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Everyone's shouting.

The doctors bark orders, the producers of the show fight with Sejin, and the staff members are milling about, calling for assistance. It's loud, overwhelming, full of noise, and makes the pain worse. But if he were being completely honest, Jimin can hardly make any sense amongst all the noise for the roar in his ears drowns everything out.

His mind is scattered, the details blurring together as his vision fades in and out from the blinding pain. He bites his bottom lip so hard as the doctor tries his best to bandage his foot carefully, that he can taste the iron of his blood when his teeth puncture through his flesh. Perhaps this new wave of pain should distract him from the swimming world before him, but all it does is add to the chaos, the fear, the adrenaline, and his never-ending deprecation.

He knew, he just knew that he should've practiced that transition better. He already knew the choreo for his duet by heart, it was this move he needed to focus on. They were waiting for him, they trusted him to be his best, to be as perfect as he had always been. And he had failed them, he had destroyed that expectation just as quickly as it had been formed. The performance was ruined, he was ruined, and now everything is falling apart. He should have known better, he should have done better, he should have...

Should have.

That's right, there's no use focusing on the past. Dwelling on something that he cannot go back and change is pointless, useless. Right now, he has to deal with what is right in front of him. And as his eyes catch Yen's worried ones by the door, a sudden wave of hopelessness attacks his heart.

What are we going to do?

"We have to decide fast, the producer said they can only give us ten minutes of spare time," Namjoon murmurs under his breath as Sejin breaks from the group and guides the producers outside the already crowded room.

It's not hard to tell that Namjoon is worried, and the talk with the producers hasn't helped his mood in the slightest. His brow creases as he watches the doctor work, eyes lost in some distant corner of his mind as they darken in apprehension.

"What are we supposed to do?" Jungkook throws his hands in the air in his exasperation. Everything has become too heavy and suffocating, so much so that the tension that grows by the second starts to slowly break each and every one of them at the seams. "Jimin can't dance on that ankle, and that's the whole point of Yen's performance!"

This isn't the same as getting injured at a concert, it's not the same as having a sore throat or their voice cracking at a pivotal part in a performance. This isn't a mistake that is so easily remedied, for this doesn't affect only them, it affects Yen as well.

"Jungkook, calm down, we cannot afford to let our emotions get the better of us," Hoseok says in hushed tones as he takes Jungkook's arm in his hold.

One glance at his calm eyes and Jungkook realizes his panic is only making matters worse. He goes quiet, his inner turmoil now being channeled through the fire in his eyes, tense shoulders and tight fists. Hoseok can't exactly blame him, however, for he feels the same way.

Forget the expectations and forget their long awaited return. Forget the fact that they let their audience down today, forget that they've pushed themselves too hard, forget that they should've known better.

If they fail, then Yen fails as well. She loses the chance she's worked so hard for.

Hoseok refuses to let that happen.

Jimin hisses in pain as the doctor sets his ankle on an ice pack to numb it slightly before setting it in a splint. The small yet clear sound silences the room almost instantly, and Namjoon swallows hard.

"Dr. Kum..."

"I've said it once, I'll say it again Namjoon, he won't be able to dance on this." Though his vexation is clear in his eyes, his hands are steady as they gently roll Jimin's ankle on the ice, pressing it consistently to test the pressure of what Jimin can withstand. He fixes Namjoon with a sharp glare as he continues. "If he does, you're looking at a permanent injury, and last I checked we don't want that."

At Namjoon's silence, you realize the full gravity of the situation, as does Jimin. When he looks at you it almost breaks you apart, for you know no one blames him more than he does himself. You can see it in his eyes, a broken plea for circumstances to somehow change, for a chance to go back so that he wouldn't have to let you down again.

You wish you could speak, tell him that it's alright and it wasn't his fault, but the hysteria has constricted your lungs so tightly that it takes all you have to just to remember how to breathe. You hold your arms tightly around your body, sinking your nails deep into your flesh so that you don't crack open like before. Jaejin can feel the tension and presses his hand against the small of your back to reassure you that he's there, but it's not enough.

It's never enough.

"Is there anyone else who knows the choreo?"

