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iv. absence

: please read the a/n at the bottom of the part before reading! thanks! :
: this part may contain triggering topics such as descriptions of gore, violence, grief and murder. please read with caution! :

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it had been one hour

one hour and sixteen minutes since the curfew time, twelve pm. it would be a lie if he said he wasn't worried.

chan sighed as he fell against the couch, checking his phone every few minutes. god, these boys really liked to worry him huh?

as always, it got him thinking.

hyunjin always said that chan was like a father, or maybe brother to the members. that was for one, true.

he remembered how it wasn't always like that though.

"what's your name?" "c-chan. bang chan."

"and y-you are?"

the man smiled, his soft features lighting up.

"woojin. kim woojin-

"and you don't have any reason to be worried now hmm? im here. the eldest, the priorities are gonna go to me now."

"you don't have to worry anymore chan"

woojin's words struck a cord in chan; for the first time in his life, he wasn't alone.

woojin was a shining light, he lit up the members' world with his affection and praise, the younger members especially.

they adored him

before the former eldest left, he had been the leader of course, along with handling the assets in the group. proficient in attack as well as missons.

with kim woojin, it was safe to say stray kids was thriving.

that was of course, until it wasn't.

chan had been working late that night, it wasn't as occasional as it was currently; the team seemed to work better under their last leader, equally dividing the work and getting along.

so as unusual as it may have seemed; chan was working late, the rest sleeping in the dorm.

his hyung had walked in, chan to engrossed in his work to notice his presence. woojin usually made his presence noticable, getting quite frustrated actually if attention wasn't given to him.

tonight again, wasn't the case for that.

chan had removed his headphones, grinning up at woojin as he looked back down at the younger, a rare serious expression on his usually calm face.

chan's smile faded slowly.

woojin had said that he had thought about it, hard. chan could remember, the elder's soft touch as he caressed his cheek slowly trying not to glance at the scared expression on chan's face.

the words.. after so many years; still stuck in the current leader's head. he remembered like it was yesterday, never being able to forget the sentence that ruined his life.

"im sorry... i-its not possible for me to stay in stray kids anymore. jus-just too much."

"why?" chan's shaky voice spoke. "w-why? why would you leave?"

it was inevitable apprently, according to woojin at least. stray kids was a successful group for sure. the money the made, the fame and fear they acquired in korea and possibly abroad; didn't it mean anything to him?