The Mystery Gang (Troisbang Part Two)

[qiguai]

(previous part)

They make plans for an investigation that night. Jisang says regretfully that he can't help out lest the PTA charge him with faking the entire thing. The case is honestly the last thing on everyone's minds as the five go to leave, but they try their best to pretend otherwise.

Hyunmin pulls Injoon to the side before he can disappear down the hall after Hyunchul and Jihwan. They stand just out of sight from Jisang's office and Hyunmin hushes Injoon before he can ask what exactly they're doing. Then it becomes clear, as Suhoon and Jisang step out of the office together. Injoon gives him a a pointed look and tries to leave, but Hyunmin has a firm grip on his arm and his eyes glued to the pair.

Jisang peers down the hall before speaking with a relieved smile. "That wasn't entirely painful."

"I told you," Suhoon replies, tired but cheerful. He's not looking at Jisang but down the hall in Injoon and Hyunmin's direction.

"You look worried." Suhoon doesn't respond but he frowns. "I'm really sorry if I cause any trouble. I know they won't be happy with you for not telling them about me."

"Nothing I can't handle," he replies in a shaky voice. "Trust me."

"Gwangchul told me that you and Hyunmin are going through a rough patch."

Suhoon visibly recoils at his words, but manages to recover enough to quip, "That's a nice way of putting it." The grip on Injoon's arm tightens and he shakes Hyunmin's hand off with a glare, not that his friend notices. He's too busy straining to catch every word. "Everything's gotten to be too much, and that's all I'll say on the matter."

Jisang puts an arm around Suhoon's shoulders and says nothing; Suhoon stiffens momentarily before relaxing into Jisang's side. "I know it's hypocritical to say this now, after being gone so long, but I'm here to help in any way I can," Jisang says quietly, struggling with his words and turning redder by the second. He stares at his shoes and Suhoon looks a little embarrassed, too.

"Thank you," he replies. Injoon watches Jisang's expression change slightly, grow very uncertain, before looking at Suhoon in a strained way as if concentrating.

Suhoon doesn't know how to react to the change, either, and stares back just as intently in confusion. Jisang gulps, and then Injoon almost yelps in surprise as Jisang's face falls forward and he--

--kisses Suhoon. Injoon has to blink several times before he accepts that he's seeing what he's seeing. Just in case, he pinches himself on the arm, but no, they're still there. Suhoon's eyes are wide and alarmed while Jisang's are scrunched closed. After a moment, Suhoon's eyes fall closed, too, and that's when Injoon realizes where he is. More importantly, he remembers who he's with, and he steals a glance out of the side of his eye at Hyunmin.

Hyunmin looks like he's been holding his breath the entire time, his face is so red. But then he takes a deep, ragged breath and it does nothing to help his complexion, so Injoon deduces it must be rage. He contemplates trying to sneak away, but there is no way to do such that doesn't involve crossing right into Hyunmin's line of vision, and that is entirely too risky at the moment. Injoon instead decides it'd be best to keep watching.

Suhoon and Jisang are still lip-locked, and what's worse, Injoon swears Suhoon is kissing back. Staying is no longer an option, Injoon decides, and puts all his strength into pulling Hyunmin out of their corner and down the hall. He doesn't bother to look behind him, because he knows very well that Jisang and Suhoon won't notice a thing.

As soon as they get back to the motel the five split up and head to their respective rooms. Suhoon hangs back and says he needs to make a call first, but Injoon barely hears him. He confirms with a quick glance that Hyunmin gets into his own room before entering his and Suhoon's and throwing himself onto his bed. He knows he needs to say something, but what? He has about five minutes before Suhoon gets back, and he can't get his thoughts together well enough to even understand what he's feeling.

Jisang and Suhoon weren't like that. They'd never been like that, not in the years Injoon had known them. Granted, Injoon had met them in their second year of high school, and he knew they'd known each other much longer, but still...

It had always been Suhoon and Hyunmin.

The door clicks open and Injoon bolts up in bed, the first thing to fall from his mouth is a low, "Uh."

"Jisang kissed me," Suhoon breathes, sinking onto the edge of his bed. He doesn't look at Injoon, but holds his head between his hands.

