Joon watched as Cheondoong’s body crumpled to the ground in a heap.  Beside him, Changwook stared in stunned silence.  Nearby park-goers screamed and pointed as the man dropped the balloon pump and began to run.  The other swooped down and threw Changwook over his shoulder before following the other.

“Oh God,” Soyun said as the two of them ran over to Cheondoong.  Amidst the gushing blood, a large gash could be seen across Cheondoong’s head from his eyebrows all the way back to his ear.  She quickly pulled out her phone and dialed for an ambulance.

Joon quickly took off his outer shirt and handed it to Soyun.  “Use this to put pressure on the gash,” he said quickly as he stood, “I have to go after them.”  With that, he quickly his heels and left.

His heart raced in his chest as his mind became near blank.  There was no thinking about the consequences of chasing the two kidnappers alone and there was no feeling afraid of what was to come; there was only the adrenaline pumping through his veins and the thought of getting to Changwook propelling him forward. 

As he rounded the corner, he spotted the man with Changwook on his shoulders running towards the streets where a white van was parked.  Putting everything into it, Joon ran towards them as if his life depended on it.  He could hear Changwook’s screaming as he neared.  He was only a few meters away now…

Out of nowhere, someone tackled him to the ground from his blind spot.  He winced as he felt gravel collide with his head, sending stars into his vision.  He gasped for breath as the air was knocked out of him but he blindly reached out and grabbed onto the man that straddled him.  Blocking the punches to the best of his ability, Joon tried unseat his attacker but the rain of fists was too overwhelming for him.

Out of nowhere, he heard something solid collide with the man’s head as he suddenly jerked to the side.  Peering through his arms, Joon was surprised to see Soyun standing above him with her legs raised in what had to have been a roundhouse kick to the man’s ear.

Helping him up quickly, Soyun said, “Hakkun is with Cheondoong.  Where are they?” 

As Joon shook the stars from his eyes, they heard the sound of a screech.  Joon watched as the white van took off down the road.  He felt despair flood through him as he watched then turn the corner to the right.  He tried to catch his breath as he wracked his brain for what to do next.  He hadn’t caught the license plate…  He sighed as he looked back into the park…

Suddenly, a bulb went off in his head.  “This way!” he called to Soyun as he took off again back from where he came. 

The park had more than one exit!  The exit he had chased the kidnappers to was different from the one they had entered from.  The gate just now read West, and if Joon had his directions right, the gate that they’d entered from was North!  Given the traffic on the road at four in the afternoon on a busy Saturday and the shortcut they could take through the park… they might be able to make it!

As they weaved through the people, Joon felt hope rise up in his chest.  He wasn’t sure why he was so desperate to save Changwook.  He barely knew the boy and his mother may have very well tried to kill Joon in the past.  But… he felt a strong attachment to him.  It was nothing like he had ever felt before.  It was different from his gratitude towards Dara, or his bond with Cheondoong.  It was certainly different from his feelings for Seungho.  But… he couldn’t explain it.  All he knew was that he had to get to him.

As Joon burst through the North gates, he let out a relieved breath as he spotted the white van barrelling towards them.  But how was he going to stop it?  He couldn’t run in front of it; they would probably just plow right through him.  What to do?

Spotting a bicycle leaning against the ticket booth, Joon pushed past the line-up and grabbed it.  With strength he didn’t know he had, he ran out to the street with the bicycle in hand.  As the van raced towards him, he mustered every bit of strength in him and flung the bicycle at the oncoming van’s windshield.  As he’d expected, the van screeched to a halt as the bicycle smashed through the windshield.  Nearby pedestrians screamed as other vehicles also came to a screeching halt.  From behind him, he heard Soyun gasp loudly before she caught up to him. 

“Is that them?” she asked, rolling up her sleeves, “Is Changwook in the van?”

“Yes,” Joon said as the two of them rushed the van, “Be careful!”  Running around the front to the driver’s side, Joon pulled the shaken driver out of his seat just as the door swung open.  Without thinking, Joon balled his hands into a fist and slammed it against the man’s temple.  Like a sack of potatoes, the man dropped to the ground in a thump; he was knocked out cold. 

From the back of the van, Joon heard screaming.  Running to the back, Joon was surprised to find the doors already open.  On the ground, one kidnapper had Soyun pinned from behind while the other was already running off into the crowds with Changwook over his shoulders. 

Leaving Soyun to deal with her kidnapper, Joon chased after the Changwook.  Luckily a crowd had gathered around them and severely restricted the movements of the kidnapper.  Several people in the crowd were also reaching out to pull on the kidnapper’s clothes, slowing him down significantly.  As Joon neared them, he ran as fast as he could and bulldozed the man from behind, sending all three of them tumbling to the ground in a heap. 

