Chapter 13: Missing
The night had settled in fully by the time Daniel and Johan reached the bench.
A soft yellow streetlamp cast a pool of light over the old wooden seat, where Sunjae sat with one leg crossed over the other, chocolate milk in one hand and Bboongi resting on his lap like some trusted advisor.
"I'm telling you," Sunjae was saying in complete seriousness, "if a dog can outrun a grown man, then maybe they're the ones keeping us as pets."
Daniel slowed to a stop, still a little out of breath from searching.
Johan stopped a few steps behind him, eyes sharp.
Sunjae looked up.
His gaze moved from Daniel to Johan, then to the empty leashes in their hands.
He raised an eyebrow.
"…Don't tell me both of you lost your dogs."
Daniel let out a frustrated sigh and ran a hand through his hair.
"One of them slipped away near the south side of the park. I've been looking everywhere."
Johan's voice was quieter.
"Mine too."
Sunjae blinked.
Then he looked between them again.
"…That's either the worst coincidence I've ever seen or the start of something really annoying."
Daniel looked up.
"Did you see anything while you were here?"
Sunjae thought for a moment.
"Not your dogs, but I did hear barking from near the walking trail about ten minutes ago."
Johan's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Show us."
Sunjae stood up, slipping Bboongi back into his hoodie pocket so the teddy bear's head poked out slightly.
"Come on then."
The three of them started walking through the quieter side of the park, where the main jogging paths gave way to narrower walkways lined with trees and benches. The place felt completely different at night. The evening crowd had long disappeared, leaving only the occasional rustle of leaves and the distant sound of traffic.
Daniel kept glancing around, clearly worried.
Sunjae noticed it and spoke more casually.
"They can't have gone too far."
Daniel nodded, though he still looked uneasy.
Johan, on the other hand, walked with a kind of stillness that made it hard to tell what he was thinking.
They reached the south trail.
For a while, they searched in silence.
Daniel checked near the bushes and trees, calling softly for his dog.
Johan scanned the darker corners of the path, eyes moving carefully over the ground.
Sunjae crouched near a patch of dirt where the grass thinned out.
There.
Paw prints.
Fresh.
He ran a finger over them.
"Here."
The other two walked over.
Daniel looked down.
"Is that—"
"Yeah," Sunjae said, standing back up. "Looks fresh."
Johan's eyes followed the direction of the prints.
They led out of the park.
Toward the nearby residential block.
The three exchanged a glance before following them.
The streets outside were mostly quiet now, lit by convenience stores and apartment windows. The paw prints faded once they hit the pavement, but the direction was enough.
Daniel exhaled slowly.
"This is getting weird."
Sunjae nodded.
"Two dogs disappearing in the same direction at the same time?"
Even Johan spoke this time.
"…Someone took them."
Daniel turned to look at him.
"You think so too?"
Johan didn't answer immediately.
His gaze shifted toward a telephone pole up ahead.
Something had been taped to it.
A small paper flyer.
Sunjae noticed it first and walked over.
It was a missing dog poster.
Then another.
And another.
Three on the same pole.
Daniel stepped closer.
His expression changed.
"All from this week?"
The posters all showed different dogs.
Different breeds.
Different owners.
All missing within the same neighborhood.
Johan's face hardened.
Sunjae stared at the papers for a moment.
Then looked down the street.
"Okay," he muttered. "That's definitely not normal."
Daniel's unease turned into something more serious.
"What if someone's stealing them?"
Sunjae gave him a sideways look.
"You just caught up?"
Daniel frowned.
"I mean, now it's obvious."
Johan stepped closer to the posters.
His eyes narrowed on something written at the bottom of one of them.
A note in smaller handwriting.
Last seen near the east block park entrance.
That was exactly where they had been running earlier.
Sunjae's expression sharpened.
"That's too close."
For the first time, the three of them were no longer just looking for their dogs.
Now it felt like they were looking for whoever took them.
The air grew heavier as they continued down the street, checking corners, alleys, and apartment entrances.
A faint barking sound drifted through the night.
All three stopped.
Daniel looked toward the narrow lane between two buildings.
"Did you hear that?"
Johan had already started walking.
Sunjae followed, hands slipping into his pockets.
The alley was dim, lit only by the weak glow of a broken lamp near the end.
Then Daniel saw it.
A metal food bowl.
Half full.
Placed carefully against the wall.
Sunjae crouched beside it.
Still fresh.
Johan's gaze moved farther down.
There were more.
Another bowl.
A leash.
A dog toy.
His voice dropped.
"…Someone's been feeding them here."
Daniel swallowed.
"Why would they do that?"
Sunjae slowly stood up.
The barking came again.
This time clearer.
From somewhere farther ahead.
He looked toward the dark end of the alley.
A slow grin appeared on his face.
"Well."
He glanced at the other two.
"Looks like we finally found a lead."
The three of them stepped deeper into the alley as the sound of distant barking echoed through the night.
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Damn yall dry asf, comment people,im so lonely