CHAPTER NINETEEN

It was almost dawn when the boys reached the train station. The whole duration of their travel, Jaehwan kept his mouth shut even though the curiosity was killing him. He wanted to ask Hakyeon why it was just the two of them. Where were Sanghyuk and the three other boys? But he knew that Hakyeon does what he does with a reason and so, he decided to trust him.

Nearing the station, Jaehwan could slightly make out a silhouette sitting on one of the benches. Upon closer inspection, he realizes that it was Sanghyuk. Forgetting about his fatigue and the pain in his feet, Jaehwan runs towards Sanghyuk and engulfs him in a hug. “Sanghyuk-ah, I thought I won’t see you anymore,”

Sanghyuk doesn’t say anything and only pats Jaehwan’s shoulder. The two boys finally let go of each other when Hakyeon clears his throat. “Well, the next train won’t be for a few hours, so I suggest we rest here somewhere. We’ll need all the energy we can get,” Hakyeon says, tightening his grip on his bag.

Jaehwan finally asks the question that has been bugging him since their escape. “Where are Taekwoon-hyung, Wonshik and Hongbin, hyung? Why aren’t they with us? Are we leaving them behind hyung? Or did they go ahead and are meeting us there?” at the thought, Jaehwan smiles but it soon disappears the moment he sees the boys’ expressions. “Is there-, are you hiding something from me?”

Hakyeon and Sanghyuk look at each other before deciding that it was best for Jaehwan to know the truth. Hakyeon clears his throat, pushing back the tears that were threatening to fall. “Remember what I told you, Jaehwan-ah? That one day, the administration will want to get rid of us? T-they injected the final serum into the three other boys. They’re no longer themselves, Jaehwan-ah,” Hakyeon says. By now, he was already crying.

“B-but it’s them we’re talking about hyung, I mean, there’s no-,” Jaehwan finds himself unable to finish his sentence the moment he sees Hakyeon’s tears. It was the first time he saw Hakyeon cry. The same Hakyeon who was always smiling and making them laugh was now a broken mess. Jaehwan knew how hard it for Hakyeon to leave the others. It was hard for him, and it was definitely harder for Hakyeon. “I’m sorry hyung,”

Hakyeon shakes his head. “You have no reason to be sorry, Jaehwan-ah. It was my fault for not telling you. Of course, I’m not telling the two of you to forget them. No, but you have to be careful. We all have to be careful. I will do everything I can to protect you but you also have to protect yourselves. Well, we still have a few hours before the train arrives, the two of you should go get some rest,”

The two boys, finally realizing their exhaustion simply nods as they start to fall asleep. Hakyeon simply sits, his mind remembering a conversation he had with Wonshik the previous month. At the memory, Hakyeon couldn’t help but frown at the thought of having been betrayed by the people he called friends; by the people he called his family and especially by the person he held dear. It wasn’t his fault; it wasn’t anybody’s fault but the human in him wanted to put the blame on someone.

“Wonshik-ah,” Hakyeon calls out to the younger boy. Wonshik drops whatever it was that he was doing and opens the door to let the older boy in. They haven’t seen each other in a while, Wonshik having been out in an assignment for a while. “Wonshik-ah, you’re the one I trust the most, out of all the boys, which is why I’m asking you this; if ever you’re given the choice on whether to kill me or not, will you pull the trigger?”

That time, Wonshik laughed at him like it was the funniest joke. “What are you talking about hyung? I won’t, of course. I mean, we’re family, right? Why would family kill each other? It’s unheard of. Why are you asking things you already know the answer to?” Wonshik says as he laughs and pats Hakyeon’s shoulder who only gives a small smile.

“You didn’t even give a second thought when you pulled the trigger,”

I finally updated! I'm so so sorry for the long delay. I've just been so busy with school that I couldn't find the time to finish this chapter (which has been laying around my laptop for a while now). I can't promise frequent updates but I'll try my best.