exo: color theory
Color Theory
- Kai/Lu Han, Kai/D.O., among many others. PG-13. 7764 words.
- On Jongin's to-do list, three things are listed as important: to pursue his company's promise of being a venue for freedom of expression through their color deals, to fight off stiff competition and rival "Technocolor", and to save the world.
- WARNING: Character death
- Inspired by Jasper Fforde's "Shades of Grey" (Not to be confused with E.L. James' "Fifty Shades of Grey") and IAMX's "The Great Shipwreck of Life" || Original @ seoulfulness || Notes, among other things
- OMG IT'S FINALLY OVER! To the usual suspects, R and J, thank you so much for bearing with me. To L, the brainstorming session over GDocs definitely helped. I cannot thank you enough! ♥
They are each given exactly a hundred and fifty color cycles go through, exactly a hundred and fifty years credited to their lives. Those born to rich families are given the opportunity to buy more color cycles, and those unfortunate enough to live in the streets have to make do with what they have. Years back, vibrant colors have seen better days, but this is the day and age of pastels - the duller the shade, the better. The lighter your color is, the more opportunities you'll be presented with and get.
Everything can be bought with colors - half an ounce for bread, another half for coffee, a full course meal plus refill for drinks for two ounces and a half. A normal human spends at least twenty ounces of color a day, one million and ninety-five thousand ounces of color in his entire life.
But no one's normal, not anymore.
i. Kim Jongin is born to a family of primaries. Half the time, he regrets having to live up to the dictates of society as a primary; half the time, he doesn't really care. His state of mind has brought him far, though, earning him top honors throughout his academic days and securing his family's company the top spot in the industry.
Hence, the speech he is delivering in front of this huge crowd pooled in the entrance of the building.
"Everybody wants to be a different color now. Tertiaries are climbing up the ladder. Secondaries are pushing boundaries, fighting their way to being primaries. Everybody wants to be different." Jongin clears his throat before continuing. The many eyes fixed on him are unsettling. "We give people the freedom of choice, the chance to be who they want to be. We at Kim Color Connections breathe a new life into the one hundred fifty color cycles we are given at birth."
Jongin watches as everyone erupts into applause, affirmative nods and smiles being exchanged left and right. He smiles to himself and thinks, maybe living according to society's dictates isn't so bad, after all.
Maybe being the only one different from those who are different isn't bad at all.
ii. "Last I heard, we were selling colors, not freedom of choice."
Jongin laughs. Trust Do Kyungsoo to show up unannounced and uninvited in his office, a cup of coffee in one hand and a handful of retorts in the other. "I mean, really, we're giving people the chance to be who they want to be? Didn't we get called out for this before? What did they say about that- Ah, misleading advertising, fondly called "shady shit" by our detractors. Does that ring a bell?"
"Cleared with the ad board," Jongin replies, crisp and concise. He grabs the cup from Kyungsoo and gives the latter a small smile before sinking into his seat. "The claim papers had your signature; I assumed you knew about this already."
Kyungsoo narrows his eyes, and Jongin smiles a little at the realization. "Oh, you did not forge my signature, Kim Jongin. You did not-"
Kyungsoo is halfway through strangling Jongin when someone emerges from the door decked in crudely worn formal attire, with a stumbling Sehun trailing him. "I'm sorry, Jongin. I tried to stop him," Sehun reasons, and Jongin puts down his coffee when the intruder walks to Jongin's table, extends his hand and says, "Good afternoon, Mr. Kim. I'm Kim Jongdae, and I'm here to let you know that your company is in trouble."
"Competition, you mean," Kyungsoo corrects. "We've got competition."
There's a look of amusement in Jongdae's features, and even with the good distance between him and Jongin, it comes off as strangely invasive, as if Jongdae is trying to sneak into his brain and implant an idea, a concept that will shake him and rile him up. "No one has ever dared to compete with Kim Color, I'm sure you know that," Jongin comments, then furrows his eyebrows. "Why now?"
"We've discovered a new way of extracting and recycling colors, that's one. We thought it would be a waste to let someone else have that knowledge, that technology." Jongdae pauses for a while, a question at the curve of his lips. "Besides, everybody wants to be different now, Mr. Kim. I'm sure you know that. So, why not now? Why not?"
iii. Media breaks with the news of Kim Color's competition the following day. Jongin does his best to stay away from interviewers and prying questions, giving the media the practiced corporate smile and the standard, "I will not be taking questions. Please wait for our press conference. We'll keep you posted." Kyungsoo takes care of pacifying the board of directors, and Sehun does his best to keep calls from networks from bypassing the secretarial line and going straight to Jongin's line.
"So, when are we doing the press conference?"
"When are they doing their launch?"
Kyungsoo runs his index finger through the calendar. "Tuesday, week after next."
"Awesome. We'll do it the Wednesday after that."
"Flawless pick," Kyungsoo comments, then gives Jongin a pat on the back. "Finish your paperwork early and I'll take you out for dinner. You've been working harder than usual."
Jongin lets a playful smile surface on his lips and pulls Kyungsoo by the necktie. Kyungsoo's used to this by now, when they toe the line between co-workers, friends, and more, so Jongin tugs some more, their lips barely an inch apart. "Aren't you proud of me, Kyungsoo?"
Kyungsoo shakes his head, and Jongin grins because he knows he's won this game. Kyungsoo punctuates the conversation with a kiss on Jongin's forehead and a promise of a nice meal in a few hours.
"Very proud, indeed."
Technocolor's grand launch takes place in the Palace of Neutrals, which means Jongdae is working with the government who Jongin and Kim Color have had one too many arguments with, which essentially means that Kim Color is in trouble. The logic of the government working with a company that goes against the set rule of having a hundred and fifty color cycles - the second and possibly most important article in the Hex Code - escapes Jongin, though, so he quietly calls out during Jongdae's opening address, "Alert the press: the government's advocating shady shit!"
"Shady as fuck," Kyungsoo comments, and takes two glasses of wine from the server passing by. If anything goes wrong, they can always choke it up to being drunk, irresponsible adolescents. "I bet you he's sleeping with the Chief of Neutrals."
Jongin scoffs. Jongdae's arm is around Yixing's shoulder and, from where Jongin is, Yixing looks as if he's having the time of his life. "Zhang Yixing doesn't sleep with shady people." He takes a sip of the wine - no, more like a gulp - and lets it burn in his throat. "Not his type."
"Oh you'd know, wouldn't you?"
Jongin raises an eyebrow, and Kyungsoo circles his arm around Jongin's shoulder, pulling the latter close. They watch Jongdae waltz across the stage, shaking people's hands, fingers lingering a bit too long when Yixing walks up to him. Jongin bites back every ounce of fury, possibly even envy, at the way Jongdae interacts with the members of the government, at the way he's easily gained their trust, at Jongdae's effortless grace and charm.
Even at the way Yixing puts an arm around Jongdae's shoulder to pull him close, the way Kyungsoo's arms are around Jongin right now.
An event is not an event without an assassination attempt at Jongin. He's lived through each and every one for the past years and everyone in his tightly-knit inner circle has survived them all but, this time, Sehun comes out scathed, taking a shot to the abdomen, then to the heart, in an attempt to shield Jongin from the blow.
"You're my secretary, not my bodyguard! Jesus- Someone get an ambulance!"
Sehun doesn't make it, not after losing too much blood and hue and taking a bullet to his chest. Jongin doesn't cry when the doctors declare him dead, doesn't even look over his shoulder when they ask him about Sehun's relatives or, "Anyone, anyone at all that we can contact?"
"His parents are dead. His relatives have gone underground. He has no family here. I'm his only family.
"Melt him down, keep his hues in an urn, anything I can take to my office. I'll keep him there. Home."
Kyungsoo arranges to look for a replacement for Sehun. "You're crazy. You won't find a good enough replacement so easily," Jongin reasons out, lips pressed tight in an attempt to argue no more. Kyungsoo means well, he knows this, but he allows himself to have a few moments of irrationality and surrender when Kyungsoo secures his palms flat on Jongin's shoulder, punctuating the gesture with a squeeze of the arm.
"You just need someone to get you through the next few weeks without throwing things at the media or the government. Or at Jongdae, for that matter."
"Ah, a contractual employee. I need someone who can make coffee like Sehun does, not a straitjacket to keep me from hitting people."
Kyungsoo laughs a little. "No, that's my job."
Jongin lets his shoulders falter and fall, the dissatisfied exhale loud enough for the two of them to hear. He gives Kyungsoo a light nod, a go signal that says, "Do whatever you think is best," or maybe, "I can't be bothered to argue with you anymore." There is no Sehun to alert him of any people barging into his room, no Sehun to tell off unwanted people, but he lets Kyungsoo wraps his arms around him, anyway.
