In Cold Blood [writing]
Title: In Cold Blood
Pairings: JunSu/ChangMin, JaeJoong/ChangMin, JunSu/Dana
Notes: Part of coyotecolored's night!verse. Thank you so much for beta-ing and forcing me to write more and think more and fix up my plot holes. There were many of them. ♥! I hope the final result was worth it~
For more night!verse, go here.
The first time you catch sight of him, it's hard to drag your gaze away. But you're not the only one transfixed -- all around you attention is fixed on the stage. His hips are swaying ever-so-slightly as his lips murmur romantic lyrics into the microphone. It's not a melody you're familiar with, but you want to sing along, to stand beside him and lose yourself to the story in the song.
His mouth is perhaps his most interesting feature, you think, lips full and uneven and playful in the way they curve up when he whispers, but thin and sharp like his voice when he belts out the next line. Even so, his neck is definitely his most attractive feature, long and slender and delicate. That combined with his small, fragile frame overwhelms you with an urge to protect. From what, you have no idea, but that seems unimportant in the moment when he's crooning at you, to you.
Yes, he's singing to you now, his shining brown eyes fixed on your features. With everyone staring at him, he's chosen to turn his gaze to your face, and a warm feeling in the pit of your stomach draws you to him. Awkwardly, a little stiffly, you get to your feet. Your leg bumps into the table you were sitting at and the glass of sparkling water you were sipping tips over, dribbling all over the floor. You don't care enough to go back and clean it up. Besides, without anyone to pay any attention, it doesn't seem to matter. All that matters to you is that you get to the stage.
It's not so difficult climbing up, but the glare of the lights makes you flinch. He laughs in your ear, arms going around you from behind. His lips are still moving, singing the same love song he was when you first started moving, but they feel different than you imagined against your neck, sending shivers up your spine. You never were much of a dancer, but now you find your body swaying easily to the beat of the music, the melody in the song.
"What's your name~?" he sing-songs, during the instrumental solo.
"Chang...ChangMin," you reply, softly.
He smirks, nips at your earlobe with his teeth. "You'll do."
You dance with him on the stage until the song finishes, bodies close. Warm as you are, he's still cool to the touch, so you take his hand in yours and rub it slowly to heat it up. He smiles at you, amused, and squeezes your fingers back.
Suddenly his hand is gone, last note still wavering in the air. You stand there staring, much as you want to follow him, until he disappears in the shadows. When the music ends, you realize just how many people are in the room, and turn red, ducking your head and hurrying off the stage even as they cheer and applaud the performance. You turn back once, to see if he's returned, but the manager is already announcing the next act.
Shaking your head, you wonder what could have compelled you to make such an idiot of yourself. Maybe someone slipped something into your drink, after all. JaeJoong did warn you about things like that happening at sleazy nightclubs like this. Yes, it's a good thing you didn't finish that water. In any case, you'd better get home before it gets too late and people start worrying.
Grabbing your shoulder bag, you hurry out the door, and walk the empty streets home. The entire way, you can't shake the feeling that someone's watching you, following you. But every time you turn back, the streets are just as dead and empty as ever.
"Get ahold of yourself, ChangMin," you mutter, and hurry into the safety of your apartment building.
------
You wait, perched delicately on the ledge of a balcony across the street, for the lights to flicker on in his apartment. When they do, you watch carefully as his tall silhouette passes by the window. The curtains are drawn and chances are it's not only shut but locked. You could easily break in to see him before he even knows you're there, but he's got a roommate, and you don't need both of them. One will do. And he's the one you want.
No matter. You rise gracefully to your feet, years of experience making the climb down to the street easy. There's always tomorrow, and you've always found the hunt so much more enticing than the kill itself.
------
It’s your sixth night back at the club now and Xiah (that’s the name the club manager gave you when you asked) is preparing for another song. As usual, your attention is intent on him. So much so, in fact, that you barely register the form slipping into the seat beside yours until her hand is covering yours, slipping a note into your fingers.
You turn, startled, and she flashes an ironic smile at you. “Read it.”
Then she’s up and walking away, disappearing into the crowd before you can even ask her who she is. It only takes a moment to remember, anyway. You recall her accompanying Xiah on the keyboard a couple nights ago, and taking over after one of his sets. Of course you don’t know her name, but that she knows Xiah is enough to spark your interest.
