ii'll be the bullet in your gun [2/2]
part one
“Good god,” Baekhyun says as Chanyeol wobbles into their headquarters. “You look like shit.”
“Thanks,” Chanyeol bites out as he brings up a bag of ice to his jaw. “I feel the love already. If I didn’t already feel bad about all of this then I do now.”
“Good cause you should.” Baekhyun crosses his arms. “I can’t believe this piece of shit did us dirty again. I can’t believe he interfered in our mission again. I can’t believe this is happening!” Baekhyun throws his hands up in anger and mimics strangling a person’s neck. “If I ever get my hands on this fucker I’m-“
“Going to do nothing,” Jongdae says calmly as he swivels around in his chair. “Chanyeol can you please tell me why you decided to go radio silent in what I’m assuming was a crucial part of the mission? Or more importantly, why you didn’t take D.O. out when you had the chance?”
Chanyeol doesn’t look up at Jongdae, choosing to slump against a free chair instead of answering. Jongdae sighs and brushes a hand through his hair. It’s sticky with sweat and when Chanyeol looks over at Baekhyun, he notices that both of his partners look like they’ve been worrying. He allows the guilt to wash into him and numb the pain in his jaws.
“Well, either way it looks like D.O. has the upper hand yet again,” Jongdae says. “Our superiors aren’t going to like this. They’re definitely going to think something’s up if we don’t mention an outside party. I can’t let them think we’re incompetent. I won’t allow that.”
“Jongdae.” Chanyeol says, leaning forward a bit as he looks him straight in the eye. “I have to find out more about this D.O. person.”
“We already know all we know about him,” Jongdae replies sadly. “They’re still looking into him, but so far there isn’t really anything to say.”
“He seems to know a bit about what we do,” Chanyeol says. “How else would he have known about those two places we were going to hit? It can’t be a coincidence that he shows up at our target just before we do and manages to steal it before us.”
Baekhyun snorts. “What’s all this we?”
“He could be someone from headquarters,” Jongdae says, ignoring Baekhyun entirely. “I wouldn’t be surprised at this point, but in the same vein, I wouldn’t expect them to put so much effort to just send some new agent after us.”
“They could if they wanted to dismiss our credibility and showcase some of their newer agents.” Baekhyun kicks at Jongdae’s chair. “Maybe we lost our fucking touch.”
“But why?” Chanyeol brings the ice pack down from the reddening bruise on his jaw. “What would be the point of sending someone just to mess with us like this?”
“Look I don’t know okay?” Baekhyun whines. “I’m-wait, are you smiling?”
Chanyeol quickly thins his lips and tries to avoid making his emotions obvious. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Are you happy with all of this?”
“I’m just,” Chanyeol sucks in a breath and decides to just roll with the truth. “I’m kind of impressed with him?”
“Oh my god,” Baekhyun throws a hand up to his forehead dramatically. “I think he punched a part of your brain out. You know, when I said that world record thing, I meant it as a joke, not for you to actually go and try to beat.”
“Shouldn’t you be happy that someone is smart enough to get past you?”
“No?” Baekhyun answers with a bewildered look on his face. “Did your brain suddenly go missing? Why on-did he touch your dick or something?”
Chanyeol squawks. “What? No!”
“I bet he gave you some of that loving you’ve been missing out on.”
“Baekhyun, please stop talking.” Jongdae deadpans, clearly unamused at the sudden change in topic, and the fact that Baekhyun is still talking.
Tuning out the conversation, Chanyeol shifts in his chair uncomfortably, the bruise on his jaw starting to ache again, and he makes a noticeable groan as he presses the ice bag back to try and relieve some of the pain. Jongdae turns away from Baekhyun when he notices that Chanyeol’s bruise is starting to get worse, and he rests a hand on Chanyeol’s knee.
“Why don’t you get some rest?” Jongdae looks worried for him and Chanyeol reassures him with a smile.
