Special...
Title: Special...
Author: kidots
Pairing: GiWoon
Genre: Romance, Angst(?)
Rating: PG
Summary: Gikwang is not liking the proximity that is between Dongwoon and Doojoon, yet, what can he do?
_______
Practice for their follow-up song, Special, is underway. They work hard in rehearsing to their best. They always have the desire to show their fans the best. Satisfied with how practice turned out the night before their follow-up song stage, they all proceed home to their dorm at 4:00AM to have what little sleep they could get before having to wake up at 6:30AM to head on over to get their make-up and wardrobe done for the stage of Special.
All going to sleep with a sense of excitement and nervousness.
~~~~~~~
Special's 1st. stage was awesome. Fans were more than welcoming. They were fan-chanting so excitedly that the boys could feel the energy up on stage. The boys were absolutely ecstatic at the fans' response to the song and now have a stronger need to out-perform this 1st. stage the next day.
In order to know exactly which parts of the song -vocally or choreographically- needs improvement, they all sat down to monitor the recording of their 1st. stage.
Junhyung feels he needed to do his rap part with much style the next day.
Everyone else was somewhat satisfied with how the performance turned out.
All, with the exception of Gikwang, who noticed something in the performance no else did.
An interaction in the choreography which involves Doojoon and Dongwoon.
From his viewpoint, it seems that Doojoon was kind of trying to get Dongwoon's attention with his hand movements in one part of the choreography.
Maybe it's just me thinking too much. Gikwang thinks to himself.
But, I never did tell Dongwoon how I feel, neither have I asked him what he thinks of me. Maybe, he has feelings for Doojoon instead. Argh!!!! What am I doing?
~~~~~~~
Special's 2nd. stage was even more awesome than the first. The cheers, the fan-chants were even louder this time. The boys had a lot of fun performing on stage, fueling their energy with the fans excitement.
Once again, the boys monitor how they did this time round and Junhyung was happy his part turned out to his liking. The rest was also happy as they feel that they did good. All except Gikwang, who once again noticed that Doojoon was still trying to get the maknae's attention. He saw the smile that was on Doojoon's face as the camera focused on him at that moment. He let the thought slide as they continue with their practice and Doojoon wasn't doing anything out of the ordinary.
At the end of practice, the boys were packing up, ready to go back to their dorm. Gikwang was exceptionally slow in packing, once again having ridiculous thoughts in his head about the leader and their maknae.
Then suddenly, his train of thoughts was interrupted, "Hyung, why are you so slow? Everyone is waiting for you." He recognised that voice instantly, moreover only that voice would call him hyung.
He stuttered, "Er, I was just... I'm coming". He shoved his stuff into his bag, zipped it shut and swung it over his shoulder. "Let's go", Dongwoon said and grabbed hold of Gikwang's shoulders and push him forward.
"Yah, yah, yah, I'm losing my balance."
"Hyung, you got to move it, everyone else is waiting, plus, don't worry, I'll catch you if you fall."
"I'll catch you if you fall".
Those words sent sweet shivers tingling down Gikwang's spine.
Dongwoon-ah, do you even realise what you are doing to me saying those kind of things?
Gikwang opens the van door and saw that everyone was already seated, waiting impatiently for the youngest duo to get in, Hyunseung, Yoseob and Junhyung in the back seat, with Doojoon sitting in the middle row at the farthest seat from the door. Just as Gikwang was about to climb in, Dongwoon said, "Hyung, can I get in first?" Gikwang stepped back and make way for Dongwoon to climb in instead.
He felt a certain kind of ache stabbing at his heart because Dongwoon chose to sit next to Doojoon, but at least he was sitting next to Dongwoon still.
Usually, the ride back to their dorm was fairly short. This time, however, they were caught in a bit of traffic as there were some sort of festivity going on on the street that their driver usually takes. Gikwang could hear soft, calming breathing rhythm from behind him, quite certain that the trio at the backseat was already sleeping. He takes a peek over at the two beside him and saw that they were sharing Dongwoon's iPod and laughing softly at something that they were watching. Another stabbing ache to his heart. He chose to ignore it and them and shove his headphones in his ears instead to block out the soft laughter he could hear, painfully amplified by his thoughts.
