Everyone stared at Minwoo who had spoken up.  Kwangmi smiled happily.  Perhaps this kid had more child in him than she had originally thought.

“You’re kidding, right?” Jeongmin asked, face skeptical.

Minwoo would not be deterred.  “No, I’m serious.  Let’s play hide-and-seek.  It’s a classic and it will be more fun now that we’re older and can choose better hiding spots.”

“I like it,” Hyesoo interjected.  “Let’s do it.”

“I agree,” Kwangmin followed up.

“But we should add a twist,” the maknae added, a sly grin spreading on his face.

Kwangmi stared, in awe of this new boy in front of her.  What happened to the shy guy on the basketball court?

“We have to do it in the dark.  Everyone gets flashlights and we turn off all of the lights.  The seeker must try to find everyone in the shadows with just a flashlight to aid him or her,” Minwoo elaborated.

Jeongmin grinned mischievously.   “Now you’re talking.  Let’s draw straws to see who goes first.”

He made his way into the kitchen, the others following.  He pulled out a box of disposable straws, removing nine.  “Since there are so many of us, I say we go in pairs while the seeker searches alone.  The pair should stay fairly close to each other so that if one is found, the seeker can find the other half with a bit more luck since they will be by themselves.”  Without waiting for anyone else’s opinion, Jeongmin went ahead and began cutting the straws two at a time at different lengths.  Hyunseong passed out pocket flashlights as Jeongmin busied himself.  Once the task was complete, Jeongmin turned his back to the rest of the group, arranging the straws to hide their true measures.  When he was satisfied, he turned back around, holding out his fists to the first person –Hyunseong.

Expressionlessly, he pulled one out, analyzing its cut.  Next was Donghyun, and on it went until everyone obtained a straw.  Quickly, the lengths were matched to their counterpart and the pairs were made: Donghyun and Kwangmin, Youngmin and Minwoo, Hyesoo and Jin, Kwangmi and Jeongmin, and Hyunseong was left as the Seeker.

“I’m not partnering with him!” both Youngmin and Minwoo shouted simultaneously.

“Hmm, yeah, this could be a problem,” Donghyun tapped his chin thoughtfully. 

“Well, they’ll just have to deal,” Jeongmin said, taking Kwangmi’s hand and leading her away.

“Yah!” Minwoo called out, stopping Jeongmin.

The older one stared at the maknae.  “Is there a problem?” he asked with a coy, knowing look.

Minwoo’s eyes grew wide.  “N-no, I mean yes.  I mean, it’s not what you, ugh!  I’m not hiding in the dark with that devil!” Minwoo pointed a finger at said devil.

“Don’t think I enjoy this situation either,” Youngmin complained, attaching himself to Jin.

“It’s how the straws were drawn,” Jeongmin replied heartlessly, still holding onto Kwangmi’s hand.  “It doesn’t matter if you agree with the situation or not, it’s how it is and you’ll have to deal with it.”

Minwoo pouted.  “But hyung~”

“Don’t ‘hyung~’ me,” Jeongmin copied.  “The seeker will wait exactly one minute for all of the lights to be turned off, and then will count to forty to give everyone time to hide.  Ready, set, go.”

With that, Jeongmin took off, dragging Kwangmi behind him.

“I think that’s the last one on this floor,” Jeongmin informed as he flicked the switch.  “Now it’s time to hide.” 

Gripping Kwangmi’s hand a bit more tightly, he pulled her along, guiding their way with his lit flashlight.  She followed silently, not wanting to make a sound lest they get caught.  He led her to a door situated at the end of a hallway, opening it and pushing her inside, following suit and shutting the door behind him.  The door opened up into a sort of office.  Kwangmi flit her light around, searching for an adequate hiding spot.  She considered hiding in the alcove between the bookshelves, but as she headed that way, Jeongmin pulled her back.

“This way,” he whispered, voice hissing in the still air.  He didn’t say more as he led her to a narrow door in the far corner of the room.  Opening it, he pushed Kwangmi into it.  He stepped in after her, closing the door.

The tight space left little room to move for one person, let alone to hold two bodies.  Kwangmi felt behind her and found that file boxes of some sort were stacked on top of each other.  She set her hands on top of the surface, testing its durability.  Finding it sound, she lifted herself onto the metal floor cabinets.  She shivered when the cold metal pressed against her bare skin.

“So…” Jeongmin began.

Kwangmi stared into the dark, both having turned off their flashlights.

“Yes?” she encouraged, wondering what he had to say.

“Well, I suppose I should tell you where we are.”

She waited for him to continue, but when he didn’t, she prodded, “Well?  Where are we then?”

“This is my father’s study, and this is where he keeps his documents.  It’s rarely used now that everything has gone digital, but it does provide a useful hiding spot.  It’s out of the way and not easily noticeable.  We might be in here for a while.”

“Who all knows about this place?” Kwangmi asked.

“Well, most everyone knows about the study.  Whether they noticed this little closet is hard to say.”

“What if they can’t find us?” Kwangmi wondered, smiling a bit.  How awesome would it be to have such a great hiding spot that the seeker couldn’t find you.

“Someone will get impatient and text me,” Jeongmin assured.  “I think Minwoo will be the first to break.”

