Kyuhyun clutched the clip-board in his hand tightly, biting the inside of his cheek.

He walked slowly, surrounded by stark white walls and the smell of hospital, and as he did so, he examined the room numbers of every door he passed, searching for a specific one.

He was looking for room 237.

Kyuhyun sighed and tilted the cupboard upward, looking once more at the packet of papers being held there.

Lee Sungmin.

The name was accompanied by a small, wallet-sized picture. The boy’s hair was long and scruffy looking, his cheeks hadn’t lost all their baby-fat, and his lips were turned up in a tiny, almost mischievous, grin.

That was the boy he was looking for, only about two years younger than himself.

Kyuhyun chuckled quietly, tucking the clipboard under his arm.

I’m glad my driver’s license photo doesn’t look like that.

The room ended up being at the very end of the hall, near a large group of windows looking out over Seoul and it’s rush-hour traffic.

He hesitated a second, standing before the door, his hand resting on the metal doorknob. He took a deep breathe, composing his thoughts for the task at hand.

He rapped on the door gently with his knuckles, after he was certain he was prepared.

“Yes?” The boy’s voice was wary, scared even, as he answered.

Kyuhyun waiting for no further invitation and turned the handle, pushing the door open.

The boy was staring up at him with bright eyes, worry and confusion on his face. There was a bandage and brace along his neck. That must have been where Donghae shot him. His mop of black hair was messy and looked as though he hadn’t been able to comb it in a while. Kyuhyun also suspected that he was not yet allowed to get up and take a shower, for his hair was greasy.

Kyuhyun found himself sympathizing for the younger male, but quickly shoved it away with a mental growl of irritation.

He was working for the enemy.

“Yes?” The boy repeated, a slight edge in his voice, tired of being stared at.

Kyuhyun snapped back to attention, clearing his throat awkwardly and looking away for a second, before composing himself again and returning his attention back to the eighteen year old. Kyuhyun was still amazed that, even though he had been shot in the neck and bled to death, that he had been able to be brought back to life. The helicopter had gotten there just in time and, miraculously, had been able to bring the kid back using defibrillators. 

“Are you…Lee Sungmin?” 

The boy hesitated, biting his lip, and then nodded slowly. “Yes. That’s me. May I help you?”

Kyuhyun nodded absently; he had already known the answer. He walked over to the other side of the room and grabbed a chair. He twirled it around and sat down, leaning his chest against the back side of the chair to appear more casual and relaxed in front of the boy.

He had learned a long time ago that criminals tend to speak more openly when the interrogator is relaxed and open around them.

Kyuhyun set his clipboard down on the small wooden table, hardly big enough to even fit the vase of flowers in the center of it, with a sigh. He ran his fingers through his shoulder-length black hair, trying to buy time.

“What do you want?” Sungmin asked coldly, a steely light entering his eyes. Kyuhyun glanced at him, his fingers pausing at the ends of his hair. He ran his fingers through the midnight locks the rest of the way, staring back at Sungmin, an eyebrow raised but otherwise calm. He then rested one arm on the top of the chair and rested the other one on his lap with another sigh.  “Don’t give me the attitude, kid. Please? I’m begging you. Traffic and my favorite coffee shop stopped selling my favorite coffee. It’s been a rough day.”

Sungmin blinked at him, momentarily set back at Kyuhyun’s response.

Kyuhyun flashed the kid a grin. “I know. Heartbreaking, isn’t it?”

Sungmin obviously didn’t know what to say to that, so he focused his attention on the TV in front of him, ignoring Kyuhyun’s eyes burning into his side.

“So,” Kyuhyun began after a minute of silence, breaking the tense atmosphere with a question. “How old are you?”

“…Eighteen.” Sungmin mumbled, shifting uncomfortably under the hospital blanket.  He had looked away from the TV, which was showing some sort of recent high-way accident on the news channel, but he still wasn’t meeting Kyuhyun’s gaze.

“Really?” Kyuhyun already knew that too, but he made himself sound surprised. “I would expect you to be older than that…”

Sungmin snorted quietly, his nose crinkling in amusement. “That’s a first. Normally people think that I’m younger than I really am.”

Kyuhyun smiled, glad to know that Sungmin was beginning to open up to him a bit.

Without bothering to stand up, Kyuhyun half scooted-half hopped his way closer to Sungmin’s bed. It would be easier to talk that way.

He extended his hand. “I forgot to introduce myself. I’m Cho Kyuhyun."

After a moment of hesitation, Sungmin reached out and took the offered hand. “I’d tell you my name but…” Sungmin nodded towards the clipboard. “Looks like you’ve already got it figured out.”

Kyuhyun grinned and pulled his hand back. He gestured towards the TV, refocusing Sungmin’s attention to the screen. “Anything interesting on?”

Sungmin frowned, watching the reporter speak about the accident for a second, and shook his head, a rather bored look on his face. “It’s the news.”

