Forget Me Not (And Don't Move On) [6/7]
Forget Me Not (And Don't Move On)
VI
Sunlight streams in through the gaps in the curtains.
A pair of eyes blink open, squinting as they adjust to the morning light.
The room is otherwise dark, the light only reaching the edge of the bed. Two sets of breaths fill the room, and Kyungsoo focuses on the way Jongin’s inhales and exhales sound less laboured than they ever have.
He peeks over at the taller man beside him who is still deep in sleep. He looks much younger, much less severe in the warm glow emanating from the window. His features look lighter, and Kyungsoo thinks he looks almost angelic this way.
Jongin, however, is nowhere near angelic.
He sighs and turns into his side to face Jongin, careful not disturb their hands which still link between them.
He thinks back to what the other had said to him the night before. About being part of an underground gang. And he just honestly doesn't get it.
Sure Jongin is constantly shrouded by an aura of mystery, danger, and adventure, but he can't believe that the man who secretly smiles at him like he's the world's greatest gift when no one is looking could be anywhere near a murderer. It doesn't make sense to him that Jongin, Jongin who had splashed him with water in his kitchen, Jongin who had worn his oversized sweater, Jongin who had loved him so, so carefully, could ever cause anyone harm.
But then again, maybe he can see it.
See it in the way that he stares at Kyungsoo so intensely, like he's Jongin’s property, or in the way the he always moves purposefully, every move and every action painstakingly calculated and executed.
Kyungsoo that maybe, just maybe, he can understand how it would be true, how Jongin could be a killer, a thief, a liar, but he could never understand how Jongin could be a bad person. Could be evil.
He likes to think of himself as good judge of character, and he's learned by now that a man's true self is not always revealed through his actions, but that sometimes, those very actions are the things to disguise his true nature.
And he fairly sure, that this is the case with Jongin.
A person couldn't look at Kyungsoo with the raw emotion in their eyes like Jongin did last night and still be a bad person. It's just not possible. It can't be. And Kyungsoo is sure of this with every bone in his body.
He's pulled out of his thoughts when Jongin's eyelids begin to flutter, an indication that the taller is about to wake.
Kyungsoo crawls closer to him, and Jongin pulls his body flush against his own, seeking out the warmth of another in the chillier hours of the morning subconsciously. The taller man pulls Kyungsoo across his chest in his half asleep state, slinging a leg protectively over Kyungsoo's torso, effectively trapping him in. The younger secretly loves Jongin like this, all needy and clingy.
He lifts his head off the strong chest to look up at a cut jawline and a five o’clock shadow that was left unshaven from the previous day. It makes him want to press kisses along the older’s neck, to make him breathless as he wakes up.
Kyungsoo scoots up ever so slightly and tenderly presses still-swollen lips to Jongin’s jaw, sucking a small spot to leave a mark. He gives little kittenish licks up the side of Jongin's face, stopping at his ear and taking the lobe between his teeth. He nibbles lightly and feels the shudder that works its way through Jongin's body. A warm pair of hands, big and calloused, wrap themselves around his slim waist, and Jongin slots his body over top of his own.
“Good morning,” He croaks out, eyes still closed and morning voice scratchy, making Kyungsoo’s member twitch in response.
“Good morning,” He mumbles back happily, taking the rare moment of Jongin's vulnerability to capture his lips in a lingering kiss. It's the kind of kiss that's meant for someone you love, and as Kyungsoo's breaks it off with a pop he smiles into Jongin's mouth.
The taller’s eyes finally crack open, lids slightly swollen and really just intensifying the puppyish look. Kyungsoo coos softly, had reaching up to brush Jongin's hair off his forehead. Jongin catches his hand and suddenly flips them over, not as incoherent as Kyungsoo had originally believed him to be.
His eyes widen, staring openly at Jongin and watching the way his pupils dilate as he rakes his eyes down Kyungsoo's body. He stops when he reaches the younger's chest, marvelling at the scarlet bruises and bite marks that mar the milky expanse of skin. It leaves him a little breathless to know that he caused this, that he so completely ruined the man beneath him. He attaches his lips the first bruise, warm breath tickling the tender skin and pressing a soft kiss there. There gentleness of Jongin's touch make Kyungsoo shudder, hands coming up to rest low on the taller's back. Jongin kisses every single mark, every bruise, taking his time to love Kyungsoo properly.
The smaller man slowly becomes more and more crazy, the feeling of lips against his collarbones just not enough. His hands slip lower and lower until his fingertips lightly grip Jongin's ass, trying to pull him closerclosercloser. It brings a vicious growl out of the others throat, his lips stopping their progress.
“Kyungsoo,” He groans. “Please, please don't do that.”
His chest heaves, breathing speeding up. He looks the smaller man straight in the eye before he whispers out in a strangled breath, “It makes me want to do very, very bad things to you.” He pushes Kyungsoo’s bangs off his forehead and chuckles lightly, the sound making his chest tighten. “Things... that I shouldn't be allowed to do so early in the morning.”
Kyungsoo feels his piercing gaze and stares back challengingly.
“Try me.”
That's all it takes for Jongin to attack his lips, turning them over to place Kyungsoo on his lap as he sits up. The smaller man winds up straddling him, legs encircling his waist. Kyungsoo moans at the pressure of Jongin’s quickly hardening cock against his own, pressing his body closer and a helpless whine escaping his throat.
He wants more, moremoremoremoremore, but before he can do anything his phone dings.
Ugh.
He wasn't even aware that he had brought it into the room, but he can hear it from the corner and he groans in annoyance before plucking himself off Jongin's lap and retrieving the device. As he hobbles over towards the source of the noise he stumbles, pained moan escaping his lips. There’s an achine deep in his spine, his ass hurting a just a little bit a lot. He grabs the device and turns around to find Jongin resting on his elbows, smugly grinning at the younger.
“Doing alright, Kyungsoo?” He asks, eyebrow raised teasingly. Kyungsoo throws his phone at him.
“Fuck off Jongin.” He grumbles. “It’s your fault you attacked me with that…” He gestures his hand vaguely. “That thing.”
“Oh?” Jongin quips, leaning back into his shoulders. “I’m sure I don’t know what you mean.”
Kyungsoo just shakes his head with a smile before approaching the bed and crawling over top of Jongin, stopping just short of his face and boxing in his shoulders with his elbows. He looks the taller man straight in the eye before saying, in a husky a voice he can muster, “Your cock. You’re big, filthy cock, that fills me like no one else ever will.” Jongin’s eye cloud over, the cheeky glint quickly disappearing. His hands come up to grip Kyungsoo’s ass, and the shorter man teasingly grinds his hips down into the other. Jongin drops down onto his back and squeezes his eye shut. After the initial ferocity of last night, his body is quickly beginning to realize that he hasn’t been intimate with anyone for years, and anything that the man above him does sets him teetering over the edge. A needy groan rings through the air when Kyungsoo increases his pressure, and Jongin all but growls.
And then he blinks.
He opens his eyes to see Kyungsoo smiling cutely above him.
He just booped Jongin on the nose.
Jongin doesn’t get booped.
And it’s so wrong, Kyungsoo smiling like an angel above him but also being the reason for his now painfully hard erection. The combination makes him extremely confused. In the best way possible.
“I love you.”
He says it before he even knows that it’s coming out, and the playful grin on Kyungsoo’s face slides right off, being replaced by one of confusion. His eyes widen in surprise, but Jongin can’t have that, no he can’t. He’s tired of playing this game where he pretends that Kyungsoo is nothing more than something casual to him, something temporary, and he needs the younger to know that. Needs him to believe it.
“Kyungsoo, I love you. I love you so, so goddamned much, and I swear to God it’s going to kill me, but I’m not going to act like I don’t anymore.” Kyungsoo still isn’t saying anything, mouth hanging slightly ajar, so Jongin continues. “Kyungsoo, Kyungsoo, Kyungsoo… I love everything about you.” He brings his up to caress Kyungsoo’s cheek and trace the outlines of his face. “I love your lips, I love your laugh, I love how motivated you and how passionate you are with what you love to do, I love your smile, and I love how when you smile I feel things that I didn’t even know were possible for someone like myself to feel. I love how your tongue pokes out of the corner of your mouth when you’re concentrated, I love how good you look in jeans, I even love how much you fucking love Baekhyun. I love how you’re kind, and caring, and protective, and I have recently discovered that I love the way your lips feel around my cock.” He smiles, and Kyungsoo leans into his palm. “I love so much about you Kyungsoo, every little thing, and I’m never going to let any of it go.” He pauses, eyes searching Kyungsoo’s for a promise that he needs to hear.
“That is, if you’ll have me.”
Kyungsoo is dead silent, features frozen, before he’s suddenly laughing. A soft one that vibrates through into Jongin’s body. He blinks
“Kyungsoo?”
“Oh Jongin.” He sighs, loving the way Jongin shuts his eyes when his name is spoken so gently “Jongin, look at me.” The taller man peels his eyes open and feels a wide pair locked onto his own.
“I’ll take it all.”
He inhales sharply.
