cynical | l.dh

☾ chapter 28

"Come in," my small voice managed to say. I felt nervous because it was almost a day since her disappearance and her only close perpetrator was Seonghwa. Honestly I didn't want it to be Seonghwa since she had trusted him quite a bit but my gut feeling was saying otherwise.

The door knob slowly twisted and my eyes met with Taeyong. "Get ready and we'll have to leave so we can start an early search," his voice was monotone and held a deep grudge. He wasn't usually like this but I knew that I had a huge part to play in this since he and Jaerin were also quite close.

I didn't want to complain about having to get up so early on the morning because at the moment Jaerin was my top priority and I had to make sure she was safe and sound within my hold.

I shifted out of the covers, the cold air hitting my skin and I almost wanted to bury myself between Jaerin's covers once again. I inhaled a deep breath before walking over to the bathroom and brushing my teeth and taking a shower. The time was moving awfully slow, almost like a sloth. It was eating me alive.

—

I had already brushed my teeth and had a shower before knocking on Renjun's door. "Come in!" he shouted.

I opened the door and before I could say a word I was met with his flaming eyes, "What the fuck happened to you-? Did you cry last night...?" his voice drifted off, knowing that I was physically and mentally unable to cope.

I walked over to his bed before dipping under the covers and sink into the mattress.

"Did you find anything?" I asked.

"No, but I found possible places that she could be. I had to dig far enough to know her favourite places so that there could be any possible lead," he replied. I was quite disappointed by his reply because I wanted to know where she was and whether or not she was in danger.

"Get up then! We have to go and find her," Renjun sighed as I laid in his bed looking soulless.

"Okay," I managed to speak out. I had no energy whatsoever and was exhausted and weak without her presence.

I forced myself out of Renjun's bed and immediately went back to her room to get dressed when I heard someone knocking. Ugh there's so much knocking today it's pissing me off. I thought to myself.

I didn't reply but they opened the door anyways. My sighs were met with Taeyong's 'hurry the fuck up unless you want your girl to be taken by someone else' face. We were already out of the door and in the van within the next few minutes and on the way to one of her favourite places that Renjun found.

1 hour later

We arrived at a lake which seemed pretty familiar. Elena and I used to come here when she was still alive. I didn't know that this was one of Jaerin's favourite places and that she spent most of her lonely days here.

I knew Jaerin since childhood but then when I met Elena, I didn't spend as much time with Jaerin. And when Elena passed away, Jaerin had already long forgotten about me. We were quite close whilst growing up until last year when all her memories of us just vanished into thin air.

We walked around the river, checking the bushes and by the lake, also the little play area and we searched the play house. Nothing had signs of her anywhere.