“Well?” Hyerin asked. “Did you find anything?”

“Um, no, not really,” Agent M mumbled, taking off the coils of wires attached to the back of her head and her temples. “I didn’t really find any drastic changes.”

Hyerin frowned, sitting up from the reclined bed inside her father’s laboratory. She stopped over there when she heard Agent M was finally back at M-LX, thinking that it was the perfect opportunity to finally ask him what was going on with her. It slightly disappointed her how her genius of a dad didn’t find anything.

“Really? That’s so weird,” she mumbled, jumping off the bed. “I’m sure there’s got to be something in me that made me this fast and strong.”

Agent M bit the bottom of his lip as he gathered his things. “That may be the case,” he said quietly.

Hyerin looked at her father and couldn’t help but pity him. He had gotten thinner and there were prominent dark circles under his eyes that showed he wasn’t sleeping well. He hadn’t look this tired since the day he took her in when her mother died.

“Hey, dad,” she called, making Myungjae glance up from what he was doing.

“Yes?”

“I need to go now. The others and I are doing work in a couple of hours and I don’t want to be late. Just tell me if you find anything, alright?” She smiled. “And you look tired, so rest a lot.”

Agent M forced a grin, and he didn’t expect a simple action to be so hard. “Of course.” He nodded before turning away from her.

---

The young agents stepped out of their respective vehicles as they finally arrived at the Noxius brothers’ residence. That weekend, they decided to get on with their mission to talk to the trio. They could only hope that everything would turn out well, but if it doesn’t, they’re more than prepared to fight.

The thirteen teenagers walked up to the humongous house and stopped in front of the main door, all of them clad in their M-LX gear. With one step forward, Kris rang the doorbell.

It did not take long before someone opened the door. It was a helper who was probably in her forties, dressed in the traditional black and white maid uniform.

“Yes? How may I help you?” the old lady asked.

“Good afternoon.” Suho bowed. “We are here to visit our good friends Kibum, Minho, and Myungsoo.”

Kyungsoo snorted at the back while Chanyeol rolled his eyes.

“Oh, but the young masters aren’t expecting anybody at this time,” she said in a gentle, respectful tone.

“Ah, yes. You see, we came here unannounced since we are going to discuss something urgent with them. We simply didn’t have time to contact them sooner. We apologize for this.”

The old lady looked contemplative for a while before pushing the heavy doors wider to let them in. “Very well then. Please stay in the living room area for a while as I fetch the young masters.”

“Thank you very much,” they chorused before entering the humongous mansion quietly.

Some of the agents sat themselves in the living room while the others preferred to stand. Hyerin plopped herself onto the loveseat near the fireplace, while Baekhyun and Kyungsoo took the seat on each side of her. Lay and Kris shared knowing looks at this.

The gang didn’t wait as long as they thought they would. While silently waiting for the trio to arrive, a small white cat made its way to the living room, catching them off-guard. They stood up from their seats as the cat circled around in place while the doors leading to another room opened, revealing Myungsoo and Minho walking out.

As the two stopped in front of them, the cat morphed in appearance and shifted into no other than Key. They didn’t know how he managed to transform while still having clothes on, but they did not question it further as they were happier to see him fully clothed than .

“Greetings!” Key grinned. “What can I help you with, gentlemen? And of course, the lady.” His eyes focused on Hyerin and winked.

“Good seeing you, Kibum,” Suho greeted dryly. “Before anything, we’re not here to fight. We came here for a whole different reason.”

“A different reason? Must be uninteresting, then,” Myungsoo cockily remarked.

Key held his hand up to stop his brother from saying anything further. “Now, now, Myungsoo. Let the boy speak,” he muttered, eyes trained solely on the thirteen agents.

Suho turned to look at Kris and nodded. He stepped away to give way to the blonde.

“We’ll just cut to the chase. We came here to ask for your help,” Kris started, folding his arms. Key’s uncaring expression faltered while Minho and Myungsoo frowned in confusion.

