Seokjin walked feverishly up the stairs of the dormitory. Hoseok had given him precise instructions and he knew exactly where to go but after what happened to Jimin, he was afraid of what could happen to him in turn.

"You need to go to the fifth floor of the dorm," Hoseok had told him.

"But the fifth floor is closed, as no one lives there," had replied Seokjin, who knew that the fifth floor did not accommodate any students, the other floors enough to accommodate everyone in double rooms.

"Some nights, when the Midnight Club gathers, the front gate is left open. This night, Jimin is expected, and it's you who will go in his place. You are going to trade places with him, it's the only way to protect him, there is no other."

" But- "

"If you don't go, I should wake him up to go," Hoseok cut in. "They asked me to send him."

"But he is in no condition to move!" Seokjin exclaimed, scandalized.

"It's you or him, Jin. And it's your choice."

Hoseok had abandoned the ridiculous nicknames and spoke to him with the utmost seriousness.

"But if I go to the director Kang and tell him what they did to Jimin, then he will surprise them all in their illegal actions and he will punish them, so why do I have to go?"

"You have no idea the power these students have in this school. If you report them, you condemn yourself and Jimin. They will not be worried in any way."

Students more powerful than the director himself? Students who had managed to get the senior school administrtor in their pocket and acted with him? In Seokjin's eyes, it was even scarier than the memory of Taehyung reigning over Gugbo Middle School. 

He had ended up letting Hoseok convince him, for Jimin's sake. He had closed all the buttons on his jacket to calm the trembling in his body that he thought was due to the cold when it was actually his fear. But he shouldn't be afraid. He had been the target of his middle school classmates for two years, he had been their victim. And he had survived, he had even come out stronger. It could do it here too.

Firmly decided, he had finally declared:

"I'm going Hobi, watch over Jimin for me please. I'll come back as soon as possible."

"You are a brave person Jin, and a loyal friend. I'm sure Jimin will realize it too."

And Taehyung, Seokjin thought inwardly. Instead, he smiled weakly and replied:

"Thanks. You are also a loyal friend to him, Hobi, I am happy about that."

Stunned, Hoseok raised his eyebrows, genuinely surprised by Seokjin's words.

But Seokjin didn't give him time to question or thank him and he rushed out, afraid of losing his composure if there was more to discuss.

Now that he was almost to the fifth floor, apprehension gripped him. He wondered what he would find in this menacing part of the dormitory. Perhaps an ancient torture chamber? Were they going to tie him to a wall and whip him until he begged to be released? Or maybe

Arriving in front of the fifth floor gate behind which was a final flight of stairs, Seokjin took a deep breath, secretly hoping that the gate made of a metal grille, like the bars blocking access to a dungeon, would be closed. 

It wasn't. 

To his great despair, it opened with a sinister rustle of poorly oiled gears, freeing the passage to the top floor by a flight of narrow stone stairs.

"Come on Jin, you can do it," he encouraged himself as he faced the ominous passage.

Without understanding what was guiding his body, Seokjin found himself in a few seconds in front of a single door which he knocked on without thinking. He knocked the way Hoseok had taught him:

Knock! Knock! 

Two knocks.

A silence of a second. 

Then two knocks again.

Knock! Knock!

Then three knocks.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

Then a last one which resonated in the silence of the night.

Knock!

 Seokjin rubbed the sore knuckles of his right hand when he finished knocking on the wooden door. After a few seconds of him waiting apprehensively, the thick door opened inwards and a familiar face appeared. After his surprise at not having Jimin, the boy exclaimed:

"Gosh, Jin!"

Surprised, Seokjin's worried face immediately relaxed as he recognized the boy.

"Captain!"

It was indeed Heungmin, the captain of his football team. Smiling, Heungmin stepped aside and gestured for him to enter. 

"You can come in, if you want."

Reassured to know him there, Seokjin nodded and entered without hesitation, letting the other close the heavy door behind him. During this time, he observed the large room in which he found himself.

