It has been a week and the police and Dragon were getting restless. 
They were waiting for Shadow's Master to finally make a move, to finally reveal himself to discuss on terms and conditions.
It was a long and agonizing wait as they were pretty much incapable of progressing as long as Shadow's Master does not make any move. 

Yoseob was attending another physiotherapy session and Doctor Hong had seen remarkable progress in him.
Before the kidnapping incident, Yoseob was able to walk with a walking stick but if the walking exceeds an hour, he gets really tired and his legs would hurt.
Now, a week and a half after Junhyung was kidnapped, Yoseob had actually progressed to walking without any support, albeit in a slow speed.
His stamina has also improved vastly with him taking walks in the hospital grounds in addition to his therapy sessions.

Emotionally, Yoseob was also much calmer. He focused his energy on to positive outlooks and refused to dwell on negative thoughts. 
Every drop of sweat, every step he took, every move he makes, every bite he takes, every time he closes his eyes, Junhyung occupied his thoughts. 
Rather than remembering the sad eyes and goodbye tone in his love confession, Yoseob strived to think of happier days where Junhyung's eyes were warm and inviting. 
Some times, he had this fear in him that he might forget how Junhyung felt against his skin, that he might forget what it was like to be in Junhyung's embrace.
At those times, he would shed some tears but he would remind himself that having good memories were better than having no memories. 
So although he might not experience those warmth again, it was good that he at least had them. 

He was mentally preparing himself for the worst ever since he agreed to Doojoon's request. 
He knew that the situation between the police, Dragon and Shadow were no child's play. It was real, it was dangerous. 
As much as he longed for Junhyung to return safe and sound, there was always logic there to harshly pull him to reality. 

Doctor Hong was largely comforted by the fact that Yoseob had become more rational and in better control of his emotions. 
Although he saw the depth of the sadness in Yoseob's eyes, the quivering lips when Doojoon brings updates, the tears that underlined Yoseob's eyes, the sad and longing sighs that escaped Yoseob's lips at times, Doctor Hong knew that Yoseob was trying to cope with the potential loss and grieve. 
And he was glad that at least he was trying. 

"Alright Yoseob, let's call it a day! Night is falling anyway, I don't want to stop you from your favourite time of the day. Go and have your walk in the garden." 

"Thank you Doctor Hong," Yoseob grinned, he was so grateful that Doctor Hong was extremely understanding and allowed Yoseob to have his breath of fresh air every evening ever since he could walk without support. Slowly, he walked out of the room and walked the familiar path towards the garden, towards the familiar bench, under the familiar tree, facing the familiar pond, taking in the ever changing sunset.  

As the sun sets, he closed his eyes, wondering how was Junhyung. 
The bench he was sitting on creaked and he opened his eyes slowly, glancing at the man that now sat beside him. 

"Yoseob ah, I'm here to bring you news."

Yoseob kept quiet, not daring to hope much, as he waited for Doojoon to continue.

"Shadow's Master has contacted Dongwoon. His men has been ordered to not place a finger on Junhyung right from the start and he agreed that for Dragon to agree to his wants, Junhyung should return to them in one piece. He plans to meet Dongwoon next week to present all the terms and conditions for the release of Junhyung once it has been fully considered upon. You know what it means right?"

"It means that it's time. That next week, either I get Junhyung back or I lose him... forever.."

Doojoon reached out and pulled Yoseob into his embrace, "I'll make sure everyone does their very best to not leave any loopholes. I'll make sure that Shadow's Master is caught and I'll make sure that before we make any obvious move, we would have Junhyung safe with us first."

Yoseob smiled, his face largely covered by Doojoon's broad shoulders, "Thank you, Doojoon-ah. I know you will do your best." 

Pushing him away slightly but hands still on his shoulders, Doojoon gazed into Yoseob's eyes seriously, "Just know that I am here for you no matter what alright? I don't care if you are still in love with Junhyung. I will make you fall for me again. I will give you the happiness that you truly deserve."

"Hey, don't make it sound like Junhyung would never make it out alive. Besides, you are my past Doojoon ah. What we had once, we can never have it again. So stop making things so awkward alright? I still want to be friends with you" Yoseob pouted.

Doojoon chuckled at Yoseob's words although his heart hurt, "Alright, I'll be back for more updates. Take care." 
Ruffling Yoseob's hair, Doojoon walked away, garnering every ounce of his strength and willpower to not shed any tears.
He knew he would regret his decision of letting Yoseob go when he was promoted. 
He had expected that he would miss Yoseob dearly, he had expected that Yoseob would move on and probably find another man.
But he did not expect that his heart would hurt so much to see Yoseob being so deeply in love with another man.
He did not expect that he would feel so ashamed to see Junhyung willingly sacrificing so much for Yoseob while he let Yoseob go too easily.
He did not expect that he would feel so broken to know that he had lost