Chapter 7: Masquerade, Part 2

Summary: Now that Grace and her friends have gotten their robot friend back, it's time to get out before Joanne stops them!

Min-Gi found Ryan’s hand through the throng of guests. Relief flooded his face as soon as he felt the familiar texture of his boyfriend’s calloused hands. Behind the mask, Min-Gi could sense Ryan’s eyes light up as soon as he caught his gaze and squeezed his hand gently. His heart fluttered slightly from the gesture. 

“Missed me?” he asked teasingly, quickly standing on the tips of his toes to give him a peck on the cheek before anyone could notice.

“Maybe a little,” he said, brushing his thumb against Ryan’s knuckles. “You miss me?”

“I’ve been waiting all night for a dance with you.” Ryan laughed as Min gently spun him around with one hand and pulled him close by his waist with the other. “Whoa…Look who’s getting bold tonight.”

Grace practically danced her way over to the two. 

“Simon and I are gonna stick around for a while, but I can call the limo to send you two home,” she said.

 “But won’t it be suspicious that we all came together but left separately?” Min-Gi pointed out. 

“Yeah, and who says the party’s over for us either?” Ryan added. “What are you guys planning? I wanna be a part of it.”

“Well-” Grace stopped short and suddenly tilted her head upwards towards the balcony. Simon seemed locked in a heated argument with Joanne, looking increasingly frustrated. He locked eyes with the group and silently urged them to leave the area while they still could. Joanne briefly turned her back on him to see who he was signaling. Ryan, Grace, and Min lowered their heads until they were sure Joanne wasn’t looking at them anymore. 

Grace pulled the two into a more secluded area of the room to huddle.

“Simon’s in trouble.” Min-Gi said.

 “Joanne knows we have One-One,” Grace said, scowling. “We’ve got to get him outta there.” 

“But how are we gonna get him out of Joanne’s line of sight?” Min asked.

 “More importantly, what if she tries to take the robot guy back when we try to get him?” Ryan added. “Then this entire night would have been for nothing.”

 Min Gi was about to speak up when he felt someone roughly grab his shoulder. He turned to face the same woman with the ponytail that they met at the entrance.

“Marcus, is it?” she said. “The band hasn’t gotten their complementary meals yet! What are you doing here bothering the guests! Let’s go!” 

She pulled Min-Gi away before he could say a word to Ryan and Grace, and the two quickly became lost in the crowd. He’d almost forgotten about the fake name he’d been given so no one would recognize him. The woman shoved a cart into Min Gi’s hands and pointed towards the stage where three beautiful women sat at the edge.

 Only one of them, a woman with an ombre mohawk, looked up when he approached.

 “Damn, and I thought that old white lady was lying about us getting food,” she said, standing up to grab a plate. The other girls finally also noticed him and got up as well. Min Gi stood there awkwardly, wondering if Ryan and Grace still planned to distract Joanne so Simon could get away from her. 

“I didn’t know we had an opener?” a girl with flowing blond hair said, glancing towards the stage. “Who’s that guy walking up?” 

Min Gi felt a sense of dread creeping up his throat. Without even looking, he could already tell who decided to make his way over to the stage. He heard the sound of a guitar starting to play. The audience, previously murmuring amongst themselves, quieted down. Min-Gi always admired the way Ryan’s guitar playing flourished over the years. In the year after the field trip, Ryan’s guitar playing helped to calm him down in times of stress and panic.

“Ryan...” Min-Gi whispered. 

“You know that guy?” Min Gi’s attention snapped back to the blonde as Ryan began to sing. 

“He’s my boyf- he’s a friend of mine,” Min said finally. “I really hope he doesn’t get himself in trouble with this stunt.”

 “What’s he doing with my guitar?” a girl with tinted shades gasped.

 “Does he always do stuff like this?” The girl with the mohawk asked. Min-Gi could not tell if the girl’s tone was curious or one of irritation.

“He’s super impulsive sometimes, which I love. But it gets him - or others - in a lot of trouble.”

“It looks like he’s gonna get in trouble now…”

In spite of the mask shrouding her face, Min-Gi could tell Joanne was glaring daggers at Ryan from the distant balcony. Behind her, Simon slowly started to move away from her once he was no longer her focus at the moment.

