"You're coming back, right?" his best friend asked. "I hope so. He said I have to take a break for a while. I will seriously miss you guys- especially fooling around with you!" Both of them smiled and hugged.
"Please take good care of yourself!" he said. "I should say that to you, hyung! You are still the one facing danger!" he chuckled. "And take care of your sister" he added.
Someone cleared his throat. They pulled apart and saw their leader standing in the doorway. "H-Hyung" Sungchan stuttered. "It's time." he said.
Sungchan grabbed his bag and headed for the door. "Hey, don't you wanna say goodbye to your brother?" the leader asked.
Sungchan turned around and walked down the hall to his brother's room. He opend the door.
"Hyung, I'm leaving now." he said. Jaehyun stood up, hugged his brother, and whispered something in his ear.
"Take good care of her, okay? And of yourself too. Be careful! I love you!"
Sungchan smiled. "I love you too, hyung. And you take care as well, okay?" Jaehyun nodded. "See you soon, dongsaeng." He smiled and ruffled his younger brother's hair.
Then Sungchan left the room and bumped into his leader's chest, who was standing right outside.
"Sungchan, I hope you know I'm doing this to help you." He looked at his leader, confused.
"I don't know who Wonchan might have contacted. See this as an opportunity to protect your sister from danger. I know Wonchan- he is planning something."
Sungchan listening to his leader. "And... what about hyung?"
"I meant what I said. He's grounded. You disappointed me, but he did even more. Still I'm trying to give you some good reasons, because you are family to me. I still care about your safety. But right now, your sister endangered ours. And given the situation, it's better for you to stay with your sister and watch her closely- for her safety, and for ours. So whenever I ask about her, you'll tell me everything I need to know. And you'll inform me regulary. Of course, you can always contact us- even if it's not about her- whenever you feel you have to. I might be angry about what you did, but I am still trying to help you with this." he explained.
Sungchan didn't say anything. Instead, he suddenly hugged his leader suddenly, taking him by surprise. The leader wrapped his arms around the taller yet younger boy as well, offering unexpected comfort.
"Now go. Kun is waiting." he whispered, gently pushing him toward the stairs.
Sungchan hesitated for a moment on the stairs. His chest tightened with the weight of everything unsaid. He wanted to ask if the leader really trusted him enough after everything that happened, if he still had a place among the others- but the words stuck in his throat. Instead, he just smiled at the leader, forcing his legs to move down the stairs, each step echoing like a goodbye.
¤
The car stopped, the girl's breath still irregular, fear tightening her chest at what might happen next. She was not sure if she could trust the man's words when he told her she could go. She had cried silently the whole ride, afraid she would never see her family or her brother again.
Suddenly, the cloth was pulled away from her eyes. She blinked rapidly, trying to adjust to the light outside. It was already dawn. The two boys looked at her.
"What are you waiting for? You can get out now- you are home." The boy said in broken Korean, smiling slightly at her.
"So stop crying." he added, carefully wiping her cheeks where the tears had already dried. From thw front seat, the driver handed her a tissue.
