Random Rambles: Guys, I have officially lost the ability to can. The whole EXODUS concept OMG- I’m die (TuT) Ahem- yes, anyway, sorry it took so long to get this next (bit tedious-kkaebsong) chapter up. Been feeling overwhelmed lately haha ^^” What do you guys think of the teasers? Lay is probably next and I'm going to die when his comes out -_-" Pray for me, okay? haha <3

***

“Wait. What? Run that by me again,” Ryo looked at his upset wife in disbelief. Still wet and tired, he sat beside her on the couch, still having to process what he found when he got back home. 

At first he had raced towards the river, looking around anxiously to see injured people there, but found nothing. Starting to feel desperate, he ran back to his car, wondering where he could start looking when he got a frantic call from Yoona, telling him to come home. 

A lump had formed in his throat when he saw that the door was open and upon walking in and seeing the mess in the living room, he started to panic. Yoona was quietly cleaning things up, but he could tell that she had been crying. She stayed strong for a few minutes until she picked up a frying pan from the floor and fell apart. 

Ryo couldn’t make out a lot of it, so he had to continuously calm her down, holding her tightly in his arms. Yoona sniffed back a sob and pointed at the kitchen. “I said, I had to whack her over the head with this!” she exclaimed, prompting Ryo to blink at the frying pan. 

“You…whacked someone?” he startled. “Wait. Who are we talking about? Oh my God, Yoona, you didn’t- Jae?” he asked in a panic receiving a glare and a painful pinch against the arm. 

“Of course not! Haven’t you been listening?!” she exclaimed angrily. “Your pretty little colleague, that’s who!” she yelled. “She broke into our house and attacked our daughter!” her voice was stronger and more steady when she was angry and Ryo made no attempt to calm her down, since it was easier for him to understand her now.

“Miss Kumiho?! She-,” he let go of Yoona for a moment to check in the kitchen, exclaiming in surprise when he saw the woman lying unconscious on their kitchen floor. He rubbed his head in confusion when anger overwhelmed him. 

“Have you called the police?” he asked Yoona as he moved towards her, carefully kneeling down beside her unmoving form just to make sure she was only knocked out cold. For some reason, he remained careful, having seen the strange shimmer in her painted fingernails, suddenly remembering how he saw her having a conversation with the restaurant owner. 

“I have,” Yoona muttered quietly. 

“And Jae?” Ryo stood up, the mere thought that someone would dare lay a finger on his baby girl making him furious. 

“She-,” Yoona sniffed and hugged her arms. Ryo frowned at this; she wasn’t looking at him. 

“Babe?” he called out gently. Yoona looked up, shaking her head as though waking up from a daze. 

“She’s in her room. We had a little disagreement,” she stated. 

Ryo calmed down somewhat at hearing this, knowing that it wasn’t going to do anyone any good if he let his anger get the upper hand. 

“About what?” he asked, but when Yoona lowered her head and took too long to answer him, he sighed. Running his fingers through his hair, he eventually tilted his head back, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Okay, fine. Let’s take this one step at a time,” he breathed. “We’ll wait until the police arrive and take it from there,” he decided, Yoona nodding absently at his words, though she looked up towards the stairs that lead to the bedrooms. 

“Should I go up to check on her?” Ryo suggested, startling her. Yoona turned to face him, but gave a wan smile and shook her head. 

“No, let her be a moment. There’s probably something I should tell you first,” she then said, biting her lip as she continued cleaning up the living room to keep her hands busy. She looked towards the stairs from time to time, as though she was still debating to herself about something. 

“What is it that you have tell me?” Ryo asked, watching his wife clean up, though the absent look in her eyes made him worry. 

“It’s about Jae, and her friends,” Yoona breathed, turning around to look at him, a pillow still in her hands. 

“What about them?” Ryo asked, waiting patiently. 

