A/N;; any quote from the song is intentional and probably stupid lmao ok continue with your lives

---

Nine

---

That day at work, work went by smoothly. You didn't mess up orders or accidentally forget customers as often as you used to. As Donghyun called it, you were becoming a "regular" in the terminology of the employees.

"But of course, practice makes perfect, so get working!" Donghyun cheered as he frosted a pink strawberry cake when you and Sujung were in the kitchen having your usual talk with him during your breaks.

Afterward, Donghyun walked Sujung home, leaving you by yourself to wait for someone to come pick you up. Unsurprisingly, one of your newly made friends was already waiting for you outside before you finished cleaning up. Surprisingly, it was Kai.

"Hi," you greeted as you exited the café.

"Hey," he shyly rubbed his next.

"The others sent you?" you asked.

He nodded. "They told me I was too awkward and that this would help us get closer, so they forced me to come get you. Not that I wouldn't willingly, though! It's just that... I... yeah..."

"It's fine," you smiled, "I kinda wanted to know you better, too."

Kai slyly replied as he walked by your side, "And the others too?" He eyed you warily.

You shook your head, "Nope, just you."

Kai raised his eyebrow. "And why's that?"

"I'm not really sure," you shrugged. "I get this feeling that I've seen you from somewhere before."

"Me entirely or just aspects of me?"

You paused and took in a deep breath. You weren't sure how to answer. Ever since your father's death, your memories of anything before that started to grow foggy. Only some memories of your mother were clear to you, but beside that, nothing else really stood out.

"Both. Your actions remind me of someone I used to know, and your face looks faintly like someone I knew, maybe a friend, from a long time ago. And sometimes I have distant memories of people from a few years ago and you look like one of them. Not that I can really pick out faces. You just look remotely similar..." You stopped after you thought you've said too much. "Sorry to burden you."

"No it's fine. I actually feel the same," Kai cautiously replied. "I think I've known you before."

"Really? Then maybe we really have met before and I'm not going crazy," you joked.

"Or maybe we were friends in my past life."

You both laughed and continued walking. Because of your oblivion, you didn't notice that Kai was no longer by your side when you crossed the street until he screamed your name, and you looked to your right with wide eyes to see a car coming closer to you quickly. He was next to you in a split second and on the other side of the street in another. Kai heaved worried breaths and warned you.

"You should be careful next time."

You stood there with wide eyes, frozen. "How did you do that?"

"Do what?"

"You were like three meters away tying your shoe,came by my side,and brought me to the other side of the street in a second. How did you move so fast?"

Kai had no answer for that.

-

After dropping you off, Kai teleported back to their house. He quickly fled to his room to avoid the others.

"How'd dropping her off go?" Suho asked as he came out of the bathroom.

"What do you mean?" Kai nervously asked back.

"I mean did you get her home safely?" Suho clarified as he furrowed his eyebrows at Kai's nervous behavior.

"Yeah, of course," Kai released a relieved sigh.

"Okay, just checking. You seem nervous," Suho stalked off to the bedroom he shared with Sehun.

"He's probably just nervous because he had to spend so much time alone with her," Chanyeol eagerly chimed from his room. He came out and looked Kai in his eyes. Chanyeol's piercing stare would be strong enough to bore holes into Kai's head if it could. "Or is it?" Kai's large figure shrunk in Chanyeol's presence. Kai cowered away as the taller of the two stepped closer.

Overhearing their conversation, Xiumin called an emergency meeting. The others emerged from their rooms and gathered in the living room. Kris had Kai sit on the sofa while they gathered around on the floor. Kris urged Kai to begin explaining so he could get dinner cooked and served before it became too late in the evening. Kai, however, sat still and quietly, worried about his punishment.

"Come on, spill it. There's nothing to hide if you didn't do anything bad," Luhan beckoned.

Seeing Kai sit quietly, determined not to speak, Sehun added annoyed, "Just tell us what happened so Kris can make dinner, and we can go to sleep faster. We have things to do tomorrow, you know."

Kai took in a deep breath before explaining the whole street situation.

"Wait, so you actually used your powers around her?!" Chen exclaimed in disbelief. Kai nodded. 

"And she didn't say anything?" D.O. questioned.

"She asked how I was able to move so fast, so I told her it was getting late and we needed to get her home because it's not safe for a girl to be out late," eleven pairs of eyes stared at Kai blankly. "I panicked, okay! What was I supposed to say?! I died and suddenly have magical powers and teleported to save you?! It was a reflex," Kai threw his hands up in exasperation.

They looked at him worriedly now. 

"Oh, and she told me something," they leaned in to listen to him now. "She said that I remind her of someone in a distant memory and she entertains the idea that we were possibly close friends before. Except what she doesn't know is that I'm - we're," he gestured to all of them now, "not technically human."

They sat in silence as they pondered what to do with this idea of hers.

For the first time in Kris's mortal and immortal life, he squeaked, "I think I'll start on dinner now."

-

The twelve sat quietly at the dinner table for the first time in a long while eating whatever Kris had concocted.

"You can't let her know that she used to know you," Xiumin finally spoke.

"What?" Kai looked up from his food.

"Don't let her know that you used to be important to her and she to you. What do you think she's gonna say when she finds our that her friends are all just a bunch of pitying dead people," Xiumin replied sternly.

"But we're not just doing this because we pity her," Tao interjected, "we're doing this-"

"Because we love her?" Xiumin retorted. "Yes, that's true, but do you think she'll know that? Imagine how heartbreaking it would be. Her first friends at school? All angels who came from heaven. Her first date?" He pointed to Sehun whose eyes were fixated on his food. "Another angel who just rode the wind into this world. We have to think about how she would feel, too."

Lay nodded in agreement. "You're always the sensible one."

"But what if she remembers us by herself?" Baekhyun said.

Xiumin shrugged, "We can't stop what happens in the course of time."

Tao smirked slightly.

"Huang Zi Tao," Kris warned sternly.

"Gege~" Tao cooed causing Kris to soften and continue eating.