The week which followed Jongin’s first encounter ran without major events and soon enough was Sunday again. Kyungsoo had shared with Joonmyeon his meeting with the enigmatic new boy and Joonmyeon was very eager to meet this new friend. Unfortunately, a last minute massive homework held him back and when Sunday came he couldn’t go to the park again.

Honestly, Kyungsoo was a little sad about that, he was used to Joonmyeon’s constant presence in his life, but the differences in their grades demands was keeping them apart lately. Although, he had many more friends, no one was like Joonmyeon.

Anyway, the new possibility of meeting his most recent friend made his gloomy humour go away and exactly like he said he would be Jongin was waiting for him at the park, Sehun and Jongdae nearby (Sehun more distant with a grumpy face). Turns out that Sehun wasn’t has excited as him and Jongdae about Jongin and during the afternoon he was a little nasty to the newcomer. Kyungsoo insisted on the new friend’s presence and taught Jongin how to play with them (using his extra deck). Jongin was a fast learner but not a very good player.

They also played on the playground and some of the other kids kept being mean to Jongin but Jongdae helped him negotiate a space where they could play with him too. Sehun wasn’t very happy about these circumstances. However by the end of the afternoon he wasn’t insulting Jongin anymore and Kyungsoo felt very happy with the progress. Quickly, Jongin was becoming one of Kyungsoo’s favourite friends to play with. He was nice and considerate and had really awesome ideas for new games. They bit their goodbyes with the promise of meeting next Sunday again.

To make up for the two weeks which he was busy with school and barely had time to talk with Kyungsoo, Joonmyeon planned a sleepover on Saturday, just the two best friends. For that, he called for help from his parents that promptly convinced Kyungsoo’s parents to spend the weekend having fun away from home (something they did from time to time). So their mothers went to the public baths and their fathers took the chance and went outside the city in a fishing expedition.

Before dinner they played with the little figurines that were Joonmyeon’s favourites and built many different types of railways for their locomotives to ride. They ate pizza for dinner and were now at Kyungsoo’s house playing on the PlayStation.

“And then Jongin beat Jongdae on the jungle gym, you should have seen it! He is a really fast climber! You will like him, I'm sure!” The younger boy has his tongue sticking out of his mouth in concentration, while pressing quickly buttons on the controller he has in his hands. Kyungsoo had passed all the time speaking about this Jongin, and if it leaves Joonmyeon utterly curious to meet him, it also makes sentiments of jealousy bloom inside his chest.

“I already told you that you shouldn’t climb it too fast. You can hurt yourself if you fall.”

“It’s not dangerous, Joonmyeon-ah. We do it all the time.”

Joonmyeon sighs at the lack of honorifics. It would forever be a lost cause. Having lost the game already, he abandons his controller and gets up to go to Kyungsoo’s bedroom window. “I hope it doesn’t rain tomorrow.”

“Eh? Do you think so? Would Jongin come if it was raining?” Kyungsoo says the last part as an afterthought, his voice lower. He pauses the game, gets up and joins Joonmyeon on the window, observing the weather, his socks padding softly against the hardwood floor.

“Maybe. If his parents let him.” Joonmyeon sees someone on the swings and thoughts of crazy people cross his mind, before the wind hisses in full force, forcing him to retract on himself with the cold, his body shaking as much as the leaves on the trees outside. He abandons the window at lighting speed on behalf of Kyungsoo’s comforter.

Kyungsoo giggles at Joonmyeon’s hasty retreat and gives one last glance at the storm outside, noticing for the first time a small figure on the playground, which looks like a boy. What was a boy doing at the park in the middle of the night?

Joonmyeon stumbles on the comforter and falls on the floor, which Kyungsoo finds incredibly funny and very typical of the older boy. When Kyungsoo takes a new glimpse at the park, he finds it empty. Maybe he was mistaken and there wasn’t anyone there before.

