Part 3

Jongin

I knew Do Kyungsoo for approximately 3 months, yet it felt like I’d known him for 3 years. I knew the story about his parents going crazy, consumed by the Mask. I knew about his older sister who was now a model and was making a load of money. I knew about the tiny freckle in his pinky. I knew his personality was equivalent to that of a mother’s. I knew that his favorite dish to cook was kimchi spaghetti. And I knew that he had the voice of an angel.

For some reason, I never questioned our relationship, neither did Luhan or Sehun. Kyungsoo and I just clicked together, like those little magnets you find on cheesy toys that can be discovered in cheap kid’s meals at fast food restaurants, which no longer existed in this “perfect” society.

I wasn’t exactly sure why I found the need to be in Kyungsoo’s presence almost a hundred percent of the time. I didn’t know if it was his saucer shaped eyes that drew me in, his innocent expression, tiny body or just the fact he was another human being that wasn’t perfect.

It’s possible I could’ve backed off if Kyungsoo didn’t feel the same way, but he did. He was also sticking to me like glue and neither of us minded.

I wasn’t entirely sure what love was. I never had a relationship ever. I didn’t know what being straight or being gay was. All I knew was that, currently, Kyungsoo was my best friend.

For some reason, I felt safer with him. It’s not like I was physically safe considering he had a minuscule body, tiny arms, a petite height and the strength of a mouse. It was just his comforting company, his presence that calmed me down. It was like his existence was assisting me in the act of breathing. It could’ve possibly just have been his motherly consulting though.

We were now both lying in my bed, Kyungsoo’s warm, soft body was curled against my toned figure, not exactly considered snuggling but his frame was comfortably burrowed into mine, like I was the one offering physical protection. Our conversation had long died down; the moment Kyungsoo had begun mumbling incoherent sentences in response to my wide awake ones.

He always fell asleep much easier and faster than I did but I didn’t mind. When he dozed off, his calm, sleepy breathing normally lulled me into a slumber.

Suddenly, the princess stirred in his sleep, fidgeting against me and lazily opening his eyes. They didn’t look tired though when they snapped open because they were so wide.

“Hey…” I mumbled to the boy who looked like a train was about to hit him.

“H-Hi…” Kyungsoo looked up at me and started to slowly retract and look at the clock which read 1:52 AM.

Kyungsoo must’ve not realized how much he gravitated towards me in his sleep at night. Normally it started out with his body angled towards mine and gradually as he got more tired he got closer to my side, which I, honest to god, did not mind.

“What’s wrong?” I finally asked, realizing that his widened eyes did not happen to be a result of our close proximity.

“Just a weird dream,” Kyungsoo admitted, closer to my side once more.

“Oh yeah?” I wondered. “About what?”

My room was completely dark and we were tangled in blankets, both staring at the dim ceiling.

“Just …something bizarre about the Masks,” Kyungsoo managed to answer. “Ah…it was just really odd. Don’t worry about it.”

“Kyungsoo…” I moaned tiredly. “The …just tell me already.”

The boy broke his gaze from the ceiling and shifted over to stare at me with his damn eyes that were the size of the moon, so innocent.

“Well…what if our world, really isn’t our world?” he questioned, not only to me but to everyone in general, even though we were definitely alone. Sehun and Luhan were long asleep, thankfully not making any noises tonight.

“What do you mean?” I inquired, turning my body so my face was only inches from Kyungsoo and we were now both rolled on our sides, gazing into each other’s eyes, his iris’s filled with colorful, watery fear.

“What if…what if the Mask is really on our body now and we have no control and this is all in our heads and-“

“Kyungsoo…” I stopped his rant by touching his forehead gently with my thumb. It was supposed to be a flick but it turned out to be much tenderer. “You’re thinking too much.”

Kyungsoo’s eyebrows furrowed in frustration…mixed with a dash of confusion.

“But what if-“

I cut him off, unwilling to listen to any more of his ridiculous theory.

“Kyungsoo, if this was all in my head or your head we would’ve had to have met each other before. It’s like dreaming. Every single person in your dream is someone you’ve seen before. You can’t just make people up. Don’t be ridiculous.” I suddenly got the feeling that I was also trying to convince myself.

“O-Okay,” was Kyungsoo’s shaky reply.

