paranormal

1.2 | UNMASKED

Music: NCT 127 "Cherry Bomb" Instrumental by  SM Everysing on YouTube

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"Neo Culture Technology? What's that?" I wondered aloud.

"Since neo means "modern and new," it could mean like, the 1:27 will be the new culture and technology that everyone will live under in the future," Jaemin guessed. "They're probably seeking world dominance or something like that."

"But what's a cherry bomb?" I thought aloud, rubbing my chin. 

"If you search it up on the Internet," Jaemin started tapping the keys furiously. "It says that it's a spherical exploding firework. They have a core of explosive composition, such as flash powder or black powder. They were banned from America in...1966?!" He exclaimed in disbelief.

"That means the 1:27 is handling with illegal materials," I wrote the evidence in my notebook. "I mean, of course they would be. They're murderers."

Jaemin chuckled. "Well, now we know that the 1:27 are probably handling dangerous objects like illegal bombs. And they're fighting for world dominance. Damn."

"Oof." I said plainly.

"Now, all we need is a way to find the 1:27's hideout, kill the members in it, and-" He gulped when he said the word "kill." "-Rescue my friends."

I nodded. "We should actually-"

I was cut abruptly when I heard a series of howls and screams. My face turned pale white. Was it 1:27 am already?

Jaemin looked at his watch. "It's 1:27 am," He had slight fear in his eyes, but his shoulders tensed, as if he was trying to stay calm. "It's happening. Follow me to my room. It has no windows."

We hurried up the stairs towards Jaemin's room. Jaemin made sure that there were no demons hiding under his bed, then we quickly hid underneath, using the blanket to vaguely cover ourselves. I was breathing heavily, but I knew that to be a detective, I had to be brave and smart, and remember that the 1:27 would obviously kill me if they heard my loud breaths. I stayed quiet.

Jaemin was tensing up. The tension was so tangible, I could literally see the word "TENSION" floating over his head in big, black letters.

I put my hand over his shoulders. "It's okay, Jaemin. Relax. We're going to be fine." I whispered.

Jaemin gave me a sad smile and then turned away, keeping an eye on the door, which was currently closed.

We could hear the screams and howls from even upstairs. Then, I heard a sound that made my blood run cold. There were footsteps stomping, in the house. Running up. Upstairs to our rooms. 

Jaemin sucked in his breath. I froze and felt my feet falling asleep from staying in the same position for too long. Jaemin slipped something into my pocket. A gun.

"Use it when you need to," he whispered in an almost inaudible voice. "That pocketknife won't really do anything to the 1:27."

I nodded. I had learned how to handle guns when I enrolled into police training, so when I would shoot, I wouldn't be all "oh my god, what the heck...how do I use this thing...". 

Then, the door creaked open. I froze completely. Jaemin looked like a statue. Standing there, at the front of the open doorway, was a tall, slender man clothed in black. You couldn't even see his face. He had a black hat covering his eyes, only slits of them showing, and he had a black mask that covered his nose and mouth. He had a jet-black leather trench coat and black combat boots. Only his hands were visible, and inked in his wrist was the word NCT 127. His hands were laced with bright red blood and he was huffing and puffing, as if he had just torn down a house.

I begged for him to not look under the bed. He pulled out a huge sword that had intricate designs crafted on the hilt. It was studded with rubies and the blade was also streaked with blood. The sight of it made me feel queasy. Seeing a stranger's blood on a stranger's weapon made me feel like fainting. 

I cupped my hands on Jaemin's ear. I whispered ever so quietly, "We should stand up for ourselves and catch the guy." 

Jaemin nodded urgently. He sighed. "I'm going to regret doing this," Then, he took a deep breath and yelled, "FBI, OPEN UP!"

The man jerked up. He unsheathed his sword and lifted it up. "Who's there?" He had a gruff, scratchy voice. Then, his voice went from husky to venomous. "Come out, come out, little one. Come to me, and I'll show you how to really play..." The sounds of his voice were like poison sliding down my throat. "You should never mess with me, child. It's NCT 127 that you're playing games with here..." 

Jaemin and I slid out from under the bed. We faced the man. I took out the gun and pointed it towards him. I wasn't going to use it. Not yet.

We couldn't see his face, but I could tell he was using that villain smile that all bad guys seem to have. "Look who's here...two little kids with weapons. How frightening." He said haughtily.

I gritted my teeth. "You're messing with the Sanguis Police Force, here," My voice felt tightened, as if someone was pulling my throat like string. "Surrender, or else we'll have to take it the hard way."

Jaemin had a gun pointed at the man's chest. "Drop the sword, put your hands up, and let us cuff you or else we'll have to shoot."

The man laughed. "Not today, boy."

Jaemin pulled the trigger. The sound of gunshot made me jump a little. The man dodged the bullet. He smirked. "Quite daring for a child," He stood up straighter. I could feel his danger and tension in the atmosphere. "Then it looks like you want to play by force, do you?" His voice was dripping with danger, and he was like a jaguar, ready to pounce on his prey.

Jaemin ran up to the man and gave him a solid punch in the jaw. I gasped at Jaemin's sudden move and tried pulling him away. "No, Jaemin...doing it like this isn't going to fix anything..."

He shoved my arm away. "No, Narae. I need to teach him a lesson. The 1:27 think they're so mighty and powerful, don't they?" He cracked his knuckles. "Well, they really aren't mighty, but they sure as hell are demons!" He punched the man in the gut. The man stumbled, but recovered quickly. For the first time in forever, I sensed a new aura in Jaemin. One that made me feel scared and made me want to run away. (A/N "Alexa, play Monster by EXO")

The man chuckled. "Tough, huh?" He pulled Jaemin's shoulders and started slapping him across the face and punching him in the guts. "You really don't understand the life of the 1:27, do you?" He was raising his voice.

Jaemin started coughing. "You don't understand my life, either! You rotten guys had to take away my six best friends, the friends I had since I was little! I was so alone, all I wanted was to kill you all, because you took away my parents, too! Do you know how heartbreaking it is to have a murderer kill your parents and take away your best friends? My friends are going to be executed because of you! Two of them are terrorists now because of you!" He kicked the man in the guts. Tears were streaming down his face and my heart started aching again.

The man fell backward. And suddenly, all the danger in the atmosphere seemed to melt. He shook his head and buried his masked face into his hands. He then lifted up his face. "Jaemin...is that you?" The voice wasn't husky or venomous. Instead, it was warm and sweet.

Jaemin looked taken aback. He advanced towards the man and ripped off his mask and took off his hat. The face wasn't the face of a scary murderer. It was a young face, the face of a friend.

"M-mark hyung-g...?"