Forget me not • Felix

Chapter 24

The projection cut off.

"Tell the men to sweep the area, I don't want any corner unseen," Hongjoong looked at me briefly before gazing back at Choi, "and bring me the bodies."
Hongjoong made his way gradually over to us in the chairs, both of us quiet, not knowing what to do next. The leader crouched down to our eye level, making sure to capture my glare.
"I'm sorry, at least you weren't there to see it in person."
I lunged forward, or as much as I could while still restrained. At this moment, I resembled a rabid animal wanting to tear down its prey.

He backed away.
"Once my guys have searched the area, I'll return you to your home."
Hongjoong explained that for now, a man would guard us constantly. While he claimed it was for security, he indirectly was stopping Jisung and I from mourning.
Jongho was the first one on shift after Choi and Hongjoong left. This time, I noticed the hand gun attached to his hip and shiv on the other side. Don't get too friendly Y/N!
I looked over at Jisung, his eyes holding back the pain, similarly to mine. My bottom lip quivered and I could feel a tightness in my neck - holding back sadness can sometimes be worse than letting it out.

My movement allowed me to lean my head on his shoulder and he rested his head on top of mine. As the only kind of comforting motion we could do, we both appreciated it right now.
"I saw the broadcast," Jongho spoke out.
The boy was outgoing with his dialogue with me since we arrived, I wondered if he was even allowed to be like this.
"I'm sorry about your brother and his friend."
While the apology was unexpected, the genuine empathy behind it was more unexpected.
I couldn't say it was ok; it wasn't. Equally, I couldn't say how I felt as it could be seen as a weakness for them to probe.

"Thank you," was my only response that I felt I could give. Silence trapped us all for the rest of Jongho's shift. None of us dared to speak and by this time, I was almost sobered by the traumatic experience - all I wanted was to go home and cry. A knock came at the door. Jongho's time was over.
A different man stood by the doorway. He was around Jongho's height and had dark ish coloured hair, though he looked around my age. The new arrival whispered something to Jongho. At first, I assumed it could just be ordered or gossip or something, but his rapid mouth movement alluded that it was more serious and urgent.

The familiar boy sharply turned his head to face us, trying to keep his cool.
His last words before both the men disappeared were "stay here!"
Huh, like we could go anywhere anyway...
There was a lot of clattering in the distance, people sprinting past where we were being kept, shouting from varied distances, it was a mess out there.
"What do you think is going on?" I asked.
Jisung shrugged, "I don't know, some kind of drill maybe?"
Jinxing it, an alarm screeched after Jisung spoke. I scanned round our room and saw a small red flashing light blinking in one of the top corners. A fire alarm maybe? Or a warning sign...

We could only wonder what was happening out there; no one came back in for a long time to even check we were still here. Then, a face I had seen a lot of today stormed into the room.
Jongho. The panicked boy ran behind the chairs and released us from the restraints. Confused from his actions, he spoke out, "your brother, he- they say he's here and- he's killing my hyungs, my family... I'm sorry they tried to kill yours but if I can take you closer to where they are then hopefully the shots can end."
It wasn't just him helping, it was a plea. If it had not have been for their actions up until now, I'd have completely stood up with them and protected them, making sure my brother and his men didn't hurt anyone else. But, I didn't know how to feel. Though, my heart bled with Jongho's. The more I saw him, the more I felt he was like me - trapped in a world you didn't want but one that the people you love are tangled in.

I nodded and helped Jisung up. The poor boy hadn't been on his feet at all since before we got taken. He needed all the help he could get to be able to properly move on his own. Linking his arm round my shoulder, Jongho took the other arm and we carried him out the room. While the corridor was familiar, the direction we needed to go in was far from it.
"Right, quickly."
We both followed Jongho's directions, letting him take charge in his home territory. The amount of rooms we passed meant that I couldn't keep up with any of it, or even work out where we were, but trust is a key ally.
"Okay up the stairs and we're there."
Hauling Jisung up a flight was a difficult task, though he had regained most of his control by this point, which I was thankful of. The boy was heavy after a while.

Once we reached the desired floor, the first thing that stood out was the light shining through the windows. It was dusk, the sun just creating those golden hues to dazzle the world.
"Where are they?" I asked.
Jongho glanced over at me, "they checked this floor first so they'll be back soon, plus the majority of the exits are on this floor and I don't doubt they'll have them guarded."
Together, we hobbled down the hall with Jisung in tow.

"Stop!" Someone called from behind. All of us froze, hoping they would identify before shooting. We slowly turned to face the voice. It was a body of black and blue, dressed from top to bottom in protective gear, a helmet hiding the person's face.
"Y/N? Han?"
The person slid up one layer of the helmet's shield, revealing a clear glass layer, highlighting the face of Hwang Hyunjin. I smiled. Finally, we'd be ok.
Hyunjin ordered him to identify himself but I answered for the boy, explaining the situation. I was assured that no harm would come to Jongho but the idea that he was coming with us anyway didn't sit right.

He whispered to me, "I appreciate it but I would prefer to check on my hyungs."
In a low tone, I muttered, "I'm just worried you might get shot is all."
Either way, he said he was sorry for the inconvenience, well the mistreatment, and that we had a truce between the two of us. The boy I could now weirdly call an acquaintance slipped away while Hyunjin radio'd to the boys that he'd found us. When he turned back, he noticed the boy was gone. I gave a shrug. He said he didn't have time to work it out and that we had to get to safety. Neither Jisung nor I could run, but Hyunjin found a way to make us painfully jog at least. We exited the building and I finally got a good look at where I had been held prisoner.

A retired prison in the open space, not too old but still wearing away. Round the exterior was a wrapping of ivy just loosely growing up, gradually beginning its process of taking over the entire place. The top floor was lit with gun shots and a small fire.
To Ateez, this was their home, their base as such, something my brother had only dreamed of finding. Now, it was a war zone. Even as a civilian wanting a peaceful solution, I wished that it would end well for everyone. Not sure I wanted Hongjoong loose on the streets, but he didn't deserve to die.
As we were guided into one of the rescue team's many vehicles, I turned to Hyunjin, "Make sure you tell my brother that I don't want him to come home a killer."
The boy agreed, sending Jisung and I on our way. I already knew that my brother had killed, but he didn't need any more red on his hands.