Chapter 7: black blood

Every time the door creaked open to announce the entrance of yet another member of the Elites, Jongho watched their eyes immediately gravitate towards his wrapped neck. The mess of bruises were no longer visible beneath the cloth bandages that Seonghwa had found, but the implication of injury was an eye catcher for the others.

Maybe because they were worried, or because they were merely curious. Either way, Jongho recognized the desire to question in more than one of their gazes, but each of them refrained from asking when Wooyoung or Seonghwa shook their heads.

The two who knew most about Jongho's situation currently were Wooyoung and Seonghwa, and both remained nearly at arm lengths to Jongho most of the time since finding out. That included when Jongho had migrated over to one of the main burgundy couches that occupied the center of the room when Seonghwa had first reappeared.

Seonghwa had voiced aloud then that he had left a message for the Elites to meet them all in the Brig once they'd arrived. And though Seonghwa didn't bother to add on what the meeting was about, it was obviously about Jongho's condition and their next step after this blatant strike from the anonymous 'Creators'.

The other two both made rounds to check in with other staff, making sure that everything would be able to run smoothly while the Elites were occupied. However, they didn't leave Jongho alone for more than 5 minutes.

Now that everyone was gathered together, it was becoming a bit squishy on the one couch. Wooyoung was seated to Jongho's left, not even on a cushion but instead sitting on the arm rest, just so he could glance over at Jongho every now and then worriedly. Jongho thought he could feel San's heated gaze from the other side of the room, but he averted his eyes for fear of starting something unnecessary.

Even Seonghwa hovered behind the couch like a worried parent, though he was a lot more subtle about his concern. He acted like he was merely leaning against the back of the couch, and swept his gaze over everyone when he wanted to check on Jongho again, just to make it look like he wasn't just looking over at Jongho. He kept his gaze dark with a level of solemnity too, and Jongho used that constant as a grounding force to remind him of the seriousness of their unavoidable conversation.

Though if Jongho were to be honest, he was getting tired of their persistent attention. It wasn't like he didn't appreciate their concern, which wasn't the case at all. They were just treating him like fragile glass and it made him feel smothered and unable to breathe freely.

He tried to send a silent signal of his discomfort by shifting slightly away from Wooyoung and closer to the middle of the couch. Wooyoung glanced over at him at the small movement and blinked in understanding. He gave Seonghwa's sleeve a small tug to relay said message and pulled him so they could both sit on the opposite couch away from Jongho. This way he had much more space and someone wasn't constantly hovering over him.

Yunho was already seated on the same couch as Jongho on the other end, but noticed Jongho shying away from Wooyoung and Seonghwa's extra attention. Yunho seemed to realize what Jongho wanted and didn't bother shifting over, even now that there was more room without Seonghwa in the middle.

Since Jongho wasn't about to miraculously speak up with his horribly sore throat, Seonghwa was the one who gave the Elites the basic rundown.

His noticeable shift into his practiced businessman persona was caught more so by Jongho than the others. Perhaps they were used to Seonghwa being on and off about it, or maybe he was this serious more often than not. Either way, the transition was a flawless slip that settled over Seonghwa's shoulders in an instant.

Jongho was starting to hate it. He sincerely hoped that one day, Seonghwa wouldn't feel it necessary to keep up the persona around him. One day he would slip up and perhaps then Jongho would actually face Seonghwa's real personality instead of his shielded and restrained one.

There were audible noises of surprise as Seonghwa's short explanation came to an end and three sets of eyes turned to Jongho with concern.

"There was a woman that attacked you?" Hongjoong let the words roll over his tongue like they were foreign to him. He pointed at the words that were scribbled on a white board that had been handed to Jongho partway through the conversation. "And what did she mean by the 'Creators'? Why were they after you?" He half whispered the last part to himself, as if knowing that none of them would be able to answer such questions.

Jongho studied the look that was beginning to overtake Hongjoong's facial features. It was a random mixture of guilt and another unknown emotion, even though the events that had taken place were in no way his fault.

Jongho could almost bet good money that Hongjoong was blaming himself somehow. Whether by convincing himself that he shouldn't have let Jongho walk out alone, or some other stupid thought that flooded his mind with guilt.

