“Kibum, is that you?”

“Are you back?”

“Seriously, say something.”

Minho asked every time someone passed by or every time he heard a noise. He had been waiting for over 15 minutes and having his eyes closed made it felt like 50 minutes.

“It’s not funny anymore, Kim Kibum.” Minho ripped the blindfold off his eyes as the last piece of patience left his body. To his disappointment the seat in front of him was empty. The restaurant was full. It was weird watching people having dinner with blindfolds. Thinking that just a minute ago he looked the same gave Minho an odd feeling. Scanning every inch of the room, Minho ascertained Taemin was nowhere to find. Suddenly having a presentiment of danger, Minho hastened to the restroom.

“Kibum,” he called but no one answered.

“Kibum,” he kept calling while checking every cabin. As expected, he found nobody. His last hope was all on the last cabin which was occupied.

“Are you in there, Kibum?” Still no answer.

“Are you ok?”

“Are you not feeling well?”

“Give me some response, Kibum.” Hearing the water, Minho calmed down, expecting “Kibum” to come out soon. Yet, nothing happened again.

“Damn it, Kibum.” Minho groaned in frustration. As he punched against the door, it finally opened, and an annoyed stranger pushed himself through Minho to get out of the cabin.

“, dude. Can’t a man in peace?” He yelled, passing by. Minho would have burst out in laughter if it wasn’t for the embracement he was feeling at the same time.

That was also the moment he admitted he needed help. Reaching for his phone, he dialled Taemin’s number.

“The number you have dialed has not been recognized.”

“What?” Minho shouted, looked at the screen to make your he pressed the right number. And he tried again.

“The number you have dialed has not been recognized.”

“What the hell is happening here?” Minho screamed inside. Next, he called Onew.

“Is Kibum with you?” He asked the second Onew picked up.

“Minho?” The older man asked at the other end.

“Is Kibum with you?” Minho repeated, not wasting time.

“No, isn’t he with you?”

“I wouldn’t have asked if he were with me, would I?”

“Did you call him?”

“Of course, I did. , Onew, can you say something useful?”

“Sorry, where are you? I’ll be right there.”

“Hongdae. And Onew, bring my guards with you.” Minho demanded.

“I’m on my way.”

Waiting for Onew and his men was a torture, especially when all his efforts to contact Taemin were just a waste of time. After the other men finally arrived, Minho sent them out to search for Taemin. He realized something was odd, but not one second did he think of Taemin leaving him. He wished he was overreacting, but his instinct told him that Taemin was in danger.

“Onew, you know him well. Where would he go?” Minho asked.

“There are some places I can think of right now. How about we separate to look for him. I’ll send you the addresses.” Onew suggested. The last thing he needed right now was being under Minho’s watch.

“Ok. Call me as soon as you find him.” Minho stated.

Right after Minho left, Onew dialed Taemin’s new number, the one Onew got him for situations like this. He was proud of Taemin. The younger man made it to escape from one of the most dangerous Korean gang. However, Onew was even more proud of Taemin for being reasonable enough to understand that he needed to leave Minho despite those feelings whether they were real or not. Because Onew understood that to Taemin, they were real. Having a crush on someone you’re supposed to escape from could make it impossible to leave. But Taemin made it. And for that, Onew was proud of his former student.

“Come one, pick up, Taemin,” Onew mumbled. Taemin was supposed to call him right after he left Minho. But still, Taemin hadn’t contacted him yet.

An hours later, Onew was officially worried. Something must have gone wrong. Taemin should have called him long ago. Onew headed to the central station where the locker he prepared for Taemin was located. Taemin was supposed to go there, if something went wrong or if they got separated. The locker contained Taemin’s passport, money, a ticket to New York and of course a phone that couldn’t be tracked. As soon as Onew opened the locker, he regretted not coming here sooner. He was dumb, waiting and hoping Taemin would call him. Taemin would never leave without his passport. That was the moment Onew realized he made a huge mistake.

Taemin didn’t escape. He went missing.

Onew wasn’t a rookie. He was trained for this kind of situations. This wasn’t even his first missing case. He should know what to do. But his hands threatened to shake like he had no idea what he was doing. Surely, they were taught to treat every victim equally. This should be a case like any other. Yet,