THE8 | Junhao | *EDITING*

THIRTY - NINE

| CHAPTER THIRTY - NINE |

"Okay," Seungkwan sighs with a clear of his throat, taking a seat in his office chair. He gets situated, back straight, eyes on Minghao, "What did you want to talk to me about?"

Minghao sits in front of him, legs together, clasped hands rested on his lap.

He parts his lips, hesitating, "Has the station always had partners?" He pauses, seeing the confusion in Seungkwan's eyes, "Like, has anyone ever been alone?" He rephrases, "Independent?"

Seungkwan looks at him for a moment before going to speak, "Nobody's ever alone." He smiles, "So yes, this station has always had the 'assigned partners' rule. It's for safety measures."

Minghao nods.

Seungkwan twists his brows, "Why do you ask though?" He wonders, leaning on his desk, "Is there something up with Junhui? I could switch you if you want. It's not too late—"

"No no, it's okay." Minghao shakes his head, "I'm just curious, chief." He says, "I mean, I know I'm new and all.... but I just feel like even though I've been working here for almost a month, I don't know anything about what happens here."

Seungkwan takes in his words, "You're having trouble?" Minghao just sighs, not really agreeing or declining, "Don't worry, The8. We can take this day to learn if you want. I'll help you, I promise. We'll all help you."

Minghao nods, clicking his tongue.

He looks around for a moment, contemplating what to say next, "Chief?" Seungkwan raises his head, humming. Minghao meets his eyes, "You said the station's always had the partner rule...." He purses his lips, "Who was yours?"

Minghao already knows of course, he just wants to hear it from the actual person his father was paired with.

He wants to make sure.

Seungkwan seems to falter a bit, the once bright smile on his face lowering, "You might not know him." The chief shrugs, looking down, "Not a lot of people talk about him much anymore."

"I might." Minghao gives him a soft grin, shrugging, "Try me."

Seungkwan hesitates for a moment, running his thumb across the skin of his other hand.

"He was my friend..." Seungkwan frowns, "He was my best, best friend. He was like a Father to me. He couldn't be swapped for anyone else in the world, The8."

The 'Father' stings, but still, Minghao plays along, "Was?"

Seungkwan meets his eyes, sighing deeply. He lowers his head, a frown on his face, "He unfortunately passed.... about a couple years ago," He seemed regretful, saddened, and Minghao didn't know how to feel, "It was so awful, the way it happened."

Minghao swallows, "Can I ask what happened?"

Seungkwan sucks a breath, "It was a brutal homicide." He says, expression pained, "And I feel like such a disappointment, The8, because even after all this time, I have yet to find the person who took him from me." The chief sighs shakily, "And then his son goes missing...."

Minghao stills, tearing his eyes away.

"It was just never ending that year," Seungkwan sighs, "I lost my best friend... and then I lost the person he cherished the most."

Minghao takes a shaky breath, "Cherished the most?"

A hum, "Goddamn that man.... The only thing he'd talk about at work was his kid," He laughs, "Sometimes I think he forgot he had a job to do, all he spoke of was how much he loved his child."

Minghao closes his eyes, "What happened to the kid?"

Seungkwan takes another breath, steadying himself, "I couldn't tell you, The8." He frowns, "I visited the funeral that day, I don't even think he was well enough to notice. I barely saw his face anyways." Seungkwan sighs in sympathy, "After the funeral, a couple days passed, then I suddenly relieve a call from the child's school."

Minghao freezes.

"They said they had called his home phone, as well as his cousin's to ask for him to turn himself in for harassing an innocent student just days before." Seungkwan tells him, "I think that's how his cousin found out actually... but nonetheless, they still couldn't get a hold of him, nobody could."

Cousin.

Soonyoung.

Minghao tries to keep his cool.

"He just disappeared." Seungkwan looks distraught, confused, "I already lost a piece of my heart when the universe took my best friend, but not knowing what happened to the person he loved the most in the world is close to shattering the other half."

Minghao sighs, "That's awful." He hates playing along, he hates lying like this.

Seungkwan nods, "It was the worst year of my life."