By putting his observational skills to use, Jongho had already figured that Hongjoong was used to being in control of situations. He had grown used to his easy confidence and with his quick thinking and considerate mindset, Hongjoong was more than capable to handle any problem that came his way. That and there was this indescribable air of authority that followed him like a dry thunderstorm.

But now he was faced with a problem that he was unable to solve. Fighting against a collection of robots wearing the faces of civilians and friends was no easy feat, especially for a group of six with no official training. (Which was way better odds than if Jongho had attempted such a mission by himself. It would be practically impossible then.)

There was more to the story behind Hongjoong's desire to have control of a situation, but Jongho would never pressure someone into revealing something that may be based on hurtful memories. If Hongjoong had bad experiences with things spiralling out of control before his very eyes, he may subconsciously do everything he can to prevent it happening again.

But then again that was just Jongho's assumption, he had no idea if such things were true or not.

Jongho nodded at Hongjoong's previous comment, glancing around at the faces of the other Elites. They each mirrored Hongjoong's concerned expression, and Yunho and San even exchanged glances.

Seonghwa stood, which immediately shot him into the spotlight. His feet carried him in restless pacing, and Jongho followed his figure back and forth with his gaze.

"This is much worse than we thought." Seonghwa spoke up at last, pausing just long enough to lock into each of their gazes in turn like a drill sergeant about to send them to war. "If they are prepared to wound someone enough to restrain them and prevent them from escaping, who's to say when they stoop to killing those who stand in their way. It makes sense that they went after Jongho perhaps because he was the first one to find out about their dark secret. But they may come after any of us just to keep us quiet. Whoever they are, they aren't messing around anymore. Our lives may be on the line here."

A tense silence settled over the group as the reality of their circumstances and the implications of Seonghwa's words sunk in.

San was the first to break the suffocating quiet, "We're literally putting ourselves at risk to stop them? Why does it have to be us? Can't we just let the police handle it? They're a hundred times more qualified than we could ever be."

San had barely finished his sentence when Yunho scoffed, "Like they'd believe us? Besides, how many of them are already robots? We could walk straight into a trap."

Hongjoong huffed out a harsh breath, and Jongho could see the tenseness of his stance and his clenched jaw. "The police corp is corrupt," Hongjoong said a little too bitterly, causing Jongho to eye him strangely at his change in tone. "We'd be better off on our own than with their help."

There was something in the way Hongjoong spoke about the corruption among the force that made Jongho pause for a moment. It almost seemed like Hongjoong had experienced the effects of the corruption he spoke of first hand.

Seonghwa clapped to draw their eyes back to him once more, "We don't have anyone else to do this for us. We're the only hope for the people who have been stolen away from their families and previous lives. We can't just give up when things start to get tough."

Wooyoung nodded seriously, but the grin he gave San was bright. "C'mon Sannie, you just need to believe in us. I think we can do it. Besides, remember when Seonghwa hyung made us take those fighting classes? We can kick some serious butt!"

Jongho was warmed by Wooyoung's optimism and for the first time a bright ray of hope seemed to shine straight through his chest. Yunho also seemed roused by Wooyoung's excited exclamation and he jumped up to perform a spinning kick, as if to show off some of the moves they had been taught.

San was unfazed.

"Those were self defence classes to use against aggressive drunk customers," San deadpanned, "I'm a bartender not freaking Batman, Woo. We aren't qualified for this. Have you all gone insane?"

Hongjoong tried to place a hand on San's shoulder and was about to speak up when San swiped away his hand and spoke up first.

"Any one of us could not come back from this just because we thought we could play hero for once. I'm not prepared to lose any of you. This is more than just uncovering robots, this is unearthing a secret organization that is kidnapping and replacing civilians."

To everyone's surprise, Wooyoung was the one who fired back at him. This time with no bright optimism or playful grin. Wooyoung looked genuinely upset at San's words.

"And what if we don't help? What about Yeosang? What about Mingi? Are you really that selfish that you'd let them suffer while we sit here twiddling our thumbs pretending nothing is wrong?! That's not how the real world works. If it means protecting those I love then I will gladly put my life on the line," Wooyoung was already on his feet, waving his hands around exasperated in a testament to his fluctuating emotions.