It is with a sense of guilt that Chanyeol makes his way back to the same bakery he met Kyungsoo at for the first time in a few days. He hasn’t been avoiding the place on purpose; he’d just been busy with recovering from the museum incident, and the fact that Jongdae wants to make sure there’s nothing broken inside of him makes it a bit harder to make his usual rounds about the city.
Minseok looks completely relieved to see him in what he’s sure is a few days too long. “It’s good to see you!” He stumbles past the counter to pull Chanyeol in with a hug, and in Minseok’s own weird way, it helps Chanyeol feel a bit better about everything that’s been going on.
“Sorry I haven’t visited in a while,” Chanyeol says. “I’ve just been a bit busy, but don’t worry. I haven’t been getting coffee anywhere else.”
“I hope not,” Minseok chuckles a bit before he really takes Chanyeol in, and his smile is displaced with a look of worry. “Did you hurt your jaw?”
Chanyeol pauses for a moment and then points to the thick bandage strapped across his bruise. “What this? Yeah I got into a tiny accident, but it’s nothing to worry about. It just hurts here and there when I talk.” Chanyeol grins as he winces from the slight pain that follows. “Kind of like now.”
“You told me you’d be careful.” Minseok looks a bit hurt and Chanyeol feels a new wave of guilt. He doesn’t want to upset Minseok since Minseok’s one of the few friends he has outside of work, and probably one of his oldest friends.
“I know,” Chanyeol says. “I guess I’m kind of bad at this. But I’ll be careful from here on out. I promise.”
Minseok studies him closely. “Well okay. But if you break this promise then we’re going to have an issue, okay?” Chanyeol smiles at him with his signature lopsided grin and Minseok eases into a warm grin. “By the way, Kyungsoo’s been asking about you.”
Chanyeol averts his eyes. “Did he now?”
“Yeah, he’s been wondering why you haven’t visited in a while.” Minseok picks up a nearby muffin and starts picking at the crumbs. “I told him that you’re probably out of town on one of those fashion shows you keep mentioning about. I really hope your jaw wasn’t hurt because of something that happened at work.”
“It wasn’t.” Chanyeol shakes his head. “I kind of figured Kyungsoo wouldn’t want to talk to me anymore after what happened.”
“Did you guys get into a fight?”
“No it wasn’t anything like that,” Chanyeol laughs dryly. “I just sort of acted without thinking.”
Minseok stares at him. “Well, whatever you did, it didn’t seem to really bother Kyungsoo that much. He was really sad a couple of days ago when he came to get his milk. I haven’t seen him this sad since well, ever really.”
Chanyeol’s lips thin.
“Don’t worry, I’m sure everything will be fine when you guys start talking again,” Minseok reassures him. “I’m sure he’ll be happy to know you’re okay, and that you’ve been missing him. It’s kind of adorable really-“
Their conversation is interrupted when the doorbell chimes as another customer walks in, and Chanyeol swallows because he knows exactly who it is. Minseok looks supportive with his two thumbs up before he vanishes into the backroom.
Taking every inch of courage left in his bones, Chanyeol takes a deep breath and turns around to face Kyungsoo.
His first reaction is surprise because Kyungsoo is dressed in clothing completely different from his usual attire. A sleek black suit slides down his body and with how his bangs are pushed back from his forehead, it gives him a sort of intimidating presence. He looks his age, and somehow, he seems to move more naturally with this style, like he was born to steal souls and eat hearts.
When Chanyeol looks up at Kyungsoo’s eyes, he’s immediately greeted with a stare that looks completely horrified, eyes blown and dilating like they’re trying to figure out what they’re looking at.
It’s a bit unnerving, but when Chanyeol offers the slightest grin to Kyungsoo, the look is gone, easily replaced by the cheerful look Chanyeol’s grown accustomed to seeing on Kyungsoo’s face. Kyungsoo takes a few steps into the shop and Chanyeol can’t help the flutter he feels inside his stomach as he memorizes Kyungsoo’s face once more.
