You felt blood in your mouth as your heart was racing in your chest. They’re after him? Who could it be that they’re after? You panicked when you thought they’d be after your father. You were sure these men had to do with the ones who broke into your room and the man who was in your house the other day. If so, then they might be after your father since he’s the only one who knew about them from the very beginning. You tried getting your hands out of the shackles, but failed. You cried in pain when one of the men slapped your face and yelled at you to stop moving. 

You weren’t aware of the time but it felt like at least an hour passed before you felt the car stop. You heard noise coming from outside the car and then heard someone call the men ordering them to hurry up. They opened the doors and pulled you out. You tried to get out of their hold again but you felt one of them carry you off your feet and follow his boss’s orders. They were told to take you inside but you were still unaware of your surroundings. A weird smell filled your nostrils but you couldn’t identify its source. You groaned in pain when the man threw you to the floor.

“Where am I? What do you want from me?"

You heard their footsteps as they walked away from you. You then heard the door close and realized they left you alone.

"Where did you go? Don't leave me here!"

The room was deathly quiet, and cold. You tried pushing yourself up when you felt something brush against your leg. You screamed in terror and pulled your leg away before yelling:

"Let me out of here!" 

You heard nothing but the echo of your voice and the sound of your own breathing. A tear rolled down your face as you cried in despair:

"Somebody let me out of here!"

You felt a light breeze of air tickle your legs and a murmur somewhere outside the room. You dragged your body closer to what you thought was the door of the room. You stretched your legs until they hit a solid barrier. You tried hitting it with your feet and heard a loud bang. Hitting it again, the murmurs stopped.

"Get me out of here!"

You yelled and hit the door again and again. You stopped to catch your breath and then yelled again:

"Get me out of here you jerks!"

You heard a loud bang but this time it came from outside the room.  

"Don't make me come in and cut your tongue!" 

"Are you out of your mind? Boss said don't touch her until he's here." 

You heard the men who brought you in say to each other before one of them gave the door another bang. You shivered in terror and crawled away from the door. Tears rolled down your cheeks. My family will get me out of here, you thought to yourself. The driver will tell them I was late and they'll start looking for me. I don't want to die... I still have a lot to do... I need to finish my book... I need to tell Taekwoon how much I love him... I... 

"Get me out of here."  

 

 

You didn't know how much time had passed until you felt sleep crawl into your eyes. You struggled to stay awake, not knowing what could happen if you fall asleep. Exhaustion and sleep took over you and you rested your head on the cold floor and were soon falling asleep. When you woke up, the place was still as quiet and as cold. Every muscle in your body ached from sleeping on the floor and your tummy grumbled. You were starving and your head was throbbing in pain. You tried to push yourself up but you couldn't. Every muscle you moved cried in pain.

You heard noise coming from outside the room. Crawling closer to the door, you yelled:

"Help! Help!"

The noise stopped. Someone was walking toward the room. Their footsteps stopped and you heard a key turn in the door.

"Help!"

The door was opened but you heard nothing. Whoever opened the door remained silent. The person took a few steps toward you and then knelt down in front of you before saying:

"Good morning pretty."

"Help me, please. Let me out of here." 

His cold hand touched your face with the back of his hand and you trembled in fear. His hand traveled down your face and neck before stopping at the top of your jacket. He pulled your jacket a bit revealing your shoulder and let out a hoarse laugh.

"What a nice dress."

"Get your filthy hands off me!"

You yelled and then started kicking until you heard him let out a groan. He raised his hands to slap your face when the other man yelled at him, ordering him to stop. 

"I told you we're not allowed to touch her!"

Your breathing hitched when you heard his heavy breathing next to your ear as he said: 

"I won't be touching her."

He left the room and you heard him walk into the room again. You let out a gasp when he splashed you with water from head to toe. He laughed and then left the room and closed the door behind him, ignoring the other man's angry disapproval. You were left shivering in your wet dress and crying in despair.

 

 

A while passed before the door was suddenly opened. You pleaded again: 

"Please don't hurt me. Please."

"Who did this to her?"

It was a new voice. You heard the man yelling, scolding the man who splashed you with water. The man then ordered them to get you a towel before kneeling down in front of you and saying: 

"I'm sorry. I'll make them regret this." 

