Caged (Final)
Title: Caged (Final)
Characters/Pairings: Kyuhyun, Sungmin, eventual!KyuMin, Siwon, Han Geng, Hyukjae, Donghae, eventual!Eunhae
Rating: R
WARNINGS: Implied sex/rape, disturbing situations, physical abuse/torture, language
Genre: au, angst, drama
Summary: It is a world full of dirt, abuse, selfishness and greed. It is an even worse world for a slade. A slade is a type of slave that is trained for a different form of manual labor. In today's terms, a prostitute of sorts. However, slades are purchased permanently and for one master only. Each slade has their own form of training, their own past, their own story. When four slades are forced to accept the idea that there is a world outside of their own, do they dare try to escape? Do they even have enough of their old selves left to be able to?
~~~~~
Kyuhyun backed up as close to the van as he could, his eyes wide as he recognized the person driving the car. He held Sungmin's legs tight as he felt Sungmin tuck his face into his neck to hide. Hyukjae moved to stand behind Hankyung, pulling Donghae with him.
“Who is that?” Donghae asked, peaking from behind Hyukjae's shoulder.
The guards stood frozen, shocked stiff at how quickly the plan had turned sour.
“What the fuck is this?” Iljun screamed as he stepped out of his car. He had headed for his one-night vacation, but just minutes down the road, realized he forgot his cellphone. This was the last thing he had expected to see when he returned to retrieve his phone.
“Jungwoo! What the fuck is this?” Iljun yelled, again, gesturing towards the guards and all the slades. “JUNGWOO!”
“F-Father...” Jungwoo spoke up, moving to stand just slightly in front of Siwon.
“Don't 'father' me! What the fuck is this, Jungwoo?!” Iljun seethed.
“We...We are l-leaving.” Jungwoo struggled out, his eyes to the ground. He was normally not one to back down from his father, but this was a different scenario altogether.
“What makes you think you can even do this?!” Iljun screamed. “My fucking slades, too, Jungwoo?! What gives you the fucking right?!”
Iljun stepped forward quickly, making his way towards Kyuhyun and Sungmin.
Kyuhyun's eyes widen more as he squished Sungmin against the van to stay as far away from Iljun as he could. However, Hankyung swiftly stepped in front of them.
“No.” Hankyung said sternly.
“Excuse me?” Iljun asked with disbelief. “You're my guard. I order you to take them back to their cages!”
“No, Iljun.” Hankyung said, standing his ground well. He didn't even falter when a swift 'SMACK' resounded through the area as Iljun's open palm contacted with his cheek.
“That's 'Master Iljun to you!” Iljun yelled. “Jungwoo, tell me what the hell this is?! You were stealing my slades?”
“Yes...” Jungwoo said, slight timidness was evident in his voice.
“But, Jungwoo, why? After all I've done for you? I raised you by myself and this is how you repay me?” Iljun said as he moved towards Jungwoo.
“All you've done for me?” Jungwoo repeated in disbelief. His courage grew exponentially in a single moment. “What the hell have you ever done for me?!”
“What...?” Iljun mumbled. Clearly, he had a completely different view of Jungwoo's life and his part in it.
“All you've ever done is tortured all of my friends, drove my mother away, and tortured and killed boys my age and younger all my life! You've done nothing for me except disgust me!” Jungwoo yelled, stepping closer to his father. “You are a fucking monster who doesn't deserve a single thing in life! You deserve to rot in hell for everything that you've done!”
“Jungwoo, son, stop this-” Iljun tried.
“DON'T! Don't even say my fucking name! And as for 'son;' I haven't been your son since my mother walked out, since you drove her away! You are so fucking disgusting; you're a monster!!” Jungwoo couldn't even control himself anymore. All of the emotions he had kept within himself were finally surging forward.
“J-Jungwoo...” Iljun said softly as he stepped closer to his son.
“I said, 'DON'T!'” Jungwoo screamed, shoving his father away as he quickly reached for something in his pocket.
“Woah! Jungwoo!” Iljun said as he stepped back, his hands raised, palms out.
“Don't say my fucking name!” Jungwoo screamed, pointing the .22 pistol he had managed to purchase a few days earlier.
“Ju-...Just please, let's relax and go back inside.” Iljun said gently, his eyes never leaving the gun.
“No! I'm not going anywhere with you!” Jungwoo yelled, tears beginning to fall. When had he started crying?
“We can talk about this. Things will change, I promise.” Iljun said.
“'Change?' You can't fucking change! You couldn't change for my mother, why should I believe that you can change now?!”
“We...We can work this out. I'll admit, I didn't try with your mother, and I should have. I should have for you. But now...I will change now, Jungwoo. I will change for you.”
“Stop lying! You will never change! You've never even shown any signs of understanding that everything you do is horrible!” Jungwoo yelled through tears. “He was my friend! My friend, Iljun!”
“W-What?” Iljun asked, scrunching his eyebrows in confusion.
“Jongwoon! Do you remember him? He was my best friend and you ruined him!”
“Jongwoon? I...Jungwoo, I don't know what you're talking about.” Iljun said with genuine curiosity, his eyes still not leaving the gun Jungwoo held steadily pointed at him.
