Never Online
Title: Never Online
Chapter: 45/50
Pairing: JungMin/KyuJong, HyunJoong/Tablo
Rating: R overall
Warning: AU, violence, angst
Summary: As part of the security detail for the online game known as Never, two officers encounter a group of elite hackers that seem intent on destroying the game, and it's their job to stop them.
A/N: RP with yeonah. Crossover with Super Junior, U-Kiss and Epik High
With everyone out of the house, HyunJoong gave Daniel a tense smile, closing the door and locking it up behind him. "HyungJoon and JongWoon are going to take the car, the rest of us will go in the van," he said following the others to the driveway. "HyungJoon has the directions, I want to limit the amount of times we call each other, and stops, just in case," he said, going tot he passenger door of the van, YoungSaeng and RyeoWook climbing into the back of the van.
Nodding in understanding, KyuJong let JungMin lead him to the van before getting in as well. JongWoon climbed into the car's passenger seat beside HyungJoon, pouting about how he would have driven if his head wasn't trying to turn itself inside out.
Daniel got into the driver's seat of the van, closing the door and waiting for the others to be settled down. "This is going to be a bit of a long ride."
"That's putting it mildly," HyunJoong said, buckling up his seat belt. "I really want to know what's going to happen the next couple of days, but it's safer for us not to touch technology for a while."
"How long do you think we'll have to wait?" JungMin asked, leaning forward a little to talk to the two up front.
"A week, a month? No idea," HyunJoong sighed. "We'll send someone out to gather information if we can, and supplies. Either way, I don't think this is going to blow over in a day or so."
"Definitely not," KyuJong shook his head. "All of Never was going crazy when we left...it's going to take a long while."
"Never will probably be shut down before long," RyeoWook said quietly, one arm wrapped loosely around YoungSaeng as Daniel backed them out of the driveway and put them on the road.
"Either way, we did what we set out to do, it's up to the rest of the world to figure out what to do next," HyunJoong said, leaning back in his seat.
"It's weird... we're done," YoungSaeng murmured quietly. "I honestly never thought about what would happen once we were done. Didn't imagine it would be like this though."
"I don't think anyone imagined it would be like this," Daniel sighed softly, tapping the steering wheel. "Still, it's over, and we could be saving thousands upon thousands of lives. I think that's more than any of us ever expected to do in our lifetimes."
"It's kinda like what I thought it would be when I first signed on with NVR Security," RyeoWook said, looking up at YoungSaeng. "Saving and helping people."
"Well... you did, just not in the way you thought," YoungSaeng said with a small smile, brushing his lips over RyeoWook's forehead. "How long is this ride going to be for Hyun? I may go back to sleep, my headache's coming back."
"Well we're taking a less direct route, so four or five hours," HyunJoong said, glancing behind him. "Kyu, you should sleep too, you were working for hours."
"I guess I will," KyuJong nodded a little, leaning his cane against the van door and slipping his sunglasses off to hang them off his collar where he knew where they were. He leaned against JungMin, closing his eyes. The events of today had been exhausting, it probably wouldn't take him long to fall asleep.
"I'm not sure if there's anything back here to use as a pillow," RyeoWook looked around for something for YoungSaeng.
"I can use your lap," YoungSaeng said, unbuckling his seat belt and laying down, resting his head in RyeoWook's lap. "If that's okay with you anyway."
Blinking with wide eyes, RyeoWook flushed before nodding shyly, running his fingers gently through YoungSaeng's hair. "You going to be okay without your seatbelt on though?"
"Long as Daniel doesn't slam on the brakes or drive like a crazy person, I'll be fine," YoungSaeng said, closing his eyes.
"I think you're mistaking me with HyungJoon," Daniel said in amusement. KyuJong had already fallen asleep by then. The older man glanced at HyunJoong out of the corner of his eyes. "Are you going to fall asleep on me too?"
"No," HyunJoong smirked, though his eyes were closed. "If you need me to take over at any point, just tell me." His eyes opened again when he heard sirens off in the distance. "I'll be able to relax a little when we're out of the city."
"Same here," Daniel sighed. "Most of the chaos should still be in Never, but the city will be pretty-much the same way in an hour or so. It's going to be a long time before we can come back."
"Yeah... but it's for the best," HyunJoong said, looking back at the other four again. "I just worry if we'll ever be able to go back to our lives, what if the police come after us even with Never going down?"
"They won't," JungMin chimed in quietly. "Once Never went international, cyber crimes has been strictly under their jurisdiction. Even if they wanted to, the government wouldn't have any files on you guys or any other hackers out there."
"That is true," Daniel nodded. "And it's unlikely they ever will. Let's just focus on staying out of the way while the world deals with this mess." They were finally on the highway to leave the city, and as usual there were very little cars around. He could see HyungJoon's car in the rearview mirror.
"That is fine by me," HyunJoong nodded, a little relieved at the news as he settled back into his seat. "We lifted the rug, the rest of the world can clean up the mess. Wake me up if you need to take a break Daniel."
"Got it," Daniel nodded, leaning back and focusing on the road. He turned the radio on low to keep himself awake while not disturbing the others.
It took the estimated five hours to reach the cabin in the mountains. For the last half-hour Daniel had to wake HyunJoong up for more precise directions, because he wasn't entirely sure where to go from there.
Many long dirt paths later, they rolled up in front of an old cabin on the side of the mountain. The sound of the motor cutting out snapped KyuJong out of sleep, the blind man blinking repeatedly as he lifted his head off of JungMin's shirt. "We're here?"
"We are," JungMin nodded, rubbing his eyes after having fallen asleep halfway through the trip. The overhead light came on and he was blinded for a brief second.
"Kyu, I want you to stay here until we get the place opened up okay? I don't know what's in there, there could be a bear living in there for all we know," HyunJoong said, hopping out of the van.
"You're joking, right?" RyeoWook winced, trying to peer out into the darkness.
"Never know," Daniel shrugged, getting out of the van.
RyeoWook turned his attention to YoungSaeng, leaning down and kissing him softly to wake him up. "We're here Saeng, you have to wake up now."
YoungSaeng made a soft whining sound at being told to wake up, though his eyes fluttered open. "We're here?" he echoed, rolling onto his back and looking up at RyeoWook.
"Yeah," RyeoWook smiled down at him. "I'm gonna help open up the place, you want to keep Kyu hyung company? You can go back to sleep once we're all inside."
