Road to Utopia - NCT

34 - Curiosity Killed The Cat

Taeyong replayed the clip again and again. There was no way he managed to basically teleport from the desk to his bed. Unless this wasn't a live feed anymore? He could have changed it without him noticing, especially as Taeyong was sleep deprived. He would have to check it in the morning because he actually wanted to sleep now.

~~

Jisung woke up with a start. He had no recollection of anything that happened last night, not even how he got into bed. Before his confusion could reach its peak, his phone vibrated on his nightstand. He felt around for it as he was still groggy and pressed the answer button.

A short crackling noise began the call followed by a high-pitched frequency. The rest of the call went quickly and before he knew it, he was opening his desk drawer. It's happening again, he thought, maybe I should tell Kun.

Unfortunately, he wouldn't be able to today as he removed the picture frame of him and Chenle hugging as well as the false bottom in the drawer. When this was installed, he couldn't say. Inside the secret area were multiple packets of pink pills. Yes, the pills the other members discarded. So, how did Jisung receive them?

Simple: Eunhee.

Yes, that bitch didn't die in the explosion and still frequently contacted Jisung. The other members had gone on many missions over the past few weeks, which gave Jisung ample opportunity to sneak out and gather suspicious supplies.

Jisung managed to swallow his dose and the rest of his day was a blur.

~~

Wasn't it weird how Jisung received so many calls in one day, Xiaojun frowned in thought as he saw Jisung slip away from the room for the third time. He thought that Jisung wasn't that popular at school so the only contacts he should have, are the other NCT members.

"You see it too, right?" The leader whispered in his ear, scaring the life out of the Chinese member.

"Shouldn't you be sleeping?"

"Not the point. I know something's going on and I'll get to the bottom of it." He slinked off to another room in the opposite direction.

The younger shrugged and discarded his thoughts of the suspicious activity. After all, nothing should disturb hm eating ice cream.

In Jisung's room, he answered the phone as he locked his door. "Pink32." He said monotonously and the unknown caller answered.

"Thank you, JS502. I wanted to check on your progress on the infiltration. What's your status?"

"A few members suspect something but have no concrete evidence, and I intend for it to stay that way. The dosage is being taken as usual, twice daily."

"Good," the feminine voice said, "but I want you to take the pills three times. Space it out between the day, leaving at least four hours between each dosage. And call me on the third dose, I need to make sure you don't pass out."

"Of course. Is that all?"

"For now, yes." She hung up and Jisung stared at the wall blankly for a few seconds. He placed his phone on the bed and opened his door to leave. He wasn't expecting Johnny to be there raising his hand to knock.

"Hey, I think Yangyang wanted to talk to you. He's in the infirmary."

He smiled a little too hard, a little too fake, but it was enough for Johnny not to question. "Thanks, I'll go now."

He made his way there with Johnny (who insisted to join him along the way since he was going to the training room), making small talk about the recent mission successes. He didn't see NCT's leader creep into his room and unlock his phone (his passcode was literally Chenle's birthday, and everyone knew it. It was a surprise that he hadn't changed yet).

He accessed his text messages, but nothing seemed unordinary, but his call history said otherwise. A few outgoing calls and several incoming ones all from the same number. Naturally, the leader was curious and inquisitive, so he dialled the number.

Almost instantly, the phone picked up.

"Hello?" The leader asked after five seconds of silence.

A weak cough came from the other end. "Hello? Jisung? Did you get my medicine?"

"I'm sorry, who is this?"

"I'm your grandma? Jisung, is your memory getting worse?" The voice chuckled hoarsely. "Can you please bring the medicine in the next hour? My cough is getting worse." The woman coughed heavily.

"I'm sorry, this is Jisung's friend. He's in the bathroom right now but I'll be sure to pass the message along, OK?"

"Oh, thank you, young man!"

"Anytime and get well soon. Please rest a lot." He ended the call. Ah, so it was a sick relative. It didn't explain why the number had only appeared within the last month, or why it wasn't saved under a name, but it slipped past Taeyong's mind right now.

On the other side of the phone, the woman chuckled in her normal and younger voice.

"They really are stupid, aren't they? They'll be so easy to kill."

END

Eunhee, our true villain. I wonder what her motive is?