“You called?”

Yuri looked up from her screen. “Ahhh, yes. BoA.” She pushed herself away from the table and picked up a chip from her desk. “I have something for you.”

The Head Hunter walked into the room and stood before her creator, arms folded and an unfathomable expression on her face. “Cancel all of your current missions; I have a brand new one for you. I think you’ll find it quite… interesting.” Yuri held the chip out to her. “Everything you need to know is on here. Look at it in private. You may take Jaejoong if you require him, but tell no one else of this. Understand?”

BoA took the chip silently. “What makes you think that I’ll drop everything just to hunt down this person for you?” Her expression remained unchanged, though her tone was contemptuous. Yuri, however, seemed unfazed. Resting her chin in her hands, she smiled up at her.

“The person I had intended to become Head Hunter after you,” she tilted her head slightly. “She’s been gone for quite a while, but I’m sure you know how strong Head Hunters can be. Even the potential ones.” She smiled again, but BoA only stared icily at her before whirling on her heels and leaving the room. After she had left, Yuri sat back into her chair and stared at the round faced girl with short black hair on her screen.

“Looks like it has to end this way, Min,” she sighed, massaging her temples. “Perhaps you should have stayed hidden.” She leaned forward and touched her finger to the side of the screen, and it disappeared.

-

Jepp stopped in the doorway of Min’s room, leaning against the doorframe. He was surprised to find the door open; Min usually kept it shut tight, and even with a knock she was reluctant to let anyone in. “Well, this is a change.”

Min jumped violently at the sound of his voice, her knees slamming into the underside of her desk. Her lamp fell to the floor with the crash, as did the piles of books that adorned the surface. Jepp burst out laughing as Min turned to him, shooting him a dead eyed glare that he fortunately didn’t catch. “Whoops.” He loped easily into the room and bent down beside her as she began picking up papers and books.

“I didn’t say you could come in,” Min told him as he held his arms out for the pile in her own. “And you didn’t even knock.”

“The door was open,” he shrugged, getting to his feet and unceremoniously dumping the pile on the surface. The books spilled out everywhere, some sliding over each other to end up back on the floor. “I’m pretty sure that’s an open invitation.”

“You’re lying,” she frowned slightly, hand suspended in midair.

“Nope,” he said easily. “Something wrong?” he asked, catching the look that flitted across her face. Min caught herself, then shook her head and got to her feet.

“No, I’m fine,” she said quietly.

“What were you doing anyway?” he gestured to the books and at her empty bookshelf. “Redecorating the place?”

“I was just rearranging,” she shrugged.

“Awesome,” he seated himself beside her on the edge of her desk and grinned. “Need any help? It’s pretty lonely with CL at the shop and Sungkyu on his deliveries.” He picked up a book and began leafing through it, eyes skimming through the pages. His bare arm bumped against hers with each turn. “Kinda seems like things have gone back to normal, huh? If it keeps up, Sungkyu would never have to know about the whole me and CL issue.”

“I’m sure he knows already,” Min said aloud without thinking.

Jepp dropped the book. It landed with a thump on the wooden floorboards. “Uhh, what?” he blinked at her. “Does… does Sungkyu know?” He placed a hand on her shoulder, forcing her to look up at him. “Min. Does Sungkyu know about CL and me?”

“I… no,” Min said firmly, or as firmly as she dared to. “He doesn’t even know about Deepground,” she lied, hating the way she sounded so calm. “He doesn’t know anything.” She looked up at him and removed his grasp from her.

“Here. I don’t feel like rearranging books anymore,” Jepp muttered, bending down and retrieving the book before handing it to her. Without another word, he left the room. Min watched him leave, struggling to force down the horrible feeling that had begun to bubble within her.

-

“Ma’am, there’s someone here to see you.”

Zinger remained with her back to the door, hair gleaming in the setting sun. “I told you, no visitors. Now get out of my sight.” Her voice sounded irritated and tired, and she waved a hand behind her.

