Lex didn't move straight away, staying frozen with her body facing away from him, calculating her next move. The man stepped forward and poked the back of her head with the gun. When she knew he was close enough, she spun around and caught his arm, pressing into his wrist and jabbing his elbow joint.
The man involuntarily dropped the gun and she kicked it away. Grabbing the front of his shirt, Lex punched the side of his face causing him to stumble backwards. He caught his balance almost immediately and lunged back. A hard landed from below her chin before she was pulled down by the neck and kneed in the stomach, falling to the ground. Her chin throbbed and she gritted teeth. That's gonna bruise, she thought to herself.
The wind was knocked out of her but she managed to swipe out her legs beneath him. The man got caught and tumbled to the ground. She heard the gun sliding across the ground and realised she had kicked that too. Both scrambled after it, but the man got to it first. As he got to his feet and pointed the gun at her, she launched herself from the ground and tackled him. She didn't let go as they slammed into the exit door.
Lex fumbled around until she felt the doorknob and twisted it, causing them to fall to the ground again. The gun was dropped again as the man fell on his back and it went sliding. Hastily shoving herself off him, Lex lurched over to it, but was stopped by a strong grip on her leg. She twisted and kicked him in the face, causing him to let go and fall back. She finally managed to grab hold of the metal object. It was cold in her hand as she spun around and pointed it at him. The figure was still on the ground, sitting back and supporting himself with both arms behind him.
With the gun pointed at his head, her heart was beating furiously in her chest. Either from the tussle or the fact that she was now holding a weapon that could take away that man's life with a single click. Adrenaline coursed through her veins and she felt the urge to do something, but could only stand there frozen, taking short breaths to catch it. She quickly devised a plan to make a fast getaway while she had the power over the man. She planned to point the gun at him and back away until she was far enough to make a run for it, she would keep the gun. With the dim lighting, the man's face was mainly concealed with the shadows. He started to push himself up but Lex stepped closer and waved the gun in his face.
A click echoed to the right of her. She didn't need to turn to know the sound was the cock of a gun. She knew she was in trouble now. The sound was followed by several flashlights illuminating the alleyway. That was when she turned her head to the intruders, the gun still trained on the defeated figure on the ground. She was met with three guns and two flashlights pointed at her. She counted a total of seven people that cornered them in the alleyway, five facing her and the other two watching their backs.
"Drop the gun, girly" A voice from the darkness warned. Even with the light in her face, and the others in dimmed darkness, she could tell the voice came from the middle figure, claiming itself as the leader. She outweighed the pros and cons mentally. There really wasn't a pro to continue aiming the gun at the man on the ground, but letting up so easily would make her seem weak and vulnerable. Which wasn't wise, especially in the midst of what she assumed was all eight men.
Snapping her gaze back to the man she had her gun at, her eyes widened. The light shining on the man revealed a familiar face. Minho. Lee Minho. Her previous thoughts were thrown out as she lowered her gun slightly. He frowned for a moment before his eyes lit up in recognition.
"Lex?"
"Minho!" She held out her hand with a hopeful glance at him that he would accept the offer. Almost immediately, he seized her hand and allowed himself to be hoisted back to his feet by her. She pulled him into a hug with her free arm, the other loosely gripping the gun.
"Shit, never thought I'd be seeing you again," Lex chuckled, feeling him nod. He looked taller and broader than when she last saw him, but that was when he was 16. She felt elated at having found her old friend again.
"Neither did I honestly. I always just assumed you were better off than me." They broke apart shortly and together faced the seven newcomers. Slowly, Lex lowered herself to a crouch and placed the gun on the ground.
"You know her, Minho?" The middle figure questioned, lowering his gun, the others following in suit. The question wasn't really whether he knew her or not, it was whether she was going to be a threat.
"She's good." Minho's reply was short but confident. They hesitated for a moment before trusting his word. The middle figure dropped his arm to his side, waving two fingers to signal the others to follow.
"Wanna explain what happened then?" The middle figure demanded, approaching the pair. She watched Minho as he nodded and signalled to the exit they had wrestled out of. Lex, Minho, and the other members followed behind them back to the room.
Minho ran his hands along the wall before flipping the light switch up. The lights were just two light bulbs that flickered a few times before turning on, brightening the room. Now that the room was lit up, she could see the whole room, and the members' faces as she turned her head to steal a glance. Lex could tell that the man walking at the front with the coldest look was the leader.
"So?" The leader Chan expected them to start speaking, an eyebrow raised expectantly.
"I was in here to.... well you can have them back." Lex unzipped her bag and tipped out what she had gathered. They fell onto the coffee table with a thud and she could tell they were all watching her judgmentally, apart from Minho, who still seemed to be excited about meeting her again. Though she kept her face straight, her cheeks heated up at the fact that she'd been caught. She can only be thankful that it was Minho that found her.
"So you were stealing?"
"More or less yeah."
"And you busted our window?" Chan indicated to the shattered window with a flick of his head. A few of the members turned their heads to where he signalled to, the youngest-looking one turned back to her with raised eyebrows.
"Yeah, sorry about that," Lex replied with little sincerity. Chan sure asked a lot of questions. But then again, she had a gun to Minho, and so it isn't really unreasonable that they were now interrogating her.
"You don't know how to pick a lock?" Chan rebuked, tilting his head slightly. He had an almost condescending tone that brought a sour taste to her mouth. A few of the members smirked at her. She didn't like being spoken to like an idiot.
"Well, I do...." Lex felt embarrassed having to explain herself. She doubted they believed her and thought she was unable to do something trivial as lock picking.
"Uh huh, then what?"
"That's when I entered the building," Minho chimed in, throwing a leg over the other, "I don't think she heard me cause she knocked over those coins."
"Huh that makes sense," Lex mumbled under her breath. She hadn't actually thought about why she didn't notice him. Feeling the gun at her head triggered her fight or flight response.
"Then we ended up in the alleyway until you guys found us." Minho finished off, smiling. Lex couldn't help but smirk at how excited he seemed now that he found her, even though everyone could see the yellow tinge on his cheek that she punched.
"So now what? We just let you leave like nothing happened?" asked one of the members. He had the longest hair out of all of them and a clearly defined face structure.
"Yes, she's returned the stuff, no harm done."
They were all now pointedly staring at his cheek before flickering to her, where her chin was smarting a bruise. The leader seemed to be the one who got to make the final decision and seemed to be thinking. He wasn't sure he trusted Lex but trusted Minho's judgement.
"Alright then."
Minho nodded, then decided he should introduce them to each other. He introduced the other seven members to her by age order. Chan was the name of the leader, or the name he went by at least. Minho's code name was Lee Know. Lex introduced herself as Lex, since they were all introducing themselves by code names, there wasn't really a need to mention her real name.
After they were all sure that Lex truly wasn't a threat, they deemed it safe for her to leave. Not that she thought it was negotiable. Before they parted ways, Lex requested Minho's number, because she didn't want it to be the last time she saw him again. The decision was ultimately up to Chan. After glancing back and forth between the two, he gave a curt nod.
They exchanged numbers and were soon parting ways. Even if Lex had ulterior motives to befriending Minho, his phone already had location disabled and was only available to the other members if they really needed it. If a member got kidnapped or lost their phone.
Lex tugged her hood partially over her head and tucked her hair into it. She didn't pull it all the way over because it blocked her peripheral vision, and that just made it easier for her to get jumped. Throwing a glance over her shoulder, she spied the retreating forms of her old friend Minho and his seven counterparts.
~~~
Published: 27th July 2020
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