a shoulder to lean on → ljs & sjh.
Jungshin couldn’t quite understand why Seohyun needed to talk to him personally. He knew that Seohyun was joining along with them to supervise and make sure that they were moving furniture, but the longer Seohyun was in the room, the more Jungshin started to sense something was off. It was almost as if the Seohyun he usually saw at school wasn’t there anymore. So when he was able to get some alone time with Seohyun, he asked with concern, “What did you want to ask me, Seohyun? You seem a little bit off today.” Was it a good idea for him to tell him about his observations? Jungshin wasn’t quite sure, but Seohyun was his friend too. He wanted to help her in every way he could. Seohyun meant so much to Minhyuk and Jungshin wanted to do everything he could to help the two of them.
“…Did Minhyuk tell you about how he was scouted for TRC?”
“Yeah, he did. It caught me by surprise, but then again I would have been more surprised if he went for that other company. You know, the one that is known for their synchronized dancing.”
There was silence from both parties as Jungshin observed Seohyun carefully. He questioned why Seohyun brought up the topic in the first place. He felt that Seohyun should have discussed the topic with Minhyuk, but it seemed like she wanted his personal opinion. As Jungshin recalled the time when Minhyuk told him the news, all he could remember was the sheer happiness and excitement he had for his best friend. He heard about TRC and how difficult it was for people to be accepted to TRC so he knew that Minhyuk deserved it. After all, he did have a music repertoire that surpasses many trainees around his age. But as he carefully observed Seohyun, he couldn’t help but wonder if she supported the idea of Minhyuk becoming a TRC trainee.
“Do you want him to be a TRC trainee, Jungshin?”
“Well, I don’t know. It depends.”
“For one thing, I’m not Minhyuk so I’m not sure if he wants to go back and pursue music. I’ve known him for a while and I think without you, he would have continued on working on films and documentaries. Another factor would be the trainee contract. I don’t know how the trainee system goes, but I’ve heard that quitting the trainee life is difficult especially if you don’t have a lot of money. There are other factors too, but those are a few.”
Seohyun remained quiet as she processed everything that Jungshin was telling her. Everything Jungshin was explaining wasn’t new for Seohyun though — she contemplated each decision and action meticulously. Seohyun didn’t want to suggest Minhyuk something without knowing the consequences. She was known to be cautious in her decisions and even though this one wasn’t for her personally, she knew that Minhyuk’s decision would affect their relationship greatly.
Jungshin asked her the one question that bothered her for a while, “How about you, Seohyun? Do you want him to be a TRC trainee?”
Again Seohyun was quiet. She was afraid to answer the question that she opted to ignore and pretend that she never heard the question. However, time was coming close and it felt like any day Seohyun was bound to find out the results to Minhyuk’s audition. She had to make a decision fast and Seohyun disliked quick decisions.
“He deserves to be one and I know that TRC would love to have someone like him in their company.”
“But do you want him to be a TRC trainee?”
“I’m telling you, Jungshin. He de—”
“Seohyun, you. Don’t tell me if TRC wants him or not. Obviously they do because they want trainees who are talented and will stick with them in the long run. Please be honest, Seohyun. I know you wouldn’t bring up this topic if you knew the answer to the question so easily.”
“I—” Seohyun stopped herself abruptly as she lowered her head. The past few months was a roller coaster ride for her. While February was a time when she focused on their relationship, March was the time when she was at her lowest point. People were being scouted in Hongdae from left and right and it irked her. Seohyun was bothered by the fact that other people were scouted and not her. Every week she would go to Hongdae thinking that everything was alright — that maybe she didn’t need to be scouted. But it hurt her internally hearing that someone she knew was getting scouted for one of the top five companies. To her it felt like she was constantly stabbed. Every day felt like a reminder that she wasn’t good enough. The perfect façade that she upheld for so many years was gone and instead she was becoming someone else — someone so foreign and unfamiliar to her.
Her eyes became watery as she hugged Jungshin tightly. “I—I don’t want him to be a trainee, Jungshin. But I’m going to sound so selfish if I say that to him. I don’t want him to be a trainee for my own selfish reasons. I—I just don’t want to lose all of the time we’ve spent together. I know we’ve only been together for a short while but nowadays, I feel like I’m competing against time. I feel like I have to complete everything before Minhyuk finds out his results. I don’t like to be pressured to hurry up. I want to take things slowly. But how can I do that when he could receive a call any day from TRC?” The tears began to run through her cheeks as Seohyun whimpered. She kept all of her emotions hidden for so long and here she was confessing her emotions to her boyfriend’s best friend.
While Jungshin stood still in shock, he wasn’t sure how to react to the situation. He felt bad for all of the problems that Seohyun had to deal with at the moment. All he wanted to do was comfort her, but he wasn’t sure how. His mind was focused on trying to get Minhyuk to come, but whenever he thought of that he was left with one question; would it be a good idea to bring Minhyuk at a time like this? Seohyun was addressing the issue to him. She wasn’t discussing the issue to Minhyuk, so perhaps she needed someone to listen to in the meantime — someone that would be willing to comfort her when she was at her lowest point.
“Tell him that, Seohyun. Tell him that you don’t want him to be a TRC trainee.”
“I also want him to accomplish his own goals too. I want to give him freedom. I don’t want him to be restricted because of me.”
“Tell him that too. Just let him hear your perspective. He’ll understand. It’s Minhyuk, after all. He’s the type that values communication and honesty. As the saying goes, relationship is like a two way street…or something along those lines.” Jungshin trailed off as he slowly wrapped his arms around her. He wanted to do what was best for the two of them. He wanted to give Minhyuk and Seohyun a sense of happiness that he saw with his friends. There was something about seeing other people’s happiness that made him happy internally.
Glancing at the wall clock nearby, Jungshin lowered his head and whispered, “Minhyuk should be coming back soon. Stay in my bedroom for now. I know there isn’t much, but when Minhyuk comes back I’ll tell him that you were asleep. I don’t think he wants to find out that you were crying.” He placed his hands on her shoulders as he gave her a soft smile.
Seohyun stared at Jungshin before returning the smile as well. Relieved that Jungshin was there to help her, Seohyun nodded her head as she quickly entered inside his bedroom to wipe off her excess tears. She was glad to have a friend like Jungshin — one that would listen to her and be a shoulder to lean on when she needed it the most.
jacobvanloon
