Chapter 8- V

Me- "Oh boy.."

Zen- "Seven just messes everything up. I knew Kao shouldn't have stayed with him!"

Seven- "Shut up!"

Kao- "..."

Jaehee Kang- "This is becoming a bit like a soap opera isn't it?"

Jumin Han- "How entertaining."

Kao- "Not helpful!"

Me- "I wonder what will happen~"

Seven- "Only you would know..."

Yoosung- "Oh cruel writer! What will happen to us?"

Me- " :)"

Jaehee P.O.V

The living room burst into laughter and I shook my head, trying to keep my composure. A smile made it on my face anyhow.

"They're probably making out right now." Yoosung chirped, trying to snatch the wine bottle from Zen who was holding it high up above his head.

"Shut up, Kao is smarter than that." Zen replied.

"She is?" Jumin asked sarcastically, taking a sip.

"If I were her, I would lock myself in my room until I were better." Zen remarked, ignoring Jumin's comment as he pushed back his hair.

"I don't think Seven would actually kiss her." I said.

"Oh yes he would!" Zen replied adamantly. "Haven't you seen the way he looks at her?" The room was silent.

"Looks?" Yoosung asked, finally giving up on the wine bottle. Zen nodded. "I didn't know he looked a particular way when he was with her. Is it his clothes?" Yoosung asked. The whole room almost smacked their foreheads.

"No, looks at her." Jumin corrected coldly.

"Ohhhhhhhhhhh." Replied Yoosung. "So he actually likes her then?" He asked.
"I'm pretty sure." Zen said with a nod. Jumin, sitting in the corner of the couch made a face, but he stayed silent.

"The question is if Kao likes him then." Yoosung said excitedly, looking back and forth between each of the members. I was silent, my fingers clutching the wine glass tightly. She did like him.

"Jaehee?" I jumped slightly at my name and glanced at Jumin. "Do you know? You two are quite close." He asked.

"She never told me." I responded. That was Kao's secret, I wasn't going to tell the rest until I knew she was okay with it. Jumin stared at me for a bit, but nodded and looked away. Yoosung chuckled, putting his hands behind his head.

"I can't wait to attend their wedding." He said with a grin.

"Oh be quiet" Zen replied. Yoosung angrily threw a pillow at Zen who caught it with his hand. "You throw like a girl." Zen added with a smirk.

"SHUT UP!" Yoosung screamed. Zen and I broke out into into laughter, Jumin had a slight smile on his face. "I was going easy on you because you were drinking!" Yoosung added vigorously.

"Like you throwing it harder would have made a difference." Replied Zen cooly. The two began to bicker before a sharp ping rang throughout the apartment. Zen and Yoosung stopped their argument abruptly and we all glanced at the door.

"I'll get it." Jumin said, standing up and walking towards the door, opening it calmly.

Kao stood in the doorway, her hair was tangled and her face was flushed. Her eyes were dark and seemed to be full of sorrow. We all stared at her in surprised silence.

"Kao, what are you doing here? Weren't you staying at Seven's?" Zen called out. Kao nodded slowly and walked in, Jumin shut the door behind her.

As soon as she walked in I knew something had gone wrong. There was an atmosphere about her in which you could tell she had lost all hope.

"Kao, are you okay?" I asked, getting up to help her. Kao was unresponsive and miserable, she merely shook her head, sitting on the couch with lowered eyes. "What happened?" I questioned, sitting besides her.

"Seven." She said softly. The room was silent before bursting into excitement.

"I knew he'd try something!" Zen snapped.

"Wait, good or bad?!" Yoosung asked dramatically, standing up. I yanked on his sleeve to pull him down and cast him an ushering look.

"Can we have some privacy please?" I snapped.

"Yes, please. This chatter is too much." Jumin added, crossing his arms and waiting for the others to exit.

"You too Mr. Han." I said as politely as I could. Jumin frowned but turned around and walked out of the room with a sigh. Zen and Yoosung cast worrisome glances at Kao but trailed behind him, shutting the door. Then I turned to her. "What happened?"

Kao's P.O.V

Words flew out of my mouth faster than I could keep track of them. Emotions flooded my mind and memories. When I had finished telling Jaehee what had happened I was breathless, tired, and thirsty. Jaehee was silent. I didn't know if she was surprised or unsure what to say. Probably both.

"Did you try calling him?" She asked finally. I nodded. Jaehee shook her head, taking off her glasses and massaging her forehead. "That's so strange. Seven's never done anything like that before. We should tell the others." I couldn't help from wincing. Jaehee caught it and gave me a sympathetic glance. "You weren't planning to keep it from them were you?"

