Seventeen

Seventeen—Sob

Andrea woke up early the next day or didn’t sleep at all. Everything that had happened in the past days had caught up to her in fast blurs over and over again. For the nth time (thought she can’t remember just when exactly it started) she asked herself if she was doing or rather if she has done the right thing. But as that bitter feeling of anger… and her undeniable deep love for her sister started to resurface, her motivation for doing all these reassured her.

She stayed with her sister until the evening and watched her fall asleep. She took her phone and checked the news when a certain headline caught her attention. She read the bold text carefully to make sure she was reading it correctly.

Were EXO Members Suho and Sehun assaulted? Alleged beaten photos of the two circulate among fans in social media

Her finger trembled as she pressed on the news. The photos were dark and seemingly taken from a night market downtown. But the duo’s features were recognizable to her even under purple bruises, ashen faces and poor lighting. Andrea was reading through the article when her phone rang. Sehun was calling her.

“You better hide now, Andrea.” Sehun’s voice sounded weak.

“And you should take a lot of rest, Sehun.” Andrea answered robotically.

Sehun snorted at her response.

“Why don’t you remove that angelic mask and reveal your true self?”

“I don’t know what you are talking about Sehun.” She answered back calmly.

Sehun sighed in frustration partly because he was angry and because he wanted Andrea to just tell her the truth. Deep in his heart, he wanted reassurance that he has become important to her enough to let him know the truth.

“Did I even matter to you?” Sehun inhaled deeply and spoke again, “Or was I simply a pawn in your little game of revenge?”

“Sehun…”

“Did you have fun seeing me follow you like a lost puppy, huh?”

No. Not recently, no.

Andrea considered telling him everything. She wanted to defend herself from him and just regain his trust on her again somehow. But she also knew that as Sehun gets into this deeper, the closer he gets to more danger.

Why would Andrea even bother worrying about Sehun though? Isn’t she supposed to be the one who is taking a merciless revenge in this story?

“What do you want from me?” Andrea said almost in a whisper.

She quietly closed the door behind her and walked along the hallway sadly yet with grace with the phone close to her ear. For some reasons, she didn’t want to hang up… she wanted to tell Sehun everything… to just let go for a moment and forget about the evil she has done and do something she hasn’t done in a long time. To sob.

“Tell me… Andrea…”

Tell me that I’m wrong. Just tell me the truth and trust in me… lean on me…

“Don’t call me anymore, kid.”

After ending the call, she ran out into the open lot and screamed her lungs out. All this time, she thought her heart was strong enough for this… that it was cold and hard enough to withstand the vile… but as hot tears burned her icy face, she was confronted with the harsh reality that she is not God. She’s just as human as these boys… as Jessica…

The crescent moon mocked her realization… almost questioned her means and blurred the ends. She was nothing but a mere dust… like everybody else; an insignificant dot sobbing in the middle of nothingness.

Her tears flowed endlessly and she didn’t care whoever was watching her. But then a pair of arms pulled her, forcefully making her feel a kind of warmth that was new. She tried to protest but the embrace went tighter the more she struggled. She looked up and saw a calm face staring back at her with eyes that almost made her feel…

Loved.

“You’re such a baby.”

The deep voice reverberated on his chest, caressing her pressed cheek. She summoned her pride to push him away but surprisingly, she was too weak to even lift her fingers to wipe her tears. Her chest heaved as a new wave of sobs came rushing up her throat… a current too strong that she almost drowned herself in the process.

“I love my sister so much. She’s all I have and I can’t…”

“You can’t lose her.” Chen finished for her.

Andrea nodded as her hands clenched into fists beside her. Chen’s arms were crushing her tiny anorexic body but it felt like he was trying to squeeze something out of her.

“But she will never forgive me for this,” Andrea said, her eyes starting to swell.

“For avenging her? Why won’t she forgive you for that?”

The sudden silence felt like forever. Instead of answering, Andrea managed to push herself away from the young lad. She closed her eyes and wiped away her tears while trying to steady her breathing. She swallowed hard before opening her eyes again… back to her old, fake self.

“What are you even doing here?” She asked him.

“You should be thankful I was here to comfort you.” His sass made the corner of her lips slightly pull upAndrea stepped closer to him, looking at him intently as if to see whether he was hiding something from her. He looked back, a little intimidated by her. One moment she’s all pitiful and sorrowful and she’s scary as hell in the next.

“You’re not going to betray me too, are you?”

The question made Chen go through his own mind. Did he do anything to betray her? Of course. But he doesn’t remember any of it for some strange reasons. Recently, all he did was to help her, defend her, and protect her. He has gone mad.

What exactly have you done, Andrea?

**

When Chen got home that night, his two missing brothers have come back. Being considered the black sheep among them, he quietly slipped in but didn’t miss Sehun’s little speech about what happened to them.

“Who did this to you? Do you know who?” Baekhyun asked eagerly, ignoring Chen’s entrance.

