005 ???

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I'm in a bakery.

The air is alight with a warm fragrance of chocolate and cinnamon and spices, notes of vanilla floating through. Wide windows let in radiant sunlight that caresses each curve, edge, and dip in the simple room.

Honey-golden wood floors and rustic, light tables fill the space with airiness and openness.

A long glass bar showcases freshly basked muffins, cinnamon rolls, and a tray of chocolate chip cookies.

I inhale deeply through my nose, reveling in the ambiance.

A cheerful voice pulls my attention to the doorway to the kitchen.

In it stands a man in a soft, creamy sweater, whose smile makes a calm, peaceful feeling settle in my chest.

"Hi, Namhyuk!" you breathe, staring at the tray of sweet rolls he's cradling to his chest.

His dimples make an appearance as he motions back to the doorway through which he came.

"We've been waiting for you," Namhyuk says sweetly."Jin made your favorite brownies. Everyone's in the back."

I nod and namhyuk whisks the tray off to the counter to put the sweet rolls inside.

Meanwhile, I wander through the door into the back, peeking my head around the frame.

Within is an elegant man in an apron, stirring a bowl of dough with a wooden spoon in the midst of a homey kitchen. He's splattered with flour, his rosebud lips pursed in a slight smile.

Behind him at a round table sit two more men, chattering with each and other and with the cooks.

They're all dressed in shades of white and cream and eggshell, the slightest glow gracing their skin to the point that I have to almost squint when you look at them.

The way the two at the table speak to each other reminds me of a pair of close siblings.

"Jin" I murmur absently "Kyo, Kenma".

The three look up from their playful banter, each gifting you with a bright smile.

"HIKARI!!!!" Kyo cheers. He pops up from the table and embraces you for a moment, then motions back to the table "You're here! Look, these are for you and your..." he trails off, shooting a sly grin at kenma and wiggling his eyebrows "...your man."

your man? my man?

My peering gaze of confusion doesn't register with the men as they all laughing at Kyo's statement.

Kenma passes off a plate of thick, chocolate-studded brownies in my hands.

"Peanut-butter chocolate chip" chirps Jin "These are your favorite. Eat them all or I'll stuff them down your throat."

okayyyyyyyy

I break off an edge of one and pop into my mouth, gasping at the vivid tumult of flavors that cascades across the surface of my tongue. My shocked expression prompts another round of laughter from the men in the kitchen.

"That face gets me every time," Kenma giggles "You always look the same when you eat Jin's brownies."

Always? Something about this whole situation is off, but I can't put a finger on why....,

The kitchen door swings open to admit a sweet baby face with the nose lifted into the air, like a hunting dog on point.

"Brownies?" Yuki questions eagerly. "I smelled brownies." and when he smiles, I have to blink in surprise to make sure that adorable gummy grin is real.

"Those aren't for you!" says the oldest "Get out, you Vermin!"

Yuki groans and persistently tries to reach around his elder, his long, pale fingers grasping for the plate in my hand.

"I'll die without them," groans the man dramatically "Hikari, do you want me to die?"

"Hobi!!" Jin yells as he simultaneously runs interference. He's swatting Yuki's hands with weak blows, mainly using his tall body as a shield between the smaller man and the plate.

Like a knight prepared to slay a dragon, the lean hobi comes roaring into the kitchen at his friend's call.

"protect" jin shouts, pointing at you and the brownies.

Hobi performs a tiny military salute and then takes the brownies in his hand, throwing me over his shoulder in one smooth movement.

I let out a tiny oof! when all of the air is forced out of my lungs at the impact.

"I needed to find you anyways," Hobi says his voice jumping up and down in pitch as he runs.

Once I make it out of the door and into the front gate, his footsteps slow down."He asked me to come and find you.:

He?

"This feels so weird," you mumble to yourself. It's not normal.

This isn't normal.

Why am I letting these men lug me around wherever they want?

My mind is foggy and vague. How did I get here again?

Hobi carries me through another staff door, into a small room that's equipped with a table, refrigerator, and a microwave. It looks like a break room of some sort.

At the table sits another man.

His black eyes are trained down on a sheet of paper, fingers clasped lightly around a mechanical pencil.

His full lower lip is trapped by his white teeth, nibbling as he concentrates.

When Hobi lets me down on the floor, my feet thunking to the floor, the man looks up.

And when his gaze clashes with mine, all of the breath is knocked out my chest, like someone just sucker punched me in the lungs.