"I think I've slept enough, but I can keep Kyu company," YoungSaeng said, sitting up and rubbing at his eyes. "At least my headache's gone. How are you doing Kyu?" he asked leaning forward to wrap his arms around KyuJong's shoulders from behind.
"Okay," KyuJong said, leaning back against the seat and covering YoungSaeng's hand with his own. "I'm going to have fun tripping over tree roots," he tried a quiet joke. RyeoWook's lips curled a little before he scooted out of the van to help the others.
"We'll make sure you don't trip," YoungSaeng said, resting his chin on KyuJong's shoulder and watching the others through the window. "It's not that bad of a cabin, but I doubt there'll be four rooms for all of us, I think some of us will be sleeping on floors or squeezing into beds. It'll be like camping when we were kids, with your parents."
"Could be fun," KyuJong nodded. "I'll probably feel better about this when the birds are awake and it's not as cold," he chuckled softly, closing his eyes again. "Maybe we could go for nature walks or something."
"That could be fun," YoungSaeng said. "Or you and JungMin could go, have him describe every leaf in horrifying detail for you. I bet this place is gorgeous during the day though, and it's so quiet, kind of forget about technology and computers when you're out in the wild like this."
"It wouldn't be a bad thing," KyuJong shook his head. "And I think I'll save both our sanity by not having him do that. What are they doing outside? Not being chased by a bear I hope?"
YoungSaeng chuckled at that, shaking his head. "No, not being chased by a bear. They wen't inside, I can't see what they're doing. They've got some lamps on looks like. You want to get out and stretch your legs?"
"That would be nice," KyuJong nodded, unbuckling himself. "It's a little disorientating being in the car for so long." He leaned forward and found his cane.
Scooting over to the door, YoungSaeng hopped out first and turned to help KyuJong out. "We're not going far though, I can't see if there's any rocks or anything to trip on, so we'll wait until those with flashlights come back."
"Fine by me," KyuJong said, taking YoungSaeng's hand and climbing out of the van. He breathed in the night air, absently rolling the end of his cane along the ground to see how uneven it was. "Are the stars out?"
Shivering a little at the chilly air, YoungSaeng looked up to peer through the trees overhead. "I think so, but no moon, which would have been nice right about now. It feels like forever since I looked at the stars... the real ones I mean."
"Umma and appa always said they were brighter outside of the city," KyuJong smiled, closing his eyes and tilting his face upward. "I hear water from somewhere," he noted after a moment.
"I don't hear anything," YoungSaeng blinked, looking around. "But I believe you, there must be a stream or something nearby, we can ask Hyun if he knows. Oh, looks like they're coming out."
"Hey you two, we're all ready if you want to head in," HyunJoong said as he came toward them. "We'll get the van unloaded. There's only two beds, so Kyu and JungMin will get one at least, we get to fight over the other."
"We can always rotate," RyeoWook suggested, coming out to get boxes out of the car.
"We'll figure it out once we're unloaded," Daniel sighed, slinging bags over his shoulder. "The fireplace is started Saeng, don't let Kyu trip over the grate," he chuckled. The blind man pouted in his general direction before carefully poking around with his cane for any tree roots.
"I won't let him trip," YoungSaeng said, keeping a firm grip on KyuJong's elbow as they walked slowly over the uneven ground. Upon reaching the door, JungMin was just coming out, smiling at seeing KyuJong.
"Hey you, I'm just going to get our bags and I'll be right back," JungMin said, leaning over to give KyuJong a kiss before stepping around him.
"Okay," KyuJong smiled as JungMin stepped away. He continued with YoungSaeng to the house, cane tapping the bottom of the stairs before he carefully climbed up them. He was nervous, as he always was when going into a new place he didn't know, using his cane to carefully map out what was in front of him. JongWoon scrambled to get out of his way before he tripped over it, plastering himself out of the way until they'd passed before going to get more bags.
Stepping slowly into the house, YoungSaeng let KyuJong figure out where things were by himself, not wanting to distract him from what he needed to do. He looked around, bottom lip pushed out in consideration of the place they'd have to call home for a while. It was nice, what you'd expect a house in the mountains to look like. The floors were wood, with some dusty looking pillows on the floor in lieu of couches. A fire was crackling in the fireplace off at the end of the room, the heat already warding off the night chill.
"Well, this isn't so bad," YoungSaeng murmured, following KyuJong along. There wasn't much of a kitchen, just a table near the fireplace for prepping food. Two doors at the far end were most likely the bedrooms. "Except there's no bathroom, where are we supposed to shower?"
"In the stream," HyunJoong said, coming in behind them with bags. "Or there's a washbasin for sponge baths. Sorry it's not a five star hotel or anything, but we'll have to make do."
"So there is a stream nearby," KyuJong mused, walking around the edge of the room to figure out how large it was.
"This is the last of it," Daniel brought in the last of the bags slung over one shoulder. "We'll unpack in the morning, let's just get out what we need to sleep."
"And the food," JungMin said, closing the door now that everyone was in. "I was starving before the whole mess, and I'm dying to eat now."
YoungSaeng rolled his eyes. "Well the food's going to be a little cold, there's no microwave," he said, letting JungMin take over at KyuJong's side before searching for the food RyeoWook had made before they left. "This won't be much of a dinner."
"It's better than pine cones," HyungJoon muttered, poking through cupboards finding some blankets. "Who's getting the second bedroom?"
"Maybe the two with the head problems should sleep in the bed," HyunJoong suggested, putting up his hands when he got a glare from YoungSaeng. "It was just a thought, don't kill me."
"My head's feeling better now, just a little dizzy," JongWoon said, carefully getting together things from the bags to sleep. "So I guess we can take the floor tonight, Joon?"
"We can rotate out every second night with someone too," KyuJong frowned a little, finding the edge of the fireplace and stepping around it. He made his way back towards them, stopping when his cane tapped Daniel's foot. "To keep it fair."
"We'll figure it out once we've had some sleep," HyunJoong said, stretching his arms out. "YoungSaeng and RyeoWook will take the bed tonight then."
"Works for me," YoungSaeng shrugged, helping to sort out stuff from bags, taking his and RyeoWook's to one of the bedrooms.
