[Year 19 of Exile]

“It seems that your boyfriends are very nervous.”

I shot Aran a glare as a frown formed on Kai’s face.

“They’re not my boyfriends!”

“They’re not her boyfriends!”

I hissed just as Kai chimed in with a hiss of his own. We looked at each other, expressions of pure horror so firmly etched on our faces that it took a few moments for them to dissolve, and we erupted into amused chortles altogether.

“I am the only boyfriend your human will ever need, Aran.” The boy sang, his finger pointing at himself. “Remember, only I.”

Beside him, Levre snorted, a sound that the black jaguar seemed to be emitting these days. He snorted when Aran whined. He snorted when Lei and Mana unceremoniously tripped on their tails in my backyard. He even snorted when Kai was so exhausted one morning, that he face-planted into his breakfast, sending droplets of sticky maple syrup flying at the other boys. Needless to say, he was made to clean the kitchen under the strict supervision of Kyungsoo and his spirit bear, Koda.

The boy never slept late at night ever since.

“Well, I believe that I never had boyfriends to begin with. So your claim is invalid, Kai-sshi.” I huffed, my eyes straying away from his smirking face to glance at the building standing opposite us. The household of James Pigalle.

“It’s strange how the mansion seemed so quiet even though we know that they’re most probably waiting for us.” Levre mused, his long black tail snaking around his human’s arm. “I would have expected fire engines and police cars to show up, their sirens blaring for the whole world to hear.”

Levre’s right, though. If they knew that there would be intruders tonight, protection would be set up. Like the jaguar, I had visualised tall metal barriers, burly men at every corner of the compound, or contraptions that would stop us from barging in. But there was nothing. The mansion was as quiet as the neighbourhood it resided in.

“There is always the possibility that they weren’t expecting us.” My tone was hopeful, but deep down we all knew how impossible that would be.

“Are you guys ready?” Luhan’s voice travelled to my ears as he traipsed over, his brows furrowed. Behind him, the boys had gathered and their eyes were looking at us as well. “We’re heading in.”

Aran’s unblinking eyes looked to me, and two other pairs followed as well. “Are you ready to head inside, Jen?”

A strong wave of determination washed over me as twelve faces surfaced in my head, warming my entire being with their bright smiles. My heart palpitated, my hands got sweaty within seconds, and my body was tensed and surprisingly, excited for what was to come. The nervousness that enveloped me was gone, and just like what I have wished for when I was walking down the street, nerves of steel hardened my physique.

“Let’s go.”

“-en! Jen!”

“H-Huh?”

“Get up! We have to move!” My eyes flitted upwards to a bronze-skinned face.

“Kai…?”

“Yes, I’m Kai.” He snapped impatiently, his hands gripping my forearms tightly as he pulled me to him. “Now, let’s go!”

Without a word, I let his hands guide my arms to wrap around his torso as a tugging feeling washed over me and I found myself at the end of the hallway.

Blinking, I painfully dragged my eyes over to the hallway that I had bypassed with Kai’s ability, taking in the numerous fights that broke out the moment we stepped out of our hiding place. I would have continued to stare, letting myself be pulled by the boy until my ears heard a soft grunt of pain.

I felt myself falling as the grip of Kai’s hand on my hand tightened. I turned to him immediately, worry and fear overwhelming me as his pale visage filled my sight.

“Kai!” I threw myself at him, my mind whirring as a loud bang came from behind me, and I hastily decided to drag the collapsed boy to a corner of the space we were in, praying hard that no one noticed our absence.

“What’s wrong? Kai, don’t scare me.” I cupped his cheeks in my palms, my fingers feeling the alarming amount of perspiration that had formed on his forehead and temples. “Kai!”

His breathing was ragged and it was then did it dawn on me. He was exhausted.

“Dammit! I shouldn’t have allowed you to teleport all of us into the mansion!” I was angry. “Levre! Where are you!”

“You called?” The black jaguar materialised beside me, a bloody hand in his mouth which he spat to the side.

“Stay with him,” I began to stand, my eyes flashing and my heart determined. “I’m going to go help the others.”

“No,” The hand gripped even tighter on mine, forcing me to pause in my tracks. “Stay with me, please.”

“Kai’s right, girl. You should stay with him.” The spirit animal growled, his long tail swinging behind him. “You’re the one they want and if they do get you, then what would the boys be fighting for?”

“But I can amplify their abilities! It’ll be of so much help to them!” I reaso