The flowerbed - Aespa's Giselle x M!Reader

The armageddon (Part 1)

The door burst open with a crash that made Ningning scream. Choi stood in the entrance, a gun held with casual menace. Behind him, Jung and his brother crowded the doorway like vultures in expensive suits.

"Ladies," Choi's smile was all teeth. "Have a seat."

We moved slowly to the couch, Karina subtly pushing Ningning behind her. My hands shook slightly but I kept my face blank, channeling everything Y/N had taught us about staying calm under pressure.

"Now then," Jung stepped forward, eyes scanning the room. "Where's the missing member?"

"Probably still out crying over your failed manager," his brother supplied with fake sympathy. "How tragic."

I caught Karina's minute head shake. Don't react. Don't give anything away.

"Search the place," Jung ordered, and Choi started moving through our home like he owned it, gun never wavering.

Please, I silently prayed, let Giselle get far enough...
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Winter's POV

"Where is it?" Choi's voice was deceptively soft as he circled our couch, gun glinting under the living room lights. "The evidence Y/N stole. Where did he hide it?"

I kept my face carefully blank, feeling Ningning trembling beside me. Karina sat like a statue, leader-mode in full effect despite the fear I knew she must be feeling.

"Search all the rooms," Jung ordered his men. "Every drawer, every closet. It has to be here somewhere."

The sounds of our home being torn apart made me sick - drawers crashing to the floor, closets ransacked, precious memories thrown carelessly aside. A framed photo of all of us after our daesang win shattered against the wall.

"You won't find anything," Karina said, voice steady despite everything. "Y/N hasn't been here in a year."

Jung's laugh held no humor. "Oh? Then why did our cameras catch him entering this building almost daily since his return?" He leaned down, getting in her face. "Try again, little leader."

"Leave her alone," Ningning burst out, then immediately shrank back when Choi swung the gun toward her.

"The maknae speaks!" Minhyuk's smile was cruel. "Tell me, child, does it hurt? Knowing your precious oppa abandoned you again?"

"Boss!" One of the men called from Y/N's room. "Room's clear. No drive anywhere."

Jung's face darkened. "Where's Giselle?"

My heart skipped but I kept my expression neutral. "Out."

"Out where?"

"Does it matter?" I shot back. "She's not here."

The slap caught me off guard, my head snapping sideways. Ningning's gasp mixed with Karina's sharp intake of breath.

"Let's try this again," Jung grabbed my chin, forcing me to look at him. "Where is Giselle, and what did Y/N give her?"

"Go to hell."

His grip tightened painfully. "You've gotten brave since I left. All of you have. Forgotten your place." He straightened, adjusting his expensive suit. "Perhaps it's time for a reminder of what happens to people like that."

Giselle's POV

"Slow down," Chaewon pressed a cup of tea into my trembling hands. "Start from the beginning."

We sat in Le Sserafim's dorm living room, Sakura pacing nearby while typing rapid messages on her phone. Yunjin and Kazuha had taken Eunchae out for late-night food, wanting to shield their maknae from whatever was happening.