By the time Mingi had finished explaining everything, the sun had cast a beautiful color of deep orange over the city. Both of the car windows had been rolled down and they had both reclined their seats a little.

It was mostly to help Mingi relax. There were quite a few times he had to stop and collect himself before he could continue on. Thankfully Yunho was patient.

He went over everything. The selection, how Yunho and Hongjoong had decided on who would be on the team, and Mingi made sure to stress just how close the two of them used to be. Yunho pursed his lips during that and stared hard at his steering wheel.

Mingi didn't press him to talk, he knew this was a lot to take in. It had been hard enough to go through this alone, and Mingi had had years to learn and process. He was asking Yunho to make a decision as soon as he was done.

He spoke about training and how they were all forced to be locked into their own room until their hacker, Yeosang, was given his own space, then about how Mingi convinced Hongjoong to give them all their own space so they could bond.

That was followed by their first mission and how Wooyoung had disobeyed orders and them finding out about his past. Then he went over how all of them weren't necessarily bad people, they had just made bad choices.

Mingi then went into specifics with San and how Yunho had felt attached to him because of his sister. This was when Yunho paled and hung on every single word that Mingi said. His mouth opened a little when Mingi said San heard voices too and that Yunho wanted to help him.

"He's like Yuri?" Yunho whispered, his voice shaking a little.

"Kind of." Mingi let out a long sigh. "We all thought he was, but... at one point we got him tested because he kept attacking us. It was mostly you because you were closest to him. It was like there was a switch that was flipped in him and he turned into a stone-cold killer. So when the test came around, we found out that he had some kind of a chip embedded in his brain so that he could be controlled."

"What?!"

"Yeah." Mingi nodded slowly. "And that ties back in to everything. Seonghwa's father is the one who did it. He wanted San to be the perfect killing machine. And in that life, San... San killed Yuri while he was under Mercer's control. He didn't remember doing it until Yeosang had come up with a device to block the signal getting to his chip."

Yunho paled and covered his mouth. "Oh god... What... What did I do?"

"You destroyed every dish in the kitchen before speeding away to your sisters grave. Hongjoong found you and convinced you to come back, but it was raining and you ended up getting sick. I think San was getting ready to leave until he saw that and he didn't leave your side. You guys really loved each other."

"San..." Yunho whispered. His eyes seemed to fog over as he repeated the name a couple of more times, then he started to shake his head. "I'm sorry, but I don't know who you're talking about."

"I know you don't." Mingi's voice made it obvious how disappointed he was, but he knew he couldn't blame Yunho. "But it's all true. Seonghwa's father ended up showing up at our complex because he regained control of San and found our address. He thought Seonghwa was being held prisoner, so Seonghwa went with him willingly to keep up the lie and they took Wooyoung. We had to evacuate because Hongjoong's boss was going to have us all arrested again for failing, and once we were safe we went to rescue them. The final time we were all together was when we were trying to stop him. But we were too late..."

"And that's why he activated this... time machine?" Yunho arched an eyebrow, showing how skeptical he was.

Mingi nodded. "Seonghwa was shot protecting Wooyoung from his father, so that's when his father lost it and dove for the machine. I—" Mingi's voice cracked. "I was the closest one to his machine. So I dove for it and I touched the machine at the same time he pressed his button. I think that's the only reason I remember. Which means he does too, and that terrifies me. If this is the world he created... then he's achieved everything he wanted."

The silence that fell between them became longer and longer. Mingi was too scared to say anything else. All he could do wait and pray that Yunho would believe him. There wasn't really any more he could say. He knew it was a crazy story and he knew that he would have a hard time believing it himself.

"So, say we find the others..." Yunho said while running his hand back and forth over his steering wheel. "What then? We take down the most powerful man around? And by the sounds of it, he already has three of the team with him in this life, right?"

Mingi's head snapped up and he looked and the driver in shock. "Are... Are you saying you believe me?"

"I don't know. This is all crazy, but... it seems to be too crazy for anyone to make up. And the fact that you know about Yuri... No one knows about Yuri."

"What happened to her?" Mingi kept his voice gentle and cautious. He knew he was walking a thin line, but the more he could get to know this new Yunho, the easier things would probably be.

Yunho's eyes darkened. "No one would help her. They all said she was crazy and a waste of space. There was no need for a psycho to take up precious food. Yuri and I never had money after our parents died, so that's why I started street racing. It was a way to put food on the table at least."

"Could you not get her medicine?"

"Around here medicine is for the super rich. And there is no medicine for her condition. Anyone with a sickness of the mind is worthless and if they are admitted to a hospital then something would happen to cause their mysterious death."

"You're kidding, right?" Mingi felt himself trembling with rage.

"That's the world you mafia leader has created. You're not from the city are you?"

The thief shook his head. "No, I was born in a small town and by the time I started remembering, all my time was spent trying to find you guys. I haven't paid too close attention to everything that's changed. I know the police don't exist and things like that, but for him to control medicine..."

