*At the Studio – 8:30PM*

“Where the hell is that guy?” Mino snarled as he paced back and forth across the practice room.

“I'm sure he's on his way.” Jinwoo tried to assure him.

“Practice started thirty minutes ago!” the tan rapper growled.

All of a sudden the entrance swung open and a sweaty and out of breath Taehyun stumbled in.

“I'm so sorry you guys!” he panted heavily, “I just lost track of time.”

Mino raised an eyebrow. “You boyfriend didn't see you to the practice room?” he said mocked bitterly.

“What? No—he—Jackson just dropped me off outside the building.” Taehyun replied, thrown off by Mino's cold demeanor. The other boy simply stepped into the center of the practice room, letting the other members know he was ready to work on their dance number. The rest of the boys stiffly followed, Taehyun being the last to join them.

*2:15AM*

The boys had gone back and forth alternating between practicing their new dance number that was choreographed to Taeyang's song, and working on the vocals for their cover.

By 3 o' clock in the morning they were all pretty exhausted and just about to call it a night, however, Mino insisted that they worked on the dance number a few more times. Even the dancing machine that was Seunghoon groaned at the amount of dancing they were being forced into.

“Hyung please... we've been practicing for almost six hours now...” Taehyun pleaded. The leader ignored the boy's pleas and gestured for the boys to take their positions once again.

“Mino don't ignore me. Look, I'm sure everyone would agree that we could all use a break.”

The other boy only continued his silence.

“HEY! Song Minho!” Taehyun was starting to get ticked off by the lack of communication from the other boy. “What the hell is wrong with you?!” he felt his face heat up with anger. “Would you ing listen to me?” he grabbed the boy's shoulder but it was immediately shrugged away.

“No YOU listen!” Mino yelled. “Do you even care about this team anymore?!”

Taehyun stepped back, startled. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“While we were all here warming up to practice you were out having a grand old time with your new boyfriend!” Mino fiercely spat back. “If you like spending so much time with him, why don't you just go switch companies!”

Suddenly, the atmosphere in the room took a turn for the bad. Seungyoon, Seunghoon, and Jinwoo froze in fear of the position they were in. They knew that they should do something to stop their argument, but there was still that uneasiness of not wanting to make the situation even worse.

Seungyoon bravely spoke up and raised his hands defensively, “Hey... you guys relax. Nobody is switching anywhere. We're all just tired from all the stress.”

The sudden outbursts caused the Team B boys from the room next over to curiously peek their heads inside to see what was going on.

“I just want what's best for this team. Not once have we won an evaluation. It's a pretty clear sign that we're not working hard enough.” Mino replied heatedly. “If we want to start winning we need our focus to solely be on this competition, not hanging out with our rivals.”

Taehyun felt a sharp pain pierce his chest. He couldn't understand why Mino was lashing out at him for going out with Jackson that day. Taehyun's voice trembled. “...hey... I was only late by thirty minutes. No need to take out our losses on me...”

Mino flinched at hearing the hurt tone as Taehyun spoke. “...Fine. We can end practice for tonight,” he huffed as he grabbed all of his stuff and headed towards the exit. The Team B boys, not wanting to be caught for eavesdropping, quickly shuffled back into their practice room. “I'll see you guys at the dorm.” With those words, he slammed door and left.

Seungyoon and Seunghoon looked at each other and proceeded to pick up all of their belongings as well.

“We're gonna go with him. We'll make sure that he makes it home okay and doesn't do anything crazy while he's in this state... see you guys back at the dorm.” Jinwoo nodded and turned to the youngest boy.

Taehyun's senses dulled. His eyes started blinking rapidly as he felt the stinging of his tears. He leaned back against the wall mirror and slid down it as the tears fell. He didn't want to cry over the same thing but he knew he wouldn't be able to stop it. God... why am I crying over him again? He thought, pitying himself. He curled up and rested his head on his arms as he began to sob once more.

Jinwoo kneeled next to Taehyun and ran his hand up and down the crying boy's back in comfort.

“Tae, you need to tell me. What happened between you two? Something changed that night after I went to bed.”

Taehyun shook his head in his arms, not wanting to talk about it again.

“I can't bear to see you like this. I need to know. You need to tell hyung.” Jinwoo tried to coerce the broken-hearted boy. “I never imagine I'd see you two fight like this. Please tell me!”

Taehyun looked up at the auburn-haired boy, his eyes red and swollen.

“H-hyung... I made a huge mistake.” he choked out.

