One week passed, and Youngjae was able to limp around without too much fuss.  They'd all managed to stay safely hidden from the Republic, but Yongguk insisted that everybody stay alert in case something does happen. They watched the news, saw how Zico had taken over for them for the time being, organizing and gathering people.

"A-As you can see," the reporter stuttered, glancing at the chaos behind her, "things are quickly spiraling out of control h-here in New Seoul."

Zico passed by on the screen, riding a scooter behind Jaehyo. They hopped off, dropping the scooter to the ground. They strode towards the reporter, wicked smiles on their faces. Zico snatched the microphone from the reporter's hands, and Jaehyo took hold of the camera.

"Things are completely fine here in New Seoul," Zico announced, running away from the crew with Jaehyo following him. The camera bounced precariously with every step Jaehyo took. "We got some soldiers here, and–– Oh, would you look at that, people are finally ing fighting back!"

"How reckless can Zico get?" Youngjae asked as Zico continued his "news report".

"Pretty reckless," Yongguk replied.

Daehyun snickered. "How do you think he and his group managed to get on the Republic's most wanted list?"

Youngjae said nothing, only continued to watch Zico.

"Isn't this ing beautiful?!" Zico shouted just before the feed was cut off and returned to the station.

The anchor stared, silent and horrified, but quickly composed himself. "We apologize immensely for the inconvenience. Back to our regular broadcast..."

A second week passed, and Youngjae's leg had gotten considerably better. It probably helped that Jieun bought some medicine earlier in the week. Zico also dropped off the weapons he promised.

"Man, whatever, just keep the thing. Ammo's in there, too," Zico said, placing a box of firearms on Jieun's coffee table. He stretched as everybody else gathered around the box. "God, that thing's heavy."

Yongguk examined the contents of the box, nodding to himself. "Thanks, Zico."

"No problem. See you guys later," Zico said, exiting the apartment.

When Jieun came back in the evening, she practically paled at all the weapons and ammo lying on her coffee table. Yongguk looked up at her, and hastily gathered the things back into the box.

Jieun stopped him, sighing. "I'm not even going to ask."

As a third week rolled around, it'd gotten apparent that everybody was getting restless. Yongguk constantly paced the apartment hours at a time; Himchan would check on Youngjae's leg more than strictly necessary; Daehyun would flip through the TV channels listlessly; Jongup would do push-ups with Junhong sitting on his back; and somehow, Youngjae had healed much faster than Himchan had predicted. He was walking perfectly fine, and he didn't feel a thing out of place. It was as if he'd never been shot.

"That's...weird," Himchan muttered to himself as he examined Youngjae's scar. "It should just barely be beginning to heal. Not that this isn't phenomenal, it is. It's just...weird."

Youngjae craned his neck to peek at his scar. It'd blackened over time, indented against the pink, puckered skin. A couple more weeks, and it'd be a pale, jagged circle.

"Maybe it's the medicine Jieun bought?" Youngjae asked, lying back down again.

"Hmm, I guess," Himchan said, his voice going quiet.

"Man, that's nasty," Junhong commented.

"Thanks for the helpful input," Youngjae said, not even bothering to look up at Junhong.

Jieun didn't come home from work by the end of the third week. Youngjae feared the worst, and he paced the living room, bit his nails, felt his stomach twist and turn in anxiety as the hours passed. He glanced at the clock, sighing as the numbers displayed 1:12.

"She's probably dead. This is all my fault. I shouldn't have brought her into this," Youngjae muttered under his breath. He rubbed his face, ran his hands through his hair, tried to distract himself from his thoughts, but they refused to be pushed away, coming back stronger.

"It's not your fault," Daehyun said, sitting on the couch. "She's not dead. She's perfectly fine. Maybe she's buying something, or maybe she's visiting a friend's house.

Youngjae stopped, turning to look at Daehyun. "At one in the morning?"

Daehyun held up his hands, showing he didn't want to fight. "I'm just trying to help. You won't do any good worrying."

"Then what am I supposed to do?" Youngjae cried. "Jieun could be detained, or worse, dead!"

"Hey, are you guys––" Jongup stopped when he saw the scene before him, and turned around. "Never mind."

Youngjae took a deep breath, and threw himself onto the couch, groaning into the pillows. He felt Daehyun rub his back, his fingers and palms massaging the knots out. Youngjae melted into the touch.

"I can't help but feel something bad happened to her, and it's my fault," Youngjae said, flipping over and placing his legs on Daehyun's lap.

"It's not, though," Daehyun replied, leaning back into the couch. "We're not even sure where she could be yet."

"That's why I'm worried," Youngjae replied. "And I just... I want to look for her, but I don't know the first place to go."

