Hyun-Ae got home that night and did nothing but rethink about what happened between her and Ravi. She was still in denial even though she knew it definitely did happen. She just couldn't believe it. She tried to put it aside and think of other things and she managed to do so, but it only lasted for a few moments. 

She remembered how he leant in and she closed the space between them and let it occur. She remembered how they gazed at each other before going right back into it. She especially remembered the feel of his palm on her cheek as they kissed. What was the worst was the fact she enjoyed every second of it. If Ken didn't come in when he did, who knows how far that kiss would have gone. 

She leapt into her bed and rolled around in it; trying all in vain to pull herself together. She halted the wild actions to really think. "Do I like Ravi in that way? Most importantly, does he like me like that?" She placed a hand on her chest feeling her heart beating hard in her chest. "Maybe it was just a spur of the moment kind of thing." She wasn't sure of her feelings, but she knew there must have been something there. "I hope this doesn't ruin our current relationship. And oh God, what's going to happen if the others find out? What if Hakyeon finds out?"  She sat up in shock. Would he think she was befriending them just to go there?

"No N, I wouldn't do that!" She said loudly, imagining the leader's dark glare as she tried to plead her case. She shook her head to come back to reality and slapped her hands on her face. She was going to cause a lot of trouble if she got too close to them she had to be more careful. They were men at the end of the day. "No, they're not like that." She quickly crossed that from her mind and sighed. "Ottoke?" Not being able to come up with any answers, she smuggled her face in her pillows and screamed.

At the Dorms...

One couldn't miss the tension in the atmosphere when Jaehwan and Wonsik entered the dorm. Their friends were seated and they all had anxious looks on their faces. Their leader was the first to stand on his feet and rush over to them.

"What on Earth happened to you two? I tried getting in contact but got no response. You all had us worrying like mad!"

"We got into some trouble on the way, but we're here safe and sound," Ken explained briefly.

"In trouble? What kind--" He stalled when he noticed the state the rapper's face was in. "OMO!" He gripped his chin and examined his lip injury. "What the hell happened? Tell me everything," he demanded urgently. Both of them sighed and gestured everyone to relax and join them in the centre of the living room. "Explain."

Ken cleared his throat and began the tale. "When we were out getting snacks, we bumped into Hyun-Ae and um..."

"Hyun-Ae?" The rest responded.

"This has to do with Hyun-Ae? She hit you?" Hakyeon frowned in wonder.

"No, of course not!" Ravi quickly replied, surprised that the oldest could ever think like that. "She wasn't alone. She was busy tangling with a dangerous man who was trying to force her to find drugs."

"But she can't do that!" Hongbin cut in.

"She didn't, she refused all the way to the end." 

"The end?" Hyuk repeated seeing how odd that sounded.

"Yeah, that scary son of a gun was going to beat her for it." 

"What?!" They all gasped. Leo suddenly sat up with his eyes flying open in shock.

"Is she okay? Did she get hurt?"

"No, that's when Ravi stepped in. He took the drug addict to the ground and well..."

"He got into a fight," Hongbin concluded and the silence confirmed it. Leo relaxed in his seat but kept an open ear.

"Are you crazy Wonsik?" Hakyeon spoke finally ceasing the silence. "Look at your face! What if he got you in the eye or the nose or both?" He was shaking in disbelief. "Or worse, what if he had a weapon?" He couldn't believe he jumped into a dangerous situation like that one.

"Well, what I supposed to do? Let that hurt her?"

"Well no, but at least think about your own safety first." He didn't miss his eye roll but turned his attention to Ken. "Jaehwanie, did you get hurt also?"

"I'm fine, I wasn't part of the fight, I was making sure Hyun-Ae was unharmed."

"Aish! Seems like I wasn't wrong when I sensed nothing but bad luck from her. I suggest it's best we don't get too close to her after all," he grumbled, making everyone else ready to object and Wonsik was the first.

"Stop talking that way about her, will ya? You know all about her!"

"And you do?" 

"No, but I'm not gonna go around and treat her like she's some sort of curse. I thought you got along with her at the restaurant, but here you are badmouthing her again."

"I'm not badmouthing--"

"I don't regret what I did tonight, hell, I would do it again in a heart beat, because I'm not a coward like you Hakyeon, so just lay off!" He snapped making the room freeze. 

They've heard Ravi snap before and when it did happen, it sent shivers down their spines. This was no different, but what was was that he snapped at N. These two were rarely in any arguments, in fact, they'd rather stay clear from it or try to tame both parties. Tonight both reasonable members were going at it and at each other. 

Ravi realised he was out of line and sighed. "Sorry, I need some space." He stood up and without looking back, entered the vacant bedroom and firmly closed the door behind him.

"Wow!" Hyuk sounded.

The leader was just about to go after him to settle things in private until Hongbin held him back and offered to go instead. He breathed deeply and allowed him to do so. "I'll talk to him after though, you know I can't let us sleep without clearing this up first." The visual nodded then left the scene. N faced Ken with folded arms and urged him to continue.

"Yeah, so as the fight is happening, Hyunnie jumps in and takes down the aggressor with her bare hands. I think she even broke the dude's jaw. It was quite the sight, you guys should have been there," he retold excitedly.

"Really?" The youngest responded deeply impressed while the oldest ones remained neutral. "What happened after?"

"She told him in this very scary voice to get up and leave and the guy did what his body could do to get out there."

"Are you exaggerating the story again, Jaehwan?" The leader commented with a slight frown still brooding over what happened between him and the rapper.

"No, that's what happened, I swear! She looked so scary. Shikkie would tell you the same if he was still here. She was like "Pow pow! I'ma kick your more if you don't get out of here." Meanwhile, Ravi and I are like "daaaaaamn" and--"

"What else?" the silent one inquired a little impatiently, not up for the theatrics.

