DAHLIA - Xu Minghao

Chapter 8 - From Bad to Worse

"They will blame us, crucify and shame us,
We can't help it if we are the problem."

***

Meilin gulped, making eye contact with the man. The members were dead silent, for probably the first time ever since she arrived.

"Hello Sir. It's quite late, did you need anything?" She asked politely, joining the other members in line, taking her spot between Minghao and Seungkwan.

"Who were you talking to, miss Wang? And why were you laughing?" His voice was low and dark in a way that Meilin had never heard it sound before. But judging from the looks on the faces of the boys, this wasn't the first time this had happened. They all looked intimidated, to say the least, even Seungcheol. Meilin understood why, for she was terrified too. The manager reminded her of her stepfather, and this time, Meilin had thirteen people to protect, instead of just one. She fake-smiled as she prepared her answer, bracing herself for the probable impact of a hand across her cheek.

"I was reading. I like to read out loud when I'm alone. I was laughing because I read something funny." The man grunted, clearly not satisfied with her answer, and Meilin understood.

She understood that he knew very well that she owned a phone, and had been calling someone, but he had no way of proving it.

So, to taunt him, she added, "would you like to see it? The book I was reading." Without waiting for his answer, she disappeared into her bedroom, and came back out with a Chinese comic from Junhui's collection. The boy's eyes lit up, and he flashed her a quick smile. Meilin opened the comic on a random page, her eyes scanning over the page until she settled on a certain image. She turned the book around and showed the page to the manager, chuckling. "There, that's what I was reading. It still makes me laugh even though I've read it several times now."

"I can't read that." The man grumbled, pushing the book away from his face.

Meilin winced, before she smiled innocently. "My bad, I forgot." She said. "Bummer, it's really funny. You definitely would have liked it." She closed the comic and clutched it to her chest. "Did you need anything else, Sir?"

"No, I don't."  He said. "I just came by to tell you that from now on, you will be brought to school by car. I'll be waiting for you at 7:15, don't be late. And don't let me find anything weird in your bag, Wang." He added, before he turned around and made his way to the door.

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Sir." He froze at her words. "Goodnight! I'll see you tomorrow!" She said sweetly, waving at him. the man just huffed at her tone and left, slamming the door behind him.

"You're insane, Meilin. Lying to the manager like that. What if he finds out?" Mingyu said immediately, hugging her from behind.

The girl just smirked, staring at the door as she slowly shook her head. "Oh, no, he knows. He just can't prove it." Mingyu chuckled and squeezed her tighter. "We should keep it that way. Everyone best find a good hiding place for their phones, because I'm sure they're going to search the house soon." The boys exchanged nervous looks, but everyone knew she was right.

From that night onwards, everything went downhill. Meilin, Wonwoo and Seokmin all gave their phones to Jihyun, who brought them to school everyday, so they could at least use them a little. Hansol brought his to his parents' house, promising to visit more if he had the time. Seungkwan and Jisoo also left their phones there. The rest of the members hid them inside the dorm. In the back of the storage room, or underneath mattresses. Anywhere the manager would never bother to look.