Chapter 1: A Bud
Chapter Text
Soi is relentlessly loud.
She jumps from one thing to another, be it a good idea or bad. She has no patience for worry and she charges head on straight into fire, while wearing her heart on her sleeve.
Shinbi has always been her rock, a steady presence that she knows she can rely on to guide her home. The ground that she always comes back to when she flies too high.
When they became friends it was far too young for them but when she grasps Shinbi's hands, she knows this is it. Forever no matter how far they are or how old they'll be. In anyway they are, they'll be together. Shinbi smiles at her gently, as if she knows the declaration Soi has made in her heart, but just to be sure, and just because Soi can't contain herself, she bursts it out. It tumbles into the air with her friend's soft giggles and her gentle agreements that one summer day.
Time flies.
Soi is a social butterfly by nature, she knows that she attracts attention from the people around her, and she doesn’t care. Soi also knows that she’s too blunt, too insensitive, too harsh for the people around her. She’s frank to a fault, and she does not care. The amount of people in her posse dwindle from when she first came to this school because of it. When her parents split and she moved to live with her mother and uncle, they restricted her circle of friends and start forbidding her from leaving the house, talking of wanting to ‘just protect’ her.
Soi fights every chain they put on her.
Shinbi stays right next to her through it all.
Come freshmen year, the duo evolves to a trio.
Eri came like a gentle breeze. Slipping between her and Shinbi, easing them and surrounding them in nothing but comfort.
It is Shinbi who meets her first.
The primary school they’re going to do not offer further education, so they both enrolled in the only academy in the area for their highschool. Soi is a different class from Shinbi, but they both visit each other so often that they might as well be in the same one. Soi mingles in her class easily, and while Shinbi is not half as sociable as her, she is initially well received among her peers.
Initially.
Shinbi is not shy, she’s about as blunt as Soi herself, but she is an overthinker- she takes her time to think things through, from her actions down to the choice of words she uses. She takes her time to mull on the response that best conveys her thoughts, and unfortunately, she’s not so good at finding them. Most of the time, she takes too long to respond and the other party assumes she’s being too cold.
Her classmates eventually switch from friendship to keeping their distance because of it. They don’t dislike her, but they do find it hard to talk to her.
Shinbi had quietly asked Soi what to do, and Soi has half a mind to march into the other class just to yell at them how great Shinbi is.
This is her friend who remembers things that Soi herself doesn’t. The one who remembers when Soi has her bad days from period, calls from her parents and makes sure there’s always a snack in hand to share. She’s the one who reminds Soi that she needs to wake up for the day and to rest early so she’s not tired the next day. She remembers what flavours Soi likes and her allergies and necessities.
To Soi, Shinbi is irreplaceable.
Shinbi has to restrain her before she does make good on her threat. “I’m fine Soi, really. Besides, it’s not like it’s everyone. There is one girl who still talks to me.”
“As a friend?” Soi blinks at her, leaning into her hold, “Not a rabid fan? We saw a few of your classmates follow us back home the other day. That was not okay.”
“This one is as a friend,” Shinbi nods with a small smile, “The homeroom teacher told her to make sure I adjusted well into the class, but I think it’s also because she’s just really nice."
Huh.
Well, she's doing her job well, judging by Shinbi's smile.
“We’ll see.” Soi frowns.
“She helped me out again today- gave me some pads and a heat pack.” Shinbi reports tiredly as she leans against her table. Her hand is holding small said heat pack loosely to her stomach.
"Was it today? I thought you had your periods after the 20th.” Soi frowns, “It’s unusually early.” “It’s probably the stress from school,” Shinbi sighes, “Math is hard.”
“Math is incredibly hard!” Soi exclaims, “Did you know that the last quiz we did on Math I saw the numbers and I could have sworn that the numbers were aliens! Like, I have never even seen these numbers in any of news reports why do we even need to know about algebra? If we don’t need them as adults why do we need to learn them when we’re still juniors . The Mayans used it and look where it got them, the same path as everyone else!”
Shinbi snorts quietly at her, and Soi carries on her dramatic rant against Maths, smiling when Shinbi smiles at her back.
“Oh my god, what happened to you?”
“A football slammed into my face and I slipped during gym.” Shinbi grumbles, her face still red and slightly swollen as she limps to the chair in front of Soi’s table.
“What? Who did it?” Soi’s blood boils- it’s not like it’s hard to avoid hitting Shinbi. She’s tall, and she attracts attention wherever she goes. It’s impossible to not notice her and adjust their aim accordingly beforehand, unless they were a fool. She stands up and cracks her knuckles, “Why I ought to go up to them for a talk in ba-”
“It’s okay. It was an accident.” Shinbi pats her friend down, “Eri helped and brought me to the infirmary. She cleaned up my wounds and bandaged me up. She’s really good at treating wounds.”
Shinbi gives her a look, and Soi looks away.
“Oh, did she? At least someone from your class helped you out.”
Shinbi reaches out and holds her hand. Soi huffs and sits back down.
“I’m still gonna beat them up though.”
“Soi. No.”
“She gave me some of her lunch today.” Shinbi starts.
Soi raises her eyebrows. They’ve done this enough times for her to be well familiar at this point, on who her friend is referring to. “Huh, don’t the other people in your fanclub do it too?” Soi asks. Shinbi nods, “They do, but this is tastier. Something new.” She pulls out a single carton of strawberry milk.
