This fucking idiot.

I'd woken up to his gaze. I'd felt his eyes on me— feel all the things that he was feeling, even if I had my own eyes closed to pretend that I was asleep.

I'd felt his uncertainty, slowly change to conflicted guilt.

And I knew exactly the moment that had happened that he would break the promise he had made with me.

I feel his presence fade.

My hands clench into a tight fist underneath the blanket as I keep my eyes closed until I hear the quiet sound of the door closing behind him. A murderous smile tugs up a single corner of my lips.

I was going to kill him. Show up right in front of his eyes in the Underground when he was least expecting it, and slap the shit out of him for trying to sneak away without me.

It is hard to move, with my back like this.

I detach the needles in my forearm with a quick swipe, kicking the blankets away as I push out of bed. Still in my scrubs, I nearly run for the door to go after him.

The moment I fling open the door, I slam straight into someone's chest.

I think I would've broken my nose hadn't hands wrapped around my shoulders just in time, pulling me away in that split second. And I feel the humiliation slowly dawning in bright red hues as I stare up into the eyes of someone who I'd thought had left for sure.

V blinks.

"Aeri, what the— where are you going?"

Shit.

"W-Water." I say, hating the way his expression gradually shifts with realization. He was just too smart not to. "And I needed to use the— um, restroom. Yeah."

He smiles, and it tinges his eyes.

"Aeri, I'd never break a promise with you."

I purse my lips before mumbling a soft I know under my breath. My cheeks are already flushing with a light scarlet as he laughs quietly.

So precious, he seems to hint, as he beckons me back towards the bed. Where were you even planning to go with your scrubs still on?

"So," He starts, his eyes flickering as he crosses his fingers over each other against the sheets. He leans lightly against the edge. "I went to check if you can be released."

My head flips up.

"And?"

He makes a sound at my anticipation.

"They said you had to stay for at least another week. I asked for a possible discharge, but..."

V raises a brow towards the floor. "They said no."

...what?

"I'll sneak out then." I say, meeting his eyes and almost daring him to tell me that he wouldn't be able to take me.

He laughs, before reaching up to touch the top of my head. He slightly shrugs his shoulders.

"I know, love. You think I wouldn't know that already?"

Then he reaches down to show me something that I hadn't even noticed before. And I look at him, at first with confusion.

It's a small plastic bag.

My confused expression turns into a light smile.

Clothes. I can see a dark sweatshirt and a pair of loose pants, easy to pull on. There's a black cap on the top of everything.

"I'm not sure it'll fit you perfectly," He says, brows furrowing as I empty it out on the bed. "I bought whatever I saw first— I couldn't take too long, could I?"

I laugh, pushing the cap over my head.

"It'll fit."

I couldn't believe I'd doubted him like that. I flash him a grateful smile underneath the shadow of the cap, and I see his eyes slightly widen when I unbutton the top of my hospital scrubs.

He gets to his feet.

"I'll be outside. Let me know if you—"

I laugh.

Cute.

"Just stay. I don't mind."

He stops. But I can't help but smile further when he stays with his back facing me, his head bent over his phone as if he was doing something important.

When I could really just see him scrolling mindlessly across the blank screen, his attention elsewhere.

________________________________

The heavy, familiar smell of smoke.

The rotting trash littering the cracked asphalt, caked with grime and dust. The gray skies, clouded with black and not a hint of sunlight. Rough laughter around every block.

The Underground.

My home.

"Lead me there, love." He whispers, and I nod. I knew these streets like the back of my own hand.

A smile tints my lips.

"Don't get lost, then."

I blend into the shadows. I feel him right behind me, a part of my silhouette— barely noticeable. His footfalls hush along with mine. I push my cap lower over my eyes, dimming my presence.

V.

He was good with the streets too, having been down here so often for his fights.

I probe my memory as I make my way down the dark maze of alleys. It's all faint, but soon I find myself slowly recalling it as I lead him and myself further into the Underground.

It's far. A steep uphill.

Soon I'm gasping for breath, sweat running down the sides of my cheeks as I force my weak legs up. Dull sparks of pain turn sharper by the moment.

Aemin had carried me up here last time.