“Jongwoon! The 11 year old boy you forced to have sex with you! The one you used to hold down and tell him to keep quiet!” Jungwoo screamed, more tears pouring down his face at the memories.
The four slades stared on with wide eyes, completely oblivious to everything that was being said. Hankyung did his best to stand in front of all four of the slades, trying to keep them out of the confrontation. Siwon still stood close to Jungwoo, his finger grazing his pocket that held the .22 pistol Jungwoo had given him. He wanted to reach out and comfort his young master, but he was too shocked at the scene that was playing out before him.
Iljun finally removed his gaze from the pistol, chuckling to himself. “Oh, him.”
Jungwoo went stiff. “What did you just say?”
“I said, 'him.'” Iljun answered, pulling his gaze to his son. “You know he asked for it right?”
“What?” Jungwoo asked. “He didn't fucking ask for it, you bastard!”
“Not verbally...but I could tell.” Iljun said, a bite to his words.
“Fuck you.” Jungwoo whispered out.
“Excuse me?” Iljun asked.
“I said fuck you!” Jungwoo yelled as he lunged at Iljun.
Jungwoo tackled his father to the ground. Siwon made to step forward, but Hankyung put his arm in front of him, giving him a look that told him to stay out of it.
“Don't fucking talk about him like that!” Jungwoo yelled as he wrestled with his father on the ground, throwing punches as best he could.
“What? Can you not take the truth, Jungwoo?” Iljun yelled back, trying his best to throw his son off of him.
“You tortured him!” Jungwoo yelled.
“And you think you're any better, Jungwoo!” Iljun yelled, rolling the pair over and grabbing at his son's cheeks.
“I saw your slade. Did he ask to be whipped too?” Iljun seethed, leaning in close to Jungwoo's ear.
Jungwoo's eyes widened for a split second, his pupils dilating, before a loud gun shot rang out, and the pair went still.
Hyukjae turned around quickly to face Donghae, pushing the other against the van and hiding him from whatever possible danger there was.
Kyuhyun dropped to his knees, letting go of Sungmin's legs and turning to face him. He used his body and the van to shield Sungmin.
“What happened?” Sungmin whispered against Kyuhyun's neck, his eyes wide as he shook slightly.
“I don't know, Min.” Kyuhyun whispered into the slade's ear as he held him tight.
“J-Jungwoo?” Siwon asked timidly, stepping closer to the pair still on the ground. He looked to Hankyung who just stared with wide eyes as blood started to spread out from the pair.
“Shit.” Siwon whispered as he, too, noticed the blood. He rushed to the pair, grabbing at Iljun and pulling him off Jungwoo.
There was so much blood, that he couldn't tell who was shot and who wasn't.
“Jungwoo!” Siwon yelled as he fell to his knees and pushed the gun off the younger's stomach. “Jungwoo, look at me!”
Siwon shook Jungwoo's face gently, panic beginning to bubble up from the pit of his stomach. He ignored the blood he accidentally spread on Jungwoo's cheek. His eyes continued to dart back and forth from Jungwoo's closed eyes to the blood covering the front of his shirt.
Siwon let out a loud sigh of relief when Jungwoo's eyes finally opened.
“Is...Is he dead?” Jungwoo mumbled out, trying stiffly to get up from the ground. .
“You're not hurt?” Siwon asked, pressing against the bloody patches on Jungwoo's stomach.
“No...I...I shot him, Siwon. I shot him.”
“He's dead.” Hankyung announced, standing up from beside Iljun's body.
Jungwoo let his body rest against the ground, closing his eyes.
Sungmin shot his head up at Hankyung's words.
“D-Dead?” Sungmin mumbled.
Kyuhyun looked at him with wide eyes. “Sungmin...”
Kyuhyun pulled the elder slade into a tight embrace. He could hear Sungmin sniffling as he felt his own tears well up in his eyes.
“It's over, Min. It's over.” Kyuhyun repeated both for Sungmin and himself.
Hyukjae turned around at Hankyung's words, curious as to what happened. He gasped when he saw Jungwoo covered in blood. He moved to stand up, but crouched back down to be eye level with Donghae.
“Are you alright?” Hyukjae asked, cupping Donghae's cheeks between his hands to make the slade look at him.
Donghae nodded and mumbled a shaky, “I'm fine.”
“I'll be right back, okay.” Hyukjae said. He brushed his thumb against Donghae's cheek once the younger slade nodded.
“J-Jungwoo?” Hyukjae stuttered out when he made it to Jungwoo's side.
Jungwoo opened his eyes to look up at his slade.
“Hyukjae? Is everyone alright?” Jungwoo asked, trying to look at the other slades.
“Everyone's fine. A-Are you o-okay?” Hyukjae asked, motioning to the blood on his shirt.
“Oh, that? I'm fine...it's not mine.”
“OH MY GOD!”
Everyone's attention turned to the front door at the shriek.
“JUNGWOO!” Seri yelled as she ran to the younger's side. She had heard commotion. On her way to see what was going on, she had heard a gun shot and feared the worst. Seeing Jungwoo lying on the ground with a blood soaked shirt confirmed her fears.
“It's okay! It's okay! I'm not hurt!” Jungwoo said quickly when Seri fell to her knees beside him, moving his shirt to see if he was injured.
