Chapter 13: a brother's broken promise

"And I don't even know what they were looking for!" Jongho tore a hand through his hair in echoes of frustration. The tight pull of his eyebrows were another factor betraying his annoyed state, but the other didn't pay him any mind.

When he received no immediate response, he tugged further on his hair, tilting his head back and falling onto the expensive couch with a huff.

Wooseok tutted at him from where he was standing in front of his modern cheval mirror, buttoning the top of his dress shirt. He glanced at Jongho once through the reflection, "Well, you said that things were thrown around like they were desperate or panicked. If they'd found what they were looking for they wouldn't have continued searching the entire place."

Jongho had thought of that, but having that suspicion confirmed by a real detective like his hyung was always a reassurance.

After Jongho's apartment had been thoroughly trashed, he'd sought out his childhood friend and older brother figure, Kim Wooseok. The same man that had first accompanied him to Wonderland those few weeks ago.

Wooseok had answered the phone almost immediately, and despite the late hours of the night, got in his car to collect Jongho from his mostly sleeping apartment building. Then he'd driven them both back to his expensive and modernistic loft that was located closer to the city centre. He'd been questioning Jongho's sudden need to be away from his own apartment the whole drive, and Jongho had finally granted some answers once they'd both settled onto Wooseok's couch at his loft. Afterwards, Jongho had settled easily into the guest bedroom where he'd stayed plenty of nights before, and slept for what felt like an eternity.

Jongho had been in Wooseok's loft a handful of times, but each time he was there, he felt too afraid to touch anything. Mostly due to his fear of breaking one of the expensive and fragile decorations that occupied most of Wooseok's living spaces. He knew Wooseok wouldn't even be that mad, and that he wouldn't even have to pay for it if he did, however Jongho would hate the guilt of his hyung having to replace something that cost more than Jongho's whole apartment and all of the belongings in it.

Not that there was much left to compare to a lot of his belongings.

The damage that had been done to his apartment was catastrophic for a mysterious robbery. The couches were torn at seams that hadn't existed prior, as if the robber was trying to find anything hidden amongst the cushion and its covering. His tables had been fully overturned. The TV in the main room had been knocked clear of its wall jack, and winding cracks snaked across its blank screen. All of their cupboards had been ripped open and all their contents were spilt carelessly across the kitchen floor, whether it was food or dishware. All of Jongho and Yeosang's glass cups and plates had been shattered into oblivion, leaving only scattered shards littering the scuffed floor.

Both Jongho and Yeosang's room had not been spared the whirlwind of destruction either. The mattresses had been lifted from the beds to reveal the frames underneath. Their closets had been thoroughly raided as well, clothes were thrown across the room to join countless other things on the floor.

If it had been possible, Jongho would have thought something akin to an earthquake had rattled his apartment to the core.

There remained the unknowns of who could have done it, or perhaps what, but there was also the mystery of whatever motive one may have had to commit the act.

As Jongho had picked through the wreckage last night, everything he could think of was accounted for.

Whoever it was had left disappointed without whatever they had come for, and Jongho was desperate to know what someone or thing would risk being caught for.

"That doesn't answer my question," Jongho groaned pitifully, "Clearly they couldn't find it, but what was 'it'? I don't have anything valuable enough for them to go through that much trouble to track down and break into my locked apartment!" Jongho sat up, letting arms rest on his knees. He met Wooseok's eyes through the cheval mirror scrunching his brows indignantly.

His hyung turned to him with an eyebrow raised, not particularly fond of Jongho's somewhat harsh tone. "You're not gonna find out by sitting around here," Wooseok scolded lightly, "Start by asking a few of your neighbours if they noticed anything strange at any point before last night. Sometimes you can gather everything you need just by looking into your surroundings, is there anyone you may have met recently that would want anything from you?"