“Ryan, it worked. Get out of there!” He whisper-yelled across the stage. Either Ryan did not hear

him, or Ryan was ignoring him. He continued to play and sing on stage, as if stuck in the same

motions. Min was all too familiar with this behavior. 

As Ryan continued to play on stage, an alarming realization dawned on him. One-One was not with him anywhere nearby. He started to look around frantically.

“Dude, what’s up?” The girl with the mohawk walked up to him.

“I uh… I lost my robot companion-thing. Yeah, I don’t go anywhere without it, and it’s lost somewhere in this crowd.”

“Maybe we can help you find it?” The blond offered.

“We’re supposed to go on stage in a few minutes!” the tinted glasses piped up.

Min looked back to find Joanne storming down the stairs attached to the balcony, making a beeline for the stage. He frantically gestured for Ryan to move out of the area, but Ryan continued to stare ahead as he played.

A commotion coming from the back of the area caught Min-Gi’s attention. Some guests started to yelp and scream in alarm, and the contagious energy slowly started to spread through the crowd. He scanned the area for any signs of Grace and Simon, but there was too much movement for him to properly focus.

Something tiny and white skittered across the floor, swerving between sharp heels and dress shoes.

“Sorry! My bad! Hey, watch it, I’m like a foot tall!” The little ball barked as guests either avoided him or tried to strike him. Min-Gi looked between Ryan, Joanne, and One-One. He sighed and practically threw himself in the crowd. As soon as the little robot came into his line of sight, he reached out just as a pair of gloved hands reached out as well. 

The person scooped One-One off of the ground, looking down at Min-Gi. Before Min-Gi could get a word in, they ran off with their sparkly dress trailing behind them. He groaned and followed after them. He caught the person outside of the venue, with One-One squirming around in their arms.

“Hey…” he reached out gently, placing a hand on the person’s shoulder. They whipped around, causing their mask to fall off. He realized this was the birthday girl herself, looking ashamed.

“I just wanted to get a better look at it, I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to steal it from you! Please don’t tell my parents or Joanne about this,” she pleaded.

“Hey, don’t freak out. I’m not gonna tell anyone what happened,” he assured her. “But I do need that little guy back, Charlotte.”

“Please, call me Charlie. Only my parents and Joanne call me Charlotte,” she scoffed, handing One-One back to Min-Gi. “What is this thing, anyways?”

“He’s uh… he’s my friend's robot helper,” Min-Gi said. “It’s for an important project we’ve been working on. We brought him here to test something out but he got loose. We’re sorry we ruined your night. If there’s any way I can make things right with you, I–”

Charlie crossed her arms and leaned solemnly on the wall, sighing. She didn’t seem concerned about getting her expensive-looking dress dirty.

“It’s fine,” she said. “Least it made things a little interesting around here for once.”

“You’re…not having fun? It’s your big day, everyone’s here to celebrate!”

“Doesn’t feel like it’s my day,” she said. “They basically decided everything for me. Like they do every year.”

“Your parents?” Min-Gi asked, to which Charlie nodded.

“Who gets invited, the food, my dress, even the band that’s supposed to play tonight. But it’s not like I can get mad at them for it,” she sighed. “They really care about me and put a lot of thought into all this… I just wish they asked for my input through it all just once.”

Charlie looked defeated as she sank to the ground. The ruffles on her dress practically engulfed the teenager.

“Geez, Charlie. I’m so sorry. I…wish I could do something to make your night even a little better…” Min-Gi said.

“It’s whatever, the party’s almost over and I’ll be able to retreat to my room for the rest of the night. And then comes next year where we’ll have to do this all over again.”

“I mean, the party doesn’t have to end on a sucky note.” Min-Gi and Charlie looked up to  see the three women he served earlier standing before them. The girl with the mohawk put her hands on her hips. “Naomi made us follow you guys over to see if you were alright.”

“We heard what was going on,” Naomi said. “We might not be able to change this party much but maybe we can let you have a moment just for you…even if it’s just for a little bit.”

Charlie looked up.

“How?”

Naomi smiled. “You ever want to play along with a band on stage?”