"Please let me out of here."

You cried so he hushed you and said: 

"Don't worry. Let's get you dry first."

 

 

You were carried out of the room and onto a chair with a towel around your shoulder. You were still trembling but you were more concerned about the new person, since he seemed to be the one behind the kidnapping. You couldn't recognize his voice and you were too tired to think of the reason behind your abduction. You had no idea how much time had passed but the grumbling in your tummy made you feel like it's been a day or so since you'd last eaten. 

"Did you get him?"

The new voice asked and one of the men answered "yes." 

 

You had completely forgotten about the other person. You instantly thought it was your father. Before you could ask, the blindfold was taken off your eyes. Squinting against the sudden light, you tried looking around the place, afraid you’ll see your father tied up to another chair at the corner of the room. You sighed in relief when your eyes were met with nothing but empty barrels and broken chairs. You turned around when you felt a hand on your shoulder to see the last person you imagined you’d see at such a place and a time.

“Mr. Richardson! Did they… did they abduct you too?”

The tall man smirked before looking around for something. He walked toward a chair and pulled it to where you were sitting. He placed his chair facing yours, sat down on it, and crossed his legs as he stared at you, the smirk never leaving his lips. Your mouth dried when you realized he wasn’t abducted; he was the abductor. The manager of the company you worked for abroad, the person everyone looked up to, was the person behind the terror you’ve been through, the terror that was about to start.

“You’ve always been naïve, haven’t you?”

He pulled a pack of cigarettes out of his shirt pocket and tapped it against his palm. Placing one between his lips and taking the lighter out, he looked at you and said:

“You and your foolish boss.”

My boss? You stared at the smoke coming out of his mouth while your mind linked the documents your boss found with everything that happened to you since your arrival.

“Leaving the country was a smart step, but did you really think we can’t find you?”

We?

Your heart was pounding in your chest as you began to understand that he’s the person behind all the illegal actions taking place at the company you used to work for. You’d always thought highly of him and never expected him to be a criminal.

“What do you want from me?”

You looked at him in disgust. You loathed the man he turned out to be, and he could see it on your face. His smirk was still drawn on his lips as he took another breath of smoke and exhaled out the side of his mouth before getting off his seat and walking in your direction.

“I’ll be very clear with you. As you know, I’m a man who hates wasting time. So, my dear friend, all I want is the password to your USB.”

You looked up at him.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

He placed a hand on your shoulder and leaned down to whisper in your ear:

“Don’t pretend you don’t know. It insults my intelligence.”

He took a few steps away from your chair and then said:

“After all, it was Mr. Burton who told us he had entrusted the USB to you.”

He paused for a second and then said:

“After we forced him to, that is.”

“F…forced him?”

He squatted down next to your chair, bringing himself to your eye level as he said:

“He was too stubborn. We had to find a way to make him disclose the information we needed from him.”

Was? The word sent shivers down your spine. Is he dead? You wanted to ask, but you couldn’t bear the answer.

He could see fear in your eyes, so he rested his hand on your knee and then looked up at you.

“I hope we won’t have to do the same with you. I’m sure you’ll cooperate better than he did.”

You body was shaking under his touch. Your lips were trembling as you stared down at him.

“I… I told you I don’t know.”

He stood up, cupped your face and smiled as he said:

“Honey, honey. Please, don’t make me do things I’d hate to do, especially to you. You’ve always been my favorite.”

“But I swear… I don’t know!”

You didn’t see his hand go up but felt its blow across your left cheek, knocking you to the floor. You cried in pain when your arm got squashed under the chair. You tasted blood in your mouth as your lower lip split open. He yelled, calling a number of his men to pull you up. He held your chin up forcing you to look at him. The smirk was now gone from his face and was replaced with a furious look that sent shivers down your spine.

“Very stupid!”

He then turned around and addressed one of the men.

“I figured you'd be this stubborn so I prepared a plan B. Bring him in!”

You lifted your head up to follow the man. He disappeared inside one of the storage room and came back a few seconds later carrying a body. He put the body down on the floor and then went inside the room to grab a chair and a rope. Cold drops of sweat rolled down your back as you tried to find out who the person on the floor was. The man pulled the body up and you let out a sharp scream when you recognized the face despite the bruises and the black eye.

