An obedient girl I was: I ate my meals, I cleaned myself, I stayed quiet. I didn’t ask any more questions. For two weeks now, I have been a good girl. The boys could sense the change in my mood, but they didn’t know how to go by it. Some would try to make conversation with me, others would just stare. Sometimes I would follow along with the conversation. After all, that’s what a good girl would do. I was waiting. I would find the perfect time to escape. I would not be a victim anymore.

       “Hey,” Taehyung called out, bringing me lunch. “How are you doing?”

       “Fine, thank you.” I smiled in return. I loathed my situation. I loathe that these boys have kept me imprisoned, but I would be lying if I said I hated these men. Something about them had me drawn. I had become the closest with Taehyung and Jhope. They talked to me a lot. For some reason, they were always trying to make me happy. Perhaps they saw the deadness in my eyes.

       Yoongi and Jin were nice as well, but they were always distance. Namjoon and Jungkook never showed their faces to me. The only time I saw them was the few times that first week or two. Then there was Jimin.

       “Lucy, are you ok?” Taehyung rubbed the back of his neck. “You seem off lately.”

       “I’m fine, Taehyung. I’m just getting comfortable with my new life.” I smiled, but my voice was dry, robotic.

Taehyung sighed, “Look, I’m sorry we can’t release you. You’ve just seen too much…You know too much. If I’m being honest, I’ve grown rather fond of you. I think we all have.” His voice trailed off. His words were touching, but not enough.

       “I understand, Taehyung. You all are doing this to protect yourselves, to achieve vengeance. I won’t pretend to enjoy being locked up in a basement, but I can do my best to make the most of it.”

       Taehyung left after a bit. He didn’t have much to say after that. I will not lie. Part of me has grown fond of them, too. They all have such sad pasts, and all I wish is for them to find happiness in life…but it can’t be through me. I had a life, and I must get it back. So I will be the good girl they expect of me, but when I get the chance, I will make my move.

 

 

Knock Knock

       “Come in.” I shouted. Jimin walked in. “Hello, Jimin! I haven’t seen you in a while.” He didn’t look happy.

       “It has come to everyone’s attention that you’ve lost your fighting spirit.” He started.

       “On the contraire, I do have a fighting spirit. However, last time I tried to use it, I almost murdered a coworker.” Came my reply.

Jimin sighed, “So now you like to be witty, too?”

       “Not witty, Jimin, but rather facing fate. If I can’t escape, I might as well get used to this life.”

       “It won’t always be like this.” He blurted. This confused me.

       “What do you mean? I thought you didn’t want to take the risk that I would tell everyone who you guys are.”

Jimin bit his lip in frustration, “Of course, but once we get rid of that man, we’ll finally be free. You’ll be free.”

       “What?”

       “Come with me.” Jimin grabbed my arm, rushing me out the door. He practically ran up the stairs into the dining room. Everyone was already sitting and waiting. Namjoon was the first to speak up.

       “Good evening, Lucy. There is something we must discuss with you.”

I sat down slowly, “Did I do something wrong?” Fear ate away at the back of my head. If I had acted up in some way, would they kill me?

       “No, it’s not that,” Namjoon sighed. “It’s clear to me that you know a lot about us…too much. It has also been brought to my attention that someone we’ve been hunting knows about you.” Thoughts of family, old friends, and coworkers crossed my mind, but none of them added up.

       “I don’t understand.”

       “We think it’s time to let you in on some things.” Jhope interjected.

       “What things?” I was becoming nervous.

Namjoon cleared his throat, “My mother was killed when I was only fifteen. The woman who killed her was a coworker of my father. The two of them were having an affair. My father told her that as long as my mother was in the picture that they could never be fully together. So, that woman had my mother killed. Now you may be wondering how this connects to the man we always are talking about. Well, that man happened to be that nasty woman’s father. I have found emails, text messages, and voice mails all pertaining to her and my father scheming to have my mother killed. These messages also connect to her father; the man who killed my mother. That man’s name is Choi Hajoon. I saw him. That bastard murdered my mother, and I will get my revenge.”

       “But it wasn’t just Hajoon who killed your mom. Your father and that woman had a say in it as well.”