"Oh oh yeah. So we left and she drives us to a lounge to tend to Shikkie's lip."

"Wait! You guys let her drive you around and to somewhere you didn't know?"

"Hyung, it wasn't like that and plus it's not the first I've--" he cut himself off then proceeded. N glowered at him but let me go on. "I was the one who suggested the place. When we got there, that's when we talked about it." When he said that, though, his excitement had dipped. "Oh right, you guys don't know. I forgot to mention a very important part of the story. Before the fight, we ran into her and well, she knew the guy was shady, but didn't tell us anything and let us walk on by. Her goal was to deal with him alone."

Once again the members present gasped in disbelief. Even N was more than shocked to learn about this and it made things clearer. "But you two sensed something was off and followed her."

"Yeah," he confirmed. "That's exactly it."

"But why would she do that?" Hyuk wondered.

"She was worried about ruining our images and thought it was better dealing with someone like that than to ask for help." His disappointment returned, recalling the memories.

"Why would that be her first concern?" Taekwoon responded. "What if she wasn't strong enough to fight him off alone? That was a dangerous decision." His fist was quivering just thinking about how her plan could have failed. How could she ever think it was a good idea to deal with him on her own?

"I know. We gave it to her straight about how dangerous her choice was and got ourselves into a mini argument. I even had to leave the room and used a good excuse to get ice. I believe she and Ravi talked it through, because when I came back they appeared to be in better moods. So I think she understands it now and won't ever do something like that again."

The oldest kept quiet and looked up at the ceiling thinking about the discussion he had with her sometime earlier in the day and nervously bit his lip. "Oh Hyun-Ae, I did ask you keep the boys out of trouble, but not in circumstances like this. Glad to know you weren't hurt, but I think we should have another chat." Hakyeon had a better understanding of the boys reckless actions and was ready to talk it over with Ravi. 

"So that's all?" The youngest poked hoping that there was more.

"Yep, she brought us home and that's the end." No one noticed Hyuk slumping in disappointment.

"Well then, I think it's time I have a chat with Shikkie," N alerted moving from his spot to the bedroom door and noticed it was slightly cracked open. Hongbin must have failed to shut it properly. He was about to push it open when he heard something that slowed his movements.

"She had another one Bean." Mumbled the rapper.

"Another what?"

"Another episode like what happened at the restaurant."

"Oh! Really?"

"Yeah and it was bad, really bad."

Hakyeon stood by the door straining to hear every word. Of course, he had never forgotten that experience of her traumatic episode, but to hear that she had it again made him curious to hear more. Just as he was getting into their conversation, he sensed a few presences around him. He tilted his head up and found the tallest and Leo's heads above his and below him was Jaehwan on the floor inching his ear closer to the crack of the door. All of them were eavesdropping. The leader nearly yelped in surprise and was about to protest but they hushed him with a single glance. Ultimately, all four of them stood by the door listening on to what Ravi was exposing.

Just before...

Ravi was lying in his bed looking up at the ceiling and thinking about everything that happened including the kiss. He didn't mean to snap at N, he really didn't, but damn it was bothersome to hear him speak about her like that. That girl obviously has gone through some deep stuff and he felt it wasn't necessary to outcast her like she's the bad guy. His thoughts were interrupted when he heard a knock on the door.

"I thought I told you I needed some space. I'll come and talk later."

"Ravi, it's me," the voice of Hongbin clarified. The rapper took a moment to think and with a sigh cued him in. The charming dimple fellow entered and made his way to his side and sat down. "Do you want to talk?"

"As I was saying before, I will talk to you guys when--"

"If you didn't want to talk, you wouldn't have bothered to let me in." And that stumped him. "Did something happen?" As soon as he asked that, the songwriter relived the moment when he and the tracker were kissing and turned away from him doing his best to hide the blush that spread across his cheeks.

"N-nothing happened!" he denied hastily, but Hongbin wasn't being fooled so he took another approach.

"You're usually a level-heaved person, so it was quite the surprise to see you so riled up. I figured something might have happened like you finding out something shocking about her."

The rapper was settling down when he remembered the events before the dang kiss. Her traumatic episode. "If that's true, how do you know?"

Hongbin formed a fine grin and simply answered, "You know all about her!" Does that ring any bells? You got ticked off when you heard Hakyeon talking about her because there is something new you learned and no one else knows, not even Ken. Where was he by the way?"

"He had gone out to get ice," he admitted. "Geez, how could you have possibly figured all that out by a few words I said?"

"I didn't actually. I was just speculating, but looks like I hit it right on the money." And his grin widened, those dimples clear for anyone to see.

"Damn, you're good." Ravi chuckled feeling a little better. "I guess I'll tell you. I don't know that much, but something did happen." And in that moment, both men hid all smiles.

"What happened?" 

Present time...

"What was so bad?" Hongbin asked curiously. Ravi sat up and began to retell it as well as how he witnessed it.

"Yo... just as I realized the expression on her face, I was too late to prevent it. She was screaming, and her eyes had nothing but terror in them." He raised his shaky hands remembering holding her in them. The second youngest remained quiet in order to hear the full tale; he'd ask and comment later. "I froze, Binnie. I almost lost it myself, but then she began to cry out for someone to come get her out of wherever she was trapped. She was begging and pleading with everything she had. So, I snapped out of it, and did everything I could to calm her down. I held onto her trying to break of it, but man, she was trying to fight me off. She was crying, screaming and flailing about believing I was there to hurt her. Well maybe not me, but someone in her past. She didn't recognize my voice and so kept on screaming, "Let me go! Let me go!""

Having all that really sink in, Ravi was on the verge of breaking down in tears. While he was sharing this, the others outside of the room were absolutely silent; it was disheartening to find out what they went through.

"I was close to letting go and calling for help, but I kept my head straight and took another approach. I tried to stay calm and proceed in telling her my name and reminding her of who I was to her. That must have been the trick because she was calming down and repeating my name as if trying to search in her mind of how she knew it, so I kept at it until she broke out of it and was finally brought back to reality."