RyeoWook followed after him with another bag, waving to the others. "Good night then, hyungdeul." He stepped into the small room after YoungSaeng, looking around in the dim light provided by a gas lamp hanging in the corner. It was a little chilly still, but not that bad. "I've never gone camping before, if it weren't for the circumstances this would be pretty fun."
RyeoWook followed after him with another bag. He stepped into the small room after YoungSaeng, looking around in the dim light provided by a gas lamp hanging in the corner. It was a little chilly still, but not that bad. "I've never gone camping before, if it weren't for the circumstances this would be pretty fun."
"Kyu's parents used to take us almost every year," YoungSaeng said, setting the bag down on the bed. "It could be worse, we could be in tents."
"Point taken," RyeoWook chuckled softly, placing the bag he was carrying down as well. "Cooking's probably going to be simple for a while."
"Yeah, probably just simple stews or dry stores," YoungSaeng nodded, glancing towards the window. "Probably barbeque too, we didn't bring that much in the way of food though, so we'll have to make it last."
The younger man nodded. "We'll be making trips to town every now and then though, right? Who knows how long we're going to be up here."
"Probably longer than we want, but I think we'll have to deal," YoungSaeng said, turning around and stepping closer to RyeoWook to put his arm around the man's waist. "You, JungMin and Daniel probably aren't going to be able to go into town though, they know what you look like."
Shoulders slumping a little, RyeoWook reluctantly nodded again, knowing YoungSaeng was right. "The rest of you have to be careful too though," he said insistently, hugging YoungSaeng back.
"We will, we got this far," YoungSaeng murmured, kissing the side of RyeoWook's head. "You and JungMin were the ones who were investigating us right? And had no idea what we looked like? I doubt they know even now."
"JungMin hyung was working on your file for much longer than me, and he was so frustrated about having never found anything on you," RyeoWook chuckled softly. "No, I doubt they have a single clue who you are." He looked up at YoungSaeng, and leaned over to kiss the corner of his mouth. "Still...better safe than sorry."
"Yes, we'll be very careful," YoungSaeng smiled, returning the kiss. "Let's go eat before they eat it all."
Chuckling and nodded a little, RyeoWook hugged him tightly before stepping back, taking the older man's hand instead as they headed back out to the other room. The others were seated around the table now, passing out the containers of food.
"We can always try holding it over the fire," JongWoon suggested.
"I think the plastic would melt," Daniel said wryly.
"Let's not melt plastic, the fumes would smell disgusting," HyunJoong said, looking through the one cabinet in the place. "There's one metal pan, you could that over the fire I guess."
"Let's do that," Daniel nodded, getting up to get that. "At the very least the food will be warmer than it is now." He took the pan and made sure it was clean before setting about warming up their food.
"It isn't a feast, but it'll taste good at least," YoungSaeng said, sitting down next to KyuJong and pulling RyeoWook into the seat next to him. "It could be a lot worse guys," he said, glancing around at the others.
"It could be," KyuJong said quietly, leaning against JungMin. "But there should be someone else here to complain about the food with us." JongWoon looked down, arms wrapped tightly around HyungJoon.
"I shouldn't have let him go with us,"HyunJoong said, watching the fire. "I should have... done..something."
"It's not your fault, Hyun," YoungSaeng said softly, shaking his head. "It was an accident."
"They murdered him," HyunJoong replied, glancing at YoungSaeng out of the corner of his eye.
"It was murder," Daniel murmured in agreement, sighing softly as he rubbed one hand slowly up and down HyunJoong's back. "SungHyun was aware of the risks, he spoke with me about it more than a few times. And we're not going to let this go unavenged."
"But what more can we do?" JungMin asked, keeping KyuJong close. "If the game closes and the company goes down.... what's left to do?"
"We'll figure something out," HyunJoong shrugged slightly. "At the very least, we'll let everyone know what happened, and that he was another casualty in a very long list."
"We're not even sure if he died though... he still had a pulse when you took him to the clinic right?" HyungJoon asked, trying to sound at least a little hopeful.
"He did," Daniel nodded. "If he managed to log out in time, he could have just been caught by the power surge and knocked out. It's not uncommon to happen. In which case, he's probably awake by now and pissed at being left behind." he watched the flames dance in the fireplace. "But if he didn't log out in time...the pulse wouldn't mean anything. He'd be a vegetable."
"I guess we just hope for the best then," YoungSaeng said, closing his eyes and leaning his head against RyeoWook's.
"Either way, we can't beat ourselves up over it," JungMin said. "It could have happened to any of us, and he wouldn't want us to be upset like this when he knew the risks, and felt what we were doing was important. If it was one of us, we'd feel the same way."
Sniffling a little, KyuJong nodded, turning his face against his boyfriend's shoulder. "No one else is going to die because of this," he whispered.
"Okay, food's warm," Daniel pulled the pan off of the makeshift grill on top of the fireplace after mixing the kimchi friend rice around. He deposited helpings back on each plate, JongWoon passing them out.
"No, no one is," JungMin whispered into KyuJong's ear, kissing the side of his head. Taking a plate for the both of them, he handed KyuJong his chopsticks.
"Let's just eat and get some sleep, it's been a long day," YoungSaeng said, accepting his plate from JongWoon. "Daniel, don't let Hyun pace around all night, make sure he sleeps."
"What do you take me for, I'll make sure he sleeps," Daniel nodded, starting to eat once everyone had their food.
"Sleep would be good," JongWoon yawned, trying not to nod off over his food. "We've got blankets and stuff to sleep on, right?"
"There's mats too," RyeoWook nodded, glancing at him. "So at least you won't be sleeping on the hard floor." He was eating quietly beside YoungSaeng.
"Realistically... how long you think we're going to be hiding like this?" YoungSaeng asked, looking right at HyunJoong. "We can't stay here forever."
"I know," HyunJoong sighed, glancing at KyuJong with a frown. Of all of them, KyuJong would have the hardest time being in this new place. "We'll give it a week before someone goes to town to hear what's been happening. Then we'll go from there. All we can do right now is wait."
"We'll stay here as long as we need to before it's safe," Daniel said calmly. "Or until it's at least safe enough to move somewhere else if we can't go back to the house right away."
"Does that mean Joon and I are the ones going into town?" JongWoon blinked at them. "Since three of us can't be seen by anyone from NVR."
"... And YoungSaeng," HyunJoong nodded slowly, looking around. Those three were the only ones that Never didn't know of. Everyone else had been in the game when it shut down, or had worked for Never. "We should have enough food for the week though, it just won't be anything spectacular. Unless someone feels like hunting."