Seeing this, Kris continued to explain. “We know that the three of you aren’t completely dedicated to this…thing you're planning. In fact, you don’t want to be involved in whatever they’re trying to do. Someone is controlling you, as well as the others that are a part of this army this person is building. Now we need to know what this is and who’s behind it,” Kris explained, staring straight into Key’s light brown orbs. “What do you know about Lucy, Blue, or Durus? Who’s the head of all this? Why did you break into Hyerin’s house? What did this person order you to do to her?”

Key stared at him coldly. “What makes you think I’ll tell you ?” he growled in a low voice.

“Because like he said earlier, we know you don’t want to do this.” Lay stepped up. “You’re only following this person’s orders because they blackmailed you.”

“Shut up,” Myungsoo hissed.

“That’s it, isn’t it? They blackmailed you, so you didn’t have any choice,” he continued.

“So what if they did?” Minho spoke up. “So what if that was the case? What are you going to do about it? It’s already over and done and we don’t have a choice. It’s too late,” he said, briefly glancing at Hyerin to make her remember what they talked about at Jonghyun's party.

“We can help you,” Luhan said. “We’ll help you as long as you help us. Just tell us what we need to know and we’ll help you escape. You can live your life freely and run away somewhere far. They won’t find you and we won’t let them. We’ll finish them.”

Key’s jaw tightened as he looked away. Judging from the brothers' expressions, they knew a part of them would give in, even if it were just a small one.

After much contemplation, Hyerin stepped forward. “Please, Key,” she pleaded. “Tell us what it is. We’ll help you run away,” she promised. “What do they want from us? From me?”

Key took in a sharp breath before tilting his head down in exasperation. He leaned back against the study table in the middle of the living room. “That night I broke into your house, I took a strand of your hair as well as your fingerprints,” he said slowly. “My arm was plastered with a gel-like substance they gave me so that if you try to touch me your prints will be imprinted on it.”

The air was dead silent before Kai spoke up.

“What did they need it for?” he asked, fighting to be calm.

Key shook his head. “I don’t know,” he mumbled quietly, and they knew he was genuinely clueless. Nothing was realer than the tired look on his face.

Seeing that they finally got something out of him, Chen asked, “Is there anyone or anything that can help us know more about this?”

Key looked over to Minho as if asking what to do. In return, Minho nodded, his mouth set in a grim line. Sighing, Key took a notepad from the table behind him and scribbled down an address.

“Here,” He ripped the piece of paper and handed it to Suho, “that’s the address to The Westin Chosun Hotel at Sokong-dong. Yukihara and a few of his acquaintances go there to gamble on the weekends. He should be there this Saturday night,” he said before adding, “you didn’t hear this from me.”

Suho took it before slipping it inside his pocket. “Thank you, Kibum.”

“That’s all I can give you. I’m not answering anymore questions,” Key said, glaring at him and the others. “And don’t thank me. I’m barely helping.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Kris said, offering a hand. “We’ll let you know what happens.”

With a clenched jaw, Key nodded and shook his hand.

---

“Hey, prez,” Hyerin said to the boy beside her. “Can I ask you something?”

After their visit to the Noxius brothers’ residence, the gang went straight back home to continue their plans for the day. Although most of them had nothing to do, there were some who were quite busy. Chanyeol, Kris, and Kai had to go to school for weekend practice for basketball, swim, and baseball, while Xiumin had to go to his grandma’s house to visit his two little brothers. Chen and Luhan busied themselves inside the secret room to investigate more on the hotel Key told them to go to, and Suho was also in his own world tending to student council duties.

Suho stopped writing on his notebook and looked up at Hyerin. He smiled before leaning back on the couch to listen to her. “I’m all ears.”

She bit her lips before asking. “Why was your grandmother acting that way back at the party in your house? I mean, I’m not sure if she is your grandmother but damn, what is she ing about?” Her nose crinkled, unable to control the obvious displeasure in her expression.

The corner of Suho’s mouth twitched upward as he continued to write on his notebook again. “To answer your question, yes she is my grandmother,” he said. “And the reason why she was angry at me that day? Well, she’s always angry at me.”