Kyungsoo giggles. “Jongin, you’re an idiot to think that I would ever even be able to watch you walk away. You drive me just as crazy as I drive you, and maybe then some. And if you think that I care about.. the other stuff, then you clearly don’t know me as well as you think you do.” Jongin looks like he’s about to speak up so Kyungsoo lightly pecks him. “You’ve done bad things, I know, and maybe I’m a complete and utter idiot for not calling the cops right now, but you’re not a bad person. That much I know. You’re good when you’re with me, and I have a feeling that you’re better than you think yourself to be.”
Jongin sighs. “Kyungsoo, you don’t get it. I could die a hundred times over, and I still wouldn’t deserve you. I’m bad news, and no matter how much I love you I can’t help but think that I’d be hurting you everyday for the rest of your life.”
“No Jongin, you don’t get it. You don’t think I know that what you’ve done is horrible? Killing people? Betraying them? Hurting them? I know how wrong all of that is, but I also know that for someone in your position, it’s not something that you can just escape so easily. And I know too, that underneath all that there is the real you, there is Jongin. There’s the Jongin that growls at other men when they come to close to me, there’s the Jongin that kisses me softly, there’s the Jongin the Jongin that creates and elaborate fucking web of lies just so he can see me. Jongin there’s so much more to you than you could ever imagine, and I’m willing to spend every day showing you just how wonderful you really can be. I love you Jongin, I really, really do.”
Jongin lets Kyungsoo kiss him then, lets the other cover his body with his own, just lets it all happen because Kyungsoo loves him.
Kyungsoo loves him.
And everything will be alright.
•
“Your… phone.” He manages eventually. Minutes later. Hours later. He has no idea.
Kyungsoo laughs into his neck. “You’re really going to remind me about that right now?”
Jongin shrugs underneath him. “It might… be important.” He offers.
“Yeah right. The most important text I’ll ever get is Baekhyun telling me that he’s finally moving out, not that that’ll ever happen.” He grumbles.
Jongin smiles, because the way Kyungsoo’s eyebrows furrow at the thought of having to deal with Baekhyun forever is nothing short of adorable. “You’re cute.” Jongin whispers, pressing a kiss to Kyungsoo’s temple. “So cute.” Another kiss. “All mine.”
Kyungsoo blushes. “Oh shut up,” He says as he reaches for his phone.
When the screen lights up he sees a message from an unknown number, the preview showing,
Hey Kyungsoo it’s Sehun. Just in case you ever need someone, and there’s a five-digit code beneath it.
“Who is it?” Jongin asks sleepily, carding fingers through Kyungsoo’s slightly damp hair.
“Just Sehun.” He replies, laughing when he feels rather than hears Jongin’s growl. “Down boy,” He teases.
“Why Sehun?” Jongin complains, voice rising in pitch.
Kyungsoo laughs, not believing his ears. “Kim Jongin, are you whining?”
Jongin looks aghast. “Of course not, I’m just wondering why you need to be talking to Oh Sehun when you have me, more than willing, right here underneath you.” At the words more than willing he grabs Kyungsoo hips and presses them flush against his own, making it Kyungsoo’s turn to whine, this time more needily.
“Jongin…” Kyungsoo moans. They’ve already gone another round this morning, he’s not sure his ass could really handle it.
“I think you should respond Kyungsoo.” He says lowly, hips grinding in slow circles up against the smaller.
“Don’t… want… to…” He responds between breaths. It’s hard to formulate clear thoughts when Jongin’s member is moving in bruising circles against his own. He swears that it will never cease to amaze him.
Jongin stops moving, laugh leaving his lips and he kisses Kyungsoo softly.
“Really, Soo, answer it. I’ll still be here, I promise.”
“Fine, fine, whatever you say.” Kyungsoo grabs the phone that lays somewhere on the bed and types out a quick thanks to Sehun (not before Jongin has screened the message and memorized the code). He throws the phone off the bed and stares back at the taller. “There. All done.”
Jongin grins. “Perfect.”
It’s silent, both men smiling at each other and letting their breaths mingle between them.
“Oh,” Kyungsoo starts casually, suddenly remembering something. “Right. I um, met someone at the gala last night, and before you start doing that weird growling thing again, I am by no means interested in them.”
“Good.” Jongin huffs, hold tightening on Kyungsoo’s waist.
“Anyways, they uh, they actually gave me something for you. I’ll go get it, before I forget.” He heaves a huge sigh and pushes off of Jongin, shuffling to wear he has discarded his suit jacket the night before.
Jongin stiffens as soon as the younger’s warmth leaves his body. He was meant to be low profile at the party last night, and if his conversation with the man of the hour himself were to have been an indication of anything, he would have thought that he had done an exemplary job. But someone leaving a note for him, through Kyungsoo who they must have figured was linked to him, raises every warning bell he has in his body.
Kyungsoo seems to find what he’s looking for with a little aha and goes back to Jongin, plopping onto onto the bed on his back beside him. He hands Jongin a small square piece of paper while saying, “They never gave me a name. They just asked me to give this to you. I don’t really get it, but I figured it may just be like a sponsor or something. But,” He says with a chuckle in light of what he’s recently discovered about the other, “I suppose that wouldn’t be correct anymore.”
Jongin unfolds the paper slowly, not sure what lies inside. But when he sees it he stops breathing. His eyes are met with a symbol of black ink, resembling a dragon breathing fire.
He’s seen this symbol far too many times in his life, most memorably tattooed on the back of a traitor’s neck.
Fuck.
Kyungsoo watches him curiously, not understanding why Jongin suddenly seems so stiff.
“What is it, Jongin?”
There’s no response.
Then Jongin is springing off of the bed, moving over to where his clothes lie and rushing to pull on his pants. Kyungsoo watches, bewildered, leaning up onto his elbows and forehead creasing.
“Jongin, what are-”
The taller man stops when he buttons up his pants, torso still bare and golden and glowing. He glares into Kyungsoo’s eyes, with such intensity but none of the tender loving that he wishes were there.
“Kyungsoo. What did this man look like?”
Kyungsoo pauses for a moment, thinking. “Um, grey suit, sharp eyes... kind of like you actually... And um, platinum blonde hair.”
Jongin’s heart drops to the ground and he stops moving.
Stops breathing.
He strides over to Kyungsoo and grabs his arm, pulling him to standing and boring holes down into his eyes.
It’s scaring the younger, whose breath comes out sharply. His eyes widen and he looks up at Jongin for answers.
“Kyungsoo, I need you to get out of here. I need you to leave.”
A deep breath.
“I need you, and probably Baekhyun too, to disappear and lay low for a while. I’ll take care of your things over here. Just, leave the city. Visit Baekhyun’s family, maybe.”
Kyungsoo’s perplexed.
“Um… what? Jongin, don’t be ridiculous.” He pauses, eyes softening as they look at the taller’s pained expression.
He sees a mix of confusion, hurt, terror, and fear all swirled together, and it gives Jongin’s face a dangerous edge. Not on that he’s used to. Not one that he likes.
“Jongin, what does that symbol mean?”
The older sighs, dropping Kyungsoo’s arm and taking a step back.
He seems to wait an eternity before finally replying. “That symbol means trouble Kyungsoo. And the man who gave it to you, his name is Lee Taemin, and he’ll do whatever it takes to knock me down... Unfortunately, I think he’s discovered that that means you.”
Kyungsoo exhales heavily, letting the words sink in. “So I’m… in danger? Baekhyun too?”
Jongin nods grimly. “More than you could ever imagine.” He sighs. “I’ll send Minseok to come and get you two later today, so make sure you both get everything packed. You may be gone for a few weeks.”
Kyungsoo frowns.
“Minseok?” He doesn’t know why Jongin’s agent is randomly being brought into this but- wait, Jongin doesn’t have an agent. The gears click in his head. “Ah. well I guess it makes sense that he’s you know…” He gestures. “-too.”
Jongin smiles. “Yeah. Him too.”
Kyungsoo looks down at the ground, his bare legs heavily contrasting to Jongin’s black-clad ones. “Jongin, what about… what about my film? I can’t just leave it like this.”
Jongin chuckles, humourlessly. “Well, Kyungsoo, I thinks it’s time for you to play the part of the runaway. No more hiding behind cameras.”
The smaller man offers a soft grin at the joke, figuring he should take advantage of Jongin’s antics, because he doesn’t do it very often.
His smile hurts the other though, because he can’t believe he’s losing Kyungsoo so soon after finally getting him. He steps closer to the younger, placing one hand on his hip and the other behind the nape of his neck.
“Kyungsoo, you’ll both be just fine. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
Kyungsoo sees the love in Jongin’s eyes, the honesty and the integrity, and he knows that he means what he says with every fibre of his being.
“I love you Jongin… I love you so, so much, and it’ll kill me but I love you anyways.” He sighs. “Be safe, okay?”
The taller chuckles. “You’re saying that to me?”
Kyungsoo chokes. “Jongin please, just promise me.” He latches himself onto Jongin and wraps his arms around his frame.
Jongin smiles and tucks the other’s head into his chest, pressing his lips to Kyungsoo’s hair and mumbling out, “I promise you, Kyungsoo… I promise.”
