“...”
I’m sitting in the car and staring at nothing in particular when the light dims slightly. I look out of the half lowered windows and see Do-Hyun’s side profile. He has his body leaned against the car while his eyes are staring at the crowd busying themselves with who knows what.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” Do-Hyun doesn’t turn his head all the way but it’s enough for me to see his serious eyes staring into mine.
I don’t answer back but return his gaze back. I understand where he is coming from since from day one he returned, he doesn’t appreciate the situation I’m being put in even with my consent.
He worries about me in his own way.
He increased our frequency of training ever since I was asked to do this even before I said yes. It’s like he was preparing me for the inevitable.
It’s no secret that I want this as much as they want it.
Their stakes may be different from mine but all of us want answers and those people have it. It’s crazy to put myself in danger but I can’t live without feeling I’m not me and I hope that once I find the answer, it will help. I hope that it helps both me and him to move on.
“What are you guys talking about?” Ryan walks toward us and asks loud enough for Do-Hyun and I to hear him.
Ryan glances at me before turning to Do-Hyun. Ryan’s face shows his displeasure toward Do-Hyun since Do-Hyun has verbally rejected the idea of using me.
“Nothing,” Do-Hyun said apathetically.
“You’re not trying to convince him to change his mind are you?” Ryan becomes suspicious of him.
“What if I am?” Ryan must have struck a nerve because I can hear a hint of annoyance in Do-Hyun’s words.
Ryan doesn’t have the temper to back down so he approaches Do-Hyun to assert his dominance. Do-Hyun appears unfazed as he looks at Ryan with raised brows. The tension between them is high but I cut it off by clearing my throat to get their attention.
“Do-Hyun, can you get me a bottle of water?”
Do-Hyun replies kindly to me and then walks away while giving Ryan the side-eye. These two can’t play nice with each other anymore.
Ryan watches until Do-Hyun is no longer in our line of sight before asking me to lower the window. He immediately places his folded arm onto the rim of the window border while trying to decipher my expressions. I play it cool by staring back but I finally can’t take it and look away.
He chuckles and that irritates me.
“Hey, I will keep you safe,” I know he says this to make sure I don’t back out last minute.
“And if you can’t?”
“Nothing will happen to you. You have my words,” His demeanour changes showing that he’s serious about this. I clam up not knowing how to respond to that.
Ryan reaches out to brush my hair away from my face then pulls back. “Thank you for doing this,”
The sincerity coming from him is making me feel weird so I brush it off by saying, “I’m doing this for myself. You guys just happen to factor into my decision-making,”
“Sure, we’ll leave it at that,”
I’m sure he is teasing me because he has the same tone right now compared to the other times when he does it. I don’t have time to refute him because the others have approached us and he starts talking to them. It is almost time to go.
The plan right now is to go to the location that the guy has provided me with and proceed with caution. The supplier is temperamental so bringing more people won’t do anything so only Do-Hyun and Ryan will be accompanying me.
I glance at Ryan who is wearing a trendy band shirt with slim vintage jeans. His blonde hair ruffled into a mess. It makes him appear youthful than he is and that leads me to think about his age. I can’t remember his exact age at all. Maybe because we don’t talk about it specifically.
Do-Hyun has put on a baggy hoodie, in an attempt to hide his thick biceps. He paired it with ripped jeans. He doesn’t really convince me that he’s younger since his aura screams maturity.
Do-Hyun enters the driver’s seat first after having a talk with the others. They could be going through the plan with him once again. They can’t afford to fail, especially since I’m involved. I don’t think having a minor in danger is good for their reputation.
“Here,” Do-Hyun passes the sealed water bottle to me.
I take it and open it with a snap. I take a sip even though I’m not thirsty. It’s awkward to not drink it after requesting one. It’s not like Do-Hyun stares at me to see if I would drink it but I still do it.
Ryan enters the passenger’s seat but Do-Hyun doesn’t even acknowledge it. Instead, he speaks to the others through the lowered car window.
“You good?” Ryan has his body turned to the backseat to check up on me. I nod as a response and he doesn’t ask anything else before readjusting himself.
Once Do-Hyun finishes talking, the car finally moves but it carries a heavy silence.
I think to myself that they’re terrible at acting. We’re supposed to emulate a group of teens having fun on a trip to get the ‘good stuff’ but this is suffocating me.
“Can you guys turn on the music?” I hope it can at least lighten up the mood.
Ryan gives a glance before connecting the car stereo to his bluetooth. He then proceeds to blast some punk rock music. I can’t say I’m surprised by his music selection but it doesn’t help easing up the atmosphere in the car.
The ride is so long to the point Ryan starts pulling out snacks and passing one packet to me. Do-Hyun opens his mouth to say something but holds back and grumbles to himself. Ryan smirks and passes more snacks to me.
I munch on a few of them and when we reach deeper into the woods I start to feel uncomfortable. I don’t like the fact that it has to be in the woods.
