Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Though they were only a week or so into their stay in Korea, Addison was already used to coming home late at night. Their classes had run very late today, and even after that, they had to wait another hour before they could talk to their language professor. By the time they were finally done, it was well past sundown.

Addison kept their head down as they walked through the metro station, their eyes locked on the map on their screen. Thankfully, they were just in time to catch the next train if they hurried. It was late enough that only a few other people were milling about, mostly silent.

It caught Addison completely off-guard when someone bumped into them, knocking them onto their back. Their bag dropped to the ground, spilling its contents everywhere, along with their phone. The person who hit them muttered at them to watch where they were going and kept walking.

“Fucking rude,” they grumbled, sitting up. Thankfully, the fall didn’t actually hurt them, only really managing to stun them. They started gathering up their things and putting them back into their bag, muttering under their breath.

When they reached for their phone, they found someone else had already picked it up. He was looking at it with a completely blank face, seemingly typing something.

“Hey, that’s mine,” Addison snapped. “The fuck are you doing?” He looked at them like he only just noticed them and locked their phone, handing it over.

“You dropped this,” he said lamely. Addison narrowed their eyes at him and got to their feet, accepting their phone with a suspicious look. The stranger--a fairly small man with bright eyes and flat, dry-looking hair--only grinned back at them, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes.

“Thanks,” they replied, wincing internally at their accent. Their Korean was passable, but they knew they sounded nothing like any of the native speakers they’d met so far.

“Are you okay?” the man asked, though he didn’t seem too concerned. “That looked like a rough fall.”

“I’m alright,” Addison replied curtly. They noticed he kept glancing down at their phone and frowned, shoving it into their pocket. “Thanks again.”

A shadow of something passed across the man’s face and his smile abruptly faded. He nodded politely and turned to walk away without another word. Addison’s frown deepened and they shook their head.

Guess he had somewhere to be, they thought. Addison rolled their eyes and pulled their phone out, continuing on their own way.

Another hour or so later, they finally made it back to their dorm, groaning as they dropped their bag on the floor beside them.

“God, I’m so fucking glad I have a free day tomorrow,” they sighed as they stretched and made their way over to their side of the small room.

Their roommate, passed out in her bed, didn’t stir at Addison’s entrance. They barely acknowledged her and plopped down in their own bed with a tired sigh.

They fell asleep almost the moment their head hit the pillow, not even pausing to change their clothes.

After what felt like only a few minutes of blissful, dreamless sleep, Addison was awoken by their phone chiming to indicate a new message. Grumbling under their breath, they fished it out of their pocket and glanced at the notification.

Unknown: Hello?

Wonderful, they thought. Unknown number. They opened their messaging app and noted with some confusion that no phone number was listed with the thread. Addison paused a moment, reading the message again. It seemed harmless enough...

Well, guess there’s no harm in saying hi, they finally decided.

Addison: Hi?

The stranger replied immediately.

Unknown: You can see this?

Addison: … Yeah?

Unknown: I’m sure you’re surprised.

Unknown: I mean, not every day you get a text from a stranger

Alarm bells started going off in Addison’s mind and they sat up, furrowing their eyebrows as they read the messages over again.

What the actual fuck, they thought to themself. Against their better judgment, they decided to continue the conversation.

Addison: Yeah, this is pretty weird

Addison: Who the hell are you?

Unknown: I’m a little flustered myself. You see, I found this phone on the subway, and it only had this messaging app with a few numbers saved.

Unknown: You’re the only one who’s responded.

Addison: Why not just find the owner and give it back?

Unknown: I tried my best to do that, but there’s nothing in the phone to tell me who they were.

Addison: Give it to the police or whatever

Addison: They can handle it

Unknown: There is something here that looks like an address, but I can’t go to it

Unknown: I’m abroad and the address is in Seoul

Though they were exhausted, Addison straightened up a tad as they read the last message. They were texting back in the kind of easy, fluent Korean a native speaker would use, and nothing seemed to indicate they were a significant distance away. Addison made a soft noise, quirking an eyebrow curiously.

Addison: Hm

Addison: Alright, two things

Addison: 1. Give it to the post office, then

Addison: They can send it to the address

Addison: 2. You didn’t answer my question

Addison: Who

Addison: the hell

Addison: are you?

Sending so many messages was probably a little too much, but they were quickly growing interested in the stranger’s… predicament.

Unknown: Oh, I’m so sorry… I didn’t introduce myself.

Unknown: I’m a student studying abroad. I’m Korean.

That answers that question, Addison mused internally.

Addison: And your name is…?

Unknown: Doesn’t matter

Addison: Would be nice to know

Unknown: You won’t find me on any search engines ^^

Addison: I didn’t say I’d be looking you up

Unknown: Like I said, it’s not important;;

Unknown: Can you help me find the owner of this phone?

Addison set their phone down a moment and considered their options. They could say no and block the number, ending the conversation and avoiding getting scammed. Or… They turned to look at the clock. 12:35 AM.

Addison made a quiet, resigned noise. Not like they had anything else to do or anyone to talk to at the moment.

Addison: Uh

Unknown: I know this is sudden, having someone pop up and ask you this

Unknown : But I’d appreciate this

Addison: Buddy

Addison: Why should I?

Addison : Actually, HOW can I?

Addison: For all you know I might not actually be in Seoul

Unknown: Are you?

Addison: …

Addison: Possibly

Unknown: Then there’s no problem ^^

Unknown: As for why you should help me,

Unknown: you’re the only clue I have.

Unknown: I’ve been trying for hours to find the owner and so far you’re the only one to respond

Unknown: I’d really like to find them…

Unknown: then God will be happy

Addison: Wait, what

Unknown: Oh, I didn’t mention? I’m religious

Addison: Cool??

Fantastic, they thought with a quiet huff. Probably some kind of cult or something like that, knowing my luck.

Unknown: I’m very sorry if I weirded you out or something like that

Addison: It’s

Addison: fine. Just a bit weird to mention out of nowhere.

Unknown: Please? The address seems to be in a safe location

Unknown: And if you feel unsafe, you can go back

Addison: … Fine.

Addison: I’m turning back immediately if there’s some shady shit happening, though, I swear to god

Unknown: Thank you! ^^

Addison got up, stretching and wincing as their back cracked. Their roommate, Mi-Chia, turned over in her bed, muttering in her sleep. They nudged her shoulder until she cracked open one eye, glaring at them.

“Why are you still awake?” she asked with a groan.

“I’m going out for a bit,” Addison said. Their phone pinged again and they looked down to see the stranger had sent an address. It seemed close enough to their dorm; hopefully, it wouldn’t be too long of a walk.

“At this hour?” Mi-Chia demanded, sitting up. Her short hair was mussed from sleep and she had heavy bags under her eyes. “Do you want to be kidnapped?”

“Yes,” Addison agreed drily, “it’s always been my dream to be kidnapped and murdered. How’d you know?” They picked up their bag and slung it over their shoulder again. “I’ll be back in, like, an hour or something. Don’t wait up.”

“Where the hell are you even going?” she asked. She rubbed her eyes. “If you’re hoping to get drunk off your ass, you can do that tomorrow night.”

“My friend texted me to go help him with something,” Addison lied easily. “Swear to God, I’ll be back soon, okay?”

Mi-Chia frowned, visibly concerned. She stood up and put her hands on Addison’s shoulders, looking at them seriously.

“Please text me when you’re on your way back,” she said. “I don’t want you to get hurt.”

“I’ll be fine,” they reassured her with a smile. “Hey, besides, if I do go missing, you can have all my shit.” That didn’t seem to comfort her, so they quickly added, “Yes, I’ll text you when I’m on my way back. Happy?”

“Enough,” she replied. She finally released them and sat down on her bed, crossing her legs. “Seriously, be careful. Bit late for a tiny, defenseless American to be walking the streets.”

“I could totally fight off a kidnapper,” Addison insisted as they opened their door. Mi-Chia rolled her eyes, clearly unconvinced, but they ignored her and made their way down the long corridor, peering down at their phone.

The walk to the address was short, but Addison kept glancing around the streets as they walked. Even fewer people were out and about than before, all avoiding each other, but Addison couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was watching them closely.

The hairs on the back of their neck stood on end as they finally stopped in front of a large, upscale apartment building. Addison looked around for a buzzer of some kind, but there was none. Tentatively, they pulled on the handle of the front door, only to find it open.

There wasn’t even a person at the desk when they walked inside, with all the lights off. Addison swallowed and tried to avoid thinking about it. They found a list of rooms hanging nearby and held up their phone to compare it to the address.

The address the stranger gave them seemed to be on the sixth floor, but whatever name listed there was scratched out. Addison grimaced, already uncomfortable, but decided to soldier on. There was still no buzzer system that they could find, so they decided to just go up and hope for the best.

No one else was in the elevator when they entered, but at least it actually had lights. As they slowly went up, Addison shot off a quick text to their roommate.

Addison: Just got there, should be heading back soon.

She read it almost immediately but didn’t reply. Addison snorted, smiling despite their unease. Just then, the elevator came to a stop. When they stepped out, they saw the hallway was dimly lit by a few haphazardly placed lights.

Addison found the room easily enough, but they stopped in front of the door. It had a keypad just above the door handle. They reopened the thread with the mysterious ‘Unknown,’ just as they received another message from them.

Unknown: Are you there yet? ^^

Addison: …

Addison: Nice timing. I just got there.

Unknown: Good!

Unknown: Is there anything strange?

Addison: I mean, there’s no one else here, but it’s pretty late so I guess they’re asleep

Addison: Like I’d like to be

Unknown: You can go to sleep again once you’re done. Is there a password needed for the door?

Addison’s eyes widened and they looked around the hallway. Still, no one was visible even walking around. The feeling that they were being watched returned tenfold and they shuffled their feet.

Addison: How the fuck did you know that

Unknown: There is?

Addison: Answer the goddamn question

Unknown: Easy, easy!

Unknown: I found a series of numbers in the notes and assumed one of them had to be a password of some kind

Unknown: If there was one needed for the door, that would make sense

Addison: Pretty big jump to make there, asshole

Unknown: No need to be mean, now

Addison: Not like you gave me a name to call you

Unknown: I promise you, nothing strange is going on!

Unknown: I’ll send you the code. Try it.

He sent a short string of numbers. Addison examined the keypad and noted, their heart in their throat, that the numbers seemed to match up with how many the keypad needed.

Addison: I’m gonna knock first

Addison: I know I’d be scared shitless if a random stranger opened my door

Addison: Fuck, what am I even gonna say to them?

Addison: “Hi, a random stranger found your phone in another country for some reason and texted me, a stranger, to come give it back to you, and I’m a huge idiot so I agreed.”

Unknown: Funny joke

Unknown: My apologies, I wasn’t thinking straight ^^

Unknown: Go ahead. Knock.

Addison lightly rapped their knuckles against the door. A beat passed and they heard no response, not even any movement inside. They knocked again, receiving a similar lack of response.

That only served to make them feel worse. Was no one inside? Was someone waiting for them, staying perfectly still?

Addison: I’m going back.

Unknown: What?

Unknown: No you can’t

Unknown: you’ll see them soon

That caught their attention.

Addison: The fuck are you talking about?

Unknown: Nothing, typo

Addison: No, explain yourself

Unknown: Come on, just go inside. You can leave a note with my information if no one’s there. I’ll give it to you.

Well, I’ve come this far, I guess, they thought. Addison groaned and rubbed their eyes. They typed out another response before hesitantly turning their attention to the keypad.

Addison: Fine. I’m typing the stupid code in.

The code the stranger sent worked like a charm; when they finished typing it, they immediately heard the lock click open. Addison still hesitated to open the door, looking around again.

Addison: Door’s open.

Unknown: Good! I’m glad it worked.

Unknown: Are you going inside??

Addison: I don’t know… is it okay to just enter a stranger’s apartment??

Unknown: It’ll be fine, I promise.

Unknown: I’ll send you my information so you can write the note, okay?

Addison: Riiiiight

Addison swung the door open slowly and peered inside. It was dark and seemingly empty. As they stepped over the threshold, Addison wrinkled their nose as they noted all the dust hanging in the air.

Groping around, Addison managed to find a light switch and flipped it on. Immediately, the apartment lit up, bright light spilling out into the hallway.

Addison’s phone chimed again and they looked down, barely having a chance to see Unknown’s messages before their screen suddenly went black.

Unknown: Th

Unknown: ank

Unknown: you…

Addison’s phone started blaring an alarm sound as bright green text scrolled quickly across the screen. They yelped in surprise and dropped it, flinching when it clattered on the floor.

Out in the hall, someone was walking towards the open apartment door, their footsteps echoing in the empty space. In a panic, Addison lunged and slammed it shut, the lock clicking as it closed. Whoever was outside seemed to walk past without stopping, and Addison sighed in relief. Hands shaking, they picked up their phone to survey the damage.

Miraculously, it seemed to be okay. The green text faded as they picked it up, giving them no chance to read it. As it did, their phone also, thankfully, stopped making the horrible noise. Instead, it was replaced with the rapid chiming of notifications.

When they unlocked their phone, Addison was surprised to see they’d entered some sort of group chat. Full of strangers. Fuck .

Addison tried to leave before they were noticed, to no avail. So far, the strangers didn't acknowledge them, simply continuing their conversation. The people in the chat were surprisingly talkative for—Addison checked the time and noticed it was now 1:05AM. Oh, goddammit.

Chapter Text

Oh, my god, Addison thought. Their heart was pounding in their chest as they shook,

They decided to ignore the chat for now, as none of the people talking had noticed them yet. Instead, Addison looked around the apartment. Now in the lights, they could see that everything was covered in a fine layer of dust, completely undisturbed. Evidently, no one had been in here in quite a while.

Addison set their phone down on the dusty counter, tuning out the chimes of messages flowing in as the people in the chat continued their conversation oblivious to the stranger.

They noticed that the apartment had one main room, with a hall that seemed to lead to a bathroom and closet. In the main room was one old-looking couch, a white bed in the corner, several shelves full of books and binders, and a desk with a computer and a series of drawers.

There were more of the thick binders strewn haphazardly around the room, some even lying open. The opposite corner held a kitchenette, which was just as dusty from disuse as the rest of the apartment.

Addison tried to open one of the drawers, only to find it locked. All the other ones, much to their disappointment, were just as locked.

They moved on and examined one of the open binders, noticing that every page had a long list of names scrawled in tiny, neat handwriting. The names were vaguely familiar, but they couldn’t place any of them. There were no faces listed next to the names, only dates and amounts of money.

Before they could go to investigate the kitchenette, they realized their phone was silent. The pinging had completely stopped. They walked back to their phone and picked it up, wiping dust off the case, and read over the latest messages warily.

707: Wait!

Yoosung★: What? Why?

ZEN: ??

707: Someone else entered the chatroom;;

Fucking hell, Addison thought.

Jumin Han: Addison??

ZEN: What the fuck. How did it get in here?

707: Must be a!!

707: HACKER!

Yoosung★: A hacker???? Therae’s a hacker in ovur room????

Yoosung★: Sevnee do somethign!!

ZEN: Typos;;

707: Wait a sec. I’m looking into it.

Jumin Han: Who are you? Reveal yourself. Assistant Kang?

Jaehee Kang: I’m here, sir.

ZEN: Wow, you were so quiet, I thought you went somewhere.

Jaehee Kang: I was just watching as nothing was out of the ordinary.

Jaehee Kang: But I see something has just happened.

Yoosung★: omg

Jumin Han: Why is a stranger here?

Jaehee Kang: No one can enter our chatroom without having the app to access it… It seems someone else managed to do so.

Yoosung★: But I thought Seven only let us get it!

ZEN: Maybe someone downloaded it twice? On two phones??

707: I mean, maybe??

Jumin Han: Who downloaded it twice?

Yoosung★: Not me!

Downloading? Addison didn’t remember downloading anything weird lately. They thought back through their day, confused, before they remembered the man at the station. Maybe he…? Goddammit. Of course.

Addison took a deep breath and decided it was about time they actually replied.

Addison: Hey there…

Yoosung★: IT’S TALKING!!!

ZEN: So it’s not just two smartphones…

Jumin Han: Who is it?

Yoosung★: Seven!! Find out what it is!!

Addison: I’m not an it, thanks

Yoosung★: Sorry;;

ZEN: Don’t be

Jaehee Kang: How did you find out about this place? Where did you download the application?

Addison: Long story

Jaehee Kang: Please explain, then.

707: Oh… ^^ Wait. This is weird.

ZEN: ??

707: I traced the IP address… whoever this is is in Rika’s old apartment.

Yoosung★: WHAT.

Jumin Han: Where is that again?

Jaheee Kang: I do believe the location is classified, sir.

Addison: Well shit

707: Anyway, someone clearly broke in. And since it talked, it has to be a person.

Addison: Of course I’m a person

Yoosung★: So it hacked the program?? Seven??

707: guess so

Yoosung★: Who are you!? How’d you get into Rika’s apartment? How did you get in here?

Yoosung★: I’m so scared right now o~o

Yoosung★: Didn’t the apartment have a password lock??

Jaehee Kang: Username “Addison,” I recommend that you confess.

Addison: Um

ZEN: Would you voluntarily confess if it were you, Jaehee??

Jaehee Kang: No, but it’s good to ask first.

Jumin Han: Reveal yourself, stranger. If you do not reveal yourself, you will pay. Who are you?

ZEN: lmao “stranger you will pay”???

ZEN: ~*so scary*~

ZEN: Ooooh, what if it’s a girl??

Addison: Umm

By this point, Addison was having a hard time keeping up with the conversation. Knowing that someone actually did have this apartment made them uneasy, and this talk of the location being “classified” wasn’t helping.

They looked back to see that they were being addressed again.

Yoosung★: Username Addison…

Jaehee Kang: An abrupt stranger…

707: my hands r shaking as i hack;;

Jumin Han: Who are you? Reveal yourself right now.

Yoosung★: Yeeeees!! Who are u???

ZEN: Speak properly please

707: maybe if it doesn’t say anything i’ll hack in and find out

ZEN: Maybe it’s one of my fans??

Addison took a moment to type their response. The feeling of being watched was back again and they kept looking around the room as they typed, their fingers shaking.

Addison: Look… this is just as confusing for me as it is for all of you.

Addison: I’m… Addison. Just a regular person, not a hacker or whatever it is you’re thinking. Who are you people and what is this??

707: lol so awkward

ZEN: Seems… kinda normal.

Yoosung★: ??? What were you thinking?

Addison: Probably that I’m a stranger

Addison: i wouldn’t know what to expect either

ZEN: Yeah;;

Yoosung★: Should we introduce ourselves?

Jumin Han: Are you serious?

Jaehee Kang: I think it’s too early for that.

