Illegal Palpitations (Chapter 6)
Title: Illegal Palpitations
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Romance, Humor, Drama
Pairing: Donghae/Hyukjae
Warning: Hints of smut
Summary: It sucks when you’re boyfriend is on the other side of the law, but the rewards for hanging on and believing in that love are much more than Donghae and Hyukjae can ever imagine.
Role-play with tees2mai: She plays Hyukjae and I play Donghae
~*~
“Hyukjae...” Donghae said with a wry smile. “Are you sure you haven’t packed too much for me?”
"What." Hyukjae looked up from the suitcase he was double checking. "No... clothes in two of them.... the other one has all the necessities... and things you like! One took all your stuffed toys. You have too many! I don't know if the place you're going will have all the things you like... so that’s what's in this suitcase." Hyukjae pouted.
Honestly, the part where Donghae’d said he’d wanted to bring all his soft toys had been a joke, but Hyukjae seemed to have taken him seriously, and he didn’t want to drive even more distance between them. “Alright, alright. I’m not the one carrying all those anyway, you’ll have to rationalize it all to the officers later.”
And Hyukjae had packed all of them. All but one. The one that reminded him most of Donghae. He had kept that one to himself. "I'll tell them." Hyukjae nodded, zipping it up. He walked over to Donghae slowly, sitting next to him.
Things hadn’t been the same between them since that incident, and Donghae knew that part of it was his fault. Despite the smile on his face, inside, he still felt worried and frightened - and more than that, useless. He couldn’t take care of himself, let alone Hyukjae, and that affected much of his usually overflowing self-confidence. He just... didn’t know what to do.
And now, it was already time for him to part with Hyukjae.
“...Stay safe.” Somehow, those were the only words he could say.
Hyukjae looked at his face, pressing their foreheads together. "I love you." He whispered, wishing they didn't have to part while Donghae was still so depressed. He wished he could have done something to help but nothing he had done so far had helped at all.
Donghae wished he could say something, something to make everything better. But he didn’t. But perhaps... perhaps he could explain himself, tell Hyukjae why he was so depressed. That he felt so helpless in the wake of everything. Explain to Hyukjae that it wasn’t because of the other, it was his own problems, and that even if they were apart, Donghae would remember Hyukjae and keep him in his heart, and knowing that he’d meet Hyukjae again, he’d work on getting better, so that when they met he’d be ready to pull Hyukjae into his arms and protect him from the world again. Would that make things a little bit better at least?
But before he could open his mouth, the doorbell rang, and the courage to say the words fled him. Instead, all he could whisper back was a feeble. “I love you too.”
Hyukjae nodded, giving him a smile before getting up to go answer the door. He let in the officers, quickly pointing out where all of Donghae's suitcases were. He walked to Donghae as the officer in charge of the operation followed him.
"We'll be handing you your new identity in the car along with all necessary documents." He explained, ready to lead Donghae out. Hyukjae knew they were keeping it a secret from him as well. Hyukjae looked at Donghae. He couldn't believe it was time to part already.
It was more than a little overwhelming, the thought of leaving like this, possibility not to see Hyukjae until at least a few years later. And Donghae had to steel himself. He didn’t want Hyukjae to remember him leaving in tears. Smiling, he pulled Hyukjae into one last hug, pressing one last kiss. “I’ll see you.” He whispered - but it came out more as a desperate hope than a promise.
Hyukjae kissed him back, nodding. "You will." He promised back, holding Donghae for the last time before letting go. The officers had already gathered his bags and had taken them out. The officer in charge waiting for Donghae.
"Sorry guys. We're on a tight schedule." He reminded him, standing at the door, waiting for Donghae to follow.
Donghae sighed, sneaking one last peck before he pulled away. The officers ushered him out, and he barely had time to glance back, gleaming one last look of Hyukjae before the door was closed behind him.
Hyukjae watched him go, quietly sinking to the floor, holding himself as the door shut behind Donghae. He pressed his head into his knees, finally letting out the tears he was holding back.
Donghae was quiet all the way to the car, letting the officers direct him with brisk instructions. He didn’t really listen, only responding automatically to their orders. He let them bundle him away in the nondescript black car, taking him away to a new identity and new life.
All the while, his eyes were trained outside of the window, straining to keep their sight on their apartment unit, then on their apartment block, until that too was out of sight.
~*~
Hyukjae got off the floor after a few minutes, wiping his face as he held the stuffed toy he had taken from Donghae. He sighed as he looked around the bedroom, quietly shutting the closet doors to hide the empty spaces where Donghae's things were.
It hadn't sunk in yet and he was sure it wouldn't for a while. Feeling too anxious, he walked around the room, cleaning up to keep his mind off things for as long as he could.
That was when the door slammed open and Kyuhyun came bursting in. “Hyukjae! Is Donghae still here? Don’t let them take him!”
Hyukjae looked up surprised at Kyuhyun, confused at his outburst. "They already came by..." He spoke softly.
Kyuhyun cursed colourfully, picking up his handphone. “Shit. Too late.” And then, turning to Hyukjae, he barked. “What are you still cleaning up for? We have to leave. Now.”
"What are you talking about?!" Hyukjae asked him, following anyway. When Kyuhyun was this worried, something major had to be up. "Why are you here?"
“The day for Donghae to leave was shifted up to next week. Some complications on the other end.” Kyuhyun said, fumbling with his phone as he walked out of the door. “Some smart asses decided to take matters in their own hands. We’re not sure what they’re planning, but whatever it is, it won’t be good for Donghae. Our best guess is that they’re using him to get something from the Lee Syndicate.”
Hyukjae's heart sank and he didn't miss a step as he grabbed Kyuhyun, pulling him along with him as he ran out the door to get out the building. He headed towards his car. "Where are they taking him!?" Hyukjae tried hard to keep calm. "Why the fuck didn't they tell me they shifted the date?!"
