Seulgi's eyes opened up to nothing but darkness.

It was still dark inside the room. She was sure the alarm she set up was going to ring anytime soon, for she knew it was time for her to wake up. Her body normally woke her up minutes before her alarm did. 

And, as she was waiting for the alarm to go off, she thought about what she had to do today after she wakes up.

School...Study...Homework...Study...Eat....Study...

She went on making her usual list. While she was at it, her mind glided through what happened the previous day where she remembered meeting Taemin and automatically smiled. But then, Seulgi suddenly froze as the memories of last night flashed through her mind.

Rain...Umbrella...Puddles...Jongin...Kiss...

Seulgi jolt up from her bed to suddenly grab and squeeze it. She remembered what she said to Jongin and how she herself went up to his lips, against his will.

"You idiot you idiot! You shameless woman ah!" Seulgi started pulling out her hair while repeatedly biting her lips as if she was going to swallow them whole.

However, she stopped at once hearing a groan beside her.

"Shhh..."

It was her mother. She was sleeping next to her.

Seulgi sighed and looked ahead at the walls that were beginning to be visible as the sun seemed to be coming up little by little.

She thought for a second going through her mind trying to remember every single detail of what happened last night. She was so sure that Jongin probably hated it for all she could remember was that only she was pressing onto him. 

I must have looked like a desperate weirdo...Kang Seulgi, you ert!

She sighed once more and flinched while her mind repeated that moment over and over. She was even more sure that Jongin felt extremely uncomfortable as she remembered how right after she pulled away from him, he hid his face and turned away from her. At first, she thought it was probably because he felt shy, but after a while Seulgi watched him leave her saying that he was going somewhere else, and that she should go ahead and go home. 

The alarm suddenly started banging across her ears making Seulgi jump up in shock and her mother startle.

She reached it quickly and turned it off telling her mother to go back to sleep, and walked out of the room to get ready for school.

She was cautious and careful. For every reason in the world, she didn't want to run in to a guy who ran away after she kissed him first thing in the morning; that would be very awkward.

However, after Seulgi got ready for school and creeped up into her kitchen, she noticed that her house felt empty than the usual, as if something was missing.

She drank up her milk and tiptoed back to her mother's room pausing near her's (where the boys were staying in). She wondered whether they were up. It seemed like all four slept in her room last night; no one was on the couch.

Seulgi tied up her hair and grabbed her school bag checking the time as she came out of her mother's room to see that it was no longer dark outside. She was drawing the curtains open when she heard the doorbell ring.

She, at once, rang to the door and opened it to find a familiar face holding a box up and smiling at her.

"Taemin-ah!"

"Good morning, Seulgi. Can you believe it, I found your place pretty fast without getting lost?...hehe."

Seulgi invited him inside. Taemin was asked to take a seat while she asked him whether he liked some breakfast (although Seulgi jolly well knew there was no breakfast in the house).

"Oh no, I'm fine. I just came by to drop off Jongin's box of belongings. He totally forgot to take it with him last night when he came to my place."

"Jongin was at your place last night?"

Oh so, that's where he ran off to after leaving me in the middle of the road? Pfft

"Yeah, he came by to say hello. Umma was glad to see him," Taemin said with a gentle smile to which Seulgi too smiled back but was laughing at Jongin from the inside. She just found it funny that he actually went to Taemin's last night.

"Let me get Jongin for you. You can meet him, give his stuff to him, and we can both be on our way to school."

Seulgi hopped her way to her room, where the four boys were supposed to be inside, and stopped right next to it as she breathed in once more to slightly give it a quiet knock.

She waited but no one answered her. She knocked again, but a bit louder.

There was still no answer. 

Finally, she took it upon herself to twist the knob and slightly open the door to peek inside and see whether they were all still fast asleep.

But what she saw as she peeked left her baffled.

She immediately pushed the door open to see no one inside the room. It was clean, arranged neatly and her bed remained untouched. There was no trace of anyone inside. 

She paused for a moment. All this time she was thinking that they were sleeping inside the room when they were not even inside the apartment. 

She turned around immediately to run out when she spotted a small note folded and kept on her table. She grabbed it in a rush and opened it.

To dear Seulgi,
Thank you for everything you have done.
If it wasn't for you none of us would be here like this.
For all the hospitality and unquestionable loyalty, I am so happy and honored to have met someone as sweet and gentle as you.
We are deeply sorry to not have said a proper goodbye. So, I'm leaving this note so you would know that we were grateful to you in every way.
Take care,
Suho.

Seulgi unknowingly thrashed the paper back onto the table. It was a farewell note. She felt betrayed rather than sad. She felt as if they purposely avoided saying goodbye to her. But then she realized that Suho hadn't mentioned her mother in the note. Knowing Suho, he wouldn't miss an opportunity to praise Mrs.Kang who actually treated him. Seulgi doubted whether her mother knew that they left, and ran to her in a hurry.

"Umma! Umma, wake up!"

Seulgi pulled her mother up and looked into her eyes.

