It was the end of the month and after tackling the flu, Mi Young was back to work, busily rushing between each of the members’ solo activites. It was an early morning and she had just gone to Eric’s apartment to wail on his door to get him on location, where he was filming for his drama, Wolf.

                “Yah, Eric-ah!!” She pounded on his door, knowing that he could very well ignore his doorbell. His normal manager—Jong Hyun—knew that sending the young woman up to get him was a much more effective way than just waiting for him downstairs in the car.

                “Yes…” Eric’s sleepy voice answered Mi Young’s shouts. “I’ll be ready in a bit.”

                “Don’t spend too much time on the toilet, hurry up!!” Mi Young huffed. “There’s coffee in the van.”

                The three arrived on set fairly early despite the leader’s slow start. As the camera and crew were setting up the scene, Mi Young took a seat as Eric paced in a small circle behind her, skimming through his script and sipping his coffee. His expression was completely different from the one she had seen when he first opened his apartment door—the Eric in front of her now was focused, studiously going through his lines and getting himself into the mindset of his character.

                Mi Young was flipping through her planner, making sure she wasn’t forgetting anything in her schedule, when Eric startled her.

                “Are you worried about me?”

                “What?” She turned—bewildered by Eric’s voice—until she saw Eric speaking into his cell phone. Oh, had someone given him a call? He didn’t hear her, apparently immersed in his conversation. There was a long silence as Eric listened to the reply and as she watched, his mouth turned up in a grin.

                “Yah, pabo… That’s what I have a stunt double for.” Eric laughed.

                There was another moment of silence as the person on the other line replied. Mi Young tipped her head to one side, wondering who he could possibly be talking to so early in the morning.

                “Yeeees,” Eric’s tone was suddenly cute, pitched an octave. “I’ll be careful, okay? Thank you for worrying about me, dear.”

                The voice on the other end suddenly exploded and Mi Young recognized it instantly.

                “Yah, it’s not like that! Aagh, why do I even bother with you?!”

                “Saranghae, Hyesungie-ah…” Eric crooned, hanging up in the middle of the main vocalist’s colorfully worded retort.

                “Hyesung-ah called to wish you luck? How surprising.” Mi Young gave the leader a humored look.

                “Hm, actually he said that I have to be careful with the stunts I might have to do,” Eric’s expression became serious as Mi Young processed his words. “He sounded anxious, so I did my best to calm him down.”

                Mi Young raised an eyebrow at the rapper, keeping the tone of the conversation light. “Calm him? You just infuriated him.”

                “Hmm, is that right?” Eric drifted off as a member of the film crew came over, signaling to him that they were ready to film. “Hyesungie will be fine. He beats the members up, but only with affection.”

                “If that’s what you call it nowadays, then sure, whatever.” Mi Young stuck her tongue out, giving him a thumbs up and wishing him luck on his shoot. However, despite the playful banter, something prickled in the back of her mind.

                ‘Why does it feel like I’m forgetting something?’

                Back in the city, Shin Hyesung’s anxiety only got worse as the day progressed. After a few hours of attempting to distract himself with video games, he gave up and tried taking a nap instead, with little success.

                His sleep was erratic, filled with terrifying images.

                Eric unconscious on a hospital bed.

                A car, picking up speed as a familiar figure stood at the side of the road.

                An ankle bound in heavy gauze.

                Eric—diving into the path of the car at the last second, his eyes widening in fear. However, instead of the car stopping, it continued on until…

Hyesung jolted, feeling all the air rush out of his lungs at once.

                His ability had fully activated and suddenly he was standing at the side of the road, watching as Eric and his fellow lead actress were flung into the air before crashing back down on the ground, the car screeching as the driver slammed on the brakes far too late.

                “Eric-hyung…?”

                He blindly reached for his cell phone, his fingers keying in the number he knew by heart. He waited anxiously for the familiar voice to answer him, feeling a chill run through him as the message system took over.

                “Answer, you bastard…” He dialed again, hissing into his phone. He forced himself to calm down, setting his cell phone on the table before he could chuck it across the room.

                Eric was in the middle of filming. He wouldn’t be able to answer a call while on set. Why didn’t he think of that? Hyesung was just being irrational… wasn’t he?

                After several minutes of attempting to reassure himself—and ultimately failing—he panicked and tried calling Mi Young instead.

                No answer.

                ‘She always answers her phone… Does that mean something…?’ Hyesung bit his lip, calling again. After five calls and still no reply, Hyesung stood and began pacing anxiously.

                When his cell phone actually did ring, he almost had a heart attack. “H-hello?”

                “Hyesung-ah, are you okay?” Mi Young’s voice was worried on the other end.

                “Eric-hyung…” He couldn’t say anything else. “He… Is he? Where are you?”