Back at the dorm, everyone fell asleep on their bunks as soon as their heads hit those comfortable pillows.
All but Gikwang, who was tossing and turning and finally worried that his movements might wake Yoseob who was sleeping on the bunk above him, decides to go grab a glass of milk instead.
He quietly climbed out of his bed, choosing not to look at the top bunks, fearing what he might see as the other 2 top bunks were occupied by both Doojoon, who sleeps in the middle and Dongwoon.
He silently stepped out of their room and into the kitchen. He switched on the light, rubbing his eyes as the sudden brightness that illuminated the small space blinded his vision. He grabbed a glass of milk and sat at the bar stool. He looked down into the glass of milk he was holding and wondered when it all started. Dongwoon was slowly becoming very important in his life. He feels happy when he sees Dongwoon's smile and he misses him when he is off doing his individual schedules. He shakes his head, trying to shake away the thoughts of Dongwoon.
"Hyung, why aren't you asleep yet?" That voice startled him, he looked up suddenly.
"Why aren't you?"
"I could hear you tossing and turning earlier. Then you walked out of the room. Is something wrong? You don't seem to be yourself lately."
Gikwang looked down into his hands and raised the glass at Dongwoon, "I just wanted a drink."
"And yet, you only chose to hold onto it."
It hit Gikwang that the milk was already starting to get warm. He smiled up awkwardly at Dongwoon.
"I guess I was just too preoccupied with my thoughts."
"Exactly the problem, Hyung. You are thinking about something lately and it is distracting you a lot." Dongwoon sat on the bar stool next to Gikwang and rested his palm on Gikwang's shoulder.
The comforting warmth of the palm, making Gikwang's mind ease a little.
"You know you can tell me anything, right? I'm always here for you."
"I'm always here for you."
Once again, Gikwang could feel the sweet tingling down his spine at Dongwoon's words.
Are you sure about that, Dongwoon? Will you still be here if you know that I love you? I love him?
Caught surprised at his own thought, he looked at Dongwoon who was smiling back at him and thought;
Yes, I really do love this kid. But, does he love me back. What do you feel for me? Am I more than a hyung to you?
Gikwang smiled back at Dongwoon. "Let's just go to bed. I'm fine. We need our sleep, I don't want to be held accountable if you are having panda eyes later." He stood up and decided to just pour away the glass of milk that was now completely warm. He finished washing his glass, and turned round only to find that Dongwoon was still looking at him with an intent gaze. He smiled warmly back at Dongwoon. "I said I'm fine. Come on."
~~~~~~~
For Special's 3rd. stage performance, the boys were loving the song and dance choreography and they enjoyed performing it on stage. Moreover, they were allowed to play around on stage. The boys were excited over the fact and the fans were equally as excited. The cheers and fan-chants were as explosive as the 2 previous performances. They ended their schedule broadcast, chatting excitedly and eager to go and monitor how they did this time.
"Yah, Gikwang, can you hear those cheers when you took off your coat?" Yoseob jokingly asked.
Being the Gikwang that he is, -shy offstage but charismatic and cool onstage- just returned Yoseob's joke with a smile. He was more intent on seeing what the camera picked up this time on the interaction between Doojoon and their maknae. His heart sanked when the video playback showed that Doojoon hit Dongwoon's hand and Dongwoon turned away, smiling shyly.
Oh, this is becoming too much for me to handle. Is there something going on between them?
Gikwang quietly walks away from the group as they started laughing on the fact that the cameraman captured Yoseob instead of Hyunseung during one of his lines.
~~~~~~~
One week later... Most of the other stages (4th, 5th and 6th) were relatively the same. All so exciting, all so loud in fan cheering that the boys can definitely feel the love and it was all so special to them. Tomorrow, however, was their last stage of active promotions of their 2nd mini album. They were told to show their best and just plainly have fun.
~~~~~~~
The boys were all excited for this. They did feel a slight ache though as they feel that they are leaving their fans, but they vow to give their fans the best for their support of the 2nd mini album and thus went up onstage with mixed feelings of excitement and a certain kind of sadness.
