A/N just a head's up... I wanted to quickly explain my update schedule (whilst listening to Jonghyun's Fine like wtf  I can't guys help me this song every bloody time it's too much) but o.o haha, yeah, basically the schedule is all over the place because I update as soon as I finish another chapter. So, that's why sometimes there's a few days between updates, and why there's times like now, where I literally updated at around 1AM this morning and I'm updating again now. I am on chapter thirty seven as far as writing is concerned, but I don't want that progress to slip so I don't update until I've written a chapter, which is why it's all over the place :3 anyway I'm crying because Moon River Waltz is playing (Onew's voice T.T) and I'm crying bc, well, every time xD so I hope you enjoy the chapter <3 and, as ever, thank you for reading and commenting ^-^   •••   The morning came as subtly as a whisper. Taemin hadn’t slept, at all, for he could not rest knowing Jonghyun was a mere level beneath him, unconscious or scared witless, and either way alone. Upon sunrise, it took a few hours for Hwangsoon to deliver his first meal – cereal with powdered milk that tasted of cardboard – but even upon his simple appearance, Taemin could tell that something was off. Usually Hwangsoon would impertinently catch Taemin’s gaze and hold it, crinkle his nose at the room’s humidity and linger for a second, presenting a question or a grunt. That morning, however, Hwangsoon barely acknowledged the younger man, and left as quickly as he could.
This unnerved Taemin.
He ate a spoonful of the cereal and left the rest, the opposite of hungry despite having under-eaten for days. He spent the next hour humming and picking at a rag-nail, anticipating what was to come: the unknown.   Finally, the door shuddered open again, and Taemin raised his head, groggily, expecting to see Eunjin or Hwangsoon, but instead shocked by the vision of a stranger. The man was a lot more threatening than his comrades, with stern features and a long forehead. His jaw was angular and his hair short, and he was tall, much taller than Taemin, with broad shoulders and a lean build. His very expression was domineering, intimidating Taemin into silence.   The man regarded Taemin with the familiarity of an old friend yet the disgust someone would hold towards a pest, bottom lip curled crudely and arms strong by his sides, revealed by the loose fitting shirt he wore, sleeves rolled up to the elbows.   "Get up,” he instructed, deep voice harsh. Taemin did as told, back stiff, yet unwilling to stand against the man. Something about him demanded respect and gripped tightly to authority. He made Taemin feel weak, vulnerable, and he didn’t like it.
“Listen to me closely,” began the man, with Taemin’s eyes locked firmly on him. “If you do as I say and remain silent, things will go a lot easier for you.”   Behind the new perpetrator, Hwangsoon appeared, with something black in his hands. Taemin couldn’t tell what it was as he slipped into the room by the stranger, eyes following Taemin’s every motion.   "Don't fight back, don’t argue, and don’t reveal anything about your location. If you do, your friend gets it. Don't think I’m lying when I say that. You're not important to us, Lee Taemin.”
Taemin was scared. His confusion only added to his terror as he tried to process the words of the man. Nothing made sense to him but the threat to Jonghyun, nothing was clear but-
Suddenly Taemin’s vision was dark and he gasped for breath, flailing out rapidly and hitting Hwangsoon’s stomach as the black bag was forced over his head.
“Stop it!” Hwangsoon grunted, as Taemin struggled, before feeling two more strong hands on him, hands so strong he couldn’t shake them, as Hwangsoon quickly tied the bag around his head securely.
Taemin couldn’t see anything and had only a slit to breathe. He coughed, squinted, but couldn’t fight back. Terror seized him as he tried to rationally think about what was happening, but the numbers were adding to nothing and all he could feel were the strong hands of Hwangsoon and the stranger, forcefully guiding him forward.
Taemin almost stumbled over his own feet, receiving a vicious slap on the back of the head, and a grumbled, “Straighten up,” from Hwangsoon, as they moved.
“Where are we going?” Taemin tried, voice muffled by the bag. They took a turn, Taemin trying to pull his arms from their painful grip. Panic was beginning to strike him, desperation fuelling his veins.
“Shut up,” the stranger barked. “You'll find out soon enough.”
•••
The first thing that struck him was the temperature.
It was as if he'd ran himself a bath of boiling water and instantly plunged in, skin sticky and damp from perspiration. As the bag was viciously wrenched from his head, his gasp for breath went unheard as he stiffened in the heat.
Taemin blinked.
In front of him was a camera, and he was sat on a chair, with his wrists and legs bound. Tape covered his mouth – Hwangsoon had forced it on in the previous room, removing the bag for a mere second – and he struggled to breathe through his nose, the air close and humid in the dark room. Though the camera glared at him from a few metres in front, Taemin couldn’t chart the expanse of the room, the corners completely darkened. He caught the tails of wires from the camera however, hooked up to something unknown, most likely transmitting a video. The only illumination came from two weak spotlights, one directly above Taemin, and the other a couple of metres to his left, directly above-
Taemin tilted his head and widened his eyes in horror.
A man sat, neck stooped, drawing the quietest of breaths beside Taemin. He too was gagged, his eye blackened and nose bust, the blood dried yet recent. He wore an over-sized hoodie to hide his narro