Johnny grabbed his friend tightly to prevent him from lunging forward again.
“You think I don’t see what you’re doing?!” he snarled, trying to yank himself free. “You look for a way to hurt and scare her!”
Jaehyun’s muscles strained violently under Johnny’s grasp, his breath harsh, his eyes wild as they remained locked on Taeyong.
"Jaehyun, stop! Nothing happened! We were here the whole time!" Johnny shouted. His voice was sharp, but there was urgency behind it—he could see just how dangerous Jaehyun’s anger could be if it broke free.
The force of Jaehyun's struggle made Johnny and Yuta stagger for a moment. Doyoung tightened his grip, feeling the younger boy’s muscles shake with barely contained rage.
“Bullshit, he was about to hurt her!” Jaehyun roared, his anger and protectiveness filled voice echoing through the training hall like a gunshot. The girl flinched at the volume, curling in on herself and pressing a hand to her side, the ache back present in her movements. Instantly, the familiar knot of fear tightened in her chest, and her trust faltered again.
She crawled backward, curling into a protective position as her back hit the wall, cold against her spine. She tucked her knees toward her chest trying to make herself as small as possible. Pain radiated along her ribs. She holded her injured side, her breath trembling. She didn’t know who she was supposed to be afraid of more—her furious brother, or the man she still wasn’t sure she could trust.
Sungchan’s eyes immediately went to his twin. He could feel the trembling in her posture, the way her fingers clenched around her stomach. Suddenly, everything clicked. He understood why his sister flinched around Jaehyun despite their trust— why she was terrified of their older brother.
"Hyung, stop! Don’t you see you’re scaring her?!" he yelled.
Sungchan’s voice cracked—not with anger, but with something almost desperate. His eyes darted between his sister's trembling form and Jaehyun’s wild expression.
He realized it then—Jaehyun didn’t see her.
He saw a threat around her.
And Sungchan saw how that made her see him as the threat.
Immediately, all eyes shifted to the girl in the corner—scared, hurting, and visibly overwhelmed.
The room fell silent as all eyes shifted to her, huddled in the corner, her back pressed against the wall. Every line of her body screamed fear, and her wide eyes darted between them, confused and hurt.
She wasn’t scared of Taeyong right now.
She wasn’t scared of the group as a whole.
She was scared of them fighting about her—scared of being the reason someone got hurt.
The moment Jaehyun moved closer, she bolted —running out of the training section and vanishing into the main house.
She didn’t look back. Her footsteps echoed sharply against the hallway floor, each one fueled by instinctive panic —a reminder of how quickly fear could undo moments of trust. Jaehyun froze mid-step, the realization hitting him like a punch:
His presence alone made her flee.
Jaehyun tried to follow, but Sungchan stepped in front of him, blocking the way.
“No… she doesn’t want to see you right now. I know that,” he said, his tone firm but tense, almost trembling with anger at both of them. Sungchan’s jaw was tight; he hated seeing his sister scared, and seeing their brother as source of that fear made him furious.
Behind them, he could still hear Jaehyun
He ran after her, but even from the hallway he could still hear Jaehyun muttering accusations at Taeyong, blaming him for “endangering” his sister.