"I can try!" JongWoon waved his arm around.
"Don't decapitate yourself," Daniel snorted. "Do we even have anything here for hunting? Or better yet, does anyone know how to clean whatever we would catch?"
"No," RyeoWook shivered, looking slightly alarmed.
"We're computer nerds, not hunters," JungMin rolled his eyes.
"We can fish, there's poles here and fish in the stream," HyunJoong said. "We can do that much I think."
"Let's discuss our food situation in the morning when we aren't all dead on our feet," YoungSaeng sighed, finishing off his plate.
"Sounds good to me," Daniel yawned, pushing his own plate away. "We're going to have to get water from the stream in the morning to wash these, might as well just leave them on the table for now." KyuJong had finished eating, trying not to nod off as he ran his fingers absently along the wooden floor.
"Yeah, I think we could use some sleep," JungMin nodded, glancing down at KyuJong. "You ready for bed?"
"Mhm," KyuJong nodded, tilting his head back towards JungMin with a tired smile. "You'll have to show me where I'm going though."
"Yeah, come on," JungMin kissed the tired smile before he got to his feet and helped KyuJong up. "At least there isn't much on the floor for you to trip over," he said, taking KyuJong by the elbow and guiding him slowly towards the bedroom. "I guess you'll be spending a bit of tomorrow figuring out where everything is and how to get around."
"It'll take more than tomorrow, but yeah," KyuJong nodded. "I'm probably not going to be able to leave the cabin without someone with me though." He carefully tapped his cane against the wall beside them as JungMin leaded him towards the room, making mental calculations on where everything was.
"No worries about that, I don't think anyone is going to let you leave," JungMin said, opening the door for KyuJong when they reached it. He tried not to be intrusive, letting KyuJong figure things out himself. "And if you do want to go outside, promise me it won't be HyungJoon and JongWoon you go with?" he said, keeping his voice low. "I do not want you being stuck out in the woods overnight with the wonder twins."
KyuJong chuckled softly. "They gave up taking me anywhere after we got utterly lost back home. HyunJoong had to drive by and pick us up a few blocks over." He stopped when his cane tapped against something that didn't make the smooth sound of wood, but a more metallic ring. "That's the bed?"
"Yup, that's the bed," JungMin nodded, already starting to get ready for sleep, pulling off his shirt. "It's a lot smaller than the bed back home, unfortunately, so we'll have to cuddle up. Not that I mind that of course."
"Just no kicking me off," KyuJong laughed. He eased closer, finding the corners of the bed before leaning his cane against the wall near the head of the bed, undoing his shirt slowly. "We might be here for a while."
"Yeah, this wasn't exactly thought out that well, but it's not like we had that much time to figure anything better out," JungMin said, kicking off his pants into an out of the way corner and sitting down on the bed. "We can make this place like home tomorrow, get things more organized so you're comfortable."
Nodding, KyuJong placed his shirt and pants down next to his cane so he could locate them tomorrow, straightening. "Repetition will help most, don't worry about me," he smiled a little, stepping towards the bed with one hand out. "How are you coping?"
"I'm trying not to think about it, and put on a brave face for you," JungMin said, taking KyuJong's hand and guiding him closer. "How am I doing?"
"If I could see your face, then I'd say you're doing a great job," KyuJong said, climbing up onto the bed next to JungMin. Once he was situated, he reached up with his free hand and cupped JungMin's face lightly. "But I can hear it in your voice."
"Then I'd say it's working," JungMin smiled, squeezing KyuJong's hand. "How are you doing?"
"It's not something you ever get over, I just find ways to work around it," KyuJong murmured, leaning in to kiss him softly. "You know...you don't have to try to be so strong for me, Min. If it hurts, you don't have to hold it down."
JungMin returned the kiss, his free hand brushing over KyuJong's jaw. "It hasn't hit me quite yet," he admitted. "But I know that it won't help if I'm upset as well, I'm just trying to be there for you, Kyu."
"I know you are, and I appreciate that," KyuJong smiled softly at him, resting his forehead lightly against JungMin's. "But I want to be there for you too...you can't play superman forever."
"I can try," JungMin chuckled, closing his eyes. "Just because I like the cape, it looks dashing."
"You're missing the point," KyuJong pouted a little, before sighing and shifting a little on the bed. "Let's get some sleep, okay? It's going to be dawn soon at this rate." He could hear the others getting ready to do the same.
JungMin sighed, scooting up to lay down and drawing KyuJong into his arms. "I'm not missing the point, I understand. You don't want me holding it all in," he said, pulling the covers up over them. "I'm fine Kyu, I'll let it out when I need to."
Smiling sadly, KyuJong nodded slowly in understanding. "...Okay..." He made himself comfortable, tugging the blanket over them and kissing JungMin's jaw. "Night Min...I love you."
"I love you too, Kyu," JungMin smiled, rolling over on top of KyuJong and attacking him with sloppy kisses on his cheeks and jaw.
Yelping, KyuJong laughed as he tried to fend off the attack half-heartedly. "Min!" The silly attitude brought a proper smile back to his face for the first time in a few days.
"What? You trying to say something?" JungMin asked innocently, dropping more kisses to KyuJong's cheeks. "I can't hear you over that smile."
Chuckling, KyuJong wrapped his arms around JungMin. "Why are you so silly." He tilted his head to catch JungMin's lips in a gentle kiss when the man tried to kiss his cheek again.
"Because I've seen far too many tears today, I just wanted to see your smile," JungMin replied against KyuJong's lips, kissing him again.
Smiling softly, KyuJong ran his fingers through JungMin's hair. "I don't know what I would do without you," he whispered, holding onto the smile even if he felt himself choking up again. "I love you so much..."
"I know," JungMin said, kissing him again before he could cry. "We'll get through this, just keep smiling."
"Okay," KyuJong whispered against JungMin's lips, closing his eyes. "Thank you, Min..." He burrowed himself close to his boyfriend, forgetting about where they were and how long they'd have to stay here in favor of listening to the younger man's heartbeat.
JungMin wrapped both arms around KyuJong's shoulders, holding him tightly and sighing. Getting through this was going to be draining on all of them, but he'd have to be strong for KyuJong, who needed him whether he said anything or not. "Night Kyu."
"Night Min," KyuJong whispered, slowly falling into sleep.
