Kingdom is about to start and Qiang is over it
Breathing heavily, Qiang collapsed to his knees and reached for his water bottle. Kingdom was starting in just a week and he was late at the company tonight working on the performance for their intro stage. He felt a lot of pressure for this.
They had won Road to Kingdom and he knew that fans and non-fans were expecting them to be bigger and better than they were before. Along with the judges as well. They had so many stunts and unique choreographies during Road To Kingdom that he had to make it even more astonishing this time around to get a high placement.
However, dance wasn't necessarily Qiang's strong point. It wasn't that he couldn't dance—he would've never debuted if he couldn't—but it did take a little more time for him to pick up the moves and make them flow naturally while also making them powerful than most of his teammates. When he was training at Pledis, dance was also the category he scored the lowest in.
It was only a 90 second performance, but Qiang still needed it to be perfect. He wanted to show the judges and other teams and fans that just because they won Road to Kingdom didn't mean they were taking it easy this time around. To show everyone that they had improved by a tenfold.
Qiang did wonder if maybe they would be better off not having him in the performance. There was eleven of them already and it wasn't like he would be missed. He just didn't want to mess it up for everyone else. He jumped when he heard the click of the studio door opening.
Much to his surprise, Hyunjae and Juyeon were frowning down at him. "Do you have any idea what time it is?" Hyunjae chided and Qiang merely shrugged. "It's almost one in the morning! What are you still doing here?" Again, Qiang only shrugged, sitting back against the mirrored wall.
"Hyung, what's wrong? You rarely ever stay this late alone," Juyeon asked quietly and Qiang shrugged again. Hyunjae clicked his tongue and stomped his foot on the ground. Qiang raised a brow and cleared his throat, "Are you five?" Hyunjae scowled at him. "Something's wrong and we need to know. Now, speak. No shrugging."
Qiang sighed as the two boys sat down in front of him. "I'm just trying to get the dance down. You know it takes longer for me. I don't want to mess it up." Juyeon chuckled and shook his head. "You could just ask for help. You know any of us would help you. Go through it and we'll watch and help you." Qiang sighed again but nodded and stood up, rolling his neck and shoulders.
He went through the choreography again, Juyeon and Hyunjae happily helping him along in different spots. It must have been another half hour when he fell to the ground again and sprawled out like a starfish. "I can't do this. You guys should just do it without me."
Juyeon and Hyunjae shared a look before sitting on either side of him. "You know we won't do that. And can't," Hyunjae spoke quietly.
"We're a team, hyung," Juyeon chimed in. "You can do this. There's eleven of us to help you. And you're doing fine!"
"Yeah!" Hyunjae chirped, "You have all the choreo down, we just have to work on the little details. Changmin-ie can help you with that tomorrow." Qiang didn't say anything to the two. He knew they were right and that he could do this, but Qiang had never been one to accept anything less than perfect for himself.
It could be because he was stressed and exhausted right now, missing home and wishing he could just call his mom or sister. He just wasn't in a good headspace and the only thing he wanted to do right now was quit.
"Yah!" Juyeon said, breaking him out of his thoughts. "You're doing great, Donghyun. We mean it." Hyunjae hummed in agreement and Qiang sighed, propping himself up on his elbows. "Sorry," he murmured, "I'm just tired and exhausted." The two boys smiled warmly at the older boy before standing up.
"C'mon, let's go grab some late night snacks and we'll start fresh tomorrow," Hyunjae held his hand out and Qiang smiled, grabbing his hand and letting him pull him to his feet. Juyeon nudged his shoulder, "You don't have to make it perfect, hyung. Just do your best. And we'll help you. We're a team."
Qiang nudged him back and smiled, nodding his head. The trio made their way into the night sky, grabbing all their favorite snacks from the convenience store that was still open. Hyunjae refused to let either of them pay, saying one of them could get it next time.
Qiang went to bed that night feeling a little more relaxed and with a clearer head. He had Hyunjae and Juyeon to thank for that.
Probably the food too.
