An alternative universe to The Littles...
What if... Nara left the show and JYP-but didn't walk away from the entertainment industry entirely?
What if... SM saw her potential, recognized the star she was meant to be, and gave her the stage she trul...
"We were all hurting," Taeyong added. "And I think... we made you carry that hurt alone."
There was no deflection. No defensiveness. Just three boys who had learned, slowly and painfully, the cost of silence.
Nara's grip on the soda can loosened slightly as her shoulders dropped. Not in weariness-but in release.
"I know," she said softly. "I know you were hurting. So was I."
They didn't interrupt.
"I used to wonder," she continued, eyes lowering for a beat. "If things would've been different if none of that happened. If the secret had just stayed quiet like everyone else. But the truth is... It couldn't. Not when I saw everything starting to fall apart. Not when it meant watching you all drift from each other-and from yourselves."
She looked up again, her voice steadier now.
"And I hated being the one who spoke up and still felt like I lost everything."
Johnny looked down at his shoes. Jaehyun swallowed hard.
Taeyong-who had always been the emotional anchor- couldn't quite find words for the knot in his throat.
"But I forgive you," Nara said, interrupting the silence gently. "Not because it's easy, but because it's necessary."
Johnny blinked. "You... you forgive us?"
"We were kids," she said. "Still are, in a way. None of us knew how to handle what happened. We all acted out of fear. Fear of losing what we had. Fear of losing each other. Fear of losing ourselves."
They stayed quiet, letting the truth of her words settle.
"And I've grown," she added, the softest smile touching her lips. "It hurts. A lot. But I needed to grow through that pain. And I think... I'm stronger for it now."
The hallway seemed lighter somehow, the burden they all carried finally shared aloud.
Nara glanced at the time on her phone, the screen lighting up with a reminder: Dance practice - 10 mins.
"Well," she said, shifting the peach soda under her arm. "I should head back. We've got long takes tonight. No rest for the rising star, I guess."
She stepped forward, walking past them with a nod-but Jaehyun turned quickly.
"누나," he called, voice clear and reverent. "The best of luck on your debut."
She turned to look over her shoulder. Her gaze lingered-on all three of them.
And then came a smile that none of them would forget.
It was different from the polite one earlier.
This one was laced with something deeper-gratitude, grace, and a tenderness only time could earn.
"Thanks," she said. "Really."
And then she turned and walked through the end door.
Into a future she was carving for herself.
Into the light she had found after the storm.
The three of them stood frozen, eyes still fixed on the closed door long after she disappeared.
Johnny was the first to speak. His voice was barely above a whisper.
"That... felt like goodbye."
"No," Taeyong replied, his gaze unwavering. "That felt like peace."
Jaehyun exhaled slowly, a hint of awe in his voice. "She's not just ready for the world... the world better be ready for her."
And though none of them said it aloud, a quiet shift took place among them-something realigning, healing.
In that quiet hallway where friendships had fractured and hearts had learned to mend, the sky above them-at last-felt cleared.
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