(no subject)
Title: Apologia Pro Vita Sua (Chapter 6 )
Authors: Scorpions angelinaii, murasaki_plum, nemesis_cry
Characters/Pairings: All (kangteuk, shichul, kihae; potential kyuwook, eunkihae, shihanchul, yeshdong, yewook, minry)
Rating: PG-13 to R
Genre: AU, organized crime, postcyberpunk
Summary: In a world where money and crime go hand and hand, survival is not determined by the fittest, but the ones who will fight to live.
Warnings: violence, swearing, sexual situations
AN: Thank you so much for the warm response so far!
Introduction and Chapter 1 | Chapters 2 & 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5
Banner by angelinaii
Like a child waiting on the front steps, Heechul toyed with matchsticks. They broke between his fingers not because he was remotely nervous or angry, but simply bored. He needed entertainment of some kind to pass the time and he knew he wouldn't find any enjoyment in his silent companion, not for another few hours. He sighed. Why not mix business with pleasure? Made life interesting.
Standing abruptly, he fished in his pocket for his lighter. He didn't smoke. At his feet, broken matchsticks made a painful, crunching sound under his boots, like bones breaking. If he remembered right, kids at his school didn't mess around. They used to go straight for the blowtorch.
"So," he smirked, clicking his tongue to break the silence. "Think he's coming out in a body bag?"
Siwon stood from his seat to cant his head towards the crack in the office door. It was silent as it had been the last time that he checked. He returned to the rickety chair, one of its legs in the process of caving in. "Which he?" he managed to smirk in return. All he knew was that he wasn't doing his job right now and if word got back to his boss about it, Siwon would find his own body laying in a bag of its own.
Heechul shot him a look. "I'm hoping it's the new guy if it comes to that." The alternative was the precise reason the two of them were out here. Smallest sign that something was wrong and they got to play knights in shinning armor. As if Eeteuk needed them. "Are they even talking in there?" he huffed, pacing. "They're too quiet. It's making me nervous." Secrets usually did.
"Whose idea again was it to invite him?" The question lacked a definitive answer, in their own ways both of them did. Putting their trust in a man who was being paid to kill the head of their group might have been a mistake, but it was a gamble each of them wanted to play. "For all we know, Eeteuk's already dead and that guy's waiting to ambush us."
A slow grin drew itself on Heechul's features. "A standoff, then? I like it." Leaning his back against the windowsill, he contemplated their options. There was always barging in and getting the shit kicked out of them, but he didn't feel demonstrative. "Eeteuk told us to leave. It's on his head. Literally." He smirked at his own, inappropriate pun and resumed his pacing, the flickering flame on his lighter setting the pace.
"Kangin'll kill me, then what will you do with yourself?" Siwon commented. No news was good news, he repeated to himself, the rhythmic click and hiss emanating from Heechul's hand grating his nerves. "Stop that."
"He won't kill you," Heechul replied pointedly, blowing into the flame until it died. "It's for the greater good, remember?" Everything was; including bringing contract killers to meet the boss when said contract killers were out for his blood. Heechul darted another look toward the closed door. "He'll be made an offer he can't refuse and everything'll be fine." A chuckle. "Or Kangin'll rip him to shreds."
"Or Kangin'll rip us to shreds." he laughed, catching Heechul's wrist when the other man crossed his path. "Do you think we can trust this one? You saw what he did to that guy."
"It's no worse than what Henry does to most guys," Heechul answered without missing a beat. Except it was, much worse. Henry was one of them, this guy... "Not our call to make, anyway." So no point in discussing it any further.
Siwon snorted, Henry was a bad example. The boy was also new--and far too quiet for others to trust. Resigned, he tugged at Heechul's wrist and pulled him into his lap. "He should've let us stay."
"He knows best," came the subtle rebuttal, the challenge without answer. In Heechul's eyes, Eeteuk rarely, if ever, made a bad call. "He probably thinks Hankyung's manageable," he amended with a smirk against familiar lips. "He'll call us in if he needs us."
"He'll call me, if he needs to." Siwon bit lightly on Heechul's bottom lip, smiling. "If I remember correctly, your job is done here."
"I've got a hole in my calendar," Heechul breathed, looping his arms around strong shoulders but drawing slightly back. "Besides, I heard there's this guy who cuts hands if you piss him off. Thought I'd stick around for the show if he gets shiv-happy on your ass."
"Self made or did you lose another contact?" he countered, clasping his hands behind Heechul's waist.
A hand fisted in dark hair. "You don't believe in coincidence?" Next time, Heechul decided, he was letting Siwon handle hitmen all on his own. Even if he'd probably encounter no problem, it would give the older man satisfaction. And an ulcer.