He looks at Sehun's urn resting comfortably on top of his shelf. Sehun's hues stain the outside of the container with a nice, soft yellow.
iv. Technocolor comes out with a set of commercials advertising a color sale towards the end of the month, and Kyungsoo releases a set of resumes, a neat pile on top of the dump of papers on Jongin's desk.
"How many applicants are there exactly?"
"Just enough to get you through the afternoon, if you don't pry into their private lives too much." Kyungsoo sets a cup of coffee on Jongin's desk, along with a few pastries. "Should last you a few hours. The first interviewee's outside. Get ready."
There's Hyunjun, Junsu, Gunwoo and Woojin, Jun, He Peng and Liang, but Jongin sets his eyes on a boy named Lu Han. He's not much shorter than Jongin is, and places his palms secure on his knees, as if preventing himself from making any unnecessary movements. There's always a peculiar smile on the curve of his lips, and a hollow look in his eyes that tells Jongin there's something more to this boy than meets the eye.
"You say you have experience as a color grader in Castel. Why are you applying for a desk job, then?"
Lu Han laughs a little. The upward curve stretches into a wry smile. "Being a color grader isn't exactly the "cleanest" job out there, I'm sure you know that, sir. And, well, I figured I could use a change of environment."
"You'd be better off in the labs than here. I could put in a good word for you down there. Your credentials are amazing."
Lu Han smiles, tight-lipped and brief. "I'll pass up on that, but thank you."
Two hours and a bunch of pastries after, Jongin goes to Kyungsoo's office to introduce the his new secretary. "Just thought you should know that it took me faster than expected to go through the applications," he quips before leaving, and Kyungsoo just waves him off. He takes Lu Han through Sehun's usual routine and gives specific instructions on how to make his coffee, and Lu Han takes everything in, the same tight-lipped smile still on his lips, the hollow look in his eyes now replaced with wonder.
"I'll see you early tomorrow," Jongin says, and Lu Han gives him a curt bow.
"I won't disappoint, sir."
"I see you've got a new kid."
Jongin swivels in his chair at the sound of Joonmyun's voice, teasing and taunting as always. "A new secretary, you mean. He's just a reliever." Jongin makes some space on his desk for the papers in Joonmyun's hands; documents that are not for his signature are always welcome in his office. "If he does well at his job then I might consider signing him up for a permanent post."
"Say whatever you want; we all know you had something going on for Sehun."
"Joonmyun."
"Anyway, I've got some news for you." Joonmyun lays down a couple of folders on Jongin's table and settles on the seat opposite Jongin's, taking one of the candies from Jongin's stash. "I'd be more careful with candies from now on."
"If this is about my lack of control when it comes to sweets, then let me tell you: we are not having this conversation again."
"No, I mean-" Joonmyun rummages through the files and shoves a paper in Jongin's direction. "I remember you telling me that this Jongdae person told you about them discovering something new, something that will change the color dealing industry. I've done some research and I've found a case involving some illegal color dealing."
"I hope this involves Jongdae."
"Well, not really." Joonmyun arranges the files in neat piles, revealing color-coded folders labelled accordingly. "Now, I'm sure you know the usual process. People pay for things in colors by having a certain amount of color extracted from them using this color patch since, well, they can't go around carrying injections and whatnot everywhere and color graders are usually not employed by retailers. Retailers send these color extracts to us for recycling, and we hold huge color sales every year and the regular color sales every other month, but limit the amount of purchase per person to forty six thousand ounces."
Jongin leans closer and carefully examines the candy wrapper. The inscription is faded and he can barely make out the color facts; it must have been tampered with, considering that this batch of candies should be only a day old. "Okay, go on."
"Now, we're very transparent about how we do these color sales. We inject colors into people's veins and that's about it. We have graders to do that. The process has been approved by the Color Dosage Authority. These illegal color dealers don't, well, do that. They supply people with pills. Color pills."
"And they're illegal because?"
"They're illegal because they give twice as much hues to people, essentially extending their lives twice as much as a normal dose of hue should." Joonmyun pauses for a while, then takes a deep breath. "With a few side effects, of course.
"Sometimes, the pigment in the hues eat up existing color cycles and essentially cut people's lives by half."
Technocolor's color sale is a success. Over a million ounces of color are sold, and people leave the facility with smiles on their faces and patches of color on their arms. Kyungsoo's text message comes in, reading, "They didn't let the media in. Shouldn't have put any effort in my get up." And then, much later, "The people here look high. Windows are covered. Can't see a thing."
"Suspicious," Jongin mumbles, and types a quick reply to Kyungsoo. And it is true - the media is broadcasting nothing but the opening ceremonies, and the windows are heavily tinted. "Very suspicious."
"Your 3 p.m. coffee, sir, just the way you want it."
Jongin is quick to swivel in his chair and offer a small smile to Lu Han. Two weeks into Lu Han's employment has yielded good results thus far - he makes good coffee, replenishes Jongin's candy stash every five days ("Exactly five days, no more, no less. And make sure to buy new candies every Tuesday. That's when the new stock comes in."), has great attention to detail and has enough backbone to remind Jongin of the many pending papers for signing, all conveniently piled on his desk.
"You have to get to working on these soon, sir. I've got another set of papers waiting for your signature and, if you don't get started on these, you won't be able to see the light of the day from behind your desk."
Jongin laughs a little, takes a sip of coffee, and quickly goes through the document in front of him. "Jongin," he says, then signs at the bottom of the document before handing it to Lu Han. "Please, call me Jongin."
Lu Han switches between furrowing his eyebrows and narrowing his eyes, and this elicits laughter, albeit abruptly suppressed, from Jongin. "I don't know, it just makes me uncomfortable that everyone here calls me "Jongin" and you call me "sir" every chance you get."
"But you're my boss."
"I'm also Kyungsoo and Joonmyun's boss, but they call me by first name."
Lu Han chuckles. "But they're your friends."
Jongin nods in approval. "Point taken. It's settled, then: we'll be friends."
There's something about Lu Han that makes it so easy for people to be comfortable with him, and that has convinced Jongin to make that decisive pick. It might be Lu Han's easy confidence and overall pleasing personality, or the way he smiles and beams at people as if he's not swamped with Jongin's paperwork. It might be the way his eyes crinkle when he smiles or whenever Jongin commends him for a great brew. It might even be Lu Han's rather peculiar shade of yellow, one he shares with Sehun.
v. Jongin's idea of befriending people is unconventional. Going through paperwork isn't exactly the best way of getting to know someone more, even with his attempts at throwing questions like, "So, what are your interests?" and "What do you do when you're not working your ass off here?" Lu Han just laughs because there are still too many papers to go through, and because Jongin isn't getting anywhere with the inquisition.
"Dancing. I like dancing," Lu Han says after a while. "I also sing from time to time."
"Wow, a dancing and singing color grader." Jongin pauses and signs a few papers, then hands them to Lu Han for filing. "You've got a lot of tricks up your sleeve, doctor."
"Well, I've got more."
Jongin looks up from the papers and smiles when he sees that teasing glint in Lu Han's eyes. "Oh, do tell."
Jongin brings Lu Han to one of the empty floors from time to time, when work gets too overwhelming and he has to escape. They run through a routine they come up with spontaneously, setting the timing to a song they mutually agree on. Sometimes, they dance for a few minutes; sometimes, they stay there for hours. In those minutes that Jongin shares with Lu Han, doing the same routine, dancing to the same song, he feels a strange kind of connection that he hasn't felt in a while.
"I used to bring Sehun here," Jongin begins, eyes wandering. "We'd dance for a few minutes, until the drowsiness wears off and, when we surface, he'd make coffee and he'd point out the steps I missed, and I'd do the same for him."
Lu Han scoots closer, then pulls his knees close to his chest. "He wasn't just your secretary, was he?"
Jongin chuckles. He doesn't answer and, instead, places his arms on either side of Lu Han, trapping the latter. Sehun is his childhood friend, his best friend, his partner in crime. Sehun is the person who saved him from that bad parting of ways with Zhang Yixing back in high school, and the one who introduced him to Kyungsoo and Joonmyun, some of the greatest friends he'll ever have. Sehun is his sanity, the only person who can come up with the perfect coffee. Sehun is one of the reasons why he's still in one piece.
Jongin presses his lips on Lu Han's lightly, almost tentatively, and probes when Lu Han parts his lips.
Oh Sehun is dead.
Lu Han casually mentions Jongdae one time. They're camped out in the empty floor again, but this time Jongin brings his paperwork, reasoning out, "I can work in the dark better." Kyungsoo doesn't prod further only because he has neither energy nor time to argue with Jongin, and partly because Lu Han promises to look over Jongin and make sure that the latter will get things done.
