fatal love // monsta x

18. Practice Makes Perfect

Note: I'm gonna be jumping POV in this chap cuz it's the only way to get me out of writer's block.

Shownu monitored the others as they performed their stretches in the practice room as they waited for Minhyuk, Abel, and Ahli to return. Just moments before, they all came up with a plan to infiltrate the Den to get the answers they desperately needed. After coming to a conclusion, Jooheon and Changkyun got to work while Shownu and the others prepared for their photoshoot for their upcoming comeback later today. Shownu focused on warming up his own body, but his own mind betrayed him and kept wandering. Minhyuk, Abel, and Ahli were taking awhile and he began to worry.

Minhyuk and Abel will be official in the eyes of the company.

He shook his head at the thought that invaded his mind. Why should he care? It's none of his business. All he should concern himself with was the well being of his members and their new friends. His members dating lives weren't much for him to worry about, as he trusted them to not do anything reckless.

Then why did he always feel uneasy at the sight of Minhyuk and Abel?

He knew two answers to that question: one was realistic, and the other he fought to ignore and bury in himself.

However, he couldn't fight the gravity that drew him to her no matter how hard he tried.

"Hyung." Jooheon's voice called to Shownu, silencing his busy mind. He blinked, and turned to his younger bandmate with a hum.

"Changkyun and I finished deciding the track list," Jooheon implied for him to look over it before noticing the far away look in his eyes, "You okay?"

"Y-yeah." Shownu pressed a thumb between his brows, soothing the hard line that surfaced while he was deep in thought.

He followed Jooheon to where Changkyun was seated in the corner of the practice room next to the sound system. He had the tentative track list displayed on the laptop on his lap. Shownu seated himself next to Changkyun and his eyes scanned it as Hyungwon approached the three. 

"We thought these songs would best fit the sound the club uses, from what we heard when we visited." Jooheon gave a slight nudge to Hyungwon.

Shownu gave a nod, he noted the list was 25 minutes long, a good enough window, "This looks good, but Party Time looks a little out of place from what you've told me."

"Well, I thought we might need a better idea just incase to sneak Abel and Ahli into the club, aside from them acting as our staff, so why not they be our backup dancers?" Jooheon suggested, referencing the song's choreography use of female backup dancers.

Shownu mulled over the idea, scratching his chin in thought.

"Abel could be recognized a lot easier on stage, it seems too risky." Shownu said.

"But what if they're wearing masks?" Changkyun butted in, showing Shownu a picture of full face masquerade mask on his phone.

"Don't they know Minhyuk? They'll recognize him too. We should all be wearing masks of some type, and it'll make sense since it'll be Halloween." Hyungwon said.

"Good idea. I think it'll work," Shownu rose to his feet and gave a playful slap to Hyungwon's shoulder, "Now we'll  need to decide who gets partnered up."

"What're we picking partners for?" Minhyuk's voice piped up from across the room.

The frosted glass door to the practice room shut behind him as he almost walked in a skip to his band mates. They all stopped and turned it him and noticed Abel and Ahli weren't seen in tow with him.