“Because those smart asses, despite being asses, have power. And they managed to shift positions around until the flow of information from HQ down to you was compromised.” Kyuhyun replied, before answering his phone, which had rang at that moment. “Have you found them?” He barked without preamble. “Okay, okay. Down at the harbour? Shit. That’s where the Lee Syndicate are supposed to have a handoff today... Shit.”
"A HANDOFF?!" Hyukjae screamed as he got into his car, not bothering to buckle in as he started the engine. "Get in the fucking car!" He told Kyuhyun, ready to speed off. It was a good thing he knew a few short cuts. Hyukjae felt like his heart was about to explode out of his chest. He knew those higher ups were assholes that would not be trusted.
Kyuhyun leapt into the car, shutting the door behind him. “Just try not to get us killed before we get there.” He mumbled as he buckled in his seatbelt, knowing he was probably going to need it.
Hyukjae was a good driver, under pressure as well. Which was probably why he always did the driving. Not caring much for traffic lights or warning signals today though, he moved on the roads as if he was the only one around. "What are they doing? Is the Lee Syndicate already there?"
“The Lee Syndicate is already there. But we have no idea what the fuck they’re planning.” Kyuhyun said, not even wincing as Hyukjae narrowly avoided being hit by an oncoming bus - he was used to it by now. “Maybe they’re trying to do a drug bust and Donghae is their insurance, which is nuts because that means they still must think Donghae is a spy.”
"Fuck!" Hyukjae growled, as he took a sharp turn. "They're going to kill him, fuck they are going to kill him!" He was panicking slightly as he gained more speed. He had to get there faster.
Kyuhyun did let out a small noise of surprise this time, “Hyuk! Wait! What are you going to do when you get there? The SWAT team is still in the process of mobilizing. We’ll reach there earlier than they will.”
"I... Shit." Hyukjae parked his car a little further from the harbour. "Fuck...." He looked around, "Okay what? What can we do, kidnap him from the officers who took him?" He glanced at Kyuhyun, trying to think up a plan.
“That’d be pretty hard since they most likely have announced their presence.” Kyuhyun squinted before motioning Hyukjae to go forward. “I think they’re there. We’ll need to move closer and assess the situation before we can make any plans.”
Hyukjae nodded, starting up the car again. He drove slowly, getting them as close as he could without being spotted, hiding the car. "We should walk from here... or else they'll hear the car." He told him, making sure his gun was loaded.
Kyuhyun nodded, already holding up his gun. “Ready when you are.”
"Let’s go." Hyukjae got out of the car, stealthily walking closer to where the police were set up. Hiding so they could listen in.
It seemed like the situation was already in the thick of things. Members of the Lee Syndicate were on one side, and the police on the other. Donghae was being held at gunpoint by one of the police officers and looking slightly annoyed and resigned.
“Throw down your weapons and surrender both your cargo and yourselves quietly to us, or else, he gets it.” The police officer holding the gun to Donghae’s head and removed the safety. If he was surprised when Donghae didn’t do anything but roll his eyes, he didn’t say it.
One of the members of the Lee Syndicate, however, was surprised. “Why do we care what you do to a traitor?”
“Hmph, obviously because he isn’t one. He’s still one of yours.” The police officer sneered, digging the gun harder into Donghae’s head, who sighed.
“Boss made it pretty clear what we should do to him if we saw him.” Another member of the Lee Syndicate spoke up, grinning. “But hey... since you’re willing to dirty your hands...”
“Don’t play with us -“ The officer yelled before cutting himself off. “Wait, you guys are still lower ended goons, you wouldn’t have access to plans of the higher ups. Call your boss, and we’ll see how he responds.”
The members of the Lee Syndicate glanced at each other, before by some unknown signal, one of them went off to make a call.
Donghae watched all this before speaking up softly. “You know, that was a bad idea. Now he’s only going to call for more back-up. And when he comes back, all of us will die.”
“Shut up.” The officer growled, jostling the gun against Donghae’s head.
Hyukjae hid behind a crate, watching the exchange between the two enemies. "What fucking idiots did our superiors hire?" He asked Kyuhyun, assessing the number of men. There was no way of getting out of this mess. He was scared. Donghae had still not healed completely. This was too much stress for him.
Hyukjae watched the gang member on the phone, looking for any signals Donghae had warned him off. Donghae had only shared information with him that would help him escape potential danger. "Back up is coming Kyuhyun." He whispered. "This is a now or never situation.
He turned to his partner, "That officer is going to get them all killed. They don't trust me... but you still have a chance, can you get word out to one of them that the look outs spotted their back up already? We need to start getting them out of there." Hyukjae kneeled down, peeking around the corner of the crate again. "Fuck he needs to get that gun away from Donghae's head."
Kyuhyun nodded, biting his lip. Making his way around, he headed towards the van, making him look as if he was part of the police group and had been there all along. Eyes flitting, he grabbed the arm of the nearest man and whispered to him. “Yah. Quick, go tell everyone to prepare to retreat. The Syndicate’s back-up is coming and we have no way to deal with t- WAH!”
Kyuhyun let out a yelp as he was suddenly flung to the ground. The officer who Kyuhyun had grabbed yelled out to the officer holding the gun to Donghae’s head. “Hyung! This guy is Kyuhyun, he’s one of Officer Lee’s friends. He must have been sent to compromise us.”
Donghae’s eyes shot over to Kyuhyun and his eyes narrowed. Shit, if Kyuhyun was here, that meant Hyukjae was too. “Shit.”
The officer’s eyes narrowed at Donghae and he tightened his grip, making Donghae wince. He yelled over to the Syndicate’s men. “Hurry up! If you don’t surrender, we’ll kill him!”