San rose right up to meet him, suddenly on the defensive, "You think I don't want Mingi back too? And I know how much Yeosang means to you, so I get it, really. But what good will we be to them if we're seriously injured or worse. It's not selfish if I'm trying to protect all of us from making a stupid decision that could come back to bite us later!"

"Well it sure sounds like it is!" Jongho blinked at Wooyoung's outburst, watching their argument unfold before his eyes. The others were also unwilling spectators, though Hongjoong seemed to be the only one at least attempting to get a word in edgewise.

Jongho wasn't quite sure what side he was meant to be taking.

He understood San's fear. He didn't want to make rash decisions that could cause more harm than good. Especially when one wrong move could have serious consequences.

It was comparable to a deadly game of chess, where each piece had to be placed in the perfect location in calculated coordination. They only had so many 'pawns'. One slip up in their defence and down went the king, and the whole game with it.

But at the same time Wooyoung's reasoning made so much sense. Who else was there to take on this role? Who could they trust to take their place when the potential of being surrounded by enemies wasn't that farfetched. Mingi, Yeosang, and at least an eighth of the population needed them to 'be the heroes' so to speak. There was no passing off the baton in this race to save their friends.

San blinked furiously, and Jongho swore he was about to cry.

"You may be prepared to die, but I'm not," San's voice broke, and he looked even more like he was on the edge of tears, "I love Mingi, really I do, but I love all of you as well. I don't want to lose anyone else and I don't want to choose between you, please don't make me."

It was then that Seonghwa decided enough was enough and he stepped forward in between the two. He pried them apart and placed a palm on each of their chests to hold them in place.

"We were involved the moment Mingi disappeared and Jongho came to us for help. There's no going back from this. We made a promise to get both Mingi and Yeosang back and I plan to fulfill that promise no matter how dangerous things may get." Seonghwa stared at both of them in turn, paying particular close attention to San, "Mingi is still one of us. We can't just abandon him at the first sign of danger." Seonghwa let his arms fall back to his sides, his harsher tone signifying that this would be the end of their conversation.

Wooyoung immediately turned on his heel with a glare, just to march over to the smaller bar built into the Brig to make himself a drink. San went the opposite direction, wanting to put as much distance as he could with Wooyoung at the moment. He opted for escaping the Brig entirely, and instead he disappeared through the door and up the dark steps to the still lively club scene above.

Both Yunho and Hongjoong shared a glance, Hongjoong's was more pleading than anything and Yunho was able to pick up the hidden message behind the look. It only took a few seconds for Yunho's long legs to carry him to the door to the stairs where he also stepped onto the darkened staircase and disappeared from sight.

Seonghwa chose an alternate route seeing Yunho chasing after San and instead moved to hover next to Wooyoung who was now attempting to drown his frustration with alcohol.

If the air hadn't been so tense, Jongho may have giggled at Wooyoung's furrowed expression while he sipped from his drink periodically under Seonghwa's scrutinising gaze.

As the only remaining member of the Elites at Jongho's side, Hongjoong naturally turned to him with a sigh.

When Jongho only tilted his head in concern for the two close . . . boyfriends? (Jongho was still unsure of their relationship. All he knew was that they were extremely close. He could probably ask Wooyoung, but part of him was afraid of the answer he might get.)

Hongjoong recognized his expression and picked up on his thinking, "San and Wooyoung are like two peas in a pod almost one hundred percent of the time. That just means that their rare arguments are usually big, loud, and hurtful. Yunho and Seonghwa can handle damage control though, I want to talk to you about something." Hongjoong joined him on the couch with a reassuring smile, "You're not in trouble or anything, I swear."

Jongho nodded hesitantly to show he was listening.

"Do you have a job currently?" Hongjoong questioned, to which Jongho shook his head.

Sure Jongho had had a job, but he had quit like two weeks ago because of the sketchiness of the business and its policies. He hadn't had the chance to go job searching for more work since Yeosang went missing not too long after he quit.

Hongjoong tried to squash his smile at the answer, "Great, I had a discussion with Seonghwa earlier and then with the rest and we all thought it would be a good idea for you to start working here too. It would look a lot less suspicious for the other staff if we had the excuse of you working with us. Plus you could earn some extra cash, have some backup if ever needed again, and gain some pretty good experience. But you aren't obligated to work here, only if you want to of course."