“Well this is interesting.”
Jongin immediately whips around and shoves Kyungsoo behind him, protective stance instinctual. He feels a growl bubble up in his throat, but stops when he realizes it’s only Baekhyun. His back frame slowly relaxes and Kyungsoo peeks his head out beside him.
“Hi Baekhyun.”
“Hi Kyungsoo. Jongin.”
“Baekhyun.”
‘Kyungsoo. You’re naked.”
“I am.”
“Jongin kind of is too.”
“He is.”
“Ah.”
“Yep.”
“Well. I’ll leave then.”
“Wait hold on,” Kyungsoo steps out and reaches for his roommate, grabbing his wrist and pulling him back. He lets go and stands beside Jongin, taking his arm.
“Baekhyun, we, um, we have something to tell you.”
“Are you pregnant?” He jokes.
“Baek.”
“Sorry. Continue.”
“Well uh, Jongin is, um, Jongin is… different.”
“I can gather.”
“Hey.”
“Not that like,” Kyungsoo hesitates, collecting his thoughts. “Jongin is part of a… gang. Yeah. Gang.”
Baekhyun smiles. “I know.”
“You do?”
“Kyung, he told me before he told you.”
“What the fuck Jongin.”
“Sorry Soo.”
“Aw. Relationship problems.”
“Shut it, Byun.”
“Aye aye sir. Please don’t hurt me.”
“I make no promises.”
“Scary.”
“Baekhyun.”
“Yes.”
“We have to go.”
“Go?”
“Away.”
“Away?”
“From here.”
“From here?”
“Yeah.”
“Well this is an interesting development.”
Baekhyun eyes Jongin, squinting slightly in distrust. He doesn’t like that Jongin’s put them in this situation, but he supposes he’ll have to have enough faith in the mob leader for Kyungsoo’s sake.
“Okay Kyung, we’ll go.”
“Really?”
“I don’t think we have a choice.”
“You don’t.”
“Fantastic.”
Baekhyun sees the sheltering hand Jongin wraps around Kyungsoo’s waist and sighs. The two lovebirds share a look, and Baekhyun thinks that he can finally tell that this is real for both of them. Honestly, Kyungsoo needs to have a less adventurous taste in men. Take him, for example. He has a crush on his boring old music theory prof, Mr. Wu. Boring.
“How long will we be gone for?” He asks to no one in particular.
“Possibly several weeks,” Jongin says as he turns his attention back to him. “I’ll have to see after I assess the situation. In any case, however, I’d be prepared for an… extended vacation.”
Baekhyun nods in understanding, quickly dismissing himself and using the need to pack as an excuse. But really he just wants to leave because as gay as he is, he hasn’t seen Kyungsoo naked since their early teen years, and it’s not something he wants to start doing now.
As soon as the door shuts silence overcomes the pair. Neither really knows what to say, unsaid words left hanging in the air.
But just as soon Jongin has Kyungsoo backed against the door and lips engaged in a heated kiss. It may be one of their last ones for a long time, so Jongin takes all the time he can now to trace Kyungsoo’s teeth with his tongue and memorize every curve and dip and line of his body with ghosting fingertips.
After a while he pulls back, both breathing hard and locking eyes. They’re both searching for promises that the other isn’t sure they can keep, and they’re both trying to convey everything they can through their eyes and their touch that they couldn’t possibly with their words.
There’s an uncharacteristic fierceness in the smaller’s expression, and an uncharacteristic vulnerability in in the taller’s.
Kyungsoo has everything to keep, and Jongin has everything to lose.
•
A week later has Jongin sitting at his desk miserably flipping through blueprints while Minseok lies on his chaise a few feet away.
They’ll be ready to break into the bank this evening, Jongin just finalizing plans and escape routes and all those fun things. He hopes to be in and out within an hour, a clean, easy job. Punch in the access code for the building’s hidden back entrance, loop the security footage to “empty out” the hallways, let Chanyeol do his thing to crack the vault, then grab the money and escape the way they came. Jongin has chosen a Tuesday evening for this particular operation, a day when the bank is still open but mostly empty as people won’t really begin putting in their paycheques and withdrawing weekend funds until Thursday.
Minseok has already greased up one of the guards named Luhan, slipping him a healthy lump of cash and maybe giving him an extra favour on the side, he had explained with a wink. Jongin didn’t want to know what that meant. The guard is unaware of their plans, obviously, but he’s promised to locate himself on the other side of the building from 10-11 pm, effectively turning a blind eye.
It should go smoothly, and Jongin hopes they’ll run into minimal resistance. The Syndicate has been suspiciously quiet over the past week ever since Kyungsoo’s run-in with them, and although Jongin doesn’t like it Minseok has ensured him that they’ll be the least of his worries. Jongin, however, isn’t so convinced. He knows that the Syndicate’s leader has never been a man to stay quiet for been a man to go for anything short of the kill. But his second-in-command had wanted him to focus solely on the KNB operation, asking him to hand over full rein of Kyungsoo and Baekhyun’s safety. Jongin had complied after a little persuasion, realizing that it was what’s best for himself, for the Family, and for Kyungsoo.
As a result, however, Jongin hasn’t spoken to the shorter since that day in their apartment. They had parted ways with a lingering kiss, just how their kisses always are, foreheads pressed together and harsh whispers of I love you being their final words to each other. Baekhyun and Minseok had fake-gagged together, seeming to bond over their mutual disgust for mushy couples. Jongin used to think he was like that himself, but Kyungsoo, well, Kyungsoo has changed everything.
It’s in the late hours of the evening (and throughout the day) that Jongin thinks the most about Kyungsoo. Where he is, how he’s doing, how his film is going. The smaller male had insisted on taking his camera, saying that the safehouse Minseok was taking them to would be the perfect place to wrap up the shoot and begin editing. Jongin had laughed and said he wouldn’t be able to concentrate much since he would be forced into an enclosed space with Baekhyun, but Kyungsoo had just replied that he liked hearing people’s voices while he worked anyways.
Jongin finds that when he wakes up from whatever sleep he manages to get his fingers seek out Kyungsoo’s warmth, seek to pull the slender body close to his and press his lips into the velvety skin. He finds himself wanting to kiss the younger breathless, to hear him moaning beneath him and become frozen as wave after wave of ecstasy washes over him. Just one night with Kyungsoo and Jongin’s wishes that he had a million more of them.
Kyungsoo is like a drug and Jongin is going through withdrawal.
To say it’s been rough on him would be an understatement, but Jongin is an infamous underground figure, so on the outside it has to look like nothing more than a if a fly were to land in his coffee and ruin his morning. Nothing but a minor annoyance. And Jongin has always been good at pretending.
He flips through the last page of the blueprints and thumbs the edge of it, tracing the pencil marks etched everywhere with his eyes. The plan is detailed, measurements covering the pages and additional notes covering any and all empty spaces. They’ve left no stone unturned, nothing to chance.
He hears a shuffle from the corner of the room and looks up to see Minseok moving into a sitting position. He stretches his arms above his head and twists his neck from side to side, Jongin hearing the popping of joints from his seated position. Minseok lets out a groan and shakes his head, blinking when he finds Jongin’s eyes already trained on his own.
“Jongin,” He starts, trying to decipher the faraway look in the other’s eyes. He’s been like this all week, as much as he denies it, colder and more distant than normal. In a way it’s effective, Jongin focusing solely on his work and being perhaps a bit more ruthless and calculating than he would normally be, but at the same time it’s concerning Minseok. He really didn’t know the extent of Kyungsoo’s effect on the leader until now. And it amazes him.
Before he can say anything Jongin cuts him off. “Minseok, I promised I wouldn’t ask, not until everything is over, but before we go tonight I just need to know that Kyungsoo and Baekhyun are safe. That Taemin has no idea where they are.”
Minseok regards him thoughtfully. A month ago he would have thought it impossible for the murderer in front of him to feel anything more than polite detachment, and he’s sure Jongin shares that sentiment, but now he seems completely different. He can see the genuine concern and care in Jongin’s eyes, can see the small traces of panic and fear that are threatening to overpower him.
He sighs. “They’re fine Jongin, they’re fine.” Is all he says.
Jongin nods, seeming to accept the limited information with grace and trying to clear all the worry and doubt from his mind.
“Alright then,” He says finally.
He looks at his hands which have now come up to rest interlocked on top of the papers scattered around him. He clenches his fists tightly then releases a bit, watching as his knuckles turn white then flood back over in red. He slowly smiles at his hands, a small smile that tells Minseok everything he needs to know. That Jongin will make it through this. That Jongin is focused. That Jongin is ready.
The mob leader looks up and finds the other man in the room still staring openly at him, waiting for his next move. So he says the first thing that comes to mind.
“Let’s go rob a bank.”
Minseok smiles.
“What a great way to spend a Tuesday evening.”
•
It;s cold tonight, Jongin thinks as he tugs the collar of his black turtleneck farther up; a feeble attempt at shielding his neck from the chilling wind.