I moved my thumb up, that had still been gently pressed onto Kyungsoo’s forehead, and ruffled his hair, making sure that his trembling ceased.

“It’s just a dream,” I assured him, bring my whole hand up now and patting the top of his head.

“There’s one more thing that’s been bothering me,” Kyungsoo continued, grabbing my attention after I retracted my hand and was preparing to doze again.

“Hmm?” I wondered, eyes closed and relaxed.

“What if our detached Mask doesn’t want to kill us?” he responded.

“Mmm…you mean yours,” I sleepily replied.

“Well yes,” Kyungsoo remarked.

I couldn’t see him because my eyes were squeezed shut but I started to feel the bed shake and my lids immediately snapped open to see Kyungsoo quivering again. He appeared to be on the verge of tears, clutching the blanket between his pale fingertips as if his life depended on it.

“Alright, well what’s so bad about that?” I asked, moving closer, as if my company was the only thing that could help soothe his raging emotions.

“What if they would want to rejoin with their original host’s body?” Kyungsoo’s voice was laced with a thick quantity of contagious fear.

Finally waking up from my sleepy self, I reached over and wrapped my hand around his, prying his fingers away from the sheets that he so dearly gripped. I made sure our fingers were tightly interlaced before continuing.

“It’s better than dead,” I reasoned.

“No,” Kyungsoo argued. “It’s not.”

My clutch on his hand only tightened.

“I’d rather be dead than controlled. It’s like being a human vegetable,” Kyungsoo protested.

I started to think about it and suddenly saw his point of view. It was only adding to the ed up society. It was like giving in. And you’d eventually be consumed by madness and thoughts of striving for perfection.

“Well,” I finally answered. “We’re going to stay our unbeautiful, imperfect selves for as long as we live in this ed world.”

That earned a chuckled from the tiny boy whose body was inches from mine. And that night we slept with our hands locked together and bodies pressed closely.

*

Breakfast consisted of the normal, constant demands from me for food, the daily insulting of calling each other s, and sitting down to read the paper. This was for Kyungsoo and me at least. Luhan and Sehun were still sleeping soundly in bed, their limbs tangled together like Twister.

That would’ve been me sleeping, but Kyungsoo always ended up getting out of bed first and requiring my company so he coerced me into getting up in the morning with him, causing a constant bicker between us two that normally resurfaced throughout the day but diminished the moment food was placed on the table.

“Come to my studio today,” I insisted, watching Kyungsoo with careful eyes as the other boy stuffed a forkful of eggs onto his mouth.

He glared at me.

“Yah,” he groaned. “You know I don’t dance. I sing. There’s a difference.”

I flicked my hands.

“You can get it,” I insisted. “It’s not that hard. It’s more mental really than physical.”

Kyungsoo set his fork down and placed his delicate head on his small arms, leaning on top of the table, looking up at me with wide eyes.

“No I can’t,” he complained. “It’s too much work and I’ve never danced before. I definitely won’t get it right away and then everyone will know that I’m Unmasked.”

I chuckled at his response.

“Come on, Kyungsoo,” I laughed at him. “It’s not like you can go to your job anyway with your Mask taking over it. You’ve got nothing else to do. Besides,” I added. “It’ll be a private lesson and no one will see. You can just watch me be amazing for the first class I teach, then we can have a lesson.”

I was surprised at my own skills of persuasion. Kyungsoo did end up coming, though I got the feeling he came more because he wanted to be in my presence. However, he left some eggs and bacon for the lovebirds that had ceased to wake up yet when we left.

*

“It smells funny,” Kyungsoo joked, examining the wide stretch of light colored wood floors that extended across the entire dance room. And then at the mirrors that wrapped around the floor, attached to all the walls.

I lightly punched him on the shoulder.

“Come on, hyung,” I said, putting my arm around his shoulder as we walked to a different room, where there were already a few students were waiting.

I allowed him to sit by the mirror and watch me teach the class.

Kyungsoo was in a trance as he watched me perform. I felt his gaze burning through me, but not in a pressuring way. It was like a fascinated scrutiny that was based off of a new experience being observed and being totally in.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed his breath hitch when I went into a triple coupé turn.  I landed in plié and slightly smirked, watching Kyungsoo bring his hands up to clap. Even though my students also performed the turn, his eyes were still fixated on me.