This is like being pushed to face your fear and deal with it. I don’t understand why a supplier would set up a place here. The sky slowly goes dark even though it's noon. My heart starts to curse while hoping it won’t rain because that seems to be a running gag in my life.
The minute I enter the forest, of course the cloud will turn grey then it will rain.
“Hey, I think that’s our place,” Ryan points out into the distance an abandoned warehouse.
The grass around the building is overgrown and the vines have crawled up the walls. It’s mostly covered in greens but you can still see the entrance clearly as someone must have cleared the plants from blocking it. The door and windows show that they are well maintained despite showing signs of age.
Do-Hyun stops the car and all of us get off. Ryan immediately flings his arm around my shoulders while telling Do-Hyun to wait by the car. I can tell Do-Hyun is holding back from rolling his eyes and forces himself to answer Ryan without a care.
This is to make sure that if anyone is watching, it would just seem like we’re out here on a whim rather than on a mission.
Ryan turns around with me and walks straight to the door while walking casually. He looks like a prick and I can’t help but laugh at that image. He raises a brow but doesn’t ask then laughs with me while squeezing me a little before facing the door.
“Yo! Is this the place where we can get the good stuff?” Ryan shouts while banging on the door with no fear.
I panic a little inside but Ryan gives me a reassuring look that calms me down. I try not to shout out along with him in case I tremble while talking.
A man opens the door and the first thing I notice is his red eyes that appear bright in contrast to the pale skin. He wears round framed glasses that’s no longer trendy. He scowls at us but does nothing else.
“What business do you have here?” The way he speaks sounds stiff and monotonous. His eyes trails away from us to Do-Hyun who's by the car.
“I want the good stuff, man! I heard you got ‘em,” Ryan shifts the man’s focus back to him by talking obnoxiously.
“You are a user?” He scrutinizes Ryan from top to bottom, not believing that someone like Ryan has used his stuff before.
“Nah, I wanna try it. This kid here had a taste and said it was the best. Wasn’t in the market no more but I want some. Y’know what I’m sayin’?” Ryan picks up the hidden meaning behind that man’s words and explains himself.
We plan to tell them that Ryan is the user because they don’t want to put me in the spot. He must have changed direction because the man before us is perceptive. This is a possibility that we’ve discussed before. He is the type that won’t be deceived by compliments or bribery talk.
The man scans me thoughtfully and after a short pause, he moves aside and lets us in.
I hesitate to walk forward but Ryan drags me with the arm that's on my shoulders while looking around curiously. My palms are sweating because I don’t know what to expect inside. Anything can go wrong and since Do-Hyun is outside, Ryan’s the only one with the proper skills to ensure both of us get out of here alive.
The inside appears cleaner and well-kept than the exterior of the place. He guides us to a sofa before sitting across from us. Ryan releases his hold on me and drops his body on the sofa while patting on the seat next to him. I follow suit and sit down while trying to make myself comfortable.
The man’s gaze has never left me. He has been watching every move I make which makes me feel like I’m under the microscope.
“How long have you been using these?” He shows the familiar stuff.
I turn to Ryan who immediately tells me to reply the man while still acting like he has no care in the world.
“Long enough,” I say vaguely.
“I have stopped circulating these in the market. Have you stopped too?”
I don’t really like meeting his eyes so I look in the general direction of his hair and notice the short black hair has white roots.
I nod before my mind starts to wonder about his hair.
“Any effect?” He slowly shows more interest.
I shake my head before I pause and say, “Just shaking and stuff. The usual, I guess.”
His eyes narrow and he stops moving. I almost thought he became a statue since I can’t tell if he’s breathing or not.
He says to Ryan indifferently, “You should leave.”
Ryan fixes his sitting posture and rejects it, “Nah man. I came here for the stuff. I ain’t leaving before I do,”
The red eyed man pulls out a gun from somewhere and points it to Ryan.
“You have the option to die here.”
Ryan puts up both of his hands. “Woah woah woah. Chill man. I can’t leave my buddy with ya. Especially if it meant I will be leaving empty-handed.”
My eyes go wide hearing that. I hope he isn’t implying that he will be leaving me if he gets those things. Ryan doesn’t even look at me so I became more anxious.
“Oh my, Nana has guests,” A languid voice interrupts us.
All of us turn to the door and find an effeminate man leaning by the wide open door. It’s the same man I saw at the club previously. Instantly, I take a sharp breath as my heart starts racing.
His long legs start to move gracefully with one foot in front of the other as if he’s on a catwalk.
“Why have you come here?” Nana, the bespectacled man who is still aiming the gun at Ryan asks him disinterestedly.
“Come on, don’t be like that. I’m here to see my favourite person,” The newcomer tucks his long white hair and sits on the arm of the sofa while giving ‘Nana’ a soft smile.
His bewitching appearance doesn’t affect Nana at all as the man has long turned his gaze back at me.