Huddled in your corner, you hastily unfold the note to see what it says.
Meet me backstage.
-Xiah
------
It's when you wake up at four in the morning, trembling from a nightmare, that you realize something is amiss. ChangMin isn't home, and this isn't like him. Even if he intends to spend the night out, he'll call somewhere around midnight (just before your bedtime) to let you know.
As you're fixing a cup of warm milk over the stove, you wonder if maybe he just forgot. Got a little too drunk, a little too absent-minded. This isn't like him, either, but it's not as if anyone at the police station will take you seriously if you try to report a missing person a mere nine to ten hours after seeing them.
I'm going out, hyung! Just to study with some friends.
He's been going out every night for a week now, and you don't think it can really be for the purpose he says. But you aren't one to pry, and you know he would offer you the same courtesy of staying out of your private business. Whatever his reason for lying, you think that straight-edged ChangMin can't be getting himself into too much trouble.
This in mind, you settle back into bed half an hour later, and drop into a blissful sleep, nightmares forgotten. But when you wake up to the sunlight peeking in through your curtains, he still isn't home.
You call out of work, not because you're worried you tell yourself, you just want to be sure. It's always better to be safe than sorry, and though you're not usually so cautious with your own affairs, you do wonder a little bit about ChangMin. At lunchtime, he still isn't back, and there are no calls waiting on your voice mail. Your phone isn't on vibrate, either.
Anxious, you grab your coat and toe on your shoes, heading out. The first place to check would be his university and you call his friend JungHyun on the way.
"ChangMin? No, I haven't seen him. I was studying last night."
"Did he call you at all? Tell you where he was off to?"
"I don't think so... Oh, wait. He wanted to have a drink at a club. I've been going with him the past couple nights, but I have a test so I couldn't yesterday."
"A club? What club?"
JungHyun gives you the directions and you change your course. The details he's given you, however scant, are troublesome. This is beginning to look more serious now than it did at four in the morning.
------
You're performing on stage when you notice him, eyes drawn to you just like everyone else in the club, yet without that glazed over quality you’re so used to seeing. With the way he's drumming his fingers against the counter of the bar, you think he must be more impatient than captivated. He's pretty, much too pretty for your tastes, and you pay him little notice after that brief glance. That is, until he catches your arm at the end of your set and make your way down the steps to the side, ready to leave without picking your choice of prey that night. JunSu is having his own fun, but it looks as if you're out of luck.
"Dana-sshi?" he asks, and you smile, giving a small nod of acknowledgment in return. You don't ask how he knows your name, but he responds before you get the chance to, anyway. "The manager of the club told me to talk to you. I'm looking for my friend." He fishes in his pocket for his wallet and pulls out a picture of himself and another boy, younger than him but taller with an awkward smile, stretched and forced.
"I haven't seen him," you reply, polite and demure. "Has he been missing long?"
"He didn't come home last night..." You watch him as he tucks the picture away and the frown creasing across his brow makes you feel a little sorry for him. God knows what JunSu might already be doing to his friend. "I was told he’s been coming here to watch someone sing. Xiah? Do you know him?”
You smile, forcing an apologetic look onto your features. "I'm sorry, we perform at the same gigs, sometimes, but I don't know him well." No use pretending that you don't know him at all, when there are bound to be others who have seen the two of you together. But you don't want this child on your tail, asking questions.
"Was Xiah here last night?" So much for that. He’s certainly persistent, you think, already annoyed at being detained for so long.
"I wasn't here. I don't really know." Only half a lie. You were at a different gig the night before, but of course you knew where JunSu was. You always know.
"Ah. Thank you for your help..."
He doesn’t believe you, but the questions have stopped and that’s all you care about. You force another apologetic smile and bow to him, before taking your leave. You crash at an abandoned apartment you've been hanging out in on nights you don't feel like going home.
------
The clock on the wall doesn't tick, and you're not sure it has since you’ve been here. Nonetheless, you can't help staring at its face, the only thing available to keep you company in the dimly lit, empty basement you've been shackled and chained in for however long now. Not that it's any help to you, even as a weapon. Not when he doesn't give you a chance to plan out your attacks before he's already melting your resolve with the sound of his voice.
