Taeyong POV

We all turn towards the source and Yuta immediately closes his laptop.

"Uh..."

"You bugged the coffee shop too?!" Jaemin shouts. "Kun as a spy was not enough?"

"Ok. Since you know now..." Taeyong clears his throat. "We might as well tell you that Jieun is keeping a secret from you boys."

"What kind of secret?" Jaemin asks.

"We don't know. That's...kinda what the bug is for." Yuta replies reopening his laptop.

"Whatever her secret is, I'm sure she's not telling us because she wants to protect us."

"You don't know her past." Johnny said.

"No. But I know Jieun noona. She would never do anything to hurt Dream. Ask any of the Dreamies and they'll say the same thing."

"Aren't you guys protecting her too much?" Johnny asks.

"Aren't you guys suspecting her too much?" Jaemin questions in return and we fall silent. "Jieun noona is a good person."

"Jaemin, we're sorry but if time goes by and everything is ok, we'll take out the bug." Jaehyun said. "We're a mafia group. We really need to be cautious. She might be a spy."

"She's Jieun noona. The Jieun noona who fed me and clothed me. The Jieun noona who helps me with school work. The Jieun noona who comes to our school events. The Jieun noona who raised Dreamies for eight years when you guys were too busy dealing with the mafia behind our back!" Jaemin shouts at us.

"If...if she is a good person like you said, then there shouldn't be a problem with the bug. We won't be able to dig up dirt on her." Taeil said.

"Yeah. What are you afraid of?" Ten asks.

"I'm not afraid. I'm...you're invading her privacy. Sometimes they talk about things that they don't want others to hear."

"Like what?" Jungwoo asks and as if on cue Jieun spoke up.

"Did you come back from killing someone? From what I remember, you were going for a walk. Not a killing spree."

"Shut up." Areum grumbles. "My stomach hurts."

"Why? You need to use the restroom?"

"Aish. That's not it. I just started my period today. Aaah. I hate being a girl!" Areum shouts. "Why did Mother Earth think that it was a good idea to let women bleed from their s 3 to 7 days every month?!" Yuta closes his laptop once again. We clear our throats awkwardly.

"Like that." Jaemin said. "I'm sure there's more where that came from. But whatever, you do your thing. I can't convince you guys. After all, I'm one of the maknaes." After Jaemin left the room, we all look at one another.

"Um...I think...I think this should be all for today. Let's go to bed." I dismiss everyone and walk of the room.

Jieun POV

"Today is busy." Kun said to me.

"Yeah. Once in a while, this happens." I said making the coffee orders as fast as possible. "Sometimes people who accidentally stumbled upon this place become regulars and they tell their friends about it, or they bring their friends here. I call busy times like this, miracle sweeps."

"I thought you wanted fate to bring people here?"

"Well, this is some kind of fate, I guess. Plus, I'm not gonna refuse the money they pay me."

After 30 minutes, the shop calms down, and we are back to our regular non-busy schedule.

"That was crazy." Kun said sitting down at a table.

I laugh. "I like miracle sweeps because it happens once in a long while."

"It's fun but tiring." Kun agrees. "We need extra help. We should hire another part timer."

"You think so?"

"Mm." Kun nods.

"I can't. I won't be able to pay them. I can hardly pay you." I joke.

"Then how are you keeping this place up?" He asks.

"I have no idea. How am I keeping this place up? Maybe because I'm a bad person who did bad things."

"You have a Masters in IT. Why not put it to use?" Areum asks. "Survived a miracle sweep, I see."

"You could've helped out, . I bet you saw the crowd and decided to wait until it died down to enter."

"Oi~ it hurts how well you know me." Areum laughs and I flip her off.

*******************************************************

The boys sneak inside the house. They look around and sigh in relief when they notice the emptiness. They make their way up the stairs and suddenly the lights come on and they stop in their tracks.

"Why are you guys sneaking around?" I ask staring down at them from the top of the stairs.

"Noona!" They shout.

"Why are you guys so scared?"

They shake their head frantically. "It's nothing."

"Go to bed it's 12am. I'm surprised you all returned. I thought you guys would be sleeping at the NCT house."

They didn't say a word and run to their room as fast as they could. I was going to go to bed when I remembered something. I walk over to Dreamies' room and knock on their door. I hear a whole lot of scrambling before Jaemin opens the door with his usual bright smile.

"Yes?" He ask. I look behind him and he tried to block my view. Dreamies were all standing in front of Haechan.

"What's going on?"

"Nothing!" They all shout a little too loud. I raise my brows at them.

"Chenle." I said staring the poor boy down.

"Haechan got a tattoo!" He yells out under pressure.

"Idiot!" Haechan hisses at Chenle.

"Jaemin. Move."