“You're not hurt?” Seri repeated disbelievingly. “But the blood...I heard a gun shot...”
“It's...It's Iljun. He's dead. I...I killed him.”
Seri gasped, pulling her hands from Jungwoo's stomach. She turned around to look at the other bloody body, a gun shot wound clear on the upper chest.
“Oh my god...” She whispered out, placing her hand to her chest.
“I'm sorry...” Jungwoo said when he saw Seri's response.
“What? D-Don't be sorry...I...He deserved it.” Seri said, turning back to Jungwoo.
“I didn't really intend for it to happen. I had gotten the gun just in case. I never expected to use it.” Jungwoo rushed out, the reality of what he had done was setting in. Yes, he hated his father, and he would stick by that to the end, and yes, Iljun was an evil person who probably did deserve it; but Jungwoo wasn't a violent person. In fact, he prided himself on no being violent, hence he purchased slades to keep safe. He never planned to kill his father, even while they were fighting, he didn't mean to kill him. Iljun had just brought out all of the emotions and memories he had stifled for so long.
“Don't think about that, Jungwoo. Think about them.” Seri said as she pointed to the two crying slades hugging each other. “They are free now because of you.”
Jungwoo turned to see Sungmin wrapped in Kyuhyun's arms, sobbing on his shoulder. He tried to sit up, but Siwon and Seri pushed on his shoulders to keep him down.
“Don't get up, just relax for a minute, I think you may have passed out for a minute.” Siwon said.
“I'm fine.” Jungwoo responded quickly, pushing everyone's hands away. He grunted as he struggled to stand, shoving a persistent Siwon away. “I'm fine.”
Jungwoo moved to beside the two crying slades. He crouched down to be eye level with them.
“Are you okay?” Jungwoo asked as he placed his hand on Sungmin's shoulder.
Sungmin looked up from Kyuhyun's chest and locked eyes with Jungwoo. As quick as he could, he detached himself from Kyuhyun and lunged at Jungwoo, pulling him into a tight hug. He rested his chin against Jungwoo's shoulder as he continued to sob, repeating “Thank you,” over and over again.
“It's okay.” Jungwoo said gently as he patted Sungmin's back. He looked at Kyuhyun who looked almost lonely. Opening his arm to beckon Kyuhyun to him, Jungwoo pulled the other slade into a hug as well. “You're free now.”
~~3 months later~~
Hyukjae stood chest deep in the lake near their new home.
All of the slades, Jungwoo and Seri, and the two guards chose to stay with each other, but to move far far away from Iljun's mansion that held so many painful memories. They moved to another mansion, away from the grimy city. Iljun had had a hefty sum of money in his possession that Jungwoo quickly used to set up a new home for them all-it was the first good thing his father had done for him.
Official papers claimed that Jungwoo still owned Hyukjae and Donghae, and that he had purchased
Sungmin and Donghae when his father died; but they were hidden deep in a drawer in his office where they felt unreal. It had been a protective act-slades with no master were usually taken back to training and resold. If Jungwoo owned them in the eyes of officials, they wouldn't be taken away.
Jungwoo had made it perfectly clear that papers said he owned all four slades, but that by no means will he ever act like it-the are free.
“How are you doing, Donghae?” Hyukjae asked as he watched said slade take another step closer to the middle of the lake, closer to where the water would go above his head.
Donghae nodded, staring wide-eyed at the water below his chin.
“Talk to me, Hae.”
“I'm okay.” Donghae answered, turning to face Hyukjae.
“You'll do fine. You can float in the shallow end and you know how to hold your breath under water. You know what you are doing. Just go for it. I'm right here.” Hyukjae encouraged.
For weeks, the two had spent hours at the lake. At first they had fished; Hyukjae wanted Donghae to finally see what a fish looked like. Donghae quickly announced that a gray, slimy, scaly thing was nothing like what he had imagined. After fishing, Donghae announced that he wanted to learn to swim, something Hyukjae had said he used to love doing before he had been taken. For weeks, Hyukjae taught Donghae how to hold his breath under the water and how to keep himself afloat. Today was the day Donghae was going to go in water over his head and swim on his own.
“I'm nervous...” Donghae said as he took another step forward, causing the water to graze his chin.
“I'm right here, Donghae. Nothing will happen to you while I'm here.”
“Promise?”
“I promise, Hae.” Hyukjae said, giving Donghae's arm a little squeeze before letting go and allowing the slade to take another step-this time, Donghae was standing on his tipy-toes, barely keeping his mouth above the water.
“Just lift your legs, Hae. You'll do great.” Hyukjae encouraged.
Donghae took a breath, staring at the sky. There were a total of three clouds in the whole sky; the sun was bright and the birds were chirping-it was a beautiful day. Donghae closed his eyes and lifted his legs. There was silence.
“Hae?” Hyukjae asked when Donghae wasn't opening his eyes.
“Yeah?” Donghae whined.
“Um...are you alright?” Hyukjae asked. He could see that the other was swimming, well, floating. But the slade's eyes were squeezed shut.
“I'm...I'm okay.”
“Want to look at me?” Hyukjae asked, a bit of a chuckle in his voice.
Donghae peaked his eyes open, eying Hyukjae.
“You're swimming.” Hyukjae announced.
