"Everyone downstairs!"
Instead of my usual peaceful morning plans of waking up to the soft sunlight and birds chirping outside, I wake up to Jin screeching his throat off at exactly 3 am in the morning.
My instant reflexes are to tug the blankets over my ears to try to block out the sound, but the high pitch of his voice penetrate through the soft cotton with more ease than I thought it would.
I groan.
Had he finally gone insane?
Sleep still heavy in my eyes, I trudge downstairs with my head ringing with his voice and my body sluggish. Annoyance emanates from me in a fierce aura as I join the rest of the sleep-ridden vampires in the living room.
They all reflect my pissed look and half-shut eyelids, but out of all them, Yoongi looks like he wants to murder the eldest vampire.
His fangs are already developed all the way down to his chin, his eyes glowing a dark violet as he growls ferociously.
He looks like a heartbeat away from tearing out his throat.
"I swear, hyung," Jungkook says sleepily, his eyes narrowed to dark silver slits. "If you woke me up for some stupid reason I promise I'll destroy your mop collection."
"It's not a stupid reason," Jin says, clicking his tongue. "It—"
"Yeah?" Taehyung challenges as he points at a bruise on his knee. "Last time you woke us up because you thought we'd stolen one of your precious broomstick or whatever. And Jungkook freaking fell on me while you were screaming your head off. Do you have any idea how much he weighs?"
"Well, we can worry about that later." Jin says with a dismissive wave. "I'm planning to check out this arena Jungkook told me about, and nighttime's best to do it."
In the corner of my eye, I see the sleep instantly escape Jungkook's posture as he tenses. It was clear that he didn't want to go back— that he'd seen enough the other day.
And Jin notices.
"Elle, you're obviously not going." He states, making me frown. If he was going to rule me out in the first place, why did he have to wake me like that?
"And Jungkook— you as well. Keep her out of trouble."
Relief and gratitude is apparent in the maknae's features as he nods, watching intently as Jin waves at Hoseok.
"Hoseok— anything we might need to know about? I know you haven't had visions lately, but—"
What?
The exclamation is out of my mouth before I can stop it, and I look to the two of them in shocking surprise.
"What visions are you talking about? Are you saying he can see the future?"
"Obviously," Yoongi says, staring at me like I was a kindergartner who'd just pronounced the first letter of an alphabet. "You didn't know?"'
"Jungkook!" I screech, and the maknae looks away. His face is blushed as he shrugs, trying to act nonchalant under my fierce gaze.
"You— You never asked."
"Well duh!" I yell, unable to contain the excitement and the feeling of betrayal as I glare at him even deadlier. I thought he trusted me— had I been wrong to think that?
Jin quickly hushes me down. "It's alright, Elle. I'll explain. The seven of us are all Gifted. That means we each have an ability different from another— the thing that puts us apart."
"For example, Hoseok can see glimpses of the future. He doesn't choose when he sees them, but when he does, it can be crucial. Do you remember when you and Jungkook were battling against that gardenia seeker? We were able to get to you faster because he warned us that something bad had happened to you guys."
And then he points at Jimin, who waves shyly as he smiles. "Jimin has the tracker ability. He was the one to tell Tae that you guys were right outside the cafe that day."
I remembered— he'd also been able to track Jungkook the night he'd disappeared up to the point of the forests.
"Taehyung is a telekinetic. That means he can move things with his mind only— no touching necessary."
After that, Jin looks a bit hesitant as he points at Namjoon. "And that guy.... he can read minds."
At that, my lips part as I struggle to think about the most irrelevant things. "So he's been reading my mind all a—"
"No, no." Namjoon says quickly, waving his hands in denial. "I haven't looked at your mind not once, I promise. I learned how to block out minds so I couldn't read them— the only times I can is when I want to. And I haven't read yours."
That puts a little more relief in my mind as I look for the mint-haired vampire. It was his turn— and he was absolutely nowhere to be seen.
"Boo."
A startled scream erupts from my lips the same time crazed laughter explodes from my right, making me grit my teeth as Yoongi materializes out of the air.
Jin sighs. "And as you can see, Yoongi can turn invisible. Yoongi, shut up and stop laughing."
I stick out a tongue at the giggling vampire before I turn back and poke at the guilty-looking maknae.
"And you?" I ask curiously. "What can you do?"
When Jungkook fidgets, Jin laughs. "You've already seen his ability, Elle. Maybe more than once. But I'm sure you've seen it at least one time."
"What?" I exclaim as I think over my memories. "No I haven't. What are you talking about?"
Then out of the blue, Jungkook's soft voice cuts in.
"You have." He tells me, avoiding my eyes as he continues. "Aggression is my ability, Elle. If I get really angry, I grow faster, stronger. More powerful— but blinded with bloodlust."
Oh.
Now that he's told me, I remember. His silver blue eyes, clouded with a storm of murder and a crave for death and blood. If I hadn't snapped him out that day, what could've happened?
Would he have ripped the other vampire to pieces?
I put a comforting hand over his as Jin finishes with his ability.
"And I can tell what other vampires' abilities are." He says, giving Yoongi a killer glare when he snorts lamely. "For that, Yoongi, you're doing dishes for the next month."
Ignoring the vampire's look of utter disbelief, Jin suddenly looks to Hoseok. His expression looks faraway— like he's in a daydream of some kind— before his eyes eventually come back into focus.
"What did you see?"
Hoseok shakes his head for a moment before he turns a pair of mystified eyes onto Jin.
"I don't know. But it's definitely a good idea to keep Jungkook here with Elle. Someone has to be with her tonight— that I'm sure."
Everyone falls into silence as Jungkook quietly tells Jimin about the general directions toward the arena, his voice full of worry and concern for the others.
He had come back battered and with a bullet wound in his shoulder, and it scared me to death knowing that something even worse than that could happen to the six standing in front of me.
Each of them, no matter how annoying and frustrating they could be sometimes, were someone I considered my family, my friends.
I'd easily give my life for any one of them.