"That sounds like torture." Hongbin released a deep breath he hadn't realised he was holding and turned away.

"Yeah more like she went through torture. I was just the one watching her relive it." 

"What triggered it this time?"

"I don't know what did, but it was scary as hell I tell you."

"I don't doubt you. It that you both had to go through it alone."

"Yeah, but it at least allows me to understand a little more about her."

"Ah, that would explain why you felt defensive when Hakyeon talked down about her. You didn't think it was fair, especially after what you saw."

"For the last time, I wasn't--" Hakyeon was close to blowing their cover until Leo covered his mouth. Ken lied there appalled that he had know idea that this sort of thing happened when he left. He was also wondering why Ravi kept it from him. Hyuk was standing there still in silence going over everything that was just revealed. He suddenly felt this urge to do something, but he didn't know what.

"Yeah, it's been a long night," Wonsik groaned, releasing the tension in his muscles. He let out a wide, tongue-curling yawn and scratched his head. 

"So that's all that went on between the two of you?"

"What else are you expecting to hear?" he grumbled and Hongbin shrugged. 

"Well. what happened after she broke out of it?"

The rapper stared at him with a slight frown. "Why do you need to know every detail? I told you the important parts. When she came to, she and I shook it off and chatted until Ken returned."

"What about?"

"Dude, I know you're a curious fellow, but seriously?" 

"I can't help it," he chuckled.

"I don't remember all that, we just made an agreement that she should be more careful when dealing with strangers and well then we..." he trailed off realising he was entering that zone.

"You both what?"

Ravi's throat suddenly felt dry and his cheeks were warming up again, he glanced away unable to look at him with a straight face. "We did nothing but wait." The flower boy eyed him suspiciously. The rapper wasn't the best liar in the group and as observant, as Hongbin was, he knew he was keeping something.

"You can just tell me, you know?"

"Tell you what? There's nothing else to tell," he fibbed still not focusing on him. Hongbin was just about to scrutinise him until a loud bang occurred startling them. Both men zipped their heads around to find four of their own piled up on the bedroom floor.

The four men were too enthralled by the conversation that they advanced closer and closer to the crack in order to hear all the details, but the leader's foot stumbled over the cute vocalist below him causing him to lose his balance. The other two did their best to keep him still but failed as the door swung open giving nothing to support their weight causing them to fall with a harsh thud onto the floor, Jaehwan getting the worst of it since he was at the very bottom.

Once matters settled down, all five members were studying each other. Two were wondering what the other guys were doing and three were wondering if they were caught eavesdropping. The only one who thought quick was the youngest. Being the one on top of the pile, he shot up from his feet and dusted himself off. 

"Woo! Sorry for having such long legs hyungs, they're in the way a lot nowadays." The rest of the guys snapped out of it and stood up, shaking off the effects of the fall; Ken stretching it out the most.

"Okay, okay, okay. Next time watch where you step! You could have damaged this cute face."

"Not my fault Leader is so short. I could barely saw him," the youngest mocked with a snide smirk. 

"Excuse me?" N glared slicing his neck while Leo stood away from them with his palm on his forehead. 

The two boys in the corner of the room glanced at each other then back at them and started laughing. Ravi was feeling loads better and was thankful that they interrupted what was going on because he wasn't sure if he would have been able to keep up with the charade for much longer. Hongbin was laughing, but his mind was on what the rapper was hiding, he'd probe it out of him sometime soon. 

A few moments later...

"I'm sorry for going off on you like that Hakyeonie." The leader of the group gave him a smile.

"That's alright. I get why you were agitated."

"You do?" he replied, cocking his head to the side. Hakyeon jolted slightly forgetting the fact he didn't know he was eavesdropping but was quick on his feet.

"Yeah, you're just being a good friend that I know you are." He was being honest when he said it, too. There were countless times Wonsik saved him and was there when he needed him most. He was the greatest friend he ever had. He just wished he understood how frightened he was when he heard he got into a fight with a stranger on the street. He didn't actually mean what he said about Hyun-Ae. She really wasn't a bad person. She was just someone that bad luck tends to follow and was worried that one of his boys would end up getting pulled in, but after hearing Ken share what decision she made for them, made him think otherwise. "I heard what she did, Shikkie."

Ravi's eyes shot opened wide and zipped his attention to the leader. His mind had switched back to that moment and he automatically assumed he was referring to that somehow. "You did?"

"Mhm, I think she and I need to have a talk about it. I don't want her making decisions like that again." The rapper gripped the leader's arm firmly and shook his head repeatedly.

"Hakyeon, it wasn't her fault! It wasn't mine either." N furrowed his brows in confusion. "We couldn't stop ourselves. It just happened so fast." 

"What are you talking about? You're not making any sense." 

"H-Huh?" The rapper's heart was beating fast, but he was puzzled. "You found out what happened between us didn't you?" He wouldn't know how he would have found out, but that's what he assumed. This time Hakyeon's eyes widened.

"He figured out we were eavesdropping? Okay, I'll be honest. I did overhear the conversation you had with Hongbin. I know she went through a traumautic episode in your presence."

Ravi heaved a heavy sigh and chuckled faintly. "Oh, you heard that, did you?" Finding out he was eavesdropping was much less of an issue of what he had on his mind. Once again, he thanked his lucky stars he was still safe.

"Yeah, so I really do understand why you were agitated," he nodded then moved on to his second point. "I also heard from Ken that she risked her own safety to protect the two of you."

"Ah yeah, that we weren't too happy about."

"I know, we weren't when we found out, but then again I can understand why she did."

"I understood too, but that was just too dangerous." And Hakyeon agreed then sighed, content that they talked it out.

"Well then, I guess it's time we get some rest, huh?"