Gikwang hadn't expected to see it onstage itself, he didn't even need to review video playbacks to see that this time during the dance choreography interaction between the eldest and the youngest, Doojoon didn't walk away from Dongwoon with a tap on the hand or a smile on his face, instead his hugged Dongwoon by the shoulders and they walked away together. His heart sank but he finished the song with as much professionally as he could muster.
As soon as the song ended, he quickly walked offstage and into the washroom. He stared at his own reflection for a moment before turning the tap on and splashing his face with the running water. The front of his stage outfit was starting to get wet from the water that was dripping off his face. He was about to get an earful from the coordi-noona but he didn't care. He just wanted to wash away that scene from his head. The fact that Dongwoon seemed happy at Doojoon's gesture made it all the more harder to forget.
The sound of the washroom doorknob turning made Gikwang quickly grabbed a towel and wiped his face with it. "Hyung, what's wrong?" It had to be Dongwoon again. He sighed, looked up and gave a smile that said he's ok. He placed the towel down and patted Dongwoon on the back, smiling reassuringly.
Dongwoon caught hold of Gikwang's arm, halting him.
"Don't lie, Hyung. I know something is wrong. Why can't you tell me? I've asked the rest. They seem to think that nothing's wrong."
"Good, cause nothing is wrong."
"Then why did you rushed offstage and came in here, splashing yourself wet?"
"I was about to get a headache from the lighting heat, I needed to cool down", quick in supplying Dongwoon's persistent question with an excuse, any excuse at all.
"Let's go, the rest are waiting for us."
Dongwoon, still eyeing Gikwang suspiciously at such a lame excuse, ended the conversation with, "You're lying and I'm upset you don't see me close enough to confide in me."
Don't see you close enough to confide in you? You are the reason I'm like this, how can I tell you that?
~~~~~~~
The next few days passed normally amongst the boys, all except the fact that Dongwoon looks at Gikwang with very obvious hurt in his eyes. The rest of the boys were starting to feel the strain between the 2 youngest boys. None of them dare say anything to either of them. As the days went by, the strain was beginning to become unbearable as conversations between the two was kept to a minimum. Saying only what was necessary and never more, not longer engaging in casual chats.
Doojoon feels they need to do something quick or the fate of the band is at risk. Everyone else agrees.
Yoseob was assigned to talk to the maknae, and Doojoon would go to Gikwang.
Hyunseung and Junhyung, not ones that are good with words deciding to sit this one out.
~~~~~~~
"Gikwang?" A soft knock on the door.
He didn't need to answer as he hear the door slowly open to let the owner of the voice of his state of misery in. He didn't turn to look at Doojoon who is already standing at the foot of his bed.
"Can you come out a sec?" Sighing, Gikwang climbed out and sat at the end of his bed. He looked up at Doojoon who was giving him a strange look.
"You do realise that the strain between you and Dongwoon are starting to eat the rest of us up, don't you?"
Being blunt, took Gikwang aback. He was at a loss of words. Without waiting for him to say anything, Doojoon continued, "Everyone but you two idiots are too blinded to see the fact. I'm surprised it came to this point. I was pretty sure Dongwoon was going to tell you the truth. He had asked me discreetly but I knew who he was talking about. Heck, we all can see it. What is wrong with the two of you?"
Still trying to grasp what the leader just said, Gikwang could only utter a mere, "It?"
Doojoon took hold of Gikwang's shoulders and shook him, probably trying to shake some sense into him.
"It. The love you guys feel for each other. How is it possible that both of you don't see it? You guys don't see the fact that the other actually loves you as much. Are you holding onto the thought that he doesn't love you back?"
Gikwang could only nod at that. "Well then, throw that thought away. Cause everyone from even miles away can feel the love radiating from the both of you." Doojoon finishes with a shake of his head.
"You think so, you really think that Dongwoon actually loves me back."
"What have I been saying just now? Were you even listening?"
"I heard everything, loud and clear. Doojoon, I'm sorry."
"What for?"
Gikwang, looking down, softly said, "I thought there was something going on between you and Dongwoon."
Doojoon couldn't suppress his laughter. "Aish, this kid will probably be ignorant to everything. Hopefully when you pair up with Dongwoon, another ignorant kid out there, you both can become more aware of your surroundings." Doojoon shakes his head as he continued, "I'll let you in on a secret. I'm in love with Yoseob, but I doubt he feels anything for me."