“Milk? Really?” Soi shakes her head, “Don’t you get sick from it?”
“I told her that,” Shinbi grinned back at her, and Soi can hear the cheers from Shinbi’s fanclub members as she does, “And Eri says, and I quote; you can drink any amount of milk as long as the restrooms are nearby.”
Well, she’s not wrong.
“You are so picky that you never try anything new! You never even wanted to try my favourite drink when I offer it to you,” Soi pouts, “Even when I keep telling you that Mejio Banana milk is 100% a gift from the gods!”
“I like this flavour better,” Shinbi hums in reply.
Judging by the look on her face, Soi knows her enough that this will be her new favourite drink.
She feels slightly jealous, Shibi rarely partakes in any of the new flavours of food and drinks Soi shoved in her face, and even less so in finding a new dish she might actually favour.
Maybe it’s time she meets this Eri.
“He-Hello! Nice to meet you! I’m Eri!”
Eri is shorter than Soi, she has a short bob cut that frames her small face and an absolutely adorable smile.
Soi may be jealous that Shinbi is spending so much time with her, but she cannot deny that Eri is cute.
“You’re Soi? Shinbi has told me all about you!” Eri smiles. She fiddles with her fingers nervously. Soi’s eyes widen, “Shinbi has?” “Well she doesn’t talk a lot,” Eri laughs, “But when she does… you’re all she talks about.”
“Eri…” Shinbi mumbles beside them as a pale blush decorates on her cheeks.
“I’m really happy to finally meet you, Soi.” Eri beams to her with adoring eyes, flushed cheeks and a sincere smile so wide that shows off her gums. And, that’s it. That's all it takes.
Soi plops herself in the chair in front of Eri’s table, and settles in to adopt a new friend.
Chapter 2: Growth
Summary:
In which Soi's family kinda sucks.
Notes:
TW: Abuse in Soi's family, bruises, and the likes.
Chapter Text
In most love stories Soi has read, it depicts it in a way that is freeing. That is gives you wings and dramatically places fireworks in the background. It spreads you far and wide, and gives you the freedom to move around the world in a light never before seen by the loveless souls.
Soi wonders when that will come for her.
Shinbi places the cake on the small table in her room as Soi pours the tea for her and her friend.
“Sorry, we were supposed to celebrate your birthday at that cafe and yet... here we are again… at my house… because my parents wouldn’t let me out.”
"It’s okay, your room is comfortable anyway.” Shinbi says as she slices the cake.
“Make yourself at home dear!” Soi’s mother yells from the open door connecting Soi’s bedroom and hers, “Just remember to leave the door open! I’ll be here. Ooh, please do cut a few slices for me and your uncle Soi.”
“It’s not even my cake, it’s yours.” Soi grumbles, “We’re supposed to have fun today.”
“This is fun.”
“Sure it is, staying in on the weekends at ten a.m. in the morning when we both got tickets for the museum exhibition you wanted to see, which I was supposed to keep safe, only to be snatched by my mom without my knowledge on the day we were supposed to go.”
“It was for your own good, sweetheart.” Soi’s mom walks in the room, “You don’t know what’s going on in the world outside our house these days. It’s safer for you to stay indoors.” Soi remains silent. Her mother glares at her. Shinbi, sensing the mood rushes the offer a slice of cake. She grabs the peace offering, and thanks Shinbi before leaving.
“We bought them with our own money too.” Soi sighes, “I’m sorry Shinbi.”
“I am having fun. Everything is fun with you.” Shinbi cuts more slices, “I brought bandages too, Clean the ones you just got. Please don’t hide them from me.” She stops slicing the cake to stare at Soi’s right arm. Soi is quiet for a moment, and then she slowly raises her long sleeves, revealing bruises and cuts on her skin.
"How did you know?”
“You weren’t leaning on your right like you like to do. I have some cold pack gels too.”
“I’m going to go insane, she’s only nice when the sun is out but when it goes away so does her sanity.” Soi hisses. “Coming into my room, stealing tickets, goddamn beating me when I don’t go home at curfew hours. How is this even a thing!”
“Not so loud, she’ll hear you.” Shinbi whispers back. She takes out her phone and sets it to play a local radio, masking the sound of their conversation. “You should just join the school activities at school, so you don’t have to stay at home so much.”
"She would never approve of it,” Soi mumbles, “She’ll just call the teacher and tell them to not let me in. She did that in our old school remember?”
“Then, join the student body. I heard from the teacher than it’s based on recommendations only right?” Shinbi suggests, “It’s managing students and it looks good on our report card.”
“I guess…” Soi wraps up her arm, and shoves her sleeves down, “I’m… I’m scared Shinbi. What if she says no? What if she says no and then she rages? Or-”
“Then, I’ll be right there with you after she does. I’ll patch you up.”
A few weeks later, after a series of nonstop battles at night, Soi is a proud member of the student body, and the chains around her loosen. She has new bruises in exchange for this, but she meets Shinbi the first day of her student body activities with a smile on her face.
“There needs to be a line drawn. Sometimes you have to leave.”
“...”
“Please, Soi.”
“You’ll… you’ll be with me when I do right? When I leave?”
“Yeah. Yeah, I will.”
“You should go for it.” Soi says one day when they’re both approached by the modelling agent one day when they’re strolling through downtown.
Shinbi stares at her inquisitively, hums and accepts the business card the agent gave them.