Chapter: 45/50
Pairing: JungMin/KyuJong, HyunJoong/Tablo
Rating: R overall
Warning: AU, violence, angst
Summary: As part of the security detail for the online game known as Never, two officers encounter a group of elite hackers that seem intent on destroying the game, and it's their job to stop them.
A/N: RP with yeonah. Crossover with Super Junior, U-Kiss and Epik High
With everyone out of the house, HyunJoong gave Daniel a tense smile, closing the door and locking it up behind him. "HyungJoon and JongWoon are going to take the car, the rest of us will go in the van," he said following the others to the driveway. "HyungJoon has the directions, I want to limit the amount of times we call each other, and stops, just in case," he said, going tot he passenger door of the van, YoungSaeng and RyeoWook climbing into the back of the van.
Nodding in understanding, KyuJong let JungMin lead him to the van before getting in as well. JongWoon climbed into the car's passenger seat beside HyungJoon, pouting about how he would have driven if his head wasn't trying to turn itself inside out.
Daniel got into the driver's seat of the van, closing the door and waiting for the others to be settled down. "This is going to be a bit of a long ride."
"That's putting it mildly," HyunJoong said, buckling up his seat belt. "I really want to know what's going to happen the next couple of days, but it's safer for us not to touch technology for a while."
"How long do you think we'll have to wait?" JungMin asked, leaning forward a little to talk to the two up front.
"A week, a month? No idea," HyunJoong sighed. "We'll send someone out to gather information if we can, and supplies. Either way, I don't think this is going to blow over in a day or so."
"Definitely not," KyuJong shook his head. "All of Never was going crazy when we left...it's going to take a long while."
"Never will probably be shut down before long," RyeoWook said quietly, one arm wrapped loosely around YoungSaeng as Daniel backed them out of the driveway and put them on the road.
"Either way, we did what we set out to do, it's up to the rest of the world to figure out what to do next," HyunJoong said, leaning back in his seat.
"It's weird... we're done," YoungSaeng murmured quietly. "I honestly never thought about what would happen once we were done. Didn't imagine it would be like this though."
"I don't think anyone imagined it would be like this," Daniel sighed softly, tapping the steering wheel. "Still, it's over, and we could be saving thousands upon thousands of lives. I think that's more than any of us ever expected to do in our lifetimes."
"It's kinda like what I thought it would be when I first signed on with NVR Security," RyeoWook said, looking up at YoungSaeng. "Saving and helping people."
"Well... you did, just not in the way you thought," YoungSaeng said with a small smile, brushing his lips over RyeoWook's forehead. "How long is this ride going to be for Hyun? I may go back to sleep, my headache's coming back."
"Well we're taking a less direct route, so four or five hours," HyunJoong said, glancing behind him. "Kyu, you should sleep too, you were working for hours."
"I guess I will," KyuJong nodded a little, leaning his cane against the van door and slipping his sunglasses off to hang them off his collar where he knew where they were. He leaned against JungMin, closing his eyes. The events of today had been exhausting, it probably wouldn't take him long to fall asleep.
"I'm not sure if there's anything back here to use as a pillow," RyeoWook looked around for something for YoungSaeng.
"I can use your lap," YoungSaeng said, unbuckling his seat belt and laying down, resting his head in RyeoWook's lap. "If that's okay with you anyway."
Blinking with wide eyes, RyeoWook flushed before nodding shyly, running his fingers gently through YoungSaeng's hair. "You going to be okay without your seatbelt on though?"
"Long as Daniel doesn't slam on the brakes or drive like a crazy person, I'll be fine," YoungSaeng said, closing his eyes.
"I think you're mistaking me with HyungJoon," Daniel said in amusement. KyuJong had already fallen asleep by then. The older man glanced at HyunJoong out of the corner of his eyes. "Are you going to fall asleep on me too?"
"No," HyunJoong smirked, though his eyes were closed. "If you need me to take over at any point, just tell me." His eyes opened again when he heard sirens off in the distance. "I'll be able to relax a little when we're out of the city."
"Same here," Daniel sighed. "Most of the chaos should still be in Never, but the city will be pretty-much the same way in an hour or so. It's going to be a long time before we can come back."
"Yeah... but it's for the best," HyunJoong said, looking back at the other four again. "I just worry if we'll ever be able to go back to our lives, what if the police come after us even with Never going down?"
"They won't," JungMin chimed in quietly. "Once Never went international, cyber crimes has been strictly under their jurisdiction. Even if they wanted to, the government wouldn't have any files on you guys or any other hackers out there."
"That is true," Daniel nodded. "And it's unlikely they ever will. Let's just focus on staying out of the way while the world deals with this mess." They were finally on the highway to leave the city, and as usual there were very little cars around. He could see HyungJoon's car in the rearview mirror.
"That is fine by me," HyunJoong nodded, a little relieved at the news as he settled back into his seat. "We lifted the rug, the rest of the world can clean up the mess. Wake me up if you need to take a break Daniel."
"Got it," Daniel nodded, leaning back and focusing on the road. He turned the radio on low to keep himself awake while not disturbing the others.
It took the estimated five hours to reach the cabin in the mountains. For the last half-hour Daniel had to wake HyunJoong up for more precise directions, because he wasn't entirely sure where to go from there.
Many long dirt paths later, they rolled up in front of an old cabin on the side of the mountain. The sound of the motor cutting out snapped KyuJong out of sleep, the blind man blinking repeatedly as he lifted his head off of JungMin's shirt. "We're here?"
"We are," JungMin nodded, rubbing his eyes after having fallen asleep halfway through the trip. The overhead light came on and he was blinded for a brief second.
"Kyu, I want you to stay here until we get the place opened up okay? I don't know what's in there, there could be a bear living in there for all we know," HyunJoong said, hopping out of the van.
"You're joking, right?" RyeoWook winced, trying to peer out into the darkness.
"Never know," Daniel shrugged, getting out of the van.
RyeoWook turned his attention to YoungSaeng, leaning down and kissing him softly to wake him up. "We're here Saeng, you have to wake up now."
YoungSaeng made a soft whining sound at being told to wake up, though his eyes fluttered open. "We're here?" he echoed, rolling onto his back and looking up at RyeoWook.
"Yeah," RyeoWook smiled down at him. "I'm gonna help open up the place, you want to keep Kyu hyung company? You can go back to sleep once we're all inside."
