Pain flashed through her head as she woke up. The ground she was lying on was hard and cold. Slowly she sat up. Where was she?

As her eyes had ajusted to the minimal lighting she was able to recognize her surroundings. It seemed she was in something like a prison. Her memory got back to her and she immediately jumped up. She ran to the grating and shook it. “Let me out! Let me out!!!!!”

It remained silent. Her heart was feeling heavy. She didn’t know how long she had been lying there but she hoped they hadn’t been able to get her grandmother. Tears filled her eyes again. Angry about her own naivety she sank down to the ground. How did everything turn out like this?

She then heard a cough and turned around. Was there someone?

It was too dark to see anything clear in this distance. Carefully she crawled to the direction the sound had came from. As she reached the grating, she concentrated her eyes and... there was someone. Someone was lying against the wall. There was a small window on the opposite side of the prisons. As the clouds let some moonlight in, it lighted up the face of the person. HyoMin gasped as she recognized him. “LeeJoon-shi!” He coughed again.

“LeeJoon-shi! Wake up! Oh god, what had happened?”, the later she almost whispered. His face was covered in blood, on his arms were prints of bonds.

She kept on calling him and shaking the grating until his eyelids opened.

“LeeJoon-shi!” His head slowly moved to her side. “Hyo...Min...shi...?”

“Yes, it’s me!”, she said crying and watched how he crawled to her. His movements were weak and slow. As he reached the grating and she saw his face closer, she was more than shocked. It was covered in blood and all swollen up.

“What had they done...?”, she mumbled and carefully touched his face.

She took a handkerchief  out of her jacket and began to gingerly wipe the blood away.

LeeJoon reached through the granting and gently touched her face. HyoMin paused in her movement.

“Thank goddness, you’re still alive...”, he said and she could see how tears filled his eyes.

She only nodded and touched his hand which was caressing her cheek.

“I’m sorry that I-“ “Don’t be sorry.”, he said, “I’m the one who has to be sorry. It’s my fault that you’re in this situation now.”

She shook her head and laid her head against the granting so their foreheads laid against one another.

“I’m just happy to see you alive.” “Me, too.”

They looked deep into each others eyes. The way he looked at her, she knew that he could’ve never lied to her. His glance was full of sincerity. She took the ring out of her pocket and put it back on her finger again. She then grabbed his hands.

“You are also wearing it.”, she said and smiled slightly.

“Of course I do.”, he answered.

She then looked at him again. “LeeJoon-shi, I l-“

“Aw, how touching.”, a familiar voice suddenly said and both of them turned around.

ChanSung was standing in front of the prisons. Smiling arrogantly.

“My father told me to get you. We want to start our ‘investigation’ now.”

The doors were then opened and HyoMin ans LeeJoon were pulled outside.

Both of them were tied up so they couldn’t move before they were brought upstairs into something which looked like an old warehouse.

“Hal-“, HyoMin wanted to shout as she saw her grandmother but someone covered .

“Ah, there you are.”, the old man said who was standing beside HyoMin’s grandmother. The woman was sitting on a chair, with tape covering .

“I think we can begin now.”

He rolled up his sleeves and walked around the old woman.

“Your son was a scientist, wasn’t he? You must’ve been very proud of him. Did he also told you about the dangerous bacterium he had created?”

Quickly she shook her head. “No? You answered pretty quick. Are you sure you don’t know anything?” Someone then handed him a knife which made HyoMin squeak under the hand of the man.

The face of HyoMin’s grandmother was full of fear. “We both don’t want that I have to use this, do we?”, he asked which made her shake her head again.

“Well, then...let’s start again. Did he ever told you about the bacterium? No? He only left his will? Not anything else?” She hesitated. “Oh, it seems like you remembered something.”

He ripped the tape off and grabbed her face. “Talk, old lady or I’ll have to use this.”

She glanced over to HyoMin who looked at her in fear and worry.

“I’m sorry, HyoMin-ah...”, she began, “... but I won’t tell anything.”

“And I thought we could have a nice talk without using weapons.”, he then said and swing back with the knife.