You're weak when you hear it, so sharp and beautiful like an angel's, until he's close enough to touch you. Then he becomes something worse than you could have imagined from the devil himself. You were never very religious, but you can't help the wandering pleas to God when he has you in his arms, cradling you oh so gently until his fingers twist in yours and you can guess what's coming.
The first visit, he started off light. Cigarette burns, candle wax, and soft kisses in between that made you shrink away with disgust, wondering just what kind of pervert he was. Then he moved on, and now your body is covered in cuts and gashes from a knife that he drags slowly over your skin, mouth and tongue following it from time to time as he revels in the taste of your blood. Sweet, he's called it, and bares his fangs so you understand why.
He limits himself to the knife nowadays, and you scream loud and shrill, having picked up that the visits don't last as long when you do. But sometimes if you scream prematurely and he catches onto the act, he'll beat you and cut deeper. Sometimes he leaves you to bleed, and sometimes he stays to tend to your wounds. But you think it would be better if he left you to die from infection, because the way in which he closes up the wounds hurts as much as what caused them in the first place.
It's been days now. You're not sure how many, but you can guess that a significant amount of time must have passed. He comes and goes and leaves you there thinking up escape plans that will never be carried out. Aside from the door just out of your reach because of the shackles binding you to one corner of the room, there are no other ways out. No one to call, either. You've tried, but nobody ever comes.
Weak, exhausted, too drained to focus today, your thoughts wander to JaeJoong. Is he worried about you, is he looking for you?. He's probably filed a missing persons report already, but you don't think that will be of any help. You know now you shouldn't have gone alone, but you did, and you're sure there were no witnesses to be helpful to any investigation.
Besides, you don't even know if you're still in the city. You were unconscious for so long, and you have no memories of anything beyond following him backstage after his show.
"God... Please help me..." you whimper into the empty air, and get no response.
------
You’ve been tailing her for days now without much consequence. It’s difficult to tell if she’s noticed, but she hasn’t tried to stop you yet and you don’t plan on letting up until you’ve got some answers. The police have been no help at all, and this girl seems like your best shot at finding ChangMin, so you figure you haven’t got a choice.
It is unusual, you’ve noticed, the hours she keeps. Maybe it’s because of her profession, but you never see her leave her apartment complex during the day, no matter how long you stay outside waiting for her (you’ve called out of work, claiming the flu). As soon as the sun comes down, though, she’s back on the streets.
You shake your head at your wandering imagination. Of course vampires don’t exist, you’re being ridiculous. But whatever this girl’s up to, you’re going to find out, and hopefully it leads you straight to ChangMin.
Stalking her up a busy street, you almost lose her in the crowd. But you’re thin and used to maneuvering through large masses of people, so it’s not difficult to catch up to her in a dark alleyway a couple blocks down. What you find, though, is what you least expected.
Blood dripping from her mouth, she turns dark, angry eyes at you and drops the limp body cradled in her arms. You open your mouth to call for help, to ask what’s going on, to demand some kind of explanation, but all that is released is a short gasp. She’s got a hold on your wrist and is dragging you off, wiping the traces of red from her lips and snapping at you to shut up.
For a woman, she’s got quite a grip, and her nails are digging into your skin so you decide it would probably be in your best interest to do as she says and follow her. If she had wanted to kill you, she would have done it in the alleyway. Maybe now she’s ready to give you some answers.
------
It was a stupid mistake, getting caught, but you hadn’t expected him to be quite so fast on your tail. Having not eaten in days, you were getting tired of waiting for him to give up the chase, so tried to shake him just this once. But now is as good a time as any to carry out your plan and hopefully things go as well as you anticipate. JunSu should have killed the brat days ago, then you could have shown this idiot the body and he would have left you alone.
“Okay, you caught me.” Not bothering to mask your irritation, you gesture vaguely for him to take a seat on the dirty mattress you’ve been using the last couple of days due to his stalking. He merely blinks at you, perhaps still in shock, and you go on. “Look, that was just a bum. He wasn’t getting anywhere in life, anyway.”
“He was still a person.” The look in his eyes lets you know that there will be no convincing him that what you did was anything but wrong. No matter, because you don’t really care what he thinks as long as he suits your purposes.
