This is PART 1 guys! I'm putting up part two in a couple of hours so don't get the two confused.

The chapter was so long that I had to split it! Enjoy!

“I want everyone to be on the same page and when I say everyone, I’m talking about me, you, Taemin, and Onew,” Minho answered.

He was closer now, Key having let him sink in the space between them. They no longer looked like strangers attempting a first meet, but rather two people who could actually have a nice conversation. Key kept his arms crossed, trying to attempt some form of expression of intimidation, but deep inside he knew he wasn’t pulling it off.

“Like I said, I’m listening,” he answered instead.

Minho sighed, dipping the space between them a little closer together.

“If I promise you and Onew that we can keep the others out of the woods for now, would you two come back?”

“You want us to go back into that death trap?!”

“Key, I think me and you both have realized that the woods are a little more than a death trap to you. You’ve been hiding something. , both you guys been hiding something and I honestly have no idea what we did to deserve it. We don’t tell the Uncles anything, we definitely haven’t said a word to the newcomers, and…” he looked towards the grown, the shadow of his lashes stretching out on the surface of his cheeks.

“And?” Key prided.

“I think Onew was right before,” his voice but a whisper.

“About what?”

“About the Elders. I don’t think we should trust them and this hasn’t been a thought that me and Taemin have been keeping from you guys, this is something I’ve been thinking about to myself for a while. Ever since he brought it up in fact. I just told Taemin,” he sighed again and scratched the back of his neck like he would distract him for a second.

“You just told Taemin?”

“Yeah. I-I didn’t want to think it but I just can’t help it now. Things just aren’t adding up. The visit to the Hallasan Mountains, the new Cerberi, the way my cousin just off and left-”

“Donghae?”

“Yeah,” somehow the man’s voice grew deeper the more he whispered, “I was talking to Taemin about it recently. I didn’t tell him about Donghae either. Taemin was just too unpredictable back then.”

“About what specifically…” Key didn’t realize that they were just a breath away from one another now and just how much Minho’s figure towered over him like a great statue. They were so close that his slightly heightened senses could smell the ground dirt under his fingernails and the grass stain somewhere on his skin.

“I haven’t trusted my cousin since he transferred here. See…he’s not exactly our age.”

“What? Then how-”

“I know the Uncles had something to do with it. Probably forged some paperwork or something. He’s too old to be in highschool and he knew I was suspecting him.”

“Why would he think you wouldn’t? You guys are cousins after all. The Uncles had to have known that you knew his age.”

Minho shook his head and looked up with his deep eyes staring down into Key’s own.

“We’re very distant. He’s one of those family members that you don’t really see at reunions and what not. Every blue moon he might show up to some family event but not really. When he suddenly got added to our pack without so much as a suggestion from me, I had to do my own digging. It took a while for some reason. Like his information was being protected. But I found out. But then…after all this, after we suddenly go to the Hallasan Mountains like a secret mission that me Taemin and Kai don’t know about, we get new Cerberi added to our pack just like he was only for him to leave? And I never did find out why he was here in the first place. What he was doing? What he was looking for-”

“Wait,” Key interrupted, unconsciously holding up his hand to Minho’s chest. When he realized his actions, he immediately withdrew, eyes scattering around for a second so as not to meet the man lingering over him.

“What is it Key?”

“You said Donghae left when you guys got there? And you never found out why he was here right.”

“Precisely.”

Flashes of that night scratched through Key’s memory like a bad record; stopping and starting, stopping and starting. The forest covering him, his aunt soaked in blood, the horror on Onew’s face when he and his mom came into view, the feeling of complete and utter terror. It was all there. Never left. But he quickly put together the missing pieces. Minho and Taemin missing precisely. He and Onew never knew if the boys actually left, or went somewhere else in the city outside of town, but apparently, they had, which excluded them from being the main attackers, even though the thought sounded crazy. Plus, he trusted them to some extent, even when he’d told Onew plenty of times that he didn’t. There was something scratching at the bottom of his intuition that quietly whispered, these boys were to be trusted. He just didn’t want to believe that when he’d heard their conversation in the cafeteria. They probably were faking, but he was so angry with everything going on, that giving them a chance wasn’t an option.