A week later Shinbi debuts in a local fashion magazine, the shy smile that Shinbi gave her when they celebrated it with Eri remains one of Soi’s dearest memories.
“It’s a bit lonely without Shinbi isn’t it,” Eri bites her lip, “I hope we get to see her in class soon.”
Their second year sees them in the same class, and then Shinbi’s modelling career took off. Thus, she is often away from class because of it. It is lonely. Shinbi doesn’t speak a lot but her presence more than makes up for it, like the soothing balm that covers their cracks and corners.
“We’ll just have to have twice as much fun and share it with her when she gets back,” Soi declared, “We should do something fun.”
Eri hums, “Wanna learn how to bake?”
Soi blanches.
“Is it so that we can bake a cake for her instead of buying it like last time?”
“I only have so much allowance to spare for the month. Besides, it’s the thought that counts!”
“Not if it gets us food poisoning Eri.”
It’s suffocating.
“She’s always on magazines these days, it’s so shameless. Don’t you feel it too? You need to pick and choose the people you hang out with Soi. Your future depends on it. You don’t need her and you don’t need to go to this school trip.” Soi’s mother sits on the kitchen table, surrounded by beer cans.
God, if she didn’t need her approval for this school trip she wouldn’t have even come and talked to her.
“The trip is mandatory for grades. And, Shinbi is my friend! You were fine with her before!” Soi stomps her feet to the ground, “You always do this! You judge the people I’m with, what clothes I wear, where I go and everything!”
“I just worry for you! You wouldn’t tell me where you’re going, you don’t turn on the GPS tracking app on your phone, and you don’t even know who you’re hanging out with! The world outside isn’t as nice as we are at home!” Her mother yells back, she steps closer and closer to Soi with each word. “You’re a girl Soi. And it’s a dangerous world out there, you need to be able to take care of yourself better. What would our neighbours say if they see you hanging out with such people?”
“Shinbi is kind and she will never hurt me! We’ve known each other for ages.” Soi is losing her goddamn mind, “And you don’t need to know where I’m going all the time! I don’t even go anywhere but school and the tutoring centers! You’re just think I can’t control my own life!”
“Soi, honey, it’s not a matter of us trusting you-”
“ I chose to befriend Shinbi! It was my decision, if you just trusted me then I-”
“Soi, don’t talk to your mother like that.” Her uncle snaps at her, “It’s rude to the person who had raised you.”
"You trust everyone but your mother!” Her mother wails. She moves closer, a bottle of beer in one hand and a long stick on the other, “I’m just doing what’s best for you! We love you."
"You always say this! You say that the world outside will be bigger, badder and meaner but the world outside has never hit me or slammed a bottle on my head!" Soi shouts, "At this point, I'd chose the world over you!"
"How dare you!" Her mother shrieks, "I'll smack you for saying those words! You won't last a day without me and the roof I've given you over your head! You useless child! Go to your room! I’ll talk to her parents for you tomorrow, and tell her of our concerns. My daughter should be around more educated people. For that matter, I’ll talk to your teacher too, such school trips are just endangering students. I’ll protest until they call it off!”
“Don’t you dare! ”
“Soi! I’m your mother! Don’t talk back to me like that! Heaven is watching and judging your every move- it’s a sin to go against your mother!”
“But, I-”
“Soi, not another word. You’re not going to be friends with her anymore and you’re not going to that school trip.”
“It’s not fucking fair! You can’t just judge Shinbi like that, she’s my best friend.”
“Soi, I warned you.”
Everything hurts.
“Soi… Grandpa says you can stay as long as you want.” Eri shuffles into the room carrying extra blankets and a packet of cold peas.
Soi pops out from under the blankets, her hand reaches out to grab another tissue from the bedside table, “Thank you Eri.”
Eri places the blankets at the edge of the bed and shuffles closer. Her room is wide and comforting; the walls were painted a soft cream colour, matching the light pink curtains and bed covers. There's a wooden drawer on one corner of the room with clothes peeking out of the top. Next to it, was a tall black cabinet- its shelves mostly empty except for one with a giant white box inside it.
She had a desk with a single book shoved hurriedly to the side on it, and a corkboard with pictures of her with various pictures and a few postcards. There was also a small tray with warm tea that Soi had yet to drink from.
“Does it hurt?” Eri softly reaches out to caress her hand, “Sorry, it must hurt doesn’t it? What am I even saying.” She sniffles, her eyes already tearing up.
Soi raises her hands to wipe the tears away with the tissue she’s holding- it might be a bit gross, but she’s tired of thinking today. It hurts, of course it does. Soi is good at taking hits. It’s not the worst she’s gotten- but it still hurts everytime. Looking at Eri’s face though, Soi gets the feeling that if she does talk about it, Eri will just cry more.
She’s kinda had enough of tears today.
“Do you… do you want to talk? A-About what happened I mean… I know I’m not Shinbi but uh- ah! I don’t mean to say that! I mean, uh…” Eri flushed, “I’m worried. You came here when it’s raining and crying… You’re my best friend Soi. I want to know what’s wrong, i-if you want to talk about it. I-if not! If not, then that’s okay too.”
Soi smiles at her friend, and reaches out a hand to grasp hers, “Thank you Eri, I just… Do you have a laptop? I kinda just wanna lay here and watch some dramas. I want to look at cute boys and dream that I’m the MC damnit!”
“Sure,” Eri smiles back at her, “Here, put the cold peas on your bruises. I’ll go get my laptop. I’ll be right back.”