"I'm sure she's fine," Daehyun reassured. He grabbed Youngjae's hand, pulling him up, and kissed his forehead, then his cheeks, and eventually his lips. He leaned back slightly, and pressed his own forehead against Youngjae's. "You're overreacting."

"Am I?" Youngjae asked, but he didn't really want Daehyun to answer.

Yongguk suddenly burst into the apartment, eyes blown wide. He slammed the door shut, and began packing everything. Youngjae knew something was wrong, and he wished it had nothing to do with Jieun.

"Yongguk?" Daehyun called out, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

"We gotta go," Yongguk replied. He went into the hallway, opening doors and waking everybody up. "Guys! Wake the up! We're leaving!"

"It's one in the morning," Himchan groaned, leaning on the doorframe. "Yongguk, what the––"

"Legion soldiers," Yongguk interrupted, returning to the living room to finish gathering everything. "Go wake Jongup and Junhong."

Himchan cursed under his breath, the last bits of sleep gone, and went to shepherd the two youngest out of the bedroom.

Youngjae felt his stomach sink and his heart lodge itself in his throat. He looked at Daehyun, but Daehyun simply shook his head, as if to say It's not what you think.

"If you guys could help out, that'd be great," Yongguk said, a tinge of irritation lining his voice.

"Come on, Jae," Daehyun said, gently moving Youngjae's legs off his lap. He patted Youngjae's shoulder, and moved to help Yongguk.

"Kill the lights," Yongguk ordered, and Daehyun obeyed.

The apartment was engulfed in darkness, and it took a couple moments for Youngjae's eyes to adjust.

"Out through the veranda," Yongguk said. He began moving, just barely a darker shadow against the walls. "Himchan, you there?"

"Here."

"Jongup?"

A groggy Jongup grunted.

"Junhong?"

"Present."

"Youngjae?"

Youngjae stood up. "Right here."

A warm hand wrapped around Youngjae's own, and he squeezed. They began moving, Himchan in the front and Yongguk in the back,  and somehow they ended up outside. Youngjae was too focused on Jieun to really pay attention to anything else.

Just as Yongguk closed the veranda door, the front door slammed open, and the sound of Legion boots hitting the wooden floor reached Youngjae's ears.

"Hurry up, guys," Yongguk urged.

Within moments, they were further down the alley, hidden in a dark corner.

Youngjae felt as if he was being suffocated. The Republic knew Jieun had helped him, and she was most likely dead now. Youngjae leaned against the wall, placing his hands on his knees and letting his head hang. He felt tears begin to well in his eyes, and he squeezed them shut.

"Look," Yongguk said, standing above Youngjae, and Youngjae looked up, wiping his cheeks, "I think I know what you're going through, but I'm not going to coddle you. You need to focus on what's happening right now. Save the mourning for later."

Youngjae wiped his cheeks again, and took in a shaky breath. Yongguk was right. They were vulnerable, and he was only burdening them by letting his emotions take over. Youngjae straightened up, and composed himself. He felt everybody's eyes on him, but he ignored them.

As much as Youngjae hated it, he would mourn Jieun later.

Yongguk nodded, patting Youngjae's shoulder. He turned to face the others. "We need to find a suitable place to stay the night."

"We don't exactly have many choices," Himchan said.

In the end, Yongguk called Zico.

//

Ten minutes later, Zico picked them up, and fifteen minutes later, they were packed in a two-room apartment that Zico claimed he found a couple days ago. It was small, just on the outskirts of New Seoul, and not unlike Youngjae's old apartment. A single window in the living room overlooked a highway and an old, brick building. A billboard with muted, faded colors lit by a lone streetlight stood by the brick building, advertising a toothpaste brand that hadn't been sold for three years.

"Sorry it's so small," Zico said, but Youngjae heard no actual sympthy in Zico's voice. "I'll come back tomorrow morning with food."

"Thanks again, Zico," Yongguk said. There was a tired smile on his face, but Zico just waved at him.

"Don't worry about it," Zico replied.

As Zico closed the door behind him, everybody seemed to wither as they familiarized themselves with the apartment. Jongup and Junhong immediately went into one room, sleep already tugging their eyelids down. Yongguk and Himchan took over the worn couch, talking in hushed tones. Daehyun and Youngjae went into the second room, Youngjae tugging Daehyun down the hall. 

Before Daehyun could even close the door, Youngjae had collapsed on the bed, his face buried in the pillow. He felt the bed dip beside him, but he didn't bother looking up.

"Do you wanna, um, talk about it?" Daehyun asked quietly.

"No," Youngjae replied.