Suddenly the doors of the warehouse were broken open and people jumped through the windows.

“This is the police! Throw away all weapons and come out with your hands in the air!”, someone said through a megaphone. The shock and anger was clearly shown on the faces of the organisation members.

Some immediately threw their weapons on the ground, some followed after they saw their fellows doing it.

They also let go of HyoMin and LeeJoon.

Only the boss of the organisation didn’t give in. As the policemen slowly came inside the building, he spun HyoMin’s grandmother around and put the knife at her neck.

“Don’t come any closer or I’ll kill her!”

The policemen stopped. If only one person made a quick move she could be death.

The old man grinned. His expression was like the expression of an insane person.

“Right! Don’t come any closer!”, he said and slowly made a few steps back, “I’ll truly-“

Suddenly a shot hit the boss into the neck.

His hand sank down and let go from the knife before he fell onto the ground.

Everyone’s eyes wandered to the direction the shot had came from. ChanSung was standing with the gun still pointed at the place were his father had stood.

One of the policemen quickly reacted and ran to him, but ChanSung already threw the gun on the ground and lifted his arms.

“This old man just doesn’t know when it is enough.”

Now the policemen rushed foreward. HyoMin immediately ran to her grandmother as she was free.

She pulled her into a hug, talking in a mess and crying heavily. A policeman then led them outside.

LeeJoon followed them hobbling with a awry smile on his lips as he saw JinWoon coming closer.

As HyoMin saw him, her eyes widened. “JinWoon! What are you doing here?”

“He was the one who brought us here.”, the police officer explained, “It’s thanks to him, that you all are still alive.”

“But-“, HyoMin began confused.

“I’m glad that it worked out.”, LeeJoon said and JinWoon nodded, “Me, too.”

“Could someone explain this to me?” “He gave this to me.”, JinWoon held up something which looked like a GPS system.

“I’ve implanted a chip in my ring. With this system you can find it everywhere.”, LeeJoon explained, “I gave it to him, before I came to you.”

“You knew that they would catch us?”

He shook his head. “I suspected it, but of course I hoped they wouldn’t. I’ve told JinWoon to call the police if the signal would be around this warehouses.”

“Without this we would’ve never found you.”

“How lucky, that-“, HyoMin said as LeeJoon suddenly collapsed. “LeeJoon-shi!”

His breathing was heavy and pulled a face with pain.

“LeeJoon-shi! Quickly! Call a first-aid attendant!”

HyoMin pulled his head on her lap. Fluttering he opened his eyes.

“Someone is coming, don’t worry!”, HyoMin said panicking.

He startled and touched his side.

It was then, that HyoMin recognized that his shirt was drenched in blood. In the dark she hadn’t been able to see it. She quickly removed it. There was a deep wound.

“I think, they stabed me, as I was uncouncious, so that I loose more blood.”, he said weakly.

“Why isn’t anyone coming?!”, she then yelled at JinWoon who immediately jumped up to search for one.

“Don’t worry, everything will be alright! Don’t worry!”, HyoMin continuously said and tried to stop the bleeding with her hands.

“HyoMin-ah....” “Don’t worry, I’ll-“ “Please, listen...”

With her eyes full of tears, she looked at him.

He reached out to caress her cheek. “HyoMin-ah... I’m sorry for everything what happened...and I regret many things in my life....but...”, he coughed, “...I don’t regret to have met you...”

“Don’t talk like that... they will save you!”

LeeJoon pulled a face again but then smiled weakly at her. “HyoMin-ah... I love you...”

HyoMin was crying even more right now. “I love you, too...Oppa....”

He laughed a bit: “It’s the first time you call me Oppa...how nice...”

“I can call you Oppa how often you want to!”, she promised as he closed his eyes again.

“Thank you...”, his words were more like a silent whisper. His hand sank down and his body got heavier. HyoMin panicked. “Oppa...? Oppa! No, don’t! Wake up! Don’t leave me!” She pressed herself at him. “Don’t die, please! Don’t!”

Her words reached him from afar and his body began to feel light. Then other voices reached him.

“....quick...wound...has lost much blood...call...”

And then the voices stopped.