• • •

"Are you sure he's going to be okay?"

"Yes, Y/n, I assure you..Yugyeom's going to be fine." Jaebum states, as I bite my nails apprehensively.

After Yugyeom had gotten jumped by Kai and his friends, Jaebum showed up and we carried Yugyeom to his car.

When we reached the house, Jaebum immediately bandaged Yugyeom up to stop his bleeding. I asked him why he couldn't just take Yugyeom to the hospital, but he never gave me a specific reason. He just said this was the quickest and easiest way to help him.

"He needs his rest." Jaebum says, leading me out of the guest bedroom and shuting the door behind him.

"I just don't understand why Kai would go to such extreme measures to hurt him." I state as I remain standing in the hallway.

"Were you able to see how the fight began and what escalated it?" Jaebum asks, but I shake my head.

"No, I got there late." I huff angrily, "..but you're a cop, right? Can't you do something about this? Maybe, press charges against them?"

"I—I mean, I don't know.." He speaks hesitantly, causing me to furrow my brows.

"What do you mean by, you don't know? You're a cop, you should know these things." I voice, my annoyance is very prominent.

"..well, I haven't really been working as a cop in a while." He lets out sheepishly.

"Then what have you been working as?"

"I can't say." He mutters, trying to avoid answering my question.

"Look, I'm getting really tired of these secrets from you and everyone else! We're friends, aren't we? Friends shouldn't keep secrets from each other. I just want to know what you're hiding from me and if you can't trust me enough to tell me...were we really even friends in the first place?" I rant, finally letting out how I've been feeling this whole time.

"I'm sorry that you've been feeling that way, Y/n, but I just can't tell you. It's for your own safety." He explains, which makes my tongue poke the inside of my cheek in irritation.

"Right." I scoff, "For my own safety."

"Well, if that's the case, maybe I should just go live with my dad. If it's such a danger to be around you, Yugyeom, and everyone else, then I'll just leave." I respond to Jaebum's meaningless words.

Tears begin flooding in my eyes as I stare up at him, angrily. If he insists on spouting nonsense and not telling the whole truth, I'll leave.

"This is your last chance, so just tell me..please. What're you hiding from me?" I ask once again, pleading for the truth.

I purse my lips as he couldn't seem to find a response. He kept silent, shaking his head as he mouthed the words, I'm sorry.

"..okay.." I nod my head as a few tears slide down my face, "..I'm gone."

I turn around and storm off to my room. I don't care how late at night it is, I'm leaving now.

I pull out my suitcase from the closet and begin packing enough clothes and other essentials to last me a couple of days.

I couldn't stay in this house any longer, I need a break from Jaebum. If he can't even tell me the truth about his work, who knows what else he's hiding.

I search around for anything else I might need, until I stopped in-front of the mirror. My eyes pan down to my chest and see I was wearing the necklace Jaebum gifted to me for my birthday.

I take in a deep breath and yank the necklace off. I carefully place it down on the dresser, not wanting to wear it any longer.

Grabbing my suitcase and phone, I walk out my room and head down the stairs.

I exit the house quickly before Jaebum saw me and started walking down the street.

I really had no idea where I was gonna go. I didn't actually want to go to my dad's house, because Kai would most likely be there.

I can't go to Jisoo and Jennie, they already have enough on their plate as they are busy moving out of their parents house and into a new apartment. I would stay with Bambam, but I have bad memories from that party and staying overnight. Jackson's not an option as I literally have no clue where he lives.

I sigh a keep walking and after and hour or two later I ended up at the house of the last person I could think of.

I knock on the door and begin waiting. I wasn't expecting an answer since it was so late, but the door swings open about a minute later.

"Y/n? Why are here so late?"

"Can I stay with you for a couple of days?" I question anxiously and he furrows his brows.

"Why? What happened?"

"Jaebum and I got into a fight and I just need a few days away from him." I explain, experiencing pain in my heart from the thought.

"Yeah, sure, come in." He says, opening the door wider as he welcomed me inside.

I walk in and look around, forgetting what his house even looked like. I turn to him and smile gratefully, "Thank you, Mark."