                Mi Young sighed, her voice softening in resignation. “Calm down, Hyesung-ah. One of the stunt drivers misread a signal so Eric-ah and Ji Min-ssi got hit, but it’s not severe--”

                Hyesung felt winded. Eric had gotten hit by a car, just as his vision predicted. Why hadn’t Eric listened to his warning?! “Where are you?” He croaked into the phone, his throat drying out.

                “I’m telling you, it’s not that bad, so…”

                “Just tell me which hospital!”

                “Inje University--”As soon as he heard the location, he hung up, grabbing his coat and heading out the door.

                Mi Young stared down at her cell phone, the flat tone telling her that Hyesung hadn’t heard a word she said. “Aigoo…”

                “Is he on his way?”

                “Ah,” Mi Young jumped as Eric blinked his eyes open. “Eric-ah, you’re awake…”

                “Hyesungie never listens.” The leader shook his head slowly, analyzing his wrapped ankle with mild fascination.

                “Are you feeling okay?”

                “I’m sore… and a little hungry,” He answered, adding a little sheepishly, “Is there any food?”

                Mi Young laughed. From his expression and reply, she could tell that he was perfectly fine. “I have an orange, so just give me a second to find a napkin…”

                “Where… Mun Jyun Hyuk… Which room is he in?” Hyesung came up to the front desk of the hospital, breathless.

                The nurse—startled by his abrupt appearance—checked him in and directed him to the right place. Hyesung nodded his thanks and ran down the hall towards Eric’s room, the anxiety in his heart making it difficult for him to breathe. Around him, the hallway seemed as if it would never end, and the entrie world seemed to be spinning too fast.

                “Eric-hyung!!!” Hyesung burst frantically into the room, gasping for air.

                Mi Young was staring at him with wide eyes, but he didn’t notice her. He only saw the figure on the bed, his foot propped up and a slice of orange in his hands. Hyesung had expected the ankle injury. What he hadn’t expected was Eric to break out into hysterics upon his arrival.

                “PUAHAHAHA, OH MY GOD…” Eric leaned back in his hospital bed, throwing back his head and roaring with laughter. “Hyesungie, your face… It’s so priceless… HAHAHA!”

                Hyesung’s face contorted and he flattened his hair, realizing how it was sticking up from his sprint. “You… I…” He his lips, trying to ignore the tightening sensation in his throat.

                Mi Young covered , trying not to laugh. “Hyesung-ah, I told you he was all right.” She said pointedly.

                “I…” Hyesung took a step back, realizing how badly he had overreacted. A rush of embarrassment flooded through him. “Well, I was…” He needed an excuse, and fast. “I’m only concerned because Ji Min-ssi got injured too!” He sputtered.

                “Oh, you aren’t here for me?” Eric prodded.

                “Y-you?” Hyesung scoffed. “Why? Your head is so hard that the car probably took more damage than you did.”

                Eric’s gaze turned playful. “Oh, I see… But if you weren’t worried about me, why rush into my room with tears in your eyes, screaming my name like that?” His voice pitched into a mock imitation of the main vocalist’s. “ERIC-HYUUUNG!”

                Hyesung’s face flushed deep red and he ducked his head, his expression hidden behind his bangs. “I came all the way over here and this is what I get? You just make fun of me?”

                Mi Young sniffed lightly, uncomfortably aware of the change in the atmosphere. She opened to say something, but Eric was already replying.

                “When you do things like that, of course.” He folded his arms. “Seriously, it was right out of a movie. You could’ve won an award with that performance. Why run in and make a face like that, pabo?”

                Hyesung looked up at the rude name and Eric gave a start as he saw that the main vocalist had tears streaming down his face. “BECAUSE I THOUGHT YOU WERE DYING!” Hyesung yelled, storming out of the room.

                Eric stared blankly at the door as it swung shut, Hyesung’s footsteps fading down the hallway. After a moment he sat back, running his hands through his hair. “Aish…”

                Mi Young spoke up quietly. “You probably could’ve handled that better, Eric-ah…” She shook her head, gently setting the neatly divided orange in front of him. “He was really worried about you.”

                Eric sighed, agreeing ruefully. He suddenly felt worse than he had when the car hit him in the first place. “I messed up pretty badly, didn’t I?”

                “Do you… Should I go and talk to him?” Mi Young offered.

                “…Nah. Hyesungie will just get more mad if a girl sees him crying.” Eric poked at the orange slices, contemplating each one. “I’ll probably get hell for it, but I’ll talk to him once he gets back.”

                Mi Young shrugged, watching as Eric popped one of the slices into his mouth and made a face at the bitter taste. “I don’t envy your position, that’s for sure.”

                It would be a while before Hyesung would come back, trudging into the room behind Jun Jin.

