Unknown Location – Kwon's POV
The air was cold.
Kwon's eyes blinked open slowly, adjusting to the dim, sterile light above. His limbs were heavy — like his body had betrayed him, moving in slow motion while his heart thundered in panic.
A soft drip… drip… echoed from somewhere behind the wall.
He was lying on a narrow cot. A single metal door stood across from him. No windows. No clock. No sense of time.
Where am I?
He sat up too quickly — his head throbbed like a warning. Nausea bubbled up, but he swallowed it down, hands trembling.
The last thing he remembered was heading out for work. Checking the time. Tapping his phone—
Then arms. A van. Something pressed to his face.
And now…
Trapped.
"Hey!" Kwon shouted, banging on the metal wall. "Let me out!"
No answer.
Only silence.
But then… a click.
From somewhere hidden in the ceiling, a speaker crackled to life. A soft, almost mocking voice filtered through:
"You should get comfortable, Kwon."
He froze.
"Someone's worried about you," the voice continued, female, smooth and haunting. "But I want to see just how worried they'll get."
Then the speaker went silent.
Kwon's throat closed up.
Who the hell was that?
And what does she want from me?
Back at Yosan – CEO Office
Tae stood in front of a massive monitor, replaying security footage over and over — the moment Kwon stepped out of his building at 6:43 AM. The next camera across the street? Blank. Glitched.
Intentional.
Tae's hands gripped the edge of the desk so hard, the veins in his arms stood out.
"He was taken," he muttered. "Someone planned this."
Sechan stood behind him, unusually quiet.
"You think it's business-related?" Sechan asked.
"No," Tae answered darkly. "This isn't business. It's personal."
He turned toward his friend, eyes colder than before.
"And the only one who's ever wanted to hurt him to get to me is—"
The phone on the desk rang.
Caller ID: Eunah.
Tae stared at it for a second too long before he answered.
"Tae," her sweet voice came through, as if nothing was wrong. "Don't forget we're hanging out tomorrow. I miss your company."
"I'm cancelling," he said flatly.
"Oh?" Her tone didn't falter. "Busy with something?"
Tae's voice dropped to a low growl.
"If you touch him…"
Eunah laughed softly.
"Who said anything about me touching anyone? You've always had a wild imagination, Tae."
"I'm warning you."
"Tsk. So dramatic. I just wanted your attention. But you're always so distant lately. Maybe I need to remind you what's at stake."
She hung up.
Tae slammed the phone down hard enough to crack the casing.
In the Lobby – Jungwon
Jungwon sat on the lobby couch, knees bouncing. He hadn't left since the confrontation. Refused to. Eyes bloodshot, phone still clenched in his hand as if willing it to ring.
Kwon, please…
He stared at the elevator as Tae finally descended, looking like something inside him had shattered.
"Did you find something?" Jungwon jumped to his feet.
Tae nodded grimly. "Someone took him. I'm going to get him back."
"Then take me with you."
Tae paused.
Jungwon looked like he might cry again. But his voice was steel.
"I don't care what problems we've had. I need to be there when you find him. He's not just your past, Tae. He's my present. And maybe my only future."
The two locked eyes for a long, weighted moment.
Then Tae nodded once.
"Get in the car."
Unknown Location – Kwon
He hadn't eaten. Hadn't slept. The lights never turned off.
He couldn't even tell what time it was anymore.
The only sounds were his own heartbeat and the occasional mechanical click above — the sound of a camera moving. Watching him. Always watching.
He'd stopped yelling hours ago. Or days ago. He wasn't sure anymore.
But what made it worse — what truly gnawed at him — was that no one had come.
Not Tae.
Not Jungwon.
Not even a whisper.
Was he really that forgettable?
He pressed his back to the wall, burying his face in his arms when suddenly—
The door opened.
A light flickered on in the next room, just visible through the crack. Heavy boots echoed on concrete.
And then she entered.
Dressed in silk. Calm. Cold.
"Hello, Kwon."
He looked up, disoriented.
"Who are you?"
She smiled — a terrifying, elegant smile. "Call me Eunah."
Kwon's blood ran cold.
"You know Tae, don't you?" she asked sweetly, sitting down across from him like this was a casual dinner.
Kwon didn't answer.
Eunah's eyes sharpened. "Let me explain something. Tae is mine. Or he was. And for years, I let him grieve you in silence. I even let him pretend he was over you."
She leaned closer.
"But then he started looking at your name again. Whispering it in his sleep. I know because I slept beside him."
"You're insane," Kwon whispered.
She laughed. "That's fair."
Then her smile disappeared.
"But I've spent years waiting to be loved the way he looked at you for two seconds."
She stood, heels clicking as she walked toward the door.
"I want to know what's so special about you," she murmured. "And the best way to know… is to break you open."
Before Kwon could respond, she snapped her fingers.
A screen lowered from the ceiling — showing live footage.
Tae. In his office. Pacing. Shouting at someone over the phone.
But beside him stood Jungwon.
Eunah's voice dropped to a whisper.
"Let's see who Tae will choose… when everything falls apart."
She walked out. The door slammed shut behind her.
Yosan HQ – Tae's Office
"He's not just missing. This was a setup," Tae said, smashing another coffee cup to the floor. "Every security blindspot was deliberate. This wasn't amateur."
Sechan sat silently in the corner, brows drawn tight.
Tae turned to Jungwon.
"I think I know who did this. But if I go after her now, she'll make him disappear."
"Then let me go," Jungwon said.
"What?"
"She doesn't know me. I'm not a threat."
Tae looked like he might protest, but stopped. He studied Jungwon.