"Ah, Kim Jongdae." Lu Han chuckles. He bites the inside of his cheek. "We were in the same basic grading class back in med school. He had a thing for color separation."
"Color surgery, huh. I bet he's had many transplants already."
Lu Han erupts into laughter and incessantly slaps him on the arm, each slap harder than the other. Later, Lu Han reveals that Jongdae is still a pure primary, that Jongdae's parents have gone against his decision of having more color infusions to achieve the fullness of the wheel. Jongin briefly wonders how Lu Han knows all these, but when Lu Han presses him against the wall and presses his lips against his, he doesn't even get the chance to choke up a question.
"That is one unattractive pile of papers on your desk, Kim Jongin."
Jongin rolls his eyes, thankful for the cup of coffee hiding the frown on his lips. "Just do your job and I'll do mine."
"But you're not doing yours."
"I'm a big boy now, Kyungsoo." Jongin sneers. "Go away."
Kyungsoo shakes his head, then turns around to leave even before Jongin can repeat the last bit.
Go away.
The rift doesn't even stretch past a week because Kyungsoo is bad at staying away from Jongin for too long, and because Jongin's sweet tooth is his greatest weakness. Jongin's candy stash is replaced by an assortment of chocolates from Kyungsoo, and finds a new home in Jongin's waste basket, along with many unreviewed and unsigned papers.
vi. With Technocolor's popularity among people and the more frequent color sales, Kim Color's sales steadily decline. "I think it's better if we go for a niche market. Let's target hospitals," Jongin says. "No way in hell am I holding color sales every end of the month. That's dangerous. I don't want people having pigment overdose."
"Clearly, Jongdae doesn't care about that." Kyungsoo visibly frowns at his phone, then tilts it so that Jongin can see what's on display. "Seriously, buy-one-take-one color supplements? Colors aren't clothes or-"
"Supplements?" Joonmyun looks up from his laptop, eyebrows furrowed. "Did you just say "supplements"?"
"Yes, color supplements. The news article specifically says Technocolor giving people color pills and supplements for a longer-lasting hue."
Joonmyun snatches Kyungsoo's phone from his hand and disappears from Jongin's office, only to surface hours after.
"Supplements. They give those who buy from them four kinds of pills - the color pill, a solvent that makes it easier to diffuse the color, and two additives, emulsifiers and adhesion promoters that make the color stick and essentially extend color cycles."
Jongin's gotten used to this by now, Joonmyun's moments of eureka that normally mean Jongin's desk being populated with papers and research data. Kyungsoo's phone is a new addition to the collection, strategically placed side-by-side a familiar article, one Jongin might have seen during one of his conversations with Joonmyun.
"It's all making sense now. They're saying they can extend color cycles because of these chemical infusions that can be harmful when taken in large doses. I can't believe I didn't figure it out sooner!"
Kyungsoo leans forward, pressing against Jongin, and runs his fingers through the data, numbers and figures that are slowly turning into otherwise unappealing doodles in Jongin's eyes. He can see blotches of color, some shapes moving around. Kyungsoo's phone is flashing in many different colors, and-
"We can take these to the Council of Colors and Technocolor's as good as dead and-
Jongin blinks a few times before everything comes into focus. It's the third straight day that he's seen the same look on Joonmyun's face - a mix of confusion and worry, with a hint of fear - and it's terribly unsettling. "Sorry. Just tired," he says, quickly taking off his glasses. "Maybe I should get my eyes checked. It's been a while since I last got new glasses. Lu Han-"
Jongin pushes himself away from his desk to call for Lu Han, but his knees give him away. He's lucky Kyungsoo's reflexes are unbelievably quick, else he'd have fallen on the floor, face first.
"Hey," Kyungsoo begins, squeezing his arm lightly. "Are you okay?"
Joonmyun inches closer, checking his eyes, his pulse, his breathing. "This isn't the first time this happened, is it?" Joonmyun asks, and Jongin is careful to avoid the former's gaze until Joonmyun steadies his shoulders, gripping him tight. "Jongin, this isn't the first time this happened, I'm sure. Tell me the truth."
Jongin takes a deep breath. This is going to be a very long conversation.
The past few weeks have been filled with nothing but attempts at trying to get to know Lu Han more, and headaches that sometimes last only a few seconds but often last long enough for him to push himself away from his table so he could take a quick nap. "It's probably just my eyes; I haven't had them checked in years, but every time I get these headaches, I hear voices in my head."
"I think what you're looking for is a psychiatrist," Kyungsoo comments. Jongin offers a wry smile, and Joonmyun gives the two a stern look.
"So, voices. What exactly are these voices saying?"
"Things. Random phrases. I can't make out most of them, but I remember hearing strategies, game plans. Mario and Luigi."
"I told you," Kyungsoo begins, a triumphant half-smile, half-frown on his lips. There's still worry at the back of his eyelids. "He needs a psychiatrist."
Jongin sneers and leans back into his chair, careful not to add damage to his already-awful headache. The voices are there again, swirling in his head, running a thousand lines through his mind. Jump, Mario, jump! Fire at him! Don't listen to them. Color cycles. Life. Power. Lu Han.
Jongin bolts from his seat, eyes wide open, sweat trickling down his cheek. Joonmyun quickly leaves the room to get some water, and Kyungsoo quickly rushes to Jongin's side, hand finding a perfect fit in his. Jongin closes his eyes, lets himself lean into Kyungsoo's touch and buries his face in the crook of Kyungsoo's neck, whispering, "I'm sorry. So sorry. I'm sorry, Sehun."
("I took some blood samples from him while he was sleeping."
Joonmyun hands Kyungsoo a couple of papers, reports on the blood testing he has just done. "I ran a couple of tests and I found some halochromes in his system. The headaches are beginning to make sense to me. Jongin's a pure red primary, after all. Any alteration to his color is deadly."
"How do you know this?" Kyungsoo asks, still amazed at the amount of research Joonmyun has done. His free hand doesn't leave Jongin's, grip still tight.
"My father died of halochrome poisoning shortly before my mother gave birth to me." Joonmyun takes a deep breath, then turns to Kyungsoo with a small smile. "That's why I'm not a pure primary. The blue runs deep in my veins but there are blots of indigo there somewhere."
Kyungsoo studies Jongin's face, traces its contours like the first time he's come too close to Jongin. There are faint washes of yellow under his eyes, and orange lines along the length of his veins. The color patch on Jongin's arm is slowly running out of color. "Yellows." Kyungsoo looks up from Jongin, then at Joonmyun. "He's been poisoned with yellows."
"Yes, pigments of yellow that have been infused in something he probably eats everyday, considering the amount of yellow he has in is body. It can be his food, his coffee, the candies."
Kyungsoo clenches his fists.
"Lu Han.")
vii. Lu Han doesn't report to work the following day, or the day after that, or the day after. It's timely, Kyungsoo thinks as he strains his eyes, flipping through news channels, what with the media breaking out with news on mysterious mental illnesses surfacing. More than twenty deaths have been reported in the span of three days, all related to veins spontaneously collapsing.
"Do you think these people are running out of pills? It looks like a case of withdrawal more than anything," Kyungsoo says, disappearing from the video chat from time to time as he trashes the last of Jongin's secret candy stash and replaces them with other sweets that, he's certain, do not have any halochromes in them. "And that rift was a blessing in disguise. He wouldn't have stopped eating those candies if I didn't give him chocolates."
"Possibly. Or maybe it's overdose. I won't be surprised; these people get color transfusions every month."
"How's Jongin, by the way?"
"Well, the last time we talked, you said he's doing fine and recovering. Just a bit more yellows left for extraction."
"You're not supposed to be extracting those yellows."
"What do you mean I'm not supposed to-"
Kyungsoo looks up, and Lu Han is at the doorstep, a small, smug smile on his lips. "It's been a while," Lu Han says as a greeting, and walks to Kyungsoo slowly, almost languidly.
Kyungsoo narrows his eyes and grips the edge of the table tight in an attempt to hold himself back.
"I'm surprised he even made it past the first week. That's a truckload of yellows he's eaten through those sweets." Lu Han reaches for something in his pocket and pulls out an innocent-looking toffee, unwraps it, and eats it. Lu Han's pale shade of yellow burns brightly for a while, then returns to the same pastel yellow he was wearing a few seconds back- ah, halochromes. "He's really one-of-a-kind."
"You're crazy." Kyungsoo sneers.
"Nope, not crazy. Just a genius, that's all."