“It’s nice to see you,” Chanyeol says. “I’ve missed you.”
“Likewise.” Kyungsoo grins even wider.
It doesn’t take them long to build the bars back in their friendship, and just like that, it’s like nothing’s changed between them.
Chanyeol dips into the white lies he’s rehearsed for what’s been going on in his absence, mentioning a few photoshoots in a nearby country, and the fact that he’d been involved in an accident with a local taxi. Kyungsoo seems to take it all in a bit cautiously this time, but then he asks if Chanyeol really is okay and it makes Chanyeol wonder if he really is.
“I’m glad you guys are together again,” Jongdae says as he pauses his dumbbell lifting. “You’ve already managed to last longer in a relationship than Baekhyun has.”
The sound of a grunt echoes in the gym before the sound of metal weights dropping onto the floor. “Are you trying to say something?”
“I’m just saying, if you didn’t cycle through girls like a revolving door, then maybe you’d actually be much happier.” Jongdae continues his weight lifting as Baekhyun glares at him across the gym.
“It feels the same, yet there’s something different now,” Chanyeol says between breaths. “It’s almost like he’s hiding something?”
“What do you mean?”
Chanyeol bites his bottom lip. “It’s like, there’s this sort of space between us that wasn’t there before. Like, there’s some sort of weight he’s holding and he doesn’t want to tell me about it. I know he’s entitled to his own secrets, but I guess I care because I don’t like seeing him like this. Is that weird?”
“Yes.” Baekhyun returns to his bench pressing.
Jongdae waves Baekhyun off. “Are you guys close?”
“Well it feels like we are,” Chanyeol replies. “He talked about how he hasn’t been feeling well lately and it’s been affecting his work and I don’t think you share that with just anybody?”
Jongdae looks over at Chanyeol. “I don’t know, that doesn’t really say much. If you guys are close, then shouldn’t you be meeting each him at somewhere other than that bakery?”
“You guys are still meeting up there?” Baekhyun scoffs. “You know what, I don’t even care at this point. I’m going to be a big person and just feel happy for you.”
Chanyeol rolls his eyes and pushes the speed on his treadmill higher.
“He might be the type that has a hard time letting other people know about his problems,” Jongdae says. “Just give him some time. He’s still with you now, so he’ll come around eventually-“
He pauses suddenly as his phone vibrates, and when he goes to check on it, his face goes pale as he reads the message on the screen.
“What is it Jongdae?”
Jongdae stays silent.
It all happens on a Monday. Jongdae said it was a sort of final test type deal, where the agency was going to decide whether or not to terminate Chanyeol from the agency because of his recent, ventures. Chanyeol knew what it all meant. He could see it in Baekhyun’s eyes, the sympathy Baekhyun was trying to give him but couldn’t find the right words to say it. Chanyeol just pushed at his shoulder with a smile.
“Do you need us to go with you?” Jongdae asks quietly as Chanyeol fills his backpack with a few supplies. “You shouldn’t have to face them all by yourself.”
Chanyeol turns to his friend and gives him a sad smile. “No, just leave this to me. After all, it’s my fault we’re falling behind so quickly. I should be the one to face the consequences.” He quickly throws in a water bottle to try and buy as much time as he can. “I shouldn’t have been so stupid. If I didn’t act so poorly we-“
“No one said what you did was foolish,” Jongdae reassures him. “You reacted exactly how we were trained. Well in your case, you reacted in how you were trained. No one can fault you for that.”
“Apparently they can,” Chanyeol laughs dryly. “Do you think things would’ve been different if you hadn’t signed on with this company? Like do you think we still would’ve become friends if we didn’t meet up through this?”
Jongdae stares at Chanyeol for a good minute before he breaks into an innocent smile. “I think so. Life does work in mysterious ways. I wouldn’t be surprised just how similar our lives would be even if we didn’t choose this path. But I guess we will never know now will we? It’s just some of things we have to sacrifice for this life. If I could get the chance, I’d love to go on a trip.”
