Wooyoung stood in the hallway, sobbing into his hands. He didn't know what to think about what he just saw, and he didn't know what was worse... The fact that she had been branded, or the fact that after telling her story she had retreated back into the cage she had made for herself to try and block out all the bad things that happened to her.

He wanted to tell her that he didn't care about any of that. He didn't care what that monster had put her through. That didn't change the way he, or any of the others, felt about her. He knew it wasn't her choice. He knew she didn't want that life.

That son of a bitch did this to her... If I ever see him again...

The brand flashed before his eyes again and he fell to his knees.

Soon, he heard footsteps running up the stairs. "Youngie!" San called out, running to pull his friend into his arms. "Youngie what happened?"

Wooyoung couldn't stop crying long enough to tell him.

A few other faces appeared over the steps, but they stopped when San shook his head, so they stood there. Their eyes flickered between Wooyoung and the door to Lily's room.

"I'm going to kill him." Wooyoung finally managed to choke out. "I'm going to kill him for what he did to her."

"Youngie..." San said, pulling away a little bit. He could feel the rage pulsing from his friend. The tears had stopped as quickly as he began, and the look he gave San when he looked up stopped his heart.

His lip twitched in a slight snarl and his brown eyes were dark.

"Wooyoung, what did she tell you?" Seonghwa said, finally walking over and kneeling in front of the others. He placed a hand on the other's knee and leaned forward.

That soft touch snapped Wooyoung out of his rage and he bit his lip, trying to fight back the tears again.

"She told me everything... everything that man did to her, and what he let others do to her. I just used almost every clean towel we have rubbing the layers of makeup they had smeared over her entire body... Hwa... she's worse than last time..."

Seonghwa's hand came to his mouth and he glanced at the closed door in front of them.

"He branded her."

"What?" Yunho said, stepping forward. "I didn't see anything."

"It's not anywhere that would be visible if you were just looking at her." He looked at the taller, then extended his leg and placed a hand on the inside of his thigh, the same place her mark was.

Everyone gasped.

"Please tell me you're lying." Yunho said, his tears threatening to fall now. "Please, Youngie." When his friend stayed silent, he fell to his knees.

"I'll join you." Jongho said suddenly. Everyone turned, shocked expressions on their face at their youngest's words. "That man doesn't deserve to live anymore." He snarled, clenching his fists.

"Ok, just wait a moment." Hongjoong said stepping forward and holding his hands up. "We have more important things to worry about right now. Lily needs us. We can't leave her here to go on a man hunt."

"I don't know that she would even notice..." Wooyoung said softly, cutting off his leader.

"What do you mean?" San asked.

"After she finished telling me... it was like there was nothing of her left, she was just..."

"A shell." Yunho finished. "She looked the same way when she first stepped into the room with me. I had to say my name a couple times and pull her too me before she seemed to even recognize me..."

"Then it's even more important that we stay here." Hongjoong said, his firm leader voice coming out, commanding everyone's attention. "She needs our help to heal her wounds, both physical and emotional. We will not abandon her in her time of need. We also made a promise to our fans. Our career has just started, we can't throw it all away now for one person, no matter how much of a monster he is. She will be safe here with us. She can travel with us too. She will never be alone. If we are performing, she will stay with the crew. They don't need to know her entire story, but we work with good people, they will help us."

He got nods in return and soft smiles. His team respected him and knew he spoke the truth.

"We all need to do our part to help her, but we need to respect her wishes too. If she wants space right now, then we will give her space. But we will always be close by. I missed her just as much as the rest of you, and I do not intend on losing her again."

"What if she tries to leave again?" Yeosang asked.

"We... we won't let her. She's not thinking clearly right now, and I think our Lily would never want to leave us. The last time she left, she was scared, after what happened to San." Yunho said. "She tried to force me to leave, not wanting any harm to come to the rest of us."

"I don't like the idea of keeping her locked in here though." Jongho rubbed the back of his head.

