Im Jongmin had been following both press conferences throughout. The two android guards of his had gotten into the system so he could watch it from his office. Upon seeing Park Sangwon getting arrested on screen and hearing the sirens from idol Junior’s press conference, Im Jongmin knew he had not much time left.

“Damn those kids!” He bellowed which his guard took it as a sign to switch off the holographic projection. He took in a deep breath right after, knowing that being like that wouldn’t get him anywhere. 

He needed to get out of here. Im Jongmin hand hovered over his car keys that were sitting on his table which he then walked pass it. Using his own car didn’t seem safe anymore.

“Delete everything here.” He commanded to his two guards as he walked pass them. “Get me a car too.”

With those words, Im Jongmin left his office with his two guards following behind; every digital evidences disappeared completely without a trace.

And when the cops arrived, they were greeted with an empty room.

---

The tension in the air was obvious in the room when Jinyoung arrived with Nayeon and Bambam in tow. None of the ones in the room acknowledged their arrival. Sunmi had her attention on her laptop with Taecyeon watching beside her, both of them in a serious hush conversation. Jeongyeon was on the phone by the corner and frustration were obvious on her face. 

“Hey.” Jinyoung greeted quietly, catching the attention of the three of them. Taecyeon was the first to react as he stood up.

“Good job the three of you.” He managed to crack a small smile but the tension in it wasn’t hidden as well as he hoped. 

“What’s the situation now?” Bambam asked and walked to where Sunmi was, taking a glimpse at the laptop screen at the same time. “Isn’t that—“

“Their original headquarter, yes.” Sunmi sighed and looked at Bambam who settled beside her on the couch. Nayeon joined them after. “But I couldn’t find anything.”

“We sent Udon over too.” Jeongyeon walked over to them after her call ended. There was a short pause after her words before she let out a sigh. “He got nothing. Said that all traces were gone.”

“Im Jongmin’s alone right? How is he able to do these?” This time, Jinyoung was the one who voiced out. He unfolded his arms and straightened his body that was leaning against the wall. “How is he able to hide without any help?”

“He has help.” Everyone turned to the door and saw Mark walked in. “Those androids, they were all coded by Sunmi which means, they could be as strong as Udon.”

“Or worse because Udon was programmed to understand human emotions. He was taught all these each time we update him. But those androids, they have none of what Udon had.” Taecyeon continued.

“They were made just to follow instructions.” Sunmi sighed and leaned back against the couch. “And now I can’t even get into the main system because everything’s in the headquarters are deleted.”

“So…” Nayeon started carefully, not wanting to say things that she shouldn’t like always. “Do we just wait or?”

Silence was the only answer she got from everyone until Jeongyeon spoke up again.

“Yeah we wait.” She took in a deep breath and closed her eyes for a short moment. “The cops will do their best and I told them we will assist them—“ Five pairs of eyes were all on her after she said that. “Behind the scenes! I won’t expose all of you!”

Taecyeon, Sunmi, Mark, Bambam and Nayeon all relaxed after her words.

---

Despite Taecyeon and Sunmi(with the help of Mark and Bambam) working hard to find Im Jongmin via all the CCTVs and traffic enforcement camera they could get, there still wasn’t any news. Even with the help of Udon who had been going around to get into the system of the black box of the cars, there was still nothing. It was as if the man had disappeared.

Jeongyeon had also been in contact with the cops all these while but there was no news on their side too.

“Is there still no news?” Jihyo asked when she noticed Jinyoung stepping into the room.

“Still the same.” Jinyoung sighed then turned to look at the still unconscious Jaebum. “And the same for him too?”

“It’s what you see.” Jihyo sighed and sat back down on the chair by the bedside.

“If he’s awake, maybe he would be able to do something.” Jinyoung spoke quietly, his eyes still on Jaebum. “I used to always call him Rich Man’s Son because it was fun to watch him get annoyed. But really, he’s nothing of that and he’d been a great help to the team.”

Jihyo smiled sadly upon Jinyoung’s words.