I was thankful I’d been doing ballet for such a long time. The longer you did it, the better your technique was. And to be among these robotic-like, perfect people, I had to have perfect turnout, which for the average human without a Mask, would take years to achieve.

However, this style we were dancing to now was not ballet. It was contemporary which used some ballet techniques but at the same time it was more different. The dance I was teaching consisted of modern movements, mixed with older dance methods.

The modern part was the robotic feel. The moves were sharp, but free at the same time, symbolizing the caged bird, the person behind the Mask. And then the older dance technique was ballet, creating a strong and powerful dance. No one in the class realized that it was mocking the relationship between the Mask and human.

It was like a fight between freedom and the Mask.

When we were finished with class, I immediately made sure that there was no sweat dripping down my neck, to make it appear like I hadn’t expelled much effort like the Masked kids. However, I believed the point of dance was to sweat through the pain and get better by doing the moves over and over again, only the strong-willed able to overcome the hardest challenges.

“The song…” Kyungsoo muttered, scooting off of his sore as he stalked towards me. “What is it?”

I waved goodbye to my not exhausted students that shuffled out of the door, waving also.

on my bottom lip for a few seconds, I answered, “Clown Mask.”

“Clown Mask,” Kyungsoo pondered, thinking for a few moments. “It reminds me of…humanity now.”

A playful smirk crossed my lips, and I folded my arms in amusement. Here was this kid, who had no dance experience, picking up on the theme of my dance.

“Yes,” I remarked, glancing around to make sure that no one else was watching. “You’ve picked up well, Kyungie, and we haven’t even started our lesson.”

Kyungsoo groaned.

“Alright,” he muttered. “Just because I knew that, doesn’t mean I can dance.”

My mouth twisted into a side smile suddenly. If Kyungsoo continued to charm me with his innocent, clueless cuteness, I wouldn’t be able to help myself. I would just have to claim him as mine.

“Just come here,” I chuckled, grabbing his arm, causing him to twitch as he moved closer to my body. “We’re just going to learn a basic move,” I said. “Can’t teach you ballet. That would be too much.”

Kyungsoo finally agreed by allowing me to clutch onto both his arms, my head right above his, the height difference allowing me to rest my chin on the top of his skull.

“We’re going to learn a body roll,” I informed him. “It’s quite easy. But I’ll start with something even more basic.”

In the mirror, I watched Kyungsoo roll his eyes at me and I lightly nudged the back of his knee, willing him to focus and call me Sungaenim, which he refused to agree to because he was my hyung.

“You can start with your arms,” I told him, gently taking his hand, my arm laid on his like icing on a cake. “Now follow me,” I instructed.

I moved my hand lethargically upwards, making sure he was following. Then, I transported the movement to the top of my arm, to the middle, to the shoulder blade. Kyungsoo copied. Then it was carried to my left shoulder blade, to the middle of my arm and to the tips of my fingers. Kyungsoo managed to do the same, getting the hang of it. And then we started to move faster.

“It’s like a wave,” Kyungsoo immaturely giggled.

I happened to find his laugh overly charismatic and enchanting, too much for my heart to handle.

“Alright now do the same thing,” I said, removing my hands from his and resting them on top of his head. “Except start with your head and neck, then move to your chest, your ribs, your stomach and pelvis, your thighs and knees, then the shins.”

I had to admit, the first time Kyungsoo attempted this he looked like a demented seal that was trying way too hard lift its head.

So, I closed my hands around his ribcage, earning a slight blush from the older boy that, in a way, pleased me. Then I proceeded to make sure he separated his movements between his head and neck and chest and ribcage.

Once Kyungsoo got the hang of it, we were both body rolling together, looking like dorks as we tried to get perfectly in sync which, surprisingly, wasn’t that hard.

“God, we look stupid,” Kyungsoo burst out laughing, tipping over his toes and tripping forward.

My arm s around his waist, stopping his momentum with a tug. His soft flesh melted around my clutch as he relaxed into my grip, the bangs that hung over our foreheads touching because we were so close.

“U-Um,” Kyungsoo managed to pipe up before grabbing my arm to pull himself up. “Thanks.”

Without any more words, and only a smirk, I began to pack up and motion for Kyungsoo to follow me. We couldn’t stay much longer unless we wanted to look suspicious.

