Alice Kang

It has been a while since everybody left me with Jisung. The room feels a little too cold and empty. The only sound resonating from the whole room is the sound of the clock ticking and Jisung's slight labored breathing.

I keep on thinking about who Johnny is. He kind of looks familiar to me, like I've seen him somewhere before.. but where?

Sighing to myself, I stand up from the chair slowly, careful not to make any sound that could possibly wake up Jisung. I wonder if he's a hostage just like me? Jisung is popular at school and a very influential person, it's no surprise he's held captive here.

"Where do you think you're going?" I freeze just by hearing his voice. I turn around to see him sitting up from the bed, harshly pulling out what Johnny placed around his body. "You can't be leaving without me," he added with a click of his tongue.

"What are you doing?" I hissed, furrowing my eyebrows as I make my way towards him. "If you can't remember, you almost died from being electricuted by Jaemin," I said.

Jisung arches both of his eyebrows, "Huh, so I wasn't wrong. I knew that son of a bitch was Jaemin. No wonder he seldom appears in school. He actually joined NCT," he scoffed, then jumping out of the bed coolly.

He examines the room with his eyes and purses his lips into a thin line before his eyes met mine. He then came with big strides towards me and didn't hesitate to grab my wrist tightly.

"I don't know why you ended up here," he says, "but we need to get out of here as soon as possible. These motherfuckers are bad news," he added quickly as he pulled me towards the exit.

My breath hitched in my throat, I want to say something back to him but I can't. The words seem to have died and I can't find the exact words to say for my protest. "Jisung," I called out, sounding like a squeak. "Let go," I added.

His head turns so he could look at me. Jisung's eyebrows are furrowed, his expression is questioning me. "What do you mean 'let go'?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. "Don't tell me they already recruited you?" His grip on my wrist starts to loosen up and he steps back slightly from me.

I quickly shake my head, "No!" Jisung's face looks relieved after hearing my answer and his grip is back to being tight again. "How'd you ended up here anyway?" I added, feeling a little bit curious.

He looks away then shakes his head, "That doesn't matter right now." When Jisung steps carefully towards the door, I notice he has a small bruise by the side of his left eye, and his black shirt somehow smells like sweat and blood.

Then all of a sudden, his grip on my wrist is loosened and I heard him curse out loud. "This room is wired," he stated, looking up to the white ceiling. "We can't sneak out without triggering the alarm," he scoffed, a small low laugh erupted in his throat. "They're really one step ahead than everybody else," he stated incredulously.

"What do you mean?" I asked, still confused. Looking at the same part of the ceiling he was looking at a while ago, I found nothing that is worth questioning.

"Old school lasers," Jisung replied, pointing somewhere in the ceiling again, then somewhere on the floor. To be honest, I'm not sure what he's pointing about, but I nod at him nonetheless. "The lasers must have been activated from the outside," he hissed.

"What lasers?" I feel a little stupid for asking too many questions, but I really don't see any lasers in front of the exit. "I don't see any lasers, Jisung. And besides, this is just a room for the patients. Even if you want us to escape now, we'll just end up encountering Johnny on the other side of the room," I stated, rolling my eyes.

"Well fuck that," Jisung sighed in defeat, throwing up his hands in the air. "I should have followed what was written in the email."

"What email?" I narrowed my eyes at him and he looks away uncomfortably. "Don't tell me you received an email from an anonymous sender too?"

"What do you mean 'too'?" He frowns, "You too?"

I nod subtly, "Yeah. What did it say?"

Jisung scowls, "None of your business. Seeing you in here is already fishy enough. What's your deal here anyway, Arisa?"

"It's Alice," I corrected.

"Alice, Arisa, whatever," he rolled his eyes and walks away from me. Jisung started to examine and observe everything inside the room including the cabinets, shelves, and the machines. "Johnny.. you even know them."

