A Race to New World // ATEEZ Dystopia AU

19 | Hongjoong

Seoul, South Korea

"Are you sure this is the way?"

For perhaps the third time since we separated from the group, San stopped in his tracks and shouted for me.

"Yes." I didn't bother to turn around or slow down before continuing down the familiar pedestrian street and entering what I vaguely recognized as Myeongdong. Even with most of the buildings damaged, the pattern, width, and shape of the paths were all ingrained into my brain from years of living around the area. "Didn't you specifically ask for me to come along because you needed me to lead the way?"

"That's right, San." Wooyoung's voice came from close behind me, in a slightly hushed and urged tone. "Out of the three of us, Hongjoong-hyung is the most familiar with Korea..." He sighed as we passed the remnants of some stalls that used to sell all sorts of products, from traditional snacks to celebrity goods to even grocery. "I've lived overseas for so long I don't think I can even walk home from the bus stop without using GPS."

"I'm not doubting his abilities," San retorted. I could imagine him pouting as his boots pattered on the concrete to catch up with me. "Which bank are we going to, anyway?"

I put a finger to my lips to remind him to keep quiet in case the Invincs heard us. He covered his mouth with both hands immediately, and I thought it was cute how both he and Wooyoung acted so acquiescent in front of me. Maybe it was because I was a soldier, and neither of them had enlisted yet?

But I brushed that thought away hastily. Now wasn't the time for that. Reminding San made something more evident in my head: it had been quite a while since we landed, yet I had yet to spot one of the robots. It was weird and unnerving.

I pointed to a building that came into our view after we made a turn. Its facade curved around the corner, and I was surprised that the windows were still intact, as well as the big sign that said "WOORI BANK". The meteors must've missed this whole area.

I went up to the entrance but didn't go in yet. "Okay, this is it. Now tell me the full truth." I eyed San first, then Wooyoung. From our quick discussion earlier, all I knew was that they needed to go to a bank to help all of us buy tickets. They are part of my team, but as a leader I couldn't rule out the possibility of them being traitors. "Why are we here? And by ourselves?"

"Before all this spaceship deal became a thing, my dad transferred money into my account," San explained. "It was supposed to be my tuition fee, my rent, my allowance, all that. But obviously, I didn't get to use any of it. I want to... I want to do something to help the team, so I thought I could use the money to get us tickets."

San gave Wooyoung a sideways glance. There was an almost imperceptible nod from the latter before he took over and resumed the explanation. There was most likely something they shared in between themselves that I had no idea about.

"Actually, San's a bit unsure about how plausible his plan is," Wooyoung said. "There might not even be enough for every single person, and he didn't want to get their hopes up."

I simply nodded, not wanting to complicate the issue further. Besides, I was secretly happy that they were willing to go so far to help the team. However, there was another problem we had to address as we made our way into the bank.

"How do you expect to access the money? I mean, you have the money, technically. But does it matter now that there's no one to help us get it?"

"Oh, that." San licked his lips. "I also realized the problem on the way here, and I guess I didn't really think about it until now... If the ATMs don't work, and--"