As we were leaving though, a faint sound of sniffling caught my attention.

Kyungsoo turned to look at me, confusion written over his face like a novel. We exchanged a few more glances before peering around a dark corner.

Behind it was a hunched figure, their back against the wall, body shivering with immense sobs, and fingers intertwined with messy hair.

It was one of my former female students. Maeji

“Maeji-yah!” I called to her, bending down so I was eye level, though I got no sight of her shielded pupils.

Soon, Kyungsoo was next to me, also prepared to comfort the crying girl.

The sobbing teenager sniffled a few times and finally showed her eyes. Sure enough, there was a glint in them. However, I was slightly surprised. Normally, Masked people did not get this emotional unless they were newly Masked, which she shouldn’t have been because of her age.

“What’s wrong?” I wondered, bringing my palm to her shoulder.

The sixteen year old girl shuddered, wiping the salty, wet substance from her cheeks that had come down from her eyes in streaks.

“U-Um…” she sniffed some more. “I-I was just getting bullied by some of the other students. That’s all.”

“That’s something serious!” Kyungsoo blurted out, earning a glare from me. “You have to do something about that!”

She continued to vigorously shake her head until her hair covered her eyes, once again defending her face from being seen.

“What was it about?” I softly questioned.

There was about 30 seconds of pure silence and I was getting ready to ask it again, but Maeji’s face resurfaced once more.

“My Mask…” she breathed heavily. “My Mask was defective, so they had to bring it back to the factory to fix it. I was without it for three whole days, but I had a pass from the government under special circumstances. But people found out and they thought I was tainted in that three day period when I didn’t have the Mask.”

She sobbed harder and harder until I thought her ribcage was going to collapse inward. Kyungsoo finally moved and pulled her into a tight hug, watching me out of the corner of his eye.

“Factory,” he said to her, but stared at me to get my reaction. “What do you mean Maeji?”

Maeji, who had her head buried in Kyungsoo’s shoulder, responded, “Where all the Masks are made of course. There’s only one location. But I mean, they told me this because they wanted to make sure I-“

“All in one factory,” I cut her off, giving Kyungsoo a look.

Our expressions both said the same thing.

My roommate picked the crying girl up and wiped her tears with his sleeve gently. He then tilted her chin and ordered her to stop crying.

“Seriously,” he told her. “A pretty girl like you does not belong in tears. Now, if anyone else decides to harass you, you can come to Jongin and me.”

I looked at him, impressed and Maeji sniffled one last final time before picking up her bag and bowing to us before leaving.

“I think you know what we need to do,” I stated, making eye contact with Kyungsoo.

*

Countless snacks and two hours of limited researched later, Kyungsoo and I both held onto two subway tickets to Bucheon.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” I wondered, watching Kyungsoo with curious eyes.

The petite boy was currently packing numerous items in a small, leather backpack. The countless objects passed my vision because my sight was fixed on my doe-eyed hyung.

“We’re leaving for only a day,” I went on because he didn’t answer me. “And all we’re doing is checking it out.”

Kyungsoo finally closed the backpack and took a seat on the bed, his hands moving to his messy hair. He buried them deep because it hadn’t been cut in months and let his fingers get tangled.

“I just…have a feeling,” he remarked, shaking his head a few times.

I took the seat next to him and watched his face with concerned eyes. He was starting to get bags that were almost worse than mine. I knew he was going to have to cover them up with makeup like me if he wanted to go out in public.

“Explain it,” I stated simply, eyes now fixed on his backpack that was loosely fit on top of his lip.

Kyungsoo removed his hands from his hair and onto the straps of the backpack. He in a deep breath, still not meeting my eyes. Then he proceeded to flop back, facing up, lying on the bed, eyebrows furrowed deeply.

“,” he moaned. “I can’t. I…I’m sorry. This was your idea anyway!”

I lifted up my hands in defense at his snapping. His annoyed expression caused me to shift backwards slightly. I’d never seen the mother-like boy angry and this was certainly as close to angry as he could get. Even when I first met him, and he was resisting me at all costs when I took him to my apartment, his emotions were different than this.

“Hey,” I responded after a minute of silence. “It’s fine. But we should go before Sehun and Luhan come back.

