ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎

Soonyoung reached his house as the car stopped in front of the house. He got down from the car along with his staff before he looked at them. "You guys are dismissed, see you tomorrow at 9am." He informed them before turning and walking towards his home.

He unlocked the door with his key and as he got into the house, he saw Joshua and Vernon standing on the opposite sides of the frame. "Good evening Sir." They bowed as they greeted and Soonyoung closed the door.

"Where is he?" Soonyoung asked, impatiently and Joshua pointed to the stairs. "He's in his room, he locked his door and refused to come down for lunch and dinner." Joshua explained and Soonyoung kissed his teeth before running up the stairs.

He dashed to Jihoon's room, knocking on the door. "Hey, it's me Jihoon-ah, open the door." He said before he knocked again but received no response. Sighing, he reached for the master key in his pocket, pulling it out and pushing it into the keyhole.

He jiggled the key before the door popped open, allowing him into the room. As he walked in, he saw Jihoon at his desk, his eyes focused on his laptop screen while he typed. "Get out." Jihoon ordered as he took a short glance at Soonyoung before turning back to the screen.

Soonyoung walked over to Jihoon, crossing his arms as he did. "What are you doing? Why did you refuse to eat?" He asked but Jihoon stayed silent, not even sparing a glance. Soonyoung ran his hand through his hair, his other hand in his pocket.

"Listen, I'm sorry, I told them not to let you leave the house but you don't understand Jihoon-ah, this is for your safety!" Soonyoung alerted Jihoon who sighed, getting up from his seat, the chair scraping against the floor.

"That's the fucking problem! The only thing I'm getting from this stupid marriage is a fucking target on my back! My dad's sales go up, your sales go up and what do I benefit from this? Nothing! Kwon Soonyoung, I get nothing..." Jihoon shouted, his voice trembling and cracking as he called Soonyoung's name. Soonyoung stood in silence and shock.

It was the first time he'd heard Jihoon swear.

The first time he'd seen him express such emotions.

"I'm being held captive in the exact same place I'm supposed to call my home." Jihoon looked down, his eyes teary and as he turned back to his desk, Soonyoung grabbed him and rotated him, embracing him in a warm hug.

Jihoon froze, rooted in place as Soonyoung's hands went around him. His warm and soft body sent heat waves through Jihoon's and he felt his rage simmer instantly, a sense of calm instilling in him.

Jihoon wanted to push him off, tell him to leave but his body didn't agree with his mind and he stayed in place as Soonyoung's grip became tighter but remained gentle.

"I'm sorry, okay? I'll let you go anywhere from now on, as long as your bodyguards are with you." Soonyoung promised as he let go, a red tint appearing on Jihoon's face as he did.

Soonyoung smiled at Jihoon blushing and Jihoon turned his head away, walking towards the door. "You're flustered."

"No I'm not, I'm actually pissed off. You broke a rule." Jihoon countered as he left the room while Soonyoung followed behind him.

"You're blushing Jihoon-ah, I don't think you're angry I broke the rule." Soonyoung pointed out and Jihoon rolled his eyes, covering his face.

"Can we just go eat?" He begged, still not looking at Soonyoung who chuckled at him being flustered. He walked closer, putting his arm around Jihoon's waist and he felt as Jihoon's body tensed up and his hair rose.

"You're blushing, darling." Soonyoung's words tingled Jihoon's ears and Jihoon immediately pushed his hands off, turning around. "Can we just go eat?! Please! And stop calling me darling!" He pleaded and Soonyoung smiled, nodding.

"Yes we can go eat, darling."

•••••••••••••

Seungcheol dragged the man out of the water before picking him up, the cold temperature making his hands jolt. He moved to the car, opening the door and throwing him in before getting in himself.

He gave CPR and some chest compressions before the man's eyes widened and he exhaled, coughing right after. Seungcheol raised him up, hitting his back a few times as he spat out water.

As the man regained his breath, he turned to Seungcheol, a smile appearing and his hand on his chest as he recognized him. "I knew you'd save me Choi Seungcheol." Seungcheol sighed, drying his hands on his pants. "Don't expect me to do it again Jeonghan, stop doing stupid shit."

Jeonghan smirked, putting his legs on Seungcheol's as he inched forward, whispering into Seungcheol's ear, "I don't expect you to save me, I know you'll save me."

Seungcheol looked away, simply carrying Jeonghan's legs off, realizing he hadn't actually been shot before cleaning off the water droplets. "Soonyoung trusts me Jeonghan, I can't keep doing this." He warned and Jeonghan kept his hand on Seungcheol's arm, a flirtatious look in his eyes as he replied. "Don't pretend you don't like it Seungcheol."

