"where are we going...?" donghyuck asked nonchalantly, his head leaning against the car window as he stared blankly at the landscape.

"i can't tell you, it's a surprise." jaemin replied, a small smile decorating his lips.

"hmph..." donghyuck let out a small groan.

neither jaemin nor donghyuck started a conversation again, both boys simply enjoying the calm atmosphere that the music created inside the car.

jaemin had selected a random music channel since he knew that music channels tended to put pop music that made you happy. however, he didn't expect for this channel to play some super m songs, which is why the younger immediately shut the radio off as the first beats from jopping started playing.

donghyuck sighed loudly, looking at the radio as if it was his long-lost love.

"do you think they remember me?" he asked, voice raspy and low.

"what?"

"super m." donghyuck continued. "do you think they know that i still exist? or am i dead to them?"

"of course, you're not dead to them. they miss you, i'm sure of it."

donghyuck snorted. "yeah, that's why they've all been texting me and visiting me these past weeks."

jaemin faced his best friend when he stopped at a red light.

donghyuck looked awful. these past two – almost three – weeks had destroyed him completely.

"have you never told yourself that their manager or their boss control what they do?" jaemin asked. "maybe they want to reach you and to talk to you, but they aren't allowed."

"lee sooman is a bitch, but that's another level of bitchiness." donghyuck sighed.

"donghyuck, do you seriously think your boyfriend would have left you without a message?"

donghyuck snorted loudly. "my boyfriend. considering him and i haven't been in contact for two weeks and a half, i'm not sure we can still call him that."

"mark loves you, donghyuck."

"yeah, well, he's not here to tell me he does." donghyuck spat, making silence take over the car again – and this time, there was no music to get their minds off all the problems in their lives.

"do you think there is something i could do to make you feel better?" jaemin asked after a while.

"unless you can make me become anonymous again, i'm sorry but i don't think you can do anything."donghyuck replied.

"and... is there something particular that you want to do?"

donghyuck thought for a while before leaning against the car window again.

"go back to the super m us tour, when mark and i and everything was perfectly fine..."

♪

"hello seoul! thank you to all of you for coming to our concert!" baekhyun exclaimed, making the crowd of fans yell and clap loudly.

it felt good after all those weeks to be back on a stage in front of a public.

concerts were always nerve-wracking for the boys, but this time, it was more than just nerve-wracking for mark. it was frightening. the canadian male dreaded the end of the concert, and his body tensed more and more with each second passing and signalling that the end of the concert was nearing. however, none of the fans seemed to have noticed it.

in fact, it seemed like the fans were amazing at jumping to conclusions and creating extravagant stories in their minds.

the seven idols had acted like they always did on stage, or at the dorm; like friends, almost family. actually, the seven members knew the truth behind the dating scandal, and they knew that there was no reason for lucas to hate mark and avoid him. the sudden revelation of mark's and donghyuck's relationship had even made mark and lucas closer which seemed to bother the fans.

durong the concert or even when he appeared on public, mark received lots of hateful comments, just like donghyuck did. however, lucas was always pitied and treasured. it was normal since they thought lucas was an innocent that had been played by donghyuck and mark.

but none of the fans were ready for what was about to be told in a few minutes, after the last song of the concert. in fact, mark wasn't ready either, and he had no idea if this whole scene would cause him to gain more hate or be understood. either way, he wanted to die right now not to have to live this moment.

the concert came to an end way too soon. everybody could agree on that – and you guessed it, this was twice as true for mark.

they sang the last song, and the fans applauded them loudly for long seconds, allowing the idols to bow a few times to thank them.

and then, the oh-so dreaded moment came.

the explanation time...

"you guys have been left without an explanation in a chaotic mess for way too long, so... tonight is the time to explain a few things." baekhyun declared as the crowd became dead silent, all the fans waiting expectantly for a rational explanation to everything that happened the past weeks. "so... who wants to start?"

mark coughed, collecting his thoughts before taking a step forward.

"i think i am in a good place to start talking..." he spoke, his voice trembling slightly as some insults and curse words escaped from the crowd

"guys, if you want the whole story, please respect mark and listen to him. you'll insult who you'd like to insult when everything will be done." taeyong made the crowd shut up again.

"thank you taeyong." mark coughed again. "so... yeah... i guess i'll start with the first important detail..." the canadian male took a deep breath, gathering all the courage he had in his body. "lucas and donghyuck were never a couple."

a huge gasp was heard, testifying the crowd's surprise at the first secret's reveal.

this gasp was immediately followed by more curse words and angry words from the fans.

"SHUT UP!" baekhyun yelled, his voice echoing in the mic and hurting everyone's ears – but at least, they understood that they shouldn't talk anymore. "we are telling you the whole truth, so, the least you could do is stay silent and then think about why we acted like we did."

the fans stayed silent, allowing mark to continue telling his story.

