Namjoon:

KakaoTalk:

HANA: Namjoon?

HANA: Namjoon are you awake?

HANA: When you get this, please call me.

Namjoon, wake up.

Namjoon stirs, looking around his pitch-black room sleepily. It would have to be midnight or something, but Namjoon can't tell. He rolls over in his bed, snuggling into his pillow.

Namjoon, wake up.

"Huh?" Namjoon frowns, rolling onto his back and staring at the ceiling, "What?

Wake up, you have a message.

"So?" Namjoon grumbles.

I'm not going to let you sleep you know. Check your phone it's important.

"Ah, fucks sake," Namjoon groans, rolling over and reaching for his phone. The light of a thousand suns shines into his eyes, making him turn his head away.

"Fuck... this better be important..." Namjoon grumbles, turning to squint at the bright screen.

3 Messages from Hana.

He quickly sits up in bed, staring at the screen for a moment. She messaged him? Why?

He looks at the time. It is a quarter past 1 am and she sent the last message 5 minutes ago. Why is she awake? He opens the texts and reads them before responding.

NAMJOON: What's up Hana? Are you okay?

Namjoon stares at the screen for a moment, waiting for her to respond. She does.

HANA: I had a nightmare...

NAMJOON: Are you okay? Want me to come see you? I can call if you'd like?

Too much.

"Shut up," Namjoon snaps. After everything Z has done over the past month, dealing with the friend group falling apart, watching Hana deteriorate from a distance, and now waking him up like this? Namjoon is livid with Z. With all this happening, he still had to attend school and complete his assessments, and go to work. It's been exhausting.

HANA: No, it's okay. My parents came in and I spoke to them.

NAMJOON: That's good, I'm glad you are okay.

NAMJOON: Why are you messaging this late at night?

HANA: Well, I asked them about what you said... about my real mother.

NAMJOON: What did they say?

HANA: They admitted to it, and they apologised. I still love them; they are my parents.

NAMJOON: I'm glad.

HANA: Can we meet up tomorrow?

NAMJOON: Of course. Do you want to ask us some questions?

HANA: Yes... I need to know the truth. You promise to tell the truth, right?

NAMJOON: I promise. I'll message Jimin and Yoongi, okay?

HANA: Okay, thank you, Namjoon.

NAMJOON: It's okay. Try to get some sleep, okay? I'll see you tomorrow.

HANA: Okay, goodnight.

NAMJOON: Goodnight.

Namjoon places his phone down, flopping back onto his bed. He stares at the ceiling for a moment, feeling nervous yet excited for tomorrow.

"Are you going to actually be helpful tomorrow?" Namjoon asks gruffly, rolling over to cuddle his pillow again.

I'm always helpful.

Namjoon scoffs, closing his eyes as he slowly falls back asleep again.

. . . . . 

Namjoon stands out the front of Hana's house, kicking the rocks on the sidewalk awkwardly. He sent her a message to let her know he will be picking her up again, and she said she is okay with that. But he can't help feeling nervous. This will be the first time they have hung out in over a month. Is it going to be okay?

"Morning," He looks up to see Hana standing in front of him, giving him a small smile. He smiles back, trying not to look her up and down. 

She is wearing a plain t-shirt and ripped loose jeans. She has converses on and a small bag hanging from her shoulder. She looks a lot healthier. He can barely see any marks on her skin now. He knew they would be mostly gone by now, but the little cuts left tiny scars on her skin. Anyone who didn't know wouldn't be able to tell.

He's surprised she is comfortably showing her arms. She has been only wearing long-sleeved shirts and hoodies since. Is the prospect of this conversation comforting to her?

"Good morning," Namjoon responds, "Ready?"

"Yeah," She nods as they turn and begin walking towards his house. An awkward silence falls over them, a silence that is making Namjoon feel restless.

Before he can do anything about it, they reach his apartment. He leads her upstairs and inside. Once inside, Jimin and Yoongi rush over, looking excited.

"Hana!" Jimin leaps forward, pulling her in for a hug. Hana pats his back gently, smiling a little.

"Hey, Jimin," Namjoon looks away, biting his lip. For some reason, he is feeling intense pressure on his chest watching Jimin and Hana hug.

Am I... jealous?

No... just a heart attack, it's fine.

Namjoon rolls his eyes, moving over to the kitchen as Yoongi gives her a brief hug. He begins pouring everyone a drink, not paying attention to their conversation as they move into the dining room, catching up on a few things.

Once they are all seated, each with a drink, Namjoon starts.

"Alright... Hana, you should lead this conversation," Namjoon says firmly.

"Why?" She asks.

"Because they are your questions..." Jimin answers, fiddling nervously. She nods in agreement, taking in a deep breath.

"Alright... well I asked my parents about my birth Mother and they told me a lot, but it's not that much different from what you guys and the old man said," Hana gulps, "And after... I could only think about that voice,"

They nod, watching her warily.

"Let's start with Jimin," She says firmly, "So, you found out when they were planning to go look for me?"

"Yeah," Jimin nods.

