1. Project IZ*ONE

Chapter 22- New Beginnings

It was quiet trip for the most part as most of the girls were just trying to catch up on some sleep. They'd been underground all night and the exhaustion had finally caught up to most of them. In Eunbi's van, she was accompanied by Yena, Yuri, Hitomi, Nako and Hyewon. Yujin, Minjoo, and Sakura were in the other van accompanying the injured Wonyoung, Chaewon, and Chaeyeon.

"So, Nako, Hii-chan, now that we completed the mission, what're your plans?" Yena asks the two Japanese girls. After a few silent seconds, the two girls share a knowing look before responding.

"It's something we'll probably discuss with Saku-chan first." Hitomi says first. There's a look of uncertainty in her face, and before Yena could prod further, Yuri puts a hand on her shoulder- a signal to wait for them to open up more.

"How about you then Eunbi-unnie?" She asks to change the topic. "You're our leader after all. You're sticking around, right?"

"Yeah, there's still a lot more work to do. This is just the first step into letting the public know that mutants aren't dangerous, that we can live in harmony." The eldest responds. The past couple weeks had been tough, but worth it. She's seen the perspectives of so many new people, and she feels like she's gained a family with them.

"We'll be with you all the way, unnie!" Yuri cheers.

"Wherever you go, Yul, I'll be there with you." Yena says, causing the hamster to blush.

"Gross, get a room!" Nako jokes. All eyes now turn to Hyewon and what she was thinking. After all, Hyewon was also an undercover agent working for special forces here. The aforementioned girl thinks in silence for a while, never actually considering her next moves. She was originally planning to head back to her base, 8D, but now, after going through all of this with these girls, she's started to feel a change of heart. Her gaze turns to Eunbi, who's looking at her expectantly. Of all the people she's met, nobody's ever cared more for her than their leader. Eunbi would always check up on her and ask if she was okay despite her cold aura that normally pushed people away. For a normal human, Eunbi had a heart of gold.

"I guess someone's gotta help Eunbi-unnie keep the peace among you kids." She finally says, causing the girls to cheer. Eunbi smiles, reaching for the quiet girl's hand and holding it tightly.

~~~~

Over in the other van, it was a lot calmer for the moment. Wonyoung was laying on a stretcher at the back with Yujin watching over her. Chaeyeon and Chaewon were feeling good enough to sit straight up, but Sakura and Minjoo were still evidently concerned for them. This calmness was as shortlived as it was in the other van though as Chaewon speaks up.

"You can stop staring now, Min. I'm fine~" She teases without even looking, earning a snicker from Sakura.

"You too, Sakura, Hongki-sunbaenim already patched us up." Chaeyeon adds.

"Yah, we weren't staring!" Minjoo tries to defend herself.

"Sure you weren't~" Chaewon laughs as she points at the rearview mirror at the front of the van that was showing a red-faced Minjoo and Sakura, caught in the act. From the back, Yujin can only smile observing the situation. She was just glad that Wonyoung was safe. Of course she was worried when Hongki told her that Wonyoung would still need a couple days to get better, but it was the best possible outcome they could've gotten, at least, that's what she was convincing herself to think. As she looks at her now, she remembers just how pretty the younger girl was. Yujin was always in awe looking at Wonyoung, but right now, there was just this serenity and aura of calmness exuding from her sleeping face that took her breath away. Hopefully she'd wake up soon.

"Yah, Yujinnie, any closer and you might be the prince charming to her sleeping beauty." Chaeyeon now directs some jokes at her, noticing where the puppy's attention was, and making the others laugh together.