"Ne," he nodded blinking his eyes at the clock. The leader rounded up the others and they all set themselves for bed. Ken and Hyuk were the only ones fast asleep while the rest of them were still awake way too deep in their own thoughts. 

Ravi was by himself on the couch, but wide awake. He would have naturally been the first one to crash, but he was still busy thinking about the kiss. From what he could tell, no one knew about it and he preferred if it stayed that way, at least for a while. His mind wandered off to her and he thought if she was having trouble sleeping thinking about it as well. Since the room was completely dark, he wasn't worried about letting his fingers trace his lips. As he did so, he remembered the feeling of her soft ones pressing gently on his. He felt the heat rising to his cheeks again as remembered how he actually enjoyed it and may have admitted to himself that he wished the moment lasted longer. "Did she like it too?" he wondered. Thinking that way brought on a scarier thought. What if she'd become afraid of him? He didn't want that, he didn't want her to feel awkward around him either. He lightly smacked his hands on his face and silently cursed himself. How on Earth was the rapper supposed to sleep with all of this on his mind?

In one of the rooms, Hongbin was still up thinking about what Ravi told him. Knowing that she went through another flashback worried him, and from what he was able to conjure up, she was trapped somewhere most likely with a very dangerous person. He  would have liked to know what happened and somewhere inside him, he had a feeling they will all find out someday. Would they be prepared for it? Gradually, his thoughts switched to what Ravi was hiding. He wasn't naive, he knew the rapper was keeping something else from him. "I would have gotten it out of him too if we weren't interrupted."

Not too far from him, the quietest member was busy thinking about everything he learned tonight. He was still upset over the fact Hyun-Ae decided the worth of their images being tarnished was more important than requiring help to deal with a violent man. He didn't care if she was a good fighter. What she did was absurd. He wondered how many times she put herself in similar situations. He then thought about what he heard from Ravi's experience. He remembered scaring himself silly when he thought he had triggered her memories, it must have been so hard on Ravi handling it alone. He couldn't imagine how well he could've dealt with it himself. He shook his head then folded his arms across his chest. It seemed possible that her defensive techniques most likely developed after her traumatic experience, but it was still reckless of her to take on people on her own.  "Hyun-Ae, I hope Jaehwan and Wonsik really got through to you."

One spot over, the oldest was still up but his back was facing Leo. He, just like the others, was busy thinking about their new friend. From what he learned and from his own experience with her, he could tell that she was a reckless person. It was noble of her to think of the boys' safety, but hers is just as important. If she didn't want their help then she should have asked someone else. He seriously needed to have a talk with her. He also thought about her detective friend and how he dealt with her being this way. Was there a way to talk to him? He had to admit, Hyun-Ae was someone making an impact on their lives and they only met her almost a month ago. She was either a blessing or a pain, but it was somewhat amusing to have her around either way. "I just hope she doesn't bring my guys into any real trouble." His mind continued to drift until he fell asleep.

...

After one long night, the new day finally appeared, but it wasn't as spectacular for all. The rapper barely slept a wink, and for him, that was quite the news. He was exhausted but just couldn't sleep with those thoughts on his mind. They were driving him nuts. He heard N waking up the rest, and Hyuk was the first one out of the room. 

The youngest was up and ready to awaken the heavy sleeper, but when he came out of the room to do so, he realised the hibernator was already up. "Woah! You're actually up?" Ravi nodded, not bothering to tell him he had a sleepless night. Hyuk shrugged and dragged himself to the bathroom to wash up.

The rest of the morning moved on and the rapper was simply out of it and some of them noticed. In the van, he barely spoke and was staring into space not focusing much on any of the discussions or jokes that were being made. When either of them turned to chat with him, he'd chuckle a little, nod then go silent. He must have been tired and they weren't too far off with that assumption, but his dizzy mind was busy pondering. As he got to his studio, he rolled up in front of the computer and got to work. His composing helped to distract the lingering thoughts, but that wasn't all it did. An hour went by and he was passed out on the desk.

--

Hyun-Ae was home and up woke up from a headache she had from the lack of sleep. She had fallen asleep, but it wasn't smooth. She had been tossing and turning and would even make excuses to get out from her bed to fetch water. It was certainly a rough night. Right now, she was lying on the couch trying to get more sleep.

*Ring!* 

Just as she was getting somewhere, she groaned when her cell phone went off. Lazily, she reached for it on the coffee table in front of her and answered, "Hello." In the groggiest tone ever.

"Sounds like you haven't slept in days. Did you miss me that much?" As soon as the voice registered in her mind, the young woman flew up and a wide smile spread across her face.

"Op- Seojin!" The drowsiness she felt was washed away when she heard his voice. "What happened to you? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. I'll explain everything in a minute. I'm downstairs."

Hyun-Ae hopped out of the couch and rushed to buzz him in. She often wondered why he didn't just come up on his own, he had an extra set of keys to her place. Not wanting to hear him complain about walking away from the unlocked door, she stood by and opened up to greet him. "Where have you been? I was so worried about you."

As he entered, he took off his shoes and pulled her into a hug. "I'm sorry. I've just been caught up with work."

"I had a feeling," she murmured, hugging him back then pulling away. "But, I know whenever you are busy with work, you at least send a message. This time, you gave me no heads up whatsoever. The last I heard from you was when you barged in here about to reveal something big and the next thing I know, you disappear off the map." She walked away for the kitchen to prepare anything he might want.

"Boy, that must have been something."

"It sure was. Clearly, now you're ready to tell me since you're here. Would you like anything?"

Seojin observed as she moved towards the kitchen and breathed. He did have to tell her. It was for her own safety. "Coffee is fine." She nodded and got to work on it as he sat down at the table. It was better to just get it over with, he was here if anything should happen. He cleared his throat and began. "So have you caught up on the news?"

