An object flew in the mid-air and Micha saw that it was Dongman’s necklace. She took a step back and let the bloodied man before her slump down on his knees. His eyes bulging out and his mouth coughing out blood. “You’re something Kwon Micha,” he hoarsely stated it. From the corner of her eyes, Micha saw Zico finishing up with Dongjun while Jiyong had kicked Daehan in the guts before rubbing his hands with pride.  

                “Are you tired already?” Micha stated in a mocking tone and coughed out blood. Then, she smiled, blood staining her white teeth completely, “This is only a ing teaser!”

                Dongman’s loud breathing could be heard as a staring competition occurred between him and Micha. All of a sudden, his neck felt bare. He ended the gazing battle at once and his focus fell on the floor. The pupil of his eyes darted back and forth searching for his necklace but relieve washed over him when he saw the necklace laying next to him. He reached out to grab it and swiftly put the necklace back around his neck. A gold key dangled on his chest. “I guess, the party is over for today,” he said.

                Zico walked over towards Micha and took her by the arms, starting to lead her towards the door while Jiyong trailed behind to make sure there were no surprise attacks. Through the earpiece, Jiyong could hear Youngjae’s voice, alerting the other members about their departure. “Eagles are out. I repeat. The Eagles are taking off,” Youngjae said.

                “Eagles,” Zelo’s voice could be heard all of a sudden, “How is the head?” he was referring about Micha’s state.

                “The head is fine,” Zico said, “We’re assembling with the other parts in a few seconds.”

                “Roger that,” Zelo stated. He gulped down the last bit of the third or fourth ice-cream he had for the day before grabbing his skateboard again. He nodded a simple thank you to the ice-cream seller and rode off. Seeing Zelo making a move, P.O stretched his body and stood up from the bench placed across the street where Zelo had previously been standing at.

                “Hamster is moving,” P.O said.

                Himchan stared at the monitor to reconfirm about Zelo’s whereabouts and then got in touch with Gikwang. “Hyung-nim,” Himchan called Gikwang, “You can pick up Zelo at the same place you had dropped him off now. The coast is clear. P.O would be waiting for you a few block away from where you had dropped him off because the previous spot is now crowded with people.”

                “On my way,” was Gikwang’s only reply.

                Outside Dongman’s office, Yongguk and Jongup stood by the door, waiting for Jiyong, Zico and Micha to come out. “Hyung, I’m feeling anxious right now,” Jongup whispered at Yongguk without moving his body.

                “We went through this Jongup,” Yongguk sighed, “A gun shot heard, we’ll rush in.”

                “I can hear them shouting,” Jongup worriedly said.

                “I’m worried too alright?” Yongguk gave up on standing still and slightly turned towards Jongup. “But the order was clear. We have to follow it so that we won’t mess up this plan. Jongup-ahh, Micha is my girlfriend. Do you know how hard it is for me to watch my own lover to walk into that room knowing that there would be a possibility she might not come out alive?” Yongguk’s voice was full of hurt.

                Jongup hung his head low, “I’m sorry hyung.”

                Yongguk shook his head, “No. We’re all worried, so, it’s okay Jongup.”

                Their little conversation was cut short when the door knob of Dongman’s office turned. They returned to their position and held in their breath, praying that the three siblings would come out alive. “Let’s go home,” Zico stepped out of the room, walking close to Micha and was still holding on to her.

                Yongguk stood still, eyes wide. Micha’s previous white clothes were stained with blood. A bruise was forming at the side of her eye and a trail of blood was trailing along her side burn. He swore he could hear his heart falling into the pit of his stomach with a huge splash. She was beaten up badly but then she looked at Yongguk and did something she had not sincerely for a while- she smiled. “Lead the way oppa,” Micha croaked at Yongguk. 

                “Hyung-nim, should I drive?” Jongup looked at Jiyong who was also pretty bad in shape.

                “I can manage Jongup,” Jiyong patted Jongup’s back.

                “Are you sure?” Zico asked but then winced when a sharp pain struck from one of his cut on the lips.

                “Yes,” Jiyong nodded, “Now, Bang Yongguk, lead the way.”

                Still in shock, Yongguk nodded and lead the way. Finally, they had declared war against Kim Dongman and the situation would be worst. He looked around, snarling at any of the guard who tried to come close to them while Jongup guarded from behind. Yongguk touched the earpiece in his ear and then said, “Back to nest,” which was the code to tell the other members to pack up and go home.

                In the car, Micha sat in between Jongup and Yongguk. She had left her jacket in Dongman’s room and was shivering. The after-effects of the previous battle had finally attacked her body as she felt every muscle in her was straining in pain. She gritted her teeth and threw back her head against the seat slowly. At that time, Yongguk reached out for Micha’s hand and his fingers s through hers. A smile crept onto Micha’s face as she turned to look at her boyfriend.

                “I’m here,” Yongguk whispered and then took off his jacket to put it over Micha.

                “Thank you,” she breathed in and leaned her head against Yongguk’s shoulder.

                “Did the two of you saw what I saw when Dongman was kneeling on the floor, completely beaten up?” Zico’s question caught Micha’s interest.