“I’d get a puppy,” Baekhyun perks up, pushing his snapback up so the bill shades him from the office lights. “A puppy that farts.”
“Way to ruin the moment,” Jongdae sighs.
A few men in suits come to pick up Chanyeol two hours later, after Jongdae and Baekhyun give him a few words of encouragement, and assure him that he will definitely pass the test with flying colors. No matter what kind of situation they were in, they always had the most faith in him, and it’s with this spot of courage that Chanyeol faces his demons head on, unflinching in the face of his superior.
“I trust you’re doing well Chanyeol?” Junmyeon asks, with a smile as sharp as his suit.
Chanyeol reclines slightly against the seat of the minivan, not bothering to apologize to the bodyguards on either side of him as they bump with his elbows. “Never better. I guess you’re the same as you’ve always been?”
Junmyeon’s smile stays in place. “I suppose you can say that. But we’re not talking about me.” His hands curl tighter around his umbrella handle. “We’re talking about you.”
Chanyeol’s lips thin as they try to smile.
“You’re a smart boy Chanyeol,” Junmyeon says softly. “I trust you understand that the agency does not tolerate failure. Especially ones so, embarrassing, I should say.” He laughs, but he’s the only person laughing in the van. “Normally, such behavior would be dealt with quickly and efficiently because we do not like messy situations. Do you like messy situations Chanyeol?”
At this, Chanyeol’s hands clench around his knees. “I can’t say I do.”
“I don’t like them either,” Junmyeon waves his hand lazily in the air like the topic simply disgusts him. “I like you Chanyeol. You have an outstanding record of achievements while serving under us, so I will make an exception for you.” Junmyeon tilts his head when Chanyeol visibly shrinks in his seat. “Don’t worry Chanyeol. This mission will be an easy one.”
They arrive at an abandoned office building near the older district in the city, a skeleton of what it once was in its glory days. With how things have turned out in his life, Chanyeol thinks he has a lot in common with the building. Chanyeol doesn’t catch it at first, but one of the rooms near the top of the building still has its lights on.
“What are we doing here?” Chanyeol asks, disregarding the looks Junmyeon’s men give him.
Junmyeon takes his sweet time getting out of the minivan, one gloved hand holding onto the hand of a bodyguard as he steps out of the vehicle delicately. “You just need to retrieve something for me. It’s a flashdrive inside the safe on the sixth floor. What’s on the flashdrive, you needn’t worry about. Breaking into one shouldn’t be that hard of a challenge for someone of, your talent.”
Chanyeol narrows his eyes at Junmyeon, who looks about as amused as a child in a theme park. Knowing how Junmyeon is, making his subordinates sweat might as well be a source of enjoyment for him. With a rendezvous point picked out for delivering the mark, Junmyeon disappears with his men, leaving Chanyeol alone with only his thoughts for company.
For a brief, fleeting moment, he wonders how Kyungsoo is doing, and if maybe he’ll still have the chance to see him after all of this is over.
The safe itself isn’t that hard to get to, since it’s clear no one has been in this building for years. The floor creaks as if it’s going to fall apart with any step Chanyeol makes, and dust drifts in from the ceiling as the building shakes beneath the wind. He doesn’t get a chance to examine the safe when he hears the familiar sound of footsteps growing behind him.
“What took you so long?” Chanyeol asks, turning around to face D.O. with a small grin. “I was beginning to think you weren’t going to show up.”
If Chanyeol was completely honest with himself, he’d believe that D.O. looked a bit sad about the fact that Chanyeol was here in this building with him. The confidence from their previous encounter is nowhere to be seen, instead replaced with the hesitation of someone who looks unsure of what kind of choices they were making.
“Did someone send you to steal what I was going to steal?” Chanyeol asks, feeling a bit bold at this point because he doesn’t really have that much to lose. “Or are you just stealing it because I’m stealing it?”
D.O. pauses for a moment, as if he’s debating whether or not to reveal any information. “I was given orders to eliminate you.”