Judging by the light streaming through the window, making the tiny particles in the air visible, I didn’t need a clock to figure out it was about noon.

“We’ve got about six hours,” Kyungsoo answered, reading my mind like we were the same body.

He rolled off the bed, allowing it to creak in his wake, and pulled the backpack with him.

*

For being in the middle of the day, the subway was painfully empty and Kyungsoo and I were very aware of the vacantness. There was only one other person in our compartment. The ones next to us were empty.

It was a rather plain and ordinary. The seats were a boring shade of pale blue. The railing was a faded stainless steel. The sound of the track was humdrum to my ears.

The stranger in the corner, who smelled of old cigarette smoke and appeared to be a man of many worries, got up and left at a stop before us, his jaded, onyx scarf that seemed more gray than black, slipping off of his body slightly.

It didn’t make sense to me. He appeared to be Masked yet so tired at the same time. And he smelled of cigarette smoke that had stuck for years. Masked people didn’t smell. They didn’t smoke either.

Once he got off, Kyungsoo and I took the opportunity to glance at each other and then to the ground.

“Hey, Jongin,” Kyungsoo tapped me on the shoulder after a few minutes of silence.

He looked at me with his wide eyes as if he assumed that I had been sleeping.

“Mmm?” I wondered, eyes closed.

This was common ground for us. Not unlikely. Me being sleepy. Kyungsoo being curious as ever. And, depending on the context or circumstances, I’d either have a smartass remark or a deep, sympathetic response that included some form of comforting touch that lingered longer than normal.

“What’s life worth living for?”

In this case a deep ,sympathetic remark was seriously in need.

Kyungsoo had pleading eyes that somewhat resembled a puppy and a lost boy, two things that could be considered to be put in the same category. His normally perfectly smooth face was contorted into an unflattering mess of confused lines. His eyes were unnaturally watery, like pools of uncertain and uncontrolled currants. And his lips, which belonged in a heart shaped smile, were pressed into a thin line.

“Life is worth living…to see the people who survive to the end,” I managed to answer, puzzled by my own words.

The subway lights flickering and wavering in the darkness made Kyungsoo’s muddled brain activity show in his expression perfectly, like sand art. Definite yet very undefined all at the same time.

“What do you mean?” He wondered.

Neither of us realized that our bodies were so close that we were nearly in each other’s laps. The heat radiating off of our skin did nothing to help us realize.

“Why do you think old people like to hang out?” I mindlessly babbled, trying to lighten the mood. “They’re all survivors. It’s like saying ‘I made it this far. I’m that cool.’ Right?”

Kyungsoo still seemed utterly confused by my pointless theory but it put a smile to his face. That heart figure taking place of his lips caused a grin to break out on my face.

“But…but what if you don’t enjoy it?” Kyungsoo continued, darkening the mood again. “Society is already screwed to a point where-“

“People,” I cut him off. “Life’s about enjoying the ride with the people who are left.”

Kyungsoo’s moon sized eyes, captivating me, only widened and I realized that he had been clutching onto my elbow the whole time we were talking. I never noticed because I was so focused on his changing expression, which was about as entertaining as watching your friend trip down a flight of stairs. Instinctively you want to laugh first and then ask after if they’re okay.

“People,” Kyungsoo let the word saram drift from his lips like the ocean water back in from a sandy, limitless beach.

“Yeah,” I hummed closer to his ear. “Like you.”

I noticed Kyungsoo’s Adam’s apple quiver and he whimpered at our closeness, however, I only increased our proximity so my forehead was bent over, touching his.

“A-And you?” He finally managed to respond.

“Yeah.”

And that word that escaped from my mouth slipped into nothingness, fading away as my lips drew nearer to Kyungsoo’s until they connected with his. His fingers, that were lightly gripping my elbow, suddenly clutched down in shock.

His entire body was shaking, either trembling in excitement or shuddering in pure astonishment. First he did nothing, just grip onto me as my lips did all the work but he soon started to respond, our mouths melting into a catchy rhythm, the beat of a song we’d both memorized mentally without trying.

My tongue his bottom lip gently. It was supposed to be teasing and I didn’t expect Kyungsoo to open his mouth, allowing me entrance. My hands found the back of his neck, making sure he was supported as my tongue clashed with his in a considerate matter.