“He could have something to do with-”

“To do with….what?” Minho circled his hands in a continuous motion, but Key shook his head.

“I-I want to tell you but I can’t-”

“Key, I thought we just-”

“I mean not like this,” he spread his arms wide motioning to the streets and sidewalks that surrounded them. Even though they seemed alone and the cars stopped really appearing, he knew better than to continue this conversation out in the open. “Not out here. Can you promise that those new guys or your Uncles won’t come in the forest today? Under any circumstances.”

Minho furrowed his brows and looked down at Key with stern narrow eyes. He nodded in a serious manner and lightly touched the boy’s forearm.

“Then we all need to have that meeting you two so desperately want. I mean you’re right, it’s time we all got on the same page.”

****

“Onew…are you okay?” Luna leaned her head down as they spun the black bean noodles in front of them. The man had gone through a nonstop blinking spree for the past ten minutes after hearing what Luna had to say. This…this was something he definitely had to share with Key, but…in a way, it would break him.

Should he tell?

“Onew?” She asked again and he blinked faster this time but looked up to meet her subtle, hazy brown eyes. She’d stopped spinning her noodles around her metal chopsticks, absent mindlessly waiting for him to say something.

“Sorry,” he tilted his head, “I didn’t mean to make this awkward, I was just thinking.”

He saw her lips thinning.

“I shouldn’t have told you,” she cursed herself under her breath and whispered, “I knew it was a dumb idea.”

“Luna, Luna,” he reached out his hand, an apologetic smile etching across his face in an attempt to mask the small palpitation of his heart that contributed more to the information he was just given and not the fact that he was now holding Luna’s hand.

It worked though.

Her cheeks flushed a rosy red as she retracted her hand down to her lap.

“It wasn’t stupid. I asked, and I got my answer,” he stated, “don’t apologize.”

“Is not too crazy right?” She sighed and shook her head, “Well I know it’s crazy. What I mean is, you definitely won’t tell anyone that I told you right? Like I said, it was just a bedtime story. But it’s not the reason I always talk about rumors if you were wondering.”

She looked like a five-year-old in his eyes, trying her best to gain some kind of acceptance or attention from her parents. But instead it was Onew and he could tell all too well in this atmosphere that she had an obvious, blatant crush on him. Which also because he knew he’d never have the same reciprocated feelings. That and he was basically using her for her information. It started off as just a pay-you-back date but soon became, use-your-charm-to-get-this-story-out. He felt awful, but what she told him was worse.

If only she knew just how real some of the things she told him was.

If only she knew the world she rumored about was very real and very close.

“D-Don’t worry Luna. Like I said, I’m not one to start rumors from a rumor. Or start rumors at all. I thought the story was interesting,” he lied.

She shrugged, leaning back. Her comfortability finally settled back in, and she shoved a bit of food in before continuing.

“And like I said, I never found you to be somebody who cared about the rumors I’ve always talked about. You’ve definitely been curious lately,” she paused, realizing her own words. Her ears perked up in curiosity and she scooted her chair forward. “Can I ask why?”

This time, Onew shrugged.

“I thought the two new boys at school were a bit…off,” more than off, they were more werewolves added to this nice town’s population, accompanied by their action-happy pack members. “It made me want to know a little more. Made me interested in your stories.”

“I don’t know,” she sighed again, digging her chopsticks into the middle pile of her noodles, “the bedtime story I told you about…even if it’s made up, I don’t get why my parents would tell me and Z a story like that as kids. It’s kind of sad when you think about it. It’s a damn story about betrayal and death. Who the hell tells their kids that?” She chuckled.

“Yeah, a little messed up,” Onew laughed back.

When he saw the genuine smile of her white teeth, he, himself, got a little more comfortable. It wasn’t that bad talking to Luna after all when they weren’t in the battlegrounds of school. Suddenly, he felt his left pocket jiggle and while Luna was back to digging in her noodles, he pulled his cellphone out to see who’d hit him up. His eyes widened when he saw the preview text on his lock screen.

“Onew. Come to the woods. In the forest with Minho…”

“Onew? Everything okay?” She had swallowed her food that fasts and was doing that curiosity thing again, but there was actual concern on her features.

