With Bated Breath; Minho/Taemin
2min - "Are you dead?"
in which Taemin goes on a mission and Minho fears he won't come back alive.
Author's Note: it's supposed to be dramatic but i failed horribly. clearly, i know nothing about this line fo work so forgive me for inaccuracies with regards to the life of an assassin/hitman. i'm guessing reality isn't as such so let's just pretend it works like this. thanks for clicking your way here and i hope you'll enjoy the read!
Fifteen minutes is all Lee Taemin needs to knock a poor, innocent room service attendant out cold and steal his uniform. He spends a little more time hiding the unconscious staff in the store room as planned but Taemin still ends up in the service lift faster than expected, looking as if he has been working in the hotel all his life. With such a smooth start to his mission, it seems like nothing would break Taemin’s cool demeanor. Yet, the moment he sees himself in the mirror of the lift, Taemin’s face changes.
“God, this is one ugly uniform.”
Instantly, a reply comes through Taemin’s earpiece that has been designed to be hidden from all eyes.
“Shush Taem.”
“Relax, hyung.” Taemin says as he straightens the annoying black bow tie that comes with the tacky uniform of the hotel staff, “It’s a long way up to the 54th floor.”
“You’re in the lift already?”
“Of course.” Taemin answers, purposely sounding a little offended, “Don’t underestimate me, Minho hyung.”
A familiar chuckle sounds in his ear and Taemin can’t help but smile along. Seeing that he has a bit of time judging by how slow the lift is moving, the skilled assassin decides to strike up a conversation with his partner in crime who is waiting in the stolen getaway car.
“Hey hyung?”
“Yeah?”
“Do you know that tonight’s target is worth five million US dollars?”
“And your point is?”
“Well, I was thinking… maybe we could take a break and fly to London together? I could book us tickets to Arsenal’s first match of the season and-”
“Taem, as much I love how that sounds, I told you, I don’t date co-workers.”
“But you like me, don’t you?”
Taemin doesn’t get a reply. He isn’t surprised though. It has happened so many times before that Taemin is already used to Minho rejecting his advances. He understands why Minho wants to keep the status quo. It’s much easier when they are not emotionally invested in their line of work (Minho is an assassin too, he’s just playing a minor role in tonight’s mission). Still, Taemin thinks it’s stupid that they’re not crossing that fine line especially when they obviously have the hots for each other. What are the chances of meeting someone who loves you the same way you love him? Taemin doesn’t blame Minho for keeping a distance but that doesn’t mean he’s going to give up so easily.
There are only a few more floors to go before he reaches his destination and so, Taemin cuts to the chaste.
“Tell you what, hyung, let's strike a deal.” Taemin suggests as he prepares himself to step out of the lift, “If I get back to the car in 10 minutes, you'll go with me to London. How does that sound?”
“Alright, fine.” Minho replies without hesitating, more concerned about Taemin’s safety, “Now do us a favor and shut up. Focus on your task and get your cute ass back here safely.”
Taemin grins, “Aww, you think my ass is-”
He doesn’t get to finish his question because the lift doors open noisily. The assassin is sure Minho has heard it too. In a split second, he has his full attention back on his mission. Taemin steps out of the lift and heads straight to the room where his unsuspecting victim is about to be surprised by his special room service.
One glance at his watch tells Taemin that he has 9 minutes to get back to the car. Smirking, Taemin is confident that he’s about to win this bet. He has killed enough people to know he’ll breeze through tonight’s mission. After all, his target is merely an abusive multi billionaire whose children want him dead.
“Room service!” Standing confidently in front of the door, Taemin announces as he presses the doorbell and knocks on the door for good measure. Any moment now, he will take out his gun from the suit pocket and point it straight at the man’s head.
“Tae, you don’t have to be that loud.”
“Shush Min-”
And that is all Minho hears before a gunshot rings out.
“Tae!” Minho shouts, panic in his voice, because he knows something has gone terribly wrong.
Taemin’s gun has a silencer.
It just can’t be Taemin who fired the shot.
Minho’s mind is in a mess. He wasn’t prepared for this. However, before he can do anything else, a second gunshot is fired. Minho tries to pick up more sounds through the earpiece but he hears nothing. A deafening silence follows.
Minho’s heart is in his mouth.
“Taem?” Minho swallows hard, his grip on the steering wheel so tight, as he says his next words, “Are you dead?”