The words leave before he realizes he's speaking. "Hyunmin saw you."

Suhoon gives no response, not even a twitch of the shoulder. Slowly, as if struggling to move, Suhoon looks up and over at Injoon. His expression is clouded as he speaks. "Before today, did you ever think about Jisang?" Something changes in his expression and he shakes his head without waiting for an answer. "Sorry, dumb question. Of course you have." His head returns to his hands and Injoon is frozen, thinking about maybe touching his friend on the shoulder, but he can't muster the strength to make his arms move.

"I-I..." he begins, his throat feeling like sandpaper. "I don't think I thought of him as much as I should have." He flushes as Suhoon glances up at him. "I think we all got distracted by other things..." He knows he's making a lame excuse to try and make himself feel better, and his shame worsens when Suhoon chuckles, low and dry.

"I know," he concedes with a kind look that tells Injoon he shouldn't feel bad. "It's just- I've thought about him a lot." Suhoon's voice cracks at the last word. On wobbly legs Injoon finally manages to cross the small space between their two beds. Suhoon sits up and leans back against Injoon's shoulder. "The day before he disappeared, I told him I liked Hyunmin, but I was lying."

"What?" Injoon asks, jerking and almost knocking Suhoon off of him. "I mean, go on?" Suhoon chuckles and it shakes Injoon's body slightly, comforting them both.

"It was really stupid, I admit it," Suhoon says with a heavy sigh. "It's not that I didn't like Hyunmin; I liked him and Jisang. Our friendship was awkward and convoluted and no one was ever really comfortable, but I thought it was working. I knew that Jisang felt the same way, and I thought that if I said that to him, he'd get jealous or something. It was like he already had one foot out the door for weeks and all I could think to do was make him jealous. I thought I could keep him with me that way."

Injoon blinks, not entirely able to absorb everything for a moment. "So, what now?"

There's a long pause before Suhoon sits up and answers, "First off, I need to talk to Hyunmin."

Injoon stands up and stretches his arms, one of which has fallen asleep. "What are you going to say?"

Suhoon smiles, weak but genuine. "That's a very good question."

Hyunmin won't look at Suhoon who refuses to look at Injoon who can't bring himself to look at either of them, not to mention Hyunchul and Jihwan who keep giving him prying, questioning looks. Somehow it feels as if they've gone back to high school in more ways than one and Injoon's not sure if he can handle being at the center of everything anymore. They enter the dark, empty school building and Jihwan starts shivering, but not from the cold. The long halls and shadowed walls of the school look menacing at night.

"What's the plan?" Hyunchul asks, and eyes immediately are on Hyunmin. He looks startled for a moment and Injoon's afraid he's going to have to bullshit his way through playing the leader.

"Alright, I've been thinking about this all day," Hyunmin finally says, and Injoon isn't sure whether to be relieved or suspicious because he highly doubts that this is what's been on Hyunmin's mind all day. "We'll split up. One team will explore upstairs, one will take the ground floor, focusing on the back staircase, and one team's going to be the bait."

Injoon gulps. Hyunmin looks right at him. "Why am I always the bait?" he whines.

Hyunmin shrugs and pats his arm. "You have a knack for attracting suspicious people."

"Is that a compliment or an insult?" Injoon grumbles, but Hyunmin just chuckles and continues on with the plan.

"Hyunchul and Jihwan will take the upstairs. I doubt you'll find anything, but it's better to be sure. Suhoon and I-" He pauses and glances at Suhoon. "I mean, if you'd rather not I can go with Jihwan and you and Hyunchul can take the first floor."

Suhoon shakes his head. "No, this is how we always do things. You and I will cover the first floor and wait for Injoon to draw out the weirdo."

Hyunmin grins, but tries to hide it. "Alright," he continues with new enthusiasm. "Then each team remember to keep their walkie-talkies on and notify the others if you see anything suspicious."

"Roger!" Jihwan chirps with a quick salute. He grabs the walkie-talkie in one hand and Hyunchul's arm in the other, and the two head for the front stairwell.

Suhoon hands Injoon his walkie-talkie with a slight smile. "Just do what you always do."

Hyunmin chuckles. "Yeah, just run around and look enticing."