“I-I have an emergency at home,” he said after a small lump was gulped down his throat. Why the hell was Key in the damn woods and with Minho of all people? He stood up abruptly, forcing the chair out of its quiet position. “I’m sorry Luna, I gotta go.”

“Oh.” He could see the disappointment laden on her face. A piece of her was ripped away when he said those words.

“I’m so sorry. M-My dad is sick, my mom says she needs my help with him. I have to get going. He gets, a little crazy when he’s…you know, sick.”

Her features softened up a bit more.

“I’m sorry to hear that, go ahead.”

He rushed over to her and kissed her on the forehead before realizing his moves and coming to a conclusion that, that was going to come back and bite him in the . But he couldn’t think of anyway else to thank her in his quick attempt to leave.

“I already paid for everything, so just enjoy your meal and dessert if you want!” He called back before disappearing out the restaurant. The last he saw of Luna was a small blushing smirk stuck to her face like one of those smiley face stickers.

****

Onew called out Key’s name in small whispers, his hands forming an ‘o’ around his mouth in an attempt to vocalize his voice, but not too much. Of course, there was nothing in return, but with his best friend’s newfound hearing, Key could definitely be able to hear Onew calling. Only…there was no answer. His back arched and he crouched as he walked, keeping himself invisible for as long as he could. What the hell was Key thinking after all? Coming back here with a damn Cerberi. The exact Cerberi that they told each other they wouldn’t trust anymore. It was going to be a minute before the sun went down, so he guessed that was a good thing, but Key didn’t have invisibility like he did, which meant his best friend in the entire world was exposed.

“Onew?” Suddenly came Taemin’s questioning voice. When Onew turned around, Taemin wasn’t that far from him. Literally. The boy was only a couple of feet away but he stood there looking at what he thought to be an empty area, his eyes switching from left to right every second. He repeated the call again.

Onew stopped crouching, his lips thinning like Luna’s. In a rush, he collided with Taemin’s chest, sending them both to the ground. Their bodies crunched over the fallen leaves and Onew’s invisibility instantly disappeared. Taemin’s head hit the ground hard and a large “umpf” escaped his throat.

“Onew what hel-”

“Where is Key, you conniving little-”

“In Minho’s cave,” he answered instantly. Without waiting, Taemin pushed him off, Onew rolling to the side. They both stood up immediately, Taemin with a scowl on his face and Onew mentally preparing himself to attack again though he was sure he couldn’t take Taemin, especially after seeing his little display of strength the night before.

Onew stepped up, about to take his chances and attack again when Taemin raised both his hands in a stop motion.

“Wait, just wait…me and Minho are trying to negotiate. He already talked to Key, we kind of knew it would be a little hard to talk to you so I sent myself.”

Onew calmed his demeanor, straightening his posture.

“You sent yourself?”

Taemin cleared his throat.

“Yes. You are…uh….a difficult person to deal with. And I-” he stopped himself.

“You…?”

“I think I’m best at getting through to you.”

Onew scoffed.

“What the hell makes you think that?”

Taemin shrugged.

“Because like you I’m a take action first, think later kind of person.”

“You’re not a person at all.” Onew retorted.

“Neither are you.”

They both looked each other in the eyes, one battling the other with pupils without saying anything for minutes. Taemin found himself moving down to the boy’s lips, watching the way it twitched and pulled in as Onew thought about whatever he was thinking.

“Fine. The hell did you tell Key to convince him to come back to the cave with you guys?”

Taemin began to smirk.

“Minho told him the truth. About everything. If you come with me, we’ll catch you up?” The ending was a question as he gestured toward the east, but Onew just looked at him squarely.

“Give me one detail of truth and I’ll go with you.”

“Fine,” he sighed, “we know that you and Key are hiding something about whatever happened while we were gone. And we were really gone. Key said he thought me and Minho were somewhere close, around the town or in the city, but we weren’t. We were pulled out of school and sent to the Hallasan Mountains without any reason given. And that’s the truth.”

Well, it was definitely a lot of information to lie about. So, he couldn’t be doing that.

“Fine, but don’t think this means I consider you two friends. I just want to make sure Key is sure about his decision to trust you two and that he’s alright.”

“Expected,” Taemin smirked, still with his hands out to stir Onew in the right direction.