Haknyeon reread the notation he made. Warehouse 7. Was it a code or an actual warehouse? He was so sure of himself in finding Kevin yet he had no memories of anything and no one around to rely on. Right now he was just a sitting duck for their pursuers. Hyunjoon was right.

Yet he wasn't going to give up. He could at least find clues. He looked into stores and food places, hoping any kind of memory would come to him. He found his legs stopping in front of a small drink shop sandwiched between big chain stores. His legs took him inside.

"Officer! You're back...!"

Haknyeon looked, seeing one of the workers waving at him. They knew him? He had to approach this carefully. Letting anyone know he had amnesia would dig him further into a hole. He approached them, carefully crafting his questions.

"The boss and I were worried about you. You hadn't stopped by in days..." she said, worry etched onto her face. "Busy with work?"

"Yeah. I'm glad to see you again, Eunyong. Have you two been well?" he asked with a smile.

Eunyoung gave him a weird look. Did he say the wrong thing?

"You're smiling... Is something wrong?"

He didn't smile? He quickly stopped, easing her worries a little.

"Uh, no. Hyunjoon told me to smile more so I thought I'd try it..."

Eunyong giggled, causing him more confusion.

"Typical Hyunjoon. So, the usual?" she smiled.

"Yes, thank you."

What was his "usual"? Coffee? Tea? Flavored water? Eunyong placed down a cup along with a pastry. He fumbled with his wallet, taking out cash the officers lent to him and Hyunjoon. He quickly inspected the items, trying to see how much he owed.

"Mr. Ju?" she called out.

"Uh..."

"Are you... short?"

He internally sighed in relief. She didn't catch on.

"I don't think so. I just had a lapse in memory. How much again?"

"Just 5."

Haknyeon handed the cash over, taking the drink and pastry. Maybe he could find out a bit more.

"How long has it been since I've been coming here? I lose count these days." Haknyeon mulled, hoping to pull her in.

"Hm. Before the boss was boss I suppose? She told me you started coming a week before she became the boss around here. So... 3 years maybe?" she guessed. "I've only been here for a year so I wouldn't trust my word, ahaha."

"When will the boss be back?" he pressed, hoping for more information.

"Eh, did you two fight?"

Did he say something else wrong? Did he not call the boss boss?

"A bit... It's nothing important."

"Mmm, she'll be back soon actually. She's been out catering since early this morning. Do you have the time though? Usually you're in and out of here. Are you finally taking time off?!"

In a way he was, but he didn't voice his thoughts. She understood his silence, opting to talking about things he missed out on. How could he ask about Kevin without it seeming suspicious?

"Have you talked to Kevin lately? Boss says she hasn't heard from him in a while..." she muttered.

Oh. She brought it up herself.

"When was the last time they talked? I'm actually looking for him too."

"We talked over two weeks ago." a voice said.

Haknyeon looked, seeing a muscular woman walking over to them. Eunyong scurried away, getting back to work.

"Oh, hey. It's been a while." he said, toning down the cheeriness.

It was tough trying to act like himself when he wasn't. She looked as if searching for something.

"Where's the pup?" she asked with a raised brow.

Pup? Was it code between them? She took note of the confusion on his face.

"Your sidekick, Heo Hyunjoon." she elaborated, taking a seat across from him. "Since when did you stop calling him Pup?"

"Ah, it just slipped my mind. Been working a lot lately..."

Her face said she could tell he was lying but wouldn't speak about it. For now.

"As I said, I haven't heard from Kevin in over two weeks. And seeing as you're looking for him too, neither of you know."

"Where was he last?" questioned Haknyeon, taking out a pen and a notepad.

He wrote down everything, racking his brain to remember places. Nothing. Just how fucked up were they that they couldn't even remember streets and places? He felt a hand on his arm, bringing him out of his thoughts.

"It's going to be okay, Hak. We here at Farena know Kevin is a good guy. I'm sure you'll figure out the truth." she whispered, her face soft and her eyes full of care. "Don't overwork yourself."

Haknyeon watched her leave, seeing he was just given new information. So he was working on Kevin's case in secret along with trying to do a drug bust? He must've been a real hardworking guy. However, this meant there was a good chance Kevin may not be at warehouse 7 anymore. Haknyeon glanced outside before freezing. His dormant instincts kicked in, alerting those behind the counter.

"Go go!" Eunyong whispered, pushing her coworker into the back. "Boss, there's trouble!"

Everyone but their boss ducked and panicked at the sound of a gunshot.

"Shh! If they learn others are here it'll give Hak more trouble." she whispered, quieting them.

Haknyeon held his arm, glaring at his attackers. He lingered too long.

"What are you waiting for? Shoot him!" one grumbled, seconds away from doing it himself.

"You're an idiot if you think I can just shoot him. Do you realize who we're up against? He and his little buddy got as far as figuring out who were are and what kind of drugs we're making and selling. So close to learning of our boss too."

They really got that far? No wonder they wanted them dead so badly. Think. He had to think. Four against one. They were expecting him to retaliate the moment the trigger was pulled.

