dissident ｡ nct

4.2 ｡

—Part 4.2—

Double Scheme

"To put it simply, I was going to get rid of all the vials. "

—Hua—

For the first time, I felt alive. I felt free, and no one could tell me what I could and could not do. This was my decision, and my parents were going to pay for what they'd done. Who knew being selfish could feel this good?

With adrenaline pumping through me, I pushed myself off my bed, cautiously making my way to the door, and opening it to look down the empty hallway.

Though dimly lit, I crept my way down the stairs, taking care to step on different sections of the floorboards, reducing the possibility of a creak echoeing around the house.

The floorboard squeaked from under me, "oh, fuck," my eyes widened in realization, a hand clamping over her mouth.

Oh, jeezus, I just swore for the first time.

I stood there frozen, waiting for the sound of a door opening, but was greeted with nothing. I took the lack of movement as a sign that I was safe. So I continued down the stairs, careful not to make another sound as I entered the dining room.

I opened the cabinet hoping to see the serums but was greeted by a safe, "oh come on," I hissed, examining the number pad, "how in the world am I supposed to-ah!"

A hand clasped over my mouth, muffling my screech.

"Mei, it's just me," Chenle muttered, hand still over my mouth, "if you keep screaming like that, we'll both be caught out of bed."

I turned to meet his eyes, an annoyed expression on my face as I licked his palm, his hand retracting away, face morphed into one of disgust.

"Ew, that's disgusting, Hua," he hissed, as he wiped his palm on my shoulder, "what the heck was that for?!"

"That's for scaring the life out of me, you dumb," I reasoned, rolling my eyes at him, "why are you even down here?"

"I should be asking you that question, sister. You're the one trying to open the serum safe."

I looked back at the open cabinet before reverting my attention back to Chenle. An embarrassed smile appearing, "well, you see, here's the thing," I started as I stalled my explanation, "I thought our parents deserved a little gift before we left."

I watched as he raised a brow in confusion, egging me on to continue my idea.

"To put it simply, I was going to get rid of all the vials and steal a couple just as souvenirs," I continued quickly.

He let out a sigh, amusement painting over his features, "I never pointed you as a petty person," he exclaimed, which earned him a shove.

I turned back towards the keypad to figure out the pin, "please, after everything they did to us, the least I can do is make their life just a little bit harder."

"Fair, but you're messing with the whole Abnegation stock, and Mark, who might I add, works his butt off to produce these."

"That's my point exactly. Parents get into big trouble, and well, Mark can make more," I justified, "so, could you crack the code?"

Sorry, Mark. I'll make it up to you somehow.

Chenle made his way closer to the safe, eyes squinting in concentration as he gazed over the keypad, fingers tracing over the console.

I watched as he pressed a random combination of numbers, a small beep coming out of the safe before opening to reveal the vials of red liquid.

I felt my jaw drop, "how'd you know the combo?" I said, disbelief lacing my tone, "there's no way that was just luck."

Chenle pulled out a vial, bringing it to eye level to examine the liquid, "some numbers were faded, so I inferred that they were the most frequently used," he explained, passing the vial to me before continuing, "then it was just a process of eliminating the combo possibilities."

I took the vial from him, picking more out of the safe to place on the dining table, "what was the combination?"

"Our birthday, " he stated indifferently, retrieving more vials to pass to me, "for parents that don't give a crap about their kids, this is honestly hilarious."

I pocketed a couple vials before taking them from Chenle, "maybe they used it so they wouldn't forget. Got to keep the model family exterior, got to know your kids' birthdays for that," I added, a tone of bitterness seeping in.

He let out a dark laugh, walking to my side to observe the mass of vials on the dining table, "well, that's the last of it," he announced, picking a couple vials up to keep as well, "let's throw the rest down the sink."

We both grabbed a handful before making our way to the sink unfastening their lids to pour the contents down the drain.

I watched as the red liquid flowed out of the glass canisters, a small smile growing on my face as I poured the last vial down the drain.

I made my way to the dining room, passing the last vial to Chenle, who gently placed it atop the rest of the empty glass containers before closing the vault.

I turned my head to face him, fixing my eyes on his chocolate orbs, a colour that matched mine.

"You ready for everything to change?" Chenle asked, wrapping an arm around my shoulder as we carefully made our way up the stairs.

"Hell yeah," I announced, "I finally found where I belong."