"No." I lied. This conversation seemed familiar somehow.

"Good, Seven is precious to all of us. You would have had no right to keep from them that-" She paused. "That he's now missing." She finished. Her words stung, but she was right. I was ashamed for thinking of it.

"I hope he's okay." I muttered.

"Seven can take care of himself." Jaehee replied, patting me on the shoulder. "I'm sure he'll be fine, don't worry." But I was worrying. I had enveloped myself in a cocoon of self pity and sadness and most of my worry was admittedly focused on myself. I took a deep breath and slapped my cheeks forcefully. I had to stop. Jaehee was staring at me worriedly. "Are you okay?" She asked.

"I'll be fine." I replied. "I just want to find Seven."

"Seven has disappeared before, days on end sometimes." Jaehee said. "But in the emotional state he left in, I'm afraid he won't be back for a long time. That would be bad for all of us, especially considering the party is coming up soon." I nodded bitterly. And it was my fault. No, no, stop. No more self blame and pity. I thought quickly, blinking when Jaehee stood up. "I'm going to tell the others. Kao, you should get something to eat and drink. You look exhausted." She said before hurrying outside of the room. I heard muffled voices through the door a few seconds later. I didn't feel hungry, though I was quite thirsty.

I had devoured at least 5 sandwiches before Jumin, Jaehee, Zen, and Yoosung opened the door and hurried into the room.

"I'll contact V." Jumin finished.

"I'll go to Seven's house quick, see if there's anything I should pick up." Zen added.

"Good, I'll take over his work with the party." Jaehee said, coming over to me, her voice soft. "We're going to go for a bit, you have your stuff right?" I nodded, not knowing what else to say. "Yoosung will be here so you won't be alone."

"Kao, don't leave the house alright?" Zen called out, opening the door and shutting it behind him.

"Can't I help?" I asked.

"Perhaps later, right now it would help most if you just stayed here." Jaehee replied quickly.

"He's not picking up." Jumin said across the room.

"Call again?" Zen suggested.

"I've called twice now." Jumin replied angrily his phone to his ear.

"We can notify him later then." Jaehee said as she grabbed her purse and made her way to the door. "Please get some sleep Kao" She finished with a smile, closing the door behind her after Jumin followed her through the doorframe.

The apartment was enveloped in silence, I glanced at Yoosung who disappeared upstairs to retrieve something. Slowly, I let the half eaten sandwich I was holding fall onto the plate. I felt so useless. Was there really nothing I could do? Was there information I knew that the others didn't? Information that could help me find Seven? I sighed miserably, racking my brain.

And then it struck me. The files. Maybe they had his birthplace or something? Seven could have retreated back there, for a breath of fresh air. And I was sure he hadn't mentioned it to someone else. It was a stupid idea, but it was better than nothing, and my fingers were itching to do anything to help. I got out my phone, thankful I had taken pictures of the files.

Quickly and efficiently I scanned through the pictures before I felt a wave of dread. Seven's file was missing. I rechecked but it was gone. Or it was never there in the first place.

Had I missed taking a picture of it? Or was it not in the file at all? That was strange, everyone's file information had been in it. Even V's. I slumped back into my chair, defeated. There went my last straw of hope.

With a miserable sigh I decided to read through the files I had missed. I had left out two pages of the file before Seven had come home and I had to stop. V's was one of them. His picture was surprising. I wouldn't have recognized him if it hadn't been for his iconic hair. It was a young man with bright blue eyes and hair. He wore a charming smile, with his sunglasses on the bridge of his nose. Real Name: Jihyun Kim. Address: -

My eyes widened.

It took everything I had to work up the courage to lie to Yoosung. Saying that I wanted to go out to get groceries, which, no wasn't what I really was planning to do. But it's not like he would let me go to V's house. If they couldn't contact them and they were too busy to visit him, I would tell V myself. He had mentioned not being on a business trip for the last couple of weeks before the party as well, so he had to be nearby.

"Absolutely not." Yoosung said, hands on his hips. I blinked.

"Why not?"

"We have plenty of food here!" He responded adamantly.

"It's not the food I like!" I lied. I had peeked in the fridge. Jumin didn't screw around with his food.

"Then I'll go get some for you." Yoosung said.

"You won't know what I want." I replied, frustrated. I knew that Yoosung was just doing his job, but I needed to do mine as well. Yoosung groaned.

"Fine, we'll go together."

"What? No!" I blurted. Yoosung frowned.

"How else am I supposed to keep track of you?"

"I don't need to be babysitted." I snapped. "I'm 22 years old, I'm hungry, and I just want to go shopping. I'll be back soon."

"You were eating sandwiches a few minutes ago!"

