"hey," called mark to the girl busy packing her stuffs from her locker into her bag.
"oh hey, mark." eunha replied as she turned around.
"are you heading home?" he asked and eunha nodded in response. he scratched the back of his neck, looking uncertain of what he was going to ask, "can i drive you home?"
his question shocked eunha. after all, she didn't want to be associated with the school's famous clique that just happened to break up before she came.
"i'm sorry if that surprised you. i just want to clarify some things and i thought maybe it'd be better to do it alone," mark said, looking uncomfortable.
"are you sure that's a good idea? i mean, wouldn't hae-"
"wouldn't haerin be watching?" mark cut off eunha from her words, "she will. but trust me. if you let me explain things to you, you'll understand why i'm doing this. i'm trying to protect you, eunha."
"okay, mark." eunha replied after hesitating for awhile.
mark smiled at eunha's agreement. he hurriedly closed his locker door and informed her, "i have to get some stuffs from the scr. i'll be back in a while. wait for me at the parking lot. i'll meet you there,"
eunha nodded and mark instantly rushed away. she heaved a sigh as she made her way outside the admin block.
you don't just trust anyone, eunha.
"shut up. i trust mark." she said to the voice in her head.
don't worry, i'll protect you if anything happens.
"i don't need you to protect me, okay? i'll be fine on my own." she hissed at herself.
but little did she know, a pair of eyes were eyeing her as she speaks to herself.
"i've said it before, but i'll say it again," spoke a voice from behind her just as she arrived by the parking lot.
"eunjin?" she said, glaring at the girl standing next to her.
"stay away from mark. or you'll regret it." eunjin said, giving a sharp stare as her lips curve to form a small smirk before walking away.
"eunha?"
"oh hey. chenle, right?" asked eunha in return.
"yeah! are you not heading home, yet?" he asked, tugging to the straps of his school bag as the girl next to him gave eunha a wave.
"uh yeah i'm heading home, soon. what about you two?" she asked as she then saw jisung approaching them while running, to which mark was following right behind.
"yeah we're just waiting for jisung-"
"i'm here!" jisung shouted in excitement as he joined the three.
"hey, you ready to go?" asked mark to eunha as he arrived not long after jisung.
"oh! are you driving eunha noona, hyung?" jisung asked.
"keep it low, jisung." mark said after he nodded to jisung's question.
"sorry,"
"i guess we'll get going, then." mark said as he turned to eunha.
"yeah we'll be going too. see you two on monday!" said jisung.
"oh noona!" called chenle, "i can call you noona, right? i mean jisung called you-"
"sure thing, chenle. you can call me noona, too." eunha replied before chenle managed to finish his sentences.
he slightly jumped in excitement before continuing, "you should join us on monday night, noona! hope to see you there!"
the three bid goodbye to mark and eunha before walking away in a line.
"ready?" mark asked and eunha nodded in return. he then lead eunha to a red car at the far end of the lot.
"nice car," she complimented just before she entered after mark opened the door.
"so where do you live?" asked mark as he settled in his seat.
"the new house on 248th Street. you can just drop me off at the cafe on the junction." she said and mark nodded.
the car then drove out of the school compound. nothing but silence in the car as eunha looked out the window. every now and then she'd give a glance to the driver next to her, only finding him to be plainly focusing on the road.
"so," eunha started, glancing at mark.
"i'm sorry," mark said, eyes still glued on the road.
"for what?"
"for dragging you into our drama-"
"are you talking about the dreamies?" she asked and gave out a small laugh.
"yeah. look-"
"don't worry about me being involved in dreamies' drama, mark. i'm trying to avoid-"
"hey," mark cut off, "we want you to be a part of us."
"and how is that going to protect me, mark? you said all that you've been doing is to protect me. prove that to me because being dragged into this whole drama thing is only bringing me danger. i don't see any act of protection here, mark." she lashed out in a harsh tone and mark instantly stopped the car by the side of the road.
"eunha?" mark called.
the said girl leaned back on her seat, eyes shut and her expression just showed evidently that she was in pain.
"eunha." he called again, sternly this time.
"i don't need your help, mark." she said again, weakly.
"eunha?"
"mark?" she replied in a calmer tone, eyes busy checking out her surrounding.
"this is exactly why you need to be protected," mark said.
"what just happened?" she asked.
"look, i know you're scared but you need to accept yourself, okay?" mark started.
"mark, i-" she stopped. the tears she failed to hold back streamed down her face.
"i'm not a professional psychologist or anything near that but i think i know what's happening to you, eunha." mark said in a calming manner. he tried to approach the sobbing girl slowly, engulfing her in his hug.
"what's happening to me, mark? why are these voices just-"
"they're taking over you, aren't they?" he continued and she managed to nod while in the arms of mark.
the two stayed hugging for a few more minutes until her sobbing lessened.
"are you feeling better?" asked mark as he drifted from the hug, checking the face of the girl before him.
"i'm sorry, why does this always happen to me when you're around," she replied, wiping away the tears on her face.
"hey, it's alright. breathe, okay?" he said, rubbing circles on her back.
"that wasn't me, i'm sorry i lashed out on you like that. i didn't mean to." she said.
"i know it wasn't you, eunha. but it's a part of you and you need to accept that, okay?" mark said as he started to drive the car again.
"jeno told you about jinhye, right?" mark started after a few minutes of silence took over them.
"yeah, he did." she replied.
"you know her story. you remind me a lot of her, that's why i want to protect you. i didn't get to protect jinhye. i don't want the same thing to happen to you, eunha." he explained as tears slowly starts to flood in his eyes.
"she committed suicide, didn't she? how are you going to protect me from doing the same?" she cackled, finding it ridiculous.
"i find it hard to believe that she committed suicide. there are things in nct high school that miss kim and i keep as secrets. i have my reasons why i want to protect you." he said sternly, enough to make eunha silent.
they stayed silent for the rest of the ride until they arrived by the cafe.
"thanks for sending me off, mark." eunha said, unbuckling her seat belt as she quickly tried to leave the car.
"hey," mark called, as he lightly pulled the sleeves of eunha's uniform, "i'm sorry if i made you think that i'm dragging you into dreamies' drama. i really am just trying to protect you. i have no intention of harming you and i certainly have no intention to lose you as a friend, too. if it looks like i'm trying to use you to move on from jinhye's death, i'm not. i'm not using you to fill in the void she left. no one in dreamies has the intention to do so."
he actually sounds sincere, eunha.
shut it, rosé. remember he keeps secrets which the dreamies don't know of. who knows what it might be?
eunha closed her eyes in pain as she tries to shut the voices in her head.
"rest well, eunha. if you need anyone to talk to, i'm one call away, okay?" he said before letting go of her sleeves as he returned a smile to eunha.
…
hello everyoneee!
it's my first author's note!
first off i'd like to say THANK YOU
if you're reading this! and thank you
for supporting alters to this point!
10 chapters in and alters just reached
500 reads which i think is quite fast
for a small account like me!
also, please let me know what you think of the stories so far!
is it going too slow???
is there too much drama so far?
whatever it is, please let me know! ehe
i meant to update alters every three
days but i think i wouldn't be able
to keep up with that schedule.
school just reopened in my country
and so it's harder for me to keep up with
school, personal stuffs and writing all at the same time.
and so i have decided to update alters every Sunday! (this chapter is a lil late tho!)
anyway, updating feels wrong for me at the moment with all the things going on around the world at the moment :(
keep staying safe, everyone <3
my dms are open if anyone wants to talk!
- ayraa