There is no reply. The line remains silent. There is still no sound transmitting through the earpiece. Minho quickly checks the connection and remains hopeful when he sees that the line hasn’t been disconnected. And so, he waits; because that’s all Minho can do when he is absolutely clueless about the current situation. His only responsibility tonight is to drive them away from the crime scene. It’s Taemin’s mission. And the rule remains - if the assassin fails to kill his target, the accomplice has to flee the scene to prevent further problems and most importantly, ensure that the organization will not be implicated.
“Taemin, answer me.” Minho tries again, helpless as he looks across the road where the back entry of the hotel is, “You can’t be dead.”
He then looks at the time on his watch. Has it only been five minutes since he last heard Taemin’s voice?
“Talk to me, Taem.” Frustrated, Minho falls back against the driver’s seat, “You told me 10 minutes max. I can only wait for 4 minutes and then I’d have to-”
All of a sudden, a piercing sound rings in his ear and Minho instantly takes off his earpiece, throwing it aside towards the passenger seat before rubbing his ear. Caught off guard by the sudden deafening sound, it takes a moment before it hits Minho that the line has been disconnected.
“God damn it, what the hell am I-”
Minho’s next word is replaced by a gasp when the passenger door suddenly flings open. The next thing he knows, Taemin jumps into the car with a smile as bright as sunshine.
“Look, I got my cute ass back here safe and sound!” Taemin beams as he shuts the door and then orders, “Now drive.”
Snapping out of his reverie, Minho instinctively turns on the engine and then steps on the accelerator.
As he drives them away from the crime scene, Minho has only one question in mind.
“What the hell just happened?!”
“Turns out the multi-billionaire is a fcking drunkard as well…” Taemin shrugs like it's no big deal.
“And he had a gun?”
“Yeah.”
“So? Was he just firing blindly when he opened the door?”
“Yes, but why are we still talking about this?” Taemin questions, “He’s dead, and I’m here, aren’t I?”
“I know, Tae, but-”
“Don’t worry, hyung. I’ve got everything covered.” Taemin simply replies as he places his hand on Minho’s thigh and squeezes it, “Just pack your bags ‘cause we’re going on a trip to London.”
When Taemin shows him the time on his watch and winks at him, Minho realizes that eight minutes is all Lee Taemin needs to convince him that life is too short to let love slip away.
in which Taemin goes on a mission and Minho fears he won't come back alive.
Author's Note: it's supposed to be dramatic but i failed horribly. clearly, i know nothing about this line fo work so forgive me for inaccuracies with regards to the life of an assassin/hitman. i'm guessing reality isn't as such so let's just pretend it works like this. thanks for clicking your way here and i hope you'll enjoy the read!
Fifteen minutes is all Lee Taemin needs to knock a poor, innocent room service attendant out cold and steal his uniform. He spends a little more time hiding the unconscious staff in the store room as planned but Taemin still ends up in the service lift faster than expected, looking as if he has been working in the hotel all his life. With such a smooth start to his mission, it seems like nothing would break Taemin’s cool demeanor. Yet, the moment he sees himself in the mirror of the lift, Taemin’s face changes.
“God, this is one ugly uniform.”
Instantly, a reply comes through Taemin’s earpiece that has been designed to be hidden from all eyes.
“Shush Taem.”
“Relax, hyung.” Taemin says as he straightens the annoying black bow tie that comes with the tacky uniform of the hotel staff, “It’s a long way up to the 54th floor.”
“You’re in the lift already?”
“Of course.” Taemin answers, purposely sounding a little offended, “Don’t underestimate me, Minho hyung.”
A familiar chuckle sounds in his ear and Taemin can’t help but smile along. Seeing that he has a bit of time judging by how slow the lift is moving, the skilled assassin decides to strike up a conversation with his partner in crime who is waiting in the stolen getaway car.
“Hey hyung?”
“Yeah?”
“Do you know that tonight’s target is worth five million US dollars?”
“And your point is?”
“Well, I was thinking… maybe we could take a break and fly to London together? I could book us tickets to Arsenal’s first match of the season and-”
“Taem, as much I love how that sounds, I told you, I don’t date co-workers.”
“But you like me, don’t you?”
Taemin doesn’t get a reply. He isn’t surprised though. It has happened so many times before that Taemin is already used to Minho rejecting his advances. He understands why Minho wants to keep the status quo. It’s much easier when they are not emotionally invested in their line of work (Minho is an assassin too, he’s just playing a minor role in tonight’s mission). Still, Taemin thinks it’s stupid that they’re not crossing that fine line especially when they obviously have the hots for each other. What are the chances of meeting someone who loves you the same way you love him? Taemin doesn’t blame Minho for keeping a distance but that doesn’t mean he’s going to give up so easily.