It was obviously an attic with a low ceiling converted into a games and rest room because between the wooden beams which supported the roof frame there were arcade games, a large pool table with three boys around it, a television, an imposing and antique oak library with ancient books with luxurious bindings, some written in foreign languages ​​and which required being particularly cultured and intelligent to understand them.

In one corner was a varnished piano and a matching velvet-covered seat, and right next to it was a painting easel with a canvas being painted by a concentrated boy who seemed unfazed by the fact that the half-rolled up white sleeves of his uniform shirt was all stained with pearl-colored paint.

Turning his gaze, Seokjin saw that there were also shelves filled with sweets, sodas and alcoholic drinks normally prohibited at school, a fridge which must have contained other cold drinks, comfortable-looking sofas to relax on and an imposing fireplace where a more than welcome fire roared.

In the center of the room sat an immense terrestrial globe in golden, brown and orange colors surrounded by rings of varnished wood allowing observation of the planet and near certain windows which were currently closed, telescopes pointed towards the sky. Looking down, Seokjin expected to see worn parquet floors like in the attic of the Kim mansion because attics were often abandoned rooms, like cellars, and served more as a shed than a living room. However, he saw that he was walking on a huge luxurious velvet carpet with sophisticated embroidery.

No trace of the cold, dark torture room that Seokjin had imagined. The room was warm, lit by a subdued light coming from a few foreign lamps placed here and there on their tripod. It was a soft light for the eyes and Seokjin found himself dreaming of living in such a room and falling asleep on one of these sofas after observing the stars and learning to recognize each country in the world...

Admiring the environment that surrounded him, he did not feel the gazes that weighed on him. Six boys were there Heungmin, the one who was painting and ignoring him as if nothing could distract him from his work, the three around the pool table who were staring at him, motionless and surprised by his presence, and another on one sofas, who held an imposing chemistry book in his hands. It was he who spoke:

"Seokjin? What are you doing here?"

Coming out of his reverie, Seokjin turned to the boy with the familiar voice who had just called out to him.

"President?!" 

The boy sitting on the sofa chuckled and said:

"I already told you to call me by my first name, right?"

"S-sorry Joonwoo," Seokjin apologized with an awkward smile, suddenly feeling intimidated like he always did whenever he was in his presence. He was suddenly very aware that he had come dressed in his pajamas while the other boys were all still wearing their uniforms.

"It was probably Hoseok who sent him," Heungmin indicated to the other boys, placing a hand on Seokjin's shoulder after joining him, as if to put him at ease in this place that he did not didn't know.

Seokjin quickly agreed:

"Yes, he's the one who sent me here."

He was starting to wonder what he was doing here, he felt like he was disturbing and wanted to politely take his leave and return to the second floor, near Jimin. Was this really where Jimin came some nights and got mistreated? Was anyone other than this small group using this place for malicious purposes?

Near the pool table, the three boys he didn't know nodded, understanding that he had been sent here by Hoseok as if that made his presence legitimate, and started playing again. The one painting still hadn't looked up and seemed to be close to completing a dreamscape.

For his part, Joonwoo closed his book with a sharp slam and placed it on his right. To his left, he patted the sofa and said to Seokjin:

"Come here, Seokjin."

With a squeeze on the shoulder, Heungmin encouraged him to go and Seokjin did not need to be asked. He shyly sat next to Joonwoo.

"So tell me, what do you think of this place?" the student president asked with his usual good nature.

Seokjin didn't hesitate for a second before answering him. Next to him, he felt safe and as he was talkative, he quickly forgot his shyness and began to pour out a stream of words with excitement:

"This place is absolutely amazing! I've never seen a place like this. Even though I don't like reading very much as I prefer way much to play football, this library makes me want to read all the books there and become a very cultured person like you. And with a globe like that, geography would become fascinating. And these telescopes would make me want to discover space!"

