Minho climbed into the van after squeezing through the crowds of fans outside of the TV recording studio, greeting them on his way with smiles and thanks even though he was exhausted. He sat down in the back seat, Lee Taemin slumping down next to him while the three remaining members and the manager sat in the middle and front seats. The driver drove off into the busy Seoul night traffic and Minho looked out through the window. The car was silent as everyone was very tired after the long schedule. Minho felt drained. The promotions for their new album took up almost all of their time and there were barely any time for anything besides interviews, variety shows, radio shows and training for the upcoming tour. Right now it was already past midnight and tomorrow morning at 06.30 they were supposed to be at a radio station to take part in a morning show. Enough sleep, free time and meeting with anyone besides the members and staff were definitively not a possibility right now. Even though Minho was used to this life now, and enjoyed the majority of it, it was very overwhelming at the moment.

He sighed and turned his head to look at the maknae next to him. Taemin was already fast asleep, his slender body curled up into a ball and head leaning against the cold window. His makeup was smudged and he had dark circles under his eyes. It stung in Minho's heart seeing his beloved dongsaeng like this. Minho knew this time was even harder on Taemin than on him. Taemin always did his best, but as he was a naturally quieter person than the rest of the group and giving his all to be funny, cheerful and likeable in public to this extent really was a great challenge for him. Minho reached out his arm and affectionately caressed Taemin's soft cheek, carefully down the side of his thin neck and, hesitatingly, lightly touched his prominent collarbone. He looked so fragile and his bare skin was surprisingly cold – the thin clothes they were wearing for this concept apparently didn't do much to protect from the cooling AC in the car. Suddenly Taemin flinched and turned his head to Minho, who quickly moved back, feeling caught.

- Hyung, what is it... Taemin said with sleepy voice, eyes barely open.
- Eh, it's nothing, Taemin-ie...
- I'm so tired, Taemin said and let his head fall back onto the car seat.
- I know, I know... Minho reached over for Taemin and pulled him closer to his own body.
- Rest against me, or you'll get an aching neck from sleeping in that position.
- Thank you... Taemin followed and curled up against Minho, who put his arm around him. Taemin let his head rest against the upper part of Minho's chest and put one of his arms loosely around Minho's belly. They often sat like this in the car; Taemin had said it made him feel safe. Minho enjoyed being able to bringing him comfort in such a simple way.

When they got to the dorm about half an hour later, Taemin was asleep for real. The passengers of the car got out and went inside the building. Minho tried to gently push Taemin off him so that they could get into the dorm and finally get some rest. Taemin wasn't budging; he was surprisingly heavy when he was all relaxed like this.
- Taemin; wake up... We have to go inside. Minho tried to make him move.
- Taemin... Taemin!
Taemin just grunted and held harder onto Minho. Minho sighed in tired frustration.
- Ach... Get off, please. Taemin!
Taemin finally released his grip and, almost as if he was sleepwalking, made his way out of the car. He stumbled towards the entrance and Minho hurried after to support him. To make it quicker he told Taemin to get on his back and hoisted him up to give him a piggy back ride to the elevator. Taemin fell heavily against his back and as Minho made his way into the elevator he found himself getting a strong feeling of anger against their management, pushing them like this. It was hard work being an idol but it wasn't many times he had seen Taemin in such a bad, exhausted condition as he had been the last couple of weeks, and it worried him a lot.
He stepped into the dorm still with Taemin on his back. He could feel his warm, calm breaths against his neck. He went towards Taemin's room, but was stopped on his way by Onew who was already sat on the sofa, eating some cup ramen and looking up at the youngest two.
- Oh, what's with Taemin? He said with a concerned look.
- Ah, it's nothing special, he's just really exhausted from our schedule as usual...
- Do you need any help? Onew asked, slurping up some noodles.
- Ah no, I'm just going to carry him to bed, it's no problem, Minho answered and smiled a little. He went on into Taemin's room and gently dumped him on his bed. He bent down to his knees to remove Taemin's sneakers. He untied them and put them neatly next to the bed. Then he up looked at the sleeping guy. His skinny legs were clad in tight jeans that Minho knew wo