Kyungsoo quickly makes his way to Lu Han and traps him against the wall, right hand gripping Lu Han's wrist tight and his other hand busy with holding Lu Han by the throat. "He trusted you. He trusted you enough to let you replace Sehun in his life and you just toyed with him! You-"
Lu Han erupts into a peal of laugher. "Whoa, whoa, wait. I did not toy with him! I didn't tell him to replace Sehun with me. He chose me. I got this position fair and square, Kyungsoo. I went through the application process. Weren't you the one who screened the applicants before he interviewed us? That was you, right, Mr. Do Kyungsoo?"
"Goddamit, that's not what I meant!"
Kyungsoo slams his fist against the wall, close enough to Lu Han's face that Lu Han flinches a little and shivers. A pale coat of blue trickles down Kyungsoo's fist, then the wall, and eventually on Lu Han's pristine white shirt. "Who are you? Just- Are you really a color grader? Is Lu Han even your real name?" Kyungsoo grabs a fistful of Lu Han's shirt and pulls him closer. "Who the hell are you?"
The smile on Lu Han's lips is blinding. "I'm Lu Han, son of the late Lu Wen, heir and CEO of Technocolor."
In a desperate attempt to extract more information from Lu Han, Kyungsoo ends up having Jongin's office nearly blown up, thanks to Jongdae and his penchant for firearms. "Mission accomplished," Kyungsoo remembers Lu Han telling Jongdae before climbing inside the helicopter. "See you when the world ends," Lu Han then tells Kyungsoo.
Terribly cliched and fucked up, Kyungsoo wants to reply, but he hires workers to repair the broken glass windows in the office, instead.
"He said we weren't supposed to extract the yellows, if we really wanted to save Jongin."
Joonmyun attaches another color patch on Jongin's arm, then looks up to face Kyungsoo. "I figured as much. Some of the yellows have fused with his reds already." Joonmyun checks Jongin's pulse - still there, but only just. "Either we extract color from a Neutral which is going to be a challenge, or I create cultured blues that can neutralize the yellows. That will take time, though."
"How much time do you need?"
Joonmyun shrugs. "I don't know. A couple of hours to create the antidote for Jongin, at least a week to create an antidote for everyone?"
"An antidote for everyone." Kyungsoo's voice drifts off, only to be replaced with light laughter. "I have a crazy idea, but I'm positive it will work. With a few risks, of course. Start working on that antidote for Jongin and stuff it in his throat if he doesn't like the taste."
Kyungsoo returns to Jongin's office and accesses the employee database, and logs out as soon as he retrieves the information he needs. He types up a message on the phone, hits send, and returns to the laboratory.
From: Do Kyungsoo
To: Lu Han
Meet me at Pinnacle Point tomorrow, at the rooftop, 12:53 noon sharp. Bring Jongdae.
Let's settle this once and for all. - Do Kyungsoo
From: Lu Han
To: Do Kyungsoo
It's a date.
Pinnacle Point is at the far north of The Spectrum, and is home to the biggest color extraction facility in the whole of The Spectrum. It is where color dealing began, and where it will possibly see its end, if things do not go as planned. Kyungsoo surveys the place; the reflectors are in their proper positions, the pumping machine is working, and the smoke canons are ready for use.
"Pinnacle Point. Cheesy," Jongin says, speech still breathy and choked. There's a familiar smirk at the curve of his lips. "I feel a lot better, though. This is the best place to be for a red. I don't even know why my dad decided to move to Cardinal City."
Kyungsoo chuckles and puts an arm around Jongin. "Stop talking; you have to conserve your energy. I'll need you later."
Joonmyun makes quick work of the wiring and connects the tablet to the central color system. Kyungsoo takes a glance at his watch - 12:48 p.m.. They should be here any moment. Five more minutes and Lu Han's helicopter comes into focus. Kyungsoo nods at Joonmyun, and extends his hand towards Jongin.
"Ready?"
Jongin gives his hand a light squeeze and smiles. "Whenever you are."
"I see you're alive."
Lu Han arrives on the dot as agreed, sans Jongdae. "I didn't need him anymore, so I killed him," he narrates, and Jongin flinches a little. The youth and wonder in Lu Han's eyes has been replaced with a blank stare, emptiness, and maybe a hint of anger. "Now, I don't need you two - three, I mean - either, so I might as well make this really quick."
Jongin scoffs. "I should've fired you when I had the chance."
"Where's the fun in that, though?"
12:54:33
Kyungsoo tackles Lu Han to the ground, pushing his shoulders back against the cold concrete. Lu Han struggles for a while, until Kyungsoo fastens Lu Han's left leg to the floor, putting all of his weight on it. "Fucker," Lu Han says through gritted teeth, and Kyungsoo pushes some more until Lu Han throws him off and kicks him in the shins.
12:56:42
Jongin sneaks up to Lu Han, holding him up from behind as Kyungsoo launches punches to his body and face. Jongin doesn't hold out for too long, though, and Lu Han kicks Kyungsoo with both feet, effectively pushing Kyungsoo to the ground, and flips Jongin over.
"Jongin!"
12:58:57
Joonmyun lays the tablet on the ground and punches Lu Han from behind, effectively catching the latter off guard. Kyungsoo rushes to Joonmyun, grabs Lu Han by the collar, and slams him on the reflector dish.
"Kill me," Lu Han says, breathing heavy and ragged. "Kill me now while you still have the chance."
Kyungsoo smiles a little. "I thought you'd never ask."
12:59:45
Kyungsoo grabs Lu Han by the neck, and Jongin climbs onto the dish. "Payback," Kyungsoo says, and lands one last punch to Lu Han's body.
12:59:56
Jongin gives Kyungsoo's hand a light squeeze.
"Let's do this."
12:59:59
"Now!"
Joonmyun hits the green button and watches as a beam of light bursts from the dish, bouncing off the Kim Color Connections' logo made of mirrors, bouncing off the reflectors surrounding the facility, the rear-view mirrors of cars nearby, the mirror shop a few blocks from the building, bouncing off every mirror in its way to wash the whole city in white.
"Reflectors. He used reflectors to make the plan work."
The media requested for a press conference to answer questions about the recent event, and Joonmyun has graciously indulged. How could he not, really; Jongin and Kyungsoo have sacrificed their lives, and he's the only one left to tell the tale.
He looks at the name plate on his table - Kim Joonmyun, CEO, Kim Color Connections. It will take quite a while beforehe gets used to it.
"It was pretty simple. Since the whole Spectrum is surrounded with reflectors and we needed to spread an antidote at once, he figured he'd use the simple concept of reflecting light, colors. Kyungsoo, Jongin, and Lu Han are pure primaries, and a diffused dosage of their color in the atmosphere is still strong enough to cancel out stray colors that have been administered via the pill. He was very particular about the timing, though. We needed the light from the sun in case the manmade light wasn't enough, so we had to pull the trigger at the time when the sun was at its peak."
"Don't you dare miss a beat," Joonmyun remembers Kyungsoo saying. Joonmyun bites back the laughter threatening to spill from his lips; Kyungsoo's being anal about the smallest of things has its perks, after all.
"So, what happens to Kim Color and Technocolor now?" one of people from the media asks. Joonmyun laughs a little.
"Kim Color will continue serving people through giving quality colors and proper transfusion of colors. As for Technocolor, you can ask Commissioner Zhang about that. But, oh, he's in prison right now, so…"
The media huddle closer and Joonmyun excuses himself, saying that he still has some paperwork to do. Jongin has left him with quite a lot to do - looking for his and Kyungsoo's replacement is one of them. Joonmyun scribbles on his to-do list, "1. Look for new Chief Operations Officer and Research and Development head," but quickly crosses it out, laughing to himself.
"1. Look for a secretary (yellows and psychos not allowed), then look for a CFO and R&D head"
Joonmyun nods to himself and thinks, Jongin and Kyungsoo will be proud of him. Very proud, indeed.
---
Kim Color Connections' sales see a steady increase in the succeeding months. Some attribute it to Joonmyun's style of management and eagerness to leave the office without any papers on his desk; Joonmyun agrees, and silently thanks Jongin for a lesson well-learned.
Kris Wu, former Chief Finance Officer of Technocolor, replaces Zhang Yixing as Chief of Neutrals after successfully presenting evidence of Yixing's secret meetings with both Lu Han and Jongdae, recordings of their conversations about color dealing using pills.
"We are turning over all legal rights of color dealing to Kim Color Connections, on the premise that they are not to distribute colors using pills and that they will be completely transparent when it comes to color sales."
Joonmyun signs the agreement, and gives Kris' hand a firm shake.
Kim Jongin, Do Kyungsoo, and Oh Sehun are given the Spectrum-wide recognition as heroes. Technocolor is erased from history books.
Kim Joonmyun is recognized as the greatest color grader in the history of The Spectrum.
NOTES, references, and explanation on some things.