Yoona sniffed and took a deep breath. “They…She-,” she suddenly scoffed and turned her head again so she could look at the stairs. “They played a game, last night,” she said after a moment of silence, shaking her head and regaining herself. “They thought it would be funny to see if they could trespass into E.T. Corp-, which they couldn’t, of course. So I scolded her in front of her friends, told her that it was stupid to do so, especially after what happened last night. All of them could’ve been in great danger,” Yoona explained. There was a strange sort of calm about her when she told the story, but Ryo was too busy freaking out himself to notice it. 

“They WHAT?!” he yelled. “Jae would never- what is she thinking?!” he exclaimed, heading towards the stairs. “Jae-In Miyano!” he yelled, ready to scold her, were it not for Yoona to come by his side to stop him. 

“Don’t, Ryo,” she warned. “Please. We’ve been past the yelling and fighting,” she said, a light tremble in her voice. “She was really upset with me. I was very upset with her. Things were said, but it’s in the past. Let her cool off,” Yoona patted his arm, but Ryo was still angry. What would possess Jae to do something so stupid and careless? What if she had encountered the thieves by accident? The mere thought alone gave him goosebumps. 

“It’s fine, really,” Yoona whispered to him, but her smile radiated sadness. 

“She said something hurtful,” he concluded, knowing his wife well. 

Yoona looked up and pursed her lips together. “It’s fine,” she assured, but he didn’t believe her. 

“What did she say?” he pressed, holding her hands. Yoona didn’t want to give in, he could tell, so he waited until she heaved a deep sigh to spill her guts. 

“I didn’t believe her when she tried to explain what she was doing there, and she rightfully got angry and yelled that she didn’t think it a surprise I wouldn’t believe her because she wasn’t my real daughter.” Through her smile, the tears broke through again and Ryo quickly hugged her. 

“Oh sweetheart, she didn’t mean that,” he immediately sushed, feeling a pang of pain in his own heart as well. “She doesn’t know how difficult it was for us to get her, but if she did, she would never say something like that,” he tried to soothe, though Yoona pulled away, still crying. 

“I just don’t understand it anymore, Ryo,” she sniffed, her voice breaking. “I don’t understand her anymore. My own daughter, and I can’t read her anymore, I don’t know what’s going on with her, what she’s keeping from me- she has secrets, Ryo, and she doesn’t trust me to- I mean, why would she when I reacted like that, I just-,” she heaved a deep sigh. 

“Okay, calm down,” he said gently. “Jae is a teenager now. She’s bound to be a mystery from time to time, that has nothing to do with you. Come on, you’ve been through puberty too.”

“But I’ve always been able to read her, Ryo. She’s my baby girl,” Yoona argued. 

“I know, I know. She’s mine, too. This will blow over, don’t worry about it. Fighting with your teenage daughter is healthy. And once she’s ready, Jae will come to you to talk about whatever is bothering her or whatever she’s been hiding, you know that.” 

“Once she’s ready,” Yoona repeated absently, hugging her own arms again. Ryo smiled at his wife and gave her a kiss on the forehead. He opened his mouth to speak when police sirens sounded outside. 

“I’ll deal with this,” he told her. “You sit down and take it easy, okay? I’ll be right with you.”

Yoona nodded and sank down on the couch, processing everything that happened so far. Jae’s harsh words still echoed in her mind and she cringed, rubbing her temple. After a quick deliberation, she got off the couch and walked towards her daughter’s room. 

***

So then. Mom didn’t tell Dad anything about me and the guys having stolen the dagger. Did that mean that she believed me? Why did she defend me the last minute? 

After the boys left and I stayed up in my room, Luhan insisted I go out to listen in on my mother and father’s conversation. Said that I wanted to hear it. I guess he wasn’t wrong about that. The boys had left to their own homes after that, and it was quiet in my head. It was better this way. Gave me room to think. 