He looks to his right to see Minseok, eyes focused on a blueprint in front of him. It details the layout of the ground floor of the building, a big red X where the separate elevator to the vault is hidden. On his left is Chanyeol, large frame hunched over a tablet and setting up the program that he’ll use to flip through all of the six million possible codes for the vault in less than fifteen seconds and stop once it finds the correct one. How he programmed it, Jongin has no clue, and when Chanyeol offers to explain he shakes his head knowing that it would give him a headache.
Together they all sit in the back of sleek black van, modelled after the ones used by KNB for monetary transportation, with a stolen license plate to boot. The three men are all clad in black turtlenecks and matching dark slacks that look formal enough to wear into a bank but are flexible enough to leave room for combat. They’ve gone for the look where if they’re seen they won’t seem too conspicuous, but at the same time they’ll have more mobility than the stiff-uniformed guards that may lie scattered throughout.
It’s currently 8:58 pm, just two minutes until the bank officially closes for the night and all personnel save for security are required to leave. At exactly two minutes after nine they’ll unlock the back entrance and make their way down the back corridor to the elevator shaft. From there they’ll slide down (actually using the elevator would cause far too much noise), and enter the hallway whose only purpose is to house the bank’s central safe. Then it’s up to Chanyeol, and Jongin prays to God that he knows what he’s doing.
When the clock ticks forward and almost reaches 9:02, Jongin taps Chanyeol who slides the tablet into a concealed zipped opening in the back of his turtleneck, neck tilting to the side and releasing with a satisfying crack. Minseok sees the motion and follows suit, pulling on a pair of stretchy nylon gloves and glancing at his wristwatch.
Time’s up, and in the most cliched way possible they push open the back door of the van and escape into the night air.
Approaching the door is easy, and entering the code is even easier. Sehun has made sure that it hasn’t changed since he gave it to Kyungsoo so that the shorter could enter whenever he needed to, a prospect which had originally made Jongin’s blood freeze but now makes him thankful. The lock releases with a slight click and Jongin pulls it open, stepping inside to the darkness of the bank.
When all three men have entered, they survey the empty corridor and find it to be empty. Jongin hears Minseok mumble something about Luhan keeping his promise and he immediately hushes him. They’re breaths already sound far too loud in the darkness, and he really doesn’t need Minseok to add to that.
He motions for the two behind him to follow, slowly creeping down the corridor. His hand rests on the Gloc 9 tucked into the waistband of his pants, fingers closed around the edge of the handle. The hallway is empty, very empty, and it almost makes it worse for Jongin because he can hear the blood rushing in his ears and the soft clack of his shoes on the floor.
Minseok lets out soft grunts of left and right and forward, quietly directing the trio through the black. It’s almost ridiculous how dark it is in the bank at night, and Jongin can’t help but wonder how the night guards can even find their way around.
Eventually they reach an elevator, unmarked and with only one arrow pointing down. He nods at Chanyeol and they both grab one door, pulling them apart soundlessly and smoothly.
Once the elevator is open Jongin slips inside, moving to the side and grasping the framework of the shaft. He waits until Minseok and Chanyeol have both entered before slowly climbing down, setting a calm pace so as not to increase his rate of breathing too much. He sets down his right foot, then his right arm, following suit with his left side. It’s a slow process, because with the lack of lighting he has only his touch to guide him. Everytime he descends further it’s a guessing game of where the next metal support bar will be, and he gives what direction he can to the two climbing down after him.
He eventually reaches the bottom of the shaft and clings to the ladder of metal beams as he remains on standby for Chanyeol to help him open the door again. The opening slides apart easily, and before he knows it they’re met with the sight of a comically large steel door with a small keypad in the centre at the end of a twenty foot hallway. It reminds him of the one from X-men, the one covered in reflective steel that leads to Cerebro.
There’s no one standing guard, no camera in sight and no guns pointed threateningly at them. It’s a straight pass through the corridor and Jongin can’t help but feel a little relieved that there aren’t any major foreseeable hiccups.
But it almost seems too easy, an empty corridor and a clear visual of the target.
He lets out an exhale that might in another situation resemble a chuckle, and no sooner does it leave his lips then a matrix of green lasers crisscrosses the path in front of him. He freezes, and behind him he hears Chanyeol mutter unbelievingly, “You have got to be kidding me.”
Jongin can’t help but agree.
It’s laughable the way this is turning into a bad episode of an espionage television show. Laser defenses activated by the slightest of breaths, green lights showering their faces in a grimy glow. He can hear the barely there hum of the sensors, and he thinks he’s stupid for not having noticed them before.
“Well,” He hears from behind him. “There’s no way I’m making it through that.” Chanyeol looks firmly at the matrix in front of them and nods in affirmation. “Yep, definitely not happening.”
Jongin frowns. “Chanyeol, you know I need you to run that program.”
“Yes, and I knew that something or other was going to come along like this and be an ass, so I have conveniently coded this program to be activated by the push of a button! Just like a James Bond movie.” He explains as he pulls out the tablet.
“You sly motherfucker,” Jongin breathes. It’s just like Chanyeol to do as much work as he needs to beforehand to do as little as humanly possible when push comes to shove.
“Now, now,” Chanyeol titters, “They probably have swearing sensors or some shits like the stick-ridden assholes they are.”
“That is a horrifying visual.”
“It was intended.”
He coughs (quietly). “Anyways, I suppose you’re off the hook then, Chanyeol. Stay here and stand guard.” And please, if the elevator starts coming down, get out of its way. I don’t need to worry about carrying around an illegal sum of cash and dead bits of technician in the back of my very scary pedo van.”
“Will do, sir.” Chanyeol nods.
“Alright then. Minseok, let’s roll out.”
“Roll out? What are we, the motherfucking Transformers?”
“Minseok honestly. Not the time.”
“Fine, fine… let’s go.”
Jongin blinks at him in response before turning his attention back to the hallway. He knows that he and Minseok are both flexible enough to make it through, but it’s still not something he had come here planning to do. Thank God for the stretchy pants.
His eyes are calculating, darting back and forth as he figures out the most time- and effort-efficient path. Once he’s found it he saves it to memory and nods at Minseok to follow closely behind him. He steps out of the elevator shaft, heartbeat accelerating slightly as he places a foot gingerly on the tiled floor. When no alarms come blaring from hidden speakers he takes it a as a sign to continue, bring his other foot down to join the first.
From there it’s a tango of person and light beam, weaving their way through the series of lasers. Bending, tucking, stretching impossibly over slightly raised areas. Jongin feels a small bead of sweat forming at the base of his spine and wills it away without a second thought. He lifts his leg up to his chest before setting it down on the other side of a beam, while simultaneously ducking his head to avoid another one above him. He hears Minseok moving cautiously behind him, trained motions almost completely silent.
Roughly fifty seconds later Jongin is nearing the vault door, but between it and him stands a ladder-like pattern of lasers crossing from wall to wall horizontally, each spaced a foot apart. It’ll be a tight squeeze, and when he turns his head back to inform Minseok he sees the other already nodding in understanding. Jongin estimates that if he turns himself fully sideways there’s a 95 percent chance he’ll fit through, and he’s suddenly glad that he skipped eating that afternoon in favour of talking to Yixing.
He takes a deep breath and sucks his stomach in as far as it will go, before sticking a foot through a gap approximately 3 feet off the ground. He slides his body slowly through it, pulse quickening as he reaches the thickest part of his torso. He tucks his head into his chest and inhales the fabric there as he squeezes through scantily. But before he knows it it’s over and he’s pulling his other leg through the hole to join his body. He looks up to Minseok and nods, signalling with his hand to the other to suck in his stomach.
Minseok just waves him ahead with a dismissive hand, and Jongin faces the vault door once again. He pulls out the tablet and unlocks it, the device already open to the program he needs. And just as Chanyeol had promised, the only thing on the screen is a big red digital button in the centre that reads PRESS ME. Jongin almost laughs at the novelty of it, but he quickly remembers where he is and taps the screen once.
All of a sudden numbers upon numbers upon numbers scroll up the page at an astounding speed, working the algorithm that Chanyeol had so painstakingly coded. He senses Minseok approach him from behind as he watches the screen carefully, secretly relieved that the other made it through alright.
No more than a minute and half has passed before the movement on the screen stops, a blaring 18657 in the middle of the image. Jongin glances up at the keypad and sees that yes, it does have 5 digits to be entered. Minseok touches his elbow in a comforting gesture before Jongin is typing in the passcode and the locking mechanism releases with a swoosh. The vault door open inwards ever-so-slightly, and Jongin is wary for more surprises as he tentatively pushes it all the way open.
He’s met with the sight of a large white room, not unlike one you might see in an overdramatized insane asylum. The pristine emptiness stretches back in a square for about eight-feet, leaving just enough room for there to be stacks upon stacks of bills towered high.
But what he does not see is money.
What he sees instead, is everything he never wished would.
He gasps, almost soundlessly.
Minseok stiffens behind him.
In front of him is Kyungsoo, slumped in a chair, baren chest crisscrossed with ugly knife marks that ooze red into a puddle on the floor, purple eyelids swollen shut and hands and feet bound.
Behind him stands Taemin, wicked grin set into devilish features.
