Rise Up (Stray Kids Seo Changbin)

20

"He's weak," Kyla stated, eyes trained on Changbin who slept soundly on a bed in the Society first aid room.

Paige hovered over him, staring intently at the black, blue, red and purple painting his face. A dark bruise filled the left side of his face, dressed with a coat of dry blood that Lily used a damp cloth to wipe. His skin was deadly pale and his lips had a hint of purple, forcing Paige to believe there was much more to his state than Kyla was prepared to say.

"If we want him to get better, we'll have to postpone the trip to Russia," Kyla hesitantly added.

"We can't. We have to leave at dawn," Paige shook her head. "We'll have to take him with us."

"No way," Lily disagreed. "You see what this is, don't you? He was sent by Cassidy. He probably has a tracker in him or something. He's a trap. Let's just leave him here and wait for the other Society members to find him."

"We can't do that. If people find out we have Changbin, they will start believing we have connections with Cassidy," the Head of the Society responded. "Kyla, you've checked if he has a tracker, right?"

"Yep. He has none."

"Then that's that."

"That's what?" Lily shrieked. "Are we seriously taking him with us? Are you genuinely planning to jeopardise this whole trip for some stupid love story? How did that turn out for Janey, huh?"

Paige sent her a cold glare, "unless you want to survive this mission, I'd suggest you shut up. Don't ever -- and I mean ever -- speak of my sister like that again. And if I believe Changbin would be a useful addition to this, then I will take my chances. If this mission fails, the Rebellion loses nothing. The Society will be the one to suffer. So I'll take the chance if I must and bring Changbin with us. And that, Lilian, is what."

To say Lily was shocked would be an understatement. An eyebrow was subconsciously raised as her jaw dropped slightly. The dangerous look in her eyes sent shivers up Paige's spine but she didn't stand down nor apologise. She wouldn't.

Only then was Paige fully aware of her surrounding, taking the silence as a request for her to appreciate the freshly painted ivory walls and oak floor. A window stared down at the chaos of the city while a couple of pictures scattered the wall. She admired the soft hum of the air conditioner and the distant chatter of Society members passing by.

For a moment, and just a moment, the world seemed to have paused. She recalled how the nauseating odour of chemicals and medicines used to calm her and the soft nurses' voices. Back then, she believed as long as she was in the doctor's hands, she'd be fine. No one would try to hurt her.

She knows better now.

"I'm just saying," Lily scowled. "He could be a disadvantage. A burden."

"Just trust her," Kyla uttered, gaze fixated on the steady rise and fall of Changbin's chest. "If we are going to be taking him with us, we'll need to take Linc's old jet. It's stocked with medicine."

"And how safe is it? Will Cass be able to find us in it?" Lily raised an eyebrow.

"Well, it isn't called The Ghost for no reason," Kyla stated.

Just then, Woojin entered the room holding a white bag with a red cross emblazoned in the centre. Judging from his dishevelled locks and sweat-stained skin, it was obvious he had been running around frantically looking for the bag. Despite this, Kyla tsked.

"Took you long enough. How long has it been? Ten minutes?"

The glare Woojin gifted her said enough and yet he still proceeded to utter, "you said it was in your office. If you wanted a quicker job, you could have been more specific. How on Earth was I supposed to know it was hidden in one of your many, many drawers?"

She shrugged in response, taking the bag from his hands and searching through it.

Taking this as the end of the conversation, Woojin turned to Paige and mumbled, "should I start loading the jet?"

"Change of plans," she said. "We are taking The Ghost... And Harrison's flying it. Do you have its location?"

"It's still in the fields he left it in last I checked."

"Good. Have you got everyone's luggage?"

"Yep."

"Searched them?"

"I thought it would be best to leave that job for you. So that you know exactly what's going in the plane and what's not."

She nodded understandingly before adding, "where are the others?"

"In the canteen. Donghyun's the only one not there."

Paige scoffed, pulling her phone out of her pocket.

"Any idea where he is?"

"Nope. He was there before I found Changbin. I guess he left while we were sorting him out. Didn't saw a word. He just left."

"Something about him is off," Lily stated, giving Paige a stern look. "I really hope you know what you are doing because if that betrayer ruins everything for me yet again, I swear I will kill him... And maybe you too."

With that, she left the room, slamming the door shut behind her.

Woojin shot Paige a confused look to which she disregarded with a scoff, returning her attention to Woojin.

"I'll go search the baggage and load then on the plane. You find Donghyun," she ordered to which he nodded quickly and left to do.

Paige started at the door for a few moments, internally laughing at how eager he was. A smile spread across her face subconsciously before immediately dropping at the sight of Kyla's serious expression.

"She's got a point, you know," she stated.

"Who? Lily?" the Head of the Society raised an eyebrow.

"I've seen the same emptiness in his eyes before, the same exhaustion. Its a look I overlooked before... A look that lead to another Davies' death."