• I •

The next morning, I woke up from the sound of utensils clattering in the kitchen. I stretch my body dramatically before dragging myself out of bed.

I walk out of the guest bedroom I stayed in to see Jisung sitting at the dining room table and Mark preparing the breakfast.

"What's all this?" I question raising my brows, Mark practically cooked a whole feast.

"You're finally awake? You've slept all morning." Jisung teases.

I turn my gaze over to him, almost choking on my spit. I haven't seen him in a few months, but he's definitely had a glow up, "You're still fifteen?"

"Yes, I'm still fifteen." Jisung laughs at my reaction to his new look.

"I don't usually cook like this, but since you're staying here..I'll do it for you." Mark says, placing a plate full of food in-front of me.

I smile, sitting down in the chair next to Jisung, "Thank you."

"No problem."

"No really, I very much needed this after you know..last night." I state, referring to my argument with Jaebum.

"Like I said, it's not a problem." He repeats, sitting down in the chair across from me.

I couldn't help but feel grateful towards Mark. He's always been really good to me, even when he was having a hard time.

"Y/n, do you know I'm entering that dance competition your school is holding?" Jisung ask and I shake my head surprised.

"No, I didn't, but aren't you home-schooled?" I question, confused in how he was able to enter.

"I am, but next year I'm finally attending your school." He explains and I nod, understanding.

"So what happened between you and Jaebum?" Mark asks as I haven't explained to him why we got into a fight.

"I got upset, because he's been hiding something from me. He keeps persisting that its for my safety, but what do I need to be protected from?" I question feeling frustrated at the thought and he just shrugs.

Mark held a blank expression on his face as if he was thinking. I wanted to know what was on his mind, but I didn't want to be nosy.

"..do you happen to know what headquarters is?" I ask as I remembered I kept hearing that word repeatedly from everyone.

Mark pauses in his thoughts and looks over at Jisung. Jisung stops chewing his food like I just said something shockingly offensive.

"..um..I don't know." Mark answered hesitantly.

I stare at him, sensing something's wrong, "Are you okay? You don't look to good."

His face was pale and he had a nervous expression on his face.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He nods and begins eating his food, unbothered.

"If you say so.."

• II •

"I got your fake ID."

Jennie walks up to Jisoo and I handing us our ID's to get inside this club called, Exodus.

Jennie wanted us all to meet up together so we could hang out for the last time before we finished our junior year.

It was already dark out as we were waiting in line to enter the club.

"I'm so excited, we haven't been here in a while." Jisoo exclaims, feeling impatient as the line was moving too slow for her liking.

"You've been here before?" I ask them surprised.

"Yeah, this place is amazing, they have the best service here." Jennie informs.

"I think the club is owned by someone named Suho, but I don't think that's his real name." Jisoo explains and I furrow my brows at her statement.

"Suho? I think I heard that name before.." I say, remembering Kai said it to me once.

"I'm sure you have, Suho's really popular in this area of Seoul." Jennie says while we move up closer in line.

"Here you go." Jisoo says handing the security her ID and Jennie and I did the same.

He checks them all thoroughly and nods, "You're good."

He hands the cards back, allowing us to pass through. Once we entered the building, Jennie smirks confidently at us.

"I knew they would work, the IDs were made by the best in town." She smiles, boasting about herself.

"You made them?" I question flabbergasted.

I didn't know she was able to do something like that.

"Yep, she's the best." Jisoo answers for her and Jennie to give her a loving look.

I look around the room, studying the place. This club is pretty large and everyone here appears to be in their mid-twenties or it could just be they look mature.

I turn my gaze over to a large angled couch in the corner of the room and sitting on the sofa was Kai and his little friends.

From what it looks, they are drinking and talking while other females are trying to gain their attention for whatever reason. I roll my eyes in disgust at the sight of them.

"I need a drink." I remove my jacket and hand it to Jisoo who was standing there with confusion all on her face.

"What's wrong with her?" Jisoo asks as I stomp over to the bar.

Jennie shrugs, not knowing and they go find a place to put their things.