Jongho mentally skimmed through his options, though the answer was already pretty obvious to him.

Currently being out of a job wasn't ideal with having to pay rent, and now that he would most likely be paying Yeosang's share, for a little while at least, he was going to need as much income as he could swing. There was also the benefit of getting closer to the Elites and being able to learn more from them and beyond. And finally, with so many extra eyes watching his back he doubted another of the Creator's lackeys would be able to get close enough to cause more damage. There was proven safety in numbers.

There weren't any lasting downsides to Hongjoong's proposition, other than the possibility of working through the night into the early hours of the morning. But then again, Jongho was a college student and sleep was practically non-existent in his vocabulary.

Jongho readily accepted with a firm nod.

Hongjoong grinned easily, "Great, consider yourself hired. If you really want to you could even go find Yunho and San upstairs, they can show you some of what they do but don't worry about trying to keep up with them. San could probably use the distraction."

Jongho wasn't sure how keen he was to hang around San when he clearly didn't like him, but with Hongjoong's urging he got to his feet. Hongjoong, however, didn't follow him up the stairs and instead went over to help Seonghwa stop Wooyoung from drowning his liver and giving himself alcohol poisoning.

As soon as he emerged into the dimly lit hallways decorated with red and black splashes and accents, Jongho tried to backtrack from what he remembered from his first night coming to Wonderland. It had only been two days ago, but with so much that had happened it felt like two weeks had gone by in that time.

The club was alive with colour and noise that he noticed as soon as he left the sound proofed comfort of the Brig. There was a mass of people jumping up and down with garbled lyrics falling from their drunken mouths. They looked like they were attempting to sing along to the song an unfamiliar woman on the stage, where Jongho had first seen Hongjoong, was performing.

She had long dyed blonde hair that was pulled up into a ponytail and bolder toned makeup that gave her a more fierce and sexy expression. The way she moved was also captivating to the eye, though she stayed away from the stray hands that reached forward from beneath the stage. Her song choice was also bold, and Jongho figured that she was the type of girl that wouldn't take anything from anyone no matter who they were.

She was also the type of girl his older brother would have been absolutely smitten with.

Not Jongho though, he liked to focus his attention more on the male population. Though he wouldn't necessarily be opposed if there was a girl or someone else that came along that intrigued him. He didn't care to label, he was just interested in who he was interested in. And that was that.

Jongho was able to spot San almost immediately. It was pretty easy considering he was the only one with both a staff uniform and vivid pink hair. Plus the tense energy that radiated from the corner where San was furiously washing out a few glasses with unfocused eyes was potent.

Jongho was sure that San had been washing the same glass aggressively for the last five minutes, surely it must have been clean by now. He was almost worried that the glass would shatter in San's tight grip.

Though Jongho didn't let his gaze linger for long, just in case San caught him staring. He wasn't keen on giving San a reason to turn his frustration onto Jongho instead. So instead of asking San to show him the ropes, he opted to find Yunho as his alternative mission.

It would be better to let San blow off some of the steam on something other than a person.

Jongho turned helplessly to see if he could see the giant, blue-haired man past the crowds. It seemed ironic that despite Yunho's height advantage, Yunho was the only one he wasn't able to see over all the people.

It was by now he had also realized that the woman on stage was no longer there. The crowd that had been at the base of the stage had now spaced out in random directions depending on where their interests lay for the evening.

While Jongho was distracted while looking for Yunho, he hadn't noticed a different man approaching him. He almost jumped out of his skin when he felt a hand brush his arm, and he whipped his head around to look at the stranger with an alarmed gaze.

The man was clearly at least a little tipsy, but he was also determined. Jongho barely caught the garbled beginnings of some cheesy pickup line before he realized what this man was wanting from him.

Jongho tried not to let some of his annoyance slip into his expression, as this man was still technically a customer and didn't know that Jongho wasn't just any other college clubber.

Jongho swiped away the hand with an attempted polite smile that may have looked more like a grimace.

Why was he always finding himself in these situations? Luck just really wasn't on his side.

Maybe being a protagonist wasn't all it was cut out to be.

"Hey there!" Another loud voice joined the vicinity, but this time Jongho's shoulders sank with relief.

