Road to Utopia - NCT

18 - New HQ

The new base was something that must have only existed in fantasies and my dreams. There was no way that no one wondered why the hell there was a 'mansion' with 34 bedrooms (ignoring the two underground floors) in Seoul. Everyone called it a mansion, but I think 'modern castle' is more appropriate.

"Alright," Taeyong grabbed our attention when we all stepped out of the vans, "I came here before with Mark and claimed the 4 biggest bedrooms for the Leaders, our new offices on the ground floor, the meeting room and another room which I don't know what for, but I know I'll need it."

"A secret room? You know we'll find a way in." Jaehyun smirked and pushed Renjun's bed inside with Jeno. Yuta also followed on his crutches.

"It's not a secret room!" He called after them.

"Just stake your claims because we're not playing musical rooms every other hour because y'all have a fight." Kun sighed. "And Lucas and Jungwoo, please choose a room away from the rest of us."

"We're not even that loud!" Lucas shouted, defeating the purpose of his argument.

"Yeah! All we do is play video games together!"

"Sure you do." Kun sarcastically drawled.

"Wait a minute...we can choose our rooms?" Yangyang confirmed.

"Yes! Do we have to say it again?" Mark answered in a frustrated manner. "But none in the basement: that's for training."

There was a small moment of silence where everyone turned to face each other before looking back at the house. It was at that point where the chaos started. Everyone ran inside and tried to spot the next best room that hadn't been taken by Taeyong.

"It's mine!"

"Taeil, move your fat ass outta the way, I was here first!"

"Clearly my 'fat ass' was here first!"

All the members (except Winwin and Doyoung, who were happy with a slightly smaller room) shoved each other out of the room with the balcony, which we could hear from where the van was parked.

"Are you gonna...?" I asked uncertainly. If there's 1 thing I could remember about this group, it was that Taeyong and the other leaders could easily sort any argument out.

"Nah, they'll argue for a bit only to find out that all the rooms are exactly the same size." Taeyong smirked. "But by all means, go in there and sort it out."

I shook my head instantly. There was no way I was sorting out a dispute between 7+ man-children. I had better things to do than that, like seeing my own room.

As if reading my mind, Taeyong beckoned me to follow him. "Come on, I'll show you to your room. And don't worry, there's a room to the right of yours for Chenle if he wants it." He raised his voice a little so that my best friend could hear.
"You bet I'm taking it! Let's go, what are we waiting for?"

~~

The leader took us to the first floor and through a maze of corridors that I would eventually learn the layout of. We arrived in a quiet area with 6 doors widely spaced. "From left to right, Kun's, Mark's, mine, Jisung's and Chenle." He pointed out. "There are ensuites too for all the bedrooms except the four on the ground floor."

"I'm sure no one will pick. those ones." I muttered under my breath, but it was enough for Taeyong to hear.

"Damn right they won't. I might just leave it for extra infirmary beds." He sighed. "I'll let you explore the place but come to my office at 7, Jisung."
I nodded and then he entered his own room.

"Chenle, wanna come inside my room and then we can look around?"

"Sure, I mean your room probably looks identical to mine so let's go in!" He opened the door and it exceeded whatever pathetic attempt I made trying to imagine it. It must have been like one of those five-star hotel rooms but way better.

Firstly, it was like its own penthouse suite (minus the amenities) but it came with its own fully-equipped desk (a PC, stationery and LED lights) and a TV opposite my king-sized bed. There was also a wide, almost wall-sized window with an area to sit at, equipped with cushions and a waffle throw.

The bathroom was also impressive. Not only did it have a wide, freestanding bath in the centre and a shower in the corner but also a twin-sink design and intricate lighting surrounding the mirror above it. And there was a medium-sized walk-in wardrobe, which I probably wouldn't use often since I think all the clothes I possess would only fill one of the rails.

"Damn, if my room looks like yours, I don't think I'll ever leave it. I think this must be the best base ever!"

"Yeah, let's hope this lasts us because I don't wanna move out of here."

Chenle nodded. "Let's go look at the rest of the place." I took his hand and followed, mentally taking a map of the place which probably would be forgotten within the next hour.

By now, most people had claimed their room (Johnny and Jaehyun were still fighting over a second-floor room that had a "better" view of one of the outside pool).

All of the thirteen rooms on the second floor were taken and Ten, Lucas, Jungwoo, Shotaro and Renjun decided to occupy our floor. If I were the rest of them, I would have stuck to the first floor since it will be quiet. That, and if I ever went on a mission, I don't have to climb another set of stairs to get to my bed. I guess it's their loss.

Downstairs on the left side of the house, there was a huge kitchen with a secret pantry behind the fridge, which was fully stocked with everything you could imagine, even my favourite cereal. There was a living room adjacent to it with recliners, large sofas and an extra-wide TV.

To the right, there were the 4 bedrooms and an external bathroom which was unoccupied and towards the back of the house was the offices. Our names were neatly written on a plaque stuck to the door. It wasn't a disappointment inside either: another fully-equipped desk and a large filing cabinet in the left corner. The back wall was a bookcase half-filled with books, some about coding, some about business management. Probably to lessen suspicions if the house was ever searched, I thought.

The underground levels were insane. There was actually an elevator leading to all floors in the centre of the room and you had to scan your necklace to get an option to pick one of the underground levels, which were labelled now. The first was the infirmary, meeting room, a bathroom and a computer room whilst the second was the gym, shooting range, weapon room and another bathroom. There were still stairs towards the back of the house, but I doubt anyone would use them unless absolutely necessary and they didn't actually lead to the basement.

Realising it was almost seven, I excused myself from Chenle and made my way back to the ground floor and towards Taeyong's office. Politely knocking, I entered when told to and noticed Yangyang and Kun alongside the owner of the office.

"So...you wanted to see me?"

END

It's been a while and honestly, I wasn't supposed to touch this book until my mock exams finished in two weeks. But I didn't want to revise, so I decided to finish this chapter that I started in September.

I haven't made a floor plan of this new place yet, but I'll probably just add it to the story notes when this book is complete.

My big theory and plan for this book are still yet to fall into place but small clues are hidden in previous chapters. It will hopefully be a big surprise when revealed and I hope I can pull it off!

I actually finish college in mid-June and don't have anything big planned until university starts in September. So, in July I should be mentally rested and happy to write and release more chapters. My aim is to finish before uni starts but the backup plan is the end of the year (since it means I wrote this in two years instead of the intended 1 and a bit).