"Hm, this will look good on you."

It seemed that when it came to fashion, Yeonjun had impeccable taste and a critical eye. Of course, looking at his clothes, it wasn't a wonder- Soobin loved his outfits. Even now, he was wearing these form fitting dark clothes that accentuated his thin waist and slight muscles.

"Also this one, ooh, try this one out!" Yeonjun wasn't looking at him, just stacking clothes on his own arm. After he had six outfits collected in his hands, he dumped them into Soobin's hands, who scrambled to make sure he didn't drop any. "Go, go, shoo! We don't have much time, I need to check some more out and I'll give them to you while you're in the dressing room so we can save time and meet up with the others."

"Um, hyung, I think this much is enough," Soobin said, pushing his arms tighter so that nothing falls. "I trust your taste, and I just need to check the size and we're good to go."

"Oh, okay," Yeonjun seemed a bit disappointed that their shopping had to come to a stop. "Okay, try them on, I'll rate them out of 10 and keep the top 3 ones, okay?"

"Okay," Soobin mumbled, liking that Yeonjun cared about something as minimalistic as his clothes. He rushed to the changing rooms to quickly wear the first outfit before coming out.

"Hmm, no," Yeonjun shook his head. Soobin's face dropped into a pout.

"I don't look nice? I thought I did," Soobin said more to himself than Yeonjun but Yeonjun heard him.

"No, no," Yeonjun replied in haste. "You do look nice but it's just that it doesn't compliment your body as it should. Your body has a very nice shape, it needs something that can make your curves stand out..."

The way Yeonjun was talking so passionately about his body shape really left Soobin speechless. Nobody had ever actually noticed him in that way, let alone talk about him with so much fascination and it was doing things to Soobin-

"...so don't feel bad," Yeonjun was too busy rambling to notice the fond look Soobin was giving him. "But, but if you like it, I'll buy it, that's not a problem! Do you like it?"

"No, it's okay," Soobin's dimples appeared right then as he flashed his most genuine and happiest smile to him and Yeonjun's breath hitched. Shit, he was gorgeous. Really, really gorgeous and to think he- "...hyung? Hyung?!"

Soobin was so close to him how, his hand waving in front of him as he looked at the older boy in concern. Yeonjun automatically took a step back, realising that they were close enough to kiss if he just moved ahead a few inches.

For god's sake, they met just 2 or 3 days ago and now he's thinking about how the blue-haired boy is gorgeous when he smiles and cute when he blushes and that concerned look and it was all too much for Yeonjun, who was used to being the one who was always calm.

"Hyung, are you not feeling well?" Soobin asked, biting his lip. Yeonjun's eyes flicked downwards at that motion but he forced himself to look only at Soobin's very expressive eyes. "Should we-"

"No, no, I'm perfectly fine," Yeonjun reassured him. "Don't worry, just go change quickly. It's nearing our meeting time."

Soobin stared at him for a few seconds before nodding and turning around to go back to the dressing room. Once he was inside, Yeonjun sighed and plopped down on the wooden stool that was placed outside the dressing rooms.

Maybe he had finally met someone who could make him lose his cool.

✿

When they had finally finished buying three outfits for Soobin, the two of them started on the walk to the small inn they had decided to meet at. Their steps were slow and leisurely and Soobin built up the courage to answer the question Yeonjun had posed to him at the start of their shopping.

"Hyung," he said slowly, drawing the attention of the older boy, who looked at him from the corner of his eyes. "About your question before.... Why I ran away..."

Yeonjun's eyes flickered downwards to the ground for a second before he looked inquiringly into Soobin's eyes.

"I guess you could say that I never fit in with my family," Soobin concluded from his haywire thoughts. Yeonjun raised an eyebrow at his statement so he decided to expand on that. "My family has much different views from me. When I was young, they did something that I didn't know was wrong. But growing up, I realised that my family... has done lots of terrible things that I could never agree to. My mind just can't accept them. They expected me to join them, to be the same, but I don't want that. I just want a normal life."

"So you ran away?" Yeonjun asked quietly as the entered an area with a thinner crowd. "Couldn't you have done anything else?"

"Hyung," Soobin paused, fixing his eyes on the older. "I don't know what your family was like, but losing them perhaps makes you feel the need to make sure that I don't lose mine either. I know that to some extent, what you did for Kai was so that he could finally be someone his family was proud of, so that they could be together."

Yeonjun's face morphed into a scared and vulnerable one as he realised that the younger boy had seen through him and his actions.

"And that's very nice of you," Soobin said warmly, "but it's just not meant to happen with me. The life I want to live is very different from the life I would have led if I continued to live with them. And I wouldn't have been happy then. But I'm happy right now, even though our tomorrow is uncertain because right now, with you and Kai and Taehyun, I feel like this is what is meant to happen. My guts are telling me that this is where my happiness is."

"Soobinie..." Yeonjun's voice faltered at the end as he absorbed Soobin's words. Soobin felt happy with him, with all of them, and wasn't he feeling the same? Going by himself had made him used to being alone, but nothing can make you used to being lonely. With them, it would certainly make life more colourful. "You're right. Don't go back to your family if you don't feel like it."

"What are you talking about?" Soobin smiled, shoving the older slightly and Yeonjun grinned. "What about you? I know absolutely nothing about you, y'know."

"Hmm," Yeonjun hummed, mock thinking. "What would you like to know?"

"Anything you're comfortable telling me about," Soobin shrugged. If he was going to know Yeonjun, he wasn't going to be picky about what. He wanted Yeonjun to trust him and tell him things that he felt fit to be known by the younger.

"Then, okay," Yeonjun inhaled deeply before launching into his story. "You already know that I lost my parents when I was 9. Um, after that, I didn't have a house or anything and I wandered for a long time, living on the streets, doing odd jobs here and there to make ends meet. Until I was 15, when I first stumbled into a group of Adventurers. They wanted directions to this place and I gave them, thinking they're just really cool-looking lost travellers."

Yeonjun paused to laugh and Soobin felt himself feeling better, seeing the genuine smile on his face. It just made something bloom in his chest.

