Again, I did not proofread this. Because I'm lazy, if there's any typo error or grammatical error, please point out. Thank you.

---

It’s been almost two weeks since that day. Nayeon and Jinyoung had been the ones communicating to update each team on the situation. 

Jaebum was still unconscious and Jisung’s programming was still undone. Despite Mark’s full trust in Sunmi, he was getting restless with the situation. There wasn’t much improvement shown in Jisung’s condition except for the fact that he stopped attacking them everytime he woke up. That made it easier for Mark and the others to feed him some water and liquid food.

“Bambam hasn’t been eating much either. Bambam, our youngest, Bambam!” Nayeon sighed exasperatedly on the phone. “But Mark’s the most worrying one…”

There was a long pause from Jinyoung’s side of the phone, as if he’s waiting for Nayeon to continue.

“He’s not eating, not sleeping. I tried to drag him out for fresh air and even tried to force feed him but nothing helped! Sunmi’s considering to knock him out, she even got a baseball bat ready.”

A snort came from the other side of the phone which made Nayeon frowned.

“I’m sorry I’m sorry.” Jinyoung apologised after he composed himself; this is definitely not a time to laugh. “But I think he will be okay as long as you’re by his side.”

“How’s everything there? Is Jeongyeon well?” Nayeon ignored what Jinyoung had said after a brief silence.

“How should I put it? After serving Jaebum, she now has to serve the princess too- Ouch!”

“Nayeon,” This time, it was Jeongyeon’s voice that greeted her. “Don’t worry about us, we will be fine—“ There was a slight pause as the woman took in a deep breath. “Yeah we will be.”

Jeongyeon sounded more like she’s convincing herself more than she’s convincing Nayeon. However, if the latter noticed, she decided to not call her out. Instead, Nayeon assured her that they will be fine on her side too. After another short chat, both girls ended the call.

Jinyoung was staring at Jeongyeon after she ended the call with Nayeon. His previous cheeky look disappeared from his face. When their eyes met, he was the one who spoke up first.

“Liar.”

“What-“ Jeongyeon was obviously surprised by the sudden accusation.

“You weren’t doing well at all.” Jinyoung stood up and walked towards her. 

Jeongyeon kept quiet this time, knowing fully well that Jinyoung’s right. She’s not okay, not at all. Jaebum’s disappearance had caused an uproar in the company and there were all kind of rumours. She singlehandedly settled everything with the help of some Taecyeon’s skill to bring all the articles down from the top search. 

And then there’s Jihyo. 

She had always been treated like a princess with no worries. Now, she’s stuck with them, wearing only casual cheap outfits and still a little traumatised from all the recent events. The news did not help either as she knew that the rumours were most likely spread by her father and Jaebum’s uncle.

“Hey.” Jinyoung’s gentle voice brought Jeongyeon out from her thoughts. “You are not alone, you should know that. It’s okay to rely on someone. I might not be any help as Junior but I’m Park Jinyoung, remember? I’m right here with you.”

Jeongyeon finally smiled as they shared a gaze, a comfortable silence filling up the room. But that was soon interrupted by a knock against the door which caused both of them to turn their head.

“I’m sorry if I’ve interrupted you guys.” Taecyeon leaned against the door with a playful smirk on his face but despite so, that couldn’t hide how tired he looked too. “We have something to discuss.”

He finished saying and turned his body slightly, revealing Jihyo behind him who’s looking nervous as she fiddled her fingers.

Jinyoung and Jeongyeon shared a look, a different one from before and nodded simultaneously.

---

Nayeon let out a long sigh after the call ended as she leaned her back against the wall. Her parents were starting to wonder what she had been doing since she’s been looking down and tired. But of course, she’s not able to tell them anything. 

Her mind started to wander back to when she first encountered this bunker; how she found the whole thing ridiculous and how she hated that she’s part of this. But her thoughts also ended up running to the time she got hurt and everyone’s worried expression.