It’s raining outside, the storm and lighting raging on through out the night. Soi is nestled under the blankets in Eri’s hugs as she maneuvers around her bruises.
It’s warm.
The next time Shinbi comes to her class, she passes her some salve, “I’m sorry. I should have been there.”
“You couldn’t help it, you were away at work for the entire week,” Soi pockets it and continues munching on her homemade sandwich, “You were right though, Eri’s really good at treating wounds.”
Shinbi nods.
She sits down, and nabs a sandwich from the lunchbox Eri gave Soi.
They sit quietly together.
It’s noon when Eri asks her to stay after school and wait for her. Her mom has already sent her multiple texts asking her why she hasn’t left the school grounds yet, Soi replies ‘Student Body Activities’ and ignores the rest of the messages that comes after it.
It’ll trigger another fight for sure, but Soi is a fighter. She’s blunt and she’s used at taking hits. ‘I’ll be fine.’ She thinks, as she paces around waiting for Eri to come.
"Happy Birthday to you, happy birthday to you... Happy birthday to our Soi... Happy birthday to you!"
The door opens, and Eri slides in singing the song. In her hands, her phone shows a video call with Shinbi on it.
Oh. It’s her birthday.
“I know you said you don’t like large parties, or people crowding you on your birthday or even surprises…” Eri says, “But I wanted to celebrate anyway, because a birthday is special you know?”
“It’s just a reminder that I’m getting closer and closer to becoming a gear in the capitalist wheel of… of… of something!” Soi huffs, “I’m getting older and I don’t like it!”
Eri giggles at her, in her hands, a snort comes from the video call on her phone. “You’re not even an adult yet and you already don’t want to grow old.” Shinbi teases.
“I made you a cake!”
Eri pulls out a box, large enough for a small cake.
Soi laughs, “No, no, no! Last time you tried to make a cake, it ended so badly!”
“I can still remember the awful taste,” Shinbi pipes in, “and the bathroom breaks it made me go. I didn’t know a taste like that even existed.”
“That’s because Soi gave me flour instead of sugar!” Eri squeaks, “How was I supposed to know you can’t make cream without it?”
“If this gives me a stomach ache Eri, I will make you eat it too and suffer!”
“It won’t!” Eri shakes her head vehemently, her face turning into an adorable shade of angry red, “Aaaa you both are mean! Here!”
She shoves the box into her hands with a glare, her eyes wide with determination and Soi laughs. The glow of the setting sun lighting up her face in a heart wrenching moment of beauty, and Soi’s laughter dies. She feels her face getting red, and her eyes getting twitchy- she hurriedly takes the box and looks away.
It was a small yellow cake, the frosting on top looked fluffy and soft, and the decorations were sparse and rather crude, but it looked good. Soi blinks her tears away- she can’t remember the last time someone made her a hand-made cake; all just for her.
Shinbi and Eri start chanting happy birthday songs loudly in the most obnoxious way possible. Soi laughs and shoves a strawberry in Eri’s mouth. Shinbi smiles at them both from the little phone screen, and as Soi settles in to eat the banana cheesecake, she can feel warm tears going down her cheeks, but no one points it out.
One day, it gets too much.
Shinbi bolts. It’s the first time she’s bailed on her agency job, but this is too important.
Soi is in the hospital.
It unravels like a thread on a worn out sweater. Soi’s mother had gone too far, too angry, too drunk. Soi had gone home to find her mother in a blind fury of anger and destruction for reasons unknown to her. Soi is used to her flashes of drunkard anger, she’s always fought it off- but her mother had never hit her with a metal pan before.
Her friend who is always bright despite the entire shit that is her mother. Soi is like a sun. Shinbi refuses to lose her, she rushes out of the taxi and into the hospital.
There is no one in the waiting room but Eri and her grandfather. She rushes up to her and asks, “Eri? Are you all right?”
“‘Shinbi!” Eri sobs, she reaches out to her friend for a hug. Shinbi gladly obliges, if nothing else, Eri is here. She greets Eri’s grandfather. “I got the call and came as fast as I could, is she okay?”
“The doctors say she’ll be fine soon after the operation. The wound wasn’t too deep.” Her grandfather says, “The police have taken statements from the neighbours. You should stay here with Eri. I’ll go get her a drink.”
Eri cries in her arms, “She ran out of the house wounded Shinbi, and her… her mother still chased her with the pan and then threw it at her. If… if a police car hadn’t been patrolling the area… Shinbi, how could she do this to her?!”
Shinbi hugs her friend tighter.
She should have gotten Soi out sooner. She shouldn’t have been so complacent at Soi’s words. For all the talks of Soi leaving her house, it did not occur to her that it would come to this point this soon.
She should have done more .
A week later in Soi’s hospital room, the three of them are curled up in the small hospital bed as best as they can. Soi quietly tells her that her uncle from her father’s side had stepped and filed the adoption papers, and promised to keep in touch now that he has custody of her.
“I didn’t even see him that much,” Soi says, “But he says I’ll never have to see my mother and uncle again.”
“Good.” Shinbi says coldly, “I’m sorry I-”
“I know,” Soi cuts her off, “It wasn’t your fault. It wasn’t anyone’s fault but theirs. I don’t even know why I stayed so long.”
“But you’re… you’re okay now right?” Eri holds her hand tighter, “Do you know where you’re going to live?”
“My uncle told me to just pick a place, apparently he’s really rich? He’s the CEO of some company, maybe he even has a rich son.”