"I like it that much?" Joonwoo asked in an amused tone. Heungmin took a seat on the other side of Seokjin and picked up his phone which he had obviously put aside to open the door for Seokjin.

"Oh yes!" Seokjin exclaimed before saying, disappointed: "It's a shame that this place is hidden and closed to students."

"Not to all students," Joonwoo contradicted. "Some have the right to do so but very few and they are considered elected. It's because it's a secret place that it's incredible. It wouldn't be if anyone could come there."

Realizing that the older boy wasn't wrong, Seokjin opened his eyes wide:

"You're right, you're a really smart person."

Joonwoo reminded him of a feeling that Seokjin had often felt in his childhood with Namjoon: the feeling of having an intelligent and caring big brother. Or maybe it was the absence of Namjoon by his side that finally made him understand that there were other people with qualities similar to his but with good hearts unlike him?

The president's smile stretched:

"Smarter than Namjoon?"

Taken aback by the question, Seokjin became embarrassed. He didn't want to displease Joonwoo whom he admired but he was too spontaneous to lie and this is how he declared:

"I don't know you well enough to know that, I'm sorry."

Surprised at his honesty, Joonwoo burst out laughing.

"You really are quite a funny specimen! That's why I wanted you but because of the other grumpy one, the choice fell on someone else. Now the error is fixed."

"Eh?" Seokjin said, perplexed as he watched Joonwoo exchange a satisfied look with Heungmin who nodded in approval.

"Nothing," Joonwoo told him. "Tell me, Seokjin, would you like to come here whenever you want? You could then freely enjoy everything that is here."

"Obviously I would like that!" Seokjin exclaimed, stars in his eyes, forgetting what Joonwoo had said previously. "Can I really?"

"Yes, but for that, you have to become a member of the club."

"The club ?" Seokjin asked. He knew that Joonwoo, like Namjoon, was part of the Orators club but he didn't want to be part of the same club as him so his expression darkened.

"What's the matter?" Joonwoo asked, seeing his change in expression. " You do not want? You know, it's not an offer I make to everyone. It's only because I really like you that I'm proposing to you."

"I'm really grateful for that, but I don't think I can agree to join the Orators' club," Seokjin said regretfully. "Besides, Hoseok said it was the Midnight Club that met here, not the Orators' club."

He finished by lowering his voice and turning his head feverishly, as if to make sure that the Midnight Club, which he imagined as a group of mean-looking boys dressed in black and faces covered with scary masks, was not hiding in the room.

Joonwoo's gaze flashed with a smart glow.

"Oh I see... there's something you still don't understand Seokjin."

"What?" Seokjin asked.

"We are indeed the Orators' club, but do you know what is special about us?"

"You get together to talk about uninteresting things like philosophy and politics?" Seokjin ventured before putting a hand over his mouth, realizing what he had just said and wondering if Joonwoo was going to take it badly.

He was reassured to see that this was not the case, because the other was still smiling. However, he realized that the boy who was painting had stopped painting and was staring at him intently, without blinking, which made him uncomfortable. However, he forgot about it when Joonwoo continued:

"You are not wrong, these are things that may seem boring to the populace but for us, it is the heart of our future. Our group brings together seven members of the richest and most influential families in the country who are at the same time in this school; we form a group of elites. We are the chosen among the chosen, chosen at our birth, seven stars among the other stars that will guide this country."

A strange glint shone in his eyes and Seokjin was disturbed. The elder seemed to speak with a frightening fanaticism that was unlike him, who was usually very humble in front of the other students despite his social status. He continued:

"By day, we are the Orators, brilliant and perfect. But at night, in the darkness, we become what our repressed instincts dictate to us and we let our demons emerge out of sight."

His dark gaze that had been so warm before suddenly became colder and Seokjin felt chills.

"It's impossible..." he murmured, understanding what that implied. But he didn't want to believe it. He looked into Joonwoo's gaze as he stared at him and stammered, "You... you're the Midnight Club? Y-you're Eunma's demons? D-does that mean you were the one who hurt Jimin?"

