Key huffed tiredly as he plopped his body in one of the comfortable seats of their booth, Onew having agreed on treating him for diner after their little revelation in the outside.

"Ok, you have some serious explaining to do Onew" Key said grabbing one of the menus they were given and starting to eye his options. Onew sighed loudly and took the other menu, bracing himself but not making any move to talk and letting the air fall in a short silence that was soon interupted by Key.

"...So... Since when do you know those two? Since when have you kept this hidden from me?" Key asked glancing at Onew shortly before looking back at his menu.

"I've known Jonghyun and Taemin for... almost a year and a half now..." the eldest answered hiding behind the framed paper so that he wouldn't have to face his friend's reaction directly.

"A year and a half?! and when were you planning on telling me?!!" Key scolded slapping the menu flat on the table and looking at his friend shocked and slightly annoyed and angry. Onew just hid furthe down behind the menu.

"I-I was going to tell you...... some day" Onew defended himself poking his head from behind the menu.

"And why not now?!" Kibum demanded with an irritated tone, not ble to believe that after all the scoldings he had recieved, now his friend just like that gave stroles on the surface everytime he felt like it. 

"I'm telling you aren't I !" Onew scolded, quieting down whe a waiter came to take their orders.

"So you mean to tell me that you have been going outside for two years and you were one day, maybe years from now, going to tell when you felt like it?!" Key reclaimed once the waiter was gone. Onew just sighed and rubbed his eyes.

"Look Key, first, it's a year and a half, second I went out to investigate something and I didn't told you because you weren't ready, and I really think that you're still not ready"

"What do you even mean?! I am a god damned soldier! I can take care of myself!" Key looked at Onew clearly affected by what he said.

"And that's exactly the problem! You are a soldier Kibum! We are soldiers, and precisely that's what makes you unprepared for what you'll be facing! You only know how to protect yourself by aiming a gun to the first thing that crosses you, out there, there's more than that! Different approaches in life and defenses out there!" Onew looked at Key intently and sighed when his younger friend went silent. 

"Look Key, I can't quite tell you..... What exactly is that we are up against..... I don't know well myself..... But something..... Something about the other soldiers and our superiors..... It smells fishy" Onew said with a sigh moving away when their food arrived. Key waited and started eating glancing at Onew between every spoonful.

"Why do you say that?" Key asked before getting more food into his mouth Onew sighed and swallowed.

"Haven't you ever wondered where they keep the mutants that are taken into custody? And not only that, but every now and then.... I think once every two weeks, a whole bunch of officers and soldiers are allowed to leave work early and they become unavailable during the rest of the day and night, they don't show up, not even in an emergency call"

"But..... Have you told commander G-Dragon? Like he would be furious if he knew about that" Key pointed out frowning. Onew just shook his head causing Key's frown to intensify.

"He knows, in fact he allows them to leave, and he wont even give an explination, and that worries me.... I think that what they do is not good at all" Onew looked at Key in the eyes, a tinge of fear visible in them "I'm worried Kibum, I don't want something bad to happen, not to them, not to you, not to us, so.... Please just... Stay inside the dome ok"

At that Key sighed and finished his food, pushing the plate away

"I appreciate your concern man, but, outside is where I belong, even if you say I don't and that I need to stay inside, I feel it, I belong there, with him" Key said, widening his eyes before clearing his throat and thinking of a way to fix what he said "with them, I belong with them" Deep down Kibum knew what was happening, but he couldn't allow it. If he allowed it, if he allowed himself to fall in love, to get involved in deeper ways, then it would get even more dangerous and he could even start bidding goodbye to his life. Onew sighed and grabbed his hand snapping the other out of his thoughts.

"Key, I know what you think and feel, I myself felt like that when I was out and met them, you're just confused, but you can't let that drive you off from what you need to do." The older said, worried filled eyes looking at Key. Key gulped and sighed thinking over it and deciding on giving up on that subject or he would accidentally end up saying things he would maybe regret later on.

"Fine.... I'll be more careful ok....switching topics, how did you meet those two?" Key grinned trying to look the most convincing he could to the other, which worked giving that the other sighed and fidgeted bashfully seemingly thinking of said event.

"H-How I-I met them..... W-Well.... It was.... I-It was after y-you h-had went o-on an mission a-and there had been lots of mutant sighting s-so I went to investigate on my own... And I-I saw them, they were walking to the forrest, I was with my gun ready to shoot.... But they seemed... Different. When I saw that, I thought of you, even if I hate to admit it. They reminded me of when you talked about the wolf that saved you six or seven years ago, they made me wonder... Are this the wolves he talked about?" Onew paused for a moment and looked at his friend chuckling at the face of the other as he listened intently waiting for him to continue. And so he did.