I sit down on one of the stools and let out a deep sigh. I'm not happy with what Kai did to Yugyeom last night, but it's not my problem and I don't want to interfere.

"Looks like someone's having a bad night."

I raise my head as I feel someone sit down on the stool to the left of me. I turn my gaze to see who it is, "..Soyeon."

"What? Did you come to mock me about sleeping with Yugyeom?" I ask, too bothered to listen to her meaningless words.

"No, actually, I came to have a good time." She corrects me.

"Right, don't let me stop you from having fun then." I state, laughing lightly as I just wanted her to leave me alone.

She remained silent for a bit before speaking again.

"..Y/n.." She calls out my name, gaining my attention.

"What now?"

"About the Yugyeom situation..I'm sorry. I never meant for you to see that." She tries explaining and I just smile in annoyance while shaking my head.

"Well, I did see it and I don't care. You can even start dating him for all I care, it doesn't matter anymore. I don't have the right to tell you what you can and can't do." I state and she just stares at me with raised brows.

"Wow, you really don't care, do you?" She questions in amusement and I shake my head, answering no.

"For what it's worth, I only slept with him to gain information, it didn't mean anything to me." She explains and I slowly turn my head to look at her once more.

"..what kind of information?"

"The kind that tells me what he's been hiding from you." She replies, quirking a brow, "..and from what I found out, his little friend over there, is in on that secret."

My eyes follow to where Soyeon is pointing, landing on Kai. I remember during the engagement party Kai said something that caused Yugyeom to feel on edge.

"Okay? What do you want me to do with what you just told me? It's not like I can do anything about it." I state, not understanding what she's trying to do and she just groans in frustration.

"I need you to trust me, that's all I ask. Just trust me, Y/n." She says in an almost pleading type of tone.

I stare at her, not knowing if I could take her word. She's never gave me a reason to believe anything she says. I've never liked her, so why would I listen? But knowing me, trusting her is the only option I have.

"Fine." I let out a huff, "Okay, I'll trust you..but you better not screw me over."

"I won't, I promise." She grins.

My eyes widen for a short second after seeing her smile. I've never seen it before. Especially not so..genuine.

"What is it?" She asks, not sure why I look so surprised.

"Nothing, it's just..you're smile..it's so pretty." I admit and her eyes soften at my words.

"Don't say that, compliments make me feel weird." She voices and I couldn't help but laugh.

"Now, are you gonna introduce me to those two girls who've been listen to our conversation this whole time?" I question, pointing to the people behind her.

"Oh, shit! I forgot they were there." Soyeon laughs and one of the girls behind her slaps her on the shoulder.

"The one with the cute baby face is, Song Yuqi." She says referring to the one who just hit her.

"And I'm, Cho Miyeon." The more mature looking girl states, introducing herself.

"Yes, that's Miyeon." Soyeon smiles at her in a motherly way.

"Hi." I greet, not sounding as enthusiastic as I had hoped.

"These two are also members of my small gang." Soyeon informs and I nod, understanding.

"How many of you are there?" I question in confusion as she hasn't told me yet.

"There's me, I'm the leader. These two, Soojin, and two more people which you'll meet soon." She informs.

"Well, now that's out of the way..who want to buy me a drink?" I ask with a smile as I have no money.

About an hour or two later, I drank a few too many shots with Soyeon and the other two girls. The room was actually starting to spin. I had no idea where Jennie and Jisoo ran off to, but I barely even noticed as I was too busy trying not to trip over myself while walking back from the bathroom.

"Excuse me, coming through."

I push and shove through the crowd of people, trying to find anyone familiar. It was hard to keep focus as my vision was blurry and I felt as if I was spinning in circles.

Until everything stops when I trip over someones leg. I fall over onto something..or someone.

I catch myself with my arms and look up to see I fell on-top of Kai. My face was only inches from his and I froze.

"My bad." I chuckle nervously and push myself to stand up straight.

Kai tilts his head to the side in interested by my drunk state. He stands from the couch and stares down at me with a smug grin.

"You good?"

"Yes," I answer, turning around to walk away.

"How's Yugyeom?" He questions all of a sudden.

