---xxvii;;

The cafeteria was lively with the chatter of the student body, a massive stream of conversations flowing through the enclosed space. Exo themselves were most likely one of the loudest, laughing raucously and jumping on the table. Shiyeon shook her head at their tendencies, questioning why she decided to sit with them.

Oh right. Kai.

Her gaze shifted to her greasily grinning boyfriend that had grabbed her hand under the table and raised a brow. She sighed to herself, allowing the male to do what he wanted. Honestly, why is he sticking with me? It was just a bet, Shiyeon pressed her lips into a thin line, exhaling roughly, just what goes on in his mind anyway? Is he even serious about this relationship—wait, is Saebyul being quiet today?

Her internal frustrations and insecurities melted away as she refocused on her best friend and connection to Exo, blinking slowly, “Byul…is something bothering you?”

The rest of Exo silenced themselves immediately, turning their attention to Saebyul whom had barely touched her food, an extremely uncharacteristic act. She was mindlessly sipping on a juice box, deep in thought with her palm supporting her head.

“Byul?”

“…”

“Yah Ryu Saebyul!”

Said girl choked when Shiyeon hollered her name, staring her at worriedly. She recomposed herself, wiping before giving the younger female a wide-eyed, questioning look.

Shiyeon frowned, “What’s up with you?”

Saebyul’s brows furrowed, barely paying noticing as the mass of men leaned closer to listen in on her explanation, “Yeon, have you heard from Jonghae recently?”

Her younger brother’s name shocked her, concern flashing through her mind within a millisecond, “No, I haven’t really contacted my family since last week. Why? Did something happen?”

“You know how my family has been in Korea for the past few weeks?” she explained slowly, waiting until Shiyeon nodded in confirmation, “Well, a couple days ago Eunhye came home crying and roughed up. She wouldn’t say what happened, just that some kids ganged up on her, and Ilsan didn’t know anything.” Everyone perked up at the mention of the snarky girl’s younger siblings, “This morning, one of my parents’ stores was raided. Nothing was stolen, but everything was trashed. Something’s happening.”

The new shocked the group, but Shiyeon only nodded calmly.

“Don’t worry, I’ll talk to my parents about it.”

“Hold her down!”

“Get her arms, hurry up!”

“GET THE OFF ME!” Saebyul roared, ripping her arms from Chanyeol and Kris’s strong grips. She tore through the hall of the hospital, violently shoving everything in her way without heeding the panicked nurses. It wasn’t long before she successfully threatened a nurse into telling her the room her brother was in, and barged inside. Shiyeon only followed as fast as she could without attempting to offer any words to calm down her enraged best friend. The rest of Exo lagged behind, apologizing rapidly and cleaning up the mess left behind as best as they could.

The conversation she had last night with her parents was stuck in her head.

“Jonghae’s fine, why? Did something happen to you?” her mother had questioned worriedly. Shiyeon shook her head, frowning, “No, but Ilsan and Eunhye got hurt and their stores were messed up.”

Her father contemplated the idea, “I don’t know what’s happening, but if Jonghae and the restaurant are okay, then this is just in Korea. Perhaps it does not even involve us whatsoever, but we’ll look into it for Saebyul’s family. Still try to be careful in the meantime, okay?”

The woman only nodded solemnly before ending the video chat.

Shaking the thoughts from her mind, Shiyeon entered the hospital room silently to find a shuddering Saebyul holding onto her seven year old brother tightly. Exo crowded at the doorway, each trying to get a look at the mystery that was the Ryu family only to have the door close on everyone but Shiyeon.

It took 30 minutes of anxious waiting, hushed speaking, and angered outbursts before the door reopened. Shiyeon revealed herself, closing the door behind her as quietly as she could before she gave a nod of acknowledgement, “They’re going back to the states for the time being.” She announced.

Sehun pouted, having registered the news fastest, “How long is noona going for?”

The brunette shook her head yet again, already starting to take out her phone, “Saebyul isn’t going, so I hope you know what this means.”

Suho sighed, “She’s not safe here.”

“She’s the only one available while her parents manage the main branch,” Shiyeon deadpanned, “She needs us, to protect her and stabilize the business. My parents are helping, but there’s not much they can do when they’re not here physically.”

“Shouldn’t we find the culprit first?”

Kris turned at Xiumin’s innocent inquiry, having remained silent and passive through the entire conversation, “That’s the next step. We take out the root.”

A small grin reached Shiyeon’s features, eyes connecting with the concerned gaze of Kai’s.

“And I know just where to start.”