Namjoon smiled, “You’re absolutely right. That’s why I killed that when I had the chance. Daddy-dearest was furious.” He was laughing slightly. This was the most emotion I have ever seen in him. “Father was always weary of me. I’m sure he knew that I discovered his nasty secrets. He ran away like the coward he is when he saw his mistress’s blood all over the pretty master bed. I’m not my father though. I will not run away. I would never cheat on the love of my life.” Namjoon seemed to be talking to himself…It scared me.

       “If you had so much proof, why not just go to the police?” A cold sweat started to form slightly.

       “Remember how I said the police are bought?” Jhope grimaced.

       “W-what does this have to do with me? Why are you telling me all of this now? I’m just your prisoner and you’ve all been so willing to share your lives with me.”

       “We could say the same to you.” Yoongi corrected me.

       Jin stepped in, putting a hand on Namjoon’s shoulder, “We have had some suspicion that Namjoon’s father killed himself, so there’s nothing we can do about him. But, the man who actually murdered his mother, was the lead involvement in the murder of Taehyung’s mother, was also involved in the murder of Jungko—”

       “Hyung!” Jungkook snapped. It was the first time I heard Jungkook’s voice in weeks. It startled me how serious he looked.

       “I’m sorry, forget that last part,” Jin said wearily, “This man’s name is Choi Hajoon. He is a multibillionaire through the underground. Things like: the mafia, gangs, black market, etc. He is a very serious man who has a lot of connections. It would be impossible to try to take him out through any justice system.”

       “Again, what does this have to do with me?”

       “We’re not sure how it happened, but he knows who you are and he knows you are connected to us.” My heart dropped at Jin’s words. Everything I knew was starting to shatter around me.

       “H-How? I haven’t been stuck here for practically a month. You guys told me no one knows about you guys! I haven’t done anything!” I was shouting and panicking.

       “Please calm down.” Jimin said, rubbing his temples. “No one knows about us, except Hajoon. He’s known for a long time that we’ve been after him. I mean, how could he not? We’ve killed dozens of his men. There are no records on us, so there’s no way for him to trace us, contact us, or bring authorities into this.”

       “Not to mention, he doesn’t see us as a threat.” Taehyung mumbled.

       “Then how does he know about me?” I turned to Jimin.

Jimin my cheek, “You’ve been on the news for a while now. You’re a foreigner who magically disappeared into the night, and no one has any leads on you. We also made the stupid mistake to talk about you while we were out on the field. Someone must have listened in.”

       “Does that mean they know where we are?” I shuddered. “Am I in danger?”

       “Technically, yes. “Yoongi replied. “They now know that the mysterious girl is involved with us. Sure, they don’t know that you’re our prisoner, but it wouldn’t really matter anyway. All they know is that you are one more person who is against them. Therefore, you’re a target.” I could feel all the blood drain from my face.

       “A target…I didn’t do anything…” I trailed off.

Jin squeezed my hand, “Please do not worry. They have no idea where we are located. We were stupid to bring your name up, but we are never dumb enough to bring up our location. We are also very good at our job. You are in no real danger.”

       “Yet.” Yoongi muttered. Everyone glared at him. “You can glare all you want, but the truth is the truth.” Yoongi stood up and towered over me. “You know why I said we should have killed you? Because, we are humane. You think we’re some killing monsters? You haven’t seen anything. I’ve seen a man skinned alive because he crossed Hajoon. I could have made it painless for you, but if he ever gets a hold of you, you’ll suffer in a way that makes hell look pleasant.”

       “That’s enough, Hyung!” Jimin snapped. “No one is killing, Lucy. Lucy, look at me. I promise you, you are completely safe here. Here, we can protect you.”

       “Jimin is right.” Namjoon joined. “Although, Yoongi is right as well. Everything Yoongi has said is true and is something to think about. However, you are safe here. No one knows about this place.”

I nodded, still unsure about everything, “I just have one question. Jimin said that when it’s over that you’ll all be free…that I’ll be free…”

Namjoon nodded, “When I see Hajoon dead with my own eyes, I believe we’ll all be able to move on. And Lucy, I promise you, we will free you as well. You’ll be free to turn us in or go back to your own life. Quite frankly, our lives haven’t exactly been the most pleasant up till this point.” His words said it all. None of them cared if they died or were thrown in prison for life. All they cared about was getting rid of this man; any other dream or wish came second.

