❄ Cold Relations ❄ [SEVENTEEN] ✓

Chapter 28: Extraterrestrial (i.e. Kwon Hoshi, Rising Star)

Joshua woke the house at 6:00am; if they wanted to eat, they had to fish. Woozi was still adapting to life on Yeoseodo. He was too used to staying up nights arranging new songs and sleeping late into the afternoons to rise this early. But the job had to be done, and anything was better than having an empty stomach.

Woozi stared into the camera, his lips slightly parted, and jerked his head slowly to the side to intimidate the viewers. Then he leaned closer until his face was only inches away from the screen, staring, staring, staring—

Jeonghan slipped into a black wind-resistant coat with a floppy hood and studied his appearance in the mirror. Joshua watched him curiously, and then said what was on his mind: "You look like E.T."

Woozi bent a finger and grinned.

Jeonghan was adjusting his collar. "Although I look like E.T., I'm protecting myself from the cold."

"Put the hood on," Joshua urged. With a less-than-patient smile, Jeonghan obliged. Woozi was surprised by the transformation. Playfully smacking Jeonghan's shoulder, he extended a finger towards him. Jeonghan played along and let their two fingertips touch before he took off the hood.

"E.T. connection," Woozi murmured.

While the others finished dressing in warm vests and other winter clothes, Joshua approached Woozi, sensing he was in a good mood. He tested the boundary by pressing his finger against Jihoon's chest and saying, "E.T."

Woozi's smile faded instantly, and the grumpiness born from lack of sleep soon returned. "What is that?"

Joshua backed off awkwardly and shrugged—

CLANG! Woozi's eyes widened, and his breath caught in his throat. He sprang up in bed, heart pounding, sheets twisted around his waist. Jihoon had never been a light sleeper, but these days he was always on guard, for fear of an attack under the cover of darkness.

Woozi looked to the others to confirm what he'd heard, but they were all fast asleep. What if someone broke in? Woozi crawled out of bed, grabbed Hoshi by the shoulders, and shook him hard. Soonyoung growled and pushed him away, disappearing like a ghost through his sheets. Woozi sighed. I guess I'm on my own.

He seized the flashlight he kept by his bedside—an item he'd salvaged from the hotel's storage closet—and switched it on, but the dim orange beam was too weak to penetrate the blackness of the hallway. Woozi jiggled the flashlight until the batteries fell into his palm. "I guess if I do find an intruder, I can pelt him with useless objects."

Jihoon crept down the stairs, dead batteries clinking together in his pockets, pale hand gripping the plastic flashlight. 

Clink. Clank. The noise persisted. 

Woozi wove his way through the furniture scattered about the lobby and came to the conclusion that whatever was making the sound was moving around in the kitchen.

The noises grew quieter with each step and ceased when he reached the basement. Woozi was blinded by darkness, without a spec of light to guide him. He felt around for the switch but had no luck in finding it. Tension filled his lungs like smoke until he could barely breathe. It was now that he wished he had brought a working flashlight, especially when he could hear something shuffling in the dark not too far away. Jihoon's hands were shaking, and his imagination was running wild. In his half-awake state, anything was possible.

"E.T.?" he exhaled.

Joshua unhooked a keychain from his belt, shining soft blue light into the room. "Woozi?"