Finally Donghae opened his eyes fully, looking around himself and down to the water below his chin. He could see through the clear water that his arms and legs were kicking out of instinct and keeping him afloat.
“I'm swimming?” Donghae said, disbelievingly.
“You're swimming!” Hyukjae yelled, grabbing Donghae and pulling him to himself so the slade could stand while he pulled him into a hug.
“You did it!” Hyukjae said happily, squeezing Donghae tightly against him.
“I did! I can swim!” Donghae yelled excitedly. He pulled away from Hyukjae slightly, only to have hands on his cheeks pull him back.
He gasped as their lips touched. It wasn't their first kiss, but Donghae never seemed to get used to it. He found it difficult to get used to the feeling of actually enjoying a kiss with someone, rather than doing it because it was expected.
Donghae hugged Hyukjae tighter for a moment before pulling away quickly, exclaiming that he wants to try swimming again, his glossy eyes shinning in the sun, much like his toothy grin.
~
“Come over here, will you? I have a carrot, why won't you come over here?”
“She's sniffing the flowers, Min. Leave her alone.” Kyuhyun sighed, looking away from Sora in a patch of flowers as went through the books he had brought with them to the open park the two slades often went to.
“But I want to pet her.” Sungmin said, tossing the carrot to the side and turning his attention to the books Kyuhyun was laying out. It had taken a few days before Sungmin was able to walk comfortably and on his own, but he eventually got there. His body had grown stronger over the weeks, slowly healing itself. The scars would never go away, a permanent reminder of the hell he had survived, but just a few days ago, the last cut healed completely-they had celebrated with a cake.
“She'll come back over when she is ready. Which one today?” Kyuhyun said when the books were all laid out.
Sungmin hummed before pointing to a book they had begun reading the last time they had come to the park.
“Good choice.” Kyuhyun said with a grin, putting the other books back in the backpack he brought.
Sungmin grabbed the book and opened to the page they left off on. He pushed the book marker off and stared at the page until Kyuhyun was done putting the books away.
“Ready?” Kyuhyun asked, his attention returning to the book in Sungmin's hands.
Sungmin nodded before taking a breath.
“'T-The reason I was s-standing way up on T-...Thomsen Hill, instead of down at t-the game, was because I'd just got back f-from New York with the fen...cing team.'” Sungmin stuttered through the sentence, a smile covering his face as he realized he had improved from the last time. He kept his eyes on the page, concentrating on sounding out the words, ignoring the proud grin claiming Kyuhyun's face.
Two paragraphs later, Sungmin stuttered to an end. It was difficult and took a long time, but he was proud, Kyuhyun was proud.
“How did I do?” Sungmin asked, finally looking up at Kyuhyun.
“You did great!” Kyuhyun exclaimed, clapping his hands a bit. “Better than last time!”
“I know...” Sungmin mumbled and grinned deviously. “I read it before, last night when you weren't looking.”
“...Cheater...” Kyuhyun mumbled, slapping Sungmin knee lightly.
Sungmin continued to smile, letting out a soft chuckle.
Both slades suddenly looked at each other with wide eyes.
“Again?” Sungmin asked, unsure of what happened.
“Again!” Kyuhyun exclaimed. “You laughed, again!”
Kyuhyun moved forward and pulled Sungmin into a hug. He quickly lost his balance and fell to the ground, dragging Sungmin with him.
“Whoops!” Kyuhyun mumbled as Sungmin pulled away to lie next to him.
Sungmin shoved Kyuhyun's shoulder lightly, grinning as he did so.
Kyuhyun stared at Sungmin for a moment, taking in the immense changed that had occurred in the elder slade. He was always smiling, sometimes laughing, and there was something in his eyes Kyuhyun had never seen before-life. It was beautiful, he was beautiful.
“Do you remember when you asked me how I held on to so much hope when we were still slades?” Kyuhyun asked suddenly.
“Yeah?” Sungmin responded, a bit confused because of the complete randomness of the question.
“I had said there are moments that keep me going. You didn't know what I was talking about and...”
“And you said you would tell me the day we got out. It's been months now, Kyu.”
“I know...so I will explain it now. There are moments when you just realize that no matter what situation you're in, life is worth living.”
Sungmin stared with glossy eyes, completely engrossed with every word Kyuhyun spoke.
“This is a moment. When we are outside, together, on such a beautiful day, and you read to me. When you smile without hesitation and you chuckle without knowledge of it...those are all moments. They all make life worth living.”
Sungmin continued to stare. He didn't know what to say. Kyuhyun was being so heartfelt, he could see it in the other's eyes. He didn't know what to say, so he let instincts take over.
Sungmin moved in swiftly, rolling on top of Kyuhyun before placing a gentle, chaste kiss to Kyuhyun's lips.
“Was that a moment.” Kyuhyun asked, looking up at the other.
“Mmhmm.” Sungmin hummed before leaning in for another kiss.
end.
a/n I had thought about writing an epilogue, but I chose to include it in this chapter.