She frowned. “Why?”

“Well,” he sighed, putting down his pen and paper, “she’s just not fond of me, I guess. It’s been like this ever since I was a kid, so it’s nothing new to me. I heard it was because she didn’t like my mom and how my dad married her instead of the successful women the family knew closely.”

“What? How is that fair?”

“I’ve wondered about that, too. Since a long time ago, actually,” he chuckled. “But like I said, she’s just not fond of me. Every mistake I make always sets her off no matter how small, but then if I finally do something right, it’s just not enough for her.”

He shook his head and smiled widely despite the heavy feeling it brought to his chest. “She’s also the reason why I lived in an apartment by myself before Kai came. She moved into our house just a couple of years ago, and she just…doesn’t want me there.”

Hyerin never imagined Suho’s relationship with his family to be as depressing as it was. What was even sadder was the fact that both his parents did nothing to stop his grandmother from verbally abusing their own child.

Suho was one of the sweetest and kindest people Hyerin had ever met. For him to be able to put a smile on his face every day knowing that he was not accepted by his family was beyond her.

“This is why sometimes, I kind of get jealous of Kai.” He shrugged lightly, drawing circles on the edges of his notebook. “Although he’s against it, his parents are willing to support him when he goes to college while I have to work hard to get to where I want to be,” he mumbled. “I don’t have anything against Kai, though. I treat him like family, much as I do with all of you, but sometimes I just wish I were in his place instead. I mean, I would rather let my parents force me to law school than get hated by my own grandmother.”

Hyerin sighed, feeling sorry for the boy. At times like these, she’s more than grateful to have a father like Myungjae, even though he can be quite embarrassing and unreasonable at times.

“Do you think she’ll ever stop hating you?” she asked.

With the grin still perfectly intact on his face, he looked down on his shoes. “Well, she said once that she’ll only accept me as a part of the family once I truly become successful. When that is, I’m not so sure.”

Hyerin pressed her lips together and placed a hand on top of his. “You already are, prez,” she said quietly. “If she refuses to see how much you’ve already achieved then she’s completely bonkers. Just remember that we’re here for you. We are your family and to us, you’re enough.”

Suho gave her a charming smile, one that wasn’t forced, as he put a brotherly arm around her. “Thanks, Hyerin.” He squeezed her gently. “You’ve gone a long way yourself,” he said in a proud tone.

She smiled. “Thanks.” 

“I hope we finally solve our mission so we can finally know what they want from you and whatever it is they find so interesting about this city,” he sighed. “You must be stressed.”

She shrugged. “I try not to think about it. I don’t like feeling sad or stressed so I just don’t dwell on it too much.”

“Don’t worry,” He patted her back. “We’ll figure it out soon.”

“Hey! That’s enough boys for you, young lady!”

Hyerin and Suho looked up to find Sehun running over to the living room where they were sitting along with Kyungsoo trailing behind him.

Hyerin glared at Sehun before throwing a pillow at him. It hit him on the chest. “Shut up, jerk.”

Sehun raised his hands up defensively before plopping on the seat beside her. “Hey, I’m just trying to keep you away from other dudes since you. Like. Baekhyun. Nooow,” he teased, poking her ribs.

“Keep it down! Not everyone knows!” she hissed.

“Oh, but I do,” Suho laughed. “And don’t worry, Sehun. I’m not stealing Hyerin away from Baekhyun,” he said, winking at the girl. “Right?”

She rolled her eyes.

“So when did you start getting the hots for Baekhyun? He’s the last person I would think you’d like,” Kyungsoo snorted, sitting down on the loveseat opposite to where she and Suho sat.

Hyerin raised a brow. “Oh, really? Who were your guesses then?”

Kyungsoo shrugged nonchalantly, grabbing the bag of Doritos from the table. “I don’t know, probably someone mentally deranged like Hyeseul? Or that blabber-mouthed Hana? Isn’t she Hyeseul’s lady servant or something?”

“Are you dumb? Those are girls, assface.”

