Chapter Text
HONGJOONG'S POV
Hongjoong prided himself on being a good leader. He knew he could be abrasive - tense with stress and pressure and ambition. He knew his bad moods could be volatile. He knew he worked too much and slept too little and pushed people away when they got too close. But he was a good Captain. He loved his team. He loved his kids. He loved Seonghwa. Hongjoong prided himself on being a good leader. Looking back, he would blame himself for his ignorance, his naivety. For every red flag he overlooked because he had so much blind trust in the company that had taken a chance on a kid who was a little too rough around the edges; the only one that saw his sparkling potential. He had been so incredibly stupid.
Debut hadn't exactly gone off without a hitch, but it hadn't been a disaster either. Sure there were no music show awards, but that was to be expected for a rookie group, especially one from a no-name company like KQ. Ateez had fought tooth and nail for their debut, knowing they would have to work thrice as hard for the same recognition as a rookie group from a Big Three company. And sure, it had been hard. It had been months, for some of them years, of gruelling idol schedules with no end in sight and no guarantee of debut. But they had done it. And they had made waves - maybe not so much in Korea where they were maybe a little too edgy, pushed maybe too many boundaries for the conservative masses, but they were already being noticed abroad. Hongjoong tried to look at the big picture in that sense - success was success whether it was at home or overseas, and most importantly, he was making the kind of music he wanted to make. He was proud of Pirate King, and even prouder of his team for making it to debut together.
Now that they had taken the first, arguably hardest step, Hongjoong thought he could perhaps dial back his intensity; be a little less harsh and enjoy his time a little bit more. Sure, they had jumped from debut directly into preparing for their first official comeback, but some of the pressure, the intense need to prove himself had loosened its grip. Hongjoong had made a resolution to be a little less dictator-Joong as the kids had taken to calling him in some of his lesser moments. And he was doing better. So it came as an unpleasant surprise to him when he could feel the simmer of his anger rolling into a boil as Seonghwa stumbled through the choreo to Say My Name for the millionth time that day.
Perhaps he would be less annoyed if it appeared to be a genuine struggle or skill issue, but Hongjoong had seen Seonghwa do this choreo flawlessly time and time again; in gruelling dance practices led by Yunho, in the tiny living space of the dorm late at night when he couldn’t drag himself to the company, in private practice rooms accompanied by Wooyoung and San. So why he couldn’t do it now, when their choreographer was there, when they were being evaluated and appraised was beyond him. Why couldn’t Seonghwa get his shit together when it really mattered? Sure this wasn’t like the near constant evaluations of their trainee years, but KQ still had the right to pull the plug on them if they weren’t cutting it. KQE didn’t have the budget of the big companies, and if they weren’t pulling their weight, they’d be out on their ass in a heartbeat. And right now, Seonghwa was not pulling his weight.
“Seonghwa,” Hongjoong’s voice came out in something between a growl and a hiss; low and uttered through sharp teeth and a clenched jaw. The slighter older man snapped his head to Hongjoong’s voice, his eyes round and bunny-like and apologetic; his newly bleached hair falling messily over his brow. At the sight of a slight sheen that hinted at the threat of tears, Hongjoong almost softened a little - he didn’t want to make Seonghwa cry. He forced the thought out of his head; Seonghwa’s sensitivity was not his problem. The idol world was cutthroat, there was no room to be soft. Hongjoong gave Seonghwa a singular sharp shake of his head and a look that screamed disappointment. It was the gesture that all the kids had learned meant that they were about to get the lecture of a lifetime at home. A gesture that had rarely, if ever, been directed at Seonghwa.
Because if Hongjoong was the Captain, then Seonghwa was his quartermaster. The kids affectionately referred to them as “appa” and “eomma”, respectively, and Hongjoong couldn’t help but agree with the comparison. Where Hongjoong was harsh lectures and discipline and expectations, Seonghwa was soft and comforting and something that could only be described as maternal. Hongjoong and Seonghwa were bound together as the oldest from the start, but they had chosen to be a team. So to feel this sharp edge of disappointment and anger at his second felt fundamentally wrong.
