VANILLA COFFEE - n. yuta

twelve. radio silence

"why don't we call the police?"

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meiling was sitting in the middle of the couch with her shaky hands in her lap. her leg was bouncing up and down due to her anxiety and the others didn't help as they just stared at her. needless to say, the girl was uncomfortable.

jaehyun returned to the room after getting her some food and taeyong approached her with a first aid kit.

"go away, you guys are scaring her."

"we're just curious."

"go be curious somewhere else," jaehyun shrugged and sat beside the girl after placing the food on the table in front of her.

taeyong kneeled on the floor in front of her and opened the first aid kit. he grabbed a few things for the cut on her forehead and the bruises on her face and arms.

meiling noticed how the other boys slowly dispersed, not wanting to argue with their leader and the man officially put in charge of the girl. she felt comfort in their presence, how taeyong was like a caring mother treating her wounds, and how jaehyun was protective of her and scared the others away when he saw how uncomfortable she was.

taeyong finished cleaning her wounds and smiled at her. "there, i hope it helps."

"thank you," she whispered to him with a small smile. she watched him smile warmly at her before getting up and leaving the room.

jaehyun pushed the plate of food closer to her and motioned for her to eat, "i didn't know what you'd want so i got you a couple of different things."

meiling smiled softly at him, giving him a thankful nod before starting to eat. she wasn't used to social interactions since she didn't get out much due to fear of running into her father. daehyun always made sure she had money and often went shopping with her when she needed something. she felt like a burden to him sometimes. she hated how he had to provide for her just because she wasn't strong enough to protect herself. she didn't want to be weak anymore, she wanted to be stronger.

she intended to get stronger.

-

it had been a few hours and there was no word from daehyun.

everyone was sitting together and was growing increasingly more worried as the minutes ticked on, especially meiling.

she knew how their father was and knew what he was capable of. she didn't want to think that he'd kill his own son, but that man wasn't good in the slightest. there was no telling what he could do at this point. his weird obsession with meiling could cause daehyun his life and the girl knew that he'd give his life to keep her safe.

that's what scared her. daehyun would die to protect her even if she didn't want him to. she was biting her nails as she watched the clock.

"stop that," jaehyun pulled her hands away from her mouth and set them down on her lap, "it's a bad habit."

"sorry, i'm just worried for my brother. he hasn't contacted any of us. what if he's seriously hurt?"

"let's try not to think like that."

"why don't we call the police?"

"because we don't know what is happening or where it's happening."

"she does," donghyuck pointed at meiling who shrunk back into the couch.

"i honestly don't know what's happening anymore."

"but you know what happened before you came here. what was it?"

flashes of what happened only hours ago passed through her mind making her shudder. "scary," was the only thing she whispered.

yuta was relentlessly texting daehyun in hopes that he'd text back. he just wanted to know if the boy he'd grown attached to was still alive at least. he needed daehyun to be okay.

doyoung was glaring at his phone as he texted daehyun. he was mad at his best friend for multiple reasons. the fact that he kept his sister a secret, which wasn't as important at the moment, and the fact that he left to put himself in a dangerous situation that could endanger his life. he couldn't lose his best friend. he wouldn't.

a weak knock sounded on the door and everyone rushed towards it, doyoung pulling it open to reveal a figure wearing a bucket hat, dark sunglasses, and a black face mask.

daehyun looked up at them, making eye contact with meiling before he passed out on the doorstep of nct 127's dorm room.