“But I thought you were lesbian?” Kyungsoo smirked before popping a Dorito in his mouth.

“Shut up before I shove that bag of chips inside your throat, dickwad.”

“Ooh, is it insult-throwing time? Let me think!” Sehun stared up at the ceiling. “Poop-head!” he shouted, making Suho slap a palm to his face.

“Maybe you’re the one who needs to shut up, asshat,” Kyungsoo retorted.

“Stop acting all cocky now, dumb.”

“Overweight squirrel!” Sehun yelled.

“Mind wiping your mouth? There’s still a tiny bit of bull around your lips.”

“I’ll ing punch your nuts, head!”

“Turdwagger.”

“Thundercunt!”

“Fat head tubby dumb-dumb! Oh my god this is really exciting!” Sehun jumped up and down in his seat, clapping his hands excitedly.

“I hope you fall face first on a cactus patch, douchebag.”

“You wanna go at it, burger?”

“What the is a burger?” Kyungsoo grimaced while Sehun almost collapsed on the floor from dying of laughter.

Hyerin was about to explain what a burger was when Baekhyun walked over to them with two mugs in hand.

Hyerin stopped laughing with the others once she caught a glimpse of the bespectacled teen approaching them. At once, she sat straight up in her seat and cleared .

“Hey,” she greeted, beaming.

Baekhyun smiled back at her before turning to the others. He raised a brow. “Looks like you losers are having fun.”

“Oh, great. Hyerin’s hipster boyfriend is here,” Kyungsoo grumbled, earning a dirty look from the female.

Suso grinned slyly. “Hi, Baekhyun.”

Sehun stopped laughing and stood up from the floor. “Hey, hyung!”

Baekhyun threw a pillow at him. “Don’t ‘hey, hyung’ me! You haven’t paid me back yet. Where’s my money, you punk?” 

“So what made you stop by, Baek? Is it for a certain someone?” Kyungsoo asked, giving Hyerin a mischievous look.

“Actually yeah,” he said, placing one mug on the table in front of Hyerin. “I just wanted to give Hyerin a cup of tea. Figured you might be thirsty.”

“Oh thanks, Baekhyun.” She flashed him a smile before taking the mug in her hands. “That’s really nice of you.”

“No worries. It’s chamomile.” He raised his own cup and walked away.

“Hmm, interesting,” Suho mumbled, rubbing his chin as he glanced at Hyerin teasingly.

“Ooh, special Hyerin gets special tea from a special someone!” Sehun cooed.

“And it’s ‘chamomile’,” Kyungsoo mocked in a high-pitched tone as he rolled his eyes.

"Wow. Just...wow," Hyerin scoffed. “I never thought you could be this immature, Kyungsoo.”

“Glad you thought so highly of me.”

“You know, if you want Baekhyun to notice you, you should start acting like a woman,” Sehun suggested, sitting cross-legged on the floor.

“Not necessarily, maknae. Judging from what I see, she already got Baekhyun’s attention,” Suho said.

“And what, am I not feminine to you?” she asked, raising a brow.

“Of course you’re not,” Kyungsoo snorted, reclining his seat while turning on the humongous flat-screen T.V. “You have bigger balls than Sehun.”

“Hey!” Sehun exclaimed.

“Then what do you guys suggest then?”

“Try to make the first move,” Suho shrugged. “Strike up a conversation with him and see what happens. I mean, this should be easy enough for you since you and Baekhyun always spend time together.”

Hyerin felt her cheeks heat up. She didn’t realize so many of them have noticed.

“Oh, please," Kyungsoo interjected, eyes glued to the television. "She'd probably scare him away less than five minutes into their conversation." 

“Stop being mean, D.O.!” Sehun reprimanded.

Hyerin glared at the uncaring boy before standing up. “Stupid . If I actually succeed in catching Baekhyun's attention, I swear, I’ll decapitate your head and shove it up your .”

The three boys raised their brows at Hyerin’s boldness.