“Like those dramas we watch,” Shinbi smiles at her, “Don’t woo him if he does, that’s family.”
“I didn’t even know he existed until like an hour ago!” Soi puffs up her cheeks.
“What if he’s really old? Like adult sized.” Eri teases, “That will really be too old for us.”
“She chased after Mr. Yujin before though.”
“Ah true, our Soi is really aiming for the skies.. Like Icarus... "
"Don't go too high Icarus-Soi."
“You’re both insufferable, aaarghh!”
They explode into a fit of giggles. The two girls snuggle closer to Soi, and Soi genuinely thanks the world for these two idiots she’s stuck with.
“I’m…” Soi starts, she gulps, takes a deep breath, and starts again, “I’m going to have to come back here again to meet with Dr. Unhyue, He recommended some therapy session which sounds nice…”
Eri looks like she’s on the verge of tears again, and Shinbi frowns, but they only hold her tighter and urges her to continue. Soi shakes her head, “Hey! At least, I get to see his handsome face every Wednesday. When I’m out of here, I want to kick some ass and go to a cafe.”
Eri is just full on crying at this point, nodding frantically. Shinbi reaches out and pats her head comfortingly.
Soi shivers, and she cries.
They stay like that for a while.
Shinbi and Eri were there when Soi moves out into another apartment, with Shinbi following her soon after. Shinbi and Soi were there when Eri is absent from school due to the death of her grandfather.
They’re there, and they cried and they laughed.
Freshmen year ends in a way that makes Soi want to burn it all to the ground. Eri comes over to stay the night and to celebrate the countdown to the new year. She holds her friends tight, and prays that she can still hold on to these two hands all the way until the far future.
Turns out far future is utter horseshit because a few months after the HOT5 enrolled into the academy they disappeared. Them, along with Eri.
Shinbi feels like her world has been torn apart.
Soi just wishes the world would stop being a piece of shit.
Chapter 3: Dust to Dust
Summary:
In which Tei is spotted, and Soi and Shinbi follow.
Notes:
Again, quality is not guaranteed and plot becomes convoluted and questionable. May you enjoy it nonetheless!
TW: Yan Tei
Chapter Text
It’s been days since the HOT5 had seemingly vanished overnight, but Soi’s even more devastated at the news that Eri is missing. No one had heard of her since after the festival. The last time Soi had seen her was her smiling and waving goodbye to her as Soi was dragged away by her student body duties.
If Soi had known…
Fuck, if she had known she would have never left Eri alone.
The principal had visited the house she lived in and reported it to be ransacked- no sign of life inside. Nothing was taken other than some cash, all the other valuables were left behind. A simple robbery gone wrong. Apparently the HOT5 were reported to be living there too. Now all six of them are missing. Police are claiming it to be a familial dispute and they were not going to issue an alert even though six people have gone missing. No one could get in touch with her parents to even notify them of their missing daughter.
No one is doing anything! Eri is goddamn missing and no one seems to care!
Soi doesn’t even know what to feel other than pure unadulterated anger at the whole thing, but she doesn’t even have the energy to maintain that fury.
Both Shinbi and Soi are broken and exhausted.
They spend hours going after school walking and running around the town looking for Eri. Her house is abandoned, the cafe they both frequented have heard nothing of either Eri or Tei, and looking into Professor Yuri’s background before he came into the academy yielded nothing but fake papers, much to the surprise of Soi and Shinbi. They post fliers up on walls and hand them out, send out messages on the radio and the internet, pleading people to be on the lookout for her.
Days pass- nothing.
Eri’s parents have been notified and left the country again, not even remaining in contact with the police. Shinbi has slowly started to reject modelling offers in favour of taking care of Soi and to look for Eri with an even more obsessive fervor. Soi meanwhile tries very hard to accompany her, while balancing her studies, her helpless feeling of everything slipping past her fingers and the possibility that her beloved friend might just already be dead.
Mercy comes in the form of an anonymous tweet on Twinter spotting a tall brown haired man in a small back alley grocery store.
It wasn’t even anything incriminating, it was just a post noting how handsome he was. Soi is desperate enough for bread crumbs though, and she follows her gut instincts. She drags Shinbi there and puts on her best high pitched fawning voice. Their visit to convince the shop owner to tell them more about the man procures them a grainy security camera recording of the man wearing a worn out jacket and cap wandering through the store buying canned goods.
That familiar walk.
That glimpse of brown hair.
Soi has spent many hours watching Tei- she knows it’s him.
She doesn’t know if Tei even knows that Eri is missing, but it’s her best lead.
If they find Tei, they might find more clues on where Eri is.
It’s pure luck, or just stubbornness on Soi’s part that they run into a familiar tall figure walking through the dark alleyways downtown and cornering him.
Tei looks… surprised to see them. For lack of better terms.
Soi doesn't have time to waste on pleasantries or questions on where he had been. She's only here for Eri.
"Where is Eri?"
Tei's eyes widen and he frowns heavily.
He denies knowing about Eri’s disappearance as well as his friends’, citing that he had an argument the day before he left the academy and had left the house prior to it. It doesn’t make much sense when even in their most tense days, the HOT5 seems to be getting along swimmingly. The students at the academy are all far too familiar with how Professor Yuri and Tei have their rivalry and how Red and Lance should never be within five meters of each other. They also know that despite the arguments and tension, the HOT5 were inseparable.
