I looked down at the envelope that Minho had given me. I glanced at him, then Taemin.

"Wait!" I heard my self cry out. Everyone turned.

I ran towards Taemin and Minho.

"Ga In..." Taemin whispered.

"I'm really sorry I got you guys into this. It's all my fault. If I go back, it will only ruin your reputation even more. Please forget about me and have a successful career." I handed the envelope back to Taemin and closed his hand, sealing my promise. I turned around, but something held me back. Minho was grabbing onto my hand. 

"No. If you won't come, I won't either,"his voice cracked with emotion. Taemin shuffled uncomfortably next to him.

I looked into his deep, chocolate eyes. They were fierce with strength, but underneath all his showy courage and anger, I detected a sense of fear. He was terrified. I choked back a gasp as the realization hit me. 

This wasn't just about me. He knew what would happen to him when he went back. If he was patient, the band could regain support and fame, but he didn't have the confidence to do that. He would leave.

"Minho--"

"I'll see you. And yes, I will see you later."

He his heel and walked away. Taemin held out the envelope. I shook my head.

"Spare yourselves some beating. I have money, too." I smiled and directed Taemin to where Minho had gone. He waved as he walked away. He didn't notice the tears in my eyes through my smile.

I turned around when they were out of sight. I turned to Joseph. 

"Joseph. I'm sorry about my outburst. She's a good person. She'll lead us back to our mom. I'll try to trust her on this one."

I turned to Jinhee. She was crossing her arms in skepticism.

"I'm not happy, but I'll do what you tell me to do."

Her face flinched slightly. I smirked at her confusion. When she recovered, I let her lead us away.

We walked for a few minutes into another gate that led to another flight. Without a word, we boarded the plane. We were going back to Seoul.

Close to home.. I thought, surprised at the fact that I felt more at home in Korea than in America with my broken Korean and mostly American childhood.

Joseph fell asleep while watching television, his headphones drooping down. I reached over to catch it, but another hand reached it first. My eyes followed the arm up to its owner. I growled at the face. Suh Jinhee. Now she was taking my place?

I snatched my arm back, as did Jinhee. The headphones dropped down with a bang, waking Joseph. He fluttered his eyes open and closed.

"What's going on? Where are we going now, Jinhee noona? Oh wait.. I remember now." I gritted my teeth.

There it was again: Noona. I turned toward the window. The sky around us was grey and black. It wasn't raining, but it looked like it might. I closed the blind and pretended to watch. Joseph shrugged passively and went back to watching his show. I looked blankly at the shampoo ad that was airing on NBC. I slowly felt myself drift off.

When I woke up, it was three hours later. The captain was announcing that the passengers should be prepared to experience turbulence. I ignored the fasten seat belt sign and went to the bathroom.

I had passed on both meals served on the plane, but I wasn't hungry. The attendant eyed me, but I gave her anapologetic look and went inside. The small, tight airplain bathroom smelled of ammonia and cleaning fluids. I got a toothbrush from the cabinet and washed my face. The airplane shook violently, but I didn't feel anything except my own heartbeat. 

I suddenly felt very dizzy. I closed my eyes, leaning against the white tile. The airplane was still shaking. The captain gave another announcement to go back to our seats, but couldn't. 

Then, I felt impact. Darkness spread throughout my vision. I remembered crying out. And I uttered nothing more.