"A few days later, it turned out that they actually found a treasure box," Yeonjun continued, "which was hidden by a crew of pirates that were stranded on an island with some cannibals. I was star-struck by the entire story and I knew that this is what I wanted to do. I wanted to live that thrill, that adventure; that idea of venturing into the unknown makes my blood pound."

"That's... amazing, hyung," Soobin smiled, impressed by the truly passionate way Yeonjun spoke about the incident. This was deeper than the way he spoke in the shop, more heartfelt. "I can't wait to find the flower with you."

"It will be damn amazing, I tell you," Yeonjun said excitedly before pointing to a small wooden shop that had a lopsided plaque brandishing its name. "We've reached our destination."

✿

"So we're all set and ready then," Taehyun concluded once they had talked about everything they had bought and the food they had ordered was in front of them. "We can leave at a moment's notice."

"Yup," Yeonjun nodded before taking a bite of his fish. "We just have to be prepared for any robbers or anything that we might come across that could try to steal our supplies."

"Robbers?" Soobin didn't want the others to know how the thought worried him. He had never met any robbers but the accounts of other people were enough to terrify him. Yeonjun barked a laugh at that.

"Not to worry, Soobinie," Yeonjun reassured him, a gentle smile on his face. "We can handle them, no doubt. And by the way you're worried, I can tell that you can't fight very well."

"I can!" Soobin said quickly, his face warming out of embarrassment. "I'm really good with a sword! I just don't have one..."

"A sword is very visible and stands out easily," Taehyun interjected. "You might want to switch to another weapon that can be hidden easily and is just as deadly, like my dagger."

"Yeah, you can learn to use a dagger," Yeonjun agreed with him, "Or you can go for a long distance weapon like needles that you can prick enemies with."

"Ooh, needles sound a great weapon for hyung!" Kai's eyes twinkled in excitement. "You can use them to simply finish someone off with poisoned needles or simple ones to knock them out. It will be helpful!"

"I suppose I can learn it," Soobin shifted in his seat uncomfortably as he prodded at the vegetables in his now lukewarm soup. "But who can teach me?"

"I can," Yeonjun offered and the idea of accepting private lessons with Yeonjun just made Soobin's face warm up once again. "I am not that good at it but I can teach you how it works. With practice, you can perfect it yourself though."

"Alright," Soobin gave him a shy smile that unknowingly made Yeonjun's stomach flip in its place.

"It's settled then," Taehyun nodded and gave them all a small smile. "Yeonjun-ssi will teach Soobin-hyung."

"You can call me hyung too," Yeonjun said and Taehyun looked at him in surprise. Yeonjun smiled at him, "I think you're okay to trust."

"After all this time, one would hope," Kai joked and the other three giggled quietly as they continued to finish their lunch.

✿

Something was off.

Yeonjun felt it the moment he had taken a few steps out of the small hotel and felt like there were eyes on them- someone was following them. He tried not to look too deeply into it because it could be that someone just found them interesting and was just staring but the feeling didn't go away even after they had walked quite a distance.

"Don't look around," Yeonjun said quietly, appearing between Soobin and Taehyun, "but there's someone following us."

As if on cue to not follow his words, the two stopped walking and turned around. Kai stopped walking, unaware of why everyone had suddenly stopped and looked around in confusion.

The crowd had thinned considerably as the afternoon had progressed and the roads were empty enough to notice everyone walking on them. Taehyun's eyes zeroed in on a black piece of cloth peeking out from behind a stall and he murmured a quiet, "Behind the fruit stall."

Yeonjun walked towards it with purpose and Taehyun followed him as casually as if he wanted a apple from the stall not the person hiding behind it. They stopped and grabbed the person by their shoulder before pulling them up- and revealing the thief from before.

The boy had a sheepish, lazy grin on his face as if trying to tell them that he doesn't mean any harm. But Yeonjun dragged the boy over to where Kai and Soobin were and Taehyun trailed behind the two, his eyes narrowed on the other boy. Once they were all close enough for nobody else to hear their conversation, Yeonjun's fist tightened around the boy's collar and he looked him dead in the eye with a dangerous glare.

"I could kill you right this moment and no one here will even know," Yeonjun said in a low voice, his voice making it clear that he meant every word. Soobin felt a chill run down his spine at the way he spoke; it was detached, cold and uncaring of whether he has to take a life or not. "So you better have a good reason for why you're following us or you'll find your bones buried six feet underneath the stall you just hid behind."

"Woah, woah, calm down," the boy seemed surprised at Yeonjun's words but eerily calm. "I don't mean any harm! And I wasn't following you all."

"Liar," Yeonjun hissed. "I could sense your presence ever since we left the hotel."

"I mean, I have been following," the boy corrected himself, "But not all of you. Just him."

He jerked his thumb backwards, pointing right at Taehyun. The black-haired boy's face brightened visibly as confusion took over the faces of the other four boys.

"Why were you following Taehyun?" Soobin asked carefully.

"Ah, so his name is Taehyun," the boy's eyes twinkled as he turned around to face the red-haired boy looking at him blankly. "Well, I was following Taehyun because I like him!"

"You what."

Yeonjun's face was blank. His words were flat but it didn't depict the storm inside him. Soobin and Kai's eyes were wide with shock and Taehyun had a look of utter confusion and disbelief on his face.

"You like Taehyun?" Kai asked after a few seconds of silence. "You barely met him!"

"I mean, that was enough for me," the boy shrugged, not even turning around to face Kai as he stared at the beautiful red-head in front of him with softened eyes. "I just knew that he's the one for me."

"Look," Taehyun said finally, "I don't care what you think. I'm not someone who will take this very laughingly and let you do what you want. So you'd better run from here with your tail tuck between your legs or else, like Yeonjun-hyung said, you'll be buried six feet underneath."

With that, Taehyun looked away from him and stormed off ahead, a confused Soobin and a bewildered Kai hastening to follow him. Yeonjun gave the thief boy a once-over before following the others.

After five minutes of brisk walking, Yeonjun stopped and turned around, his eyes staring at the black-haired boy that was still following them in disbelief.

"Are you kidding me," Yeonjun's words were more of a statement than a question as he stared at the boy expressionlessly. The boy simply smiled easily as if he was undeterred by his words. "Stop following us, kid."