"It hopefully won't be for long, and if she wants to go out, we will go with her." Hongjoong said. "I'll inform our crew who is close by to keep an eye out." He sighed and ran his hands through is hair, stopping to play with the end of his mullet. "And we will keep the front gate closed..." He blinked a couple times, then walked down the stairs to call the head of their crew.

The rest of the group slowly made their way down the stairs, San forcing Wooyoung to come with him.

They all went into their large living room to think, sleep, do nothing. All except Jongho, who sat on the stairs, leaning against the banister, positioned in a way that he could see his friend's door.

---

Lily didn't leave her room at all the next day, and she didn't let anyone in either. She had taken advantage of the lock on the door and ignored anyone's calls from the other side.

She hated that every time someone turned the handle or knocked, her first instinct was to fall to the ground in submission.

They couldn't see her like that.

On the second day she had tried the window, but the drop was too far and there was nothing for her to use to help her climb down. For a split second, she thought about just throwing herself from the window, wanting to end it all. She almost did too, but then Wooyoung's voice came from the other side of the door, just asking if he could get her anything.

His sweet voice pulled her back to reality and she went to the door, resting her fingers on the lock.

She didn't know why, but she found herself finally unlocking the door and taking a few steps back. It was like she wasn't in control of her own body. One second, she was unlocking the door wanting to let him in, the next she was on her hands and knees, forehead placed against her hands when the door opened.

The door closed quickly, and she felt Wooyoung pull her up from her position and enveloping her in his arms.

He forced his disgust at the sight away as he felt her shaking in his arms.

"I-I'm sorry." She breathed into his neck, pressing her nose to his skin.

"No," He pulled away and cupped her face in his hands, forcing her to look at him. He sighed when he saw a small spark in her hazel eyes. "You don't need to apologize for anything. I know... I know it was a reflex. Lily, let us help you." He kissed her forehead.

She closed her eyes and leaned into his touch.

Wooyoung.

She found herself nodding against his lips. "Help me, I need you." She sobbed, angry at herself for all her mixed emotions.

At her words he pulled her into a hug again, gripping her as tightly as he dared.

Worthless.

Slut.

Whore.

Broken.

...

Home.

Loved.

Safe.

She chanted the last three words to herself over and over, trying to convince herself that they were the truth, not the others she had been trained to think for so long.

"I'm never letting you go again." Wooyoung said, whispering next to her ear. "I can't. I felt like a part of me was missing when you were gone. I don't know what you did to me, but Lily, I can't be without you."

Her lip started trembling again as she dug her fingers into his back.

---

That evening, the nine of them had a group meeting. They gathered in the studio, a place all of them felt comfortable in.

In a tight circle, so that everyone's knees were touching their neighbors', they waited for her to speak.

As per usual, she had Wooyoung on one side holding her hand, and this time she had San on the other, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Like last time, please... Let me finish. I don't know if I'm going to be able to say everything I want to... But please let me try."

She squeezed Wooyoung's hand, drawing on his strength.

"Did Wooyoung tell you what I told him?" She couldn't meet their eyes, but she saw everyone's nods and felt San's against her shoulder.

"I... I don't know who I am anymore." Her lips trembled. "When Wooyoung came to see me today, it was like I was two different people. One part of me unlocked the door, the other part fell back into its own ways..." She met Yunho's eyes and she heard him growl, understanding what she had done when the door opened.

"I don't know if I will ever find myself, if I'm being honest. But I know I am so, deeply, truly sorry for the pain I caused you. I left to protect you." San squeezed her tighter. "I couldn't stand the thought of anyone else getting hurt for me."

They started to protest but she held her free hand up.

"Please... I want you to understand why."

She looked down at the charm on her wrist that Wooyoung had given back to her before they came into the studio.

Give me strength, Micah.

"I... I want to tell you what happened. To Micah."

.

.

.

.

