“Just the usual.” What he means by that? My thought was interrupt by a hand grabbing my collar dragging me out of the room. Because of the sudden movement, I’m stumbled and caught a glimpse of the other members. They were no different from me. I looked in front tried to figure out where we headed. Noticed the familiar route, I know we were heading back to the previous room.

***********

We were left alone. I moved my body with a little difficult since my hands were still tied together, facing the members. I looked at each one of them before I spoke.

“Do you guys have any idea what happened now because honestly I lost?” I confessed.

No reply. Everyone lost of words.

I didn’t blame them. Everything happened to fast. From been kidnap by this dangerous gang who apparently wanted to found Dark Angel who they believed is one of us to Sungjong who miraculously now how to fought and use a gun which were good things since it save him. There were too many questions in my mind right now: How he knew to fight? Where the hell he learned to shot? Who teach him? And etc. But the main question is: Is he the Dark Angel?

These chains of events make me doubt how much I know the maknae. Thinking back, he never told us anything about him. When we asking him about his family or his past he just changed the subject and we didn’t bother to interrogate more thinking that maybe he felt uncomfortable to talk about it. And now when we were back here in this smelly room waiting for the usual to come, which I didn’t have any idea what is it, I started to regret the action. The only thing we knew about him was he has a brother who is three years younger than him and the fact that he from Gwangju but that’s all, nothing more nothing less.

My trail of thought then was cut short by the Woohyun’s sudden question.

“Are we going to die?” there was uncertainty in his voice. He looked at me. I’m not sure how to answer. I don’t want to discourage them but at the same time I didn’t want to give a false hope.

After giving much thinking, I finally answer, “honestly, I don’t know Woohyun. I really want to said that we gonna be okay. But I don’t want to lie to you or any of you.” With that the atmosphere turned gloomy.

“Hey, what with those gloomy expressions… At least we gonna death together right. It will be totally if I’m here alone,” Dongwoo said trying to lift the atmosphere but failed. 

“For how long we have been here?” Hoya asked to change the subject.

“Don’t know maybe a day or more. Can’t tell the time here.” Sungyeol said nonchalant.

“Do you think they realized we were gone missing?”

“I bet Manager Hyungs now were searching for us like crazy. Remember the time we did the Sesame Player.”

With that remark, everyone burst into laughter. How irony just a minute before we were so scared to death but now we were laughing like nothing had happened.

“Is he the Dark Angel?”

At that question, everyone stopped laughing. We looked at Myungsoo. Feeling our stares, he looked up and fluster from the sudden attention but then a realization hit him.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to say it out loud.”

No words, everything turned quite. Although Myungsoo didn’t mention the name but we all knew for sure who he means. We still immersed in our thought when the door suddenly opened.

I looked up, my eyes met with a person in the black cloth and in his hand, hung a briefcase. He spoke nothing, walked into a table stood at the corner of the room which I never noticed before. He swung the briefcase up and put in on the table. I watched as he carefully opened the briefcase. I tried to peek what inside the bag but much to my dismay, I can’t see anything.

He picked something and held it up. My eyes grown bigger, there in his hand was a syringe filled with an unknown liquid. It was dark, this is not good. He turned his body facing us and with that syringe, he walked to me. Every step he took makes my heart beats faster. I try to distance myself away from him but with my hand tied behind, nothing much I can do.

He caught my hand and to my horror, put the needle in my arm. I bit my lip to withstand the sting I felt as the needle pierced my arm and the next thing I knew I lost conscious.

*****************

I opened my eyes. Where am I? I looked around, then I noticed I was on my bed in my room in Infinite dorm. How I got back here? How we escaped? Were we saved by someone? Too much questions to ask but no one around. I reached for my cell phone which I put beside the pillow, the usual place, I checked up the time, it show 3.00 pm. I stayed for awhile before got out of bed and headed to the door. As I opened the door, I can hear the noise came from the living room.

All the members except the maknae and Myungsoo were in living room with Woohyun and Sugyeol were having an intense arm wrestling match while Dongwoo acted as a referee. Hoya on the other hand was lying in front of laptop surfing internet. No one noticed my presence.

“Sugyeol won.” Dongwoo announced.

“Hahaha… I won again. You are such a loser, hyung.” Sugyeol yelled. He got up and did a celebratory dance while Woohyun watched in despaired.

“You cheated. I’m not ready yet. I want a rematch.” Woohyun demanded.

“Just admit your lost, Woohyun. Oh hyung, you woke up.” Dongwoo the first one noticed me. Everyone eyes were now on me.

“How you felt now, hyung?” Hoya asked with concerned written all over his face.

“I’m fine. How we escaped from there anyway.”

