BEYOND THE SHIMMERING PENDANT ( PART 1)

Chapter 3 : Bridging the Divide

" Father , I urgently need your assistance, " Ji sun persistently troubled her father from the moment he walked through the door .

" Why this sudden urgency , Ji sun ? And who are all these boys ? Are you selecting a Fiancé ? " Ji sun's mother inquired, arching her eyebrows. Ji sun caught off guard, struggled to formulate a response, attempting to concoct a plausible excuse .

" Well ... You see , mother , I've been staying inside this huge mansion , doing nothing. So I decided to assist Mr. Choi seung-cheol as his personal assistant. He assigned me a task to locate these men . This is my first ti-"

Ji sun's father , folding the newspaper and diverting his attention to his daughter, interrupted, " Are you telling me this is the reason you went to meet Mr. Choi seung-cheol? "

" Yes father , " Ji sun replied hesitantly.

" Honey , I believe our child is undergoing some changes . Give her a chance , won't you ? " Ji sun's mother interjected, offering her perspective on the matter . Shocked yet intrigued, Ji sun's father decided to lend a helping hand .

                                 ***

The next morning, Ji sun's peaceful sleep was abruptly disrupted by a persistent knocking at her door . Stirring from her sleep , she opened the door to find out who it was . It was the assistant lady, holding a set of papers .

" Miss , your father requested me to deliver these to you . They contain information about the men you've been searching for ," the assistant explained, handing over the papers.  Ji sun examining the contents with elation, expressed her joy to the assistant.

" This is too quick, I wasn't expecting it today !" Ji sun exclaimed.

" Yes miss , when it comes to tasks like this , we all know that your fathers team is the fastest, " the assistant proudly replied.

" Get ready , once I go through this , we're going to the agency." Ji sun instructed the assistant.

Upon arriving to the agency , Ji sun , rushing with the papers in hand , accidentally collided with someone, causing the scattered papers to flutter around . All eyes turned towards her as she raised her head , meeting the gaze of a familiar face .

" K-kai?" Ji sun inquired, eyes widening as he bent down to help her collect the scattered papers.

" I'm kim Jong -in , the heir of Lunar corp . Nice to meet you . It seems like you are in a hurry , " he greeted, handing over the collected papers . Ji sun apologized for the incident.

" I'm sorry for what happened; she was in a rush due to our manager's work , " Seungkwan interjected, coming to Ji sun's defence. He guided her towards scoups' office, asking if she was okay .

" I'm fine , but that was kai , right ? Kai from EXO? " Ji sun questioned Seungkwan. He replied, " he is not the kai we all know ; he's a different person. Stay away from him . I'll explain it later . " With that he opened the office door .

Inside Ji sun found Scoups , as a charismatic agency manager , engrossed in his work . After exchanging greetings  Scoups offered her a seat , ready to hear the information she had found.

" Look , I found them ! Check it ! " Ji sun handed over the papers , eliciting bright smiles from Scoups and Seungkwan. Proudly, Ji sun mentioned how she had separated the information of the members from the others and expressed gratitude for having photos .

" Wait, Woozi lives in the same apartment as mine ? ' Azure heights Apartments 789, Gangnam Avenue, APT 202 , Gangnam - gu , Seoul ' ? Woah but I didn't see him yesterday..." Scoups exclaimed visibly shocked .

"Scoups, what is your apartment number?" Ji sun asked .

" As I can remember, it's APT 101" , Scoups replied.

" Seungkwan, why don't we seize this opportunity to meet Woozi? You can go and bring him here ." Ji sun suggested with curiosity.

" But I don't know how to go there; yesterday, I went to my place with the help of a Co-worker.... This place is so different, even the roads too , " Seungkwan admitted, looking down .

" I'll go . I can't miss the chance. Until then you two locate the others and bring them here , ask for help from the Co-workers ; it will make things easier for you guys ," Scoups proposed. Both Ji sun and Seungkwan nodded in agreement. Scoups swiftly grabbed his coat and rushed out of the room .

Ji sun and Seungkwan meticulously went through the gathered information, strategizing to dispatch Co-workers to bring the members to the agency.

" Seungkwan, what about the meeting with Jun ? " Ji sun inquired while scanning the papers.

" We are meeting him tomorrow. Don't worry," Seungkwan assured her .

" First , let's send co-workers to bring the members who are not in Seoul. They are ; Joshua, Hoshi , and the8 ." Ji sun proposed her plan to Seungkwan. He nodded , taking the addresses and instructing Co-workers to bring them no matter what . Seungkwan distributed the remaining addresses to additional Co-workers before joining Ji sun in the office.

" I think you're a lucky Carat . For how long have you been a Carat ? What is your name ? And how old are you ? " Seungkwan queried with curiosity.

" For 6 years I've been a Carat and I'm Ji sun , 22 years old . " She replied, meeting Seungkwan's gaze .

" Oh I see . That fansign was the first-ever fansign in your life ? I haven't seen you earlier but I remember your name slightly." Seungkwan pondered on the question.

" Yes , that's my first time meeting you guys "

" Your name ..... I have seen it somewhere; I can't remember." Seungkwan continued to rack his brain .

" Weverse?" Ji sun suggested, widening her eyes . Seungkwan clapped with happiness.

" Yes , yes , it's you ! You are the one who sent us fanletters every month right ? And your profile picture was a cute white pusy cat right? " Seungkwan exclaimed happily. " Yes it was me , but I wasn't expecting for you guys to read them. " Ji sun replied.

" What are you talking about? We read fan letters, of course! Jeonghan was the one who saw your fan letter first and read it to us . Thank you so much for encouraging us and sharing your thoughts and daily life . ! Thank you for trusting us . I can't wait to introduce you to the others . They've always been waiting for your fan letters , but sometimes we missed one or two because there were alot . But wow ! ." Seungkwan expressed his gratitude keeping his palm on his chest .

" Thankyou so much reading them . " Ji sun  , looked down shyly , thanked him with a bright smile. She was internally thrilled, unable to put her happiness into words .

Suddenly, the office door swung open , and Scoups entered with Woozi . Seungkwan overjoyed, ran and hugged Woozi tightly. Ji sun stood up to greet him . Scoups introduced Ji sun to Woozi , explaining her role in finding him and the Others . Woozi greeted her with a bright smile , expressing gratitude.

" My pleasure," Ji sun replied Woozi happily. Seungkwan found a chair for Woozi , and the four of them engaged in a conversation.

" You were surprised right ? Tell us what happened, " Seungkwan asked woozi .

" Of course, I was . After that blackout yesterday, I found myself inside that apartment room while writing music. I went out , and I was even more shocked . The addresses were different, the roads were different, even though this is South Korea, it feels like a different world . I was afraid , and I missed you guys so much  ; I can't wait to meet the others as well . I hope they are doing okay ." Woozi shared his experience, and the anticipation for the reunion grew among them .

As the conversation flowed between Ji Sun, Seungkwan, and Woozi, a sense of camaraderie and relief filled the room. Despite the perplexing circumstances that had brought them together, there was a shared determination to unravel the mysteries that bound them.