“From who?” Chanyeol bites his tongue to try and contain the sinking feeling in his stomach.
There’s another pause. “From your employer. Kim Junmyeon.”
He isn’t surprised at all. In fact, he’s seen it coming a mile away what with the remote location they picked out for him to live out his final mission for them, and the fact that they sent another agent to do him in. It all fits perfectly and Chanyeol’s first reaction is to laugh. For the first time in a long time, he feels a sense of relief in his body, loud laughter echoing in the dead building as Chanyeol finally understands everything.
“Sorry, I suppose that was a bit strange,” Chanyeol says as he rubs the back of his neck. Do you really want to kill me though?”
“They told me to,” D.O. starts. “But, I don’t want to.”
Chanyeol smiles his signature smile and D.O. takes a step back. “I know we’ve been enemies for a while now but, I don’t know, I’m kind of happy when we’re together.”
“What?”
“That sounds weird doesn’t it?” Chanyeol laughs. “I don’t want us to be fighting all of the time. I mean, I want us to work together.”
D.O. looks down at the ground, and then takes a really good look at Chanyeol. “But why?”
Chanyeol licks his lips. “I guess… I guess I kind of like you?”
With those words, the world seems to pause around them, like time has suddenly come to a halt. Chanyeol realizes that he’s acting beyond what any logical person would be acting in a situation like this, but he’s finally reached the point where he doesn’t care anymore. The agency he worked so hard for has finally stabbed him in the back, what he once called home now just an enemy.
“It’s weird,” Chanyeol says. “It feels like I’ve known you a lot longer than just three meetings though. I mean, you seem so familiar. But that’s impossible, because we’re just-"
Chanyeol doesn’t get another word in as D.O. takes a turn to laugh, clutching at his stomach like it’s the funniest joke on the planet. His tiny body bends in laughter and it’s a nice sound, happy notes that make Chanyeol smile a bit. A split second later, his stomach sinks.
“No way,” Chanyeol gasps.
Kyungsoo doesn’t try to look at all surprised when he finally sheds the mask off of his head, strands of black brushed back that this time, makes his face look younger than usual. Chanyeol takes a moment to process all the information he’s just been given, and then his mind revisits his previous thoughts, and he comes to the conclusion that his life is just one big clusterfuck.
“I can’t believe you punched me!” Is the first thing Chanyeol shouts as he presses a hand to his chin.
Kyungsoo’s lips thin. “Well, at the time I didn’t know it was you. I was given orders to just interfere with the mission. Then you went and jumped on me, I just sort of panicked.”
“So wait are you really an event planner?” Chanyeol asks quickly.
“Are you really a professional model?” Kyungsoo fires back.
“I just can’t believe the infamous D.O. is just little Kyungsoo from the bakery shop.” Chanyeol smile gets wider when Kyungsoo starts to pout.
“Is it really that hard to believe?”
“Yes.”
“Are we really doing this right now?” Kyungsoo puffs his cheeks out. “I should’ve punched you harder.”
Chanyeol quickly closes the gap between them with a few stride, pulling Kyungsoo into a hug that’s long overdue. There’s a million thoughts running through his mind right now, and all of them revolve around Kyungsoo and just how many ways he’s been unknowingly shaping Chanyeol’s life. Kyungsoo takes a while to start moving, but he quickly leans into the hug, wrapping his own arms around Chanyeol’s neck.
“So, what does this make us?” Kyungsoo asks as Chanyeol finally releases his arms a bit so they can breathe because Chanyeol’s hugs are never pleasant for shorter people.
“I don’t know. It’s not like this makes sense at all. I mean, how am I supposed to explain this to people? The guy I like was actually the guy that outwitted me in my work and I bet-“
They barely catch it in time. It’s Kyungsoo that notices it first, the faint ticking, and with quick reflexes, he pulls Chanyeol in with him to roll away from the safe that finally explodes in a brilliant flash of fire. It’s a smaller explosion than last time as the flames make no attempt at swallowing the building, merely smoldering around the remains of the safe like a fiery nest.