No one just ups and leaves the other five people they had been living with like that, and not have heard of news of their disappearance.
Not to mention people had reported that they saw Tei leaving with Eri the day of the festival. It’s just not logical that Tei did not see or know of the disappearance of her when he was the last person to have seen her that day.
But, god does Soi want to believe.
Soi can recognize Tei just by his footsteps and gauge just how far and relaxed it is, she is an expert at this. If she was in a less tense mood, she’ll joke about how all her days watching Tei had paid off, just not in a way she expected.
The Tei that she knows is kind and gentle, fuss and takes her world by storm, setting butterflies alight in her stomach. The Tei that she knows is loved by all, and has the patience and kindness of a saint. The Tei that she knows and loves and watches from afar is a gentle soul.
She doesn’t know what his preferences are or what hobbies he has- they weren’t exactly friends after all. But, she does know the subtle ticks he has from her long hours of observing him from afar. How his eye twitched when he sees something he doesn't like, or his smile is just a bit crooked when he mischievously manipulates Red into gearing up the whole second year with his antics. How he’ll walk when he’s hurried or relaxed, or the way his green eyes flicker under the light and seem to glow with his warm mood.
The point is that Soi knows things about Tei.
Not a lot, but enough.
Enough to know that Tei is lying.
“This is dangerous.”
“I know it is.” Soi grumbles, “But something about this doesn’t feel right. If we wait for the police to come he’s just going to slip away from us! I’m not letting my only lead escape!”
Tei may be handsome and wonderful, and her heart may be fucking hurting from the pain and confusion but Soi is determined not to let it deter her. She's going to tail this man and find holes in his story and make him make sense.
This is the only clue they have to Eri, and heartbreak or no, danger be damned, Soi is going to goddamn find her.
They turn quietly into a corner, and Soi’s eyes widen.
He’s going into Eri’s abandoned house.
Soi volunteers to be the bait. Shinbi has visited Eri’s house once, and while it’s been forever since then, it’s still a better bet than Soi who gets lost in a straight hallway in haunted houses. She’s never been good at navigating herself in moments of fear.
But, Soi is relentlessly loud.
And she’s always been good at taking hits.
This is what she’s experienced at, she can divert and attract attention to herself. She charges head on because she has no time for worries. And honestly, considering the weeks that pass after the initial announcement of Eri’s disappearance? Soi doesn’t think Eri can wait either. They only have their backpacks with their school supplies and their phones, but this will have to do.
It just has to.
Shinbi slowly creeps around to sneak in through the large broken windows on the side of the house, and when Soi can no longer see her, she marches up to the front door.
She knocks once, twice, thrice.
She slams the doors once, twice, thrice.
She screams.
A scream responds back to her- it’s not hers or Eri’s.
It’s Shinbi’s.
No!
Fuck the distraction, Soi slams open the already brittle door with brute strength that she didn’t know she had, adrenaline rushing through her veins. She leaps over broken tables and rugs, practically flying into what seems to be the kitchen. There was a small hidden door near the counters, and Soi doesn’t waste time rushing inside it.
She stops to throw up because oh god.
Eri lays chained in the small room to a pipe, sitting on a small mattress surrounded by blankets. There were lots of metal buckets of… something near her and she is listlessly staring into the ceiling, seemingly oblivious to her surroundings. Next to her bed on a table, sits an entire glass jug of brown liquid and a box of familiar looking tea leaves lay. Next to it was another box full of pills.
She doesn’t see Shinbi anywhere. She wipes her mouth and tentatively steps inside.
Tap.
A single loud step behind her. Soi doesn’t get the time to turn around before something slams into the back of her head. Instinct makes her raise her hand with her bag and slam it into whoever has hit her. It hits something and she hears Shinbi grunt in pain.
‘Fuck, was that Shinbi?’ Soi thinks as she falls onto the ground.
Pain explodes in a fiery white flash across her nerves and she feels like throwing up again because fuck , it hurts. Her ears can hear nothing but painful ringing. Her limbs shiver and her head feels so goddamn heavy she can’t get up, she falls back on the floor and stares up to the shadowy figure above her.
Tei grins at her, knife in one hand and Shinbi’s throat in the other. She struggles weakly in his hold, her face bruised and blue. Her right eye is turning purple, her hair is a mess and she scratches the hand holding her up desperately. Soi’s heart lurches in her goddamn throat because her friend can’t breathe and she’s fucking dying.
“My Owner… Look who I found…,” Tei hums, “A couple of rats in our world.”
He raises his left hand, and throws Shinbi to the wall. She yelps in pain and slumps lifelessly onto the ground.
Soi shrieks, “Shinbi! You monster! What are you doing! Tei!”
How could you? How dare you?!
“Monster might be fitting,” Tei stretches his fingers, “But, nothing is too much to make sure my owner and I remain safe.” He walks and then kneels in front of her. He raises the knife close to her face, “Don’t forget, you two were the ones who barged into our loving home.”
Soi growls.
Her head is still pounding with pain, but the rage she feels burns inside her and she shouts, “Our loving home?! What part of this fucking place is what you call home? Or even loving?! You chained her to wall!”
“Home; a place where you feel safe and love your loved ones in peace, and be cared for in peace.” Tei sighs, “You wouldn’t understand. My owner is special to me. The outside world is dangerous, only by existing here with me, that she is safe. Everyday she goes out to school, and meets all those… impurities. Here, she is safe from everyone. Here, I can take care of her. Here, she is safe.”
