No one dared to say the first word in the silent room. Even Taecyeon and Sunmi were watching Mark carefully, not wanting to say anything to upset him. 

The silence was so awkward that it was enough for Jisung to sense that something’s wrong. He looked around and noticed that everyone else were sneaking glance at each other then at himself and his brother. He followed their gaze to his older brother beside him, he looked… scared?

Was it because he touched the computer earlier? Should he not had? But it was also because something in him was telling him that he could do something about the situation outside. Was he wrong?

“Did I do something wrong?” Jisung finally asked in a quiet whisper which got everyone’s attention. Suddenly, everyone had their eyes on him.

“No, of course not!” Nayeon was the first one to react from his sudden question. She was smiling but Jisung was able to tell that the nervousness and worries she had were still hiding behind it.

“Then why are all of you looking at me like that? Was it because of what I’ve done earlier?”

“Jisung—“ Sunmi started. There’s no point keeping silent now that the boy himself had spoken up. However, she was interrupted by Mark before she could even start a conversation.

“Jisung, how did you know what to do?”

Everyone else in the words and questions that were at the tip of their tongue. Maybe it’s best to let Mark do all the talking.

“I don’t know how but I just did. Is it something bad that I shouldn’t do?”

When Mark didn’t answer his question after a while, Sunmi took over once again. After all, she was the one who made him like that and was also the one who fought along by his side all those years.

“Jisung, do you remember me?” It was a simple question but strong enough to get a few questions answered.

“You look familiar, just like that man out there.”

Mark flinched at Jisung’s words as his fists tightened. Bambam who was sitting by his side, placed a hand on his shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. It wasn’t much but it was enough encouragement for Mark to relax his body slightly.

“But I feel different when I see you.” Jisung continued even without any prompting. “I feel safe with you but I was scared when I saw him. That’s why I ran and when I saw this—“ Jisung pointed at the closed MacBook on the coffee table. “I suddenly knew what I was able to do.”

Once again, there was complete silence in the room. This was the first time Jisung spoke like how his age was supposed to.

“Do you… perhaps...” Bambam hesitated as he took a glance at Mark’s unreadable expression but he took in a deep breath and continued. “Do you perhaps remember everything?”

“What do you mean by everything?” With just that one question, Jisung turned back to the little boy he was.

“Nothing.” Taecyeon smiled at him then stood up. “Are you hungry? Let’s go get some food, what do you want to eat?”

A wide grin split across Jisung’s face as he stood up.

“Burgers!” Bambam stood up too and answered before Jisung.

“He wasn’t asking you!” Nayeon joined in and gently pulled Jisung by his arm towards her. “Ignore him, you will decide what we’re eating!”

“Hey!”

The four of them left the room, leaving only Mark and Sunmi who understood what they were doing. She stayed quiet, leaning her back against the couch again and waited. Even though it wasn’t a long time and that she wasn’t in his life for a few years, she still understood Mark. He would talk once he’s ready and all she had to do was wait.

“Sunmi…” Mark started after some time and Sunmi sat up again, giving Mark her full attention. “I’ve made up my mind.”

---

After they carried Udon’s motionless body back into an empty room, Jinyoung and Jeongyeon headed to the meeting room. There were only Sunmi and Mark there. They had wanted to ask where the others were but the words from Mark made them stop in their tracks. Neither Sunmi nor Mark had noticed their presence which they took the chance and left the room quietly.

Both of them said nothing as they walked side by side. They had a rough guess of why Mark had made that decision; it’s for Jisung’s sake. However, for some reason, it had killed the sense of victory they had felt not too long ago. Their legs brought them to the room Jaebum’s in and to none of their surprise, Jihyo was there too.

“Hey.” Jihyo smiled when she noticed their presence. But her smile faded a little when she noticed the serious look on both their faces. “What’s wrong? Did something go wrong again?”

“No, no, it’s not that.” Jeongyeon’s professionalism took over as she stepped forward and stood beside Jaebum’s bed. “It’s all over. Im Jongmin’s definitely going into prison and their army of androids would be destroyed. You are safe and so is Jaebum.”

Jeongyeon’s eyes lingered on Jaebum’s unconscious body then to Jihyo. She took the latter’s hand into hers and gave it a few pats on the back of her hand.

“You’ve been really really brave.” Jeongyeon smiled. “I’m sure Jaebum will be proud of you.”

“I’ve never heard you call him by his name.” Jihyo voiced out her observation. “It sounds a little weird coming from you.”

