444 (BTS Hyung Line x OCs)

Twenty-Five: Unearthed Secrets

The soft crash of the waves against the shore reminded Morgan of how little time they had left on the island. Two weeks. Just two weeks, and they'd all be back to their complicated lives, back to the secrets they'd been running from. The trip had brought unexpected romance, emotional moments, and a fragile sense of peace. But Morgan couldn't shake the feeling that something more was brewing, that the secrets between them weren't just hers alone.

She leaned against the doorframe of her bedroom, letting out a soft sigh. She had spent most of the day thinking about her conversation with Namjoon. The relief of finally telling him about her father, the weight it lifted off her chest, was immense. Still, there was so much she hadn't shared with the girls. They were close, but even with them, there were unspoken things hanging in the air.

"Morgan, we're heading to the shops in a bit!" Justice called out from the living room, her voice light but echoing through the house.

Morgan looked into her vanity mirror and realized she needed to reapply her lip gloss. She rummaged through her drawer, but it was nowhere to be found. She called out, "Hey, Lola, can I borrow some of your lip gloss? I can't find mine anywhere."

Lola was already halfway down the stairs when she answered absentmindedly, "Yeah, go ahead. It's in my top drawer."

Morgan walked into Lola's room, the familiar smell of her perfume filling the air. The room was neat, with only a few personal items scattered around. She opened the top drawer to grab the lip gloss but froze as her hand grazed something unexpected—something small, cold, and glass. She pulled it out slowly and stared at it.

A vial.

Her heart raced as she turned it in her hand, recognizing it immediately. It was unmistakable. Her mind flashed back to the times Lola had seemed distant or on edge, the brief slip-up a few weeks ago when she had run out of the party. She'd said it was just alcohol, that she'd been overwhelmed, but now Morgan knew there was more to the story.

She pocketed the vial, her chest tightening with worry. . But now wasn't the time to confront her, not yet. Lola had been dealing with so much, and Morgan didn't know how she'd react to being called out. She couldn't keep this to herself forever, but she needed to process it first.

Taking a deep breath, Morgan grabbed the lip gloss and made her way back downstairs, trying to act as if nothing had changed. The last thing she wanted was for the others to notice something was off.

"Ready?" Lola smiled as they all gathered by the door. If she knew Morgan had found her secret, she didn't show it.

Morgan forced a smile. "Yeah, let's go."

𖤛❀𖤛❀𖤛❀𖤛❀𖤛❀𖤛❀𖤛

Later that evening, the girls were back at the house, getting ready to hang out with the guys. The tension in Morgan's chest was still there, gnawing at her, but she pushed it aside as she finished getting dressed. Tonight was supposed to be fun—a break from the heaviness of their secrets and the uncertainty of what was waiting for them back home.

As they settled into the familiar comfort of the boys' house, laughter filled the air. They played cards, ordered food, and cracked jokes. For a few hours, everything felt normal, as if the weight of their secrets didn't exist. Morgan even managed to forget about the vial in her pocket, lost in the easy rhythm of the night.

But the peace was short-lived.

Morgan noticed Lola's phone vibrating on the table beside her. Lola picked it up, her expression hardening as she read the message. Her smile faltered, and for a split second, something like panic crossed her face.

"Everything okay?" Morgan asked, keeping her tone light, though she knew something was wrong.

Lola smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. "Yeah, just my brother. He's wondering when we're heading back home."

Morgan's blood ran cold. Lola's brother. She hadn't met him, but she knew enough to understand how complicated things were between him and Justice. Justice had never told her the full story, but she had dropped enough hints that Morgan knew the breakup hadn't been simple. Yet, here was Lola, casually talking about him, as if there wasn't a dark cloud hanging over them.

"Oh? He's checking in?" Justice asked, her voice careful.

Lola nodded, completely unaware of the tension brewing beneath the surface. "Yeah. He said he wants to work things out with you, Justice. Said maybe when we get back, you two could talk."

Justice froze, her face paling slightly. She let out a small, forced laugh. "We'll see about that."

Morgan didn't miss the look of fear that flashed in Justice's eyes. She could see how tightly she was gripping her phone, how she was avoiding eye contact. There was more to this than just a bad breakup. Justice had been hiding something, just like Lola.

"I think that's enough about home," Morgan said quickly, hoping to steer the conversation away from the brewing storm. "We're still here for two more weeks, right? Let's enjoy it."

Lola seemed to relax at that, her smile returning as she tossed her phone aside. "Exactly. We've still got time."

But as the night went on, Morgan couldn't shake the unease settling deep in her bones. She looked at her friends, the people she trusted most in the world, and realized just how much they didn't know about each other. And now, with Lola's brother involved and Justice's strained reactions, things were about to get even more complicated.

𖤛❀𖤛❀𖤛❀𖤛❀𖤛❀𖤛

As the evening came to an end and the girls headed back to their house, Morgan found herself alone in her room, staring at the vial she had taken from Lola's drawer. She ran her thumb over the glass, feeling the weight of the secret she now carried. She needed to tell the others, but how could she when everything was already so fragile?

Her phone buzzed, pulling her from her thoughts. It was a message from Namjoon, asking if she'd like to go for a walk tomorrow. She smiled softly at the thought of him, the only person who had managed to make her feel safe in a long time.

But her mind was still racing. How much longer could they all keep pretending everything was fine?

In the next room, Justice stared at her phone, heart racing as another text from Lola's brother flashed across the screen. When are you coming home? We need to talk.

She bit her lip, the memories of their toxic relationship flooding back. She hadn't told the girls the truth about him, not even Lola. How could she? He was Lola's brother, and everything was already complicated enough. But now, with him reaching out again, things were about to unravel fast.

Justice turned her phone off, throwing it onto her bed. She had no idea how to handle this, and the weight of her secrets was becoming too much to bear.

Two weeks left. Just two more weeks, and then everything would change.