"Noo-"

"Move." I repeat myself. Jaemin lets out a sigh and let me into the room. The boys step back closer to Haechan. I stand in front of the boys. "Will you move on your own accord or do you want me to move you?" The boys all look at each other then disperse revealing a tattoo on Haechan's back, a few inches straight down the middle, from the neck.

"S-say something." Haechan stutters out.

"I'm going to bed."

Jaemin POV

"Jieun noona didn't yell at me. I should be happy, and yet I'm not." Haechan said.

"Do you wanna know why?" I ask. "Did you see her face? She wasn't angry. She was disappointed."

"If we keep doing this, one day, she's gonna get tired of our and not care anymore." Jeno said.

"Jieun noona? I doubt it." Jisung shakes his head. "She's never really mad at us."

"Jisung-ah. Just because she's your noona doesn't mean that you can take her for granted." Renjun said. "If one day she leaves you behind, what will you do?"

"I have you guys and NCT." Jisung shrugs.

"Yah! Do you not care at all that one day Jieun might abandon you?" Chenle asks.

"She won't. She can't. I'm her brother."

"My parents abandoned me." Chenle deadpan. "You really think Jieun noona won't leave you behind?"

"S-she won't. She can't." He repeats and walks out of the room.

"Yah. Aren't we being too mean to him?" Renjun asks.

"Yeah. I mean, c'mon. We all know Jieun noona won't leave him behind. If she wanted too, she would've gotten rid of him years ago."

"Nah. He deserves it. He needs to stop being a spoiled brat towards Jieun noona." Haechan said.

"Says the person who got a tattoo." We chorus.

"True." Haechan nods. "But just because I don't listen to her doesn't mean I don't love her. And I'm not taking advantage of her kindness like Jisung."

"You're not that different from Jisung." Chenle said.

Jieun POV

I am awaken by the sound of clattering downstairs. I grab the gun from under my pillow and make my way downstairs quietly. I follow the sound all the way to the kitchen. I peek around and step into the kitchen.

"Freeze!" I shout making the person turn to me and I immediately lower the gun before he sees it. "W-what are you doing?"

"Making breakfast." Jisung answers. "Well, trying anyways." I blink. Did I hear correctly?

"What are you doing?" I repeat.

"Making breakfast." He replies returning his focus on whatever he's doing.

"Uh...why?" I cross my arms immediately to hide the gun.

"Because it's morning. Duh."

"A-are you sick? Do you want something from me? Did you do something wrong?"

"No. No. And no." Jisung said. "What's wrong with me making breakfast?"

"You know just...go get ready for school. I'll...uh...make breakfast."

"I can do it."

"The kitchen is a mess." I deadpan. Jisung looks around and smiles sheepishly.

"Whoop. Sorry." He apologizes.

"Just go get ready." He nods and runs back up to his room. I walk to one of the rarely opened cabinets and stuff my gun inside. I ignore the mess and start preparing breakfast.

"Why is the kitchen so messy?" Haechan asks.

"Ask Jisung." I said. The other Dreamies turn to look at him.

"I was trying to cook breakfast." He replies. The others were taken back at his words.

"What?!" They shriek out.

"Wait. Wait. Wait." Chenle said. "You? Cook breakfast?" Jisung nods and the others burst out laughing.

"That's the best joke you've ever told." Jeno said.

"Why were you doing that?" Jaemin asks.

"Because you guys-" Jisung stops himself. "Never mind." The boys eat their breakfast.

"Bye noona." Dreamies run out the door with their school bags. I make my way to the coffee shop after cleaning up Jisung's mess.

"You're late today." Areum said from the corner table.

"I wondered if I was ever gonna come." I reply. Kun serves me coffee and I thank him.

"Why do you say that?"

"I don't know what Jisung was thinking, but he tried to cook breakfast today, and the whole kitchen was a mess. I had to clean it up after I made breakfast for the boys before coming here."

Areum laughs. "Jisung? Spoiled maknae on top Jisung." I nod and she laughs louder. "What's wrong with him?"

"I want to know that too."

As usual, the day is slow because there are hardly any customers.

Areum let out a sigh. "It's boring!"

"Go on a date."

"With who?"

"For starters, Kun." I suggest.

"Eh? Oh, I...I'm still working." He said.

"We're the boss. If we say 'go on a date', you go on a date." Areum and I say in sync.

"Bye." I wave them off and let out a sigh. "Empty." Suddenly my phone rings. "Hello? S-Seungcheol. What do you want?" I listen to him over the phone.

"Ok." I nod. "You must've heard from Woozi. I don't know them. Not personally anyways. No, I...What? No. I don't know their weakness. Why would I dig up dirt on them? What? You're kidding. Negotiation? When? Thanks Seungcheol, but I can't help you cause I really don't know them. Bye."

"Ok then." I let out a sigh. "I thought Seventeen was gonna attack sooner than this."

Lucas POV

After Areum drags Kun out of the coffee shop, Jieun immediately gets a call from Seungcheol. We look at each other and listen to the their conversation intently. But nothing happens. Jieun didn't give out information or reveal anything about us. We look at each other.