"I don't actually know them," I explained, crossing my arms in front of my chest, slightly feeling irritated with how he's acting. "Johnny was the one who treated you after you lost conciousness. Don't get me started with Lucas—"

"Lucas?" Jisung said his name with interest and slightly chuckle while at it. "I can't believe that guy just welcomed me in here like I was one of them," he said, then Jisung starts laughing loudly, "That was fucking hilarious."

I stare at him in utter disbelief, "What's wrong with you?" I asked, tone slightly turning higher. "You should know that Lucas was the one who saved your ass from dying," I muttered in pure irritation.

Jisung scoffs and rolls his eyes again. I can't believe he's acting like a spoiled brat in times like this.

We both jump away from each other when the door opened, revealing Johnny and Mark looking utterly relaxed.

They make their way towards Jisung and Mark smirks when the younger steps back. "You seem to know each other, Alice," Johnny said kindly, eyes straight to Jisung while Mark eyed him like a predator.

I inhale a great deal of air before speaking, "Jisung... We've known each other since we were kids," I replied, looking at Jisung who's busy staring back at Mark. He looked more intimidating than Mark since he's a lot taller than him.

"Is that so?" Johnny nods, "He called you Arisa though?" He added, fighting off a laugh from escaping his lips.

I huff, "Jisung's just being stupid again."

Mark and Jisung looks at each other like they're fighting using lasers in their eyes. None of them are moving as if they're afraid of making the first move. I clear my throat and Jisung is the one who flinched first, his eyes moving to look at me.

"What are you two up to?" I asked, walking towards the two of them and I tap Mark by the shoulder. "Jisung might look like he can intimidate you, but actually he's a real softy," I whispered to Mark. Mark's lips turns into a small smile, then transforms into a wide grin.

"He shouldn't be hard to persuade then," Mark replied, ruffling his hair. "Park Jisung, isn't it?" He said, talking to Jisung this time. The younger blinks, completely aware that he has lost his guard around Mark. "What do you think of joining NCT?"

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▶ Present Time_ June 11, 2018_ NCT Main Headquarters_ 2:56 PM

"You let him go?!" Renjun hollered, standing up from his seat at the dining table the moment Mark said the news. "You're out of your mind, Mark," he added, shaking his head.

"Calm down Renjun," Mark said, folding his arms together. He seem to look too relaxed for letting his captive run loose outside of their lair. "Jisung's going to come back," he added, smirking as he turns to look at me.

My stomach churns into an ugly way that I started to feel sick. My gut is telling me something is about to happen and I'm not going to like it one bit.

Jaemin shifts his position and exchange looks with Renjun. Oddly enough, Jeno isn't here with us. Donghyuck is probably still busy with his cafe that he couldn't join us for lunch. Lucas, Johnny, and Ten might have their own business to attend to so they're not present either.

"How'd you know that the kid is going to come back?" Renjun scoffed, pushing his half eaten dish away from him. "If I were him, I won't think twice of never coming back here. After all you've done to him? I doubt he'll be back," he added.

"We only taught him a lesson," Mark replied hotly, frowning at the scowling Renjun. "Besides, he deserved that beating. Haechan and I actually went soft on him." Mark shoves a spoonful of food inside his mouth and began chewing so fast and gulping it down in one go. "Let me remind you he's part of the group that blew up the cafe!"

Upon hearing the words from Mark, I almost spit out everything I ate. I stare at Mark in disbelief and he stares back with a confused expression etched on his face. In my peripheral view, Jaemin slowly stands up but eventually sits right back when Mark eyed him sharply.

"What do you mean that 'he's part of the group that blew up the cafe'?" I asked, knitting my eyebrows together. Don't tell me that the shy, awkward, but sassy Jisung is part of a gang similar to NCT?

Renjun clears his throat and walks away from the dining room, going to some place who knows where. Jaemin keeps silent the whole time and pushes his dish away from him. Unlike Renjun, Jaemin actually finished his serving.