“And no, it’s not your fault.” Jinyoung added on when he noticed Jihyo’s expression. “It’s—“

“It’s my father’s fault.” Jihyo whispered. “Im Jongmin and Yang Jungseob too. Until now, I still don’t understand why is there a need for all these?”

It was greed. Jinyoung silently answered in his head but did not voiced it out so Jihyo won’t get anymore disappointed with her father.

“Are you still not going to see your father?” Instead, Jinyoung asked a question.

“I can’t…” Jihyo muttered. “After all, I’m still the one who helped get him arrested. Beside, I don’t want to see him until all these are over too.”

Jinyoung nodded in response as silence filled the air. His eyes shifted onto Jaebum once again.

It’s time to wake up, Jaebum.

---

Nayeon quietly left the room when she saw that Taecyeon, Sunmi, Mark and Bambam working. Taecyeon and Sunmi didn’t wanted everyone to be involved since they could tell that everyone’s tired. Nayeon had protested at first but Bambam’s words made her accept the situation.

“Nayeon, with Mark being busy. He will need someone to look after Jisung.”

She got what Bambam meant right after those words. Mark needed to be involved because he would definitely want to put Im Jongmin into jail. But knowing him, he would also feel uneasy to leave Jisung alone. That was the reason why Nayeon’s standing in front of the room that Mark and Jisung’s currently residing in. The younger boy was on the couch, watching the television but the one thing that really caught Nayeon’s attention was how innocently in awe Jisung looked.

Up until now, Nayeon still had no idea what kind of life Mark and Jisung had, she didn’t dare to ask either. All she knew was that Taecyeon and Sunmi took him in and judging from how amazed Jisung seemed to be, she assumed that it hadn’t been a smooth one that she had. 

Nayeon continued to watch Jisung for a while more, not wanting to disturb. It was only when the advertisement started playing then she knocked on the door. Jisung turned to the door and a bright smile spread across his face.

“Hello Nayeon!”

“Hello to you too.” Nayeon smiled and sat down beside him. “Are you having fun?”

Jisung nodded then turn his whole body to the the side so he’s facing Nayeon. Seeing that excited expression on his face, Nayeon did the same too, wanting to give him her full attention.

“You know, I’ve never knew that a television is this cool! Bambam showed me a lot of gaming videos and anime. He also told me he will get me a mobile phone— an iPhone, I think that’s what he said. Do you have one too, Nayeon?”

“Ah,” Nayeon smiled and showed him the phone she’s been holding. “This is an iPhone. Let me show you what you can do.”

Jisung shifted nearer to her as she showed him the functions of it. He was absolutely excited when she showed him the camera function which she let him take her phone and go around taking random pictures.

“Nayeon, you should look here too!”

“Wha—“ 

Jisung had taken a photo of her before she could even finish that word. His excitement was contagious as Nayeon’s smile grew wider as she watched him.

“Jisung, come here.” Nayeon pat the empty spot beside her again. “Let me show you another way of taking photos.”

Intrigued, Jisung walked back to the couch from the window and sat beside her. Nayeon took the phone back from him and tapped on the screen to flip the camera.

“Jisung, look into the camera.” She pointed at the front camera which Jisung did as she told. Upon seeing their faces on the screen, Jisung’s excitement went up again and Nayeon took a photo of them right at that moment.

“This is called a selfie.” Nayeon explained and showed Jisung the gallery. “We look good, don’t we?”

Jisung grinned widely but just as he was about to reply, his eyes spotted the figure who seemed to be standing at the door for quite a while now.

“Mark!” The younger boy stood up and waved.

Nayeon stood up too and turned around, her gaze meeting with Mark’s the moment she did.

“Hey.” She greeted softly. “I was just about to leave.”

With those words, she turned to face Jisung again and gave him a few gentle pats on his arm.

“I will come back later and teach you more, okay?” She gave him a smile and headed straight to the door. She let her hair covered her face when she was about to walk past Mark. But what came next was something that she wasn’t expecting at all.

