Alone | NCT

Chapter 24

Sejung adjusted her sunglasses as she lay on the beach in her bikini, taking in the sun as she closed her eyes. The one thing that she loved about the coastal village the Siren Choir resided in was that it was summer all year-round.

On the beach, various siren families played in the water as the teenages hung out with their friends, catching up over the winter break. Sejung let herself get absorbed in her own thoughts, the noises around her fading away.

Suddenly, she no longer felt the sun on her body. She opened her eyes to come face to face with a figure standing in front of her. She glared at him as she removed the sunglasses from her face.

"What do you want, Xiaojun?" Sejung asked. Xiaojun shrugged his shoulders.

"Heard something important when I was wandering in the village that you might want to hear." Xiaojun told her. Sejung rolled her eyes before patting the sand beside her.

"Sit down and stop stop blocking the sun then." Sejung snapped back but Xiaojun shook his head.

"Not here." He looked around him before whispering. "Somewhere more.... Private."

Sejung sighed as she got up, rolling up her towel before putting her flip flops back on.

"Fine, let's go to my loft then." Sejung said, making her way towards the village, Xiaojun following close behind.

...

After what felt like an eternity, the Renjun spotted the shore. There, large, black iron gates were waiting for him. At the entrance stood a man, a familiar man that Renjun had met before in the Underground City.

"You're far from home." Cereberus said as Renjun got off the boat. Renjun rolled his eyes before responding to him.

"You are too, isn't Aria lonely?" Renjun said. Cereberus shrugged his shoulders.

"I spend most of my time with her anyways." Renjun raised an eyebrow.

"Why are you here then?" Renjun asked him. Cereberus gave him a small smirk.

"Jaehyun asked me to welcome you into the gates of Hell. He said it would be a nicer welcome." Cereberus paused before continuing. "Trust me, you're going to appreciate this in a moment."

"Thanks, I guess." Renjun said as Cereberus opened the large iron gates for him.

"Best of luck Renjun. You're going to need it." Cereberus said before the sound of the iron gates closing began to echo around him.

...

Sejung had changed into a plain t-shirt and shorts, taking a seat on her armchair across from the loveseat that Xiaojun was sitting on, waiting for her. Xiaojun placed his phone into his pocket as he noticed her return from her room.

Sejung lived in a small loft in an old abandoned factory building near the edge of the village. Sejung had always been independent, ever since she was young, so her parents knew it would be more ideal if they lived separately. Although they were still close by, it gave her the privacy she needed when she was back during the breaks. She did frequently visit her family for small dinners, catching up with them over the meals. But at the end of the day, she would always look forward to returning to her own private space.

"This better be good." Sejung said, crossing her arms. She watched as Xiaojun gulped before beginning to talk.

"So I heard some sirens talking about looking for Dongwook to work on this new project or something like that. Apparently Dongwook has this big plans and needs some sirens to help him." Xiaojun said before looking up for approval to continue. Sejung gave him a nod, letting him continue.