"Oh God, Seulgi. What is it? I came home very late last night, let me sleep in peace."

"Umma, do you know? Do you that they are gone?...Umma!"

Seulgi's loud voice woke Mrs.Kang up and made her look up at her daughter in confusion.

"Did you know that they were leaving?"

Seulgi's question left Mrs.Kang to scratch her head and ask back,

"You didn't? They were all ready to go when I came back last night. It was probably around three in the morning. They were all saying goodbye but I made them stay so I could pack them some breakfast. They could have told me earlier though. Sehunnie looked like he was about to pass out saying goodbye. Aigoo, that child needs someone nice to take care of him. Not only him, all of them--"

"Ah umma! You should have woken me up!"

"I thought they had already told you."

Seulgi frowned at her mother as a reply and left her immediately stomping her foot and walking out of the room.

She went to Taemin and asked whether Jongin mentioned anything about leaving her place to him last night.

Taemin was surprised. He too scratched his head and replied back unsure, "He did say that one of your friends have found the rest of them in someone's house. And he did say that they were all planning on meeting up sometime soon, but I didn't think they'd leave right away."

Listening to Taemin, Seulgi caught on to something and retorted, "One of my friends? Who?"

"I don't know. He didn't mention a name."

Seulgi thought for a minute.

No way....It can't possibly be Seungwan, right? She found the rest?

And then, Seulgi remembered seeing that Wendy had called her yesterday several times and had left a few messages (to which Seulgi didn't bother in checking). 

She immediately ran to her bag and searched through it to pull out her tiny phone and bring it closer to her eyes. Her hands trembled for no reason. She saw that Seungwan had called her nineteen times. And as Seulgi opened up Seungwan's many messages she paused for a moment scanning them through.

Yah! Seulgi answer your phone!

Why do you even have a phone, this idiot!

You should know something, answer the phone!

Call me now!

You know what, let me just say it to you here. I found some of your umm special friends at Johnny's place. They are going to meet up tomorrow morning. They said something about trying to find two more of their people. But if they don't find them on time, I think they are going to leave....for good. I don't know why, it's none of my business but...you might already know too...and...uh never mind

Seulgi read through Wendy's messages again...and again. Seemed like Wendy knew that they were planning not to tell Seulgi or anyone that they were going to leave. Ji Yeon knew because they ran into her when they were about to sneak out of the house, and Wendy seemed to be far luckier that Seulgi knowing what they were planning on doing. 

Taemin walked to Seulgi and asked in a low voice seeing her face turn gloomy, "Is everything okay?"

Seulgi nodded right away and started typing a text to Seungwan with her shaky fingers that misspelled words several times.

Seungwan, where are you?

The message got sent and Seulgi stared at the screen for a few moments waiting for the reply. The more she stared at it, the more painfully long it felt. 

Suddenly, the doorbell rang startling both Taemin and Seulgi at once. 

She gripped onto her phone tightly and walked to the door. As she held the door knob, her mind went crazy. She was hoping that the person who rang the door bell was him...she was hoping it was all of them.

But as she opened the door, Seulgi sulked automatically seeing that she got her hopes up for nothing.

However, as she looked at the person standing in front of her, her eyebrows knit not knowing how she found her place. The last time she met her was probably when she still hasn't decided on moving to the city.

"Seulgi-ssi, after a long time, eh? How have you been?" her soothing, slightly high pitched voice asked in a restless manner as if she was trying to get to her point as quickly as possible but had to be polite at the same time.

"Song Qian-ssi, how did you...how did you find--"

"They told me--"

"Who?"

"They told me where you live..." Seulgi watched Song Qian look into her apartment and turn to her once more, "...Lay and Luhan-ssi are with me. I have them. They are safe. Do you by any chance know where the others are? We have to get to them fast."

Seulgi paused. She wondered whether the two more people the others were looking for were Lay and Luhan. She looked up to Song Qian and shook her head.

"Oh...I see--" Song Qian was getting disappointed. But Seulgi spoke up right after.

"Actually four of them were here for about a week or so. They just left early this morning."

Song Qian's eyes widened as she looked into Seulgi at once grabbing her by her shoulders. "What? Do you know where they went to?"

"I don't know--"

Just then, the phone on Seulgi's hand vibrated making her look to it. It was Seungwan.

I'm at Grace's.

Seulgi took up her phone once more and started typing fast.

Seungwan, do you know where they went to? Do you know where they are at now? 

Seulgi and Song Qian both stared at the phone. They were getting restless.

However, this time around it didn't take long for Seungwan to reply. The phone vibrated once more making the two ladies to suddenly freeze seeing Wendy's reply.

They are with me. All nine of them and Johnny are at Grace's place with me. Why?

***

Seulgi sat at the back seat of Song Qian's car with Taemin taking a seat to her right, and a rather peculiar yet incredibly adorable man who looked completely worn out was seated to her left.

"Hello, I don't think we've met formally. I'm Luhan."

Seulgi couldn't hear him speak but read his lips instead. She bowed slightly and replied,

"I've seen you befo