I still felt like crap, and hearing Mom defending me didn’t make me feel relieved that much, since I also heard Dad saying how difficult it was to get me. Now that I think about it, it must mean that I’m adopted, or something, right? They never really told me anything about my birth- then again, I never asked. Right now, I wasn’t sure I wanted to know. 

When the police came, I hurried back to my room and locked the door. What was I going to do now? What was the next step? Something had to be done against Mr. Yok, but what? And how do I deal with parents? Why weren’t teenagers given a manual for that? Eh, parents are probably thinking the same thing…

“Okay, Jae. Breathe. Keep it together. No more crying, remember? Fix this thing with the dagger-thing and then everything will be okay again… Really…” I muttered to myself seeing flashes of my memory in my mind. Were things going to be okay? They sure as heck weren’t going to be the same again…

“Jae? Are you there?” 

I startled when there was a knock on my door and I grabbed the dagger on instinct. I hurried over to my desk and put it in the drawer- a y hiding place, I know, but it was the best one available for now. 

“Jae, can we talk a moment, please?” Mom called from the other side of the door, and the heavy stone in my stomach made me feel like running away. I did not want to open that door. 

“I know you’re in there,” she coaxed from the other side. “Will you please let me in?” she asked, a light quiver in her voice. 

I swallowed. “I’m not in the mood to talk,” I replied, hoping that would scare her off. Then again, this was Mom we’re talking about. She doesn’t back down easily. Guess I got my stubbornness from her- wait… I shook my head. “Shouldn’t you help Dad?” 

“Jae, please,” Mom begged. “Open this door.” 

I was quiet for a moment, thinking about what I should do. I was still angry, to be honest. It really hurt to hear from her that she didn’t believe me. On the other hand… I hated fighting with my mother. Wasn’t it time for me to face facts anyway? If this dagger was right about who I was in the past, or whatever, then it meant that my parents weren’t my real parents. I was from Exo planet, apparently, and as far as I know, my parents weren’t. 

“Okay. Fine. Then I’ll stay outside and talk loudly from the other side of the door, but don’t blame me if things are heard by people who shouldn’t hear about them,” Mom exclaimed. Was she threatening me? 

“Damn it,” I huffed, unlocking the door and opening it, though I walked away towards my bed before she got into the room properly. I also made sure not to look at her when she came in and closed the door behind her. 

“Hi,” she started carefully. 

“Hello,” I replied, still pretending that I didn’t care even though I did. I truly did. I didn’t like seeing my mother like this. Made me feel guilty and I didn’t like that. I shouldn’t have to be guilty for anything. Why couldn’t I just be mad?

“The police arrived. They’re going to make sure that that Kumiho woman won’t get near you or any of us in the future,” she started, trying to sound optimistic, but the news just unsettled me. Knowing a bit about that woman I doubted whether what Mom said would be true. 

Mom shuffled her feet, looking horrible out of place in my room. I grabbed my pillow and hugged it, purposely looking out the window so I wouldn’t have to look at her. 

“Jae,” she started and halted again, as if she was wondering how to continue. I didn’t bother trying to start a conversation. I let the silence come. 

“Your father is pretty shaken up,” she then said, still standing in the middle of the room. “He’s furious at Miss Kumiho, though he’s a bit confused about everything that’s been going on.” She waited. Was this my cue to speak? Why should I? I told her what happened and she didn’t believe me. I was not in the mood to go through that again. 

Mom sighed to herself. “I found it rather difficult to give him an explanation myself,” she then said, carefully stepping closer towards me. She stopped when I moved, pulling up my knees. 

“I realized how difficult it must’ve been for you to have to try and explain everything to me, when I tried to explain to your father,” Mom suddenly stated and this caught my attention. I looked at her and she calmly looked back, moving to sit at the edge of the bed. 

“I honestly don’t know why, but I didn’t tell him what you told me. I didn’t tell him that I knew that it was you and your friends who broke into E.T. Corp last night. I guess I just want this behind us, Jae. Can we put this behind us, please?” she asked, trying to make amends. I wanted to say yes. I really did. But I couldn’t. 