"I told you, I'm following Taehyun-ssi," the boy said pleasantly, as if the answer was very obvious and something he took great happiness in saying.

"Well then stop following him!" Yeonjun nearly shouted, unable to take in anymore 'pleasantry' from the boy.

"I'm sorry but I can't," the boy almost looked sympathetic as he said that. "I'm not giving up on Taehyun-ssi, you see. I'm determined to steal from him this time- I just want his heart."

"You're not getting it," Taehyun said flatly as he stared at the boy blankly once again.

"I want him to give me his heart willingly," the boy corrected himself. "And if that means that I have to be with all of you for a long time, then sure. I wouldn't mind befriending y'all."

"Oh my god," Yeonjun slapped his face on both of his hands as he tried to digest the boy's words. "I give up. I wanted to do this alone, but the goodness inside me screamed to take Kai along. So I took him. He asked me to take Soobin along. I let him. Then Taehyun came barging in, unwelcome, but helpful so I let him come along too. I can't take anymore now. I'm done."

With that, Yeonjun threw his hands up in the air and walked away, ignoring Kai's calls as he ran behind the older boy, trying to get him to listen. Taehyun rolled his eyes at the other boy before turning around and following Yeonjun. Then it was just Soobin and the thief.

Soobin was eyeing him with dismayal and wariness while the boy gave him a small smile. For some weird reason, Soobin felt like they could trust this boy. And Soobin always trusted his instincts. So he offered the other boy a small smile. The boy took this as an invitation to grin and Soobin couldn't deny that he was pretty.

"What's your name?" He asked the boy, beckoning him to follow. The boy fell in step with him as they walked together.

"I'm Choi Beomgyu," the boy said finally, his eyes glancing towards the blue-haired boy every now and then as they walked. "You?"

"I'm Soobin," he replied. "How old are you?"

"Turned 19 this year," Beomgyu replied and Soobin was glad to finally put a name to the face. "You?"

"Will turn 20 in December," he murmured back, not looking away from the road ahead of him. The other three were much ahead and hadn't seemed to notice his absence. "Can I ask you something, Beomgyu-ssi?"

"Just call me Beomgyu," the boy replied brightly. "And yeah, sure!"

"Beomgyu," Soobin hesitated. It wasn't his place to ask this question but if Beomgyu was going to follow them everywhere, then he might as well get to know him, right? "Why do you want to follow Taehyun so badly? You do know that Yeonjun really meant it when he said he will kill you, right?"

"I don't think he did," Beomgyu hummed. "I mean, no offence, you're probably friends who have known each other for a long time, but when he said those words to me, I looked at his eyes. And he didn't seem like the type of person who will kill someone for such a reason."

That was true. From what Soobin had come to know about the pink-haired boy, he knew that he was kind and thoughtful. Yeonjun wouldn't just kill someone for a small reason.

"As for why I want to follow Taehyun," Beomgyu's eyes softened as he said the name and the first thing that popped up into Soobin's mind was the word 'love'. "Do you know I have been a pick-pocket since I was 13? I wasn't that good at first, but no one has been able to catch me in the last 4 years. No one. I'm so swift and clean, that no one notices until I have gone far away, out of their reach. But Taehyun, he saw through me and my technique so easily. And when he told me off, I just, knew it."

Soobin looked at him in confusion and Beomgyu explained a bit more to ease his confusion.

"My entire life, I have been able to understand people with just one look at their face," Beomgyu said, his eyes trained on the back of Taehyun who was walking 40 feet ahead of them. "I just know what type of person they are and I know what they will mean to me. And Taehyun, his face just told me how meaningful he will be to me. I haven't met anyone like him in my entire life and now that I have, I don't plan on letting him slip through my hands."

Soobin didn't know what to say upon that as he finally let his eyes fall upon the younger boy who was looking at Taehyun like his whole world revolves around the wide-eyed boy.

✿

"Yeonjun hyung," Soobin said his name quietly, but the boy continued to ignore him.

They were back at the hotel, with Kai having given up trying to talk to Yeonjun and making his way to his room. Taehyun had said that he'll meet them the next day and gone to his own house, Beomgyu persistently on his tail (Taehyun acted like he wasn't there and whenever he had to acknowledge him, mentioned him like he was a kicked puppy following them everywhere- Soobin found the description a bit accurate).

Yeonjun was currently sitting on the cot in his room and Soobin was sitting beside him, trying to make him talk.

"Okay, fine, don't talk," Soobin said finally. "But hear me out atleast, okay? I understand that you don't want us here, or rather, you're more of a 'lone wolf' and this working in a group thing is being a bit hard on you, but..."

He saw Yeonjun's eyes waver and he continued.

"But if you don't want me here, I can go. You and Kai and Taehyun, you can do it just the three of you. I don't even have anything that I really want from the Lily. I'm just accompanying you guys because Kai is my friend. And I thought we are friends too, hyung. I know it has been just a few days since we met, but I thought we clicked. I enjoy being in your company, and I wanted to find the Lily with you. But if my presence is a bother, then I-"

"It's not a bother, Soobinie," Yeonjun finally spoke, interrupting Soobin's spontaneous speech. "You aren't a bother. I enjoy your company too. And I enjoy Kai's and Taehyun's company too. It's just that, it feels like I'm letting my personal, emotional side collide with my work side. I don't know how to work with other people constantly there with me. Until now, I have always been alone, working on everything by myself. And meeting you all, getting to know you... I like being around you all. And I'm afraid it's gonna come between my goal and me."

"But why can't you enjoy both the journey and the destination, hyung?" Soobin asked him quietly, resting his hand on top of Yeonjun's. Yeonjun didn't answer for a few seconds, his eyes trained on Soobin's hand. Thinking it must be making the older boy uncomfortable, he hastened to remove his hand but Yeonjun slipped his fingers against Soobin's.

"I haven't told you all the reason behind why I am searching for the Lily," Yeonjun said finally. "It's... something very personal and deep for me. It's the one goal of my life that I really want to achieve. It's everything that my life amounts up to. And if I don't find the Lily... I'm afraid that without the Lily's help, I will be unable to achieve what I want to achieve."

