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CHAPTERTHIRTY-THREE

❝SECRETCONVERSATION❞

Hewas so stupid.

How could he have forgotten?

Everything, everything Suji had ever told him came to the forefront of his mind.

Sunggyu was the man she was in love with.

How could he have forgotten something as substantial as that?

Even though he had not heard her utter his name the last time he had saw her, Sunggyu was all she was thinking about on her deathbed.

His eyesight became blurry as he stumbled down the hall. He couldn’t stand there and watch that anymore. It took all of his strength to not sob out loud. He stopped as he reached the end of the hall. He placed his hand against the wall, leaning against it for support.

Woohyun glanced over his shoulder back down the hall, wishing for everything he had just witness to be wiped from his mind. He closed his eyes, turning away.

He was so stupid.

What was he supposed to do now?

Sunggyu was the man his mother was deeply in love with. 

“…he was in love with someone else…”

That was one of the last things Suji said to him before she had succumbed to her illnesses. Did Sunggyu not actually have feelings for her? But then why hadn’t he pushed her away? Why had it looked like he indulged in the action?

Unless coming to this world and meeting Sunggyu and the others had somehow altered this timeline…

If that was true, then there was no way he could get in-between his mother and Sunggyu. Suji deserved all the happiness in the world and to be with the one she desired, even if that meant breaking his own heart.

Woohyun sighed, rubbing his eyes. Just the thought of them together pained him. He momentaily watched the rebels, who made up INFINITE, walk to and fro, going about their business. No one paid him any mind. Did any of them even know what was going on behind closed doors? Did they already know about their relationship?

He had heard from multiple people that Sunggyu and Suzy were childhood friends. Being that close to one another for such a long time… If only he had known how at a disadvantage he was for the leader’s attention. He never had a chance against Suzy anyway.

Had they been together before in the past? Had they kissed before? If he was so comfortable with letting Suzy kiss him, then why had Sunggyu kissed him on the rooftop? Why make Woohyun go through all the stages of fully realizing he was probably in love with the older man only to step on his heart a second later unknowingly?

How could he have been so stupid?

The brunet placed a hand over his heart, clutching his shirt. He needed to get out. He pulled away from the wall. He needed some air. Everything hurt. He couldn’t stay here, at least not for the meantime. Some fresh air would do him some good.

Woohyun refused to look back down the hall as he made his way through the crowded main room of the headquarters towards the elevator. He needed to clear his head and think about what he was going to do next. He couldn’t possibly tell Sunggyu how he felt now, not after witnessing that intimate moment.

When he reached the elevator, he pressed the button, signaling the lift to come to the main floor. Maybe spending a couple of hour outside would help. If he stayed here any longer, he would go crazy. When the elevator doors opened, he entered. He looked to the floor buttons, only to realize there were no actual level buttons but just a keypad. He had forgotten that there was a password needed to get in and out of the building. He had once memorized it when he had went on his first mission, but it’s been so long and so much had happened since that he no longer could remember the code. And the only other code he knew was the one leading to the roof.

And just the thought of going back up there made his heart ache. He couldn’t do that. He couldn’t go back up there. But what was he supposed to do now? He needed to get out. What if Sunggyu emerged from his room with Suzy in tow? What would he say to the caramel haired man?

He closed his eyes, groaning in anguish.

“Woohyun? Where are you going?” Someone asked.

The brunet opened his eyes to see Sungjong staring at him from outside the elevator.

“I, uh, need to go out…” Woohyun couldn’t think of a good excuse.

“Why? You know it’s dangerous out there, especially for someone like you.”

“Yeah, I know,” Woohyun mumbled but loud enough for the younger boy to hear. “But I really need to get out.”

“Okay… but why?” He crossed his arms, giving Woohyun a concerned look. The latter didn’t answer, though. “Weren’t you going to see Sunggyu?”

Woohyun looked down, shuffling his feet. He lightly bit his tongue to stop himself from sniffling at just the mere mention of the man’s name. Man, he had fallen hard to Sunggyu.

He was so stupid.

“Woohyun?”

“Please, Sungjong…” He looked up, giving him a pleading look. “I won’t be gone long. I just…” He sighed heavily. “I just can’t be here right now.”

Sungjong was quiet for a moment. “Do you know the code?” Woohyun shook his head. “The password is Infinite. The numbers on the keypad correspond with the letters that spell the name.” Sungjong explained.

Woohyun nodded, glancing at the set of numbers on the wall.

Infinite.

The brunet had to mentally give the rebel leader credits for thinking up of a code like that. It would definitely be hard for someone to break into the headquarters. Not only was the password a long series of digits, one had to be somewhat knowledgeable in another language. For example, the “I” of Infinite was the ninth letter in the English alphabet. The brunet wasn’t that good in English, but he knew enough, and he knew how to spell in the language.

9.14.6.9.14.9.20.5.

Infinite.

“What happened with Sunggyu, Woohyun?” Sungjong asked as he watched the brunet silently type in the code. “Did he…?”

“Nothing happened,” Woohyun muttered a moment later. “He was with Suzy. I… didn’t want to interrupt their intimate moment…” He wondered if he had mirrored Sungjong’s surprised expression when he had witness the scene.

Before the younger could say anything, the elevator doors had shut, effectively ending the conversation.

Woohyun pulled the hood of the jacket he was wearing–curtesy of Dongwoo, once again–up to partially cover his identity and then stuffed his hands in his pockets. He wasn’t sure where he was going to go for the meantime, but he was in his right mind to know that he could possibly walk into a dangerous situation and he had no real means of defending himself.

The brunet briefly eyed his surroundings as he walked about. He wasn’t sure where he was going, and at the current moment, he didn’t care. He just needed some air and to get away from Sunggyu and his presence for the time being. He let his feet take him in a random direction as his mind wandered off.