“So, I guess now we know for sure that, they really wanted to eliminate us,” Chanyeol notes as Kyungsoo examines what’s left of the safe, picking at the pieces of burnt metal. “I can’t believe they tried to take you out too though.”
Kyungsoo breathes for a few seconds. “I didn’t think I was that dangerous.” He chuckles a bit and Chanyeol’s stomach does a backflip. “I guess I outlived my usefulness. If you’re curious, there wasn’t any flashdrive inside.”
Chanyeol rubs at the aching in his arms, and pats Kyungsoo on the back, motioning him to follow since there really isn’t much point for them to stay there anymore.
On the way down, Chanyeol learns that Kyungsoo’s been in the agency a bit longer than he has, and was recently given specialized training to deal with defectors and people who might pose a threat to the agency later on. Chanyeol is unsure how he feels about this, but he supposes that it doesn’t matter anymore because in the end, both ended up becoming true.
“You’re really going to like Jongdae,” Chanyeol says. “Baekhyun, not so much, but we tolerate him enough.”
“They sound like nice people,” Kyungsoo says. “When I said I don’t really have that many friends, I was actually-“
The sound of gunfire explodes through the air as a bullet shoots clean through Kyungsoo’s arm, blood spraying on the concrete below them. Chanyeol’s ears are filled with the horrifying cries of Kyungsoo as he wails in pain, clutching at the blood now seeping through his sleeve. Immediately, Chanyeol drops down to try and help Kyungsoo, but not before he hears the sound of a gun clicking in front of him.
“I must say, this is unexpected.” Junmyeon’s standing at an abandoned construction sign a few feet away, bodyguards flanking him and closing in around them. “When I saw the explosion had gone off, I’d hoped it had taken at least one of you out. But no, you both had to go and live through it. It’s really annoying, because now I have to get messy.”
He cocks his gun forward towards Chanyeol’s face.
Chanyeol refuses to let the fear take over his body, instead letting rage fill up every inch of his veins, for what Junmyeon did to him, and to Kyungsoo. “Do you think toying with people is fun?” When Kyungsoo starts to breathe a bit heavier, Chanyeol tries to shift so that Kyungsoo can lie against him a bit easier. “What’s wrong with you?”
“Do you really think you’re some kind of saint Chanyeol?” Junmyeon asks wryly. “You of all people have the gall to come at us like we’re the bad guys. If I recall, you have quite the dirty past yourself. Do you really think you’re past is clean of any kind of sin?”
Chanyeol grits his teeth when he feels Kyungsoo start to shake.
“This is all moot now.” Junmyeon says as he raises the gun higher. “Good-“
A second shot rings through the air and pierces straight into Junmyeon’s hand, clearing a bloody hole right through the middle. Junmyeon lets out a pained howl as he drops to the floor, gun slipping out of his hand and abandoned in favor of panicking over the sudden wound. The guards react by rushing in towards their leader, screaming and shouting for backup over the radio.
It isn’t a few seconds later when multiple shots take out the guards with precise accuracy, headshots that carve a path for Chanyeol and Kyungsoo to escape in. Junmyeon’s eyes are frantic as he looks around for where the gunfire came from, quickly searching the building windows around them. A final shot clears through the field and tears straight through his shoulder, knocking him back onto the floor and ending the fight.
With Junmyeon unconscious, Chanyeol quickly scoops up Kyungsoo and tries to determine which direction would lead them out of the area the quickest, but not before he hears the roar of an engine as a Jeep rolls in through the traffic cones near the front.
“Chanyeol!” Jongdae quickly shouts, relief in his face as he sets down his phone in the cup holder. “You’re alive!”
“Jongdae? Baekhyun?” Chanyeol laughs lightly, making sure his arms around Kyungsoo are holding him safely. “What are you guys doing here?”