“You wouldn’t spare some time for an old friend?” Sungkyu stepped forward before his could close the door. He watched as Zinger spun around, looking slightly shocked. Their eyes met, and hers narrowed slightly.

“Get out,” she ordered the guards. “And don’t let anyone else in.” The man nodded and backed away, closing the door behind him with a silent swish.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Zinger hissed, standing up. She made no indication that she was going to be civil today, and Sungkyu knew that if he wanted to get anything out of her he would have to tread quietly. “First it took you ages before you even commence the mission, then you failed to acquire Yuri, and now you turn up on the doorstep of the very people who want you dead? You’re a special case, Kim Sungkyu.”

“Firstly, I didn’t fail. I just haven’t tried again yet,” Sungkyu remained stoic. “And if you want me to finish this task you’re going to have to give me more information than what is written in a file, Zinger.”

“You’re demanding quite a lot for someone who knows the procedure, aren’t you?” Zinger sat back down, regarding him with a glare. “Urgh, hurry up and get it over with, I don’t have time to play with you today.” She pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. “What do you want?”

“The Facility. What exactly is it?” Sungkyu started right away. He knew that when Zinger was in a mood she hated anyone trying to beat around the bush; he had seen the injuries his fellow trainees had sustained when they didn’t get to the point fast enough. “And what are they doing in there? And who the hell is Kwon Yuri and what does she have to do with everything?”

Zinger sighed again. “The Facility,” she started heavily. “Is an organization solely intended to overthrow Aboveground.  Kwon Yuri is the… leader, if you might call her that.” She paused, and then shook her head. “Her aim - or what we think her aim is - is to create the ultimate human army, one that’s indestructible. One of these days, possibly in the near future, she might come to the surface and destroy mankind as we know it. And we don’t want that, do we?” She had gotten up and was looking out the window as she spoke, her hands clasped behind her back. “We can’t let this glorious city fall into the hands of someone like that. It would be a disaster.”

Sungkyu thought of the bedraggled children running around the Precinct, their faces streaked with dirt. He thought of the elderly who sat by their windows, the light in their eyes dimmed. Mankind as we know it isn’t exactly a blissful utopia at the moment, he thought, but said nothing. That was another matter. “How did you find out about this place?” he ventured.

“We’ve always known about it,” Zinger didn’t turn around. “We’ve simply decided to observe quietly for now, to see what her next move is. But now that her army seems to be growing and getting far too powerful, we’ve decided it’s time to step in.”

“So you knew about what they do in there,” Sungkyu’s voice was low.

“Yes,” she replied impassively. “We knew.”

“You knew about the children they snatch off the streets, you knew about what they do to them in that hellhole?” He got quietly to his feet.

Zinger sighed irritably. “Look Sungkyu, what - .”

She didn’t get to finish her sentence; the next second Sungkyu had grabbed her by the shoulder, spun her around, and shoved her into the window with so much force that a tiny crack appeared in a corner. “You bastards,” he snarled, his face up in hers as he grabbed her collar in one hand. “You knew all this time and you did nothing to stop it.” It was happening again. Old Impulsive Sungkyu.

Zinger stared coolly up at him; already the shock was fading from her face. “I was simply following orders,” her eyes narrowed.

“They’re kids!” he roared. “You let helpless, innocent children be dragged from their homes, from their parents, just so they could participate in this sick game that you and Yuri are playing?! What the is wrong with you people?!”

“Once upon a time you wouldn’t have objected to following orders,” Zinger breathed, her lips lifting in a slight sneer. They were almost nose to nose, and he steeled himself to not look away as her eyes searched his. “And you didn’t object, did you Sungkyu? When Yunho sent you to kill your girlfriend?”

“Shut up,” he growled, already feeling his spirit wavering. Zinger knew how to press buttons, and she knew how to press them hard.

“Power demands sacrifice,” Zinger whispered. “Who knows what rank you would hold today if you had stayed?”