Despite the whole dangerous situation, she did met a group of friends. Friends who accepted every part and flaws of hers. Friends who taught her about loyalty and courage.

And then, a certain someone’s face appeared in her mind instead.

Nayeon opened her eyes, letting another sigh out. She knew what this meant, there was no need for denial anymore. She had been doing that since that moment they shared in the park. When did it actually start, she had no idea. 

When he got shot? Or maybe earlier.

All these thoughts weren’t any help! Nayeon groaned and hit her head, as if that will help get rid of all her thoughts.

“If you’re unwell, you can go home.” 

Startled, Nayeon straightened herself immediately and turned her head to where the voice came from.

Mark.

“I’m fine.” She cleared and tried to forget the thoughts she was having earlier. Instead, she ended up staring at the man in front of her and noticed how tired he looked. She frowned a little and asked the first question that popped into her mind. 

“Have you eaten?”

“What—“

“Have you had any sleep?”

“Yeah.”

“One or two hours doesn’t count.” Nayeon cut him off. “I bet you have not been eating since who knows when. I will treat you, let’s go!”

With those words and the courage that she didn’t know she had, she grabbed Mark’s hand and dragged him towards the exit. She could hear his protest but she gripped his hand tighter; on the way out her eyes met with Sunmi’s who gave her a thumbs up.

Nayeon only nodded as a response as she half dragged half pulled Mark away.

“What the hell are you doing!” Mark yelled and shoved her hand away the moment they’re out from the bunker. “I still have work to do!”

“Oh yeah?” Nayeon challenged and folded her arms. “All I see is you being stuck—“ She gulped when Mark’s face darkened. “And you won’t be of any help to Sunmi and Bambam if you collapse!”

“I won’t—“

“My .” Nayeon interrupted Mark before he could even finish his sentence which surprised him. Nayeon has never spoken like that, not much at least. 

“You look like a freaking zombie. I don’t care, I’m not Im Nayeon if I don’t manage to get some food into your system. I will force feed you if I need to.”

Without letting the surprised Mark recover, Nayeon took his hand once again and dragged him out to the nearest restaurant.

---

Sunmi smiled as she watched Nayeon dragged Mark out. It seems like Mark finally have another female that he will listen to other than herself. She noticed Bambam smiling too and spoke up.

“I don’t know her well but she’s doing great, isn’t she?”

“Oh you have no idea.” Bambam grinned, something he hasn’t been doing recently. “Nayeon is a gem to Mark.”

---

Mark stared at the table of food — Yukgaejang (spicy beef soup), ddeokbokki (spicy rice cake), chicken bulgogi and fried chicken — then up at Nayeon again, giving her a “Are you serious?” look.

In return, Nayeon gave him a firm nod with a simple message “Eat!” in that action. However, seeing that Mark’s not picking up any utensils, Nayeon got frustrated.

“You’re really good at being hard to get.” Nayeon blurted out. If she had regretted those words, she definitely hid it well.

“What?”

This time, Nayeon made no reply. Instead, she picked up a spoon and spooned some soup and beef into the rice. She mixed a small portion together then scooped a spoonful of rice, putting it right in front of Mark’s mouth.

“Eat.” She repeated herself and continued. “Or do you want me to feed you for real? And by feeding, it means me shoving this damn spoon into that glued up mouth of yours.”

That simple threat was enough for Mark to take the spoon and eat his first proper meal obediently. Nayeon rested her elbows on the table and her chin on her hands, looking very satisfied with herself. 

“Are you not going to...?” Mark asked. This time, it was Nayeon who was surprised; she wasn’t expecting that question at all. 

Mark said nothing after that, only continuing to eat quietly. Nayeon watched him for a while before a wide grin spread across her face as she picked up her chopsticks too. 

After all, she did ordered a lot of food.

---

It took another few more days for Sunmi to finally finished coding the program that would turn Jisung back to a normal human boy. 

Upon hearing the news from Jinyoung and having his and Jeongyeon’s assurance, Taecyeon headed back to the bunker.