"okay... huh... so, lucas and donghyuck were never a thing, meaning that donghyuck didn't cheat on lucas." he explained. "but yeah, i get that you guys aren't satisfied with this version of the story, so i'll just tell you everything from the beginning to the end until you know everything that happened."

the crowd didn't make a noise; it seemed like they understood baekhyun's message.

"everything started on the day of the 'one day with super m' program." mark started telling the story. "you surely don't all know about it, so, to sum it up, the 'one day with super m' program allowed seven fans to spend a whole day with super m, doing activities. and donghyuck was one of the seven fans who participated in the program." he continued, looking at the fans in the eye. "he immediately caught my eye, and i tried getting closer to him. i was so sad that our paths were going to diverge that... that i gave him my number."

"YOU WHAT?!" the six other members of super m exclaimed, breaking the rule baekhyun had just set in place a few seconds ago.

"i-i... i gave him my number..." mark repeated, looking successively at his members, gulping as he realised they were all very angry at what had just been said.

"mark lee, i'm about to kill you, are you aware of that?" taemin muttered.

"you were the start of this whole mess?" kai raised a brow.

"yes. i was the start of this whole mess." mark admitted.

ten sighed. "and i suppose that donghyuck's presence at the concert a few weeks later wasn't just coincidential..."

"exactly." mark admitted. "donghyuck and i chatted over text, and i ended up offering him a v.i.p. ticket to the concert so that i could meet him again."

"that's it. i'm killing you." taemin stated before walking in mark's direction furiously.

"let him continue." baekhyun blocked his member before he could reach the maknae.

mark gulped, looking back at the crowd.

"we continued chatting after that, and i wanted nothing more than to make him happy. so, one day, i decided that i should organise a 'coincidental' meeting between him and lucas, since he had told me multiple times how lucas was his favourite member." mark explained. "and that's how i organised their meeting, the day of the huge storm, and also a few days before the dating rumours started. you would have guessed it, a picture of donghyuck and lucas trying to run away from sassengs was captured, getting published on the internet a few days after."

the canadian idol glanced at his members, his eyes staying a bit longer on lucas who seemed to be slowly understanding everything that had happened.

"when the dating rumour was published, lee sooman forced lucas and donghyuck to- "

"wow, wow, wow!" taeyong interrupted mark. "what are you doing?"

"i'm saying the whole truth." mark replied.

"the whole truth? are you sure you want to say the WHOLE truth?" taeyong insisted, surely hinting that if lee sooman came to hear about this, they would be doomed. but mark knew what he was doing, and the others weren't aware of the little agreement that mark and the ceo had come to.

"yes, i do." mark nodded. "lee sooman forced donghyuck and lucas to date, even when donghyuck complained that he didn't want to date lucas. and that's how all of you were informed of the new couple which was actually completely fake."

another few gasps were heard, but compared to the beginning of mark's speech, the fans immediately shut up instead of chatting with their friends and debating on which version seemed to be the most realistic.

"because lucas and donghyuck were supposedly a couple, donghyuck spent considerably more time with us, and we all got to know him better. i'm sure you can ask any of the other members, they'll tell you how much of an angel and a blessing donghyuck actually is." mark smiled dreamily. "anyway. since he spent more time with us, him and i could get closer until we both developed feelings for each other. we faced a hardship during the us tour, because donghyuck realised how bad things could become if him and i got caught when he was supposed to be lucas' boyfriend. but everything got better in san fransisco, where we confessed our feelings and became boyfriends officially. and well... a picture of us was published, and this whole cheating scandal started. but now that you have the whole truth, you guys can understand that no scandals should have occurred."

there was a deathly silence during which mark stared at the crowd, not knowing what to do or what to say.

should he start talking again?

should he just bow?

should he leave?

should he do a mic drop?

he had no clue.

thankfully, a fan seemed to have understood his silent pleads as a clap was heard, followed by another, and another, and finally the whole crowd was clapping loudly.

mark didn't know why his speech required a clapping session, but he still bowed to thank his fans for their support and understanding.

"thank you mark for stating the truth. i guess this was really a big misunderstanding. so, now that everyone knows the whole truth, first we are going to go back to the dorm for a scolding session."baekhyun joked, glaring at mark. "well, that is if no one has anything else to add."

"well... i have... i have something else to say..." mark lifted his hand slowly.

"sure, go on."

another cough and mark's body was back in a state of pure stress and nervousness.

"i have a confession to make." he started. "lee donghyuck, i know that you are here, listening to what i am saying... i am sorry for the mess i brought you in. you are the best thing that ever happened to me, and i rewarded you by bringing you into the messy life of an idol, full of lies and fake promises. but you don't deserve any of this. you deserve love, adoration and all of the good things existing on this earth..."

the boys on the stage frowned as the noticed mark heading towards the front of the stage and jumping in front of the crowd, where the public was.