Hyun-Ae pulled out two mugs from the cupboard, placed them in front of the coffee machine then turned to him waiting until it was done brewing. "Not exactly, I haven't had the time." 

"You don't have time?" He faced her with a frown. "I'm always out on the streets or in my study deciphering new material. I don't have time, but I do at least know what's going on in my city."

"I'm not like you Seojin, I can't do twenty million things at one time."

"I'm not expecting you to be like me, but you should at least take a couple of minutes to turn on a radio or something.  I thought I taught you better, I'm disappointed."

The tracker folded her arms and huffed. She took a moment before responding and sighed. "I'll be honest, I've been distracted with other matters. I'll remember to pay more attention, just don't look at me like that." She hated when she disappointed him. "What's going on in the city I don't know about? It must be bad if you're pressuring me about it."

"I told you that a body was found, right? Well, more are showing up," he answered shortly. 

"That's what you want me to see on the news?"

"If you've been paying attention to the broadcasts, you would know that they're... not intact." He was staring directly into her eyes, brows dipped. In that second, Hyun-Ae froze. Something about that sounded familiar and before she could recollect it, the coffee was done. She blinked out of her frozen state and turned to the machine. With shaky hands, she poured the hot liquid into both mugs and nervously carried them over to the table. She placed one if front Seojin and one on her side. She didn't take a seat yet however when she heard him continue. "Civilians have been finding parts around town and most in public areas."

"T-That's t-terrible."

"It is. It's as if the criminal wants the public eye to see his work. Does it sound familiar to you?" He observed her take a deep breath and walk away from the table. She was attempting to distract herself with unnecessary matters.

"I-It does." She went over to the counter and placed a couple slices of bread in the toaster, but was beginning to feel dizzy. "What are you getting at?"

"I wanted to check with you because the attacks and discoveries sound familiar to me as well, so I went back through some old files and found something that matches."

"B-But that's silly." She moved to the cupboards to grab a plate. "Any of your old cases, you've solved. So how can any of them be the same criminal? Unless there's a copycat out there." She was saying all this, but her heart was beating fast.

"Yes or..." he took a pause before continuing. "It could be the only one that I didn't complete."

The girl spun on her heels to face him with the plate in her hands. "Seojin?"

"Yeah Hyun-Ae, I think he's back." hung open, but no words came out and she was quivering where she stood.

"It couldn't be, it just couldn't be."

"Callimachus." Her eyes shot open wide and the ceramic plate shattered on the floor just as the toast popped up.

...

"No!" VIXX rapper Ravi cried, jumping up in his seat. He looked around the room and recognised his surroundings then heaved. "Geez, what the hell was that?" He heard a light tap at the door and called out to whoever was there that they could come in. It was the maknae.

"I was practising when I heard you shouting, is everything okay?" 

"I was? Must have been talking in my sleep." Hyuk studied him for a moment then walked over to him. 

"That was a pretty loud talk. The dream must have been intense. Anyway, I spoke with others about it and was wondering if you wanted to be in on it, too."

"On what?" The youngest leant in and explained what he had planned. "Of course I'm in. That's a brilliant idea!" 

"Great!" He patted his back, explained a few more things then left the studio.

Once the rapper was alone, he thought back to the dream he had. The kiss wasn't the only thing on his mind. He couldn't forget her freaking out and the ways she was looking at him as if he was the devil. He knew it wasn't at him, but it was still heart wrenching. It could explain the reason he dreamt something like that.  Hyun-Ae was in it. She was on the ground staring up at him in terror as he was standing above her ready to do something unbelievable.  It was weird because in the dream he didn't recognise himself and he didn't know her. He just knew one thing; attack. He woke to when his large hand came down to strike. He rubbed his forehead and shook away the nightmare. "I would never do something like that." 

He turned to his phone next to him and stared. He wanted to check up on her like he normally did, but he was nervous. He didn't know what she would say to him, but he didn't want her to think he was ignoring her either. At last, he picked up the phone and sent her a quick text.

--

Seojin knew it was going to happen and he was already done breaking her out of the episode. She barely had time for it to really kick in. He knew the tactics dealing with trauma and was more than used to working them on her. They were sitting on her couch and he was holding onto her hands.

"And you're s- sure?" she stuttered, counting out the breaths she took.

"It's not proven, but I'm working on it. I couldn't tell you before because I wasn't positive, but I'm getting closer to decoding it so I thought it's best to mention it now."

"So what do you want me to do?"

"You do know criminals that get away most of the time come back to finish where they left off?" And she saw her bob her head. "If this is Callimachus, he's returned to do exactly that." The girl beside him shivered. "I don't want you to do anything, but stay on guard at all times. Settle down that job of yours."

"But-"

"Please. At least until whoever the culprit is caught."

"Okay." 

"I just want you to be safe." He said pulling her against him for a hug.

"I know."

"If you find anything or anyone strange, you tell me right away, okay?"

"I will. By the way, what's happening with that stalker guy?"

"Ever since I put Min Ji in the safe house, his whereabouts have gone under the radar. I believe he's doing what he can to find her and without being caught."

"But if he's so good at hiding now, how come it was easier to track him before? And do you think he's Calli... Callimachus?"

"I'm glad you picked up on that. That's one of the things I'm working on. And to answer your next question, I need more proof before I can make that claim." He rubbed her shoulder when he felt her hands shaking. "You're tired, I'll let you rest. Are you going to be alright?" She nodded then he stood up. "I'll be off then. Contact me whenever you need anything."

"Are you going to answer now?"

"Yeah, I'm sorry for keeping my distance. It won't happen again." He patted her head then hustled for the door. "No need to me. I'll let myself out and lock up. Get some sleep." Before he walked out the door, she called out to him.

"Jin, I know you're worried about me and all, but you need to be careful too." He turned his head toward her and gave her a firm nod then left.