After that, they decide it’s time to go to sleep, both tired of their Saturday classes and doing homework. Joonmyeon reads a bit out loud, until Kyungsoo falls asleep. Even if he could read now, the younger boy still liked being read to and because he knows him better than anyone else, Joonmyeon welcomes the boy’s embrace when it comes.

Usually Kyungsoo could only sleep if he was hugging someone or something.

At the age of five, he had got lost at Lotte World. It took almost four hours before the security guards managed to find him hidden near some bushes, terrified. Since then Kyungsoo couldn't stand being alone. Kyungsoo's parents and Joonmyeon took turns in sleeping with him, otherwise the youngest nightmares would made him weirdly quiet and impossible to physically separate from their hugs during the day. It lasted almost a year, before the boy’s parents thought of dolls as replacements. It took a while, but finally they succeeded with the Gabumon stuffed animal. The boy’s newfound love for Digimons helping a lot.

Joonmyeon drifts to sleep, while smiling at Kyungsoo's sleeping pouting lips. His neighbour is too cute for his own good.

Unfortunately, although it isn't raining in the afternoon, it had been raining in the morning, so the playground is all wet. Even so, Kyungsoo insists on going, otherwise he wouldn't meet Jongin, and Joonmyeon – as the good friend he is – allows it.

True to his expectations, the park is deserted – with just a couple of people walking around – and the playground doesn’t have anyone playing there, only a lonely kid standing at the entrance, that Joonmyeon assumes is the famous Jongin. It’s confirmed when Kyungsoo rushes to go meet him.

“Hi, Jongin-ah. Everything is wet because of the rain, right?”

Jongin is standing, facing the opposite side to where the boys where coming, so he needs to turn around before speaking. “Hum... Hi Kyungsoo-yah.” He looks different from the usual, more slovenly.

“This is my front door neighbour, Joonmyeon,” Kyungsoo introduces excitedly. “The one that is older than us,” pride evident in his tone of voice.

Joonmyeon narrows his eyes at Jongin’s aspect. The kid appears to be in a really bad shape, but his eyes immediately start to shine at Kyungsoo’s presence, giving them some life. “Hello Jongin-ah, nice to meet you. Kyungsoo told me a lot about you.”

“Hum?” Jongin is staring again at the opposite way, but turns around to bow and greet the older properly. “Oh, hello Joonmyeon-ssi,” he voices timidly.

Joonmyeon is pleasantly surprised with Jongin’s manners. But noticing the younger’s lack of responsiveness, he tries to catch on whatever is holding the other’s attention, however he misses it.

“What are you looking at?” Kyungsoo also takes notice of the lack of reaction he is receiving.

“Nothing... Do you want to play with me?”

“No. Joonmyeon doesn't think it's a good idea.” Jongin flinches and s freeze in its place, fear quickly lodging in the pit of his stomach at the words. Which Kyungsoo doesn’t notice, thus he continues lightly. “Because everything is wet and all. So we could go to the music store instead and eat cake. Please, say you’ll come with us. Please, Jongin-ah.” Kyungsoo clings to the other’s arm, begging.

“Is it far from here?” Jongin visibly relaxes, however the new suggestion brings trouble to his mind.

“No, we just have to walk a little.”

“I don’t have any money,” he admits softly.

“That’s okay. Me neither. Joonmyeon is going to pay for us.”

The older boy was observing carefully the interaction between the younger and something wasn’t right. Jongin is obvious very poor to begin with, his clothes are severely worn out as if they had been used by many, many days in a row, and the worst part is his awful smell (if Joonmyeon wasn’t trying to be at his best behaviour, he would be covering his nose) yet Kyungsoo seems to be immune to all of this.

Understanding that there is a chance of the new boy refusing to go with them (and how sad his favourite neighbour would be because of that), Joonmyeon intervenes to reassure him, “I’m the hyung and hyungs are supposed to take care of the younger ones. So let me buy you cake, okay? It would really be a pleasure and call me hyung please.” He ends with his most charming smile that usually no one can resist to.