“Okay, okay. Well, now that you’ve seen me, I guess you can connect all the pieces together. I lied. I do know Xiah.” Lifting a chair from its knocked over position on the floor, you take a seat, crossing your long legs at the knees and tugging your skirt over the edge of your boots. You miss being able to go home, especially now that you’re running out of clothes to wear.
“Did he take ChangMin?”
You nod and cut him off before he can ask the next question. “He’s alive, and I’ll help you get him back, but you have to promise to leave me alone after this. All right?”
“No.” You blink, a little surprised at the rejection, until he goes on. “You have to guarantee our safety.”
He’s smarter than you thought, but you know you’re no match for the other vampire and tell him so.
“Fine, but you have to promise you won’t be the one to kill us if it comes down to it. I don’t know how loyal you are to him, but I don’t trust you either way.”
You laugh, because he’s exactly right. The plan would have been to take him there and finish them both off, then claim that you were only trying to keep the secret from getting out in case they both escaped before JunSu could come back for them. He’d forgive you with a reason like that.
No matter, because these two humans - especially the younger in the state he’s undoubtedly in by now - are not going to be any kind of match for JunSu when he finds out. You know that once he realizes the risk he’s running with this tool snooping around, he’ll get around to finishing what he should have days ago.
“Deal.”
-----
When you open your eyes again, you think you must be hallucinating. Not daring to trust your sight, you reach up lightly to stroke JaeJoong’s cheek, trace the outline of his jaw. You even draw his lip down a little, and are relieved to find no signs of fangs.
“Min-ah…” His voice is different from what you remember, soft and strained, and you crack a small smile if only to alleviate the pressure of tears welling in his eyes. But your surroundings bring you back to reality and, with a slight groan, you raise yourself stiffly into a semi-sitting position, supported by his arm.
“Hyung… Hyung, we have to get out of here.” You don’t sound the same yourself, your voice creaky and tired, but you hope it properly expresses the severity of the situation. There’s no time for a sentimental reunion, because your captor could return at any moment.
JaeJoong nods. He understands. Slowly, he helps you to your feet, and you make a small frustrated noise in the back of your throat when you remember the shackles bound to your ankles.
“How…”
JaeJoong is already picking at the lock and in a moment you’re free. You lift your foot, wiggling it awkwardly and catching your balance on your rescuer’s arm. He half-leads, half-carries you towards the door and you decide it’s best to leave the questions for home, your priority getting out before Xiah returns.
You don’t get very far before he catches up to you. It’s no surprise really, but the panic welling in your chest makes it difficult to run. That and you haven’t walked in what must have been days, judging from JaeJoong’s mutterings. Stumbling, you try to keep up with him, try not to hold him back. Nonethless, there’s no denying that Xiah is faster than the both of you and ,before you’re entirely aware of it, he’s flying down to you from God knows where.
He looks angry, angrier than you’ve ever seen him, and you’re shivering under the energy behind his gaze. “Run,” you hiss to JaeJoong, not wanting him to get in the middle of this.
Of course you should have expected nothing less. He offers himself up as a shield between the two of you, form stiff with his own angry judgment towards your captor. But he’s no match for the creature you face, and in the same moment he steps forward, he’s knocked away, leaving you exposed and defenseless.
You take a step back, breathing heavily, nervous and afraid, but there’s still some fight left in you, and with a desperate cry you lunge towards Xiah. Perhaps the best defense is a good offense, you think, hope, pray.
He’s stronger, but you persist, scratching and kicking, trying to hold him down, hoping to at least distract him so that JaeJoong can run free. Your entire body aches and you’re running out of breath, crying out suddenly when he twists you around and you feel as if your arm is about to snap under the strain.
“You made a mistake, ChangMin,” he hisses, voice dripping with murderous venom.
Oh God. Oh God, you realize. You’re going to die. He’s really going to kill you now. And all because you were stupid enough to…
A shrill shriek breaks you from your thoughts and you drop to the ground, no longer supported by his tight hold. With a groan, you reach to clutch at your aching arm. Thankfully, it’s not broken.
Turning around, you see his limp form on the ground, a piece of steel bar protruding from his back. JaeJoong is standing beside him, bent over, breathing heavily. But his shock only lasts a moment before he’s helping you to your feet and you’re both running again, as far as you can without looking back.