"Shut the fuck up," Injoon growls and storms off- where to, he's not exactly sure.

Storming off into a dark, empty school turns out not to be such a good idea. After turning a few corners Injoon finds himself utterly alone in a hall with only a hazy idea of how he got there. He takes a deep breath and the sound echoes for what feels like forever. After standing as still as humanly possible for a few minutes to ensure he hasn't been heard and, oh god, followed, he turns back around and tries to retrace his steps.

While he isn't able to find where the group split up, he is able to accidentally find the back staircase. Though he's still not thrilled at being alone, he is proud of at least being in the correct location. He climbs to the top of the stairs, then back down. He checks around the corner and out the doors into the dark parking lot. Of course, no one is there. He wanders back over and sits on the first step.

Just run around and look enticing. He frowns and makes a mental note to kick Hyunmin in the shin once this is over.

A burst of static from the walkie-talkie and Hyunmin's voice is hard to hear, "First half of the main floor is empty."

Hyunchul's voice follows, "Upper floor is empty."

Injoon presses the button and mumbles, "In position at the stairs."

"Haven't been jumped yet? Hyunchul asks, perfectly innocent. Injoon's still trying to formulate a biting comeback when Hyunmin butts in.

"Come on, let's be serious," he says through the static, though everyone can tell he's been laughing. "If anyone sees anything, report it right away."

"Roger," Injoon says and Hyunchul follows suit. Then, silence. The stairs call to him as he yawns. The past few days have been so stressful, even cold, hard stairs look inviting to his exhausted self.

Just as his eyelids start to get heavy, a bright beam of light flashes over his shoulder. "Guess you'll need to be reporting me?" a voice says as arms wrap around his back and Injoon screams.

"Did you hear that?"

Suhoon glances over his shoulder at Hyunmin. Their gaze meets a second before Suhoon glances away. "It sounded like Injoon," Hyunmin continues. They're in a hall somewhere around the middle of the long building. In the dark they've found it too difficult to track their turns in the now unfamiliar layout. "Should we check on him?"

"If he needs us, he'll let us know on the walkie talkie or scream again," he answers with a shrug. Hyunmin smiles inwardly; it's the closest they've come to a normal interaction in days. He's tempted to push the limits, but he can't. When he looks at Suhoon, all he can think about is the scene from that afternoon.

Suhoon is staring at him thoughtfully and it's starting to make him uncomfortable. "So, um, let's check down that way?" He gestures down the hall and doesn't mean for it to be a question, but he has no control over his voice nowadays. Unfortunately, Suhoon doesn't move, doesn't even pretend to move.

"Let's not," he says in that perfectly monotone voice of his which Hyunmin finds impossible to argue with. He looks at Suhoon but finds it equally impossible to maintain the gaze. He shoves his hands into his pockets and stares at a wall. "Look," Suhoon says, voice uncertain a moment before asking the one question Hyunmin wishes he wouldn't, "are you okay?"

No, hell no, you know I'm not, he wants to say, but it comes out more like, "Yeah, sure."

"Liar."

The back of his neck grows hot and he bites back the urge to snap. "I'm fine, really."

He can almost feel Suhoon's long, drawn-out sigh and hears him take a few steps closer, though he hesitates a couple meters away. "This would be a lot easier if you'd admit you're not," he says in a tired voice Hyunmin's not used to hearing because Suhoon never likes to let on when something is wrong.

That thought prompts him to ask, "And what about you?" He asks not as a quip but out of genuine worry and hates himself for it. He turns around to find Suhoon smiling weakly.

"I've been better," he admits. Upon closer inspection, Hyunmin finds his friend looks utterly exhausted and he feels a pang of guilt that he hasn't noticed until now.

He swallows hard, his mouth suddenly dry. "So I guess you want to talk about it now?" The words come out bitter and he's not sure if that is exactly what he wanted, but he goes with it. Suhoon's face hardens but otherwise appears unruffled.

"I think it'd be better for everyone if we did," Suhoon says, careful and deliberate.

Hyunmin grimaces. "Do you have to be so fucking civil?" he sneers. Suhoon flinches, and the hurt expression in his eyes only worsens Hyunmin's frustration. "Does this mean you're going to tell me what the hell I did wrong?"

