, the patterns appearing jagged and uneven as the tip of the vocalist's shoe dragged against the floor.

"Yah don't make that face, you'll get wrinkles." 

Jonghyun couldn't help but groan and smile before turning to look at the slightly younger member.

"Stop tht Jonghyun, you'll be fine. So shut up about being nervous and tell a joke or pretend a be a goat or whatever. Anything but what you're doing right now." Key pursed his lips, his arms folded over his chest.

"Yeah yeah, got it Kibum." Jonghyun moved his free arm to outstretch in an invitation to Key. 

Key silently sat next to Jonghyun and the vocalist's arm wrapped around the rapper's waist. Key mirrored Taemin's position by laying his head on the older's shoulder to comfort him, and his hand rested on Jonghyun's thigh. Key's fingers traced soothing patterns into the fabric on Jonghyun's leg.

"Guys! Why are you so quiet? Come on now, we're about to perform together! Someone tell a joke please, this atmosphere is suffocating me." Onew walked up to the rest of SHINee, his makeup now finished.

They four stayed silent, the nervousness spreading from Jonghyun to the rest of them, even though they knew not to be.

"Alright then. Ill do it.' Onew's eyes went totes tallest of the group, 'Hey Minho."

"What?"

Jinki moved a hand to place it on the rapper's shoulder before speaking in English. "Sorry to tell you but... you are a pizza."

Minho's eyebrows furrowed. "Wait, what?" 

There was a pause and Onew face as already turning red from surpressing his laughter.

A few silent moments passed and Onew leaned closer to Minho.

"A pizza ." Onew's laughter echoed in the dressing room and for a while it was only him laughing.

Soon after some of the cordinoonas started giggling and after them Key's head was thrown back as his laughter joined theirs.

Minho soon understood and he only shook his head at the joke while Taemin started laughing along. Jonghyun looked from Onew to Minho and them over at the cordinoonas.

Did everyone except him get the joke?

"Uh...Jinki hyung? I don't...get it.." Jonghyun tentatively asked the leader, but Onew was busy laughing as his gripped Minho's shoulder for support.

Jonghyun felt a tap on his shoulder and Key leaned in to whisper the joke to him in Korean and then explain it to him why it was so funny to everyone ((besides him)).

"OOOOHHHHHH I GET IT." Jonghyun's eyes widened before turning into crescents as he laughed with everyone else, the previous tension in the room now dissapated.

"SHINee! You have 30 minutes to show time!" A PD opened the dressing room and hollered inside before rushing off somewhere else.

The five looked at each other, the usual anxiety before a performance building up between them.

"I.. I'm kind of scared. What if they don't like the performance with me there now? Since they've been watching the performance with just you four.. or what if I mess up? I just got back and if I mess up it won't do anything good and-"

Jonghyun's nervous rambling was cut off after Tarmin's arms wrapped firmly around his hyung's  waist.

"You'll be fine hyung. Don't worry so much." 

Key moved his arms to go around Jonghyun's shoulders. "You will be fine, you had plenty of rest. Now it's time to come back with us."

Minho and Onew both stood in front of the trio, calming smiles on both of their faces. Jinki moved to hug the three, his arms winding around their bodied and pressing them together in a comforting hold. 

Minho followed suit by wrapping his long limbs around the four of them, his head resting on Onew's shoulder.

"We are all proud of you Jonghyun. You always perform well, no matter what. This time is no exception." Onew's voice was slightly shaken with emotion as he tightened his hug.

Taemin, Key, and Minho all nodded in silent confirmation. Jonghyun moved his gaze to the floor. 

A hiccup in his breathing was heard and the four around him tensed.

Key pulled back to have a better look at the vocalist's face. Steady streams of tears were leaving wet streaks on Jonghyun's cheeks, his breath catching in his throat as his lips quivered.

Key moved a hand to wipe at the tears quietly, Jonghyun needed to get this out. Minho moved quickly to grab a tissue box on the makeup counter, grabbing a handful of the tissues and returning to the rest of his band mates.

Minho handed the tissues to Key, and the blonde started blotting the other's face to catch the tears and keep from ruining the makeup on his face.

As Key did this, the other began speaking words of encouragement to the vocalist. Words of praise and thanks were spoken. Years together had told them that it was exactly what Jonghyun needed to pull himself together again and smile and laugh like he usually does.

After a few moments, the hiccups stopped and his breathing returned to normal and a collective sigh of relief was shared.

The silence was filled with anticipation. For what Jonghyun would say, how their performance would go, how the fans would react.

But in the moment Jonghyun firmly stated, "I love you guys. We'll be fine." The tension dispersed and only smiles filled the room.

"SHINee! 5 minutes!" 

The five looked at each other, the worry now gone from their faces as they pulled away from hugging Jonghyun.

Tick tock. Tick tock. Tick tock.

The passing seconds were now only filled with energy and anticipation, the kind that made your hands sweaty and your heart racing- but in a good way.

The five were ushered onto the side of the stage, their manager speaking some instructions and changes that were made to the choreography and to "not forget or you're walking back to the dorms".

The manager left and they all watched each other again, their hearts racing at the sound of the MCs and the audience.

"And now, SHINee!"

Tick tock. Tick tock. Tick tock.

Time seemed to stop and everyone else in SHINee could clearly hear the words from Jonghyun.

"SHINee's back."

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A/N: *sob sob* they are back T^T

I had to get this out of my system before they perform bc I can't deal omfg

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