“Taekwoon!”

Mr. Richardson let out a laugh and took a few steps toward Taekwoon who was now tied up to the chair, still unconscious.

“Seems like he won’t answer your calls.”

“Please let him go. Please!”

You broke down sobbing like a child begging him to let Taekwoon go. With his free hand, he pulled at Taekwoon’s hair lifting his head up. He looked at him for a second and then addressed you:

“He’s got a pretty face. It would be a shame to have to ruin it for him.”

“Please! Don’t hurt him! I’ll do anything you ask. Please!”

You continued to beg but he ignored your pleads as he instructed his men to rid Taekwoon’s of his shirt.

“Seems like he’s got a body to match his face.”

He took another breath of smoke and looked at you before taking the cigarette from between his lips and pressing it against Taekwoon’s bare chest. Taekwoon’s eyes shot open and he let out a loud scream. It felt like your heart was being ripped out of your chest. You kicked the floor and tried to pull your body off the chair, but failed. You cried again: 

“Stop! Please stop!”

Taekwoon was panting heavily, eyes squeezed shut in pain. He opened them a few seconds later to find you crying on the chair facing his. Tears were flowing down your cheeks as you looked at Taekwoon.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. This is all my fault.”

He didn’t say anything as he continued to stare at you. It seemed like he was drugged, still half unconscious of his surroundings. The men around you were instructed to bring a laptop and the USB they claimed from your room and placed both on an old rusty table.

“Bring them both here.”

One of the men pulled your chair toward the table while the other pulled Taekwoon’s chair and positioned it in front of the table. Mr. Richardson opened the laptop and then said:

“Why don’t you be a good girl and give me what I want?”

 “Please let him go.”

You pleaded again.

“Give me the password and you’re both free to go. I’ll even drop you home myself, how’s that?”

“I swear I have no idea. Please!”

He took a deep breath and then said:

“Boys!”

 

 

 

Nana looked at the clock for the tenth time in the past half an hour. It was past midnight and you weren’t home yet. She called the driver, asking him where he dropped you and he told her that you had texted him asking him to leave, and that you'll be leaving with your friends. 

"What friends? She doesn't have any friends here!"

"I have no idea ma'am. That's what she told me, so I came back home."

She thought for a second and then asked:

"Where did you drop her?"

"She usually asks me to drop her at a coffee shop two blocks from here."

She called Hakyeon and asked him to call Seokjin since you told her you were spending the day with him and his fiancée. When he said he hasn't seen you in a week, she freaked out. She tried calling the police but they told her that you need to be missing for at least 24 hours before they could handle the case.

Hakyeon walked into the room with an unreadable expression on his face.  

“Did you find her?”

She asked him and he shook his head “no.” She could tell that he was hiding something, so she urged him to talk.

“Do you know something we should know?”

She asked before noticing your father walking into the living room. He then noticed that she was staring at Hakyeon, waiting for an answer.

“What’s going on? Did you find her? Do you know where she is?”

Your father asked him. Hakyeon’s hands were shaking as he averted his eyes away from them. Your father grabbed his shoulder and almost yelled:

“Where is my daughter?”

“I… I don’t know for sure but…”

“But what?”

Nana asked impatiently.

“She might be… with Taekwoon.”

“Taekwoon?”

Your father yelled and Nana’s eyes widened in surprise.

“What is she doing with Taekwoon? Answer me, why would my daughter be with that boy?”

“They… they’re dating.”

“What?”

They both asked in unison. They couldn’t believe their ears. Everything they’ve worked for was suddenly shattering in front of their eyes. Nana tugged at Hakyeon’s arm before asking:

“When did it happen? Did you know about this?”

He nodded.

“Who allowed this? Why am I the last to know?”

“I… she asked me not to tell anyone and I…”

“You’re stupid! You know what happened! How could you keep this from us?”

Your father yelled at him before picking up his phone and calling the driver.

“Do you know where he lives?”

"No."

He said. Your father grabbed his arm and said:

“How do we find him?”

"I know where he works." 

"Where?"

Nana asked. 

"At a coffee shop." 

She exchanged looks with your father before saying: 

"The driver said he dropped her at a coffee shop! That's where they're meeting!" 