Mark and Jaemin exchanged glances and Jaemin clears his throat slightly. None of them dared to speak up and I narrow my eyes at them like a hawk. If they're keeping me here, might as well tell me something about Jisung.

"We'll tell you if you help us get him back," Mark suggested, standing up from his seat. This time, it is me who exchanged glances with Jaemin. I shoot him a questioning look, but he actually dared to look away from me.

I groan, "Fine," I spat, gritting my teeth. "If you're actually getting him back as a part of NCT, why did you even let him go in the first place? And why can't you let me go?!" I added, building up my frustrations again.

Mark smirks and pulls out something from his pocket. Jaemin begins to chuckle and I eye the items carefully. What Mark pulled out was the latest model of a smartphone in the market, then a few set of keys hanged on a brown bear keychain.

"You think we haven't done our fair share of investigation?" Mark asked, still smirking at me. "Jisung is a popular lone wolf, lives alone, and his only mode of communication is his phone," he continued, twirling the keychain around his finger. "Plus, we have his card. I doubt he'll be able to go around without this," he added, flipping a golden sheer of Master Card.

"I guess he probably noticed it by now," Jaemin added, standing up from his seat and started to gather the dirty plates. "Come on, you should eat, Alice. Jisung will be fine," he added with a small smile.

I take a deep breath. I honestly don't know if I have the appetite to eat now that I know that they want Jisung back as a member. It's almost the end of the day again, and I still haven't contacted my parents about my whereabouts.

Now that I remember, I can't remember where I placed my phone after the underground incident with Jeno. They must've hid it somewhere so they could prevent me from exposing their whereabouts to the police.

"Don't tell me you took his possessions while he was unconcious?" I asked, breath hitching in my throat.

"Technically, it's called strategy, but you can say that," Mark shrugs his shoulders, his grin never leaving. "I reckon that Donghyuck's email wants us to recruit the 'youngster', and Jisung's the youngest member in their group."

I'm about to speak again when Jaemin spoke, "Jisung is a part of the group QQ. Their leader is a woman," he explained. He takes a deep breath and continues, "When they infiltrated the cafe last night, half of their subordinates are eliminated and half retreated."

I knit my brows together, trying to piece every information I know. Mark, Donghyuck, Jeno, Jaemin, Jisung, and myself are the only people that I know who received an email from the future. It's still unclear whether Renjun received an email since he wasn't hinting anything about receiving one.

"How'd you know the youngster that the email was talking about is Jisung?" I asked, looking down at the curry Jaemin had prepared earlier—half eaten and still untouched since then.

"A photo was attached below the email," Mark answered, pocketing the items he was holding earlier, followed by a long sigh. "The email from Donghyuck warned us about never disclosing this information to you," he added grimly. "So we formulated a counter measure in case the plan fails."

"What do you mean with 'counter measure'?"

"You're a vital part of Jisung's recruitment to NCT. In the follow up email that Donghyuck received, Jisung will not return to QQ or either join NCT," he answered darkly, pocketing both his hands and glanced at Jaemin subtly. "Because Jisung will go missing."

"What? Wait, this is making my head hurt, Mark," I told him, closing my eyes tightly, processing everything that's happening right now. "H-How is he going to get missing?"

Mark shrugs his shoulders, "It wasn't stated."

"So in order to prevent that to happen since you already knew about it, we've prepared a plan," Jaemin interjected, a flash of worry showed on his expression. He sighs and didn't say anything further and begins placing the dirty dishes in the sink. "Mark hyung, do you think using Alice in this mission is safe?" He asked, turning to Mark.

"It will be," Mark replied sternly. "It should be."

Mark walks out of the dining room, leaving me and Jaemin looking at his retreating back. Once he's out of sight, I look back to Jaemin who's already looking at me. The worried expression he's wearing since earlier is still plastered on his handsome face.

