chapter XIII 장력 [tension]

this reality that seems to be slowly unfolding is a little more twisted than they expected

        He's been shaking the entire time. Clasped hands resting on his knees, wide and fearful eyes staring at the dirty tile ground as crystal-like tears slowly crawled their way down his cheeks. His hard, shaky breathe was the only that could be heard in the dead silent room - aside from the shock and the fear that was so palpable one could easily hesitate to even walk into the room. His heart was beating so fast in his chest he swore it might just break through his ribs, crawl out of his chest, and scream once it was met with the cruel world outside. His nerves felt like they were on fire; his entire body felt like it was being engulfing in flames.

This couldn't be real. It couldn't ... Could it? How was this even remotely possible?

Daehyun's lips formed an 'o' shape as he let out another shaky breathe, attempting to gather himself in hopes of calming down and thinking clearly. That men he saw was not only in the memory that flashed in his head but also in person; right in front of him, shaking his hand. That man--that disgusting excuse of a man--that was the true being behind the torturing, the , the fear, the pain was right there. Right in front of him.

"This...This must be some type of dream." Daehyun murmured. "I'm going insane. I... t-this... this isn't real."

After experiencing the memory, Daehyun had a mental breakdown on the spot in front of everyone; a severe panic attack. The two men were quickly seperated with Daehyun's begs--more like screams--of 'get him away from me!' and Daehyun was quickly escorted out of the police station only to pass out on the sidewalk. He awoke 3 hours later in his hospital bed and with Jaebum's entire team surrounding his bed. They interrogated him; softly, gently, and only asked questions Daehyun was willing to answer.

"You saw him before?"

"Where did you see him?"

"What did he do to you?"

Daehyun gave him all of the details, slowly pouring his out to the men that had saved him. He told them the truth, every painful ounce of it.

The chief--their boss--would occasionally drop by the cell Daehyun was locked in when he was still being held captive. He could stop by, most of the time still in his uniform. Most of the visits, the Chief had the intention of the poor boy but the other rare occasions were either beating him senseless or watching other gang-members either beat or him; sometimes even both. The Chief was a sadistic devil, finding pleasure in Daehyun's pain and cries and smiling as he saw the boy bleed. It was like he lived for it and used his status, his power, his wealth to live this life in such secrecy and to get whatever he wanted. And it seemed that the only thing that the Chief wanted the most, was to tear Daehyun apart. He would start physically by burning his skin with his still lit cigar or cigarettes, leaving small circular burn marks all over his thighs and hips. He would leave finger-like bruisings all over his neck and wrists before landing angry red hand-marks on either cheek. But then as time passed, the man would move on to his emotional state; taunting Daehyun by provoking painful details about his past and mocking him about Yongguk and Zelo or anything that deemed worthy to make Daehyun squirm. And slowly, the emotional and physical pain began clawing at Daehyun's mental health until there was nothing left. No memory, nothing. It was like his entire brain had been 'cleansed' of his entire life and when he woke up months later, the Chief would make sure that Daehyun didn't even know was a butterfly was. He did all of this to make Daehyun live in fear for the days that followed his awakening, so that the nightmares and the memories slowly coming back to him would tear him apart all over again.

Jaebum had Daehyun repeat everything to the actual interrogators back at the station and was lucky enough that Daehyun first gave the sketch artist details of the man who sadistically beat him. However, every detail Daehyun described turned out ot be just like the Chief, as did the portrait. Without a single beat of hesitation, Mark brought up the idea of taking Daehyun into their apartment to help protect Daehyun, to make him feel safe and that nothing bad would happen. Jaebum quickly agreed, thinking that his knowledge and Mark's combat skills would be enough to help protect Daehyun until the lawsuit blows over.

Oh, yeah, the lawsuit? It was Jimin's idea. With the information Daehyun gave about the memory, the sketch that he described before the interrogation and the Chief's weird behavior after Daehyun's rescue, everyone knew something was going on behind closed doors. But either way, the Chief was poking his nose into an unhealthy field and because of so, controversy was coming his way. It was a rather hard decision for everyone to agree to, but they knew that the Chief was involved and needed to be brought to his mistakes. So Jaebum called for a press conference tomorrow, where he will announce everything and state his reasoning for starting the lawsuit. Meanwhile, Daehyun was more than willing to give the sketch artist more details about the gang-members, since most of them escaped the ordeal. While that done, the police department finally had a good lead on the crime by releasing the sketches of gang members, a suspect, and a reliable witness to help close this case.

But Daehyun so shaken up by the memory of the Chief that he barely ate, barely slept, and barely spoke. There were times where he even refused coming out of the guest room Mark and Jaebum prepared for him.