What he had just said terrified him and he would have liked someone to contradict him.

"That's it, he finally got it," said one of the boys near the pool table who held his pool cue on the back of his neck with his hands on either side nonchalantly and looked at Seokjin with a mocking look. 

Everyone else looked at him the same way and Seokjin felt the irrepressible urge to run away: he felt in danger. He tried to get up but a hand pulled him back and he fell back heavily on the sofa.

"Captain..." he said, suddenly feeling a sense of security overcome him. He had briefly forgotten Heungmin's presence. "I would like to leave now, can I-"

"You were really bad on the field today, you know that Jin?" Heungmin replied dryly. "You shamed the team and made us look ridiculous."

"I-I'm sorry-" Seokjin started before stopping when Heungmin's hand slapped him hard.

Shocked, Seokjin immediately placed his hand on his throbbing cheek. Heungmin had never been violent with anyone, he had never reproached him in the slightest and here he was slapping him? It was a nightmare, he must have been in his bed and he was going to wake up... But the slap hadn't woken him up somewhere else and the persistent pain indicated that he wasn't dreaming.

"Heungmin, that's enough!" Joonwoo intervened.

Grateful, Seokjin turned to Joonwoo, who was berating his friend for the slap he had just given him.

"Don't hit him in the face, you know I like his face!" Joonwoo explained to Heungmin, ignoring Seokjin who then realized with horror that the student president had not planned to protect him at all and that his previous remark had nothing of any sympathy towards him.

"I'll have to add some red," the boy who was painting grumbled. "Don't change my model as you please, Heung."

Seokjin turned towards him and saw with concern that the pearly dreamscape of the canvas had transformed into a dark abyss marked by the color black and that in the foreground, a face now appeared: his. 

So that was why the boy had been staring at him earlier? To draw it on his painting? The worst part was that the only thing that bothered the boy was not Heungmin's violence but the fact that he was going to have to change his painting. Who was this scary boy?!

"Sorry Raenjun, I held back from hitting him for so long that I didn't think," Heungmin retorted, apologizing to his two friends without any consideration for Seokjin.

"C-captain, I'm sorry I played poorly today," Seokjin promised, hoping that would save him from danger. "I promise it won't happen again, so please-"

"You poor thing, do you think that's the only reason why I want to tear you down?" the captain of the football team interrupted. "You are a beggar, I don't need any other excuse to hit you."

Seokjin froze upon hearing this insult that he had heard so often in middle school. He had lived such a serene life in Eunma where equality reigned that he would never have imagined that his captain whom he admired so much and who had always been so kind to him would one day treat him as a beggar. He had just understood that Jungkook was not wrong: Eunma's equality was in fact just a golden facade that hid a dark reality. So Eunma was really a demon haunt with the faces of noble princes...

"I despise people like you and if you are not capable of playing perfectly on my team I will be happy to correct you to calm my frustration!"

Without warning, he pushed Seokjin off the couch and he fell to the ground with a cry of surprise mixed with pain.

"My behavior with you was my gilded face. Here at the Midnight Club, my dark side can express itself and I can be whoever I want with you."

Then he began to kick him. Curled into a ball, Seokjin gritted his teeth as he felt Heungmin's foot hit his back, the foot he had always found so powerful when kicking a ball and which he discovered was just as powerful against his body.

When the beating stopped, he was relieved and heard someone say with a sort of unhealthy admiration towards him:

"I thought he was going to cry."

"It will come," another replied. "He always sounds like a kid when he talks, I'm sure he has no pride."

"On your feet!" Heungmin ordered, grabbing Seokjin by the soiled back of his jacket and forcing him to his feet.

Wincing in pain at this lack of care and panting, Seokjin waited to be told what to do, wondering how long his ordeal would last.

"Look at him, he looks bored, not scared: he just wants to get it over with quickly," one boy giggled.