V touches my shoulder. His eyes narrow in concern at my flushed face, noting everything that I hadn't wanted him to notice.

He suddenly gets down on a knee.

"Get on."

A heavier blush spreads up my neck as I stare at the broad surface of his back. And I turn my head to the side, embarrassment flooding my voice.

"I'm fine. It's not that far away, anyways."

His lips purse.

"Aeri. Don't make me regret this, please."

That makes me fall quiet. So I end up awkwardly shifting myself onto his back, edging my arms around his neck. My cheek touches lightly against his dark hair.

He lifts me off the ground.

And for a while I stay silent, until he laughs softly.

"Aeri. Am I really that bad?"

"It's just embarrassing," I say, chewing on my bottom lip. "I'm not a child, you know."

"You still have to tell me where to go, love."

I sniff again. Then I tighten my arms around his shoulders, careful to lean against him. But his hands stay firm and unshaken against my weight.

"You just keep going up until you see a tree."

His brows knit together.

"I thought you said there were multiple trees."

Uh.

"...I lied."

"So," I say quickly, trying to turn away the topic. "This is it, right? We just have to get rid of whatever my brother and his classmates created, and the Underground won't blow up?"

He nods.

"That's the idea, yes."

My expression falls a little.

"But then what about you?"

"What about me?" V whispers, his gaze fixed forward. I can only see the back of his head.

I sigh softly.

"What's going to happen to you? Your father doesn't know me, but you're his son."

There would be backlash. Undoubtedly.

He gives me a warm look. "I'm not sure. Maybe I won't go back at all— maybe I'll just stay as your next-door neighbor down in the Underground, hm? Help you out when you need me."

My eyes slowly brighten. And I instantly clasp his shoulders, reaching over to peek at his eyes.

He's right. That would be perfect.

No one could find someone determined to hide in the maze of the Underground.

"Like when the lights go out? Or my water doesn't work?"

He nods again.

"You might as well just stay with me," I laugh, feeling happy just thinking about the future. "You're not used to living down here. I think you'll need my help more."

"Is that a proposal?"

I blush faintly. "Maybe it is."

"Then I accept." He says, and I can feel strange flutters deep in my chest as I unconsciously hug his neck tighter. Even though he's been carrying me for the last five minutes uphill, the arms enclosed around me are firm and steady.

I breathe out softly.

And my eyes lift, to see the tree. It's as massive as I remember— a miracle growing in the middle of a smoke-filled desert. The shades are as vibrant as ever.

"We're here."

He sets me down. I go towards the tree, as if I'm almost drawn to it. If the memories had come back in drops earlier, it now pours across my mind.

I can see Aemin.

Isn't it beautiful, baby girl?

His eyes glimmer in my direction as he tucks a pale flower into the curve of my ear. And I smile widely at him, my fingertips burying itself into the blades of soft grass.

Come here.

My eyes lift.

I can feel V's gaze on my back as I slowly make my way over to the base of the tree. The roots itself are huge, covering the ground in a thick, tangled brown.

This is our secret, Aeri.

My breaths feel shallow as I crouch, reaching my hand into a gaping hole, guarded by ivy. My fingertips brush against something foreign and cold.

Promise me that you'll keep it.

A thin, narrow tube. The cap comes off easily, and I spill the contents out into my palm. There's nothing much in it in the first place— only a tight roll of paper.

I spread it open.

This is it.

The blueprint of the explosive that could level the Underground off the map.

"Aeri!"

My head jerks up in surprise at the sound of V's urgent call. And before I can even take my next breath, someone crashes straight into my side. Arms snake around my shoulders, the same moment I hear a spray of gunshots echo through the air.

The impact is so hard that the blueprint rips in my hands. A streak of agony runs down my back as I hit the ground, and I lose all feeling in my right arm for a brief second.

The piece of the blueprint slips from my fingertips. It flutters away in the breeze, and I cry out as I reach for it.

A large, pale hand tugs me back. In a second V has pulled me up to my feet, already leading me down a pathway on the opposite side of the hill. I see a group of men on the path that we had come from, guns in their hands.

"Leave it."

The men lift their guns again, aiming straight for us. And the only thing I hear is V's desperate whisper.

"Run."