Hyukjae cursed as Kyuhyun was caught. He couldn't let his friend get into trouble. He looked around trying to figure out a way he could get to Kyuhyun at least. Hyukjae was about to put his gun into its holster when he was suddenly grabbed from behind.
Before he could scream there was a hand on his mouth, and Hyukjae could only try and fight the strong hold on him. "We've been looking for you Officer Lee." A voice spoke in his ear. "You've caused us a whole lot of trouble... even turned one of our men against us. Tsk." Hyukjae's eyes widened at the voice. The Syndicate's boss’ personal guard had grabbed him. He was dragged out to where the officers were and Hyukjae noticed how the police were being trapped from both sides.
"How about a little exchange?" The guard holding him called out. The hand was removed from his mouth and the cold metal of a gun was pressed to his head. "This for that."
Donghae stiffened when he saw Hyukjae. His blood turned cold and he spat at the guard. “Moonjung. Let him go.”
But before Moonjung could reply, the officer who was holding Donghae at gunpoint shouted out. “Hah. I knew it, you want him back... so he was in cohorts with you.”
Moonjung raised an eyebrow. “I think you’re mistaken. That guy...” he nodded at Donghae. “Is a traitor through and through. The boss just thought it might be nice to get him back to see what information he’s leaked to you... and maybe there’s this element of wanting the pleasure of killing and torturing Donghae-ah himself. But he says it’s alright if we don’t get him back alive.”
The officer laughed. "Like I'm falling for that shit!" He pressed the gun against Donghae's head more. "We will kill him. Don't doubt that." He warned Moonjong. Moonjung shrugged. "And what about your officer?" He asked. He let go of Hyukjae, punching him hard enough to make him fall to the ground before pointing his gun at him again. Hyukjae coughed blood out of his mouth as he tried getting up a little, not making too many moves because of the gun pointed at him.
Donghae tightened his fist, shaking in anger at the way Hyukjae was treated, there was a roaring in his head that was beginning to mount - like white noise before the beginning of the storm.
“Officer Lee, in our eyes, is a traitor as well. He’s probably leaked sensitive information to Donghae who passed it to you guys. We don’t care about him.” The officer spat.
“Well, that’s funny, because Officer Lee hasn’t leaked to Donghae anything. He’s still quite your docile and loyal police officer, unlike our Donghae over there. No doubt the failure of one of our major handoffs just two days ago was because he was a bit too talkative for his own good. Now...” Moonjung nodded at one of the guys, who shot one of the officers down. “Five seconds to switch. If you do, we’ll let you go, running with your tails in between your legs, or else all of you die.”
The officer holding Donghae looked at Hyukjae and then back at Donghae. "If that is true why don't you just kill him right now?" He dared Moonjung. He pointed his gun at Hyukjae, challenging Moonjung to prove he was right all along. That Donghae was still part of the syndicate and Hyukjae was the traitor. "We can get rid of our problems right now and continue on."
Hyukjae's eyes widen. Two guns were pointed at him. There was no way to escape this.
Hyukjae’s eyes went to the dead officer on the floor, it was clear that had shaken the officer holding Donghae.
No doubt about it, the officer would kill Hyukjae.
Moonjung snorted. “Fine.” And he released the safety, lifting his hand to aim at Donghae. “Let’s do it then.” And he fired.
"Donghae!" Hyukjae cried, hand reaching out as if he could grab Donghae out of the way of the bullet.
Time seemed to slow, and the bullet flew closer and closer to its target. It seemed almost like an eternity before the bullet reached its target, connecting a burying itself into flesh with a sickening thud. A scream, and a body falling to the floor.
But it wasn’t Donghae’s body.
And the next thing that anyone knew was the sound of another gunshot, a scream, and then Moonjung falling to the ground while Donghae stood in the place of the officer, his gun held out, still smoking from the shot he’d just fired.
Everything happened so fast that Hyukjae could only process it a moment later when his eyes darted over Donghae's body to see the other was unharmed. No one could ever question how Donghae had moved up the ranks of the Syndicate so fast after seeing that. Hyukjae grabbed the gun Moonjung had dropped, only to have another member of the syndicate grab him. He began to fight with the man, throwing punches and kicks as the both fought for the gun.
Hell had broken loose as both the Lee Syndicate and police flew into a panic as their respective leaders were taken down. Kyuhyun winced, only able to stay down as bullets flew above him, straining his eyes to try to see what had happened to Donghae and Hyukjae, only to see a most incredible sight.
Donghae was walking calmly towards Hyukjae, not seeming to be bothered by the bullets that flew all around him. He picked off anyone that came too close, not caring if they were police of syndicate, picking up guns from the floor when his bullets ran out, simply stepping out of the way of bullets coming towards his path.
Finally reaching Hyukjae, Donghae put a bullet into the head of the man Hyukjae was wrestling with before throwing down his gun and moving towards Hyukjae.
Hyukjae almost screamed as the guy was shot, dropping on top of him. He pushed him off, looking up only to see that Donghae was there. His heart was pounding in his chest, as he finally got up. He hissed when he tried to wipe blood off his face, the sand from the floor stinging his cuts. "Donghae..." He called out to him, reaching out to pull him out of harm’s way.
Donghae moved over to Hyukjae, gun clattering to the floor. But he didn’t really seem to look at Hyukjae - not really, a familiar blank look on his face.
Hyukjae pulled Donghae close, grabbing a gun as he held Donghae in his arms. He needed to get him out of there. He looked around for Kyuhyun, signalling for him to follow as he pulled Donghae away from the scene. He had not created this mess but he needed to call back up for the other officers. He pulled them towards the SWAT van. Grabbing the phone inside, he threw it at Kyuhyun to call for back up, to let HQ know what was happening at the harbour.
Kyuhyun had gotten calling HQ straightaway, then let out a sigh of relief. It seemed like HQ had managed to pin-point their location using their phone GPS. “They’re almost here.” He told Hyukjae, and no sooner than he’d done that, there were the sounds of shouts outside as the Lee Syndicate members began to retreat in alarm at the sound of police sirens - back-up had come.