"I think I've slept enough, but I can keep Kyu company," YoungSaeng said, sitting up and rubbing at his eyes. "At least my headache's gone. How are you doing Kyu?" he asked leaning forward to wrap his arms around KyuJong's shoulders from behind.
"Okay," KyuJong said, leaning back against the seat and covering YoungSaeng's hand with his own. "I'm going to have fun tripping over tree roots," he tried a quiet joke. RyeoWook's lips curled a little before he scooted out of the van to help the others.
"We'll make sure you don't trip," YoungSaeng said, resting his chin on KyuJong's shoulder and watching the others through the window. "It's not that bad of a cabin, but I doubt there'll be four rooms for all of us, I think some of us will be sleeping on floors or squeezing into beds. It'll be like camping when we were kids, with your parents."
"Could be fun," KyuJong nodded. "I'll probably feel better about this when the birds are awake and it's not as cold," he chuckled softly, closing his eyes again. "Maybe we could go for nature walks or something."
"That could be fun," YoungSaeng said. "Or you and JungMin could go, have him describe every leaf in horrifying detail for you. I bet this place is gorgeous during the day though, and it's so quiet, kind of forget about technology and computers when you're out in the wild like this."
"It wouldn't be a bad thing," KyuJong shook his head. "And I think I'll save both our sanity by not having him do that. What are they doing outside? Not being chased by a bear I hope?"
YoungSaeng chuckled at that, shaking his head. "No, not being chased by a bear. They wen't inside, I can't see what they're doing. They've got some lamps on looks like. You want to get out and stretch your legs?"
"That would be nice," KyuJong nodded, unbuckling himself. "It's a little disorientating being in the car for so long." He leaned forward and found his cane.
Scooting over to the door, YoungSaeng hopped out first and turned to help KyuJong out. "We're not going far though, I can't see if there's any rocks or anything to trip on, so we'll wait until those with flashlights come back."
"Fine by me," KyuJong said, taking YoungSaeng's hand and climbing out of the van. He breathed in the night air, absently rolling the end of his cane along the ground to see how uneven it was. "Are the stars out?"
Shivering a little at the chilly air, YoungSaeng looked up to peer through the trees overhead. "I think so, but no moon, which would have been nice right about now. It feels like forever since I looked at the stars... the real ones I mean."
"Umma and appa always said they were brighter outside of the city," KyuJong smiled, closing his eyes and tilting his face upward. "I hear water from somewhere," he noted after a moment.
"I don't hear anything," YoungSaeng blinked, looking around. "But I believe you, there must be a stream or something nearby, we can ask Hyun if he knows. Oh, looks like they're coming out."
"Hey you two, we're all ready if you want to head in," HyunJoong said as he came toward them. "We'll get the van unloaded. There's only two beds, so Kyu and JungMin will get one at least, we get to fight over the other."
"We can always rotate," RyeoWook suggested, coming out to get boxes out of the car.
"We'll figure it out once we're unloaded," Daniel sighed, slinging bags over his shoulder. "The fireplace is started Saeng, don't let Kyu trip over the grate," he chuckled. The blind man pouted in his general direction before carefully poking around with his cane for any tree roots.
"I won't let him trip," YoungSaeng said, keeping a firm grip on KyuJong's elbow as they walked slowly over the uneven ground. Upon reaching the door, JungMin was just coming out, smiling at seeing KyuJong.
"Hey you, I'm just going to get our bags and I'll be right back," JungMin said, leaning over to give KyuJong a kiss before stepping around him.
"Okay," KyuJong smiled as JungMin stepped away. He continued with YoungSaeng to the house, cane tapping the bottom of the stairs before he carefully climbed up them. He was nervous, as he always was when going into a new place he didn't know, using his cane to carefully map out what was in front of him. JongWoon scrambled to get out of his way before he tripped over it, plastering himself out of the way until they'd passed before going to get more bags.
Stepping slowly into the house, YoungSaeng let KyuJong figure out where things were by himself, not wanting to distract him from what he needed to do. He looked around, bottom lip pushed out in consideration of the place they'd have to call home for a while. It was nice, what you'd expect a house in the mountains to look like. The floors were wood, with some dusty looking pillows on the floor in lieu of couches. A fire was crackling in the fireplace off at the end of the room, the heat already warding off the night chill.
"Well, this isn't so bad," YoungSaeng murmured, following KyuJong along. There wasn't much of a kitchen, just a table near the fireplace for prepping food. Two doors at the far end were most likely the bedrooms. "Except there's no bathroom, where are we supposed to shower?"
"In the stream," HyunJoong said, coming in behind them with bags. "Or there's a washbasin for sponge baths. Sorry it's not a five star hotel or anything, but we'll have to make do."
"So there is a stream nearby," KyuJong mused, walking around the edge of the room to figure out how large it was.
"This is the last of it," Daniel brought in the last of the bags slung over one shoulder. "We'll unpack in the morning, let's just get out what we need to sleep."
"And the food," JungMin said, closing the door now that everyone was in. "I was starving before the whole mess, and I'm dying to eat now."
YoungSaeng rolled his eyes. "Well the food's going to be a little cold, there's no microwave," he said, letting JungMin take over at KyuJong's side before searching for the food RyeoWook had made before they left. "This won't be much of a dinner."
"It's better than pine cones," HyungJoon muttered, poking through cupboards finding some blankets. "Who's getting the second bedroom?"
"Maybe the two with the head problems should sleep in the bed," HyunJoong suggested, putting up his hands when he got a glare from YoungSaeng. "It was just a thought, don't kill me."
"My head's feeling better now, just a little dizzy," JongWoon said, carefully getting together things from the bags to sleep. "So I guess we can take the floor tonight, Joon?"
"We can rotate out every second night with someone too," KyuJong frowned a little, finding the edge of the fireplace and stepping around it. He made his way back towards them, stopping when his cane tapped Daniel's foot. "To keep it fair."
"We'll figure it out once we've had some sleep," HyunJoong said, stretching his arms out. "YoungSaeng and RyeoWook will take the bed tonight then."
"Works for me," YoungSaeng shrugged, helping to sort out stuff from bags, taking his and RyeoWook's to one of the bedrooms.
RyeoWook followed after him with another bag, waving to the others. "Good night then, hyungdeul." He stepped into the small room after YoungSaeng, looking around in the dim light provided by a gas lamp hanging in the corner. It was a little chilly still, but not that bad. "I've never gone camping before, if it weren't for the circumstances this would be pretty fun."