It’s only when the sun comes up that either of you feels safe.
Pairings: JunSu/ChangMin, JaeJoong/ChangMin, JunSu/Dana
Notes: Part of coyotecolored's night!verse. Thank you so much for beta-ing and forcing me to write more and think more and fix up my plot holes. There were many of them. ♥! I hope the final result was worth it~
For more night!verse, go here.
The first time you catch sight of him, it's hard to drag your gaze away. But you're not the only one transfixed -- all around you attention is fixed on the stage. His hips are swaying ever-so-slightly as his lips murmur romantic lyrics into the microphone. It's not a melody you're familiar with, but you want to sing along, to stand beside him and lose yourself to the story in the song.
His mouth is perhaps his most interesting feature, you think, lips full and uneven and playful in the way they curve up when he whispers, but thin and sharp like his voice when he belts out the next line. Even so, his neck is definitely his most attractive feature, long and slender and delicate. That combined with his small, fragile frame overwhelms you with an urge to protect. From what, you have no idea, but that seems unimportant in the moment when he's crooning at you, to you.
Yes, he's singing to you now, his shining brown eyes fixed on your features. With everyone staring at him, he's chosen to turn his gaze to your face, and a warm feeling in the pit of your stomach draws you to him. Awkwardly, a little stiffly, you get to your feet. Your leg bumps into the table you were sitting at and the glass of sparkling water you were sipping tips over, dribbling all over the floor. You don't care enough to go back and clean it up. Besides, without anyone to pay any attention, it doesn't seem to matter. All that matters to you is that you get to the stage.
It's not so difficult climbing up, but the glare of the lights makes you flinch. He laughs in your ear, arms going around you from behind. His lips are still moving, singing the same love song he was when you first started moving, but they feel different than you imagined against your neck, sending shivers up your spine. You never were much of a dancer, but now you find your body swaying easily to the beat of the music, the melody in the song.
"What's your name~?" he sing-songs, during the instrumental solo.
"Chang...ChangMin," you reply, softly.
He smirks, nips at your earlobe with his teeth. "You'll do."
You dance with him on the stage until the song finishes, bodies close. Warm as you are, he's still cool to the touch, so you take his hand in yours and rub it slowly to heat it up. He smiles at you, amused, and squeezes your fingers back.
Suddenly his hand is gone, last note still wavering in the air. You stand there staring, much as you want to follow him, until he disappears in the shadows. When the music ends, you realize just how many people are in the room, and turn red, ducking your head and hurrying off the stage even as they cheer and applaud the performance. You turn back once, to see if he's returned, but the manager is already announcing the next act.
Shaking your head, you wonder what could have compelled you to make such an idiot of yourself. Maybe someone slipped something into your drink, after all. JaeJoong did warn you about things like that happening at sleazy nightclubs like this. Yes, it's a good thing you didn't finish that water. In any case, you'd better get home before it gets too late and people start worrying.
Grabbing your shoulder bag, you hurry out the door, and walk the empty streets home. The entire way, you can't shake the feeling that someone's watching you, following you. But every time you turn back, the streets are just as dead and empty as ever.
"Get ahold of yourself, ChangMin," you mutter, and hurry into the safety of your apartment building.
------
You wait, perched delicately on the ledge of a balcony across the street, for the lights to flicker on in his apartment. When they do, you watch carefully as his tall silhouette passes by the window. The curtains are drawn and chances are it's not only shut but locked. You could easily break in to see him before he even knows you're there, but he's got a roommate, and you don't need both of them. One will do. And he's the one you want.
No matter. You rise gracefully to your feet, years of experience making the climb down to the street easy. There's always tomorrow, and you've always found the hunt so much more enticing than the kill itself.
------
It’s your sixth night back at the club now and Xiah (that’s the name the club manager gave you when you asked) is preparing for another song. As usual, your attention is intent on him. So much so, in fact, that you barely register the form slipping into the seat beside yours until her hand is covering yours, slipping a note into your fingers.
You turn, startled, and she flashes an ironic smile at you. “Read it.”
Then she’s up and walking away, disappearing into the crowd before you can even ask her who she is. It only takes a moment to remember, anyway. You recall her accompanying Xiah on the keyboard a couple nights ago, and taking over after one of his sets. Of course you don’t know her name, but that she knows Xiah is enough to spark your interest.