He expects Suhoon to be infuriated, to yell and scream or tell him to forget it, because Hyunmin should have figured out by now what he's done wrong and he knows it. Despite night after knight of racking his brain trying to figure it out, Hyunmin is still as confused as he was the night Suhoon walked out on him. He watches Suhoon unfold his arms and prepares himself for an onslaught.

But Suhoon is quiet. He steps up to Hyunmin and pauses, his expression clouded. He reaches out and Hyunmin flinches, but it doesn't stop Suhoon as he wraps his arms around Hyunmin's shoulders and pulls him into a tight hug. The feeling is so familiar and the action so natural, Hyunmin's arms move around Suhoon's waist on their own, and he squeezes a little too hard without realizing it. Suhoons breathes against Hyunmin's shoulder and for the first time in days, Hyunmin feels completely at ease.

When he presses his lips against Suhoon's head, Suhoon stiffens and pulls away. Hyunmin refuses to let go, even when images of Suhoon and Jisang re-emerge from his memory. Suhoon tries to pull away again and Hyunmin tightens his grip, frowning.

"Hyunmin," Suhoon begins, eyes panicking. "I-"

"You kissed Jisang," he finishes for him and he half-laughs bitterly at Suhoon's lack of surprise. "I suppose if you'd wanted it to be a secret, you would've chosen a less-public place."

"Hyunmin," he says again, but he stops struggling in Hyunmin's arms. After a moment, Hyunmin lets go, but with great reluctance.

"Listen," he says, voicing breaking so that he has to cough and begin again. "Listen, you don't have to explain anything, okay? I understand."

Suhoon frowns and cocks his head. "You understand what exactly?"

Hyunmin rubs the back of his head and looks away. "You used to always tell me," he mumbles, "how much you liked Jisang. In high school, I mean."

"You think that's what's going on here?" Suhoon scoffs. "Unobservant as always."

Hyunmin glares at his friend, wanting nothing more than to throttle and kiss him at the same time. "I apologize then. I must have been too distracted by the fact that you were fucking kissing him to see anything beyond that!" He whirls around and is tempted storm off, but he can't bring himself to do it when he finally has Suhoon talking.

"I'm trying to say that it's more complicated than that," Suhoon says softly. Hyunmin feels a hand on his shoulder. "I've just been really confused lately."

The word confused makes Hyunmin's hearts sink and he can't help asking, "But do you like him?"

Suhoon laughs, a relieved, light sound. "Is that really what you're worried about?" he asks with a small smile. Hyunmin nods, swallowing his frustration. "It's not like that anymore," Suhoon finally says. He doesn't dare look at Hyunmin as he forces the words from his lips. "We've all changed- him, me, you. I only want to be with one person, the one who was there for me no matter what. The one I know won't disappear because he promised me he wouldn't."

"Well.... that's...." he mutters and, despite not knowing what to say, feels himself relax. He reaches out to Suhoon and is exasperated when he pulls away again. Suhoon's eyes are still uncertain and his smile is sad.

"I know it's not fair to ask this after all this time," Suhoon says quietly, "but do you remember what else you promised me back then?"

Hyunmin opens his mouth to speak, but his mind goes blank. "What?" he manages to choke out.

Suhoon's eyes narrow. "I guess it really didn't mean much to you, huh?" He turns around and tries to storm off, but Hyunmin grabs him by the shoulder and forces him back.

And then the yelling really starts.

Injoon and Gwangchul sit huddled around Injoon's walk talkie in complete silence, listening in thanks to a convenient frequency malfunction.. Gwangchul frowns next to Injoon's cheek as they listen to the bickering through the speaker and backs away to sit on the steps. Much to Injoon's surprise, Gwangchul pulls out his own almost identical walkie talkie and mumbles something into it which Injoon is too distracted to make out.

"Wait, why do you-"

He's silenced by Gwangchul's raised finger as a voice heavily muffled by static practically shouts something through the speaker. Gwangchul rolls his eyes. "Don't freak out on me," he says, apparently able to understand the voice. "You're the one who went and made this stupidly complicated." Silence. Gwangchul sighs. "Don't worry. Sounds like they worked everything out."