"N-no," Seokjin wanted to deny.

"But that's true," Joonwoo remarked curiously. "It's like he's used to getting beaten up."

This time, Seokjin refrained from answering anything. His body remembered very well that Jimin's blows were stronger than Heungmin's and his mind had not forgotten Yoona's cruelty and the combined efforts of all the students to harm him. 

He remembered even more the fear that Taehyung had already made him feel. What he was currently experiencing was ultimately less difficult to bear, he was suddenly aware of this and this reassured him.

Catching his expression of relief, Heungmin replied:

"Oh yeah? We will see."

He let go of Seokjin and walked away to get something further into the room. Seokjin didn't have time to worry about him because the three boys who were previously around the pool table moved towards him until they surrounded him.

"An introduction is necessary since we will be spending a lot of time together. I'm Kim Jaekyeon," the youngest boy in the group presented himself with a candid face but a wicked look.

Instead of shaking his hand as convention would have required, he reached into Seokjin's pajamas pocket and grabbed his phone.

"Hey!" Seokjin protested, wanting to get your phone back from the thief.

"Shut up," Jaekyeon immediately shushed him. "Pfff what a shame! guys, look at this antique!" Jaekyeon taunted, waving Seokjin's old cell phone.

The other two – Lee Jihoon and Park Dongmin – laughed in turn.

"His roommate must be waiting for him, he will end up worrying, we should warn him," Jaekyeon said while searching the phone book of Seokjin's phone.

"Min Yoongi?" Jihoon asked, "I bet he doesn't care about him, he won't even notice his absence."

"I'm not sure," Dongmin replied, "I see Seokjin talking to him all the time."

Seokjin was less bothered by seeing them talking as if he wasn't there than finding out that they were watching him at school without him realizing it.

"Yes, but not the other way around," Jaekyeon retorted, holding up the phone to show them the message conversation between Seokjin and Yoongi.

Seokjin refrained from exclaiming that it was a private conversation and shamefully let them observe the messages while making fun of him.

"Amazing," Dongmin chuckled, "it's a one-way conversation, it's only Seokjin talking."

Indeed, the long messages where Seokjin checked in on Yoongi every day and took the time to tell him about his days with enthusiasm were all unanswered. There was no indication that Yoongi had even read them. Still, Seokjin made it a point to send him some every day to make sure Yoongi didn't feel alone, so he felt like someone was thinking about him.

"Yoongi clearly doesn't give a damn about you, why do you keep talking to him?" Dongmin asked, giving Seokjin a big, falsely friendly pat on the shoulder, who grimaced but didn't respond.

"Okay, even if that's the case, we have to keep up appearances. Let's send him a message," Jaekyeon decided with excitement.

"Good idea," agreed Jihoon, who seemed happy with this new game. "Write: 'sorry Yoongi, I'll be late because I went exploring around the school with Taehyung."

He seemed to be having fun imitating Seokjin's enthusiasm that he had read in the messages sent to Yoongi. Seokjin frowned, frustrated at being reduced to watching them play with him.

"With Taehyung?" Jaekyeon asked, unconvinced, even though he wrote down what Jihoon dictated to him.

"Well yes, Seokjin is always glued to him, it's no secret," Jihoon justified himself.

"What if Yoongi checks?" Jaekyeon insisted.

"Yoongi hates Namjoon's family, he won't ask Taehyung or Jungkook if it's true," Dongmin told him. And even if he does, what could he possibly do? Come and save this beggar? He won't, he never interferes in other people's affairs."

"Okay," Jaekyeon agreed. "It's done, I sent it. No one will come pick you up, you're ours for the night," he concluded, turning to Seokjin who felt more alone than ever.

He tried not to let himself be intimidated by these rich boys from very powerful families but he knew that his future could depend on the will of these boys and that was what scared him more than the blows he could receive. If he obeyed them, would they leave him alone? He hoped so but he knew he was going to suffer no matter what...