Struggles (Book One)

Telling Them The Truth

Deonne’s POV:

Heat. I felt so much heat as I sat on the windowsill at my house. Daehyun was just below me waiting for me to jump so he could catch me. I was so afraid of heights that I didn’t want to jump, but I needed to unless I wanted to be burnt alive. I took a deep breath and slowly started to slide off the sill, when two arms embraced me from behind and pulled me back in.

“Deonne!” I heard Daehyun scream as my body disappeared from his view.

“Dae! Help me!” But there was no time. The person pulled me into the flames and I couldn’t escape or be helped. I looked back at the sinister grin spread across my brother’s face. He chuckled as I screamed, jolting awake.  

“Deonne?” I sat up sweating and ignoring the concern coming from the half-sleeping body next to me. I got up, wide awake now, and paced the room. Daehyun slowly got out of bed and walked over to me. “Deonne, baby what is wrong?” Before I could answer him, our door was swung open and Yongguk, Zelo, and Youngjae came barging in, Yongguk holding a bat. A bat, really Yongguk?

“What happened? Is everyone ok?” Youngjae asked concerned.

“I think Deonne had a bad dream. She woke up screaming and now pacing, but she won’t talk to me. And really Yongguk, you brought a bat?” Daehyun explained.  

“Shut up Dae.” Yongguk threw the bat down and sighed. “I’m going back to bed.” He took Zelo’s hand and walked out of my room. I looked over at Youngjae who was looking at me.

“I am sorry I woke you.” He gave me a small smile then walked over and gave me a soft hug.

“It’s ok Deonne. I just hope you are ok.” I hugged him back.

“I am fine.” I let him go then walked into Dae’s arms.

“Deonne, I’ve been meaning to ask you about these dreams. Are they around the same concept or are they just random scary dreams?” I looked at him sadly and sighed. I let him go and walked to the bed sitting on the edge of it. I knew he would ask me one of these days, but I still wasn’t ready to answer. I guess I’ll just have to suck it up.

“They are mostly about my brother. I was born in Kansas, but when I turned eight we moved to New York. My brother was a year older than me and with my mom being a single mother; he had to look after me. Two years of living in New York and my brother had become a gang member. Soon he made his way up the ranks and became the leader at age 15. When he wasn’t busy dealing with gang shit, he would teach me how to fight and protect myself in case one day he wouldn’t be there to do it for me.” Dae and Jae came and sat next to me. Dae was on my right and Jae on my left. I took both their hands and squeezed them. I took a deep breath and continued.

“When he became the leader, he began to take me everywhere. I saw things that girls my age shouldn’t see. I saw him torture, murder, and steal from a lot of people. One day, I met one of his rival gangs in a bar. I caught a glimpse of the guy he was fighting. I met him again at my school; that was the day I noticed that he actually went to school. His name was Nicholas, but of course everyone called him Nick. He was in my chemistry class and one day we were partnered up. After that we became kind of close. We would hang out without my brother’s knowledge. I soon fell in love with him, but we never did anything and I never told him.” I stopped knowing the next part of my story was going to be hard to tell.

“What happened to Nicholas?” Youngjae asked, breaking the silence.

“Well, we were hanging out at an old park. It was very late and I had snuck out of my house to see him. We were holding hands as we sat on the swings. Donald noticed I was missing and came looking for me, sadly he found me. When he found me, he claimed that I wasn’t family anymore. He told me to come to him for a second, so I complied but before I reached him completely, he pulled a gun out and pointed it at me.” Tears were soon building in my eyes.

“It’s ok Deonne. We are here for you.” Zelo had said as he walked in. We all gave him a confused look. “I wanted to make sure you were ok, so I came back. I also brought Gukkie back with me.” He explained as Yongguk slowly walked into my room. I nodded and was about to continue, but he interrupted me. “I also brought Himchan and Jongup if that’s ok.” I nodded again. I might as well tell all of them.

“Do I need to restart?” They shook their heads no. Good. I don’t think I could.

“We heard the end, so we kind of understand what is going on.” Himchan said; his voice masked with sleep. I felt so bad, but they didn’t leave just stared at me waiting for me to continue.

“I freaked out when he aimed it at me. I didn’t think he would do that to me. I closed my eyes waiting for the gunshot, but when I heard it I didn’t feel any pain. I opened my eyes and saw Nick’s body on the ground. I pulled him to me and cried. I didn’t have to take him to a hospital, I knew he was dead. I looked up to find Donald gone. He had killed my first love.” I buried my face into my hands crying. I felt a hand on my back rubbing it in comfort. I knew it was Dae’s so I leaned over laying my head on his shoulder.

“But… What happened after that?” I looked over at Zelo. I could see his hyungs giving him a glare, but I didn’t mind it.

“I did the only thing I could, I ran. I did what my brother taught me and stole all the money I could. I easily got away with it all, until I ran into the cops. I used the money I stole to come here. I started over here and I am glad I did. I have you guys now.” I let go of Youngjae’s hand and wrapped both my arms around Dae. “I have you now too. I love you Daehyun, so much.” I heard an “Awwwwh” coming from Zelo, Youngjae, Himchan and surprisingly Jongup.

“Ok, well I am sorry for your lost Deonne. I don’t mean to sound rude, but I am very tired and we have practice in the morning, so everyone to bed now.” Yongguk walked out of the room. Zelo gave me a hug before following him out. Himchan and Jongup waved goodnight and left too. I gave Youngjae a hug and whispered a “thanks” and “goodnight” before letting him go. He nodded and left with a wave.

“I am sorry again about waking everyone. I hope you aren’t mad at me.” I looked over at Dae. He stood up and pulled me to my feet looking me straight in the eyes.

“I am not mad at you Deonne and I love you too, so very much. I will always be here for you when you need me. Let’s get some sleep ok?” I nodded and pecked his lips before getting back into bed. Dae slid into bed next to me then pulled me closer to him. I laid my head on his chest as he ran his fingers through my hair. I soon found myself drifting off into a dreamless sleep.

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Hey guys! So now everyone knows what happened to Deonne. What’s going to happen next?!?! Vote comment fan! <3