“Hey.” He greeted as he stepped into the bunker, heading straight to where Sunmi was sitting. At the same time, Bambam stood up and stepped aside immediately, giving up his seat beside Sunmi. “It’s all good?”

“By theory, yes.” Sunmi turned her laptop slightly to show Taecyeon. “But I would feel more confident if you have a look too.”

Taecyeon pulled the laptop closer to his side and scrolled through all the codings that’s shown on the screen as Sunmi continued to explain everything.

“I’ve gotten Udon to scan through Jisung’s body for the chip that I made long ago. This is the cancelling program I wrote in reference to that. And here,” Sunmi brought another laptop to the table. “These are the coding Udon got.”

Taecyeon nodded and turned his attention to the laptop Sunmi just showed him.

“What do you think?”

“Well,” Taecyeon started off quietly. “Like you said, by theory this is perfect. However, this is a human boy we’re talking about and,” Sunmi followed Taecyeon’s gaze which is now on Mark. “This is Mark’s little brother. Are you okay with it, kiddo?”

‘Kiddo’ was the term the both of them liked to use on him when he was younger. The fact that Taecyeon used the term on him for the first time since he grown up, Mark knew that they’re more than worried about him. Watching the two of them staring at him with the expression they wore when they first brought him home made Mark feel like a kid again. 

And since then, he had always trust Taecyeon and Sunmi.

“You know I’ve always trust the both of you.” Mark’s voice was quiet but the slight fear in his tone did not go unnoticeable by everyone in the room. 

Sunmi gave him an encouraging smile as Taecyeon nodded. Bambam went to stand closer to him, resting a palm on his shoulder then giving it a gentle squeeze. 

“I trust that you will bring him back.”

After spending another hour of checking over and over again, Sunmi encrypted the program into a microchip created by Taecyeon and herself. It was also the same method she used on Jisung many years ago.

The whole process wasn’t smooth.

When they injected the microchip into Jisung’s body, the boy woke up and tried resisting. But Udon was able to find the chip quick enough and with him as a medium, Sunmi managed to overwrite the coding that was in him all those years.

All of them let out a breath that they had no idea they were holding when Jisung finally stopped resisting and closed his eyes. His breathing even and as compared to the first day they’d seen him, Jisung looked more alive than any other day before.

“We can untie him.” Taecyeon said in a gentle tone and almost immediately, Bambam stepped forward and untied the rope around the young boy. 

“We need a mattress too or something soft for him to lie down too.” Sunmi added on which Taecyeon caught her message in between.

“Let’s go get one.” He walked up to her and as they walked out, he made eye contact with Bambam which the latter interpreted as “Take care of Mark.” 

Bambam nodded then returned his gaze to where Mark was still standing. Throughout the whole time, Mark stayed where he was and only had his eyes on Jisung.

It took a while but Mark eventually took tiny steps towards his younger brother and knelt down in front of him. 

“I’m sorry.” Those were the first two words that came out from his mouth. “I’m sorry…” He repeated, reaching out to cup Jisung’s face with his trembling hands. The tears were streaming down his face but it soon escalated into loud sobs as he hugged his brother tightly. 

Bambam watched as Mark continued to mutter incoherent words in between his cry that was echoing in the quiet bunker. It was the first time he saw Mark this vulnerable; his shoulders were trembling and his face were pressed against the shoulder of Jisung, as if he’s going to lose him anytime.

Mark had always been his pillar of support ever since they first met but now that he needed comfort, Bambam realised that there’s nothing he could do but to let the older man cry his hearts out. Without knowing, tears had also blurred Bambam’s eyes but managed to hold them in and looked away.

Somehow, it felt wrong to watch.

---

The news of Jisung being back to normal spread among the team. But because of the circumstances, they could only get updates via texting or phone calls.

Except Nayeon, who’s the nearest to the bunker. So, she’s usually the one who gave Jinyoung’s side the first hand updates on the how Jisung’s doing once again.

Which was never a good news.