- Kai/Lu Han, Kai/D.O., among many others. PG-13. 7764 words.
- On Jongin's to-do list, three things are listed as important: to pursue his company's promise of being a venue for freedom of expression through their color deals, to fight off stiff competition and rival "Technocolor", and to save the world.
- WARNING: Character death
- Inspired by Jasper Fforde's "Shades of Grey" (Not to be confused with E.L. James' "Fifty Shades of Grey") and IAMX's "The Great Shipwreck of Life" || Original @ seoulfulness || Notes, among other things
- OMG IT'S FINALLY OVER! To the usual suspects, R and J, thank you so much for bearing with me. To L, the brainstorming session over GDocs definitely helped. I cannot thank you enough! ♥
They are each given exactly a hundred and fifty color cycles go through, exactly a hundred and fifty years credited to their lives. Those born to rich families are given the opportunity to buy more color cycles, and those unfortunate enough to live in the streets have to make do with what they have. Years back, vibrant colors have seen better days, but this is the day and age of pastels - the duller the shade, the better. The lighter your color is, the more opportunities you'll be presented with and get.
Everything can be bought with colors - half an ounce for bread, another half for coffee, a full course meal plus refill for drinks for two ounces and a half. A normal human spends at least twenty ounces of color a day, one million and ninety-five thousand ounces of color in his entire life.
But no one's normal, not anymore.
i. Kim Jongin is born to a family of primaries. Half the time, he regrets having to live up to the dictates of society as a primary; half the time, he doesn't really care. His state of mind has brought him far, though, earning him top honors throughout his academic days and securing his family's company the top spot in the industry.
Hence, the speech he is delivering in front of this huge crowd pooled in the entrance of the building.
"Everybody wants to be a different color now. Tertiaries are climbing up the ladder. Secondaries are pushing boundaries, fighting their way to being primaries. Everybody wants to be different." Jongin clears his throat before continuing. The many eyes fixed on him are unsettling. "We give people the freedom of choice, the chance to be who they want to be. We at Kim Color Connections breathe a new life into the one hundred fifty color cycles we are given at birth."
Jongin watches as everyone erupts into applause, affirmative nods and smiles being exchanged left and right. He smiles to himself and thinks, maybe living according to society's dictates isn't so bad, after all.
Maybe being the only one different from those who are different isn't bad at all.
ii. "Last I heard, we were selling colors, not freedom of choice."
Jongin laughs. Trust Do Kyungsoo to show up unannounced and uninvited in his office, a cup of coffee in one hand and a handful of retorts in the other. "I mean, really, we're giving people the chance to be who they want to be? Didn't we get called out for this before? What did they say about that- Ah, misleading advertising, fondly called "shady shit" by our detractors. Does that ring a bell?"
"Cleared with the ad board," Jongin replies, crisp and concise. He grabs the cup from Kyungsoo and gives the latter a small smile before sinking into his seat. "The claim papers had your signature; I assumed you knew about this already."
Kyungsoo narrows his eyes, and Jongin smiles a little at the realization. "Oh, you did not forge my signature, Kim Jongin. You did not-"
Kyungsoo is halfway through strangling Jongin when someone emerges from the door decked in crudely worn formal attire, with a stumbling Sehun trailing him. "I'm sorry, Jongin. I tried to stop him," Sehun reasons, and Jongin puts down his coffee when the intruder walks to Jongin's table, extends his hand and says, "Good afternoon, Mr. Kim. I'm Kim Jongdae, and I'm here to let you know that your company is in trouble."
"Competition, you mean," Kyungsoo corrects. "We've got competition."
There's a look of amusement in Jongdae's features, and even with the good distance between him and Jongin, it comes off as strangely invasive, as if Jongdae is trying to sneak into his brain and implant an idea, a concept that will shake him and rile him up. "No one has ever dared to compete with Kim Color, I'm sure you know that," Jongin comments, then furrows his eyebrows. "Why now?"
"We've discovered a new way of extracting and recycling colors, that's one. We thought it would be a waste to let someone else have that knowledge, that technology." Jongdae pauses for a while, a question at the curve of his lips. "Besides, everybody wants to be different now, Mr. Kim. I'm sure you know that. So, why not now? Why not?"
iii. Media breaks with the news of Kim Color's competition the following day. Jongin does his best to stay away from interviewers and prying questions, giving the media the practiced corporate smile and the standard, "I will not be taking questions. Please wait for our press conference. We'll keep you posted." Kyungsoo takes care of pacifying the board of directors, and Sehun does his best to keep calls from networks from bypassing the secretarial line and going straight to Jongin's line.
"So, when are we doing the press conference?"
"When are they doing their launch?"
Kyungsoo runs his index finger through the calendar. "Tuesday, week after next."
"Awesome. We'll do it the Wednesday after that."
"Flawless pick," Kyungsoo comments, then gives Jongin a pat on the back. "Finish your paperwork early and I'll take you out for dinner. You've been working harder than usual."
Jongin lets a playful smile surface on his lips and pulls Kyungsoo by the necktie. Kyungsoo's used to this by now, when they toe the line between co-workers, friends, and more, so Jongin tugs some more, their lips barely an inch apart. "Aren't you proud of me, Kyungsoo?"
Kyungsoo shakes his head, and Jongin grins because he knows he's won this game. Kyungsoo punctuates the conversation with a kiss on Jongin's forehead and a promise of a nice meal in a few hours.
"Very proud, indeed."
Technocolor's grand launch takes place in the Palace of Neutrals, which means Jongdae is working with the government who Jongin and Kim Color have had one too many arguments with, which essentially means that Kim Color is in trouble. The logic of the government working with a company that goes against the set rule of having a hundred and fifty color cycles - the second and possibly most important article in the Hex Code - escapes Jongin, though, so he quietly calls out during Jongdae's opening address, "Alert the press: the government's advocating shady shit!"
"Shady as fuck," Kyungsoo comments, and takes two glasses of wine from the server passing by. If anything goes wrong, they can always choke it up to being drunk, irresponsible adolescents. "I bet you he's sleeping with the Chief of Neutrals."
Jongin scoffs. Jongdae's arm is around Yixing's shoulder and, from where Jongin is, Yixing looks as if he's having the time of his life. "Zhang Yixing doesn't sleep with shady people." He takes a sip of the wine - no, more like a gulp - and lets it burn in his throat. "Not his type."
"Oh you'd know, wouldn't you?"
Jongin raises an eyebrow, and Kyungsoo circles his arm around Jongin's shoulder, pulling the latter close. They watch Jongdae waltz across the stage, shaking people's hands, fingers lingering a bit too long when Yixing walks up to him. Jongin bites back every ounce of fury, possibly even envy, at the way Jongdae interacts with the members of the government, at the way he's easily gained their trust, at Jongdae's effortless grace and charm.
Even at the way Yixing puts an arm around Jongdae's shoulder to pull him close, the way Kyungsoo's arms are around Jongin right now.
An event is not an event without an assassination attempt at Jongin. He's lived through each and every one for the past years and everyone in his tightly-knit inner circle has survived them all but, this time, Sehun comes out scathed, taking a shot to the abdomen, then to the heart, in an attempt to shield Jongin from the blow.
"You're my secretary, not my bodyguard! Jesus- Someone get an ambulance!"
Sehun doesn't make it, not after losing too much blood and hue and taking a bullet to his chest. Jongin doesn't cry when the doctors declare him dead, doesn't even look over his shoulder when they ask him about Sehun's relatives or, "Anyone, anyone at all that we can contact?"
"His parents are dead. His relatives have gone underground. He has no family here. I'm his only family.
"Melt him down, keep his hues in an urn, anything I can take to my office. I'll keep him there. Home."
Kyungsoo arranges to look for a replacement for Sehun. "You're crazy. You won't find a good enough replacement so easily," Jongin reasons out, lips pressed tight in an attempt to argue no more. Kyungsoo means well, he knows this, but he allows himself to have a few moments of irrationality and surrender when Kyungsoo secures his palms flat on Jongin's shoulder, punctuating the gesture with a squeeze of the arm.
"You just need someone to get you through the next few weeks without throwing things at the media or the government. Or at Jongdae, for that matter."
"Ah, a contractual employee. I need someone who can make coffee like Sehun does, not a straitjacket to keep me from hitting people."
Kyungsoo laughs a little. "No, that's my job."
Jongin lets his shoulders falter and fall, the dissatisfied exhale loud enough for the two of them to hear. He gives Kyungsoo a light nod, a go signal that says, "Do whatever you think is best," or maybe, "I can't be bothered to argue with you anymore." There is no Sehun to alert him of any people barging into his room, no Sehun to tell off unwanted people, but he lets Kyungsoo wraps his arms around him, anyway.