“Like fuck she is,” Soi hisses, “Locking people up, suffocating them in a room like this. I thought you were a compassionate and handsome guy, but you’re just insane aren’t you? This how you treat things special to you? You lock them up and stuff them in a shitty closet?”
“You don’t understand it either! I’m doing this to protect her!” Tei raises his voice angrily.
Soi refuses to fucking flinch.
She’s far too familiar with those who claim to love someone, only to want to chain them, seclude them to a room and never let them be free. She's used those who wear masks in public and set their real selves loose behind closed doors. She’s lived with one her entire life.
She’s not afraid.
She just needs to buy more time. Shinbi had contacted the police before they barged in. Just a little bit more time- hold out until they arrive.
“What happened to the rest of the HOT5? I’m sure they told you that you were fucking insane too.”
“Insanity means nothing to me. Her safety is what means everything to me. The others.. Those who tried to seperate us just don’t understand it.” He snarls, “Yuri and Lance most of all. All the do is hurt her, Yuri harassed her and Lance ignored her struggles. Yeonho was a stain by her side, unfortunately. And Red… Red is left in his own world. But, I suppose it doesn’t matter too much, I’ve taken care of them. If you’re expecting them for rescue, I’m afraid you’re out of luck.”
“What did you do to them?”
“Nothing that you will need to concern yourself with.” He grasps her hair and yanked her upright, her vision turning white from the pain bombarding her entire body. “You won’t be here any longer, after all.”
He raises his knife high up, and slams it down. Soi however, is used to hits and blows, she rolls out of the way instictively. Her hand reaches out for the closest thing it can grab- the buckets next to the bed. It’s heavy, and Soi swears that she can feel her muscles being torn from the weight, but she pulls it with her other hand and slams the containment to Tei’s surprised face.
He grunts and drops the knife as he attempts to shield himself.
‘Betcha thought I was too scared to move.’ Soi snarls in her head.
Pieces of porcelain white limbs and a head rolls on the ground, and Soi rushes back from it in horror. Soi blinks and realizes that it’s a… it’s a mannequin doll head. A large one. Ones you’d see in clothing stores. A long white wig is attached to it, and its beady green eyes seem to glow and stare at her.
What the fuck.
“Eri will be upset at you, Lance was her favourite.” Tei says quietly.
This was… Lance?
Soi turns to Tei to demand what’s going on but she can’t even voice it. Her eyes widen when she sees not a bruise or a wound on Tei’s face, but a large crack. As if Tei wasn’t made of flesh and bones, as if he was made from clay.
“What… What are you?”
“Ah… this? This is…” Tei laughs, “Ah… I’m becoming more dirty… more broken… My owner wouldn’t mind though right? But, what if she does? Aaa… How dare you? How dare you break me? What will I do if my Owner doesn’t like me anymore? If she will look for other dolls other than me...”
He’s a doll?
Soi looks around to the other buckets, and sure enough, inside were all pieces of mannequins, a finger, a foot there, and oh god, a familiar head. Is that Professor Yuri? Soi feels like throwing up again. The one furthest from her hand contains some smaller hands and fingers- so small they are a quarter the size of her fist. From where she sits, she can see a small head, with the same blue eyes and purple hair of Professor Yuri, one that's Lance and another with blond hair. Fuck, that must be Yeonho.
No fucking way.
“You… You’re not human! You’re a doll!”
Were… were the HOT5 all dolls? Were the smaller dolls just them in voodoo stage? What the fuck is going on?!
A loud utterly terrifying laugh erupts from Tei. Soi snaps her head to look at him; what she has she gotten herself into. The calm eerie aura he had been excluding turns malevolent and then he suddenly straightens up and walks towards her, “I am a doll. A wretched, broken doll. How dare a small rat break me? You horrible, insignificant, little girl.”
Soi is a fighter.
Soi is loud and she is used to hits. Her body ache and her head pounds so much she wishes she no longer has a brain, but she grabs the next bucket and throws it at him. She screams and throws another.
Tei doesn’t stop. Even as cracks appear in his body with each hard slam of the large mannequin pieces hitting him, he does not stop.
He reaches out and Soi raises her hands to claw, punch, hit, do anything.
He grabs her by her throat, and she chokes. Her foot swings back, and she slams into his solar plexus with her knee, and again to his crotch with her foot. He doesn’t even flinch, but instead, his grip gets tighter and tighter. She coughs and gasps and writhes for air. Her vision turns white and black around the edges. She might not make it, Soi thinks, she hates that the last thing she’ll see is the lifeless eye of Tei staring at her.
A metal bucket slams itself to the back of Tei’s head and he drops her in surprise.
Soi drops to the ground and gasps for air, she hears Shinbi yell and throw another metal bucket towards Tei. ‘Oh god, she’s alive, thank fuck.’ Soi thinks, and glances around for more weapons for her to throw. All around her were tiny pieces of resin dolls, Shinbi must’ve gotten the bucket furthest from her. There were pieces everywhere, and she spots a tiny red haired doll head. That must be Red. With that… all the pieces of the HOT5 were here.
Except for Tei.
…
If… if it were true they were dolls… if the smaller dolls were like voodoos of the bigger ones, Tei should have one of himself.
In movies, if you break a voodoo doll the person breaks too.
I must be insane.
This isn’t logical thinking. But, Soi’s never been good at using her brain cells in times of terror, and at the moment, it’s all she’s got.