So this is the end...wow... I can't believe it's done. And just think, all of this was because of a twisted dream I had o.0
I hope everyone enjoyed it! To everyone who commented, I loved all of the support, criticism...and grammar/spelling corrections :D To everyone who didn't comment, don't think I don't love you, too, because I do! Thank you EVERYONE who read and enjoyed this! :)
Characters/Pairings: Kyuhyun, Sungmin, eventual!KyuMin, Siwon, Han Geng, Hyukjae, Donghae, eventual!Eunhae
Rating: R
WARNINGS: Implied sex/rape, disturbing situations, physical abuse/torture, language
Genre: au, angst, drama
Summary: It is a world full of dirt, abuse, selfishness and greed. It is an even worse world for a slade. A slade is a type of slave that is trained for a different form of manual labor. In today's terms, a prostitute of sorts. However, slades are purchased permanently and for one master only. Each slade has their own form of training, their own past, their own story. When four slades are forced to accept the idea that there is a world outside of their own, do they dare try to escape? Do they even have enough of their old selves left to be able to?
~~~~~
Kyuhyun backed up as close to the van as he could, his eyes wide as he recognized the person driving the car. He held Sungmin's legs tight as he felt Sungmin tuck his face into his neck to hide. Hyukjae moved to stand behind Hankyung, pulling Donghae with him.
“Who is that?” Donghae asked, peaking from behind Hyukjae's shoulder.
The guards stood frozen, shocked stiff at how quickly the plan had turned sour.
“What the fuck is this?” Iljun screamed as he stepped out of his car. He had headed for his one-night vacation, but just minutes down the road, realized he forgot his cellphone. This was the last thing he had expected to see when he returned to retrieve his phone.
“Jungwoo! What the fuck is this?” Iljun yelled, again, gesturing towards the guards and all the slades. “JUNGWOO!”
“F-Father...” Jungwoo spoke up, moving to stand just slightly in front of Siwon.
“Don't 'father' me! What the fuck is this, Jungwoo?!” Iljun seethed.
“We...We are l-leaving.” Jungwoo struggled out, his eyes to the ground. He was normally not one to back down from his father, but this was a different scenario altogether.
“What makes you think you can even do this?!” Iljun screamed. “My fucking slades, too, Jungwoo?! What gives you the fucking right?!”
Iljun stepped forward quickly, making his way towards Kyuhyun and Sungmin.
Kyuhyun's eyes widen more as he squished Sungmin against the van to stay as far away from Iljun as he could. However, Hankyung swiftly stepped in front of them.
“No.” Hankyung said sternly.
“Excuse me?” Iljun asked with disbelief. “You're my guard. I order you to take them back to their cages!”
“No, Iljun.” Hankyung said, standing his ground well. He didn't even falter when a swift 'SMACK' resounded through the area as Iljun's open palm contacted with his cheek.
“That's 'Master Iljun to you!” Iljun yelled. “Jungwoo, tell me what the hell this is?! You were stealing my slades?”
“Yes...” Jungwoo said, slight timidness was evident in his voice.
“But, Jungwoo, why? After all I've done for you? I raised you by myself and this is how you repay me?” Iljun said as he moved towards Jungwoo.
“All you've done for me?” Jungwoo repeated in disbelief. His courage grew exponentially in a single moment. “What the hell have you ever done for me?!”
“What...?” Iljun mumbled. Clearly, he had a completely different view of Jungwoo's life and his part in it.
“All you've ever done is tortured all of my friends, drove my mother away, and tortured and killed boys my age and younger all my life! You've done nothing for me except disgust me!” Jungwoo yelled, stepping closer to his father. “You are a fucking monster who doesn't deserve a single thing in life! You deserve to rot in hell for everything that you've done!”
“Jungwoo, son, stop this-” Iljun tried.
“DON'T! Don't even say my fucking name! And as for 'son;' I haven't been your son since my mother walked out, since you drove her away! You are so fucking disgusting; you're a monster!!” Jungwoo couldn't even control himself anymore. All of the emotions he had kept within himself were finally surging forward.
“J-Jungwoo...” Iljun said softly as he stepped closer to his son.
“I said, 'DON'T!'” Jungwoo screamed, shoving his father away as he quickly reached for something in his pocket.
“Woah! Jungwoo!” Iljun said as he stepped back, his hands raised, palms out.
“Don't say my fucking name!” Jungwoo screamed, pointing the .22 pistol he had managed to purchase a few days earlier.
“Ju-...Just please, let's relax and go back inside.” Iljun said gently, his eyes never leaving the gun.
“No! I'm not going anywhere with you!” Jungwoo yelled, tears beginning to fall. When had he started crying?
“We can talk about this. Things will change, I promise.” Iljun said.
“'Change?' You can't fucking change! You couldn't change for my mother, why should I believe that you can change now?!”
“We...We can work this out. I'll admit, I didn't try with your mother, and I should have. I should have for you. But now...I will change now, Jungwoo. I will change for you.”
“Stop lying! You will never change! You've never even shown any signs of understanding that everything you do is horrible!” Jungwoo yelled through tears. “He was my friend! My friend, Iljun!”
“W-What?” Iljun asked, scrunching his eyebrows in confusion.
“Jongwoon! Do you remember him? He was my best friend and you ruined him!”
“Jongwoon? I...Jungwoo, I don't know what you're talking about.” Iljun said with genuine curiosity, his eyes still not leaving the gun Jungwoo held steadily pointed at him.
“Jongwoon! The 11 year old boy you forced to have sex with you! The one you used to hold down and tell him to keep quiet!” Jungwoo screamed, more tears pouring down his face at the memories.