Charlie's eyes lit up, her face breaking into a grin. She excitedly followed the girls back into the venue, leaving Min-Gi with One-One.

“Are you my mum?” the little robot asked.

“...no,” Min-Gi said. “Let’s uh… let’s just get back to the others.”

Min-Gi returned to the inside of the venue, holding One-One under his arm. Ryan was still on stage, but he wondered where Grace and Simon were. He spotted Grace stroll across the stage next to Ryan with a mic of her own in her hand. The movement seemed to snap Ryan out of his daze, as turned to look at her. He broke out into a grin upon seeing her.

 “Good evening, ladies and gentlemen!” She waved to the rambunctious audience with a twirl. Joanne was fighting her way to the front but the crowd continued to push her back until she was out of sight. 

“Wild night tonight, I see.” Ryan chuckled, leaning into the mic Grace held.

“Wonder what those two are up to?” Simon's sudden appearance behind Min-Gi made him flinch. His friends loved to sneak up on him, no matter how many times he’s asked them to give him a heads up beforehand. He rolled his eyes.

“Did you see where Joanne went?” Min-Gi whispered. “I lost track of her in the crowd.”

 “I saw her near the shrimp bowls last time I spotted her. She can’t get through to the stage without getting trampled. Although, I wouldn’t be too mad if she tried,” Simon snorted.

Grace and Ryan had broken into song and dance, stirring the crowd into joining along. The security posted in the corners looked absolutely bewildered, but remained in place. He glanced at the stage and found Charlie talking excitedly with the three musicians.

He couldn’t help it, but sometimes Min-Gi felt a lingering sense of envy towards how Grace could easily match Ryan’s energy with the way they flowed together when performing. And spontaneously as well! He’d always seen this synergy between them when practicing in their band.

As the song came to a close, Grace and Ryan laughed and stumbled together on stage.

“It’s been great having you guys here to celebrate Charlie!” Ryan said. 

“There’s one more surprise left in store. We’re bringing the birthday girl up here with our last song of the night, let’s give it up for Charlie!”

The two of them glanced at each other and danced their way off the stage and into the crowd once more, continuing to sing. 

At least Min had Ryan’s voice to foreshadow his appearance right in front of him this time around.

 “Hey Ry,” he said softly, one hand grasping Ryan’s and the other finding his boyfriend’s waist. 

“Hey. What happened to the robot?”

 Realization stabbed his chest. 

“It’s uh…” he frantically scanned the area around them. He gasped when he spotted One-One at the edge of the stairs of the stage, about to follow the girls to the front. He rushed over and scooped One-One up before he was spotted.

“Joanne’s super pissed,” Ryan chuckled once Min-Gi returned.  He handed One-One off to Grace, who took off into the crowd soon after as the band began to play with Charlie.

 “I think she’s still stuck at the shrimp table. Let’s get out of here while we can. Follow my lead?” 

“Sure, but what are you planning?”

 “Trust me.”

He felt himself get whisked away into the crowd. He tried his best to keep up with Ryan’s movements. It’d only been a year since they were last able to hold each other, but to Min-Gi, he felt he had to get used to Ryan all over again. 

After a while, he seemed to get the hang of Ryan’s movement patterns as they danced around the room.  He felt like he was practically floating around in Ryan’s arms, barely acknowledging anything other than the two of them in that moment.

“Where are we even going?” he asked suddenly as Ryan pulled him into a low dip.

 “Joanne’s still looking for us. I’ve gotta make sure we’ve lost her.” He pulled him back up. “Besides, I was getting a dance with you one way or another.” 

Min-Gi’s cheeks flushed and he could barely keep himself from smiling wildly from behind his mask. 

“Min-Gi? Min, I can’t get through to Simon, I think his ear piece is broken!” Grace’s voice came out strangled by the sound of static and background noise came through Min-Gi’s earpiece. “I spotted Joanne heading towards your direction. Get out of there!”

By the time Min-Gi registered what was going on, Joanne came into his line of sight. And she was approaching fast. 

“Ryan!” Without even glancing backwards, Ryan took him by the hand, weaving in between the guests as they broke into a run together. He suddenly stopped, sending the two of them colliding into a young woman whose large hat covered her face.