Jisung had been unconscious for days; all they could do was wait and moist his lips with water to let his body absorb some water. However, these few days were also enough to make Mark frustrated again. All the effort Nayeon made to get him to take care of himself was gone.

Nayeon sighed then took in a deep breath before she stepped into the bookstore, heading down the basement. Another day of being ignored by the great Mark Tuan.

“I’m here because Jinyoung and Bambam forced me to.” She mumbled to herself as she walked towards the bunker. However, deep inside, she knew the exact reason why she’s still doing this.

When she’s inside, Taecyeon and Sunmi were nowhere in sight. Bambam was on his computer and Mark, he’s indeed where she thought he would be — Right beside Jisung.

Her eyes met Bambam’s but the latter merely gave her a shrug of defeat. It seemed like nothing had improved after all. Taking in another deep breath, Nayeon went to sit on the floor beside Mark. She stayed silence for a while before she fished a lollipop from her pocket and unwrapped it before she held it in front of Mark.

Bambam who was watching behind, raised an eyebrow at the sight. So, this was where Mark’s habit of eating sweets start from.

Or rather, who.

Seeing that there was no reaction from Mark, Nayeon shoved the lollipop into his mouth with force which resulted to Mark pushing her hand away. But Nayeon was unfazed by his actions. After all, she was trained to handle him the moment he was ‘assigned’ to protect her.

“Sweets will help.” Nayeon stated firmly then with the same firm tone, she continued. “Finish it, then we will go out for a walk.”

“I don’t want to.”

“You’ve got no choice.” Nayeon replied nonchalantly as her gaze stay fixated on Jisung too.

Once again, Bambam was amused as he continued to watch the back of the two of them. He got even more amused and amazed when Nayeon actually managed to force Mark out. But of course, Mark did not follow obediently; he complained, pushed her away, got a little mad at her but Nayeon was completely unbothered as she hooked her arm around his and half dragged the man out.

“Wow.” 

That was all Bambam could mutter after he was left alone (with Jisung) in the bunker.

---

The place Nayeon dragged Mark to was the park. The park where she first saw him with the stray dogs, when she first saw his smile. The two of them stayed silent for a while as they sat side by side on the bench.

“See, getting fresh air is good for you.” Like always, Nayeon’s the one who first broke the silence. 

And like how it used to be at the beginning, Mark did not respond. But now that she knew how he’s like, she didn’t get as frustrated as before. She’s used to talking to a wooden block after all these while.

“I would have brought Kookeu but he probably would be too annoying right now.” She started talking again, observing Mark from the side. But just like she expected, he did not react to her words.

Silence took over once again for a short while before she in a breath.

“You know,” Nayeon started carefully and slowly. “It’s not your fault he’s like that.”

Mark flinched upon those words.

“It was those evil and cruel men, you shouldn’t—“

“Shut up.” Mark finally opened his mouth but it wasn’t anything Nayeon had expected. 

Her jaw dropped open then closed again, unable to find the correct words to respond to that. In the end, she could only bit on her lower lip.

“I was just trying to—“

“You don’t have to.” Mark cut her off again, his voice getting colder with every word. “I don’t need your pity and definitely not your nose in my business.”

That did pissed Nayeon off.

“So you think I’m being nosy? Heck, you think I want to? You pathetic little .” She should stop, Nayeon knew she had to stop but she didn’t. “You think I am showing you pity when in fact you’re the one who’s doing all this self pitying to yourself!” She stood up as her voice got louder with every word. “If I could, I don’t even want to bother about you!”

“Then don’t!” Mark stood up and raised his voice too. “I don’t need you to do that!”

“You really don’t know why I’m doing all these, don’t you?”

“I don’t want to know.” Mark’s voice dropped low with this last reply. He turned around and headed towards the direction back.

Nayeon stood there, watching his back as angry tears welled up in her eyes. Her vision blurred but she could still see his back walking further away from her.

“Mark ing Tuan!” She shouted before Mark completely got out from her sight and she was sure the man heard her. Even though it was only a brief second, she saw his body froze before he continued walking. This time, his steps got bigger.