RyeoWook followed after him with another bag. He stepped into the small room after YoungSaeng, looking around in the dim light provided by a gas lamp hanging in the corner. It was a little chilly still, but not that bad. "I've never gone camping before, if it weren't for the circumstances this would be pretty fun."
"Kyu's parents used to take us almost every year," YoungSaeng said, setting the bag down on the bed. "It could be worse, we could be in tents."
"Point taken," RyeoWook chuckled softly, placing the bag he was carrying down as well. "Cooking's probably going to be simple for a while."
"Yeah, probably just simple stews or dry stores," YoungSaeng nodded, glancing towards the window. "Probably barbeque too, we didn't bring that much in the way of food though, so we'll have to make it last."
The younger man nodded. "We'll be making trips to town every now and then though, right? Who knows how long we're going to be up here."
"Probably longer than we want, but I think we'll have to deal," YoungSaeng said, turning around and stepping closer to RyeoWook to put his arm around the man's waist. "You, JungMin and Daniel probably aren't going to be able to go into town though, they know what you look like."
Shoulders slumping a little, RyeoWook reluctantly nodded again, knowing YoungSaeng was right. "The rest of you have to be careful too though," he said insistently, hugging YoungSaeng back.
"We will, we got this far," YoungSaeng murmured, kissing the side of RyeoWook's head. "You and JungMin were the ones who were investigating us right? And had no idea what we looked like? I doubt they know even now."
"JungMin hyung was working on your file for much longer than me, and he was so frustrated about having never found anything on you," RyeoWook chuckled softly. "No, I doubt they have a single clue who you are." He looked up at YoungSaeng, and leaned over to kiss the corner of his mouth. "Still...better safe than sorry."
"Yes, we'll be very careful," YoungSaeng smiled, returning the kiss. "Let's go eat before they eat it all."
Chuckling and nodded a little, RyeoWook hugged him tightly before stepping back, taking the older man's hand instead as they headed back out to the other room. The others were seated around the table now, passing out the containers of food.
"We can always try holding it over the fire," JongWoon suggested.
"I think the plastic would melt," Daniel said wryly.
"Let's not melt plastic, the fumes would smell disgusting," HyunJoong said, looking through the one cabinet in the place. "There's one metal pan, you could that over the fire I guess."
"Let's do that," Daniel nodded, getting up to get that. "At the very least the food will be warmer than it is now." He took the pan and made sure it was clean before setting about warming up their food.
"It isn't a feast, but it'll taste good at least," YoungSaeng said, sitting down next to KyuJong and pulling RyeoWook into the seat next to him. "It could be a lot worse guys," he said, glancing around at the others.
"It could be," KyuJong said quietly, leaning against JungMin. "But there should be someone else here to complain about the food with us." JongWoon looked down, arms wrapped tightly around HyungJoon.
"I shouldn't have let him go with us,"HyunJoong said, watching the fire. "I should have... done..something."
"It's not your fault, Hyun," YoungSaeng said softly, shaking his head. "It was an accident."
"They murdered him," HyunJoong replied, glancing at YoungSaeng out of the corner of his eye.
"It was murder," Daniel murmured in agreement, sighing softly as he rubbed one hand slowly up and down HyunJoong's back. "SungHyun was aware of the risks, he spoke with me about it more than a few times. And we're not going to let this go unavenged."
"But what more can we do?" JungMin asked, keeping KyuJong close. "If the game closes and the company goes down.... what's left to do?"
"We'll figure something out," HyunJoong shrugged slightly. "At the very least, we'll let everyone know what happened, and that he was another casualty in a very long list."
"We're not even sure if he died though... he still had a pulse when you took him to the clinic right?" HyungJoon asked, trying to sound at least a little hopeful.
"He did," Daniel nodded. "If he managed to log out in time, he could have just been caught by the power surge and knocked out. It's not uncommon to happen. In which case, he's probably awake by now and pissed at being left behind." he watched the flames dance in the fireplace. "But if he didn't log out in time...the pulse wouldn't mean anything. He'd be a vegetable."
"I guess we just hope for the best then," YoungSaeng said, closing his eyes and leaning his head against RyeoWook's.
"Either way, we can't beat ourselves up over it," JungMin said. "It could have happened to any of us, and he wouldn't want us to be upset like this when he knew the risks, and felt what we were doing was important. If it was one of us, we'd feel the same way."
Sniffling a little, KyuJong nodded, turning his face against his boyfriend's shoulder. "No one else is going to die because of this," he whispered.
"Okay, food's warm," Daniel pulled the pan off of the makeshift grill on top of the fireplace after mixing the kimchi friend rice around. He deposited helpings back on each plate, JongWoon passing them out.
"No, no one is," JungMin whispered into KyuJong's ear, kissing the side of his head. Taking a plate for the both of them, he handed KyuJong his chopsticks.
"Let's just eat and get some sleep, it's been a long day," YoungSaeng said, accepting his plate from JongWoon. "Daniel, don't let Hyun pace around all night, make sure he sleeps."
"What do you take me for, I'll make sure he sleeps," Daniel nodded, starting to eat once everyone had their food.
"Sleep would be good," JongWoon yawned, trying not to nod off over his food. "We've got blankets and stuff to sleep on, right?"
"There's mats too," RyeoWook nodded, glancing at him. "So at least you won't be sleeping on the hard floor." He was eating quietly beside YoungSaeng.
"Realistically... how long you think we're going to be hiding like this?" YoungSaeng asked, looking right at HyunJoong. "We can't stay here forever."
"I know," HyunJoong sighed, glancing at KyuJong with a frown. Of all of them, KyuJong would have the hardest time being in this new place. "We'll give it a week before someone goes to town to hear what's been happening. Then we'll go from there. All we can do right now is wait."
"We'll stay here as long as we need to before it's safe," Daniel said calmly. "Or until it's at least safe enough to move somewhere else if we can't go back to the house right away."
"Does that mean Joon and I are the ones going into town?" JongWoon blinked at them. "Since three of us can't be seen by anyone from NVR."
"... And YoungSaeng," HyunJoong nodded slowly, looking around. Those three were the only ones that Never didn't know of. Everyone else had been in the game when it shut down, or had worked for Never. "We should have enough food for the week though, it just won't be anything spectacular. Unless someone feels like hunting."
