Practice wrapped in a blur of music and sweat. Terrence and Kai had afternoon classes, so they packed up after a few final run-throughs, promising to swing by later for dinner. Ben knew Daniel was still stuck at his part-time job.

And even though he wasn’t exactly thrilled about staying back alone, he didn’t leave. Everyone else had been training since they were kids or, at the very least, long before Ben ever dared to take dance seriously. So, he couldn’t afford to coast. 

He kept dancing right up until the studio lights flickered, reminding him it was closing time.

However, among all these practices and schedules, what none of them had noticed was the simmering resentment they had started to attract.

Just when Ben had wrapped up and was heading back, he ran into them.

A group of guys he vaguely recognized from the dance studio were lounging near the entrance. There were eight of them, and the air felt wrong immediately. The way four of them blocked the exit made his skin crawl.

"Look who's here," one of them sneered, arms crossed. "The pretty boy."

Ben stiffened.

"You're one lucky guy, huh? Clinging onto sunbae like a leech, getting all the perks," another taunted.

He could already tell where this was going. He had heard the whispers before, comments about Daniel's privilege, about how talent came easy when you had money, about how he and his little group thought they were better than everyone else. 

"Bet he thinks he’s hot shit," one of them, lanky with long hair tied back, sharp, venomous eyes, and a distinct cut above his eyebrows, chuckled darkly. "I mean, look at that face. Almost too pretty to be a guy, don’t you think?"

Ben's jaw clenched.

Another one stepped closer, tilting his chin up with two fingers. "So pretty. Wonder if you plan on using that face to seduce the judges, huh? Maybe show a little skin?"

That was it. 

Ben reacted on instinct; his fist connected with the guy’s jaw, which was a grave mistake. Before he could even take a step back, someone grabbed his wrist, twisting it painfully. Another guy yanked him backward by the collar. 

"You little—"

A knee slammed into Ben's stomach, knocking the breath out of him. He gasped, his knees buckling slightly.

Another voice, sickly amused, murmured, "You sure you're even a man? You should prove it."

A hand tightened on his shoulder, and something cold and sick churned in Ben's stomach.

Just then, a fist came out of nowhere, slamming into one of the guys' faces.

The group barely had time to react before Daniel was standing there, eyes blazing. Ben had never seen him look this angry before. His usual playful smirk was gone. His jaw was clenched tight, and his entire body radiated pure rage.

Behind him, Terrence stood with his arms crossed, looking unimpressed. "Wow, what an ugly gathering."

Kai, standing next to him, fidgeted nervously. "Guys, do we really need to—"

"Yes," Terrence deadpanned.

And just like that, chaos erupted.

One of the guys lunged at Daniel, but he sidestepped smoothly, landing a brutal elbow to the gut. Another tried to swing, but Daniel ducked and kicked his knee sideways, and the guy collapsed, cursing.

Terrence, ever the boxer, delivered a clean punch to someone's nose, his expression blank. "Oops. My hand slipped."

Kai, meanwhile, grabbed the closest thing he could find, a bag, and threw it at one of them. "I'M HELPING!"

Ben, finally catching his breath, slammed an elbow into someone’s ribs, making them stumble back.

Seeing the chaos, the four guys who did not join immediately ran with tails between their legs. Others started backing out, too, seeing as Daniel, Terrence, and Ben were way more difficult to handle than they expected.

But just as the fight seemed to tilt in their favor, one of the retreating guys took a cheap shot, a sudden kick aimed at Daniel’s ankle.

The sharp, sickening crack that followed made Ben’s heart stop.

Daniel barely had time to react before his leg buckled underneath him.

"HYUNG!"

Ben reached out instinctively, grabbing his arm before he could hit the ground, but Daniel winced; his ankle was twisted.

The remaining guys, seeing their opening, scrambled away before things could escalate further.

For a moment, everything was eerily silent.

Daniel groaned, his voice tight with pain. "You have got to be kidding me."

Terrence crossed his arms. "Baboya." [Idiot]

Kai hovered awkwardly. "Uh… should we call an ambulance or, like, a doctor or maybe a priest?"

Ben's chest felt tight. He tightened his grip on Daniel’s arm.

Daniel was injured a week before the competition??

Daniel sighed, despite the pain. "Okay. This is fine. No big deal. Just my career-ending injury happening at the worst possible time. Ha-ha."

Ben swore under his breath. "Dumbass."

Daniel grinned at him despite the sweat on his forehead. "You sound concerned, Bennie. What’s next, a dramatic monologue?"

Ben dropped his arm.

"Ow—! Ben!"

Kai sighed. "I'm gonna have to carry him, aren't I?"

Terrence nodded. "Absolutely."

As Kai grumbled and hoisted Daniel onto his back, Ben followed close behind, his heart still racing.

This was bad because Daniel had gotten injured. 

And Ben had just realised something even worse.

The idea of Daniel not being able to dance scared him more than anything.