ZEN: Bah. No harm in being polite :)

ZEN: Hi there. I’m Zen. 24 years old. Musical actor. Don’t look me up online. It’s embarrassing.

Yoosung★: Zen, you’re so brave!

Jumin Han: He probably just wanted to show off.

Addison: Should I have… introduced myself like that?

707: I mean, it’d be helpful.

ZEN: I’m not showing off~

“Zen” immediately sent a photo, presumably of himself. Addison quirked an eyebrow at the man in the picture, a man with long white hair and red eyes that shone brightly, their face heating up slightly. Well… he definitely was very handsome. They couldn’t blame him for it if he really was just showing off.

Looking a little closer, Addison thought that he looked vaguely familiar, but couldn’t remember where they’d seen him before. They’d have to ask their roommate about it… Addison grimaced. Hopefully they’d actually get to see her again.

Addison: Nice??

Jaehee Kang: My eyes have been cleansed…!

Jaehee Kang: Oh… I shouldn’t act like this right now.

Jumin Han: I see he has no interest in privacy

707: lolol

707: My nickname’s 707. Real name’s a secret.

707: fyi, Zen’s real name is Hyun Ryu

Addison: Well there goes the privacy…

ZEN: Why does your name get to be secret but not mine?;;

707: u don’t care anyways lmao

707: My name is too holy to spread around~! I’m gonna pray again after I finish hacking.

ZEN: Riiiiiiiight.

707: “Addison,” just remember me as the 22 yr old young hacker! :)

Addison: The one with the holy name, yes, of course.

707: :D

Yoosung★: I’m Yoosung Kim! I’m a college student, 21 yrs old!

Yoosung sent a photo next, of a sweet-looking, small blond young man grinning at the camera while sitting in what seemed to be a cafe. Addison smiled slightly, already charmed.

Addison: Ayyyyyy I’m a college student too

Yoosung★: ReallY???

Addison: Yep

Jumin Han: Why are all of you introducing yourselves to this stranger?

ZEN: Lol, Seven, why aren’t you sharing any selfies?

Addison: Should I…?

707: I don’t have anything recent

707: no lol you’re fine

707: the secrecy is fun

707: Also!

707: Jumin’s the heir of a pretty famous corporation, you’ve probably heard of him, and Jaehee is his assistant. 27 and 26 yrs old respectively.

Jumin Han: Why??

707: Wanted to give “Addison” a sense of who we are

Jumin Han: Stop shitting around.

707: oh, fyi, Jumin has the CUTEST cat.

Addison: omg!!

ZEN: ;;;

Jumin Han: Hey.

Jumin Han: Why are we talking about Elizabeth the 3rd to a stranger?

707 sent a picture of, presumably, Jumin, a man with dark hair and eyes. He was dressed in a clean, professional suit, kneeling next to a fluffy white cat. The cat seemed to be eating while Jumin pet it, smiling fondly.

Addison’s attention was immediately on the cat. They cooed softly, a wide grin stretching across their face as they looked at the soft creature.

Addison: aw I love cats!! What a cutie

Jumin Han: Hm. You may be suspicious but at least you have good taste.

ZEN: ;;

707: didn’t think u’d introduce urself jumin lmao

Yoosung★: I don’t think Addison needs to know about his cat;;

Jumin Han: Can’t believe you showed a picture of Elizabeth the 3rd to a stranger...

Jumin Han: Idiot.

Jumin Han: By the way, I know you came to my apartment the other day and harassed her. It’s all on CCTV.

Jumin sent what looked like a grainy screenshot, of someone else with the cat. He was seated on a couch and holding the cat close, seemingly mesmerized by the creature’s tiny paws.

Addison couldn’t see much of his face, as both his thick glasses and messy hair hid his eyes from the camera’s view.

707: MY PRECIOUS PRIVACY!!

ZEN: Since you care so much about it…

Yoosung★: Omg

Addison: Did you break into his apartment just to play with his cat??

707: … maybe

707: you have no room to judge though!!!

Addison: oh my god

707: I want to see the cat again~~

Jumin Han: No.

ZEN: Stop talking about cats. Giving me goosebumps.

Addison: Do you not like them??

ZEN: God no.

Jaehee Kang: I believe we should take care of this stranger.

Jaehee Kang: We seem to have a breach of security.

ZEN: Yeah… how’d you get here, Addison?

Addison: Well

Yoosung★: Are you really in Rika’s apartment!?

707: yup.

707: How’d you get the password??

ZEN: Where IS the apartment?

Addison: If you giVE me a minute I’ll explain

707: Okie dokie

Addison paused to consider their response. It’s unlikely these people would believe them if they told the truth, but… it didn’t feel right to lie.

What’s a good way to say, “Some weird person texted me telling me to come here and I’m a fucking idiot so I agreed? They also conveniently had the password to everything. ” They couldn’t think of one, and decided to try and be… as honest as they could.

Addison: I’m pretty confused too. This strange person started texting me and they sent me the address. I don’t know anything about an app or this or whatever’s going on here.

Addison: That sounds fake I know but it’s the honest to God truth

Jumin Han: Chatting with a stranger… How naive.

Addison: :(

ZEN: aww so cute lol

Yoosung★: You shouldn’t listen to strangers!! It’s dangerous.

Jaehee Kang: I agree.

Addison: I’m bad at making decisions.

707: Do you have the record?

Addison: Well…

Addison: Their name was ‘Unknown’ and they didn’t have a number listed or anything. Idk how that’s even possible.

707: That’s not that weird lol. The second part I mean.

707: We care about privacy here

ZEN: Are you sure about that

Addison: And I think the thread deleted itself the second I walked in here? The apartment I mean. I mean I can’t seem to access it hahah

Addison: Typing that out I realize it sounds fake but trust me I’m too exhausted to lie

Addison: I haven’t slept in like 20 hours

Yoosung★: That’s not healthy...

707: That’s… weird. You need to set SOMETHING… you can’t just be “Unknown”.

707: I can’t find anything in your phone’s logs…

Addison: What the fuck

Yoosung★: Log???

Jumin Han: Why are you talking about tree trunks?

Jaehee Kang: It refers to past records, sir.

ZEN: why is everyone here so dumb

Yoosung★: O:

707: lolol

Jumin Han: Never thought I’d hear that from you.

Jumin Han: The world must be ending.

Jaehee Kang: Let’s calm down and look at the situation. Who could this ‘Unknown’ person be?

707: Good idea.

707: Maybe….!!!

707: Hacker!!!

Yoosung★: !!!

707: So this “Unknown” told you the password for the door lock??

Addison: Yes

Addison: Swear to God I don’t know anything ;~;

ZEN: Cute lolol

Yoosung★: But… How’d you end up talking to this person?

Addison: They messaged me out of nowhere.

Jaehee Kang: How did you access this chatroom?

Addison thought back to the train station again. What had that man been typing on their phone? They hadn’t cared to check once they got it back, or even when they’d returned to their apartment. They cursed under their breath and rubbed their temples.

“Fucking idiot,” they mumbled. “Of course.”

Addison: Shit

Jaehee Kang: Pardon?

Addison: When I was coming home I dropped my phone and this guy picked it up but before he gave it back he was typing something on it

Addison: I didn’t check to see what he was doing. Er, did…

Yoosung★: How would he know to download the right thing…?

707: Yoosung.

Yoosung★: Oh!!!!

Jumin Han: So this stranger may have been the hacker.

Jumin Han: Do you remember what he looked like?

Addison tried to remember the man, but all that came to mind were his eyes. The way he’d smiled at them when he gave them their phone… they shivered, the hair on their arms standing up.

Addison: … I remember he had these really… empty eyes. Like, he smiled at me when he gave me my phone back, but…

707: Hm. Well, not the most helpful, but I’ll take it.

707: I should trace whoever that was ASAP.

Jumin Han: Assuming she is telling the truth.

She. Addison immediately began typing out a correction. I’m not a chick; please use “they/them” thanks. Before they could finish, they stopped to think about it. They supposed, since they hadn’t corrected Zen earlier, the others had just assumed. Addison didn’t think they could fault the strangers for that.

What if they reacted badly? It wouldn’t be the first time that’d happened to them. The situation was stressful enough; Addison’s stomach churned at the idea of dealing with these strangers criticizing their gender on top of everything else.

They sighed and erased what they’d typed up. As much as it hurt to be called “she,” they decided they’d wait it out.

I’ll probably never talk to them again after tonight, Addison reasoned to themself. No need trying to explain my gender and deal with it if we’ll never speak again. I can just… deal with it. No need to put them off by saying I’m not actually a chick.

Addison: I promise, I’m being honest

Jaehee Kang: Still, we should contact V.

707: Yeah. That’d be a good idea.

707: I’ll give him a call and explain the situation.

Jumin Han: I can call him.

707: already on it lol

Addison: That was fast

707: Why thank you~

Yoosung★: V seems to talk to you a lot…

Addison: Who’s V??

Addison: Also, what IS this chatroom for?;;

Jaehee Kang: We can answer that after we discuss it with V.

Jumin Han: I hope he can solve this…

ZEN: Hey, look at the bright side! V’s always too busy to chat with us. We can talk to him again because of this.

Addison: You’re welcome?? :’D

ZEN: Oh my god you’re adorable

Addison: Thank you I’m trying really hard

Yoosung★: I don’t think that’s an excuse. We’re all busy and he’s the only one who doesn’t show up.

Jaehee Kang: V should know Addison is here. Seven, are you calling him?

707: Yep

Yoosung★: I think we should tell Addison what this chatroom is for first!

Addison: Nah, it’s okay, if you guys would rather wait for this V person

Yoosung★: No, you need to know how serious this is.

Jumin Han: Especially because you’re in Rika’s apartment.

Jaehee Kang: I’m ready to call the police, sir.

Addison: ;~;

Yoosung★: ;~; You’re scary, Jaehee…

Jumin Han: I’d like to wait until we know who Addison is before we reveal anything.

Jaehee Kang: I agree.

707: yep

707: wecandothat

707: lololsorrytypingandcallingvatthesametime

Addison: You can just call and type later??

Yoosung★: Yeah!

707: anywaylookedintotheownerofthedevice

707: she’scutelol

Yoosung★: You did a background check?? So she’s definitely a girl!?

Addison barely stopped themself from typing up another correction. They took a deep breath and shook their head.

Not too much longer, probably, they thought. This V person can get here and resolve the situation and I can go home and never talk to these people again.

Addison: How are you doing a background check, calling V, and typing here at the same time?

707: i’mverytalented

Addison: Damn. I can tell

707: V’ll be here in a sec

ZEN: Girl???

Jumin Han: You’re sure it’s a girl??

Addison: Please stop calling me “it”

Jumin Han: My apologies.

707: Yah

[V has entered the chatroom]

ZEN: Show me a photo!

707: Nope~

Addison: I mean. I can send one, probably.

707: No need

707: Zen, how dare you violate someone’s privacy like that!

Seven sent a picture and Addison rolled their eyes when they saw what it was, already a little charmed by the jokester. He’d sent a picture of a pretty young woman with brown hair and glasses exiting a metro car, dressed in a neat, professional suit and clutching a purple binder in her arms.

Jumin Han: ?

ZEN: Is that Addison!???

Yoosung★: I thought we were respecting her privacy!!

Addison: That’s not me lol

Addison: She’s pretty tho

Jaehee Kang: ;;;;;

Jaehee Kang: That’s me.

Jaehee Kang: Thank you, Addison??

Yoosung★: Oh, sorry;;;

Yoosung★: I got excited;;;;

ZEN: Sorry for not… recognizing you…

Jaehee Kang: Did you not recognize me either, Mr. Han?

Jumin Han: Anyway.

ZEN: He didn’t recognize his own assistant??? So cold!

Addison: Damn.

Jumin Han: When will V be getting here?

Addison: He’s already here lol

V: Yes, I just arrived, my apologies.

707: Yay ^^

Yoosung★: Hey V

V: Hello

V: How is everyone? Jaehee, have you been well?

Jaehee Kang: Yes. It’s been a long time, V.

V: It has.

V: Well, I’ve heard about the situation.

V: This strange person named Addison is logged into our private chatroom and currently in Rika’s apartment.

Addison: Sorry;;

Jumin Han: Who else knows the password, V?

V: No one.

V: Even I don’t know it.

Yoosung★: I thought you would… she never invited me there, so I don’t.

Jumin Han: None of us do, Yoosung.

Addison: Well clearly whoever contacted me knows

Addison: I’ll probably forget it by tomorrow, you don’t need to worry

Yoosung★: V, tell us the address. I want to see who this Addison is myself.

Addison: Uh

Yoosung★: Seven, can’t you tell us? You traced it, didn’t you?

707: I can’t tell you that.

707: Sorry;;

Yoosung★: Why not??

Yoosung★: I’m her surviving family.

Addison wasn’t always the quickest to figure things out, but they understood all at once why everyone was so upset about them being in Rika’s apartment. She was… dead. They looked around the apartment again, thinking about the person who had lived here before.

They rubbed the back of their neck, thinking back. Well, shit. Even if they never talked to these people again, they decided they couldn’t go without apologizing, now that they were starting to understand.

Addison: I’m…. sorry, Yoosung

Yoosung★: It’s not your fault.

ZEN: Maybe it’s ‘cause you’re just her cousin

Addison: That’s kinda mean

707: Not even her immediate family can go.

707: It doesn’t even belong to her anymore.

Yoosung★: ??

V: It belongs to me, Yoosung.

Yoosung★: You don’t even know the password though!

V: I just respected Rika’s privacy.

Jumin Han: I thought you of all people would know…

V: I know where it is, that’s what’s important.

V: Yes, the apartment is in my name.

V: There are many documents there that are very important and shouldn’t be damaged. She mainly just worked there.

Addison glanced at the binders strewn around the apartment. All at once, they were very grateful they didn’t touch the one they’d been looking at earlier.

Addison: I haven’t touched anything I promise

V: I believe you.

V: The address needs to stay secret, however, because sensitive materials are stored there, such as classified information about this organization.

Addison: Hey quick question is this a gang or something

Addison: No offense

Jumin Han: Why would you assume such a thing?

Addison: Just wondering

Yoosung★: Omg

707: lolol

Jaehee Kang: No, it isn’t.

Yoosung★: But, V… You don’t trust us enough to let us go there?

Jumin Han: It’s not about that. Don’t take it personally.

Addison: Is it, like. That “ignorance is bliss” thing?

Jumin Han: Yes, exactly.

Yoosung★: Then why does Seven get to know the location?

707: I’m the one in charge of classified information~

707: Also Rika had me come over once to help set up security measures

Addison: Like the door password??

707: …

707: Something like that.

V: Please, do not try to find the apartment. The items inside are too important and must stay hidden. Don’t ask Addison where it is.

V: And Addison, don’t tell anyone where it is.

Addison: No worries; I’ve already forgotten the address

707: wow

Addison: I’m very tired

ZEN: ;; Then go to bed

Addison: No

Yoosung★: Then what do we do? Can Addison stay there?

Addison: I can go home. I mean really it’s no problem.

Addison: I won’t tell anyone

Addison checked the time again. It was 1:30 AM. Despite the time and their own exhaustion, the thought of staying in this apartment turned their stomach. No way in hell they’d be comfortable staying somewhere that used to belong to a dead woman.

Besides, it was unbearably dusty.

Yet, they also couldn’t bring themself to just get up and leave. Addison wasn’t sure why they hadn’t already, but… well, they’d come this far already, they supposed. It probably wouldn’t hurt to see this… situation through.

V: …

V: My apologies, but we have more to discuss.

Addison: -~-

V: Sorry to repeat myself, but I need to be sure. None of you are going to Rika’s apartment, right?

V: The information involves everyone there, so we need to be careful.

Jumin Han: You can stop explaining, we understand. Classified information. Got it.

Jumin Han: But I still wonder… How did a complete stranger know of it? Let alone give another stranger access to it…

V: I’m only guessing, but if this person knew the password… it must be someone Rika trusted.

707: That ‘Unknown’ person knew Rika!?

V: Possibly…

707: Didn’t think she trusted someone besides you.

Yoosung★: I didn’t think she trusted anyone more than us… I can’t believe this. It’s not true.

ZEN: It is… surprising;;

Addison: So you guys were pretty close with her?

ZEN: You could say that…

V: We shouldn’t assume we knew everything about Rika. She...

V: She had a deep world of her own.

Yoosung★: …

Jumin Han: Anyways, V, continue.

V: If I’m right…

V: Then this is what Rika wanted. She wanted Addison to be at her apartment.

Addison: Um.

Addison: I don’t wanna be that guy but I didn’t really know anyone named Rika.

Addison: I don’t think so, at least.

Jumin Han: That is a fair point.

Jumin Han: V, you’re saying Rika called a complete stranger from up in the sky?

V: Maybe Rika wanted someone to do… the work she did before. At the place she worked before.

Jumin Han: What?

ZEN: No way…

Jaehee Kang: The work… she did before…

Addison: What are you guys talking about you’re making me uneasy here

707: Hosting parties??

Addison: That’s a lot less threatening than I thought it would be, nevermind

ZEN: Rika’s parties were very important, Addison.

Addison: Oh

Yoosung★: So… you think Rika would have wanted this? That she planned this?

V: That’s my guess… but yes. Rika didn’t leave a will, after all.

V: Besides, from the information Luciel provided, Addison doesn’t seem dangerous.

Addison: Wait who’s Luciel

707: That would be me;;

Addison: Oh. Cool name I guess.

Jumin Han: I’m not sure about this.

V: Besides, she’s basically in the same boat now that she knows about this. Whoever she may be.

707: True...

ZEN: If that’s what V thinks… then I’ll agree to it. I still don’t feel good about it though;;

707: Same. I won’t oppose it lolol

Jumin Han: I can’t understand or agree with this. I don’t understand why you’d make that guess, V.

707: Aw, Addison must be going crazy with how things are going rn

Addison: This is actually the least stressful group chat I’ve been in in a while

707: Wait what

Addison: ;;;

Yoosung★: I think I’m going crazy ;_;

Yoosung★: I can’t believe there’s something I didn’t know about Rika…

ZEN: Yeah, you two were close…

Jumin Han: Not as close as she was with V.

ZEN: Jumin, you dick, why do you need to be so harsh on Yoosung;;

Addison: I still don’t really understand what’s going on honestly

707: Fair enough

Jaehee Kang: Wait.

Jaehee Kang: I understand that everyone values V’s opinion. But this chatroom is strictly prohibited to strangers.

Jaehee Kang: I believe we must verify what Addison has said.

Jaehee Kang: For all we know, she could have made up this ‘Unknown’ person.

Addison: I’m not nearly that creative but I see where you’re coming from.