 “Sorry, Kez!” Ryan said apologetically, helping the young woman off her feet.

“Wait, Kez?” Min Gi asked. Ryan pulled him away before he could catch a better look at the woman. “Ryan, that was Kez?” 

“No time, we’re almost to the exit!” Min-Gi stumbled, and his hand slipped out of Ryan’s. Flat on his stomach, he saw Ryan run out the door without him. 

“I knew you and the rest of Simon’s little gang of friends were up to something tonight,” Joanne hissed, standing over him. She reached out for Min-Gi’s mask, prepared to yank it off his face. Min-Gi turned his head away at the last second before she could touch him. Out of the corner of his eye, the woman with the silver hat came into his view once more. She seemed to sway backwards, falling headfirst into a tray of pastries. She made a beeline for Joanne, tapping her on the shoulder.

“Hey, uh… are you the person in charge of this whole thing?” she asked. “You know there’s a loose floorboard in here? I tripped on that just now. I could’ve gotten seriously hurt.” 

Min-Gi took the time to escape through the doors while Joanne was distracted with the woman nagging her. Grace and the others were waiting for him at the limo in the front of the area. He opened the limo and sat next to Ryan.

 “When I realized you hadn’t followed me to the limo, I was prepared to run back for you,” Ryan said, looking guilty. 

“It’s fine, I’m here now. Everyone here?” Ryan nodded as One-One slipped out of Grace’s arms.

“This has gotta be the worst party I’ve been to,” One-One grumbled. “Not that I’ve been to a lot of parties. I’ve never been invited to any parties when I was on the train.”

“Well, once we find that train again and get those kids back, we can have all the train parties you want,” Grace said.

“Just one more thing!” Ryan said suddenly, brushing past the others in the limo and running back inside.

 “What? Ryan!” Min called after him. He disappeared behind the doors. After a few minutes, Min considered going back inside when Ryan came running back out with a tray in his arms. 

“What do we even need that for?” Grace asked, as Ryan sat back with the tray. 

“I was still hungry,” he said with a shrug, peeling back the foil and popping a shrimp back into his mouth. “They were giving these out as leftovers.” 

Min Gi laughed, pulling Ryan into his lap as he fed him little pieces of shrimp.

“Joanne’s probably gonna raise hell tomorrow morning,” Simon said, rubbing his temples. “I think it’s best if Grace holds onto the notebook and One-One tonight. We’ll meet at Min-Gi’s house in the morning if Joanne or my mom hasn’t bitten my head off.” 

The others nodded in agreement. Grace and Simon were dropped off at their homes before the limo stopped in front of the Park residence. The two placed the leftover tray in the fridge and left a note for Min-Gi’s parents to help themselves if they wanted. 

With that out of the way, they made their way upstairs into Min-Gi’s room to change and collapse into bed. 

“Wild night,” Min-Gi said softly, lying on the bed. Ryan joined him, stretching his body. 

“Not bad for my first full day back here,” Ryan said. “But now I’m just glad I get to be with you again. You were a total badass out there, by the way.”

Min-Gi flushed, a little taken aback by the compliment. “Me? I barely did anything.” 

“You kept up with me pretty well on the floor,” he said with a wink.

 “Guess you’ve still got it after all this time.” 

“Ugh, you make me sound old as hell,” Min snorted as Ryan leaned in to kiss him. He pulled the covers over both of them and held Ryan close as he fell asleep.

The next morning, Min-Gi woke up before Ryan did, just as he had the previous morning. He once again wondered what Ryan had done in the year he left town. He wasn't typically the type to sleep in. Regardless, he decided to let his boyfriend sleep in a little while longer while he got himself ready. He pressed a kiss to Ryan’s forehead, causing the latter to scrunch up his face in his sleep a little.

He left another pair of fresh clothes he didn’t wear anymore on the bed for Ryan before heading downstairs to eat breakfast. His mom was the only one in the kitchen.

 “You two were out late yesterday,” she said quietly. “I saw you guys brought leftovers…what were you two up to last night?”

