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When Youngjae caught up to Shinhye, they’ve already - only - walked for ten minutes. For Youngjae, who has without fail been the runner in his group, somehow found it difficult to keep up with her. Not only were her strides long but they were quick. Quicker than he had expected, so in the end he found himself pleading, “Can you walk slower? This afternoon walk with Jangjun is taking its toll and my feet are killing me,”

However, rather than respecting his desire, the woman kept her pace and instead encouraged him, “There’s a bus stop ahead. If we plan to take breaks, too, then we should hurry to compensate for any lost time,”

Youngjae, who wasn’t given the option to agree or disagree, began slacking. While Shinhye sped up; jogging in between every three to four steps.

Scanning around their dark and slightly empty surroundings, Youngjae’s mind began to wonder if there were ways they could get out of traveling on foot.

Hitchhiking? An idea that came to him when a car passed by noisily. But as quickly as it came, it left just as fast. Though he was confident that he could protect Shinhye and him from unwanted harm, he didn’t like it after all. If he was wary of his traveling buddy, there was no doubt he’d be able to trust a stranger.

Then just as he thought the car would pass by, it stopped just ahead of them and began to reverse. Youngjae with his 20 out of 20 vision instantly recognized the license plate.

JD 696.

Once the car stopped beside a standstill Shinhye, the passenger door flew open and a man came out. Shinhye took a step back as the male stood to face her. Meanwhile, Youngjae who was sprinting at them, easily avoided Shinhye as he reached out and grabbed a hold of the man’s dress collar, ripping one or two of his buttons. Then as Youngjae was ready to swing and strike the man with a punch, a quick arm from behind him grabbed onto his arm.

Taken by surprised, Youngjae peeked over his shoulder and noticed it was Shinhye. Her grip on him was incredibly strong that he mistook her for a man a split moment ago. Then with him distracted, the man pushed Youngjae’s hand away and attempted to kick Youngjae, but Shinhye easily kicked the man’s only standing leg and it sent him to the ground with a grunt.

And before they all knew it, a shot was fired into the night somewhere. Youngjae and Shinhye turned to their left where they saw Daewon. He had a gun pointed at them, where smoke was quickly escaping its barrel and fading into thin air.

The man smirked, “I see you still have it in you. Do you still practice, Shinhye?”

Youngjae’s felt his body heating up. He wanted to wipe the smirk off the man’s face. He wanted to punch him, to kill him, and to get Seyeon back. Then before his building anger could get the best of him, he felt Shinhye’s grip loosen and slowly she dropped her hand to her side.

“What are you doing out there? You have no business being here. This isn’t your hometown anymore,” Shinhye said as she deflected his comment.

For a moment the man cocked his gun as he drew it back and lowered it out of sight. “You’re right. It isn’t. But it is yours and I came here to find you,”

“At this hour?” Shinhye asked in disbelief and with a hint of sarcasm. Youngjae wanted to stay still but his head and heart wouldn’t let him.

“Cut the crap, where’s Seyeon you bastard?”

Amused and offended by his question, Daewon scoffed, “Bastard? Isn’t that you?”

“Me?”

“Yeah. You’re the bastard who didn’t save her,” with an entertained chuckle he added, “you should have seen the look on her face when she thought you’d save her. I did warn Shinhye that I better not see you there but it’s not like she listens to me. And I thought, maybe a foolish guy like you would show up so I prepared one bullet that day. Too bad I used it on some other loser though—”

“You must want to die, come here I’ll help you, you bastard—!”

When Youngjae made steps toward the car, Shinhye grabbed onto his jacket and pulled him back. “He’s provoking you, don’t fall for it!” She warned. Youngjae ruffled his hair in frustration before turning to Shinhye.

“How can you be so calm? The bastard who took Seyeon and killed Chul is right in front of our eyes! Don’t you feel sorry for Chul? He left behind a wife and child! And what about Seyeon? She was taken against h