“Why don’t we take a break?” Daeshim, their choreographer, called out, “I’ll help Seonghwa-yah with the chorus.”
Hongjoong blew a sharp exhale through his nose before nodding at the man. They could all use the opportunity to cool off and reset. He made his way to the side of the room where their stuff was laid out haphazardly and grabbed his water bottle. He gulped it down greedily. Yunho stood next to him doing the same, but when they locked eyes, Yunho gave him a questioning look and raised an eyebrow. Hongjoong stopped drinking and sighed. He couldn’t deal with Yunho’s puppy dog eyes and calm rationale right now.
Instead of answering, Hongjoong turned to where Daeshim was helping Seonghwa. The choreographer had his hands on Seonghwa’s thin hips and was guiding him through the “driving” motion of the chorus. He pointedly ignored the pull of something akin to jealousy that stirred in his gut at the sight.
“You don’t need to thrust like Mingi-yah does, but loosen up, Seonghwa-yah. I know you know how to move those hips,” Daeshim teased. Hongjoong clenched his jaw, and he could feel the vein in his forehead throb slightly.
“Hyuuuuuuuung,” a loud voice whined, distracting Hongjoong from what he reasoned was an absolutely normal degree of protectiveness over his teammate. Wooyoung.
The younger boy bounded over to where Seonghwa and Daeshim stood, Daeshim still loosely holding Seonghwa’s hips. Wooyoung threw his arms around Daeshim’s shoulders, leaning his weight onto the taller and older man.
“You said you’d help me with my part of the chorus,” he pouted.
“Of course, Young-ah,” Daeshim agreed pleasantly, ruffling the shorter male’s pale-blond hair. Wooyoung playfully swatted the offending hand away, scrunching up his nose in mock-offence. Daeshim finally let go of Seonghwa’s hips and stepped over towards the mirrors to demonstrate the section Wooyoung had requested. Seonghwa’s previously tense posture visibly deflated and relaxed once Daeshim’s attention was elsewhere. Hongjoong could empathize with that - it never felt good to be the one singled out, especially when the reason you were was negative.
Hongjoong caught Seonghwa’s eyes when he looked up and mouthed a ‘You okay?’ which was met with a resigned nod, but glassy eyes. Hongjoong frowned. Seonghwa had his arms wrapped around himself in a self-soothing gesture that made him look pitifully small despite his statuesque figure. Like this, Hongjoong couldn’t help but remember how young they all were. How even as the oldest, they were barely out of high school and still just kids in the grand scheme of things. But he couldn’t let himself pity and coddle Seonghwa like that, there was no place for weakness in the idol world and Hongjoong couldn’t help but view Seonghwa’s sensitive and emotional nature as weak even when he was appreciative of it.
“Let’s run it five more times then call it, okay?” Daeshim called out from where he was no longer helping Wooyoung by the mirrors. Hongjoong turned at his voice and when he looked back over at Seonghwa, he had a Wooyoung wrapped around him, arms mimicking Seonghwa’s self-hug and their hands intertwined and squeezing tightly. Hongjoong tried not to let the same twinge of jealousy he had felt earlier pull at him; Wooyoung was one of his kids, his teammate. And it was Wooyoung, the kid offered physical touch like it was as simple as breathing. Just because Hongjoong didn’t like skinship didn’t mean he had to get his feathers ruffled because someone else did. Especially when that someone was one of his beloved members.
They ran the dance five more times and Seonghwa almost looked normal by the end of it. He was still a little stiff on the part of the chorus Daeshim had been helping him with earlier, but at least he wasn’t tripping over his own feet or running into other members anymore.
“Okay, let’s stop there for today. I’ll be with you guys for the rest of the week so we can really sharpen things before your first comeback stage. Ateez fighting!” Daeshim clapped his hands together once and grinned at the members. Six of the members, including Hongjoong, echoed the sentiment; Wooyoung and Seonghwa were notably silent. “Seonghwa-yah?
“Yes, Daeshim-ssi?”
Daeshim made a face at the formal language. “Stay back with me for an hour? I’d like to keep running the chorus with you a few more times.”