                “You mean the frantic look in his eyes when he realized his necklace was gone?” Jiyong’s right brow rose.

                That had got Micha thinking. Dongman clearly looked troubled when the necklace was gone. She witnessed it herself. How his eyes were twitching in fear of losing the item. “Yeah, it was a golden key hung around his neck,” Micha nodded. “Maybe they key means something?”

                “Probably he kept the documents in a safe and that golden key can open it?” Jongup suggested.

                “I have to admit, what Jongup said actually made sense,” Yongguk agreed.

                “But, the key looked unique,” Micha said. “I think we need to consult someone about this key. Every key has its meaning. I just want to make sure that the key we saw is not just a random key which opens up his toilet or something.”

                Jongup turned to look at Micha and asked, “Do we have a member who we can consult with?”

                After being silent for a few seconds, Micha’s face brightened, “Yeah, our sub-group called SHINee. There’s someone named Kim Kibum. He’s so good with keys that people actually nickname him as Key.”

                Micha’s hope faltered away when Zico said, “But, he’s not around right now.”

                “Why?” Micha’s voice dropped along with her mood.

                “Off grid,” was all Jiyong said.

                “What’s off grid?” Yongguk and Jongup at the same time.

                “It’s a term we use when a member of our own is on a dangerous mission. Their connection with us should be minimized and we should not get in touch with them for their own safety,” Zico explained.

                “There are so many terminologies in this clan,” Jongup shook his head. “Do you guys have like a manual book or something?”

                “We do,” the three siblings chirped.

                “You do?” Jongup and Yongguk said at the same time.

                Jiyong chuckled, “We learned how to read from that book.”

                “This is serious man,” Jongup was in awe, “You’ve been reading it for that long?”

                “And still learning new terms until now,” Zico gave a thumbs-up, showing off his bloody knuckles.

                While Jongup was busy asking Micha about her interesting childhood tales, Yongguk let the waves of thoughts carry him around. He started floating around calmly as his brain reeled. After a few minutes, a memory came rushing in like a huge wave as he was forced back to shore to face the reality. “Micha,” he called.

                “What?” Micha looked at Yongguk.

                “I remembered something,” he started, “Chunji, from Teen Top, his father is actually a key maker. Chunji learnt a lot from him and I heard his father makes special keys for important people at times.”

                “Really?” Micha exclaimed, “I’ll call L.Joe to ask Chunji to come over to his ramen shop. That way we can ask Chunji about the key.” 

                “Whatever it is, we must patch up the three of you first,” Yongguk was referring Micha, Zico and Jiyong, “We can’t go around with the three of you full of blood and wounds. I think we would be toss in jail before Dongman,” he said while tucking a strand of hair behind Micha’s ears.

                The other five people in the car laughed at Yongguk’s statement as Zico said, “For a second, I forgot about my wounds.”

                Seated in the middle of the living room, Jessica stared into space. The video of her own brother aiming a gun at Zico stuck in her head. The pictures of her brother initiating his own death was stuck in her head and no matter how many times she shook her head, the image stubbornly remained. “Micha was protecting her own brother. It was self-defence for her. I’ve been barking at the wrong tree all the time,” Jessica curled into a ball and wept.

                Tears ran down her cheeks and soaked into her red carpet. There was no one to hug her. She had always been alone since her brother’s death but at these kinds of fragile moments, Jessica could not help but wished she had someone to cry to. “Mom, I miss you,” she whispered. Another tear leaked from the corner of her eyes.

                Now, she must straighten up her life. But how? Dongman was on her tail, keeping a close eye on her.

                Then, her mind clicked. For a moment, the gear in her brain which had been out of order for these few days was starting to turn again. The day when she had gained Dongman’s trust completely rushed back to her. “You must keep this with you. If anything ever happens to me, they would suspect it to be with my sons, so, by giving it to you, I can rest assure that it would be in a safe place,” Dongman once said to her while giving her a sealed brown envelope. “But, remember, you would be blamed first if words about what’s inside this envelope is leaked,” he reminded her and went off.

                Jessica hastily stood up, leaving tears to dry on her cheeks as she had no time to wipe them off. She head towards her bedroom and pushed the mattress of her bed. As expected, the brown envelope lay before her, gleaming in an almost joyous manner. “This could probably straighten things,” she said alone with her gaze set upon the envelope which was in her grasp.

                Zelo and Daehyun hopped off the van without waiting for Gikwang to turn the engine off. The two of them ran into the mansion as they were the last team to arrive home from the mission. “Don’t run,” P.O whined while trailing behind Daehyun and Zelo. However, the two males ignored P.O’s plea and dashed through the door, heading straight to the living room.

                Their heavy steps attracted the people in the living room and the moment they reached at the place, Himchan crushed into them with a bear hug. “Hyung!” Zelo cried, “I told you not to hug me in front of people.”

                “I’m just glad the two of you made it,” Himchan mumbled.