Jeongyeon let out a soft chuckle.

“Only you would notice this.”

“Hey, I did too.” Jinyoung walked up to them, deciding to interrupt the girls’ moment after hearing what Jeongyeon had said. “Throughout the years of knowing both of you, you had always called him Boss.”

“I had to call him by his name, that includes his last name by the way, when he needed to keep his temper in check.” Jeongyeon shrugged then looked at Jaebum again. “Right, Boss?”

The sound of the aircon was the only answer she got back. Jinyoung and Jihyo did not say anything either as their eyes all shifted onto Jaebum.

There was no sadness in them, only hope. This man wouldn’t go down that easily.

---

Jinyoung found Mark sitting alone in one of the empty rooms. Judging by how far it is from the main lobby and the meeting room, he had assumed that Mark’s hiding from the others. Hearing another sigh coming from the other man, Jinyoung knocked on the door which fortunately managed to get Mark’s attention. 

“Hey.”

Mark simply nodded as a response, not having enough energy to even give a proper greeting. But being one of those few who understood him, Jinyoung just walked towards Mark and sat down beside him.

“So... when are you going to talk to her?”

Mark opened his eyes.

“I happened to hear your conversation and...” Jinyoung paused for a moment then continued with a sign. “And the one with Sunmi.”

Mark sat up straight this time and turned to look at Jinyoung. 

“Are you going to tell the others?”

“Do you want me to?”

“I—“ Mark looked away and sighed. “Just keep it to yourself for now.”

“Jeongyeon knows about your decision too, she was there with me during your conversation with Sunmi. I believe Taecyeon would have heard it from her by now. So you’re left with Bambam and Nayeon.”

“Just don’t tell them anything.”

“Alright, then what about your talk with Nayeon? Will that be happening?”

Mark kept silent once again; Jinyoung did not press for any answer either.

“Yeah.” That was Mark’s quiet reply after a long silence. 

Jinyoung smiled then stood up, leaving the room after giving the other a pat on his shoulder.

---

Nayeon stared at her computer screen, twirling her pen she’s holding absentmindedly, a notebook forgotten on her table. It’s been a week since what had happened and no one contacted her ever since Jeongyeon sent her home. 

Even Bambam’s annoying text notifications stopped appearing on her screen.

The group chat was quiet too.

For some reason, Nayeon felt really uneasy about it. It almost felt like they were hiding something from her. Also, how’s everyone doing? Has Jaebum regained his consciousness yet? Are Jeongyeon coping well? And Jinyoung, rumours about his fight were spreading on social media but there was no evidence. It was obvious to her that the others were the ones responsible for the lack of evidence.

Talking about the others, how’s Mark doing? What about Jisung?

With all these questions swimming in her head, Nayeon let out a long sigh then rested her forehead on the table. 

On the side, her parents were watching her from the cashier.

“Isn’t it time we ask her about it?”

“You think she broke up with that boy?”

“He’s not my boyfriend!” Nayeon raised her head and shot a glare at her gossiping parents. “And I am okay, it’s just the stress from my internship and this stupid essay which won’t write itself!”

Nayeon groaned and threw her pen on the table, messing her hair in frustration. Everything is so stupid suddenly. The stupid essay, her stupid thoughts and that stupid Mark. Thinking about him made her groaned even louder as her head dropped down onto the table once again.

“Oi.”

This is so stupid that she’s even hallucinating his voice now.

“Oi.” His voice got louder as if he’s standing near her. Stupid brain of hers, she’s acting like a love struck high school girl.

“Oi!” 

“What!” She pushed the hand that, just knocked on her head, away in a rough manner, snapping at whoever it was. Her eyes widened when she realised that Mark was indeed standing beside her.

“What are you doing here?” She stood up quickly, the chair she was sitting on fell from the impact as she did.

“To talk to you.” Straightforward as ever.

Right, the talk that he mentioned before. 

Nayeon could see her parents excusing themselves from the corner of her eye but she could deal with that later.

“Let’s go.” Mark grabbed her wrist and dragged her towards the entrance, leaving her no chance to protest. As she was being dragged out, she managed to grab her phone that was sitting on the side of the table.

---

Both Jinyoung and Jeongyeon sighed as they sat side by side on the bench outside of Jaebum’s private hospital room. Now that everything’s over, all of them agreed that Jaebum should stay in the hospital to get properly treatment, whether awake or not. The both of them were the ones who spent most of their time there for the past few days since Jeongyeon’s still the faithful assistant and Jinyoung… He just had nothing to do except for hiding from the media.