“Yes, Daeshim-ssi.” Seonghwa’s voice was small and his posture was rigid, but he dropped his bag and made his way back to the centre of the floor. Hongjoong almost felt bad, he was likely to get a firm, yet gentle scolding from Daeshim and a firm, much less gentle, scolding from Hongjoong when he got home.
“Oh, I’ll stay too, hyung! We can all keep working on the chorus together!” Wooyoung was quick to jump in. Seonghwa shot Wooyoung a look that was equal parts scolding and something Hongjoong couldn’t quite place. Panic?
“Wooyoung, no,” Seonghwa stated firmly. Daeshim looked mildly amused at the interaction.
“But hyuuuuunggg…”
“No. Go home with Hongjoong. I’ll be home soon. I promise.” A look crossed Wooyoung’s face like he wanted to keep arguing, but Seonghwa looked serious in a way he never did. Wooyoung’s expression twisted slightly into one of mild hurt and that same emotion Hongjoong had seen cross Seonghwa’s face earlier. He made a small wounded sound in the back of his throat that Hongjoong wouldn’t have caught had he not been watching the interaction so closely, but nodded his assent.
-
Wooyoung was a world-famous pouter and it was no secret that he would do so for the most ridiculous reasons, but Hongjoong couldn’t help but feel as though there was something really and truly wrong. Wooyoung sat in the middle, window-seat of the van, head leaned against the glass, lips stuck out in a firm pout, headphones in, hood up, and arms crossed. San and Yeosang both tried to coax him into one of their exhausted, post-practice cuddles, but he shook off their attempts at skinship with something beyond just mild irritation or overstimulation. Something was definitely wrong for Wooyoung to be denying San and Yeosang skinship.
His bad mood continued to the dorm where he threw his bag on one of their beat up couches, stomped his way to the bathroom, slammed the door, and locked it. The slam echoed through the tense silence of the dorm before the faint sound of the shower filled the space with white noise.
“Jung Wooyoung!” Hongjoong half-yelled, half-growled out. It had been a long day, and he was already annoyed with Seonghwa, he didn’t need a bratty Wooyoung on top of everything else he had going on. There was no response, but Hongjoong wasn’t really expecting one. He let out an exasperated sigh and ran a hand through his sweaty brown mullet. “Everyone shower and get to bed, I’ll wait up for Seonghwa,” he directed towards the rest of his members. They all offered him nods and quiet ‘goodnight’s. Only Yunho lingered a moment later than the others. He opened his mouth as if to say something before sighing and following the rest towards their rooms.
-
Three in the fucking morning. It was three in the fucking morning, when Hongjoong finally heard the lock click and door swing open to reveal a tired and, quite frankly, pathetic looking Seonghwa. His shoulders were slumped forward and even from where Hongjoong was sitting on one of the couches in the low lighting of the living room, he could see the faint tremble of his whole body. His breath was coming out in too long and too even intervals; practiced, rehearsed. It didn’t sit right with Hongjoong and on another night where he had stayed up working by his own volition, when he wasn’t so tired and frustrated, he would have taken the time to notice how wrong it all was. He would have confronted Seonghwa for his weird behaviour, for his current pitiful state. But tonight, he was just done.
“Where the fuck were you?” Hongjoong snapped out, perhaps a bit too loud for 3am in their sleepy dorm. Seonghwa jumped and let out a surprised yelp as though he hadn’t noticed the light on or Hongjoong’s lurking presence. Another unreadable look passed over his face before settling into something sheepish. Even in the low light Hongjoong could tell Seonghwa had been crying, the tightness in the skin of his cheeks and the raw, red rims to his round boba eyes. So Daeshim had scolded him. If it had been a different night, maybe Hongjoong would have deemed one scolding as acceptable. Instead, he gave Seonghwa no more time to respond before continuing to vent his frustrations. “And what the fuck was up with you today? Our comeback is in a week. A week!”
His voice was still too loud for the hour and the quiet dorm and Seonghwa winced at both the volume and the tone.
“Let’s not do this out here, Joongie. Let’s talk in our room,” he suggested softly.