Jinwoo looked at him puzzled. “What sort of mistake?”

“I-I... fell in love.”

Jinwoo stared, wide-eyed. “...how could that be a mistake, Tae?”

“I confessed to Mino-hyung... that night. After you made us dinner. I just... I couldn't hold it in anymore. I've felt this way for so long... and I thought for sure he felt the same way..” Taehyun's lips quivered as he heaved from his sobs. “But then h-he... rejected me.”

Mino, you . What have you done to Taehyun? Jinwoo thought.

“I thought that maybe I could get over it, you know?” Taehyun looked up at the older boy with the most pitiful expression. “But then... things got awkward between us... and then Jackson... ugh... he suddenly started treating me so coldly. I don't know why...”

“It's not your fault Taehyun.” Jinwoo wiped a tear from the boy's face. “Mino is probably just having trouble figuring out his feelings.”

Taehyun shook his head. “No. I'm positive he hates me. You should have seen him that night, hyung. He wouldn't even look me in eyes after I confessed. I felt like I was disgusting him or something...” a hiccup escaped his lips.

Jinwoo could feel his own heart break as he watched Taehyun continue to cry. He instinctively pulled the boy into his arms and hugged him tightly. “Shhh... Taehyun-ah... everything will be alright.”

Taehyun could only sob harder into the other boy's chest.

Junhwe and Jinhwan poked their heads back into practice room once they realized that the enraged Mino had left.

“Is everything alright?” Junhwe asked as both boys slowly entered the room. Jinwoo threw them an unsure look as he continued to comfort the boy in his arms.

Jinhwan knelt next to his tearful same-aged friend. “Don't worry Taehyun-ah. Mino definitely didn't mean those words he said. He has a kind and caring heart. You know that.”

“Yeah, this whole deal has been a lot of pressure. Especially since he's been designated as your leader.” Junhwe chipped in.

Taehyun looked up at the two boys and gave them a watery smile. He really appreciated the care and support he received from his trainee family. The Team B boys helped their hyungs stand up. Taehyun, sniffled as he accepted a tissue that Jinhwan held out to him.

The quivering boy let out a shaky sigh. “I think I'm ready to head back now. Thanks you guys...”

As much as he honestly didn't want to head back to the dorm, he knew that he'd have to return home sooner or later. Taehyun dreaded the days to come. If he and Mino were hardly able to return to friendly terms after that night he confessed, there was no hope for them to recover from this incident.

*At the dorm – 4:20am*

Taehyun and Jinwoo arrived at their dark apartment. It seemed that the others had already gone to bed. Jinwoo said goodnight to the boy as he retired to his room. Taehyun did the same and dragged his feet across the hall.

He flopped onto his bed and rested his arm over his tired eyes. The brief thought of how swollen they would be in the morning did not make him feel any better. So much had gone down tonight. All the drama was really taking a toll on him, both physically and mentally. His emotional state had been severely damaged. Still, he knew he had to put on a brave face and keep on pushing for the sake of the team. He couldn't bear to know that his personal issues would hurt his friends' chances of achieving their dreams.

Face it Taehyun. There's no point in dwelling on these feelings anymore...

It was finally decided. Taehyun reasoned that it'd be the best for him.. for Mino... and for everyone else. This had gone on long enough. It was time he buried any feelings he had for Song Minho away... forever.

*Mino's room*

Mino laid on his side silently in the dark. He found himself having difficulty sleeping as his mind was reeling with thoughts about what had occurred earlier that night. He was still awake when he heard the two remaining team members finally come home. He heard what he figured was Taehyun making his way to his room, followed by the click of his door closing.

He continued staring into the darkness. He couldn't get over the horrible things he had said to Taehyun. Why did he go and lash out at the poor boy like that? Why couldn't he control his feelings around him? He accepted the fact that he had feelings for the boy that ran deeper than friendship but could it possibly be even more?

Could he really, possibly be in love with him? Mino felt a clenching pain in his heart. Why was he only realizing his true feelings now when it was already too late. He had already hurt the boy he loved so deeply far too much.

Mino felt a single tear roll down his cheek.

I'm sorry...

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A/N: So... yeah. Sorry for all the sad feels these last few chapters. But if I could hazard a guess I'd say there's only two or three chapters left to write...? I'm not sure. Thank you all for sticking with me and reading. Also thank you to all of those who have subscribed and/or left comments, you don't know how happy that makes me feel. ;~; See you all when the next chapter is up! -UxT