Jongin feels heat rising in his body to his cheeks as he starts blushing. Never before did a hyung offer to pay for him. Joonmyeon appears to be very nice and was even smiling beautifully at him. He for sure must be the best of all hyungs.

Jongin nods his head with vigour. And in embarrassment slowly takes refugee behind Kyungsoo, who laughs delighted with the turnout of events making Jongin blush more. If it’s even possible. Because Kyungsoo also has the prettiest of smiles.

“Let’s go, then!” Kyungsoo utters, while he tugs at Jongin’s sleeve and walks out of the park in the music store direction.

In less than twenty minutes, they arrive at the store, Jongin listening carefully to Kyungsoo’s and Joonmyeon’s dialogue during the walk, understanding how close the neighbours are. Kyungsoo takes him immediately to the foreign section, teaching Jongin all about CD’s.

Joonmyeon trails after them, shortly behind and smiles kindly each time Jongin looks at him, making the younger boy blush profusely. At least Kyungsoo was right in this part, the younger is very nice and polite.

Kyungsoo tells Jongin all about the music store, (how it’s recent in this street, with just a couple of years), his favourite songs (foreign hits from the 80’s), Joonmyeon’s favourites (hits from the 90’s and how the older takes special attention to a new Korean style of music) and how this place is special for the both of them, because of their shared love for music. Joonmyeon adds supplementary information here and there to Kyungsoo’s descriptions.

Jongin jumps startled when without warning Kyungsoo tries to put headphones on his head, making the other giggle. The oldest of the three boys explains that they are connected with the music speakers and they can listen to music that way. Kyungsoo touches some buttons on the column – having to put himself on the tip of his toes to reach it – and that’s when Jongin starts listening strong rhythmic sounds.

It appears to be a day for first times, because Jongin had never heard music this way before and he can’t say he doesn’t love the experience. The boy’s heart pounds electrically, feeling his body stimulated by the sounds and his mind suddenly refreshed with a new wave of strength, his head moves at the beats rhythm and besides him Kyungsoo copies his movements, being capable of hearing the song thrown the headphones. They smile wholeheartedly at each other sharing the enthusiasm.

Time passes too fast like this and after two hours – that felt like twenty minutes – Joonmyeon asks them to go to the pastry shop now, before he faints of hunger. They exit the store and walk back in the pastry shop direction – that is closer to the park – chatting cheerfully, especially the youngest, with Joonmyeon walking closely behind.

Suddenly, a tall and dark clothed man grabs Jongin and Kyungsoo by their nape and drags them to an alley to their right, leaving a gaping Joonmyeon on the sidewalk staring at their retreating forms.

The man lets go of the two boys once they are deep into the alley to take a knife and rope from his pockets. “Finally, I catch you rascal. You thought you could pull the wool over my eyes, hum? And just look at this, you even have a pretty friend with you. He is going to be worth something very worthy I’m sure,” he spits out at the same time Jongin backs away from him, breath coming out puffy and a wave of cold sweat running over his body. A little too late, he notices Kyungsoo still petrified figure in front of the man and grabs him by his elbow, pulling him harshly even deeper into the alley, but as far as he could from the scary person that has been hunting him down like a dog for the past month.

“What’s going on Jongin-ah?” Kyungsoo shakily voices out and takes the other’s hand in seek of comfort, searching desperately for Joonmyeon, who in the meanwhile managed to follow after them and is putting himself between the man and the younger ones.

“He i-i-is dan-ge-rous. We need to go!” Jongin stutters, sensing urgency but hopelessness to find a way out, since the man is blocking the only one.

“And another one, hum?” The man says appreciatively at Joonmyeon appearance, a smirk pulling at the corner of his mouth. But it quickly falls out of his face, being replaced by a grimace. “Bah, your clothes are too pricey. I don’t need the cops on my heels, thank you,” he declares as he effortlessly pushes Joonmyeon’s body to the side, whose eyes widen in shock, startled at the touch.