Gikwang raised an eyebrow and said, "Are you holding onto the thought that he doesn't love you back?"
"Yah, go and solve your problem before you butt into mine." Doojoon jokingly pushes Gikwang out the door.
~~~~~~~
Meanwhile...
~~~~~~~
"Dongwoon, what are you doing out here in the balcony? Is the scenery that captivating that it's kept you here for hours?" settling himself down beside Dongwoon who frankly was looking at nothing in particular. Only the look of hurt and worry evident in his eyes. He smiled at Yoseob and Yoseob could tell that the smile was forced.
"Ah, Yoseob-hyung, I was just thinking about something."
"Thoughts on Gikwang?"
Instantly, Dongwoon gave a questioning look at Yoseob. Yoseob laughed at that.
"Apparently only the two of you don't see it. Everyone else can feel it but you guys are absolutely clueless.
I thought either one of you would have made the first move by now. Yet, we are at this predicament and the strain between the two is starting to really annoy the rest of us."
"Hyung, I'm sorry. I didn't realise that."
"Exactly, you didn't realise this and you also didn't realise that you and Gikwang are both in love with each other. When are you going to acknowledge that? Go to him. Ask him. Make the first move."
Dongwoon thought hard at Yoseob's urging. "Are you sure, Hyung, that he loves me back? I wouldn't want to ask and then be rejected and have this whole awkwardness between us."
"It's better than the strain you guys are having now, moreover, he is not going to reject you" Yoseob said and hit Dongwoon on the head jokingly. He stood up and pulled Dongwoon up, "Now go talk to him." Yoseob pushed Dongwoon back into their living room.
~~~~~~~
Just as Dongwoon raised his hand to knock on the bedroom door, it swung open with Gikwang looking back at him on the other side. Dongwoon lowered his hand to his side. "Can we talk?"
Gikwang nodded and said, "Let's go to the park." Dongwoon nodded in agreement as he could feel Yoseob's eyes looking at them. Smiling, he led the way to the park.
"Erm..."
"Erm..."
Both of them, smiling shyly as they tried to speak at the same time.
"Let me go first, Dongwoon." Dongwoon could only nod.
Not wanting to make eye contact, Gikwang started to walk about, "The reason I have been acting weirdly the past few week was cause I was jealous. I was jealous of you and Doojoon and the playful interaction you both had on our Special stages. I thought there was something going on between the two of you."
Walking about, Gikwang didn't notice the smile that has crept onto the maknae's face. He continued, "I felt that the two of you were becoming very close to each other and you were enjoying each other's company a lot."
Dongwoon interrupted, "Hyung, Doojoon-hyung is my friend and is like a brother to me. Moreover, he is our leader and he takes good care of me, so of course, naturally we would enjoy each other's company. Heck, all of us enjoy each other's company, we're best friends."
Best friends? Gikwang's heart sank, coming to a stop from his nervous walking in the moonlit park.
"Hyung, I'm sorry for what I said the other day in the washroom. I felt hurt that you chose to keep your problems to yourself. I didn't want you to feel burdened and yet, I just realised that the burden was me. Hyung, I should have told you this a long time ago. But, I didn't have the courage. I feared rejection and I know awkwardness would definitely ensued. Gikwang-hyung, I don't know when it all started, we were best friends but I don't want us to be that way anymore. I want us to be more than best friends, I want to make you the special one in my life cause I love you."
Gikwang's face lit up. He walked over to Dongwoon and took hold of his hand. "Dongwoon, I'm sorry for the way I acted too, and for making you feel hurt. I was scared too. I didn't think you'd feel the same way I do you. I love you too and you definitely are the special one in my life."
Pulling Dongwoon down for a kiss.
_______
A/N:
~This was inspired by the actual LIVE performances of "Special".
~I had intended it to be short, honestly. *as evident by the first few timeline separations*
~But, once again, my writing went out of control and this turned out to be very long. I'm really sorry.
~I thought of posting it in 2 parts but I'm a bit unsure where to cut and so just decided to leave it as it is.
~I hope you enjoyed this fic as much as I enjoyed writing it.
~Comments are much loved and appreciated. ♥
~Oh yes, anyone interested in a DooSeob from this? Let me know and I'll challenge myself. (^_^)
Author: kidots
Pairing: GiWoon
Genre: Romance, Angst(?)