Hyukjae nodded, turning back to Donghae. "Donghae?" He called out to him, patting his cheek lightly as he tried to bring him back. "Hae please..." He whispered softly. "You saved my life out there.... please come back to me..."
Donghae let out a small gasp as his consciousness suddenly snapped back. Sitting up, his eyes panicked, he called out. “Hyuk?”
"I'm right here!" He looked up at him, grabbing his hand. He pulled him to sit back down, wanting to look him over for injuries, grabbing the first aid box in case.
Donghae blinked, staring at Hyukjae, before looking around, taking stock of his surroundings. “...It’s over? What happened?”
Hyukjae kissed him softly. "It's.... you saved me. You saved me out there. You were amazing." Hyukjae hugged him tightly.
Donghae relaxed into the kiss, before he blinked. “I did?” He whispered, arms instinctively curling around Hyukjae.
Hyukjae nodded, quickly explaining to him everything he had done. He leaned against him, not bothering to pull away when the SWAT van doors were open, revealing a few officers from the back up team.
Donghae listened with an unreadable expression. And when Hyukjae was done, he was silent for a while, ignoring the officers that had come in.
Then finally, he said. “Well... what do you know? I guess this condition of mine came in useful after all.”
Hyukjae turned to him and shook his head. "It wasn't the condition. It was all you and you know it." Hyukjae squeezed his hand, pulling away to check on Kyuhyun.
Donghae snorted. “I don’t remember a fucking thing, of course it wasn’t all me.” Then, he caught Hyukjae just as he pulled away and pulled him into his embrace. “But that doesn’t matter. All that matters is that even like this, I was able to protect you. And that’s all that’s important to me.”
Hyukjae smiled as he hugged him back. "You did." He nuzzled him. "Thank you for protecting me."
“I was only acting on my instincts.” Donghae replied honestly. “Probably.” He let out a soft sigh, confessing to Hyukjae. “I’m sorry for acting the way I had before. I was just terrified that I’d become useless to you because of my condition... and I was scared if I left, you’d probably just forget me, after all your life would become so much easier if you didn’t need to take care of me.”
"Forget you?" He pulled back to stare at him. "You really did hit your head hard." Hyukjae shook his head. He held his hand and squeezed it, lacing their fingers together. "You're so stupid." Hyukjae told him off, frowning, but his eyes held a completely different message. He could never forget Donghae.
Hyukjae wouldn’t know, but his words had a huge effect on Donghae’s heart. It was as if a huge weight was lifted, and Donghae couldn’t help the sweet smile that spread across his face. Of course, now that he thought about it, it had been silly - he knew deep down that Hyukjae loved him and wouldn’t forget him. But the depression and feelings of uselessness had been getting to him - all of them lifted by a few simple words.
Hyukjae smiled softly, turning to Kyuhyun. "How bad is the damage out there?" He asked, wondering how this would affect him and Donghae.
“Most of the police guys who pulled this stunt are dead. Luckily, it seems like they’ve arrested all of the Lee Syndicate matters.” Kyuhyun smiled. “So Donghae is safe on that end. None of them will be able to report Donghae is alive, so we can fake the reports, saying that Donghae died in the incident.”
Hyukjae nodded, glancing at Donghae. "This works in our favour. We've got a few really important members of the Lee Syndicate now." He smiled as well, "Did they collect the drugs from the handover? There's got to be enough in there to push our case through."
“They split the cargo as Donghae had predicted, but the fact that he mentioned it probably helps to prove our case.” Kyuhyun said the happy news, “There’s probably going to be a few delays with Donghae’s moving though. Need to make all the death documents and stuff.”
“Huh.” Donghae seemed slightly amused. “I guess you love a dead man now, Hyuk.”
"I should practise my tears for the press." Hyukjae rolled his eyes at him. He pressed a hand to his cheek, hissing when he touched the bruise. "Can we leave now?" He asked Kyuhyun, "Or are we heading to HQ to finish off the paperwork?"
“You know what, just go. I’ll take care of everything.” Kyuhyun shook his head.
Donghae had reached over, caressing Hyukjae’s cheek and frowning at the bruise. But he looked up then, surprised. “You sure?”
“Yeah. You’d only gross me out even if we all went back.” Kyuhyun snorted at which Donghae smiled. “Thanks, Kyuhyun.”
“Ah... whatever.” Kyuhyun shook his head before ducking behind the van, carrying on with his work.
"Thanks Kyuhyun..." Hyukjae called out as he left. He turned to Donghae, pressing their foreheads together for a moment. "I'm taking you home now and I'm locking you in our bedroom until they come knocking out doors down." He told him, smiling as much as he could.
“Oh? So I’m your prisoner now?” Donghae grinned, hands snaking around Hyukjae’s waist. “Oh dear. Out of the frying pan and into the fire huh?”
He put two fingers to Donghae's temple. "Start walking to the car or else you'll be in a lot of trouble mister."
“Yes, sir. Doing as I’m told.” Donghae put his hands up in an imitation of surrender, walking forward to the car as Hyukjae instructed.
Hyukjae brought him to the car, getting into the driver’s seat. "Do I have my Donghae back now?" He asked him, turning to look at him, reaching out to cup his cheek. "Happy meal loving, stuffed animal collecting, smiley Donghae?"
“You never lost him.” Donghae replied, retaliating by poking Hyukjae’s cheek. “He was just asleep for a bit.”
"Let’s go home then. He needs to spoil me again." Hyukjae laughed softly, starting the car as he took them back home. He finally felt some peace having Donghae be himself again. It lifted a great burden off his shoulders.
“Oh... and spoil you he will.” Donghae grinned, letting his hand roam underneath Hyukjae’s shirt, playing with the skin underneath.