Kwangmi cocked her head to the side in the darkness, annoyed she couldn’t see his facial expressions.  “What do you mean?  Is he impatient?”

“A little impatient,” Jeongmin agreed, “but that’s not what I meant.”

“What did you mean then?”

“He doesn’t want you around me any longer than you have to be.”  Kwangmi heard a large grin in his voice, amusement lacing his words.

“Does he not trust you or something?” Kwangmi asked, entertained by the interesting conversation.

Jeongmin paused a bit before answering.  “It’s not that.  Well, maybe.  I don’t know, but he definitely is different around you.”

“Different in a bad way?  Or a good way?”

“I’m not sure yet if it’s good or bad,” he admitted.

Kwangmi rolled her eyes.  “You are just full of information,” she said drily.

“Well, I don’t want to say too much,” he defended himself.  “We don’t want influenced results.”

Kwangmi laughed at his words.  “Is this some sort of science experiment to you?” she joked.

Jeongmin hummed, thinking to himself.  “Yes, I believe it is.  And the results so far are very interesting.”

“Oh?” Kwangmi leaned forward in anticipation, wishing she could see his face, see what he was thinking.  “And how are they interesting, Dr. Jeongmin-ssi?”

The boy paused just a moment before chuckling.  “I don’t think you have used an honorific with me before,” he said.  “Or any of us, for that matter.”

Kwangmi shrugged in the dark.  “I usually don’t.  Sometimes it gets me into trouble.  Most of the time I don’t care.”

Jeongmin chuckled again.  “You know, I like you.  I think you’ll be good for our group.”

Kwangmi grinned, straightening up.  “Really?  Cool.  When do I get a T-shirt?”

He laughed outright at that.  “I’ll make sure to have-” he cut himself off, pausing. 

“What’s up?” Kwangmi asked, confused as to why he cut off so abruptly.

“Shh,” he whispered, voice hissing softly in the air.  “Someone’s coming.”

Kwangmi listened carefully, trying to make out what Jeongmin had heard.  “I don’t hear anything.”

“Shhp!”  He reached out his hands, finding the frame of her face.  She felt small, warm gusts blow on her face.  “Don’t make a sound,” he murmured in her hear.

That’s when she heard it, the soft creak, creak of the loose floorboards in the hallway.  Kwangmi held her breath, heart racing with the adrenaline thrill of the possibility of getting caught.  The soft gusts came more frequently, denser, the scent of mint swirling in the flurries.  Another scent lingered in her nose, something musky and masculine.  Jeongmin’s cologne.

Another creak sounded in the air, almost imperceptible, but cracking like a whip in the silence.  Someone had opened the door.  Kwangmi’s heart rate picked up a few notches, images of the movie flying back to her mind.  She knew that it wasn’t a killer with a knife or a gun, but her mind couldn’t stop the emotions now coursing through her veins.  Her breathing quickened, coming shallower with each inhale and exhale.  Her hands reached out, clutching at Jeongmin’s upper arms, decreasing the amount of space between their bodies as she pulled him closer for protection.  She hadn’t heard another noise and Kwangmi wondered if the person had moved on.  Feeling her heart slow down, she relaxed a bit, muscles unclenching.

And then the door burst open with a bang, light shining on the two bodies.  Kwangmi jumped, gripping onto Jeongmin tighter, a small squeak escaping her paralyzed vocal chords.  The girl dug her head into Jeongmin’s chest, clenching her eyes shut tight.  Jeongmin the girl’s hair, attempting to calm her down before turning his head to look at the person who had found them.

“Way to go, man,” Jeongmin chided, all the playfulness from before gone.  “You just scared her half to death.”

Kwangmi peeked out from behind Jeongmin’s shoulder, relief flooding her when she saw who it was.

“Minwoo,” she breathed, heart still in the process of returning to normal.

She couldn’t see his face behind the bright light, but she would have recognized the contours of that face combined with that hairstyle anywhere.  All stayed quiet for a moment, a moment that seemed to last a second but also forever, a moment suspended in time.  It was a moment that could have stayed like that if Minwoo hadn’t broken the spell.

“Found you.  Come on, everyone else is waiting.”  No emotion accompanied his words and Kwangmi wondered what was going on in that mind of his.  He turned around and left, not looking back to see if the other two followed. 

Jeongmin carefully stepped away, keeping a hold of her just in case.

“I’m okay,” Kwangmi assured, smiling at him gratefully.  “Sorry about that.  I tend to cling to things when I get scared.”  She gave him the same explanation she had given Minwoo.

Jeongmin’s greasy smile returned.  “Don’t be sorry.  I enjoy pretty girls holding onto me.”

Kwangmi laughed shakily.  “If this place turns into a horror house, you can expect more.”

“I’m looking forward to it.”

She flicked his forehead.  “You shouldn’t like scaring girls,” she chided.  With that, she pushed him back and followed after Minwoo.

Hey everyone! New chapter! What did you think?

Sorry about the slow updates. Life has been a living hell recently. Ever thought about running away? I'm at that point right now. This may sound really stupid, but if any of you out there care and are able to, could you drop some encouraging words? I kind of need them right now. I need support.

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