"I wondered, will they kill me? If I lower my gun, will they kill me? Or will they spare me, are they really the different creatures that Key claimed they were, was I to become mutant meat, or would they spare me? I did not know... But still I tried it, I lowered my gun, already aimed at their heads, I lowered it and just then they looked at me. One ran, Taemin ran away, but Jonghyun, he stared at me... It was a different stare, it wasn't the remorseful hating stare that others had, no, his was.... It was a warning now that I think it. His look said 'near me and maybe nothing will happen, go after him, and you're dead' but, it was also sparing, saying that if I turned around, he would do the same and keep on with his life" Onew chuckles looking down at his hands.

"After I lowered my gun.... I don't know what came over me... I walked up to the creature, slowly, and when we were at arm's reach closed.... I touched his head. In that moment I thought 'good bye hand' but I was surprised and rewarded by the creature leaning his head to my hand. It's surprising because in that moment I realized that... I knew nothing, us humans didn't know anything about the fascinating being in front of us, we all just believed what we were told and followed it without question, but I wouldn't do that, at least not in the outside, I wanted to learn, I wanted to know more, and I just... Found myself, visiting the outside a lot, each day more often, until days became months, and months... Became a year and so on... Part of me, the proud stubborn part, didn't want to acknowledge that, all the way since the begining, you had been right, you were right all along, about... There being more to those creatures than what met the eye" smiles at Key and chuckles taking out the money to pay there food.

"Ha! I won I knew it!" Key cheered grinning and chuckled composing himself and sighed happy "say... Maybe you can help me... Now that I know you have more experience out there... I have been... Feeling... This odd... Thing in my chest every... Time I'm with Tae-" Key started, getting cut off by Onew getting up holding a finger up and then pointing it at him.

"You want my advice? I already gave it to you. Don't get involved" Onew told him dead serious and left to pay. Huffing Key stood up and waited for his friend huffing and grumbling.

When Onew came back, they readied to leave and bid their goodbyes, walking separated ways. His mind only could think of Taemin, and the outside, but he forced himself to believe in his frined.Thinking about it, maybe he should listen, after all, now that he knew, maybe Onew did know more than him. He knew things he didn't and facts he hadn't thought about. Maybe those were the answers to his questions. All he could do was ask him and lay content with the answers even if he wasn't. 

 On his way home, he saw something weird, a tall man with the uniform of his squad walking to the secret exit he always used. Key felt the air get caught in his lungs and quietly followed the mysterious figure, uneasiness growing in him with each step that neared the exit. He kept tailing the figure until they stood before the double door. Panic grew when the figure opened the doors and walked out. He thought he was caught, busted, trapped, all types of horrible thoughts filling his mind. What if that's an ambush, what if they were waiting for him in the other side, aiming guns at him to take him to HQ and torture him to a slow and painful death for treason to human kind. Then again, the thought of his mutant friend at the other side, being in danger and needing him popped in his mind making him brush everything away, grab his hand gun and open the door aiming around.

Key blinked confused at the empty field that welcomed him, no guards nor patrol nor army waiting for him. He stayed silent until he caught the sound of the heavy boots of only one pair of feet walking to his left. Closing the door behind himself he secured the gun in his hands and quietly walked towards the sound, not wanting to be caught. Looking around he was surprised on how easy being in the outside was becoming to him, and he loved it, the feeling of being free outside thrilled him and filled him with Joy. Staying silent he walked towards the other man, the sound of boots having stopped. He rounded a small hill staying close to the ground and hid behind a large piece of steel that was nailed to the ground for decades and centuries would be. He took a peek over the edge to see what was going on, only to gasp silently and his mouth to fall open in shock.

The man's cap on the floor forgoten, his gun on the floor next to him, and his arms around another man, a mutant as the shoeless feet showed. Tao sat there, fingers tangling on the mutant's hair as he gave a long mouth to mouth kiss to the mutant. When Tao pulled away and smiled, Key's mouth fell even more open as he saw the other mutant, a dimpled smile giving away Lay's identity. They smiled goofily as they stared into each other's eyes lovingly and started to chat as if the make out they just had or being like that with each other didn't endanger them. Tao laying down and resting his head on Lay's thigh as they both stared happily at the sky, not worrying for patrols since they were far enough to not be seen and the piece of steel covered them.

Shock overwhelmed him as not only Onew, but his own squad as well, kept secret lives from him, and now he too had one. But still, the feeling of wanting to know ate him alive. And then, like a lightning bolt, it hit him. Maybe he had been asking the questions to the wrong person.

Maybe the approach he had wasn't the same approach Onew wanted. Even if he denied it, the approach he wanted, the approach his subconscious wanted... Was what Tao had now. To be happy, free and even careless, but with all the warnings he got in a daily basis didn't help.

Maybe he needed a different explanation

Maybe what he needed....

Was for Tao to do some explainin.