Jongho bit his tongue in hesitation, just as Wooseok suddenly mumbled a curse under his breath and jogged up the stairs to grab what he had forgotten. He left Jongho on the couch, who was inches away from tearing out a chunk of his own hair in frustration. He only returned a few minutes later after successfully locating his missing tie, looping it over his shoulders with practised precision.

Though Wooseok didn't spare him a glance, Jongho stared pointedly at the other's back with a pensive frown.

"You work for an agency. Why don't you use your detective skills here? You're one of the best, surely you think there's something suspicious about this?" Jongho grumbled.

Wooseok gave him a small chuckle in response, "You know that I only deal with government level stuff."

Jongho was already on his feet, his arms crossed in front of his chest like a sulking child. "So? Then this should be a walk in the park." Jongho knew that he was being unreasonable to his hyung, but he was already frustrated and just wanted answers however necessary.

Wooseok brushed off the briefcase that had been resting next to him on the table, sealing it with dark eyes, not afraid to meet Jongho's challenging stare. "I'm sorry, Jongho, but I can't take on every case there is. You're like a little brother to me and I understand you're frustrated. However, you can just talk to the police. They deal with 'suspicious robberies' a lot more than I do. Besides, I'm already swamped with work right now. I don't expect to be back in the loft for the next few weeks."

A stab of guilt pierced Jongho's side, not only because he had just acted like a bratty child, but because of the reality of his situation. He had conveniently left out any mention of robots or the Creators or even the truth of hatchings when he had talked through the past night with Wooseok.

Something would grasp onto his tongue whenever he thought it best to finally bring up the life changing news to his older brother. Maybe he was scared of Wooseok not believing him, or maybe he didn't want to burden his hyung with more detrimental news to add to his plate of things to worry about. Given that Wooseok was an operative of the government he was usually swamped with business outside of the city. He was rarely at home for too long before he flew out to meet with superiors or to track down the threads of a case he'd been chasing for months.

Adding the stress of the concept of being surrounded on all sides by people who could in reality be robots created even more of a mess for what Wooseok had to deal with. So Jongho, for now, would bide his time until he felt spilling the truth was unavoidable.

However, there was a detrimental new problem with what Wooseok had just said.

Jongho's eyes widened in anxious concern, "Where am I going to stay now? You already forbid me from staying here by myself after the one time I set the oven on fire, so where would I go? I can't go back to my place, I don't really think it's safe to stay there at the moment." Jongho flexed his fingers in his curled fists, his uncertainty was like an irregular twitch in his hand holds.

Wooseok hummed in acknowledgement, hefting the slim briefcase after clicking it closed with a flourish. He turned away to the front door, and Jongho trailed after him, absentmindedly and simultaneously patting his back pocket and his front jumper pocket to make sure his phone and the bag that contained the black goo was present and within reach.

They both emerged into the dark wood hall outside of the main door into Wooseok's loft. His hyung twisted the key in its lock to keep the place secure, though there wasn't much to worry about in a building as trusted and maintained as Wooseok's. Though Jongho had already been surprised that someone had decided to break into his own apartment, so maybe anything was possible if you were determined enough, or if you had advantages humans just don't have.

When Jongho stared at him for an answer, Wooseok sighed and turned to meet his burning and questioning gaze. Wooseok placed a comforting hand on Jongho's shoulder to capture his full attention. His eyes flickered with brotherly affection.

"Jongho," Jongho paused, letting his shoulders sink at Wooseok's calming voice, "I can give you money for a hotel if you need one, but I really think you should stay with your parents for once. I know you haven't talked to them since the beginning of the year, but they worry for you, and I know they would welcome you with open arms. Remember they love you, and everything is under control. This is the first time such a thing has ever happened to your apartment, and I don't really expect it to happen again so soon. However, if you really are that concerned I can pull a few favours and look into it when I get back. But for now, you're just gonna have to sit tight and wait it out. Call your mom, she won't let you stay out on the streets alone even if you guys are at ends right now." Wooseok gave Jongho's shoulder another small squeeze, before his hand dropped back to his side once again.