Huddled in your corner, you hastily unfold the note to see what it says.
Meet me backstage.
-Xiah
------
It's when you wake up at four in the morning, trembling from a nightmare, that you realize something is amiss. ChangMin isn't home, and this isn't like him. Even if he intends to spend the night out, he'll call somewhere around midnight (just before your bedtime) to let you know.
As you're fixing a cup of warm milk over the stove, you wonder if maybe he just forgot. Got a little too drunk, a little too absent-minded. This isn't like him, either, but it's not as if anyone at the police station will take you seriously if you try to report a missing person a mere nine to ten hours after seeing them.
I'm going out, hyung! Just to study with some friends.
He's been going out every night for a week now, and you don't think it can really be for the purpose he says. But you aren't one to pry, and you know he would offer you the same courtesy of staying out of your private business. Whatever his reason for lying, you think that straight-edged ChangMin can't be getting himself into too much trouble.
This in mind, you settle back into bed half an hour later, and drop into a blissful sleep, nightmares forgotten. But when you wake up to the sunlight peeking in through your curtains, he still isn't home.
You call out of work, not because you're worried you tell yourself, you just want to be sure. It's always better to be safe than sorry, and though you're not usually so cautious with your own affairs, you do wonder a little bit about ChangMin. At lunchtime, he still isn't back, and there are no calls waiting on your voice mail. Your phone isn't on vibrate, either.
Anxious, you grab your coat and toe on your shoes, heading out. The first place to check would be his university and you call his friend JungHyun on the way.
"ChangMin? No, I haven't seen him. I was studying last night."
"Did he call you at all? Tell you where he was off to?"
"I don't think so... Oh, wait. He wanted to have a drink at a club. I've been going with him the past couple nights, but I have a test so I couldn't yesterday."
"A club? What club?"
JungHyun gives you the directions and you change your course. The details he's given you, however scant, are troublesome. This is beginning to look more serious now than it did at four in the morning.
------
You're performing on stage when you notice him, eyes drawn to you just like everyone else in the club, yet without that glazed over quality you’re so used to seeing. With the way he's drumming his fingers against the counter of the bar, you think he must be more impatient than captivated. He's pretty, much too pretty for your tastes, and you pay him little notice after that brief glance. That is, until he catches your arm at the end of your set and make your way down the steps to the side, ready to leave without picking your choice of prey that night. JunSu is having his own fun, but it looks as if you're out of luck.
"Dana-sshi?" he asks, and you smile, giving a small nod of acknowledgment in return. You don't ask how he knows your name, but he responds before you get the chance to, anyway. "The manager of the club told me to talk to you. I'm looking for my friend." He fishes in his pocket for his wallet and pulls out a picture of himself and another boy, younger than him but taller with an awkward smile, stretched and forced.
"I haven't seen him," you reply, polite and demure. "Has he been missing long?"
"He didn't come home last night..." You watch him as he tucks the picture away and the frown creasing across his brow makes you feel a little sorry for him. God knows what JunSu might already be doing to his friend. "I was told he’s been coming here to watch someone sing. Xiah? Do you know him?”
You smile, forcing an apologetic look onto your features. "I'm sorry, we perform at the same gigs, sometimes, but I don't know him well." No use pretending that you don't know him at all, when there are bound to be others who have seen the two of you together. But you don't want this child on your tail, asking questions.
"Was Xiah here last night?" So much for that. He’s certainly persistent, you think, already annoyed at being detained for so long.
"I wasn't here. I don't really know." Only half a lie. You were at a different gig the night before, but of course you knew where JunSu was. You always know.
"Ah. Thank you for your help..."
He doesn’t believe you, but the questions have stopped and that’s all you care about. You force another apologetic smile and bow to him, before taking your leave. You crash at an abandoned apartment you've been hanging out in on nights you don't feel like going home.
------
The clock on the wall doesn't tick, and you're not sure it has since you’ve been here. Nonetheless, you can't help staring at its face, the only thing available to keep you company in the dimly lit, empty basement you've been shackled and chained in for however long now. Not that it's any help to you, even as a weapon. Not when he doesn't give you a chance to plan out your attacks before he's already melting your resolve with the sound of his voice.
