He was worried, enough that he nearly started pacing, it was only because of years of containing his anxiety that he was able to stay in place, but that didn't stop him from scanning the crowd, hoping that he would spot his friend.
They were all worried.
Seokju hadn't been answering his phone at all. He didn't answer direct messages, he didn't answer any of the group chats messages, and he didn't answer phone calls. Seokju wasn't even answering Yeona . If it weren't for the fact that Seokju was already in trouble, then Ijin would have kicked down Seokju's front door himself to check on him.
God, he just wanted to make sure that Seokju was okay. Some sign that his friend was okay, even a simple text message would be enough to let him know, just something . But no one had heard a peep from Seokju, and that was enough to send all of them into a nervous state.
Hyeokjin rocked back and forth on his feet, occasionally glancing down at his watch as students flowed past them, the same students that Jaehyung and Yeongchan were straining to look over. "Where is he?" Yeongchan stood up on his tiptoes as if he was tall enough to look over the crowd. "Is he with Yeona?"
"Hang on." Jaehyung's fingers flew across the screen as he typed, "I'm asking her now. But he should be with her. I don't think Yeona is even allowed to leave without him."
"She's not." Ijin quickly supplied, staring down into his phone as he tried to will Seokju into making contact, "Seokju is her personal bodyguard. They'll both get in trouble if they're not together in public." Which is why they left so late for the trip. Seokju had to be off duty so he wouldn't get in trouble for leaving Yeona prematurely.
He clicked his tongue out of frustration when he didn't get an answer from Seokju. It had already been days since he answered any of their messages and the last time Seokju answered their messages was on the day of the trip. So, where the hell was that asshole? Why wasn't he answering his phone? Ijin had tried calling Seokju a few more times before he left home, but each time, he had immediately been sent to voicemail. However, when he sent a message, the message was marked as delivered so he knew that Seokju's phone was on.
He just had no idea why Seokju wasn't answering his phone.
"Um," Jaehyung's voice wavered, his uncertainty increasing as he looked up at them, "She said that Seokju was put on leave a few days ago. He's not with her."
"What do you mean he's not with her?" Hyeokjin hissed out, "Ijin just said that they'll get in trouble if they're not together!"
"Not if he's on leave." Ijin calmly interjected though he was anything but calm on the inside. Seokju only went on leave when he was hospitalized so that meant that something had happened to him. However, that revelation only made his worry increase because that only answered one question, it still didn't answer why Seokju had suddenly gone no-contact. Seokju wasn't the type to land himself in the hospital and not tell them, he would at least explain to them why he hadn't been answering his phone. That meant that Seokju had been put on leave for another reason.
Ijin noticed the others were looking at him expectantly, he was the only one who worked with Seokju there, so they knew that he knew more than he was letting on. Ijin didn't want to worry them, but he also didn't want to lie to them. "Seokju almost never goes on leave. Something must have happened."
They didn't get a chance to react to that tidbit of information before Jaehyung was cutting back in again, offering more information from Yeona. "Yeona said that no one knows why he was put on leave. She even tried asking his grandpa and he said that it was a family matter."
Despite himself, Ijin scowled at the mention of Seokju's grandfather. He didn't like the elder then, that hadn't changed and he definitely didn't like how 'family matter' was the only explanation that was given. What could be so important where they were pulling Seokju from his work? The very same one that he'd done since childhood?
Ijin didn't know if Seokju's grandfather had the capacity to hurt him, but it was obvious that he had the capacity to scare Seokju shitless. He just knew that Seokju had been raised to ask 'how high' when ordered to jump and that only made him all the more nervous.
If Seokju's grandfather made Seokju apologize for a stupid prank, a prank that had minimal impact, what was he going to make Seokju do for the fuck up that happened the past weekend?
Ijin knew that it wasn't his place, nor was it any of his business, but Seokju's grandfather had a concerning amount of control over Seokju's life. Maybe it was because he had grown up with a foot on his neck for most of his life, but the fact that Seokju just gave in without a single complaint, did not sit right with him. He understood that Seokju was raised to respect his elders but dammit Seokju, that didn't mean he was supposed to lie down like a docile dog with each order. Despite his stubborn personality, Seokju had somehow missed the memo that he was allowed to fight against his superiors when the time called for it, and Ijin would have to say that the past weekend was one of those times.
Yeona closed the car door with a slam, and she looked just as worried, if not more, as the rest of them. Ignoring the way her bodyguards were yelling after her, Yeona went straight to them, a notable absence behind her. "Is Seokju here yet?"