"Hyung, I won't ask what you want from the Lily," Soobin said, rubbing circles on top of Yeonjun's hand. "You can tell me that if or whenever you want to. But whatever it is, I can assure you that being with us isn't going to ruin your chances of getting to the Lily. Like Taehyun said, you need atleast three people. And even then, after the Lily comes and goes, after you have achieved your life goal, what remains? It's the people, hyung. We'll be here. So don't worry about this. You'll get to the Lily. We all want to reach there, hyung. And together, we have more of a chance of doing it than we have doing it alone."

"Okay," Yeonjun gave him a small, genuine smile and Soobin was so relieved to see it that without thinking, he hugged the pink-haired boy. Yeonjun was taken by surprise but he loved it.

He loved how Soobin was warm, and soft and comfortable. He loved how it felt just right to be in his arms, as if they were two puzzle pieces that finally fit after years of searching. He loved how safe and calm and at peace he felt when Soobin hugged him. The last time he had felt this way was when his mother had hugged him.

His grip tightened on Soobin as he drank in the feeling of holding Soobin close; until he realised that they were hugging for far too long and let go of him embarrassedly. To his surprise, Soobin was displaying pink cheeks and a shy smile on his face- a sight, Yeonjun decided, he loved to see.

"But what about the thief?" Yeonjun said after a few minutes of silence in which they soaked up each other's presence. Soobin raised an eyebrow.

"Beomgyu?" He asked and Yeonjun looked at him in disbelief.

"You know him?" Yeonjun asked.

"I asked his name when you stormed away," Soobin explained. "I just, had a feeling that he's trustworthy. Just my guts telling me that he doesn't mean any harm."

"Your guts can be wrong, Soobin," Yeonjun warned him.

"They haven't been till now," Soobin shrugged. "Anyway, you don't have to warm up to the idea of him. For all we know, Taehyun would have handled him by tomorrow. And if he hasn't, then perhaps you should consider letting him in on our little mission."

"I draw the line at Taehyun," Yeonjun said with a finality in his tone. "I honestly cannot take responsibility of one more person."

"If it matters to you so much, let Taehyun and me take responsibility," Soobin squeezed his hand gently. "I feel like Beomgyu will be a great addition to our group. I think he and Kai will be become great friends and that if Taehyun gives him a chance, he might actually fall for the boy. But you don't have to trust my words. Just trust your instincts, hyung, and everything else will fall in place."

✿

The walk next day was awkward.

Yeonjun and Taehyun wanted to show the other two the meeting spot with the ATEEZ members- a secret cave where the pirates harboured. It was a bit of a walk through some thick trees and plants and no one was speaking a word unfortunately.

Soobin was busy looking at Yeonjun with dreamy eyes, Yeonjun was busy trying to push all the branches out of their way, Taehyun was busy glancing at Beomgyu and pretending he wasn't there and Kai was busy looking between Taehyun and Beomgyu as if that would make everything make sense.

Beomgyu, on the other hand, was walking behind them with a small smile ever-present on his face as he watched Taehyun ignore him fondly. His hands were tucked into his pant pockets and he walked behind them leisurely, his eyes subtly taking in his surroundings as they walked.

"Why are you two silent?" Yeonjun asked after a few minutes of walking, brushing his sweaty bangs out of his eyes. The sight made Soobin's heart leap into his throat but he managed to catch the older's words. "Kai? Soobin?"

"Oh, um, hyung looked busy," Kai said off-handedly but looked away when Soobin glared at him. Yeonjun looked confused.

"Busy? Doing what?" He asked, looking away to hold back another branch and letting them walk pass.

Before Kai could answer, Soobin sent him a warning glare before giving Yeonjun a sweet smile and speaking, "It's nothing hyung. Kai must have thought I don't want to talk. But I do. So, Kai, let's talk."

Soobin had a crazy glint in his eyes as he looked at Kai pointedly and Kai gulped. Soobin sidled next to him and shot him a glance. Yeonjun found their words weird but decided not to interfere between the two.

"What was that about?" Soobin pouted at the younger boy.

"You were looking at Yeonjun-hyung weirdly," Kai stated dryly, his voice low enough to be heard by just Soobin. Soobin glanced at the pink-haired boy nonetheless, afraid he might have heard. "Hyung, do you... like him?"

"I-," Soobin flushed to the tip of his ears and he fiddled with his fingers at the hem of his shirt.

"You do!" Kai exclaimed, his voice strainingly low. Soobin just looked away, not wanting to lie to the younger boy but not wanting to tell him the truth at the same time. "Hyung, I would have never thought Yeonjun-hyung to be your type."

"I didn't either," Soobin laughed nervously. "I've never liked anyone before him, this is all pretty new to me and I don't even know if I'm doing anything right or if everything I'm doing is wrong."

"He doesn't seem to hate your guts," Kai shrugged. "So you haven't done anything wrong... But, just a warning, hyung. I can see that you like him but Yeonjun-hyung isn't someone who'll easily reciprocate your feelings. Based on whatever I know of him, I can tell you that he doesn't have anyone as close as family. He might just, not be the type of person you can handle after some time. He might end up hurting you unintentionally..."

"You think I don't know?" Soobin asked quietly, his eyes trained on the subject of their conversation that was conversing a few feet ahead of them with Taehyun. "My mind is aware but my heart... It refuses to listen. I can't help the way my heart beats faster when I'm close to him. I can't help the way I lose my breath when he smiles at me. And I can't help the deep ache and fondness I feel when I look at him."

"Hyung..." Kai doesn't say anything more, just looks at him sadly. "Just don't get hurt, okay? That's all I want from you."

"Don't worry about your hyung, Kai," Soobin smiled at the brunette, ruffling his hair. "I can handle myself."

"You might want to make a move on your man soon," a new voice said from behind them and Soobin whirled around in alarm, berating himself internally for forgetting that Beomgyu is behind them. "Don't mind me, just saying. There's a saying, hyung- you don't mind if I call you that, do you?"

Soobin shook his head, glancing at Yeonjun to make sure the boy hasn't heard anything of what they said.