What was he supposed to do now? Continue being a member of INFINITE while being in an awkward friendship–if that’s what he could even call what he and Sunggyu have, at this moment–with the caramel haired man, knowing he kissed his mom?

Woohyun shuddered at that thought. He once again wondered if they had shared a kissed before. If they had, then he had an indirect kiss with his own mom!

“Oh god!” The brunet moaned in despair. He did not leave the safe confines of the INFINITE headquarters to be having thoughts like these. It was making everything worse! He was officially scarred for life.

But maybe they hadn’t kissed before. Based on the look Sungjong gave him when he had mumbled what had happened, the thought of Suzy and Sunggyu potentially being a thing hadn’t even occurred to him. Maybe that was their first kiss?

How long has it been since he had left the headquarters? Were they still kissing?

“You’re so stupid, Woohyun,” he mumbled to himself. “Stop thinking about them…”

Woohyun wasn’t sure how long he had been walking, for he did not recognize the area he was in at all. And it didn’t help that the tint of the sky didn’t give him any clue to what time it was. He was pretty sure he had left HQ mid-morning, though.

He stopped in his tracks, eyeing his surroundings. Everything was so bright and colorful and lively. There were many people walking the streets, talking to one another as if they didn’t have a care in the world. The fashion wasn’t as terrible as that of the members of INFINITE or even that of the citizens of sector eight. Some people’s fashions looked a tad bit outdated compared to his time, but everyone looked… normal. Happy. Carefree.

Where was he? What sector was he in? He couldn’t had gone too far from sector two, but then again, there were many paths and secret passageways that made getting to the upper sectors quicker and easier. He must had unconsciously taken one of said routes. As he continued to look around, he began to feel a dull, pulsating throb in his head. He lightly massaged his temples, trying to somewhat alleviate the pain. The pain wasn’t too bad; it was something he could ignore. Perhaps, he had been walking for a long time. He was a bit tired.

“C’mon, c’mon!” Someone yelled. “Hurry before it’s over!”

“We have, like, all day! It’s only two o’clock!”

Woohyun glanced over his shoulders and saw a group of kids, running past him. They all had big smiles on their faces. It’s been a while since he had seen any children. The first and last time was when he went on his first mission and he met Krystal. She had been taking care of some children, many of whom had been siblings or the sons and daughters of the rebels of INFINITE. He briefly wondered how the woman was doing and hoped that she was alive and well. If he ever had a chance, he would like to see her again.

The kids talking and laughter caught Woohyun’s attention again as they ran around the corner where the brunet noticed many others were making their way way as well.

With curiosity bubbling up in him, he followed the throngs of people around the corner. His eyes widened when he realized what he stumbled upon.

A gigantic banner was hung in the air attached to two lamp posts on each side of the street. It read,

Sector Five’s 10th Annual Street Vending Event

“How did I get all the way to sector five?” Woohyun mumbled out loud, his brows furrowing in confusion.

Tables and tents were lined against the sidewalk next to each other. Groups of people occupied each booth, peering at the material the tents were presenting. Some tables were selling clothing and accessories while others were food booths. Woohyun could see even more children running to and fro from each booth, pointing at everything. Some were with, the brunet assumed, their parents, begging them to buy them something.

This was the last thing Woohyun expected to come across in a time such as this. With this being such a war-torn country and the government kidnapping and terrorizing its own people, how any community had time to get together like this was amazing to Woohyun. Maybe because of all the problems South Hallow had, this was just a way for them to temporarily forget their problems and live without fear for a change.

Woohyun walked amongst the citizens of sector five, inspecting every other table. It was extremely crowded; and he bumped into someone every couple of minutes. The owners of each booth would yell and call to him and many others, trying to get their attention and buy their merchandise. This reminded him of home. Every couple of months or so, there would be a little event or festival in his town that everyone would go to. Boohyun often took him to such events and would spoil him with food and toys with what little money he had saved up for such occasions.

While continuously walking down the street looking at the booths, the headache he had developed earlier began to worsen. As he continued to walk, the pain intensified. He moved off the streets and onto the nearby sidewalk, getting out of people’s way. He leaned against the wall, feeling a sudden spell of dizziness. Where did this sudden headache come from? He rubbed his temples, trying to alleviate the pain.

The brunet groaned as his head continued to throb terribly. He had never felt this much pain before. He pushed himself off the wall and looked around for a bench to sit at. He couldn’t continue like this. Maybe if he sat down and rest, he would feel better.

With each step, his head pulsed. The further he walked, the pain increased. He could barely see straight, the ache taking over his body. With the last bit of strength, he walked unsteadily to a nearby bench, slouching down the moment he sat.

Woohyun whimpered in agony as he attempted to ease the pain. Everything hurt. This pain in his head reminded him on the night before coming to this time, when he was trying to make his wish and someone knocked into, sending them both to the ground. Before he could had said anything, the mysterious person had quickly ran away, only leaving behind the peculiar infinity necklace. The only object Woohyun considered to be the link to his time traveling. When he had picked it the accessory and inspected it, a sudden headache had come, and he had felt a bit lightheaded, though not as bad as he felt at this moment.

He also felt similar discomfort and pain right after Dr. Wu finished injecting the mysterious illness–later realized as the flu–into Woohyun. While the doctor was waiting and the brunet was strapped to the chair, he had felt a sudden dull and pulsating throb in his head. Though, at the time, he had chalked it up to being because he was being tortured.

Why was this happening? What did this mean? Where was this sudden pain coming from?

Woohyun felt extremely weak. He squeezed his eyes shut. Every little movement he made sent pain riveting through his