Something In Between (2Min Christmas Present)

Chapter 1

Summer always made everything louder.

The practice room windows were open, letting in the heat, the noise of the city, the distant sound of fans outside the building. Sweat clung to skin, music echoed off the mirrors, and laughter bounced easily between them—except for Lee Know.

Lee Know loved Kim Seungmin in the quiet way.

The kind of love that didn’t reach for hands or steal glances meant to be caught. The kind that stayed in the back of the room, leaning against the wall, pretending not to watch while memorizing everything.

Seungmin was laughing again—head tilted back, eyes crinkling, voice bright as if sadness had never learned his name. Hyunjin said something dumb, Changbin laughed too loud, and Han Jisung immediately threw an arm around Lee Know’s shoulders, dragging him into the noise.

“Minho-hyung, say something,” Jisung said, grinning. “You’re being creepy quiet.”

Lee Know smirked on cue. “I’m always quiet.”

That was a lie, and they all knew it.

In public, Lee Know belonged next to Han Jisung. The way their shoulders brushed, the way they leaned into each other without thinking, the way fans screamed *Minsung!* like it was something proven and permanent. Cameras loved them. Stays loved them.

Lee Know let it happen.

He laughed with Jisung, teased him, rested his chin on his shoulder during interviews. He played the role perfectly, because pretending was easier than explaining why his chest tightened every time Seungmin’s name was called.

Across the room, Seungmin was practicing vocals, headphones half-on, half-off. He caught Lee Know’s eyes for just a second.

Just a second was all it took.

Seungmin looked away first.

That was how it always was.

Only the members noticed the details.

Bang Chan noticed how Lee Know always made sure Seungmin ate first, sliding food toward him without a word.
Changbin noticed how Lee Know’s jokes softened when Seungmin was tired.
Hyunjin noticed how Lee Know stood a little straighter when Seungmin entered a room—and how he relaxed only after Seungmin left.
Felix noticed the way Lee Know’s smile never quite reached his eyes when fans screamed about ships that didn’t include the one name he never said out loud.

And Han Jisung—Han noticed everything.

“You’re staring again,” Jisung murmured during a break, voice low enough that only Lee Know could hear.

“I’m not.”

Jisung followed his gaze anyway.

Seungmin was sitting by the window now, sunlight spilling over him like something fragile and temporary. He looked tired. Summer did that—it made sadness feel heavier, like it had nowhere to hide.

Jisung didn’t tease this time. He just nodded, slow and understanding.

“You know,” he said softly, “loving someone quietly hurts the most.”

Lee Know exhaled, a sharp breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding.

“Don’t,” he said.

Jisung squeezed his shoulder once before standing up. “I’m on your side, hyung. Even if no one else sees it.”

But Lee Know didn’t need everyone to see.

He just needed Seungmin to be okay.

That night, after schedules and showers and exhausted silence, Lee Know stood alone on the dorm balcony. The city glowed below him—gold and blue and unbearably beautiful, like something that would break your heart if you stared too long.