Eun Gyeol’s POV

If I did not hear a whimpering noise coming from the laundry room, I would have skipped this area completely. The Dance Concert had granted me entry into Serin Girls’ High disguised as an audience, but not into its dormitories. Despite the baseless accusations of hyung nim and Sulli, I was not a maniac or ert. Therefore I was not tempted to step into this private premise to do what I shouldn’t.

Nevertheless, I decided to take the risk, in the name of helping Sulli. Yes, I would do anything for her. As discreetly as possible, I sneaked into the laundry room without anyone noticing and tip-toed towards the source of the noise.

“Krystal, is that you?” I shone my mobile phone light at a female figure hiding behind one of the washing machines.

“NO! I didn’t mean to hurt her!” her hysterical outburst almost gave me a heart attack.

“Seol Han Na? What are you doing here?”

“I… I should be the one asking this question? What’s a guy like you doing here? Are you a byuntae?!”

“ANIEYO! I am helping Sulli to find Krystal. I heard someone crying, and I thought it was her. By the way, have you seen Krystal anywhere?”

“Well… actually…”

I gawked at what Seol Han Na was about to tell me next.

Sulli’s POV

“Sulli, hold on,” the president of the choir group called out to me.

“Yes?” although I was a little impatient to entertain anyone else, I did not want to sound rude.

“Can you pass the music score of our new song to Krystal? She was absent from the meeting this afternoon and I can’t seem to find her anywhere.”

“A meeting this afternoon?”

“Yes. ECA Block 1 will be closed from tomorrow onwards, so we pushed our regular meeting forward. Since it’s a last-minute decision, I shall forgive her for not attending,” with that, she left.

Based on what the president had told me, Krystal did HAVE a reason to be at ECA Block 1 after all. Krystal was passionate about singing and her ECA, so she would never skip such meetings deliberately. Apart from doing the lab report with me, she did not have any other appointment this afternoon. Something must have happened to her on the way to ECA Block 1 such that she failed to make it for the meeting.

“Beep…” It was a text message from Eun Gyeol.

“Krystal is inside the art room of ECA Block 1. Her head is injured!”

Jae Hee’s POV

“Eun Gyeol’s message is so helpful. Where the hell is ECA Block 1?!” Tae Joon complained.

“You are pretty whiny for a guy,” I commented, “No wonder Krystal rejects you.”

“Stop acting high and mighty! Krystal rejects you too.”

Sad to say, Tae Joon was right. However, that was not important at this moment. I was more concerned about Krystal’s head injuries. Right now, I wished I had the power to teleport to where she was and saved her, but like Tae Joon, I did not know where ECA Block 1 was either. Suddenly I felt a presence nearby. I halted my footstep on the spot.

“Tae Joon! Follow me!”

“Why should I? You don’t look like you know the way.”

“Never mind then! We can find Krystal with or without you.”

“Who says you guys are going to do it without me?”

Tae Joon ended up following me, so much for the protest. As expected, I saw her after we stepped out of the building we were currently in. “Jin Ri! Wait for us!”

Krystal’s POV (Art-and-Craft Room of ECA Block 1)

Due to the similarity in our predicaments, I was suddenly reminded of how Sulli was locked up in a shed. Just like the shed, Jae Hee described, this room had no windows except for narrow openings at the top of the wall. Even at seventeen, I could feel my fear eating me alive. Imagine how much this fear was amplified for a small kid. Like Sulli back then, I was praying for that someone to save me.

Talk about thoughts manifesting into reality, I spotted my LED bangle some distance away from where I was sitting. I felt unusually grateful that it was not gone forever with Seol Han Na. Moving slowly to where it was, I picked it up and switched on the flashing lights. Considering that the lights in this room were not working, this was a godsend.

“Don’t shoulder all these problems alone. Remember I am on your side. Always,” my eyes turned watery as I recalled Jae Hee’s words.

“Yes I can feel it now,” I spoke to the bangle he gave me.