In a scramble of limbs, Joon managed to climb on top of the struggling man and land a punch to the man’s temple.  Like the driver before him, the man’s head lolled to the side as he fell unconscious.  Beside them, Changwook was silent as he looked at Joon with large tear-filled eyes.  One side of his face was red and his lip was bleeding. 

Getting off of the kidnapper, Joon sat on the concrete and tried to catch his breath.  He turned to look at Changwook, who returned his look with trembling lips.  “You okay?” Joon murmured quietly, giving him a soft smile. 

“Mmn,” Changwook nodded, sniffling, “I didn’t cry.”

“You are a brave little man,” Joon said with a smile.  He watched as Changwook’s face crumpled.  Feeling relief well up inside of him, he opened his arms and gestured for the boy to come.

Obediently, Changwook got up from his seat on the road and walked over.  Swinging his little arms around Joon’s neck, he burrowed into Joon’s neck and began to wail loudly.  His small shoulders shook with every hiccup and his tears drenched Joon’s shirt.

Gently, Joon wrapped his arms around him and patted his back gently.  He sighed as the adrenaline seeped out of him, leaving him exhausted.  He turned as he heard Soyun run up to them, her own face covered in sweat.  He was surprised to see that she didn’t have a single scratch on her. 

Her face was scrunched up in worry as she looked between Changwook and Joon.  She sighed in relief as she spotted the unconscious kidnapper laying beside them and sat down on the concrete next to them.  In the distance, they heard the sounds of sirens approaching them as the crowd murmured and cheered around them.

Suddenly snapping out of his exhausted daze, Joon turned to Soyun with wide eyes and said, “Where’s Cheondoong?”  And then he remembered… he blinked at Soyun and asked, “Who’s Hakkun?”

Joon sighed as the nurse finished wrapping up his hands with gauze.  Although he had barely sustained any injuries, the skins atop his knuckles were ripped.  Considering he had never once punched anyone before in his life, Joon thought himself as lucky for having avoided breaking his hand.  Hyunsik would have loved that…

He felt one of his cheek’s stinging as the nurse dabbed it with peroxide.  He had sustained a small cut… great.  He was going to get into so much trouble when he got back… with both Hyunsik and Seungho.

“Alright, you’re all set,” the nurse said, giving him a shy smile, “Please be careful not to wet your hand tonight.”

“Thank you,” Joon said, bowing slightly before making his way out into the hall.  Soyun looked up as he approached her.  “Are you okay?” he asked, giving her a look-over.

“I’m fine,” she said, “I have a second degree black belt in hapkido.”  She sighed and said, “Changwookie’s fine too.  He’s got a busted lip but that’s about it.  Cheondoong’s already been moved to a regular room for the time being and he’s awake.  Changwook is with him right now…”

Joon nodded and sighed with relief and followed Soyun as she led the way to Cheondoong’s room.

They had returned to Cheondoong to find Hakkun, their driver, coordinating with the ambulance.  As soon as they arrived at the hospital, nurses had wheeled Cheondoong into trauma and promptly closed the door in their faces.  They had waited for a while before a nurse insisted on checking the rest of them for wounds.  Soyun had stayed with Changwook and Cheondoong while Joon had been led away by a nurse.

“The doctor said that it was really lucky that he turned when he did,” Soyun said, “The impact was off kilter and did more damage to the skin than the brain.  If he hadn’t turned…”  She sighed and shook her head.  “If he hadn’t turned, he could have gotten a serious concussion and probably had brain damage,” she said, looking at Joon, “You sort of saved his life, Lee Joon-shi.”  She gave him a smile as they reached door. 

Joon nodded and fell silent as he listened to Soyun.  What a turn of events… His mind still felt blank from the lack of energy but he was glad everything turned out okay.  They would be able to find out more information on their kidnappers once the police filed a report. 

As Soyun pushed her way through the door, Joon felt his heart thud a little bit faster.  He hated the smell of the hospital.  It reminded him of the sad visits to Dara; it reminded him of his own helplessness and suffering.  But it seemed… he just couldn’t get away from it. 

The room Cheondoong had been placed in was a general room with eight beds in total, four on either side.  Cheondoong was placed near the end of the room by the window.  As they approached, they could hear Changwook’s incessant chatter as the boy described what had happened after he was carried off by the kidnappers.

Joon let out a sigh of relief to see Cheondoong smiling as Changwook talked his ear off.  His head was wrapped up in bandages and heavily padded to the right side of his head.  Other than that, he seemed perfectly fine.  He looked up as Soyun and Joon approached him and the smile disappeared from his face.  His eyes fell on Joon’s hand and a small frown graced his face.