At the sound of his voice, everyone in the room turns to the entrance to see BangPD and Park Jiwon standing there. Their presence is almost ominous and adds to the pressure that continues to rise in the room, but it's different this time. Somehow, something in their eyes provides a form of unity, of tranquility, and you find that it's somewhat eased your worry.

"Come on guys, I need you to think. If someone else knows Jimin's choreo, he may be able to swap and change his stage to a vocal one. I am aware it is not ideal, but it is our only option on such borrowed time."

At the proposed solution, the room comes alive again, a taste of hope breaking through the otherwise impotent situation.

"Well, I do. I choreographed it after all." Hoseok speaks up, but before anyone can humor the idea, Yoongi is already shaking his head at the notion.

"But you can't perform it, Hoseok. Your stage is first up, and Jimin's is right after yours." He stares at Jimin with harsh, calculating eyes, and Jimin can't help but shiver beneath the severity. "Jimin won't be able to recover enough to perform in your place. Plus, you wouldn't be able to change into a costume in that limited amount of time."

"Not to mention the fact that your stage is dance-heavy, and Jimin won't be able to do your rap without practice," Jin mutters matter-of-factly as he runs his hands through his hair.

"Your stage also has a smooth transition into Jimin's, so it just wouldn't make sense," Jungkook says from the corner of the room he now presides in, his hands folded tightly in front of his mouth as he tries to ease the anxiety out of his mind.

"Well, what are we supposed to do?" Hoseok snaps in annoyance at their quick dismissal. "It's not like Yen can go out on that stage alone, now can she?"

As the room turns its eyes on you, you swallow hard, the panic rising fast and true in your throat. Your hands grow tighter around your arms, nails digging deeper and deeper into your flesh as you try to contain it, bury it deep into the farthest corner of your mind. Jaejin's hand moves from your back to your shoulder, but his warmth escapes you as you grow cold, breath coming faster and faster as you grow closer to another attack.

Jimin can see the fear in your eyes, the way your skin begins to pale, the harsh wounds you inflict upon yourself in your anxiety. For the first time, he can see the cracks. He witnesses your weakness, your instability, and understands that you are not as strong as you pretend to be. The world is pressing its insurmountable burden on your shoulders, and not even you know if you're ready. And at the sight, at the knowledge that you've been falling apart all this time, he cannot help but feel guilty. He was supposed to be there for you, he was supposed to protect you, he was supposed to support you when you needed him the most. He had made so many promises, so many bonds that he never wanted to break.

He's already failed you once.

He can't afford to fail you again.

"I'm fine."

When Jimin speaks, you're as surprised as the rest of the room is as they turn to him. But perhaps it is not so much the fact that he has spoken, but the words that have emerged past his lips that have resulted in the unanimous shock.

"What?! Jimin, you cannot dance in that condition." Hoseok exclaims, looking to Dr. Kum for assistance, but the doctor shakes his head making it clear that it is Jimin's decision to make, not his.

"Then I won't go all out, I'll just be there to support her."

"No." As Jimin ignores him and tries to rise from the cot they have rested him on, Namjoon takes him by the arm, his eyes stern and his voice firm. "No, that's completely out of the question."

Jimin tries to shake his arm out of Namjoon's grip, but it only grows tighter at his resistance, and Jimin cannot help but wince.

"Namjoon, I--"

"The answer is no, Jimin!"

You can't help but flinch at the rise in Namjoon's voice as he shouts, his voice booming and almost as forceful as the grip he has on Jimin's arm. His fingers grow white with the amount of pressure he applies, and you can sense by the tension in his muscles that he is restraining himself from doing any further damage. As you see the look in his eyes, the way they are equally angry and sad, you know that this is only out of love. He doesn't want to see Jimin hurt himself beyond repair.

None of them do.

The one love he has is the stage. It is his world, the very air that he breathes. You know it, his team knows it, the world knows it. Without it he is lost, without it he doesn't know who he is.

But at this moment, Jimin cannot find that reason enough.

"Goddammit, why won't you let me do this one right thing?!" He shouts, pushing Namjoon off of him with such force that it causes him to stumble backward in shock. Jimin's eyes are aflame with enraged tears and guilt. He falls apart in his resentment and despondency, his heart aching beyond any repair. He cannot stand to see you look at him like you did that day in the hospital again. He cannot stand to let you down another time. "I've already ruined her life enough. I've already hurt her, I can't be the reason her dream is taken away. I just can't."

