Jaejin and Hyunki both stood inside the office, hands firmly placed behind their back as they struggled not to whimper from fear. Being Yukihara’s best men were a handful; not only do they have to tolerate their boss’ infuriating attitude, they also had to take charge in case he wasn’t available. In this case, they were reporting what happened last night to Yukihara to the one man behind all this, and it was not an easy task.

“So you’re telling me,” the man started, his chair turned away from them, “Yukihara was kidnapped from his own hotel room?”

“Y-Yes,” answered Jaejin. “When w-we arrived in his room he was gone.”

“And the money?”

“G-Gone,” Hyunki practically whispered with his head bowed down from shame.

Silence enveloped them, though it was not the type that was comforting or peaceful. It was tense and hanging, as if something bad might happen at any minute.

All the while the two remained motionless.

“I see,” the man muttered.

How the two wished to see the mystery man’s face right now, just so they know what he was going to do. The only thing they could see was the calm smoke coming from his tobacco, the dim orange light casting a sinister shadow over the man’s silhouette.

“We’re very sorry about this,” Jaejin said, brave enough to break the unnerving silence. “It won’t happen again.”

“Do not worry about that, boy,” the man said. “It certainly won’t happen again.”

The man snapped his fingers, making Durus stand straighter from where he stood beside the table. “Durus here will take care of you young lads. With this, you surely wouldn’t be able to make the same mistake ever again.”

Jaejin and Hyunki shared a look. “W-What do you mean by tha-”

“Skin them alive,” the man ordered.

With an eerily calm look set on the muscular man’s face, he pulled out a small knife from his pocket as he advanced towards the two.

They started to scream, struggling from the iron grip of their fellow gang members who had no choice but to oblige. At this point, they had no chance of escaping.

Meanwhile, outside the office, the guards’ faces hardened from devastation as they heard the sound of muffled cries and ripping skin.

---

“C’mon, you sloth! Hurry up!” Hyerin exclaimed, pulling an unwilling Kyungsoo with her to the eighth store of the day.

“Why am I doing this again?” he asked, crankily pulling his arm from Hyerin’s grip.

“Because my date with Baekhyun is only a few hours away and I don’t have anything to wear yet and Sehun stood me up since he’s the one who’s supposed to be doing this with me, not you,” she explained, going through the racks.

“God, I can’t wait to kill that little ,” he grumbled, folding his arms and sighing.

“Oh, shut up, will you? You’ve been saying that for the past thirty minutes!” she exclaimed. “If you stop with your complaining and help me pick out a nice dress that would be greatly appreciated and ooh, let’s go to that section!” she said, pulling Kyungsoo by the front of his shirt.

“These are so nice!” she cooed, picking up a blouse and inspecting it.

In return, Kyungsoo rolled his eyes. “You know, you should have just brought someone else who actually knows about all girl stuff ‘cause I can assure you, I’m clueless when it comes to these.”

“Over my dead body. Honestly, you’re the first person—well, second since Sehun was supposed to be the one doing this—that I would want to bring with me here because one, you’re easy to manipulate and two, because you’re one of the few who wouldn’t annoy me the whole time we’re shopping.”

“Wrong assumption since I’ve been annoying you ever since we stepped inside the mall, assface.”

“Yeah, well whatever. It’s over and done with. You’re here anyway and in all honestly I’d rather bring you than the others.”

Kyungsoo watched as the girl happily skipped her way to another corner of the store, looking like some Disney princess overdosing on . The girl was uncharacteristically energetic, perhaps a little too much that it seemed unnatural. There was something up with her and there were endless possibilities as to what it was.

Knowing her, she’s probably hiding her frustrations with their current mission and all that jazz about Yukihara and the money. All of them were stressed about that and maybe she’s covering that stress with fake smiles and cringe-worthy giggles.

The second thing that might be the root of this attitude is Kyungsoo’s little sleepover at her house. Kyungsoo mentally slapped himself as he recalled the events of last night. They didn’t do anything scandalous; he even slept on the couch while she stayed in her bedroom. He just didn’t know what came over him or where he got the courage to ask her such a thing, but most of all, he wanted to hit Hyerin upside the head for agreeing to it so easily. If she said no—he really wish she just said no, goddammit—he wouldn’t be giving into his own selfish desires of being with her. Yes, he really wanted to be with her and that was proven yesterday when he was so persistent on staying the night.

If she just said no, he would have backed away and that way, he could have some kind of closure – some kind of assurance that no way will there be something between them. But no, she just had to say yes and he just had to succumb to it. It was his fault, since he was the one who pressed her into agreeing to it anyway, but he liked to think it was hers. Only because he didn’t like admitting his wrong doings and also because she was just too damn irresistible.