                “Now, get off me,” Daehyun huffed and pushed Himchan away. “Micha,” Daehyun called out happily to brag about his achievements but stopped when he saw Micha’s state. “Micha,” this time, his voice changed from happy to concern.

                “Ouch,” Micha hissed when Yongguk placed a pack of ice on her bruised ribs. When she saw the look on Daehyun and Zelo’s face, she said, “Don’t worry. I’m just a little sore for now. I’ll be good after getting some rest.”

                “Are you really okay?” Zelo squeaked.

                “Yes, Junhong, so relax,” Micha said in assurance but hissed again when Yongguk started to put some medicine on the big gash on her arm.

                Daehyun knew that if they were to only worry about getting beaten up, they would never be able solve the problem. So, he took a seat beside Micha and stated in a big smile, “I made it. I did it Micha. I managed to put in the thumb drive and Youngjae was able to hack into the system.”

                “Good job Daehyun,” Yongguk spoke for the first time after he was done attending to Micha’s wound.

                “Thanks hyung,” Daehyun turned shy all of a sudden.

                “Micha!” Youngjae came running into the living room with a picture in his hand, “Your camera manage to catch the image of the golden key around Dongman’s neck. I printed it out,” he placed the picture in front of Micha as the rest of the members gathered around to have a look, “This is the one right?”

                Satisfied, Micha gave Youngjae a big hug. “Yes! We got the picture!”

                “So, what now?” Himchan asked.

                “I called L.Joe a few minutes ago and he said that Chunji would come over at his ramen shop in half an hour. So, I’m going to meet up with Chunji and ask his opinion about the key. From there, I will start to plan our next move,” Micha optimistically stated but Yongguk shook his head in disapproval.

                The boyfriend said, “How are you going to go there?”

                “To avoid any attention, I’m going to walk there,” Micha casually answered.

                Knowing that there was no way Micha was going to back down from this, Yongguk stood up, “Alright, but I’ll follow you.”

                “Aish, cheeky bastards,” Jiyong entered the living room with a can of soda in his hand, “The two of you just want to go on a date after completing the mission.”

                With judging eyes, Jongup said, “Seriously? A date after a fight?” he shook his head while crossing his arms, “Such a unique couple.” However, Jongup’s teasing came to an end when Yongguk had caught him into a head lock. “Hyung!” he shrieked, “Hyung!” he screamed when Yongguk started to tickle him, “No, no, no the-” Jongup’s words were cut short when the other members of BAP joined Yongguk in tickling Jongup.

                Micha laughed at the scene before her. It was great to see the boys playing around again. She missed their smiles and their playful ways. “You should take good care of them,” Jiyong came by Micha’s side and slung his arm around her, “They are unique in their own ways. Cherish them Micha. Don’t be like me,” Jiyong’s voice suddenly turned solemn, “If only I took care of Soohyun a little bit more, maybe he would still be doing pranks right now.”

                “Jessica’s brother’s death was not your fault,” Micha turned to look at her own older brother, “He chose the wrong path and because of that, he had to receive the consequences. You took good care of him, so, cut yourself some slack alright?”

                Jiyong sighed and patted his sister’s shoulder. “I’m going to head to my room. I’ve got some contracts to look at.”

                “Alright oppa,” Micha said, “Don’t work too hard.”

                After watching her older brother leave, Micha stood up from the couch which she had been sitting on for a while and walked towards the members of BAP. Zelo was laughing while he lay still on Jongup’s stomach and the rest of them continued on tormenting Jongup by showering him with tickles. “I’m-I’m-I’m going t-to die!” Jongup stated between gasp and laughs. “Help,” he squeaked.

                “Guys, cut it out,” Micha said, “Or else Jongup is going to die laughing.”

                “Isn’t that considered a happy death?” Youngjae beamed at Micha who in turn rolled her eyes sarcastically.

                “I wish to live longer!” Jongup screamed.

                “Dream on!” Daehyun let out his evil laughter as his Busan’s accent escaped.

                At the side, Yongguk was holding onto Jongup’s feet. His huge smile never left his face, revealing his gum. He looked happy and for a moment, Micha just stood in her spot and stared at him. She would give up anything if it meant that she could witness that smile on Yongguk’s face every day. The way his eyes twinkled in delight caused butterflies to swarm into her stomach. “What are you looking at?” Yongguk’s deep voice was heard as he was currently standing only a few inches away from Micha.

                His face was so close that Micha could not help but gasped in astonishment. “Are you staring at me?” Yongguk winked.

                There was no reply but Micha could feel her cheeks heating up as she looked down in embarrassment. “No,” she mumbled, “Why would I do that?”

                Yongguk chuckled and pinched Micha’s cheeks, “You look so cute when you’re shy.”

                “I’m not feeling shy!”

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Author's note:

Hello! I'm so happy right now since I can update twice for this week>< YEAH!!! VICTORY! This was supposed to be included in the chapter before this but it would've been too long if I've done so. And.... because Micha and Yongguk had always been like a 'blood &fighting' couple, I decided to make some light, cute stuff for them towards the end^^

Comments are always welcome here^^ For new subscribers:) Lemme hug.... Hihi... Peace out peeps!