He knows that, just like him, the stage is your paradise. It speaks to you when nothing else does, encases you in its embrace, and brings you to life. He's seen it in the practice room, he's witnessed it when you dance, when you sing. He can feel it in you almost as true as you feel it in your own heart.

How can he take that away, when he's already taken away everything else?

At his words, your heart almost cries in sorrow.

He didn't deserve it. He didn't deserve your anger, your blame, he didn't deserve any of it. And yet, you used him as your scapegoat. You tore him apart and blamed him for something that was out of his control as though he had wished it. As though it was his fault when it was the world that was cruel and unforgiving.

It wasn't his fault.

You knew it before, but it's only just sinking in now.

It wasn't his fault.

And it wasn't yours.

"Jimin--"

You don't know what you would have said to him. If it would have been an apology or a cry for help. You don't know if you would have been able to keep yourself together if you had spoken like you had intended to do, and you will never know. For when he speaks it erases any and all thoughts you might have had and fixates on him, and only him.

Just as it always does.

Just as it will continue to do for as long as you live.

"I'll do it."

When Taehyung speaks, everyone turns to him. He has stayed silent throughout this entire conversation, his eyes quiet and solemn as he watched from afar, so much so that you had almost forgotten he was there. It is only now that you are able to see him clearly, and when his eyes travel to yours, even if it's only for a second you can feel your heart stop from where it was supposed to be beating in your chest. Time standing still as though it were made for you and him to stand together within it alone.

"Tae?" Jimin's voice is soft and vulnerable, and at the sound, Taehyung smiles his way, his calm demeanor a different measure of reassurance for his soulmate.

"I know the choreo, I helped Hobi choreograph some parts and practiced it with Yen when she needed it."

Bang Sihyuk narrows his eyes at the new revelation, and looks between Taehyung and Yen, almost as though he would be able to find some answer to this unspoken connection in the way their eyes speak to the other. He doesn't know why, but the insinuation of Taehyung doing the pair choreography with Yen does not sit well with him, but if he is the only option then what are they to do?

"You remembered it?"

Taehyung looks Hoseok's way at the question, and as soon as Hoseok sees his eyes, he knows.

"Yeah."

He doesn't know how he knows, but he can see it. Deep within his quiet determination, past the worry and panic, Hoseok can sense what Taehyung himself has only just realized. He wonders how long he's felt it, how long he has known, and perhaps most of all, he wonders how this will affect your future.

Will you still be able to rise?

Or will everything come crashing down just as quickly as it was built?

When Taehyung looks at you, it's almost as though the world has faded away. You're altogether bare, vulnerable, beneath his eyes you are just as strong as you are frail, and if he says so, somehow you can manage to believe that everything will be alright. A feeling begins to erupt within your gut, a feeling much like the fire you had experienced when you danced with him before. Only this time it's fiercer, almost so overwhelming that you lose your mind, just a little bit. Almost forgetting even to breathe beneath the intimate intensity of his stare.

But just as soon as it appears, it fades when he looks away.

"Jimin can sing my song, probably better than I can and it's one of the last performances so he should have enough time to recover." Taehyung chuckles wryly at the irony of the situation, the way things have fallen so perfectly into place, almost as though they were meant to happen. "I was planning to stay seated anyways, so it's kind of perfect."

"Taehyung, are you sure?"

Taehyung looks to Bang Sihyuk and can see a challenge hidden beneath his small eyes. He wonders if he's already figured out his desires and if he plans on destroying them just as he had destroyed them years ago. He wonders what lengths he would go to to prevent his happiness this time around. For as much as he knows that he will not be so easily persuaded, Taehyung also knows that Sihyuk will not relinquish his chains so willingly.

Perhaps that is the problem, the reason why Taehyung wishes to hide just a little longer.

Taehyung nods at the question, before turning back to Yen and finding himself once more enraptured in the world they have merged to exist together as one. And in a corner of his mind, he wonders how long this world will last, and who will be the one to taint it next. But for now, all he does is bask in the warmth she provides him and relishes in the way his heart beats whenever she is near.

For any form of pain is worth it, as long as she is the one who is holding the blade.

"Yes I'm sure." 

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