Daehyun let out a cough and thought about what he wanted to say. The others went around saying what they appreciated about the next member and he looked at the person next to him and sighed. Even though all the members truly loved each other, what they were saying were all pretty generic things. It was Zelo’s turn and he was shyly praising the leader he looked up to.

            Daehyun touched his headphones and took in a deep breath. It was Yongguk’s turn to praise him and he looked at their leader. The oldest hyung was smiling shyly. “I really appreciate Daehyun. I know our song has a lot of high notes and it puts a burden on you.” It was the same thing Yongguk always thanked him for but Daehyun knew that it was a big deal. For someone who wasn’t outwardly sentimental, Yongguk, like all of them, was having a hard time.

            Daehyun nodded and clapped his hands at his leader’s acknowledgement and it was finally his turn. He looked at everyone and thought about what they’ve all said before. Then he looked at the person sitting next to him. Youngjae had started to bite his nails, a sign that he was nervous and Daehyun felt his stomach squirm. What did Youngjae have to be nervous about? It wasn’t his turn to speak yet.

            He opened his mouth and suddenly, all the emotions he had suppressed throughout the “love game” were pouring out. Daehyun thought about a few years ago and the hardships he had to face, being the only one who had just arrived to Seoul. He had felt so lost, having waved goodbye to his friends and family a few hours ago.

            “Youngjae,” he turned to look at the boy he had regarded as his rock, his best friend ever since arriving. He smiled. It had been a funny pair: Busan bumpkin and the Seoul city boy, a city boy who wasn’t as chic as he had imagined them to be.

            “Youngjae,” Daehyun began again. “After coming up from Busan to Seoul, you were my only friend. The other hyungs seemed a bit too unapproachable and so that was a little difficult. I felt bad for coming in so suddenly and changing a five person group into six. It was really hard.”

            Daehyun faced forward. If he kept looking at Youngjae, he would really cry. He tried to keep his voice steady. Youngjae started to rock, and he knew that his best friend was getting emotional too.

            “Did you know that even now, the only person I can talk to freely is still you?” The other members were smiling, knowing that this was truly coming from the heart. Youngjae was moving around again and Daehyun looked up to keep his tears in his eyes. “We’re both vocalists and whatever hardships I have, you have. We talk about a lot of things and if things are hard on me, I always talk to you about it.”

            He remembered all the times when it was just the two of them, especially in the practice rooms, and Daehyun was thinking “I wasn’t cut out for this. I can’t dance and sing at the same time. I can’t.” He remembered the heavy breathing and the ache in his body as he collapsed from the dance practices.

            And there was Youngjae who was just as tired as he was, but Youngjae was smiling. “Hey, think about it, it’s still a dream come true. We’re singing what we mostly want to and even though the dances are hard, it’s like working out. Come on, Busan, you can handle a little muscle in your body, right?” He had tried to say the last part in the satoori he had picked up from Daehyun but of course city boy always wrangles it and Daehyun can’t help but laugh.

            Daehyun blinked and stared ahead again. Youngjae had thrown an arm around him and the feeling was comforting. Even when he was confessing his heart, Youngjae was still here to keep him from feeling too embarrassed.

            Darn. His voice was cracking. “In the future as well, I hope you can continue to take care of me. I love you.” And now Youngjae was nuzzling his face into his shoulder and Daehyun sniffled. It was hard to admit to someone how much you depended on them, and he was grateful that he had a best friend like Youngjae by his side.

            Everyone cooed and Daehyun surreptitiously wiped at the single tear that leaked down his cheek. Youngjae clapped his shoulder and smiled, but Daehyun could see the mist in his eyes and knew that he was touched as well.

            “Of course! You can see the true friendship between the two of them,” Ryeowook was saying before he moved on to Youngjae.

            And then Daehyun could breathe again. Yongguk, next to him, patted his leg assuringly. Daehyun smiled and leaned in slightly towards Youngjae as he was talking about how good a hyung Himchan was. When the segment was over and they took a break, Youngjae turned to look at Daehyun. The two of them shared shy smiles and Youngjae voluntarily threw his arms out.

            “Gimme a hug, bumpkin.”

            Daehyun laughed and hugged him before they both started pounding on each other’s backs. “Gosh, I didn’t know I was so important. I would have charged more for my advice.”

            Daehyun flicked Youngjae and they settled back into their seats. “And then sometimes, I would gladly strangle you too.”

this is for scyther

Daejae feels ;; 

whole gif set