“Will someone please explain to me what the hell happened?”

The grumbling sound of thunder indicating it will soon rain was no match for Chief Byun’s turmoil inside the house as soon as everyone arrived. Alex managed to disappear before any questions were directed to her and Eunbi followed her behind with Kai on tow, both worried for the girl’s mental state.

Chief Byun paced around the kitchen as Xiumin and Baekhyun settled against the island, watching the man with fearful eyes. “Dad, we don’t know!” Baekhyun frowned. “Alex was already like this when we found her.”

“Actually, she was in a worse state.” Xiumin nervously pointed out. “Kai was able to calm her down a bit for us to get her out of the room.”

“How is it possible than none of you saw who went in there after she did?” Beomseok, Baekhyun’s father, glowered.

“Oh my god, dad!” Baekhyun ran a hand through his own hair out of frustration. “How many times do we have to explain that we didn’t see anyone?! We have no idea who did this to her.”

“Alex isn’t talking either.” Xiumin sadly sighed. “She’s so shaken with whatever happened inside that room that she has shut us out. She won’t say anything.”

Chief Byun placed his elbows on top of the kitchen’s island and rubbed his fingers against his forehead out of distress. The boys turned their heads towards the entrance of the kitchen when they saw Kai joining them, his face full of worry. “Eunbi got her to sleep. She finally stopped trembling but with the panic attack she had earlier, I don’t think she’ll be okay for a while. We’re going to have to keep an eye on her.”

“Someone must had seen something.” Chief Byun concluded. “Does she have a bully tormenting her in school or something?”

“Not likely, chief.” Xiumin responded. “Most of the people- if not all- are practically scared of her. I don’t think anyone would even dare to lay a hand on her.”

“She built this reputation in school, dad.” Baekhyun explained. “Everyone there respects her a lot. Including the teachers.”

Kai nodded at his words before continuing himself. “And I don’t think it was a student. Alex does not let just anyone step on her. Whoever attacked her, had to be someone else… and outsider maybe.”

Before anyone else could comment, the sound of steps entering coming down the stairs caused for everyone to turn their heads and watch Eunbi join them with a wore out expression. Baekhyun frowned at her state and asked, “How is she?”

Eunbi sighed, tears threatening to fall down her cheeks. “It’s not good, guys. She keeps waking up and muttering something I can’t really understand. She refuses to tell me when I asked again…  She’s really exhausted though because she keeps falling back asleep. I’ve never seen her like this before.”

Xiumin welcomed her into his embrace when she began to cry and urged for her to continue. “Whatever happened to her must had really terrified her. She’s gone mute on us.”

“Eunbi, you were inside that room with her. Did you happen to see anything?” The chief with voice full of hope.

With a sigh, she shook her head and wiped her tears. “I went in because she was taking so long to change. But when I got there, it was empty. I didn’t even see her. I found her because she screamed my name and when I got to her, she was already on the floor shaking and screaming. Her face was all swollen and she has this red and purple marks on her neck as if someone tried to strangle her. I kept asking who did this to her, but she refused to say a word. That’s when I called Xiumin to come and help me because she wouldn’t move.”

“Chief Byun?” The man turned to Kai who was currently biting his nails out of nervousness. “What if it was her uncle? What if he found a way inside the school and tried to take her away?”

“But there are cameras everywhere in school.” Xiumin remembered.

“Not by the locker rooms.” Eunbi said. “The school board never agreed to place cameras there to respect the student’s privacy. I mean, it’s obvious why. There are students changing in there.”

“Then maybe that could explain her silence.” Baekhyun spoke in a whisper and everyone turned their heads to him for an explanation. “If it was her uncle, maybe the man threatened to harm her… or us. Maybe that’s why she’s too scared to talk.”

Chief Byun sighed and rubbed his hands against his face. “Let’s not jump into conclusions yet. I’ll give Alex some space for the night and give it another try in the morning. I still need her to make a statement about what happened in order to make a report.” The boys nodded in agreement as he continued speaking, “Mijung will arrive any minute now to check on Alex. I need to make a call to the station and try to get more security around school grounds. I’ll be back in a bit.”