“You think those two will be okay? They should be having their talk by now, right?”

“I don’t know.”

The both of them sighed again.

“How’s Bambam doing?”

“I went to check on him yesterday,” Jinyoung stated as he rubbed his temples. “He’s still refusing to come out from his room. Called him this morning and he did not pick up.”

“We can’t blame him tho, he had always rely on Mark all these year.

“And now, I don’t know how Nayeon will feel after she finds out about it.” Jinyoung closed his eyes and leaned his head against the wall behind them. But he opened it after a while and turned to look at Jeongyeon.

“Let’s digress a while.”

Jeongyeon looked at him with a confused look.

“Let’s talk about us.”

“Huh?”

“Isn’t it time for me to get my reward?”

“Huh??” Jeongyeon was confused but Bambam’s words came to her mind right after.

“Do it and Jeongyeon will kiss you after all these."

A wave of heat spread across her body as her ability to speak disappeared for a short moment.

“I—“ She stuttered then looked away. “I wasn’t the one who said that!”

“I was just teasing you.” Jinyoung chuckled then placed a hand on Jeongyeon’s head. “I don’t want you to do something you don’t like. But I’m serious about my feelings.”

“What—“

“Remember what I’ve told you before? That I feel comforted with your guys, especially you. I don’t know when it started but I meant it when I said I hate it when you cry. It took me a while to realise what was it since it’s kind of my first time too.”

Jeongyeon stayed silent as she held her breath.

“I think I’ve fallen in love with you.” It was a very straightforward confession. “Yes, it’s not an “I like you” anymore.”

He shifted his gaze from the front to Jeongyeon once again and Jeongyeon could see that little tinge of red on his cheeks.

“I won’t force you into anything but,” Jinyoung smiled and this time, Jeongyeon could see the cheekiness in it. “I know you feel the same so, let’s take it slow? I will follow your pace.”

“I—“ Jeongyeon was loss for words once again but she found some courage in herself too and she knew that if she didn’t do anything, this courage will fade. So, with this little courage, she placed two fingers on her lips then pressed them against Jinyoung’s.

“Your reward…” Jeongyeon straightened herself and faced the front again. “For now.”

That was enough for Jinyoung’s grin to grow even wider.

---

“Where are we going?” Nayeon shook Mark’s grip off and exclaimed. “You don’t just drag someone out without explaining!”

“You do that to me all the time.” The man turned around to face her and Nayeon almost hated how he simply said it out. “So I’m going to do the same to you. Let’s go.”

This time, he grabbed her hand instead and Nayeon did not try to push him away either.

It wasn’t any of the public transport they took but rather, Mark had decided that it’s a good idea to use his bicycle as transport. As he rode by the roadside with Nayeon behind him, the both of them couldn’t help but let themselves be engulfed with the peace in them.

“This feels nice.” Nayeon muttered, a smile on her face as she closed her eyes.

Hearing those words, a small smile formed on Mark’s lips too.

For some reason, there wasn’t any awkwardness after that. Mark had brought them to a mall, a different one. But despite so, Mark being Mark, was still the one being dragged around by Nayeon.

First to McDonald’s, then to random shops and because she knew how much of a gamer he was, they went to the arcade. 

She cheered for him during a racing game with some random stranger. He guided her at the zombie station and after some grumbling from people because they were taking such a long time, Nayeon managed to clear a level. There was the basketball machine and Mark did well there too but that’s a given since she knew that the boys tend to do that when they weren’t that busy.

They spent the longest there and finally, before they decided to leave, Mark went to the counter.

“Getting a little something for your girlfriend?”

“Eh we’re not—“ Nayeon denied but she was cut off when Mark pointed at a puppy soft toy that looked quite similar to Kookeu.

“That one.” He handed the tickets they won to the man behind the counter. “These should be enough right?”

The man smiled then turned around, taking the soft toy and handed it to Nayeon. 

“Here you go.”

Nayeon stared at him then at Mark then at the soft toy again before she accepted it.

“Thank you.” She muttered and hugged the toy close to her.

The last place they went to in the mall was the pet store. For the first time of that day, Mark was the one leading. And for the first time of that day, Nayeon followed quietly, still confused about what had happened. She watched him get a pack of kibbles; he didn’t spent time choosing and simply grabbed the one he had his eyes on.

He must had missed the dogs he’s been feeding. Nayeon smiled at the thought.

