Sungyeol saw Sunggyu and Woohyun barricading the door that Hoya and Sungjong had just disappeared through. Two detectives were trying to pull the main vocals away but Sunggyu and Woohyun held on firm. Another detective tried to go past Sungyeol towards the door but Sungyeol grabbed her arm and tripped her.

Myungsoo yelled out in shock and Sungyeol’s head jerked to find out why. The younger boy was gasping on the floor, clutching his stomach, winded by the detective stood over him. Sungyeol saw a mist of red and he sprinted forward to knock the detective to the ground. His height gave him an advantage to meet the detective head on and a strong shove sent the detective barrelling over.  

“Pick on someone your own size,” Sungyeol muttered. Adrenaline surged through him, and he clenched his fists, ready for a fight, ready to do anything to stop these so called law enforcers from getting to Sungjong.

“Arrest the brats!” Xioumin cursed loudly. He barged towards Sunggyu and Woohyun, but was intercepted by Dongwoo tripping him up with a chair that he slid across the floor.

But the order had already been given and Sungyeol found himself tackled to the ground by two heavy men. He cursed and tried to get up but someone kneed him in the gut and another placed their full weight on his back leaving him breathless. A hand pulled at his hair painfully as his already sore arms were wrenched behind his back and cold metal bit into his skin.

“Get off him!” Sungyeol heard Myungsoo cry before a pained yelp indicated a similar situation was happening to him. Sungyeol gritted his teeth and raised his head in time to see Dongwoo shoved face first towards a wall and be restrained there.

“Hyung!” Sungyeol yelled. He made his body lax so that the policemen would not be able to easily lift him to his feet.

Woohyun cried out and Sungyeol’s breath caught in his throat to see the older boy being dragged away from the firedoor by his hair. When Woohyun refused to give up his grip on the door handle, a detective punched him in the stomach and another stepped in to strike Woohyun’s neck, finally causing the boy to crash to the ground and be handcuffed.

That left only the leader to guarding the door and Sungyeol screamed louder that he ever had before as Xioumin punched Sunggyu in the face, causing Sunggyu’s head to ricochet against the door. The other members screamed their fury in time with him as Xioumin and a few other detectives started a relentless battering attack on Sunggyu’s body.

“Don’t you touch him!” Sungyeol screamed as he was forced to his feet.

“You bastards!” Myungsoo’s face was twisted in a mask of wild anger. “Get off him, you ing bastards!”

“Hyung!” Woohyun struggled viciously with the hands holding him.

Sunggyu didn’t let go of the door handle, buying time for Hoya and Sungjong’s escape. From the corner of his eyes, Sungyeol could see the managers fighting and shouting at the detectives, though there were no attempts made to arrest them.

It was too noisy, Sungyeol thought almost absently. Most of the female idols who had been standing by, were now screaming and crying. Yoo Jaesuk and Song Jihyo had run forwards and were trying to talk to Xioumin, their faces outraged. Sungyeol bit his tongue to see Jang Dongmin nd Noh Hong Chul stand by with bored expressions and almost like smirks forming on their faces.

Hyungdon was yelling at the detectives, flinching each time a detective kicked at Sunggyu. He tried to manoeuvre past them to get to Sunggyu, but the detectives held him back, ignoring his cursing.

Sunggyu received another blow to his mid stomach, and finally let go of the door, face contorted into pain and his body curled up on the floor. Detectives stormed through while Xioumin arrested Sunggyu.

“Get off them!” f(X)’s Amber yelled, shaking off her manager’s hands. “You’re hurting them!”

Most faces were shocked. Super Junior’s Henry was as white as a sheet, completely horrified and frozen to the spot. BTS Rapmon seemed as though he wanted to step in but his friends were holding him back, looking terrified of the police themselves.

Sungyeol breathed out slowly, trying to ignore the pain wracking his body. He glanced at Myungsoo and saw that the younger was relatively unhurt, compared to Dongwoo who had blood streaming down from his nose, and Woohyun, whose face was a myriad of bruises. Sunggyu was being dragged to his feet by Xioumin, and he couldn’t suppress his pained cry as his injured ankle was forced to support him fully.

“Sunggyu-ah!” Hyungdon bounded forward to help but was again blocked by the police.

“This is the most blatant scene of police brutality I have ever seen!” Jaesuk was yelling. “How can you hurt these boys like this! You are in no position to – “

“Take them to the station!” Xioumin roared after listening to his radio. Sungyeol could only hope that it meant that Hoya and Sungjong had escaped. He allowed the police to him out with the other members, his face colouring at some of the scornful looks he could see.