His fingers travelled up to Seungcheol's chest area, making him harden up but he maintained his composure as he held Jeonghan's hand with a sudden force.

"I'm not pretending, I don't like it anymore, if Soonyoung ever finds out, both of our lives are at risk, stop acting like a fucking child and stay on a low radar for now."

He put Jeonghan's hand down before crossing his legs. Jeonghan rolled his eyes, turning to the window on his right, watching outside.

"I didn't ask you to fall in love with me. So don't blame me for your actions." He folded his arms, sulking which made Seungcheol run his hand through his hair, frustrated as he turned to Jeonghan.

"I'm not blaming you, I'm-"

In a second, Jeonghan turned around, grabbing Seungcheol's neck and pulling him closer, their lips meeting in a heated kiss as opposed to their shivering bodies. Seungcheol instantly kissed Jeonghan back, carrying the slim man unto his laps.

Jeonghan's fingers sunk into Seungcheol's back as he closed the gap between them. Seungcheol's lips took over Jeonghan's, encompassing them in a passionate embrace while his hands ran up and down Jeonghan's soaking wet thighs.

Their tongues twirled, the refreshing feeling of their freezing mouths sending both of them on a pleasurable ride as they explored their bodies, claiming every part of each other.

Seungcheol broke the kiss, his mouth moving over to Jeonghan's neck, sucking and biting it slowly making Jeonghan moan loudly. As Seungcheol returned to Jeonghan's mouth, the kiss continued, their tongues intertwining as their lips asserted dominance over each other.

With a last kiss, their faces parted and Jeonghan gave Seungcheol a peck on the cheek before whispering, "See you next time, Choi Seungcheol." He got off Seungcheol's lap and opened the door on his side, jumping out of the moving car before Seungcheol could stop him.

Seungcheol turned around instantly, watching as Jeonghan rolled, got up and dashed into the darkness of the night, vanishing before his eyes.

Seungcheol slammed his fist into the window of the car, cracking it before he closed the door and turned back to face the front.

Jeonghan would always have an edge over him and there was nothing in this world he could do about it.

•••••••••••••

Wonwoo adjusted his glasses as he searched the Internet and various databases for as much information as he could find on Kim Mingyu.

After he finished searching, he decided to make a file and started to print each page one by one before compiling. He read the first page while he waited for the others. "Kim Mingyu, 27 years old, son of Kim Joonhyung, CEO of Kim Corp, brother of Kim Taehyung, COO of Kim Corp, best friends with Lee Seokmin, unemployed."

Wonwoo's eyes went over the page but he found no standout details that would help him understand why Mingyu helped them. Or why he needed a grenade.

For about an hour straight, Wonwoo read all the pages of the file, going over the pages more than once but he didn't manage to find anything helpful. "Still nothing." He muttered to himself in annoyance before his eyes caught a number on one of the pages.

He looked at the phone number and wondered if it was really Mingyu's. He didn't have a job at his father's company so it couldn't be a business line, right?

Wonwoo took out his burner phone, which he used for Soonyoung's shady business, and dialed in the number, pressing the phone to his ear. After a few seconds of ringing, the person answered, their voice cracking on his old model as they asked, "Hello? Who is this?"

Wonwoo cleared his throat before replying. "Hello, this is Jeon Wonwoo, I'd like to speak with Kim Mingyu." The line went silent for a few seconds before a response came through. "Well, go on, I'm Kim Mingyu."

"Oh, okay." Wonwoo said before searching for the file he's wrote some information on. "By the way, why is the connection so bad? What are you using to call me? A microwave?" Mingyu laughed at his own joke and Wonwoo's nervousness faded into irritation in an instant.

"I'd like to meet you in person, during your free time, I have something important I want to discuss." Wonwoo stated his purpose as he awaited Mingyu's answer. "Well, how do I know I can trust whoever you are? What if you're some murderer?"

Wonwoo smirked, pleasantly surprised by Mingyu being cautious. He didn't take the man to be smart at all, based on the information he had on him.

"You can trust me because I told you my real name, Jeon Wonwoo. I'm Kwon Soonyoung's secretary."

ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎

Ⓒ︎𝙾𝙷𝚆𝙰𝚈𝙾𝙷𝚆𝙰𝚈𝙾𝙷
𝚂𝚃𝙰𝚁𝚃𝙴𝙳 - 11•01•2025
𝙴𝙽𝙳𝙴𝙳 - 𝙽•𝙰