"I don't like them!" I lied again. Yoosung sighed and scratched his head.

"I can't just let you leave. Keeping you here is the only thing I can do right now." He muttered. I bit my lip, anger washed over me but I silenced it. If I was going to do this, I had to compromise.

"Sorry." I said softly.

"Huh?" He asked in surprise.

"I wasn't thinking about the position you were in." I said finally. "Tell you what, lets just go together. Yoosung blinked in surprise, and then nodded. I could tell he was surprised at my easy surrender. Grabbing a spare key off of a drawer, we hurried out of Jumin's apartment.

We got into my car (which a bodyguard had delivered here since I had gotten here by bus) and drove away to my destination.

Sometime later.

"Kao, this is nowhere near a grocery store." Yoosung snapped, eyeing me wearily. I looked up from the small sheet of paper with V's address on it and shoved it in my pocket.

"It's not a very popular place. You've probably never been there" I said, exasperated. I had never lied this much in one sitting in years. Especially not to a friend. Then Yoosung's eyes widened as he observed the road around him and he spun in his seat to face me.

"You aren't going to a grocery store! This is the way to V's house!" He snapped. "How did you even know where it was?"

"There's a grocery store here!" I defended.

"Don't play dumb!" Yoosung yelled. "You lied to me! Pull over!"

"No." I said coldly, my hands holding the wheel firmly. "This is something I want to do."

"Jumin, Jaehee, and Zen have the issue under control!" Yoosung demanded.

"I want to help!" I yelled, my eyes staring at the road furiously. "Seven disappearing is my fault! I'm the one who pushed him. I'm the one who snuck into his room! I'm the one who wanted to stay with him! You don't understand!" I took a deep shuddering breath. "I can't just sit around and do nothing!" I finished.

The car was enveloped in silence, except for the low hum of the engine and the sound of the night life around us. Yoosung stared out of the window without replying. I could tell he was struggling with himself.

"I understand the want to help." He said finally, looking away from the window. "I always feel it. With everything! Even the party. I can't do anything. To help find Seven I have no redeeming skills, they don't trust me enough with the tasks. And what do I do? I stay behind. I always do!" His voice was rising. "Jumin has his money, Seven has his smarts, Jaehee is the most organized person I've met, Zen is famous and gives us publicity and you hold the whole organization together!" He yelled, and then his voice softened considerably. "Like Rika."

"Yoosung-" I began.

"I'm useless. All I do is play LOLOL because that's the only place where I can be the person I want to be. A hero. I can't offer anything to the group because I don't have anything. The only reason I'm even in it is because I was Rika's cousin. And now even she's gone." Yoosung finished. His voice was dripping in sorrow.

"That's not true." I said as I reached for his hand but he pulled his away.

"Yes it is. So don't tell me that I don't know about feeling useless." He said bitterly. "Because I know that feeling all too well."

I searched for something to say but I couldn't find a thing. Yoosung had felt this for much longer than I had. And he had kept it inside all this time.

"I'm sorry." I said lamely. Yoosung was silent. He was didn't speak for the rest of the drive.

Later

When we arrived at V's apartment I pulled up next to it, parking the car. I got out, stretching and shut the door behind me. Yoosung stayed put as he stared emotionlessly at the dashboard. I had the feel he was in no mood to talk to V. My eyes lingered on him, wanting to apologize again but I looked away.

I hurried into the apartment and made it to his room, paper in hand. I raised my hand to knock before I heard muffled voices.

"Did you get notice from Saeran?" I could barely make one out. There was a muffled response. I debated my choices and decided to listen a little more. I had come to terms with the fact that I was a nosy piece of shit.

"...not…busy….really to...Mint Eye" I pressed my ear into the door. Mint Eye? What was that?

"V...Luciel disappeared...trouble.." My eyes widened.

"...meeting tomorrow.." There was more barely audible voices and the sounds of footsteps coming towards the door. I didn't know who this Mint Eye was, but I had a morbid feeling in my gut and I didn't want to stick around. I blinked, my mind slowly working and then spun around, looking for a hiding spot. I made a mad dash for a small cleaning closet that was open by a crack, reaching to close it before I saw the door to V's room open. Two grown men stepped out in suits. I peered out of the crack with one eye, tracking their every movement. Then I saw V step out and exchange a few words with them. He nodded and then went back in, shutting the door. The two men turned around, walking towards me. I panicked, stilling my breathing.

But the men didn't spare me a glance. I examined their faces as best as I could before they disappeared out of my view. I sat in the darkness for a little, breathing slowly. Mint eye? Luciel? Why did they know Seven's real name? Who was Saeran? My mind was whirling and for a little, I couldn't sit up. I didn't know what I getting into.