"It doesn't look like he's gonna do anything. Shoot him!" another complained.

Haknyeon took a shot the moment they took their eyes off of him. He narrowly avoided an incoming bullet.

"I was going to let you writhe in pain but since you decided to off one of us..."

Eunyong looked to her boss, wondering if she's been in this kind of situation before. Soon the gunfire stopped. Their boss kept them from moving.

"Is it not over?"

"I don't want any of you to move. Wait until the police arrive."

They didn't have to wait long, hearing sirens. Their boss went first, needing to assess the situation as exposing her workers to danger was the last thing on her mind. Haknyeon sat on the floor, other officers making reports of the lifeless bodies. She hurried over to Haknyeon who hadn't moved an inch.

"Hak, are- oh god..." she whispered, seeing her hands coated in blood. "Officers-"

"We know. Come on, let's get him to a hospital stat."

The others came out from the back, freaking out over the blood on the floor. The officers started taking a statement from the boss, seeing the employees would need a moment to calm down.

୨୧⑅︎*‬‪*⑅︎୨୧︎

Hyunjoon hurried towards Haknyeon's bed, tears pricking his eyes. He knew he shouldn't have let him go. He knew he should've done something, anything, yet...

"I'm so sorry... We're supposed to look out for each other..." he wept, his tears falling onto his lap. "Why didn't I stop you?! Why..."

"I'm not dead..."

Hyunjoon's head snapped up, looking at Haknyeon. He wanted to hug him tight but he looked as if he was in so much pain.

"What happened?" he finally asked, trying and failing to calm down.

"I was attacked at Farena. It's a drink shop we frequented actually. Kevin too!" said Haknyeon, closing his eyes as he recalled. "It felt so warm and homey there. Apparently I'm a long time customer. My usual is warm milk tea with sweet bread."

"I can't believe I let this happen... I'm not worthy of being your partner anymore."

"No, you are. Had I listened to you, I wouldn't be here now. I need you. You keep me grounded and from getting my ass killed." smiled Haknyeon, taking his hand. "Let's keep working together, if you'll have me back."

"Of course..."

"Oh! I also learned more about Kevin. The woman who runs Farena is friends with Kevin too! But he stopped talking to her two weeks ago. There's a chance he may not be at warehouse 7 anymore..."

Things weren't looking good. Their only clue could possibly be invalid.

"When you're discharged, let's go find where this warehouse is. I'll search for answers in the meantime."

Haknyeon nodded, knowing he wouldn't be able to do much in this state. He tightly held Hyunjoon hand, keeping him from leaving.

"Thank you for staying by my side even when I act a complete idiot. I'm happy to call you my partner." laughed Haknyeon softly, making Hyunjoon blush.

"Me too..." he meekly responded, slowly letting go of his hand.

Hyunjoon gave him one last look before walking away. He started with his phone, looking up places that could possibly have warehouses nearby. Other officers arrived, tasked with keeping watch over Haknyeon lest their pursuers try finishing him off in his sleep.

୨୧⑅︎*‬‪*⑅︎୨୧︎

Hyunjoon downed another cup of coffee, having very little success. Either the area had no warehouses, didn't go past seven or were outside of Seoul. There had to be somewhere he wasn't looking. He sat back in his seat, accidentally bumping into a filing cabinet. One of them opened. He moved to close it only to notice something unusual. All but one were marked with sharpie. He pulled out the unmarked one, promptly opening it. There was hardly anything in it. Nothing stood out to him.

"A letter? A handwritten one... 'Hyunjoon, meet me for dinner. -Haknyeon'. It looks like he erased a lot." he mumbled, inspecting the stickers and other papers. "Wait... Warehouse 7..."

Hyunjoon looked at the flier for free french toast and scrambled eggs at some diner. They had considered it being a code, but what if the code was scrambled? He tried making words out of warehouse and seven, hoping to make a breakthrough.

"Joon, we're switching out okay? Yoobin and Hyeojin are taking our places."

"Got it. Thanks." he responded, focused on unscrambling.

After tirelessly searching, he came up with a few possibilities. He decided to end here, feeling as if he'd crash at any moment. He powered everything down, putting all his notes into the unmarked file folder. The officers gave him a lift to their place, all of them agreeing it wasn't safe for them to be alone. He found it hard to keep his eyes open, praying to any entity to keep them out of trouble.

Hyunjoon awoke, seeing he was in a comfortable bed. Nothing happened. He was safe. The folder was still there as well.

"Oh! You're up. Perfect timing." said the chipper officer.

The other officer shared his sentiment. It was too early to be that enthusiastic. They followed after the chipper officer who seemed to have everything already cooked.

"Joon, do you mind if we take the trip to the doctor today? Say you'll go."

"Will it help?" he asked, fearing they won't find anything.

"We've gotta try, right?" the officer reasoned.

"Then... let's do it. Let's find out the source of our amnesia..." he said half heartedly, still worried nothing would turn up.