Appearing like a ray of sunshine through a thunderstorm, Yunho pushed through the throngs of bodies that parted around him like Moses and the Red Sea.

Yunho's smile didn't falter though he did pry Jongho away from the stranger by stepping between them. "Sorry, but we need to get back to work. I hope you enjoy the rest of your night!"

And just like that, Yunho was pulling him away and the man disappeared behind more dancing people before he could blink. Yunho had made the exchange look like a walk in the park, but then again he was probably used to the antics of drunk customers and their boldness.

When they emerged on the other side of the throng, Yunho huffed out an exaggerated breath.

"All in a day's work you know," Jongho was beginning to think that smile was permanently painted on his face, "I used to have to save Mingi all the time when he was just starting out." Finally for the first time Jongho saw the corners of Yunho's lips dip and his gaze turned forlorn. "He was so lost with all the people and the fast paced work, but once he got a hang of it he was a natural. Though that didn't mean people didn't flirt with him constantly, sometimes it almost seemed like he'd pretend to be in trouble just to get my attention."

Jongho's curious nature wanted to jump at the opportunity to talk about Mingi with Yunho, but at the same time he wasn't cruel. The memories they shared may be hard to talk about considering the current situation, and Jongho understood that.

Yunho shook his head, once again wearing that smile, the smile that Jongho was beginning to think wasn't as genuine as he wanted others to believe. "But it's all good, let's get moving. I want you to meet someone."

There was a slight pause where Jongho took a dive, he poked Yunho and directed his attention to a napkin he had snatched off a nearby table. There was a single scribbled question in the center with pen, and Yunho read the question aloud without hesitation. " . . . Was that before you started dating?"

Yunho clearly hadn't expected the question so his gaze shot to meet Jongho's with surprise etched into them. But the small, almost unnoticeable nod was all Jongho needed to understand. If he hadn't been watching he may have missed it.

Yunho then began to walk over to another hallway that wasn't accessible to the public at all. It was the same hallway that led to the back entrance and a few storage rooms.

The blue haired man made a beeline for the lonely woman standing there. It was the same person who had been performing on the same stage as Hongjoong not even ten minutes ago.

She looked up with a friendly smile, recognizing Yunho in an instant.

Yunho came to a quick stop at her side, and Jongho followed him like a helpless duckling.

The woman gave him a once over, "Ahh, this must be who Seonghwa was talking about the other day."

Yunho nodded, "Yeah, Jongho, this is Hyuna noona. She's one of our performers like Hongjoong hyung. You'll see her at Wonderland usually every Wednesday, Friday, and Monday. Well, at least until our DJ gets back from his vacation. Both Hongjoong hyung and Hyuna noona are extremely good at what they do. I'm sure the performance tonight was one of the highlights of the evening."

Hyuna ducked her head at his praise, but cuffed his shoulder lightly with one of her fists in a teasing manner. "Oh shut up, you. It's nice to meet you, Jongho. I've heard a lot about you already. All good things, I swear." Her gaze had a teasing glint to them as she looked up at them once more.

Jongho returned one of his brightest smiles, wishing he could compliment her verbally in return. Her performance, or at least the few glances that Jongho had been able to get in, was truly show-stopping. The way she carried herself with steadfast confidence was not only attractive to the audience, it also made her seem like a professional performing on a stage in front of thousands versus a single room of less than fifty.

He was also grateful for her humour after the intense argument that had taken place in the Brig. The relaxed commentary and her teasing finally helped his shoulders to sink from their tense state.

Speaking of the main participants in the argument, Jongho caught a flash of bright pink hair out of the corner of his eye. And he turned just fast enough to see San settling on a barstool, while speaking heatedly with who he had called JinJin through a break in the crowd. He was most likely reliving the argument and explaining his (downsized) side of the story to a startled JinJin who only blinked at San's frustrated tone.

The crowd shifted once more, and both JinJin and San disappeared from sight.

Jongho tuned in once again to the conversation between Yunho and Hyuna. It was mostly hushed small-talk, but Jongho didn't dare interrupt them.

Instead, he moved to lean back on his heels, tucking his hands into the back of his jean pockets. He flinched in surprise when he felt the corner of some plastic bag that he scarcely remembered placing there.