"Why did you believe them?" She asks.

"Well, after hearing the voice and their explanation... I don't know it just made sense," Jimin shrugs.

"You never questioned it?" Hana cocks her eyebrow as Jimin shakes his head.

"I'm honestly surprised you don't believe it after hearing his voice," Jimin shrugs.

"Well... it could have been an edited recording!" Hana says firmly.

The three guys look at each other and sigh. They were hoping she was feeling more open.

"Yoongi," Yoongi's eyes flick towards Hana, a little concerned, "So, you were raised by this cult?"

"Yeah... I left once I was old enough to rent a house," Yoongi explains, "I watched them kill someone, and I didn't believe in the god. Namjoon confronted me about my pendant,"

"Why did you believe him?" Hana asks.

"Namjoon told me something Z told him... something about me... something I hadn't told anyone before... including a memory I had never told anyone," Yoongi blushes slightly as Namjoon recalls his pale face when Namjoon told him he knew he is bisexual and his first love.

"What was it?" Hana asks quickly.

"I'm not telling you!" Yoongi says loudly, his cheeks and ears going red from embarrassment.

"Yoongi," Namjoon whispers, "It's okay... if you want to... they'll be supportive,"

Hana and Jimin look between them, both looking desperately curious.

Yoongi looks back at them, his breathing shallow. He takes a deep breath and stares at his hands.

"Fine," Yoongi mumbles. He lifts his eyes, fear flashing across his face, "I'm... bisexual..."

Hana and Jimin stare at him for a moment before nodding in sync.

"Yeah, I can see that," Jimin says.

"That makes sense," Hana agrees.

"Super proud of you for telling us, and we fully support you no matter what," Jimin smiles.

Hana considers this for a moment, so they turn to watch her. After tilting her head a little, she looks back at Yoongi.

"Then, after that, you heard the voice?" Hana asks.

"Yeah, when he spoke to Jimin," Yoongi smirks, "He might be omniscient, but I feel like it would have been easier if he did that with me as well,"

"You would have panicked too much," Z says aloud. Hana grimaces, looking around the room wildly. She gulps, turning her shaky eyes to Namjoon.

"That's him, isn't it?" Hana asks. Namjoon nods, watching her carefully. She would have a level of trauma surrounding his voice. Which explains why she refused to believe it was real.

"So... you were really born with this thing huh?" Hana asks.

Namjoon gives her a brief summary of his life once again, including the new information he has obtained. How he was 6 months old when Z started possessing him, how they have been living parallel lives so Z could keep an eye on her, and how Z felt responsible for her, even though he didn't do the sacrifice.

He explains how it works, how it feels, and the pros and cons of having an omniscient voice in his head. He also explains more information about the Xanthus pantheon and how the cult prayed to Xedysus as the almighty powerful god, the father of the gods, and the father of the universe.

Most of their beliefs are mixed in with the Necronomicon and the beliefs around the King of Solomon, which is why it is so intense. However, the Xanthus pantheon appears to be actually pretty chill. Most of the religion's practices simply involve prayer and meditation.

"Right," Hana nods a few times, staring off into the distance. She does appear to be listening, just taking a moment to really comprehend what this means for her.

"So, am I really owned by... do you really own me Z?" She asks shakily, looking upwards like Yoongi does.

"I did, at one point," Z responds softly, trying to not startle her, "But I relinquished that as you grew,"

"I see," She nods a few times, "And you are Xedysus, correct?"

"Yes,"

"And you don't want to kill me?" She asks. Namjoon, Yoongi and Jimin cock their eyebrows, waiting for Z's response.

"No, I have never wished for your death," Z responds, "If I had wanted you dead, I would have killed you already,"

Hana shivers involuntarily, looking at Namjoon warily.

"That's... should I be grateful?" Hana asks.

"No, it's okay. He just says things like that, it's fine," Namjoon smiles.

"Okay," She smirks, "Alright, one last question,"

"Sure," Namjoon says.

"Have you ever left Namjoon's body and spoken to that old man?" Hana asks.

"No. Even if I wanted to, I can't," Z explains, "That cult had a protection sigil tattooed on their bodies. Not only could I not communicate with them, but I also can't read them,"

"I see," Hana nods a few times, looking comforted, "Well, I guess that is all I wanted to know,"

"How do you feel?" Jimin asks nervously.

"I feel better. This is a lot to take on, but at least I know I am not crazy," Hana chuckles, "Thank you guys for saving me..."

They respond to her gratitude, all looking relieved. Hana and Yoongi look more relaxed than the other two, smiling happily around the table. Namjoon wonders how long Yoongi held onto that part of his identity, refusing to tell others?

Jimin manages to change the subject, wanting to watch something – anything – on the TV. Hana allows Jimin to change the topic as they move into the lounge room, ready to hang out for the first time in a long time.

Namjoon feels at peace, watching them all happily. Finally, hopefully, everything can go back to normal, right? 

(A/N) 🫰🫰🫰

I'm getting this vibe that RM might be mad at Z? I don't know...