Sweats rolled down her face when he woke up from a nightmare. She looked around and the room and saw it empty. Fear started to consume her when she can’t find Luhan.

‘Was that just a dream?’ she thought as she moved out of the bed, “But it was too good to be a dream,” she thought again.

She tied her hair and went down. She saw her cousin sitting on the couch, staring at his phone.

“Drew,” she called him.

He whipped his head to look at her, “You’re already awake,” he smiled.

The visible dark circles beneath his eyes made her sad.

“Where’s Luhan Oppa?” she asked.

“They had left an hour ago. They promised to return back earlier tomorrow,” he said and stifled a yawn.

“Go on and take some rest. I’ll just call Xiumin Oppa to check if they are already home,” she said and grabbed her phone.

She went over a corner and dialed Xiumin’s number. He was not able to pick it up. She tried again, but he didn’t pick up so she decided to send him a message. ‘For sure, he will reply if he is on a show or not,’ she thought and looked outside to see the thick snow covering the road.

After almost ten minutes, there is no reply so she tried again to call him but he didn’t pick up again. No matter how many calls she tried, none of them are answered. She started to worry.

“Drew, can you go and check them at their unit?” she asked when she came back the living room.

“Why? Isn’t he picking up?” Drew asked instead.

“Ne, I had sent him a message and tried calling him again but he would not pick up. That is not the like of him,” she replied.

“He probably will text you later. Maybe he is busy on a recording or something. You know how their lives are,” Drew said and leaned on the sofa.

“I know but that is impossible. Please, check over them. I just had this bad feeling that something happened to them,” she begged.

Unable to refuse his cousin’s request, he finally stood up and grabbed his car keys. Before he left, he removed his watch and let Joo In wear it.

“What for?” Joo In asked as Drew locks it on her wrist.

“Just in case something happens,” he said and finally left the house. She watched the car disappear before she closed the door.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*

It’s almost 15 minutes past seven.

Drew had been gone for more than an hour which made Joo In worried. She tried calling Drew but he would not pick up. She tried again and again but it’s all the same. None of her calls were returned.

She grabbed her coat and winter boots and decided to wait for Drew outside the apartment. When she is already beside the road, she closed the gate.

She looked from side to side to check if there are approaching cars.

For almost ten minutes, she stood under the pouring snow, trying to fight off the freezing temperature.

Since she has her earmuffs, she was not able to hear approaching steps behind her. She just felt a hand wrapping around her shoulder and a hanky being covered in . She inhaled to scream but lost consciousness when she smells an unfamiliar scent from the hanky.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*

She slowly opened her eyes, but it seems like the world is spinning. She tried to regain her composure and control her balance. When she can finally think straight, she felt ropes tied around her to a chair. A spotlight was projected to her from the above and everywhere around her is pitch black.

Fear starts to crawl all over her as she tries to strain her eyes to look for possible silhouette in the dark.

Suddenly, something in front of her lights up. It was a glass wall and behind it sits Luke.

“Hello Joo In,” he greeted.

“Who are you? What do you want from me?” she replied, anger lacing her words.

“You don’t remember me already? That’s bad! I should have withdrawn my share on the magazine you and Kris promoted,” he smiled with such menace.

She tried to think back and remembered him.

“Remember me now? Or should I remind you also of our happy moments way, way back when we are still in America, how is that?” he grinned.

The same nightmare plagued her mind as she remembers who really he is.

“You bastard!” she screamed.

“Not so loud. That is not the Joo In I knew,” he replied.

“Shut up! You beast! Do you think I will forgive you for doing that to me?” she yelled back.

“Maybe you will change your mind when I make a proposition,” he calmly stated, crossing his arms.

“What do you want?” she hissed.

“Allow me to let you choose between these two,” he said and gestured over his left hand. Her left side suddenly gets illuminated. When her eyes adjusted, she saw the whole Exo members beaten down as Diane is tied on a chair and probably had her own torture ahead of the boys. She can’t hear them, but the way they crouch and held their stomach made her feel the pain. All of them were down the floor, trying to hold their aching bellies. Wounds and scars were visible in her eyes.

“Don’t worry, they don’t see you making the bargain with me,” Luke said.

Tears fell from her eyes, “No, not them,” she whispered. She tried to free herself from the ropes but it was tightly wrapped around her.

Then her right side gets illuminated as well. When she turned her head, there goes her kids, tied back to back in a chair, a strip of cloth were tied around their head to blindfold them. The same on the other side, she can’t hear them, but she can see their mouths opening as if they are calling someone. This time, she really cried.

“Andy! Janine! NO!” she cried as she wriggles herself free from the ropes.

“WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS??” she yelled back at him.

“Now, give me your choice. I will free the boys and Diane and get rid of the twins OR free the twins but get rid of Diane and the boys. Choose,” he laughed evilly.

She was speechless, not minding the cascading tears in her face. She looked from left to right, trying to think straight.

After almost five minutes, she hung her head low, unable to decide.

“Can’t choose?” he heard him chuckle.

“What do you really want from me?” she asked still had her head down.

Something in her peripheral vision made her turn to the left to witness some men in black beat up Luhan and Xiumin who were already in their knees.

“Please make them stop! Please!” she begged.

“I’ll provide another option. If you can’t choose between them then come with me and I will free both of them,” he grinned again.

“Yes, I will come with you. Just don’t beat them up again and please let go of my kids,” she immediately replied, nodding vigorously.

She felt a door being opened behind her. Then a man in black again started to untie the ropes around her. When she is already free to untie herself, she heard Luke speak again which made her look up.

“There’s no thrill in this bargaining. I’ll just take the twins since they are worth a fortune, you can leave with the boys and Diane already,” he then laughed.

The man who untied her disappeared from the door.

“NO!!!” she screamed when she saw two men removing the ropes around the twins and carried them out a door. She cried as the glass wall on her left hissed and slid on the right so she can get to the boys. Luke is still laughing from his seat which made her grab the chair she was sitting before and throw it to him. When the chair came into contact with him, he broke into thousand pieces of glass shards. It was actually a projected image on a glass frame.

When she finally heard their groans, she immediately ran to untie Diane who was beaten also before she knelt down to get to Luhan. She cried as she tries to wipe the dust and blood stains from his face.

“Oppa, this game is not like your music video,” she said as she wiped his face with her hand.

He smiled and wiped a spilled tear from her face, “I want to have my children back,” he whispered.

“For god’s sake! This is no time act sweet and all, we need to catch up with them or you will never see the twins,” Diane yelled at the two in frustration. The others helped themselves to get out the door where the man in black who helped Joo In got out. Their progress was slow since all of them were beaten so badly.

It was also a long hallway as the boys staggered to get outside. When they finally came out the main entrance, the car had already fled away as the winter wind blew over them. Joo In slowly lets go of Luhan and tried to run after the car screaming for the twins.