“Don’t ‘Joongie’ me, Seonghwa. You were a fucking mess today, and now you come back at three in the fucking morning! Where were you?”
“Please, Hongjoong, we’ll wake the kids.” Hongjoong didn’t move. Seonghwa sighed. “I was at the company. With Daeshim.”
“For four hours?”
“You said it yourself, I was a fucking mess today. Clearly I needed help.” On another night Hongjoong would have noticed that Seonghwa voice was all wrong. It was not the normal soft, mildly embarrassed tone that he usually took on after a rough day; it was eerily hollow with just a twinge of bitterness. But Hongjoong was too tired and too angry to notice.
“Well you could have fucking let someone know - let me know. I wouldn’t have waited for you on the couch if I knew you were going to be four fucking hours.” Lies. Hongjoong would have waited any amount of time to make sure Seonghwa made it home safe. It’s not like he had the most stable sleep schedule to begin with, and he was especially bad at resting when he wasn’t at least aware of the whereabouts of all his members. And he especially never would have gone to bed, to the room he shared with Seonghwa, without the white noise of the other’s even breathing and soft snores to lull him to sleep.
“I’m sorry, Joongie,” Seonghwa’s voice cracked in the middle. Still more detached than his usual tone, but adopting a slightly desperate whine.
“Don’t call me that!” That was definitely too loud. The pair heard a door crack open from down the hall before Yunho appeared in the living room, bleary-eyed and hair stuck up in every direction.
“I know we call you eomma and appa, but you don’t have to actually fight like a married couple. Save it for the morning, the kids are trying to sleep,” Yunho scolded the pair. As the oldest of the 99z and Hongjoong’s first kid, Yunho was perhaps the most mature of the members and the only one who could legitimately chide the oldest two without being called disrespectful. In fact, Yunho was unfailingly polite, respectful, and frustratingly right more often than not. After such a wonderful first child, Hongjoong sometimes wondered what he did wrong in raising the others. Whatever, they could blame their mother for their horrible manners and incessant brattiness.
“Sorry, Yuyu,” Seonghwa’s soft apology pulled Hongjoong out of his thoughts.
“Sorry,” Hongjoong muttered. “You’re right. We’ll talk in the morning. I’m sorry for waking you, Yunho-yah.” He turned to Seonghwa who was still shaking, but some of the tension had slipped from his posture. “I’ll just sleep out here.”
A hurt look flashed across Seonghwa’s face and even Yunho looked like he was about to protest, probably with a lecture about how bad sleeping on the couch was for one’s posture, when the sound of another door creaking open before softly closing sounded out. An, admittedly adorable, sleep-rumpled Wooyoung appeared next to where Yunho was still standing in the mouth of the hallway.
“Hyungie?” he yawned, rubbing at his eyes. He took one look at Seonghwa and clearly registered something Hongjoong didn’t because he jolted forward and crashed into Seonghwa in a tight hug. Hongjoong could hear him whispering soft words into Seonghwa’s chest as he gripped onto him like he was drowning, but his voice was too muffled to make out anything specific. “Let’s go to bed, hyungie.” Wooyoung separated from his embrace and tugged Seonghwa gently by the hand and down the hallway. Another night Hongjoong would have registered the stiffness in Seonghwa’s gait, the slight limp, the wince at every step. But all Hongjoong could see in Seonghwa’s slow pace was that it served him right for needing ten hours of dance practice this close to comeback.
Once Wooyoung and Seonghwa disappeared into Seonghwa and Hongjoong’s room, he turned his attention back to Yunho who was gazing at him curiously. There was no judgment in Yunho’s eyes, but Hongjoong couldn’t help but feel ashamed for needing one of his kids to remind him to keep it down and not fight with their eomma.
“Sorry, Yunho-yah. You can go back to bed.” Yunho’s gaze lingered a couple of extended moments longer.
“Goodnight, hyung.”