Goddammit, Seokju really wasn't with her.
They all exchanged looks again, and the tension quickly became palpable because it was one thing for Seokju to ignore them and it was another thing to ignore Yeona, the person who had been his closest friend for well over a decade.
Yeongchan answered for them. "He still isn't answering you?" The look she gave them was damning enough. The crease in her brow let them know that she was just as distraught as the rest of them with Seokju's sudden silence.
"What are we going to do?" Hyeokjin looked down at his phone, noting that it was almost time for school to start, "They're going to close the gates soon." Once that happened, then they were all going to have to go to class because after that, the only way Seokju could enter the school was through the main office. It wasn't like they would be allowed to wait at the front office, hoping that Seokju would walk in.
He answered within seconds, "We'll wait until then." They were going to get in trouble for being tardy, but that was a consequence he could live with. He, along with the others by the look of it, all wanted to make sure that their friend was okay, detention be damned.
Sure, if Seokju did show up, they were going to see him in class, but it felt wrong just trying to sit back and wait for his arrival. They wanted to take a more active stance, none of them could settle their nerves enough to do something like sitting back and waiting.
The stream of students had long died down, leaving the entrance open for them to watch, only it didn't make a difference because Seokju still wasn't there. But on the other hand, when a tinted car pulled up to the curb, they were able to see it from a mile away.
Tension filled the air, all of them shuffling on their feet nervously, exchanging looks and glances with each other as they eagerly waited for the car door to open up.
Ijin was already walking towards the car when the door opened, he picked up his pace when he saw that it was Seokju who was getting out of the car. As a group, they converged on Seokju, not even letting him close the car door before they started asking questions. Seokju was nearly pressed up against the car with the way they were crowding him.
"Why haven't you answered us!?"
"Are you okay? Did something happen at home?"
"What did your parents say?"
"Did you get in trouble?"
Ijin was the only one who didn't ask questions. He had been planning to ask as well, he almost had an interrogation ready to figure out what the hell happened, but when Ijin saw the state his friend was in, he paused.
Seokju looked tired. More tired than Ijin had ever seen him. The skin around his eyes was slightly irritated, his eyes were puffy and rimmed with red. Seokju's usual confidence was gone. Instead of facing everyone head-on with squared shoulders like he usually did, he was stiff, the tension showing in his entire body with the way he had a white-knuckled grip on his backpack.
"Seokju." His friend flinched at the voice that emanated from the car, the man's voice was firm and unforgiving. He spoke like Seokju had already made a mistake in the past minute and Ijin couldn't help but frown at that, his eyes focused on Seokju as he waited for an answer.
Somehow, Seokju only got stiffer, his lips turned white as he forced himself to smile, "I am alright, "Seokju said and Ijin nearly scoffed. As if they would believe that. Seokju sounded like a fourth grader reading off a script for the first time; it was forced, robotic almost.
Seokju faltered, once, and then twice, his expression turned into a failed attempt at stoicism, only resulting in a pained expression. "And I just want to say that while these past few months have been fun, and it has been great getting to know you all." He paused, and it looked like it had physically pained Seokju to keep on talking. Even through his attempt to stay neutral, the corner of his lips turned down, his voice taking up a strained note. "This weekend made me realize that I needed to reassess my priorities. Thank you for your companionship, but I will be focusing on my studies from now on." Seokju ignored the way they were staring at him as he gave them a bow. "Sorry."
What the fuck?
They were all so shocked, that even when Seokju slipped past them, none of them made a move to go after him. For a few seconds, all they could do was stare at Seokju's back as he walked away, all of them were too shocked to follow him because what the fuck just happened? Ijin didn't even know what to say, to think.
What the fuck happened when Seokju got home?
What did his grandfather do?
They exchanged looks and when they saw that even Yeona was surprised, they knew that something was wrong. "No-wait!" Yeona took off after Seokju first, causing everyone else to follow her.
Completely and utterly confused, Ijin looked over at Yeona's escort, just to make sure that he wasn't the only one who was blindsided. And by the look on the guard's face, it was clear that no one outside of Seokju's family had known about it beforehand.
What the fuck.
The distant yell of Hyeokjin calling for Seokju finally prompted Ijin to get a move on it. But by the time Ijin caught up with the others, Seokju was gone. No one had any clue where he went and Ijin had to suppress a groan. How the fuck did he manage to slip away between the front gate and the classroom? Hell, between the front gate and the entrance .