There are only a few more floors to go before he reaches his destination and so, Taemin cuts to the chaste.
“Tell you what, hyung, let's strike a deal.” Taemin suggests as he prepares himself to step out of the lift, “If I get back to the car in 10 minutes, you'll go with me to London. How does that sound?”
“Alright, fine.” Minho replies without hesitating, more concerned about Taemin’s safety, “Now do us a favor and shut up. Focus on your task and get your cute ass back here safely.”
Taemin grins, “Aww, you think my ass is-”
He doesn’t get to finish his question because the lift doors open noisily. The assassin is sure Minho has heard it too. In a split second, he has his full attention back on his mission. Taemin steps out of the lift and heads straight to the room where his unsuspecting victim is about to be surprised by his special room service.
One glance at his watch tells Taemin that he has 9 minutes to get back to the car. Smirking, Taemin is confident that he’s about to win this bet. He has killed enough people to know he’ll breeze through tonight’s mission. After all, his target is merely an abusive multi billionaire whose children want him dead.
“Room service!” Standing confidently in front of the door, Taemin announces as he presses the doorbell and knocks on the door for good measure. Any moment now, he will take out his gun from the suit pocket and point it straight at the man’s head.
“Tae, you don’t have to be that loud.”
“Shush Min-”
And that is all Minho hears before a gunshot rings out.
“Tae!” Minho shouts, panic in his voice, because he knows something has gone terribly wrong.
Taemin’s gun has a silencer.
It just can’t be Taemin who fired the shot.
Minho’s mind is in a mess. He wasn’t prepared for this. However, before he can do anything else, a second gunshot is fired. Minho tries to pick up more sounds through the earpiece but he hears nothing. A deafening silence follows.
Minho’s heart is in his mouth.
“Taem?” Minho swallows hard, his grip on the steering wheel so tight, as he says his next words, “Are you dead?”
There is no reply. The line remains silent. There is still no sound transmitting through the earpiece. Minho quickly checks the connection and remains hopeful when he sees that the line hasn’t been disconnected. And so, he waits; because that’s all Minho can do when he is absolutely clueless about the current situation. His only responsibility tonight is to drive them away from the crime scene. It’s Taemin’s mission. And the rule remains - if the assassin fails to kill his target, the accomplice has to flee the scene to prevent further problems and most importantly, ensure that the organization will not be implicated.
“Taemin, answer me.” Minho tries again, helpless as he looks across the road where the back entry of the hotel is, “You can’t be dead.”
He then looks at the time on his watch. Has it only been five minutes since he last heard Taemin’s voice?
“Talk to me, Taem.” Frustrated, Minho falls back against the driver’s seat, “You told me 10 minutes max. I can only wait for 4 minutes and then I’d have to-”
All of a sudden, a piercing sound rings in his ear and Minho instantly takes off his earpiece, throwing it aside towards the passenger seat before rubbing his ear. Caught off guard by the sudden deafening sound, it takes a moment before it hits Minho that the line has been disconnected.
“God damn it, what the hell am I-”
Minho’s next word is replaced by a gasp when the passenger door suddenly flings open. The next thing he knows, Taemin jumps into the car with a smile as bright as sunshine.
“Look, I got my cute ass back here safe and sound!” Taemin beams as he shuts the door and then orders, “Now drive.”
Snapping out of his reverie, Minho instinctively turns on the engine and then steps on the accelerator.
As he drives them away from the crime scene, Minho has only one question in mind.
“What the hell just happened?!”
“Turns out the multi-billionaire is a fcking drunkard as well…” Taemin shrugs like it's no big deal.
“And he had a gun?”
“Yeah.”
“So? Was he just firing blindly when he opened the door?”
“Yes, but why are we still talking about this?” Taemin questions, “He’s dead, and I’m here, aren’t I?”
“I know, Tae, but-”
“Don’t worry, hyung. I’ve got everything covered.” Taemin simply replies as he places his hand on Minho’s thigh and squeezes it, “Just pack your bags ‘cause we’re going on a trip to London.”
When Taemin shows him the time on his watch and winks at him, Minho realizes that eight minutes is all Lee Taemin needs to convince him that life is too short to let love slip away.