"i wish i can be the person to give you all of this, lee donghyuck." mark continued, walking forwards in the crowd as the fans stepped aside, creating an aisle for mark to walk in. "i wish i can make you happy forever and never deceive you. i wish to be by your side day and night, 365 days a year."

the crowd kept stepping aside as mark continued walking towards the back of the crowd, all of the people present wondering what was happening.

and that's when they understood.

donghyuck was standing at the very end of the aisle, his body frozen on its spot while jaemin held onto him so that he didn't fall.

mark's face brightened at the sight of his boyfriend whom he hadn't been able to see in weeks.

"lee donghyuck." mark continued, now accelerating his pace until he was standing right in front of donghyuck. "i wish all of those things because i am in love with you."

"i-i am in love with you too..." donghyuck stuttered out as tears left his eyes right before he jumped into mark's arms, the feeling so familiar and so pleasant.

"glory to markhyuck!!" lucas yelled, his fist high in the air.

"GLORY TO MARKHYUCK!" the five other super m members screamed right after.

and so, mark and donghyuck shared their first kiss in public in namsan park, surrounded by dozens of super m fans chanting 'markhyuck' in unison while cheering on them.

and just like that, the truth was untold, and the hate faded from people's minds.

♪

"it's either you tell the whole truth at the concert tomorrow or i'm leaving super m and sm entertainment!"

the ceo blinked a few times, trying to process the words that had just left the idol's mouth.

"excuse me?" he asked.

"you heard what i said. let me tell the whole truth at the concert tomorrow."

"there's no way i'm letting you do that." lee sooman snorted.

"if you don't, you can forget about me and my talent. i'm leaving sm entertainement." the canadian male declared.

"you won't have the guts to leave. you'll be alone, without a house and money."

"i'm sure it won't be too hard to find myself a new music company that doesn't mistreat its idols." mark explained with a shrug – well, he wasn't so sure there were companies that didn't mistreat their idols, but he needed sooman to accept his conditions.

"who do you think you are?!" the ceo spat.

"mark lee, singer, rapper, dancer, lyrics writer, and i'm pretty sure i can play some instrument and produce a song too." the idol listed. "oh, and i'm on high demand, meaning that i make you earn lots of money."

lee sooman hummed. he couldn't deny that.

they had found mark in a sm audition in canada, and he had to say he was impressed by the young boy's talent at that time. now that he had been trained, he was even better, and the whole world knew it. mark lee was demanded everywhere, both in asian and american events, or as a featuring artist in many songs. but lee sooman kept him to himself, because this made him earn so much money...

"let me tell the truth." mark spoke again.

"and ruin my reputation? never ever."

"would you rather have me quitting? because you'd lose lots of money then." mark crossed his arms over his chest as he smirked.

"you're a bitch." lee sooman muttered.

"not as much as you." mark retorted.

there was a long silence that the ceo broke.

"okay. here's my proposition." he sighed. "you tell the truth and you say everything you want. but you don't mention anything about me."

"which means i wouldn't be telling the truth." mark pointed out. "i'm sorry, but it's the truth or i'm leaving."

"leave then." lee sooman challenged him.

mark looked at the ceo in the eye. "alright then."

mark pulled his phone out, opening the contact app and clicking on a number before turning the phone to show the screen to his ex-boss.

lee sooman let out a strangled sound at the sight of the name 'park jinyoung', the ceo of jyp entertainment.

"he'll never answer." lee sooman huffed.

mark put the phone on speaker. "hello, jyp speaking, who is that?"

lee sooman started sweating, looking at mark with widened eyes.

"hello mister park. i am from sm entertainment. i heard you were debuting a new boy group, are you still looking for a rapper?"

"yes, the spot is still vacant. do you have anyone to suggest?"

mark pressed the 'mute' button. "wait a second, i'm not part of sm entertainement anymore, i could suggest myself."

"hello?"

"hang up. i'll do what you ask." lee sooman answered.

"i'm sorry?" mark smirked.

"hello?!"

"tell him you're have no idea and hang up. i allow you to tell the whole truth even if it compromises my image!"

mark's smirk widened as he pressed the 'mute' button again, allowing the man on the other side of the line to hear.

"anyone here?!"

"yes, sorry mister park. i was going through our trainees, but i believe we have no one that fits your criteria, sorry."

"no problem. goodbye."

"goodbye."

mark hung up, placing the phone back in his pocket.

"i'm telling the whole truth." he told. "and you cannot do anything about it."

"yeah, i understood."

"great. see you later, then."

"whatever... asshole." the ceo rolled his eyes as mark walked out of his office, immediately dialling jinyoung park's number.

"jyp speaking, who is that?" the voice on the other side stated.

"jaemin, i did it! i can finally tell the whole truth!" mark whisper-shouted.

"yes! i knew you would make it!" he exclaimed. "i'll see you tomorrow then, i'll bring donghyuck at namsan park, as planned."

"thank you so much jaemin, i don't know what i would be doing without you."

"this is all for donghyuck." jaemin stated.

"for donghyuck."