 “We went to a party,” he said. His mom pursed her lips, but her face relaxed soon after. “I’m glad you’ve gotten more social lately,” she told him. “Especially after all this time.But please let us know next time you are going to be out late like that. I was worried that something happened to you when you didn’t come home.”

“Sorry, mama,” he said, lowering his head apologetically as his mom handed him a plate of food. 

“Where’s Ryan? Did he go home?” 

“He’s upstairs, sleeping,” he answered. “I’m sure he’ll be down soon.” 

Again with the pursed lips.

 “Min-Gi, do you know if everything’s alright with Ryan at home?” She asked, sitting at the table with him. “I didn’t want to say anything alarming in front of him, but he was…acting strangely yesterday.”

“I’m sure he’s just dealing with jet-lag… whatever the van equivalent of that is,” Min said, pushing his food around on the plate. 

“I didn’t even see his van parked outside,” she said. 

“He said it’s at the shop.” Min-Gi cringed at how easily he was able to lie to his mother lately. But Ryan made him promise not to say anything about his family until he was ready. And Ryan trusted him. 

“Good morning, Mrs.Park, Min-Gi,” Ryan said, standing at the entrance of the kitchen awkwardly. “I hope I wasn’t interrupting anything.” 

“No, of course not, dear. Have a seat,” she said, standing up from the table. “I’ll be going to work soon, there’s some breakfast on the counter if you’re hungry.”

She gave Min-Gi a hug and a kiss on the cheek before taking a paper bag with her. Once Min-Gi’s mom left the kitchen, Ryan took her seat at the table. Min-Gi reached over and gently placed his hand over Ryan’s. 

“I didn’t tell her anything, promise,” he whispered. He felt Ryan noticeably relax under his touch, but Min-Gi himself felt even more tense. When the doorbell rang, Ryan got up to answer the door. He let Grace and Simon inside, leading them upstairs. Min-Gi finished his plate and cleaned up. He noticed Ryan’s plate went untouched. He decided to store it in the fridge, figuring Ryan probably wasn’t hungry this early in the morning.

“Joanne ripped me a new one last night,” Simon complained, leaning back on a chair. “Told her I technically did as she asked all night, so it’s not like she could do anything to me…for now.” 

Grace sucked her teeth sympathetically, patting his back. She pulled the notebook out from her bag and started to look through the pages. 

“I can see the pages about those kids that went missing on the train,” Min-Gi said quietly as he looked over Grace’s shoulder. “They really are on this numbers train… or at least they were.”

 “I think they’re still there,” Grace said. “This book belonged to someone who’s been on the train for quite awhile…”

“This train doesn't have normal stops… I don’t think they could’ve easily gotten off like they got on,” Simon added. Min-Gi continued to flip through the notebook, skimming the pages. A certain image caught his eye, and he called the others over to look.

 “This drawing… looks a lot like Kez!” he pointed out. Ryan gasped when he recognized her, but Grace and Simon looked incredibly confused. 

“Who?”

 “Kez! The lady we saw last night at the charity ball!” Ryan said. “She helped us get One-One back, Grace!”

“She also helped me get away from Joanne,” Min-Gi added. Ryan frowned slightly, and Min squeezed his hand to let him know he wasn’t upset at him for accidentally letting go.

 “She was our babysitter for a few years,” Ryan continued suddenly. “Until she disappeared out of nowhere. By that time, we’d gotten too old for babysitters, but we still missed her.”

 “Her being in the notebook suggests that she was on the train at some point,” Grace said. “But then how did she escape but the kids didn’t?”

“She looked… very strange when we found One-One,” Ryan piped up. “I tried asking her what was up, but she didn’t say anything. Maybe we could ask her–”

His phone rang loudly. He left the room quickly to go answer it. Min-Gi suppressed the urge to go after him and figure out who kept calling him. 

“One-One, do you know Kez?” Min-Gi asked. “Did you see her on the train?”

“Well yes, actually! I think she’s the last person I saw before I ended up here and Miss Grace found me! I don’t really remember what happened before, though. It was all a blur of light and yelling.”

“I still know where Kez lives,” Min-Gi said, standing up. “Sometimes our parents dropped us off at her place instead of having her come to us. Once Ryan finishes his phone call, we can go see her.”