√ 𝐸𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑣𝑒𝑠𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡 // 𝐻𝑤𝑎𝑛𝑔 𝐻𝑦𝑢𝑛𝑗𝑖𝑛

twenty one.

     The quiet house felt distinctly like home when Nari walked in. After Chan opened the front door, the boys spilled into the foyer, exhausted expressions on their faces. Nari followed, trudging in like her shoes were filled with water.

     It had been not more than six hours earlier that Nari had been taken, and it was almost midnight now. Sighs of tiredness filled the room, but everyone stood up straight and faced their leader.

     "Any orders, Chan?" Woojin asked, barely covering up a large yawn. Against her will, Nari copied her senior's action, mouth stretching open while her nose wrinkled cutely.

     Chan laughed quietly and tousled Nari's hair, smirking endearingly.  "Only one. All of you go get some rest."

     Gratefully, the group dispersed to their rooms to get ready for bed. Before Nari could even turn the light in her room on, someone deftly slid in with her and clicked the door place behind his back.

     Nari flinched back in fear before she recognized who it was. "Hyunjin, don't scare me like that," she laughed weakly, lifting a hand to her pounding chest. He said nothing, only stood with his back pressed against the smooth wood of the door. Nari squinted in the dark, trying to see him better. "Are... are you okay?"

     He inhaled shakily and reached a trembling hand out, grasping the hand she had rested on her chest. "I'm sorry," he whispered, and everything else spilled out. "This whole thing was my fault, I didn't get to you fast enough, I wasn't thinking quickly enough. I put you in danger and - "

     "Stop," Nari murmured softly. She closed the space between them and stood on her tippy toes, sliding her arms around his neck in a comforting manner. "Stop Hyunjin. Don't blame yourself, it wasn't your fault."

     Shaking, Hyunjin returned her embrace, wrapping his strong arms around her waist and clinging to her, just to make sure she really was safe. He laughed breathily, stirring the hair on her shoulder.

     "I couldn't think of anything else while you were gone. I wanted... I wanted to hurt them, to kill whoever it was that took you, to make them pay with blood. Of course, after I realized it was your brother, that plan went down the drain."

     Shocked by his intense words, she pulled away to look Hyunjin in the eye. "But why... "

     He cocked an eyebrow. "Why what?"

     Clearing her throat awkwardly, Nari attempted to finish her thought. "Why would you want to hurt my captors so much? It would have been the same with any of the others," she said, coughing out a fake laugh. Her face burned as she became extra aware of Hyunjin's arms holding her to him still.

     Hyunjin blanched and started to disentangle their bodies, stepping a respectful distance away from Nari. "I... um, yeah, that's what I meant. All my members matter to me, and you're one of them now, so... "

     Nari couldn't help the disappointment that panged in her chest. Sometimes she felt like Hyunjin returned her feelings, like they had a real connection. And others she felt like she was just his annoying younger sister, clamoring for attention.

     "Oh," she relied lamely. "That's really nice."

     A few moments of empty silence passed, and Hyunjin almost burst with frustration. He was yelling internally at himself upon seeing Nari's face, beating himself up.

     Stupid, stupid, stupid! Can't you see how crushed she looks?

     Trying not to make the situation worse, Hyunjin reached for the doorknob. "Well, I should go to bed, and you're probably exhausted, so... goodnight."