Addison thought it wouldn’t be hard to ignore the misgendering, knowing none in the group knew any better. Still, they couldn’t help but stiffen as they read the responses from the group of strangers. They frowned at their screen, shaking their head in a vain attempt to clear it.

707: Ooooooh

V: Thank you, Jaehee. But I would appreciate it if you all would trust me.

Jumin Han: Hm.

V: If Addison is dangerous, we can deal with it later.

Jumin Han: I disagree, but I’ll follow your decision.

Jaehee Kang: If that’s how Mr. Han feels, then that’s how I will feel, as well.

707: Nice~

707: Now, shouldn’t we explain??

Addison: That’d be nice thanks

ZEN: Alright.

ZEN: Rika…

ZEN: Rika is V’s old girlfriend, and the one who created this group.

Yoosung★: She used to host parties for a good cause. She organized this group, the RFA, to plan the party and manage the attendees.

Addison: … Good cause? Like charity?

707: Exactly. Each party was a fundraiser for those in need.

707: She also helped arrange business deals at some of them, and bring attention to good organizations.

707: She… founded the organization called the RFA four years ago and hosted two parties in that time.

707: Us six, besides her, were the only members.

Yoosung sent a picture, a grey-toned one of a woman holding a clipboard. She had bright, cheerful eyes and long hair down to her shoulders, and was dressed in neat, professional formal wear. Addison could only assume this was Rika.

Addison: She sounds like she was an amazing person.

Yoosung★: She was…

Yoosung★: She always sparkled.

ZEN: And Rika… is no longer with us.

ZEN: She passed away a year and a half ago.

Addison: I’m sorry.

Yoosung★: ...

707: Addison deserves to know, Yoosung.

ZEN: Thanks.

ZEN: If you can’t tell, we’re not really… over it yet.

ZEN: So please… keep this all to yourself, Addison.

Addison: You don’t need to worry.

Jumin Han: I… still can’t believe that Rika knew she’d pass away and planned all this.

V: Jumin…

Jumin Han: But if that is what V believes, I’ll consider it true.

Yoosung★: I can’t imagine anyone else doing what Rika did…

ZEN: But if we carry on like this there’s no reason for this organization to exist. You know that.

Jumin Han: We don’t even know who she is, though.

ZEN: I don’t know… I kinda trust her already.

Jumin Han: Let me guess. It’s because she’s a girl.

Addison: ;;;

Fuck, that’s definitely not getting any easier. Addison realized that their chances of never speaking to these people again were slimming rapidly. Should I… correct them? No, shit, that’d be awkward at this point. I don’t want them to feel bad about it...

V: Everyone, I know this is confusing, but maybe… maybe Addison was chosen by Rika.

707: I’ll look into this ‘Unknown’ person.

V: For now, please, just believe in me and wait.

V: I… think I have to leave now.

707: Guess u really are busy

V: Yes…

V: Addison, please don’t touch anything in the apartment for now.

V: It wouldn’t be good if the alarm rang.

Addison: The what now

Addison froze where they sat on the couch. Did he mean… everything? They looked warily around for anything to indicate what kind of security, exactly, this apartment had, but couldn’t see anything.

707: It’s okay, don’t get all worked up

V: Seven will walk you through what you need to do.

V: I expect the other members will help as well.

Jumin Han: Of course.

Jaehee Kang: Yes, V.

Yoosung★: …

Yoosung★: Alright.

ZEN: Mmhmm

707: I can transfer emails from Rika’s computer over to your phone, so you won’t have to touch it.

707: And u’ll get all the guests’ information as well.

V: Then there’s no need for Addison to touch Rika’s old things.

Addison: Does that apply to everything in the apartment?? Like. Literally everything??

V: Most things, yes. Within reason.

V: Please do not attempt to open any of the drawers or closets, look through any notebooks or binders, or touch any electronics.

Addison: Got it.

Addison: But what alarm??

707: Don’t worry about it

Addison, though they were still a little stiff and uncomfortable, relaxed. They were struggling to keep their eyes open now, feeling the weight of their tiredness dragging them down.

ZEN: Why don’t you do that for any of us??

707: Do you really need it tho

Yoosung★: You could set up an alert so I’d know when my LOLOL guild was logged in!!

707: omg

Addison: What’s that??

Yoosung★: You don’t know what LOLOL is!?

ZEN: NO SHE DEFINITELY DOES SHE’S JUST KIDDING

Addison: What

Yoosung★: Zen how would you know that??

ZEN: Because everyone knows about LOLOL???

Yoosung★: Oh! That makes sense!!

ZEN: Just trust me, Yoosung!

ZEN: Addison don’t do that to yourself

V: I’m sorry, but I must take my leave now.

707: Okay. See u later, V.

V: Jumin.

Jumin Han: ?

V: Take care of things for me.

Jumin Han: Alright.

V: Thank you.

[V has left the chatroom]

Addison: Wow. And just like that it’s over

707: Not quite~

ZEN: I wonder what he’s so busy with…

Jumin Han: That’s none of your business.

707: Anywaaay, let’s go ahead and do what V said!!

Addison: Sounds good. What do I have to do?

707: Not too much. You just need to log in here every now and then,

707: I’ll talk to you and set up the other important stuff on your phone

707: You just gotta keep in touch with guests mainly

707: Emails and stuff

Addison: Okay I’m pretty sure I can do that

Addison: Emails. Yes.

ZEN: lol you don’t seem that confident

Addison: I’m good.

707: Most of the emails you get from Rika’s computer will relate to people who wanna come to the party.

ZEN: And come talk to us regularly~

Jumin Han: Why don’t we just let Assistant Kang summarize it for her?

Jumin Han: And invite her to the organization.

Addison: There’s no reason to make her do all the work though

Jaehee Kang: Yes, sir.

Jumin Han: She can handle it

Jaehee Kang: The RFA is an organization Rika created with the idea that anyone, regardless of nationality, class, or other factors, would be able to donate to causes that are important to them.

Jaehee Kang: At the time, she hosted quite large parties every two years, and they were very successful.

Addison: That’s impressive

ZEN: Yeah, those were the days~ I remember I almost got trampled by all the people.

Jaehee Kang: We used this chatroom to discuss the details of the party and other important matters.

707: I created it lol

Yoosung★: Everyone knows that, Seven.

Addison: I didn’t tho

707: Seeeeeeeee

Yoosung★: Pls don’t encourage him

Jaehee Kang: Because this chatroom contains a large amount of private information that cannot be released to the public, only the RFA members were given access to it.

Jaehee Kang: Seven created an app that simply allows the user to access this chatroom. If you don’t have the app downloaded, then you wouldn’t even be able to view it.

707: And only the RFA gets to even know the app exists.

Jaehee Kang: However… since Rika’s passing, we haven’t hosted a single party.

Jumin Han: We couldn’t. Not without Rika. Nothing was the same, not without her.

Addison: I guess… that makes sense, yeah.

Jaehee Kang: And so this became more of a place to share our personal matters, rather than RFA matters.

707: Basically, we just check in here to make sure everyone’s still alive lol

Yoosung★: Or talk about Rika, sometimes…

Jaehee Kang: … Addison, it’s clear you were led here without any explanation.

Jaehee Kang: If V is right, then someone wants you to fulfill Rika’s position. Whether or not it was Rika herself remains to be seen, but…

Jaehee Kang: … you already know about this organization and this chatroom, which satisfies the conditions for joining, and V seems to want you to join.

Addison: Those are the only conditions for joining??

Jaehee Kang: Considering how private this organization is, yes.

Addison: Oh.

Jumin Han: For your information, there are only six members: myself, Assistant Kang, Yoosung, Seven, V, and Zen.

Addison: So basically just everyone here? Except me??

Jumin Han: Yes.

ZEN: Well, if Addison joins, there will be seven people.

707: I like the sound of that lolol

Yoosung★: So she’s really becoming a new member??

Addison: I don’t know??

Jumin Han: We haven’t formally asked her yet.

Addison: Ask away, then

Jumin Han: Addison.

Jumin Han: I understand that you are uneasy and distrustful of us, but all we are trying to do is host parties, raise funds, gather people… we do a lot of good.

Jumin Han: Rather, we HAVE done a lot of good so far.

Jumin Han: You would never regret joining.

Addison: You sure seemed to change your mind about me pretty quick

Addison: I thought you didn’t want me here

Jumin Han: I am only following V’s orders. Nothing more, nothing less.

Addison: Okay

ZEN: Come on, if you join, we’ll be able to talk more~

707: You just want her to join ‘cause you think she’s a pretty girl lol

707: You don’t even know if she’s pretty or not ‘cause you haven’t seen her

ZEN: Send the photo then ^^

Addison: Please no

707: Nope! At least someone here deserves some privacy

Addison: Thank you

707: Sure~

ZEN: Dammit.

Yoosung★: Zen, you shouldn’t judge people by their looks!

Jaehee Kang: Famous people should not act that way.

Addison: Wait what??? Okay I need to look you up now

ZEN: I’m not famous~ Gosh~

Jumin Han: I was talking, you guys.

Jaehee Kang: I apologize.

Jumin Han: Addison, will you join the RFA?

Addison glanced at the clock again as they pondered their options. It was nearing two in the morning at this point, and they sighed, rubbing their eyes. By this point, they were certain they would have to spend the night in that apartment; it wouldn’t be worth walking all the way back, especially so late.

If they didn’t agree to join this group, there was no guarantee they’d be able to stay. Hell, they’d probably be kicked out immediately and the police would be called. The mere idea made them shudder.

On the other hand, if they agreed to join, they would have to eventually explain that they weren’t actually a girl. The prospect was terrifying, but… surely they wouldn’t be booted from the organization for something so trivial. Once they were actually a member, the other members would probably accept them much more easily.

Addison grinned, a little excited at the idea. Since coming to Korea, they hadn’t told that many people that they were non-binary. In fact, the only people who knew were their friends back home and their roommate.

It’d be nice to actually be called “they” again, they thought. With that, they decided to accept and started typing their response.

Addison: Alright. Sure, I’ll give it a go.

Addison: Sounds kinda fun I guess

Yoosung★: Wow! Kind of a fast decision…

Jumin Han: I like it.

Jaehee Kang: I don’t think you’ve thought this through, Addison.

Addison: I’ll be fine

ZEN: Welcome~

ZEN: Seven, register her information!

Fuck. Addison swallowed. What if he can’t change it after he registers me? If I’m going to be spending more time with these people, I don’t think I could deal with being seen as… that.

707: Yeah! Gotta register her before she changes her mind.

Addison: Excuse me

707: Nothing~!

Yoosung★: Even the processing is really fast!

Yoosung★: Addison must be a really positive person to make that decision so quickly.

Addison: That’s one way to put it.

Jaehee Kang: She may not be a very careful person.

Addison: Aaaaand that’s another way to put it.

Realizing this was probably the only time they would have the chance to do so, Addison started typing up a longer message, explaining that, no, they weren’t actually a girl. Though they struggled to keep their eyes open, they were determined to explain this before they fell asleep.

I doubt any of them would’ve heard of non-binary before, they thought as they typed. I don’t really wanna explain right now, but I guess I’ll try.

Yoosung★: Jaeheeeee don’t be like that

Jumin Han: Is there something you do not like about her, Assistant Kang?

Jaehee Kang: It’s not that.

Yoosung★: I’m glad we have another girl now.

At the last message, Addison paused in their typing. These people were happy to have another girl in their group, weren’t they? Would they be disappointed when they learned otherwise? Despite only knowing them for a little over an hour, the idea did not sit well with Addison.

Yoosung★: Addison, if you have any questions, feel free to ask!

Yoosung★: I’m happy to help you ^^ It’d be no problem!

707: Good. I’ve registered her as a member.

707: Btw, we don’t need your signature or anything.

Yoosung★: ;; Did you already collect her information?

707: Yep.

ZEN: Hey, don’t go collecting that stuff without her permission, okay?

707: Okie

Addison sighed and erased their message. If they were already registered as a girl, they might not be able to get it changed. Addison squared their shoulders in an attempt to make themself feel a little more confident than they really were. They could deal with this.

Even if just reading the word ‘she’ filled them with an uncomfortable, all-consuming dread, stirring up old memories.

“No one’s going to take you seriously if you insist on being something you’re not,” a vindictive voice in the back of their mind hissed. Addison winced.

707: I gotta go do something actually

ZEN: Background check??

707: Nah. Work lol

Jaehee Kang: Now that Addison has officially joined, I think it’d be best if we all took our leave as well.

ZEN: Aww but I was hoping to chat more.

Addison: We could do that later lmao

ZEN: Oh, true!~

707: Anyway, welcome, Addison!

Yoosung★: Welcome!!

ZEN: I’m glad you joined :)

Jumin Han: We’ll see how you do.

Jaehee Kang: I look forward to working with you. For now.

Addison: Wow

Addison: Thanks, you guys.

[Jumin Han has left the chatroom.]

[Zen has left the chatroom.]

[707 has left the chatroom.]

[Jaehee Kang has left the chatroom.]

[Yoosung★ has left the chatroom.]

Addison: holy fuck

Addison: What did I just get myself into

Chapter Text

Addison tried again to leave the chat, quietly sighing in relief when they were finally able to do so.

[Addison has left the chatroom.]

A few minutes after Addison exited the chatroom, they decided to pick up their phone again. They took a minute to scroll through their phone, looking for anything like what the RFA had mentioned before, any kind of new app. Sure enough, they found one.

It was hidden among their other apps, a blank icon simply titled ‘RFA.’ When Addison tapped on it, nothing happened. They rolled their eyes, but couldn’t help but feel relief. At least the strangers seemed to be telling the truth in that regard.

Before they could think on it too long, their phone chimed again. Unknown had sent them another message.

Addison immediately went back to that thread, ready to give the stranger a piece of their mind for forcing them into this situation. None of their previous exchange was available, seemingly erased. All that was there was one new message.

Unknown: It’ll be really fun from now on, I promise. Enjoy your time with everyone. I’ll come get you soon.

They barely stopped to think their response through, the strange message unnerving them too much.

Addison: The fuck are you talking about??

Addison: Who are you, really?

The stranger read the message immediately, but seemed to deign not to respond. Addison grimaced and went to put their phone down, ready to go to bed, before they remembered their roommate and cursed under their breath.

If they weren’t coming home, she deserved to know. Addison kept their message to her short, deciding she’d probably panic if she knew what was really going on. Besides, the RFA didn’t want them to tell anyone else the details.

Addison: Sooo something came up and turns out I gotta spend the night with my friend. I’ll be home tomorrow.

Predictably, there was no immediate response; she’d probably fallen asleep waiting up for them. She’d definitely give them quite the earful come morning, but Addison couldn’t bring themself to care about that.

They set their bag down next to the couch, curling up on the stiff, cool cushions. As quickly as they could, they changed out of their binder, sighing in relief as they finally had room to breathe again. The tight, black garment was neatly shoved into their bag as they bundled up in their coat.

The bed would probably be a little warmer than this, they thought as they lied down on their side. Still, something about sleeping in the strange bed, especially one belonging to a dead woman, seemed like a bad idea, despite how cold and uncomfortable the couch was.

It wasn’t long before they realized that there was no way they’d be able to fall asleep like this, though. Addison took a deep breath and got to their feet, glancing towards the bed. They made their way over to it, frowning at the layer of dust visible on the comforter.

Addison held their breath as they grabbed the comforter in their hands and pulled it off the bed, stirring the dust into the air. They coughed a few times and grimaced, shaking the bed to try and free it as much as possible. When they were satisfied, they dragged it over to the couch, grabbing their phone along the way.

Addison wrapped the blanket around themself and curled up on the couch again, already much more comfortable. They sighed, much more satisfied, and rested their head. Before they could fall asleep, an incessant ringing from their phone brought them back to alertness.

“Who the actual…” Addison sat up and, after struggling a moment, freed one of their arms from their blanket cocoon. They picked up their phone to see that they were receiving a call from--

An unknown number. Fantastic. Addison stared at their phone for a moment. They sighed and rubbed their eyes with their free hand.

“I’ve already answered one unknown number tonight,” Addison murmured to themself. “What’s one more?” They accepted the call, half-hoping it would be a wrong number or, well… anything that wouldn’t require them to do anything about it.

“Hello?” Addison said. The person on the other line took a moment to answer, and Addison was caught off guard when they realized the stranger was speaking English.

“Hello, Addison Linwood,” they said in an unfamiliar, very heavy accent, “I’m calling to inform you that we have found some unusual activity on your bank account.” That got their attention.

“I’m sorry, what was that?” they asked, the English words feeling strange on their tongue after not speaking a word of the language for a week.

“Your account may have been hacked,” the person repeated drily.

“No, there’s no way-” Addison untangled themself entirely from the blanket and ran a shaky hand through their hair. It was way too late at night for this. “God, how could-?”

“Please calm down, ma’am,” the voice said calmly. Addison’s heart clenched and they winced. They could hear what sounded like typing in the background. “I'll walk you through the steps you need to take next .”

Addison almost corrected the caller, but decided it would be better to just get this over with. Fuck, they thought, why’d they have to call so late?  Frustrated, they felt tears start forming at the corners of their eyes, threatening to fall. They grimaced and rubbed at their eyes with their free hand, sniffing softly.

“Okay,” they said, a little shaky. “What… what do I have to do?”

“I need you to confirm your phone number,” the bank representative droned. Addison heard them continue to type, but decided not to dwell on it. “And then you need to give me your pin and answer a few more questions to confirm your identity.”

“Alright, I’ll type that in-” Addison said, starting to pull their phone away from their ear to do so, but the bank representative quickly cut in.

“No, no, you misunderstood,” they said, their tone unamused. “You don’t need to type anything in just yet. For now, tell me your phone number and pin verbally.”

Addison frowned. “Are you sure?” they asked. “That doesn’t sound safe--I mean, what if someone overhears?”

“Ma’am, I don’t have time to argue this with you,” the representative snapped. Addison flinched, tears beading up in their eyes again at the harsh tone. “I assure you, it is perfectly safe. Now, please follow my instructions.”

Despite the representative’s half-assed attempt at comforting, Addison had had enough. They were far too exhausted and frustrated to deal with this right now, and decided to make that clear.

“Look-” they said, only to choke up. The hand holding their phone started trembling slightly and they made a sound somewhere between a whimper and a sob, taking a moment to blink away their frustrated tears.

The representative was silent and had stopped typing.

“I’m sorry,” Addison said quietly. “Just- just give me a second.” They cleared their throat and rubbed at their eyes again, feeling their damp cheeks with a grimace.

“Are you okay?" the representative asked, sounding concerned. Addison coughed and groaned, wiping their face with a frown.

“I’m okay,” they replied quickly, only to tear up again. “God dam -”

“Hey, now, no need to get upset,” the voice started consoling them somewhat awkwardly. Addison noticed distantly that the representative’s strange accent was gone now, replaced by a regular Korean accent.