When the man disappeared to his office, Xiumin let out a low groan. “This is really frustrating. We finally made some progress with Alex and now because of this it’s like she took twenty steps back.”

“Did anything like this happened with you when you were in China?” Baekhyun asked.

“Not really. After I told my father about everything, the whole process was pretty fast. I didn’t have to deal with it long nor did I have any setbacks.”

“You were also dealing with just stupid kids, Xiu.” Kai expressed. “Alex isn’t. She’s fighting grown men with a criminal history.”

“What?” Eunbi gasped.

“You didn’t know?” Baekhyun frowned when she shook her head. “When dad went to swipe Alex’s house for evidence, he found drugs inside her uncle’s room. The police concluded that he must had been running a drug cartel or something because of the number of drugs they found.”

“It’s worse because Alex had no knowledge of this.” Xiumin said in a sad tone.

“All this makes us wonder what other things he’s hiding.” Kai sighed.

The sound of the entrance door opening interrupted their conversation. Mijung, Baekyun’s mother, entered the kitchen with a panic looking expression. “Where is she? Is she sleeping?”

“Mom!” Baekhyun ran up to the woman and hugged her. “She’s safe, mom. She’s in her room.”

“We were able to calm her down for a bit, but she’s still shaken with what happened.” Kai told her while grabbing a few of her bags to help her out.

Mijung sent a low ‘thanks’ to the boy and looked around the kitchen before pulling back from her son’s hug. “Where’s your father?”

“He’s making a call to the station. He wants to place more security around school.”

The woman let out a breath out of relief and nodded. “Okay, good. I’m going upstairs to check on her. Your father told me she has bruises on her face. Aside from that, are you guys aware of any other injuries?”

Eunbi stepped closer and let out a shaky breath. “She has marks around her neck and… I also checked her torso because she kept flinching whenever we grabbed around her waist. She has this huge purple bruise on her stomach.”

The doctor sighed and nodded. “I’ll check her then. Be back in a bit.” She placed a kiss on Baekhyun’s forehead and ran upstairs towards Alex’s room.

“Oh my god!” Xiumin gasped. The other looked at him with raised brows demanding an explanation for his sudden shout. “The game! The game is this Friday. She’s playing for the scholarship. What if she’s not able to play?”

“Well, her legs weren’t wounded or anything.” Eunbi frowned.

“Anyways, that’s up to mom. If she thinks she’s capable of playing, mom will let her know.” Baekhyun said.

Kai scoffed in anger. “Whether she can play or not, I think her emotional health is a little more important than a game, don’t you think?!”

“Chill man, we know!” Baekhyun raised his hands up in defeat. “No need to yell at us.”

Eunbi and Xiumin shared a knowing glance before the girl sighed and walked up to the angered boy. “Kai?” Eunbi gently squeezed his shoulder. “How are you holding up with all this?”

The boy let out a bitter chuckle, running his hands against his face and eyes stinging with unshed tears. “I lost count on how many times I’ve held her when she’s like that. I hate it! I hate that man! I hate that he makes her feel so vulnerable and terrified when I know she’s not like that! She is brave, and kind and the strongest person I’ve met in my entire life and that man makes her feel so… UGH!”

The sound of the chair being kicked made the others jump in surprise. There were tears already running down the boy’s cheeks and Baekhyun, being the fastest to react, ran up to him and embraced him in his arms. Kai slumped down the boy’s shoulder with a low sob. “It isn’t fair! No person should make her feel like that. No one!”

“We know, Jongin… we know.” Baekhyun patted his back out of comfort the same time that Eunbi and Xiumin gathered them both in their arms as well.