"There's a saying, hyung," Beomgyu continued, brushing his dark hair out of his eyes as they focused on the red-head walking ahead of them. "'Nothing in this world will become yours if you do not strive to achieve it.' If you like Yeonjun-ssi, don't just wait for him. Do something about him. Make him fall in love with you."

"Of... course," Soobin smiled painfully at the younger boy, who didn't acknowledge his smile- too busy looking at Taehyun fondly. "Thank you for your input, Beomgyu."

"I know you didn't want it," Beomgyu said, amused. "But just thought I should tell you. You two can continue your chat, I'll just go and talk to Taehyun."

But the two didn't continue their chat. Instead, they opted to watch Beomgyu's one-sided conversation with Taehyun who either ignored all his words or grunted if he asked him questions. For some reason, the scene amused Soobin and he just laughed lightly, wondering if that's what he'll look like if he tries to make a move on Yeonjun.

Nope, he's definitely not doing that.

✿

"It's here," Yeonjun said between pants. They had finally reached the spot but instead of the hole they were expecting, there was a smooth flat slab of stone there. "Who the frick blocked this-"

"It was open till two weeks ago," Taehyun frowned as he watched Yeonjun try to budge the stone. The two seemed frustrated as they tried to think of when and how this happened when suddenly-

"They shut it off a few days ago," Beomgyu said calmly from where he was leaning against a large tree. The other four boys turned to look at him.

"How do you know?" Taehyun challenged him and Beomgyu's pleasant smile dropped into a serious face.

"Taehyun-ah," Beomgyu pushed himself off the tree and walked closer to the younger boy. If Taehyun felt anything from that, he didn't show it on his face and instead continued to stare at Beomgyu resolutely. "I am a thief. I may not have any friends, but I have aquaintances. And we share information with each other. So I am aware of all legal and illegal routes in and out of this city."

Taehyun didn't respond with anything other than averting his gaze towards Yeonjun to ask him what to do. Yeonjun sighed.

"Well, do you know how to go there, then?" Yeonjun asked warily. Beomgyu's face immediately reverted to its usual easiness as he nodded.

"I do," he confirmed. "Do you want me to lead you there?"

"In exchange of what?" Taehyun interrupted before Yeonjun could speak. Beomgyu looked at him in confusion so he clarified, "You can't possibly be doing this for free. If you show us the way, what do you want from us?"

"Nothing," Beomgyu said simply. "Just let me accompany you."

Yeonjun closed his eyes and Soobin was worried. He was worried that Yeonjun was done with all of this and that he would do something that will end up killing the short journey they had started upon-

"Okay," Yeonjun said with finality, his eyes determined as he looked at Beomgyu.

"Okay?" Beomgyu asked.

"Okay," Yeonjun repeated, giving a small nod. "You can accompany us. But that's where I draw the limit. No more people. You can't take anyone along. You can't expect us to do all the work for you or for you to do all the work for us. If you want to be with us, you will have to learn to work in a group."

"Yeonjun-hyung..." Taehyun looked flabbergasted at the pink-haired boy, as if he couldn't believe what he was saying. Yeonjun gave him a reassuring blink of his eyes but Taehyun didn't look reassured at all. "You... Why are you suddenly okay with this?"

"Someone made me realise that it's not all that bad," Yeonjun didn't say Soobin's name but the way his eyes flickered towards him fondly for a second didn't go unnoticed by anyone of them. "It's okay, Taehyun. You'll get used to it. Now, can we move to the task at hand? Beomgyu, if you could please show us the way."

"Of course!" Beomgyu was full-on grinning this time as he beckoned Soobin and Kai to follow him. Soobin fell in step with the younger boys as he eyed Beomgyu curiously.

"Beomgyu," he said, grabbing the attention of said boy. "Why do you steal? Like, why don't you just work and earn money instead of stealing it?"

"Hyung," Beomgyu laughed at his words for a few seconds before continuing, "Do you think I haven't tried? I was very young when I became homeless. And nobody wanted to give work to me. I wasn't particularly strong or smart or even determined. I did what I had to do to survive. And although I could do work now, I have become quite good at stealing. So I have never thought about changing my way of life."

Beomgyu didn't look at him, just straight ahead as he pushed through leaves and shrubs in their way. He hummed suddenly before speaking again.

"But, if being with you guys on your journey with Taehyun by my side ends up changing me, I don't think I'll mind it much. I'm proud of my skills, hyung, but I'm not proud of being a thief. It's not that I don't want to live righteously or any of that shit, it's just that I never got the chance. But perhaps with you all..."

Soobin knew that Taehyun and Yeonjun could hear them. He hoped that it would change their opinions of Beomgyu because he could see that the boy himself was a good person at heart. Just perhaps in unfortunate circumstances. Not unlike all of them.

✿

"We're nearly there!" Beomgyu called out, stepping out of the thickets and Soobin, who was behind him stepped out into sand. He looked around in amazement as the deep azure sea made itself visible in front of him, playing push-and-pull with the white clean shores of the beach. It was his first time seeing the sea, having lived in the middle of the peninsula for all his life.

"Wow," he whispered, unable to take his eyes off the way the sun gleamed upon the sea making it shine. A few boats were tied quite some distance away and fishermen that looked as tiny as needles were moving their fresh catch of the day. The beach was otherwise empty and the gentle breeze felt amazing to breathe in.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Taehyun smiled fondly as he looked at the sea from beside Soobin. "This is where my heart lies. Can you blame me?"

"Not at all," Soobin said in awe, thinking that it was only natural for one to fall in love with the sea. "I can see why you like the sea, Taehyun. It's beautiful enough to match sapphires!"

"I know."

Soobin finally broke his gaze away and saw the gentle way Taehyun was looking at the sea, as one would do when they look at their mother. He saw Kai looking at the sea in awe and reverence and Beomgyu looking at Taehyun with a small smile, as if warmth had blossomed in his chest from the view alone. His eyes finally landed on Yeonjun who was looking at him, a playful smile lilting on his lips as his eyes twinkled mirthfully.

"Come on, we are going to be staring at the sea when we go on the ship," Yeonjun called out. "You can appreciate its beauty then. For now, we gotta go."

