The Mystic 13

4.

"You and I, we are forever a pair."

Joshua sat in the silence of a dark room. He had screamed until his throat hurt but no one came. No one had saved him. He was scared of all the unknown possibilities. In that moment he heard a sound. He froze in fear and held his breath. He didn't expect it to be Woozi when the door opened. The expression on Woozi's face was of relief.

No one but Hoshi had known where Woozi was. They spoke through their bond as he walked into the room and carefully walked toward Joshua.

"I found him. Keep up the facade for now. We can't let the fake Joshua know that we found the real one. We'll lose all of our leverage if we do." Woozi said. He could feel Hoshi's relief through the bond.

"I got it, Hyung. Stay safe."

"I will. We'll head your way as soon as I make sure he's okay." Hoshi gave a quick okay before he went silent again. Joshua scooted further back in an attempt to protect himself. Woozi could tell just by reading his aura that he'd been through hell. Woozi bent down in front of Joshua and smiled.

"It's really me, I promise. I'm the real Woozi. How long have you been here?" Joshua hesitated for a moment before holding out his hand. Woozi grabbed it and pulled him into a hug.

"I've been here for a week." Woozi felt his heart clench. He was angry that it had taken him that long to realize that it hadn't been the real Joshua.

"I'm so sorry I failed you. I should have realized sooner." Joshua pulled out of the hug and shook his head.

"It's okay. You found me. What's happening? Is everyone okay?" Woozi nodded lightly.

"The fake Joshua, who I think is Seungkwan's brother, hasn't tried anything yet. He doesn't even know that Hoshi and I know he isn't the real one."

"Do you have any water? My throat is raw from screaming." Woozi nodded and pulled out a water bottle to give him.

"Let's get you out of here and to the Annex. Hoshi is waiting for us." Joshua nodded. With Woozi's help, he was able to stand. The two of them carefully headed toward the Annex. When they got there, Hoshi was sitting on the table. His eyes were closed and he was fiddling with his fingers.

"Baby?" He opened his eyes as soon as he heard Woozi's voice. He was off the table in an instant and running toward them.

"Hyung. Are you okay?" Joshua nodded as he hugged the younger.

"I'm okay. How did you guys figure out that he wasn't me?" Hoshi let go of him and pulled them toward the table. He walked out of the room and came back a moment later with food in hand. He handed it to Joshua and motioned to sit down.

"It was Woozi that realized." Woozi nodded at Hoshi's words and went on to explain.

"I only noticed because of the way he was acting. It was how he acted around DK that gave it away. I couldn't see his aura."

"How was it different? I didn't notice anything." Hoshi said with a raised brow.

"The real Josh-" He said, motioning to Joshua. "Is very gentle with DK. Not only in touch but in words too. You wouldn't have noticed it but because I was mute for as long as I was, I learned how to read the way people talk and their tones. Anyway, my point is that his voice was not as gentle as the real Josh's. That's how I noticed. I know you can't tell Josh, but I can. There's probably no one in this world that talks to him as gently as you do. You're in love with him and a person like me could tell it from a mile away." Joshua could only smile. He had never realized how observant Woozi was till that moment. He was thankful for it too. Had Woozi not noticed that little change, He might have never been found.