𝐒𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐄𝐍 𝐆𝐔𝐄𝐒𝐓 𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐒𝐄

46; 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙮𝙤𝙪

happily, soonyoung bit a huge chunk out of his sandwich. "soonyoung, you have strawberry jam all over your mouth. that's fucking disgusting." minghao pointed to soonyoung.

soonyoung licked it off. "okay, that's more fucking disgusting. stop it!" minghao sets the sandwich on fire.

yes, the members got the abilities of their own back to themselves. joshua was a genius, but wonwoo would like some credit for handing joshua his pen. if wonwoo hadn't handed joshua that pen, joshua wouldn't have wrote those crazy equations and notes and he wouldn't have made a new version of sands of time that reverses the original version's effects.

sadly, soonyoung throws the burnt sandwich away. "that was a good sandwich! what a waste!" he huffs, reminiscing the taste from the first and only bite he had out of that strawberry jam sandwich. "anyway. where's shrimpy?" soonyoung says, getting over his sandwich immediately.

"i don't know." minghao replied. "i was with him on the elevator on the way here. he seemed like he was going to the twelfth floor."

so soonyoung bolted to the twelfth floor immediately, reminding himself to punch minghao if he finds no jihoon in the twelfth floor.

jihoon was floating along the pool, eyes closed, breathing lightly. soonyoung decided not to shout and interrupt jihoon on whatever he was doing. soonyoung just sat on one of the beach chairs and watched the night sky.

the stars are showing tonight, which soonyoung liked very much. the cresent was the center piece, and the stars scattered around it made the sight more pleasing to the eye, that you'd want to stare at it for longer than intended.

soonyoung almost forgot why he was here, until jihoon rised from the pool and flicked soonyoung's forehead. "you, what are you doing here?" jihoon places his hands on his waist. "i was trying to relax until i saw your face."

"aw, is my face unsettling? i don't look anything like a monster from a horror movie, right?" soonyoung made a fake sad face. "you? you're in your natural habitat, shrimpy! but y—hey! let me sit here in peace!" soonyoung cuts himself off when he realized that he was floating, courtesy of jihoon.

"you interrupted my supposed alone time!" jihoon replied, before sitting on the beach chair beside where soonyoung sat. soonyoung did not reply.

as time passed by, soonyoung found himself diverting his gaze from the sky to jihoon. soonyoung did not want to question himself for doing that; he wanted to enjoy looking at a calm jihoon.

jihoon's soft features definitely didn't match his usual aura, grumpy and shut out from the world. his eyes, just like soonyoung's, they were small. soonyoung can usually read jihoon's expression when he looks at jihoon's eyes, but now, soonyoung can't fathom how many emotions jihoon is showing, or if he is even showing one at all.

and: god, they were beautiful. they shine with the help of the moon's reflection, and its depth was unimaginable. then, soonyoung realized: he's not showing any emotion.

"you..." soonyoung starts, and jihoon's gaze drops to soonyoung. "you're beautiful, but you're empty."

jihoon looked at his lap, and chuckled. this made soonyoung only more attracted to the mystery of jihoon. "is that so? i'm beautiful? i mean, i know i'm empty, but beautiful? seriously?"

soonyoung thought that jihoon would react the opposite way he actually reacted, soonyoung thought that jihoon would object his perception of jihoon being empty. "you know you're empty?"

"of course i do. it's inevitable for an orphan like me. in the beginning, you'd be full of hope that someone would pick you up from the terrible place you stay in, that someone would take you in and make you a part of their family. but as you grow up, you realize things. nobody's going in to pick you up, and you lose hope as another day passes by." jihoon opened his arms like he was presenting himself. "and this is the product. me."

"but jeonghan's so happy! chan too!"

"they're happy because they believe in wonwoo's plans of taking us out of the orphanage. they lost hope, too, but wonwoo came. plus jeonghan is just usually like that."

"you?"

"huh?"

"you don't believe in wonwoo?"

"i didn't, but i wanted to atleast try. and at the last try, i got out and i was accepted in seventeen."

soonyoung smiled at jihoon, to which jihoon didn't understand. what was that smile for? "jihoon, can i give you happiness instead?"

"sure, if you can't fill me with hope." jihoon laughed, shrugging off whatever soonyoung meant. jihoon took it as a joke, until he noticed that soonyoung's expression didn't change. "i-i mean... happiness is what will come when you—soonyoung, i don't get you." jihoon gives up and asks soonyoung directly.

soonyoung shifted his body to face jihoon properly. "jihoon, i want to fill you with happiness. if you can do it yourself, i will still help you. as i said, you're beautiful, but you're empty." soonyoung held one of jihoon's hands, as he continued. "while i was looking at you, i can't deny your beauty. but you know, your beauty makes me sad. it's because you're empty."

soonyoung did not get a response. he expected jihoon to slap his hand away, scoff at him and leave for saying such things. but, like what soonyoung saw in jihoon when they were out for their first mission together, jihoon showed soonyoung his vulnerability.

jihoon smiled and chortled. "whatever, do what you want." before jihoon jumped into the pool. soonyoung smiled, feeling fulfilled when he hasn't even started on his mission.

the team was called in for a meeting again—unfortunately, for jihoon and soonyoung, who were having fun and conversing in the twelfth floor. much more unfortunate for jihoon, who was fresh out of the pool.

"guys," seungcheol said, eyeing jihoon who was dripping wet before he continued. "i have bad news to break." seungcheol looked back at the unknown person behind him, who was tapping away on his phone.

"is he going to join seventeen?" chan points to the unknown person. he looked young, almost younger than chan. "i don't see that as bad news at all!" chan beamed. it hurted seeing chan's smile right now, for seungcheol, so seungcheol looks away.

"he's not. anyway, this is the bad news." seungcheo took a deep breath, before he spat it out. "jinha is missing."

chan's smile faded. his eyes that was previously filled with happiness suddenly became dull, and his face twitched. seungcheol knew that jinha grew on chan, so he expected this.

"it's the note on my construction costume, right?" wonwoo inquires, showing the piece of paper. they pass it around to read, and when it reaches chan, it's reduced to trash: ripped into pieces, and balled up. "i'm pretty sure they kidnapped jinha. but where could she be?"

"you're right, they did kidnap her." the unknown person steps into the spotlight, brushing his dyed hair off of his face. "i know where in seoul, just not the exact building. they're not using it as an attack to seventeen, it's an attack to seoul. the entirety of seoul." he says and shoves his phone inside his pocket.

"who are you?" jihoon asked. as usual, being rude.

"i am...." he smirked. "seventeen's informant. kim minseok, at your service."