"Wait." Hyeokjin's grip on his arm kept Ijin from hunting Seokju down. "Class is almost starting. He won't miss class." That was a good point. Seokju would have to go back at one point for class if he wanted to focus on his studies like he wanted to. All Ijin had to do was wait in the classroom and then confront him there.
Seokju emerged just before their homeroom teacher entered and he went right to his desk, giving the others no time to get their questions in before class started. Not that Ijin- or any of them for that matter- could focus. He, along with the others, kept on glancing towards the back, and more than once, he and Yeongchan exchanged nervous looks. None of them had a clue about what was going on with Seokju, and none of them liked that.
Yeona seemed to be the only one capable of getting answers. Ijin's attention was squarely on what was happening in the back of the room, Ijin didn't miss the discreet way they tilted their heads to talk or how Seokju went stiff for a moment when Yeona reached over and squeezed his hand. The only reason Ijin stopped looking at them was because Yeongchan elbowed him, just in time for Ijin to hear the teacher call on him.
Ijin would talk to him during lunch, whether Seokju wanted to or not. He was going to get to the bottom of it and he was going to find out what the hell made Seokju cut off their ties like that.
Yet, despite his determination to figure out what had happened over the weekend, by the time Ijin turned around to confront the guy during lunch, he was already gone. Seokju must have known what they were going to do, the bastard. If it was any other time, Ijin would have admired the way Seokju managed to leave the classroom without him noticing, though, at the moment, all it did was frustrate him even more.
"I'll be back." That was all Ijin gave them before he was walking out of the classroom, ignoring the way the others called for him.
He needed to find Seokju. It was not like Seokju to run away. He was not taught, or trained to run away from his problems, if anything, as a bodyguard, he was taught to face his problems head on. It was against his training to avoid problems like that.
So, what happened where Seokju felt the need to isolate himself?
Why was he breaking off their friendship in the first place?
If there was one thing Ijin was good at, it was being annoyingly stubborn. Seokju should have known that if he was stubborn, then Ijin was even more stubborn. He should have known that saying something like that would warrant such a reaction and obviously, Seokju had anticipated them trying to wring answers out of him.
Ijin looked around corners as he walked down the hallways, slowly making his way down to the first floor to try and see if Seokju was trying to hide down there from them. Seokju was on the taller side, so that meant that a simple scan of the hallway was enough to determine if Seokju was there or not. The bathrooms were empty, so that meant that Seokju was most likely not in the classroom portion of the school.
He was right. Ijin was on the second floor when he spotted Seokju through the window. All he caught was a glimpse because of how fast Seokju had been walking, but he saw enough to know that it was Seokju who was currently walking into the baseball dugouts to hide.
There he was.
Without a second thought, he was running down the stairs to catch up, nearly colliding with a teacher in the process. Ijin only offered a rushed apology before he picked up his pace, skipping stairs on the way down to the ground floor.
Ijin just knew that Seokju wasn't doing it of his own accord. It just didn't make sense. He saw the way Seokju valued the friendship he had with everyone. The way his friend almost never crossed any lines, the way Seokju gave everyone a certain amount of respect.
Ijin knew that Seokju wouldn't isolate himself from them unless he was ordered to. It was the only thing that made sense. If Seokju had really done it of his own accord, not only would he have not done it like that, but he wouldn't have looked so pained as he did it. Seokju had looked like he would have swallowed glass if that meant he didn't have to break off their friendship like that.
He kept his footsteps light, shifting his weight in a way that would make his approach silent. Seokju would probably leave if he heard Ijin and yeah, he was basically cornering Seokju, but Ijin thought it was necessary.
Ijin froze in his tracks. "Yes dad, I already cut ties with them." He had been approaching the dugout when he heard Seokju's voice. Seokju sounded genuinely upset. He pressed himself up against the wall, just below a window that led into the dugout, allowing him to hear better.
He didn't sound happy and Ijin decided that he didn't like hearing Seokju with such a tone. He sounded defeated. Seokju sounded completely and utterly defeated as he spoke, "Dad I don-" Seokju had a pleading tone in his voice, he could hear the desperation in his friend's voice, "...it was just a trip gone wrong, we didn't-" Seokju made a strange noise, low and keening, like a wounded animal cowering from the slightest sound.
He had never heard Seokju make a sound like that.
Ijin wanted to find out what was making his friend distressed like that.