"Daehyun." A soft voice called out, soft and cautious as if the owner was afraid of scaring Daehyun even more. At the sound of his name, the said male looked up only to meet gazes with Jaebum and Mark standing in front of him with worried gazes.

"...Hey." Daehyun whispered and leaned back a little, feeling the soft cushions of the couch comfort his aching back. He reached up and wiped the sweat from his forehead before sniffling. "I couldn't sleep..."

"It's okay..." Mark reassured and carefully took the spot beside Daehyun, reaching up to gently rub his back. Daehyun exhaled and let his head drop onto Mark's shoulder. "...Is it the nightmares again?"

Daehyun nodded, closing his eyes. "They keep coming back. And each time they do, it keeps getting worse." His eyebrows furrowed and he turned his head to bury his face into Mark's shoulder, letting his trembling body curl up into him--and Mark let him by hugging the frail boy tightly. "More and different memories of that cell...But sometimes...there's...something else..."

"Something else?" Jaebum piped in, his eyebrows knitting together in curiosity and vague surprise. "Do you...mind explaining?"

There was a brief moment of silent before Daehyun lifted his head. "A voice. Someone calling my name. It was male, I could tell by how deep and husky his voice was. Although I didn't seem to recognize the voice it seemed so...familiar."

"And what was the voice saying to you? Or was it just calling out your name?" Mark continued carefully, threading his fingers soothingly through Daehyun's hair.

"Most of the time, yeah, it was calling out my name. But it wasn't in a desperate way or anything. It was more in a calming, soothing way. There were a few times where the voice would say something else. 'Forgive me', 'wake up', 'stay alive, you've gotta stay alive', 'I love you so please just open your eyes', 'I'm so sorry'. There was even one time where I didn't have a nightmare." Daehyun sniffed and rubbed his eyes. "I was...I was standing in some kind of field and I could hear the voice off in the distance. I was walking towards some light that got brighter as I got closer. And once I got close enough, I reached out to it and a hand reached out to me. When our hands touched, the hand linked our fingers together and pulled me close. I originally thought I'd get consumed by the light but instead, a pair of arms wrapped around me. They were...so warm, so soothing. I felt so safe in their arms. Safe enough that I buried myself against the person's chest and he...held me there."

"...Did you see his face?" Jaebum asked as he sat down on the opposite side of Daehyun.

Daehyun shook his head. "When I looked up, I got a small glimpse of his face...but then I woke up." He explained. Mark and Jaebum exchanged glances before Jaebum got to his feet, walking over to his desk. He opened a couple drawers before seemingly finding what he was looking for. He then walked back over to them and handed Daehyun a photograph.

"Did he look like the guy in the middle?"

Daehyun blinked at Jaebum as he took the photo before looking down at it. "Hey...that's...me." He noticed, running his thumb along the smiling boy that was, indeed, Daehyun standing next to a couple other men. Daehyun's eyes then glanced to the male in the middle and widened a little, his lips parting in surprise. "Him. That's him. He's the one I saw in my dream..."

"I thought so." Jaebum took the photo with a sigh and went back to his desk. "You two knew each other. In fact, I heard that you've been by each other's sides for many years."

"I see." Daehyun murmured, anxiously nibbling on his lip. "What's his name?"

Mark smiled faintly at him. "Maybe one day you'll remember his name." He exhaled and squeezed Daehyun's hand. "But...we were hoping you'd return to the police station. You had a new memory right?" Daehyun looked at him and hesitantly nodded. "New faces?" Another nod. "...Are you willing to describe them to sketch artists?"

"...Yes."

---

"I feel bad that we keep dragging him here to describe them to sketch artists." Jaebum sighed, folding his arms across his chest as he watched Daehyun speak to the sketch artist. "I hate how he has to look deep into those memories just to describe the smallest detail..."

"Well, the only reason he agrees to it is because he knows he's helping us." Jinyoung pointed out, joining Jaebum's left side. "He knows that the more he gives out, the less likely it'll happen to someone. Did you know? 2 of the gang-members that Daehyun described got caught yesterday."

Jaebum turned his head and looked at Jinyoung in surprise. "Really now?"

"He's right, I saw it on the news." Jimin  confirmed as he approached them, carefully sipping on his fresh coffee. "I guess their names were Jackson and Choi? I believe so."

"So that only leaves 2 more gang-members." Jinyoung nodded a little and sighed. "And whomever Daehyun is describing now."

"Hell, even Zelo is still loose." Jimin groaned as he set his cup down, jogging over to his desk as the phone there began ringing. "Hang on, guys."

