Chan and I had to wake up early the next morning to catch our flight. He packed a few additional items from my nightstand, and we were off.
They had the concert tonight in Phoenix, but we had chosen to fly in pretty last minute so we could have more time together.
Chan had been getting texts all morning from the guys (except Han) complaining about Lee Know. He'd been making them do chores for him around the bus and hotel. Jeongin was on "Han duty" today which meant he had to carry Han anywhere he wanted to go.
Lee Know also rewarded people with candy who made cat noises when he walked into a room. It had gone into a full dictatorship in his absence.
"Will JYP be at the show tonight?" I asked Chan.
"I'm not sure," he replied seeming equally as nervous.
I worried about seeing JYP again. We still hadn't heard from Agent Branson, and it had me on edge. Maybe he was on to us. Maybe he wanted more proof that I was pregnant first. I had no idea what the cause was for the delay.
"Hey, Ella," Chan stroked the back of my hand. "It'll be okay," he reassured me as if he could read that my mind was going a million miles a minute trying to decipher what was going on.
"Thank you," I whispered and kissed his hand that was intertwined with mine.
The plane eventually landed and Dmitri met us to retrieve our luggage. On the car ride to the hotel, we were pretty quiet. We didn't know whether or not Dmitri could be trusted.
We decided to continue playing pregnant. Maybe he'd have JYP leak the info, so Agent Branson could catch him.
"Would you want a girl or a boy?" I asked Chan.
"As long as it's healthy, I'm happy," he grinned and put a hand on my stomach. He was really selling it. His eyes shimmered, and it almost felt real. I suppose it could be...
"Seeing you hold that baby the other day was so cute," I admitted. I hadn't stopped thinking about the image. He looked so comfortable, and he managed to get the baby to stop crying so quickly.
"Just wait til it's one of our own," he whispered and kissed my cheek.
I nestled into his chest for the rest of the car ride allowing the sound of his heartbeat thumping to fill my ears.
"Ella," he whispered sweetly. My eyes fluttered open. I hadn't realized I'd fallen asleep. "We're here," he told me. Dmitri was already unloading the luggage.
I yawned and got out of the car. Chan followed behind me, and we walked hand in hand to the room, leaving our luggage with Dmitri.
The manager was waiting for us to give us our hotel key, and Chan accepted it. "Time to go save them from Lee Know's regime."
I laughed, and we headed upstairs. We passed Jeongin carrying Han in the hallway, and he dropped him to the ground, immediately running over to hug Chan.
"We missed you so much," he cried. "We'll never complain about you being strict ever again."
"Is he back?" Seungmin peaked his head out of his room as though he'd been in hiding. He swung the door open widely and also launched himself into a hug for Chan.
Felix joined us in the hall and celebrated Chan's return as well. Lee Know heard everyone talking and walked into the hallway sucking on a lollipop.
Seungmin meowed.
Lee Know tossed him a sucker, and he shrugged. "It's good candy."
"Welcome back, Chan!" Lee Know slapped his back.
"Yeah, next time I'm leaving Changbin in charge," Chan shook his head.
"Oh they love it," Lee Know rolled his eyes and helped Han off the ground.
Everyone thanked Chan but as he counted the members, he realized he was missing one.
"Where's Hyunjin?"
"Oh," Lee Know frowned, "you didn't hear?"
"Hear what?" Chan asked.
"JYP sent him on a trip. He got back this morning."
I looked at Chan, confused about what he meant but the way his clenched jaw and lowered eyes told me everything I needed to know.
"Go ahead to our room, Ella. I need to make sure he's okay."
I nodded and the guys went back where they'd come from, parting to make way for Chan. I walked to where I knew our room would be and settled in. Dmitri dropped our things off not too long later.
I hoped Hyunjin was okay. Chan had said JYP sent them off to meet with clients and sometimes other idols or company heads. It sucked he hadn't gotten even a single day to himself without being pranced around like JYP's own personal show pony.
I'd just opened my suitcase when the door opened, and Chan walked in with a loud sigh. "He was sent to Atlanta, to meet with one of the Coca-Cola execs."
"Atlanta? Weren't we just there?"
"Apparently, they haven't paid JYP the full amount that he was promised for that promotion that almost got us canceled because he'd promised the exec alone time with Hyunjin."
I gasped, "Chan, that's horrible."
"I know. We hadn't even wanted to do the fucking thing in the first place." Chan complained as he sat down on the bed looking disheartened.
"Does this happen a lot?" I asked quietly as I sat beside him and placed my hand on his.
"More than I'd like," he exhaled. "And it's worse than Fan Service because they know they're taking advantage of us. The fans have no idea."