Rating: PG
Summary: Gikwang is not liking the proximity that is between Dongwoon and Doojoon, yet, what can he do?
_______
Practice for their follow-up song, Special, is underway. They work hard in rehearsing to their best. They always have the desire to show their fans the best. Satisfied with how practice turned out the night before their follow-up song stage, they all proceed home to their dorm at 4:00AM to have what little sleep they could get before having to wake up at 6:30AM to head on over to get their make-up and wardrobe done for the stage of Special.
All going to sleep with a sense of excitement and nervousness.
~~~~~~~
Special's 1st. stage was awesome. Fans were more than welcoming. They were fan-chanting so excitedly that the boys could feel the energy up on stage. The boys were absolutely ecstatic at the fans' response to the song and now have a stronger need to out-perform this 1st. stage the next day.
In order to know exactly which parts of the song -vocally or choreographically- needs improvement, they all sat down to monitor the recording of their 1st. stage.
Junhyung feels he needed to do his rap part with much style the next day.
Everyone else was somewhat satisfied with how the performance turned out.
All, with the exception of Gikwang, who noticed something in the performance no else did.
An interaction in the choreography which involves Doojoon and Dongwoon.
From his viewpoint, it seems that Doojoon was kind of trying to get Dongwoon's attention with his hand movements in one part of the choreography.
Maybe it's just me thinking too much. Gikwang thinks to himself.
But, I never did tell Dongwoon how I feel, neither have I asked him what he thinks of me. Maybe, he has feelings for Doojoon instead. Argh!!!! What am I doing?
~~~~~~~
Special's 2nd. stage was even more awesome than the first. The cheers, the fan-chants were even louder this time. The boys had a lot of fun performing on stage, fueling their energy with the fans excitement.
Once again, the boys monitor how they did this time round and Junhyung was happy his part turned out to his liking. The rest was also happy as they feel that they did good. All except Gikwang, who once again noticed that Doojoon was still trying to get the maknae's attention. He saw the smile that was on Doojoon's face as the camera focused on him at that moment. He let the thought slide as they continue with their practice and Doojoon wasn't doing anything out of the ordinary.
At the end of practice, the boys were packing up, ready to go back to their dorm. Gikwang was exceptionally slow in packing, once again having ridiculous thoughts in his head about the leader and their maknae.
Then suddenly, his train of thoughts was interrupted, "Hyung, why are you so slow? Everyone is waiting for you." He recognised that voice instantly, moreover only that voice would call him hyung.
He stuttered, "Er, I was just... I'm coming". He shoved his stuff into his bag, zipped it shut and swung it over his shoulder. "Let's go", Dongwoon said and grabbed hold of Gikwang's shoulders and push him forward.
"Yah, yah, yah, I'm losing my balance."
"Hyung, you got to move it, everyone else is waiting, plus, don't worry, I'll catch you if you fall."
"I'll catch you if you fall".
Those words sent sweet shivers tingling down Gikwang's spine.
Dongwoon-ah, do you even realise what you are doing to me saying those kind of things?
Gikwang opens the van door and saw that everyone was already seated, waiting impatiently for the youngest duo to get in, Hyunseung, Yoseob and Junhyung in the back seat, with Doojoon sitting in the middle row at the farthest seat from the door. Just as Gikwang was about to climb in, Dongwoon said, "Hyung, can I get in first?" Gikwang stepped back and make way for Dongwoon to climb in instead.
He felt a certain kind of ache stabbing at his heart because Dongwoon chose to sit next to Doojoon, but at least he was sitting next to Dongwoon still.
Usually, the ride back to their dorm was fairly short. This time, however, they were caught in a bit of traffic as there were some sort of festivity going on on the street that their driver usually takes. Gikwang could hear soft, calming breathing rhythm from behind him, quite certain that the trio at the backseat was already sleeping. He takes a peek over at the two beside him and saw that they were sharing Dongwoon's iPod and laughing softly at something that they were watching. Another stabbing ache to his heart. He chose to ignore it and them and shove his headphones in his ears instead to block out the soft laughter he could hear, painfully amplified by his thoughts.