Sungyeol prayed that the police would take them out through the back entrance but his hopes were dashed as he was brought to the front of the hall. He closed his eyes and tried to drown out the fans’ screams of panic and horror. He could hear cries of “Oppa! Are you okay?” and “Let them go! How dare you hurt them?”

Their concern warmed Sungyeol’s heart somewhat but he was too exhausted and shocked to fully appreciate it, and it was almost a relief to get into the quietness that greeted him in the police van.

They were bandaged and plastered at the police station by a kind looking doctor who gave Xioumin a silent glare when she saw them. Sungyeol squeezed her hand gently in a gesture of thank you just before she left.

The handcuffs had been removed once they reached the police station. But it didn’t matter, Sungyeol thought tiredly, plenty of photos were probably already circulating around of them getting arrested. He dimly wondered what his parents would think about it, but the anxiety churning his stomach calmed at the thought of his mother. She had always been a kind lady who had his back. And Sungyeol was sure that she’d support him in his actions to save a friend.

Sunggyu had an arm around Myungsoo and was trying to comfort the boy. Woohyun’s head lolled on Dongwoo’s shoulder as they both stared into the distance listlessly. Sungyeol perked up when he heard Geonam’s voice coming from the front of the station but he shrank back as Xioumin walked up to them.

“One on one interrogation,” Xioumin stated. He gestured to an officer standing by. “Get them ready.”

Sungyeol found that he was last to be interrogated and by the time Xioumin came for him, he was a mess of nervousness and agitation. Nevertheless, he held his head high as he was led to a darkened room and sat in front of a table. The room was typical of any other interrogation room he’d seen in the movies.

“Where have they gone, boy?”

Xioumin’s face leaned in closely and Sungyeol found himself inching back in his chair to get away from the foul stench. But the hand firmly clasping his shoulder prevented the action.

“I – I don’t know,” Sungyeol said. He jumped as Xioumin yelled gutturally and slammed a hand onto the table.

“Of course you do!” Xioumin’s veins looked ready to burst in his forehead. “The CCTV footage clearly showed you rotten brats signalling to each other secretly!”

Despite the choking fear, Sungyeol felt the urge to laugh. He still couldn’t believe that they’d managed to orchestrate for Hoya and Sungjong to get away while the detectives were busy arguing with the managers. It felt like something out of an action movie.

“You think this is funny, brat?” Xioumin snarled. Sungyeol stiffened, cursing himself for letting the corners of his mouth lift up.

“No, sir.”

Xioumin surged forward to grab Sungyeol’s collar and wrench the taller boy to his feet. Sungyeol gasped, his breathing coming out erratically as Xioumin cocked his head to the side. The gesture was eerily similar to Sunggyu’s but Xioumin somehow looked like a vulture cocking its head before consuming its prey.

“You know they won’t get far, don’t you?” Xioumin’s voice was silky. “The dancer boy, the manly one – he’s been shot.”

Bile hit the back of Sungyeol’s throat and it took him a few seconds to respond in a pitched high voice. “Hoya? Shot? No, no, you’re – “

“He’s been shot,” repeated Xioumin and he seemed to find a strange enjoyment from the horror etched on Sungyeol’s face. “He left a trail of blood from his shoulder as he got into that MC’s car with the girly . Trust me, he won’t get far in that condition.”

Sungyeol swallowed against the lump in his. Was Hoya going to be all right? Where was he shot? Would Hoya somehow be able to go to a hospital? How?

“Why did you shoot him?” Sungyeol hated the way his voice came out pathetic and small. “He’s just a singer, he’s just helping Sungjong because you...you monsters are trying to arrest Sungjong under false charges!”

He expected the hard slap that greeted him. He had used banmal after all. Sungyeol ignored the pain that flared in his cheek. Anger surged within him, replacing the cold fear. Sungyeol clenched his jaw and screamed, “You bastard! We were supposed to be happy today! And you’ve ruined it!”

Xioumin raised his hand again but he was stopped by the door slamming open. An officer stepped in.

Sungyeol was not only the last to be interrogated. He was also the last to reach home, and it was a quiet, sullen ride with Geonam manager driving. Sungyeol opened his mouth a dozen times but couldn’t think of what to say, so just kept quiet.

Police surrounded their house in cars, and Sungyeol ignored them as he made his way to the front door. An ache was building up behind his temples, and right then, he just wanted to sleep. He groaned as once he went through the front door, he was greeted by Woohyun’s yelling.

“Why Hoya?” Woohyun was yelling at a grimfaced Sunggyu, who had bandages wound around him, peeking above his collar and shirt sleeves. “It should have been me or Dongwoo taking Sungjong away! Now look at what’s happened!”

