enough is enough.

enough.

"Jake, that's enough." Sunghoon walked up towards the boy who was still staring at his reflection on the mirror covering the wall in their dance practice studio. "Jake? We have to go now." The others had already left and were probably already waiting for them in their van, but Jake hadn't moved from his seat on the floor since the music stopped.

"I think I will stay behind and go over this a couple more times." The younger boy's eyes widened as he checked his watch to make sure it was as late as he thought it was. It obviously was.

"What? No way. It's already 10pm. And you barely ate anything during lunch break. You are coming back with us. And I am making sure you eat well and go straight to bed, because you actually kind of look like shit. This is our last day off until our comeback, Jake." His voice got a little lower as he crouched down next to where the other was sitting and got a hold of his arm to drag him to his feet.

"Stop acting like you're my mother. I am staying here." Sunghoon tried to hide the flash of hurt in his eyes when Jake pulled his arm away and stood up, walking away from him and his annoying - as it seemed to him - concern.

"What's wrong? Where's Jake?" Jungwon asked when he joined them in the van with a pathetic pout on his face.

"He said he is staying behind to practice more," he mumbled before putting his earphones on in an effort to drown his worrying brain in music.

"But-" "Yes, I reminded him we have been practising non stop since everyone recovered and this is our last scheduled day off before the album release," he interrupted Heeseung, making the older boy raise an eyebrow at his sudden outburst. "Sorry. I am just worried about him." His head dropped in shame, but Heeseung set a comforting hand on his thigh, comfortable silence sinking in the enclosed space.

[ ... ]

He dropped on the floor once again, panting. He had definitely lost track of time, but he wasn't sure what time it was already. His stomach grumbled but he ignored it and stayed still until his breathing slowed down. He raised his head enough to look at the clock on the wall, cursing at how it was already midnight and he still wasn't satisfied with his progress.

He had kept practising the same song for the past two hours, but seemed to just not get it right. Every time he would go over it, he corrected one move only to notice that he made a mistake on another move. So he would play the song again and again, every time noticing something else he didn't like. It was an unending circle, but he wouldn't let it go. Not so close to their comeback. The thought that most of his mistakes were due to his exhaustion after practising for more than half of the day never crossed his mind. So he played the song again and again, almost driving himself crazy.

The faint metallic taste of blood suddenly filled his mouth as he exhaled shakily, startling him. He sat up quickly, but the room tilted and he had to fight to hold himself up to a sitting position. He let out a harsh cough, making the blood taste more distinct. He fought back a gag as he looked around and spotted his water bottle in a corner.

He stood up (this time slower than he had sat up) and walked towards his stuff, reaching down to pick up the bottle and wash down the foul taste in his mouth. His balance faltered for a second and he found himself leaning heavily against the wall in order to not fall down and crack his head open. He took a few deep breaths, trying to calm himself down, before he tried to take the bottle in his hands, this time with success.

As he was bringing the bottle up he noticed his phone and took it in his other hand. The screen lit up while he was gulping down the water as if it was his lifeline and revealed a series of unanswered calls and unread messages from the members (mostly Sunghoon). He sighed before dropping the now empty bottle on top of his discarded hoodie and called his fellow '02 line member to let him know he was alive. Obviously not completely okay, but still breathing.