Wooseok moved to pass Jongho, walking the few steps to the elevator doors that were inset into the wall just diagonally from Wooseok's main door. Jongho followed him a few steps, but remained in the hallway as Wooseok called the elevator. Wooseok paused just then, turning his head to look over his shoulder at Jongho who looked up at him expectantly.

"Promise me you'll let me know if anything else happens. And that you won't get into trouble while I'm away from the city. I'll be out of the country for the next two weeks maybe more, but I'll still answer the phone if you need anything." Wooseok's words were based on concern and reassurance but they still made Jongho's insides churn guiltily.

He must have appeared slightly troubled on the outside, as Wooseok gave him a small smile, "Remember to call your mom, too."

Jongho returned a similar smile, though it didn't quite reach his eyes, "I promise, but you won't get mad at me if I walk into it by accident, right? As long as I stay out of its way?"

Even if Jongho tried to soften his commitments, it was still a promise that he couldn't guarantee.

Wooseok's eyes narrowed just enough for Jongho to know that he suspected that something wasn't quite right with Jongho's responses. They stood in silence for a moment as the elevator doors opened, and Wooseok stepped through.

When Wooseok faced the buttons to press the farthest one on the bottom to the main lobby floor, he directed his gaze to Jongho's.

"And about you accidentally getting into trouble that's way over your head, you don't walk into trouble Jongho. You attract it."

The elevator doors slid closed before Jongho could even utter a reply, making the final interaction feel like a scene from a movie where some character had just finished their iconic monologue with some final quip to leave the audience reeling.

Once the display above the door started counting down floors, Jongho let out a near silent breath of relief. Though the guilt continued to swell inside of him like an angry thunderstorm. He couldn't help but to scold himself silently.

He hadn't breathed a word to his Wooseok hyung about anything other than what had happened to his apartment last night.

This meant that Wooseok was entirely in the dark when it came to the robots, the truth behind the hatchings, or even Jongho's job at Wonderland. He had also feigned to mention the night he was nearly strangled or the far more recent assault that had happened not even twenty four hours ago. It hurt to lie to the man he had grown up with, but he just couldn't tell him.

It wasn't anything to do with Jongho not trusting him, in fact, Wooseok was one of the few people that Jongho trusted almost blindly. He knew that Wooseok had never had a hatching and that he was a great man with a golden heart behind his seemingly disinterested or professional facade he wore so often. If Wooseok were to know the real truth of what was going on, the agent side of him would instinctively want to report it to his superiors, and Jongho wasn't sure how many of them may be corrupt or compromised already by hatchings. The other side, Wooseok's brotherly and naturally protective one, would drag Jongho out of the action to prevent him from getting hurt, and Jongho wanted to be everywhere else but the sidelines.

His moral compass and loyalty to his best friend made him determined to be the one to find Yeosang. There was a tiny present voice in the back of his mind that just whispered that Yeosang was relying on him, and he couldn't bear the thought of letting him down.

Jongho needed the help of the Elites and Yunho's connection that he had mentioned before so they would be able to track down connections to the black substance the female robot had left behind. Maybe they would even be able to find the warehouses or factories that they were stored or created. Then it was only a matter of getting in to be able to find indicators or clues to the whereabouts of where the missing people were kept.

Suddenly a hidden chord was struck in Jongho's memory.

Wait.

Jongho ran a hand down to his pocket, whipping out the plastic bag that he kept with him at all times now. He just hadn't been able to part with it, seeing as it was their current biggest clue to tracking down potential locations of their missing friends.

The black substance was opaque and thicker than water between his curious fingers. It had almost the same consistency as a syrup or honey, though it was far from being as sweet. The substance was in no way visibly alive, but still it seemed to impossibly glare at him, mocking him even.

His answer had been with him this whole time.