Sunggyu put the phone down from his hand and hissed, “I don’t need your temper tantrum right now, Woohyun.”

Woohyun’s face turned red and Sungyeol found himself hastily stepping in between the two of them.

“Stop it, hyung – “

“HOYA’S JUST BEEN SHOT AND IS POSSIBLY BLEEDING OUT SOMEWHERE AND YOU’RE SAYING I’M HAVING A TEMPER TANTRUM!”

“YOU THINK I DON’T KNOW OR CARE ABOUT HOYA? I’M JUST AS WORRIED AS YOU!”

“YOU SHOULDN’T HAVE PICKED HIM TO GO WITH SUNGJONG IN THE FIRST PLACE!”

“STOP IT!” Sungyeol screamed and to his surprise, Sunggyu and Woohyun fell silent. He glared at them through a watery haze as tears stung his eyes. “Stop it. We have to stick together. We can’t fight. Not now when – “ His voice broke. “- when Sungjong and Hoya needs us.”

Sunggyu sighed heavily and took a look around, probably taking note of how Myungsoo was silently crying in the corner and how Dongwoo’s face seemed unnaturally still – as though he was one thread away from a breakdown.

“Sorry,” said Sunggyu. He sat down, bringing his knees to his chest. “That was Sungjong’s mother on the phone.”

“What did she say?” Sungyeol asked, almost not wanting to find out.

“She’s hysterical. She blames me for not taking Sungjong out of our group. Things wouldn’t have escalated to this if Sungjong had left Infinite from the very first day that stupid photo went around.” Sunggyu clenched his jaw and bowed his head. “She’s right.”

“How is she right?” Dongwoo asked in a gravelly voice. “Sungjong is a part of Infinite. We couldn’t lose him.”

“SM’s CEO warned me that he’d take measures against Jongie,” Sunggyu said. “And now, I’ve doomed Sungjong. And Hoya.”

Sungyeol stared, finding the sight of their leader curled up like a lost child incredibly disturbing. He went to sit next to Sunggyu and put a comforting arm around Sunggyu’s shoulders, the role reversal not lost on him. There were always the odd combinations in Infinite that was slightly awkward with each other. Like how he and Myungsoo could go for days without having a proper conversation with Hoya, though their bond as brothers stayed as strong as the rest of the group’s.

Sunggyu got along with everyone but Sungyeol could see how at odds he and the leader were with each other. It was the combination of Sunggyu’s matureness and careful words that struck a discordant chord with Sungyeol’s boldness and impulsiveness. If they had met as ordinary people, they would have smiled and then try to avoid each other for the rest of their lives.

But when put together in Infinite, they had no choice but to stay together, and thought there’d been friction, Sungyeol liked to think that Sunggyu was just as fond of him as he was of Sunggyu.

“You did what you could to keep Sungjong with us,” Sungyeol said calmly though he felt like wailing himself. “We just have to keep fighting for him instead of breaking down like this.”

Sunggyu nodded slowly and stayed in Sungyeol’s embrace for a second longer before moving away. He glanced up at Woohyun who had collapsed against a wall and was staring into the air blankly.

“I picked Hoya because he was the most suitable one,” Sunggyu said. “He was the only one of us, except for Sungjong, who wore normal clothes instead of really expensive ones, which would led him blend in. He could drive – and drive fast enough to lose the potential police on his tail. He’s fiercely protective of Sungjong, which means he’d never let Sungjong fall into Xioumin’s hands.”

“But now he’s been shot,” Myungsoo whispered. “He could be bleeding, the wound could be infected, he could be dead – “

“Stop,” Woohyun said firmly. He’s held Sunggyu’s gaze and nodded slowly. “Hoya will be fine.”

Sungyeol felt his phone vibrate and took it out to check his messages. There was a note from the manager. “Watch the news.”

Sungyeol switched on the news channel and blinked in surprise to find Infinite’s members’ faces staring back at him. The newsreader’s voice spoke in the background and Sungyeol quickly turned up the volume so that the monotone filled the room.

“Popular idol group, Infinite, was rocked by a scandal two weeks ago when a photo circulated online displaying their maknae member, Lee Sungjong, kissing a boy. His actions were heavily condemned by the entertainment industry who felt that this was an obvious show of lack of moral.”

The picture of them faded to show clips of them dancing earlier today. Sungyeol stared, feeling like the performance they’d worked so hard for was a whole lifetime ago.

“Today, after a performance that some audience claimed “took their breath away” and “far surpassed any other idol displays thus far”, Lee Sungjong was charged by the police under the crime of hacking and leaking secret governmental data. This is a serious breach, the penalty carrying up to twenty years in prison.”