"Let's go!" 

 

 

 

 

You were crying in pain as you looked at Taekwoon hanging helplessly from a hoist in the middle of the garage.

“Please! Please let him go.”

One of the men punched him in the stomach and he yelped in pain.

“Please!”

You begged again so he hit him again. Mr. Richardson walked up to you.

“I didn’t want things to turn out like this. But you leave me no choice.”

“Please!”

Another punch.

He was still struggling to keep his eyes open. He was exhausted and in pain. Turning on a hose, they squirted him down until he was wide-awake. His body was shaking violently. Your eyes met and you whispered a “sorry.” He dropped his head, panting and trying to stop his limbs from shivering.

"Just give me the password and this will end immediately."

You dropped your head on our chest and sobbed again.

"You're testing my patience."

You lifted your head up when you heard a door open. One of the men entered a storage room and came back with a baseball bat in his hand. You yelled when the man walked in Taekwoon's direction. 

"No! Don't touch him!"

Mr. Richardson took the bat from the man and looked at you before saying:

"So, are you going to hand me the password or should I demonstrate my best hit on your boyfriend?"

"I told you I don't know the password, I swear!"

Without a word, he touched Taekwoon's chest with the bat, raised it and swung it in Taekwoon's direction.

"No! Stop! Please!"

An inch separated the bat from breaking Taekwoon's ribcage. Taekwoon's head fell on his chest. Mr. Richardson traced Taekwoon's chest with the bat as he addressed you: 

"So, are you willing to cooperate or do you want to see the real hit?"

"I told you I don't know it."

You cried so he raised the bat again but before he could swing it you said:

"I'll try! Please!"

"You'll try?"

He gawked at you.

"I... I know a few password combinations he used for... For other documents."

"So you'll try them with this USB?"

You nodded. He put the bat away and then said:

"Fine, works for me."

He signaled one of his men to untie your hands. He turned the laptop on, placed it in front of you and then said:

"Go ahead."

"Please let him down first."

"You don't tell me what to do."

"Please!"

He ignored your pleads as he motioned his men to leave the room.

"I'll be back in an hour. You better have something to give me."

He left and closed the door behind him. As soon as he did, you called Taekwoon's name. He lifted his head up slowly to look at you.

"I'm so sorry!"

He smiled faintly at you and gave you a tiny nod before saying in a stutter:

"Did... they... hurt... you?"

His voice came out weak. You wept and shook your head "no."

"Your lip..."

He whispered. You traced your lips with your fingers and then said:

"It's nothing."

You paused for a second and looked down at the laptop in front of you.

"I will get us out of here. I will do my best, I promise."

 

 

 

Your father barged into the coffee shop. 

"Where is he?"

He was yelling so Namjoon dropped the towel in his hand and ran toward your father. 

"Please sir, you're scaring our clients." 

Your father grabbed Namjoon's shirt and asked again: 

"Where is he?"

"Who?"

"Taekwoon."

"I... he didn't show up for his night shift. We have no idea where is he." 

Namjoon stuttered. He had no idea why a man like your father would be out at this time looking for a barista. 

"Do you know where he lives?"

Your father asked and Namjoon nodded. 

"Take me to his house." 

 

 

 

 

"What is going on?"

Your father said when he climbed the stairs to Taekwoon's apartment and found a couple of police officers blocking the way.

"Sir, you're not allowed to go any further."

Hakyeon tried to calm him down before asking:

"What happened?"

"Who are you?"

"My friend lives here. Is he okay?"

"The landlady went to check on him when she heard noise coming from his room. She called the police when she found the room in this state and found no trace of your friend."

Your father stared at the police officer before asking:

"What does that mean? Where are they?"

"They? The landlady said he was alone."

Hakyeon interfered again.

"He's dating my cousin. They were probably together this morning and she hasn't returned home yet."

"Wait here. You have to repeat that in front of the detective."

 

 

 

 

"Kidnapped? You mean he kidnapped my daughter!"

Your father yelled at the detective. Hakyeon looked at him and then at the detective.

"I don't believe he had anything to do with her disappearance. The report I have in front of me states that your daughter has received several threats over the past couple of months. It was never mentioned that her boyfriend had anything to do with it."

"But..."