Sehun paused, seemingly thinking whether to tell his brothers or not. But then Suho spoke for him.“Andrea… Andrea did all these to us.” All the members including Sara who was talking on the phone fell silent. Some of them cursed under their breath, some were confused and others sighed, confirming what they’ve suspected all along.

“Is this true, Sehun?” Lay asked.

“The guy who kidnapped me, said that… Andrea is Jessica’s sister.” Sehun sat back in the couch, “And that she’s after us.”

Sara stood up and walked to the middle. She looked around and told everyone that she had to tell something.

“Just recently, the company sold ownership of its biggest money maker to a private individual,” Sara knew that the boys would be hurt but she had to continue, “I should’ve told you but I couldn’t because I was scared. Until I met your new owner living next door to all of you. I thought all she wanted was to watch all but now it’s clear… We have to do something about this.”

Sara quickly dialed for a lawyer in her phone and went out to the kitchen. Baekhyun stood up, shaking his head in anger. The others just stayed quiet as the tension started to get stronger.

“I knew it. I knew it was Andrea who is behind everything,” Baekhyun looked at Chen, “Defend your girlfriend now, troll.”

All of them turned their heads to him as he felt the heat starting to burn him alive. He was the only one who has seen Andrea in different faces other that the one she wore for show.

“She has nothing to do with this.” Chen said in monotone.

“So Sehun and Suho are liars? Is that what you are saying?” Baekhyun hissed at him.

“I didn’t say that. Have you heard what she has to say, huh?”

Baekhyun stood up and pushed him strongly, making him fall back a bit onto the wall. Chen had no intention to fight back and just looked at his brother get restrained by the others.

“Whose side are you on?! Can’t you see that she’s destroying all of us!” Baekhyun shouted at him in frustration.

“Stop it now Baek…” Luhan told him.

“I didn’t destroy anyone one. If there’s someone to be blamed for this, it’s us! All we are is a bunch of people forced to make money. Have you ever seen yourselves doing this for a longer time?! Never. Because all of you are selfish and sees EXO as a stepping stone to something greater.”

“Chen, stop it.” Suho said authoritatively as Sara came back to know what the commotion was about.

“Andrea loves her sister more than anything else in the world. She did what she did for her. Tell me, Baekhyun, would you do that for me?” Chen paused, “No. But I would. I desperately would do the same for all of you.”

“Don’t try to be the hero now. You’re clearly the traitor.” Baekhyun shook off the other’s hands around him and walked to the window.

All of them spread out in the entire living room as confused and bothered as ever. Now it wasn’t just a matter of Andrea’s evil plan against them but this involves their relationship with each other. Are they bound tight enough to barrel through this?

“Boys, stop this now. We have a new problem,” Sara looked very serious as she spoke, “Kai just called. He’s in jail. Do you know anything about this, Chen?”

Chen felt nervous for the first time that day and looked away. This time, it was Kris who walked to him and pinned his right shoulder on the wall.

“She asked you a question. Answer it.”

“The handkerchief found in the crime scene… is Kai’s.” Chen said quietly but everyone caught it.

“And you told Andrea??!” Kris was horrified, “Damn, pheasant. I didn’t know you are this dumb.”

“I suppose this is a way to somehow protect us, brother?” Baekhyun’s tone was tainted with disgust.

Sara wanted to be angry and just punch them all in the face but she did her best to stay calm. She took all her things and before getting out of the door, she looked at the boys’ desolate faces.

“I’ll see what I can do for Kai. But for now, stay here. Do not go out and do not fight among yourselves. Be a family for once.”

The gravity of what Sara said stayed in the room. For hours, no one talked with each other. Everyone either slept, walked around or ate something. Maybe the rumors are going to come true after all… EXO is starting to go down.

**

“Traitor my ass.” Chen muttered, looking out the big window.

“They’re all fools, aren’t they?” Chanyeol stood next to him.

“Yeah.”

“Wanna go out to get some air?”

“Aren’t we gonna bend Sara’s orders with that?” Chen said sarcastically.

“Not if we don’t get caught.”

Both of them secretly escaped while everyone else was sleeping. At 2am, Suho noticed that the two of them were missing and was about to go out to find them when Chanyeol beat him in opening the door. They were both surprised but Suho’s face was quick to change into anger.

“Where have you been? You’re not supposed to be out.” Suho scolded.

“Chen attacked me.”

“What?? Why??”

It was only then that Suho noticed Chanyeol’s disheveled appearance and the pink bruise on his jaw. He told the leader that Chen asked him to go out to get some air and then attacked him once they were away from the guards.

"He was so angry. You should have seen him. He would have killed me if not for some passersby who noticed us."

“Where did he go after that?” Suho was so worried.

“He ran away. Probably met his girlfriend.”

“Gosh. Okay. Wash yourself up and put medicine on that bruise.” Suho said, massaging his temples.

“I think he has gone insane,” Chanyeol added.

Suho sighed and excused himself to call their manager. Chanyeol watched him leave and went to the bathroom sink to wash his hands. He looked at himself in the mirror as a smirk started to creep up his beautiful face.

He didn’t expect Chen to throw such a powerful punch on his perfect jaw.