ch.1

Hardwood floors stretched beneath a small figure, providing only a sliver of comfort as they curled up in a dark corner. The walls beneath them spread out on opposite sides, dull grey faces reflecting the dim moonlight pouring in through the windows. The room itself was otherwise dark as the windows served as the only gateway to the outside, but even they were small and in disarray. Broken shutters hung from rusted hinges as they swung back and forth in the slight breeze. The figure shivered as the thin fabric covering their body proved itself useless against the chills lapping at their form.

    How did they get here? They’d been asking themself that for the past few hours now, eyes searching their surroundings for any sort of object that may serve as a clue. Nothing. Ultimately, they ended up sitting in solitude with hopes that something- anything could happen. That day, it seemed, was their lucky day. Not a second or more after the idea passed, a loud crash came from downstairs. They jolted in surprise and their gaze narrowed in on the wooden door across the room. ‘What...was that?’ they asked themselves before standing on a pair of unsteady legs.

-

    “Why are we here again?” the shorter of the two asked for what seemed to be the umpteenth time that night. He brushed stray slivers of wood and glass from the shoulder of his leather jacket before checking the rest of his body. “And did we have to break through the window?”

    “Of course we did. It’s all part of the adventure.” the other replied, a wide grin etched onto his face as his baritone voice echoed around the room. It was his idea of a good time, after all.

    “That boarded up window was just asking to be broken. C’mon, this place is abandoned anyway.” He spared another quick glance at his friend before pulling a flashlight from the backpack held firmly to his back and turning it on. The light flashed a bright yellow as it shone around the room, illuminating everything in its path. Shadows leered as the light passed over covered chairs and lamps. A dull rug in the middle of the room briefly smiled back with rosy cheeks as it lay on the floor.

    “This must be the living room.” he concluded before moving through the space to inspect its contents.

-

Careful feet lowered onto hardwood floors as the figure crept along the walls in the hallway. They could hear the voices of two intruders growing louder in volume as they approached the stairs. Pausing at the top, they craned their neck in an attempt to listen to what was being said. Mention of the living room caught their attention. ‘That must be where they are’ they thought before sliding down the stairs. Each stair creaked in agitation under the weight of their feet as they descended but they continued to move in fear of drawing attention. It didn’t take long to reach the bottom, though they paused to peek around the corner before lowering onto all fours and crawling behind the couch. Just as they situated the intruders spoke again.

    “C’mon, hyung, can we please just go? You can bring Baek with you next time, alright?” the shorter complained. “This dust is definitely not good for my pores.”

    “Stop complaining, Sehun. This is exactly why Joonmyeon hyung asked me to bring you along.”

    “Joonmyeon hyung can kiss my .” Sehun grumbled under his breath.

‘Joonmyeon? Sehun? Bake?’ They furrowed their brows. Too lost in thought, they failed to notice their foot peeking out from behind the couch and found themself anxiously surprised when a blinding light revealed their somewhat hidden form.

    “The is this?” Sehun exclaimed. “I thought this place was abandoned? You said it was abandoned!” Sehun began mumbling as a small panic consumed him, hands grasping his hair in frustration as he walked in circles.

    “Shut up for a second will you? I can’t think when you’re complaining.”

Chanyeol directed his attention to the stunned figure on the floor. Messy hair covered a majority of their face, making it difficult for him to get an appropriate look, but his eyes quickly latched onto the italic number nine inked onto their wrist as it peeked out from underneath the oversized shirt they wore. Sensing the attention drifting towards their mark, they pulled the sleeve down and pulled their arm in. Chanyeol let out a small hum before crouching down to be at eye level.

    “Do you have a name?” The question seemed simple, but lead to confusion and further discomfort as the figure on the floor retracted.

    “Um… My name is Chanyeol. The babbling drama queen over there is Sehun.”

He received no response.

    “Why the hell would she tell you her name? Pennywise lookin’ motherfu-”

    “She?”

    “Are you blind? That right there is a girl. I know you’ve never seen one up close but we go now?”

    “We’re taking her with us.”

Sehun paused. “We’re what?!”

Chanyeol opted to not respond, instead offering his hand out. The girl looked between the two in front of her before hesitantly extending her hand towards Chanyeol’s. Taking this as a positive reaction Chanyeol carefully took her hand and helped her to her feet. Sehun tossed his hands up in the air in frustration before making his way towards the window.

    “Sehun, you’re carrying her.”

    “What?! Oh come on you’re kidding right?”

After receiving a rather serious stare in response, he begrudgingly made his way back towards the girl before gesturing for her to get on his back. She did nothing at first, only staring at him before he sighed. “You can trust me, alright? I won’t drop you.”

Pursing her lips, she gently climbed onto his back, arms wrapping around his shoulders for support before he stood and once again made his way towards the window, this time with caution. Chanyeol followed close behind, and minutes later the trio were on their way down a sidewalk and into the night.

    “Junmyeon hyung isn’t going to like this.”

    “We couldn’t just leave her there. It’ll be fine.”

    “He’s gonna kill us.”

    “Sehun. Please.”

    “What’s your deal? You’re so calm about this. Have you seen her before or something?”

    “I’ve just got some stuff on my mind.”

    “Care to share what that stuff may be?”

    “Maybe. I need to confirm it first.”

    “Junmyeon hyung really isn’t going to like this.”