Swapped by fate

Chapter 17

Stacy’s POV

I was literally pacing the living room, my phone clutched in my hand like it was a lifeline. Nami had been gone for days. DAYS. And nobody was telling me anything. I swear, I was about two seconds away from losing my mind. What was I supposed to do, sit here and *wait*?

Hell. No.

I mean, when your bestie goes *missing*, you don't just chill. You freak out, obviously! Which, btw, I was doing. Hard.

Then suddenly, the front door creaked open, and I whipped around so fast I nearly got whiplash.

“NAMI?!”

There she was. Standing there like she hadn't just disappeared from the face of the earth for DAYS. She looked... fine? Like, not even a scratch on her. What the hell?!

I ran over, grabbing her by the shoulders, my eyes probably as wide as saucers. “GIRL, WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN?!”

She blinked, all calm, and just shrugged. SHRUGGED. As if I wasn’t having a full-blown meltdown right in front of her. “Hey, Stacy. Miss me?”

“Miss you? Are you kidding me? I thought you were DEAD!” I screeched, my voice going a full octave higher. “I was about to start making *missing* posters, girl! You can't just vanish like that!”

Nami rubbed her temples like I was giving her a headache. “Chill, Stacy. I’m fine. Seriously.”

“*Fine?*” I parroted, my voice dripping with disbelief. “You’ve been gone for DAYS, and you think ‘fine’ is gonna cut it? Oh no, you better spill the TEA, girl. Right now. What happened? Did someone kidnap you? Did you join a cult? Are you a secret spy?!”

Nami laughed, like actually laughed, which just confused me even more. “You and your imagination, Stace. I didn’t join a cult. It’s a long story, and I don’t even know if you’d believe half of it.”

I crossed my arms and glared at her. “Try me.”

She sighed, plopping onto the couch like she hadn’t just dropped off the grid. “Okay, fine. But don’t freak out.”

“Too late for that, girl. Start talking.”

So, Nami starts explaining. And let me tell you, my jaw was on the FLOOR. She’s talking about these guys, like *actual criminals*, who thought she was someone else. And she was stuck in their mansion?! Like, what?! My bestie’s life was straight out of a crime drama, and I was here, thinking she’d run off to a retreat or some weird crap.

“Oh my God, wait,” I interrupted, holding up my hand. “These guys were hot, though, right? Please tell me they were hot.”

Nami rolled her eyes. “Stacy, seriously?”

“Um, yeah? If I’m gonna get kidnapped, they better be good-looking.”

She groaned. “Not the point.”

“Okay, okay,” I said, waving my hand for her to continue. “Go on, I’m listening.”

She told me about Hyunjin, the guy in charge. And Felix and Jisung, who sounded way more fun than they had any right to be. By the time she was done, my head was spinning, and I had, like, *a million* more questions.

“So, wait... let me get this straight. These guys thought you were someone else, kept you in their mansion, and then just... let you go?”

Nami shrugged again, leaning back on the couch like it was no big deal. “Pretty much.”

“And you’re telling me none of them tried anything funny? No handcuffs? No dungeons?”

She gave me a look. “What kind of Netflix dramas have you been watching?”

I ignored that and continued my interrogation. “But seriously, Hyunjin—what’s his deal? He sounds like he’s got the whole brooding, mysterious vibe going on.”

Nami huffed. “He’s... complicated. I don’t know. He’s cold, but not in a mean way? More like... distant.”

“Ugh, classic bad-boy type,” I said, rolling my eyes. “Let me guess, you have *feelings*?”

She smacked me with a throw pillow. “No, Stacy! Not everything is a rom-com, okay?”

“Sure,” I said, totally unconvinced. “And what about the other guys? Felix and Jisung, right? They sound like fun.”

She smiled a little. “Yeah, they were. Felix is super nice, like, *way* too nice for this whole situation. And Jisung? He’s a complete goofball. They said they might come visit sometime.”

I gasped dramatically, clutching my heart. “Oh my God, we’re gonna have *visitors*? From *the mansion*? Nami, you *have* to tell them to come. I need to meet these guys.”

Nami laughed again, which was nice to hear, after everything she’d gone through. But still, I couldn’t wrap my head around it all. Like, this was Nami we were talking about—my best friend, who gets excited about book sales and can’t even jaywalk without getting stressed. And she’d been living in some *dangerous guy’s* mansion for days like it was no big deal.

“You’re seriously not freaked out at all?” I asked, still trying to process everything.

She shrugged again, and I swear, if she shrugged one more time, I was gonna lose it. “I don’t know. I guess after everything that’s happened, I’m just... tired. I’m glad to be home.”

I plopped down next to her, my mind racing. “Well, I’m glad you’re home too. But, girl, you better be ready for more questions. I’m not letting you off the hook that easy.”

Nami groaned. “I figured.”

“Good,” I said, leaning back on the couch. “Because you owe me *major* details about this Hyunjin guy. Like, seriously. I need the *scoop*.”

Nami rolled her eyes but smiled. “We’ll see.”

We sat there in silence for a minute, and I couldn’t help but feel a weird mix of relief and excitement. Like, my bestie was safe, but now her life was suddenly way more interesting than mine. I mean, seriously—getting kidnapped by hot, mysterious guys? That was next-level drama.

But hey, as long as she’s okay, I’ll deal with my FOMO later.

“By the way,” I said, breaking the silence, “next time you decide to disappear, maybe give me a heads-up? Just a text or something. I was *this close* to calling the FBI.”

Nami laughed again, and I was pretty sure I’d never been more relieved to hear it. “Deal, Stace. Next time I get kidnapped, I’ll let you know.”

“Good,” I said, nodding firmly. “Now, you hungry? ‘Cause I’m ordering pizza, and we’re binge-watching something. I need to forget how close I came to a mental breakdown.”

“Sounds perfect,” Nami said, smiling as she leaned back. “But no crime dramas. I’ve had enough of that.”

I smirked. “Deal. Rom-coms it is.”

And just like that, things felt... kinda normal again.

Too be continued