You're weak when you hear it, so sharp and beautiful like an angel's, until he's close enough to touch you. Then he becomes something worse than you could have imagined from the devil himself. You were never very religious, but you can't help the wandering pleas to God when he has you in his arms, cradling you oh so gently until his fingers twist in yours and you can guess what's coming.
The first visit, he started off light. Cigarette burns, candle wax, and soft kisses in between that made you shrink away with disgust, wondering just what kind of pervert he was. Then he moved on, and now your body is covered in cuts and gashes from a knife that he drags slowly over your skin, mouth and tongue following it from time to time as he revels in the taste of your blood. Sweet, he's called it, and bares his fangs so you understand why.
He limits himself to the knife nowadays, and you scream loud and shrill, having picked up that the visits don't last as long when you do. But sometimes if you scream prematurely and he catches onto the act, he'll beat you and cut deeper. Sometimes he leaves you to bleed, and sometimes he stays to tend to your wounds. But you think it would be better if he left you to die from infection, because the way in which he closes up the wounds hurts as much as what caused them in the first place.
It's been days now. You're not sure how many, but you can guess that a significant amount of time must have passed. He comes and goes and leaves you there thinking up escape plans that will never be carried out. Aside from the door just out of your reach because of the shackles binding you to one corner of the room, there are no other ways out. No one to call, either. You've tried, but nobody ever comes.
Weak, exhausted, too drained to focus today, your thoughts wander to JaeJoong. Is he worried about you, is he looking for you?. He's probably filed a missing persons report already, but you don't think that will be of any help. You know now you shouldn't have gone alone, but you did, and you're sure there were no witnesses to be helpful to any investigation.
Besides, you don't even know if you're still in the city. You were unconscious for so long, and you have no memories of anything beyond following him backstage after his show.
"God... Please help me..." you whimper into the empty air, and get no response.
------
You’ve been tailing her for days now without much consequence. It’s difficult to tell if she’s noticed, but she hasn’t tried to stop you yet and you don’t plan on letting up until you’ve got some answers. The police have been no help at all, and this girl seems like your best shot at finding ChangMin, so you figure you haven’t got a choice.
It is unusual, you’ve noticed, the hours she keeps. Maybe it’s because of her profession, but you never see her leave her apartment complex during the day, no matter how long you stay outside waiting for her (you’ve called out of work, claiming the flu). As soon as the sun comes down, though, she’s back on the streets.
You shake your head at your wandering imagination. Of course vampires don’t exist, you’re being ridiculous. But whatever this girl’s up to, you’re going to find out, and hopefully it leads you straight to ChangMin.
Stalking her up a busy street, you almost lose her in the crowd. But you’re thin and used to maneuvering through large masses of people, so it’s not difficult to catch up to her in a dark alleyway a couple blocks down. What you find, though, is what you least expected.
Blood dripping from her mouth, she turns dark, angry eyes at you and drops the limp body cradled in her arms. You open your mouth to call for help, to ask what’s going on, to demand some kind of explanation, but all that is released is a short gasp. She’s got a hold on your wrist and is dragging you off, wiping the traces of red from her lips and snapping at you to shut up.
For a woman, she’s got quite a grip, and her nails are digging into your skin so you decide it would probably be in your best interest to do as she says and follow her. If she had wanted to kill you, she would have done it in the alleyway. Maybe now she’s ready to give you some answers.
------
It was a stupid mistake, getting caught, but you hadn’t expected him to be quite so fast on your tail. Having not eaten in days, you were getting tired of waiting for him to give up the chase, so tried to shake him just this once. But now is as good a time as any to carry out your plan and hopefully things go as well as you anticipate. JunSu should have killed the brat days ago, then you could have shown this idiot the body and he would have left you alone.
“Okay, you caught me.” Not bothering to mask your irritation, you gesture vaguely for him to take a seat on the dirty mattress you’ve been using the last couple of days due to his stalking. He merely blinks at you, perhaps still in shock, and you go on. “Look, that was just a bum. He wasn’t getting anywhere in life, anyway.”
“He was still a person.” The look in his eyes lets you know that there will be no convincing him that what you did was anything but wrong. No matter, because you don’t really care what he thinks as long as he suits your purposes.