~*~
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Romance, Humor, Drama
Pairing: Donghae/Hyukjae
Warning: Hints of smut
Summary: It sucks when you’re boyfriend is on the other side of the law, but the rewards for hanging on and believing in that love are much more than Donghae and Hyukjae can ever imagine.
Role-play with tees2mai: She plays Hyukjae and I play Donghae
~*~
“Hyukjae...” Donghae said with a wry smile. “Are you sure you haven’t packed too much for me?”
"What." Hyukjae looked up from the suitcase he was double checking. "No... clothes in two of them.... the other one has all the necessities... and things you like! One took all your stuffed toys. You have too many! I don't know if the place you're going will have all the things you like... so that’s what's in this suitcase." Hyukjae pouted.
Honestly, the part where Donghae’d said he’d wanted to bring all his soft toys had been a joke, but Hyukjae seemed to have taken him seriously, and he didn’t want to drive even more distance between them. “Alright, alright. I’m not the one carrying all those anyway, you’ll have to rationalize it all to the officers later.”
And Hyukjae had packed all of them. All but one. The one that reminded him most of Donghae. He had kept that one to himself. "I'll tell them." Hyukjae nodded, zipping it up. He walked over to Donghae slowly, sitting next to him.
Things hadn’t been the same between them since that incident, and Donghae knew that part of it was his fault. Despite the smile on his face, inside, he still felt worried and frightened - and more than that, useless. He couldn’t take care of himself, let alone Hyukjae, and that affected much of his usually overflowing self-confidence. He just... didn’t know what to do.
And now, it was already time for him to part with Hyukjae.
“...Stay safe.” Somehow, those were the only words he could say.
Hyukjae looked at his face, pressing their foreheads together. "I love you." He whispered, wishing they didn't have to part while Donghae was still so depressed. He wished he could have done something to help but nothing he had done so far had helped at all.
Donghae wished he could say something, something to make everything better. But he didn’t. But perhaps... perhaps he could explain himself, tell Hyukjae why he was so depressed. That he felt so helpless in the wake of everything. Explain to Hyukjae that it wasn’t because of the other, it was his own problems, and that even if they were apart, Donghae would remember Hyukjae and keep him in his heart, and knowing that he’d meet Hyukjae again, he’d work on getting better, so that when they met he’d be ready to pull Hyukjae into his arms and protect him from the world again. Would that make things a little bit better at least?
But before he could open his mouth, the doorbell rang, and the courage to say the words fled him. Instead, all he could whisper back was a feeble. “I love you too.”
Hyukjae nodded, giving him a smile before getting up to go answer the door. He let in the officers, quickly pointing out where all of Donghae's suitcases were. He walked to Donghae as the officer in charge of the operation followed him.
"We'll be handing you your new identity in the car along with all necessary documents." He explained, ready to lead Donghae out. Hyukjae knew they were keeping it a secret from him as well. Hyukjae looked at Donghae. He couldn't believe it was time to part already.
It was more than a little overwhelming, the thought of leaving like this, possibility not to see Hyukjae until at least a few years later. And Donghae had to steel himself. He didn’t want Hyukjae to remember him leaving in tears. Smiling, he pulled Hyukjae into one last hug, pressing one last kiss. “I’ll see you.” He whispered - but it came out more as a desperate hope than a promise.
Hyukjae kissed him back, nodding. "You will." He promised back, holding Donghae for the last time before letting go. The officers had already gathered his bags and had taken them out. The officer in charge waiting for Donghae.
"Sorry guys. We're on a tight schedule." He reminded him, standing at the door, waiting for Donghae to follow.
Donghae sighed, sneaking one last peck before he pulled away. The officers ushered him out, and he barely had time to glance back, gleaming one last look of Hyukjae before the door was closed behind him.
Hyukjae watched him go, quietly sinking to the floor, holding himself as the door shut behind Donghae. He pressed his head into his knees, finally letting out the tears he was holding back.
Donghae was quiet all the way to the car, letting the officers direct him with brisk instructions. He didn’t really listen, only responding automatically to their orders. He let them bundle him away in the nondescript black car, taking him away to a new identity and new life.
All the while, his eyes were trained outside of the window, straining to keep their sight on their apartment unit, then on their apartment block, until that too was out of sight.
~*~
Hyukjae got off the floor after a few minutes, wiping his face as he held the stuffed toy he had taken from Donghae. He sighed as he looked around the bedroom, quietly shutting the closet doors to hide the empty spaces where Donghae's things were.
It hadn't sunk in yet and he was sure it wouldn't for a while. Feeling too anxious, he walked around the room, cleaning up to keep his mind off things for as long as he could.
That was when the door slammed open and Kyuhyun came bursting in. “Hyukjae! Is Donghae still here? Don’t let them take him!”
Hyukjae looked up surprised at Kyuhyun, confused at his outburst. "They already came by..." He spoke softly.
Kyuhyun cursed colourfully, picking up his handphone. “Shit. Too late.” And then, turning to Hyukjae, he barked. “What are you still cleaning up for? We have to leave. Now.”
"What are you talking about?!" Hyukjae asked him, following anyway. When Kyuhyun was this worried, something major had to be up. "Why are you here?"
“The day for Donghae to leave was shifted up to next week. Some complications on the other end.” Kyuhyun said, fumbling with his phone as he walked out of the door. “Some smart asses decided to take matters in their own hands. We’re not sure what they’re planning, but whatever it is, it won’t be good for Donghae. Our best guess is that they’re using him to get something from the Lee Syndicate.”
Hyukjae's heart sank and he didn't miss a step as he grabbed Kyuhyun, pulling him along with him as he ran out the door to get out the building. He headed towards his car. "Where are they taking him!?" Hyukjae tried hard to keep calm. "Why the fuck didn't they tell me they shifted the date?!"