-
Around 5am, Hongjoong knew he wouldn’t be getting any sleep. And if he wasn’t going to get any sleep, he might as well go to the studio and be productive. With a final stretch of his spine and a low groan, Hongjoong stood up from the couch and softly made his way to his and Seonghwa’s room. He cracked the door open slowly and quietly, sighing in relief when neither Seonghwa nor Wooyoung, who had evidently stayed in the room after putting the oldest to bed, stirred. Hongjoong quietly changed into slightly more presentable clothing and packed his laptop and work bag, slowly shuffling around the room so as to not wake the pair.
Before he left the room, he looked at where Wooyoung and Seonghwa were tangled together on the bottom bunk, Hongjoong’s rarely-used top bunk remaining empty. In the dim glow of the moonlight streaming through the windows, Hongjoong could make out their peaceful expressions. Seonghwa looked ethereal as ever; all honeyed skin and silky, straight hair and blushed, full lips. His arms were wrapped tightly around Wooyoung, even in sleep, where the younger was practically laying on top of him, lips smushed into a pout from where his cheek pressed into Seonghwa’s chest. The two let out soft snores almost in sync and Hongjoong felt a large portion of his irritation of just a couple hours ago dissipate as he gazed fondly at the sweet scene the two made. Their bodies were a tangle of limbs and blankets and warmth. Even though some of his frustration lingered, Hongjoong couldn’t help but feel mostly just lucky to have his members all soft and safe and asleep inside the dorm. With one more loving gaze towards the pair, Hongjoong slipped out of the room.
-
Hongjoong had an hour of uninterrupted work in his studio before a knock at the door sounded before it swung open without waiting for an answer. Hongjoong looked up from the notebook where he was scribbling lyrics to the latest song he’d been working on to see Eden slipping into the room.
“Oh, hey hyung.”
“Hey, Joong-ah. Working on that track for the Epilogue?”
“Yeah, I’m thinking we could record the guide track in the next couple of weeks if you like what I’ve put together. I still have to meet with Mingi so he can give me what he has so far for his rap, but it’s really coming together.” They were working two comebacks ahead, already having the guide tracks and some of the vocals for Treasure Pt. 3 recorded. Now they were working on the penultimate release of the “Treasure” era.
“That’s really good, Joong-ah, you’ve been working hard.” Eden sat down in the chair next to Hongjoong and the two fell into a comfortable silence as Eden read some of Hongjoong’s lyrics over his shoulder. “Don’t take this the wrong way, Hongjoong, but why are you here? I thought you said you were finally going to get some sleep - I didn’t expect you here until your dance practice at 10.”
Hongjoong sighed. He really didn’t want to talk about it, but Eden was too kind and too observant and too nosy to not notice when something was up.
“Seonghwa and I kind of argued last night, so I couldn’t sleep in the room, and I couldn’t fall asleep on the couch either, so I figured I’d just come here and work.”
Eden gave him a look and a slightly patronizing sigh. The kids might have called Hongjoong ‘appa’ for his patented “disappointed dad look”, but the real abeoji of KQ was Eden. Just a sigh and Hongjoong felt like a scolded child.
“What did you fight about, Hongjoong-ah? You know you really shouldn’t be starting anything this close to comeback. The fans can always tell, and you’re so new you guys don’t quite have enough of a rapport in the public eye to rely on.” Eden’s scoldings were always gentle, but biting. Hongjoong winced.
“I know, I know. It wasn’t really a fight. He was just…He was really fu-messing up at practice and I wanted to know why he couldn’t just do a dance we’ve been working on for months a week before the comeback.” Hongjoong caught himself from cursing. Not that he didn’t curse in front of Eden or any of the other producers, but when Eden was like this, he had a habit of chiding Hongjoong for speaking too casually.
“Daeshim is with you guys this week, right?” Something changed in Eden’s tone, but Hongjoong couldn’t quite place what it was. Hongjoong hummed in agreement. “Maybe just cut Seonghwa some slack then, you know he gets nervous when the choreographers are there. He’s much better when it’s just Yunho, Wooyoung, and Yeosang.”