He grabbed her wrist.

She stopped in her tracks, eyes widening but she still didn’t turn to look at him.

“After all these, after everything…” Mark trailed off but continued in a softer tone. “Then we will talk.”

Nayeon did not respond and just walked away when Mark loosened his grip on her wrist. Her steps got bigger the moment she stepped out from the room and once she’s sure she’s out of sight, she leant her back against the nearest wall and closed her eyes, a hand over her chest.

What was that?

“It’s funny how I’m always the one who get to witness whatever’s going on with the both of you.”

Nayeon jumped a little when Jinyoung suddenly voiced out. She opened her eyes and turned her head to his direction. Jinyoung stepped forward to her with a cheeky smirk.

“How much did you witness this time?”

“Everything.” Jinyoung shrugged. “I wanted to go check on Jisung since I assumed everyone’s busy. Then I saw him outside the room and the next thing I know, he said those words and you half ran out.”

“And you followed me?” Nayeon narrowed her eyes. “Why?”

“Because I know you will be like this.”

“I’m all good.”

Jinyoung raised an eyebrow at her words and stared at her, which Nayeon understood as him not believing her. She sighed.

“Am I going to embarrass myself again?”

“What makes you think so?”

“You saw me the other time.” Nayeon sighed once more and leant back against the wall with her hands behind her back this time. “I’m going to get rejected right?”

“Do you not remember what I told you the first time? I remember telling you that he’s afraid—“

The sound of two ringtones interrupted Jinyoung. Both of them shared a glance then picked up the call from Bambam and Taecyeon at the same time. The two of them ended the call and without sharing any words, they ran towards the common room. Along the way, they bumped into Mark who just left his room too but that wasn’t the time for any awkwardness.

---

“You guys found the bastard?” Mark was the one who asked before he even stepped in.

“More like he’s openly asking for war.” Jeongyeon said and shared the screen onto the television on the wall which showed the mall opened by the Im Corps. But the main thing that caught all of their attention were the barriers set up and that the shutters of the mall were all down. 

“That’s live from the road camera in front of the mall and these,” Jeongyeon typed as she said and the screen changed once again. “Are the footages of all the CCTVs inside the mall.”

“Are those…” Nayeon trailed off and everyone understood what she meant. It was the red blinking light and the countdown timer. “He’s holding all these people hostage.”

“I’ve already sent these to the cops, that’s why the barrier is up. But there’s one clip that I did not share. It was sent straight into my email.”

The screen changed again and this time it showed Im Jongmin himself.

“You lunatics are the one who forced me to take this route. I won’t go down alone, all these people here? They will be accompanying me to death. But there is a way to save them, come to me and I will let all these people go. All these innocent people who don’t know that you’re the reason why they’re in this situation.”

The screen turned black and the room got silent.

“This is madness…” Nayeon was the one who spoke up first but in a soft whisper. “Complete madness.”

“What do we do now?” Bambam asked, turning to look at Taecyeon which everyone else did the same. 

“We have to go.” Taecyeon looked at all of them with a grim expression. “His whole army of androids are probably there in the mall too and the bombs, we have less than a day. But the bombs are probably made by the android system so if we can get into it, we can stop all the timers at once.”

“And the army of androids?” Mark asked this time. “We have to do something about them or they will interfere.”

“That’s why we have to all go. This will both be a hacking war and a physical fight.” Taecyeon looked at Jinyoung when he said the last two words.

Jinyoung blinked once, then twice before he understood.

“Me versus an army again?” He pointed at himself and asked. “Jaebum isn’t here with me this time.”

“If needed, Mark will help but it’s going to just be a decoy. I just need them all in one place then the rest of them can do the job.”

“And what about Sunmi?” Bambam asked.

“She and I, we will get into the bomb system.” Taecyeon replied which Sunmi nodded in agreement.

“What about Udon?” Nayeon brought up the android boy when she realised that he’s not in the plan at all. “He can fight and hack at the same time.”