“Why wouldn’t I get upset?” they demanded, their voice cracking. “You’re telling me my account’s probably been hacked!” They winced at the sound of their voice and quickly added, “I’m… I’m sorry. It’s been a long day.”

“It’s alright,” the representative said hesitantly like they weren’t sure what to say. “Do you need a minute, ma’am?”

Addison shook their head, realizing belatedly that the representative couldn’t see them. Face flushing, they cleared their throat.

“I’m fine,” they said quickly. “So, I just need to confirm my pin and phone number out loud to you, right?”

“Mmhmm,” the representative hummed, though they sounded reluctant now. “And then we can go about re-securing your account.”

“Sounds good.” Addison sighed. May as well just get this over with, they figured. “My phone number is-”

“Wait! ” the representative yelped, now in Korean. “Stop! Don’t do that .”

“What the hell?” Addison snapped, confused. “Don’t do what? I’m doing exactly what you told me to.”

“And that’s how you get scammed! ” the person replied, chiding. “With this and Rika’s apartment, you really are naive, Addison.”

Addison froze. “Who is this?” they asked urgently. “I swear to God, whoever-”

“No, no, don’t get upset! ” the person yelped. “It’s me--Seven, from the chatroom. I just wanted to give you a call so you’d have my number. We still need to set up your phone to work with Rika’s email, and then I’d like to keep in touch with you. ”

“Can’t we just do that in the actual chat?” Addison sighed, though they were already feeling relieved.

“Well, I mean,” Seven stammered. “We don’t really have to talk much outside the chat if that would make you uncomfortable, but I figured it wouldn’t hurt to at least have each other’s personal numbers--”

“I meant, can’t we set it up in the actual chat?” Addison said, rubbing their eyes with their free hand. “And exchange numbers, or whatever?”

“Do you… not like talking on the phone? ” he asked, somewhat hesitantly. “I-I mean, if not, that’s fine-"

“I’m just a bit too tired to function,” Addison explained, trailing off into a yawn. “Could we do this in the morning?”

Seven paused for a moment. Addison could hear what sounded like a pen tapping against a desk. They were about to just hang up when he finally spoke again.

“Okay, so you don’t have much reason to trust me on this, but I can try and do it remotely,” he said. “I promise I won’t, like… go through your phone, or anything, but while you sleep I can set up everything you need and then send you the details.”

Addison decided to take a moment to think this over and glanced at their phone’s clock again. By now, it was almost 1:30 AM.

“Alright,” they said with a shrug, laying back down and relaxing. “Sure, alright. Just… can you… just do what you said, not go through anything? Just set up the email shit or whatever.” They could hear Seven snicker as he responded.

“Alright, alright,” he said. “Scout’s honor! I’ll be in and out in an hour tops. You don’t even need to be awake for it!”

“Sounds good,” Addison said, not really paying attention. “Do I need to tell you anything? Like, my password or whatever?”

“Okay, we really need to work on your tendency to offer sensitive information over the phone. But… uh, no, I won’t need that. You’re good, just. Go to bed or something, please. Have you really been awake for 20 hours?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?”

Seven made a sound somewhere between an exasperated sigh and a chuckle.

“Alright,” he said. “Just… go to bed. You really need to sleep. I’ll set everything up and text you the instructions. Goodnight!”

Before Addison could respond, he hung up. They stared dumbfounded at their phone for a moment before shaking their head and setting it down. Whatever. They could always worry about it in the morning.

The next morning, Addison woke to the sound of their phone buzzing. They groaned and sat up slowly, yawning and rubbing at their eyes. Groggily, they groped around for their phone, accepting the call just in time without checking the caller ID.

“Hello?” they grumbled.

“Morning, sleepyhead!” a cheerful voice greeted them. “Jeez, you sure slept in late today. I’ve been trying to call you for hours!”

“Sorry,” Addison replied, barely stifling a yawn. Still, they were smiling now. “Didn’t mean to worry you, Roxie.”

“It’s not me you should be concerned about,” Roxie remarked. Addison could practically hear the smirk in her voice. “It’s those professors of yours--I know for a fact you have an early class on Tuesdays.”

“Ah-ah, you forget,” Addison said, feeling more awake already. “I’m 13 hours ahead, not behind, so it’s Wednesday for me. I have a free day; I can sleep as long as I want.”

“Fair enough,” Roxie snorted, “but it’s a bit weird for you to actually get some sleep! Even since we were kids, you were always the ‘burn-the-candle-at-both-ends’ type.”

“What can I say?” they joked with a little shrug. “Being in another country is really changing me for the better. I’m finally a functional human being.” Roxie cackled on the other line and Addison grinned.

Pressing the phone between their cheek and shoulder, Addison got to their feet and picked up the blanket they’d been using, folding it absentmindedly as they talked. It hadn’t even been a solid day since Roxie had last called them, yet it felt like years had passed.

“So how are things back on the east coast?” Addison asked. “Student government still driving you nuts?”

“Oh, you don’t know the half of it,” Roxie groaned. “I’m starting to wonder why I joined, but I swear if I leave them alone for five minutes everything falls to pieces. They’re like a bunch of overgrown toddlers with drinking permits.”

“Aw, you should give toddlers a little more credit!” Addison teased as they finished folding the blanket. They sat down on the couch next to it, taking their phone back into their hand.

“You’re so right!” Roxie agreed quickly. “ Toddlers I can deal with; those are easy! These assholes? Absolutely not.” She groaned. “Did you know that the other presidents are gone now?”

“Did something bad happen?”

“That’s a really good fucking question! They both just dropped out without a word to anyone! They’d better hope I don’t find them or I’ll shove pens so far up-”

Addison’s laughter cut her off and she sighed loudly. Soon enough, she was cracking up as well--they could imagine her rolling her eyes.

“So, basically,” she said, “everything is going great. Definitely not considering leaving the student government to crash and burn out of pettiness.”

“Good to know, good to know. Please don’t do something stupid, Rox; you know all of us are poor as shit and can’t afford a good lawyer.

Roxie chuckled and muttered something under her breath that sounded suspiciously like “no promises,” which Addison decided not to mention.

“So how are you, really?” Roxie asked casually. “I know it’s only been a week, but, I mean… it must be a pretty big adjustment. Are you holding up okay?”

Addison took a moment to answer, leaning against the back of the couch and drawing their legs up. They could tell she wasn’t just asking about being in a new country. The concern in her voice was obvious, regardless of her attempt to mask it with casual interest.

Roxie was one of the few people who knew the reason why Addison applied to the student exchange program. Before they left, though, they’d asked her not to bring it up, even if it was just them. Addison didn’t want to talk about it.

She respected their wishes, of course, but every time she called she still asked the same question. And every time, Addison hardly knew what to say.

“I am,” they replied with a thin smile, even though Roxie wasn’t there to see it.

Right on cue, she asked, “So, have you been out and about or staying in your apartment? I know you’ve got a lot of classwork while you’re there, but you should really go out and explore.”

“I have been!” Addison protested. They got to their feet and began pacing around, their eyes absentmindedly searching the apartment. Now, much more well-rested, they could get a better sense of its layout.

They made their way to the far side of the room, glancing out the massive windows at the sprawling city below. Judging by the sun, it was around mid-morning. Addison glanced at their phone to confirm their suspicions.

9:30.

And a grand total of seven unread text notifications and five missed calls. Perfect.

“Really?” Roxie said, disbelief practically dripping from the words. “So what have you been getting up to? Seen any sights? Met any new people?”

“I’ve… met some people, yes,” Addison said hesitantly. Like the night before, they had the sudden sensation of being watched, a cold shiver up their spine. A glance around the apartment, however, revealed that they were alone.

Part of them was desperate to tell her everything that had happened the night before, but… the RFA had seemed really serious when they talked about keeping the organization secret. Now that Addison was a member, they weren’t exactly keen on getting on the group’s bad side.

Still, Roxie had always had an uncanny ability to tell when Addison was keeping something from her. Growing up, it had been both a blessing and a curse, and even now it was no different. She wouldn’t be satisfied to just leave it at that.

“Can you tell me about them?” she asked right on cue. “How’d you meet them?”

“Ah, I just… they’re just people from school,” they explained, stepping away from the window. “Trust me, they’re not that exciting, Roxie, nothing you need to worry about. Besides, I only just met them. There really isn’t that much to talk about.”

“Booooo,” Roxie replied. “Come on, you’re not giving me much to work with, kiddo! How am I supposed to be an obnoxious, overbearing sister if you don’t give me anything I can pry into?”

“First of all,” Addison said, striding back towards the couch, “you are far from overbearing. You are just the right amount of bearing.” They bent down and picked up their bag from where they’d tossed it on the ground the night before.

“And second of all,” they continued, rifling through their bag to see if they remembered to pack their phone charger, “there really is nothing to tell. My trip so far has been very uneventful. Completely devoid of any excitement. A veritable empty void-”

“Okay, I get it, you really don’t need to keep going,” Roxie cut in. “Fine, sure, alright. But I expect you to start actually talking to these people and getting to know them, and when you do, tell me about them.” Addison could tell from her tone that she definitely saw through their lie, but thankfully she was kind enough not to mention it.

“I will,” they promised, finally fishing their charger out of their bag. They searched around the room until they found the nearest outlet.

“I’ll hold you to it,” Roxie said in a serious tone. “Alright, I have to go now, kiddo; gotta tuck the kids into bed.”

“Alright,” Addison said, their face lighting up as they finally found a goddamn outlet. “I’ll talk to you later, Rox. Tell the kids hi for me.”

“I will.” Addison could hear Roxie’s fond smile over the phone. “I meant what I said, by the way--you’d better be getting out and making friends. Don’t just hole up in your room all day.”

“I wooon’t.”

“Love you, dork.”

“Love you too.”

Click.

Addison took a deep breath and sighed, plopping down on the floor next to their phone as it charged. They loved their adopted sister dearly and they knew she only meant well for them, but talking to her just reminded them of home.

As much as they’d wanted to leave, they missed her. And being a whole continent away from her was strange, like missing a limb.

They shook their head to clear it, sitting up slightly and picking up their phone to scroll through their missed notifications. Nope. No need to think about that now.

The first few messages were from their roommate, as were three of the missed calls. The rest of the messages were from Seven explaining all the changes he’d made to their phone to hook them up to the RFA system so they could access Rika’s email and such.

Mi-Chia’s messages, though, were a lot more pressing.

Mi-Chia: Wait WHAT

Mi-Chia: Addison, answer the fucking phone

Mi-Chia: Addison I swear to God, please answer the phone if you’re okay

Addison winced as they read her messages. Shit, they’d really worried her, huh? They hadn’t meant to do that at all. Immediately, they began typing up a response.

Addison: Hey! I’m okay! Fuck!

Addison: I’m really sorry for freaking you out, I fell asleep and didn’t wake up until just now.

Addison: I promise I’ll explain everything, how about we meet up for lunch?

Mi-Chia took a few moments to respond, typing and deleting her answer several times before she finally sent it.

Mi-Chia: Alright, that’ll work. I’m glad you’re okay. Meet me at that coffee shop I showed you your first day here, we can get lunch.

Mi-Chia: How about noon, does that work for you?

Addison: Okay!! Yeah, that works just fine.

Addison breathed a sigh of relief and leaned back. They’d have to figure out how the hell they were going to explain this to Mi-Chia without her freaking out and calling them an idiot, and without breaking any of the RFA’s secrets. God. This was gonna suck.

Maybe they should ask the RFA for advice? Yeah, that seemed like a good idea. They scrolled through their phone until they found the group chat from last night and tapped it with their thumb. Thankfully, it let them in without a fuss.

Jumin and Seven were already there, in the middle of a conversation. Addison chuckled as they read through the messages before typing out one of their own.

Addison: Heyo, you two

707: Wow! If it isn’t the infamous Addison! Welcome~!

Jumin: Yes, welcome.

Jumin Han: My driver isn’t here yet.

Jumin Han: Thanks to that, I can’t go to work.

Addison: lol just take the subway

Addison: that’s what i do

Jumin Han: I don’t know where that is. And I don’t have cash.

Addison: omg

707: Knew it lmao

707: Anyway, how are you, Addison? Did you finally get some sleep?

Addison: I did!!! Just woke up actually

707: Good lol

707: Don’t be like me lolol

Jumin Han: Yes, it is important to get a healthy amount of sleep every night. Be careful not to neglect your health.

Addison: Ok mom

Jumin Han: ?

707: LOL

Addison: Anyway

Addison: I have a question for y’all

Addison: So I’m going for lunch with my roommate today, and she’s gonna want to know where I went last night

Addison: I know I can’t tell her anything about the RFA, so I was wondering

Addison: What the hell should I tell her I was doing last night?

It took them some time to respond, clearly not expecting the question. As they waited for a response, Addison sat back, glancing at their phone and biting their lip  nervously. Hopefully they'd be willing to help…

Thankfully, it seemed that they were.

707: uhhhh

707: maybe tell her you were helping out a friend with something?

Addison: that’s what i told her last night, but she’s gonna want a more solid explanation, especially if i’m gonna be staying in this apartment more regularly

707: Damn

Jumin Han: Why not simply tell her your friend is going to need more help on a regular basis? Perhaps with tutoring?

Addison: She's gonna be suspicious of that tho

Jumin Han: Well, that is unfortunate.

707: She's probably gonna be suspicious no matter what, though

707: So that explanation might work

707: unless you want to tell her you have a top secret job with a secret organization that you can't talk about :D

707: wait! tell her you're a secret agent now!! a cat secret agent!

Addison: oh my god

Jumin Han: Take this seriously.

707: Sorry;;

Addison: It's okay

Addison: Thank you guys, I'll figure it out

Addison: And I won't reveal any secrets so you don't gotta worry about that

707: i wasn't worried lol

707: but that's good lol

Jumin Han: Good luck.

Jumin Han: Though, on the subject of cats…

Jumin Han: Sometimes I worry that there are a lot of people who don’t understand the beauty of cats in this world…

Addison snorted at the abrupt subject change, a fond smile on their face as they read over the messages. Damn, they’d only known these people for a few hours now and they already liked them. In their defense, these strangers were some of the friendliest Addison had met so far, secret organization shit notwithstanding.

Addison: Like Zen?

Jumin Han: Yes.

707: lolol

707: Addison, remember how I said Jumin has a really cute cat?

707: I want to see her~

707: Show us a picture, Jumin!!!

Jumin obliged after a moment of hesitation, sharing a picture of a fluffy white cat with a flat muzzle. She was lying on her back, fluffy white belly exposed to the camera and dainty little paws held up by her face. The cat was absolutely adorable, and Addison let out a reflexive little coo when they saw her.

Addison: Oh my god, what a pretty baby!!

Jumin Han: It seems you really do have good taste, Addison.

Jumin Han: Perhaps I should have the company carry out more cat related businesses…

Addison: Oh?

707: lol Jumin’s a cat mom

Jumin Han: I do not like that term.

Addison: lol cat mom

Jumin Han: Please do not call me that.

Addison: Sorry, just teasing ^^;

707: :3 then how about cat man? Trust fund baby cat? Director cat?

Jumin Han: Call me by my name.

707: Or~ Father… father of cat mom!

707: That was a bit too much.

Jumin Han: Call me by my name.

Now Addison was actually laughing, the kind of full-bodied laugh that had their sides burning by the time they were done.

God, Seven’s hilarious, they thought as they finally calmed down. They realized they’d missed several messages, Jumin and Seven lightly bickering with each other as Seven teased him. Finally, though, it seemed they remembered Addison was still in the chat room with them.

Jumin Han: Addison, 707 is a dangerous man.

Jumin Han: Because he never listens.

Addison snorted again and quickly typed out a response.

Addison: He seems like he just likes joking around, though?

707: Yup! That’s right!

707: Wow! Ur like the only one who gets me in this group.

Jumin Han: The jokes of a dangerous man and the jokes of a not-so-dangerous man are different.

707: I’m not dangerous~!!

Jumin Han: Sure.

707: :(

707: Anyway! Thanks for getting me, Addison!

Addison: lol, no worries

707: I am also very devoted to my religion.

707: My heart is full of love and peace!

707: Why can’t anyone recognize the love inside me? :(

Addison: Aww

Jumin Han: If that’s love, then you’re a sadist.

Addison: asdfjk;l

707: :) what’s that?

Jumin Han: Don’t ask. You already know.

Jumin Han: You’re dangerous. You’ve been to Rika’s apartment, and you’ve kept it secret all this time.

Addison: well, you guys said it’s top secret, right? It’s not his fault

707: Yeah!!

707: See? Addison gets me!

Addison: Besides, I think he’s funny lol

707: Wow! She thinks I’m funny!

… Ah. Right. That. Addison set their phone down for a moment, crossing their arms as they felt their heart twinge uncomfortably.

They’d almost forgotten.

Addison took a few deep breaths to calm themself down, anxiety prickling under their skin. They felt ridiculous that a simple word could cause such a reaction in them, but… they supposed it was something they’d have to get used to. Either that or tell the RFA the truth, but that idea was somehow scarier than dealing with the misgendering.

No. They’d just have to deal with it.

Once they were calm, they picked up their phone again, idly scrolling down to see the latest messages.

707: Addison? U okay?

Addison: Yeah, I’m okay, I just got distracted ^^;

707: okie

Jumin: Anyway, I should be going to work now.

Jumin: Have a good day, Luciel, Addison.

Addison: Goodbye, Jumin

707: I’ll give u the proper cat mom send off

707: Goodbye for meow~!

[ Jumin Han has left the chatroom. ]

707: lol

707: No one knows how affectionate I can be lol

707: I hope u believe me, Addison

Addison smiled softly despite themself. Already, their previous anxiety was gone, replaced with something almost like fondness.

Addison: I’ll believe you haha

707: Yay!!!

707: Ur a nice person, Addison!

707: I have to peace out now tho

707: I have to go to work T_T

707: The company’s lucky to have me as their slave…

Addison: Good luck, Seven!!

707: Thank you!!

707: ^^

[ 707 has left the chatroom. ]

Chapter Text

With the conversation over, Addison quickly checked the time. By this point, it was about 10:30. Yes, perfect--they had time to swing back by their dorm and change into something else. Not that what they were wearing was necessarily bad, but they’d been wearing the same ratty t-shirt and jeans for two days now and wanted a change.

Once their phone was sufficiently charged, they stuffed it haphazardly into their bag with their charger and slung their bag over their shoulder. Taking a deep breath to steady themself, they finally stepped out of the apartment. As they walked outside, they glanced back at the apartment number, trying their best to commit it to memory.

They weren’t lying when they said the night before that they’d already forgotten the address, and since they weren’t able to see any of their previous messages with “unknown” and retrieve it, they’d have to find some other way to remind themself. At least they remembered the password. Thank fuck for the little things.