The four slades stared on with wide eyes, completely oblivious to everything that was being said. Hankyung did his best to stand in front of all four of the slades, trying to keep them out of the confrontation. Siwon still stood close to Jungwoo, his finger grazing his pocket that held the .22 pistol Jungwoo had given him. He wanted to reach out and comfort his young master, but he was too shocked at the scene that was playing out before him.
Iljun finally removed his gaze from the pistol, chuckling to himself. “Oh, him.”
Jungwoo went stiff. “What did you just say?”
“I said, 'him.'” Iljun answered, pulling his gaze to his son. “You know he asked for it right?”
“What?” Jungwoo asked. “He didn't fucking ask for it, you bastard!”
“Not verbally...but I could tell.” Iljun said, a bite to his words.
“Fuck you.” Jungwoo whispered out.
“Excuse me?” Iljun asked.
“I said fuck you!” Jungwoo yelled as he lunged at Iljun.
Jungwoo tackled his father to the ground. Siwon made to step forward, but Hankyung put his arm in front of him, giving him a look that told him to stay out of it.
“Don't fucking talk about him like that!” Jungwoo yelled as he wrestled with his father on the ground, throwing punches as best he could.
“What? Can you not take the truth, Jungwoo?” Iljun yelled back, trying his best to throw his son off of him.
“You tortured him!” Jungwoo yelled.
“And you think you're any better, Jungwoo!” Iljun yelled, rolling the pair over and grabbing at his son's cheeks.
“I saw your slade. Did he ask to be whipped too?” Iljun seethed, leaning in close to Jungwoo's ear.
Jungwoo's eyes widened for a split second, his pupils dilating, before a loud gun shot rang out, and the pair went still.
Hyukjae turned around quickly to face Donghae, pushing the other against the van and hiding him from whatever possible danger there was.
Kyuhyun dropped to his knees, letting go of Sungmin's legs and turning to face him. He used his body and the van to shield Sungmin.
“What happened?” Sungmin whispered against Kyuhyun's neck, his eyes wide as he shook slightly.
“I don't know, Min.” Kyuhyun whispered into the slade's ear as he held him tight.
“J-Jungwoo?” Siwon asked timidly, stepping closer to the pair still on the ground. He looked to Hankyung who just stared with wide eyes as blood started to spread out from the pair.
“Shit.” Siwon whispered as he, too, noticed the blood. He rushed to the pair, grabbing at Iljun and pulling him off Jungwoo.
There was so much blood, that he couldn't tell who was shot and who wasn't.
“Jungwoo!” Siwon yelled as he fell to his knees and pushed the gun off the younger's stomach. “Jungwoo, look at me!”
Siwon shook Jungwoo's face gently, panic beginning to bubble up from the pit of his stomach. He ignored the blood he accidentally spread on Jungwoo's cheek. His eyes continued to dart back and forth from Jungwoo's closed eyes to the blood covering the front of his shirt.
Siwon let out a loud sigh of relief when Jungwoo's eyes finally opened.
“Is...Is he dead?” Jungwoo mumbled out, trying stiffly to get up from the ground. .
“You're not hurt?” Siwon asked, pressing against the bloody patches on Jungwoo's stomach.
“No...I...I shot him, Siwon. I shot him.”
“He's dead.” Hankyung announced, standing up from beside Iljun's body.
Jungwoo let his body rest against the ground, closing his eyes.
Sungmin shot his head up at Hankyung's words.
“D-Dead?” Sungmin mumbled.
Kyuhyun looked at him with wide eyes. “Sungmin...”
Kyuhyun pulled the elder slade into a tight embrace. He could hear Sungmin sniffling as he felt his own tears well up in his eyes.
“It's over, Min. It's over.” Kyuhyun repeated both for Sungmin and himself.
Hyukjae turned around at Hankyung's words, curious as to what happened. He gasped when he saw Jungwoo covered in blood. He moved to stand up, but crouched back down to be eye level with Donghae.
“Are you alright?” Hyukjae asked, cupping Donghae's cheeks between his hands to make the slade look at him.
Donghae nodded and mumbled a shaky, “I'm fine.”
“I'll be right back, okay.” Hyukjae said. He brushed his thumb against Donghae's cheek once the younger slade nodded.
“J-Jungwoo?” Hyukjae stuttered out when he made it to Jungwoo's side.
Jungwoo opened his eyes to look up at his slade.
“Hyukjae? Is everyone alright?” Jungwoo asked, trying to look at the other slades.
“Everyone's fine. A-Are you o-okay?” Hyukjae asked, motioning to the blood on his shirt.
“Oh, that? I'm fine...it's not mine.”
“OH MY GOD!”
Everyone's attention turned to the front door at the shriek.
“JUNGWOO!” Seri yelled as she ran to the younger's side. She had heard commotion. On her way to see what was going on, she had heard a gun shot and feared the worst. Seeing Jungwoo lying on the ground with a blood soaked shirt confirmed her fears.
“It's okay! It's okay! I'm not hurt!” Jungwoo said quickly when Seri fell to her knees beside him, moving his shirt to see if he was injured.
“You're not hurt?” Seri repeated disbelievingly. “But the blood...I heard a gun shot...”
