Outside Work We... •[TNN One-shots]•

The Truth •|| EVERYONE ||• [Intrusion Pt. 3]

Prompt: The five of them finally reveal what happened.
[AU]

Marjorie’s voice sliced through the heavy silence like a blade, sharp and demanding. “Alright, I’ve had enough of the cryptic stares and half-answers. What the hell is going on? And why do you five”—she gestured at Autumn, Mia, Reece, Shibhon, and Clodagh—“seem to know exactly what’s happening? And seriously, Autumn, why is there a gun safe in your living room wall?”

The group exchanged tense glances, none of them eager to speak first. Shibhon let out a long sigh, reached for the wine bottle, and topped off her glass to the brim. She downed it in one go, setting the glass back on the table with a clink that felt deafening in the tense room.

“It started in university,” Shibhon began, her voice steady but tinged with resignation. “Well, for most of us. Autumn, Reece, and Mia were already a group, but that’s where the rest of us met.”

Clodagh picked up where Shibhon left off. “Some of us needed a way out of the lives we were trapped in,” she said, her gaze flickering briefly to Autumn and Reece. “Some of us needed money. Some of us just wanted to rebel against everything.”

Mia leaned back in her chair, arms crossed. “At first, we thought it was just harmless deliveries,” she said, her voice low and bitter. “Drop off this package here, pick up another one there. It seemed like easy cash.” She let out a humorless laugh. “God, we couldn’t have been more wrong.”

Reece took a deep breath and jumped in. “We didn’t realize who we were working for at first. But by the time we did, we were already in too deep. And it wasn’t just us. We had an entire group of friends we’d formed through this... organization.”

“Just say it, Reece,” Autumn said quietly, her voice hard. “We worked for the mafia.”

A collective gasp echoed around the room. Winter’s eyes widened, Carly’s hand flew to her mouth, and Sorcha muttered, “What the actual hell?” under her breath.

Autumn pressed on, her tone flat and matter-of-fact. “The deliveries turned into kidnappings. The kidnappings turned into... killings. It was a way for us to let out all the rage and anger we’d been carrying for years.”

The room was silent except for the faint clinking of Shibhon refilling her wine glass.

“We became the mafia’s best assassins,” Shibhon said, her voice sharper now. “And for a while, that was just... life. It was dark, and it was brutal, but it was our life. And then things changed.”

Autumn took a deep breath and continued. “We got into relationships, started thinking about the future. And then I got pregnant. That was my breaking point. I couldn’t raise a child in that world, surrounded by that kind of darkness.”

Clodagh nodded, her expression grim. “We all agreed. We were done. We wanted out.”

“But the boss didn’t like that,” Reece said, his voice tight. “He told us there was no leaving. Said he’d make us regret it.”

“We didn’t take him seriously,” Mia admitted, shaking her head. “We thought it was just a scare tactic. So we left anyway.”

Autumn’s voice dropped, trembling with emotion. “I gave birth. And then, not even a week later... they came for her.” She closed her eyes for a moment, as though trying to block out the memory. “The boss sent someone to the hospital. They... they killed my baby.”

Winter gasped audibly, and Charlotte’s hand flew to her chest. Even Marjorie looked pale and shaken.

“We were devastated,” Shibhon said softly, her voice wavering for the first time. “But the boss wasn’t done. A few months later, he left a letter on Autumn’s doorstep. He said he was coming for all of us.”

Autumn nodded. “We were terrified. So we ran. Moved across the world to get away. All five of us. We thought if we stuck together, we could protect each other.”

“That’s why the safe is there,” Clodagh said, her tone almost defensive. “It’s not paranoia. It’s preparation. In case they ever came back.”

“And for a while,” Mia added, “it worked. Years passed. We started new lives. New jobs, new relationships. We thought we were done with all this shit.”

“But we were wrong,” Autumn finished, her voice heavy. “Clearly, they haven’t forgotten about us. And now, we have to deal with it. Again.”

The room fell into stunned silence. The reality of the revelation was almost too much to process.

“You... you were assassins,” Winter said finally, his voice barely above a whisper as he looked at his wife. “You killed people.”

Autumn met his gaze, her expression unreadable. “I’m not that person anymore, my sweet. None of us are.”

“But they might make us be,” Clodagh muttered darkly, her hand still resting on the closed safe.

“What do we do now?” Carly asked, her voice trembling.

No one answered. For the first time in years, the group was faced with the shadows of their past—and the uncertain danger of their future.