Unknown to them, Chief Byun saw the entire scene as he leaned against the wall close to the kitchen’s entrance. His heart ached in pain. It was clear for the man how much these kids care for the abused girl upstairs and it hurt him that he was not able to be faster in placing the man responsible behind bars to end this difficult situation. He made a vow to her and it was killing him that he couldn’t be faster in keeping his word. If only I could have the power to make all of this disappear…

As he took steps closer to the group to announce his appearance, hurried steps climbing down the stairs made everyone turned their heads towards the sound in alarm. “Beomseok!”

Mijung shouted as she made her way to the kitchen with widened eyes. “Alex isn’t in the house!”

“What?!” The group gasped out in horror.

“What do you mean?” The chief held his wife’s arms with a panic expression.

“I checked everywhere. She’s not here and the window in her room is opened!”

The chief ran around the house shouting the girl’s name while the group paced around the kitchen. “She’s crazy to leave the house in this weather. It’s about to pour!” Eunbi exclaimed.

“She can’t have gone far!” Baekhyun shouted to his father.

Kai grabbed his jacket and ran towards the entrance door, but a hand stopped his tracks and he turned to look at Baekhyun with a frown. “I’m going after her, Baek. Let me go!”

“Not in this weather, you idiot!”

“Alex is out there and I’m bringing her back whether its raining or not!”

“Guys!” Xiumin called but the boys did not pay attention as they kept arguing.

“My dad can go out in his car and look for her. We have to act rationally, Kai!”

“Look, I’m not going to wait around here. And we’re already wasting time. Just let me go, Baek!”

“Guys!”

“You are not going out there by yourself and that’s final, Kai!”

“You can’t tell me what to do, Byun!”

“Guys!”

“WHAT?!”

Xiumin was standing by the window in the kitchen and threw them a glare at the shout before turning back to look outside. “I found her!”

Everyone in the house ran up to him as he kept his eyes fixed out the window. The grownups let out a breath out of relief and the kids gasped when they saw Alex sitting down in the middle of the small park steps from the Byun’s backyard. The flash of the lighting made the sky shine, and everyone was able to get a good look at her. She was holding her knees against her chest and kept her eyes straight ahead, lost in thought.

“Why is she out there?” Eunbi asked in a whisper.

“I don’t know, but we need to get her back inside before its starts to pour. Honey, go get her.” She ordered her husband, but the man shook his head.

“If we want to get her to talk, we’re going to have to approach her differently. I don’t want to scare her away.”

“I have an idea.” Eunbi said and waited for everyone to pay her attention. “I have known Alex my entire life, and she has always been a closed person. It’s hard for her to let someone inside the barrier.” Her eyes flicked towards the three boys and she offered a small smile. “But you three… you three managed to break down her walls in a very short period after she met you. If anyone can get her to talk again, it has to be the three of you.” 

“Eunbi is right.” The chief agreed. “Alex trusts you boys. I think its best that you three go out there and talk to her.”

“Just don’t pressure her too much, if she doesn’t want to say.” Mijung advised. “But do get her back inside before she grabs a cold for being out there.”

The boys looked at each other with uncertainty. They all knew they were the best shot at getting her to open up again, but the concern for her reaction made them hesitate. What if she closes off completely? What if she decides to push them away?  What if what happened to her today is the last straw for her?

Eunbi noticed their hesitation and stood in front of them with an encouraging smile. “You guys can do this. As you’ve been told before… show her how much you care. That is all she has ever wanted. Someone that cares for her.”

The roaring sound of the thunderstorm approaching used to be peaceful for Alex. She used to always love this weather for moments like this was when she would only focus on the noise the thunder made and for a second, she was able to forget about every problem she had.

But today was different.

Today she was not able to forget. Today every time the sky brightened with a lightning, she’d see a mirage of her uncle holding an unconscious boy in his hands and it frightened her. The image came from her head, of course. But it felt so real. Every image felt real…

Every image showed one of the boys dead in her uncle’s arms while she kept trying to beg for him to stop next to him, but her voice was nowhere to be found. She felt so useless. The man that attacked her earlier would always stand in front of her with Eunbi in his arms and vicious smug on his face, tormenting her. She kept struggling to free herself and save her friend, but the man would only mock her. Another round of thunders made her jump, and it was at that exact moment when the man stabbed Eunbi straight through her chest. Alex tried to scream but no sound came out of .