Did he like her? Maybe, but it could also just be hormones.

Kyungsoo sighed, sitting on one of the waiting chairs inside the store. Maybe it really was because of his staying overnight that she’s putting up this fake façade. Maybe she didn’t want things to get awkward between them so she resorted to acting like something she’s not. He didn’t blame her, though; the following morning, he was up two hours before her and did the stupidest thing of all the stupidest things in the world—he cooked brunch for her.

Kyungsoo groaned, digging the heels of his palms into his eyes. It may not seem like a big deal, but that may just be the thing to make everything instantly awkward. First of all, one does not simply invite oneself to sleep over, especially since they're not even in a relationship. Secondly, one should immediately leave the morning after, preferably before the other wakes up. He already had that opportunity, but he just had to go to the kitchen and make food for her. That’s something a boyfriend would do, and he was anything but a boyfriend. Just imagine how surprised Hyerin was to see Kyungsoo in her dad’s apron, holding a spatula and a bowl of kimchi spaghetti in one hand.

“Jesus Christ,” he mumbled under his breath. He knew now. He knew now that he was the reason for all this madness.

“Do Kyungsoo! Aren’t you supposed to help me pick a dress!?” Hyerin stomped her way over to him, lightly kicking his foot.

Kyungsoo groaned. “What?” he demanded, glaring up at her. “What do you want?”

“Which one is prettier?” She held up two blue dresses of the same style, one being a tad lighter than the other.

Kyungsoo gave her an incredulous look. “I don’t see any difference, assface.”

“Are you dumb?”

“I really don’t. They’re both blue, you picked the same dress.”

“I did not. Are you blind? They’re clearly different!” she exclaimed, rolling her eyes before turning on her heels and going back to the racks. “God, you’re such an idiot.”

Kyungsoo scoffed. “This girl. Making everything so complicated,” he huffed, standing up to follow her anyway. He leaned against the wall beside the rack she was looking through before speaking up. “I told you, assface. I won’t be much help here.”

“It doesn’t matter, now that you’re here anyway,” she sighed. “And stop calling me assface, head.”

Kyungsoo clicked his tongue. Maybe it wasn’t because he didn’t know how to help; maybe he just didn’t want to help.

“Really, I would much rather deal with all the M-LX than this.”

“Just-” She paused before sighing. “Look, you’re the only one I have right now, okay? Just think of it this way,” she started cheerily. “You’re my fashion consultant of the day of some sort.” She shrugged.

“Are you kidding me?” he snorted. “Fashion consultant my . Just wear a sweatshirt or something, I’m sure he’ll like you for who you are, not for whatever the hell you’re wearing.”

“Are you ting me right now?”

“What? I know I wouldn’t mind.”

Hyerin snapped her head up to look at him, brows furrowing together. “What?”

“I-I mean,” he stammered. “If, you know, if I were on a date, I wouldn’t mind what the girl is wearing since, you know, I would like her anyway regardless of how she’s dressed.”

Her eyes slowly lowered back down on the rack. “Oh,” she mumbled. “I see.”

Stupid Kyungsoo. Always accidentally voicing out his thoughts. Why can’t he just keep things to himself, really?

“What do you think about this one?” she asked, lifting up a pastel pink dress.

Kyungsoo gave her a sarcastic thumbs-up. “Great. It’s nice,” he deadpanned. “Looks exactly like all the other clothes in this store.”

“Argh! I’ve had it with you!” she exclaimed, putting back the dress. “This is the first time in a long while that I’ve ever done something like this and you just have to be a killjoy! Can’t you just give me a real sincere opinion? You’re only going to say if it looks good or not!”

“How will I know if it looks good on you if you’re not even trying it on!?” he argued back. “Then here you go, just-” he grabbed the dress from the rack and pushed it towards her, “there! Try it on!”

“Fine, I will!”

“Then go!”

Hyerin huffed, giving him one last glare before storming towards the fitting room and slamming the door behind her. The other customers inside the store gave him curious glances.

Kyungsoo sighed as he followed her, sitting in front of the dressing room and bowing his head down with his elbows rested on top of his knees.

“Get a grip, man,” he whispered to himself. All he had to do was say that the dress looked good on her so she would just buy the damned thing and he could go home. He didn’t know why this was frustrating him so much, but it probably had to do with his feelings and her date with Baekhyun. It was so stupid and ridiculous how he was getting worked up about it, when in the first place he shouldn’t even care.

Then it all goes back down to his feelings and how he suddenly became aware of it. He didn’t even know he had any of that for Hyerin, but the way he's been acting lately was definitely making him think otherwise. Just a few weeks ago, he wouldn’t even give two s about it, but now that’s clearly not the case.