“You coward, self pitying !” She continued to yell, streaks of tears falling from her eyes. “I like you!”

This time, Mark did stop in his tracks however, he’s still not turning around. 

“I like you, you !” Nayeon repeated her confession and continued. “You’re a jerk, a pathetic idiot and ungrateful er but I still like you. And I hate it! I hate this so much.”

She waited for a while; she knew it won’t happened but she still waited for Mark to turn around.

He didn’t.

Instead, he walked away and out from her sight.

“I really hate this.” Nayeon muttered to herself as she sat back down on the bench. She kept her head low and let her hair cover her face so she could hide these stupid tears of hers. “Stupid stupid stupid!” 

“You’re not stupid.” Nayeon widened her eyes when Jinyoung’s voice rang beside her. She could feel him sitting down beside her. “Mark doesn’t hate you, you know. He just couldn’t let anyone else into his heart.”

Nayeon stopped crying but stayed silent, waiting for Jinyoung to elaborate on what he said.

“He’s just scared.”

“Scared?” That was enough for Nayeon to lift her head to look at Jinyoung. “What is he scared of?”

“Of losing people dear to him.” Jinyoung sighed. “You see how he is with Jisung. None of us knew what happened until recently, when we were at the resort. Taecyeon told us. Up till now, he’s been blaming himself for losing Jisung and he had never forgiven himself for that.”

Jinyoung paused for a while. When Nayeon did not reply, he continued.

“Taecyeon and Sunmi saved him and raised him, it took him a while to fully trust him. Then Bambam came whom he took care of like a little brother. After that we got into his life and finally, you.”

“Me?”

“Having friends and family like us is already a really scary thing for him. If he gives in to his feelings and allowed you into his heart, that would mean having another person he’s afraid of losing.”

Nayeon kept quiet, not because she’s waiting for him to continue but because she really didn’t know what to say to this revelation. She only turned to look at Jinyoung when she felt a hand on her head. 

Jinyoung gave her a small smile when their eyes met.

“It will be okay, let’s go back.”

This time, Nayeon smiled too.

“Why are you here anyway?”

“I was sent here by Jeongyeon to get first hand news. Should I tell her what I’ve witnessed too?”

“Shut up.” Nayeon responded, not meaning her words. “How’s Jaebum or Jihyo?”

Jinyoung sighed and he shared the situation on his side. Apparently, Jihyo had decided to go against her father.

---

After what had happened, Nayeon did not go back to the bunker. Bambam sent her concern texts everyday but she would always tell him she’s fine.

Until another few more days, the content of his text changed.

“Jisung woke up.” 

---

` i am back! back to finish this story and back as a markyeon shipper! i miss them so much that i made a little something. you can have a look on my instagram (@ddeokbxkki), if you're a markyeon shipper, i promise you you wont regret.

just a short explanation why i disappeared. first, i was disappointed at got7. i would be fine if they simply just doesn't want to renew their contract, but as a Hottest, i was mad at JB and Yugyeom who joined Jay Park's company. it's their decision, i know, which made it worse. 2pm took great care of JJP when they first debut, as trainees, they should have seen how much 2pm suffered bc of what happened so yeah, i was freaking upset. then we have them and their rude gestures towards JYP himself.

you can judge me for this but as a fan who had been here since 2009, JYP is really the best founder. there's a reason why Rain and Sunmi or his previous artistes still keep in contact with him or even have a collaboration. so yeah, i was mad at that too.

HOWEVER, i realised, no matter what, i waited for GOT7's debut since JJP era. i watched them grow and i definitely miss the old GOT7. so i guess i will keep my love for the 2014-2020 them and continue shipping markyeon, markbam and jinjeong. 

i will still wish for end of year stages if any because i'm sure markbamyeon doesn't care about whether their interactions will be judged or not.

cheers!

http://instagram.com/ddeokbxkki
https://tellonym.me/ddeokbxkki