I-Doll | Choi Seungcheol

32.

A/N The more I write, the more I realise how important Woozi's character is to the story...

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"How dare you?!" Jihoon bellowed at the news he had just received, eyes burning with anger. He couldn't believe it, rather he refused to that the sister he had treasured was... "How dare you..." His voice softened, his hold loosening over the man's collar, "You should've done something... You should've called the police!"

Seungcheol remained frozen in his spot, all energy leaving his body as he stumbled a step backwards, falling into his seat. He had known all along that someone had been threatening Yuri, someone had been hurting her, someone-yet, he had failed. Burying his face in his hand, he blamed himself for not being by her side sooner and for causing the tragedy.

"It's all my fault." His whisper put silence to the room within a second as Jihoon turned to look at him, "She is-she was threatened... She was-this is all my fault."

"What do you mean?" Jihoon looked at Scoups, eyes wide, his entire body shaking with anger, "Coups, tell me. Why is this your fault?" His voice was low enough to send shivers down the spines of the people in the room, "What threats?"

But Seungcheol could barely think. The disappearance of the one girl he had sworn to protect, to not leave no matter what the case be had shattered him. Like crumbling blocks, the realisation and the guilt were breaking onto his conscience, scaring him of the crime that had come to be because of him.

He felt Jihoon hold onto his shoulders and shake him to bring back reality but the black ink of remorse had already seeped into his veins, the shock only escalating the poison that pained him.

"Don't stay silent, Coups! Tell me... What threats? Why is this your fucking fault?!"

Losing words, Seungcheol somehow managed to pull out his phone and look for the image she had sent... The very first threat, the start of a chain that had all spiralled down to death. He showed it to Jihoon, "Yuri was..." He gulped at the sound of her name from his mouth, "She'd been getting these every day for months until last week. We'd sent the evidence to the law firm and they were trying to track the person behind it. But when it stopped, we thought, I thought-"

But Seungcheol could not lift his head and Jihoon could not stop staring at the red letters on the phone, eyes reddening, tears forming.

"M-my sister went through something so horrible..."

Seungcheol's heart broke at the sound of Jihoon's voice. He was just as heartbroken and hurting all because he couldn't pull himself together when he should have. Seungcheol's fists tightened the moment he could feel Jihoon grow weak.

"That's not the end of it," Seungcheol spoke gritting his teeth, as he looked at Jihoon, "The nails on the stage, no, perhaps the light falling too was a threat of its own."

Jihoon's head swerved in Seungcheol's direction, alarmed, unbelieving. It couldn't be. Not something so back in time... Such a while ago... No way.

Seungcheol let out a deep breath having told Jihoon everything. Standing up, he looked down at Jihoon's bent silhouette, wounded at heart so suddenly. And why not? Why would a brother not hurt upon learning that the sister he wished to give a flowery road to had been walking on nails all along?

But this wasn't the end. It couldn't be and Seungcheol would not accept it. Fists balled, Seungcheol pulled himself together.

"I refuse to sit here waiting for Yuri to turn up by a miracle." His eyes grew determined, his stance confident, "No, I will find her."

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