Returning his attention to his own walkie talkie, Injoon hears Hyunmin mumbling curses, but otherwise the two have finally quieted down. There's a rustling, followed by a distinctly louder curse.

"Injoon?" Hyunmin's uncertain voice calls through the speaker.

"Still in position," he replies, voice shaking with restrained laughter.

"Did you hear anything?"

"Hm, like what?"

There's another pause before Suhoon's suddenly the one with the device. "We'll talk about this later."

"Sure." Injoon grins to himself. He glances over his shoulder at Gwangchul, who the entirely time has been alternating between mumbling into his walkie talkie and yawning.

"Is someone with you?" Suhoon asks, and before Injoon can respond Gwangchul is leaning over and speaking into Injoon's receiver.

"'Sup," he drawls with a wink to Injoon.

"What are you doing here?" Suhoon isn't even bothering to mask the suspicion in his voice and Injoon can't blame him.

"Helping out," Gwangchul answers vaguely. "Hey, could you do me a favor? Move about two meters to the left."

At first there's no response, but after about three seconds Injoon hears a distinct shout echo through the empty halls, followed by few shorter shouts. Hyunmin's voice sounds angry and confused when it finally comes through the speaker, "What the fuck just happened?"

"You'll understand soon," he replies calmly and through Hyunmin's fit of curses delivers his instructions.

"Do you remember our first mystery?" Gwangchul asks. Injoon watches him run his hands along a giant poster pasted onto the wall under the stairs. The shadow casted by the stairwell makes it hard for him to make out what exactly it is the poster is advertising.

"You mean the one we're re-investigating now?"

Gwangchul nods and pulls carefully at the corners of the poster until, slowly, the edges peel away. "Do you remember how we caught the guy?"

Not exactly pleased with being quizzed when he feels he should be the one asking questions, Injoon crosses his arms and stamps his foot impatiently. "Suhoon found a secret passage to the basement and Jihwan went in and chased the guy out. So what?"

"We didn't know at the time, but that wasn't the only secret passage down to the basement," his friend explains. The poster finally comes clean off the wall to reveal a decrepit door. The gray paint is chipped and the dark steel beneath is tarnished with age. The metal doorknob is rusted slightly around its bolts and where it means the door itself, and a heavy padlock dangles from a thick chain around the deadbolt. "There are three in total. I stumbled across the other two while working here."

"Are you the one behind all of this?" Injoon asks in a whisper. His heart pounds when Gwangchul turns to him and doesn't reply, just smirks.

"Shall we go?" he finally says after clearing away the dust and cobwebs from the doorknob. He produces a key from his pocket and the padlock falls to the tiled floor with a dull thud. "Don't want to keep Suhoon waiting."

Injoon grabs him by the shoulder and practically shouts into Gwangchul's face, "What the hell did you to Suhoon?"

"He just found the third passage," he replies, unruffled. With a sad smile he pats Injoon's hand before holding it in his own. "Do you trust me, Injoon?" His smile falters and he lets go of Injoon's hand.

"Secret passages are a little suspicious," he manages to choke out after several failed attempts at forming a coherent sentence. Gwangchul laughs, but it's a hard, cold laugh and he doesn't look at Injoon's face. When he tries to amend his answer, his mouth feels numb and awkward and the words won't come out. "I-"

"Do you trust me, Injoon?" he asks again, staring Injoon down in a way that makes his skin go cold.

He doesn't think, just answers. "I do." There is only a flicker of surprise before Gwangchul's usual relaxed composure returns with a light chuckle and grin that makes his eyes squint merrily. Something in Injoon swells. With that smile, Gwangchul disappears inside the dark doorway. Injoon panics and stumbles after him, only to slam into Gwangchul's back as soon as he hits the second step. Over Gwangchul's shoulder there is dark abyss, neither of them able to make out anything beyond the step beneath their feet.

"I knew you'd do that," Gwangchul grumbles over his shoulder and Injoon realizes that his friend is braced with his hands clinging to either wall. If he hadn't been there, Injoon would have gone tumbling down the steep set of stairs the instant he entered.