"Yeah, well, it's a fucked up world. Because Yuri couldn't get any medicine, she just got worse and worse. It got to the point where she wasn't able to leave the house without drawing attention to herself." Yunho's voice started to tremble. "It became to much for her and when she had her bad spells I had to lock her in her room to prevent her from escaping so she didn't harm herself or others... If someone found her out by herself..." He closed his eyes and turned his head away.

Mingi felt his chest tighten. Even if he didn't know this Yunho, he still considered the older his close and personal friend, and he didn't like seeing him hurt like this.

"It got to be too much for her. One day I went out for a race. She had had one on of her bad spells earlier that morning and I was hesitant to leave, but she had been craving this chocolate cake from a bakery in the city. So I promised her I would stop there if I won. When..." Yunho paused, almost choking on his words now. "When I got home... She was hanging from the ceiling in her bedroom, with her bedsheets shredded and wrapped around her neck."

Mingi couldn't believe what he was hearing. He dug his fingers into his legs so hard they started to ache.

"I knew I sh-shouldn't hav-ve left that d-day. But we n-needed the money. Y-Yuri couldn't work, so I w-was the only source of inc-come." Yunho lifted his hand to his mouth now to try and cover his sobs, but there was no point. He was already shaking enough that his car was trembling too, almost as if it felt his pain.

Even though he wasn't sure how Yunho would react, Mingi couldn't stop himself as he leaned over and pulled Yunho too him and held him close. The older didn't seem to mind, he even turned his head a little to press his nose into Mingi's chest. The position was awkward with the center console between them, but it was something at least.

"I'm so sorry." Mingi whispered into the top of Yunho's hair.

"It's ok... Sh-She's in a b-better place now, r-right?"

"Yes. Yes she is." Mingi kept his voice low and started to rub Yunho's back. "She's not in pain anymore, and I'm sure she's looking down on you right now. You used to believe that she actually led San to you, since they had the same symptoms."

Yunho sat up suddenly and looked at him. His eyes were red and swollen and his face was drenched with tears, but he had a hard look to him. "I did?"

Mingi nodded and sat back. "You did. And in a way, she did before. If he hadn't killed her... You wouldn't have become a cop. That was the main reason why you joined the force."

The older pressed his lips together in a firm line and closed his eyes. He sat there without moving for an incredible about of time. It got to the point where Mingi would almost say he's a machine that just shut down. But then his eyelids flicked open in one quick, fluid moment. "So how are we doing this?"

"You're going to help me?"

"If there's one thing I've always believed in, it's that fate plays a big part in life. If Yuri hadn't fallen ill and my parents hadn't died, I wouldn't have discovered my love for racing. I know that seems a little petty, but who knows where I'd be right now. And if you say I thought Yuri brought me and San together in this old life, well, that sounds like something I'd say." Yunho sniffed once and rubbed his nose. "And I want that son of a bitch to pay for what he did."

Mingi started to grind his teeth together before giving a wicked grin. "Oh you bet he's going to pay. He's going to suffer for every little thing he's done."

Yunho nodded and stuck his fist out, which Mingi immediately covered with his own hand. "Where do we start?"

"I know the location of Hongjoong... I was hoping maybe you'd be able to help me pull him to our side. And Yeosang and Jongho have eluded me so far, but I have an idea of where Jongho could be."

"The fighting ring off Windego?"

The corner of Mingi's mouth quirked up in a lopsided grin. "You've got it. You always did learn quickly."

"Who do you want to try first?"

Mingi rubbed his chin while they both adjusted their seats. "Let's go survey the fight club and see what's going on there. I don't know what's happened to him here, but Jongho was a pretty reasonable kid."

"Alright." Yunho started his car with a mighty roar. "Let's go get some food and then we will head over there. I don't think it opens until two hours after sunset anyway. Buckle up, Buttercup." Yunho revved his engine.

"Don't call me tha— Fuck!" Mingi shouted when he was slammed into his seat as Yunho pressed the gas pedal to the floor. The tires squealed beneath them and the car spun in a circle.

Yunho started to laugh while he slid easily into traffic on the main road. They zipped back and forth, not paying attention to any speed limit.

Mingi's knuckles were white on the door handle as he did his best to stay calm. He was too afraid to close his eyes and it got to the point where they started to sting. But the one time he glanced over at the person next to him, he felt himself relax.

It may not be the same Yunho he knew before, but there were traces of him in there. Hopefully the others could be convinced to join too. If he could get Yeosang at least, then maybe they could start coming up with a plan to get the other three out of Mercer's grip.

He just needed to find Yeosang first.

For now they would focus on Jongho and Hongjoong.

Mingi glanced out the window of his car, missing Hongjoong more and more. "I'm coming. Please, please still be there." He whispered while placing a hand over his heart. He had to have faith, otherwise there was no point in him continuing on...