Mijoo chased after Nayeon in the hallway. “I didn’t tell you because I was scared!” She practically yelled turning the corner to face her friend who was standing in front of the elevator waiting.

Mijoo saw Jisung out of the corner of her eye standing in her doorway, watching. 

“I wanted to tell you, but I didn’t because I was scared. Nayeon you’re my best friend but I didn’t know how to explain any of this! I still don’t! You’re right I’ve changed, but I didn’t want to. I wanted to be the same old Mijoo whose idea of an exciting night was watching tv shows with you till 2 in the morning. I didn’t tell you about Club Miroh because I spent most of my time standing in line talking to the person next to me and didn’t even make it into the club. Then my cousin came and threw me for a loop and then I met Chris and we hit it off and the next thing I know he’s taking me to some fancy event! That was only the second time we’ve ever even gone out! …I don’t want to lose you Nayeon,” Mijoo cried.

Nayeon stepped towards Mijoo, hugging her arms close to her body. “I don’t want to lose you either,” she replied, looking down at the floor. “It just started to feel like you didn’t want me in your life anymore.”

“Not at all, this whole time I’ve been trying to think of how I was going to tell you about all this without sounding like I’m a completely crazy person,” Mijoo explained. 

Nayeon huffed, “Yeah well, I guess I can see why I would’ve thought you were crazy. I probably wouldn’t have believed you were dating Christopher Bang even if you had told me. …That was really only the second time you guys had gone out?”

Mijoo gave her a small smile, “Yeah it was. Talk about a culture shock. …So, are we still friends?”

Nayeon let out a short disbelieving laugh, “Yeah, yeah, we are. But I’m still pissed at you right now, ok?”

Mijoo’s smile grew even more, “Ok,”

The ride back to Chan’s apartment was quiet. Mijoo stared out the window at the passing scenery, cradling Brian close to her chest, replaying the conversation with Nayeon over and over again in her head. What could she have said differently to change the outcome? What could she have done? She didn’t want her friend embroiled in all of this, it was too dangerous, and yet she also didn’t want to lose her best friend, her only friend.

“I met Chan when I was thirteen,” Jisung said, breaking the silence. “He really wasn’t that much older than me, three years, but when you're teenagers it feels like so much more.”

Mijoo turned to look at Jisung as he drove, he just stared forward as he continued to speak. 

“Even at thirteen I was already a troubled kid. Stealing, picking fights I couldn’t win, running away from my foster parents, it was only a matter of time before I ended up in jail. Chan came and changed all that. He found me in an alley, in another fight I couldn’t win against these three guys. They were probably even older than he was at the time, but he didn’t care. He just strolled right in, all confident and carefree, and told them they should pick on someone their own size,” Jisung paused, a smile pulling at his lips as he seemed to be reliving the memory. “I watched him kick all of their asses single handedly. After they had run off, he turned to me with this confident smile and said he liked my guts, wanted to know if I wanted to learn how to actually fight. I never looked back.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

“I’ve been with Chan the longest and a lot’s changed since I met him all those years ago. This life is tough and can cost a lot, but I’ve never regretted it. Not even once. I know I’ve been an to you and that hasn’t been fair of me. Stray Kids is the only family I have and the thought of something threatening that family terrifies me. And that’s how I saw you, as a threat. You did good today, with your friend.” Jisung continued, his honesty surprising Mijoo. “I was afraid that you were going to say something, reveal something when you ran out after her, but you didn’t.”

Mijoo let silence fill the car again for a few moments before she replied. “Do you believe in fate?” She asked, looking back out the window.

“Fate? I don’t know, I’ve never really given it much thought,” Jisung answered. “Why?”

“I was thinking what I could have done differently to avoid this. If I had never gone down that alley, if I had never brought Felix into my apartment, then none of this would be happening. But I don’t… regret that decision. I don’t think Felix would be alive right now if I hadn’t stopped that night and if I had the chance to go back and do it all over again, I probably would make the same decision.” Mijoo shifted Brian around her lap, and pulled up the sleeve of Chan’s hoodie, raising her arm in front of her showing off the scars that ran across the skin. “But at the same time, I’ve… I’ve been ing branded for the rest of my life,” Mijoo’s voice shook, “and someone is trying to kill me because I’m in a ‘relationship’ with someone I don’t even know! I… I don’t know what to think about all this anymore. I hadn’t thought I’d changed that much but Nayeon is right, I have.”

Jisung eyed her raised arm for a moment, letting her statement hang in the air. “If it were fate, would it make it easier or harder to handle?” Jisung asked.

“I don’t know,” Mijoo exhaled, dropping her arm back in her lap.

The rest of the ride back to Chan’s apartment was silent as they both thought over what the other had said. Jisung was getting Mijoo’s bags out of the back when his phone pinged with a text message.

Looking over it quickly he turned to Mijoo, “When we get up to Chan’s there are some police detectives here who want to talk with us about last night.”

Mijoo felt her heart speed up as Jisung began walking toward the elevator. Mijoo froze for a moment before hurrying to catch up to him. “Is…is that safe. What if I mess up, what if I say something wrong,” Mijoo worried. 

“You’ll be fine, besides Chan and I will be there and they're on our turf so don’t worry.”

Easier said than done. Mijoo thought to herself.