I stop in my tracks as something clicks in my head. I could feel my angry drunk coming out.

"What did you just say?" I ask, spinning around to face him.

"I said, how's Yugyeom? He looked pretty rough after, you know, we beat him to near death." Kai states, provoking me.

Before I could stop myself, my hand raises and swings, slapping him across the face.

"You son of a bitch." I scoff.

He grabs his face, glaring at me. All his friends stand to their feet, ready to back him up, but Kai stops them.

"Why'd you do it, huh? Was it to upset me?!" I holler, wanting an answer.

"That had nothing to do with you, the world doesn't revolve around you, Y/n. That fight was between me and Yugyeom..you just got caught in the crossfire." He voices, his jaw was clenched as he still felt the stinging sensation in his cheek.

"Fuck you." I spat my harsh word, turning to leave, but he grabs my arm and yanks me back.

"We're not done."

Suddenly, someone shows up out of nowhere, pointing his gun to Kai's head.

"Jungkook.." I whisper, not expecting to see him anytime soon.

"Remember when I said I'll kill you if you ever get close to her again? I suggest you let go of her." Jungkook demands, his finger already on the trigger.

My heart starts racing as I've never seen this side of Jungkook before. He was actually scary, like his aura was different.

The first time I met him was in sixth grade, we both were only eleven. I remember that he was so shy, but he eventually warmed up to me and we became best friends. That's when he introduced me to his hyungs, so we practically grew up together. But he's been through so much that it changed him.

"You think that's gonna scare me?" Kai question, his grip around my arm still firm.

"Considering you got a loaded gun to your head, you should be scared." Jungkook says, cocking the pistol and pressing it against Kai's forehead.

"..don't go thinking you're off the hook." Kai speaks through gritted teeth and reluctantly let's me go, "I'll get you back for this."

"Oh, I count on it."

"Now, it's time to leave." Jungkook states, gripping my forearm and dragging me out of the club before I even had time to react.

"Jungkook, wait a second.."

He doesn't stop and continues to pull me along with him.

"You're hurting me, you need to calm down." I say, trying to remove myself from his grasp.

His hand tighten as we were now on the sidewalk. I turn my gaze, watching the club slowly leave my sight.

I turn back around, grabbing Jungkook's arm to hold myself in place. I take a deep breath in and swing my foot towards the back of his leg, kicking him.

"Ow! Why the hell did you do that?!" He questions angrily, coming to a quick halt.

"Because you weren't listening to me! Now let go!" I demand, yanking my arm from him.

"I didn't mean to hurt you, it's just he pisses me off." He sighs, feeling bad for angering me.

"It's okay, I was just worried." I stare up at him with a sympathetic expression, "..but..you were gone for a few weeks. Where did you go?"

"I went to go find Taehyung and Jimin back in Busan." He confesses and I tilt my head at the mention of my old friend's names.

"Why? Did something happen?"

"I heard they dropped out of high school not too long ago. Jin contacted me, saying they've been missing for about a month. No one's seen or heard from them." Jungkook informs and my brows furrow.

"Missing? What do you mean missing?" I question, not comprehending the situation as I cross my arms over my chest.

"They're gone, Y/n. Every trace or piece of evidence of where they could be was wiped. It's like they don't want to be found." He explains and my arms fall to my side.

"Those assholes." I scoff. I knew they'd do something like this eventually.

A few years ago, they began to fall into a depressive state. I tried my best to help them through it, but when I left I wasn't able to anymore. And from what I heard, everything went to shit after I left Busan. It wasn't that surprising as I was practically the glue to our friend group. Now, Jungkook is the only one I'm still in contact with which isn't a shocker.

"Of course they'd be the ones to go into hiding. I know exactly what they're thinking, so don't stress, they'll be back soon." I reassure Jungkook who held a frown on his face.

"How are you so positive?"

"We all grew up together, Jungkook. You should know just as well as I do that they'll come back." I smile, not as upset anymore.

"Yeah, you're probably right." He nods.

"..so, am I walking you back to Jaebum's place or..?" He asks, waiting for my reply.