𝑩𝒂𝒄𝒌 𝒂𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒍𝒍 //𝑺𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒚 𝑲𝒊𝒅𝒔 𝑭𝑭//

~𝟰~

"Finally decided to join me?" Lee Know asked, dropping the weight he was lifting a moment before. He got up and grabbed the towel on the floor in front of him.

"Yeah, I was just-"

"Talking to Chan, right? I hope he wasn't too harsh on you." He came closer, arms crossing over his chest.

"No, not at all. He was really nice. Why'd you think he would.... Oh, right. You guys are his inferiors." I gave a giggle, and he rolled his eyes.

"Oh, I can assure you we are not inferior to him. He can just get a little.... Angry when we don't tell him things. He just wants to protect us."

"I noticed. It really is endearing, the way he cares for-"

I was cut off by a loud noise, making me curl in on myself and clutch my ears.

"What is that?!" I yelled.

"Don't worry! Just follow me," he yelled back, not even fazed by the noise.

He walked out the door and I followed as best I could. He jogged up the stairs and walked to the door at the end of the hallway. He opened it to reveal the rest of the members already standing inside. As soon as he stepped over the threshold, the blaring alarm stopped. I slowly took my hands off my ears, afraid that the noise would start up again.

"It's okay, Ava. Sorry for the noise. We probably should have warned you," Hyunjin said, looking slightly guilty.

"It's fine. I just might be a bit hard of hearing for a while."

"Usually the sound isn't that loud, unless the commander has something important to say," Chan added.

"Ah, good to see you could all make it," a voice said from behind me. I turned and found Commander Della Valle's face on a big screen on the wall. The boys all stood up straight and saluted him. I moved to do the same when he spoke again.

"That won't be necessary. I wanted to check in on you, Agent Noyes. Have you been adapting well?"

I hesitated slightly. I didn't know if I could trust him.

"Yes. Yes, I have. It's actually nice to live with eight men, Sir."

"Good. I'm glad to hear that. Now, I actually have a mission for the nine of you."

I felt my stomach clench. I looked up at Chan and Lee Know. It'll be okay, Chan mouthed, placing a gentle hand on my shoulder. I looked at the floor. My mind trying to remember everything I knew about my job, and how to stay safe. My thoughts scattering as Commander Della Valle spoke again.

"It shouldn't be too difficult. Just a simple find and retrieve. But there is just one problem. My boss told me that we are not able to kill anyone unless there is no other choice. So, I expect you all to come home with clean clothes and no bullets missing from your magazines."

"Yes, Sir," we all said in unison. Then the screen went black again.

"So, now what?" I asked no one in particular, my voice trembling more than I would have wanted.

"Now, we get going. But don't worry. It'll be fun," Changbin said, a malicious smirk on his mouth.

"Ignore him. He likes it when we can't kill anyone. That way he gets to get his hands dirty."

I looked up at Felix as he spoke to me, almost falling through a hole in the floor. It had a pole through the middle. Through the hole I could see what I assumed was the weapons room Chan had talked about on our tour.

"Come on, I'll catch you," Han said from down below. I cautiously took the pole and slid down, feeling his hands touch my back as I landed, steadying me. I turned away from the pole and he clasped my wrist, fastening something around it that looked like a smartwatch.

"These are our comms, but it also contains a suit. Bulletproof, waterproof, and fireproof. It fastens on over your clothes, so you can put it on any time you want," he said, tapping the screen and pressing a button. A rubbery material formed from underneath the watch, stretching up my arm and over my body.

"It's only a temporary one so it might be a little loose. Once you are officially part of the team, your own one will get programmed for you."

I moved around, admiring the detailing. As I was in my own little world, Seungmin came to me and gave me a pair of lace up boots.

"These are the most comfortable shoes you'll ever wear. We can speak from experience."

"Looks like you guys are fully geared out. Our team never had anything like this."

"It's all Channie Hyung, keeping us safe like the overprotective dad that he is," Seungmin said, shooting Chan a playful glance. Hyunjin gently took my wrist and led me to a big glass cupboard. Knives, pistols, sniper rifles. All packed into neat rows.

"What's your weapon of choice? I'm guessing you like getting up close and personal." He opened the glass and took out a few throwing knives, glinting in the light.

"Actually, no. I'd rather keep my distance. I don't really like seeing the life drain out of my victims."

I picked up a pistol, examining the weapon in my hands and aiming it at the wall.

"This should work," I said, turning back to Hyunjin. He brought forth a belt, the holster light in his hands.

"May I?" he asked, motioning to the belt and then my waist.

"S-sure."

He hesitantly wrapped the belt around my waist, keeping his eyes on mine, judging my facial expressions. He tightened it slightly and took the weapon from my hands, putting it in its place. He got up off his haunches and turned to grab his own weapon. I curled and uncurled my fingers, watching the new material stretch over my skin.

"Feels weird, doesn't it? Took me a while to get used to it, but it's barely noticeable once it settles in."

Felix's deep voice rang out from behind me. I turned around to face him. He smiled softly, before pulling up the hood connected to his suit. He motioned to my hood, silently asking if he could pull it over my head. I nodded softly. He slowly reached to the sides of my neck and pulled up the hood, making me notice for the first time how small his hands were.

"Your hands are tiny. It's so cute!" I exclaimed, gently taking his hand and comparing it to mine.

"I know. I don't know why though."

"It's okay. It makes you unique, not that you weren't already."

"Thank you. I appreciate you saying that."

He smiled at me, his eyes forming the cutest eye smile. It was strange to me having men care so much and be so gentle with me. I just hoped they would stay that way when my secrets came out.

"Come on, the chopper's waiting for us," Chan called. The boys each grabbed a big bag of equipment and went outside. Chan pulled me aside.

"Whatever happens out there, just know that we all trust you, even though we have only known you for two days. But I know you will do great."

I smiled at his encouraging words, even though the worry was clear in his voice. I ran outside after the others and climbed into the chopper, the steady drumming of the propeller easing my nerves. I sat down between Jeongin and Seungmin; Changbin, Han and Hyunjin across from me. I gently laid my head back against the cool metal of the chopper and closed my eyes. It was like a habit. Before every mission, I would close my eyes and take a few deep breaths.

"Hey, you okay?" Seungmin asked, his hand gently falling onto my knee as Chan came in and closed the door.

"Yeah, I'm okay. I just do this before every mission I go on. A little habit."

"Oh, like Chan giving one of us a pep talk or Han tying and retying his shoelaces three times before a mission?"

"Exactly like that," I giggled, both the mentioned boys sporting red cheeks.

As we flew to the destination, I watched in awe at how close the guys were. Making jokes and laughing together. Teasing without being mean. And to think they had only been together for two years. It had taken me at least three years to start trusting my team members, and only four months after that did I start letting my walls down. And suddenly I thought to myself, would I ever trust these eight men enough to disclose the information that had scarred me for life?