“It's...It's Iljun. He's dead. I...I killed him.”
Seri gasped, pulling her hands from Jungwoo's stomach. She turned around to look at the other bloody body, a gun shot wound clear on the upper chest.
“Oh my god...” She whispered out, placing her hand to her chest.
“I'm sorry...” Jungwoo said when he saw Seri's response.
“What? D-Don't be sorry...I...He deserved it.” Seri said, turning back to Jungwoo.
“I didn't really intend for it to happen. I had gotten the gun just in case. I never expected to use it.” Jungwoo rushed out, the reality of what he had done was setting in. Yes, he hated his father, and he would stick by that to the end, and yes, Iljun was an evil person who probably did deserve it; but Jungwoo wasn't a violent person. In fact, he prided himself on no being violent, hence he purchased slades to keep safe. He never planned to kill his father, even while they were fighting, he didn't mean to kill him. Iljun had just brought out all of the emotions and memories he had stifled for so long.
“Don't think about that, Jungwoo. Think about them.” Seri said as she pointed to the two crying slades hugging each other. “They are free now because of you.”
Jungwoo turned to see Sungmin wrapped in Kyuhyun's arms, sobbing on his shoulder. He tried to sit up, but Siwon and Seri pushed on his shoulders to keep him down.
“Don't get up, just relax for a minute, I think you may have passed out for a minute.” Siwon said.
“I'm fine.” Jungwoo responded quickly, pushing everyone's hands away. He grunted as he struggled to stand, shoving a persistent Siwon away. “I'm fine.”
Jungwoo moved to beside the two crying slades. He crouched down to be eye level with them.
“Are you okay?” Jungwoo asked as he placed his hand on Sungmin's shoulder.
Sungmin looked up from Kyuhyun's chest and locked eyes with Jungwoo. As quick as he could, he detached himself from Kyuhyun and lunged at Jungwoo, pulling him into a tight hug. He rested his chin against Jungwoo's shoulder as he continued to sob, repeating “Thank you,” over and over again.
“It's okay.” Jungwoo said gently as he patted Sungmin's back. He looked at Kyuhyun who looked almost lonely. Opening his arm to beckon Kyuhyun to him, Jungwoo pulled the other slade into a hug as well. “You're free now.”
~~3 months later~~
Hyukjae stood chest deep in the lake near their new home.
All of the slades, Jungwoo and Seri, and the two guards chose to stay with each other, but to move far far away from Iljun's mansion that held so many painful memories. They moved to another mansion, away from the grimy city. Iljun had had a hefty sum of money in his possession that Jungwoo quickly used to set up a new home for them all-it was the first good thing his father had done for him.
Official papers claimed that Jungwoo still owned Hyukjae and Donghae, and that he had purchased
Sungmin and Donghae when his father died; but they were hidden deep in a drawer in his office where they felt unreal. It had been a protective act-slades with no master were usually taken back to training and resold. If Jungwoo owned them in the eyes of officials, they wouldn't be taken away.
Jungwoo had made it perfectly clear that papers said he owned all four slades, but that by no means will he ever act like it-the are free.
“How are you doing, Donghae?” Hyukjae asked as he watched said slade take another step closer to the middle of the lake, closer to where the water would go above his head.
Donghae nodded, staring wide-eyed at the water below his chin.
“Talk to me, Hae.”
“I'm okay.” Donghae answered, turning to face Hyukjae.
“You'll do fine. You can float in the shallow end and you know how to hold your breath under water. You know what you are doing. Just go for it. I'm right here.” Hyukjae encouraged.
For weeks, the two had spent hours at the lake. At first they had fished; Hyukjae wanted Donghae to finally see what a fish looked like. Donghae quickly announced that a gray, slimy, scaly thing was nothing like what he had imagined. After fishing, Donghae announced that he wanted to learn to swim, something Hyukjae had said he used to love doing before he had been taken. For weeks, Hyukjae taught Donghae how to hold his breath under the water and how to keep himself afloat. Today was the day Donghae was going to go in water over his head and swim on his own.
“I'm nervous...” Donghae said as he took another step forward, causing the water to graze his chin.
“I'm right here, Donghae. Nothing will happen to you while I'm here.”
“Promise?”
“I promise, Hae.” Hyukjae said, giving Donghae's arm a little squeeze before letting go and allowing the slade to take another step-this time, Donghae was standing on his tipy-toes, barely keeping his mouth above the water.
“Just lift your legs, Hae. You'll do great.” Hyukjae encouraged.
Donghae took a breath, staring at the sky. There were a total of three clouds in the whole sky; the sun was bright and the birds were chirping-it was a beautiful day. Donghae closed his eyes and lifted his legs. There was silence.
“Hae?” Hyukjae asked when Donghae wasn't opening his eyes.
“Yeah?” Donghae whined.
“Um...are you alright?” Hyukjae asked. He could see that the other was swimming, well, floating. But the slade's eyes were squeezed shut.
“I'm...I'm okay.”
“Want to look at me?” Hyukjae asked, a bit of a chuckle in his voice.
Donghae peaked his eyes open, eying Hyukjae.
“You're swimming.” Hyukjae announced.