"Sorry," he whispers with his hands against Gwangchul's back. Gwangchul puts his arms down and rolls his shoulders and neck.

"Just be careful," he replies in a low tone that sounds a little embarrassed. He begins downward and Injoon follows carefully, feeling for each step before putting his foot down and keeping his hands glued to the wall beside him at all times. Gwangchul seems to know the way even in the dark, his steps unhindered and confident and his hands staying at his sides.

He must come down here often, Injoon thinks, his mouth turning down in a frown. It's so quiet in the small corridor that he can hear Gwangchul breathe, calm and even. Then, suddenly, Gwangchul inhales sharply and Injoon barely makes out him turning around to stare at Injoon. Well, not so much stare at as stare in his general direction, seeing as it's pitch black, unless of course Gwangchul has amazing night vision. Injoon would believe that.

"You're quiet," he says, "and when you're quiet, that means you're thinking. Thinking is never a good thing with you."

"I'm not?" Injoon squeaks, too nervous to process the slight jab. He hears shuffling and then Gwangchul's face is in his, close enough that Injoon can see his eyes, which is really damn close.

"I hate that you don't trust me." His voice wavers at the end as if he's struggling to control it.

"I do trust you," he says, but it's unconvincing.

"I'll tell you whatever you want if it will make you trust me." Injoon starts to answer, but Gwangchul interrupts, correcting himself. "Anything but what's going on tonight."

He starts to protest, but stops because he knows better. Convincing Gwangchul to reveal anything beyond what he is willing to takes a lot more energy and focus than Injoon has right now. "Then tell me why you didn't come with us." By now his eyes have adjusted, and he notices a spark of something in Gwangchul's expression.

"Because you all didn't need me, and Jisang did." He takes Injoon's hand and squeezes it. All of Injoon's protests and possible other reactions get caught in his throat. "Someone had to wait for him, Injoon." With that, he pulls Injoon gently along with his as they continue their descent.

All Injoon can think to say is, "But you hate waiting..."

The first person Injoon sees as they finally step out of the dark stairwell is Jisang, because he's standing in the small pool of light from an old lamp and no one else could ever be that tall. After a moment of clinging to Gwangchul's hand in silence, he notices Suhoon standing just out of the dim light near Jisang. Gwangchul lets go of his hand and he flounders in confusion until a fluorescent light flickers on in the center of the room. All four blink a few times, adjusting to the new light, before looking around at each other.

"Hey," Suhoon greets them casually with a little wave. Jisang nods, too, but his smile is forced. Gwangchul returns to Injoon and, taking his hand again, leads him further into the room slowly.

"Have we missed anything?" he asks.

"Not much," Jisang answers directly with a quick sidelong glance at Suhoon, who smiles and agrees. Jisang's smile eases into a more natural one as he visibly perks up, color returning to his abnormally pale face. "Should we be expecting everyone soon?" He glances at his watch and then back up at Gwangchul, who shrugs.

"My guess would be on Hyunmin," he replies, and Injoon can't help but notice that Gwangchul hasn't let go of his hand. "I told him where to look whereas we're relying on Hyunchul to remember the old way in." He gives the three of them a knowing smile. "I would have loved to make him find he entrance on his own, but then we'd be waiting all night."

As if on cue, the room is suddenly filled with an echoing cry, getting closer and closer until something falls from the ceiling onto a pile of old sport mats with a loud curse. Injoon doesn't need to strain to identify the disgruntled mess on the floor. Hyunmin flails in the mats, dust flying and making him cough and sputter.

"Nice to see someone else do that for once," Suhoon muses. Injoon chuckles to himself and Jisang cracks a smile, which disappears as Hyunmin's head perks up at the sound of Suhoon's voice.

"Suhoon?" he whispers harshly and squints as his eyes adjust to the dim light. By the time he manages to get to his feet, he must still be adjusting because he hasn't noticed the other three. "What the hell happened, Suh-" He cuts of with a sharp jerk. He'd been approaching Suhoon slowly in the dark until he finally caught sight of Jisang. Whirling around to inspect the entire room, his deer-in-headlights look makes Injoon smile despite himself. "The fuck!"

