She was scared, naturally.
Terrified, actually. Of what her words meant, of the weight they held, of the lives they affected. Of what future they brought.
And yet, when she saw the glint of approval in Chan's eyes, the proud tilt of Minho's head, she was sure. This was the right choice. Hyunjin appeared not to think so, however.
As soon as the words left her mouth, he turned and stalked off somewhere in the house, hands fisted at his sides. Heart pinching, Nari bit her lip and looked to Chan for help.
He looked like he was hardcore judging the younger boy, and rolled his eyes as he said, "Don't worry about him, Nari. He'll see eventually that this is for the best." That didn't make her feel any better though.
Chan rubbed his forehead tiredly. "Minho, could you show Nari to one of the guest rooms? She can arrange it however she wants."
With a nod, Minho stood, popping his back as he stretched, and gestured for Nari to follow him. "Come on. You're gonna be upstairs with the rest of us. And don't worry, you'll see everyone else soon," he said with a wink. She managed a weak smile.
They stopped in the same hallway she had fainted in, with Chan's office at the end. Six doors lined either wall, random bits of paper or decoration on each one. Minho motioned to the third door down on the right.
"That one's yours. All of us except Chan, and I guess you now, bunk together, two in a room. If you get scared at night come snuggle with me, yeah?" the boy said cheekily, mischief twinkling in his eyes. But Nari knew that he meant it; he would offer her comfort if she needed it. "And again, don't worry about Hyunjin. Chan's right, he'll come around."
With that, he left her standing the hall, alone. There was a silence after he walked away, allowing Nari to hear the blood roaring in her ears. A pressure built up in her chest, and at that moment she wanted nothing more than to sit down, curl up and cry like a baby. But she straightened up, went to her door, and twisted the knob.
It was just a bedroom; light blue walls, a gray bedspread, a desk. Very generic, really. When Nari saw the small bathroom attached to it though, she thanked the gods above that she didn't have to share one with any of the boys.
Flopping down on the bed, Nari let out a loud, obnoxious sigh and closed her eyes. At least she could relax a bit more now. No more abuse, at home or at school, no worrying about covering up, no emergency trips to Jisoo's house...
Suddenly, Nari's eyes flew open in panic, and she flailed her arms, trying to stand. Jisoo!!
The walls of the bedroom floor whizzed by as she sprinted to the stairs, jumping down them two at a time. She almost missed the last step, barely catching herself from slamming down on the floor.
Somehow, she found her way back to the living room, where two boys were lounging in the couches. They stared with startled looks when she burst in, eyes wild and panting for breath. One of them was that deep-voiced blonde kid, Felix, and the other was the fox-eyed boy she had run into when leaving Chan's office.
Felix sat up straight, pausing a game he was playing in his phone. "Hey, you're up. What's wrong?"
"Felix, where's Chan?? I need to talk to him and find my phone because last night when I was attacked I was on my way to a friend's house because of my uncle and I never got there and she's probably worried about me and I need to - "
Eyes blinking rapidly, Felix held his hands up. "Whoa. Slooow down. You're looking for Chan? And your phone? I'm pretty sure Chan is talking to Changbin about tattoo stuff, and Woojin has your phone. He was putting in the tracking system we all have, I think."
Nari nodded furiously. "Where's Woojin? I need to get my phone, please!"
His forehead creased. "Woojin's probably in the systems room. Jeongin, can you take her? I'm gonna call Chan," he requested, giving Nari one last look before leaving the room. Desperately, she bounded over to the young boy, who seemed low-key scared of her intensity.
"Um, this way." They took to the stairs again, but went to a third floor this time. How much room did a gang need?
When they reached the top of the stairs, Jeongin took a hard right and led her down a hallway with a single door at the end. "This is Woojin's office, sort of. He stays here during missions, talking in everyone's ear, giving us directions, alerting us to danger, that sort of thing."
"Cool, so can I go talk to him?" Nari rushed out, her mind moving at the speed of light.
"Oh, yeah, you can go in. Sorry," he said sheepishly, rubbing an awkward hand on his neck. "I'll wait out here, if you want."
A sudden, unexpected warmth flooded her. This boy here, just a few years older than her, was surrounded by impossible odds and dark events 24/7, yet he was so soft and kind. They all were.
A nod rocked her vision. "Yes, thank you, Jeongin."
He smiled bashfully, a dimple peeking out of one cheek, and leaned against the wall. Nari knocked on the door.
Some rustling came from inside. "Who is it?"
"Um, it's Lee Nari. I just wanted to - "
The door swung open, startling her, and a rumpled boy stood in the frame, his big eyes sparkling.
"Hello! No need to introduce yourself, I know who you are. You're a part of our family now! Well, not officially, but still," Woojin exclaimed, a large grin spreading across his face. "Anyway, although you probably know already, I'm Woojin. Come in, I'll show you around."
She obediently followed him inside, itching to just look for her phone and take off with it. The space was very organized, a large black desk taking up the center of the room and several wall monitors playing blank feed. Three large computer screens sat on the desk, and a stack of neat papers covered in tabs and notes had been set on the edge. Woojin sat in the swivel chair that had been tucked under the desk and typed a few commands on his keyboard.
"These show me any camera feed that's hooked to this house," Woojin said, gesturing at the screens on the wall. "Front door, basement, backyard, you name it."