“Because those smart asses, despite being asses, have power. And they managed to shift positions around until the flow of information from HQ down to you was compromised.” Kyuhyun replied, before answering his phone, which had rang at that moment. “Have you found them?” He barked without preamble. “Okay, okay. Down at the harbour? Shit. That’s where the Lee Syndicate are supposed to have a handoff today... Shit.”
"A HANDOFF?!" Hyukjae screamed as he got into his car, not bothering to buckle in as he started the engine. "Get in the fucking car!" He told Kyuhyun, ready to speed off. It was a good thing he knew a few short cuts. Hyukjae felt like his heart was about to explode out of his chest. He knew those higher ups were assholes that would not be trusted.
Kyuhyun leapt into the car, shutting the door behind him. “Just try not to get us killed before we get there.” He mumbled as he buckled in his seatbelt, knowing he was probably going to need it.
Hyukjae was a good driver, under pressure as well. Which was probably why he always did the driving. Not caring much for traffic lights or warning signals today though, he moved on the roads as if he was the only one around. "What are they doing? Is the Lee Syndicate already there?"
“The Lee Syndicate is already there. But we have no idea what the fuck they’re planning.” Kyuhyun said, not even wincing as Hyukjae narrowly avoided being hit by an oncoming bus - he was used to it by now. “Maybe they’re trying to do a drug bust and Donghae is their insurance, which is nuts because that means they still must think Donghae is a spy.”
"Fuck!" Hyukjae growled, as he took a sharp turn. "They're going to kill him, fuck they are going to kill him!" He was panicking slightly as he gained more speed. He had to get there faster.
Kyuhyun did let out a small noise of surprise this time, “Hyuk! Wait! What are you going to do when you get there? The SWAT team is still in the process of mobilizing. We’ll reach there earlier than they will.”
"I... Shit." Hyukjae parked his car a little further from the harbour. "Fuck...." He looked around, "Okay what? What can we do, kidnap him from the officers who took him?" He glanced at Kyuhyun, trying to think up a plan.
“That’d be pretty hard since they most likely have announced their presence.” Kyuhyun squinted before motioning Hyukjae to go forward. “I think they’re there. We’ll need to move closer and assess the situation before we can make any plans.”
Hyukjae nodded, starting up the car again. He drove slowly, getting them as close as he could without being spotted, hiding the car. "We should walk from here... or else they'll hear the car." He told him, making sure his gun was loaded.
Kyuhyun nodded, already holding up his gun. “Ready when you are.”
"Let’s go." Hyukjae got out of the car, stealthily walking closer to where the police were set up. Hiding so they could listen in.
It seemed like the situation was already in the thick of things. Members of the Lee Syndicate were on one side, and the police on the other. Donghae was being held at gunpoint by one of the police officers and looking slightly annoyed and resigned.
“Throw down your weapons and surrender both your cargo and yourselves quietly to us, or else, he gets it.” The police officer holding the gun to Donghae’s head and removed the safety. If he was surprised when Donghae didn’t do anything but roll his eyes, he didn’t say it.
One of the members of the Lee Syndicate, however, was surprised. “Why do we care what you do to a traitor?”
“Hmph, obviously because he isn’t one. He’s still one of yours.” The police officer sneered, digging the gun harder into Donghae’s head, who sighed.
“Boss made it pretty clear what we should do to him if we saw him.” Another member of the Lee Syndicate spoke up, grinning. “But hey... since you’re willing to dirty your hands...”
“Don’t play with us -“ The officer yelled before cutting himself off. “Wait, you guys are still lower ended goons, you wouldn’t have access to plans of the higher ups. Call your boss, and we’ll see how he responds.”
The members of the Lee Syndicate glanced at each other, before by some unknown signal, one of them went off to make a call.
Donghae watched all this before speaking up softly. “You know, that was a bad idea. Now he’s only going to call for more back-up. And when he comes back, all of us will die.”
“Shut up.” The officer growled, jostling the gun against Donghae’s head.
Hyukjae hid behind a crate, watching the exchange between the two enemies. "What fucking idiots did our superiors hire?" He asked Kyuhyun, assessing the number of men. There was no way of getting out of this mess. He was scared. Donghae had still not healed completely. This was too much stress for him.
Hyukjae watched the gang member on the phone, looking for any signals Donghae had warned him off. Donghae had only shared information with him that would help him escape potential danger. "Back up is coming Kyuhyun." He whispered. "This is a now or never situation.
He turned to his partner, "That officer is going to get them all killed. They don't trust me... but you still have a chance, can you get word out to one of them that the look outs spotted their back up already? We need to start getting them out of there." Hyukjae kneeled down, peeking around the corner of the crate again. "Fuck he needs to get that gun away from Donghae's head."
Kyuhyun nodded, biting his lip. Making his way around, he headed towards the van, making him look as if he was part of the police group and had been there all along. Eyes flitting, he grabbed the arm of the nearest man and whispered to him. “Yah. Quick, go tell everyone to prepare to retreat. The Syndicate’s back-up is coming and we have no way to deal with t- WAH!”
Kyuhyun let out a yelp as he was suddenly flung to the ground. The officer who Kyuhyun had grabbed yelled out to the officer holding the gun to Donghae’s head. “Hyung! This guy is Kyuhyun, he’s one of Officer Lee’s friends. He must have been sent to compromise us.”
Donghae’s eyes shot over to Kyuhyun and his eyes narrowed. Shit, if Kyuhyun was here, that meant Hyukjae was too. “Shit.”
The officer’s eyes narrowed at Donghae and he tightened his grip, making Donghae wince. He yelled over to the Syndicate’s men. “Hurry up! If you don’t surrender, we’ll kill him!”
Hyukjae cursed as Kyuhyun was caught. He couldn't let his friend get into trouble. He looked around trying to figure out a way he could get to Kyuhyun at least. Hyukjae was about to put his gun into its holster when he was suddenly grabbed from behind.