Jongin pulls his gun.
•
VI
Sunlight streams in through the gaps in the curtains.
A pair of eyes blink open, squinting as they adjust to the morning light.
The room is otherwise dark, the light only reaching the edge of the bed. Two sets of breaths fill the room, and Kyungsoo focuses on the way Jongin’s inhales and exhales sound less laboured than they ever have.
He peeks over at the taller man beside him who is still deep in sleep. He looks much younger, much less severe in the warm glow emanating from the window. His features look lighter, and Kyungsoo thinks he looks almost angelic this way.
Jongin, however, is nowhere near angelic.
He sighs and turns into his side to face Jongin, careful not disturb their hands which still link between them.
He thinks back to what the other had said to him the night before. About being part of an underground gang. And he just honestly doesn't get it.
Sure Jongin is constantly shrouded by an aura of mystery, danger, and adventure, but he can't believe that the man who secretly smiles at him like he's the world's greatest gift when no one is looking could be anywhere near a murderer. It doesn't make sense to him that Jongin, Jongin who had splashed him with water in his kitchen, Jongin who had worn his oversized sweater, Jongin who had loved him so, so carefully, could ever cause anyone harm.
But then again, maybe he can see it.
See it in the way that he stares at Kyungsoo so intensely, like he's Jongin’s property, or in the way the he always moves purposefully, every move and every action painstakingly calculated and executed.
Kyungsoo that maybe, just maybe, he can understand how it would be true, how Jongin could be a killer, a thief, a liar, but he could never understand how Jongin could be a bad person. Could be evil.
He likes to think of himself as good judge of character, and he's learned by now that a man's true self is not always revealed through his actions, but that sometimes, those very actions are the things to disguise his true nature.
And he fairly sure, that this is the case with Jongin.
A person couldn't look at Kyungsoo with the raw emotion in their eyes like Jongin did last night and still be a bad person. It's just not possible. It can't be. And Kyungsoo is sure of this with every bone in his body.
He's pulled out of his thoughts when Jongin's eyelids begin to flutter, an indication that the taller is about to wake.
Kyungsoo crawls closer to him, and Jongin pulls his body flush against his own, seeking out the warmth of another in the chillier hours of the morning subconsciously. The taller man pulls Kyungsoo across his chest in his half asleep state, slinging a leg protectively over Kyungsoo's torso, effectively trapping him in. The younger secretly loves Jongin like this, all needy and clingy.
He lifts his head off the strong chest to look up at a cut jawline and a five o’clock shadow that was left unshaven from the previous day. It makes him want to press kisses along the older’s neck, to make him breathless as he wakes up.
Kyungsoo scoots up ever so slightly and tenderly presses still-swollen lips to Jongin’s jaw, sucking a small spot to leave a mark. He gives little kittenish licks up the side of Jongin's face, stopping at his ear and taking the lobe between his teeth. He nibbles lightly and feels the shudder that works its way through Jongin's body. A warm pair of hands, big and calloused, wrap themselves around his slim waist, and Jongin slots his body over top of his own.
“Good morning,” He croaks out, eyes still closed and morning voice scratchy, making Kyungsoo’s member twitch in response.
“Good morning,” He mumbles back happily, taking the rare moment of Jongin's vulnerability to capture his lips in a lingering kiss. It's the kind of kiss that's meant for someone you love, and as Kyungsoo's breaks it off with a pop he smiles into Jongin's mouth.
The taller’s eyes finally crack open, lids slightly swollen and really just intensifying the puppyish look. Kyungsoo coos softly, had reaching up to brush Jongin's hair off his forehead. Jongin catches his hand and suddenly flips them over, not as incoherent as Kyungsoo had originally believed him to be.
His eyes widen, staring openly at Jongin and watching the way his pupils dilate as he rakes his eyes down Kyungsoo's body. He stops when he reaches the younger's chest, marvelling at the scarlet bruises and bite marks that mar the milky expanse of skin. It leaves him a little breathless to know that he caused this, that he so completely ruined the man beneath him. He attaches his lips the first bruise, warm breath tickling the tender skin and pressing a soft kiss there. There gentleness of Jongin's touch make Kyungsoo shudder, hands coming up to rest low on the taller's back. Jongin kisses every single mark, every bruise, taking his time to love Kyungsoo properly.
The smaller man slowly becomes more and more crazy, the feeling of lips against his collarbones just not enough. His hands slip lower and lower until his fingertips lightly grip Jongin's ass, trying to pull him closerclosercloser. It brings a vicious growl out of the others throat, his lips stopping their progress.
“Kyungsoo,” He groans. “Please, please don't do that.”
His chest heaves, breathing speeding up. He looks the smaller man straight in the eye before he whispers out in a strangled breath, “It makes me want to do very, very bad things to you.” He pushes Kyungsoo’s bangs off his forehead and chuckles lightly, the sound making his chest tighten. “Things... that I shouldn't be allowed to do so early in the morning.”
Kyungsoo feels his piercing gaze and stares back challengingly.
“Try me.”
That's all it takes for Jongin to attack his lips, turning them over to place Kyungsoo on his lap as he sits up. The smaller man winds up straddling him, legs encircling his waist. Kyungsoo moans at the pressure of Jongin’s quickly hardening cock against his own, pressing his body closer and a helpless whine escaping his throat.
He wants more, moremoremoremoremore, but before he can do anything his phone dings.
Ugh.
He wasn't even aware that he had brought it into the room, but he can hear it from the corner and he groans in annoyance before plucking himself off Jongin's lap and retrieving the device. As he hobbles over towards the source of the noise he stumbles, pained moan escaping his lips. There’s an achine deep in his spine, his ass hurting a just a little bit a lot. He grabs the device and turns around to find Jongin resting on his elbows, smugly grinning at the younger.
“Doing alright, Kyungsoo?” He asks, eyebrow raised teasingly. Kyungsoo throws his phone at him.
“Fuck off Jongin.” He grumbles. “It’s your fault you attacked me with that…” He gestures his hand vaguely. “That thing.”
“Oh?” Jongin quips, leaning back into his shoulders. “I’m sure I don’t know what you mean.”
Kyungsoo just shakes his head with a smile before approaching the bed and crawling over top of Jongin, stopping just short of his face and boxing in his shoulders with his elbows. He looks the taller man straight in the eye before saying, in a husky a voice he can muster, “Your cock. You’re big, filthy cock, that fills me like no one else ever will.” Jongin’s eye cloud over, the cheeky glint quickly disappearing. His hands come up to grip Kyungsoo’s ass, and the shorter man teasingly grinds his hips down into the other. Jongin drops down onto his back and squeezes his eye shut. After the initial ferocity of last night, his body is quickly beginning to realize that he hasn’t been intimate with anyone for years, and anything that the man above him does sets him teetering over the edge. A needy groan rings through the air when Kyungsoo increases his pressure, and Jongin all but growls.
And then he blinks.
He opens his eyes to see Kyungsoo smiling cutely above him.
He just booped Jongin on the nose.
Jongin doesn’t get booped.
And it’s so wrong, Kyungsoo smiling like an angel above him but also being the reason for his now painfully hard erection. The combination makes him extremely confused. In the best way possible.
“I love you.”
He says it before he even knows that it’s coming out, and the playful grin on Kyungsoo’s face slides right off, being replaced by one of confusion. His eyes widen in surprise, but Jongin can’t have that, no he can’t. He’s tired of playing this game where he pretends that Kyungsoo is nothing more than something casual to him, something temporary, and he needs the younger to know that. Needs him to believe it.
“Kyungsoo, I love you. I love you so, so goddamned much, and I swear to God it’s going to kill me, but I’m not going to act like I don’t anymore.” Kyungsoo still isn’t saying anything, mouth hanging slightly ajar, so Jongin continues. “Kyungsoo, Kyungsoo, Kyungsoo… I love everything about you.” He brings his up to caress Kyungsoo’s cheek and trace the outlines of his face. “I love your lips, I love your laugh, I love how motivated you and how passionate you are with what you love to do, I love your smile, and I love how when you smile I feel things that I didn’t even know were possible for someone like myself to feel. I love how your tongue pokes out of the corner of your mouth when you’re concentrated, I love how good you look in jeans, I even love how much you fucking love Baekhyun. I love how you’re kind, and caring, and protective, and I have recently discovered that I love the way your lips feel around my cock.” He smiles, and Kyungsoo leans into his palm. “I love so much about you Kyungsoo, every little thing, and I’m never going to let any of it go.” He pauses, eyes searching Kyungsoo’s for a promise that he needs to hear.
“That is, if you’ll have me.”
Kyungsoo is dead silent, features frozen, before he’s suddenly laughing. A soft one that vibrates through into Jongin’s body. He blinks
“Kyungsoo?”
“Oh Jongin.” He sighs, loving the way Jongin shuts his eyes when his name is spoken so gently “Jongin, look at me.” The taller man peels his eyes open and feels a wide pair locked onto his own.
“I’ll take it all.”
He inhales sharply.