All at once the memory came rushing back to him, and that moment was when he realized he had yet to bring up the 'black ooze' he had acquired from the robot woman to Yunho. He figured Seonghwa would have filled in the others eventually, but the presence of the substance on his person was burning a hole through his pocket now that he was aware of it.

The foreignness of the contents made him want to keep it at arms length and within sight at all times, but the fear of losing their chance made him deal with the worst of it.

Though some part of him wanted to be the first one to transfer the last bit of news that had been most likely unintentionally left out during Seonghwa's quick explanation. Once he could pull Yunho away from Hyuna so they would have more privacy he was pretty much set.

His fingers itched to tug slightly on Yunho's sleeve to get his attention, wanting them to finish their conversation already so they could move on.

He mentally smacked his consciousness. He was acting like an attention deprived child desperate for their parents to notice them. (Come to think of it, Yunho was certainly tall enough for Jongho to feel like an insolent kid again.)

Hyuna glanced over at him once, and a flash of some understanding flitted through her gaze. Jongho blinked owlishly, was his impatience painted that clearly across his expression?

As if she was reading his mind, Hyuna placed a hand on Yunho's shoulder while turning her body as if to walk away. Yunho looked down at her puzzled for a moment, but she spoke first.

Hyuna tapped at her wrist as if she was checking a watch when in reality there was nothing on her arm. "I think it's time I went backstage again, my next performance is in a few minutes. It'd be nice to practice a little before it's time. I'll see you later, Yunho, and I'll see you around, Jongho." She left them with a small wave, her smile not faltering even as she disappeared behind one of the few doors along this bare hallway.

Yunho shook off his confusion at Hyuna's sudden exit and instead focused his attention on Jongho who was staring up at him expectantly.

"Did Hongjoong hyung tell you about the job already?" Yunho tilted his head to the left slightly in question.

Jongho nodded.

"And you said yes?" Yunho at least attempted to keep the hope out of his voice though it wasn't working all too well.

At the second nod from Jongho, Yunho beamed at him excitedly as if he was a child again and Jongho had just offered him all the candy in the world.

"That's great! I can even give you a quick rundown while I take stock in the storage room. It's this way-" Yunho went to lead him to the door opposite the one Hyuna had entered moments before, but Jongho grasped his forearm before he could move far.

Yunho gave him a confused look, "What's up?"

The edges of the bag were already pinched between his fingers before he even consciously reached to grab it. He presented it on his palm like a precious gift, and in some ways it was.

Yunho's eyes almost popped out of his head at the sight, and he grabbed for the bag almost a little too quickly.

He sifted it through his fingers, unblinking eyes drawing in the way it moved and shifted. Somehow Yunho seemed to immediately understand the importance of the black 'blood substitute' and its strange properties. Maybe he picked it up from the care Jongho had held it with. Or maybe he was familiar with other things like it. Wooyoung had once casually slipped into a conversation earlier that Yunho grew up servicing cars with his father, perhaps it stirred some memories that had been almost forgotten.

The black substance sure did bear some resemblance to dirty oil, but these were walking, talking machines and not the hunks of metal and rubber that Yunho had grown up with.

Yunho's eyes were different now.

Jongho noticed a few seconds later than he probably should have, but in his defense his mind did try to run away on him for a second.

There was an unexplainable intensity seeded deep in the chestnut pot soil that occupied the center of Yunho's iris. To be entirely honest, the sudden switch up between the happy and bright Yunho and this foreign seriousness made him uneasy.

"Where did you get this?" Yunho said, turning it over to prod at it once again. Jongho wasn't quite sure what he was searching for, maybe just answers that wouldn't come from anywhere else.

All Jongho had to do was motion at his neck and Yunho nodded in understanding.

Now knowing that it was something that directly came from one of the robots that was keeping him from his boyfriend, Yunho didn't seem to want to part from it. Jongho wouldn't take it back from him just yet.

The almost insignificant sealed plastic bag that Yunho was holding was the key for him to find the person he was currently missing the most. Yunho's gaze ached with longing for someone he couldn't physically see or touch.

Jongho would have loved to see their natural dynamic when they were together. With how much Yunho cared for him, Mingi must have been truly spoiled to have such a doting boyfriend. It was sad to think that the only perceptions Jongho had of their relationship were the pieces the Elites sometimes dropped in conversation when Yunho wasn't around, and Yunho's one sided affection for someone who wasn't there.