“JOONMYEON-AH!” Kyungsoo screams, he is truly frightened right now. Joonmyeon is always the one who controls the situations and takes care of him, yet now he was disabled by this horrible man as one would do to an object. His heartbeats feel like as if the vital piece of his body is locked up in a bird’s cage that keeps on shrinking and shrinking and he is afraid it will smash his heart in process. Thus, he crushes Jongin’s hand harder, the other boy still silently eyeing the only exit.

“I wouldn’t touch them, if I were you,” recovered from the shock, Joonmyeon attempts to fight back. This individual appears to know a bit about Jongin, but he wouldn’t know much about Kyungsoo much less Joonmyeon himself.

The man acts as if the older one of the boys is entertaining him, as he moves forward closer to the other two, snickering. He probes, “And why is that?”

“That’s my younger brother. And our parents are in the coffee shop at the end of the street.” Joonmyeon is trying very hard to sound trustworthy and confident about his words for his attempt of distraction to be effective.

It works. The man is eyeing him now, studying his face. Joonmyeon walks sideways in the only exit’s direction. “I’m going to scream for them to come.” He announces and runs the fastest he can to the outside, praying in his head that Kyungsoo takes the opportunity and runs out to the street, far away from the unnoticeable alley and to where someone could help.

The man moves after him like a lighting flash, grabbing Joonmyeon in a couple of seconds. He tosses both of their bodies to the floor and goes for the boy’s throat.

“JOONMYEON-AH! NOOOOOO!” Kyungsoo runs to them, bringing Jongin along by their joint hands. The said boy wakes up from his drunken stupor and understanding the seriousness of their actual situation. Immediately together with Kyungsoo, tries to push the man off Joonmyeon.

Although it’s two against one, the man is by far stronger than the younger ones. In is despair to save the older, Kyungsoo feet slip and he falls. Jongin lets out a yelp at the now lack of help and desperately grabs the man’s hair pulling it hard, earning a satisfying pained groan as reaction. On the inside shivers run down his spine, because he knows how strong this person is, how easily he can crush Jongin’s head when he finds him again later (believing in the bottom of his heart that there's still a chance for his new friends to escape now).

From Joonmyeon’s perspective, time stops moving and memories of the first time he swam farther out to sea and couldn't keep his body on the surface of the water, the liquid quickly filling his nose and mouth and burning his throat, reach his mind. Only that time his father was fast in reaching him and later Joonmyeon could laugh at the experience from the safety of his father’s arms.

Now, every breath he takes fills his lungs with heaviness, as if he was inhaling wet flour, instead of oxygen that spreads to his inner organs and blocks him from inhaling further. Amongst the pain, his surroundings start to move in slow motion and he can feel his eyelashes so heavy, conscience certainly leaving him. He reaches his hand up, bobbing the man on the nose and his head is beaten against the floor as retaliation.

“Hyung, I could see you guys going into the alley from my mum’s-” Jongdae voice reaches them loud and clear and as he steps into the alley, three pairs of eyes focus on him. He first sees Kyungsoo kneeling on the floor with Jongin standing by his side, both pushing this third dark figure that is sitting on… Joonmyeon coughs, having the man’s grip loosen. Only then Jongdae sees the older boy’s body, bellow the dark figure. “WHO ARE YOU??”

“Jongdae,” Kyungsoo beams at their saviour and Jongin uses this moment of distraction to give a hard push against the man.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO MY HYUNG???” Jongdae keeps on shouting, scaring the daylights out of the man. Who stands and looks, frantically for his weapon.

“Shut up, you stupid kid!”

“I’M GOING TO CALL THE POLICE!!!”

“. Holy shi- You ing-” A flush of curses runs out of the man’s mouth, while he passes hastily by Jongdae, pushing him to the floor in the process and races up the street, leaving all the boys alone in the alley.