Before he could scream there was a hand on his mouth, and Hyukjae could only try and fight the strong hold on him. "We've been looking for you Officer Lee." A voice spoke in his ear. "You've caused us a whole lot of trouble... even turned one of our men against us. Tsk." Hyukjae's eyes widened at the voice. The Syndicate's boss’ personal guard had grabbed him. He was dragged out to where the officers were and Hyukjae noticed how the police were being trapped from both sides.
"How about a little exchange?" The guard holding him called out. The hand was removed from his mouth and the cold metal of a gun was pressed to his head. "This for that."
Donghae stiffened when he saw Hyukjae. His blood turned cold and he spat at the guard. “Moonjung. Let him go.”
But before Moonjung could reply, the officer who was holding Donghae at gunpoint shouted out. “Hah. I knew it, you want him back... so he was in cohorts with you.”
Moonjung raised an eyebrow. “I think you’re mistaken. That guy...” he nodded at Donghae. “Is a traitor through and through. The boss just thought it might be nice to get him back to see what information he’s leaked to you... and maybe there’s this element of wanting the pleasure of killing and torturing Donghae-ah himself. But he says it’s alright if we don’t get him back alive.”
The officer laughed. "Like I'm falling for that shit!" He pressed the gun against Donghae's head more. "We will kill him. Don't doubt that." He warned Moonjong. Moonjung shrugged. "And what about your officer?" He asked. He let go of Hyukjae, punching him hard enough to make him fall to the ground before pointing his gun at him again. Hyukjae coughed blood out of his mouth as he tried getting up a little, not making too many moves because of the gun pointed at him.
Donghae tightened his fist, shaking in anger at the way Hyukjae was treated, there was a roaring in his head that was beginning to mount - like white noise before the beginning of the storm.
“Officer Lee, in our eyes, is a traitor as well. He’s probably leaked sensitive information to Donghae who passed it to you guys. We don’t care about him.” The officer spat.
“Well, that’s funny, because Officer Lee hasn’t leaked to Donghae anything. He’s still quite your docile and loyal police officer, unlike our Donghae over there. No doubt the failure of one of our major handoffs just two days ago was because he was a bit too talkative for his own good. Now...” Moonjung nodded at one of the guys, who shot one of the officers down. “Five seconds to switch. If you do, we’ll let you go, running with your tails in between your legs, or else all of you die.”
The officer holding Donghae looked at Hyukjae and then back at Donghae. "If that is true why don't you just kill him right now?" He dared Moonjung. He pointed his gun at Hyukjae, challenging Moonjung to prove he was right all along. That Donghae was still part of the syndicate and Hyukjae was the traitor. "We can get rid of our problems right now and continue on."
Hyukjae's eyes widen. Two guns were pointed at him. There was no way to escape this.
Hyukjae’s eyes went to the dead officer on the floor, it was clear that had shaken the officer holding Donghae.
No doubt about it, the officer would kill Hyukjae.
Moonjung snorted. “Fine.” And he released the safety, lifting his hand to aim at Donghae. “Let’s do it then.” And he fired.
"Donghae!" Hyukjae cried, hand reaching out as if he could grab Donghae out of the way of the bullet.
Time seemed to slow, and the bullet flew closer and closer to its target. It seemed almost like an eternity before the bullet reached its target, connecting a burying itself into flesh with a sickening thud. A scream, and a body falling to the floor.
But it wasn’t Donghae’s body.
And the next thing that anyone knew was the sound of another gunshot, a scream, and then Moonjung falling to the ground while Donghae stood in the place of the officer, his gun held out, still smoking from the shot he’d just fired.
Everything happened so fast that Hyukjae could only process it a moment later when his eyes darted over Donghae's body to see the other was unharmed. No one could ever question how Donghae had moved up the ranks of the Syndicate so fast after seeing that. Hyukjae grabbed the gun Moonjung had dropped, only to have another member of the syndicate grab him. He began to fight with the man, throwing punches and kicks as the both fought for the gun.
Hell had broken loose as both the Lee Syndicate and police flew into a panic as their respective leaders were taken down. Kyuhyun winced, only able to stay down as bullets flew above him, straining his eyes to try to see what had happened to Donghae and Hyukjae, only to see a most incredible sight.
Donghae was walking calmly towards Hyukjae, not seeming to be bothered by the bullets that flew all around him. He picked off anyone that came too close, not caring if they were police of syndicate, picking up guns from the floor when his bullets ran out, simply stepping out of the way of bullets coming towards his path.
Finally reaching Hyukjae, Donghae put a bullet into the head of the man Hyukjae was wrestling with before throwing down his gun and moving towards Hyukjae.
Hyukjae almost screamed as the guy was shot, dropping on top of him. He pushed him off, looking up only to see that Donghae was there. His heart was pounding in his chest, as he finally got up. He hissed when he tried to wipe blood off his face, the sand from the floor stinging his cuts. "Donghae..." He called out to him, reaching out to pull him out of harm’s way.
Donghae moved over to Hyukjae, gun clattering to the floor. But he didn’t really seem to look at Hyukjae - not really, a familiar blank look on his face.
Hyukjae pulled Donghae close, grabbing a gun as he held Donghae in his arms. He needed to get him out of there. He looked around for Kyuhyun, signalling for him to follow as he pulled Donghae away from the scene. He had not created this mess but he needed to call back up for the other officers. He pulled them towards the SWAT van. Grabbing the phone inside, he threw it at Kyuhyun to call for back up, to let HQ know what was happening at the harbour.
Kyuhyun had gotten calling HQ straightaway, then let out a sigh of relief. It seemed like HQ had managed to pin-point their location using their phone GPS. “They’re almost here.” He told Hyukjae, and no sooner than he’d done that, there were the sounds of shouts outside as the Lee Syndicate members began to retreat in alarm at the sound of police sirens - back-up had come.