The detective looked at your father urging him to continue.

"We're against their relationship. Maybe... Maybe they ran off together."

The detective skimmed through the report again before saying:

"We found signs of resistance in the boy's apartment. It's unlikely that they'd run off together and leave the door open and the furniture upside down."

"What do you mean?"

Hakyeon asked.

"I mean they're kidnapped, together."

 

 

 

 

The hour passed very slowly as you tried all the combinations you could think of. You couldn't take your eyes or mind off Taekwoon whose limbs were getting sore from being hanged to a hoist. Every now and then you'd look at him and whisper your apologies for getting him involved in this mess. You were dying to get off your seat and untie his hands but you were tied tightly to the chair and couldn't leave your place. A couple of minutes passed before you heard the door open. Cold drops of sweat rolled down your back when you saw Mr. Richardson walk into the room with a hopeful smile on his face. You hadn't managed to figure out the password yet and you were scared of his reaction.

He walked up to you, placed his hand on your shoulder and looked at the screen as he asked:

"Anything yet?"

You shook your head "no."

He took a few steps away until he was standing in front if Taekwoon. He stared at him for a second and then turned to look at you.

"Do you want to know how this word makes me feel?"

"I'm sorry, I'm still trying."

You said faintly afraid he'll hurt Taekwoon.

"That's not an answer."

"No. Please."

He cupped Taekwoon's face with one hand and then looked at you.

"No? Again?"

Without thinking, you pulled the USB out of its port and yelled:

"I'll break it if you hurt him!"

He pulled his hand away and stared at you in shock.

"Put it down!"

"You put him down first!"

You raised your hand preparing to smash the USB against the table when he called his men into the room. He instructed them to put Taekwoon down before saying:

"You must be exhausted. I'll let you rest tonight and we'll continue our work tomorrow."

You gawked at him as he signaled his men to get you of the chair while your hands and legs remained tied.

"Don't try anything stupid. These men will be guarding all the exits until I come back tomorrow morning. See you tomorrow."

He left the place followed by his men. The doors were locked and you were left alone with Taekwoon. You crawled in his direction. He tried crawling in your direction before giving up and lying on his back. You wept again when you saw the bruises on his face and eye.

"I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry."

He let out a faint moan when he tried pulling his arms down.

"It hurts a lot, doesn't it?"

He gave you a tiny smile and then said:

"Not anymore."

You both tried sitting up but you couldn't. He was too exhausted to pull himself up and he was shivering. You crawled closer to his body, printed a kiss where Mr. Richardson’s cigarette had left a mark and looked up at him. 

“We’ll get over this. I know we will.”

 

 

 

 

“We retrieved the car’s license plate number from the CCTV installed at the boy’s building. We’re doing our best to track it down and find your daughter and her boyfriend as soon as we can.”

The detective addressed your father who was at the police station very early in the morning. He couldn’t sleep at night knowing you were in danger. He had to go home to stay with Nana and to assure her that the police are doing their best to find you.

“I don’t care about him, he’s the reason my daughter is in danger.”

Hakyeon placed his hand on your father’s shoulder before asking:

“How long would it take?”

“We’ll do our best to find them within the coming 24 hours. If we find any trace that leads us to them we’ll let you know immediately.”

 “Thank you.”

 

 

 

“Look at them, aren’t they adorable?”

Mr. Richardson said in a sarcastic tone as he looked at you and Taekwoon sleeping on the floor next to each other. He then kicked Taekwoon’s leg waking him before pulling you up by the arm. For a second you forgot where you were and let out a scream when you felt a hand pulling you up.

"Let her go!"

Taekwoon yelled but one of the men kicked him again and he groaned in pain.

“Let me go!”

You struggled to free yourself from Mr. Richardson’s hold to no avail. He signaled one of his men to tie you down to the chair again before placing the chair in front of the table.

“Time for work.”

You looked at Taekwoon to find the men pulling him up in preparation to hang him to the hoist again.

“Let him go!”

Mr. Richardson looked at you and then shrugged his shoulders before saying:

“Sure, why not? Boys, let him go.”

The men holding him suddenly let go of him and he fell to the floor. He groaned in pain before getting pulled up again.

“No!”