Daehyun didn't respond, but the bed shifted again. "Okay."

//

The next morning, Youngjae woke up with Daehyun's arms wrapped around his waist. Youngjae sighed, and his back, throwing an elbow over his eyes. Although sleep had come relatively easy to him hours before, being left alone with his thoughts now made him want to explode. His eyes stung with unshed tears, and he let out a shaky breath.

"What's wrong?" Daehyun asked, his voice sending small vibrations through Youngjae's body.

Youngjae didn't reply, unable to trust his voice from cracking. His breath hitched as he tried to even it out, but a soft sob escaped his lips. He didn't want to think about Jieun, about what had happened to her, but the guilt that weighed on his chest was suffocating him again.

The bed shifted, and Youngjae felt his arm lift off his eyes. He turned his head, seeing Daehyun looking at him with a worried expression.

Youngjae blinked away tears. "I shouldn't have involved her."

"How are you so sure of her death?" Daehyun asked. He pulled Youngjae closer to him, nuzzling his nose into the crook of Youngjae's shoulder.

Youngjae sighed. "There was a Legion soldier that came to her apartment. I'm pretty sure they did something to her."

"That doesn't explain anything," Daehyun said.

"It explains everything," Youngjae replied.

Daehyun sighed, his breath tickling Youngjae's neck. "She could have been somewhere else at the time the Legion soldier came to her apartment."

Youngjae closed his eyes, burying his face into Daehyun's hair. The earthy musk mixed with the faint scent of gunpowder and flooded his nose, comforting him.

"We should get up," Youngjae said. He needed to distract himself, needed to busy his mind so his thoughts couldn't wander back to Jieun.

Daehyun drew in a long breath, releasing Youngjae. While Youngjae stood up, stretching his limbs, Daehyun went to the door, muttering something that sounded like "Bathroom".

Youngjae opened the door, and walked down the hall. He heard faint voices coming from the living room, but they sounded nothing like Yongguk or Himchan. Was there a television in there?

", change the channel," Yongguk said in a hushed tone. "Himchan, where the is the remote?"

Youngjae walked into the living room to find Yongguk and Himchan frantically looking for the remote on the couch. Youngjae picked up the remote from the side table, and turned to look at the TV. He nearly dropped the remote.

It was Jieun––or... It was Jieun's body.

Youngjae turned up the volume slightly as he listened to the newsanchor speak.

"Song Jieun was found at the curb of South 59th Street with multiple laser wounds on her body. It's currently inconclusive as to who committed this violent murder."

Youngjae stared in horror. So it was true. Jieun was dead. He turned to look at Yongguk and Himchan, but they were suddenly focused on the floor.

The newsanchor continued. "Experts speculate that this murder is closely related to the recent uprisings that have been occurring. Suspects include members of terrorist groups Guernica and Block B, who are the leaders of these uprisings."

Suspects? The media was trying to turn the public against them? In a matter of seconds, Youngjae found it difficult to breathe.

"You should sit down, Youngjae," Yongguk said.

Youngjae didn't respond, only stared at the screen. His vision grew dark, and his felt his balance begin to tip. Himchan moved to get up and help Youngjae, but he shoved Himchan away.

"I...," Youngjae dropped the remote. He turned towards the door. "I gotta go."

They could have said something, but Youngjae didn't hear it. He threw the door open, blindly navigating his way down the corridor. Something suddenly snagged on Youngjae's arm, and he turned to look, finding Zico holding a large paper bag. He held onto Youngjae's bicep, his fingers pressing harshly into the skin.

"Where are you going?" Zico asked, his eyes searching Youngjae.

Youngjae yanked his arm back, and continued down the corridor. Zico didn't stop him, and he was half-relieved.

When Youngjae emerged from the building, the metal door slamming shut behind him, he took in a deep breath of the cool morning air. He paced the sidewalk, trying to sort his thoughts, but it was as if a bomb had exploded in his head, and the only thing left was the image of Jieun's body abandoned on the curb. She was innocent, and she didn't deserve a death as undignified as that.

Youngjae bit his lip as his throat closed up. He ran his hands through his hair. His vision grew blurry with each step he took.

A hand touched Youngjae's shoulder, and he spun around, recoiling from the hand, but it was only Daehyun. Without a word, he pulled Youngjae into his arms. Youngjae laid his head on Daehyun's shoulder, feeling the warmth emanating off the other.

Youngjae let out a sob, which led to another, and then, like an overflowing dam, he was a mess of tears and pitiful whimpers in Daehyun's arms.

"I know it's hard. It's alright," Daehyun said, running his hand up and down Youngjae's back.

A/N: Oh. Well. I mean, we probably all expected this anyway.

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