"She...didn't tell." I said. "About our connection with her through Dreamies."

"Of course not. If she did, they'd be in danger." Taeyong replies. "I'm going out. Lucas, you go to the coffee shop."

"Sure thing." I said and make my way over.

"Wel...come." She loses her energy when she sees me.

"Even though there are no stars out tonight, you're still shining like one." I wink.

"It's afternoon. There are no stars out, except for the sun." She deadpan. "What do you want?"

"Coffee." I reply.

"Oh, no . What do you want from the menu. Let me guess, black on black. Oh wait, with three creamers and six sugars?"

I chuckle. "You remembered. How sweet. You must like me to remember." She gave me an annoyed look. I laugh. "I'm just kidding. I'd actually like to try the Creamy Italian Iced Coffee."

"Mm." She nods. "$6.85." I hand her the money and she starts making my drink.

"So," I start after receiving my drink. "What are you up to?"

"Thinking."

"About?"

"Ways to get rid of you. When will you leave?"

"I'm a paying customer."

"Yeah? And you also got your drink so..." She trails off.

"This is good." I nod. "Are you sure you have a master in IT and not barista work?"

"How did you know that?" She asks making me tense up. . I ed up. "Ah. Taeyong must've told you."

"Yeah, he told me." I nod immediately.

"There's really no secrets between NCT members, huh?"

"Nope." I shake my head. Gotta keep the bug a secret.

"Whatever. Just leave already."

"Oh, aren't you bored all alone here. I'll keep you company until Areum comes back from her date."

She stares at me silently. "I'm a bad person. You shouldn't be hanging around me. Go home."

"But I want to stay."

She lets out a sigh. "Fine. Don't bother me." She said and went to clean the utensils.

Jieun POV

When I return home, the boys were in the living room doing their homework together. There were trash and snacks all over the floor.

"Dreamies, clean up, please."

"Ok." Jisung replies and starts cleaning immediately. We all blink in surprise at his behavior.

"Jisung-ah, take out the trash."

"Ok." He nods and immediately does as he is told.

"Jisung-ah, pick up the dishes and wash them." I order after dinner.

"Ok." He said getting up and walking over to the sink.

"Stop! You're being so obedient today. What's wrong with you? You're scaring me." I said.

"It's nothing really." He shrugs and the others cover their mouth trying to suppress their laughter.

I turn to the others. "What did you boys do to him?" They all avert their eyes.

"Chenle."

"It's just..." Chenle starts laughing. "We played with him a bit."

"We told him that if he kept being spoiled, one day, you're gonna abandon him." Jaemin said. "We didn't think he was gonna take it so seriously."

"He's being so spoiled. He doesn't listen to you and he talks back a lot." Haechan points out.

"But you're not that much different from him. You were the first one to dye your hair," I point at his orange hair. "Making the other follow suit. You were the first one to cut class. Again, they followed. Plus, you got a tattoo. Everything starts with you." I said making Haechan pout.

"We just wanted to help you control him a bit." Jeno said.

I chuckle. "Ok. Jisung, sit down." I order and he sits just as told. "I will tell you right now that there is no way I will abandon you Jisung. Same for the rest of you. I'm not going to abandon you even if you don't listen to me," I look at Haechan. "Or you cut class." I look at all of them one by one. "Or don't graduate high school." I look right at Jisung.

"Why are you looking at me?" Jisung asks.

"Because you hate studying. I'm afraid that you're the only one who won't graduate."

He gasps. "Nuh-uh. Haechan at studying too."

"Yah. How dare you throw me under the bus like that." Haechan whispers.

I laugh. "Just know that I won't abandon you boys, even if you are walking down the path of...the underground. I'll always love and be proud of you."

Haechan POV

After Jieun noona went upstairs, Jisung turns to us.

"You guys lied to me!" He yells and we all laugh.

"You were being too spoiled." Jaemin said.

"You don't listen to Jieun noona very well." Jeno adds.

"We were just trying to teach you a lesson." Renjun said.

"You should love and appreciate Jieun noona more by listening." Chenle states.

"What are you gonna do about it, maknae?" We say in sync.

"You're all ugly!" He suddenly shouts running upstairs.

"How can this face be considered ugly." I said turning to the drawers.

"What are you doing?" Jaemin asks.

"I hid something here a few days ago." I said searching through the items. "I'm gonna use it on Jisung." I grab something hard and cold pulling it out. We stare at the gun with wide eyes. I put it back and turn to the others.

"You hid a gun?" Chenle asks.

"You're gonna shoot Jisung?!" Renjun shrieks.

"That's not mine!" I hiss at them. "I only hid water guns."

"Then that...belongs to...Jieun noona?" Jeno mummers.

We look at each other in silent agreement. We do not tell NCT hyungs.