You yelled. You picked up the laptop resting on the table in front of you and threw it on the floor as you yelled again.

“Scr*w you!”

Mr. Richardson’s eyes widened in shock when he saw the laptop shatter into pieces. He slapped you across the face and then pulled your hair as he said:

“You ungrateful b*tch! You both should have been dead hours ago but I was merciful enough to keep you alive.”

“Don’t touch her!”

Taekwoon said weakly before getting slapped by one of the men.

“I told you I don’t know. I. don’t. know. I swear! Just let us go!”

You cried. They jerked him to his feet and pushed him into one of the rooms.

“Where are you taking him? Let him go,” you pleaded. “He doesn’t have anything to do with this.”

“Boys.”

Mr. Richardson yelled. One of the men punched Taekwoon in the face with his fist. You heard him let out a loud moan of pain. You heard another groan; this time, someone had punched him in the stomach, knocking him to the floor. You begged him to make them stop when you heard Taekwoon gasp as someone kicked him in the chest. You wept in your hands believing only a miracle would save you from this situation. Mr. Richardson knelt down in front of you and said:

“Save yourself a great deal of unnecessary suffering and do what I ask for.”

You lifted your head up and said:

“I told you I don’t know. I tried everything but nothing worked. I don’t know.”

He stood up, looked down at you for a second and then slapped your face. He pulled you up and dragged you to where Taekwoon lay on the floor, drenching with blood and sweat. He threw you on the floor and signaled his men to leave. As soon as they did, he took his jacket off and placed it on one of the shelves. He then pulled his sleeve up before grabbing Taekwoon and punching his face again. You cried in pain and begged him to stop. Taekwoon tried pushing himself up but Mr. Richardson kicked him in the guts causing him to groan in pain. You threw your body over Taekwoon’s trying to protect him.

“You’re seriously testing my patience! It took your boss an hour to crack up.”

He grabbed his jacket and put it on before saying:

“I’m leaving for an hour and when I come back I will take either the password or your lives, do you hear me?”

He closed the door behind him leaving you weeping as you held Taekwoon in your arms. This was the end. You had no idea how to get yourself or Taekwoon out of this situation. You did all you could to try to figure out the password. Your boss used a number of unique passwords and shared them with you in case you needed to retrieve any document in his absence. You tried all the ones you could remember but nothing worked. You looked at Taekwoon who was in pain and whispered another “sorry.” You lay down next to him, pulled him in your arms and closed your eyes, praying that you’d wake up and realize this was all a nightmare.

 

 

 

You woke up to some noise coming from outside the room. You jumped of the floor and tried to open the door to no avail. You then went back to where Taekwoon lay and tried to wake him up. It took him a few seconds to open his eyes and stare at your face aimlessly.

“We need to get out of here.”

You said when you heard a gunshot. You tried opening the door again when the noise got louder and closer. You could suddenly hear sirens filling the place. Police is here! You started yelling, asking for help. The door was suddenly pushed open and you saw Mr. Richardson with one of his men.

“I’ll go first. Finish them and follow me. Don’t leave any trace behind you.”

He then ran toward the nearest exist leaving you with an armed man. He grabbed your arm and jerked you to your feet as you screamed in terror.

“Shut up!”

“Drop you weapon!”

The man hesitated for a second when he heard the orders. Taekwoon gathered all what is left of his strength and pulled you out of the man's hold before falling on the floor with you in his arms. The man held his gun in your direction and pulled the trigger once before falling to his knees when one of the police men shot him in the leg. You let out a cry when Taekwoon let out a muffled moan.

“No!”

He fell on top of you, eyes closed and shirt drenched in blood. You screamed when your hands were covered in blood and Taekwoon's body was heavy against your chest. You took his head between your hands and wiped the sweat off his face.

“Baby, please! Stay with me. We’re safe now. Taekwoon!”

He opened his eyes slowly, stared at you for a second and then whispered faintly:

“I love you.”

“Stay with me! Taekwoon!”

You said between your sobs. He closed his eyes again and his body felt heavier as he lost consciousness. A police officer and a couple of paramedics walked into the room and carried Taekwoon off the floor and onto a gurney before helping you out. You followed Taekwoon with your eyes and a scary feeling tugged at your heart, I won't be able to tell him about my book.