"Zelo's still loose?" Jaebum scoffed and shook his head. "ing unbelievable."

Jinyoung gave him a look. "Well, what do you expect, boss? The -er was too damn quick for us."

"Watch your language." Jaebum warned before turning around when Jimin called out for him.

"We just got a 911 call." Jimin explained, grabbing his gun and putting it in his holster. "Someone has spotted Zelo hiding in an abandoned warehouse. I got the address." Jaebum's eyes flew open and he looked at Jinyoung, who was mirroring his expression. They then bolted to their desks to grab their things before gathering the rest of the team. But before they left, Jaebum sighed as he remembered something.

", guys, get over here. I just remembered that there's a press conference in 15." He groaned out and put his hands on his hips. "...Jimin, stay here with me. Daehyun seems to be comfortable around you the most. I'm sure the rest of you guys will be able to handle Zelo." Jimin frowned but obediently handed another team-mate a piece of paper with the address written down on it.

Jungkook nodded firmly. "We'll get him, captain. I have a plan." He addressed. Jaebum's eyebrows raised in interest. "Since Zelo is on the run, I bet the only 'news' he's seen is the sketches of the gang-members plastered around. He doesn't know I'm officer."

"So you'll draw him in and snag him. Good plan." BamBam cheered with a smile. "Alright, Cap'. We got this."

Jaebum nodded. "Good. Remember filing the report once the job is done. You got it?" He called out as they began leaving.

"Captain?" Jimin murmured hesitantly. "...Why did you make me stay behind? And I know it's not because Daehyun feels comfortable around me. He's more comfortable with you and Mark..." Jaebum sighed and began guiding him back into the station.

"Jungkook's only weakness is you." He explained. "He joined the police force to help protect you. If there's a chance than you go and Zelo slips away and sees you, there's no doubt in my mind he will use you as his personal shield to help escape. And believe me," Jaebum stopped walking in front of Jimin and put his hand on his shoulder. "The last thing I want to happen to my little brother is getting kidnapped. Again."

Jimin sighed. "Hyung, for the upteenth time, I was adopted--"

"Doesn't make you any less of a little brother." Jaebum softly spoke, a fond smile growing on his lips. "I took the job as a Captain to bring them to justice, Jimin. And I succeeded. But them--especially Zelo--is more dangerous than the men who killed your family. I just..." Jaebum lifted his hand to lightly trace a long barely-noticable scar under Jimin's jaw with a sad glint to his eye.

"I know." Jimin murmured, reaching up with his own tiny hands to take Jaebum's in both of his. "I know, hyung..." Jaebum let out a breathe and brought Jimin close to him before hugging him tightly. They held each other a couple more minutes before Jaebum kissed his forehead, said something about to check up on Daehyun and the sketches, then walked off. Jimin, however, remained in the same spot. He watched Jaebum leave and let out a shaky breathe as tears began to flood his eyes. With a shaking hand, he reached up to run his fingers through his cherry red hair.

"I know. I know you both mean well." He murmured, as if Jaebum was still there. Jimin turned his head and looked out of the window as he heard police sirens, watching a couple police cars pull out from the drive way before zooming down the street. "...But I don't need protection." Jimin sighed and eventually turned away from the window before he began walking, heading up to the 3rd floor of the building, a floor with empy offices that was once used when there were many more officers but even Jimin knew being a police officer was sometimes frowned upon due to the media.

He just needed to take a walk to clear his head, to stop his shaking limbs and the keep the tears in his eyes at bay. There were so many things about Jimin that no one knew about; like his parents being involved in gangs, him getting kidnapped by a gang that finally had enough of their over-piling debt and his parents getting killed in front of him (a/n: sound familiar? recall on an earlier chapter). Only to get found by Jaebum, who was only a detective at the time, and was soon rescued by the police. Somehow, Jaebum's parents took a liking to the small, fragile boy and took Jimin in before adopting him. It was tough for Jimin; he lived in a shell made of fear and hesitance for a complete year before finally warming up to them. And yet, the gang that kidnapped him was still roaming by then, which enraged Jaebum to the fullest and thus sparked his want to bring them to justice. By doing so, Jaebum earned the position he's currently in; Captain. But that was years ago. Jimin is nearly 21 and it all happened when he was 15.

Jimin suddenly snapped out of his thoughts when he heard some voices around the corner. He paused as his facial expression changed into confusion. Voices? The entire floor is vacant. There really shouldn't be anyone up here. Not even him.

He sighed deeply and approached the corner, ready to tell whoever was up there that they couldn't be there. He turned the corner and