He looks at Sehun's urn resting comfortably on top of his shelf. Sehun's hues stain the outside of the container with a nice, soft yellow.
iv. Technocolor comes out with a set of commercials advertising a color sale towards the end of the month, and Kyungsoo releases a set of resumes, a neat pile on top of the dump of papers on Jongin's desk.
"How many applicants are there exactly?"
"Just enough to get you through the afternoon, if you don't pry into their private lives too much." Kyungsoo sets a cup of coffee on Jongin's desk, along with a few pastries. "Should last you a few hours. The first interviewee's outside. Get ready."
There's Hyunjun, Junsu, Gunwoo and Woojin, Jun, He Peng and Liang, but Jongin sets his eyes on a boy named Lu Han. He's not much shorter than Jongin is, and places his palms secure on his knees, as if preventing himself from making any unnecessary movements. There's always a peculiar smile on the curve of his lips, and a hollow look in his eyes that tells Jongin there's something more to this boy than meets the eye.
"You say you have experience as a color grader in Castel. Why are you applying for a desk job, then?"
Lu Han laughs a little. The upward curve stretches into a wry smile. "Being a color grader isn't exactly the "cleanest" job out there, I'm sure you know that, sir. And, well, I figured I could use a change of environment."
"You'd be better off in the labs than here. I could put in a good word for you down there. Your credentials are amazing."
Lu Han smiles, tight-lipped and brief. "I'll pass up on that, but thank you."
Two hours and a bunch of pastries after, Jongin goes to Kyungsoo's office to introduce the his new secretary. "Just thought you should know that it took me faster than expected to go through the applications," he quips before leaving, and Kyungsoo just waves him off. He takes Lu Han through Sehun's usual routine and gives specific instructions on how to make his coffee, and Lu Han takes everything in, the same tight-lipped smile still on his lips, the hollow look in his eyes now replaced with wonder.
"I'll see you early tomorrow," Jongin says, and Lu Han gives him a curt bow.
"I won't disappoint, sir."
"I see you've got a new kid."
Jongin swivels in his chair at the sound of Joonmyun's voice, teasing and taunting as always. "A new secretary, you mean. He's just a reliever." Jongin makes some space on his desk for the papers in Joonmyun's hands; documents that are not for his signature are always welcome in his office. "If he does well at his job then I might consider signing him up for a permanent post."
"Say whatever you want; we all know you had something going on for Sehun."
"Joonmyun."
"Anyway, I've got some news for you." Joonmyun lays down a couple of folders on Jongin's table and settles on the seat opposite Jongin's, taking one of the candies from Jongin's stash. "I'd be more careful with candies from now on."
"If this is about my lack of control when it comes to sweets, then let me tell you: we are not having this conversation again."
"No, I mean-" Joonmyun rummages through the files and shoves a paper in Jongin's direction. "I remember you telling me that this Jongdae person told you about them discovering something new, something that will change the color dealing industry. I've done some research and I've found a case involving some illegal color dealing."
"I hope this involves Jongdae."
"Well, not really." Joonmyun arranges the files in neat piles, revealing color-coded folders labelled accordingly. "Now, I'm sure you know the usual process. People pay for things in colors by having a certain amount of color extracted from them using this color patch since, well, they can't go around carrying injections and whatnot everywhere and color graders are usually not employed by retailers. Retailers send these color extracts to us for recycling, and we hold huge color sales every year and the regular color sales every other month, but limit the amount of purchase per person to forty six thousand ounces."
Jongin leans closer and carefully examines the candy wrapper. The inscription is faded and he can barely make out the color facts; it must have been tampered with, considering that this batch of candies should be only a day old. "Okay, go on."
"Now, we're very transparent about how we do these color sales. We inject colors into people's veins and that's about it. We have graders to do that. The process has been approved by the Color Dosage Authority. These illegal color dealers don't, well, do that. They supply people with pills. Color pills."
"And they're illegal because?"
"They're illegal because they give twice as much hues to people, essentially extending their lives twice as much as a normal dose of hue should." Joonmyun pauses for a while, then takes a deep breath. "With a few side effects, of course.
"Sometimes, the pigment in the hues eat up existing color cycles and essentially cut people's lives by half."
Technocolor's color sale is a success. Over a million ounces of color are sold, and people leave the facility with smiles on their faces and patches of color on their arms. Kyungsoo's text message comes in, reading, "They didn't let the media in. Shouldn't have put any effort in my get up." And then, much later, "The people here look high. Windows are covered. Can't see a thing."
"Suspicious," Jongin mumbles, and types a quick reply to Kyungsoo. And it is true - the media is broadcasting nothing but the opening ceremonies, and the windows are heavily tinted. "Very suspicious."
"Your 3 p.m. coffee, sir, just the way you want it."
Jongin is quick to swivel in his chair and offer a small smile to Lu Han. Two weeks into Lu Han's employment has yielded good results thus far - he makes good coffee, replenishes Jongin's candy stash every five days ("Exactly five days, no more, no less. And make sure to buy new candies every Tuesday. That's when the new stock comes in."), has great attention to detail and has enough backbone to remind Jongin of the many pending papers for signing, all conveniently piled on his desk.
"You have to get to working on these soon, sir. I've got another set of papers waiting for your signature and, if you don't get started on these, you won't be able to see the light of the day from behind your desk."
Jongin laughs a little, takes a sip of coffee, and quickly goes through the document in front of him. "Jongin," he says, then signs at the bottom of the document before handing it to Lu Han. "Please, call me Jongin."
Lu Han switches between furrowing his eyebrows and narrowing his eyes, and this elicits laughter, albeit abruptly suppressed, from Jongin. "I don't know, it just makes me uncomfortable that everyone here calls me "Jongin" and you call me "sir" every chance you get."
"But you're my boss."
"I'm also Kyungsoo and Joonmyun's boss, but they call me by first name."
Lu Han chuckles. "But they're your friends."
Jongin nods in approval. "Point taken. It's settled, then: we'll be friends."
There's something about Lu Han that makes it so easy for people to be comfortable with him, and that has convinced Jongin to make that decisive pick. It might be Lu Han's easy confidence and overall pleasing personality, or the way he smiles and beams at people as if he's not swamped with Jongin's paperwork. It might be the way his eyes crinkle when he smiles or whenever Jongin commends him for a great brew. It might even be Lu Han's rather peculiar shade of yellow, one he shares with Sehun.
v. Jongin's idea of befriending people is unconventional. Going through paperwork isn't exactly the best way of getting to know someone more, even with his attempts at throwing questions like, "So, what are your interests?" and "What do you do when you're not working your ass off here?" Lu Han just laughs because there are still too many papers to go through, and because Jongin isn't getting anywhere with the inquisition.
"Dancing. I like dancing," Lu Han says after a while. "I also sing from time to time."
"Wow, a dancing and singing color grader." Jongin pauses and signs a few papers, then hands them to Lu Han for filing. "You've got a lot of tricks up your sleeve, doctor."
"Well, I've got more."
Jongin looks up from the papers and smiles when he sees that teasing glint in Lu Han's eyes. "Oh, do tell."
Jongin brings Lu Han to one of the empty floors from time to time, when work gets too overwhelming and he has to escape. They run through a routine they come up with spontaneously, setting the timing to a song they mutually agree on. Sometimes, they dance for a few minutes; sometimes, they stay there for hours. In those minutes that Jongin shares with Lu Han, doing the same routine, dancing to the same song, he feels a strange kind of connection that he hasn't felt in a while.
"I used to bring Sehun here," Jongin begins, eyes wandering. "We'd dance for a few minutes, until the drowsiness wears off and, when we surface, he'd make coffee and he'd point out the steps I missed, and I'd do the same for him."
Lu Han scoots closer, then pulls his knees close to his chest. "He wasn't just your secretary, was he?"
Jongin chuckles. He doesn't answer and, instead, places his arms on either side of Lu Han, trapping the latter. Sehun is his childhood friend, his best friend, his partner in crime. Sehun is the person who saved him from that bad parting of ways with Zhang Yixing back in high school, and the one who introduced him to Kyungsoo and Joonmyun, some of the greatest friends he'll ever have. Sehun is his sanity, the only person who can come up with the perfect coffee. Sehun is one of the reasons why he's still in one piece.
Jongin presses his lips on Lu Han's lightly, almost tentatively, and probes when Lu Han parts his lips.
Oh Sehun is dead.
Lu Han casually mentions Jongdae one time. They're camped out in the empty floor again, but this time Jongin brings his paperwork, reasoning out, "I can work in the dark better." Kyungsoo doesn't prod further only because he has neither energy nor time to argue with Jongin, and partly because Lu Han promises to look over Jongin and make sure that the latter will get things done.