“Before he could be placed under arrest to await his trial a month away, Infinite members conspired with each other, leading to Hoya running away with Sungjong as the other members blocked the only route out.” The tv showed a clear CCTV footage of Sunggyu slowly linking Hoya and Sungjong’s hands and their shared looks of resolve, before the skirmish with the police. “During the attempt to run away, Lee Howon was shot in the shoulder. However, he still managed to hijack the car belonging to comedian and popular MC Hyungdon and make a getaway.”

Sungyeol remembered Hoya’s joke last week about being able to outrun any police. The lump in his throat grew as a grainy CCTV clip of Hoya and Sungjong sprinting to Hyungdon’s car played. He saw Hoya jerk back as he was shot before seeming to ignore it as he dragged Sungjong with him. Sungyeol couldn’t make out if Sungjong was crying or not – but the shaking shoulders certainly made it seem like it.

“The car travelled north from Seoul, out manouvering several police cars before stopping in a deserted field in Gwangmyeong. Police recovered the car. In the car were streaks of blood and a small note apologising to MC Hyungdon, but the two idols seem to have disappeared. The police urge the two men to turn themselves in and also urge anyone who catches sight of these two men to report them instantly, especially as Lee Howon’s injury may result in serious consequences for himself.”

Feeling as though the world was turning around him too quickly, Sungyeol sat down. He switched the tv off and the ensuing silence felt grim.

“At least they got away,” Myungsoo said hoarsely.

“Hoya knows how to sleep rough,” Sunggyu said heavily. “I’m sure he’ll manage.”

“But his shoulder,” Sungyeol said, “we don’t know how serious the wound is.”

Woohyun growled and punched the wall. “Why did those bastards shoot Hoya in the first place! Argh!”

“We don’t know anything right now,” Dongwoo spoke for the first time, calmly pulling Woohyun down to sit next to them. “And they’re definitely not going to call us. They know we’re being monitored.”

“I can’t believe this,” Myungsoo said with a catch in his voice.

 Sunggyu clenched his fists and after taking a deep breath, he stood up and looked down at all of them with a firm look in his eye.

“Moping around isn’t going to help Sungjong or Hoya,” Sunggyu said. “Right now, we will continue to promote and perform Attack. Dongwoo, you adapt the choreography for the five of us. Woohyun, you’re in charge of our fan account. Write a complete and honest retelling of what happened today and apologise to our fans and ask for their support. Show me before you publish it. Sungyeol, you call all our parents and tell them what’s going on so far, ask them to stay away for a while too. Myungsoo, you show me your camera collection.”

The members who had been quietly nodding their heads to Sunggyu’s orders jerked their heads up.

“Hyung, this isn’t the time to take selfies of yourself,” Sungyeol said, forcing a smile on his face.

Sunggyu shook his head slowly. He frowned and rubbed at his chin. “I’ll put myself in charge of finding a good lawyer for Sungjong. But we might need more evidence to prove that Sungjong’s innocent.”

“And you need to see Myungsoo’s cameras for that?” Woohyun’s eyebrows drew tougher.

“I have a plan,” confessed Sunggyu, “but I don’t know if it will work.”

Saying that, he went to Myungsoo’s bedroom and Myungsoo hurried after him. Dongwoo got up next, followed by Woohyun. Sungyeol sat still, willing himself not to cry again. The house which had previously been far too cramped for the seven of them, suddenly seemed too big with Sungjong and Hoya missing. 

Jongie, you look after Hoya okay, Sungyeol hugged himself. And Hoya, you look after Sungjong. Don’t let the police get him.

He remembered Xioumin’s fierce glare and powerful hands, and shivered at the thought of Sungjong landing in the brute’s hands.

A warm touch to his face startled him and he saw Woohyun knelt in front of him, brandishing a wet cloth.

“You’ve got another cut on your cheek,” Woohyun said and he dabbed at Sungyeol’s wound. “That bastard hit you too, huh?”

“Hyung, how do we get out of this?” Sungyeol’s voice wavered.

Woohyun didn’t say anything and drew him into a hug instead. The tears Sungyeol had been trying to hold back poured down his face and he leaned into the hug, cherishing the warmth of another precious person.

Hoya, Jongie...keep each other warm okay?

Stay safe..

I'm sorry that the story has taken such a dramatic turn, but please be rest assured that I never have sad endings in my fics. Also, just a note that I have sacrificed realism for the sake of artistic license to make the story interesting. I'm constantly busy and so, don't have the time to research in detail about law enforcements and how the system works in Korea. Please bear with me! =)

Next chapter: Sungjong - Lost and Found?

As always, please send me your comments! xxx