“It’s a long story,” Baekhyun says from the driver’s seat. His rifle is sitting beside him and Chanyeol thanks the heavens that he befriended a sniper. “Who’s that?”
“This is Kyungsoo.” Chanyeol says as he brings him over to the backseat, pushing aside the monitors and keyboards that are piled up to make room. “He’s-you guys already know him.”
“His arms looks pretty bad,” Jongdae says as he pulls out a roll of gauze. “Junmyeon did this didn’t he?”
Chanyeol nods.
“Shit,” Baekhyun grits out as he slams his fist down on the steering wheel. “I can’t believe this is fucking happening.”
“What happened?”
“As soon as you left, they tried to shoot me and Baekhyun,” Jongdae says as he begins cleaning up Kyungsoo’s wound. “They’re pretty bad shots at that. But, it’s just, the fact that they tried. I really wanted to believe it all just a really big prank, but they went and destroyed my equipment. Most of it anyways.”
“They really wanted to get rid of us. Of all of us. No loose ends and all.”
“Kyungsoo too?” Jongdae asks as he reaches for morphine. “Why him?”
Chanyeol cups his hand around the side of Kyungsoo’s head. Kyungsoo feels fragile in his hand, and even now, it’s still hard to believe that the boy from the bakery is this person here. “He’s, D.O.”
Baekhyun and Jongdae look at him like he’s lying to them, but when they realize that he’s being completely serious, they take a moment to take it all in. Jongdae stays quiet, finishing up the bandages around Kyungsoo’s arm. Baekhyun scratches his head twice and breathes out a forced sigh.
“I guess I can’t really strangle him now that he’s all beat up and shit,” Baekhyun says. “But when he gets better, I’m going to give him a piece of my mind.”
“You can try,” Kyungsoo says and Chanyeol almost pushes Jongdae out of the way to get a good look at his face. Kyungsoo’s eyes are barely opened, but he’s conscious and that is much better than the alternative.
“How do you feel?”
“Like a mess, but I’ll manage.” Kyungsoo smiles to them and Jongdae looks over to Chanyeol with his own smile. Baekhyun tries not to smile as well, but a small one does appear as he drives them away.
“So we can’t go back home, our former company is out trying to kill us, and our identities might be tied to criminal activities now.”
“…”
“We’re screwed aren’t we?”
“Not for me. Ladies love bad boys.”
With all of their identities now determined as threats to their former company, they decide that the best course of action would be to leave the city and try to start over in a place that had no record of them. Chanyeol felt bad about leaving Minseok with such a short notice, but he knows that it’s better this way, to not get him involved.
“Are you going on a trip?” Minseok asks, when Chanyeol comes in to give him the farewells.
Chanyeol stretches and pokes at Kyungsoo’s side with his finger. “You could say that. Don’t know how long it’ll be but I’ll be with this guy the whole time.” He pulls Kyungsoo in with one arm and Kyungsoo tries to squirm out of his hold, but to no avail.
“You kids grow up so fast,” Minseok says as he wipes an imaginary tear away. “I remember when I met my first-“
“Hey!” Baekhyun shouts from outside the shop, shades back in full effect and now complete with a fedora. “We don’t have all day you know.”
“Sorry Minseok, we really have to get going,” Kyungsoo says as he pulls out the biggest smile he could muster. “We’ll make sure to come visit when we come back.”
“You guys better promise me on that,” Minseok says. “And I hope you guys also take care of yourselves. I see little Kyungsoo has gotten his arm hurt. I hope it was just a small accident.” He wags his fingers disapprovingly like a grandfather, and Chanyeol lets out a boisterous laugh.
“Kyungsoo just tripped over himself is all. Nothing to worry about.”
Chanyeol can feel the pair of eyes glaring at him from the back, but he ignores it to wave Minseok a final farewell.
Chanyeol knows that nothing will ever be the same as it used to be, but with Kyungsoo now a permanent part of his life, he feels that things can be much better.
♔