Back at the dorm, everyone fell asleep on their bunks as soon as their heads hit those comfortable pillows.
All but Gikwang, who was tossing and turning and finally worried that his movements might wake Yoseob who was sleeping on the bunk above him, decides to go grab a glass of milk instead.
He quietly climbed out of his bed, choosing not to look at the top bunks, fearing what he might see as the other 2 top bunks were occupied by both Doojoon, who sleeps in the middle and Dongwoon.
He silently stepped out of their room and into the kitchen. He switched on the light, rubbing his eyes as the sudden brightness that illuminated the small space blinded his vision. He grabbed a glass of milk and sat at the bar stool. He looked down into the glass of milk he was holding and wondered when it all started. Dongwoon was slowly becoming very important in his life. He feels happy when he sees Dongwoon's smile and he misses him when he is off doing his individual schedules. He shakes his head, trying to shake away the thoughts of Dongwoon.
"Hyung, why aren't you asleep yet?" That voice startled him, he looked up suddenly.
"Why aren't you?"
"I could hear you tossing and turning earlier. Then you walked out of the room. Is something wrong? You don't seem to be yourself lately."
Gikwang looked down into his hands and raised the glass at Dongwoon, "I just wanted a drink."
"And yet, you only chose to hold onto it."
It hit Gikwang that the milk was already starting to get warm. He smiled up awkwardly at Dongwoon.
"I guess I was just too preoccupied with my thoughts."
"Exactly the problem, Hyung. You are thinking about something lately and it is distracting you a lot." Dongwoon sat on the bar stool next to Gikwang and rested his palm on Gikwang's shoulder.
The comforting warmth of the palm, making Gikwang's mind ease a little.
"You know you can tell me anything, right? I'm always here for you."
"I'm always here for you."
Once again, Gikwang could feel the sweet tingling down his spine at Dongwoon's words.
Are you sure about that, Dongwoon? Will you still be here if you know that I love you? I love him?
Caught surprised at his own thought, he looked at Dongwoon who was smiling back at him and thought;
Yes, I really do love this kid. But, does he love me back. What do you feel for me? Am I more than a hyung to you?
Gikwang smiled back at Dongwoon. "Let's just go to bed. I'm fine. We need our sleep, I don't want to be held accountable if you are having panda eyes later." He stood up and decided to just pour away the glass of milk that was now completely warm. He finished washing his glass, and turned round only to find that Dongwoon was still looking at him with an intent gaze. He smiled warmly back at Dongwoon. "I said I'm fine. Come on."
~~~~~~~
For Special's 3rd. stage performance, the boys were loving the song and dance choreography and they enjoyed performing it on stage. Moreover, they were allowed to play around on stage. The boys were excited over the fact and the fans were equally as excited. The cheers and fan-chants were as explosive as the 2 previous performances. They ended their schedule broadcast, chatting excitedly and eager to go and monitor how they did this time.
"Yah, Gikwang, can you hear those cheers when you took off your coat?" Yoseob jokingly asked.
Being the Gikwang that he is, -shy offstage but charismatic and cool onstage- just returned Yoseob's joke with a smile. He was more intent on seeing what the camera picked up this time on the interaction between Doojoon and their maknae. His heart sanked when the video playback showed that Doojoon hit Dongwoon's hand and Dongwoon turned away, smiling shyly.
Oh, this is becoming too much for me to handle. Is there something going on between them?
Gikwang quietly walks away from the group as they started laughing on the fact that the cameraman captured Yoseob instead of Hyunseung during one of his lines.
~~~~~~~
One week later... Most of the other stages (4th, 5th and 6th) were relatively the same. All so exciting, all so loud in fan cheering that the boys can definitely feel the love and it was all so special to them. Tomorrow, however, was their last stage of active promotions of their 2nd mini album. They were told to show their best and just plainly have fun.
~~~~~~~
The boys were all excited for this. They did feel a slight ache though as they feel that they are leaving their fans, but they vow to give their fans the best for their support of the 2nd mini album and thus went up onstage with mixed feelings of excitement and a certain kind of sadness.
Gikwang hadn't expected to see it onstage itself, he didn't even need to review video playbacks to see that this time during the dance choreography interaction between the eldest and the youngest, Doojoon didn't walk away from Dongwoon with a tap on the hand or a smile on his face, instead his hugged Dongwoon by the shoulders and they walked away together. His heart sank but he finished the song with as much professionally as he could muster.