Can feelings grow overnight? Because if it did, that would make a lot of sense. He took out his phone from his pocket, about to type into Google this question of his, when the dressing room in front of him opened.

Hyerin stepped out of the small cubicle. “Kyungsoo.”

“What?” he said, not looking up.

Hyerin glared at him. “I tried it on, look.”

“Wait, I’m busy,” he mumbled, pressing ‘Enter’. He waited for the results to come up.

“You are so unbelievable. You told me to try it on and you’re not even looking at me!”

The results finally came up, but it wasn’t what Kyungsoo expected. “What the ? Can a Uterus Grow Overnight?, 3 Ways to Get Rid of Zits Overnight? My Baby Bump Grew Overni–what the hell is this ?” he scoffed. Talk about no help at all.

“Kyungsoo!”

“What!?” he exclaimed, finally looking up. “I’m kind of busy at the-”

His words got stuck in his throat. He stared at Hyerin standing in front of him, looking stunning in a flowy pastel pink dress.

“Well?” She grinned, waiting for his opinion on the outfit. “What do you think?”

His eyes gradually softened as he stood up from his seat, eyes not leaving Hyerin. He could practically hear his heartbeat pounding violently against his chest,leaving him hopeless that he couldn’t do anything about it. He wanted it to stop, because anyone in their right mind would. It was clear she liked Baekhyun and he probably reciprocated the same feelings, so there was no point in meddling with that. He didn’t want to interfere with anything that was probably starting to bloom between them. That’s just wrong.

“It looks…okay. You look really...feminine. I guess that’s a good thing, right?” he simply said.

Hyerin narrowed her eyes. “That’s all? Really?” she complained, folding her arms.

“Well what do you want me to say?”

“I don’t know, Kyungsoo, aren’t you a straight male? You are, aren’t you? Then tell me your opinion as a straight male!” she said. “You’re not going to tell me I’m cute at all?”

“Cute? Well aren’t you just full of yourself,” he scoffed.

“Come on! Does it look great, fantastic, or beautiful? Does it fit well with my body type or does it compliment the color of my eyes?” She laughed when he raised a brow. “Come on, Kyungsoo. Be a little more descriptive, will you?”

“Descriptive?” She was acting funny again. Way too cheerful and so unlike herself. She should really stop doing that or else his heart would burst.

He shrugged, giving in. “Well I would have never thought that pink would suit you, but it might actually be your color. Not bad, assface, you look pretty,” he said in a light hushed tone, a small charming smile playing on his lips, “really, really pretty.”

Hyerin blinked up at him, stunned. Was Do Kyungsoo smiling at her? The Do Kyungsoo who was always grouchy and arrogant and an ninety-nine percent of the time? Was the world ending tomorrow or what?

It surprised her how it slightly made her heart jump and if she didn’t have enough self-control, she would have probably let out a squeak from how nice he looked smiling. It was a small tight-lipped grin, no teeth or anything, but it gave off a strong impact on her. Kyungsoo never smiled like that, ever, and knowing she was the reason behind it made her feel amazing.

Just when she was about to thank him, he stopped her by gently grasping her arm and stepping closer to her. She looked up at him and the smile was gone, but the after-effects were still messing with her.

“Listen,” he started. “I’m sorry for staying over last night. I shouldn’t have forced the idea on you when you already said you didn’t need it. I should have just left. I mean, if people found out, especially Baekhyun, it might create misunderstandings and I don’t want that now that you guys are getting on each other’s good side.”

Hyerin chuckled, shaking her head at Kyungsoo before enveloping him into a hug, surprising him.

“No,” she said. “That’s not it, it’s just…I wanted you there, you know? I asked you to stay because I needed company, and I’m sure Baekhyun would understand that,” she continued, squeezing him a little. “Thank you for sharing what you thought, though,” she added quietly.

Kyungsoo remained stiff under her hold, pure shock written all over his face, when he just gave in and placed a hesitant arm around her waist.

He was a hypocrite. Just a couple of minutes ago, he was thinking about how he shouldn’t do anything stupid that could ruin Baekhyun and Hyerin’s possible relationship, yet here he was, so comfortable holding her. He was a hypocrite because he wasn’t doing anything to stop her or himself. He was a hypocrite because he needed to keep reminding himself that he really didn’t like her, when in reality, he did.

He was a hypocrite, a really big one, because he would give anything to be in Baekhyun’s place.

“It’s no big deal,” he whispered, a little sad, before pulling away.