Did Hongjoong know that? It was difficult to compare it to working with choreographers during their trainee years; everyone was nervous and eager to please and scared of fucking up back then. But Hongjoong didn’t think this was the case when prepping for their debut. Sure, Seonghwa was jumpy in the way everyone was, excitement and nerves and anticipation buzzing under their skin, but not nervous the way Eden seemed to be indicating. In fact, it was only after debut that Hongjoong noticed how off Seonghwa would act when they were dealing with anyone other than just members. Even certain managers seemed to put Seonghwa on edge. Everyone else seemed to breathe a sigh of relief after they wrapped their debut stages, but Seonghwa seemed to be wound tight as a whip. The only other person he could see a real change in would be maybe Wooyoung, but even he remained clingy and affectionate and largely the same, if not a little more antsy and, well, bratty.
Hongjoong shook his head to escape his reverie and notice Eden staring at him with an indecipherable look. God. Why was everyone acting so weird and mysterious lately?
“You okay, Hongjoong?”
“Yeah, hyung. Maybe you’re right about Seonghwa. I’m sure he’ll be fine for the comeback.”
-
“Hey, Hongjoong-hyung, we just got here. Everyone else is already in the practice room,” Mingi’s head poked into the studio, speaking hesitantly. Hongjoong sighed.
“Come in, Mingi-yah.” Mingi stepped into the room a bit sheepishly. Hongjoong gestured for him to sit in the chair Eden had sat in before leaving Hongjoong to his notebook a couple hours ago. “Talk to hyung.”
“Well…we all heard you and Seonghwa-hyung last night. Are you still mad at him?” Hongjoong sighed again. He took a moment before answering.
“I wasn’t really mad at him, Mingi-yah. Yesterday was just a really long day and I was tired and frustrated and took that out on Seonghwa which wasn’t fair to him. And it wasn’t fair to you, any of you, that I couldn’t control my volume and woke you all up last night. Everyone is tired, and I’m sorry for disturbing your sleep Mingi-yah. Can you forgive hyung?” Mingi’s face split into a wide grin, his eyes disappearing into happy crescents.
“Of course, hyung,” he paused, smile dimming slightly, “But you really should apologize to Seonghwa-hyung. I know he wasn’t really on his game yesterday, but I’m sure Daeshim-hyung already scolded him enough that he doesn’t need a visit from dictator-Joong also.”
“Yah! You brat!” Hongjoong scolded, jokingly. “I will talk to Seonghwa. You’re right, Mingi-yah, I was harsh on a day that he clearly was already struggling. When did you get so smart? You’re spending too much time with Yunho.”
Mingi grinned, “I’ve always been smart, hyung, it’s not my fault none of you appreciate my specific brand of genius.”
-
When Hongjoong and Mingi joined the others in the practice room, the soft chatter petered off into silence while everyone stared at Hongjoong with hesitant, nervous glances (Yunho, Yeosang, San, and Jongho), a harsh glare (Wooyoung), or terrifyingly blank neutrality (Seonghwa). Daeshim was also already in the room, but he was too busy fiddling with the speaker in the corner to notice the chilly atmosphere that had fallen over everyone else present.
Hongjoong considered himself a prideful person, but he also knew when he had made a mistake and needed to apologize. He faced the others in the room and fell into a ninety-degree bow.
“I am really sorry for waking you all up last night by yelling. You have all been working so hard and deserved some uninterrupted rest. I should be able to control my volume even when upset and it was not fair to subject you all to that. Yunho, I’m sorry you had to come out and remind me to keep it down. As your leader, I should know better. Wooyoung, I’m sorry you also had to get up, and that you had to comfort Seonghwa from the situation I caused. That should not have been your responsibility, and I should not have placed you in that position.” Hongjoong paused and his voice softened before speaking again, “Seonghwa, I am so sorry for my behaviour yesterday during practice and once you came home. It was a long day and I was tired and frustrated, but I did not need to take all of the stress of this comeback out on you. It was not fair of me to scold you the way I did, nor to pick a fight in the middle of the night. I’m sorry for not coming to bed and any other hurt I may have caused you with my actions.”
