N0 B0DY, N0 CRIM3 | Bang Chan

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By the time Lee Know woke up, he had overslept by an hour. He should have been at his job an hour ago. His usual dreams had faded into the abyss. Instead of the usual dreams, he spent all night being plagued by nightmares. Every time he woke up from one and drifted back to sleep, he was soon sucked into another. 

Felix screaming for help tied up while Lee Know was unable to move. Felix sitting in the dark with bloody tears seeping down his cheeks. Felix curled up into a ball and begged to be let go while Willie circled him. Lee Know was cemented in place and forced to watch, unable to utter a single word. 

Nothing had been the same since Felix went missing. So when Lee Know overslept, he called his boss and received a voicemail message. He left a message informing him that a personal emergency had happened and due to it, he'd be unable to attend work today. He apologized for the late notice before hanging up. 

After he was dressed and walked out of his room, he couldn't stand the silence of the morning. Not sure if anyone else was even up, he left the house haunted by the ghost of Felix. He dug his palms into his eyes and tried to rub the thought of Felix away. 

Like a lost puppy, Felix often followed Lee Know around. In the kitchen, if it were anyone else, it would have bothered Lee Know. When it came to Felix, he didn't mind. Felix was curious and occasionally helped Lee Know cook. He used to joke that one day he'd make better meals than Lee Know. Usually, Lee Know would scoff and roll his eyes in a playful manner, but today that memory stung. 

It pierced through the soft tissue of his chest and hit his heart. He'd do anything to find Felix and bring him back home. He needed, they needed, everyone needed Felix back. There was no Stray Kids without Felix. The glue, their glue, was gone. 

Still early in the morning, dew clung to the bright green blades of glass. A hazy layer of fog coated the area, but Lee Know didn't mind. He approached the sidewalk and began to head towards the store. Nature had always been a way to clear his mind. Taking hikes, going camping, and even short walks; small things he could do to reconnect with the earth and get his mind off of his stress. 

He pulled up the hoodie of his head and continued walking. The sun was up, but it didn't provide much warmth this morning. The cloudy gray skies only added to the ominous aura of the day. For whatever reason, it seemed more quiet than usual. It was almost like everyone, including nature, seemed to be mourning Felix's disappearance. 

The vibration of Lee Know's phone yanked him from his thoughts and jerked him back into the present. He grabbed the device from the back pocket of his jeans and unlocked it. He paused as he read the text message from Hyunjin. 

'S.O.S'

Another text immediately followed. 

'Han and I were ambushed at the diner looking for you. The dumb bastards didn't take our phones away. We were knocked out. We're heading to DC unwillingly. Stay away from the diner. Don't trust the waitress. My phone is about to die. Tell Chan. Get help. Stay together.'

Lee Know frantically typed back a response and spun around on his heel. Not wasting time, he sprinted back towards the house. Halfway there, Hyunjin responded to his text message. While running, he shakily unlocked his phone and scanned the message. 

'I don't know who took us. Secret service members I think? My phone is at 2%. I'll text you when I can. We'll be okay.'

Hurrying towards the door, he fumbled for his keys, cursing beneath his breath. His brain was going into overdrive. Not only was Felix gone, but now so were Han and Hyunjin. That was three guys gone. Three of their members were gone when there were only eight of them to begin with.

Once he unlocked the door, he flung it open. Slamming it shut behind him, he started screaming Chan's name while he ran up the stairs heading towards his room. Hyunjin must have texted him because he knew he was up this early. He cursed beneath his breath and nearly slipped on a stair. 

Upstairs, Chan was on his laptop when he heard Lee Know's voice. His head perked up and beside him, Kiera pushed herself up into a sitting position. Still half-asleep, her eyes were nearly shut. Chan stood up to open the door, but before he could get there, Lee Know shoved it open. 

With a loud thwack, the door slammed into the door stopper and caused Kiera to jump. Chan frowned and glanced up at Lee Know. Lee Know panted and shoved his phone toward Chan's face. His chest heaved up and down while Chan scanned the words. His eyebrows pinched together in concern. 

"What?" Kiera asked. "What is it? Is something wrong?" 

"They got Han and Hyunjin," Lee Know wheezed through frantic breaths. 

"What?" Her voice raised in shock. 

Chan typed a response back on the text thread and handed it back to Lee Know. An outstretched hand ran through the top of his hair. His gaze lowered to the floor. He pulled his lip piercing into his mouth with his teeth. 

"Chan..." 

"No, Kiera. I already know what you're about to say and the answer is still no. We're not sending you back to the white house." 

"Chan, please!" Kiera crawled on her knees over to the edge of the bed. She leaned over, grasped a fistful of his shirt fabric, and jerked him towards her. "We don't have a choice! I have to do this for them!" 

Chan's voice came out sharp, "no! I said no and that's final!" 

"Then what fucking plan do you have?" Kiera's voice raised. "If you think you're so fucking high and mighty, name your plan! How do you expect to get through all the secret service members? There's security level after security level! Pull your head out of your ass!" 

"We are not doing this right now, I need to think." 

"You need to listen!" 

Lee Know watched the couple bicker in silence. His eyes darted back and forth between the pair. He was shocked to see how level-headed Chan was at the current moment. When he was angry, he usually started screaming at the top of his lungs. 

"I'm not letting you go back there. Don't you understand? You could die!" 

"And if I don't go and try to make things right, they could die!" Tears filled Kiera's eyes. "I-I can't just sit here and do nothing," her voice cracked. "This is your family, remember? Remember why you kidnapped me to begin with? You wanted to bring down my father. You wanted to use me to get through to him. You started this for the sake of protecting your group." 

"I haven't been here long, but I've learned so much," she continued. "My parents fucked me up in a hundred different ways, but you know what I've learned here? I've learned about how it feels to have a family. I've been here for nearly three months. I'm not the same person I was three months ago." 

"I know you're terrified deep down, we all are, but you know what?" Salted tears trickled down her cheeks. "The guys have turned into my family too and you know what I've learned? I'll go to the ends of the fucking Earth for my family. I have a chance to save them, Chan. Please don't let love cloud your judgment." 

Lee Know swallowed the lump forming in his throat. He didn't want to watch this conversation, but he didn't want to interrupt it either. His breathing had finally mellowed back out. He watched the pair without uttering a single word. 

Kiera's eyes met Chan's, "so please, let's go get our family back."