“Okay, okay. Well, now that you’ve seen me, I guess you can connect all the pieces together. I lied. I do know Xiah.” Lifting a chair from its knocked over position on the floor, you take a seat, crossing your long legs at the knees and tugging your skirt over the edge of your boots. You miss being able to go home, especially now that you’re running out of clothes to wear.
“Did he take ChangMin?”
You nod and cut him off before he can ask the next question. “He’s alive, and I’ll help you get him back, but you have to promise to leave me alone after this. All right?”
“No.” You blink, a little surprised at the rejection, until he goes on. “You have to guarantee our safety.”
He’s smarter than you thought, but you know you’re no match for the other vampire and tell him so.
“Fine, but you have to promise you won’t be the one to kill us if it comes down to it. I don’t know how loyal you are to him, but I don’t trust you either way.”
You laugh, because he’s exactly right. The plan would have been to take him there and finish them both off, then claim that you were only trying to keep the secret from getting out in case they both escaped before JunSu could come back for them. He’d forgive you with a reason like that.
No matter, because these two humans - especially the younger in the state he’s undoubtedly in by now - are not going to be any kind of match for JunSu when he finds out. You know that once he realizes the risk he’s running with this tool snooping around, he’ll get around to finishing what he should have days ago.
“Deal.”
-----
When you open your eyes again, you think you must be hallucinating. Not daring to trust your sight, you reach up lightly to stroke JaeJoong’s cheek, trace the outline of his jaw. You even draw his lip down a little, and are relieved to find no signs of fangs.
“Min-ah…” His voice is different from what you remember, soft and strained, and you crack a small smile if only to alleviate the pressure of tears welling in his eyes. But your surroundings bring you back to reality and, with a slight groan, you raise yourself stiffly into a semi-sitting position, supported by his arm.
“Hyung… Hyung, we have to get out of here.” You don’t sound the same yourself, your voice creaky and tired, but you hope it properly expresses the severity of the situation. There’s no time for a sentimental reunion, because your captor could return at any moment.
JaeJoong nods. He understands. Slowly, he helps you to your feet, and you make a small frustrated noise in the back of your throat when you remember the shackles bound to your ankles.
“How…”
JaeJoong is already picking at the lock and in a moment you’re free. You lift your foot, wiggling it awkwardly and catching your balance on your rescuer’s arm. He half-leads, half-carries you towards the door and you decide it’s best to leave the questions for home, your priority getting out before Xiah returns.
You don’t get very far before he catches up to you. It’s no surprise really, but the panic welling in your chest makes it difficult to run. That and you haven’t walked in what must have been days, judging from JaeJoong’s mutterings. Stumbling, you try to keep up with him, try not to hold him back. Nonethless, there’s no denying that Xiah is faster than the both of you and ,before you’re entirely aware of it, he’s flying down to you from God knows where.
He looks angry, angrier than you’ve ever seen him, and you’re shivering under the energy behind his gaze. “Run,” you hiss to JaeJoong, not wanting him to get in the middle of this.
Of course you should have expected nothing less. He offers himself up as a shield between the two of you, form stiff with his own angry judgment towards your captor. But he’s no match for the creature you face, and in the same moment he steps forward, he’s knocked away, leaving you exposed and defenseless.
You take a step back, breathing heavily, nervous and afraid, but there’s still some fight left in you, and with a desperate cry you lunge towards Xiah. Perhaps the best defense is a good offense, you think, hope, pray.
He’s stronger, but you persist, scratching and kicking, trying to hold him down, hoping to at least distract him so that JaeJoong can run free. Your entire body aches and you’re running out of breath, crying out suddenly when he twists you around and you feel as if your arm is about to snap under the strain.
“You made a mistake, ChangMin,” he hisses, voice dripping with murderous venom.
Oh God. Oh God, you realize. You’re going to die. He’s really going to kill you now. And all because you were stupid enough to…
A shrill shriek breaks you from your thoughts and you drop to the ground, no longer supported by his tight hold. With a groan, you reach to clutch at your aching arm. Thankfully, it’s not broken.
Turning around, you see his limp form on the ground, a piece of steel bar protruding from his back. JaeJoong is standing beside him, bent over, breathing heavily. But his shock only lasts a moment before he’s helping you to your feet and you’re both running again, as far as you can without looking back.
It’s only when the sun comes up that either of you feels safe.