It had been a week already, Tori went to every one of Taehyung's lectures 15 minutes before and asked all his lecturers for notes on what they were going to teach, telling them that he had a family emergency and wasn't able to make it.

After that, and apart from attending her own lectures, she would constantly be visiting his apartment and the hospital's morgue where his mother was being kept, in case she would find him.

But no luck.

And she didn't know anything else about him to figure out where else he could be.

"What about PC rooms?" Jen suggested as they were eating their lunch.

"PC rooms?"

"I've never been in one but you know, in the dramas that's where all the ner- smart people go in their free time."

"Really?"

"I'm trying to help, Tor, I can't be sure though."

She stepped into the PC room down the street from their University and looked around. He wasn't there.

She went to the next one, and then the next, until she had searched through all of the PC rooms in the Seoul area through the whole week.

She didn't know what to do, she was trying her hardest not to break down for it would be a waste of time, but it was hard for her.

She was starting to grow attached to the boy, which wasn't surprising considering all the time they had spent together. They had literally spend every minute – apart from their own lectures and the few times they had eaten lunch apart – studying and working on their assignment but she couldn't help thinking that those may have just been excuses... she found herself wanting to be with him more and more. And everything that worried him, worried her. She didn't want to ever see him sad and she loved seeing him happy.

There must have been something more behind that... it wasn't just something a friend feels for a friend.

It was... more.

Tori didn't know what else to do, who else to ask.

The only member of Taehyung's family she had met was his mother and... she couldn't ask her for help.

But then it hit her.

There was one more person, there was still one more person who could possibly help.

She headed to Taehyung's apartment and sat at his counter, calling the pizza shop she had called before, when the pair were working on their science project.

Ordering whatever came up to mind, she waited the 15 minutes until the delivery man showed up at his door.

She opened the door without second thought and her eyes lit up to see him standing there.

Her hope.

"Hi!"

"Uh... hi," he was visibly taken aback by her enthusiasm.

And honestly Tori was too, she hadn't felt this much zeal in a long time, even if it was for a short while.

"You're Taehyung's friend, right?" she asked and he raised an eyebrow.

"He's my cousin... why?"

Right. Taehyung didn't have friends.

"Really?" she stepped aside and motioned for him to come in, "Do you think you can help me with something?"

"I'm on duty..."

"This is important."

"How important?"

"Tae's missing," she spurted and Jungkook's eyes widened.

"He's what?"

"Missing. I can't find him, and I don't know where to look for him."

"Have you tried calling him?"

Tori glared at him, "Wow, you're so smart, geez I didn't even think about that."

"Okay, okay, sorry," he shook his head, looking at the table while he put the pizza down, "Do you know why he went missing?"

"Uh... I think I do."

"Why?"

"His mother died," she told him and judging by his expression she realised that the tone she used probably wasn't right when talking to his cousin about it.

"Aunty's what?" he whispered and Tori noticed the way his eyes started to become extremely reflective, glossy even.

"I-I'm sorry... I didn't know if you we-"

"Hyung must be in so much pain," the boy sobbed, running his fingers through his hair. "We need to find him."

"Yeah, Jungkook I'm so sorry, I didn't realise-"

"Aunty treated me like her own son when my own mother left to go overseas without me, and Taehyung treated me and my little brothers and sisters like his own... I just can't believe..."

Tori didn't know what to do, so she handed him tissue, after tissue, after tissue.

After a good five minutes, he took a deep breath, wiping his eyes and shaking himself.

"We really need to find hyung, before he..."

"Before he what?"

"Does something he'll regret."

"What will he do?" Tori asked, feeling her heart rate increase and she was close to stammering her words.

"Let's just find him as soon as possible," he took his phone out and dialled a number.

"Hi Boss," he answered, "I just wanted to ask if I could get off work early, I have a family emergency", "Yes, I'll work longer hours tomorrow", "Thank you so much!"

Tori waited until Jungkook put the phone back into his pocket, took his apron off and put it on the table.

"Where do you think he would have gone?"

"Let's check his family's home, and then his high school and if those don't work, the last option is the science labs over on the other side of Seoul."

"Okay..." Tori agreed without asking the question she really wanted to ask; why those places?

Their first stop was Taehyung's family home, and it was as empty as she expected it to be.

But that was when it hit her, now Taehyung literally had no more family, apart from Jungkook and his nieces and nephews.

Jungkook knew the passcode number to the house and he entered it, familiar with the layout as if it were his own house.

He went into all the rooms while Tori stayed in the living room, looking around at the various photo frames and all the little details that just make this place a home.

"He's not here," Jungkook appeared, panting.

"Alright," Tori looked over at the clock, it was nearing 5 o'clock. "Out of the high school and the science labs, which one do you think he would most likely be at?"

"The high school?" Jungkook said in a questioning tone and then shook his head, "The science labs."

"Are you sure? We don't have time to waste," she asked and he shook his head again.

"I don't know," he lips started to tremble and Tori realised he wasn't okay like he said he was.

"That's okay," she tried to calm him down, "He wouldn't do anything to himself, he wouldn't do that to you or your brothers and sisters, okay?"

"I don't kno-"

"I've only known Tae for a little over a month," Tori smiled at him, "And I just know that he wouldn't even think about doing anything to himself, especially when you guys are in the picture, I know how much his family means to him, he wouldn't."

"Okay," he nodded, "Well the high school is closer, so let's go there first."

"Will the science labs be... open this late?" Tori asked, she didn't know what science labs he was talking about and she didn't know how they worked.

"They aren't really 'open' to the general public per say, just to their students."

"Their students?" Tori asked and they got into Jungkook's car, "Is Tae their student?"

"Well, yeah, he's been studying there on the side, there's this specific degree he wants to get, and only that branch of the University offers it. It's similar to a PhD degree, so he doesn't need to attend any lectures, just needs to visit to hand in assignments. But I guess it's turned into his safe haven."

"Then shouldn't we check there first?"

Jungkook turned to her, "But the high school..."

"You said it was his safe haven though, wouldn't that mean he would be there?"

"Yeah but... okay, you're right."

He spun the car around, making Tori grip to the handlebar so tight it hurt.

"Hello?!" she screamed, and took a deep breath out once he was driving normally again.

"Sorry, the labs are just in the opposite direction."

"Oh, of course they are," she mocked his tone, making them both laugh.

And that was the first time that day she felt like she helped, even if it were the tiniest bit.

▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

They arrived at the labs about forty five minutes later, and both of them rushed out of the car as soon as it was parked.

Jungkook lead Tori into the back entrance, because the office hours were over, and he started pacing down the hallway rapidly.

He knew exactly where to go, the turns and the doors, which was weird, considering that from what he had told her, Taehyung didn't come here much, so he wouldn't have much reason to visit the building either.

He finally reached a door at which he stopped.

"Well?" Tori asked and Jungkook raised an eyebrow.

"Huh?"

"Are you going to open it?" she asked and he just stared at her.

"What?"

"Oh boy," she muttered and pushed past him, twisting the handle and opening the door.

And there, in that dimly lit room, standing in front of a few test tubes and a Bunsen burner, wearing a lab coat and safety glasses, was the man she had been looking for all week.

The only man on her mind that whole time.

Tae.

He turned around, almost dropping the test tube he was holding when his eyes rested on them.

"Vic-"

"Taehyung!" she ran up to him without a second of hesitation, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"V-Victoria?"

"That's right, you jerk," she punched his stomach, to which he gasped, clutching it with the hand that wasn't holding the test tube. "Do you know how long I waited for you to come back? I can't believe you didn't even send me single a text to tell me you were alright."

"Y