With all his apologies said, Hongjoong stood upright and let his gaze flick over the faces of his members. Yunho, San, Yeosang, and Jongho all looked relieved, muttering various ‘thanks hyung’s; Wooyoung looked less murderous, but his lips formed an aggressive pout and his brows knit together in a way that would make the makeup noonas scold him for causing wrinkles; and Seonghwa looked back at him fondly, no traces of his previous icy, robotic stare left on his pretty features. He was forgiven.
The moment between them was broken when Daeshim called out that he was ready to start practice. Hongjoong glanced once more at Seonghwa, relieved to see a tiny, but genuine smile gracing his full lips. The members all got into position and the open chords of Say My Name ran through the speakers.
Seonghwa was definitely better today than the day prior, but Hongjoong still felt as though something was off. Sure, he was hitting all of the moves on a technical level, and he certainly wasn’t stumbling and crashing into the others the way he had yesterday, but the usual sensuality he possessed while dancing was muffled. It was like watching a Seonghwa-shaped android dance instead of the real deal. What was even more concerning was the way Seonghwa seemed to limp into position between run-throughs. His gait was stiff and awkward in a way that could be attributed to his extra hours of practice, but it still set off alarm bells in Hongjoong’s head. The first chance they had to take a real water break, Hongjoong grabbed both his and Seonghwa’s water bottles before making his way over to the taller man. He held out his water bottle with a raised eyebrow and concerned gaze. Seonghwa took the bottle with an outstretched hand, but didn’t step any closer to Hongjoong. If anything, he put even more distance between them.
“You okay?” Hongjoong asked. He didn’t like the vibes he was getting.
“Yeah, Joongie, I’m fine,” Seonghwa said softly before taking a few swigs of his water. He placed his bottle back next to his things and made his way to his starting position for Hala Hala.
Wooyoung was practically bouncing off the walls at finally moving on to the B-side’s choreo. He loved Say My Name, but he loved Hala Hala’s choreo, especially his practically guaranteed ending fairy moment. Brat.
Admittedly, Hongjoong loved Hala Hala too. Say My Name was fun and catchy and had what he hoped to come across as their signature edgier pop sound, but Hala Hala was experimental and different and non-traditional K-pop. Hongjoong loved doing something different and unexpected.
They ran through the choreo and it was really good, great even. Even Seonghwa seemed more relaxed, more present in his body. Everyone was sharp, hitting their marks and working, breathing as a team. The ending notes hit, and everyone except Wooyoung dropped to the floor while he gave his signature bedroom eyes to the front mirror. Daeshim clapped and cheered as they all sat up to breathe.
“That was incredible guys! That’s what I’m talking about! And Wooyoung - that ending! God, you’re sexy.” Soft laughs echoed in the room at Daeshim’s comment, but Hongjoong was looking at Wooyoung when he said it and Wooyoung was definitely not laughing. Instead he looked like he’d been slapped in the face, his expression stricken and looking a little lost. A moment later, his features morphed into a shy smirk and cutesy posture.
“Hyung! Stop, you’re going to make me blush,” he called out, putting some aegyo into his voice. Hongjoong felt his head spin a little from the whiplash between Wooyoung’s demeanour from one moment to the next. He looked around to see if anyone else had noticed and saw Seonghwa’s expression. He looked angry. Hongjoong couldn’t remember a time in the almost three years he’d known Seonghwa that he had been genuinely mad. Hurt, frustrated, upset, irritated - sure, but Seonghwa didn’t get angry. That’s what made him Hongjoong’s perfect second; what made him the kids’ eomma.
“Daeshim-ssi,” Seonghwa gritted out through clenched teeth. Holy shit, he was pissed. Wooyoung’s head snapped around to stare at Seonghwa like a deer in headlights and, yes this time he definitely saw it, panic crossed his expression. “A word? In the hallway?”
Daeshim's lips quirked up into a smug smirk. Idiot, Hongjoong thought. He might have never seen an angry Seonghwa, but he knew he definitely did not want to be on the wrong side of one.
“Of course, anything for you, Seonghwa-yah.” The two left the room together, and Hongjoong stared at the door after them, unable to shake the feeling that something had gone or was about to go terribly, horribly wrong.