---

Kyungsoo sat on the first floor living room, arms and legs crossed as he stared blankly at the television. A cheesy variety show was playing, and Kyungsoo hated variety shows, but he wasn’t watching anyway so what was the point in changing the channel?

He sighed as he lifted his sleeve to check the time. It was exactly seven-thirty in the evening. Around this time he should be taking out the leftovers and heating it up in the microwave for dinner, but it was also the time Baekhyun’s supposed to pick up Hyerin from her house. Unfortunately, the latter is taking up the space in his mind right now for him to even give a about dinner.

“Hey,” Luhan called from behind, leaning against the kitchen’s doorframe. “Come on, we need to prepare the food.”

Kyungsoo rolled his eyes. “Give me a break, will you?” he grumbled, sinking further into his seat. “I fix dinner every single night, it’s about time someone else does it.”

Luhan raised his eyebrows as he circled the couch and sat next to the boy. “What’s up with you?” he asked. “Usually you don’t complain about stuff like this.”

“Well I am now.”

“What is wrong with you?” Luhan laughed, further annoying the boy. “Is this about Hyerin and Baekhyun’s date? Are you jealous?”

“Who said anything about being-”

Kyungsoo’s phone rang in his pocket, cutting his words off. Shooting Luhan one last glare, he answered it.

“Hello?”

It was Hyerin. “Kyungsoo!”

Kyungsoo bolted up from his seat. “Hyerin? What? What is it?” Why was she calling all of a sudden? Was there an emergency?

“I need your help,” she said. “It’s about the date.”

“Why? Is there something wrong?”

“Yes! Yes, there is!” she exclaimed, anxiousness seeping through her voice. “I’m so nervous, I don’t think I can go on with this!”

Kyungsoo’s face tensed. “What are you talking about?”

“I’ve never been on a date, idiot. What if everything goes wrong?” she asked. “What if he doesn’t like the way I look? My shoes, hair, jewelry–all that stuff! What if he doesn’t like it? Or my dress? What if he doesn’t like me?”

Kyungsoo sighed. This girl seriously needed a little more faith in herself. “It’s going to be fine, you idiot.”

“No it’s not. I want him to see me at my best and I-” She sighed, closing her eyes to calm herself, “I should have just went with my usual clothes, he’s probably going to think I look stupid.”

“No. Calm down, will you?” he said. “Is he there already?”

“He’s been downstairs in his car for maybe a little over two minutes.”

Kyungsoo put a palm to his face. “Look, can you just,” he sighed, “can you just stop whatever you’re doing and do me a favor?”

“What?”

“Find the nearest mirror around you and stand in front of it.”

“But Baekhyun’s waiting!”

“Just do it! You already made him wait long enough.”

“Fine,” she mumbled, walking towards her tall bedroom mirror. “What now?”

“Now, look at yourself,” he instructed.

“Alright,” she muttered, giving herself a onceover.

The line became quiet. “Are you doing it?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“Good,” he murmured. “Now don’t you see how beautiful you look?”

Hyerin's face fell. “Kyungsoo, I-”

“You know, honestly? Whether you’re in a dress or in just your regular clothes you look perfectly fine and I’m more than a hundred percent sure that Baekhyun would appreciate you either way,” he said. “I don’t know why you’re getting so nervous about this because trust me; any guy would be down on their knees with you looking like that.”

He couldn’t stop his lips from slightly quirking upward when he heard Hyerin’s quiet laugh. “Once you step out of that door and Baekhyun sees you like that, he’ll go completely crazy. To have such a lovely, lovely girl as a date,” his voice gradually softened as he longingly stared up at the ceiling, “he’ll realize just how lucky he is.”

Hyerin’s eyebrows curled up as she smiled at her reflection, laughing breathlessly while holding her phone against her ear. “You really think so?”

“I really think so.”

Hyerin slowly walked over to her window, pushing the curtains to look outside. A silver car was parked in front of the gates, engine already running.

She took a deep breath. “Thank you, Kyungsoo. I wouldn’t know what to do without you.”

“No problem,” he said. “Now go. Hurry or you’ll be late.”

“Okay, okay,” she chuckled. “Bye.”

“Bye.”

Click.

Once the call ended, Kyungsoo collapsed back on the couch and closed his eyes, sighing.

“Hm, I see what this is,” Luhan mumbled, placing his elbows on the backrest of the couch while his temples rested on top of his knuckles. “Getting yourself friend-zoned, huh?”

“Shut up, Luhan,” Kyungsoo scowled before bolting up from the couch, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

---

The movie theater lobby was packed with people, either going on a date, hanging out with friends, or alone. It was relatively noisy and crowded, kids playing with the arcade machines and adults chatting while waiting in line to get food from the snack bar, but Hyerin didn’t mind because they would be inside the theaters soon anyway.