Injoon steps out from behind Gwangchul and pats the dust off of Hyunmin's shoulder. He gives Injoon a sharp look, but Injoon smiles in return and that appears to placate him. "What's going on?" Hyunmin asks slowly, struggling to keep his voice even.

"Don't ask me," he replies with a shrug, continuing to dust off his visibly upset friend, who looks to the others for an answer. Gwangchul hums thoughtfully with a wry smile and Jisang looks away as soon as Hyunmin's gaze meets his.

"They clammed up on me, too," Suhoon answers finally and shoots Jisang a displeased frown. The hurt look that flashes across Jisang's face makes even Injoon feel a pang of guilt, but Suhoon appears unaffected.

Balling his fists, Jisang takes a step and starts to speak,"It was supposed to be a surprise-"

"Not yet!" Gwangchul interrupts with an impatient toss of his head. Hyunmin glares at him, but his attack is ineffective. "We'll explain once we're all here." Another amused smile plays on his lips as Hyunmin huffs and goes to stand next to Suhoon, but hesitates as Jisang's tall frame hovers awkwardly on Suhoon's other side. After a moment of what appears to be incredibly deep thought, Hyunmin finishes crossing the room and stands directly next to his friend. He doesn't notice, but Injoon does as Jisang shuffles just slightly closer to Suhoon as well. Injoon looks pleadingly at Gwangchul, but he's too absorbed in observing the other three with narrowed eyes.

After a few seconds of Injoon practically staring daggers at the side of Gwangchul's head, Gwangchul finally turns to him, but nothing in his expression is comforting. "Should we do something?" Injoon mouths and gestures toward the others with his eyebrows. Giving him a tender look, Gwangchul shakes his head and beckons him back to the other side of the room. There, Gwangchul puts an arm around his shoulders in a sad attempt to comfort him, but it works.

"You okay?" Suhoon asks, breaking the silence and looking at Hyunmin. Even Hyunmin is surprised as he nods with a bewildered look on his face. Suhoon smiles a little. "It's easy to get hurt coming down one of those things." Hyunmin looks up at the hole in the ceiling thoughtfully.

"I never realized how much going through a trap-door must suck," he laughs, and though he doesn't notice, Injoon does when Suhoon blushes and looks away. Jisang seems to notice, too, as he shuffles a centimeter closer, but a sudden thudding from the stairs draws all gazes in that direction.

"You sure we're allowed down here?" Jihwan's voice echoes.

"Of course we're not, which is exactly why we're here," Hyunchul's voice follows.

"I don't think I get it," Jihwan replies just as he bounces off the last step and into the room, freezing on the spot. "Oh. What's up, guys?" He looks at each person individually with the same confused expression, not even noticing when Hyunchul steps up beside him looking anything but confused.

Gwangchul frowns. "I was expecting you two to come in the other way."

Rolling his eyes, Hyunchul clicks his tongue and drawls, "Like we were going to drop through the ceiling like a couple of idiots when there obviously was a better way in." Out of the corner of his eye Injoon sees Hyunmin twitch and flush, and he decides not to bring up how certain other people happened upon the room. "I knew Injoon was hanging out around the stairs, and overheard you on Injoon's line on the walkie-talkie, so I assumed there was another way around here."

"You're just too smart for me," Gwangchul sighs, but doesn't mean it. Hyunchul looks around the room at his friends and raises his eyebrows at Gwangchul, who glances away, for the first time a look of uncertainty flickering on his features. "Well, in case you all haven't noticed, whatever was originally going on here failed miserably."

"So you two were behind this?" Hyunchul says, unsurprised but frowning. Jihwan's expression clouds and he looks like he wants to speak, but doesn't. Hyunmin looks angry and Suhoon looks bored, and Injoon isn't sure which is more worrisome.

"I don't understand," Injoon says for them all. "Why would you-"

"I just wanted to surprised everyone!" Jisang exclaims, and the other six look to the tall boy suddenly as if surprised to find him there.

"If you hadn't strayed from the plan, it might have worked," Gwangchul sighs. He wipes the dust off an old desk and sits on top of it, resting his chin in his hands. "This is so anti-climactic." Seeing the others still so confused, Gwangchul tilts his head to the side and continues, "The plan was to surprise all of you, but someone here went and made everything stupidly complicated." Injoon looks to Jisang and sees guilt and something else in his eyes.