The lock clicked shut automatically as Addison closed the door behind them. They startled slightly at the sound in the silence of the hallway, then felt a rush of white-hot embarrassment at their own jumpiness. Thankfully, a quick look around revealed there was no one in the hallway to see them.

As they rode the elevator down to the ground level, idly playing on their phone, their mind began to wander as they thought a little more about their situation. Now that they were awake, it was really hitting them how ridiculous and bizarre this all was.

Was the RFA the “them” that “unknown” had been talking about? It made sense, but that just made things all the more confusing. If the RFA was so secretive that the only people who knew about its existence were the members of the organization itself, then how would some strange third party know about it? And more importantly, why would that stranger want Addison to know about the RFA?

There had to be something going on, and as the elevator dinged to let them know that it had reached its destination, Addison decided that they wanted to get to the bottom of it. They’d figure this out if it killed them.

Well. Okay, hopefully it wouldn’t go that far, but their point still stood.

Addison stepped out of the elevator to find that, surprisingly, there actually was another person there. At the desk was a bored-looking receptionist, a thin man with floppy black hair. He hardly even looked up as Addison walked past him, not registering or acknowledging their presence at all. Not even when Addison paused and lifted a hand in greeting.

Nope, he just kept typing away on his laptop.

Figuring he probably didn’t want to be bothered, Addison decided to take their leave rather than continue trying to engage him. It was nice to know there was at least one other person in the building, though, even if he wouldn’t talk to them. They wondered if he knew about the RFA, or possibly worked for them in some capacity. Maybe if he was still there when they came back they’d ask.

The walk back to their apartment with Mi-Chia was short, and when they arrived they found that she’d already left for class and they had the place to themself. Well, at least they had a little more time to figure out what they were going to say.

Addison tossed their bag on their bed and set about making themself look a little more presentable. They changed out of their ratty old t-shirt and jeans and into a cream-colored sweater with black leggings and put their long, brown hair up in a bun. Since they didn’t have any plans today besides meeting up with Mi-Chia, they decided to forego their binder for now--their sweater was baggy enough to hide their chest, anyway.

It was right when they finished changing that their phone began to ring again. Addison glanced at their bag in surprise before they fished out their phone, checking the caller ID with a confused frown on their face. There was no way Roxie would be calling again so soon, and Mi-Chia preferred to text, so who--

Oh! It was Jaehee, apparently. Seven must’ve added her number to their contacts, so it wouldn’t come up as an unknown number.

Figuring there must be some official RFA business to worry about, Addison quickly answered it.

“Hello?” they said as they put their charger and binder away in their proper places.

“Hello,” a soft, feminine voice on the other line said. “This is Jaehee Kang. I apologize for calling you so suddenly, but I wanted to talk to you properly instead of talking to you through text. I wish we could talk in person, but unfortunately we cannot yet, so this is the next best thing.”

“Well, it’s nice to talk to you properly, Jaehee,” Addison replied. They sat down on their bed, crossing their legs as they got comfortable. A quick glance at the clock hanging on the wall nearby told them it was just after 11:00 now, so they had plenty of time to talk to her. “What did you want to talk about?”

“I was hoping to answer any questions you may have regarding the RFA,” she said, “or in general. I’m happy to help if you need any assistance.”

Addison smiled softly. Jaehee seemed really nice, even if she seemed not to trust them at all (not that they could really blame her, considering the circumstances). It’d be nice to get to know her more, maybe even be friends.

“Thank you so much, Jaehee,” they said. “That’s really kind of you; I really appreciate it.”

“I’m simply doing my duty as a member of the RFA,” Jaehee said, sounding a little taken aback by their gratitude. “But… of course. I’m glad to be of help.” Addison could hear her shift slightly. “Is there anything you would like to know?”

A better question would be what Addison didn’t want to know. But they weren’t sure how to put their questions into words, nor if it would be a good idea to ask about them when they were still such a new member. If they asked too many questions and got booted from the organization, then they’d never learn what they wanted to know!

So, instead, they decided to say, “I want to know about you, Jaehee.”

Jaehee paused for a long moment before she spoke again. “I… About me? What do you mean?”

“Y’know, what kind of things do you like? What are your hobbies? It’d be cool if we had some of the same interests.”

“Why would you want to know about me?”

“Well, if we’re gonna be members of the RFA, I just thought it’d be nice to get to know each other a little.” Addison’s voice faltered as they spoke, wondering if this was really a good idea. What if Jaehee didn’t want to get to know them?

After another long moment, though, Jaehee said, “I… I suppose that makes sense.” She cleared her throat and shifted again. “Well, I like musicals, especially musicals starring Zen--he’s my favorite actor.” Though she was clearly trying to keep her voice carefully neutral, Addison could hear a hint of excitement in her voice. They grinned, happy that she was opening up.

“That’s really cool!” they said. “I like musicals, too! I don’t think I’ve seen any that Zen’s in, though.” Or any non-American ones, if they were honest, but Addison was always up for broadening their horizons.

“Well, when we meet in person, if you’d like, I could lend you some of my DVDs. I’m sure you’d enjoy them.”

“Thank you, Jaehee, that’s really nice of you.”

“Of course,” Jaehee replied. Addison could hear her typing something, and they wondered if she was at work right now. Hopefully she wouldn’t get in trouble for making a personal call, they thought with a slight grimace. “Addison, may I ask you a question?”

“Oh, uh, sure.” They shifted their position slightly, uncrossing their legs and sitting up straight.

“Weren’t you a bit alarmed to join the RFA so suddenly?” she asked them. “You can be honest with me, Addison--I know better than anyone else how you’d feel, as I only joined after Mr. Han forced me to.”

Jumin forced her to join the organization? Addison furrowed their brow. “Why would he do that?” they asked. “I mean, isn’t the RFA supposed to be secret?”

“Mr. Han decided that, as his assistant, I should be available to assist him with both company matters and matters regarding the RFA. For me, work regarding the RFA is nothing more than part of working for Mr. Han.”

Well, that made sense, Addison supposed, but that still sounded a bit… off to them. Jaehee didn’t seem too bothered by it, but she was probably just resigned to her situation. Though… it probably wasn’t any of Addison’s business anyway, they thought with a grimace. Not like there was much they could probably do to help her.

“I’m sorry,” they said. “That really sucks.”

“It’s… fine,” Jaehee replied, sounding a little taken aback by Addison’s concern for her. She cleared her throat and asked, “Anyway, weren’t you alarmed? I certainly was when I first joined the RFA.”

Oh, right, she’d asked them a question, hadn’t she? Feeling a rush of embarrassment at having forgotten, they stumbled over their words in their attempts to answer her quickly.

“Right, sorry! I, well, y’know, maybe a little, but it’s not too bad, really, I-I mean-” They took a deep breath to calm themself before speaking again. “I mean, ah, it was… pretty surprising, but it’s not too bad. I mean, you guys have been pretty welcoming so far.”

“I’m glad,” Jaehee replied. She started to say something else, when it seemed she was interrupted. Addison heard her speak to someone nearby on the other line, muffled and serious. After a moment, Jaehee said in a clipped, almost apologetic tone, “I apologize, Addison, but I have something I must attend to.”

“Oh! Uh, yeah, that’s okay. It was nice talking to you, Jaehee.”

“It was a pleasure to talk to you as well.” Addison thought they could almost hear a smile in Jaehee’s voice as she spoke. “If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to ask and I will help you as best as I can. I look forward to looking with you.”

“Yeah, you too!”

And with that, Jaehee hung up. Addison stared at their phone for a moment before they realized how much time had passed while they were talking to Jaehee. It was just about 11:30 at this point. Shit . They had to get to the coffee shop!

Addison stuffed their phone into their bag and slung it over their shoulder, practically tripping over themself in their rush to get out the door.

Thankfully, the coffee shop wasn’t too far away--they’d be able to make it if they got to the metro in time.

With that in mind, Addison squared their shoulders and ran down the streets, holding their bag close to their chest as they did. Somehow, against all odds, the streets weren’t too crowded today, so they didn’t run into anybody as they frantically sprinted to the metro.

Against all odds, they made it to the station in under ten minutes, and within a few more minutes they were sitting on the train, sweaty and panting. No one else in the train spared them even a glance, much to their relief, as they relaxed against the uncomfortable metro seat.

A beat passed and they pulled out their phone to shoot Mi-Chia a quick text letting her know they were on their way, when they saw they had more notifications from the RFA. Oh?

After they texted Mi-Chia, they swiped over to the RFA chat. Addison glanced around to make sure no one was close enough to look over their shoulder, then opened the chat to see what was going on.

[ Addison has entered the chatroom ]

707: oh!

707: it’s you again

Yoosung★: Hi Addison!!

Addison: Seven my guy I thought you had to work

707: i am working lol

Yoosung★: Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Yoosung★: What are you up to, Seven?

707: I’m researching.

Addison: What are you researching?

707: About you!

Addison: oh!

Hadn’t he already done a background check on them? Addison shifted a little in their seat, not sure how to feel about this.

Yoosung★: Are you doing a background chekck??

707: No I’m not doing a background chekck

Yoosung★: :(

Yoosung★: It was a typoooo

707: lol type slower

Yoosung★: My phone touch screen is crap!! :(

Addison: I thought you already did a background check?

707: I’m just double checking some things, don’t worry lol

Yoosung★: What kind of things???

Addison: Yeah, what are you looking into?

707: :)

707: oh you know

Addison: omg

Yoosung★: I

707: Anyway!

707: I’m not actually digging up your personal life, Addison, so don’t worry. I’m actually looking for the person who sent you to Rika’s apartment.

Addison: Ohhhhhhh okay

Yoosung★: Oh…!

Yoosung★: If you find out, will you tell everyone?

707: It depends on what V says, as always~

Addison: Can you tell me?

Addison: I mean, I’m the one they led to the apartment, right?

707: Mmmmmm… that’s a fair point

707: I’ll think about it ^^

Yoosung★: I doubt it

Yoosung★: Seven only does what V tells him to do

Yoosung★: That’s how it’s been until now.

707: What can I do, I’m V’s slave u_u

Addison: Aw jeez

707: lol

Yoosung★: I really don’t like this

Yoosung★: He always makes it clear he has all the information but he never gives any out.

707: I can’t help it tho :(

707: It’s called ‘classified’ for a reason, Yoosung

Yoosung★: Still… even when it came to Rika’s death. V didn’t tell us anything.

Yoosung★: I’m her family! I deserve to know what happened!

Oh. Things were getting serious now. Addison swallowed uncomfortably and wondered if it was too late to back out of the chatroom. Wait… that’d probably be rude, wouldn’t it? Yeah.

They glanced up to see that they had a couple stops left before their destination. Alright… they had time to see this through.

Addison: I mean… I understand that there’s classified information and stuff, but doesn’t Yoosung deserve to know what happened?

Yoosung★: Yeah!!

Yoosung★: I just

Yoosung★: I still can’t believe she’s gone…

Yoosung★: …

707: I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to talk about this anymore.

Addison: I’m sorry

707: Don’t be, it’s okay ^^

707: You didn’t do anything wrong, just

707: I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to talk about that right now, maybe some other time

Addison: Ok, I understand ;;

707: Really, you didn’t do anything wrong lol

707: Ah, wait, I have to leave now

707: I have work to do :(

Yoosung★: Ah, I have to go to class too

Yoosung★: Do you have class today, Addison?

Addison: Nah, today’s a free day for me

Addison: I’m going to meet up with my roommate tho and explain where I was last night

Yoosung★: Oh boy

707: good luck lol

Addison: See ya guys

707: ^^

707: Laterz~

Yoosung★: Yup~

[ 707 has left the chatroom ]

[ Yoosung★ has left the chatroom ]

[ Addison has left the chatroom ]

Addison was starting to get the feeling that they knew what had happened to Rika. It was an achingly familiar feeling, one they’d felt only a short year before coming to Korea. If their suspicions were correct, they could understand why Seven didn’t want to talk about it.

After all, they still hadn’t talked to anyone, not even Roxie, about their own struggles, instead keeping them deep inside their heart to fester and rot. It was better that way--they didn’t need to burden anyone else with their shit when they could deal with it themself. No matter how much it burned and ate them up on the inside to stay quiet.

They stuffed their phone back into their bag just as the metro came to a stop at their destination. Taking a deep breath to calm themself and steel their nerves for their conversation with Mi-Chia, they stepped out and began the short walk to the coffee shop.

When they arrived, they found Mi-Chia was already there, seated at a table in the corner typing away on her laptop. She’d already ordered coffees and food for them both, and every few moments she idly took a sip from her own cup.

Addison quickly made their way over and draped their bag over their chair, taking a seat across from her.

“Hey,” they said. “Sorry I’m a little late--I had a phone call.” They decided to just leave it at that, figuring she’d assume it was either Roxie or one of the boys they used to tutor and still kept in contact with.

“It’s alright,” she said with a soft smile. “I get it.” Mi-Chia closed her laptop and gestured to the table. “I got you your coffee--more sugar than coffee and enough cream that it’s almost milk, just how you like it.”

Addison snorted and rolled their eyes, taking a sip from the warm cup with a pleasant sigh.

“I also got you some breakfast,” Mi-Chia continued, “since, knowing you, I figured you hadn’t eaten yet.” She shot them a look and they snorted again, setting their coffee down. Mi-Chia had ordered them a simple breakfast sandwich, nothing too exciting but still enough to make their mouth water.

“Thank you so much,” they said, picking up the sandwich and taking a small bite.

“You’re welcome,” Mi-Chia said, taking another sip of her own coffee. A moment passed as Addison chewed their food, then she got right to the point.

“So,” she began, “the hell happened last night?” Addison swallowed and put their sandwich down, taking a deep breath to steel their nerves. Before they could speak, Mi-Chia added, “I’m not mad at you or anything, don’t worry about that, I’m just worried and want to make sure you’re okay.” She smirked, though Addison could see the concern in her eyes. “I’m your roommate and friend--it’s my job to worry about you, kid.”

“I’m not a kid,” Addison said petulantly, squinting at her. “I’m older than you!”

Mi-Chia just laughed and rolled her eyes. She put her laptop away in her bag and sat up, crossing her legs as she looked curiously at Addison. “But, for real, what happened last night with that friend of yours? Everything okay?”

“Yeah, it’s fine!” Addison said a bit too quickly. “It’s like I said, a friend of mine just asked me to come help him with some homework.”

“At midnight?”

“Yesssssssss.” Addison could tell that she didn’t believe them as she stared them down, her dark eyes full of suspicion and concern. Hoping to fill the silence, they added, “Um, I’m gonna be tutoring him for a little while on a regular basis, so I might be out a little more.”

Mi-Chia just continued to stare. After a moment, though, something seemed to occur to her and she snorted.

“Ahhhh, okay,” she said, “I think I see what’s going on here.” She smirked at them. “I’m proud of you, Addison, going out and making ‘friends’ so fast.”

Addison flushed in embarrassment as they caught her meaning. “I-It’s not that!” they said. “I really am just tutoring him! He has trouble with math!”

“Sure it’s not.” Mi-Chia winked playfully. “Just make sure you’re being safe, alright? I don’t want you to get hurt or something. Text me when you go out so I know you’re okay or something.”

“I will,” Addison promised, “but it really isn’t what you think it is. He’s just my friend.”

“Of course.” Mi-Chia clearly still didn’t believe them, but it seemed there was nothing to be done about that.

Resigned to their fate, Addison took another bite of their sandwich, their face still warm with an embarrassed blush. Mi-Chia snorted and chuckled at the look on her face, taking another sip of her coffee.

“Well,” she said, “with that, I gotta get to class.” She got to her feet, slinging her bag over her shoulder and shooting Addison one last smirk. “I’ll see ya’ later--have fun with that ‘friend’ of yours.” Mi-Chia patted their shoulder as she left.

Addison waved after her before they sighed, sagging in their seat in relief. Thank fuck. She might’ve gotten the wrong impression, but she wasn’t suspicious of them anymore and they didn’t accidentally reveal any RFA secrets! A little embarrassment was worth that.

Taking another sip of their coffee, they pulled out their phone to update the RFA and let them know that everything went well.

[ Addison has entered the chatroom ]

ZEN: Oh! Hello, Addison~

Addison: Hey Zen!

ZEN: What are you up to?

ZEN: I’m taking a break from rehearsals

ZEN: God I wanna go home and shower ;; we’re rehearsing in the basement today and it’s so humid I feel like I’m gonna die

Addison: Oh, jeez, I’m sorry about that;;

Addison: I just met up with my roommate for lunch! Don’t worry, I didn’t reveal any RFA secrets or anything

ZEN: Oh, I wasn’t worried about that~

ZEN: I’m glad it went well though!

Addison: thanks!!

ZEN: Ugh, I’m starting to get a headache from this humidity :(

Addison: Are you okay? ;;

ZEN: I’ll probably feel better after taking a shower

ZEN: I wish we could rehearse somewhere with good ventilation, but I guess that’s too good to be true

ZEN: Thank you for worrying, though

ZEN: I wish we could practice in proper rehearsal rooms instead of a basement ;;

Addison: Why can’t you?

Addison: I mean, I don’t know much about acting, but why do you have to practice in a basement?

ZEN: It’s because we’re not working on a project right now

ZEN: The director keeps saying he’ll get a new project for us soon, but…

ZEN: to be honest, without the parties, we haven’t had a lot of sponsors and projects

Oh, right. The party. Addison had almost forgotten about that. They took another long sip of their coffee and glanced around at the other patrons in the coffee shop, suddenly wary of someone looking over their shoulder. Hopefully it was okay to talk about RFA business in public.

ZEN: There were a lot of sponsors from the art industry at our parties

ZEN: It’s been a year and a half since our last party, so we haven’t had any new sponsors since then

ZEN: And the ones we’ve had have been leaving one by one ;;

Addison: Jeez

Addison: I’m really sorry about that, Zen

ZEN: Thank you for your concern ^^

ZEN: I hope it’ll get better now that we’re holding the party again

ZEN: Thank you for that, by the way

ZEN: If it weren’t for you, we’d never be able to hold the party again without Rika; it was all thanks to her and V that we were able to hold them in the first place.

Addison: V? I thought the parties were all just Rika’s doing

ZEN: Oh, I forgot you don’t know about V

ZEN: Yes, the parties were mainly Rika, but V helped a lot as well

ZEN: V is a famous photographer. Not really to the public, but he’s famous in the industry.

ZEN: He doesn’t like being in the press, but he’s the reason we got so many people from the industry to come to our parties.

Addison: Oh, that’s really cool!

ZEN: Yeah!

ZEN: I don’t think we should talk about it more though, V doesn’t like people talking about him.