“So have you ever been to the movies with friends before, Hyerin?” Baekhyun asked as he looked through the movies that were airing that night.

Hyerin nodded. “Yeah, but it was a long time ago with Soojung, my friend back in middle school.”

“I see,” he mumbled. “Then I assume you haven’t gone with a guy.”

She grinned bashfully. “No, I haven't.”

“Great,” he chuckled, taking her hand and leading her to the ticket booth. “I’m honored to be the first one, then.”

Hyerin felt her whole body jolt from excitement as Baekhyun took her hand. It might not mean anything, but nonetheless, she couldn’t help but feel giddy over it. She was holding the hand of the boy she liked, why wouldn’t she be?

Hyerin watched as Baekhyun bought two tickets for a comedy movie, looking handsome in his long-sleeved flannel shirt and white converse. His dark brown hair was pushed back, and he looked absolutely stunning.

She thought they would be going straight to the restaurant he was talking about the other day, but to her surprise, he took her to the movie theater. He said that the night wouldn't be complete without doing anything fun, to which she agreed to right away. It had been a while since she last saw a movie on the big screen after all, the last being with her dad a couple of months before this school year started.

Her gaze went back to Baekhyun – he was casually fixing his rolled up sleeve while waiting for their tickets. She didn’t even know why she got so nervous in the first place. Once she stepped out of the door, Baekhyun greeted her with a smile and a compliment. He acted like how he normally did with her, and that gave her the sense of comfort she'd wanted to feel all day long. Kyungsoo was right; Baekhyun would appreciate her no matter how she looked or acted.

Baekhyun turned around, grinning at her in an excited manner as he held up two tickets to Dumb & Dumber between his fingers.

"This is going to be awesome," he said, taking her hand again before walking towards the snack bar to get something to eat. "You know, people always assume that I'm not into comedy movies since they say I'm always either too quiet or uptight but it's actually my favorite movie genre."

"You can't blame them, though. I was relatively surprised as well when you chose that film," she chuckled.

"What can I say?" he asked, looking at her playfully. "I'm a guy full of surprises."

Hyerin laughed. He was a guy full of surprises. A quiet painter who's actually a rockstar at night? Definitely.

"So," he started as the long line moved forward, "any news about Yukihara?"

"No, not really," she said in a hushed tone, shrugging. "He won't speak up no matter what the others do, even when they're practically beating him up until he blacks out. The money is hidden in the underground vault so we shouldn't be worried about that, and then the chip I found in his hotel room is with Chen and the others. They're actually working on tracking where it's from right now at M-LX."

"I see." He nodded, folding his arms. "He really doesn't take a break from all of this, huh?"

"No. No, he doesn't," she said, a small smile tugging on her lips. "I don't think we would come this far if it weren't for Chen. I'm just so happy that he chose to be a part of this no matter how scared he was back then."

He gave her a teasing grin. "And it's all thanks to you and you're acting skills."

Hyerin slapped his arm. "I was just doing my job!" she said in her defense.

Baekhyun laughed. "I know and I'm happy you managed to get us all to join M-LX," he said seriously this time. "If it weren't for you, we would still be stuck in our boring lives right now. The guys and I didn't even give a damn about each other before this. Now we can't even let a day pass by without seeing each other..." he trailed off, eyes flickering with reminiscence and uncertainty. It fascinated her.

"But most of all, I wouldn't have met you."

He gave her a heart-stopping smile, the kind where you feel like it's the most precious thing in the world. Well, Hyerin thought Baekhyun was the most precious thing in the world, anyway. Even the little things he does and says when they're together made her heart leap out of her chest. It worried her that this might cause her to seem a little too into him, but she just couldn't help it. No one could ever stop from liking someone as charming as Byun Baekhyun.

"You really know how to sweep a girl off her feet, don't you?" she asked quietly, admiringly looking up at him.

Baekhyun turned away, an uneasy smile tugging on his lips. "Maybe."

The rest of the date continued perfectly. The movie was fantastic, and although her focus was not entirely on the film, it was satisfying to just hear Baekhyun's laughter resound in the air. She found herself constantly sneaking glances at him and honestly, that was enough for her.

After the movie, they drove to the restaurant he was talking about and he was right; the place was really fancy. It was a big Italian restaurant with romantic lighting and velvet curtains, vintage pictures and paintings scattered around the vicinity as a quiet violin instrumental played in the background.

They chatted throughout dinner and not once did the conversation die down as they talked about every topic there was. It was a relaxed night for the both of them, and there was no better way to spend it than this.