He sighs, shaking his head as his hands are placed on his hips. "I don't agree with this plan, Alice. Mark can let Donghyuck dress up as a girl and they can fuck it all up for all I care, but you can't go. This plan of Mark is too reckless, especially for you who don't have any experience with all of this," Jaemin huffs, looking all distressed. "I'll talk about this with Mark again," he added with a long heavy sigh.

"Jaemin, I'm doing this for Jisung. I know what those emails are and I'm sure everything about it is true. I don't want Jisung to go missing for who knows how long," I replied, heaving a heavy sigh, looking down at the cold dish that has long been forgotten in front of me.

"Why?" The words came out from Jaemin like a small whisper, barely audible for me to hear. "Jisung doesn't even remember you that much, yet you care for him like this."

I gasp, eyes widening at Jaemin. I stand up from my seat abruptly, slightly startling Jaemin on the process. He seem to have noticed my drastic change of mood because a flash of panic is already evident in his eyes. "Alice I-I didn't mean to—"

"Yeah, you guys can get all the information you want, but it doesn't mean you know everything about us," I spat, gritting my teeth angrily. I can feel my face getting hot from anger and Jaemin avoids eye contact with me with a guilty expression.

"I really didn't mean to sound—"

"Yeah, okay," I answered with no hint of interest. I didn't even look at Jaemin and went on ahead somewhere around their headquarters. I don't really care if someone sees me again and points a gun through my head. They can shoot me off the bat for all I care.

Marching my way towards the garden, I find Renjun sitting by the cushioned-swing under the shady oak tree. He's holding a paper, somewhat like a sketchbook. Renjun's eyebrows are knit together in concentration, his hand moving in a slow but steady pace.

"What are you looking at?" I heard him speak, looking at me by the corner of his eyes.

Catching me by surprise, I jump slightly at my position. I didn't know he already noticed me watching him since he's concentrated on sketching.

"Oh um, hey," I said, sounding like a little squeak. "Did I disturb you?"

He sighs and I walk closer to him. "Obviously," he muttered and closes his sketchbook on his lap. "Shouldn't you be with Jaemin or Mark?"

"Mark walked out of the dining room and Jaemin..." I trailed off. "What are you sketching anyway?" I asked instead in hopes to divert his question away from me.

Renjun sighs again, closing his eyes as the afternoon breeze sweeps his brown hair. Renjun seems like the guy who doesn't care much about the world around him. He's a little bit distant from the rest of the boys I have met and he usually just talks whenever he has something to say.

I can say that my first impression of him, he's the type of person that doesn't open up to others so easily.

"Can I sit beside you?" I asked, my voice a little shaky from his aura.

"I don't mind," he replied in a monotone voice. I slowly make myself sit on the cushioned-swing next to him. I made sure to sit slowly so that it won't rock back and forth. "You're being too cautious of me," he added, looking at me at the corner of his eyes again.

His lips turns into a small smirk and he clutches his sketchbook near his chest. "You really do look like him," he muttered, chuckling when I gave him a bewildered expression.

"Who?"

"You'll find out soon," he answered, closing his eyes again. "Do you think you can handle it? Mark's mission for you, I mean," he added quickly, and he takes a deep breath.

"It's for Jisung," I murmured, heart beating rapidly just by saying his name. "I don't want him to go missing," I added, looking down at my feet covered with Renjun's over-size slippers.

Renjun hums a bit, looking down at my feet then upward towards my clothes (that apparently he owns), and to my face. I got uncomfortable from it so I looked away from him, unconciously clutching my body using my arms.

I heard him snort, "Don't you dare think that I'm checking you out," then he stands up, holding his sketchbook tightly in his grasp. "I can't believe Jaemin gave you my newest shirt and sweatpants," he clicks his tongue and shakes his head. "Better wash it thoroughly before giving it back. I don't want your stupidity rubbing on to me," he muttered harshly before walking away, leaving me dumbfounded.