       “I see.” I muttered.

       “Lucy…if you so happen as to ruin anything along the way,” Namjoon warned. “I will kill you. I don’t want to do that, but I will not let you get in my way.”

       “I-I won’t.” I shuddered.

Namjoon stood up, no emotion in his eyes, “This is my life’s goal, all of our goal. I will not let you put my family in danger. I’ve been kind and following our rules, trying to make you a comfortable guest as best I can. Believe it or not, you aren’t the first to have been captured or found spying. You’re just the first to have lived this long. Don’t make me regret it.” Silence filled the air. There was nothing left to say, so Jimin took me back down to the basement.

       “Are you scared?” He asked as he wrapped me in the blanket.

       “A little, but I don’t think everything has really set in.” I replied honestly.

Jimin hummed, “I understand. It’s not something to take in easily.” He had a distant look in his eyes again, like he was in a different place.

       “You’re all very brave.”

Jimin looked confused, “Brave?”

       “Yes. I don’t think I could ever kill someone, especially when they are trying to kill me. I would be far too scared.”

Jimin chuckled lightly, “Killing isn’t brave, Lucy. It’s cowardly.” I looked at him to continue. “Only cowards kill to get their way. We couldn’t just trust or have faith that things could work out. We couldn’t work with others to make things better. We couldn’t put one foot in front of the other for ourselves. Instead, we ran away. We ran away from responsibility, from people, from trust…from the world. We banned together because we are cowards. Because, if anyone saw the real us, we would be shunned.”

       “Sometimes you have to run away to find yourself.” I replied. “Not everyone will accept you for who you are, but it’ll be a lot easier if you can accept yourself.” Jimin laughed. It was a genuine smile that he had on his face. I didn’t understand why, but it made me feel warm inside.

       “How is it, that you can say the things I need to hear the most.”

       “What do you mean?”

Jimin shook his head, “Forget about it. Go to sleep. We have a lead on where Hajoon is so we’ll be preparing for that trip soon.”

       “You’ll be leaving?”

       “Not all of us, but yes. I promise he won’t hurt you.”

       “What about you?” Jimin paused at my question.

       “Are you worried about me?” He teased. “Don’t be. I don’t deserve it, but I will be back. We always come back.” Jimin leaned down and kissed my forehead before he left the room.

       I sat in silence, staring at the door, burning an image of Jimin’s back into it. There was so much information flooding my senses. I could barely breath, let alone think straight. I have always been a level-headed person; emotions never truly clouded my judgment. Yet, as I sat on the floor wrapped tightly in a blanket, I realized how much I resembled my mother; how much her emotions reflected mine. I would like to pretend that I know how to handle myself, but at the end of the day, I’m just like my mom. When something becomes too much for me to handle…I make bad decisions.

 

       ‘I’m sorry Jimin…but I can’t stay here.’ I waited till I couldn’t hear anyone upstairs moving. I immediately got up. With the help from the moonlight and my familiarity of the room, I located the dresser. I pushed it as quietly as I could towards the window. With it in place I could reach the window. I could see the ground outside; if I leaned, I could see the woods to the left and the road that lead into it.

       ‘The window is locked.’ I tsked in my mind. With the dim light I spotted the dead potted plant. It was made out of clay. I lifted it with a bit of a struggle and stood back on the dresser.

       “I’m so sorry, Jimin…I’m so sorry everyone.” I whispered. “I swear I’ll never tell anyone about you guys. You deserve that much.” With that, I lifted the pot and smashed it into the window with all my might. The pot shattered along with the window. I could already hear footsteps moving about upstairs.

       I quickly squeezed myself through the tiny window. Glass and clay shards bore into my hands and legs. Nothing on my body was left unscathed. When I made it onto the ground, I ran. I ran as fast as I could straight onto the road, into the forest. I hear the shouts of my name, but the house was long gone from my sight. I couldn’t stop running now. Adrenaline kept me pushing.

       Suddenly, I could hear a car behind me. I quickly ducked into the bushes on the side of the road. I kept myself still as they drove by slowly. They were out of sight soon enough and further down the road.

       ‘Eventually they will drive back, but for now I can stay on the road.’ I thought. My mind was focused. I kept on running.