Hyerin laughed out loud at something funny that Baekhyun said, fork and knife at hand as she struggled to keep shut. 

"How dare you crack a joke when I'm in the middle of chewing my food!" She glared at him, wiping the sides of with a table napkin.

"Well, you shouldn't have laughed! Know your proper table etiquette."

"Oh, yeah? Then please do enlighten me, kind sir."

"Of course," he said in a light tone. "The first rule is to never talk when your mouth is full. Clearly, you already failed in that particular subject so I'm sorry to say that you don't have table manners."

Hyerin gasped dramatically, acting scandalized. "How dare you say that in front of a lady's face!"

"The truth hurts."

"But lies are worse."

Baekhyun unintentionally dropped his knife unto his plate, making a loud, distracting clinking sound.

Hyerin frowned. "You okay?"

"Yeah," he abruptly answered, eyes conciously darting down as he his lips. His mouth formed a small frown, and the sudden change in his mood slightly threw her off.

Before she could question him, though, he looked back up at her, the smile back on his face. "Hyerin, when I said I was happy to have met you I really meant it," he started out of nowhere, leaning forward on the table. "I've never met a girl like you before, and I can't help but admire how strong and powerful you are. You're different and I hope you don't change that about yourself. It's what makes you special."

Hyerin fumbled with the hem of her skirt under the table, cheeks heating up from his sweet words. Baekhyun was absolutely perfect; so perfect that even his flaws were attractive to her. He was nice and funny and smart and talented and if he continues to be this amazing she might just burst any minute now.

Did he know what he was doing to her? Because if he didn't, she was going to tell him right now.

"I like you," she blurted, eyes widening from a different kind of adrenaline. Baekhyun’s eyes widened.

"I really, really like you and I just have to say that to your face right now. I don't know how it started or when it started but I really don't care 'cause I really like you and that's all that matters to me. It's bothering me how I find you so amazing because I've never experienced something like this before, but even though I have no clue as to where I'm getting the courage to confess to you like this, I'm not stupid to not know that I like you," she gulped, “and I'm kind of hoping that you like me, too."

It felt like a burdensome weight lifted from her chest as she confessed all that, eyes not leaving his that were clearly wide from shock. The air was tense as his mouth fell open, unsure of what to say.

Hyerin bit her lip, food long forgotten as anticipation continued to make her heart thump violently against her chest. If she weren’t the strong-willed girl she was, she would have already passed out. She just really, really wanted him to say yes. That way, it would be easier and everyone would be happy. They’d spend everyday together, eat together, and do fun things together. She’d get the life she’d always wanted, and he’d get his.

But then his dumbstruck expression contorted into distress and just like that, her fantasies went down the drain just as fast as it surfaced.

Baekhyun frowned, eyes slightly wide from devastation as he stared down at the table. “Hyerin, I-” he stammered. “I-”

“Is there something wrong?” she asked uncertainly.

“No. It’s just that I, the thing is—,” he rambled, leaning back against his chair and looking everywhere but her. “I’m so sorry, this is just–I’m so sorry.”

“Oh my god,” she exhaled, looking away and tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. She could feel the back of her eyes heating up, but she wanted so badly not to cry. “What’s wrong? Why are you saying sorry?”

“I’m so sorry, I didn’t know I was leading you on, I just-”

That was all it took for Hyerin to block out whatever he was saying. She stared at her lap in disbelief, sadness and embarrassment eating her away as she gripped the armchair so hard her knuckles turned white. Her surroundings blurred and it felt like there was only Baekhyun and her. This was not happening. This was seriously not happening to her.

“Are you not over Yoona?” she asked, biting the inside of her cheek.

“What? No, no! That’s not it, I-”

“You’re not over Yoona,” she said with finality. “God, I’m so stupid.”

She was so stupid because she knew this all along, yet she chose to just ignore it. Hyerin knew how he looked whenever they talked about the girl. Even during the ball, he looked so hurt seeing Yoona with Yongguk. She was dumb and ridiculous to even think there was going to be a chance.

But Baekhyun begged to differ. He looked at her straight in the eye with the same look of regret and guilt he’d been sporting for the past five minutes. “This is not about Yoona. It’s something different,” he said firmly. “Hyerin, I-”

“What?”

She had never seen Baekhyun look so torn before. It almost made her feel sorry for him, but her pain overpowered that on a different level.

She blinked rapidly, willing herself not to cry. “Tell me,” she said. “What is it?”

“No, I can’t tell you.”

“Why not?”

“I just,” he exhaled through his nose and ran his hands through his hair, “I just can’t.”

