[Neo Zone] Population: 23 Kids

Unexpected Return

The middle school kids were casually walking home from school, all of them this time since they didn't have anything else to do. Scratch that, Sungchan had soccer practice, so he wasn't with them. But the rest were there.

Haechan and Renjun were having a competition on who could kick a stone the farthest on the sidewalk behind them, snickering when they hit Jeno. Until he turned around and started chasing them.

"So when's Hendery coming back?" Shotaro asked, and YangYang shrugged.

It had been roughly two days since he had disappeared, and when YangYang and Lucas showed up at his house to ask where he was, they ran off without asking because Hendery's brother had opened the door and they were scared they would be tortured until they died. So the only explanation they had with his disappearance was Jungwoo saying they'd know when he came back.

"You can always go to his house and ask." YangYang teased with a smirk.

"And die? No thanks."

"I think we should be more scared of Renjun killing us one day." Jeno butted in, deciding he was done chasing Haechan and Renjun as he slung his arm around Chenle's shoulders.

"Nah, he's a big softie. Hendery hyung's brother, though? He'd kill us with no hesitation." Jaemin reasoned, wincing when Renjun flicked his ear from behind.

"I wouldn't count me out."

"We all know you love us, I don't know why you keep trying to act like you don't." Jisung commented, earning himself his own ear flick from Renjun.

"Don't abuse the baby!" Jaemin scolded, starting a fake fight with Renjun.

The two continued to pretend they were fighting as the group continued walking, Haechan removing Jeno's arm from Chenle's shoulders and replacing it with his own.

"So when's your Mom leaving?"

"Not any time soon."

The morning after their movie night of protecting Chenle, Kun had stopped by with new clothes for Chenle before school and explained to everyone what was going on. So while they knew Chenle should at least talk this out with his Mom, they also made sure someone was with him at all times to protect him from the wicked witch.

"You can't keep hiding from her. It's not going to end well."

"Kun and Granny won't expose my location. I'll be fine."

"Until she reports a missing child to the po-po and the Suhs get charged with kidnapping because she's insane."

Chenle's eyes widened as he met Haechan's.

"She wouldn't. Would she?"

Haechan just shrugged.

"Don't scare him into talking with her if he's not ready." Jeno scolded, punching Haechan's arm.

"Anyone coming with me to my house?" Jisung asked, stopping at the street corner he had to break off at.

He had gotten into the habit of stopping by his parents' house everyday after school to pick up the mail and make sure no one broke in. It wasn't much, but it made him feel productive. It also was a good excuse to look for any signs of his parents returning.

"I'll come." YangYang and Shotaro said at the same time, so the group split up.

Normally Chenle went with him with the occasional Jaemin if everyone was walking home, but if it was only a few of them everyone would go. YangYang and Shotaro were a new combination, though.

Jisung's house wasn't too far out of the way, just like Taeil's. It was right across from it actually, so Taeil's Mom kept an eye out for Jisung and waved when he passed by.

She was right in the window like she always was, ready with a smile and wave that he returned. When he looked over to his own house, though, he instantly knew something was different. That was mainly due to there being a car in the driveway, but he would argue that the house itself just looked different.

"Do you know who's car that is?" YangYang whispered, prepared to run to Taeil's Mom if he needed to.

"Nope."

Jisung approached the house anyways, opening the mailbox just to see someone had already gotten the mail. Or there was no mail. He then grabbed the cold metal of the doorknob, just to test if it was still locked like it had been for years.

To his unsurprised surprise, the door opened.

"I don't know about this, Ji." Shotaro mumbled, refusing to step any closer.

Jisung, being a rebellious eleven-year-old, didn't listen as he opened the door further and stepped inside. The house was exactly as he remembered it, probably because literally nothing moved since he had last been inside, but the pair of shoes in the doorway weren't ones he recognized.

"Hello? Who's here?"

"Jisung?"

A man in uniform came around the wall the separated the kitchen from the entryway, a cup of coffee in his hand. Jisung wasn't sure how he got said coffee since it was in one of the mugs he remembered was in their cabinet, but it was that mug that told him who he was looking at. No, literally. The mug had "Dad" written on it.

The mug was instantly set on the counter as the man ran up and hugged him, catching Jisung off guard.

"You've grown so much! How are you? Where's your Mom?"

"Mom left for the military the same day you did. I thought you would know where she is."

Jisung's Dad pulled back from the hug, confusion very evident on his face.

"Wait. Who's been taking care of you?"

"The people that run Limitless Cafe. I have a lot of friends there. Two are them are standing outside right now." Jisung motioned out the door, and his dad leaned to see them, waving.

"How'd the house stay so perfect?"

"You guys locked me out. This is the first time I've been in here for years."

"We didn't tell you where the spare key was?"

Jisung shook his head, and his Dad rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. Apparently his surprise enlisting didn't go quite as he planned it would.

"So you've been living with them this whole time?"

Jisung nodded, still in shock at the fact that his Dad was back and standing in front of him. Albeit older and a lot more toned and worn down, but still his Dad.

"We can head over later so I can thank them, but we've got a long time to catch up on. What's it been, five years?"

"Six."

"Even more to learn about you. I'd offer snacks while we talk, but I don't trust anything that isn't stale or moldy after that long."

Jisung's Dad pulled out a chair at the table, after grabbing his coffee mug. Except Jisung still had two people thinking he had just walked in to a house with a burgular, and there were more expecting him at the cafe.

"One second." Jisung stepped outside of the house, YangYang and Shotaro still standing there. "My Dad came back so I'm staying here for the night. We might stop over later, not sure, but I'm okay, you can go."

Shotaro and YangYang shared a skeptical glance and a shrug. They left Jisung with his Dad for them to talk and catch up with each other, heading to the cafe Jisungless.

"At this rate Yuta's parents are going to be coming back too." YangYang commented, and Shotaro laughed.

"If Xiaojun's come back I'm never teasing Renjun again."

"Nah, I'd still bother him."

YangYang had seen what he did with his clients before, and he knew it was nothing to be scared of. Though the thought of the dead coming back to life was enough for him to question the Tiny Witch Doctor's power.