Addison: Oh?

ZEN: He’s a secretive person, but I respect him a lot.

ZEN: I’m gonna go get something to eat and get back to practice.

ZEN: Did you eat, Addison?

Addison: I’m eating right now!

Addison took another bite out of their sandwich.

ZEN: Good ^^

ZEN: It’s important to eat well.

ZEN: Let’s talk again, Addison~

Addison: Yeah, let’s ^v^

ZEN: I’ll see you later ^^

[ ZEN has left the chatroom ]

[ Addison has left the chatroom ]

Chapter Text

After they finished their breakfast sandwich and coffee, Addison decided to go back to the strange apartment and take another look around. Though they knew they weren’t supposed to touch anything, they wanted to try and learn more about the RFA and it seemed this would be a good way to do it. They’d just have to be careful not to mess around too much or accidentally set off any alarms.

With that in mind, they shot a quick text to Mi-Chia and set off back towards the metro station, this time at a much more measured pace. At this point, according to their phone, it was just after 12:45--they had plenty of time to dick around in the apartment before they had to work on their homework for tomorrow. Nice.

While waiting for the train, they idly checked their phone to find that, once again, they had some notifications from the RFA. Huh.

Talkative bunch, aren’t they?   they thought as they tapped on the chatroom to see what was going on.

707: Hellooooooooo

707: Anybody there?

707: :?

Oh! It was him again. Addison smiled to themself as they stepped onto the train, taking a seat by the door. They typed out a response quickly, leaning back in their seat and making themself comfortable.

[ Addison has entered the chatroom ]

Addison: helloooooo

707: Hey babe~

Addison was taken a bit aback and their cheeks grew warm at the term of endearment. He… He didn’t mean it, right? He was just teasing. Yeah, that was probably it.

They took a breath before responding, deciding to tease him back. That was probably what he was expecting, right?

Addison: I’m here babe~

707: omg!!!

707: That was kinda gross just now lol

707: Ur hard to beat Addison

Oh, it was teasing. Addison let out a little breath they didn’t know they were holding and frowned at the strange sense of almost disappointment they felt in the pit of their belly. No, it couldn’t be that. Addison had only just met the guy, after all.

And, besides, they weren’t really one for even the most casual flirting anymore, not after--

Nope, not thinking about him right now. Addison shook their head and quickly typed out another message to give themself something else to think about.

Addison: lmao I know

707: I bow before the master~~

Addison: Thank you UuU

Addison: But I thought you had work to do?

707: Oh yeah

707: To be honest

707: I came to procrastinate because I couldn’t focus on work

707: Hhhhhhh why can’t I focus???

Addison: Um

Addison: Maybe it’s because I joined the organization?

707: Hmmmmmmmm

707: Maybe

707: To be honest tho, what I was really thinking was…

707: What if Rika’s still alive?

707: I can’t get the thought out of my head…

Addison: Maybe ‘Unknown’ has something to do with her?

707: Yeah, he has to have something to do with her, but I can’t figure out how…

707: I really want to find this person, whoever he is.

707: God

707: Thinking about this is making me sad.

Seven sent a picture of a woman in a white dress wearing a sunset, with long blonde hair tumbling over her shoulders. She had a soft expression on her face and was winking playfully at the camera, her one visible eye twinkling in the bright sunlight. Addison smiled at the picture despite themself.

The woman in this picture looked a little different from the one Yoosung had shared, but it must have been Rika.

Addison: She’s beautiful.

707: This is…

707: a photo of ME lololololololol

Oh! Addison’s face flushed in embarrassment at their mistake and they giggled despite themself. A few people in the train shot them confused glances at the noise, but no one said anything to them thankfully. They smiled apologetically and glanced back down at their phone, tilting it close to them so no one else could see.

Addison: omg

Addison: Well then YOU look beautiful!

707: >u<

707: lolol thank you

707: I don’t like talking about depressing and serious things

707: I hope there’s only happiness

707: r u smiling at the photo? I hope u r ^^

Addison: I am :)

707: lol

707: Anyway

707: I’m still looking into the person who took you to Rika’s apartment like V told me to

707: But I’m worried you might be in danger

Danger? Addison frowned. Could they really be in danger? Sure, there was definitely something going on with the RFA, and that ‘Unknown’ person was a fucking creep, but could they really be dangerous? They shifted a little in their seat, suddenly uncomfortable.

Addison glanced up to see that they had only one stop left before their destination. They had enough time to talk to Seven a little more, they decided. At least enough to figure out what he meant by  danger.

Addison: Danger? ;;

707: Yeah ;;

707: If this ‘Unknown’ guy isn’t related to Rika, then that means a third party knows about you and the RFA

707: Addison, if anything happens, please let us know immediately, okay?

Addison swallowed uneasily and nodded. Then they realized Seven wasn’t there to see them nod and quickly typed up a response.

Addison: Okay, I will

707: Good ^^

707: I may not be able to be the knight in shining armor to protect you, but I can let the real knights know where the villain is!

707: Ah, I have to go now, sorry; gotta try and get some work done now u_u

Right on cue, the bell dinged to signify that Addison had reached their stop. They got to their feet.

Addison: It’s okay! I actually have to go too lol

707: lolol

Addison: Thank you for telling me these things, Seven, I really appreciate it.

707: I should be the one thanking u for listening :)

707: Well, peace out!

[ 707 has left the chatroom ]

[ Addison has left the chatroom ]

The walk back to the apartment was a short one. Though Addison didn’t remember the exact address, they remembered the route well enough, and they were able to find the building easily that way. When they stepped inside, they found it once again empty, the receptionist from earlier now missing.

Frowning, Addison checked the time again on their phone. It was only 1:30. Surely the receptionist would still be working at this time, right? Or maybe he was just on break? But if that were the case, why wasn’t anyone else at the front?

Addison shook their head. They were probably overthinking things--there was probably a perfectly reasonable explanation for the receptionist’s absence.

They walked over to the elevator and stepped inside, checking their phone to find a text from Mi-Chia as they did.

Mi-Chia: Have fun with your friend ;) Text me when you get back to the room!

Addison: Ok he really is just a friend like I said, but will do

When they got back to the apartment, they found it was just as they left it, dust and all. Addison set their bag down beside the door and looked around with a renewed sense of curiosity. Last night, they’d been too tired to take a proper look around after their initial search, but now they were awake and ready to search.

Careful to avoid disturbing too much in the dust-covered room, they sifted through the piles of binders and papers scattered around the desks and shelves. Now that they knew the RFA was a charity organization, what they found made a little more sense: the names in the binders must be donors, and the dollar amounts must be how much each person donated.

However, one thing caught their eye. In one binder that they determined to be some sort of personal agenda, they found something strange. Amid what they assumed to be meetings with donors and other errands, they saw that there was an appointment titled “ME” at least three times a week, sometimes more than that.

Maybe Rika just needed a lot of ‘me time’? Addison wondered idly as they flipped through the agenda. Again and again, going back several months, Rika had appointments labeled “ME.” It seemed a bit excessive for personal time, but Addison supposed they shouldn’t be one to judge. It had to be stressful organizing all these parties for the RFA, after all.

Addison wondered if they should ask the RFA about it, but… no, they didn’t want to explain that they’d been snooping around. Not until they had a better idea of what was going on. Addison closed the agenda and set it aside, questions swirling around their mind in a whirlpool.

Satisfied for now, they set their attention to the next order of business: cleaning up the apartment a bit. While they weren’t sure how often they were supposed to be there, if they were going to be spending any time there, then they’d hoped that it’d be a little less dusty.

They managed to find a ratty old duster stashed away in the corner and set to work, humming to themself as they dusted whatever they could reach. It wasn’t as easy as they thought it’d be, with all the little nooks and crannies and high shelves, but they enjoyed the busywork.

As they worked, they checked their phone now and then to see if there was any activity from the RFA. Just as they thought, there was plenty of it. It seemed the RFA really were a talkative bunch of people, not that Addison minded too much. They were nice to talk to.

Conversation with the RFA flowed easily, and as they talked, Addison learned more about the RFA and the parties they held, as well as what exactly they would be expecting of Addison.

Yoosung★: Rika invited people from all kinds of organizations, and V sold his photographs and donated all the profits.

Yoosung★: Oh, I'm sorry! I hope I'm not pressuring you too much!

Addison: It's alright! I'll try my best ^^

Addison: I just hope I can live up to your expectations

Yoosung★: I'm sure you can, don't worry!!

They also got to see more of the RFA’s interactions with each other and learn more about their relationships.

Jumin Han: Oh, I have to visit your apartment tomorrow.

Jaehee Kang: Oh?

Jumin Han: I have some business to take care of.

Jaehee Kang: When do you plan to come?

Jumin Han: After midnight?

Addison: That

Addison: That can't be within business hours

Jaehee Kang: I agree -_-

Plus, it really was just nice to talk to them. They were really nice and encouraging, for the most part, and they helped Addison feel better about their new position as the party coordinator.

ZEN: How do you really feel about getting wrapped up in all of this?

ZEN: If I were you, I would've said no lol

Addison: Honestly, I'm nervous as hell and a little lost

Addison: But I'm gonna try my best

Addison: And I'm kinda curious about what'll happen

ZEN: I like your honesty!

ZEN: I'm sure everything's gonna be okay

… At least, for the most part.

Addison: It's not bad that I'm here with you guys, is it?

Jumin Han: Time will tell the net profit.

ZEN: That's harsh! Addison's not your employee!

Jumin Han: That's not what I meant.

Jumin Han: I simply mean, if Addison can't handle Rika's work, then she's good for nothing, just like you.

ZEN: You dick!

Addison: Oh

Addison: I guess I'll try my best

Jumin Han: That's a good attitude to have.

ZEN: I'll help! Don't let him get to you, Addison, okay?

Jumin Han: Everyone has to help.

By this point, Addison was done cleaning and gathering up their things to head back to their apartment with Mi-Chia. Even though Rika’s old apartment was clean now (or at least, as clean as Addison could get it), they weren’t keen to spend another night in the unfamiliar space if they could help it.

Besides, they had class tomorrow and homework to do. No time to worry about RFA business.

If Addison can’t handle Rika’s work, then she’s good for nothing.

No time at all.

Mi-Chia was still gone when they got back to the apartment, and it took Addison a moment to remember that she had evening classes on Wednesdays. She wouldn’t be back for another few hours at this point, giving them plenty of time to finish their work before she got back.

As they worked on their homework, they allowed their mind to wander and further consider this strange situation they’d found themself in with the RFA. In the past 24 hours, not only had they joined a secret charity organization that they’d never heard of, but they’d done so due to a complete stranger leading them to it.

And the goddamn RFA still thought they were a woman, because they were too much of a coward to correct them.

A wave of self-loathing washed over Addison and they set down their sketchbook and the practice anatomy drawings they’d been working on, not in the mood to work on them anymore. They had until next week to finish them anyhow.

Addison crossed their arms and leaned back in their bed, wondering just what the hell they should do. If they were going to be a part of this organization going forward, then they didn’t want to be misgendered all the time, but at the same time, they didn’t want to deal with all the questions and the judgment if they came out.

But… maybe… maybe it’d be worth it?

Addison furrowed their brow and pulled out their phone, glancing at it to check the time.

10:35 PM.

It’d been a few hours since anyone in the RFA said anything, and they hadn’t gotten any other phone calls or text messages in the meantime. Without thinking, they opened up the chatroom and stared at it for a moment. It seemed that things had died down for now, leaving Addison alone in the chatroom.

They thought more about the day, and more specifically how the RFA had been treating them. Everyone had been so nice and welcoming, even if they didn’t completely trust Addison yet, so surely they wouldn’t reject them based on something so trivial, right? Even if they didn’t understand.

And in the worst-case scenario that they did reject Addison based on their gender, then they supposed it didn’t really matter. They weren’t in that deep anyhow, right?

With that in mind, Addison started typing a long, rambly series of messages to try and explain themself.

Addison: Hey, everyone

Addison: I know it’s late but I have something important to say

Addison: Like… really important.

Addison: I’m not actually a girl

Addison: But I’m not a boy either!

Addison: I’m… neither, I guess? Idk, it’s kinda hard to explain, but please please don’t call me a girl

Addison: If you want you can call me he, that’s fine, just please don’t call me she because it makes me really upset and uncomfortable

Addison: I mean, he kinda makes me uncomfortable too, but it’s not as bad as she

Addison: Really I’d like it if you guys used they/them for me, but I understand not everyone’s comfortable with that, it’s okay

Addison: I’m sorry for not telling you sooner, and I’m not mad at any of you I promise, I just

Addison: Fuck

Addison: I’m sorry

Addison would’ve kept rambling on and on if it wasn’t for the fact that, right on cue, someone else entered the chatroom and saw their messages. And it wasn’t just anyone--

[ 707 has entered the chatroom ]

Fuck.

Before Seven could say anything, Addison backed out of the chatroom and set their phone face down, unwilling to read anything he might have to say.

After a few minutes, their phone began vibrating to let them know that someone was calling them. Tentatively, they picked it up to see who it was, and they felt their heart drop into their stomach to see the name 707 on the caller ID. Fuck, fuck, fuck.

Addison dropped their phone back onto the bed and backed away from it as though it would hurt them, listening to it ring with wide eyes and biting their lip. After a couple seconds, the ringing stopped, and their shoulders sagged with relief. He must’ve given up.

Except he didn’t, because just as Addison relaxed and let their guard down, the phone started ringing again insistently. Evidently, Seven hadn’t given up, and he was determined to talk to them.

They decided to just bite the bullet and talk to him, get their expulsion from the organization over with, and picked up the phone. Addison took a deep breath before they answered, their hand shaking as they held the phone up to their ear.

“Hello?” they said, biting their lip until it was nearly bleeding.

“I am so sorry!”  Seven said in lieu of a greeting, sounding genuinely upset. “Oh, my God, I’m so sorry, Addison! I had no idea, but I guess that’s on me for jumping to conclusions instead of just asking you.”

Addison was taken aback and took a moment to respond.

“You’re… not mad?” they asked uneasily. “I’m not being expelled from the organization or anything?”

“What?”  Seven sounded surprised now. “No, of course not! It’s not your fault I was rude and didn’t just ask you about your gender instead of jumping to conclusions. God, I’m really so sorry, Addison; you didn’t deserve that.”

“I-It’s okay!” Addison said quickly. “I’m not mad, like I said, a-and I’m kinda used to that sort of thing anyway.”

“That doesn’t make it right.”  They heard typing on the other line. “Don’t worry, I’ve already changed your information in our records, so you’re listed as non-binary now.”

Addison felt tears of happiness beading in the corners of their eyes and they smiled, covering their mouth with their free hand. “That’s great, thank you,” they said quietly. “I really appreciate that, Seven.”

“Of course!”  he said. “It’s the least I could do. If we ever get your gender or anything else wrong again, don’t hesitate to correct us, okay? A little embarrassment on our end isn’t worth discomfort and distress on yours.”

“Thank you, Seven,” Addison said, wiping at their eyes with their free hand. “God, I can’t thank you enough, really.”

“It’s no problem, and I mean it,”  Seven told them seriously. “Really, I’m sorry again, and I promise it won’t happen again. And I’m sorry that we made you feel like you couldn’t tell us something this important.”   He sounded… genuinely sad that they’d been so upset. It was weird--Addison wasn’t used to this kind of concern from people, especially not people that weren’t Roxie.

“It’s okay, Seven.”

“It isn’t, but thank you. You’re really nice, Addison.”  They could practically hear his smile through the phone. A beat passed and he added, "You know, you’re not the only one in the organization who’s non-binary.”

“Wait, really?”

“I am, too!”  he announced cheerfully. “I mean, more specifically I’m genderfluid, in case you haven’t guessed already, but still.” A pause. “Whiiiich just makes me more of an asshole for assuming that you’re a girl when you’re clearly not.”  They both laughed at that, lighthearted and happy.

“Do you want me to use any other pronouns for you?” Addison asked after they’d calmed down a bit.

“Nah, he is fine for me,”  Seven said, “or she sometimes, but you don’t gotta worry about me. Thank you for asking, though!”

“Of course,” Addison said with a wide smile. “It’s the least I can do.”

They both chuckled again, and then Seven said, “By the way, if anyone, in the RFA or otherwise, gives you trouble, just let me know, okay? I’ll take care of them.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Oh, you know.”

“I really don’t.” Another laugh. “But, well, thank you for the offer, Seven, I really appreciate it. You’re really nice.”

There was a beat of silence on the other end before Seven said, “You can call me Luciel if you want. I mean, you’re a member of the RFA n’ all.”

“Are you sure? I thought your name was too holy to be spoken.” Their voice was teasing, and they flushed and smiled a little when they heard him laugh on the other end.

“I’ll make an exception for you,”  Seven--no, Luciel--teased right back. “I think you’ve earned it after this little misunderstanding.”

“Thank you, Luciel.”

“You’re welcome.”  Addison heard a commotion on the other end and Luciel cursed under his breath. “Shit, Addison, I have to go. I’ll talk to you tomorrow, alright? Get some sleep.”

“I will,” Addison promised. “Goodnight, Luciel.”

“Goodnight!”  And with that, he hung up.

Addison was smiling as they set their phone back down, their heart suddenly light in their chest.

They still had to talk to the rest of the RFA, but that went better than they could’ve ever imagined. Things were good.

Chapter Text

Addison decided to go to bed a little early that night--or, well, early for them at least--shortly after their talk with Luciel. A part of them wanted to stay up and talk to the rest of the RFA immediately (assuming they were still awake), but they had class early the next morning and didn’t want to be exhausted during the lecture.

Besides, they were way too nervous about what the rest of the RFA would say to face them immediately.

Luciel may have been incredibly kind and understanding, but that didn’t mean the rest of the RFA would be. While Addison was pretty confident that having Luciel on their side meant no one would be outright rude to them, they knew that didn’t mean they would understand or take them seriously.

As they lay there in bed, staring up at the ceiling of their dorm, they tried their best to calm their racing mind down at least enough for them to fall asleep. And they almost succeeded, when they heard a soft ping from their phone. Addison wrinkled their nose and rolled over to face their nightstand, picking their phone up to take a look at it.

707: Hey, I know ur probably nervous about talking to the rest of the RFA about your gender

707: but don’t worry about it, ok?

707: I know it’ll go well ^^

707: And I’ll try and be there to help!

707: Ok goodnight, get some sleep

Addison made a soft sound and smiled softly, and strangely enough, Luciel’s reassurance was enough to help calm them down. They typed out a quick response before they set their phone back down on their nightstand.

Addison: Thanks, Luciel, I really appreciate it :)

The next morning, when Addison awoke, they saw that Mi-Chia was already up, munching on a bagel and reading from a textbook as she sat cross-legged on her bed. Addison sat up slowly and stretched, a quiet little groan rumbling its way out of their throat. They glanced over at their phone to check the time.