Hyerin angrily wiped the tears rolling down her cheeks, mascara running along with it. “Then don’t bother explaining yourself. It’s alright. I shouldn’t have assumed that you liked me back in the first place. It was my fault for being so stupid. I’m sorry.”

“No, Hyerin you don’t understand-”

The ringing of her phone inside her purse cut off Baekhyun’s words. She sniffed, somewhat relieved, and opened her bag to retrieve the phone. It was Agent Zero.

“Hello?” she answered, avoiding Baekhyun's worried gaze.

“Agent. You are with Baekhyun, am I correct?” he asked right away.

“Yes. Why?”

“You need to come to the quarters immediately. There is an emergency and we need you two here.”

Her eyebrows furrowed. “Why, what happened?”

“Our HQ got ambushed, Blue escaped, and ZiTao got kidnapped.”

---

The room was bustling with activity when Baekhyun and Hyerin came in. M-LX detectives and agents were investigating the ruined office while some staff cleaned up the mess. Papers and folders were scattered on the floor, file cabinets were toppled over and desks were thrown to the other side of the room. The glass wall on the left was completely shattered, letting the chilly wind inside the office.

Everyone was already there, including Agent Zero and even Suzy. Hyerin walked towards them with Baekhyun trailing behind, her dress swaying with the wind.

"What happened?" Hyerin asked, swiping a finger under her eyes just in case there was smeared mascara.

Everyone turned to them. "Finally, you're here,” Suho sighed, walking over to them. “We’ve been waiting for you.”

“We came here as soon as you called,” Baekhyun said.

Kai stood up from his crouching position in front of the shattered wall, eyeing the two suspiciously. “Why are you all dressed up?”

“We…” Baekhyun warily side-glanced Hyerin who was now talking with Chanyeol and Sehun. “We went out for dinner.”

“Together?” Kai asked, heart sinking at the thought of the two alone. Kyungsoo, on the other hand, frowned at Baekhyun. They were acting strange and distant from each other for some reason.

“Whatever.” Baekhyun shook his head. “What happened?”

“Luhan and I were busy researching about the chip Hyerin found the other day at Yukihara’s hotel while Tao just stood by in here with us since he said there was nothing to do at home,” Chen explained with panic still in his voice. “Then suddenly, we heard noises outside and some people screaming. Tao went out to see what was happening. Some of the Immitis Clan and night crawlers were everywhere with Durus, Blue and another guy we didn’t recognize. They vandalized the premises and took Tao away.”

“And you know how Tao is,” Luhan added, squeezing the bridge of his nose. “He’s always confident about himself so he doesn’t use his time control. He was so sure he’d be able to defeat them without using his powers but then…” he trailed off, sighing heavily as he looked down on his shoes.

Hyerin rubbed her temples. “What about Blue? How’d he get out?”

“They bombed Asylum 413N,” Kris explained, folding his arms. “It was a good thing they used a low intensity bomb so only Blue’s cell got jacked up. If they used a bigger bomb, the other prisoners would have escaped as well.”

“What about the other guy you were talking about? The one with Durus and Blue?”

“His name is TOP,” Agent Zero cut in, holding up a blurry screenshot picture of a man with white hair and distinct features, clad in brown slacks, a white dress shirt and suspenders. He also sported black dress shoes and a brown fedora. “We caught them on the surveillance camera and as soon as I saw him, I immediately recognized him. He’s the son of Choi Soohyun, an ex-weapon specialist here in M-LX.”

“Then why is he with Durus, then?” Lay asked.

“His father was kicked out of M-LX because he was caught stealing dangerous chemicals from the lab and conducting self experiments on his own son,” Agent Zero explained. “Because of this, TOP became pathokinetic, someone who can manipulate a person’s emotions. He’s probably here to get revenge for his father.”

Everyone in the room fell silent, physically and emotionally drained from everything that was happening. It was extremely tiring to be so clueless about the whole situation and frustrating when they couldn’t find anything to solve the problem.

“Tao…” Sehun worriedly mumbled while Suho patted his back.

Xiumin ran a hand through his face. “What do we do now?”

“We need to find a way to get Tao back,” Chanyeol said.

“How are we going to do that? Hell, we don’t even know where they are!” Kyungsoo said.

“Well, that might help,” Kai said, pointing to the wall behind them.

Everyone turned around to where the boy pointed. They gasped as they read the chilling words spray-painted on the wall in red.

‘Give us what’s ours and we’ll give back what’s yours.’

Hyerin’s tired face tensed as she re-read the phrase. “The money and the chip,” she said. “They want it back.”

The others gave her an uneasy look before Suho spoke up.