“You okay?” he asked, “I heard about what happened…”

“I’m fine,” Joon replied, sitting down on his bed in exhaustion, “Are you okay?  Should you be sitting up right now?”

“I’m fine,” Cheondoong said, smiling at him in relief, “It’s just a little scratch.”

Soyun scoffed as she collapsed onto a nearby chair.  “A little scratch,” she said, “Yeah right.”  Sighing, she opened her arms as Changwook went to her and sat on her leg.  “I’m just glad it ended well,” she said, looking at Cheondoong with relief in her eyes, “It was… terrifying.”

“I can imagine,” Cheondoong replied, looking back at her with softness in his eyes, “Fighting off those guys…”

“It was more terrifying watching you fall,” she murmured as she placed her chin on Changwook’s shoulder, “It was like you just…crumpled to the floor without life…”  She let out a shaky breath and tightened her hug around the boy’s waist.  

Silence fell between them as they let the severity of the situation sink in.  If the hit had been had been at bit more well-aimed, they wouldn’t be having a conversation between the three of them now…

“But we’re all okay,” Changwook said brightly, as if what happened had been a simple walk in the park, “So that’s good, right?”

“Yeah,” Soyun said, placing a gentle kiss on the top of his head, “I’m glad you’re okay too, you little bugger.”

“But you should have seen the way Joonie-hyung tackled that guy!” Changwook said, suddenly jumping up and flailing his arms, “It was like a football tackle!  The guy dropped me and then tried to get on top like this-”  He gestured wildly as he re-enacted the fight.  “And then, Joonie-hyung went like this,” he said throwing out a punch, “And then the guy totally passed out like-”  He made a face as he flopped onto Cheondoong’s bed and rolled his eyes to the back of his head.

Joon couldn’t help the laughter that rose in his chest as he watched the boy talk about the incident with such animation.  The boy’s spirit was amazing; he easily dispelled the tension in the room and made them smile after the ordeal they had gone through.

“Oh,” Soyun teased, “Was it like that?  And since when did Lee Joon become your Joonie-hyung?”

Changwook shook his head at her and made a ‘tsk’ noise with his tongue.  “Always a step behind, noona,” he said as-a-matter-of-factly, “The question is, when has Joonie-hyung not been my Joonie-hyung?”

Joon laughed as Soyun rolled her eyes.  On the bed, Cheondoong chuckled as he gazed at the boy with fondness.  Joon felt an overwhelming amount of relief as Changwook flashed him a smile.  The day had started with apprehension for him.  When he had met Changwook again, he was sure the boy didn’t like him.  And after all the adrenaline… it had certainly been a rollercoaster of a day for him.

“Oh yeah,” Soyun said suddenly, “I called hwajangnim and Hyunsik-oppa a few minutes ago while I was waiting for Joon.  They’ll be here in a few minutes they said…”

“Aww man,” Changwook complained, “Why did you have to call my mom?  She’s going to freak out again…”

“As she should,” Soyun interrupted, “You were almost kidnapped.  She has a right to be worried.”

As Changwook pouted, Joon felt his heard speed up again at the mention of Song Bangna.  Of course she would be notified of this; she was Changwook’s mother after all.  But… he wasn’t ready to face her again, was he? 

“Since when did Joonie-hyung become just Joon for you?” Changwook asked in petty revenge.

“Oh shush,” Soyun said, flicking him gently on the forehead.

Cheondoong frowned slightly as he looked at Soyun.  Joon could see the wheels of jealousy turning in his head at Changwook’s remark.  And although he wanted to clear up the misunderstanding, it was sort of amusing to see the usually composed Cheondoong become jealous.

Giving his head a shake, Cheondoong dismissed his own feelings irritably and said, “You told Hyunsik-hyung too?  He’s… going to be mad.”

“That’s an understatement,” Soyun sighed, “He’s going to pop a vein is more like it.  And I’m going to get in so much trouble…”

“With your father?” Joon asked.  He felt unsettled at the idea of facing Song Bangna again but he was almost more worried about Hyunsik’s wrath when he sees the cut on Joon’s face.  It won’t be pretty…

“Yeah,” Soyun said, leaning back in her chair, “He was able to get you guys a day off and Hyunsik-oppa was already pissed about that.  Now they’re both going to kill me…”

“But it wasn’t your fault,” Cheondoong said, frowning, “They’ll understand.”

Soyun opened to argue but at that moment, the hospital room door swung open.  In walked Song Bangna… and a very angry Hyunsik.

Author's notes:

Action!!  Haha angry Hyunsik =  devil.  Next chapter should be fun!  XD  But aren't you guys glad I let Doongie be okay?  You're welcome muahahaha.  I feel there may have been a mutiny or something if I had given him severe brain damage or made him die... Am I right or am I right?