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Mingyu's eyes stayed focused on Yujin who didn't dare to say a word after watching the video. He could see the gears in the boy's brain turning. He was most likely making up a lie.

"Where is she, Yujin?" Wonwoo asked, crossing his legs, trying to mask his sudden hatred towards the boy in front of him.

Mingyu gritted his teeth, he was sure Hyein was in this house. They needed to get a search warrant and they needed to get it fast, before he moved the body.

His brain drifted back to the smell they'd perceived when they first entered into the home. It was coming from somewhere, perhaps it was Hyein?

He stood up, handing the laptop to Wonwoo before he began to move. "Where are you going?!" Yujin shouted, the hair on his hands raising as Mingyu walked to the kitchen.

"Excuse me, Yujin's mother. Do you have a basement?" Mingyu asked and she nodded, an uneasy smile on her face as she escorted Mingyu to the basement.

Wonwoo heard the sounds and kept a tight grip on his gun. He wasn't playing around.

He stood up, pressing his pager and calling for help from the station as he walked out of the living room, towards the front door.

He locked it and threw the key into his pocket before also going to the basement. As he reached there, he saw Yujin's mother stood with her jaw hung wide open.

He opened the door slightly and the two faced him immediately. Mingyu pointed to the clothes on the floor which seemed like teenage girl clothes then he pointed to the backpack on the side.

The Hans certainly didn't have any female children so this, this had to be Hyein's.

Wonwoo went back up the stairs, instructing the kids to follow him. As they got back to the floor, the girls' reactions to the clothes and bag confirmed their suspicions.

"You're not going to tell us where she fucking is now, Yujin?!" Mingyu slammed his fist into the wall, his knuckles slowly starting to become coated by blood as he breathed in and out.

Yujin avoided looking at anyone, tears slowly building up in his eyes. "I'm sorry, she... she came here to yell at me and I don't know what happened, I got so angry and then we fought and I ended up taking off her clothes to ridicule her." The first tear dropped to his cheeks.

"I kept her in here for about a week or two, tied her up and convinced my parents I was just using the basement for a project but..."

He caged his face in his palms, shaking his head in regret. "But what, Yujin?" Wonwoo asked, the grip on his gun getting tighter and his heart starting to feel a lot heavier.

"But, she escaped 2 days ago and... I have no idea where she went."

Mingyu's eyes closed, his head hanging down as he began to tear up. Memories of his own brother's case washing over him in painfully nostalgic waves.

They were so close, they were so close to finding her and yet, they were so far.

Wonwoo sighed, his grip loosening as he crossed his arms and stared at the floor. He wondered how someone could be so evil, so violent, so wicked as a child.

Yujin had not only cheated on her but also violated her in his own home, a home she probably assumed she would be safe in, her boyfriend's house.

"You're a disgrace, Yujin. I hope you change in the future but in the meantime, you can prepare to go to a juvenile center because I swear you will." Wonwoo spat with not even a hint of consideration or care for the boy beside him.

He quickly snapped pictures of the scene and walked towards Mingyu, taking him by the hand and dragging him out of the basement.

"Officers, please wait, my son, he's a good boy... please." Yujin's mother ran out of the basement, begging on her knees.

Wonwoo scoffed, about to reply when Mingyu turned around with an expressionless face. "No, your son is a criminal in the making and a cheater and a sexual assaulter. You all let Lee Hyein down, you all are responsible for whatever state she is in and has been in. You all are why she disappeared."

After hitting them with the cold, hard truth that rendered them speechless, he turned back to continue his walk up the stairs.

Don't worry Lee Hyein, we're going to find you.

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Jeonghan brushed his hair with almost no energy, leaving it looking both kempt and unkempt at the same time.

He went for a natural look, throwing on a black hat, his favourite dark blue sweater and black cargos with his blue sneakers.

He had no idea why Joshua had all of a sudden wanted to take him out for dinner but a free meal was a free meal and he took all his chances as he rightfully should have.

He threw his tote bag over his shoulder, putting his phone and his wallet in there before grabbing his key and leaving the house.

As he got outside, he saw a car parked outside of his home and the windows rolled down, revealing Joshua in the front with an extremely familiar face in the passenger seat.

It was Seungkwan, the person Jeonghan cared the most about in this world. Jeonghan and Seungkwan used to live in the same neighbourhood before he had to move to Seoul.

But what was Seungkwan doing here?

They hadn't contacted each other in literal years and besides, how was he here? He didn't know Joshua either.

Jeonghan waved briefly before walking to the car, opening the door to the backseat but as he did, he came in contact with Seungcheol seated at the other end looking so handsome and so dashing that he froze for a second.

"Aren't you going to get in?" Seungcheol asked, reaching out for Jeonghan's hand and playfully pulling him into the car. Jeonghan fell into the car, seating down before closing his door.

Jeonghan blinked over and over, cleaning his eyes. "Why are... you here?" He questioned. Seungcheol's sudden presence in Joshua's car surprised him even more than Seungkwan being in Seoul and in Joshua's car.

"Free food." He replied with a nonchalant demeanor as Jeonghan put on his seatbelt. Jeonghan remained skeptical but let it slide as he turned to Seungkwan. "Seungkwan! You didn't tell me you were coming!"

He shook Seungkwan's shoulders from behind and the boy smiled, laughing a bit as he replied, "I just came to Seoul yesterday, for a business trip but suddenly Joshua found me and contacted me." Seungkwan explained and Jeonghan turned to Joshua, pinching his cheek weakly.