“I said shut up!” Sungkyu cried, yanking her forward and pushing her into the desk. Her back struck the edge and she fell to the ground, wincing slightly. Both their chests heaved with rage and pain as Sungkyu stared wildly at her. “I don’t give a about what happens anymore,” he panted. “Your city can burn to the ing ground for all I care. I’m forfeiting this mission. I quit.” He straightened and walked past her without a second glance.

He almost made it to the door. He almost made it to being a free man. He could have walked away, taken the others and fled the city without looking back. He might have made it. But Zinger began laughing, and from then on there was no turning back.

“I can always order someone to take out that little friend of yours,” she called out. “The one who went with you to Deepground. Dark hair and a braid. I think her name was Min.”

Sungkyu froze.

-

“I don’t know who the hell it was, but whatever it was it sure as hell caused a ruckus down there,” Key groaned. “Jaejoong told me security is up and all the Hunters have been briefed about intruders. I don’t know how long he can keep sneaking out to update me, so we’re taking extra precautions for now.”

“Who would have known it was Jaejoong giving you all this information,” CL shook her head with a smirk. “No wonder he didn’t want to fight me.”

“Jaejoong doesn’t give a crap about whose side he’s on,” Key corrected her, “as long as he gets his money. But he told me that if he had to choose a side he’d choose us. Said he likes the fresh air and the coffee,” He shook his head in disbelief as CL laughed.

“Sungkyu knows!” The doors burst open and Jepp ran in, his expression harried and agitated. “We’re so screwed.”

“Jepp, what are you talking about?” CL threw down the rag she had been wiping the tabletops with and hurried to his side. “And where’s your jacket, it’s cold outside!” She closed her hand around his arm and noticed him shivering slightly beneath her fingers, goose bumps forming on the bare skin.

“About you and me, about Deepground,” Jepp panted, burying his face in his hands. CL exchanged a look with Key, who nodded and got up to lock the doors and draw the curtains on the windows. “Damn it, he knows!”

“Are you sure?” CL drew up a chair and pushed him into it. “Are you absolutely sure?” She felt her own hands beginning to shake, and swallowed hard to calm herself down. If Sungkyu knows where we’re from, who knows what he might do. She shook her head to clear the thought away.

“What makes you sure?” Key dragged a chair over.

“Min said she wouldn’t be surprised if he knew,” Jepp told him. “It means that he’s probably made it obvious that he knows, doesn’t it? For her to say something like that?”

Key glanced at CL and they both let out sighs of relief. “So he didn’t actually say that he knew,” CL remarked, feeling the calm beginning to return to her. “Man Jepp, you scared the crap out of me,” she ran her hands through her hair.

“It might be true!” Jepp protested. “What – I – it’s not funny!” he thumped his hands on the table as Key and CL began chuckling.

“You’re so cute,” CL gave him a warm smile, patting him on the cheek. She didn’t notice that the goose bumps had disappeared, that his neck had turned slightly pink. His eyes darted to her briefly, then he quickly looked back down at his hands. “But I guess we shouldn’t assume that what Min said is wrong,” she continued, scrunching up her face.

Jepp looked up briefly to catch Key grinning slyly at him. He felt his ears heat up as well. Well , look what you’ve dragged yourself into, he chided himself as he heard Yongguk’s faint laugh inside him. He mumbled something inaudible.

“What?” CL looked at him, the ends of her hair tickling his arm.

“I said,” he took a deep breath and lifted his head. “Min never lies.”

-

Min was sliding a book into place when there was a slight thump on the roof outside her window. Suddenly wary, she silently took the silver cylinder from the shelf before her. Her katana was on the other side of the room, next to her bed, and getting there required her to pass the window. She took in a deep breath, then turned towards the sound.

L was perched on her windowsill, a boyish grin playing on his lips and his black hair falling carelessly over his right eye. “Hey,” he tilted his head, a playful sparkle in his eyes as he regarded the weapon in her hand. “Always cautious, huh?”

“I have to be,” she replied warily, but allowed herself to flash him a quiet smile. “Thanks again for getting us out of there.”

