Runaway

Chapter 15: Interview

Taeyong once again found himself in a basement but now tied up getting tortured by his father's men.

Five days.
Five days of hell, beatings, pain.
He hadn’t drank or eaten anything.
He hadn’t slept too, the vicious people around him made sure to pure ice cold water on him whenever his eyelids felt heavy.

He regretted leaving Johnny and breaking their meant to be broken promise, but this was for the best, he could keep Johnny and everyone else safe now.

Too out of it, he was soon pulled out of his thoughts when a hand collided with his cheek.

"Get up! We'll pretend you just came back, you'll be shown on national TV and don't you dare to disagree with my saying. Then we are going to meet the Hwangs."

Taeyong's arm was violently grabbed, maids soon surrounding him dressing him in a new pair of clothes. Taeyong chuckled, they were from a well known brand and he would only wear them once and then they would be forever stained with his blood.

Johnny on the other side has been cold. More than before. After his breakdown that day he stopped being a human and transformed into an emotionless robot.
He just worked and drank.

"Johnny!"

"What do you want Donghyuck? Ah? What?"

"I want you to finally face the situation and do something-"

"I can't do anything don't you get it?"

"Oh come on! We all know you can! You are as powerful as Lee, if not even more!Do something! Even though I don't le him and don't understand why you love him so much, do something. You said you loved him yet you do nothing that resembles love."

"Why do you care?"

"Because he hurt you hyung! Look at you! You haven't eaten anything since he left, you only work and drink alcohol while you cry yourself to sleep. You even shouted at Chinese! You are freaking dying, while he was being a bratty rich kid-"

"Stop. You have no right to talk like that. You know nothing about him."

"I know, that he had it all and he chose not to-"

"You're wrong goddammit!"

"Um- guys?"

"Oh yeah? To what?"

"Guyyss?"

"You are wrong for everything!"

"Guys!"

"Shut up Mark!"

"Shut up Mark!"

"Why do you say you love him so much? We all know what was plan-"

"Don't go there!"

"HEY!"

"Shut up!"

"Shut up!"

"I would if Taeyong wasn't on national TV!"

"He- what?"

"Well, watch!"

They put the TV on full volume.

"Mr Lee Taeyong. You seem quiet... hurt and exhausted but how are you really feeling?"

Taeyong's voice was raspy and void, no emotion could be heard as if he spoke a seemingly proofread speech, yet his eyes mirrored his pain and proved his words to be true.

"My kidnapping was... something that made me rethink every choice in my life. From being happy with people I liked and loved, suddenly I was found in a basement tied up getting hit by my f- kidnapper. I didn't even drink water for five days. I tried to keep quiet so my punishments would be lighter but with every noise that came out of my mouth caused by the unbearable pain I've felt made him hit me and hurt me more, it was so easy for him... as if he and his men have been doing this for years. I- whatever I did and endured and- and got through was to protect people that are special to me."

"By that you would mean your father..."

"My... father. Yeah... he is special, on his own way... you could say."

"Is there anything else you could and would want to share with us before the court?"

"... I'd never go back in time and whatever I lived the last three months... I would relive it all over again, I regret nothing. Thank you."

Clicks of cameras and thousands of questions were heard while Taeyong made his way in the court.

"W-what was that?"

"That... Donghyuck, was the proof that you were wrong, you and everyone who doubted him too."

"But-"

"What Taeil? Isn't this enough? You all talk about how weird and crazy he looks and how arrogant and fake he is, only because he has money! And you are right... he is fake. But not the way you think he is. The only thing he ever pretended was the fact that he has healthy relationship with his father and that he is happy. Whatever you heard in this interview was true."

"But- he was there, we didn't-'

"We didn't, but his father and his men back home the last five days and since he was a baby did. Taeyong is rich, he is kind, he is pretty, he is thin, he is educated, strong, confident, he is smart but he is also abused, assaulted, scared, insecure, sad, hurt, traumatized. He has been through so much you don't have the right to call him names."

"Wait, Johnny what are you talking about?"

"Come on Mark, I didn't expect you to be that stupid. His father is the devil himself, he is the reason Taeyong... his sister committed suicide and people thought she went abroad and his mother runaway. So Taeyong tried to follow her steps while taking his so needed revenge, yet... he fell upon me and we fell in love together. So now, get over it, man up and help me find a plan to get rid of the old man and take Taeyong back safe."