“Why didn’t you tell Dad anything?” I asked instead, my voice flat. 

“A mother has to protect her daughter,” she replied softly, shrugging a little. Her face stood worried though. She was preoccupied with something. 

“So you believe me?” I asked tentatively, but sighed when she shook her head. 

“I don’t know what to believe where you’re concerned anymore, Jae,” she said in exasperation, but at least she was being honest. “And that’s okay, but I don’t want it to change anything between us. I want to start over, have this idiocy with the dagger over and done with,” she admitted, but I scoffed softly. 

“Idiocy with the dagger,” I repeated sarcastically. “Right. Okay, fine,” I replied skeptically. “It’s behind us. Can you leave me alone now?” 

I was harsh and that . I know. But she wasn’t the only one that was fed up with everything, and she only scratched the surface of the whole mess. 

“Jae, stop that!” she said sternly. “I’m trying to fix this, but you’re not making it easy for me, you know? Can you put yourself in my shoes and see how difficult it is to accept or believe what you’ve told me? Why would you think that I would simply understand, baby?!” she uttered in frustration and I nearly threw the pillow at her. 

“Because you’re my mother! I relied on you, you said that you would be here to catch me if I needed you but instead you let me fall! You take that woman’s side, saying that you can understand why she wanted to kill me. That’s a real confidence boost, Mom,” I scolded, looking away. “Or should I even call you that,” I mumbled to the pillow, but it was loud enough for her to hear. 

Mom got to her feet, moved closer to me and grabbed my wrist so I had to look up at her. 

“You listen to me and you listen well, young lady,” she fumed. “I was wrong to have said those things to you, and you can rely on me- but I expect honesty in return, Jae. Do you even remotely realize how fantastically foolish your story sounded? You’re telling me that you wouldn’t have reacted the same way? How dare you!” she replied fiercely. “Of course I have your back, you silly child! Don’t you dare assume otherwise- I am your mother, Jae-In! I gave you your name, I cradled you in my arms when you cried, fed you, clothed you, have always taken care of you- I knocked someone’s head in with my frying pan for you! You are my child and I’ll do anything to protect you. You drive me insane at times, but you make me laugh too, and when you’re sad, I am too. I am your mother,” she stated, her eyes gleaming with unshed tears. 

Mom’s grip on my wrist weakened and she let it drop. We only looked at each other in silence, unmoving, until I felt a tremble from my bottom lip and reached out to embrace her waist. She didn’t miss a beat and wrapped her arms tightly around me, hushing me down as she my hair. 

“Oh, my little girl,” she mused, carefully sitting down beside me without breaking contact. “You crazy kid. Why would you ever think that I’m not your mother, huh?” she whispered as I sobbed softly into her clothing. 

“You never talk about my birth or anything,” I said, sounding muffled. I pulled away so I could look at her. “Am I adopted?” The question earned me a playful flick on the nose.   

“Babo,” Mom said. “Of course not, baby. I carried you for nine whole months, you know? Got the stretch marks to prove it,” she rubbed her stomach. “Come on, Jae, you’re so much like your father and me, how could you be adopted?” 

I sniffed. Was Mom speaking the truth? How could it be possible? I wasn’t from this world, if I had to believe the dagger, so how could any of this make any sense? I was afraid to feel any form of relief in case I’d be disappointed again, and Mom seemed to see the hesitation in my eyes. 

“Your father and I never told you about your birth because-,” she chuckled softly. “Actually, I don’t know why we never told you. I guess we just thought that all of that didn’t matter anymore, since we already got you.” 

I blinked at her. “What do you mean?”

“You’re gonna think that I’m corny and made everything up,” she dismissed. 

I lifted my eyebrow skeptically at her. “Try me,” I provoked and she chuckled. 

“Fair enough,” she took a deep breath, caressed my cheek and started telling the story. 

