You Rock My World

Our babies are all grown up

Seonghwa gathered the members in the hallway before they headed to the practice room, wanting to make sure they had a little bit of information about Hongjoong's whereabouts before they had to be surrounded by cameras and spies.

"Hey, everyone. Hongjoong had a personal thing to take care of again so he won't be here. But he'll be back as soon as he can."

"Is everything okay?" Yunho asked and Seonghwa nodded.

"Yeah, yeah everything's okay. He just had something really important to do."

"He's not dying or something, is he?" Yeosang asked and Jongho elbowed him in the side.

"No, he's not dying," Seonghwa laughed.

"Well it better be pretty important...the show's tomorrow," San pouted.

"Don't worry. He'll be back as quick as he can. We can practice a little longer tonight so he gets a chance to rehearse with us once before the show. Okay?"

Everyone nodded and they walked down to the practice rooms. Unfortunately, as soon as they'd arrived, they ran into an annoyingly familiar face.

"If it isn't my favorite new band," JYP smiled and the members greeted him with a quick bow.

"Good morning, sunbaenim," Seonghwa smiled but remembered his act and let it fall a little quicker than usual.

"One, two, three, four, five, six, seven—hmm, you're not missing anyone, are you?"

Seonghwa tried his best not to be annoyed by the obvious bait.

"Hongjoong had an important personal matter to attend to. He'll be back as soon as possible," Jongho responded, surprising Seonghwa. He hadn't expected his members to try to help him out. Not when JYP carried so much power. It made him smile a little. But he quickly shifted his expression, displaying subtle annoyance.

"I'm sorry, sunbaenim. It was really last minute. He told me it would only be one day but he needed to take another day to figure things out."

"It's alright. I won't take any points away for missing practice. I've always found those who show up tend to be more prepared, so any absences will present themselves eventually in the performance."

Seonghwa swallowed. He knew they didn't plan to stay but the idea of having a member eliminated at their showcase was a terrifying thought.

"Of course. I'm sure he'll be ready for the show," Seonghwa muttered, but he let his eyes communicate the opposite. JYP flashed him a knowing nod.

Seonghwa smiled in response and kept it on until he was sure JYP had left the room and was nowhere nearby.

He finally let it drop, feeling exhausted and repulsed at the same time. He didn't like making anyone think he wasn't on Hongjoong's side. But he needed to keep JYP off their trail.

The group rehearsed for a few hours before taking a quick break for lunch. They waited an extra fifteen minutes but Hongjoong didn't appear. They ended up returning to practicing until late into the evening before Seonghwa decided to end things.

"Alright, we've been going at it all day. You all deserve a break. Our show's tomorrow, so for the rest of tonight I want you all to rest. Just relax, have fun, enjoy yourselves. Okay?"

The members stared at him in surprise.

"Are you sure? What if Hongjoong hyung wants to rehearse?" Mingi asked.

"It's okay. I don't think he'll make it back until late tonight. You guys go on ahead."

The members cheered excitedly, and Seonghwa joined their circle to celebrate with them.