Kyungsoo giggles. “Jongin, you’re an idiot to think that I would ever even be able to watch you walk away. You drive me just as crazy as I drive you, and maybe then some. And if you think that I care about.. the other stuff, then you clearly don’t know me as well as you think you do.” Jongin looks like he’s about to speak up so Kyungsoo lightly pecks him. “You’ve done bad things, I know, and maybe I’m a complete and utter idiot for not calling the cops right now, but you’re not a bad person. That much I know. You’re good when you’re with me, and I have a feeling that you’re better than you think yourself to be.”
Jongin sighs. “Kyungsoo, you don’t get it. I could die a hundred times over, and I still wouldn’t deserve you. I’m bad news, and no matter how much I love you I can’t help but think that I’d be hurting you everyday for the rest of your life.”
“No Jongin, you don’t get it. You don’t think I know that what you’ve done is horrible? Killing people? Betraying them? Hurting them? I know how wrong all of that is, but I also know that for someone in your position, it’s not something that you can just escape so easily. And I know too, that underneath all that there is the real you, there is Jongin. There’s the Jongin that growls at other men when they come to close to me, there’s the Jongin that kisses me softly, there’s the Jongin the Jongin that creates and elaborate fucking web of lies just so he can see me. Jongin there’s so much more to you than you could ever imagine, and I’m willing to spend every day showing you just how wonderful you really can be. I love you Jongin, I really, really do.”
Jongin lets Kyungsoo kiss him then, lets the other cover his body with his own, just lets it all happen because Kyungsoo loves him.
Kyungsoo loves him.
And everything will be alright.
•
“Your… phone.” He manages eventually. Minutes later. Hours later. He has no idea.
Kyungsoo laughs into his neck. “You’re really going to remind me about that right now?”
Jongin shrugs underneath him. “It might… be important.” He offers.
“Yeah right. The most important text I’ll ever get is Baekhyun telling me that he’s finally moving out, not that that’ll ever happen.” He grumbles.
Jongin smiles, because the way Kyungsoo’s eyebrows furrow at the thought of having to deal with Baekhyun forever is nothing short of adorable. “You’re cute.” Jongin whispers, pressing a kiss to Kyungsoo’s temple. “So cute.” Another kiss. “All mine.”
Kyungsoo blushes. “Oh shut up,” He says as he reaches for his phone.
When the screen lights up he sees a message from an unknown number, the preview showing,
Hey Kyungsoo it’s Sehun. Just in case you ever need someone, and there’s a five-digit code beneath it.
“Who is it?” Jongin asks sleepily, carding fingers through Kyungsoo’s slightly damp hair.
“Just Sehun.” He replies, laughing when he feels rather than hears Jongin’s growl. “Down boy,” He teases.
“Why Sehun?” Jongin complains, voice rising in pitch.
Kyungsoo laughs, not believing his ears. “Kim Jongin, are you whining?”
Jongin looks aghast. “Of course not, I’m just wondering why you need to be talking to Oh Sehun when you have me, more than willing, right here underneath you.” At the words more than willing he grabs Kyungsoo hips and presses them flush against his own, making it Kyungsoo’s turn to whine, this time more needily.
“Jongin…” Kyungsoo moans. They’ve already gone another round this morning, he’s not sure his ass could really handle it.
“I think you should respond Kyungsoo.” He says lowly, hips grinding in slow circles up against the smaller.
“Don’t… want… to…” He responds between breaths. It’s hard to formulate clear thoughts when Jongin’s member is moving in bruising circles against his own. He swears that it will never cease to amaze him.
Jongin stops moving, laugh leaving his lips and he kisses Kyungsoo softly.
“Really, Soo, answer it. I’ll still be here, I promise.”
“Fine, fine, whatever you say.” Kyungsoo grabs the phone that lays somewhere on the bed and types out a quick thanks to Sehun (not before Jongin has screened the message and memorized the code). He throws the phone off the bed and stares back at the taller. “There. All done.”
Jongin grins. “Perfect.”
It’s silent, both men smiling at each other and letting their breaths mingle between them.
“Oh,” Kyungsoo starts casually, suddenly remembering something. “Right. I um, met someone at the gala last night, and before you start doing that weird growling thing again, I am by no means interested in them.”
“Good.” Jongin huffs, hold tightening on Kyungsoo’s waist.
“Anyways, they uh, they actually gave me something for you. I’ll go get it, before I forget.” He heaves a huge sigh and pushes off of Jongin, shuffling to wear he has discarded his suit jacket the night before.
Jongin stiffens as soon as the younger’s warmth leaves his body. He was meant to be low profile at the party last night, and if his conversation with the man of the hour himself were to have been an indication of anything, he would have thought that he had done an exemplary job. But someone leaving a note for him, through Kyungsoo who they must have figured was linked to him, raises every warning bell he has in his body.
Kyungsoo seems to find what he’s looking for with a little aha and goes back to Jongin, plopping onto onto the bed on his back beside him. He hands Jongin a small square piece of paper while saying, “They never gave me a name. They just asked me to give this to you. I don’t really get it, but I figured it may just be like a sponsor or something. But,” He says with a chuckle in light of what he’s recently discovered about the other, “I suppose that wouldn’t be correct anymore.”
Jongin unfolds the paper slowly, not sure what lies inside. But when he sees it he stops breathing. His eyes are met with a symbol of black ink, resembling a dragon breathing fire.
He’s seen this symbol far too many times in his life, most memorably tattooed on the back of a traitor’s neck.
Fuck.
Kyungsoo watches him curiously, not understanding why Jongin suddenly seems so stiff.
“What is it, Jongin?”
There’s no response.
Then Jongin is springing off of the bed, moving over to where his clothes lie and rushing to pull on his pants. Kyungsoo watches, bewildered, leaning up onto his elbows and forehead creasing.
“Jongin, what are-”
The taller man stops when he buttons up his pants, torso still bare and golden and glowing. He glares into Kyungsoo’s eyes, with such intensity but none of the tender loving that he wishes were there.
“Kyungsoo. What did this man look like?”
Kyungsoo pauses for a moment, thinking. “Um, grey suit, sharp eyes... kind of like you actually... And um, platinum blonde hair.”
Jongin’s heart drops to the ground and he stops moving.
Stops breathing.
He strides over to Kyungsoo and grabs his arm, pulling him to standing and boring holes down into his eyes.
It’s scaring the younger, whose breath comes out sharply. His eyes widen and he looks up at Jongin for answers.
“Kyungsoo, I need you to get out of here. I need you to leave.”
A deep breath.
“I need you, and probably Baekhyun too, to disappear and lay low for a while. I’ll take care of your things over here. Just, leave the city. Visit Baekhyun’s family, maybe.”
Kyungsoo’s perplexed.
“Um… what? Jongin, don’t be ridiculous.” He pauses, eyes softening as they look at the taller’s pained expression.
He sees a mix of confusion, hurt, terror, and fear all swirled together, and it gives Jongin’s face a dangerous edge. Not on that he’s used to. Not one that he likes.
“Jongin, what does that symbol mean?”
The older sighs, dropping Kyungsoo’s arm and taking a step back.
He seems to wait an eternity before finally replying. “That symbol means trouble Kyungsoo. And the man who gave it to you, his name is Lee Taemin, and he’ll do whatever it takes to knock me down... Unfortunately, I think he’s discovered that that means you.”
Kyungsoo exhales heavily, letting the words sink in. “So I’m… in danger? Baekhyun too?”
Jongin nods grimly. “More than you could ever imagine.” He sighs. “I’ll send Minseok to come and get you two later today, so make sure you both get everything packed. You may be gone for a few weeks.”
Kyungsoo frowns.
“Minseok?” He doesn’t know why Jongin’s agent is randomly being brought into this but- wait, Jongin doesn’t have an agent. The gears click in his head. “Ah. well I guess it makes sense that he’s you know…” He gestures. “-too.”
Jongin smiles. “Yeah. Him too.”
Kyungsoo looks down at the ground, his bare legs heavily contrasting to Jongin’s black-clad ones. “Jongin, what about… what about my film? I can’t just leave it like this.”
Jongin chuckles, humourlessly. “Well, Kyungsoo, I thinks it’s time for you to play the part of the runaway. No more hiding behind cameras.”
The smaller man offers a soft grin at the joke, figuring he should take advantage of Jongin’s antics, because he doesn’t do it very often.
His smile hurts the other though, because he can’t believe he’s losing Kyungsoo so soon after finally getting him. He steps closer to the younger, placing one hand on his hip and the other behind the nape of his neck.
“Kyungsoo, you’ll both be just fine. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
Kyungsoo sees the love in Jongin’s eyes, the honesty and the integrity, and he knows that he means what he says with every fibre of his being.
“I love you Jongin… I love you so, so much, and it’ll kill me but I love you anyways.” He sighs. “Be safe, okay?”
The taller chuckles. “You’re saying that to me?”
Kyungsoo chokes. “Jongin please, just promise me.” He latches himself onto Jongin and wraps his arms around his frame.
Jongin smiles and tucks the other’s head into his chest, pressing his lips to Kyungsoo’s hair and mumbling out, “I promise you, Kyungsoo… I promise.”
“Well this is interesting.”