7:00 AM.

Nice, they had a couple of hours before their first class.

“Good mornin’!” Mi-Chia said, not looking up from her textbook. Addison smirked.

“Forgot to do the reading?” Addison asked.

“Just refreshing my memory,” she replied unconvincingly as she turned the page. Addison laughed, deciding to drop the subject there.

They unlocked their phone to check if they got any texts, and found they had several notifications from the RFA. The memories of the night before came flooding back to them and they remembered then that, right, fuck, they had to talk to the RFA still. Swallowing a bit nervously, they opened up the chatroom.

It seemed like everyone was there this morning.

[ Addison has entered the chatroom ]

Yoosung★: Oh! It’s Addison!

Jumin Han: Good morning.

ZEN: Hey! ^^

707: Hellooooooo

Jaehee Kang: Good morning, Addison

Addison: Hey y’all

ZEN: So… I think we all owe you an apology

Jumin Han: Yes, I believe we do.

Yoosung★: I’m sorry Addison!!

Jumin Han: I apologize.

ZEN: Me too!

Jaehee Kang: I apologize as well.

Addison: It’s okay, really!!

ZEN: God, you’re so nice ;;

Jumin Han: Still, we shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions like that.

Jaehee Kang: Yes

Jaehee Kang: Addison, in the future, please do not hesitate to correct us if we make mistakes like this.

707: Yeah!!

Addison: Ahhhh but I know you guys didn’t mean anything by it

ZEN: Still!!!

Yoosung★: You’re a member of the RFA!

Yoosung★: So that means you deserve respect and stuff!

Yoosung★: And using your right pronouns is part of that!

707: Exactly!

Addison: Oh jeez

Addison: Thank you guys, really

Addison couldn’t stop smiling as they read the messages, their nerves from before completely gone in the face of the RFA’s unconditional acceptance and understanding. This was better than they could’ve ever imagined!

Mi-Chia glanced up from her textbook and over at them, furrowing her brow at the expression on their face. She smiled slowly.

“Who ya’ talking to?” she asked teasingly. “Is it that mystery man you were telling me about yesterday?”

“None of your business,” Addison replied lightly.

“Tell him that I’ll beat him up if he even thinks of hurting you.”

“It’s still none of your business, but okay.”

Mi-Chia snorted and went back to her reading.

Jumin Han: Of course. It is only common courtesy.

Yoosung★: But Seven, you haven’t apologized yet :/

ZEN: Oh yeah

707: I already did!!! I called them last night

Addison: Yeah! He was really sweet

ZEN: Seven? Sweet?

Jumin Han: I shudder at the thought.

ZEN: Still, it’s good that he apologized

Addison: Yeah

Addison: Thank you guys, really, all of you. I really appreciate it <3

ZEN: Aww

Jumin Han: Once again, please do not hesitate to correct us in the future if we make a mistake like this again.

Addison: Okie

Jumin Han: Anyway, I must leave now. I have work.

Jumin Han: Assistant Kang?

Jaehee Kang: Yes, sir.

Jumin Han: Have a good day, Addison.

Jaehee Kang: Yes

Addison: Good luck, you two ^^

[ Jumin Han has left the chatroom ]

[ Jaehee Kang has left the chatroom ]

Addison: I should probably get going too, I gotta get ready for class x_x

ZEN: Good luck, Addison~

Yoosung★: Heeey

Yoosung★: You don’t wish ME luck when I go to class :(

ZEN: You barely even go to class; all you do is play LOLOL

Yoosung★: Well I’m going today!!

Addison: Good luck, Yoosung!!

Yoosung★: Thank you Addison :D

Addison: Bye, everyone!

ZEN: Talk to you later~

Yoosung★: Bye!!

707: See ya!!

[ Addison has left the chatroom ]

Addison was about to set their phone down and start getting ready for class when their phone pinged with another text. They checked it to find it was a text from their sister--or, rather, two texts from their sister, as she sent another one right as they tapped on the notification.

Roxie: Hey Addison! Sorry I can’t call you rn, I have a stupid student council meeting I gotta go to x_x

Roxie: I love you!!!!! Have a good day <3 The kids say hi!

With the second message, Roxie sent a selfie of herself with her three children all huddled around her, four freckled faces smiling brightly at the camera. Addison smiled as they looked at the picture, though they felt a sharp pang in their heart. God, they missed them.

Looking at Roxie and Addison, most people wouldn’t be able to guess the two were siblings--which was fair enough, Addison supposed, as they were both adopted. Whereas Roxie was tall and pale, covered in freckles and with wavy red hair cascading down her shoulders, Addison was short, with dark skin and darker hair that hung loosely around their face. There wasn’t a lot they had in common, but Addison supposed that was part of the reason they were so close. Opposites attract and all.

Addison set their phone down and went to go get ready for their day.

An hour and a half or so later, Addison was on the train to their college campus, idly scrolling through their phone as they waited for their stop.

It wasn’t long before they got another notification from the RFA. Addison grinned and quickly navigated over to the chatroom. Now that the RFA knew and was so accepting of their gender, they found themself even more excited to keep talking to them.

Much to their delight, it was Luciel in the chat again.

707: So damn tired x_x

707: Anyone here?

707: Respond!!

707: Mayday mayday!!

[ Addison has entered the chatroom ]

Addison: hello i’m here!!!!! asjfdkl;

707: Oh! A survivor!!

Addison: What’s up meow

707: Oohohooo

707: I don’t usually get THIS kind of response

Addison: I live to please~

707: :3c

707: Anyway! I just wanted some attention lol

707: How are you doing today?

707: You doing alright after all that?

Addison bit their lip to hold back a wide smile.

Addison: Yeah, I’m okay, thanks <:)

707: :D

707: Good!!

707: I have some good news, too!

707: I did some more checking to see if u have anything to do with the hacker, but it seems ur all clean!

Addison: oh yay :D

707: lol

707: Still trying to figure out who the hacker is

707: Not much luck so far u_u

707: But at least you’re all safe :D I’ll go ahead and tell V!

Addison: Thank you, Seven!

707: Ooooooh a compliment~

707: You know, I think you might be one of the nicest people in the RFA

Addison: You’re all so nice tho?

707: Aw

707: I mean, yeah, but

707: Zen and Jaehee for example, they’re cat haters!! T_T

707: You like cats, right?

Addison: Yeah!!!

Addison: I think they’re cute!

707: Hell yeah!

707: I really like Jumin’s cat Elizabeth, but he won’t let me play with her :(

Addison: Awww

Addison: Can’t you get a cat of your own?

707: I’d love to!

707: But I can’t u_u

707: My made Mary Vanderwood said if I get a cat they’ll demand twice their current pay

707: I’d go broke!!!!

Addison: Damn you have a maid? That’s pretty wild

707: Yeah lol

707: They’re from the UK

707: luv their accent

707: They’re super efficient, too

707: They show up, clean the whole house, and disappear in the blink of an eye!!!

Addison: That’s cool holy fuck

Addison: I’m impressed

707: Yeah lol

707: It’s really cool lol

707: Unfortunately tho I have to go x_x I got work to do

Addison: Awwww man!

Right then, the train came to a stop and the bell dinged, letting Addison know that they’d reached their stop.

Addison: Well, good timing, cuz I gotta go too :(

707: We can talk later!!

Addison: Yeah, ok!!! Bye, Luciel!

707: Bye, Addison :)

[ 707 has left the chatroom ]

[ Addison has left the chatroom ]

When Addison got to class about a half-hour later, most of their classmates were already there. Thankfully, though, their professor wasn’t there yet. They were right on time.

They took their seat towards the middle of the class and pulled their notebook out of their bag, flipping to the next clean page. As they waited for their professor to arrive and the lecture to begin, they idly glanced around the classroom at their classmates. Most of the other students were familiar, or at least familiar enough, but one caught their attention.

Towards the back of the lecture hall was a head of blond hair, held in place by a pair of brown clips. Whoever he was, he was tapping away at something on his phone rather than readying his notes for the lecture, a look of concentration on his face. It only took a moment for Addison to realize who they were looking at.

Was that… Yoosung? Did they really share a class with him?

Addison grinned. God, what were the odds of that?

Before they could do anything with this newfound information, though, the professor walked in.

Dr. Lee was a stern-looking woman with short black hair that barely came down to her earlobes, pulled back from her face with black hair clips. The comically large glasses she had perched on the bridge of her nose did little to soften her expression.

“Good morning, class,” she began dryly, setting down the books she was carrying and turning to the large whiteboard at the front of the room. Dr. Lee shot a sharp look towards the back of the room. “Please put away your phones--it’s class time, not personal time.”

Shit. Addison would have to wait to try and talk to him till after the lecture.

Still, this was exciting, wasn’t it? If they were right and that was Yoosung, this would be their chance to meet an RFA member in person, rather than just texting them. Not that Addison minded texting, but it was nice to talk face-to-face now and then.

Here’s hoping Yoosung would feel the same way.

Chapter Text

Class seemed to take forever that day. Addison was sure it was just their imagination, but as Dr. Lee gave her lecture they could’ve sworn the hands of the clock were moving slower than normal. The lecture only lasted an hour, but by the time it finally ended it felt to Addison as if a whole year had passed.

When Dr. Lee announced the end of the lecture and students began packing up their things, Addison quickly turned their gaze to see if they could find the blond student in the crowd again. If they moved quickly enough, they could talk to Yoosung before he--

Just their luck, Yoosung was one of the first students out the door, talking with another student as he went. Addison stared after him for a moment before they shook their head and gathered their things. As they walked towards the door, they pulled out their phone to find they had a new message from Roxie.

Roxie: I heard about your new mystery man… are you sure about this, Addison?

Roxie: Sorry, not trying to be overbearing, I just wanna make sure you’re okay

Roxie: You know I worry about you <3 Love you!

Fuck.

Wait, how the hell did Roxie know?

It took Addison only a moment to figure it out, and when they realized what must have happened they groaned. Grumbling under their breath, they sent off a quick message to their meddling roommate.

Addison: How the hell did you get my sister’s number?

Addison: And why’d you tell her about my

Addison: Friend. My friend.

They received a response only seconds later.

Mi-Chia: Okay first of all she called me first

Mi-Chia: I have no idea how she got my number but we’re pen pals now

Mi-Chia: Your sister’s cute btw :3

Addison: I will pay you to never say those words to me again

Addison: And how the hell did she get YOUR number, then??

Mi-Chia: lol I have no idea

Mi-Chia: I just choose not to question it

Mi-Chia: Anyway, I know this is probably a surprise, but we’re not shit-talking you or anything

Mi-Chia: She just reached out to me because she’s worried about you and wants to make sure you’re okay

Mi-Chia: Plus, this is a good chance for me to practice my English lolol

Addison worried their bottom lip between their teeth as they walked through the hall, looking up from their phone now and then to make sure they didn’t run into anybody.

They… really weren’t sure how they felt about this. This was far from the first time that Roxie had reached out to Addison’s friends to check up on them, but every time it was just as confusing as the last.

On the one hand, it felt like a violation of privacy, even considering that there wasn’t really a “mystery man” for Roxie and Mi-Chia to be talking about. Not even to mention how embarrassing it was--they felt like a little kid with overprotective parents going behind their back to check up on them.

But on the other hand… it was kinda nice to know that Roxie and Mi-Chia cared so much about them. Even if this was a little ridiculous.

They were interrupted from their thoughts by the pinging of their phone, and they glanced back down to see what Mi-Chia was saying.

Mi-Chia: Hey, you’re not mad, are you?

Mi-Chia: Cuz if you’re mad we’ll stop

Addison smiled. Alright, maybe this wasn’t too bad if at least they were willing to stop.

Addison: It’s weird and I resent the idea that I need looking after

Addison: But I’m not mad

Mi-Chia: Okay good!!

Mi-Chia: Okay I gotta go, not supposed to be on my phone

Mi-Chia: See ya later!!

Addison: See you later, criminal

Addison was about to put their phone away and head back towards their dorm, when their phone pinged to let them know they had another notification. As they stepped out onto the general campus, they glanced down to see that it was from the RFA chat. Oh!

Smiling to themself, they opened up the chatroom to find Yoosung was there, though it seemed that the others were busy.

[ Addison has entered the chatroom ]

Yoosung★: Oh! It’s Addison :D

Addison: Hey!!

Addison: Yoosung, I’m glad you’re here actually

Yoosung★: ?

Addison: I think you and I might have a class together

Yoosung★: WHAT

Addison: YEAH I SAW SOMEONE WHO LOOKS LIKE YOU

Yoosung★: What class is it!!

Addison: Uhhhh

Addison: Art History 102 with Dr. Lee?

Yoosung★: I JUST HAD THAT CLASS

Yoosung★: I can’t believe I missed a chance to meet Addison!

Addison: It’s okay!!!! I just missed you

Addison: We should meet up!!

Yoosung★: Yeah!!

Addison: Hey, I was actually going to the dining hall--maybe we could get lunch together or something?

Yoosung★: Ahhh I have another class I have to go to :(

Yoosung★: Maybe we could meet up later this afternoon or something?

Yoosung★: If it’s okay for us to meet up at least

Yoosung★: we might have to ask Seven if it’s okay;;

Addison furrowed their brow as they wondered what the hell Yoosung meant. Then it hit them--right. The apartment and all that was supposed to be classified. Addison wasn’t supposed to tell anyone about it or where it was. Did that extend to them as well? Were they supposed to be a secret as well?

Nah, that’d be ridiculous, they thought. Still… maybe they’d ask Luciel about it the next time they got to talk to him.

Addison: oh yeah

Addison: I mean, it should be okay, right?

Addison: only the apartment’s classified; as long as i don’t tell you where it is or anything like that then we should be fine

Yoosung★: oh!!

Yoosung★: That’s a good point!

Addison: Still, I’ll try and talk to him to make sure it’s okay O:

Yoosung★: Alright ^v^

Yoosung★: Though… speaking of Seven…

Yoosung★: Can you believe he has a maid!?

By this point, Addison had arrived at the dining hall. They put their phone away in their pocket for a moment and pulled out their student ID, handing it to the weary-looking cashier with a nervous little smile. He swiped them in and nodded at them, and they took their ID back and stuffed it into their pocket alongside their phone.

The dining hall at SKY University was small considering the size of the university, with only one main seating area. It was very different from the dining hall at Addison’s old college back in the U.S., but they hardly minded.

They set their bag down at an empty table and went to get their food, pulling out their phone to respond to Yoosung as they did.

Yoosung★: He’s so rich, I can’t believe it!

Yoosung★: Do you think his maid even cooks for him??

Addison: I mean, maybe

Addison: That’d be kinda like having your mom there though, haha

Yoosung★: lolol

Yoosung★: i guess so

Addison: besides, maids usually clean, right? Not cook?

Yoosung★: I wouldn’t really know u~u

Addison: Neither would I lmao

Addison: It’s kinda cool that he has a maid though

Addison: i mean, idk, in a weird sort of way

Yoosung★: i guess so

Yoosung★: Still pretty weird though, I never would’ve guessed

Yoosung★: he doesn’t ACT like someone who’s rich enough to have a maid

Addison: I never would’ve guessed either tbh

Addison: I don’t think that’s really a bad thing though

Addison put their phone away again to pick up their tray, offering a smile to the employee behind the counter. She smiled back, though it was a little strained. They could relate.

Once they were sitting back at the table they’d claimed for themself, they began to eat, idly scrolling through their phone as they did.

Yoosung★: I guess not

Yoosung★: anyway, I hope Seven says it’s okay for you and me to meet up somewhere!

Yoosung★: maybe we could meet at a cafe?

Yoosung★: or is that too much like a date

Addison: Nah, a cafe would be fine, lol

Addison: There’s one my roommate and I went to yesterday that’d be good

Yoosung★: Oooooh!

Yoosung★: Okay!!

Addison: I don’t see why he wouldn’t say we could meet tho

Addison: I mean, like I said, as long as I don’t tell you any classified stuff it should be good

Addison: He said I’m safe

Addison: And I trust him about that

Yoosung★: yeah, he did a really good job!!

Yoosung★: I think some members might still have doubts though;; I know Jaehee does

Addison: damn :(

Yoosung★: you didn’t do anything wrong!!!!

Yoosung★: it’s just weird, cuz even Seven doesn’t know how that hacker that brought you here is connected to Rika

Yoosung★: Jumin says he trusts V to tell us if there’s a problem but idk if I believe that

Yoosung doesn’t trust V? Addison wondered, taking a bite of their rice. That was weird. Wasn’t V supposed to be the leader of the RFA?

Addison: You don’t trust V?

Yoosung★: No, I don’t

Yoosung★: It’s just... 

Yoosung★: i know he’s trying his best

Yoosung★: but it bothers me that he doesn’t tell us anything

Yoosung★: He’s been hiding himself away since Rika left, and he only ever talks to Seven.

Oh. Well, that made sense, they supposed. Still, Addison wanted to trust V--he was the one who let them into the RFA, after all! If he wasn’t trustworthy, then… well, they didn’t know what, but the idea made them uncomfortable.

Addison: I’m sure he has good reasons

Addison: And he and Luciel have to deal with the classified stuff anyway, don’t they?

Addison: Besides, I think if something was REALLY important and we needed to know, Luciel would tell us

Yoosung★: Why does our organization need to have classified information in the first place though?

Yoosung★: We’re a charity organization!

Addison had been wondering that, too, if they were honest. They swallowed their mouthful of rice and took another bite, furrowing their brow as they thought it over.

The only reason they could think of was that, maybe, some of the donors were really important. But why would that matter? Didn’t famous and rich people like to make a big deal about it when they donated to charity? Unless the RFA was hiding something…

Addison shook their head to clear it. Nope, they probably shouldn’t worry about that right now, not while they were eating. They’d have plenty of time to try and investigate and learn more about the RFA later, after all. Maybe they could ask Luciel about it.

Addison: Honestly I have no idea either

Addison: But I’m sure there’s a good reason

Addison: There has to be

Yoosung★: I guess so…

Yoosung★: I just don’t know why V and Seven have to be so secretive

Addison: Maybe they’re just working extra hard to make sure we’re all safe?

Yoosung★: Well…. Maybe, but shouldn’t we know about it if there’s something dangerous happening?

Addison: Mmm I guess so

Addison: But still, sometimes it’s a good idea to lie, as bad as it sounds

Yoosung★: :/

Yoosung★: i guess

Yoosung★: i still don’t really like the way V’s going about it though

Yoosung★: He’s never active, and I feel like Seven’s becoming more secretive too

Yoosung★: I mean, he has a maid! I had no idea!

Yoosung★: Where did he even get the money??