“Once upon a time,” she joked. “There was a young couple, who were madly in love with each other. They married not too long after they had met and were looking forward to living their lives together. Now, they were extremely happy and couldn’t complain about anything since they were resilient and adapted to life’s struggles, and felt that they had everything they wanted. Except, there was one thing they thought lacked in their lives and could make them happier than they already were. They wanted a family. Lots of children,” Mom explained, a slight tremble in her voice when she spoke. She looked lovingly at me. 

“I’ll spare you the details on how enthusiastic they were to make that dream come true-,”

“Ew, Mom!” I protested, making her laugh. 

“So I’ll skip ahead a bit,” she continued, swallowing. “They tried very hard to have children, but found that each attempt was futile. So they went to see a doctor, who told them the most devastating news any young married couple could possibly hear,” she sighed softly. “‘I’m sorry,’ the doctor said, ‘after extensive research we’ve come to the conclusion that it is impossible for either of you to conceive children.’,” Mom swallowed, my hair again. “The couple wouldn’t give up, though. So they tried everything to conceive their biological child, even exhausting their financial sources, causing the young husband to work extremely hard to cover expenses. It was a trying, difficult time, and eventually, they decided to give up.” 

I listened carefully to my mother’s story, feeling a sadness creep over me as I could literally read her expressions and how tiring it must’ve been for them. She even looked older for just a moment. 

“But then,” she continued, a smile on her face, “just when the couple thought that all was lost, a miracle occurred. One night, the young wife looked out the window, praying, looking for guidance, and wishing so very hard in hopes to have her dream come true somehow- she saw something amazing,” she whispered for dramatic emphasis. 

“As she looked out the window, she saw the full moon smiling at her on the one side, and on the other, a single star shone and trembled. The longer she looked, the bigger the star seemed to become, when whoosh!” she gestured with her arms. “The star fell, casting a warm, beautiful light over the darkness of the earth as it passed over. The wife took that as a sign from the heavens and prayed and wished to get a child. That night, when she slept, she dreamt of a beautiful sky and voice in the wind whispering to her that she would one day become a wonderful mother.” 

Mom smiled brightly at me. “A few weeks later, I visited the doctor again because I was complaining of morning sickness, and sure enough, they found out that I was pregnant. A miracle, they said, but I knew it was a gift from the moon and stars. You’re my gift, Jae, my little fallen star,” she hugged me. 

I felt breathless after hearing her story, and confused, but reassured at the same time. Fallen star? 

Mom pulled away and brushed the hair from my face, admiring me for a bit until she sighed almost wantonly. “Who would’ve known that my gift from the heavens would end up causing me grief over a stolen dagger?” she added, spoiling the mood. 

“Mom, I told you-,”

“I know, I know, I- know…” she breathed. “I’m still not sure what to do with that, Jae. Your father’s company, baby!” she said. 

“But I explained to you why it was necessary,” I stubbornly tried. 

“You’re really sticking to your story, huh?” she asked, though seemed less harsh than she was before. 

“Mom, think about it, why would I lie about something like that?” I retorted. 

“Why? I could come up with a bunch of reasons why you would do that,” she replied. 

“But are any of those reasons fitting to my character?” I argued, and this actually shut her up for a moment. Speaking of miracles…

“Still,” she spoke after a quiet moment of deliberation. “That dagger doesn’t belong to you, whatever your reason was of having taken it without asking,” she said calmly. “I’m sure we can fix this, Jae. Where is the dagger? I’ll tell your father that I found it while cleaning his office. He’s such a scatterbrain, I’m sure he’ll believe it. No one has to know,” she winked, and I appreciated what she was trying to do for me, but it still frustrated me that she didn’t understand. 

“No, Mom, thank you-, but that’s not the point. I’m sorry, for everything, really, but I cannot give you the dagger back,” I insisted. If she wouldn’t listen or understand, then I’ll just have to find a way to make her understand. And what if that won’t work either, Jae? I took a deep breath. I didn’t want to think about that.