“Nana found a new toy and doesn’t like me anymore,” Though his voice is gentle his smile is long gone as he takes a look at me.
The moment our eyes meet, he raises an eyebrow while the corner of his lips curves upwards. I know that he has recognised me. It makes my heart beat faster and I can feel a sweat rolling on my back.
The man gets up and walks toward me. Everything appears to move slowly in my eyes as fear grows stronger in me when in fact, it only takes a few seconds. I can see his slender bony hand reach to tilt my chin.
“Ah, I see now why Nana is interested in you,” His voice sounds sticky and sweet that doesn’t give me a single sense of comfort. I can feel my body start to shake.
His mismatched eyes move away from mine and trails all the way to Nana.
“The body is the same but the soul has changed. Did you notice that? Such a curious thing, this little one,” He giggles resound within my eardrum. “The true soul must have passed on but it doesn’t make sense that another soul can use the corrupted body. Afterall, I gave him a lethal dosage that day that should have completely destroy the body function,”
He continues to chuckle before letting go of my chin.
“Nana~” He calls out in a sickeningly sweet voice. “Can you give him to me? I want him.”
His hand reaches out to touch my hair. I stare as it gets closer but my body is frozen in fear and I become unable to avoid it. The hand stops a few centimeters away and I glance at the irked Ryan who has dropped his act by grabbing the man’s wrist.
“Why is there a rodent here?” It seems the man never put Ryan in his line of sight. He appears displeased with Ryan since his hand is gripped tightly by the other.
The seemingly fragile man flings his hand roughly causing Ryan to let go. His heterochromia eyes glower at Ryan. Anger starts seeping out of him, almost causing me to be breathless.
“We have company,” The moment Nana finishes his words, almost instantly, the sound of gunfire starts blaring.
At this moment, Ryan pulls me away and far from the sofa. His reaction allows us to escape two sharp needles flinging in our direction and embedded themselves into the sofa. The needles are as big and long as those regular knitting needles.
The light glints from the silver needles and my wide eyes stare at the perpetrator. He pulls out the needle out of the sofa harshly as his long hair sways with the motion. I start shaking in Ryan’s arm as his eyes trails to us.
Then he chuckles lightly. “Sorry Nana. I ruined your nice sofa,”
Nana doesn’t care since he has moved to the window with a gun in his hand. His lack of emotions make him appear less human as he apathetically watches the mayhem unfolds outside.
Ryan notices that the only person with the lethal weapon is distracted by the chaos coming from out there. He raises his gun that I don’t even know where he pulled out from and points it at the man who attacks us first. His unwavering gaze shows that this isn’t his first rodeo.
“You two made those things for what purpose?” He asks in the most serious tone I’ve ever heard from him.
The man pauses for a second before bursting out laughing. His bell-like laughter rings throughout the empty warehouse.
“Did you expect me to be a typical movie villain and expose my plans to you?” He hugs his stomach while shaking his head. Not once he stops giggling to the point he has to wipe his tears away.
“Why not? You’re not gonna leave here alive. Might as well tell me the legacy you want to leave,” Ryan's eyes focus on him intensely.
“A mere human thinks he can kill me? Nana! Did you hear that?!” He laughs so hard that Nana finally turns to watch our confrontation.
A chill runs behind my back as Nana’s gaze lands on me and a soft smile forms. I clutch on Ryan’s shirt when I start to feel this strange overwhelming desire to move towards Nana after seeing that smile. My rational mind fights with the desire and luckily, Ryan’s voice snaps me out of it.
“Mere human?! I won’t hesitate to shoot!” Even laced with irritation, Ryan’s hand remains stable.
“Shoot then. Let’s see whether your bullet or my needles reach first,” The man tucks hair while laughing. It’s like he’s at a picnic rather than being held at gunpoint.
The taunt is enough for Ryan to shoot unhesitantly. The man tosses his needles the moment Ryan pulls the trigger. It hits Ryan almost instantly and makes him drop to his knees.
I look across from us and notices not a scratch on him. I can see a faint black mark on the wall behind the man and realises he managed to avoid the bullet easily.
Ryan groans in pain and starts shaking. His hand is supporting him from collapsing all the way on the floor.
I start to panic and then I see Nana walking to us with an eerily huge grin. He may have seen this as the opportunity to grab me.
Ryan is aware of Nana's approach and tries to push me to hide behind his back. “S-stay back!” Ryan tries to point his gun but his hand is trembling hard.
His threat bears no weight to either of them. Nana doesn’t even care since his eyes are plastered on me since the moment he starts moving. On the other hand, the other man only finds it amusing by covering his lips while giggling.
Nana’s footsteps echo along with the laughter coming from his friend. Each step is like a drum beating to my heartbeat. I stare in horror as he reaches closer with the silver gun firmly held in his hand.
The tightly closed door suddenly flies out across the place. The sunlight gleams into the warehouse making me squint by the sudden increase of brightness.
A figure of a man stands at the exposed entryway.