"Ah, Kim Jongdae." Lu Han chuckles. He bites the inside of his cheek. "We were in the same basic grading class back in med school. He had a thing for color separation."
"Color surgery, huh. I bet he's had many transplants already."
Lu Han erupts into laughter and incessantly slaps him on the arm, each slap harder than the other. Later, Lu Han reveals that Jongdae is still a pure primary, that Jongdae's parents have gone against his decision of having more color infusions to achieve the fullness of the wheel. Jongin briefly wonders how Lu Han knows all these, but when Lu Han presses him against the wall and presses his lips against his, he doesn't even get the chance to choke up a question.
"That is one unattractive pile of papers on your desk, Kim Jongin."
Jongin rolls his eyes, thankful for the cup of coffee hiding the frown on his lips. "Just do your job and I'll do mine."
"But you're not doing yours."
"I'm a big boy now, Kyungsoo." Jongin sneers. "Go away."
Kyungsoo shakes his head, then turns around to leave even before Jongin can repeat the last bit.
Go away.
The rift doesn't even stretch past a week because Kyungsoo is bad at staying away from Jongin for too long, and because Jongin's sweet tooth is his greatest weakness. Jongin's candy stash is replaced by an assortment of chocolates from Kyungsoo, and finds a new home in Jongin's waste basket, along with many unreviewed and unsigned papers.
vi. With Technocolor's popularity among people and the more frequent color sales, Kim Color's sales steadily decline. "I think it's better if we go for a niche market. Let's target hospitals," Jongin says. "No way in hell am I holding color sales every end of the month. That's dangerous. I don't want people having pigment overdose."
"Clearly, Jongdae doesn't care about that." Kyungsoo visibly frowns at his phone, then tilts it so that Jongin can see what's on display. "Seriously, buy-one-take-one color supplements? Colors aren't clothes or-"
"Supplements?" Joonmyun looks up from his laptop, eyebrows furrowed. "Did you just say "supplements"?"
"Yes, color supplements. The news article specifically says Technocolor giving people color pills and supplements for a longer-lasting hue."
Joonmyun snatches Kyungsoo's phone from his hand and disappears from Jongin's office, only to surface hours after.
"Supplements. They give those who buy from them four kinds of pills - the color pill, a solvent that makes it easier to diffuse the color, and two additives, emulsifiers and adhesion promoters that make the color stick and essentially extend color cycles."
Jongin's gotten used to this by now, Joonmyun's moments of eureka that normally mean Jongin's desk being populated with papers and research data. Kyungsoo's phone is a new addition to the collection, strategically placed side-by-side a familiar article, one Jongin might have seen during one of his conversations with Joonmyun.
"It's all making sense now. They're saying they can extend color cycles because of these chemical infusions that can be harmful when taken in large doses. I can't believe I didn't figure it out sooner!"
Kyungsoo leans forward, pressing against Jongin, and runs his fingers through the data, numbers and figures that are slowly turning into otherwise unappealing doodles in Jongin's eyes. He can see blotches of color, some shapes moving around. Kyungsoo's phone is flashing in many different colors, and-
"We can take these to the Council of Colors and Technocolor's as good as dead and-
Jongin blinks a few times before everything comes into focus. It's the third straight day that he's seen the same look on Joonmyun's face - a mix of confusion and worry, with a hint of fear - and it's terribly unsettling. "Sorry. Just tired," he says, quickly taking off his glasses. "Maybe I should get my eyes checked. It's been a while since I last got new glasses. Lu Han-"
Jongin pushes himself away from his desk to call for Lu Han, but his knees give him away. He's lucky Kyungsoo's reflexes are unbelievably quick, else he'd have fallen on the floor, face first.
"Hey," Kyungsoo begins, squeezing his arm lightly. "Are you okay?"
Joonmyun inches closer, checking his eyes, his pulse, his breathing. "This isn't the first time this happened, is it?" Joonmyun asks, and Jongin is careful to avoid the former's gaze until Joonmyun steadies his shoulders, gripping him tight. "Jongin, this isn't the first time this happened, I'm sure. Tell me the truth."
Jongin takes a deep breath. This is going to be a very long conversation.
The past few weeks have been filled with nothing but attempts at trying to get to know Lu Han more, and headaches that sometimes last only a few seconds but often last long enough for him to push himself away from his table so he could take a quick nap. "It's probably just my eyes; I haven't had them checked in years, but every time I get these headaches, I hear voices in my head."
"I think what you're looking for is a psychiatrist," Kyungsoo comments. Jongin offers a wry smile, and Joonmyun gives the two a stern look.
"So, voices. What exactly are these voices saying?"
"Things. Random phrases. I can't make out most of them, but I remember hearing strategies, game plans. Mario and Luigi."
"I told you," Kyungsoo begins, a triumphant half-smile, half-frown on his lips. There's still worry at the back of his eyelids. "He needs a psychiatrist."
Jongin sneers and leans back into his chair, careful not to add damage to his already-awful headache. The voices are there again, swirling in his head, running a thousand lines through his mind. Jump, Mario, jump! Fire at him! Don't listen to them. Color cycles. Life. Power. Lu Han.
Jongin bolts from his seat, eyes wide open, sweat trickling down his cheek. Joonmyun quickly leaves the room to get some water, and Kyungsoo quickly rushes to Jongin's side, hand finding a perfect fit in his. Jongin closes his eyes, lets himself lean into Kyungsoo's touch and buries his face in the crook of Kyungsoo's neck, whispering, "I'm sorry. So sorry. I'm sorry, Sehun."
("I took some blood samples from him while he was sleeping."
Joonmyun hands Kyungsoo a couple of papers, reports on the blood testing he has just done. "I ran a couple of tests and I found some halochromes in his system. The headaches are beginning to make sense to me. Jongin's a pure red primary, after all. Any alteration to his color is deadly."
"How do you know this?" Kyungsoo asks, still amazed at the amount of research Joonmyun has done. His free hand doesn't leave Jongin's, grip still tight.
"My father died of halochrome poisoning shortly before my mother gave birth to me." Joonmyun takes a deep breath, then turns to Kyungsoo with a small smile. "That's why I'm not a pure primary. The blue runs deep in my veins but there are blots of indigo there somewhere."
Kyungsoo studies Jongin's face, traces its contours like the first time he's come too close to Jongin. There are faint washes of yellow under his eyes, and orange lines along the length of his veins. The color patch on Jongin's arm is slowly running out of color. "Yellows." Kyungsoo looks up from Jongin, then at Joonmyun. "He's been poisoned with yellows."
"Yes, pigments of yellow that have been infused in something he probably eats everyday, considering the amount of yellow he has in is body. It can be his food, his coffee, the candies."
Kyungsoo clenches his fists.
"Lu Han.")
vii. Lu Han doesn't report to work the following day, or the day after that, or the day after. It's timely, Kyungsoo thinks as he strains his eyes, flipping through news channels, what with the media breaking out with news on mysterious mental illnesses surfacing. More than twenty deaths have been reported in the span of three days, all related to veins spontaneously collapsing.
"Do you think these people are running out of pills? It looks like a case of withdrawal more than anything," Kyungsoo says, disappearing from the video chat from time to time as he trashes the last of Jongin's secret candy stash and replaces them with other sweets that, he's certain, do not have any halochromes in them. "And that rift was a blessing in disguise. He wouldn't have stopped eating those candies if I didn't give him chocolates."
"Possibly. Or maybe it's overdose. I won't be surprised; these people get color transfusions every month."
"How's Jongin, by the way?"
"Well, the last time we talked, you said he's doing fine and recovering. Just a bit more yellows left for extraction."
"You're not supposed to be extracting those yellows."
"What do you mean I'm not supposed to-"
Kyungsoo looks up, and Lu Han is at the doorstep, a small, smug smile on his lips. "It's been a while," Lu Han says as a greeting, and walks to Kyungsoo slowly, almost languidly.
Kyungsoo narrows his eyes and grips the edge of the table tight in an attempt to hold himself back.
"I'm surprised he even made it past the first week. That's a truckload of yellows he's eaten through those sweets." Lu Han reaches for something in his pocket and pulls out an innocent-looking toffee, unwraps it, and eats it. Lu Han's pale shade of yellow burns brightly for a while, then returns to the same pastel yellow he was wearing a few seconds back- ah, halochromes. "He's really one-of-a-kind."
"You're crazy." Kyungsoo sneers.
"Nope, not crazy. Just a genius, that's all."