Jongho couldn't wait for the day when they were reunited once more.

"What should we do with it?" Yunho's fingers curled and uncurled around it, the rigid fear of losing his only tie to Mingi held him captive with tense ferocity. His hands physically didn't not want to release their grip, despite Yunho knowing that it was best to leave it with Jongho.

Jongho's eyes softened at the torn look Yunho carried in his chestnut gaze, moving to answer the best he could.

He mimicked searching for something, lifting a hand to his brow in a motion that was akin to a salute but lower. He mouthed the same word over and over again hoping that his actions were enough to get his message across.

Yunho squinted in confusion as if it would somehow help him decipher Jongho's message. His eyes finally blew open in understanding a few moments later.

"'Find?' Oh," He snapped his fingers at his realization, "You want to see if we can find who made it and track it from there?"

Well, it wasn't exactly what Jongho had been planning, but it was close enough.

When Jongho clapped his hands proudly, Yunho glanced back down to the bag in his hand, scanning it as if committing it to memory. He seemed lost in thoughts that Jongho would never be able to hear, perhaps re-living some memory that brought him into a dreamlike mindspace.

Jongho waved a hesitant hand in front of Yunho's spaced out form, which successfully made Yunho look back up at him with furrowed eyebrows. He gazed at Jongho without realizing for a few seconds, but blinked and jerked backwards when he came to his senses.

Suddenly, like a lightbulb had gone off over his head, Yunho's eyes cleared.

Jongho barely caught Yunho's hushed start, "I know someone that can help us." When he looked up once more to check if Jongho was still listening he continued, louder this time. "A few years before I started working here, I met someone who works as an underground informant of sorts. The information that he holds is so valuable some would kill for it, it's one of his greatest weapons and weaknesses. If you need anything, he can help you get to it. For a price, of course. However, I still have a spare favour I can cash in to maybe get it done for free. If we ask him, there's almost a guarantee he knows something that will be helpful to us. We can ask him about where this stuff came from or what it's made of. Maybe if we're lucky we can even squeeze out some information on these 'Creators' that that robot had mentioned if he knows anything."

There was a hopeful lilt to Yunho's voice, and he spoke slowly and thoughtfully as if seriously considering the suggestion even though it came from his own mouth.

Truly it was as good a place as any to start. They had nothing else to go off on and the fact that there was nothing they could do yet was hounding Jongho's worry for Yeosang.

He snatched up a napkin once more, not quite sure where he had swiped it from. He wrote only two lines in his slanted handwriting, but it was all he felt needed to be said.

Yunho read the note aloud once more, "'Contact him, but be careful. If anyone can pull it off, you can.'"

Jongho opted for an encouraging smile, but that thoughtful look had not disappeared from Yunho's gaze.

Before he forgot, Jongho stuck his palm out carefully to silently ask for the plastic bag back.

Yunho stared forlornly at the object even as he handed it over reluctantly, but he still sent Jongho a thankful smile that for some reason didn't reach his eyes.

With a now unreadable look in his eyes, Yunho moved to walk away, but he paused before he could make it a few steps.

Yunho turned his head slightly to speak over his shoulder, his voice both flat and deeper.

"I appreciate the encouragement, I'll do all I can to set this up. The others will back us up on this no problem. However, it's you who should be careful."

Jongho blinked in surprise.

"They already tried to kill you or silence you at least, just because they found out you knew their secret. Who knows what they would do if they found out what you are keeping in that bag." Yunho's warning seemed to be out of concern, but it still sent ominous shudders down Jongho's spine.

And as Yunho walked away to be swallowed by the crowd of bouncing silhouettes, Jongho wasn't able to quench the dread that was beginning to settle in the pit of his stomach.

——————

ack so I've been kinda lacking on these updates-

that doesn't mean I haven't been working on peregrine, i've spent a bunch of time plotting mwhaha *rubs hands together*

expect another update (maybe even two) in the next two/three days 0.0 this is because i want to wrap this book up fast and continue writing my next one... i mean what-

♡ thanks for reading ♡

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[the surprise art for this chapter has been removed to not interrupt the flow of the book]