N0 B0DY, N0 CRIM3 | Bang Chan

Fish out of water

The sound of forks scraping against glass plates filled the air. The white house chefs made everyone a classic American breakfast. Pancakes, eggs, and your choice of bacon or sausage. Freshly squeezed orange juice was made via a juicer less than fifteen minutes ago. Kiera's stomach was in knots as she picked at her food. 

The pancakes reminded her of her first day with Stray Kids. She ate them when she was first taken captive, not once, but twice. When Lee Know made them and then again when Felix made a chocolate chip version the next morning. All eyes kept glancing at her direction, but she didn't care. 

Last night, her father led her back to their shared section of the white house. After a quick reunion, she was ushered to bed. Little did she know, her father would come knocking at her bedroom door at six the next morning. Ever since, she's seen a mirage of people. 

Faces blurred together and she couldn't remember names. Was it Dr. Thorn or was it Dr. Thrush? She had been ushered around by secret service members, but she never paid attention to their names. Everything was wrong. 

Eating in a gathering room at the white house while Felix, Han, and Hyunjin were missing felt wrong. She pushed her eggs to the side and stabbed her fork into her pancakes again. She couldn't taste anything. The usual acidic citrus tang of orange juice wasn't there. The maple syrup tasted like paste. 

Her eyes were red and bloodshot from crying herself to sleep the night before. She wanted to curl into Chan's side and feel safe again. Instead, she glanced up from her plate. Her eyes met the icy gaze of her father. His eyes narrowed at her and she dropped her head back down. 

She knew that look, that look was a polite way of telling her to get her shit together. Of course, get it together because having a daughter who was supposedly held hostage for three months wouldn't take a toll on her mental health. As if she could just choose to get over everything that happened. 

She slammed her fork into a stack of pancakes hard enough that the fork loudly scraped across the plate. The murmurs around the table came to a stop as everyone glanced over at her. When she looked up and realized it, she muttered a quiet apology and shoved a bite of the pancakes into her mouth. 

A handful of people sat around her. All of them, she didn't want to talk to. She wanted to go back to her room, lay in her bed, and shove her comforter over her head. She wanted to forget about everything. This was worse than being tortured. She wanted to scream and bash her head into that wall. 

Her father, Philip, the doctor she saw this morning, a psychiatrist, and the secret service agent who introduced himself to her as Lucas; they were all there. She immediately realized he was Marvin's son. Not only was his last name familiar, but the two shared similar looks. Plus, there were two police officers from the Washington DC police department. 

The bitter scent of fresh coffee hit her nose. Her father poured a steady stream of the steaming liquid into a mug and cleared his throat. "Alright, so what should we discuss first?" 

One of the police officers eyed Kiera up and down. This morning she showered and changed into a new pair of clothes. She shimmied into a black skirt and a white t-shirt. By exposing her arms and legs, more bruises had been revealed. She was thankful that Lee Know hadn't forgotten to kick her legs a few times. 

"Why not start with the obvious?" The officer pulled his eyes away from Kiera and turned his attention to the doctor. "Dr. Thorne, what did you find in the physical examination?" 

The doctor pushed his golden-rimmed glasses up higher on the bridge of his nose. He straightened his back and began to speak. "She has a few cracked ribs, but other than that, nothing too extensive. A lot of bruises, but it looks worse than it actually is. It'll take a few weeks for them to heal, but other than that, she'll be fine with painkillers."