She sees Tei get up and grabs the metal bucket that had hit him. He spins around and slams it to Shinbi. She yelps in pain. He marches towards her, “I thought I took care of you. I must be getting sloppy.”
Soi does not have time to hesitate, she glances around frantically, and there!
Nestled beside Eri, partially hidden under the blankets, was a doll that looked just like Tei.
She gets up, pain erupting in her knees and in the back of her head, but she gets up. She stumbles her way to Eri, and grabs the doll. Just as she was about to stand up and turn towards Shinbi, a hand pulls her long hair back and she screams, dropping the doll on the ground. It cracks in the knee, and Tei stumbles. His grip on her hair is tight, and she falls with him. They smash into the bedside table, spilling the tea everywhere.
She grabs the largest piece of the jug and slams it to his face.
He still won’t let go.
Another metal bucket to his face should force him to let go, Soi thinks frantically as she searches around her.
There’s only a knife, and it’s out of her reach.
She is suddenly flipped on to the hand wet ground and she stares up to see Tei, furious and crazed. “You… I shouldn’t have played around so much. Now look at the mess you’ve made. Look how dirty you’ve made our home!” He raises his hand and punches her in the face.
Fuck, it hurts.
How did she even fall for him in the first place? What the fuck.
His hands grasps her throat again and he laughs, “Goodbye, vermin.”
“Goodbye to yourself, you insane asshole.”
Shinbi stands behind them with giant bruises on her face. Her shaking broken fingers grabs Tei doll’s head and pulls .
Instantly, Tei lets go of her throat and turns around to lunge at Shinbi, but Soi won’t give him the chance. She latches on to his torso as best as she can, arms and legs wrapping around him, weighing him down and desperately trying to stop his ascent. He stands up, but Soi pulls and he slips on the wet floor, and they both fall to the ground.
Soi howls in pain, but she does not let go.
“Shinbi!” Soi screeches, “Throw it to the ground! Just fucking break it! ”
Shinbi keeps on pulling the head until it splits from the body, and then she raises her hands high and slams the two pieces of the body on the ground. It cracks.
Tei screams and writhes, Soi lets go of him in favour of stumbling to Shinbi and slamming her foot down on the doll, breaking and cracking it even further. Tei’s head is gone from his head, but his body still moves like a man possessed.
In a way, it is possessed.
Soi focuses on the head- slamming down on it with all her might.
Crack!
It breaks.
Tei stops moving. His body stiffens and freezes, lifeless and cold. His skin no longer even looks human, having turned white like the rest of the mannequin pieces on the ground.
Soi collapses onto the floor, and Shinbi follows her soon after.
“Holy shit…” Soi gasps.
She stares at Tei, “Is… Is it finally over?”
A shivering hand touches her shoulder, and her view is suddenly filled with teal coloured hair.
She takes a few minutes to sob into Shinbi’s shoulder.
Her first love just tried to murder her.
Her first love was a fucking doll.
What the ever loving fuck.
Soi sniffles as her tears die down, she has to be a big girl here. It’s not over yet. Tei is gone and so are the rest of the HOT5, but she doesn’t know what the fuck happened or how she came into the conclusion that the hot boys at her academy had creepy resin dolls as their voodoo dolls. Does that make sense? God, none of this does, but Eri is still chained up and unresponsive throughout the entire battle. Both Shibi and Soi herself badly needed medical attention.
She needs to check on them.
She needs to move.
She struggles out of Shinbi’s warm arms, “Are you hurt? Oh god, are you hurt? What am I saying? Of course, you’re hurt! Oh, oh god!”
Shinbi tears up and shouts, “How can you even ask me that? Look at your face.”
A hand reaches out to caress her cheek.
Soi weakly grins back, “You should see the other guy.”
“That was so reckless," Shinbi shakes her head, and never in the entire years that they've known each other does she look any more broken to her. "I can’t believe we made it." Shinbi continues, "Don’t do that to me ever again, I thought you were about to die!”
“Me? I thought you were about to die! Do you know how much my heart was pounding when I heard your scream?!” Soi retorts back.
She grabs Shinbi’s cheeks with both of her hands, “Thank goodness you’re alive.”
“You should have ran when you heard me scream.” Shinbi grunts, “Why did you run in here like a horror movie protagonist? You should have waited for the police to arrive.”
“Shut up, at this point, I am a horror movie protagonist.” Soi says, her tone rising with each word because holy fuck, they did it.
Tei is gone.
“I can’t believe he’s a doll. Shinbi. I think my fate with guys is just shit. I’m never doing this again. Sign me off of dating.”
“Don’t even joke about this. God, I almost lost you.” Shinbi sighs and hugs her closer, “Please don’t.”
A tiny peck on her dirty cheek, quiet but profound.
Soi blinks in surprise.
Shinbi looks at her quietly, "I thought I almost lost you when I got that call from the hospital last year, and now this. I didn't... At this rate, I thought-"
Shinbi has bruises all over her limbs from when Tei slammed the bucket to her, and her throat has bruises and her head is bleeding. The blood still stark red against the tiny light over their heads in the dark room. But even with the wounds, Shinbi has a cute small blush, and Soi's brain screams pretty back at her.
This isn't the time for this.
"Sorry," Soi smiles, and hugs her tightly, “Let’s go get Eri and get out of here.”
She lets Shinbi lean on her, and together they limp towards Eri.