“Hyerin, I don’t think that’s the only thing they want,” he said, walking over to the wall. Hyerin didn’t notice it before, but there was a photograph stuck in the wall with a small knife. Suho ripped it off, slowly making his way over to Hyerin to show her.

She peered over it, only to see her own dark eyes staring back at her.

“The  is this?” she hissed, snatching the photo from Suho and crumpling it in her hands. Was this about her again? Was she the reason why Tao got kidnapped and why they trashed M-LX?

Anger bubbled up inside her as she balled her hands into fists and clenched her jaw. She’s had enough of these stupid games. She’s had enough of feeling guilty all the damned time for giving more trouble to everyone. To be honest, they were only going through all these hardships because of her.

In the end, it was really all because of her.

“What do they want?” she asked in a dangerously low voice. “What is it that they want from me so bad that they have to involve innocent people into this?”

“Hyerin, it’s okay-”

“No, it’s not okay!” she exclaimed, whipping around to face Agent Zero. “Do you know? Do you have any idea why they’re doing this? Because I’m getting so damn tired of all this when in the end all they really want is me!”

“Hyerin,” the older man mumbled worriedly.

“I’ve been quiet about this matter for a very long time now, but I don’t think I can keep my mouth shut when people I love are getting kidnapped! What’s in me, Zero!? What do they want!?”

Hyerin started to go into hysterics, kicking tables and throwing scattered objects at the graffiti on the wall. Her face was getting red from fury as Kyungsoo and Chanyeol attempted to calm her down.

“Hyerin, stop,” Chanyeol said in a soft voice.

“Calm down, Hyerin,” Kyungsoo ordered, grabbing her wrist. “Stop it right now.”

“What do they want?” she demanded, clutching Agent Zero's collar. “Just tell me and I’ll give it to them!”

“Just you.” Agent M appeared at the doorway, eyes downcast and arms folded against his chest. “All they want is you.”

Everyone stared wide-eyed at Agent M as he walked inside the room. “I know you’ve noticed the drastic changes happening to your body, Hyerin. You even approached me about it, asking me to help you figure out what it was. I told you I didn’t find anything that day we did a check-up but in reality, you really are changing,” he started. “And it’s all because of one thing.”

He made his way over to Hyerin, lifting his guilt-filled eyes from the ground to meet her devastated ones. “You were born two months earlier than due and that seemed to cause problems with you. You had a heart defect, which caused us all to panic that you might end up dead. Me and your mom, we wanted to have a baby so bad, and finally finding out that the time has finally come…it made both of us so happy,” he said. “We couldn’t accept the fact that you might end up dying. You were born in M-LX’s medical center, and since I had a high position as well as your mom, everyone did everything to make you live, and what I mean by everything, I mean everything.”

Hyerin stared at him warily. "What did you do?"

“We did every procedure there was, but nothing was working. We were getting so upset, until they said there was a last resort,” he explained. “The lab suggested to use technologically advanced chemicals and small machine components to keep your heart pumping to which we agreed to. So they proceeded to inject different kinds of chemicals into you and inserted a small metal bioelectric device into your heart and surprisingly, it worked. You were alive, well, and healthy, but there was a side effect to all the chemicals inserted in your body and all the foreign components running your heart.

"It gave you superhuman abilities like excessive strength, speed, power…it was only a matter of time before it took effect. The doctors and scientists explained this to us beforehand. I was reluctant to go forth with it, but your mother agreed right away. We argued about this a lot, and it was one of the reasons why we had a divorce in the first place.

“I was so persistent on not going forth with it because I knew she would want you to get involved in all this. But she was the mother, so they proceeded to go with her decision anyway. So to make the long story short, you survived because of the engineered lethal components. ‘Till this day, it’s what keeps you alive and going,” he said, eyes lowering down to the floor as his voice gradually became softer. “If those engines running in your heart stop…you’ll be a goner in less than a second. To be quite honest, that must be what they want from you and I’m-” he paused and sighed heavily, “I’m sorry I never told you about this earlier. I know I should have. I’m so sorry.”

Hyerin stared at her father the whole time, forced to listen to the truth she’d wanted to know for so long. The questions she’d been asking were finally answered, there was no more being clueless now, but knowing that both her parents had been keeping something from her this whole time made her nauseous.

Her vision blurred with tears, not having the strength to be angry anymore. By the way her father looked at her, she already knew that he was aware of how she felt and what she was about to say. There were no words needed for him to realize that.

“Well thanks for telling me anyway,” she said with pure bitterness, storming past Agent M to leave the room. The others attempted to stop her, but she was too quick on her feet and too desperate to get away from the continuing trepidation she called life.

Unfortunately, they were too slow to catch up.

---

A/N: Yes, the new guy is TOP of Big Bang.