L slouched in the corner of her window, one leg hanging in the room and the other bent in front of him. “It was nothing,” he mumbled, staring down at his hands as he wiggled them in his lap. At that moment he looked like the teenager that he was, the teenager he could have been. But even as Min stared, she knew that in that youthful face his eyes were a dead giveaway to all he had been through, all he had done. She knew because she held the exact same look. He cleared his throat. “Why were you even down there anyway?” he asked.

Min turned away. “I… it’s not for me to say,” she said quietly, placing the scythe back on to the bookshelf and resuming her rearranging. L watched her quietly, not moving from his spot on the windowsill. Min was just allowing herself to get comfortable in the silence as she slid the last book into place when there was a quiet rustle of clothing and he appeared by her side, his hand pinning hers on the shelf.

“You could have died down there you know,” he said in a low voice, his dark eyes boring into hers. They were steely and his mouth was set in a grim line. She felt a shiver down her spine. “I don’t care about him, but what if you had gotten caught? You know what they would’ve done to you right?”

“I’m sorry, I… we’re friends, I…. I wanted to help him,” she faltered under the intensity of his gaze. “I know what I was risking, I just wanted…” she swallowed and bent her head. Even after everything they had been through, she still could not share her feelings with L. It was as if she had kept herself locked away for so long that she wasn’t even sure about how she felt anymore. She shook her head. “I just can’t tell you, L. I’m sorry.”

L reached out with his free hand and lightly touched her on the chin. “It’s okay. Min. Just…” he said, his tone softer. He tilted her head up, and she saw that the look in his eyes had softened as well. “Just promise me you won’t go back there. Okay?” She could feel the pressure on the back of her hand where his fingers were gripping tightly. He was so close she could hear him breathing in the silence. His fingers were cool on her chin. And yet, the situation wasn’t entirely uncomfortable to her.

“I… I promise,” she breathed. His eyes flashed gray. She could see him drawing closer and closer, his gaze never leaving hers. She could feel her heart hammering in her chest, but she wasn’t sure from what. Nerves? Anticipation? Excitement? Fear? The last time she had felt this way was on the day of her escape, and she sure as hell did not want to be remembering that right now. Her head was spinning and her breathing was shallow as his hair brushed against her forehead and her eyes immediately squeezed shut, waiting for what she thought she knew was coming.

But nothing came.

“Good,” L whispered, his breath ghosting across her lips. And then he was gone.

Min’s eyes snapped open. L was back on the windowsill, one arm draped over his propped up leg as he stared into the distance. A fresh wind whipped his fringe across his forehead and sent waves through his head. It reminded Min of the illustrations of grass blowing in the wind that she had found in her books; the image seemed so real to her that she had to mentally will herself not to reach out and run her fingers through his dark locks.

“I’m going to have to leave soon,” he said without looking at her. His fingers fiddled with the clasps on his jacket. “It’ll probably be a while until we get to see each other again.” This time his eyes flitted to her. “…”

For a few seconds Min was frozen to her place, but then her fingers began moving and she plucked a book from the shelf. Her feet were walking towards him, dragging her desk out from the wall so that it stopped just beside him. Neatly clearing her belongings to one side, she clambered on to the table and sat with her back against the part of the wall where the window began so her right shoulder was touching his left. Thanks to the desk’s height they were roughly on the same plane, and when L’s hand dropped from his jacket and landed on her own she made no attempt to move it.

“I can read to you if you want,” she offered. The thump of his head on to her shoulder was more than enough to give her the answer she needed.

Halfway through the second chapter L was fast asleep against her. Min looked down at their hands. His hand was still placed over hers, both of them palm down, but his fingers were locked loosely between hers. She paused, wondering if her knuckles were digging into his skin, then slowly slipped her hand out from beneath his and turned it over, sliding it back in and entwining their fingers together.

L stirred slightly but said nothing, seemingly lapsing back into slumber almost immediately. However, his fingers curled tightly around hers and she swore she felt him smile against her. She gave their interlocked fingers one more glance and resumed reading, a broad smile bubbling up to the surface.

For the first time in her life she didn’t need to pretend that everything was alright.

Maybe this was what it felt like to be normal.