Hyukjae nodded, turning back to Donghae. "Donghae?" He called out to him, patting his cheek lightly as he tried to bring him back. "Hae please..." He whispered softly. "You saved my life out there.... please come back to me..."
Donghae let out a small gasp as his consciousness suddenly snapped back. Sitting up, his eyes panicked, he called out. “Hyuk?”
"I'm right here!" He looked up at him, grabbing his hand. He pulled him to sit back down, wanting to look him over for injuries, grabbing the first aid box in case.
Donghae blinked, staring at Hyukjae, before looking around, taking stock of his surroundings. “...It’s over? What happened?”
Hyukjae kissed him softly. "It's.... you saved me. You saved me out there. You were amazing." Hyukjae hugged him tightly.
Donghae relaxed into the kiss, before he blinked. “I did?” He whispered, arms instinctively curling around Hyukjae.
Hyukjae nodded, quickly explaining to him everything he had done. He leaned against him, not bothering to pull away when the SWAT van doors were open, revealing a few officers from the back up team.
Donghae listened with an unreadable expression. And when Hyukjae was done, he was silent for a while, ignoring the officers that had come in.
Then finally, he said. “Well... what do you know? I guess this condition of mine came in useful after all.”
Hyukjae turned to him and shook his head. "It wasn't the condition. It was all you and you know it." Hyukjae squeezed his hand, pulling away to check on Kyuhyun.
Donghae snorted. “I don’t remember a fucking thing, of course it wasn’t all me.” Then, he caught Hyukjae just as he pulled away and pulled him into his embrace. “But that doesn’t matter. All that matters is that even like this, I was able to protect you. And that’s all that’s important to me.”
Hyukjae smiled as he hugged him back. "You did." He nuzzled him. "Thank you for protecting me."
“I was only acting on my instincts.” Donghae replied honestly. “Probably.” He let out a soft sigh, confessing to Hyukjae. “I’m sorry for acting the way I had before. I was just terrified that I’d become useless to you because of my condition... and I was scared if I left, you’d probably just forget me, after all your life would become so much easier if you didn’t need to take care of me.”
"Forget you?" He pulled back to stare at him. "You really did hit your head hard." Hyukjae shook his head. He held his hand and squeezed it, lacing their fingers together. "You're so stupid." Hyukjae told him off, frowning, but his eyes held a completely different message. He could never forget Donghae.
Hyukjae wouldn’t know, but his words had a huge effect on Donghae’s heart. It was as if a huge weight was lifted, and Donghae couldn’t help the sweet smile that spread across his face. Of course, now that he thought about it, it had been silly - he knew deep down that Hyukjae loved him and wouldn’t forget him. But the depression and feelings of uselessness had been getting to him - all of them lifted by a few simple words.
Hyukjae smiled softly, turning to Kyuhyun. "How bad is the damage out there?" He asked, wondering how this would affect him and Donghae.
“Most of the police guys who pulled this stunt are dead. Luckily, it seems like they’ve arrested all of the Lee Syndicate matters.” Kyuhyun smiled. “So Donghae is safe on that end. None of them will be able to report Donghae is alive, so we can fake the reports, saying that Donghae died in the incident.”
Hyukjae nodded, glancing at Donghae. "This works in our favour. We've got a few really important members of the Lee Syndicate now." He smiled as well, "Did they collect the drugs from the handover? There's got to be enough in there to push our case through."
“They split the cargo as Donghae had predicted, but the fact that he mentioned it probably helps to prove our case.” Kyuhyun said the happy news, “There’s probably going to be a few delays with Donghae’s moving though. Need to make all the death documents and stuff.”
“Huh.” Donghae seemed slightly amused. “I guess you love a dead man now, Hyuk.”
"I should practise my tears for the press." Hyukjae rolled his eyes at him. He pressed a hand to his cheek, hissing when he touched the bruise. "Can we leave now?" He asked Kyuhyun, "Or are we heading to HQ to finish off the paperwork?"
“You know what, just go. I’ll take care of everything.” Kyuhyun shook his head.
Donghae had reached over, caressing Hyukjae’s cheek and frowning at the bruise. But he looked up then, surprised. “You sure?”
“Yeah. You’d only gross me out even if we all went back.” Kyuhyun snorted at which Donghae smiled. “Thanks, Kyuhyun.”
“Ah... whatever.” Kyuhyun shook his head before ducking behind the van, carrying on with his work.
"Thanks Kyuhyun..." Hyukjae called out as he left. He turned to Donghae, pressing their foreheads together for a moment. "I'm taking you home now and I'm locking you in our bedroom until they come knocking out doors down." He told him, smiling as much as he could.
“Oh? So I’m your prisoner now?” Donghae grinned, hands snaking around Hyukjae’s waist. “Oh dear. Out of the frying pan and into the fire huh?”
He put two fingers to Donghae's temple. "Start walking to the car or else you'll be in a lot of trouble mister."
“Yes, sir. Doing as I’m told.” Donghae put his hands up in an imitation of surrender, walking forward to the car as Hyukjae instructed.
Hyukjae brought him to the car, getting into the driver’s seat. "Do I have my Donghae back now?" He asked him, turning to look at him, reaching out to cup his cheek. "Happy meal loving, stuffed animal collecting, smiley Donghae?"
“You never lost him.” Donghae replied, retaliating by poking Hyukjae’s cheek. “He was just asleep for a bit.”
"Let’s go home then. He needs to spoil me again." Hyukjae laughed softly, starting the car as he took them back home. He finally felt some peace having Donghae be himself again. It lifted a great burden off his shoulders.
“Oh... and spoil you he will.” Donghae grinned, letting his hand roam underneath Hyukjae’s shirt, playing with the skin underneath.
~*~