Once he was gone, Hyun-Ae groaned loudly and began to shake a bit. As much as she wanted to sleep, she couldn't lay down now that she had something else to worry about. "Callimachus." The name made her jump and she instinctively looked around. She began to quiver more and rubbed her shoulders after feeling a sudden chill. "No, he can't be back." She closed her eyes, but that was a mistake. She was going through the memories. She shot her eyes open and took deep breaths. "It's okay Hyunnie. It's not real, it's in the past." She needed anything to distract her thoughts. Maybe she should have made Seojin stay longer.

Her ears suddenly picked up a familiar whistling sound and followed it to the kitchen counter, spotting her phone. She pushed herself up from the couch and quickly moved for it. Her eyes perked up in surprise once she opened the message.

                       From: Ravi

  Good morning. How are you doing?

                                        Sent 10:24 am

She stared at the text then remembered the events of last night. It was true, she was exhausted because she was busy thinking about the person texting her. "Oh wow and even after what happened, he's still checking up on me?" She couldn't deny she felt happy hearing from him. It made sense that she reply to ensure him that she wasn't ignoring him.

                        To: Ravi

          Just tired, but I'm fine. How about you?

                                         Sent at 10:27 am

                         From: Ravi

                        Me too. Didn't get enough sleep?   

                                   Sent at 10:27 am

"Woah! He's answering pretty fast."

                       To: Ravi

                       Lol yeah, I guess...

                                 Sent at 10:28 am

A few minutes went by until he responded and this one made her wince a bit.

                      From: Ravi

                     Is it because of me?

                               Sent at 10:33 am

"How do I answer that?" She didn't want him blaming himself for keeping her up; it wasn't his fault. She didn't need to answer because he sent another one.

                    From: Ravi

                   I couldn't sleep either.

                                    Sent at 10:35 am

                It's not your fault!!!!

                              Sent at 10:35 am

She giggled a little at how fast he sent the other to not try and make her feel bad. She replied with a small smile.

                To: Ravi

        It's not you fault either

                                 Sent at 10:36 am

A little time passed until he messaged her; this one making her heart skip a beat.

              From: Ravi

      I've been thinking... We should meet up sometime. Just us, so we can talk about what happened

                                                                                                                                    Sent at 10:47 am

 "He wants to meet up?" She was suddenly feeling nervous but had the courage to respond.

                          To: Ravi

                  I was thinking the same thing. When are you available?

                                                                                Sent at 10:49 am

                          From: Ravi

                 Oh really? It's best if we meet up sometime soon. I'll let you know when I'm free.    

                                                                                                                                                                              Sent at 10:50 am

                          To: Ravi

                  Yeah, sure. No problem. 

                                              Sent at 10:51 am

                        From: Ravi

            I gotta get back to work. Take care!

                                         Sent at 10:52 am

                     To: Ravi

               Oh okay, gotcha! Thank you, you too!

                                                        Sent at 10:52 am

After that, she moved back to the couch then closed her eyes. A few moments later, her cell phone went off again making her groan. She grumbled as she picked up her cell to find out who was contacting her now. "Huh?"

                      From: Hyuk  

                 Hey Hyunnie!! How are ya?

                                                                Sent at 11:12 am

This was not the first time he's texted her, but it wasn't often either. 

                      To: Hyuk

            Morning Hyukie. I'm good and you?

                                                            Sent at 11:13 am

                    From: Hyuk

             I'm good too. I know this is sudden, but can you meet me around Jelpi this afternoon?

                                                                                                                                  Sent at 11:14 am

"Woah! Wait, what?" This girl was more than stunned.  "Why does he suddenly want to meet up and so soon?" She thought of the person who messaged her minutes ago and gasped. "Oh my God! Does he know? Did Ravi tell him?" Her heart started racing just thinking about them all talking about the kiss. She didn't want to jump to conclusions, but it was a possibility. "If Ravi did tell them, why is Hyuk the only one messaging me?" If it was anyone who'd ask to meet up, it would be their leader. The hair at the back of her neck rose up picturing him finding out about their incident. 

                  To: Hyuk

             I can do that, but why so sudden?
                                            
                                               Sent at 11:17 am

                  
          From: Hyuk

There is something I want to discuss and I think it's best we talk it out face to face. Plus, I haven't seen you in a long time.

                                                                                                                                                                          Sent at 11:19 am

She swallowed as was beginning to dry up. "It's possible that Hyuk is the only one who knows about it, but what does he have to say?" She was scared but really curious. She took a deep breath and answered.

...

Hyun-Ae was nervously walking around in circles near the corner of Jelpi waiting for the youngest member to appear. "What is so secretive that he couldn't tell me by phone? He's even taking the time out of his busy schedule just to meet me." 

"Because you're worth it." A voice answered from behind. 

She jumped before twirling on her heels to face the person who snuck up on her once again. "Hyukkie!"  

"Hello!" He grinned. 

"Are you making a habit of sneaking up on me?" she panted. 

"Your reactions are amusing, so maybe I will." 

"Please don't." And he chuckled while raking his fingers through his hair. Now that she had a good look at him, he looked like someone who just ran out of the gym. He had a towel around his neck and was wearing a simple t-shirt with a pair of shorts. "Did I catch you at a bad time?"

"Huh?" He followed her wandering eyes and came to realise what she was talking about. "Oh, I was practising the group's dance." 

"Oh no, am I disrupting you all?" 

"Not at all, it's just me going over my parts. Besides, I was the one who gave the time to meet up. I lost track of it though so no need to be sorry. It was my bad noona," he explained. "I didn't plan to come out like this, but I didn't want to keep you waiting."  In the daylight, she could define his adoring features more clearly. Even though his face was beaded with sweat, it was gleaming with beauty. She observed as he passed the towel through his damp locks with bangs that would stick against his forehead. There was a drop that slid from his head and down his throat making her gulp. Here she was star gazing at one of them again.  Once he was done wiping away most of the sweat, he caught her gaze and raised an eyebrow. "I must look terrible huh?"

