It had been a mistake to underestimate the size of the safe house, one wrong turn and the place had become a labyrinth. Nari winced as she carefully turned her neck around, gnawing her lip as she tried to identify the rooms around her or someone who could point her in the right direction.
As she was about to follow another random hallway, a familiar face came into view, a grin brightening his face as he came closer.
"Mark," Nari managed to get out before he engulfed her in a hug. The contact was unexpected, but she squeezed him back, trying to be conscientious of her wounds. "Everybody is okay, right? You're all safe?"
He pulled away, the grin never leaving his expression. "Not a scratch to show for the mission, only you were with the few who were injured. How do you feel?" he asked, the mirth draining from his attitude as he caught a glimpse of her bandages.
Sore shoulders scrunching, Nari shook her head. "I'm feeling pretty okay, considering what I went through."
Mark bit his lip, sorry to bring the subject of her capture up so soon. "I shouldn't have asked like that, I - "
"No, it's... its okay, I'm sorry," Nari stopped him, rubbing her eyes tiredly, her head feeling light. "I'm fine, thank you for asking."
Still uncomfortable, Mark rocked on his feet, pointing down the hallway he had just come from. "Do you want me to show you where you're bunking? Taeyong requested we put you with the rest of Stray Kids instead of your own room - "
"Yes. Take me to them now, please," she jumped in suddenly, hand grasping his arm in desperation. An ache was building in her chest, and she was afraid she would burst if she couldn't affirm that they were all well and okay herself.
"Follow me," Mark announced, gently tugging her to walk alongside him as he showed her the way. "It's just down a few hallways."
Everything felt surreal for some reason, like a dream; Nari's feet felt like they were full of lead, every step like it was in slow motion. Mark was speaking still, but the words reached her like she was underwater, garbled and thick. As they turned the last corner, he led Nari to the correct door and placed a hand on her shoulder reassuringly before leaving her to the reunion.
Slowly, Nari raised her curled fist and thumped it on the wood, her heart slamming against her ribs as she waited for the door to open. There was some commotion on the other side, and she could hear voices and some laughing. Footsteps approached the door and it swung open with no warning, the greeter looking shocked at the girl standing before him. It took him a second, but he scooped her into a deep hug, one hand cradling her head as he embraced her.
Nari's eyes watered as she fiercely hugged him back, her tangled emotions forcing themselves out. "Felix... oh my God, you're okay," she breathed out, eyes squeezing shut as she let herself relax in his warm arms.
"It's okay," he murmured while stroking her hair, blinking quickly as he brushed a kiss on top of her head. "You're safe now."
The other had caught on and were swarming the pair now, Jisung's excited yells and Changbin's sighs of relief filling her ears as Seungmin's arms silently joined Felix's around her, his hand patting her shoulder gently. Felix didn't let go for a long time.
The group finally broke it up when Chan emerged from the steamy bathroom, blinking the moisture out of his eyes as he saw her. "So what did Minho say, there isn't any permanent damage, right?" he worried as he walked over, taking her hands in his to inspect them.
Nari shook her head, fingers twitching as Chan turned her hands over under his meticulous gaze. "Nothing. A broken finger is the worst of it," she confirmed, waving her bandaged hand up for them to see.
"Well that's a relief."
A gentle hand reached over her shoulder from behind and grasped her own, a pair of lips brushing the white gauze. Jisung made a grossed out noise as Nari laughed and glanced back, Hyunjin's tender eyes peering back at her. "Are you really feeling alright? Shouldn't you be lying down?" he fussed while running his fingers through her hair.
Ignoring the boy's smothering concern, Nari slipped out of his grasp and into their shared room. "You don't need to worry, I swear. Now all of you go away, I'm going to shower."
As the boys grumbled and left, growing quieter as they walked down the hall, Chan poked his head in, eyes resting on the carpeted floor. "I'll wait for you, everyone's leaving to eat."
"You don't have to, Chan, really."
Her leader grinned brightly before he shut the door. "I know."
All of the sudden the silence was deafening. Every time she touched her own skin it was too loud, every noisy breath filled her ears. Nari awkwardly undressed, her body still stiff, and padded barefoot to the bathroom. She watched her hands turn the knobs in the shower, her elbow testing to make sure the water was a moderate temperature and stepped under the stream, letting it wash away the horrible things that had been done to her.
The water was a murky brown by the time it streamed to her feet. Nari winced as she moved her head under the spray, the water forcibly rinsing the sweat and grime and blood out. She didn't know how long she was in there, carefully keeping her hands dry, rubbing her skin almost raw to feel clean; when she stepped out, it still didn't feel like enough.
Someone had left clean clothes for her on one of the beds, and taken the dirty ones from the floor. She felt numb as she pulled the soft material over her aching body, but her mood lifted a tad when she spotted and put on the fuzzy socks at the bottom of the pile.
After brushing out her damp hair and arranging a decent expression on her face, Nari opened the door and looked around for Chan. Her mouth formed his name before she spotted him, and she bit her tongue, a small smile teasing her mouth.
He was dozing on the floor next to the door, knees pulled up to his chest as he breathed softly. Nari knelt down slowly, placing her bandaged hand on his knee to wake him.
"Chan? Are you ready to go?"
A small tremor went through his body as his eyes sleepily opened, blinking several times to focus on Nari. "Yeah, sorry. I must have fallen asleep."
"No, I took too long. Come on, you're probably way hungrier than I am," she said, pulling on his arm as he stood, joints popping as he stretched.
"You did take a long time," Chan accused as they left, carefully grabbing Nari and hooking her in his elbow, rubbing her head lightly with his knuckles. She gasped and fought back against his massive strength playfully, squealing as she begged him to stop, even though it didn't hurt.
Their mirth echoed down the hall as Chan's phone went unnoticed on the ground, having fallen from his pocket when he was asleep. The display lit up for a moment with a message from an unknown number. A single line of text with a file attached blinked onto the screen.
S.O.S. - KW
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