Nari hated to seem rude, but she was bursting with anxiety and couldn't keep her mouth shut for another second. "Woojin, thank you for taking the time to show me everything, but I really need my phone."
His eyebrows went up. "Oh, well, you could have just said so," he chuckled. Reaching down, he opened one of the desk's drawers. His fingers fumbled around for a moment and drew her phone out of the small compartment. "I added the tracking technology that the others have in their phones, but don't worry, it's completely invisible to anybody else. Also, you obviously can't tell your friends where you are, so you'll have to cut them off, for now at least." His tone was apologetic.
Her heart ached. Because of the events that had taken place, she wouldn't be able to see her best friend in the world anymore. Maybe never again. All because she just couldn't mind her own business.
"I know. Don't worry, I'll make up an excuse for them," she sighed, brushing the pad of her thumb over her phone's screen. Woojin winced and patted her shoulder. It was a very brotherly gesture, and Nari smiled gratefully at him.
"Don't worry, everything will work out," he assured her, giving her arm a playful squeeze. A laugh was drawn out of her, and Nari held on to the joy it gave her.
"I'm going to go downstairs now," she said, twisting the door open. Woojin gave her a nod and turned back to his many screens, scribbling something on a piece of paper. Gently, she shut the door behind her.
Jeongin was still in the hall, staring at the ceiling patiently. His hands went to his pockets and he smiled as she came out. Nari unlocked her phone. "I'm going to make a call really quick."
Without waiting for a response, Nari stepped away and dialed her friend's number, drumming her fingers in her arm as the line rang. And rang. And rang. No answer.
She huffed a frustrated breath and opened her texting app, typing out a message.
Nari
Hey, I'm so so sorry!! My uncle gave
up on trying to get to me and went to
bed, but I couldn't get a hold of you
because my phone died and I lost my
charger. Sorry if I worried you!! Just
wanted to let you know I'm ok.
Love you ❤
Sent
Nari shook her head and turned back to Jeongin. "I just had to check up on something. Sorry I took so long in there, Woojin got excited."
He laughed, shaking his head. "I think you'll find that everyone around here is a little too eager to show off their skills."
Curious, Nari bumped his arm as they walked down the levels. "So what do you do? What's your role in the gang?"
Lips scrunching, Jeongin replied, "I have cleanup duty. Sweeping the scene after we're done with it, making sure we didn't leave behind any traces or evidence. I'm not really in the field during missions yet."
"Why? Have you not completed your training or something?" Nari prodded.
A sickly, fearful look came upon his face, and Jeongin looked at the floor, swallowing hard. "Or something."
She seemed to realize she had stepped over the line, and tried to backtrack. "I'm sorry, it's none of my business."
Jeongin inhaled deeply and his usual, pleasant smile beamed at her. "It's fine. You don't have to apologize. I'm just... not ready to talk about it yet. Again."
A reply found its way to her mouth, but was stolen as she caught a lovely scent in the air. It smelled delicious and permeated the air of the living room, taunting Nari's taste buds.
"Mmmm, what is that?" she wondered aloud. Jeongin laughed at her expression.
"That's Hyunjin's cooking. It's almost dinnertime."
The mention of food spurred her further towards the smell. She wandered into a room she recognized as a kitchen and was amazed at all the wonderful food spread across the granite counters. The space was just as modern as the rest of the house, with a sleek refrigerator and large, aged cabinets. A large wooden table was placed just outside of the cooking area.
She glanced at the huge stove and saw Hyunjin stirring a pot intently, his eyebrows drawn down with focus. He looked up and caught her gaze, his lips twitching up into a small grin.
"Hungry? It's almost done. Jeongin, could you and Nari start taking things to the table?" he asked offhandedly. She bit back a sigh and grabbed a dish with disappointment.
He wasn't talking to her.
With Jeongin's help, Nari set the table and brought some of the food out, placing each dish just so on the hard surface. Slowly, the other inhabitants of the house trickled in, telling jokes and laughing. Those she had met, Seungmin, Felix, Woojin, and Minho, acknowledged her with nods and smiles, while one boy she didn't know gave her a small grin.
He walked over sheepishly. "Hi, I'm Changbin, it's nice to see you again."
Nari shook his extended hand, narrowing her eyes. She cocked her head in confusion. "Again? Have I met you before?"
"Sort of," he said, his grin spreading across his face. "I was with Hyunjin when you gave us the thumb drive he dropped at the store."
Her eyes shot wide open, and her mouth curved up. "Really?" she laughed. His hoodie had been pulled up at the time, but now Nari recognized his stocky build.
"Yep," he sang, popping the "p". "Anyway, come on, let's sit down. Food goes really fast in this house."
Chuckling at the warning, Nari pulled out a chair and surveyed the array of food once more. A moment later, Chan and Jisung came in and sat as well. Jisung sent a sly smile and wink in Nari's direction, only to be smacked in the head by Woojin.
The boy let out a yelp and rubbed the sore spot, scowling. Woojin squinted at him. "No flirting. She's off limits, squirrel boy."
A laugh erupted around the table, and Hyunjin entered with the last of the food. The boys cheered as he sat, and everyone dug in, complimenting the boy on his cooking skills. As the group ate and the heavy atmosphere relaxed, Nari felt, for the first time, like she belonged. Like she really, truly mattered to people.
Finally, she was home.
Double update since this chapter
was boring