"I can try!" JongWoon waved his arm around.
"Don't decapitate yourself," Daniel snorted. "Do we even have anything here for hunting? Or better yet, does anyone know how to clean whatever we would catch?"
"No," RyeoWook shivered, looking slightly alarmed.
"We're computer nerds, not hunters," JungMin rolled his eyes.
"We can fish, there's poles here and fish in the stream," HyunJoong said. "We can do that much I think."
"Let's discuss our food situation in the morning when we aren't all dead on our feet," YoungSaeng sighed, finishing off his plate.
"Sounds good to me," Daniel yawned, pushing his own plate away. "We're going to have to get water from the stream in the morning to wash these, might as well just leave them on the table for now." KyuJong had finished eating, trying not to nod off as he ran his fingers absently along the wooden floor.
"Yeah, I think we could use some sleep," JungMin nodded, glancing down at KyuJong. "You ready for bed?"
"Mhm," KyuJong nodded, tilting his head back towards JungMin with a tired smile. "You'll have to show me where I'm going though."
"Yeah, come on," JungMin kissed the tired smile before he got to his feet and helped KyuJong up. "At least there isn't much on the floor for you to trip over," he said, taking KyuJong by the elbow and guiding him slowly towards the bedroom. "I guess you'll be spending a bit of tomorrow figuring out where everything is and how to get around."
"It'll take more than tomorrow, but yeah," KyuJong nodded. "I'm probably not going to be able to leave the cabin without someone with me though." He carefully tapped his cane against the wall beside them as JungMin leaded him towards the room, making mental calculations on where everything was.
"No worries about that, I don't think anyone is going to let you leave," JungMin said, opening the door for KyuJong when they reached it. He tried not to be intrusive, letting KyuJong figure things out himself. "And if you do want to go outside, promise me it won't be HyungJoon and JongWoon you go with?" he said, keeping his voice low. "I do not want you being stuck out in the woods overnight with the wonder twins."
KyuJong chuckled softly. "They gave up taking me anywhere after we got utterly lost back home. HyunJoong had to drive by and pick us up a few blocks over." He stopped when his cane tapped against something that didn't make the smooth sound of wood, but a more metallic ring. "That's the bed?"
"Yup, that's the bed," JungMin nodded, already starting to get ready for sleep, pulling off his shirt. "It's a lot smaller than the bed back home, unfortunately, so we'll have to cuddle up. Not that I mind that of course."
"Just no kicking me off," KyuJong laughed. He eased closer, finding the corners of the bed before leaning his cane against the wall near the head of the bed, undoing his shirt slowly. "We might be here for a while."
"Yeah, this wasn't exactly thought out that well, but it's not like we had that much time to figure anything better out," JungMin said, kicking off his pants into an out of the way corner and sitting down on the bed. "We can make this place like home tomorrow, get things more organized so you're comfortable."
Nodding, KyuJong placed his shirt and pants down next to his cane so he could locate them tomorrow, straightening. "Repetition will help most, don't worry about me," he smiled a little, stepping towards the bed with one hand out. "How are you coping?"
"I'm trying not to think about it, and put on a brave face for you," JungMin said, taking KyuJong's hand and guiding him closer. "How am I doing?"
"If I could see your face, then I'd say you're doing a great job," KyuJong said, climbing up onto the bed next to JungMin. Once he was situated, he reached up with his free hand and cupped JungMin's face lightly. "But I can hear it in your voice."
"Then I'd say it's working," JungMin smiled, squeezing KyuJong's hand. "How are you doing?"
"It's not something you ever get over, I just find ways to work around it," KyuJong murmured, leaning in to kiss him softly. "You know...you don't have to try to be so strong for me, Min. If it hurts, you don't have to hold it down."
JungMin returned the kiss, his free hand brushing over KyuJong's jaw. "It hasn't hit me quite yet," he admitted. "But I know that it won't help if I'm upset as well, I'm just trying to be there for you, Kyu."
"I know you are, and I appreciate that," KyuJong smiled softly at him, resting his forehead lightly against JungMin's. "But I want to be there for you too...you can't play superman forever."
"I can try," JungMin chuckled, closing his eyes. "Just because I like the cape, it looks dashing."
"You're missing the point," KyuJong pouted a little, before sighing and shifting a little on the bed. "Let's get some sleep, okay? It's going to be dawn soon at this rate." He could hear the others getting ready to do the same.
JungMin sighed, scooting up to lay down and drawing KyuJong into his arms. "I'm not missing the point, I understand. You don't want me holding it all in," he said, pulling the covers up over them. "I'm fine Kyu, I'll let it out when I need to."
Smiling sadly, KyuJong nodded slowly in understanding. "...Okay..." He made himself comfortable, tugging the blanket over them and kissing JungMin's jaw. "Night Min...I love you."
"I love you too, Kyu," JungMin smiled, rolling over on top of KyuJong and attacking him with sloppy kisses on his cheeks and jaw.
Yelping, KyuJong laughed as he tried to fend off the attack half-heartedly. "Min!" The silly attitude brought a proper smile back to his face for the first time in a few days.
"What? You trying to say something?" JungMin asked innocently, dropping more kisses to KyuJong's cheeks. "I can't hear you over that smile."
Chuckling, KyuJong wrapped his arms around JungMin. "Why are you so silly." He tilted his head to catch JungMin's lips in a gentle kiss when the man tried to kiss his cheek again.
"Because I've seen far too many tears today, I just wanted to see your smile," JungMin replied against KyuJong's lips, kissing him again.
Smiling softly, KyuJong ran his fingers through JungMin's hair. "I don't know what I would do without you," he whispered, holding onto the smile even if he felt himself choking up again. "I love you so much..."
"I know," JungMin said, kissing him again before he could cry. "We'll get through this, just keep smiling."
"Okay," KyuJong whispered against JungMin's lips, closing his eyes. "Thank you, Min..." He burrowed himself close to his boyfriend, forgetting about where they were and how long they'd have to stay here in favor of listening to the younger man's heartbeat.
JungMin wrapped both arms around KyuJong's shoulders, holding him tightly and sighing. Getting through this was going to be draining on all of them, but he'd have to be strong for KyuJong, who needed him whether he said anything or not. "Night Kyu."
"Night Min," KyuJong whispered, slowly falling into sleep.