“He’s staying here.” Mark answered before Taecyeon or anyone else could. “Jisung, Jaebum and Jihyo are all here.”

“I know it’s more logical to send him there than any of us. But like Mark said, those three are here. Jaebum’s out of commission, Jisung and Jihyo are helpless in this situation.”

“And you said it, Nayeon.” Jeongyeon spoke up for the first time after her report, continuing what Taecyeon had said. “He’s the only one who can fight and hack, he’s the best protection.”

Silence took over once again.

“We won’t be exposed right? I know it’s a stupid question but I really don’t want my family to know I’m part of all these.” Nayeon’s voice got softer at the end. 

“Leave that to me.” Jinyoung smiled. “This place has lots of the same emergency pack, wait here.”

The idol jogged out of the room and came back with six black caps of the same design. He handed one to everyone each.

“These will help, just pull it down. If needed,” He held up six black masks. “I have these too if it’s not enough.”

The six of them took one cap each from Jinyoung.

“Technically, we just have to blend in with the crowd, right?” Bambam asked despite him putting on the cap too. “Do I look good?”

Jeongyeon who was beside him elbowed him after that question.

“I believe Im Jongmin’s androids have all our faces in their memory system. They will be looking for us especially when we will be using the computers in the KC store.”

“What?” Everyone except Sunmi turned to Taecyeon, a look of disbelief on their faces.

“Wouldn’t that be more obvious?” Mark asked.

“But it’s the fastest way to get into their system at once. Beside, like Taec mentioned earlier, Jinyoung is the decoy and the bait to bring the androids to us and that’s the perfect place.” Sunmi explained and when she saw Jinyoung’s eyes widening even more, she added. “Sorry Jinyoung, it’s the fastest way.”

“I need to write a will.”

Bambam and Nayeon both walked to each of his side and gave him a pat on his back. 

---

“… The police have blocked off the area around IM Mall due to the bomb threat intel that was sent to them. We have no idea what’s happening inside and neither are we able to have any communication with anyone inside. This could also be related to what idol Junior had revealed during his latest press conference—“

Taecyeon switched the radio off as he stopped the van behind the mall, away from any view of the crowd.

“Bambam, what’s the situation in the mall?”

“A huge mess.” Bambam replied, his MacBook on his lap and behind him are Jinyoung and Nayeon who’s peering on his screen. “The androids are keeping the people in the different stores and they’re all freaking out.”

“Im Jongmin is a mad man.” Jinyoung looked up from the screen. “Are we going in now?”

“What’s the situation near KC Telecom?” Mark asked and took the MacBook from Bambam at the same time which the latter let him as he sat closer to the older man. Jinyoung and Nayeon at the back shifted to his side to have a closer look at the screen.

“As expected, more androids.” Mark answered his own question.

“I’ve contacted the detective in charge and told them what’s going on.” Jeongyeon who was on Bambam’s other side put down her phone. “Told them to keep the safety of the people inside as priority. Obviously, they’re not happy to be given instructions by me.”

“That’s their issue.” Nayeon said without thinking. “Ah I did it again.”

Jinyoung laughed and placed a hand on Nayeon’s head which she pushed away, annoyed with his action.

“That’s the Nayeon we all know.”

The rest of the team laughed along but the relaxed atmosphere did not last long as the shutter to the carpark basement opened slowly.

“Is that an invitation?”

“One way to find out.” Taecyeon muttered and stepped on the accelerator, heading straight into it.

---

` after all the previous excitement, this chapter shows you the human side of the characters. especially the development of markyeon. their relationship is a slow burn but hinted throughout if you read carefully. anyway, the actions will start again next chapter. technically it should be this chapter but it got longer than i expected. can you believe this story is now a 72068 words story that will take you about an average of 5h to finish haha. this is ending in about two or three more chapters. thank you for reading this after my disappearance. i hope this chapter satisfy you!

votes and comments are motivations for me!

cheers, leen

p.s. also, let me do a shameless self promo of my one shot series, Adoration and i want to hear thoughts of the latest one shot.