I debated asking V where Seven was, but I had the feeling he wouldn't tell me anything. Numbly, I opened the closet, looked left and right, and then rushed down the hall. I reached Yoosung in a matter of minutes, getting in and driving away from the apartment as fast as I could. Yoosung spared me a curious glance but he didn't say anything. He had probably just assumed it hadn't gone well. He was right. It hadn't.

We arrived at Jumin's apartment late in the evening. I shut the door and hurried inside, Yoosung trailed behind me. Luckily, Jumin, Jaehee and Zen hadn't returned yet. I held Yoosung back before he could move upstairs.

"When they get back, please don't tell them we went to V's." I pleaded. His head moved towards me but he brushed me off and continued to walk away. My chest tightened as he moved upstairs. I uttered a soft apology and moved to the guest room. I would to fix things with him, but for now I wanted to know more about what I had overheard.

I closed my door and got out my phone, looking up 'Mint Eye'. Not surprisingly, the results weren't helpful. I slumped back on my bed and stared at the ceiling. I had to think. I was missing something important that would connect this all together. Rolling on my side, I tried contemplating the events that had happened in the last few days. Then I blinked. No, I would go back to the beginning. The day I met the others.

First, someone had contacted me to find the owner of a phone. Unknown. It felt like it had happened ages ago. I went to the house of the owner and was thrown into the chatroom. Days later that same Unknown had hacked the system and sent a cryptic message that had put everyone on edge. What was it again? I squinted, trying to remember. 'Welcome to paradise.' He had said.

I brought up notes on my phone and typed the message quick. After that someone had broken into my apartment. I shivered at the memory. I still didn't know what they wanted. Then Seven had saved me, he had treated me, and said that he had been tracking a member of an organization. And then I found the files. And then I overheard V talking to strangers about a 'Mint Eye'. I bit my lip.

What if Mint Eye was the same organization that Seven had been tracking? And what if Unknown was part of Mint Eye? The same organization that sent the message. I had no proof of this, only my gut feeling. But that wouldn't make sense. Why would they want me to be part of RFA? There would be nothing to gain from it. And why would V be involved with that? A weight dropped in my stomach. But what if he was? What if V had ordered my abduction? When I had entered the chat room he was the one who wanted me to join in the first place, if I remembered correctly.

I shook my head and cast the thought away. There was no way. Only a few days ago V had gone with us to dinner. There was no way he had an ulterior motive. And then I remembered my dream that I had after the attempted abduction. A burning fire with blue eyes staring at me. Quickly, I brought up V's picture from the files, almost dropping my phone. It was the same piercing mint eyes.

The sound of a key turning and door opening woke me from my trance and I sat up abruptly.

"Kao?" Jaehee's voice called out.

"I'm here." I said, my voice shaking. I could hear footsteps before Jaehee knocked on my door.

"Can I come in?" She asked, muffled.

"Yes." I responded. Jaehee opened the door a little and peeked inside. She saw my face and walked further inside.

"Are you okay? You're as pale as a ghost." She sat on my bed and I bit my lip.

"Yes." I replied. Jaehee stared at me with concern, putting her arm around me.

"Don't worry Kao, we'll find him." She said softly. I nodded slowly.

I didn't know what I was getting into. But something dark was going on, and I had finally realized it. I was unsure if I had failed to notice it because I had been so busy, or because I had forgotten about it. But I knew that I would uncover what was happening. Not just for me but for Seven as well.

IMPORTANT PLEASE READ! (Please follow and leave a review! I really love the reviews some people have posted and it's really helpful reading them. Please feel free to leave more \o/)

Okay, so a couple of things. Vacation! Again! Maybe. A decent amount of people liked the Busan trip so I was thinking another one like that would be nice as a treat. I don't know when I will be able to fit it in, it could be the next chapter, or at the very end of the fic, but I'm hoping I'll be able to include another vacation with all of the RFA members.

So if I'm able to fit one in, I'd like to leave the decision of where it will be to readers. Feel free to message me if you want a particular place to be chosen (like London or something) and if the majority is in that area I'll make that the location of the next vacation. If there's not a majority, then I'll go along with the idea I already have in mind. Readers can pick 3 cities they'd like it to take place in, in the order of the one they want first. I'll wait a week or two for the votes to come in, and then I'll "close the polls" and go along with the majority (if there is one). You don't have to participate, but it would be nice to get some ideas. It doesn't have to be in Korea! It can be anywhere! Just as long as it's in Earth…cause u know, Jumin's got the monz.

Example: (Venice being your most prefered and Paris being ur least)

Venice

New York

Paris