"Right," Taehyun shook his head and looked at Beomgyu. "Come on."

"Yes sir!" Beomgyu mock saluted him with two fingers and Taehyun looked away, his cheeks red with embarrassment. Soobin giggled at it all as they trudged on across the beach.

Once they were far away for the fishermen to look like tiny ants, Beomgyu pushed through the thickets once again and made way for them to follow him.

"If we had to enter the thickets again, why did you make us leave?" Taehyun grumbled.

"So that you could see the sea," Beomgyu said without looking his way. Taehyun paused at that and looked at Beomgyu with an unreadable look. "It's around here somewhere..."

Beomgyu seemed to be sifting his hand through the various veins adorning the smooth expanse of a rock. Finally, he tightened his grip around one and tugged at it. Nothing happened.

"What?" Yeonjun looked at him with an eyebrow raised. "Why is nothing happening?"

Beomgyu didn't answer and looked at the rock calmly. Then it moved. The rock moved a foot to the left and a face appeared in the gap. Whoever it was, was looking at them coldly and calculatingly.

"Choi Beomgyu," the man seemed to recognize the black-haired boy and the rock finally moved enough to show the entire man. "There's no one here today."

"I know, but someone's gonna come in a few days," Beomgyu answered. "Thought we should just take a quick check around and let you know."

"Come in," the man said after a few seconds of silence. He moved out of the way and Beomgyu squeezed himself in. Yeonjun followed him, so unwillingly, Soobin followed him too. Once they were all in, the man pushed the rock with another man and shut it close. Soobin looked around and saw that they were in a very large cave of some sort.

It was dark inside, lit up only by torches that were alight every few feet. The small channel of sea water stretched wide enough to hold a medium sized ship. There were only a few people around, either eating or drinking or chatting. A few eyed them but no one spoke to them.

"Who's the one ya lookin' for?" asked the other man, dusting his hands.

"Wooyoung said they're gonna drop by here around this time," Yeonjun decided to take charge. The man looked at him, giving him a grin that showed the gaps in his teeth.

"ATEEZ, huh?" The man chuckled, sauntering ahead of them. They walked in silence before the man spoke again. "Want us to let ya know when they drop by?"

"Yes," Beomgyu piped up. "That would be nice of you."

"It would be, it would be..." The man murmured to himself. Soobin fidgeted nervously, feeling a bit off. He didn't like being in this cave much. Suddenly, a hand slipped into his and squeezed his hand reassuringly. Soobin looked up to see Yeonjun giving him a reassuring smile. Right, he had Yeonjun with him. Yeonjun wouldn't let any of the men there hurt them. Nor would Taehyun. And maybe not Beomgyu either. He smiled and Yeonjun took that as a sign of it being okay so he let go of his hand.

It left an empty feeling inside Soobin, making him feel disappointed at the sudden lack of a warm hand. But now was not the time for such thoughts. He needed to be alert, lest someone here attack them...

"Perhaps we can send one of them boys themselves to ya," the man gave his gap-filled grin again, and the sight made Soobin feel uneasy once again. "Wouldn't ya like that?"

"Hmm," Beomgyu seemed to lean closer to Taehyun, whether because he wanted to protect him or because he was scared, Soobin didn't know. "Is Jaeyun around?"

"Kid dropped by yesterday," the first man said from behind them. "Said he's goin' to 'nother town for the next few days."

"I see," Beomgyu stopped walking. "Then, I guess that's all I wanted. We have to go now. Have a good day."

He tilted his head to let the other four know to turn around and back to where they came from.

"I suppose," the toothless man said and Soobin was glad that this was the end of their interaction. He couldn't wait to go back to his hotel room. And from the looks of it, Kai was feeling the same.

✿

The next day, Soobin was checking through his belongings, packing them up so that they can leave at a moment's notice. He was alone in his room and the hum of a quiet afternoon drifted in the air.

The door suddenly opened and Kai skipped inside, Yeonjun at his heels. Soobin's dimples appeared as he gave them a smile and beckoned them inside.

"Are you done packing?" Yeonjun asked, not meeting his eyes for some reason and staring at his bag as if it was the most interesting thing in the room.

"Yeah, I'm ready to leave the moment you say," Soobin answered, looking at the bag himself. His lips curled into a smile as he giggled at a sudden thought he had.

"What?" Yeonjun glanced at him in curiosity.

"Nothing, I just..." Soobin bit his lip, trying to contain his smile. "I feel like I'm running away again. Except last time, I just wanted to run and didn't know where to. This time, I know where and with who, and it's just... a nice feeling, you know?"

"Hmm," Yeonjun's face softened at his words and Soobin wasn't sure if he could handle looking at that look on his face without combusting so he looked at Kai who was looking at them with his mouth set into a flat line.

'Stop flirting,' Kai mouthed to him and Soobin's eyes widened as he quickly checked if Yeonjun had seen it. Fortunately, he was too busy looking at his bag in interest and he hadn't noticed. "I still can't believe we're going on a search for the Lily! If we manage to do this, I will be... I will be so happy!"

"I know, Kai," Yeonjun turned around and looked at him fondly as he ruffled up Kai's brown hair. Suddenly the door opened again and Beomgyu walked in, looking as if he owned the place. Behind him, Taehyun was glaring at the ground intensely as if threatening it to swallow him. "Beomgyu?"

"Sorry, just wanted to drop by and check on you all," Beomgyu flashed them his usual smile. God, doesn't this boy get tired of smiling? Soobin wondered if Beomgyu smiled Taehyun's share as well or something. "And give you the news I found out!"

"What news?" Yeonjun plopped down on Soobin's bed beside his bag, making himself comfortable in the spot. Kai crawled past him and sat behind him, back-hugging him like a koala. Soobin decided to sit on the other side of the bag as well.

"I was wandering the markets and it fell on my ears," Beomgyu lowered his voice, gesturing Taehyun to close the door. Taehyun grumbled but closed the doors. "I heard that the Prince was kidnapped."

Soobin froze as Kai exclaimed loudly, "He was what?!"