Jisang opens his mouth to respond, looking embarrassed, but Hyunmin suddenly breaks from Suhoon's side to walk over and grab Gwangchul by the shirt collar. "So there's no case?" he growls, nostrils flaring in what usually would have been a comical way in any other situation.

Gwangchul meets his fury with a stony expression. "We made the whole thing up."

"What about the PTA and all that bullshit?"

This time it's Jisang who answers with obvious shame, "They were never involved. Neither were the students. The two office workers you spoke to were given instructions by the two of us to say what they did." Hyunmin finally releases Gwangchul and with a tired, sarcastic smile on his face, laughs.

"So you're messing with us?" He looks from Gwangchul to Jisang, who flinches. "You two are just fucking with us again? Ditching us back then wasn't enough for you?"

Injoon steps forward and touches Hyunmin's arm. "Hyunmin, don't-" he mumbles, but Hyunmin is too far gone. He shakes off Injoon's hand and steps away, his shoulders shaking with bitter laughter.

"Do you two even know how hard we've been working these past few years?" he shouts, clawing at his clothes, and Injoon is afraid that any second he is going to start attacking someone else. "Do you realize how much bullshit we've been through?" He calms for a moment, looking at Gwangchul and Jisang levelly back and forth. "I guess it must be easy for you two, who've been sitting around here not doing shit to think we have this kind of time to waste." He makes for the stairs, but someone moves and with an echoing smack followed by a thud Hyunmin is on the ground, clutching his face.

The pain in Injoon's hand is so intense he wants to cry, and the enraged look in Hyunmin's eye only makes him want to cry more, but he does his best to look as tough as he possibly can, taking long, deep breaths. He has no idea how long he stands there, watching Hyunmin fume on the ground while all he can do is breathe and wonder what the hell he was thinking when he decided to punch Hyunmin, who freaking boxes whereas Injoon is only trained in the fine art of channel surfing while high.

Meanwhile Jihwan reluctantly helps Hyunmin to his feet, pulling the simmering boy to the side. Injoon blinks and finally lets his arms relax, feeling all eyes on him. Gwangchul is smiling, and that is enough to prompt him to finally speak. "I don't think it matters why we're here," he mumbles, voice scratchy and his throat dry from nerves. "I think it just matters... that we're here."

Hyunmin looks sheepish and Jihwan grins. Jisang looks grateful and relieved as he pulls Injoon into another one of his tight, overwhelming hugs, and Gwangchul is still smiling. Suhoon goes to check on Hyunmin's face, the latter's smile bright though he winces from the fresh cut on his lip. Jisang joins the two of them on the floor, filling the empty space between them and wrapping an arm around both. Hyunmin apologizes while staring at his shoes and Jisang laughs it off.

Leaning against Hyunmin, Suhoon gives a fake sigh and asks again, "So, do you still not remember what you promised me back then?" Hyunmin looks surprised, then annoyed, but Suhoon doesn't let him respond. "Right before we left town, after Gwangchul decided not to go, you said something, probably the best thing you've ever said."

"You're making me feel like an idiot," Hyunmin grumbles with his hand still on his face.

Suhoon touches his hand affectionately. "You said that someday we'd come back and find Jisang, once we raised enough money to hire the proper investigators."

The tears in Injoon's eyes spill over before he even realizes they're there, and he grins. Hyunmin's eyes widen and then he, too, smiles.

Something touches Injoon's shoulder and he turns to find Gwangchul resting his chin on him, that same peaceful smile on his face. "Everything is perfect," he exhales blissfully.

Injoon watches Jihwan settle at Jisang feet and Hyunchul squeeze in next to Hyunmin, giving him a light punch on the shoulder. Jisang turns and says something intimately to Suhoon, who beams, and doesn't notice the falter in Hyunmin's expression he causes. A second later, though, Hyunmin is laughing and smiling at something Jisang says.

"No, not perfect," he mumbles, mostly to himself though he knows Gwangchul can hear him, "but it's as close as we're going to get."