Finally Donghae opened his eyes fully, looking around himself and down to the water below his chin. He could see through the clear water that his arms and legs were kicking out of instinct and keeping him afloat.
“I'm swimming?” Donghae said, disbelievingly.
“You're swimming!” Hyukjae yelled, grabbing Donghae and pulling him to himself so the slade could stand while he pulled him into a hug.
“You did it!” Hyukjae said happily, squeezing Donghae tightly against him.
“I did! I can swim!” Donghae yelled excitedly. He pulled away from Hyukjae slightly, only to have hands on his cheeks pull him back.
He gasped as their lips touched. It wasn't their first kiss, but Donghae never seemed to get used to it. He found it difficult to get used to the feeling of actually enjoying a kiss with someone, rather than doing it because it was expected.
Donghae hugged Hyukjae tighter for a moment before pulling away quickly, exclaiming that he wants to try swimming again, his glossy eyes shinning in the sun, much like his toothy grin.
~
“Come over here, will you? I have a carrot, why won't you come over here?”
“She's sniffing the flowers, Min. Leave her alone.” Kyuhyun sighed, looking away from Sora in a patch of flowers as went through the books he had brought with them to the open park the two slades often went to.
“But I want to pet her.” Sungmin said, tossing the carrot to the side and turning his attention to the books Kyuhyun was laying out. It had taken a few days before Sungmin was able to walk comfortably and on his own, but he eventually got there. His body had grown stronger over the weeks, slowly healing itself. The scars would never go away, a permanent reminder of the hell he had survived, but just a few days ago, the last cut healed completely-they had celebrated with a cake.
“She'll come back over when she is ready. Which one today?” Kyuhyun said when the books were all laid out.
Sungmin hummed before pointing to a book they had begun reading the last time they had come to the park.
“Good choice.” Kyuhyun said with a grin, putting the other books back in the backpack he brought.
Sungmin grabbed the book and opened to the page they left off on. He pushed the book marker off and stared at the page until Kyuhyun was done putting the books away.
“Ready?” Kyuhyun asked, his attention returning to the book in Sungmin's hands.
Sungmin nodded before taking a breath.
“'T-The reason I was s-standing way up on T-...Thomsen Hill, instead of down at t-the game, was because I'd just got back f-from New York with the fen...cing team.'” Sungmin stuttered through the sentence, a smile covering his face as he realized he had improved from the last time. He kept his eyes on the page, concentrating on sounding out the words, ignoring the proud grin claiming Kyuhyun's face.
Two paragraphs later, Sungmin stuttered to an end. It was difficult and took a long time, but he was proud, Kyuhyun was proud.
“How did I do?” Sungmin asked, finally looking up at Kyuhyun.
“You did great!” Kyuhyun exclaimed, clapping his hands a bit. “Better than last time!”
“I know...” Sungmin mumbled and grinned deviously. “I read it before, last night when you weren't looking.”
“...Cheater...” Kyuhyun mumbled, slapping Sungmin knee lightly.
Sungmin continued to smile, letting out a soft chuckle.
Both slades suddenly looked at each other with wide eyes.
“Again?” Sungmin asked, unsure of what happened.
“Again!” Kyuhyun exclaimed. “You laughed, again!”
Kyuhyun moved forward and pulled Sungmin into a hug. He quickly lost his balance and fell to the ground, dragging Sungmin with him.
“Whoops!” Kyuhyun mumbled as Sungmin pulled away to lie next to him.
Sungmin shoved Kyuhyun's shoulder lightly, grinning as he did so.
Kyuhyun stared at Sungmin for a moment, taking in the immense changed that had occurred in the elder slade. He was always smiling, sometimes laughing, and there was something in his eyes Kyuhyun had never seen before-life. It was beautiful, he was beautiful.
“Do you remember when you asked me how I held on to so much hope when we were still slades?” Kyuhyun asked suddenly.
“Yeah?” Sungmin responded, a bit confused because of the complete randomness of the question.
“I had said there are moments that keep me going. You didn't know what I was talking about and...”
“And you said you would tell me the day we got out. It's been months now, Kyu.”
“I know...so I will explain it now. There are moments when you just realize that no matter what situation you're in, life is worth living.”
Sungmin stared with glossy eyes, completely engrossed with every word Kyuhyun spoke.
“This is a moment. When we are outside, together, on such a beautiful day, and you read to me. When you smile without hesitation and you chuckle without knowledge of it...those are all moments. They all make life worth living.”
Sungmin continued to stare. He didn't know what to say. Kyuhyun was being so heartfelt, he could see it in the other's eyes. He didn't know what to say, so he let instincts take over.
Sungmin moved in swiftly, rolling on top of Kyuhyun before placing a gentle, chaste kiss to Kyuhyun's lips.
“Was that a moment.” Kyuhyun asked, looking up at the other.
“Mmhmm.” Sungmin hummed before leaning in for another kiss.
end.
a/n I had thought about writing an epilogue, but I chose to include it in this chapter.
So this is the end...wow... I can't believe it's done. And just think, all of this was because of a twisted dream I had o.0
I hope everyone enjoyed it! To everyone who commented, I loved all of the support, criticism...and grammar/spelling corrections :D To everyone who didn't comment, don't think I don't love you, too, because I do! Thank you EVERYONE who read and enjoyed this! :)