His fingers already gravitated to my chest, using it as wall of protection, a shield of armor from his thoughts that had previously consumed his mind, but I was going to make sure that I would devour his brain’s activity. I was going to make sure he could escape from his regular routine of worrying and just let go.

“Bucheon-“

Our spluttered, surprised cries drowned off the monotone voice that drawled out of the speaker. Kyungsoo and I panted, heaving our chests while we glared at the intercom with unspoken words between ourselves.

Silently, we got up and walked out into a dreary looking subway. People passed by as if their lives were as boring as Kyungsoo had previously described his worries.

Just barely making it by, not enjoying the ride.

Once we were above ground, the dreary rainclouds that hung over the city didn’t do much to lift our moods that were soiled from the interruption on the subway. However, they managed to make our previously beet red faces seem a more dull color. It wasn’t until we walked a block and a half down a rain soaked and beaten down sidewalk that we said a word.

“Sorry,” I managed.

Kyungsoo shot me a look, hands stuffed in his pockets. He was wearing faded blue jeans and a navy blue sweatshirt that complimented his body well. The hood was now resting over his thick hair that my hands had beforehand been dug into.

Children danced around sidewalks, playing in the light drizzle, smearing their dirty hands along the rough sidewalk to smudge the wet chalk into a blur of rainbows.

“For what?” He managed a slight smirk. “Let’s not pretend we didn’t enjoy that.”

I also managed a slight smile.

“I feel like I’m ruining your innocence,” I admitted. “I shouldn’t have picked you up in the first place.”

“No,” Kyungsoo argued as the rain started to pick up and when we passed a brightly colored and lit bubble tea shop, a contrast to the dense clouds and rain. “Thanks to that glory filled two minutes, I understand what life is worth.”

“Which part?” I joked. “My old people revelation or the part where I practically stripped you of your innocent title?”

Kyungsoo rolled his large eyes, a laugh escaping his lips.

“Both,” he answered.

And it was then that I realized I was completely and utterly in love and couldn’t do a ing thing about it. Currently. Whatever situation we’d be in, we would have to be kept in the apartment because gays weren’t accepted in society. But I was so blinded with my happiness for him at that moment, I didn’t care.

We continued walking in a blissful silence; the only sound was the pitter pat of the rain, drumming calmly against the sidewalk. Neither of us minded getting a layer of water covering our skin. For some reason, the dampness was more comforting now that we talked.

For some reason, the two of us also knew where we were going. While, yes, we had both been to Bucheon before, we had no idea where this factory was. But somehow, our bodies guided us around the heart of the city, the central business district.

“There’s no way there’s a factory in the middle of Bucheon,” Kyungsoo moaned while we walked around.

“Yet you still allowed us to walk in this direction,” I answered him with a raised eyebrow.

Kyungsoo ignored me. He was actually about to come up with some smart remark to counter mine but he halted in his tracks, busy people passing him with annoyed expressions.

“Are you going to explain why you’re stopping in the middle of the sidewalk?” I asked, pausing when I stood next to him.

His eyes were larger than normal and I continued to observe his expression in order to pick up what was going on.

“I-It’s not a factory,” Kyungsoo said. “It’s the company…the company makes the Masks at the same location of its headquarters!”

I turned my head and faced the large building that consumed an incredible amount of space across the street. It was completely white. Majestic. Large. Ridiculously high class.

“But I thought…only meetings took place there,” I countered, nevertheless getting an uneasy feeling in my gut that said he was right.

I grabbed my hyung’s elbow and dragged him out of the street in order to stop getting in the way of the other cars.

“W-Wouldn’t it make sense though?” Kyungsoo stammered, watching the building tower over us. “Make the Mask in the place where people would least expect it.”

“Alright,” I gave in. “So let’s say you’re right. What are we going to do? Just walk in there? Make a grand entrance? If there are people who’ll know about “us” Kyungsoo, it’s them. If anyone could ever figure it out at first glance, it’s them.”

My convincing wasn’t doing the best of jobs. Kyungsoo still longingly looked at the building. I didn’t even know what he was planning on doing. I didn’t know what I was planning on doing either. I just…wanted to be there.

“But I get this sensation,” Kyungsoo said. “That while I have you to live for, we should do something more.”

“Kyungsoo…” was all I could say.