As soon as the song ended, he quickly walked offstage and into the washroom. He stared at his own reflection for a moment before turning the tap on and splashing his face with the running water. The front of his stage outfit was starting to get wet from the water that was dripping off his face. He was about to get an earful from the coordi-noona but he didn't care. He just wanted to wash away that scene from his head. The fact that Dongwoon seemed happy at Doojoon's gesture made it all the more harder to forget.
The sound of the washroom doorknob turning made Gikwang quickly grabbed a towel and wiped his face with it. "Hyung, what's wrong?" It had to be Dongwoon again. He sighed, looked up and gave a smile that said he's ok. He placed the towel down and patted Dongwoon on the back, smiling reassuringly.
Dongwoon caught hold of Gikwang's arm, halting him.
"Don't lie, Hyung. I know something is wrong. Why can't you tell me? I've asked the rest. They seem to think that nothing's wrong."
"Good, cause nothing is wrong."
"Then why did you rushed offstage and came in here, splashing yourself wet?"
"I was about to get a headache from the lighting heat, I needed to cool down", quick in supplying Dongwoon's persistent question with an excuse, any excuse at all.
"Let's go, the rest are waiting for us."
Dongwoon, still eyeing Gikwang suspiciously at such a lame excuse, ended the conversation with, "You're lying and I'm upset you don't see me close enough to confide in me."
Don't see you close enough to confide in you? You are the reason I'm like this, how can I tell you that?
~~~~~~~
The next few days passed normally amongst the boys, all except the fact that Dongwoon looks at Gikwang with very obvious hurt in his eyes. The rest of the boys were starting to feel the strain between the 2 youngest boys. None of them dare say anything to either of them. As the days went by, the strain was beginning to become unbearable as conversations between the two was kept to a minimum. Saying only what was necessary and never more, not longer engaging in casual chats.
Doojoon feels they need to do something quick or the fate of the band is at risk. Everyone else agrees.
Yoseob was assigned to talk to the maknae, and Doojoon would go to Gikwang.
Hyunseung and Junhyung, not ones that are good with words deciding to sit this one out.
~~~~~~~
"Gikwang?" A soft knock on the door.
He didn't need to answer as he hear the door slowly open to let the owner of the voice of his state of misery in. He didn't turn to look at Doojoon who is already standing at the foot of his bed.
"Can you come out a sec?" Sighing, Gikwang climbed out and sat at the end of his bed. He looked up at Doojoon who was giving him a strange look.
"You do realise that the strain between you and Dongwoon are starting to eat the rest of us up, don't you?"
Being blunt, took Gikwang aback. He was at a loss of words. Without waiting for him to say anything, Doojoon continued, "Everyone but you two idiots are too blinded to see the fact. I'm surprised it came to this point. I was pretty sure Dongwoon was going to tell you the truth. He had asked me discreetly but I knew who he was talking about. Heck, we all can see it. What is wrong with the two of you?"
Still trying to grasp what the leader just said, Gikwang could only utter a mere, "It?"
Doojoon took hold of Gikwang's shoulders and shook him, probably trying to shake some sense into him.
"It. The love you guys feel for each other. How is it possible that both of you don't see it? You guys don't see the fact that the other actually loves you as much. Are you holding onto the thought that he doesn't love you back?"
Gikwang could only nod at that. "Well then, throw that thought away. Cause everyone from even miles away can feel the love radiating from the both of you." Doojoon finishes with a shake of his head.
"You think so, you really think that Dongwoon actually loves me back."
"What have I been saying just now? Were you even listening?"
"I heard everything, loud and clear. Doojoon, I'm sorry."
"What for?"
Gikwang, looking down, softly said, "I thought there was something going on between you and Dongwoon."
Doojoon couldn't suppress his laughter. "Aish, this kid will probably be ignorant to everything. Hopefully when you pair up with Dongwoon, another ignorant kid out there, you both can become more aware of your surroundings." Doojoon shakes his head as he continued, "I'll let you in on a secret. I'm in love with Yoseob, but I doubt he feels anything for me."