"Huh? What? You're okay." 

"Just okay?" She witnessed as he cringed a little then quickly fumbled to correct herself.

"No no, you're fine." She noticed he had the same expression and continued without gaping into his eyes. Just as she looked down she missed the smirk forming on his lips. "You l-look..." He inched closer, the smirk widening. "You look great, you look great Hyukkie." She turned away slightly so he couldn't tell she was flustered.

"Thank you. I knew what you meant the first time around." She blinked up at him then her brows dipped. 

"Then why did you-"

"Just felt like teasing," he shrugged getting her to pout.  

"So it's just you practising?"

"Yeah, everyone else is out doing their things you know? And soon I gotta head to class."

"Class? You go to school?" 

"Yeah. We all pretty much attend school."

"But how? Aren't you constantly busy with idol work?"

"We do the best we can." 

"That's amazing. What are you studying in?"

"Can't you take a guess? It's Kpop."

"Wait, you're majoring in Kpop?"

"Let me guess. You're wondering why since I've already immersed in this field. Well, there's still so much to learn, so much to experience and appreciate. Even as an idol, the subjects I learn in these courses are things I know nothing about. I want to study as much as I can about the career I'm in, so I can do and be the best idol I can be."

"Wow! That's a great goal Hyuk. I'm impressed." 

 He gave her a genuine smile then scratched the back of his head. "T-thanks. So yeah about why I called you out." Hyun-Ae felt the nerves coming back but nodded.

"Yeah is everything okay? Did you lose anything?" 

"No no, nothing like that. Do you mind coming in?" 

"Come in where? In the studio?" And he nodded. "I'm allowed?"

"As long as you're with me, it's fine. It'll only be a moment."

"Oh okay then." Her heart started beating faster when they approached the building. This would be the first time she'd be entering a place where her new friends worked daily. Before entering, the tallest member scanned the area which was clear of suspicious people then grabbed her hand leading her in. 

"It's so... clean," she commented as they walked down the hallway. 

"It has to be in order to impress visitors and very important people." Hyuk and Hyun-Ae brushed passed the staff and they were too busy handling matters of their own to pay attention. She passed a few rooms and a couple looked like folks in a conference meeting. Hyuk waved and greeted those that made eye contact with him and she politely waved to them, too.

"We should give you the tour of the place sometime."

"Yeah, that would be awesome." 

"Sanghyuk!" A man called running toward them. "I've been looking for you."

"Sorry, I stepped out for a minute to meet a friend," he responded.

"I see. Well, it's best you get dressed now so that when it's time to hit the road, you'll be ready."

"Yes sir," the youngest nodded. The man glanced down at the woman beside the young idol and she caught his stare. Out of respect, she bowed before him and he a gave a firm nod before leaving their presence. 

"Is that one of your managers?"

"Yeah, he's a little uptight sometimes but isn't so bad. Now, let's hurry." He led her further down the corridor until he turned to open up a door. Once they entered the room, she took the time to analyse it. It was much wider than the ones she's peeked in earlier, the floors were wooden and there were three walls while the fourth one was a large mirror. 

"Is this where you practice all the dances?" Hyun-Ae asked, knowing all too well that this was a dance room. 

"Yep. It's a little humid in here since I just used it, but the AC should take care of it," he responded as they walked in. "You won't believe that this room had no AC, it was smaller and a little more crowded, but at long last, it's been renovated."

"Really? That's great!" And he nodded along with her. He walked up in front of a table in the corner of the room and swiped up something then hid it in his pocket. 

"Now back on the topic about your job earlier, I haven't thanked you properly yet, have I?"

Knowing exactly what he was talking about, the seeker smiled. "You don't have to thank me. I'm just a person doing their job."

"But finding people isn't. You broke your restrictions to find me. I don't know what Jaehwanie and Bean hyung did, but I want to show my appreciation. I also know what you went through last night."

"You do?"

"Yeah, Ken and Ravi told us everything. You found yourself dealing with a drug addict and you decided to deal with him by yourself because you were concerned about their safety.."

She winced picturing all of them discussing her rash decision. "Oh, so you're here to give it to me, too? I know it wasn't the best-"

"Actually, I wanted to tell you that I think it was pretty cool."

"Huh? Cool?"

"Don't get me wrong. I do think the choice you took was reckless as hell, but I know you were doing it to protect us which is kind of cool. You really care about us, huh?"

"Yeah, you all my friends." Hyuk formed a genuine smile and pulled something out of the pocket of his shorts.

"Then this shouldn't be odd. Open your hands," he directed. She stared at him in confusion, but obeyed his request and placed her open palms between them. Hyuk placed a white envelope in them and playfully squeezed her finger tips before backing away. She inspected the envelope then the heat rose to her cheeks when she read her name on the front side of it.

"What is it?"

"You'll find out when you open it," he chuckled.

She asked with her eyes if she was to open it now and he gave her the signal. She turned over the card and carefully tore open the flap at the side and peeked in before shaking out of the contents that were inside. The youngest was blushing nervously watching her open up the gift and waited for a hopefully positive reaction. Hyun-Ae discovered a note and smaller card but before she went to flip to see what it was, she read the note first.  

Hi Hyunnie, 

We've only known you for a short while, but it feels like we've been friends forever. You are so much fun to hang around with and talk to. I wish we could spend more time with you, maybe once our promotions are over we can.

I want to thank you for helping us out when we were in trouble especially during the time I was puking my guts out on the streets. This isn't much, but the guys and I are inviting you to come see our comeback stage in October. It's free and all, but I thought it'd be more meaningful to show that we are personally inviting you.

I'm not very good at concluding letters, but I wish you well and hope to see you at the show. Take care,

Hyukie

After reading it, she flipped the other card and realised it was a handmade ticket with a couple of doodles and all their signatures. "As you know VIXX has a comeback happening in a few weeks and well we all think it'd be an honour to have you watch our first live stage."