I hadn't considered that. Poor Hyunjin. Poor Chan. Poor all of them being sucked into this.
"Maybe the show will just go on normally," I hoped. "Maybe JYP won't show up since he's gotten something from y'all already."
"We'll still have fan service," Chan grumbled.
"If you're picked..." I began but remembered the bracelet and eyed it for Chan's sake, "could you try your best not to sleep with them."
Chan kissed the top of my head and hugged me, "Of course I will, baby." Until he had wrapped himself around me, I hadn't realized how severe that insecurity was in me.
"If I'm picked," he began and leaned closer to whisper so softly it wouldn't be audible, "and you can't come with me on the date to shut anything down," he returned to normal speaking volume, "can you promise to go to Han's room until the date is done? I don't want you to have to hear anything again in case it doesn't go my way."
I gulped at the thought of him having to do another fan service. "I promise."
"We leave in 10," Seungmin knocked. I wasn't even changed yet.
I quickly threw on one of the outfits Chan and I had shopped for and my pink boots.
He whistled at me when I walked out of the bathroom, and I did a spin for him. It was a white fringe set with sequins.
"So hot," he cheered, and I did a quick makeup look, which was mostly blush, before rushing out the door.
The guys seemed nervous on the ride to the venue. I knew we were all wondering the same thing.
Would JYP be there?
There were a ton of fans waiting today, and Chan greeted all of them with warm smiles. I headed inside before him since nobody was there for me anyway.
"Ella," I heard the moment I entered the venue. My hair rose on my neck, and I turned to see a guard...not JYP.
I breathed a sigh of relief...until he spoke
"JYP would like to see you."
"Okay, let me just go get Chan," I turned and the guard grabbed my arm harshly. I yanked it away.
"Just you."
My eyes went wide, but I nodded and followed him. He stopped in front of a door and waited for me to open it before leaving.
Inside, JYP was sitting behind a table. On the left sat a voice recorder and on the right a glass of water.
"Sit," he ordered me. I listened, and my stomach churned.
We didn't start with any pleasantries. It was clear we were far beyond that point.
"Ella, you are causing quite a mess for me," he complained. "First you date my leader. Then you help them break fan service rules. Now I hear you may be pregnant?"
There was no use in arguing, everything he'd said so far was true. I waited for him to explain what he wanted.
"Choose," he told me. I stared at the recorder and the glass of water in confusion.
"What?"
JYP hit play on the audio. It was the same horrible one he'd played for us last time.
"Choose. I release this, or you drink this glass of water."
I'd been drugged before. There had to be more to this. "What's in it?"
"Does it matter?"
"Will it kill me?" I asked him. My body felt tense and anxious as I stared at the glass trying to figure out if it was slightly tinted or if I was just imagining it.
"God, you're so stupid," he complained while rolling his eyes. "No, it will not kill you."
I knew the audio wasn't an option. I downed the glass and set it back down, noting that there was a definite whitish hue to it.
"You may leave," he told me.
"That's it?" I asked.
"Yes. Go."
I turned and walked out of the room and down to Chan's dressing room.
"Ella!" I heard Chan yell frantically. He came barreling out of his dressing room and found me walking calmly down the hallway towards him.
"What's wrong?" I asked. He sounded like he had gotten punched in the gut.
He held up the Plan B pill package. It was empty.
"Did you take it?" he asked. He looked heartbroken. But it clicked. I knew what JYP had done.
I covered my mouth and ran to the bathroom. Chan followed after me. "Did you take it? Why didn't you just tell me?" he asked, thinking I'd betrayed him.
"JYP called me into his office," I explained, pacing back and forth.
"What?"
"He told me to choose between a glass of water or the recording he played for us."
"He what!" Chan shouted furiously.
"I think he crushed it into the glass, Chan," I finished. I was crying and went into a stall. Maybe I could vomit it up.
I stuck my hands in the back of my throat and gagged. I tried again but nothing came up.
Chan followed me into the stall to lift me off of the ground. He grabbed my hands to stop me from putting them down my throat before pulling me to his chest.
"It's okay, baby. You're okay," he whispered. I cried as he held me. The possibility of the future I'd seen had been stolen from us. JYP had decided that we didn't deserve it.
"I'm sorry, Chan. I didn't know." I sobbed, and he began crying, too.
"I'm sorry, Ella," Chan told me and kissed my temple. "I'm so sorry."
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COMMERCIAL BREAK:
What's ya'll's fave Stray Kids songs to workout to? I'm doing a 10k on Sunday (which is so dumb because I broke/hurt my toe at Coachella by choosing fashion over comfort) and need a longer playlist!
Lately, STOP has been my fave!