Kyuhyun chuckled. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

The room fell silent again, both young men watching the news though neither one of them were very interested in it.

“So…why are you here?” Sungmin asked again.

Kyuhyun sighed once more. “I’m from the Seoul Metropolitan Police station, downtown. I work in the investigations office.”

“…So that means you’re here to ask questions, right?” The cold tone in Sungmin’s voice returned and he scooted over in his bed, trying to distance himself from Kyuhyun. He suddenly looked angry, betrayed almost.

Kyuhyun tried not to feel hurt. “Yeah...”

“You’d better start asking then. I don’t want you in here any longer than necessary.”

Kyuhyun bit his lip, but reminded himself that he was a professional and should act like one. 

It didn’t matter that Sungmin was around his age, was scared, and probably lonely.  It didn’t matter that, if you looked deep enough, you saw the real side of Lee Sungmin – one that had started to shine through just minutes before.

What mattered was that he had to ask questions. His job mattered.

After trying to convince himself of that, Kyuhyun went straight into the questions.

“My colleagues, Choi Minho and Lee Donghae, said there were three other men with you that night at the Junkyard. Was this true?”

“Yes.” Sungmin’s voice still maintained the steely edge to it.

“Do you know their names? They told me that you said the leader of the organization you were working for - went by the name of ‘Wolf’? Is that correct?”

Sungmin shrugged halfheartedly. “That’s what Jongwoon told me.”

“Was Jongwoon with you that night?”

“Yes. Dunno if he’s alive though.”

“He’s alive. He ran off in the middle of the fight, Donghae said. We searched the area later and found him a few miles away from the Junkyard. He was arrested immediately.” Kyuhyun gave Sungmin a pointed look, which the younger ignored. “You would be too, if you weren’t injured. You shot at a police officer."

Sungmin suddenly scowled, whipping around to face Kyuhyun, his eyes dark. "I didn't shoot at him! He shot at me! I was defending myself!"

Kyuhyun stared at Sungmin, blinking in astonishment. He hadn't expected that.

The silence now was tense and awkward. Neither one of them looked at the other.

Soon though, only about five minutes later, Kyuhyun felt the tension in the room fade. He glanced up at Sungmin and saw this his face was relaxed again.

Kyuhyun watched as Sungmin picked up the remote from the bedside table and turned the channel to sports. Soccer was on, between America and Brazil.

The game distracted Kyuhyun for a minute or two, watching as one of the players from Brazil scored.

“Damnit! Turn the TV off! I have to do my job here, and you’re not helping any.” He cried, wrenching his eyes away from the screen. He loved watching soccer.

Sungmin scowled at him again, but turned it off without complaint. He didn’t seem to be that interested in the game anyway.

“Now, please just answer truthfully and in detail, so we can be done with this. Ready?”

Sungmin nodded reluctantly. “Shoot.”

Kyuhyun leaned in towards Sungmin, lowering his voice.

“This is very important, do you understand?”

Sungmin gulped.

“Tell me where this ‘Wolf’ character is hiding out.”

Kyuhyun studied Sungmin’s reaction. It seemed panicked almost, shocked, and definitely nervous and scared. 

“This one question, Sungmin," Kyuhyun pressed, watching him. "- may just determine whether or not you go to jail for next ten years of your life.”

Sungmin bit his lip to try and keep it from trembling. Kyuhyun spotted tears in his eyes and was stunned.

Why was he…?

It took a long time for Sungmin to find the resolve to try and talk. He opened his mouth to speak, but no sound came from his mouth. Kyuhyun saw his throat working as he either tried to find the words or tried not to cry. He suspected both.

“…Sungmin?” He asked quietly, his voice gentle and concerned.

Sungmin took a deep breathe, as if to finally speak, but then closed it again abruptly and buried his head in his arms. “I-I can’t…n-not yet.”

Kyuhyun cocked his head, confused.

“I can’t. I can’t! H-He’ll know.” Sungmin was sobbing now, which confused Kyuhyun even more. “Please…please, just leave me alone. Come back a-another day o-or something, just…please leave…”

Kyuhyun, stunned, obeyed the younger boy’s wishes and numbly grabbed his clip board from the table, pushed the chair back to where it belonged, and excited the room.

He held the door open for a second longer, watching as Sungmin rocked himself back and forth, sobbing.

What did he mean by ‘He’ll know’? Why couldn’t he say anything?

Kyuhyun closed the door softly, his eyes sad and downcast.

He found himself hoping that Sungmin was going to be okay, as he walked back down the hall to the elevator.

It was weird for him to feel that way. He always distanced himself from people and never cared about anyone besides himself and the people he loved and allowed himself to open up too.

Why was he suddenly caring about Sungmin when he hardly knew him?

Frustrated with himself, Kyuhyun practically punched the down button on the elevator.

He blamed it on not having his favorite coffee this morning.