The way he looked at me. It melted all of my concerns into a tiny pot that would be kept in a small pocket of my heart, forgotten momentarily.

“Let’s just go check it out,” Kyungsoo continued and I found myself apprehensively following him through the magnificent doors that swung open like they were oiled by the second.

There was a long white corridor that remained empty and led down to a receptionist desk. It was a longer walk than anticipated, though we could see the tightly wound woman clearly in view.

Her hair was pulled into a skintight, taut ponytail, done like a boy scout’s knot. Her thin lips had a dash of red lipstick that contrasted immensely with her incredibly pale skin, which blended in with the pearly white walls.

“Can I help you gentlemen?” She inquired, her voice like a flowing river, fast yet perfectly balanced.

I wondered how long she’d been Masked. She was too old for it to have been her whole life but if I had not known better, I would’ve guessed that.

“We would like to talk to someone,” Kyungsoo blurted out.

I was in preparation to slap him across the face for something so loud, eruptive and mindlessly stupid but it had been only a half hour ago that I discovered I was in love so I kept my mouth shut and let him ramble. Hitting him was something I never intended to do, but I was now convinced that lady thought we were incredibly psychotic for being “Masked”.

“Someone,” the woman repeated, judgingly staring at Kyungsoo.

“What he means to say,” I butted in. “Is that we have concern for someone we know and we’d like to report it. Personally.”

What the were we getting into?

Kyungsoo gave me the briefest look of thank you before the lady glanced down and typed something inhumanly fast on her miniature, futuristic laptop that had a brand that I’d never even heard of.

“Alright,” the woman said.

She gestured towards a door to her right, down another corridor, not quite as long as the first one.

“Please wait in the room down there while I call a representative to speak with you,” she firmly ordered us.

Wordlessly, Kyungsoo and I made our way to the door, taking in the white walls and the emotionless décor that graced the barriers that caved us in.

Once the door was closed, we looked at each other and immediately held hands. I secretly hoped that there wasn’t surveillance. There seemed to be none in sight but this technology never failed to amaze me.

In the room there were two wooden chairs that were antique white. There was a pearly desk in the corner of the room, so neatly organized I wondered if anyone even used it. The folders and pens and everything else that tidily resided on it looked untouched.

The ceiling seemed higher than a normal ceiling but it wasn’t like a foyer or anything. Just made the room feel emptier than it should’ve.

“Sorry,” Kyungsoo whispered. “This was a bad idea.”

I shook my head.

“No,” I protested. “You were right. Maybe we’ll earn some valuable information.”

Kyungsoo still looked as uneasy as ever.

“I thought she already called someone,” he muttered. “On the computer or whatever. Now she has to individually call someone? Ridiculous.”

I had been nodding at everything he sad but I suddenly stopped, in a state of shock. I grabbed Kyungsoo’s shoulders.

What had she typed in the computer? She…she…if she hadn’t called them before…she…she…knew. She knew about Kyungsoo and I and we were completely and utterly trapped.

It all happened so fast, I could barely register what was going on. I found my body backed against the wall, clutching onto Kyungsoo as tightly as humanly possible.

The door to the room no longer resided in its normal spot. It had been knocked down by men in white, biohazard suits. They roughly and carelessly approached us.

Before I could even respond, Kyungsoo was ripped from my grasp, yanked away crudely, stumbling as he went, screaming my name so loudly his voice went raw.

Jongin! Jongin!

Something clear was slapped onto his skin. It spread over right his arm, then to his other arm. I watched it travel down his leg. I watched it consume his calves. I watched it take over his neck. His eyes watered uncontrollably and I screamed to him so loudly.

“Kyungsoo!” I screeched, my lungs feeling as if air would never return to them. “I…I love you…” it was so hoarse.

And it was the last thing Kyungsoo heard before he snapped his eyes shut and reopened them. My eyes were greeted with his.

His eyes that had a glint.

.

.

.

A/N: I am ing sorry -_- I always get mad at Kaisoo fics with awfully ed up or sad endings yet I write them. I swear, the story I’m writing now won’t be this angsty but lol this actually had fluff and it was supposed to be all angst. Sorry it took so long to update and sorry about grammar mistakes. I was busy with life and now it's late at night and I don't feel like editing a lot ;) Anyway, leave me a comment about how you feel. I think I’m going to make this all into one part later one.