"No, that's why I have you." he grinned, hooking his thumb into the chain fastened to the back of Heechul's jacket.
Heechul smirked, a half smile full off mirth and condescension on his lips as he felt hands at his back, effectively trapping him. "Bite me."
Siwon bared his teeth playfully and let go of the other man. "Later."
From the doorway, a soft cough echoed, effectively drawing their attention.
Heechul stood from his lover's lap gracefully, unabashed and threw the newcomer a measuring look. No change since he went in, no blood dripping from any gaping wound. None on his hands either. "I lose. Isn't that a shame?"
"Heartbreaking." Siwon grinned as he stood, reaching out to tug at bright crimson hair as he appraised the man standing in front of them. "So? Are you one of us?"
The blond smiled, looking at one and then the other. "Hankyung," he finally introduced himself, choosing to answer the question in that manner. The only people who knew his name were those he could trust, or would not live to tell it to anyone else.
"No more mystery man, then?" Heechul returned with ease, draping an arm around Siwon's waist. "Must say I'm a little disappointed," he grinned into a tan shoulder. "Still, bet you're glad you came with us instead of chopping us up, aren't you?"
"This could be fine too." Hankyung said in a soft monotone. While Eeteuk was persuasive in his discussion, the fact still remained that he was the highest bidder. He watched the pair guardedly, still taken aback by how little personal space was valued in this organization. Something to grow used to, he supposed.
Siwon reached behind him to tangle his fingers between blood-red hair, a small laugh at Hankyung's answer. "Trust me, more than fine."
***
He couldn't help wonder about getting an implant of his own, no matter what Kyuhyun said on the off chance that Heechul was even around to hear it. It was always the same thing; like waiting for the Oracle to speak and he couldn't be bothered to make the effort. Eeteuk just about told him to get lost anyway, so it wasn't for lack of empathy that he slid down the banister to the dilapidated ground floor, wrinkling his nose in disgust at the decor.
What to do? Siwon would be out and he didn't feel like tracking him down.
There was always church, of course, but even faith had its limits. His fingers reached for his lighter unconsciously, flipping it open. Good one today. He hadn't even looked before leaving in the morning, just picked one at random, under Siwon's heavy gaze. Good one today. Another time for the blood and gore then.
For Hankyung, the lack of blood and gore was also evident, as well as little to do. While he could have gone out, found side 'work' outside of the Bottoms, Hankyung reasoned to himself that what he was doing was useful. He made a vantage point outside of the building's exit, watching as people entered and exited the building, observed body language as they interacted amongst themselves while ignoring his presence. It was at times like those when reading how a person carried their body spoke louder than any words they could spout from their lips.
Heechul exited into the gray, murky half-light feeling strangely antsy. It was usually a compliment to feel eyes on him, but not when those eyes didn't immediately turn appreciative or threatened. The blurry side in between unnerved him and he squared his jaw before rounding on the silent figure lingering by the exit. He thought he'd see Henry there, but then he wasn't the only silent, deadly little murderer in the gang. Hankyung was equally worth noting.
"Surprise, surprise," he grinned, clicking his tongue. "You look bored. No one to kill?"
"Not today...Heechul." Hankyung said with a slow smile, the other man's name rolling off of his tongue like a pleasant afterthought. "Nothing to burn?"
Sauntering over to his side even though he was probably unwelcome--hard to tell with such a man--Heechul flicked his lighter open anew. "There's always something to burn," he countered, turning the flame against palm without fanfare. Eeteuk's people knew him and his kinks and they usually left him to it, cringing as they went. Hankyung tended to defy the ways of the majority.
"Hm. A powerful element." Hankyung cut through the flame with his fingers before enclosing his fist around it. Settling back against the wall, he opened his hand to observe the faint marks left on his skin. "It rarely gets the respect it deserves."
"You have no idea," Heechul agreed, impressed but not showing it. He didn't need a playmate. "See anything interesting?" he pressed, for lack of a better idea.
A shrug. "People came, people left. Yesung's been shackled with another partner who is not long for this world and Kyuhyun is concealing something."
Heechul arched an eyebrow, flicking his lighter closed and stuffing it into a pocket, for once trying to break the annoying habit. "You need a hobby, you know that?" What did hitmen do for fun, Heechul had always wondered. Apparently, nothing.
"My profession is my hobby, there is little time for much else." Hankyung grinned, the tone in his voice teasing. "Disappointed?"
"Very," came the curt reply, Heechul turning to lean on one elbow against the wall. "I look forward to the day I become your target... see if it's as big a thrill as I've been told."
