KING

一 18

That got her attention, her head whipping around to stare at Taeyong, a glint of triumph in his dark eyes at the reaction he'd managed to elicit from her.

She resisted the urge to smack that grin off his face, settling for narrowing her eyes.

"And I think he was right to worry about that." A knowing smirk began to grow on his lips, and she felt the urge to smack him increase, a constant itch at the back of her mind.

Not the best idea, she told herself. He was didn't seem to be stronger than her, having a thin frame hidden by the bulky coat he had donned, but she didn't want to underestimate someone who could be potentially dangerous. That, and the fact that neither Ten nor Johnny would particularly appreciate her smacking their friend.

"You're very similar to the old man." She glared at him, she could see the clear enjoyment in his eyes. He was amused, toying with her.

"You're interesting, Rina." Taeyong clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth, rest his chin in his hand. "You seem to not be hiding much from any of us. You're innocent, having been thrown into a prison for merely just existing, and then you escaped with the people who brought your brother to safety. You seem so," He paused, searching for the right word. "Weak." He said.

The word rung in her head, bouncing around her skull, and she could feel her fingers tighten around the railing to the point where her knuckles felt numb.

"But are you really?" His voice had dropped to a whisper, yet the question still hung heavy in the air.

She finally turned to him, letting go of the railing as she faced him. He mirrored her, turning entirely so that the two of them stood face to face.

She tilted her head up slightly, jutting out her chin in defiance. He was accusing of her of being secretive, she was smart enough to read between the lines. Or rather, she thought as she narrowed her eyes at him, he was was trying to gauge at how much she knew about something, something he wanted to know.

She just needed to find out what it was.

He looked down at her, strands of his white hair being blown as the wind picked up pace.

Brace the storm.

"You're an NCT, aren't you?" He asked, an eyebrow raised. "At least, half an NCT. You're not even fully human. You're half robot, most of your senses enhanced."

She could feel her heart pounding as she widened her eyes, taking a brief step back. She swore in her head, the curse being the only thing heard over the ringing in her ears.

The triumph that had glittered in those dark orbs fizzled out slowly as he watched her reaction closely, a frown curving his lips downwards.

"Did you even want it?" He asked lowly. Now that was a question she knew how to respond to. She immediately shook her head, rather vigorously. She didn't ask for her nerves to be connected to computers for days on an end as they tried to do the impossible, to regenerate cells that couldn't, she didn't ask for wires to twine with her veins, she didn't ask for her vocal cords to be damaged when they couldn't get the right program.

She didn't ask to be turned into a robot, an NCT, a part of the Neo Culture Technology Project, a failure.

"I'm willing to help." He said. "And you can help me in return." A light smirk replaced the frown, eyes sparkling with mirth. "Youngho always told me that if you ever met me, we'd probably click right away, but you always preferred to stay in the Palace."

Oh, holy f-

Before she could complete the curse in her head, he continued. "Lucas and Mark told me about how you seem to have acted rather strangely with them." He tilted his head, arms over his chest. "Ten, bless his soul, seems to be rather attached to you, and refused to tell me just exactly what you are."