Seokju's father said something loud enough for Ijin to hear the sound and Seokju shakily cleared his throat, the mere action taking him a few attempts until he was able to get it. That time, his voice was steadier, but the tone still showed his sorrow, "Yes sir...how long until I can talk to them again?... What? You said-! Dad this isn't fair!" Whatever Seokju's dad said next must have been a doozy because it was a long while before Seokju had the chance to speak again.
There were a couple of attempts from Seokju for an interjection, but those were quickly shut down. Even from his distance, Ijin could hear the snap of a voice from the speaker, even if he couldn't discern the words. Just listening to the conversation made Ijin upset, he could hear each and every single time Seokju had been brutally talked over.
More upsettingly, he could hear the effect it was having on his friend. He could hear the way Seokju was struggling to keep his tone strong, to make it seem like he was firm and composed. But despite his efforts, Ijin could hear the pain in his friend's voice.
Then there were responses to questions Ijin couldn't hear, "Yes... Yes... I won't... I understand... Of course, I know that," his voice nearly broke on that statement, "No, you're right... I love y-" then Ijin heard the clatter of a phone being put down and was about to leave when he heard the choked intake of a suppressed sob. "Fuck," he heard, the word waterlogged. Seokju took more shaky breaths, deep and painful in an effort to keep them full. His efforts were not rewarded, because Ijin could still hear Seokju sniffling inside the dugout.
A combination of anger and shame burned in Ijin's chest.
He was peering into a private moment he wasn't supposed to be privy to. Seokju had come out to the dugout for privacy, and in his stubbornness, he had invaded it. Ijin had wanted to find out what had happened with Seokju, but not like that. He wanted to hear it from Seokju, not from eavesdropping.
The times Seokju had invaded his privacy had been far and in between. And the few times that Seokju did it, even Ijin had to admit that it was necessary. Those were moments where him being private was either putting himself or others in danger.
He just invaded Seokju's privacy for his own means.
Silently, he slipped away back to the classroom, lying to the others that he hadn't found Seokju. He already invaded Seokju's privacy, he didn't need the others to make the same mistake.
The end of the day . Ijin told himself. He'd confront Seokju about it at the end of the day. He was going to find out what had happened after Seokju got picked up from the station. He was going to find out the true reason behind Seokju breaking off his friendships with everyone.
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Yeona was the one who stopped Ijin from following Seokju, holding onto his arm just long enough for Seokju to slip away into the same car he had arrived in. Ijin would have gotten annoyed if it wasn't for Yeona dragging him and the others to the convenience store to explain everything. Seokju had explained everything to her during class and asked her to inform them.
It was dead silent as they sat at the table.
Ijin tapped his finger on his arm as he leaned back in the chair, arms crossed with a scowl on his face.
He didn't know if he wanted to feel outraged or saddened at what Yeona told him. Either way, it was taking a concerning amount of energy for him to keep his composure.
He thought that he wouldn't be pushed to his current level of anger after he stopped dealing with 004's and 005's bullshit once he left the camp, but there he was, struggling to keep a calm and rational mind, "So," Ijin took a deep breath, his hand going up to pinch the bridge of his nose as he fought to keep his voice steady, "His parents are making him do this?" Just what kind of shit parents did Seokju have?
Yeona quietly nodded, picking at her hands, "They think you guys are a bad influence." Looking down at her hands, Ijin could see that the skin around her fingernails was already noticeably red, "He didn't do it willingly..." Ijin huffed and reached over, he grabbed Yeona's hand to stop her from picking at them.
Most of the time, it was Seokju who kept Yeona from picking at her hands. Most of the time, he would stop her before she even had a chance to start and if he had to, Seokju would hold onto her hand until he thought she was ready.
With a gentle order for her to stop, he let go and the table fell back into silence.
It was wrong.
Ijin knew that he didn't have any experience with parents, and he'd only had a family for a year, but he knew that it was wrong .
He glanced over at Hyeokjin, and the firm shake of disapproval he got in return only cemented his suspicions. It was never a good thing when people with shit childhoods agreed that one of their friends had shit parents. Though it certainly explained everything that was going on.
According to Yeona, it was not the first time Seokju's parents had exuded some type of control over him, but it was the first time they were doing something so drastic. They were forcing Seokju to cut off all contact with them, as well as get rid of any evidence of their friendship from his phone.
That in particular was infuriating to him.