Back in Chan’s apartment she was surprised to find a familiar couple sitting in the living room talking with Chan. The woman who had pulled her out of the way of the bullet sat with a notebook in hand, taking notes from time to time as she listened and asked questions. She was now dressed much more comfortably in slacks and a button up shirt, accessorized with a holster across her back. The man was dressed similarly. 

The group in the living room looked up as Mijoo and Jisung entered. Mijoo noticed that Seungmin hadn’t bothered to hide from the two strangers in the apartment whose names she couldn’t remember. 

“Ah you’re back, good. Detective Yeosang and his partner Jeongyeon have some questions for you,” Chan said, motioning them over.

“Weren’t the two of you at the auction last night?” Mijoo asked, sitting down next to Chan on the sofa and releasing Brian from her arms to explore his new domain.

Jeongyeon smiled at her, “Surprise! Yeah, that was us. I’m pretty sure my boss sends us undercover specifically because he knows I hate it. It was a rough night and then somebody started shooting.”

“Thank you again, for pulling me out of the way. If you hadn’t…”

Chan grabbed Mijoo’s hand and pulled it into his lap, surprising her into silence. Jeongyeon’s eyes flickered between the two of them, interpreting her silence as being choked up at her near-death experience. 

“I’m just glad you’re ok,” Jeongyeon said sincerely. “If you’re up for it, we’d like to ask you some questions about last night.”

Mijoo looked over at Chan who gave her a small nod and her hand a squeeze. Taking that to mean it was ok, she turned back to Jeongyeon. “I think I’m up for it,” she said.

“Ok. When you arrived at Destiny did you notice anyone giving you a strange look? Anyone seem out of place or giving you extra attention that made you uncomfortable?”

Yes. She wanted to say. She was the one out of place at the event. Mark of Got7 made her extremely uncomfortable. Seonghwa made her uncomfortable. But she wasn’t sure if she should tell the police that. She wished Chan or Seungmin would just tell her what she should say, but she knew the police officers would find that suspicious if she just parroted whatever they wanted her to say.

“Um, no. No one stood out to me. It was all really very hectic when I arrived. I don’t know anyone at these events yet, so I didn’t notice anyone giving me extra attention than normal, especially being the first woman Chan’s ever brought somewhere.”

“Can you think of any reason why someone was trying to kill you? Have you done anything to piss someone off, do you have any enemies?”

The first person to come to mind was Mark, followed quickly by the two men who had kidnapped and tortured her. “No, I really can’t. I’ve never really thought of myself as someone with enemies. With all those high-profile people there I can’t imagine why I, of all people, would be the one targeted.”

“Would you be interested in a police detail for the next several days while we continue our investigation into what happened? We don’t have anyone in custody yet, and there’s always the concern that they try again.” 

“No, no. While I appreciate the concern. I’m sure the police have much more pressing matters to attend to and I feel perfectly safe here with Chan and his security.”

“Well, if you change your mind, please let me know. Here’s my card,” Jeongyeon reached across the coffee table, handing the card to Mijoo. “I wrote my cell number on the back. You can reach me at any time for anything.”

Mijoo took the card, holding it close. “Thank you, I really do appreciate it. If I can think of anything I’ll give you a call.” 

“Even if you can’t, give me a call. I notice you’ve got a lot of guys around you. You ever just need a fellow woman to talk to you can call me. I know how it can be being a woman in a man's world.” 

Mijoo gave Jeongyeon a small smile. “I will, thank you.” 

The two police detectives left shortly afterward with a promise to catch whoever who did this. Seungmin then left shortly after them, citing the fact that he was in desperate need of a shower and sleep. 

“Well, I guess we need to talk about sleeping arrangements. Until we have better information, I don’t think it would be wise for you to stay at your apartment,” Chan said looking at Mijoo. “Jisung will continue to sleep out here on the couches while you take my bedroom.”

“Boss, I want financial compensation for having to sleep on your couch more than once,” Jisung spoke up.

“Noted.”

“Do you not have a guest bedroom? I didn’t think about it last night, but I can’t kick you out of your room for an extended length of time,” Mijoo said looking at Chan. 

“Yeah, a guest bedroom would be the smart idea,” Jisung scoffed.

“I don’t have a guest bedroom. I have two extra rooms besides my bedroom. One functions as my home office and the other I use to work out,” Chan supplied.

“Yeah, heaven forbid anyone ever comes to stay for an overnight visit. They get relegated to the back breaking sofa’s I’m sure were first used in Alcatraz” Jisung complained, leaning back against the couch. 

“Could we set up a cot or mattress in your workout room? I could take that instead of stealing your bed,” Mijoo asked.

“Unlike Jisung, I don’t mind taking the couch,” Chan replied. “But if it makes you feel better, I’ll look at getting something for the workout room, to turn it into a makeshift guest room while you’re here.” 

“I would appreciate that. As comfortable as your bed is, I feel bad making you sleep on the couch in your own apartment.”

“No one seems to feel bad that I haven’t slept in my own apartment in forever,” Jisung muttered, neither Chan nor Mijoo seemed to pay him any mind.

“Well go ahead and make yourself at home, I have work I’ll be taking care of in my office if you need anything,” Chan said, standing up from the couch. As he stood up Mijoo’s hand fell from his grasp pulling her attention to the fact that her hand had been in Chan’s this entire time, and she hadn’t even noticed. 

As Chan disappeared down the hall her gaze met Jisung’s who was giving her a mischievous smile before waggling his eyebrows at her. She threw the nearest pillow at him which hit him square in the face.