Lily and Micah walked down the street, close enough to be brushing shoulders in a friendly, comfortable way. He was laughing at her confused look as he tried to explain a complicated math equation to her.

"Micah! It's not funny! I don't get it, speak English please!" That caused him to laugh harder.

"I can't, math is a language all of its own. Either you get it, or you don't." he said, pausing to pinch both her sides, forcing a squeak out of her.

She turned bright red and started chasing him down the street.

She stopped suddenly when they came to the intersection that led off to her house.

Micah noticed the sad look in her eyes. He knew she never liked to go home, but he respected her enough to never ask why. She would tell him when she was ready.

But today, she couldn't even look down the street.

He pulled her into a hug, and she pressed her face into his chest. He was tall enough that he could rest his chin on the top of her head without having to extend his neck too much.

"I'll see you tomorrow." He said, smiling.

"I'll see you tomorrow." She said, trying to keep her voice from trembling. She started walking away, keeping her eyes on the ground.

Micah hated seeing the defeated look on her. He decided he had had enough. After she was far enough away, he grabbed the straps of his backpack in his hands and followed her.

He had seen her house a couple times, but he was never allowed inside. She always had some excuse. One day she started stopping at the end of the street, not letting him walk her all the way home anymore. Their goodbyes lasted longer and longer.

Enough was enough. He had to know what was going on with his best friend.

He watched from behind a tree as she walked into the house, letting the door slam behind her. He deposited his backpack, crouched over, and went up to one of the windows. They were so dirty he couldn't see anything.

Then he heard muffled yelling. It was a man's voice, and he was furious.

Micah crept slowly to the door, freezing when he heard Lily scream in pain.

That was all he needed. He pushed the door open to see Lily cowering in a corner and a man's fist raised high in the air. He struck her. Again. Again.

"STOP!" Micah cried, running forward without a second thought to stop the man's hand from falling again.

The surprise and shock, plus the power of Micah's tackle, caused the man to fall to the ground and hit his head against the wall. He sat there, stunned.

Micah turned to Lily. She had several bruises already covering her body and her shirt was torn. He grabbed her hand and started pulling her to the door.

"No, Micah, you have to leave. Please go." She cried, trying to pull away.

"Are you kidding me?" He said, wrapping his arm around her waist and started moving faster. He handed her his phone and said, "Call the police. No-"

He was cut off when and arm wrapped around his throat and tore him away from Lily.

She screamed and called for the man to stop. Begging him.

Micah elbowed the man in the stomach, breaking free of his grasp and turned to punch him. He hissed at the impact and shook his stinging hand.

"Lily call the police! Now!" He said, now dodging punches from the beet red man, who was swearing at the top of his lungs.

She flipped open Micah's phone and dialed the numbers.

"9-1-1 What's your emergency?"

Before Lily could speak, she watched as her father finally landed a punch, sending Micah to the ground. She screamed. "No! Please stop!"

She was faintly aware of the voice on the phone, but she dropped it to run and try to protect Micah. She placed herself over him, facing her father.

"Out of the way, Bitch." He said, backhanding her. She cried out as she rolled to the side, but then picked up a glass from the table in front of her and threw it as hard as she could.

It made contact in the middle of her father's face, shattering upon impact. He swore and stumbled back, wiping blood and glass from his face.

Lily ran to Micah, grabbing his hands and pulling him to the door.

Sirens rang in the distance.

They were almost there.

Her father growled and grabbed Micah's flailing ankles, yanking him out of Lily's grasp.

Everything happened so fast.

Lily stumbled forward, losing momentum from the loss of Micah's grip.

Her father punched Micah again, dazing him just enough that he couldn't fight back.

Micah was being lifted off the ground.

A hand placed on his head and another on his chin.

He looked at Lily, sending her a look of 'I'm sorry'.

She watched as his head twisted to the side violently. She watched as all life left his eyes. She watched as he fell to the ground, never to stand again.