Life in the camp was miserable, where any and all relationships were heavily discouraged. At least when Ijin had been there, he didn't have any memories of past relationships for him to cling to, he couldn't lament over something if he never had it in the first place. But it was completely different for Seokju. Seokju had relationships for him to cling onto, for him to miss dearly and mourn the loss of.
Ijin had seen the way it had affected 006 and 032, and that was not a fate he would ever wish on someone, especially someone as close as Seokju.
Apparently, he and Yeona had to get a little bit creative with communication, because to make sure that Seokju truly was not in contact with them, his parents were checking his text messages and such. Or the house staff was because his own parents were too busy to invade their child's privacy themselves, they had to get someone else to do it.
He needed to find a way to make contact with Seokju, a way that wouldn't get Seokju into even more trouble. But that required planning and the main problem was that Ijin couldn't contact Seokju, so he had no direct way to make plans.
But, he did have Yeona. Who very much still had a way to contact Seokju that would go under the radar.
"Yeona, does Seokju still have access to the S. W gym?"
Yeona blinked at the sudden question, but she was quick to nod her head, "Yes." Good. That meant he had a chance to talk to Seokju. Seokju had been placed on leave from bodyguarding as a whole, but it was clear that he was still allowed to go to the S. W gym to get some sort of training. "He's only allowed to be there for two hours at a time, but yes."
Yeesh.
Considering the fact that Seokju was used to having two-hour training along with some more individual training to follow up later on. Ijin just knew that Seokju had to be going stir-crazy, especially since Yeona said that he wasn't even allowed to leave the house for a run. Yeona had told them stories about Seokju bouncing off the walls whenever he wasn't allowed to exercise, and Ijin had no doubt that he was doing just that.
But he could make it work, "Tell Seokju to come two hours after training. I'll wait in the locker room for him." Ijin had faith in Seokju, but if he suddenly had everyone he cared for and loved taken away and was forced into isolation, even he would have a hard time dealing with it.
He didn't even want to imagine how it'd been for Seokju.
Yeona nodded her head, and just as she took out her phone to let him know. A soft and choked-out apology made them stop, "I'm sorry. I-I-"Thick tears streamed down Yeongchan's face, his face turning red and scrunching up in sorrow, "I should have never thrown out that stupid shirt." A sob was ripped from Yeongchan's throat as he started to wipe away the tears, "This is all my fault..."
Despite the pause all of them took at his declaration, it wasn't long until all of them were scrambling to comfort the young man. Just the sight of Yeongchan crying like that was enough to make them tear up as well.
"It's not your fault Yeongchan."
"Don't blame yourself. You weren't the one who made Seokju do this."
"But-but, "Yeongchan hiccupped into his hands, "I was the one who got us pulled over." Hyeokjin was sitting next to Yeongchan and was pulling the smaller boy to his side, his hand rubbing Yeongchan's arm as he comforted him.
"But you weren't the one who made this happen to Seokju," Hyeokjin said gently, sending Yeona a grateful look when she started to rub his back in gentle circles, "Don't blame yourself Yeongchan. None of us thought this would happen when we went out that night." Despite his kind words, it was clear that Yeongchan was taking it to heart, blaming himself for Seokju's situation.
The sight of Yeongchan, who was one of the kindest people he had ever met, breaking down into sobs made Ijin's heart clench.
Again, he had to take a deep breath to calm down.
Ijin could see where Yeongchan was coming from, it was his throwing the shirt out the window that caused them to get pulled over. But somehow, Yeongchan had somehow managed to leave out the fact that it was Seokju's parents who were overreacting, citing the one detention and their detaining against him.
Seokju was a good person. He had good morals and principles, along with a good work ethic. Save for that time outside of the training center, Seokju had never said anything hurtful, and even then, if Ijin hadn't been so stubborn, Seokju would have apologized the next day. Seokju owned up to his mistakes and wouldn't try and push them under the rug as some people would.
He understood that there were consequences to actions, but Seokju did not deserve that kind of punishment. To force isolation onto someone for such a problem was just cruel, and that was coming from Ijin of all people.
"Yeongchan, that's the stupidest thing I ever heard, "Ijin huffed out, ignoring the way the others were gaping at him, "Don't blame yourself for something you didn't do. Stop blaming yourself. I doubt Seokju is blaming you for all this, so stop it." If anything, Ijin was the one to blame. He was the one who had been getting Seokju in trouble lately, and it was him who had been driving the car at the time.
But just like Yeongchan, Ijin did not plan for anything to happen to Seokju.
Shit happened, there was no getting around it.
All they could do was deal with the aftermath.