“Jae, don’t be ridiculous, we’ve nearly solved this, baby. Just hand me the dagger and I’ll give it back to your father,” she urged. 

“Mom, I can’t do that. I’m sorry. Dad will just bring it back to Mr. Yok-,”

“And rightly so. That dagger belongs to him,” she spoke as though she was trying to get through to me, but the problem with that, was that I was trying just as hard to get through to her. Guess I am my mother’s daughter after all…

“But it doesn’t! He stole this dagger in the first place!” 

“Oh right, it actually belongs to your friends, the power rangers from space, right?” she mused skeptically, chuckling as she shook her head. “Just hand it over, baby. We’ll forget the whole thing.”

I firmly shook my head. “I’m sorry, Mom, I really am. But, no,” I stated resolutely, risking another fight with her, but Mom only looked at me, wide-eyed and confused. I realized then that she wouldn’t understand. Not really, at least. Maybe some things did stick with her, but it didn’t get through to her. What are you going to do now, Jae? You can’t give the dagger back. You know what might happen…

. 

“Jae,” Mom said warningly. 

I made a decision with heavy heart. It was going to be a huge risk, but I was cornered. This was me punching the ‘eject’-button. 

“I’d feel too guilty towards Dad, Mom,” I said and it wasn’t entirely a lie. “I think I need a moment to figure stuff out before we do anything. I mean, you know, kind of do a little soul searching.” 

Crap. Soul searching? Really, Jae? 

Mom glanced at me shrewdly, squinting her eyes a moment. Then, she nodded. “Okay, but one way or another, you are giving that dagger back, Jae. No excuses,” she warned once more and I agreed. 

“Got it,” I said, a lump in my throat. 

“Good. I’m going back downstairs. You think things over and I’ll give you till dinner, alright?” 

I checked the clock. Dinner. That would be about four hours from now. Ample time…

I nodded and Mom headed towards the door, looking pleased that things were resolved, but I just felt terrible all over again. Then again, what else was there for me to do? 

“Mom,” I called out before realizing I’d opened my mouth. 

“Yes, baby?” 

“Thank you,” I said, though I wasn’t sure why it sounded so final. “Do you still trust me?” I added quietly. 

“Of course, baby,” she said unwavering. 

I smiled a small smile. “I love you, Mom. Dad, too,” I told her. She needed to know this. It was important somehow for me to tell her that. She just had to know. 

“I love you too, baby,” she came back to hug me again and I put my all in that hug. When we parted, I felt a little empty inside. This was stupid. Everything was stupid! But I had made my decision. I had to stand by it. 

As soon as Mom left me alone, closing the door behind her, I moved. I grabbed my backpack, grabbed the dagger and stuffed it inside. I made sure I grabbed my wallet, too and some extra money, just in case. My desk was a mess as usual, but I managed to find a clean sheet of paper and quickly jotted something down. It was best if I didn’t think too much about this. Just do. Think later. 

I waited until the police cars and ambulance left, and things had quieted down in the house. My parents were probably still talking and my heart beat so fast. 

I opened the window, my senses sharpened. I didn’t know where I was going to go once I took that leap, but anywhere was fine than staying here. I promised myself that everything will be better again once we solve what we have to with the dagger, but until then, it’d be better if I wasn’t here. I couldn’t let them get the dagger back. 

This was dangerous, I didn’t even want to think about all the consequences, but the sooner I solved this with the boys, the better. I could explain everything then and hopefully, my parents will understand. 

When I knew no one was looking, I jumped out the window. I landed neatly on the grass below, letting my wolf instincts kick in. I ducked down as I passed the window, unable to resist one more glance at my parents. 

I’m sorry, I told them in my heart. I love you. I’ll be back when we’re done saving the world. 

I turned around. 

And ran.