"Aww Hyukkie..." She was touched and felt like tearing up, but she held it back and looked up at him. "You guys didn't have to do this, I would naturally come."

"You promise? It would be great if you came."

She took his hand, gave it a pat and smiled sweetly. "I'll be there, I promise." He twisted his hand, so he was the one holding hers and returned the kind smile.

"Okay great! Oh and Hyun-Ae..." he began, his smile shrinking. Her own disappeared when she felt the mood changing. In the back of her mind was the possibility he knew about the kiss and this was the time he would discuss it.

"Yes?"  He stepped in closer and cleared his throat.

"Thank you." 

"Huh? For what?"

"For appearing when you did."

She cocked her head less worried but more confused. "What do you mean?" He was about to answer until the sound of someone entering the room occurred. Both Hyun-Ae and Hyuk turned their attention to whoever walked in.

"I figured you'd still be here, I was just about to..." the figure stalled when he noticed the second person in the room and his mouth dropped open. "Hyun-Ae?" The tracker bore deep into the rapper's eyes, just as shocked as he was. 

"Great! You got back right on time. I was able to get in contact with noona and she was free to come by and guess what? She's promised to come see our first show." Hyun-Ae quietly stood aside while the youngest explained the situation.

"Is that so? Hi, Hyunnie..." he chuckled lightly.

"H-hi..." she waved, not directly looking at him anymore. Ravi shifted his gaze to the ground and scratched the base of his head still holding a strained grin. The dance room's atmosphere had become thick and Hyuk was not clueless to notice. He looked between them and folded his arms.

"What's wrong with you two?" Since he received no response he furrowed his brows. "Does it have to do with last night? I thought you two worked it out, at least that's what Ken hyung said unless something else happened that he might have missed," he snickered awkwardly, not understanding the tension in the air. They slightly jolted and attempted to speak, but somehow forgot how to do so. The maknae did not miss the reaction and his eyes perked up in amusement. "Something else did happen and what--"

"Sanghyuk!" Another voice belonging to his manager called. He cracked the door open and was appalled to see that he hadn't changed. "I can't believe you're still here. Get ready quickly, we're leaving in ten."

"A-ah! I'm sorry. It was nice seeing you noona, thanks for coming. Don't eat each other while I'm gone." He looked from Hyun-Ae to Ravi then his manager before moving to his gym bag and left the room. 

"Bye Hyukkie!" The seeker uttered just before he left.

The youngest member stood by the door for a few seconds more recalling what he just witnessed in there. He was really curious to know what happened, but duty was calling out to him, so with a heavy sigh he marched off. The click of the door closing was the last sound made in the dance room. The final occupants stood in their spots in complete silence trying all in vain to come up with anything to kill it.  

Ravi cleared his throat before finding the courage to speak. He didn't want this, he wanted to go back to how things were before. "It's funny how meeting up worked out in the end."

"Yeah, I had no idea you'd be here. Hyukkie told me everyone else was out doing business."

"They are. My business is mostly done in my studio. I just came up for a break."

"Oh true, because you're mostly busy composing," she nodded.

"That's right!" he chortled then a moment of silence.

"So... I guess we might as well talk about it." And to that, he agreed. "Where is the best place to have it?"

"Yeah, we can just stay here. No one's going to occupy this room for a while."

"Alright then."

Both Ravi and Hyun-Ae were seated in the corner of the room, side by side, but not looking directly at one another. They sat there for a couple minutes to gather their thoughts and to figure out where to begin.

"Does anyone know?" The young woman spoke at last.

"No. I assume you haven't told anyone either." And she gave a simple nod. 

"I don't think anyone needs to know, it was just a kiss."

"A pretty good kiss," he admitted. It came off as a joke, but it was still the truth.

"Yeah..." She could not deny that. The heat rose to their cheeks as they looked up at one another then a few seconds later, they burst out laughing, the awkward atmosphere between them dissipating.  Once they settled down, Hyun-Ae spoke up again with a more serious tone. "Ravi, I'm not expecting something serious to come out of the kiss, but I don't want the incident to change our friendship."

"This is pretty much what I wanted to tell you also," he reached for her hand and held it up causing her to feel a bit nervous. "Hyunnie, I don't want you to be afraid of me. I don't want us to feel awkward whenever we meet or talk. We do have a pleasant bond and I don't want it to be ruined, I like you."

She placed her free hand on top of his and patted it. "I like you too, Ravi."

"I'm happy to hear that. I promise to not let it change anything."

"I promise, too."

"Let's seal it," he curled his pinky finger around hers and she reacted by closing it. Knotting their pinkies, they pressed their thumbs together and shook their hands, sealing the promise. They gazed at one another with grins plastered on their faces. Once they untangled themselves, the rapper eagerly pulled her into one of his famous big bear hugs.  

"I'm glad we had this talk," he whispered. She tightened her hold on him and nodded.

"So am I." She admired the way Wonsik was. In appearances, he may come off looking fierce, but he's really a protective softy. She figured that out a while ago, but it still amused her. 

As the songwriter held her in his arms, he thought about how great of a person she was. He wasn't sure of what he truly felt for her, but one thing was certain, he really did like her and enjoyed having her around him. His good feeling lessened when he abruptly thought of the nightmare he had. Nothing like that would ever happen.

End of chapter.

Oh my goodness! I finally finished and uploaded the next chapter. I am so sorry it has taken me a while to update. I honestly got stuck in the middle of the chapter and also busy in the last couple of months. The next chapters should definitely not take as long to upload, I'll do my best to not get trapped again.

Now about this chapter, a little more was to happen, but I felt like it would be a bit too long and I did not want to keep you all waiting. I want to thank you for your patience and see you all in the next chapter!!