“Hurry up, will you?” N called desperately over his shoulder. His sneakers pounded on the pavement like this was the last, most desperate run of his life. He tried to be there for the younger boys when they needed him, and he didn’t think there was any other time that Leo needed him more than now, whether or not he was willing to admit it.       

Hongbin and Ken panted as they tried to keep up with his strides; he may have been shorter, but he certainly ran faster than they.

“How...do you know...where to go...?” Ken gasped for breath and pulled his t-shirt out of Hongbin’s grip as the younger grabbed it to keep up. “It’s...not like...he told you...where he was...headed...”

"Long story!” N was already several yards ahead of them, and he stopped for a moment to glance around to make sure they were in the right place. As his eyes roamed their surroundings, he became aware that there were only two accompanying him, bent over double and trying to catch their breath.

“Where’s Ravi?” He asked them, watching their eyes widen and glance around, obviously just noticing that he was no longer with them. “This is stupid. We’re not waiting for him.”

“Wait...hang on...!” A voice called from behind them. Ravi was running as fast as he could to catch up. “Wait for me!”

They waited, none too patiently, for him to stumble to a halt and grab onto Ken’s shoulder to keep himself upright. “Where were you?” N asked, semi-angrily. Ravi shrugged noncommittally, avoiding all of their gazes.

"It doesn’t matter.” He finally caught his breath. “Can we find Leo now?”

“That’s what we’re trying to do.” N muttered before grabbing Hongbin’s shirt and hauling him with him. The four of them continued running, the streets growing darker as they did. The sun had long since disappeared over the horizon and the air was becoming colder; the thought of coats hadn’t crossed any of their minds, but they ignored the way their teeth were chattering and continued running as fast as they could.

They turned the corner onto Naebu street to find that it was as deserted as the rest of the streets in the area. Confused, they started looking around, knowing Leo had to be here somewhere.

“Are you sure he’d be here?” Hongbin dared ask, earning himself glares from the other three. They crept around, and were just about to give up when they heard a shout coming from the alleyway at the end of the street.

"And do you happen to remember what I said after that?!” They looked at each other in shock. This time, Ken led the way to the entrance of the alleyway. It was dark, but they could still see enough to make out the two shadowed silhouettes, and the sight was enough to make them stumble to a halt and stare.

None of them had heard the voice in four years, but there was no way any of them would have forgotten it. While it was rather soft and quiet most of the time when they used to hear it, it did have the capability to sound downright terrifying when Leo wanted it to. He wouldn’t yell at first; if anything, his voice would go dangerously soft before he deemed the time right to explode. His voice could rip through several octaves when he got angry enough, and if any of them were to think about it, the only time it ever did that was when Hyuk had finally pushed him too far. Right now, the voice was slightly hoarse, but still the same.

Distant sirens wailed, coming louder and closer, as the four of them stared at the scene before them. What scared them most was not the fact that Leo had who they presumed to be Jiyong by the hood of his sweatshirt, and despite that Jiyong was bigger and stronger, or the fact that Leo was shouting in a way that meant he was past reasoning, or that he seemed to take no notice that they had joined him.

What was most frightening about the pair before them was that Leo’s knuckles were white in a death grip around a wicked-looking switchblade.

*       *       *

Detective Ilsung rushed out of his office and cursed all teenagers in his mind before snagging his partner coming out of his own office. “Come on. Got a situation with that kid who doesn’t talk.”

Taehyun’s reaction was much like Ilsung’s: his first instinct was to curse. His second was to follow his partner out the door to their squad car. “Why can’t they have their issues in the afternoon? Why does it have to be at nine at night?”

"School.” Was all Ilsung said. This was clearly not satisfactory, as the only reaction from Taehyun was a derisive snort. Ilsung threw him the keys and they got into the car.

“So tell me about the kid.” Taehyun said conversationally, as if they weren’t about to diffuse a potentially violent situation. “You’re the one who met him.” He eased out of the parking lot and headed to Naebu street, Jiyong’s last known location, courtesy of Wonshik. Ilsung pushed the button that would turn on the sirens.

Ilsung lifted his shoulders, picturing Taekwoon doing the same. “Not much to tell really. He was arrested for a he didn’t commit when he was fourteen, and apparently while he didn’t talk much before that, he hasn’t said a word since.”

“Right, I read that in the file. But what about him, you know?”

Ilsung considered this as they to the main street that would take them to Naebu street. “The first word that comes to mind would be angry, I suppose. I noticed that when they first came into the station. He was the only one that would look right at me, like he was daring me to try anything.”

"Try what?”

"Not a clue. Everything about him screamed mistrust, not that I blame him for that. His hands were in fists both times I met him; I thought he’d punch me. But, I have no idea what makes me say this, but he just seemed so sad. Lonely almost, even though he had his friends with him. I think he tries to cover it up with anger, but I get the impression that he just wants someone to care. Kids like that break my heart, you know?”

Taehyun was quiet, absorbing this. He flicked his turn signal without paying much attention. “I guess it’s the father in you.”

Ilsung sighed. “Yeah. Maybe.”

The car slowed on a deserted street and Ilsung looked out the window and actually paid attention to their surroundings for the first time. “This isn’t Naebu street, pabo. It’s the next one over.”

Taehyun peered around and smiled slightly. “Sorry.” He began to turn around, but Ilsung stopped him.

“It’s fine. There’s an alley that runs between the streets. We’ll just cut through there.”

His partner shrugged. It didn’t make a difference to him. He turned the car off and they climbed out in the chilly air, blowing puffs of air out of their mouths. Ilsung patted his belt to make sure he had his gun and led the way to the alley on the other side of the street. As they walked, they heard something coming from the alley where they were headed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sorry, teasing you guys again. We'll have the final showdown coming up soon. Let me know what you think!