- Forty One -

1.9K 109 102
                                    

They had no idea where they were going but it was a bright and sunny day, so they weren't too upset about walking outside.

The sunlight felt warm, and a sort of beauty held in it the way it seemed to shine that day.

They had headed out the entrance door they had entered, still not used to the sight of the huge stainless steel building that shone in the light.

When they had first got there, the sky was transitioning to night time, so they really didn't get to see the building in full light. To say it was astonishing was an understatement.

Ten continued to lead the way, heading directly into a thick brush, until he himself had disappeared. It was another distraction, a screen like the one for the warehouse. So Ten was used to the dark image of trees that made the forest seem dangerous. The boys stopped, not wanting to go where Ten was, it seemed suspicious.

When Ten realized that they others weren't following, he headed back, looking at the frozen boys in confusion.

"Guys," he said, "what are you doing?"

Chenle shifted uneasily on his two feet, seemingly nervous.

"When we learned about forestry," Ten's confused face made the younger pause, until he realized that the older didn't understand.

Not having the confidence that he could translate it in Korean well, he looked at Renjun with pleading eyes.


Without having to say actual words, the older understood, and turned to Ten to further explain.

"When we learned about forestry, or the study of trees, or plant-making, we learned of the dangerous brush that could be located around and underneath these trees. As well as the dangerous animals living in this area," he explained, his words sinking in as he too realized the potential dangers that could be facing them.

Ten looked at them in understanding, comprehending what Renjun had told him, and smiled in reassurance.

"Guys, we've been living there," he pointed at the little bit of the building that they could still see, "for years. We've been tracking every living thing that resides in these woods, and we know these forests like the backs of our hands. If there were any dangerous animals, we took care of them years ago," he said, still smiling softly.

That information seemed to calm them down, each taking deep breaths, and then Ten held his hand out, ready to help whoever needed it.

Chenle took it, and he was pulled through the brush and on the other side, where he, too, disappeared from the other boys' eyes.

Next was Jisung, not wanting to be apart from Chenle too long, followed by Mark and Donghyuck. Jaemin and Jeno seemed to have a little battle as to who would accompany Renjun across.

The oldest of the three sighed, pushing them together quickly, making them hold onto each other in shock, and pushed them through the little image without Ten's help.

Ten said nothing but laughed a little in amusement.

Renjun only sighed slightly, before smiling back at the older boy.

Renjun took Ten's hand, who also walked through with Renjun.

Chenle and Mark were too busy looking at the distraction that Renjun and Ten passed through to actually get out of the way, making the Chenle and Mark fall backwards when suddenly Renjun and Ten were there.

Renjun looked back at what they were looking as.

It was what they had just come through, a iridescent marbly surface that showed a distorted image of where they had just come from.

Guilty Parties  [ NoRenMin ] | ✓Where stories live. Discover now