"You could've said something." He pouted but Joshua just smirked, shaking his head. "And ruin the fun? No way, besides, you've always told me about Seungkwan. I had to do this for you."

Jeonghan smiled giving them both kisses on their cheeks which surprised them but made them happy nonetheless.

Seungcheol watched as Jeonghan's soft, pink lips touched their cheeks and how he laughed with them and joked with them and had full on conversations with only them throughout the car ride and he felt a black hole swallowing up his heart.

Seeing Jeonghan do all that with people who weren't him was driving him to insanity. His fists balled as he tried to distract himself, looking out the window but it didn't work.

The sounds of his beautiful, melodic laugh still passed through Seungcheol's ears and that alone was torture for him.

Why wasn't Jeonghan paying any attention to him? Or maybe he shouldn't have been wanting attention from a criminal and the prime suspect in his case.

But he couldn't help it. The man was an angel.

He faced Jeonghan again, grabbing his arm and pulling him back to his seat. Jeonghan looked at him with both an annoyed and confused expression as he fell on his seat.

"You shouldn't stand in the car, if anything happens, you'll get hurt." Seungcheol alerted him and Jeonghan's face relaxed, a small smile forming on his lips. Was it weird that he found Choi Seungcheol cute?

Was it weird that he was strangely excited and also strangely nervous around the man?

Was it weird that he couldn't even talk to him properly without hearing his heart beat like a drum?

Yes, yes it was. He was the detective on his case for Christ sake! And yet here he was, slowly drowning into his charms.

Everyone here had a better connection with him than Seungcheol and a better relationship so why did he feel more connected to Seungcheol, more drawn to him like a magnet?

They were both playing dangerous games and they definitely knew it.

Was it strange though, that they liked the thrill?

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The four men got to the restaurant, staring at the breathtaking interior in awe and astonishment as they walked in. Everywhere in the restaurant was beautiful.

"Hello, Reservation for Hong Jisoo." Joshua informed the host who checked her tablet before smiling at him and gesturing to his table.

A perfect, round table for four. Jeonghan started down first then Seungcheol then Seungkwan and Joshua. As they sat down, a waitress walked up to them.

"Good evening Sirs, what would you like to order?" She asked but Joshua called her over, whispering her he had already made a birthday dinner menu. She nodded, walking away.

Jeonghan's face scrunched up, "What was that? We don't get any food?" He asked, placing his hand on his tummy as it grumbled aggressively.

Joshua chuckled, placing his arms on the table. "I already ordered a menu for us." He explained and Jeonghan made an "Oh" expression before going quiet.

"Seungcheol-ah, this is the quietest I've heard you." Joshua pointed out, a wide smile on his face as Seungcheol gradually exposed his middle finger.

Seungkwan noticed, laughing but Jeonghan was too busy to see. Damn. Seungcheol wondered if it would have made him laugh too.

"You know I'm not a social person. I'm just good at my job." He explained anyways and Jeonghan glanced at him before his eyes fell back to his phone. He felt a bit shocked. Seungcheol wasn't someone who seemed antisocial to him.

In fact, he seemed extremely sociable.

Guess you truly couldn't judge a book by its cover. Maybe he needed to find out more about Seungcheol.

But that would be after he killed his next victim because not only had that bastard raped 2 women including his wife, he had also raped an underage girl just today.

He needed to go to hell. Very soon and Jeonghan would make sure of that.

An hour passed before Jeonghan leaned back, closing his eyes as his hand touched his small bump on his stomach. He was full and satisfied. The meal was delicious and the conversations with everyone were also very good and interesting.

The four men were an odd combination for sure but in some way, they got along perfectly well.

As Jeonghan sat back up, he saw a waitress bringing out a cake with sparklers on top and his three guests singing the happy birthday song to him.

"Happy Birthday To You!" They finished with loud claps as the cake was placed in front of Jeonghan and he smiled, blowing out the candles.

He wasn't usually emotional but for some reason, his eyes started to water and he gently patted them to get the tears out quickly.

"I'd like to give you my present first." Seungcheol announced, getting up with his gift bag. Joshua smiled and so did Seungkwan as Seungcheol went closer to Jeonghan.

He handed over the bag which Jeonghan opened, taking out the content. A plushie,  stress reliever and a pack of chamomile tea.

Jeonghan turned to him a bit taken aback by the choice of presents. "They'll help you with your insomnia and sleep paralysis." He whispered into Jeonghan's ears and Jeonghan started to cry again.

He was so grateful to have people in his life who actually cared about him because normally, usually people didn't.

Seungcheol squatted, taking out something from under the table. He placed it on the table and Jeonghan's eyes widened.

A new PC. He'd been wanting one for months. How the hell did Seungcheol know that?

Even Seungkwan and Joshua stared at the gift, shocked by Seungcheol's gift sense. "What, is it bad?" He asked, oblivious but as Jeonghan stood up and ran to him, wrapping him in a tight hug, his worries faded.

In that moment, it was just the two of them against the world and maybe, against each other as well.

The feeling of being in each other's arms was exhilarating and soothingly comforting.

And suddenly, Seungcheol couldn't wait for more moments like these.

Ⓒ︎OHWAYOHWAYOH
𝕾𝖙𝖆𝖗𝖙𝖊𝖉 - 11/11/2024
𝕰𝖓𝖉𝖊𝖉 - N/A

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