He had wondered through the night as he had tossed and turned in the feathery duvet, what purpose would someone have to raid a pair of college students' basic apartment. But now as he stared down at the midnight molasses, he knew.

The Creators were determined to stop them from locating Mingi and Yeosang, determined to stop the Elites' 'little investigation' before it got out of hand. Kind of like pinching a tap root off at the source to prevent the growth of an invasive tree.

And in order to keep Jongho and the Elites far away from their base of operations, they needed to do that exact thing. Cut off whatever advantage Jongho and the Elites had, to keep them out.

They'd been desperate to clean up their tracks, that's why they had sent that one robot after him not long after he joined up with the Elites. It was also why they'd sent lackeys or whoever to trash his apartment.

They'd been looking for the very thing he now held in his hand. The strange black, blood substitute that had been lost from the cut hand of an android woman. The same substance which now carried unimaginable worth to them.

It felt as if it became heavier even as moments passed by as Jongho realised just how important this small souvenir really was.

If the Creators were desperate enough to trash his entire apartment looking for it, then he would have to be more careful with how he handled it from now on.

He clenched it in his hands, almost fearful that someone would run up to him right then just to steal it away, but no one came. He slipped it into the front pocket of his sweatshirt, moving to call the elevator just like his hyung had done moments before. He pressed the main lobby button as well, and hummed a barely familiar tune while he waited.

As soon as the elevator doors slid open, Jongho stepped through the threshold, still humming away. He made sure that the ground floor button was lit up before he moved to lean against the handlebar opposite the elevator's doors.

His mind felt thoroughly conflicted.

On one hand, he felt at ease knowing their enemies hadn't succeeded in cutting off the only clue they had, but on the other, he dreaded what new extent they might go through just to pry this chance away from his hands.

The doors in front of him slid open with a flourish while he stared through them absentmindedly, revealing the new scene of a lively common room. The curious random glances of lingering occupants snapped him from his stupor, and he bashfully crossed the lobby to the exit. He exchanged a small nod and smile with the woman who was seated at the front desk, knowing she recognised him immediately as one of Wooseok's more frequent visitors.

He stepped out into the warm sunlight of the late morning that shone through the light clouds. He let his worries wash away into the air around him, allowing a smile to slip through into the sun's warm embrace. He was sure it was quite a sight to those strangers who scurried past on their way to work, but he couldn't bring himself to care what they thought. He was just another face passing by.

He inhaled deeply to clear his thoughts before he began to walk, the determination that pumped through his veins made his steps confident and striding.

His first course of action would be to pack up what he needed from his trashed apartment. Then he would look into booking a hotel room for the night. He didn't want to use Wooseok's money, as he still owed him for some other things that Wooseok kept trying to brush away but Jongho continued to refuse. And there was absolutely no way he was getting his parents involved. They had enough to say last time they had talked, and he wasn't quite ready to take on the inevitable conversation that they would no doubt bring up. He didn't doubt that his mother wanted to hear from him, but it always spun around to the same annoying questions.

He decided that he would use some of the extra money he had started to set aside for emergencies, adamantly telling himself that this was indeed an emergency of sorts. It wasn't as much as he would have liked, but Jongho wasn't about to complain and jinx himself accidently.

As he walked down that warming sidewalk, a noticeable skip in his step, Jongho felt a sudden burst of confidence that he hadn't felt since Yeosang had been around over three weeks ago. He would stay strong. He would stop the Creators and help save hundreds of innocent people in the process, all with the help of some unlikely teammates that he would have never considered meeting some weeks ago. And most of all, he would save Yeosang and Mingi, and return with them to make the Elites family whole once more.

He would.

He had to. 

——————

aha i'm tired 

♡ thanks for reading ♡

this chapter was not the best, but expect three more for tomorrow

i was going to post all four today to get caught up, but got a little busy.

anyway

happy ateez 3rd anniversary ! ♡♡

ps. i decided to leave Wooseok's song Red Moon above because he holds an important role in this story : )