KING

一 06

Rina huffed as she tried to tie her hair back, the short knotted mess of tangled black locks bothering her ever since that morning. Both the boys were gone, a guard having taken them out, and for a brief moment, she missed their presence in the empty cell. Giving up, she let her arms flop at her sides, leaning back.

What occurred a few days back still played on her mind, goosebumps erupting on her skin as she vividly recalled the memories of the incident.

When she woke up, the chip installed by the switch was gone, both Lucas and Mark apologizing for startling her like that, making excuses as to why they had a needle in their hand.

She didn't listen.

She had known from day one that something was off about them, not that it required any sort of commendable intelligence and deductive skills. The weird thing about them was their normalcy, how they acted like regular kids.

But they weren't, were they? They were twisted lies under tanned skin, shining eyes that blatantly hid secrets. Did she even want to search for them in those 'windows of the soul'?

"Hey, pup." Donghyuck's voice startled her, making her flinch and whip her head to the golden haired boy who stood outside the cell, smiling fondly at her.

"You've been sighing for quite a while now. What's wrong?" He asked softly, concern evident in his hazel orbs.
It just wasn't fair, Rina concluded as she shook her head, how beautiful some people were.

"Want me to tie your hair for you? It looks like a mess." He asked, a teasing smile on his lips. The corners of her mouth were pulled upwards as she nodded, watching him enter the cell and gesture for her to sit on the lower bed of the two.

She complied, bringing down her paper and pen as well. He silently got to work, adjusting the back of her loose jumpsuit slightly to push away the tangled strands of her raven black hair, fingers combing through the locks gently.

She smiled, peace settling in the cell as he began to hum softly under his breath.

An expected friendship blossoming from two very different sides of a barred cell surprised the both of them. It was even harder to maintain, Donghyuck having seen her one day when he was a new guard, and then having to make it not seem suspicious when he snuck away to check on her.

Over the course of the years, the number of soft, calm moments she'd stolen with the boy who's fingers were running through her hair all fit on one palm, being so few in number.

But a handful was enough to define a friendship - loving, caring, fun.

He'd make her laugh, bring her small gifts he'd get from outside. Jeno would take her out and talk to her, even if she couldn't reply.

The guards sometimes came down to the third floor to gossip, sometimes paying little regard to her existence, sometimes ragging her knowing full well she couldn't retaliate neither with tongue nor fist.

She concluded her dull life was worth living for, if she could see Hyuck and Jeno smile when she finally had funny stories to tell of what the other guards whispered.

A faint sense of security spread through her, and she was happy. Until his next words.

"Pup, what happened?" Donghyuck asked. She tensed, sensing the shift in his tone, and raised her fingers to where his own were brushing against her slightly exposed skin.

She pressed her fingers down, flinching slightly as a small amount of pain coursed out from the area." Did they," She turned to him, watching as his eyes darkened. "Did they do something to you?" He asked, voice lowering dangerously.