Jongdae runs to Joonmyeon's side that Kyungsoo’s crawling figure already reached, leaving Jongin kneeling on the last place left at the older boy’s feet. “Hyung, hyung are you okay? Who was that person? Kyungsoo-yah, what happened? Do you know that man? Jongin-ah, why was he attacking you guys?” Jongdae’s questions shoot wildly from one side to the other, but are completely ignored by everyone.

Kyungsoo's mantra of please be okay, please be okay is only interrupted by Jongin's words. “Do you think we should call an adult for help?” and Kyungsoo is about to answer that yes, please help us, when Joonmyeon's raises his hand stopping all the movements. “I'm okay. Just need to rest and get something for my neck,” his voice is slow and weak, tears falling from his blinking eyes. “It really burns.” But it appears to be becoming stronger word by word.

“My home is right on this street, come on. Let's take him. Quickly!” This time, Jongdae is heard and the three boys move Joonmyeon to a standing position, helping carrying him with a synchronised precision, without uttering one more word.

Jongdae's grandmother welcomes them excitedly at the apartment, but is automatically replaced by concern when she gets a better look at Joonmyeon's state.

During the rest of the afternoon, the older boy is pampered back to a healthier appearance by the old lady and his two friends. Jongin had looked very uncomfortable at the house (Jongdae's grandmother glares help a bit) and left once Joonmyeon guaranteed that he was perfectly fine, although he actually wasn't.

In the place where the man’s fingers had been, red aggressive prints marked him, but with some herbal pomade it didn't actually hurt that much. He and Kyungsoo discussed quietly between the two that it was better to hide what happened from their parents for now because of the most certainly worried reactions and forbidden Sunday's at the park. Joonmyeon is sure he can hide his neck behind fluffy scarfs and turtle neck sweaters, until it looks more presentable for parents’ eyes.

The four of them were peacefully sipping some tea and eating some sweets (that Jongdae's grandmother had kindly provided). The light of the day is almost gone, but they were so comfortably warm and safe that no one made a move to go home.

“That dirty boy from earlier is a friend of yours?” Unexpectedly Jongdae's grandmother questions calmly, surprising all of them with the topic.

Jongdae answers carefully, not wanting to create problems, “He is a friend from the park that sometimes we play with.”

Joonmyeon can already foresee what is going to follow, truthfully he also thought that Jongin could bring troubles, but now he seriously doubts it. The boy appears to be a sweetheart.

“Hum…” She sips a little more of her tea and settles the cup on the coffee table. “You are a good boy aren't you, my angel?”

“I… Think so…”

“Yes, you are. You are my favourite grandchild too. My little light of energy,” the old woman coos at her grandson, while hugging him from the side. Jongdae laughs content with the sudden attention. “I only want the best of the best for you. You know that son, right?”

“I know grandma, I love you too.” He smiles happily letting his head rest on her tired shoulder.

The old lady smiles back at the child she has in her arms. “That type of boy isn't a good company for you, sweetheart. Where boys like him are, mess always follows. I don't want you to play with him anymore, okay? Can you promise me that?”

Jongdae's smile is replaced with a frown.  But after a hard glance from his grandma, he replies, “I won't.”

Kyungsoo has the sudden urge to throw up all the sweets he ate before. What does Jongin have to do with anything now? He is always nice and polite. He bowed a lot more than them to the old lady to show respect.

Jongdae glances at him and he gives him the best betrayed face he can come up with. If he wouldn't play with Jongin again, then Kyungsoo wouldn't play with him again too. He grabs Joonmyeon’s hand to take them out of there the fastest possible. The other, quick to understand, complies and in less than ten minutes they are at their homes’ front doors.

Joonmyeon ruffles Kyungsoo hair as a goodbye gesture, before entering his home. They don't know yet, but their night would be filled with nightmares where they would see the worst of that day happen to each other all over again.

---

Author’s note: ‘The man's’ figure was inspired (sadly), by the story of a boy that was kidnaped by his neighbour in my country. Until today, the boy remains disappeared.
Originally, this part and the next one were united in one only chapter.