Just when she thought that the day had ended when they were riding back, Mark brought them to the park instead. The park where she first found him with the dogs. The park where they both always ended up at when she forced him out. The park where she felt something changed within her regarding him.

They went to their usual spot which Nayeon went to the bench and sat down, still hugging the soft toy. Whereas for Mark, he whistled and waited for the two dogs to run over.

She watched his back while he poured the kibbles onto the floor, watching the dogs eat as he their back. She didn’t know if he realised or not but, there was always a smile on his face whenever he’s here. A smile so gentle that she couldn’t help but stared at him.

After the dogs had their fill and went off, Mark stood up and walked to where Nayeon was sitting which he then sat down beside her. Silence took over them and this time, unlike before, it was awkward.

“So…” Nayeon tried to start the conversation first like always but Mark cut her off.

“I told you we will talk after all these.”

Nayeon stayed silent and hugged the soft toy closer to her, waiting for him to continue.

“You know, I at talking.” Mark continued and Nayeon couldn’t help but snorted a little but she used the soft toy to hide it so Mark could continue. “So I thought maybe my actions would be able to convey everything.”

Nayeon blinked twice and finally looked at him. She looked confused at first but after understanding what he meant, she widened her eyes.

“So…” She started carefully and slowly. “This was a date? Is that your answer?”

Mark did not answer but he did not deny instead. After spending those times with him, Nayeon got her answer from his silence. She smiled widely, wanting to say more but Mark stood up suddenly.

“Let’s go, I will send you home.”

“Huh?” 

Okay, now he’s back to being confusing. But Nayeon did not object to what he said and got on the bike after he did. On the way back home, her arms around his waist were tighter than before.

“Thank you for today.” She whispered but it was loud enough for Mark to hear.

When they reached the path not far from her family’s cafe, Nayeon got off and gave Mark a look before she headed straight towards the door. She let out a breath and couldn’t help herself from smiling when Mark called her name. 

She turned around as he got off the bicycle too, kicking the lock down before he walked up to her. He looked at her for a short moment that was enough to make Nayeon feel a little self conscious. But before she could even say anything, she felt him bringing her head closer to him as he planted a soft kiss on her head.

“Thank you for everything.” He held her close as he said those words. But he pulled away from the hug before Nayeon could react. Without giving Nayeon a chance to say anything, he went to his bicycle and rode off without another word.

“And I’m sorry.” Mark muttered even though he knew that Nayeon couldn’t hear him anymore.

---

The next day, Bambam finally showed his face. But unlike before, he wasn’t cheerful, instead he simply passed Nayeon an envelope then sat down beside her.

Nayeon gave him a confused look. 

“Open it, I will be here.”

With Bambam’s not so enthusiastic encouragement, Nayeon opened the envelope.

Hey Nayeon,

If you’re reading this now, I probably would be faraway from you and everyone else. You’re right, I was and still am a coward. Forgive me for being one. 

I actually wanted to tell you personally yesterday but as you said, I’m bad with expressing myself and I’m pretty sure what I was going to tell you will come out bad. I don’t want to hurt you anymore than I’ve already done so. In the end, I decided to just write this letter since I thought an email wouldn’t be good enough for all the support you’ve given me.

With all these going on, I couldn’t accept you into my life just like that. Jisung… he still needs me. I don’t want his memories to come back to him, I don’t know how much pain that will cause him. Thus, the only way I could think of was to bring him faraway, away from all that had happened, to let him experience everything that he missed out. 

I want to give him a new life. As an older brother, I owe him this.

This is very selfish of me but I will be back because, all of you are my family. I don’t know how long this journey will take so, I won’t ask you to wait for me. I just want you to be happy and go back to living a normal life before you met any of us.

Be happy, Nayeon.

- Mark

P.S. Yesterday was one of the happiest days in my life.

Nayeon’s hands were shaking by the time she finished reading the letter. She looked up at Bambam and finally noticed his slightly swollen eyes. This was the reason for his silence that past week.

“Idiot.” Her voice quivered as she dropped her hands down onto her lap. Her grip on the letter tightened as she lowered her head. “Stupid .”

“I know.” Bambam shifted closer and wrapped an arm around Nayeon’s shoulder, pulling her closer to him. “I know.”

---

` i believe the next chapter will be the last. i tried to not make mark ooc in his letters and during the date but, i also need him to be slightly more brave since it's his last day before he leaves. hope i've managed that well! jinjeong and markyeon fans, are you satisfied with it? since it's coming to an end, maybe i should start asking questions like, who's your favourite character?