"what's the plan, the8?" junhui asked, catching up with minghao. "hey, talk to me!"

"this is the plan." minghao stopped, searching the busy port, to find the enemy. when he sees the cargo ship which had pledis mafia's logo, he sets fire on it. the people nearby panicked, but minghao didn't give a damn. "done. the weapons are on fire. nothing more to smuggle."

"that's not how we're supposed to do—minghao!" junhui cuts himself off, seeing minghao just slip in a puddle in front of him. he worriedly crouches, checking if minghao was okay. "are you okay? you have a back problem—does it hurt? do you want to drop by the hospital?" junhui offers a hand.

minghao slaps away junhui's hand, standing up on his own. "you can't call me by my real name when we're at work. i thought you knew that." minghao brushes off wet soil from his outfit. "i can ask jeonghan to heal it if it hurts. let's just go home."

"but he'd have to make it worse—"

"yes, and you don't need to care."

wow, minghao hates junhui with a burning passion today. of course, the two always bickered and threw insults at each other—but sometimes, minghao really showed absolute hate towards junhui. minghao shuts junhui off and he doesn't want to see junhui's face.

sometimes, they get along, though. this was just a bad day, probably.

junhui never knew why minghao was like that.

minghao cussed for the nth time. jeonghan probably broke his spine now. "bitch, be careful!"

"i can't be careful when i'm trying to make your injury worse!" jeonghan shot back, standing up from minghao's bed. he stretches. minghao, who was lying on his stomach, turned to see what jeonghan was doing. minghao only got more alarmed.

"what are you doing?!"

"okay, i might have to kill you for a sec but i'll heal you the next second. ready?" minghao was protesting as jeonghan flipped him over, then elbowed the injured part of minghao's back. minghao's whines ended, he's probably dying—but jeonghan shrugged it off and healed minghao immediately.

minghao turned, gasping. "okay, okay, okay. the first part hurt like hell, but now that i'm okay, it feels so good. thanks." he sat up straight, trying out if his back was really okay. he smiles when it really is healed. "why did i not notice that puddle, anyway?!" minghao scoffed.

jeonghan frowned. a smile looked good on minghao.

"why didn't you just drop by the hospital? you didn't have to experience more pain if you went there." jeonghan scratches his nape. "did junhui not at least asked you if you were okay?"

"he did, he offered to go to the hospital, too," minghao spat out. jeonghan knew better than to ask another question, he just patiently listened to minghao. "but i didn't want to go. i don't need his concern." that was the last thing that minghao said before leaving jeonghan in his room.

jeonghan shrugged, walking outside as well. that was weird, but he still had a report to do.

"thank you for assisting me, cotton candy!" jeonghan wooed, clinging to joshua's arm. joshua chuckled nervously, trying to pull away from jeonghan. jeonghan lets go soon enough, then he gets back to typing on the computer.

"jfc, when will jeonghan stop flirting?!" seokmin said, placing his hands on his hips. "when you two weren't here, it was quiet and serene!"

vernon takes one of his earphones off. "did you really just say jfc?" to which seokmin nodded proudly. "you're cancelled."

seokmin laughed, getting back to what he was doing: pulling out the jammed paper on the printer. he had to keep it low key or else joshua will notice and he's grounded from the fourth floor. luckily, he pulls the jammed paper out just before joshua saw.

"is everybody done with their reports?" joshua asked, looking at the wallclock. "it's almost time for dinner. i'll ask HEUSC to print your reports out for you, then we can all go out."

"you named your virtual assistant HEUSC. yeah, not obvious that you got it from balance unlimited. god, you're such a weeb," junhui comments. hopeful, he looks at minghao who sat across him—but junhui didn't get the reaction that he wanted.

minghao liked anime and mangas just as joshua liked it, and he usually backed up joshua when his weeb is showing too much. but minghao really wasn't in the mood today, no matter how much junhui tried.

jihoon expected an over the top dinner, elegant and classy food served on the table while they talk about politics or something. jihoon ate steak yesterday night and he was expecting something like it today—but there wasn't any on the table.

instead, there were two boxes of pizza and three litres of various soda. jihoon shrugged it off. at least the food still tastes good, whatever.

"so, how did everyone's missions go?!" seokmin roared, jumping around with a slice of pizza in hand. he was one of the people who weren't entrusted with a mission today, so he craves some action. "i want to know!"

junhui secretly goes to the bathroom to avoid this conversation. nobody noticed. minghao also wanted to run away from the conversation—so he walks away quietly to go hide in the bathroom but he didn't know that junhui went there. wow, it's like they planned to meet there.

"wonwoo seemed to be really sefless." mingyu raised a hand, earning 'ooh's and 'woah's around him. "the bomb was underneath the car, then i told him to do something about it with his ability while i confront the butler—and the bomb ends up in his hands."

"if he didn't tell me to not die, my thought process would've stopped and i also would've hugged the bomb and crouched down to save the people nearby." wonwoo admits. "i panicked."

"my boy's really a perfect fit for seventeen! i knew it!" vernon cheered, then he got boos. (vernon wished that instead of boos he got boo seungkwan instead.)

"kihyun's caught and karasu mafia's officially gone from our list." joshua spoke, pushing the rim of his glasses up since it hung so dangerously low. "jeonghan fought a man who had an ability, cloning. he did well, too."

"aw, don't give me all the credit, babe!" jeonghan sets his cup of soda down to cling to joshua's arm. joshua laughed nervously, trying to get him off. "you did well, too! you were like, fighting the boss level!"

"so is this babe and flirting thing going on real or...?" jihoon asked. "actually, it's really disgusting and i wanted to know if i'm going to have to see it everyday."

"you will, jihoonie!" jeonghan gushed, squeezing joshua's arm. joshua winced, to which seungcheol laughed at. "get used to it! me and my love will be doing this everyday!"

"eww, a couple! scram!" seungkwan pinched his nostrils, as if there was an unpleasant fume wafting around. his action caused laughs all around the room.

"we-we're not a couple!"

"ouch, sugarpie!"

"we had enough of that." jihoon grunted, the dying laughs came back again. "we found sands of time."

"yeah! shrimpy was so fast and we traveled in a blink of an eye! i got shot with rubber bullets, too, but i beat all the guards and made them my minions!" soonyoung did his best villain cackle. "i'm so powerful!"

"stop calling me shrimpy-!" jihoon sighed, biting the last piece of his pizza slice. at the corner of his eye, he noticed chan happily eating but not actually speaking and whatnot. "hey, you, kid! did you finally realize that you're being unnecessarily positive?!"

"ah... jihoon-hyung..." chan smiled and turned his head to jihoon. "today was hell..."

"let me guess. seungcheol led you into that white room and trained with you. he socked you as his first move." mingyu asked. "you should've brought a knife. when he did that to me, i was randomly carrying a swiss knife with me so he let me go."

chan looks enlightened until he met seungcheol's eyes. chan sighs, nodding sadly. the other members laughed. "you won't improve if you do that, chan! don't listen to him!"

"you will improve in outsmarting dumb people."

"we're trying to improve your combat skills and stamina, chan. not what he said," seungcheol glares at the tall , tanned man who suggested such a ridiculous idea. "mingyu, you're not off the hook. i'll deal with you later."