Jongin immediately whips around and shoves Kyungsoo behind him, protective stance instinctual. He feels a growl bubble up in his throat, but stops when he realizes it’s only Baekhyun. His back frame slowly relaxes and Kyungsoo peeks his head out beside him.
“Hi Baekhyun.”
“Hi Kyungsoo. Jongin.”
“Baekhyun.”
‘Kyungsoo. You’re naked.”
“I am.”
“Jongin kind of is too.”
“He is.”
“Ah.”
“Yep.”
“Well. I’ll leave then.”
“Wait hold on,” Kyungsoo steps out and reaches for his roommate, grabbing his wrist and pulling him back. He lets go and stands beside Jongin, taking his arm.
“Baekhyun, we, um, we have something to tell you.”
“Are you pregnant?” He jokes.
“Baek.”
“Sorry. Continue.”
“Well uh, Jongin is, um, Jongin is… different.”
“I can gather.”
“Hey.”
“Not that like,” Kyungsoo hesitates, collecting his thoughts. “Jongin is part of a… gang. Yeah. Gang.”
Baekhyun smiles. “I know.”
“You do?”
“Kyung, he told me before he told you.”
“What the fuck Jongin.”
“Sorry Soo.”
“Aw. Relationship problems.”
“Shut it, Byun.”
“Aye aye sir. Please don’t hurt me.”
“I make no promises.”
“Scary.”
“Baekhyun.”
“Yes.”
“We have to go.”
“Go?”
“Away.”
“Away?”
“From here.”
“From here?”
“Yeah.”
“Well this is an interesting development.”
Baekhyun eyes Jongin, squinting slightly in distrust. He doesn’t like that Jongin’s put them in this situation, but he supposes he’ll have to have enough faith in the mob leader for Kyungsoo’s sake.
“Okay Kyung, we’ll go.”
“Really?”
“I don’t think we have a choice.”
“You don’t.”
“Fantastic.”
Baekhyun sees the sheltering hand Jongin wraps around Kyungsoo’s waist and sighs. The two lovebirds share a look, and Baekhyun thinks that he can finally tell that this is real for both of them. Honestly, Kyungsoo needs to have a less adventurous taste in men. Take him, for example. He has a crush on his boring old music theory prof, Mr. Wu. Boring.
“How long will we be gone for?” He asks to no one in particular.
“Possibly several weeks,” Jongin says as he turns his attention back to him. “I’ll have to see after I assess the situation. In any case, however, I’d be prepared for an… extended vacation.”
Baekhyun nods in understanding, quickly dismissing himself and using the need to pack as an excuse. But really he just wants to leave because as gay as he is, he hasn’t seen Kyungsoo naked since their early teen years, and it’s not something he wants to start doing now.
As soon as the door shuts silence overcomes the pair. Neither really knows what to say, unsaid words left hanging in the air.
But just as soon Jongin has Kyungsoo backed against the door and lips engaged in a heated kiss. It may be one of their last ones for a long time, so Jongin takes all the time he can now to trace Kyungsoo’s teeth with his tongue and memorize every curve and dip and line of his body with ghosting fingertips.
After a while he pulls back, both breathing hard and locking eyes. They’re both searching for promises that the other isn’t sure they can keep, and they’re both trying to convey everything they can through their eyes and their touch that they couldn’t possibly with their words.
There’s an uncharacteristic fierceness in the smaller’s expression, and an uncharacteristic vulnerability in in the taller’s.
Kyungsoo has everything to keep, and Jongin has everything to lose.
•
A week later has Jongin sitting at his desk miserably flipping through blueprints while Minseok lies on his chaise a few feet away.
They’ll be ready to break into the bank this evening, Jongin just finalizing plans and escape routes and all those fun things. He hopes to be in and out within an hour, a clean, easy job. Punch in the access code for the building’s hidden back entrance, loop the security footage to “empty out” the hallways, let Chanyeol do his thing to crack the vault, then grab the money and escape the way they came. Jongin has chosen a Tuesday evening for this particular operation, a day when the bank is still open but mostly empty as people won’t really begin putting in their paycheques and withdrawing weekend funds until Thursday.
Minseok has already greased up one of the guards named Luhan, slipping him a healthy lump of cash and maybe giving him an extra favour on the side, he had explained with a wink. Jongin didn’t want to know what that meant. The guard is unaware of their plans, obviously, but he’s promised to locate himself on the other side of the building from 10-11 pm, effectively turning a blind eye.
It should go smoothly, and Jongin hopes they’ll run into minimal resistance. The Syndicate has been suspiciously quiet over the past week ever since Kyungsoo’s run-in with them, and although Jongin doesn’t like it Minseok has ensured him that they’ll be the least of his worries. Jongin, however, isn’t so convinced. He knows that the Syndicate’s leader has never been a man to stay quiet for been a man to go for anything short of the kill. But his second-in-command had wanted him to focus solely on the KNB operation, asking him to hand over full rein of Kyungsoo and Baekhyun’s safety. Jongin had complied after a little persuasion, realizing that it was what’s best for himself, for the Family, and for Kyungsoo.
As a result, however, Jongin hasn’t spoken to the shorter since that day in their apartment. They had parted ways with a lingering kiss, just how their kisses always are, foreheads pressed together and harsh whispers of I love you being their final words to each other. Baekhyun and Minseok had fake-gagged together, seeming to bond over their mutual disgust for mushy couples. Jongin used to think he was like that himself, but Kyungsoo, well, Kyungsoo has changed everything.
It’s in the late hours of the evening (and throughout the day) that Jongin thinks the most about Kyungsoo. Where he is, how he’s doing, how his film is going. The smaller male had insisted on taking his camera, saying that the safehouse Minseok was taking them to would be the perfect place to wrap up the shoot and begin editing. Jongin had laughed and said he wouldn’t be able to concentrate much since he would be forced into an enclosed space with Baekhyun, but Kyungsoo had just replied that he liked hearing people’s voices while he worked anyways.
Jongin finds that when he wakes up from whatever sleep he manages to get his fingers seek out Kyungsoo’s warmth, seek to pull the slender body close to his and press his lips into the velvety skin. He finds himself wanting to kiss the younger breathless, to hear him moaning beneath him and become frozen as wave after wave of ecstasy washes over him. Just one night with Kyungsoo and Jongin’s wishes that he had a million more of them.
Kyungsoo is like a drug and Jongin is going through withdrawal.
To say it’s been rough on him would be an understatement, but Jongin is an infamous underground figure, so on the outside it has to look like nothing more than a if a fly were to land in his coffee and ruin his morning. Nothing but a minor annoyance. And Jongin has always been good at pretending.
He flips through the last page of the blueprints and thumbs the edge of it, tracing the pencil marks etched everywhere with his eyes. The plan is detailed, measurements covering the pages and additional notes covering any and all empty spaces. They’ve left no stone unturned, nothing to chance.
He hears a shuffle from the corner of the room and looks up to see Minseok moving into a sitting position. He stretches his arms above his head and twists his neck from side to side, Jongin hearing the popping of joints from his seated position. Minseok lets out a groan and shakes his head, blinking when he finds Jongin’s eyes already trained on his own.
“Jongin,” He starts, trying to decipher the faraway look in the other’s eyes. He’s been like this all week, as much as he denies it, colder and more distant than normal. In a way it’s effective, Jongin focusing solely on his work and being perhaps a bit more ruthless and calculating than he would normally be, but at the same time it’s concerning Minseok. He really didn’t know the extent of Kyungsoo’s effect on the leader until now. And it amazes him.
Before he can say anything Jongin cuts him off. “Minseok, I promised I wouldn’t ask, not until everything is over, but before we go tonight I just need to know that Kyungsoo and Baekhyun are safe. That Taemin has no idea where they are.”
Minseok regards him thoughtfully. A month ago he would have thought it impossible for the murderer in front of him to feel anything more than polite detachment, and he’s sure Jongin shares that sentiment, but now he seems completely different. He can see the genuine concern and care in Jongin’s eyes, can see the small traces of panic and fear that are threatening to overpower him.
He sighs. “They’re fine Jongin, they’re fine.” Is all he says.
Jongin nods, seeming to accept the limited information with grace and trying to clear all the worry and doubt from his mind.
“Alright then,” He says finally.
He looks at his hands which have now come up to rest interlocked on top of the papers scattered around him. He clenches his fists tightly then releases a bit, watching as his knuckles turn white then flood back over in red. He slowly smiles at his hands, a small smile that tells Minseok everything he needs to know. That Jongin will make it through this. That Jongin is focused. That Jongin is ready.
The mob leader looks up and finds the other man in the room still staring openly at him, waiting for his next move. So he says the first thing that comes to mind.
“Let’s go rob a bank.”
Minseok smiles.
“What a great way to spend a Tuesday evening.”
•
It;s cold tonight, Jongin thinks as he tugs the collar of his black turtleneck farther up; a feeble attempt at shielding his neck from the chilling wind.
