THE SECRET BETWEEN US

The rain had been falling over Seoul for nearly three hours.

Ara stood beneath the awning outside the company building, watching drops of water race down the glass doors.

Her phone vibrated.

She looked down.

Unknown Number

You shouldn’t have debuted.

Ara’s smile disappeared.

Another message arrived.

Ask your members what happened three years ago.

She stared at the screen.

Three years ago?

“Ara!”

She quickly looked up.

Minae was standing inside the entrance.

“Are you coming?”

Ara locked her phone.

“Yeah.”

She slipped it into her pocket and followed Minae inside.

VÉLORA had debuted only a few months earlier, and things were moving faster than any of them had expected. Their first song had become surprisingly popular, and now they were preparing for a special collaborative performance.

With Stray Kids.

Rina had been talking about it all morning.

“I’m going to meet all eight of them,” she whispered excitedly.

“You’ve met them before,” Yuna reminded her.

“Not like this!”

Sora laughed.

Ara smiled at them.

For a moment, she forgot about the message.

Almost.

When they entered the practice room, Stray Kids were already there.

Bang Chan greeted them warmly.

“Hey! Glad you guys made it.”

The introductions quickly turned into laughter.

Changbin and Yuna immediately started arguing over which group was louder.

Han and Rina began talking so quickly that neither seemed to know what the other was saying.

Felix complimented Sora’s choreography.

Seungmin teased Rina when she nearly tripped over her own bag.

Lee Know watched everything with an amused smile.

I.N joined the conversation.

Hyunjin stood near the mirror, quietly stretching.

Ara caught his eye.

He smiled.

“Ready?”

“Ready.”

The music started.

For the next hour, everything felt normal.

Then the lights went out.

Everyone stopped.

“Uh...” Han said. “Was that supposed to happen?”

The emergency lights flickered on.

Then the main lights returned.

Something was lying in the middle of the floor.

A photograph.

Ara walked toward it.

She picked it up.

Her blood ran cold.

Five girls were standing in the photograph.

Ara.

Minae.

Sora.

Yuna.

Rina.

But the picture looked years old.

On the back were six words:

Some secrets don’t stay buried.

Ara’s hands trembled.

“Ara?” Sora asked.

Ara turned the photograph over again.

There was something else.

A date.

Three years ago.

She couldn’t breathe.

Her phone vibrated.

Unknown Number

You found it.

Another message appeared.

Now find out who took the picture.

Ara slowly looked around the room.

Everyone was watching her.

Except Hyunjin.

He was staring at the photograph.

And the expression on his face wasn’t confusion.

It was recognition.