“What you talking about, hyung? Escaped from where? Since when we did another episode of Sesame Player...” Sugyeol asked confused.

Now I’m confused. Didn’t they remember the event from the day before? “Well, we been kidnapped…before…right…?” I asked with uncertainty. They looked at me confused but then burst into laughter.

“Hyung, what are you talking about? I think you did hurt your head.” Dongwoo said in between laughed.

“HUH?”

“Hyung, you fainted during practiced yesterday. And I’m not sure but I think you hurt your head when you fell.” Woohyun said tried to hide the smiled. I can felt my face turn red from embarrassment. Everything was just a dream. Idiot! How can I think that was real? Good job, sunggyu. Now, everyone will think you are an idiot. To avoid more embarrassed incident, I escape to the kitchen. Feeling thirsty I opened the fridge and grabbed a carton of orange juice. After checking the expiration date I poured the orange juice into glass and started drinking when I noticed Hoya was leaning at the entrance. I lifted my brows, waited for him to speak, a minute passed, Hoya remained statue with his eyes never leave me.

I sighed. “What do you want to ask me, Hoya?”

“No, I was just curious what you dreamt about, hyung?” his question caught me off guarded. I quickly composed myself and gave him an intense stared said I-won’t-tell-you-anything.

“C’mon hyung, I’m dying to know.” Woohyun pleaded from behind Hoya, hinted that he had eavesdropping our conversation. I shot him a glared.

“No, I’m telling you nothing, I know how you all will react after I told. There is no way I want to embarrass myself in front of you.” I told them firmly.

“No hyung, we promise we didn’t laugh,” Sugyeol said out of nowhere, almost gave me heart attack with his sudden appearance. He raised his hand, sworn to never laughed, I looked at him skeptical.

Looking at me still unconvinced, they started attacked me with the best puppy eyes they can mustered, which were hard to resist.  I tore my eyes away quickly as I know I will gave in if I waited a little longer. I was now debating whether to tell them or not. My eyes were wandering back into them, wrong moved, I sighed in defeated as they now were showering me with aegyo even Hoya who rarely showed any aegyo, I gave in, I began to reminiscence my dreamt.

After a while…

“That’s what I dreamt,” I said after finished telling them the whole dream. I held my breath, waited for their reaction in silence.

“Wow hyung, you dreamt something that was most bizarre thing to happen.” Dongwoo commented. Since when he was here, I never noticed.

“No offence but if you see Sungjong’s physical, there was no way he will be good in fighting to defeat two well built men and he at aiming.” Woohyun pointed.

“Like you are any better, hyung…” Sugyeol said with a playful smile and quickly ran way when he saw Woohyun with deathly aura, ready to attack.

“Yah, come back here Sungyeol. You better not let me catch you or you’ll die.” With that Woohyun leaved in a hunter mode, ready to hunt the Choding. I’m not going interfered with this, let the Choding handled it himself, after all he the one in false.

“Well they were right, hyung. I think you were thinking too much, you need to rest, you looked tired.” Hoya said with concerned sound in his voice.

“Nah, I’m fine. By the way, where were Sungjong and L? I didn’t see them. ” I asked changing the topic.

“They had schedule. Myungsoo was doing his drama while Sungjong had a variety,” he explained.

*********************

Everything turned back into normal. The topic of my dream was never brought into discussion after a little talked and blackmail especially toward Woohyun who never gave up a chance to humiliate me. Today, we had a performance at Dongdaemun, a popular shopping district in Seoul. We were in the backstage waiting for our turned to perform. Although we had done it countless time, I can’t help to felt nervous every time. To help ease my nervousness, I let my eyes wandered around. I watched as coordinator was threading the microphone and the in-ear monitor through Dongwoo’s clothes, Hoya quietly practice the dance routine of Paradise across the room, Woohyun busy warming up his voice while Sungjong and Myungsoo were in deep conservation with Sugyeol who kept talking animatedly.

My eyes fixed at Sungjong, watching him laughed wholeheartedly at one of jokes cracked by Sungyeol. This day I always found myself staring at Sungjong without meaning it, then my mind would automatically replaying the dream. Even other members notice and they would confront me secretly asking what was wrong. Sungjong seem didn’t realize my behavior or maybe he aware but shrugged it.

“Hyung, you kept looking at me, do you want something?” Sungjong asked suddenly. I didn’t know when he came here but now he was standing straight in front of me, face genuine with curious waiting for my answer.

“No… nothing,” I stuttered.

“Are you sure, hyung? But you…”

“Infinite, you are next.” One of the staff said. Thank you heaven. I felt like want to run to him, hug and thank him, he save me from being interrogated by the maknae. We all headed to the stage, taking place and the show began.