Yeonjun was silent but he spoke after a few seconds, "If he was weak enough to get kidnapped, I suppose he shouldn't become our king anyway. We need someone strong enough to protect the kingdom and its subjects."

"Now, now, aren't you being too harsh?" Beomgyu tutted. "Who knows? Maybe they got a lot of people or used dirty back-handed tricks. Anyway, guards are roaming around and trying to find him. Thought I should warn you about that, since we're gonna go on a pirate ship."

"Yeah, thanks for the information, Beomgyu," Yeonjun nodded before glancing at Soobin. The boy was stiff and frozen, as if the news had shocked him to his core. "Soobinie? You okay?"

"Hyung?" Taehyun seemed concerned as he neared the blue-haired boy. Soobin jolted in his place as he looked at Taehyun with fear in his eyes. "Hey, are you okay?"

"Yeah, sorry, I just..." Soobin looked away, willing himself to be strong. "I was, I was kidnapped when I was a kid. Bad memories came back, it's nothing. I'm okay now."

"Okay hyung," Taehyun seemed convinced but the concern was still there. "If you want to talk anytime, I'm here, alright?"

"Uh-huh," Soobin gave him a fake smile and Taehyun eyed him for a few seconds before nodding and looking away. He saw Yeonjun looking at him with pity in his eyes and he hated that look. He didn't want to look weak and pathetic in front of Yeonjun. And he had gone ahead and done just that. God, he hated to lie to them but he didn't have a choice...

"Anyway, I'm going to the markets again," Beomgyu announced. "I'll see if I can catch anything else that will be useful. Anyone who wants to join me? Anything you want to buy?"

"Have you packed up your luggage?" Yeonjun asked, standing up once Kai loosened his grip. "I'll join you. We can do some shopping for you. Kai, wanna come?"

"Yes, yes, yes!" Kai jumped off the cot and the three waved goodbye to Soobin and Taehyun before leaving. Then it was just the two of them. Taehyun glanced at Soobin.

"I don't know what you're hiding hyung," he said slowly. "But whatever it is, I hope one day you trust us enough to tell us about it."

And before Soobin could respond with anything, Taehyun walked out and closed the door behind him.

✿

"Um, sorry, but, I'm looking for a Choi Yeonjun?"

Soobin stared at the boy in front of him, waiting at the door of his hotel room politely. His hair was silver and Soobin couldn't deny that he looked good. He was wearing loose brown pants that had tucked in a white cotton shirt that was open till below his chest, showing the smooth expanse of the tanned skin of his chest.

"I guess you don't know him," the stranger muttered and was about to go when Soobin nearly shouted.

"Who are you?" He cursed at himself for yelling that but it made the boy pause as he looked around in curiosity. "I know him, but I can't tell you unless I know who you are."

"Wooyoung," the boy answered, hands on his hips and Soobin finally noticed the broad-sword hanging at his hips. The name rang a bell and Soobin looked him in the eye. Wooyoung regarded him coolly.

"ATEEZ?" Soobin asked weakly. The boy brightened and nodded. "So that man did send you to get us. Alright, I'll take you to Yeonjun-hyung's room."

Wooyoung smiled easily as Soobin took the lead and walked down the hallways to where Yeonjun's room was. He knocked on the door and Yeonjun yelled from inside, "Who is it?"

"Hyung, it's me, Soobin," Soobin answered, feeling silly to shout when Wooyoung was right behind him. "There's a guy here and says he's Wooyoung and wants to see you."

"What's his hair colour?" Yeonjun shouted. Soobin found the question weird but before he could answer, Wooyoung shouted from behind him.

"It's silver, you doofus!"

The door slammed open and Soobin caught only a pink-haired blur as Yeonjun pounced on the silver-haired boy who giggled as he caught him in his arms and twirled him around. Okay, what fairy tale shit is this? Soobin could only stare at the two boys as they giggled and rambled together and it was like a whole another side of Yeonjun in a way.

Yeonjun suddenly grabbed Soobin's arm and dragged him, getting Kai as well.

"Grab your bags, to the place Beomgyu showed us!" He said in a rush before running back to his room, Wooyoung on his tail. Soobin had questions, he wanted answers but he knew that now was not the time. They needed to be on-board the ATEEZ pirates' ship and he quickly went to grab his ready bag. He joined up with Kai at the reception, giving back their keys to the old man who owned the place before stepping out.

"Yeonjun-hyung left with that guy to inform Taehyun and Beomgyu-hyung," Kai explained as they brisk walked to the path they had taken last time. They weaved through the people without sending another glance to those around them. Ten minutes later, the black-haired boy slipped next to them and Soobin was glad Beomgyu had joined them. He wasn't sure if he remembered the path very well.

"Taehyun?" Soobin asked him.

"He left with Yeonjun," Beomgyu said, his breath a little bit laboured. "I had to rush through because not all my belongings were packed. There isn't much but it took me a few minutes and he wanted to leave so I told them to leave me. I said I'll come with you guys, so they agreed."

"Hmm," Kai nodded.

"Good thing you're here," Soobin muttered. "I don't think I remember the way..."

Beomgyu laughed brightly as he tugged on Soobin's arm to drag him to an alleyway. Kai pushed through the people to follow them.

"I know shortcuts," Beomgyu explained, letting go of his hand. "We'll go through those. Stick close to me, both of you."

Ten minutes later, they were full on sprinting along the side of the empty beach, the sea to their right and the forest to their left. They passed the fishermen who just eyed them curiously and shouted to them, "Slow down or you're all gonna fall, kids!"

Soobin shouted a "Thanks!" but they didn't slow down nor did they stop. He could hear rambunctious laughter behind him and he couldn't stop grinning himself as all the running was making him feel like he was floating, the wind slapping him in the face. Beomgyu laughed beside him too and Kai giggled as they sped up and ran till they reached the spot of the forest where they had entered the last time.

They finally slowed down and the burn of the run hit them like a truck and the boys panted as they pushed through all the branches and the shrubs to make way to the entrance. Kai leaned against the rock slab once they reached it, hands on his hips as he tried to catch his breath.

"Oh my god," he wheezed. Soobin laughed brokenly, the need for air punctuating his laughter. "That was fun but I'm not gonna do that again."