“Well,” Kyungsoo folded his arms and looked at her with newfound interest, “I’d like to see you try then.”

“Oooh!” Sehun and Suho chorused as they watched the challenge take place. Hyerin sneered at the boy before turning around on her heels.

She started stomping towards Baekhyun, but as she was nearing him, her steps began to slow. The sight of the boy sitting down beside the window, sketching on his notepad with a cup of tea in his hands made her knees feel a little wobbly, more so when he suddenly looked up at her.

Stupid boy. Why do you have to be so beautiful?

“Hey,” Baekhyun greeted her.

“Hey,” she chirped, stopping in front of him.

“Done fooling around with the others?” Baekhyun asked playfully, flashing a cute lopsided grin before turning back to his sketch.

Oh god. This was harder than she thought. “W-Well, yeah, I guess. We weren’t fooling around we were just-” she stuttered. “We were just-”

“Just fooling around?” Baekhyun repeated, lifting his head up to look at her again, chuckling lightly. “Are you alright?”

“No. Yes. I mean, yes, I am, it’s just that,” What the hell was she supposed to say again? “It’s just that I…”

He raised a brow. “You…what?”

“I-” Think of something, you worthless piece of ! “…I’m just worried about the case and how w-we’re going to solve it,” Hyerin blurted, hearing the others snickering behind her.

That didn’t matter though, as Baekhyun seemed to buy it anyway. His smile turned into a frown, scooting in his chair to make room for her.

“Why? What’s the matter? Here, sit with me,” he offered, patting the limited space beside him. She nodded and did as she was told.

“Well, all this stuff going on is kind of frustrating me lately. I just hope we figure it out soon so we can finally move on with our lives again,” she said. Well, it wasn't entirely a lie. 

Baekhyun nodded attentively. “Uhuh.”

“I never knew this mission would take so long. I just can’t wait for us to go back to how we were before. Back when we didn’t think too much about stuff like this.”

Baekhyun pressed his lips together as he shifted in his seat to face Hyerin. He took both her hands and placed it on top of his lap, making the girl turn to him as well.

Hyerin gulped, feeling her heartbeat quicken. She could hear the three boys make weird noises from Baekhyun’s bold action. She could only hope that he doesn’t find out what she and the others were doing.

“Listen to me,” he started, looking straight into her eyes. “I know this is beginning to turn into something more than what we originally thought, even as far as you suddenly getting involved in this. But I want you know that you don’t have to be worried or scared, because we’re here for you. We all care about you and we’d do anything to protect you. Do you remember when we went to the art exhibit?”

“Yes.”

“Do you remember what I promised you then?”

“Yes,” she replied, daring to only blink once.

“Good, because I’m living up to that promise. Alright?” he whispered, craning his head low to meet her downcast eyes. When she finally looked up, he smiled and curled a strand of hair behind her ear.

Hyerin couldn’t do anything but nod, losing her ability to speak.

Baekhyun laughed and let go of her hands. “That’s my girl.”

Hyerin’s eyes widened, whole face flushing red. Oh my god, he said I’m his girl.

Meanwhile at the back, Sehun and Suho’s jaws dropped. Kyungsoo choked on his Doritos.

Kyungsoo’s eyes practically bulged out. “What did he just say?”

“Oh man, her face is priceless!” Sehun cackled.

“Looks like she won, Kyungsoo,” Suho chuckled, glancing at the boy who looked utterly dumbfounded.

At the meantime, the bookshelf at the second floor living room lifted from the floor as Chen and Luhan came out. It shut close as soon as the two reached the stairs.

“Okay, guys! Listen up!” Chen exclaimed, climbing down the steps with Luhan following behind him. The others immediately gathered at the first floor living room where Kyungsoo, Sehun, and Suho were sitting.

“Are we missing anyone?” Suho asked, looking around.

“Kris, Kai, Chanyeol, and Xiumin aren’t here,” Tao offered, but right after he mentioned the people who weren’t present, Kai appeared right beside him with a poof of black smoke.

“Did I miss anything?” he asked, still in his baseball uniform.