He looks to his right to see Minseok, eyes focused on a blueprint in front of him. It details the layout of the ground floor of the building, a big red X where the separate elevator to the vault is hidden. On his left is Chanyeol, large frame hunched over a tablet and setting up the program that he’ll use to flip through all of the six million possible codes for the vault in less than fifteen seconds and stop once it finds the correct one. How he programmed it, Jongin has no clue, and when Chanyeol offers to explain he shakes his head knowing that it would give him a headache.
Together they all sit in the back of sleek black van, modelled after the ones used by KNB for monetary transportation, with a stolen license plate to boot. The three men are all clad in black turtlenecks and matching dark slacks that look formal enough to wear into a bank but are flexible enough to leave room for combat. They’ve gone for the look where if they’re seen they won’t seem too conspicuous, but at the same time they’ll have more mobility than the stiff-uniformed guards that may lie scattered throughout.
It’s currently 8:58 pm, just two minutes until the bank officially closes for the night and all personnel save for security are required to leave. At exactly two minutes after nine they’ll unlock the back entrance and make their way down the back corridor to the elevator shaft. From there they’ll slide down (actually using the elevator would cause far too much noise), and enter the hallway whose only purpose is to house the bank’s central safe. Then it’s up to Chanyeol, and Jongin prays to God that he knows what he’s doing.
When the clock ticks forward and almost reaches 9:02, Jongin taps Chanyeol who slides the tablet into a concealed zipped opening in the back of his turtleneck, neck tilting to the side and releasing with a satisfying crack. Minseok sees the motion and follows suit, pulling on a pair of stretchy nylon gloves and glancing at his wristwatch.
Time’s up, and in the most cliched way possible they push open the back door of the van and escape into the night air.
Approaching the door is easy, and entering the code is even easier. Sehun has made sure that it hasn’t changed since he gave it to Kyungsoo so that the shorter could enter whenever he needed to, a prospect which had originally made Jongin’s blood freeze but now makes him thankful. The lock releases with a slight click and Jongin pulls it open, stepping inside to the darkness of the bank.
When all three men have entered, they survey the empty corridor and find it to be empty. Jongin hears Minseok mumble something about Luhan keeping his promise and he immediately hushes him. They’re breaths already sound far too loud in the darkness, and he really doesn’t need Minseok to add to that.
He motions for the two behind him to follow, slowly creeping down the corridor. His hand rests on the Gloc 9 tucked into the waistband of his pants, fingers closed around the edge of the handle. The hallway is empty, very empty, and it almost makes it worse for Jongin because he can hear the blood rushing in his ears and the soft clack of his shoes on the floor.
Minseok lets out soft grunts of left and right and forward, quietly directing the trio through the black. It’s almost ridiculous how dark it is in the bank at night, and Jongin can’t help but wonder how the night guards can even find their way around.
Eventually they reach an elevator, unmarked and with only one arrow pointing down. He nods at Chanyeol and they both grab one door, pulling them apart soundlessly and smoothly.
Once the elevator is open Jongin slips inside, moving to the side and grasping the framework of the shaft. He waits until Minseok and Chanyeol have both entered before slowly climbing down, setting a calm pace so as not to increase his rate of breathing too much. He sets down his right foot, then his right arm, following suit with his left side. It’s a slow process, because with the lack of lighting he has only his touch to guide him. Everytime he descends further it’s a guessing game of where the next metal support bar will be, and he gives what direction he can to the two climbing down after him.
He eventually reaches the bottom of the shaft and clings to the ladder of metal beams as he remains on standby for Chanyeol to help him open the door again. The opening slides apart easily, and before he knows it they’re met with the sight of a comically large steel door with a small keypad in the centre at the end of a twenty foot hallway. It reminds him of the one from X-men, the one covered in reflective steel that leads to Cerebro.
There’s no one standing guard, no camera in sight and no guns pointed threateningly at them. It’s a straight pass through the corridor and Jongin can’t help but feel a little relieved that there aren’t any major foreseeable hiccups.
But it almost seems too easy, an empty corridor and a clear visual of the target.
He lets out an exhale that might in another situation resemble a chuckle, and no sooner does it leave his lips then a matrix of green lasers crisscrosses the path in front of him. He freezes, and behind him he hears Chanyeol mutter unbelievingly, “You have got to be kidding me.”
Jongin can’t help but agree.
It’s laughable the way this is turning into a bad episode of an espionage television show. Laser defenses activated by the slightest of breaths, green lights showering their faces in a grimy glow. He can hear the barely there hum of the sensors, and he thinks he’s stupid for not having noticed them before.
“Well,” He hears from behind him. “There’s no way I’m making it through that.” Chanyeol looks firmly at the matrix in front of them and nods in affirmation. “Yep, definitely not happening.”
Jongin frowns. “Chanyeol, you know I need you to run that program.”
“Yes, and I knew that something or other was going to come along like this and be an ass, so I have conveniently coded this program to be activated by the push of a button! Just like a James Bond movie.” He explains as he pulls out the tablet.
“You sly motherfucker,” Jongin breathes. It’s just like Chanyeol to do as much work as he needs to beforehand to do as little as humanly possible when push comes to shove.
“Now, now,” Chanyeol titters, “They probably have swearing sensors or some shits like the stick-ridden assholes they are.”
“That is a horrifying visual.”
“It was intended.”
He coughs (quietly). “Anyways, I suppose you’re off the hook then, Chanyeol. Stay here and stand guard.” And please, if the elevator starts coming down, get out of its way. I don’t need to worry about carrying around an illegal sum of cash and dead bits of technician in the back of my very scary pedo van.”
“Will do, sir.” Chanyeol nods.
“Alright then. Minseok, let’s roll out.”
“Roll out? What are we, the motherfucking Transformers?”
“Minseok honestly. Not the time.”
“Fine, fine… let’s go.”
Jongin blinks at him in response before turning his attention back to the hallway. He knows that he and Minseok are both flexible enough to make it through, but it’s still not something he had come here planning to do. Thank God for the stretchy pants.
His eyes are calculating, darting back and forth as he figures out the most time- and effort-efficient path. Once he’s found it he saves it to memory and nods at Minseok to follow closely behind him. He steps out of the elevator shaft, heartbeat accelerating slightly as he places a foot gingerly on the tiled floor. When no alarms come blaring from hidden speakers he takes it a as a sign to continue, bring his other foot down to join the first.
From there it’s a tango of person and light beam, weaving their way through the series of lasers. Bending, tucking, stretching impossibly over slightly raised areas. Jongin feels a small bead of sweat forming at the base of his spine and wills it away without a second thought. He lifts his leg up to his chest before setting it down on the other side of a beam, while simultaneously ducking his head to avoid another one above him. He hears Minseok moving cautiously behind him, trained motions almost completely silent.
Roughly fifty seconds later Jongin is nearing the vault door, but between it and him stands a ladder-like pattern of lasers crossing from wall to wall horizontally, each spaced a foot apart. It’ll be a tight squeeze, and when he turns his head back to inform Minseok he sees the other already nodding in understanding. Jongin estimates that if he turns himself fully sideways there’s a 95 percent chance he’ll fit through, and he’s suddenly glad that he skipped eating that afternoon in favour of talking to Yixing.
He takes a deep breath and sucks his stomach in as far as it will go, before sticking a foot through a gap approximately 3 feet off the ground. He slides his body slowly through it, pulse quickening as he reaches the thickest part of his torso. He tucks his head into his chest and inhales the fabric there as he squeezes through scantily. But before he knows it it’s over and he’s pulling his other leg through the hole to join his body. He looks up to Minseok and nods, signalling with his hand to the other to suck in his stomach.
Minseok just waves him ahead with a dismissive hand, and Jongin faces the vault door once again. He pulls out the tablet and unlocks it, the device already open to the program he needs. And just as Chanyeol had promised, the only thing on the screen is a big red digital button in the centre that reads PRESS ME. Jongin almost laughs at the novelty of it, but he quickly remembers where he is and taps the screen once.
All of a sudden numbers upon numbers upon numbers scroll up the page at an astounding speed, working the algorithm that Chanyeol had so painstakingly coded. He senses Minseok approach him from behind as he watches the screen carefully, secretly relieved that the other made it through alright.
No more than a minute and half has passed before the movement on the screen stops, a blaring 18657 in the middle of the image. Jongin glances up at the keypad and sees that yes, it does have 5 digits to be entered. Minseok touches his elbow in a comforting gesture before Jongin is typing in the passcode and the locking mechanism releases with a swoosh. The vault door open inwards ever-so-slightly, and Jongin is wary for more surprises as he tentatively pushes it all the way open.
He’s met with the sight of a large white room, not unlike one you might see in an overdramatized insane asylum. The pristine emptiness stretches back in a square for about eight-feet, leaving just enough room for there to be stacks upon stacks of bills towered high.
But what he does not see is money.
What he sees instead, is everything he never wished would.
He gasps, almost soundlessly.
Minseok stiffens behind him.
In front of him is Kyungsoo, slumped in a chair, baren chest crisscrossed with ugly knife marks that ooze red into a puddle on the floor, purple eyelids swollen shut and hands and feet bound.
Behind him stands Taemin, wicked grin set into devilish features.
Jongin pulls his gun.
•