"You guys need to up your stamina," Beomgyu told them, his voice sounding the least strained among the three of them. "But well, I'm used to running all the time so maybe I shouldn't speak. Come on, move aside, Kai."

Beomgyu tugged on the vein the moment Kai stepped away and they waited, catching their breath. The rock slab moved a bit and the face of the man from last time appeared. Soobin's grip tightened on his bag as the rock moved open further. When there was just enough space to squeeze in, Beomgyu slipped inside and Kai followed immediately. Soobin was the last one to enter and the rock slab was closed behind them.

"Are hyung and Taehyun here?" Soobin asked, looking around at the cave which now had a large ship resting on the other bank of the channel of sea water.

"I don't see them," Beomgyu noted. "Maybe because we took shortcuts. Anyway, we have to go around the entire channel to be able to board the ship so come on, we're gonna have to walk some more."

Kai groaned but complied and Soobin couldn't wait to actually reach the ship and rest. He hadn't run so much so fast in his entire life; he was used to running at a regulated speed for quite some time but he was out of touch with exercising anyway and the prospect of rest was quite appealing.

They walked along the left bank to further inside until they reached a large lake-like circular end where the cave ended as well.

"The ships turn around at this spot," Beomgyu explained to them as they took a walk around the sides of the cave and crossed the end of the cave to reach the right bank. "So that they can leave the cave just as quickly too."

There were less people in the cave this time and Beomgyu's voice was slightly echoing around the cave, giving it a roomy feeling. The three finally made it to the ship and found themselves in front of two boys around their age leaning against the rope ladder that was lying on the side of the ship. Both of them had pitch black hair like Beomgyu and were eyeing them with wariness and curiosity at the same time.

"Uh, should we wait for Yeonjun-hyung?" Soobin tried to whisper to Beomgyu but his voice slightly echoed and it was a futile attempt because the two seemed to have heard him.

"Oh, are you Yeonjun's friends?" The slightly taller one asked. Beomgyu nodded as Kai shifted closer to Soobin and wrapped himself around Soobin's arm, probably to seek comfort. A bell rang somewhere and they could hear the grinding of the rock as it moved once again. The two pirates walked past them to look at the newcomers so the three of them decided to check if Yeonjun and Taehyun were here as well.

"You guys are already here?!" Yeonjun's voice suddenly filled the entire cave as he shouted from the other bank upon seeing them. "Wait there, we're coming!"

After what felt like eternity, Yeonjun, Taehyun and Wooyoung finally reached them on the right bank. The two pirates from before clapped Yeonjun on the back before the slightly shorter one of the two leaned close to Wooyoung to whisper something in his ear. Wooyoung grinned at him before turning to look at Beomgyu, Soobin and Kai.

"You were all fast," Taehyun commented, his eyes on Beomgyu. "Didn't you leave after us?"

"We may have taken shortcuts and ran like our life depended on it," Kai answered him instead of Beomgyu and the older boy pouted as his chance to speak to Taehyun was wasted. Taehyun seemed to stare at the pout of his lips and Soobin smiled inwardly. Perhaps he did like Beomgyu a bit...

"You gonna let us on-board or not?" Yeonjun asked teasingly to the slightly shorter boy who laughed and nodded. "Come on, climb up everyone!"

"Anyone back?" Soobin heard Wooyoung ask the two pirates.

"Mingi came back with the food," the taller one answered as Taehyun started climbing the rope ladder. "But he didn't get vegetables so I sent him back."

"We can just live off meat, y'know?" the shorter one answered and Wooyoung snorted. Beomgyu had started on the ladder as well.

"As the cook, I decide what we live off," the taller one snapped at him and the shorter boy just raised his hands in surrender. "None of the rest have come back yet. I don't expect them to, though. They won't be here for atleast another hour or two."

Soobin grabbed the ladder and tried to climb it but the rope was swinging because of Beomgyu who had reached the top by now and Soobin was scared that he was going to fall.

"Binnie, I'm right behind you," Yeonjun said gently. "Go on, you can do it."

Soobin tried to put his trust in Yeonjun and slowly started to climb the ladder, pulling himself up, his grip tight on the rope. When he had crossed more than halfway, he felt the rope move underneath him and he knew Yeonjun was on it as well. He managed to climb the last bit and tumbled inside to find Taehyun staring at Beomgyu, who was unusually not looking at him but instead at Soobin.

"You made it!" He said, bending down to pull him up. Soobin grabbed his hands and pushed himself off the floor of the ship. "I thought you would never climb or something."

"Shut up," Soobin huffed, dusting his pants for any dust but there was none. Yeonjun clambered in and leaned against the side of the ship to check how far up Kai was. Soon, Kai and Wooyoung were up as well. Yeonjun immediately latched himself onto Wooyoung and something burned inside of Soobin.

He didn't know this Wooyoung guy but he didn't like him much. Not with the way Yeonjun was so close to him and the two were obviously in their own little world. He knew what this feeling was called. Jealousy. But he couldn't bring himself to care about that when Yeonjun was barely paying attention to any of them.

"So!" Wooyoung clapped his hands a few minutes later, Yeonjun right beside him with a bright smile on his face. Soobin hated that smile. He wanted to be the one who would make Yeonjun smile like that but it wasn't him; it was Wooyoung. His stomach twisted in itself. "Yeonjun here has told me about where you guys want to go. We need to drop by somewhere else for a bit so it will take us three days to reach there. I've told my crewmates about this so they won't have a problem. Since it's not really that far, I'm sure it will be fine. When they're back, I'll be sure to introduce them to you all."

Wooyoung paused then smiled and said, "Oh, and you don't need to introduce yourself. I know your names from Yeonjun. If you still don't know it, my name is Jung Wooyoung and I'm an ATEEZ pirate and a friend of Yeonjun's."

Yeonjun turned to look at them all.

"I'm going to catch up with Wooyoungie," he said to him. "I'll tell San to show you where we're gonna sleep for the next few days so you can keep your bags and look around."

As Yeonjun called one of the pirates from below, Soobin looked at Wooyoung, who was looking at the pink-haired boy fondly.

Friends was really not the word for them.

✿