“No, you’re just in time,” Baekhyun said.

“Alright, so the address they gave us is indeed The Westin Chosun at Sokong-dong. I checked their website and it’s a pretty high-class hotel.”

“It’s a five-star,” Luhan added.

“Anyway, based on the old records of the Immitis Clan in our databasees, they do go here every weekend and gamble. This Saturday is pretty special, though.”

“Why? What’s the occasion?”

“There’s going to be a fifty million jackpot at the casino, and Yukihara is determined to get it,” Chen said.

Everybody hummed in understanding.

“So…what’s the plan?” Tao asked.

“It’s simple,” He shrugged. “We’ll enter the pot and try to play for it.”

“What?” Kyungsoo asked incredulously.

“I said we'll try to play for it,” Chen explained. “We go into that casino looking like young hustlers, gamble like pros and win that son of a .”

“And if we don’t?” Lay asked, folding his arms.

“If we don’t, we’ll wait for Yukihara to win that fifty million jackpot, use Hyerin as bait until she gets him to bed, and then kidnap him.”

“How are you so sure he’ll actually win the jackpot?”

“Because he’s been gambling even before our mothers gave birth to us, that’s how,” Chen grumbled. “He’s been doing this for years. He knows every single strategy there is so I’m more than a hundred percent sure he’ll win this. Unless, well, we do.”

“Which is highly unlikely,” Luhan added.

“So is everyone up for this?” Chen asked.

The boys looked around at each other before nodding.

Tao smirked. “I think it’s a good idea.” 

“Until the other three are home, we’re all going forth with this plan,” Suho said with finality.

“Hold up!” Hyerin exclaimed, placing her hands on her hips. “You never even asked if it was alright for me to act as bait for that grandpa!”

“Don’t worry, you’ll do great,” Chen said simply, giving her a small smile.

“Right. ‘Cause it’s dangerous for me to get attacked by Key at my own house but it’s okay to be alone with a hundred-year-old man,” she sighed. “Whatever. You’re all a bunch of losers. I’m going home.”

“Bye, Hyerin!” they chorused.

Hyerin rolled her eyes. “Bye, losers,” she mumbled. She pressed the elevator button and it opened immediately.

Hyerin walked in and was about to punch the close button when Kai jumped inside, startling her.

“Jesus Christ, Jongin!” she exclaimed, clutching her chest. “Don’t go all Spiderman on me now! What’re you doing?”

Kai flashed a cheeky smile before pressing the close button for her. “I’m going with you.”

“Why?”

“I’m going to walk you home.”

“Oh,” Her brows knitted together. “Why?”

He shrugged, a small smile playing on his lips. “It’s not safe for a pretty lady like you to walk around the streets alone.”

“But I can pro-”

“Stop!” He placed a finger on her lips. “Just let me do this, please?”

“You’re weird,” Hyerin scoffed, pushing his hand away. “But fine. Do whatever pleases you.”

“Oh, I will,” Kai replied, digging his hands into his pockets as he smiled to himself.

As soon as the two arrived at the ground floor, Kai began leading the way, but not to her house.

“Uh, where are we going?” Hyerin asked uncertainly, letting the boy pull her by the wrist.

Kai ignored her, walking so fast that in a little while, he was starting to jog.

“Wha-”

They stopped in front of a movie theater with neon signs and bright lights decorating the building. The movies that were currently playing were listed at the side of the ticket booth.

“Hm,” Kai hummed, grazing his finger over his bottom lip.

Hyerin raised a brow. “Are we watching a movie?”

“If we are,” he started, eyes glued to the list, “what would you most likely pick?”

“What?”

“Just pick.”

Hyerin sighed and folded her arms, hip jutting out. “Girls On Fire, Love in the Air, House In Flames, Anchorage, The Wilderness, The Adventures of Shark and Elephant...” she trailed off. “I’d go with Anchorage. Sounds pretty interesting.”

“Great!” Kai chirped, taking her away from the movie theatre and starting on the sidewalk.

