Not Alone || Jung Jaehyun

Chapter 20 | "trust yourself"

All the members cast her grateful smiles as they continued to warm up, Jaehyun leaving her side after giving her arm one final squeeze and going to stretch as well.

"Ooh so the plot thickens." Jaemin said, walking up to her with a playful smirk.

"Shut up...." she mumbled out with red cheeks.

"He kicked out that bitch for you. I think that's gotta mean something."

"He did it for everyone, not just me."

"Mhmm sure he did."

"Oh stop, let's go warm up." She said, rolling her eyes and dragging him to the side of the room.

- - -

"So, you showed up." Jaehyun said as Hyemi walked into the studio early the next morning.

"You asked so here I am." She relied, dropping her dance bag on the bench.

"I'm glad. I've really missed our mornings."
He replied, standing up from his stretches.

"Me too, it's been a long week."He smiled at her response as he walked up to her, staring into her eyes. "So, uh, you wanted me to take a look at your solo?"

"Oh, yeah right." He said quickly, snapping out of it. "With sectionals only two days away, I really need your final notes. I want to make sure Yeonhee didn't screw things up too badly."

The two of them laughed as Hyemi went to cue up his music.

"Well, damage control is one thing I can do. Let's see it."

- - -

"Thanks for all your help, Hyemi. I'm so glad that we reworked the beginning, Yeonhee's choreo was terrible." He said, taking the water bottle from her hand.

"You could say that again." Hyemi mumbled. "But it looks great. Definitely first place worthy."

"I hope so. But I'm feeling good about this. I think we're gonna do well this year."

"That makes one of us."

Jaehyun recoiled at her words, staring at her as if she was crazy.

"Oh come on, the group dance looks great! You're doing a great job, you have nothing to worry about." He said, playfully nudging her shoulder as the took a seat on the floor together.

"Have you even met me? That's basically all I ever do. Hyemi isn't Hyemi without uncontrollable nerves." She giggled out.

"Oh please, nothing is uncontrollable for you. You're one of the strongest people I know. Plus, I think we're gonna crush it." He said with a reassuring smile.

"Since when we're you this confident about sectionals? Wasn't it just a few weeks ago when you were literally freaking out about this?" She asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"Well that was before I saw the dances." He replied, rolling his eyes as if it was obvious. "I always get nervous early on because I don't know where we'll be in the future. If I knew that our dances were gonna look as good as they do, I wouldn't never panicked. I owe a lot of that to you."

"Well we wouldn't even be here without you. You're a way better captain that people give you credit for, you're literally the reason we do so well. I know you love it."

"I do." He nodded back. "And I know what it's like to be nervous for something when it matters a lot to you. I feel pretty confident, sure, but those nerves will always be there."

"I just hope they don't affect my performance. We all need to be on our A game."

"We will be. You're amazing, Hyemi. I say this as a friend, captain, snd fellow dancer. Don't doubt yourself."

Jaehyun saw the expression on her face and knew that, despite his words, she wasn't convinced. Hyemi tried her best to internalize what he was saying, but the doubts were still there, coming up with every possible situation gone wrong.

"Look, you trust me, right?" He said, lightly gripping onto her hand.

"Of course." She replied without hesitation.

"Then it's time to start trusting yourself. Because I do. And it takes a lot to earn my trust."

She smiled, looking away from him to hide her red cheeks as he rubbed his thumb on the back of her hand.

"And hey," he used his other hand to gently grab her chin, turning her head so she was looking right at him. "If you start to feel those nerves, just look at me. Think of us and this moment right now and know that I think the world of you, I wouldn't put you on that stage if I didn't. No matter what happens, I'm here for you. And I'll continue to be here for you, sectionals champions or not."

She felt her heart rate slow and her breathing relax, the feeling of nervousness slowly fading into the background as she stared into his eyes. Everything around her went silent and in that moment it was just the two of them. Neither one of them moved, the intensity of the moment drawing them into one another.

But of course it wouldn't last as Hyemi's phone began to ding. Instantly the two of them snapped out of it. Jaehyun moved his fingers from her chin and released her hand as she went to grab her phone.

It was just a text from her mom wishing her luck before sectionals since she didn't want to bother her the day of. Hyemi rolled her eyes with a smile, sending her mom a quick 'thanks' before putting her phone down.

"Sorry about that...." she trailed off as she walked back to Jaehyun, who was now standing.

"No worries, the others are gonna be here soon anyways. You feeling better?" He asked with a smile.

"Yeah, a bit."

"Good. And remember what I said, if you feel those nerves, just look at me. I'll always be rooting for you."