Beomgyu stirred awake from his sleep, stifling a yawn as he covered his mouth with his hand, sitting up straight. He stared at the little box of pills just by his side, before quickly putting it into his pocket, buttoning it up just as he did so. Another yawn escaped his lips, his eyes only halfway open, afraid of the blinding light of the morning.

But the morning light never reached his eyes.

With a groan, he looked all around him, the sheer darkness putting him at unease. He didn’t realise how important mornings were up until now; there was just something unnerving about waking up with hopes of covering your eyes from the sunlight, only to try and widen your eyes even further to adjust to the dim surroundings.

“Good morning, hyung…”

Beomgyu looked over his shoulder, smiling at the sight of a sleepy Kai lying behind him and rubbing his eyes. He nodded and responded with a sweet voice, “Good morning, Kai.”

Only then did he realise that they were the only ones who were still drowsy. He gently rose to his feet, trying not to fall over as he bent down to pick up a torch just a few inches away from him. He switched it on, gasping as the light flickered for a few seconds.

“No, no, please…”, he prayed that the flashlight wouldn’t die on him at such a critical moment. He slapped his hand across the body of the torch a few times, shaking it vigorously, breathing out in relief as the light became steady.

He waved around the torch, a silly idea popping into his mind. Slowly, he turned around and began focusing the light on Kai’s tired face, giggling at the younger’s reaction.

“Beomgyu-hyung, stop!” Kai jumped up, trying to walk away from the bright light, only to whine as the beam kept following him. “Hyung, stop it! Look behind you, it’s Taehyun!”

At that, Beomgyu froze his hands, turning around with a wide grin. Upon realising that he was just tricked by the younger, he sulked visibly, and that temporary joyous moment from just a few seconds ago diminished at the sight of reality.

In front of him, standing within the dimly lighted area, was the rest of the team. While some of them were inserting batteries into the slots of the torches, others were exchanging empty bottles with those that were just filled. They were all working.

Further to the side, just by the edge of the park, were two long lines of civilians, two men at the front. The queues moved along rather quickly, though it was unclear what exactly was happening.

Beomgyu and Kai nodded towards each other, before walking forward. They halted by the two files.

“Umm, what’s happening, hyung?”

Yeonjun was startled by the voice; he looked to his side with a pitiful smile. “Good morning.”

Somehow, it felt wrong to use that phrase, for the cage they were stuck in showed no signs of dawn.

He cleared his throat, letting his eyes linger on the two columns of people. “We’re just checking everyone to make sure no one else is infected.”

It only took a few seconds for the still sleepy duo to process the situation, comprehending just how serious and critical it was. To have each and every citizen, young and old, assessed from head to toe, searching for signs of sickness in the form of patches and irregular bumps, told them loud and clear just how disastrous things were.

Yeonjun noticed the terror that climbed into the eyes of the other two. He quickly reassured them, “You two don’t have to worry about that, okay? Did you sleep well? Uh, there are some biscuits and muffins you could have. Thankfully, we managed to grab some snacks before the stores were destroyed.”

Only then did Beomgyu and Kai observe their surroundings, surprised yelps leaving their mouths as they faintly saw the machine moving towards the group of restaurants and cafes, the parking lot already out of sight, the machine’s final destination being the hotel that was just by the circumference of the barrier.

Kai broke out of his trance, turning his head back towards Yeonjun. “H-How long has it been since we slept?”

“Well…”, Yeonjun paused for a moment, tossing the torch from one hand to the other. He wondered if they would panic with his answer. “I mean, it’s obviously really dark in here but it’s been about ten hours. Outside this barrier, it should be slightly dark, because according to the time, it’s almost sunrise. Technically, it is the next day…”

“What?!? Did my pills really just knock me out for almost half a day?!?” Beomgyu began to whine, shrugging off the concerning looks he received from the others. He then looked at Kai with a hint of guilt, knowing that he shared his medicine with the younger before they fell into slumber.

Kai raised an eyebrow and gritted his teeth, hoping that the other would understand his incomprehensible message through the dark. He didn’t want anyone to know.

Yeonjun missed the exchange of glances, still hooked on Beomgyu’s words. “Wait, you still take the pills? I thought the body oil that Soobin bought for you on your birthday helped you sleep better…”

“Alright, genius. But maybe I don’t carry around my body oil in my pocket, ready for an apocalypse!”

Kai stepped away from their bickering, knowing that it would take more than just a few more comments for it to stop. He stealthily took Beomgyu’s torch, using it for himself. He his heels and walked towards a familiar crowd – the squad.

“Hey, s-sorry for waking up so late. What did I miss?”

“Oh, Kai!”, Soobin flashed a quick smile as he looked over his shoulder. He then returned to his work; he was practicing, training himself on how to wield his power, moving his hands around in a pattern, trying to move variously scaled objects lying on the ground.

Kai watched in silence, directing his flashlight towards an empty box that was floating above ground. He couldn’t help but feel happy for the other, knowing that Soobin was very much eager to help.

“Where’s Taehyun?”

“In the park with Yeosang-hyung, that idiot…”

Kai was surprised at the sharp tone in the older’s voice, a great contrast to the calm manner in which he asked the question. He knew that Soobin wasn’t one to hold a grudge against anyone, nor was he the type of person to backbite about others. “Whoa, whoa, whoa! What happened between you two?”

“Nothing.”

“Something.”

“Nothing, Kai, nothing.”

“Oh, so you’re just mad at him for nothing. Should I get Yeonjun-hyung to pry it out of you?”

“Don’t even mention his name, ugh!” Soobin finally turned around, loosening his hands immediately, flinching slightly as the suspended box dropped to the ground. He huffed, folding his arms across his chest. “With Taehyun’s help, Yeonjun-hyung somehow convinced Yeosang