“I thought we were going to watch a movie!” Hyerin exclaimed.

When they turned a corner, they came across a music store. Kai did not hesitate and ran inside with Hyerin following behind him.

“What exactly are you up to-”

“What kind of music do you like? Pop? Rock? Hip-Hop? Do you like Britney Spears, Girls’ Generation, or SHINee?” He picked up the albums of the said artists and walked down the aisle in a speedy manner. “What about Jay-Z? Kanye? Tiger JK? Or maybe you like Guns n’ Roses, The Runaways, Kiss…which ones do you like?” he asked, turning around to face her with a bunch of CDs in his arms.

Hyerin really didn’t know what Kai was doing, but decided to just go along with it. “I…I guess I like classic rock…?” she said unsurely.

“Great! We’ll take that, then,” he said, putting the other albums back in the rack and taking the classic rock CDs.

He paid for the albums and stormed out of the store. He took Hyerin with him as they jaywalked across the street to a coffee shop.

“Do you like coffee? Hot chocolate? What about sweets?”

“I’m getting tired of your nonsense, Kai. What the hell are you trying to do!?”

“You like cake, right? What flavor?”

Hyerin sighed exasperatedly. “I like my coffee black and no, I don’t like cake.”

“Great! Two plain black coffees,” he said to the cashier. “Make it fast please!”

“Kai, why are you doing this?” Hyerin questioned, confused. Kai did nothing but give her a mischievous smile.

Once the drinks were ready, Kai immediately grabbed them and gave one to Hyerin. He ran out of the coffee shop and sprinted towards the flower shop just beside it.

“What kind of flowers do you like, Hyerin? Tulips or roses? Orchids or sunflowers?” he asked, inspecting the fresh displays.

“Roses,” she said, crossing her arms as she watched Kai take one long-stemmed rose before paying the vendor.

"So does this mean you like the color red?" he asked.

She shrugged. "I guess."

After that, he was on the run again, but this time, it was finally the route to her house.

It was a silent walk—more like jog—to her home, and when they finally arrive at the front gates, Kai found himself breathing heavily as he crouched down with his hands on his knees. 

Hyerin glared at him. “Now do you mind telling me what we just did?”

“We went on a date,” Kai laughed, running a hand through his sweaty dark tresses.

“A date?” she repeated, eyes widening.

“Yup. A date.” He nodded. “I’ve been meaning to ask you to hang out for a while now but since we're so busy-”

“Why?” she cut off.

“Well,” He rubbed the back of his head bashfully, “I just wanted to get to know you more. But as I was saying earlier, circumstances won’t allow it since we’re too busy lately. And I guess I just missed you,” he mumbled the last part quietly, handing her the rose. “Here.”

Hyerin took the flower and stared at Kai thoughtfully. It was such a sweet thing to do especially since it was out of the blue. “Thanks, Kai. This is really sweet of you. I was wondering why we didn’t just teleport home!”

He chuckled shyly. “Even though everything was rushed…it was still a date right? At least now I know that you listen to classic rock and you like red roses, and that you prefer dark movies and drink your coffee black." 

Hyerin nodded, grinning. “Yeah.”

A peaceful silence engulfed them as Hyerin looked down own her shoes with a small smile on her face while Kai just stared at her. He knew it was a good idea to do this. 

 “Well," he sighed. "I guess I should go,” he muttered under his breath, gazing at her affectionately before leaning in and kissing her cheek softly, catching her off-guard.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” he whispered in her ear. He flashed a crooked grin before teleporting back home, leaving only a black puff of smoke.

 “Absolutely crazy,” Hyerin mumbled, smiling to herself as she unlocked the gate to her house.

----

A/N: omfg good thing i decided to edit this first before publishing it! i wrote the last part while i was at the gym (i was on the elliptical) and didn't realize i had so many mistakes! 

Before anything, I don't know what a burger is. Deal with it.

Anyway, I just want to make a poll to know who's still reading Guts and all. Whether you're a silent reader or an active commenter, answer the poll! It's really easy, guys. Just click on any of the answers.