Addison: I hope he’s not doing something dangerous to get it…

Yoosung★: You don’t think he’s working for rich people in the underworld, do you? O~o

Yoosung★: or something like that

Addison: well, i guess anything’s possible

Addison: i hope not though

Yoosung★: Seven’s life feels like a movie…

Yoosung★: Oh, shoot, I have to go now

Yoosung★: Class is starting TT-TT

Addison: good luck!!!

Yoosung★: thank you!!

[ Yoosung★ has left the chatroom ]

[ Addison has left the chatroom ]

Just as Addison went to set their phone down and get to eating, their phone chimed to alert them to another message. They tapped the notification to find it was another private message from Luciel.

707: i saw your conversation with yoosung lol

707: you two have weird ideas about me lolol

Addison smiled despite themself as they typed up their reply.

Addison: In our defense, you ARE a secretive little rascal

707: I know lol

707: I think it’s part of my charm :3c

707: Still, you two talk like my life is a movie!!

707: And is it really that weird that I have a maid?? She just helps me with cleaning!!! lol 

Addison: well neither of US have maids, so yeah it’s a little weird

707: lol

707: anyway, if you want to meet up with Yoosung, that’d be fine!

 707: just don’t tell him anything classified, okay?

Addison: Sir yes sir!

707: lolol

707: that was cute

707: oh! Also, speaking of money stuff, I have an idea for your first guest to the party!

Oh, fuck, the party. Addison had almost forgotten about that.

Addison: oh shit

Addison: who are they?

707: lol don’t worry it’s no one scary

707: it’s this businessman named Frank Reid

707: he’s a finance expert

707: maybe he can give you guys some advice BD

Addison: wow lmao

Addison: i guess he’d be a good guest, yeah!

707: Alright, I’ll tell him to contact you!

707: Anyway, I gotta go work ;_;

Addison: Good luck!

707: thank you ^^

707: remember to eat! Have a nice day

Addison: you too! ^^

Chapter Text

Addison’s next class, immediately after lunch, dragged on and on for what felt like hours. It was their longest class, as they only had it once a week, but somehow today it felt even longer than usual. As they dutifully sketched the model posing for the class (a plump young woman with short hair and skin so pale it nearly blended in with the white floor), their eyes kept drifting over to the clock hanging on the far wall.

Though they did their best to pay attention, their mind wandered again and again to their upcoming meeting with Yoosung. They’d already texted him the address and agreed upon a time to meet, and now all that was left for them to do was think.

What would it be like to meet someone from the RFA in person? Logically, Addison knew that it wouldn’t be different from meeting anyone else they’d been talking to, but they still felt a knot of anxiety deep in their stomach. Sure, they were most likely just nervous because the RFA was so secretive, and they probably had nothing to worry about, but their worries refused to leave .

Addison tried to reassure themself by reminding themself how nice Yoosung had been in the chatroom. They had no reason to assume he’d be anything but nice in person! Though… what if Yoosung in person was different than he was in the chatroom? What if he was actually a dick? What if he was somehow disappointed by them? What if he didn’t even show ?

These thoughts had Addison worrying their bottom lip between their teeth, and they unconsciously pressed their pencil down harder on the paper. The lead snapped easily and they jumped slightly, almost dropping their pencil in surprise. A few faces turned to glance their way, and they felt their face heat up with embarrassment.

I need to focus , Addison thought, taking a deep breath as they grabbed another pencil from their bag and went back to sketching. They just had to put their anxieties out of their mind for now. After all, there wasn’t anything they could do. If something went wrong, they would just have to deal with it.

Eventually, class came to a close. Addison packed up their materials with shaking hands, hardly registering as their professor, Dr. Kim, called out to remind the class that their practice sketches were due next week.

Once they’d gathered their things, Addison slung their bag over their shoulder and rushed out the door, keeping their head down. They had a train to catch and a friend to meet, and they didn’t want to be held up by anything or anyone.

Thankfully, this time they managed to catch their train without having to make a run for it, but they weren’t quite lucky enough to get a seat. That was fine, though--Addison didn’t mind standing. As the rest of the crowd filtered in around them, they glanced down at their phone and made themself comfortable.

They had a private message from Yoosung, the notification blinking plainly on the screen. A small smile spread across their face as they answered it.

Yoosung★ : hey, Addison! I’m at the cafe

Yoosung★ : i can’t wait to meet you ^^

Addison : i can’t wait to meet you too!!

The knot in Addison’s stomach was still there, but they felt a little better seeing Yoosung’s excitement. Everything was going to be okay.

Another ping from their phone snapped them out of their thoughts, and they glanced back down to see that they had a message from the RFA chat itself. They glanced around to make sure no one was trying to look down at their phone before tapping on the notification to open the chat. It looked like it was just Luciel in there now, waiting for someone else to talk to.

Addison bit back a grin as their stomach fluttered, though this time from excitement rather than nerves.

[Addison has entered the chatroom]

707 : Oooooh hi Addison!

Addison : hi hi hi!!

707 : lol someone’s excited

… Why were they so excited? Addison frowned slightly. It was definitely strange how quickly they’d gotten attached to the RFA, but they hadn’t thought about it much until now. Maybe they were just excited at having a new friend group after what had happened--

Nope. Not thinking about that. Addison mentally scolded themself as they typed out a response.

Addison : Maybe i’m just happy to talk to my non-binary buddy again -w-

707 : Well your non-binary buddy is here!!! ^^

707 : I just woke up

707 : Nothing beats sleeping lol

Addison : god, I knoww

707 : I don’t think I’ve been this refreshed in a long time

Addison : god I wish that were me

707 : so I would like to make a huge leap

707 : and tell you

707 : how I save

707 : money! :)

Addison snorted a little despite themself, drawing curious glances from some of their fellow passengers. For the second time in only a few hours, their face flushed hot with embarrassment and they looked down, tilting their phone towards themself so no one else could see.

Addison : lmao how?

707 : :)!!

707 : It’s a method only I can use

707 : with my immense knowledge on cars lol

707 : I think that instead of giving the bank my money,

707 : it’s best to use it to get more babes on my side :D

Addison : lol don’t you have to pay for insurance and stuff tho?

707 : true

707 : but my limited edition babes might go up in value *-*

707 : or maybe not

707 : but still!! This is Seven’s way of investing!!

707 : Besides, you get to feel happy just by watching them <33

Addison : That’s investment??

707 : The key is limited edition lol

707 : Cars that are no longer made go up in value every day!!

Addison tried to remember the one economics class they’d taken in high school. They didn’t remember much, but they were pretty sure Luciel was partly right at best. Then again, they weren’t wealthy enough to have even one car, let alone multiple.

Maybe things just worked differently for rich people.

Addison : guess you really like cars >.<

707 : I do :)

707 : Tbh, I like how cars work mainly

707 : So many parts come together through incredibly exact calculations

707 : and make each other work lol

Addison : i guess that is pretty cool

Addison : i don’t even have one car tho

Addison : so i can’t invest the Seven way u_u

707 : TT_TT

707 : sorry if it sounds like i’m bragging;;

Addison : it’s ok lol

Addison : speaking of, tho

Addison : i’m still surprised you have a maid

707 : Oh yeah!

707 : I guess I never mentioned her huh

707 : I should introduce her!!!! *-*

Luciel then sent a photo of a woman in what looked like a stereotypical maid costume. She had long, flowing red hair and a coy grin on her face as she looked at the camera, one hand resting on her chest while her skirt blew in the wind.

Addison might’ve thought this was a different person if it weren’t for the fact that this woman had the same distinctive eyes as Luciel.

Their small smile became a wide smirk as they picked up what he was doing.

707 : Mary Vanderwood 3rd!

707 : lololol

707 : She’s pretty right?

707 : She’s cute right?

707 : She’s so adorable, right? lololol

Addison : Hmmmmmmmm

Addison : Yeah, I think you look very cute there ^^

707 : asdf;laksdjf;lkj

707 : hahahahaha omg

707 : Shhhh that’s our little secret!

Addison : My lips are sealed, meow!

707 : lol

707 : you’re cute too!!

Addison definitely did not blush at being called cute. Absolutely not.

707 : ANYWAY

707 : The only person who can come in my house except me is Mary Vanderwood 3rd.

707 : My job is pretty risky, and I have a lot of people trying to chase me >_<

Addison remembered their earlier conversation with Yoosung and frowned. They hoped that Luciel wasn’t doing anything that put him in serious danger.

Addison : you’re not in any trouble right?

707 : oh no!

707 : I’m not worrying you am I? :(

707 : Don’t worry about me!!!!

707 : If I’m ever in danger, then

707 : I activate my triple layer security!!

Addison : Always be careful meow!

707 : I will meow!

707 : U really r worrying for me TT_TT

707 : So touched

707 : And I luv the way u talk lolol

Addison : Right back at you lol

707 : >w<

707 : But anyway

707 : I’m always paying attention to my personal protection.

707 : I saw that you’re all really curious about what I do

707 : But I wish no one would try and find out

707 : That means you too Addison

Addison swallowed a bit uneasily.

Addison : I’m sure we’re all just worried

Addison : I mean, I know I am

707 : T_T

707 : It doesn’t matter if I get hurt doing what I do, but if others get involved,

707 : they’ll be in danger as well.

707 : I can always protect people physically,

707 : but I won’t be able to do anything about their feelings getting hurt.

Addison thought about it for a moment. They really were worried about Luciel, and the more he told them not to be, the more worried they got. Really, they couldn’t help it! Even though they’d only known him for about a day, they really liked him, and they wanted him to be safe.

Still, they didn’t want to stress him out or make him uncomfortable. That was out of the question. So, they supposed they would just have to accept not knowing his profession.

Addison : Alright, just let me know whatever you feel safe telling me.

707 : :) Just count on me!

707 : I feel like u really understand me.

707 : It’s tough and lonely to handle secrets,

707 : but… thx for understanding.

Addison smiled slightly despite themself.

Though it wasn’t at all on the same scale as what they assumed Luciel must be dealing with, Addison supposed they did understand, on some level. After all, they had their own secrets they were keeping. Didn’t everyone, after all?

Luciel deserved to keep his, they decided. They weren’t going to push him.

Addison : Yeah of course

Addison : :)

707 : ^^

707 : Whew.

707 : Talking about work is suddenly making me hungry

707 : I skipped my meals today ;;

Addison : Don’t do that!!

Addison : You need to eat!

707 : I will!!! Totally ready to shove food down my throat lolol

707 : Got some Honey Buddha Chips that are calling my name

707 : Don’t skip your meals, Addison!

Addison : You have literally no room to talk

Addison : But I won’t

707 : Do as I say

707 : Not as I do

Right about then, the bell chimed to announce that the train was pulling into its next stop. Addison’s stop.

The train doors opened slowly and people began filing out, Addison among them. As they walked, they typed out a quick goodbye for Luciel.

Addison : Shoot, my train just arrived

Addison : I gotta go. I’ll talk to you later!

707 : I have to go too lol

707 : Talk to you soon!

[707 has left the chatroom]

[Addison has left the chatroom]

When Addison got to the cafe, they saw that it was much more crowded than it’d been the day before, so much so that they had trouble spotting Yoosung in the crowd at first. Finally, though, they were able to find him: he was sitting at a small table near the door, typing away on his phone with a determined expression on his face. There was a smoothie in front of him, mostly untouched, though Addison couldn’t tell what it was from a distance.

They quickly made their way over and set their bag down, taking a seat in front of him. It took him a moment to realize they were there, and when he did, his eyes widened.

“Are you Addison?” he asked, voice hesitant but excited. Addison grinned at him and nodded.

“It’s nice to finally meet you!” they said. Yoosung grinned right on back, setting his phone down.

“I’m the one who should be saying that!” He chuckled. “I-I mean, it’s really nice to put a face to the name. I had no idea we had a class together!”

“I didn’t either.” Addison shook their head in amazement. “Then again, the semester’s only just started, and I’ve only been in Korea for a week.” They laughed as well. "And, besides, you didn't know what I looked like!"

"I guess that's true." Yoosung was still grinning at them, a faint flush on his cheeks. Addison figured he must be nervous, and they felt a lot better about their own anxiety over the meeting. As they made themself comfortable, he suddenly perked up slightly.

“Oh! Um, did you want anything?” He looked a little sheepish now. “To eat or drink, I mean. Sorry, I wasn’t sure what you’d like, so I didn’t order anything except this.” He gestured vaguely to his drink.

“Nah, it’s alright,” Addison replied with a chuckle. “I appreciate the offer, though!”

They took a moment to really look at Yoosung then, taking in his appearance. He looked just like the photo he’d sent in the chat, though he wasn’t wearing the same hoodie. Hanging off his chair was a shoulder-strap bag with colorful pins attached to it, though Addison didn’t quite recognize the characters. After a moment, they realized they were staring and quickly averted their eyes, embarrassed. Thankfully, Yoosung didn’t seem to notice.

“So!” he said. “Um, I guess this is our chance to really get to know each other, haha.” His eyes brightened. “You said you’re a student, right? What’s your major?”

Addison looked back up at him, resting their arms on the table. “I’m an Illustration major,” they said with a little smile. “I’m, uh, not too sure what I want to do with it yet, but I’ve always loved art so I figured I’d go for it.” They shifted slightly. “That’s actually why I’m here--I got accepted to SKY’s Illustration program and decided to just go for it.” Well, that was one reason at least.

Yoosung was practically starry-eyed as he grinned at them. “That’s so cool! I’ve never really been that good at art myself, but I like to draw little things sometimes.”

“You’ll have to show me your art sometime!” Addison said excitedly. “I’d love to see it!” Yoosung laughed, looking a little bashful, but he nodded.

From there, conversation flowed easily between the two, and they talked for what felt like hours. Addison found out that Yoosung was a veterinary science major in his second year of college (Addison was in their third year), that his birthday was in March (Addison’s was in May), and that he had an older sister named Seoyeon who was already out of college.

At some point, though, their phones began to chime at once. Both smiled sheepishly at the other as they reached for their phones.

“Sorry, do you mind-” Addison started. Yoosung nodded quickly.

“Yeah, that’s fine!” he said quickly. “I-I mean, mine’s going off, too.”

A quick check revealed it was the RFA chatroom that was going off. Evidently, Jumin and Zen were in the middle of an argument. Addison blinked in surprise as they read through the logs, though the messages were moving by so quickly they had a little trouble keeping up. Still, what they could see made them chuckle a little.

Yoosung sighed and muted his phone, putting it back in his pocket. Addison did the same.

“Sorry about that,” he said with a little chuckle. “Those two never really get along.”

“It’s fine,” Addison said. “It’s not your fault--and, besides, it’s actually kinda funny, I think.”

Yoosung tilted his head slightly, much like a confused puppy would. “Oh? Well, I’m glad you’re not upset about it, at least.” He shook his head in disappointment. “They were never this bad when Rika was around, but since she… well, they’re almost always at each other’s throats nowadays.”

Addison furrowed their brow. They remembered seeing the two bicker a bit before, but it hadn’t seemed that bad. “Do you know why?”

Yoosung shrugged. “I guess there’s a lot of reasons.” He thought about it for a moment. “Well, I know Zen doesn’t like that Jumin doesn’t really empathize with others very much.” He frowned. “I mean, he gives Jaehee so much work, and he doesn’t give her very much encouragement!”

“Yeah, I’ve definitely noticed that.” Addison rubbed the back of their neck. “I feel really bad for her. Wish there was more we could do for her…”

“I do, too.”

For a long moment, Yoosung and Addison were both quiet. Then, Yoosung spoke up again.

“And I guess Jumin doesn’t like that Zen complains so much about being single and shows off his looks all the time.” Yoosung snorted. “I mean, yeah, he is handsome, but that doesn’t mean he has to talk about it so much.”

Now it was Addison’s turn to be confused. Sure, Zen had mentioned once or twice that he was single, but he hadn’t gone on about it too much to them.

“Does he really complain that much?” they asked. Yoosung nodded emphatically and rolled his eyes.

“Oh, yeah,” he said. “I’m surprised you haven’t noticed--he talks about it a lot . And he’s not even that special! Everyone in the RFA is single.” He then paused, looking at Addison curiously. “Um, if it’s not too forward, are you single? N-Not that it matters; I’m just curious!” His face flushed bright red in embarrassment.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay!” Addison reassured him quickly. “I…” They thought for a moment on how to answer. Eventually, they decided they may as well just be honest. “I am, yeah.”

Yoosung relaxed slightly, though he had a frown on his face. “I’m sorry about that,” he said. “I definitely know what that’s like…”

“Don’t be,” Addison said with a shrug. “I mean, I appreciate it, but I’m fine. I’m not really looking to date anyone right now anyway.”

“Why not?” He looked genuinely curious.

Addison hesitated again. “Ah, well… let’s just say things didn’t end so well with my last boyfriend.” Yoosung winced sympathetically.

“Sorry!” he said. “I shouldn’t have pried… um, well, that’s okay! You don’t need to date anyone if you don’t want to.” Addison smiled at him and nodded.

“That’s right,” they said. “So don’t worry too much about it, okay? Maybe you’ll meet someone, maybe you won’t, but all that matters is that you’re happy.”

“I guess that’s true!” Yoosung agreed, looking a little less embarrassed now. He suddenly seemed to remember something and pulled out his phone again.

“O-Oh, by the way, there’s this group I know that I think might be good for the party! It’s a group for people who choose to be alone, a-and they have a lot of really good advice for living on your own. I haven’t joined it, but I think they might be good to invite!”

Oh, fuck, right. The party. Addison had almost forgotten about that. They should probably be looking out for guests, shouldn’t they? “Yeah, that sounds perfect! Tell them to reach me.”

“I will!” Yoosung said. He then glanced down at his phone, and his eyes widened slightly at the time. “O-Oh, I think I need to get going; it’s almost time for dinner!”

“Shit,” Addison cursed, “that’s right. I have another class I need to get to.” They got to their feet quickly, as did Yoosung.

“It was really nice to meet you!” Yoosung said. Addison grinned at him and nodded.

“Yeah!” they agreed. “Maybe we can meet up again sometime. Y’know, instead of just talking in the chatroom all the time.”

“I’d like that!” Yoosung was beaming as he gathered up his things. “Well, good luck with your class!”

“Thanks, I appreciate that.” Addison reached out an arm and pulled Yoosung into a quick half-hug, releasing him as quickly as they’d grabbed him. Yoosung’s eyes were a little wide when they pulled back, but he was still smiling. “I’ll talk to you later!”

“Y-Yeah!” Yoosung said with a nod, his face a little red once more. 

And with that, Addison quickly left the cafe, feeling a little exhilarated at having met one of their new friends in person. They were really doing it--they were making friends and meeting people, just like Roxie had told them to.

Things were really looking up now.