Gikwang raised an eyebrow and said, "Are you holding onto the thought that he doesn't love you back?"
"Yah, go and solve your problem before you butt into mine." Doojoon jokingly pushes Gikwang out the door.
~~~~~~~
Meanwhile...
~~~~~~~
"Dongwoon, what are you doing out here in the balcony? Is the scenery that captivating that it's kept you here for hours?" settling himself down beside Dongwoon who frankly was looking at nothing in particular. Only the look of hurt and worry evident in his eyes. He smiled at Yoseob and Yoseob could tell that the smile was forced.
"Ah, Yoseob-hyung, I was just thinking about something."
"Thoughts on Gikwang?"
Instantly, Dongwoon gave a questioning look at Yoseob. Yoseob laughed at that.
"Apparently only the two of you don't see it. Everyone else can feel it but you guys are absolutely clueless.
I thought either one of you would have made the first move by now. Yet, we are at this predicament and the strain between the two is starting to really annoy the rest of us."
"Hyung, I'm sorry. I didn't realise that."
"Exactly, you didn't realise this and you also didn't realise that you and Gikwang are both in love with each other. When are you going to acknowledge that? Go to him. Ask him. Make the first move."
Dongwoon thought hard at Yoseob's urging. "Are you sure, Hyung, that he loves me back? I wouldn't want to ask and then be rejected and have this whole awkwardness between us."
"It's better than the strain you guys are having now, moreover, he is not going to reject you" Yoseob said and hit Dongwoon on the head jokingly. He stood up and pulled Dongwoon up, "Now go talk to him." Yoseob pushed Dongwoon back into their living room.
~~~~~~~
Just as Dongwoon raised his hand to knock on the bedroom door, it swung open with Gikwang looking back at him on the other side. Dongwoon lowered his hand to his side. "Can we talk?"
Gikwang nodded and said, "Let's go to the park." Dongwoon nodded in agreement as he could feel Yoseob's eyes looking at them. Smiling, he led the way to the park.
"Erm..."
"Erm..."
Both of them, smiling shyly as they tried to speak at the same time.
"Let me go first, Dongwoon." Dongwoon could only nod.
Not wanting to make eye contact, Gikwang started to walk about, "The reason I have been acting weirdly the past few week was cause I was jealous. I was jealous of you and Doojoon and the playful interaction you both had on our Special stages. I thought there was something going on between the two of you."
Walking about, Gikwang didn't notice the smile that has crept onto the maknae's face. He continued, "I felt that the two of you were becoming very close to each other and you were enjoying each other's company a lot."
Dongwoon interrupted, "Hyung, Doojoon-hyung is my friend and is like a brother to me. Moreover, he is our leader and he takes good care of me, so of course, naturally we would enjoy each other's company. Heck, all of us enjoy each other's company, we're best friends."
Best friends? Gikwang's heart sank, coming to a stop from his nervous walking in the moonlit park.
"Hyung, I'm sorry for what I said the other day in the washroom. I felt hurt that you chose to keep your problems to yourself. I didn't want you to feel burdened and yet, I just realised that the burden was me. Hyung, I should have told you this a long time ago. But, I didn't have the courage. I feared rejection and I know awkwardness would definitely ensued. Gikwang-hyung, I don't know when it all started, we were best friends but I don't want us to be that way anymore. I want us to be more than best friends, I want to make you the special one in my life cause I love you."
Gikwang's face lit up. He walked over to Dongwoon and took hold of his hand. "Dongwoon, I'm sorry for the way I acted too, and for making you feel hurt. I was scared too. I didn't think you'd feel the same way I do you. I love you too and you definitely are the special one in my life."
Pulling Dongwoon down for a kiss.
_______
A/N:
~This was inspired by the actual LIVE performances of "Special".
~I had intended it to be short, honestly. *as evident by the first few timeline separations*
~But, once again, my writing went out of control and this turned out to be very long. I'm really sorry.
~I thought of posting it in 2 parts but I'm a bit unsure where to cut and so just decided to leave it as it is.
~I hope you enjoyed this fic as much as I enjoyed writing it.
~Comments are much loved and appreciated. ♥
~Oh yes, anyone interested in a DooSeob from this? Let me know and I'll challenge myself. (^_^)