It was a living nightmare.

Alex watched how each and one of her friends died in the hands of her uncle and his partner while she hopelessly kept begging for them to end her life instead.

The sky began to let out a few drizzles, and it wasn’t until she felt a presence beside her that she forced herself to stop those images in her head. She let out a low sob when she watched Baekhyun and Kai sitting on each of her side while Xiumin placed himself in front of her. Alex lowered her head in shame and her hands gripped her arms to suppress the tremble, but it was useless when her entire body began shaking in fear.

She felt Kai placing an arm around her shoulder with great care and pressing her closer for warmth and comfort. The boys took notice of a misplaced bag at a certain distance from them and Baekhyun decided to speak first in a soft voice. “Planning a trip on a school night?”

Xiumin offered her a small teasing smile. “I feel hurt, Alex. You could have told us. We would’ve gone with you and make it one hell of an adventure.”

Alex slowly lifted her head to get a good view of the boys. Their faces showed tiredness, and it is understanding since they have been through frustrating events in only a matter of hours. But Alex felt guilty because their weariness was her fault. If only Xiumin never decided to make that project about her, none of this would’ve had happened. Her friends would be safe. They would never have to worry about her own safeness, and they would have lived a normal live. One where no threats were made against them. One where no one would be hurt because of her.

One where she never fell love for them.

Things might had been easier that way. Even if it was just going to be for a little while. At least, they would’ve been safe.

“What are you thinking about, Alex?”

Kai’s soft voice brought her back from her thoughts. Her body tensed as her eyes filled once again with tears and she gripped her arms tighter against her. Alex let out a shaky breath, and for the first time since the incident, she finally spoke with a hoarse throat.

“When people run away from their problems, usually they try to run away to a place they once found peace in. A place where only good and happy memories live. A place where one can really breathe. A place one can truly call home.”

Baekhyun managed to lock his arm with hers, internally grateful that she did not push him away, and rested his head against her shoulder for comfort as she spoke.

“When I was a kid, that place for me was my mother’s arms. She would hold me when I cried until I passed out of exhaustion. Sometimes she would run her fingers through my hair when I felt stressed until I fell asleep. She would cheer for me, help me whenever I had a problem… she was my peace, my good and happy memories, where I could breathe… my home.”

Alex voice cracked as she lowly cried. “C-cancer took my home from m-me. And for s-seven years, I didn’t have another h-home to go to.”

Xiumin glanced at the bags on the side before scooting closer to the girl and speaking in a low voice. “Where were you going to run to?”

“That’s the thing…” Alex sniffed and leaned herself more into the arms of the two boys holding her. “The second I left the house, I realized something…I don’t have where to run to…”

The boys looked at her with expectant eyes and Alex couldn’t prevent another round of tears run down her cheeks.

“Because I’m already where my peace is… where I can breathe…” She looked at the each of them one by one, her voice trembling as she speaks. “Because… the th-three of y-you… are my home.”

The three teary-eyed boys didn’t even hesitate for a second from gathering her into their arms. Alex could not help a low chuckle escape from her lips as she was squished by their embrace, ignoring the painful sting on the bruise of her stomach. They all stayed in position for a few minutes until they all managed to compose themselves from all the feelings they had. They slowly pulled back and Kai took hold of Alex’s hand.

He gently squeezed her hand for reassurance and with his free hand, he lifted her chin gently to meet her eyes. “Alex, we will always be here for you. Not because we have to, but because we want to. We want to be your good and happy memories. We want to cheer for you. We want to help you whenever you have a problem.”

Her eyes drifted away at his last sentence. Kai noticed the avoidance, so he ran his fingers through her hair to help her feel ease. Alex closed her eyes as he spoke. “We cannot help you if you don’t tell us anything, Alex. And it hurts us… because it feels as if you don’t trust us enough.”

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