                “Yah, hyung… You’ve really done it this time, haven’t you?” Jun Jin poked at Eric’s bandaged ankle good-naturedly, setting the flowers he had purchased on the bedside table.

                “What have you heard about the accident?” Eric asked, noting how Hyesung was avoiding his gaze as he took a quiet seat in the back of the room.

                “Jong Hyun-ssi made you sound like a hero, gallantly leaping out to save the girl.”

                “Aigoo, really?” Eric laughed. He would have to talk to his manager about that later. He was no hero. “That’s terrible.”

                “But that was the role anyway,” Mi Young commented. “So really, you aren’t so much of a hero… You’re just a really unfortunate actor who was played his part too well.” She folded her arms thoughtfully. “Maybe they’ll give you an acting award for it.”

                Jun Jin and Eric burst out laughing at her naïveté, and even Hyesung cracked a smile.

                “Hyung,” Jun Jin noticed that Hyesung was off to the side and waved him forward. “Why are you over there? Aren’t you worried?”

                “I… I knew he was going to be fine.” Hyesung muttered softly. There was a brief pause. “…You are okay, right?”

                Eric’s expression turned serious, but only for a moment. Hyesung had really worried about him. “Yeah, I have to rest a while and I’m not sure about how filming is going to go for Wolf anymore… But I’m all right.”

                The main vocalist continued analyzing the floor, nodding offhandedly. “Okay.”  

                Jun Jin—feeling the blatant awkwardness that was permeating through the room—gave Mi Young a questioning look. She returned it with a shrug, deciding to feign innocence. If Hyesung or Eric wanted to talk about their conflict, they would have to do it themselves.

                After a moment of uncooperative silence, Jun Jin laughed uneasily. “Yah, what is this? There’s something weird going on.”

                Eric joined in, chuckling. “I don’t know, man.”

                “It’s been a pretty long day though…” Mi Young offered, trying to smooth over the atmosphere.

                “Yeah and I have a schedule tomorrow morning,” Jun Jin scratched the back of his head. “Hyung, is there anything you need?”

                Eric shook his head, grateful for the younger rapper’s thoughtfulness. “I’ll be okay. Good luck with your work, Jinnie-ah.”

                Jun Jin nodded, clapping the leader on the shoulder before turning to leave. “See you later, Hyesung-hyung, Mi Young-ah.”

                “Fighting,” Mi Young waved cheerfully at him.

                “See you later,” Hyesung gave the baby bird a tiny smile.

                As the door shut, Mi Young also stood. The tension in the room had only risen after Jun Jin’s departure and she knew her presence wasn’t going to make anything better.

                “I’m going to the bathroom,” She announced in a loud singsong voice.

                Eric burst out laughing. “Aigoo…”

                From his corner of the room, Hyesung rolled his eyes.

                “Yah, just don’t kill each other while I’m gone, okay?” She gave each of them a pointed look before taking her leave.

                Mi Young headed to the cafeteria, giving the two members some privacy to sort out their conflict. She pulled out her cell phone, messaging Andy and updating him on Eric’s situation.

                It didn’t take long for him to reply.

                ‘These hyungs… They’ll sort things out.’ Mi Young could almost see Andy rolling his eyes in exasperation.

                ‘Yeah, you’re right. It was just startling, seeing Hyesung-ah cry like that.’ She replied thoughtfully.

                Andy’s response came after she had purchased a soda from the vending machine. ‘Did you get a picture? :D’

                Mi Young laughed. Of course, Andy was more interested in finding potential dirt to hold over the older members’ heads. ‘What kind of response is that? -__-  Really now…’

                ‘Ahahaha~ I was just kidding ^^ Well, I’ll come by the hospital later so I’ll talk to you then, okay?’

                Mi Young smiled down at the text. The way he typed made it almost seem as if he were actually speaking to her in person. Maybe it was the way he worded his responses, but they were very characteristic of his personality. ‘Yes~ I’ll be waiting for you. ^^’

[RICSYUNG FEEEEEEEEEELS!! I have the feeling that Eric has a tendency to say things very bluntly as the leader of Shinhwa, and with his love of practical jokes and his informal demeanor when around the members, he gets into trouble when he goes a little too far. Hyesung—of course, being the most no-nonsense out of all of them when it comes to serious situations—wouldn’t stand for any of that and everything would explode in Eric’s face. Tis the story of our beloved ‘oil and water’ couple in Shinhwa…

Text message conversations are always fun to write. I enjoy using tons of emoticons while chatting with friends and getting to use them in my writing is a rare and fun way to tell and show things without having to spell it out in words.

After reading the news about Shinhwa and their legal battle for their own name, I felt that putting this chapter up was especially important today. Shinhwa will get through their tough times—they always do. And we Shinhwa Changjo will always be there to support them, no matter what. :D

Shinhwa, fighting!! Shinhwa Changjo, fighting!!]