Kyungsoo quickly makes his way to Lu Han and traps him against the wall, right hand gripping Lu Han's wrist tight and his other hand busy with holding Lu Han by the throat. "He trusted you. He trusted you enough to let you replace Sehun in his life and you just toyed with him! You-"
Lu Han erupts into a peal of laugher. "Whoa, whoa, wait. I did not toy with him! I didn't tell him to replace Sehun with me. He chose me. I got this position fair and square, Kyungsoo. I went through the application process. Weren't you the one who screened the applicants before he interviewed us? That was you, right, Mr. Do Kyungsoo?"
"Goddamit, that's not what I meant!"
Kyungsoo slams his fist against the wall, close enough to Lu Han's face that Lu Han flinches a little and shivers. A pale coat of blue trickles down Kyungsoo's fist, then the wall, and eventually on Lu Han's pristine white shirt. "Who are you? Just- Are you really a color grader? Is Lu Han even your real name?" Kyungsoo grabs a fistful of Lu Han's shirt and pulls him closer. "Who the hell are you?"
The smile on Lu Han's lips is blinding. "I'm Lu Han, son of the late Lu Wen, heir and CEO of Technocolor."
In a desperate attempt to extract more information from Lu Han, Kyungsoo ends up having Jongin's office nearly blown up, thanks to Jongdae and his penchant for firearms. "Mission accomplished," Kyungsoo remembers Lu Han telling Jongdae before climbing inside the helicopter. "See you when the world ends," Lu Han then tells Kyungsoo.
Terribly cliched and fucked up, Kyungsoo wants to reply, but he hires workers to repair the broken glass windows in the office, instead.
"He said we weren't supposed to extract the yellows, if we really wanted to save Jongin."
Joonmyun attaches another color patch on Jongin's arm, then looks up to face Kyungsoo. "I figured as much. Some of the yellows have fused with his reds already." Joonmyun checks Jongin's pulse - still there, but only just. "Either we extract color from a Neutral which is going to be a challenge, or I create cultured blues that can neutralize the yellows. That will take time, though."
"How much time do you need?"
Joonmyun shrugs. "I don't know. A couple of hours to create the antidote for Jongin, at least a week to create an antidote for everyone?"
"An antidote for everyone." Kyungsoo's voice drifts off, only to be replaced with light laughter. "I have a crazy idea, but I'm positive it will work. With a few risks, of course. Start working on that antidote for Jongin and stuff it in his throat if he doesn't like the taste."
Kyungsoo returns to Jongin's office and accesses the employee database, and logs out as soon as he retrieves the information he needs. He types up a message on the phone, hits send, and returns to the laboratory.
From: Do Kyungsoo
To: Lu Han
Meet me at Pinnacle Point tomorrow, at the rooftop, 12:53 noon sharp. Bring Jongdae.
Let's settle this once and for all. - Do Kyungsoo
From: Lu Han
To: Do Kyungsoo
It's a date.
Pinnacle Point is at the far north of The Spectrum, and is home to the biggest color extraction facility in the whole of The Spectrum. It is where color dealing began, and where it will possibly see its end, if things do not go as planned. Kyungsoo surveys the place; the reflectors are in their proper positions, the pumping machine is working, and the smoke canons are ready for use.
"Pinnacle Point. Cheesy," Jongin says, speech still breathy and choked. There's a familiar smirk at the curve of his lips. "I feel a lot better, though. This is the best place to be for a red. I don't even know why my dad decided to move to Cardinal City."
Kyungsoo chuckles and puts an arm around Jongin. "Stop talking; you have to conserve your energy. I'll need you later."
Joonmyun makes quick work of the wiring and connects the tablet to the central color system. Kyungsoo takes a glance at his watch - 12:48 p.m.. They should be here any moment. Five more minutes and Lu Han's helicopter comes into focus. Kyungsoo nods at Joonmyun, and extends his hand towards Jongin.
"Ready?"
Jongin gives his hand a light squeeze and smiles. "Whenever you are."
"I see you're alive."
Lu Han arrives on the dot as agreed, sans Jongdae. "I didn't need him anymore, so I killed him," he narrates, and Jongin flinches a little. The youth and wonder in Lu Han's eyes has been replaced with a blank stare, emptiness, and maybe a hint of anger. "Now, I don't need you two - three, I mean - either, so I might as well make this really quick."
Jongin scoffs. "I should've fired you when I had the chance."
"Where's the fun in that, though?"
12:54:33
Kyungsoo tackles Lu Han to the ground, pushing his shoulders back against the cold concrete. Lu Han struggles for a while, until Kyungsoo fastens Lu Han's left leg to the floor, putting all of his weight on it. "Fucker," Lu Han says through gritted teeth, and Kyungsoo pushes some more until Lu Han throws him off and kicks him in the shins.
12:56:42
Jongin sneaks up to Lu Han, holding him up from behind as Kyungsoo launches punches to his body and face. Jongin doesn't hold out for too long, though, and Lu Han kicks Kyungsoo with both feet, effectively pushing Kyungsoo to the ground, and flips Jongin over.
"Jongin!"
12:58:57
Joonmyun lays the tablet on the ground and punches Lu Han from behind, effectively catching the latter off guard. Kyungsoo rushes to Joonmyun, grabs Lu Han by the collar, and slams him on the reflector dish.
"Kill me," Lu Han says, breathing heavy and ragged. "Kill me now while you still have the chance."
Kyungsoo smiles a little. "I thought you'd never ask."
12:59:45
Kyungsoo grabs Lu Han by the neck, and Jongin climbs onto the dish. "Payback," Kyungsoo says, and lands one last punch to Lu Han's body.
12:59:56
Jongin gives Kyungsoo's hand a light squeeze.
"Let's do this."
12:59:59
"Now!"
Joonmyun hits the green button and watches as a beam of light bursts from the dish, bouncing off the Kim Color Connections' logo made of mirrors, bouncing off the reflectors surrounding the facility, the rear-view mirrors of cars nearby, the mirror shop a few blocks from the building, bouncing off every mirror in its way to wash the whole city in white.
"Reflectors. He used reflectors to make the plan work."
The media requested for a press conference to answer questions about the recent event, and Joonmyun has graciously indulged. How could he not, really; Jongin and Kyungsoo have sacrificed their lives, and he's the only one left to tell the tale.
He looks at the name plate on his table - Kim Joonmyun, CEO, Kim Color Connections. It will take quite a while beforehe gets used to it.
"It was pretty simple. Since the whole Spectrum is surrounded with reflectors and we needed to spread an antidote at once, he figured he'd use the simple concept of reflecting light, colors. Kyungsoo, Jongin, and Lu Han are pure primaries, and a diffused dosage of their color in the atmosphere is still strong enough to cancel out stray colors that have been administered via the pill. He was very particular about the timing, though. We needed the light from the sun in case the manmade light wasn't enough, so we had to pull the trigger at the time when the sun was at its peak."
"Don't you dare miss a beat," Joonmyun remembers Kyungsoo saying. Joonmyun bites back the laughter threatening to spill from his lips; Kyungsoo's being anal about the smallest of things has its perks, after all.
"So, what happens to Kim Color and Technocolor now?" one of people from the media asks. Joonmyun laughs a little.
"Kim Color will continue serving people through giving quality colors and proper transfusion of colors. As for Technocolor, you can ask Commissioner Zhang about that. But, oh, he's in prison right now, so…"
The media huddle closer and Joonmyun excuses himself, saying that he still has some paperwork to do. Jongin has left him with quite a lot to do - looking for his and Kyungsoo's replacement is one of them. Joonmyun scribbles on his to-do list, "1. Look for new Chief Operations Officer and Research and Development head," but quickly crosses it out, laughing to himself.
"1. Look for a secretary (yellows and psychos not allowed), then look for a CFO and R&D head"
Joonmyun nods to himself and thinks, Jongin and Kyungsoo will be proud of him. Very proud, indeed.
---
Kim Color Connections' sales see a steady increase in the succeeding months. Some attribute it to Joonmyun's style of management and eagerness to leave the office without any papers on his desk; Joonmyun agrees, and silently thanks Jongin for a lesson well-learned.
Kris Wu, former Chief Finance Officer of Technocolor, replaces Zhang Yixing as Chief of Neutrals after successfully presenting evidence of Yixing's secret meetings with both Lu Han and Jongdae, recordings of their conversations about color dealing using pills.
"We are turning over all legal rights of color dealing to Kim Color Connections, on the premise that they are not to distribute colors using pills and that they will be completely transparent when it comes to color sales."
Joonmyun signs the agreement, and gives Kris' hand a firm shake.
Kim Jongin, Do Kyungsoo, and Oh Sehun are given the Spectrum-wide recognition as heroes. Technocolor is erased from history books.
Kim Joonmyun is recognized as the greatest color grader in the history of The Spectrum.
NOTES, references, and explanation on some things.