"If you've been told, it's never been from a target." Hankyung traced a line against the back of Heechul's neck, pinching the skin at the base.
The redhead smirked but didn't pull away. Hankyung needed longer nails for that to be truly painful, and even then he'd probably stick around, tempting fate. "No, because you never screw up, do you?" His grin turned self-satisfied. "Except that one time when we got to you before you could put a bullet in Eeteuk's head."
Hankyung made a face then laughed. "Guns are impersonal, I prefer other methods." he said, curling his fingers around long red strands of hair. "Eeteuk was not a screwup, merely a pause and move onto a better opportunity."
"You never feel like we're just wasting your talents out here?" Heechul pressed, licking his lips absently. "Or you're still pausing?" He shifted away from the blonde man, boots making a rough noise on the uneven ground. "I wonder what you'd do if you got a better offer..." He was careful not to shape the thought into a question. Either way, it wouldn't make any difference.
"More money, more power perhaps?" Hankyung queried, raising to his feet to fall into step behind Heechul. "Depends, most offers are empty promises out of desperation."
Yes, Heechul thought with a strange glimmer of satisfaction, the desperation of human beings you're sent to kill. "Not all. And sometimes the money is just that good." Judoh's mob bosses had every interest in buying Eeteuk's men, Heechul knew just how strong that drive was for them.
"And sometimes you gain enough money that it doesn't mean anything." Hankyung said, his shrug unseen. "As it stands, no one has yet to top Eeteuk's offer, and I doubt anyone will anytime soon."
Heechul grinned. "What you don' know is that I've been saving up. I want a hitman of my own for Christmas." He glanced at the blonde man's profile, surprisingly relaxed against a backdrop of famine and destruction. "Think I have a shot?"
"Doubtful."
***
"You could have allowed them to stay." Hankyung said after the door closed behind him. The thin male at the desk smiled and leaned back in his seat, barely giving any acknowledgment to the weapon at Hankyung's side.
"I have no illusions that makes little difference." Eeteuk waved his hand. "You could have killed me the moment you entered the room."
"Flattery?" he asked as his steps made it closer to the man's desk. The blond smiled up at him and shook his head.
"Honesty. I am curious to know why you had Death at hand but kept him at bay."
"You don't fear death." Hankyung noted. It was that observation that made him change his mind, a brief moment of indecision that he was certain Eeteuk saw.
Eeteuk nodded once and made a motion towards the chair in front of his desk. "Would you like to hear why people wish to kill me? If it bores you, do kill me at anytime."
"I'm listening."
Authors: Scorpions angelinaii, murasaki_plum, nemesis_cry
Characters/Pairings: All (kangteuk, shichul, kihae; potential kyuwook, eunkihae, shihanchul, yeshdong, yewook, minry)
Rating: PG-13 to R
Genre: AU, organized crime, postcyberpunk
Summary: In a world where money and crime go hand and hand, survival is not determined by the fittest, but the ones who will fight to live.
Warnings: violence, swearing, sexual situations
AN: Thank you so much for the warm response so far!
Introduction and Chapter 1 | Chapters 2 & 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5
Banner by angelinaii
Like a child waiting on the front steps, Heechul toyed with matchsticks. They broke between his fingers not because he was remotely nervous or angry, but simply bored. He needed entertainment of some kind to pass the time and he knew he wouldn't find any enjoyment in his silent companion, not for another few hours. He sighed. Why not mix business with pleasure? Made life interesting.
Standing abruptly, he fished in his pocket for his lighter. He didn't smoke. At his feet, broken matchsticks made a painful, crunching sound under his boots, like bones breaking. If he remembered right, kids at his school didn't mess around. They used to go straight for the blowtorch.
"So," he smirked, clicking his tongue to break the silence. "Think he's coming out in a body bag?"
Siwon stood from his seat to cant his head towards the crack in the office door. It was silent as it had been the last time that he checked. He returned to the rickety chair, one of its legs in the process of caving in. "Which he?" he managed to smirk in return. All he knew was that he wasn't doing his job right now and if word got back to his boss about it, Siwon would find his own body laying in a bag of its own.
Heechul shot him a look. "I'm hoping it's the new guy if it comes to that." The alternative was the precise reason the two of them were out here. Smallest sign that something was wrong and they got to play knights in shinning armor. As if Eeteuk needed them. "Are they even talking in there?" he huffed, pacing. "They're too quiet. It's making me nervous." Secrets usually did.
"Whose idea again was it to invite him?" The question lacked a definitive answer, in their own ways both of them did. Putting their trust in a man who was being paid to kill the head of their group might have been a mistake, but it was a gamble each of them wanted to play. "For all we know, Eeteuk's already dead and that guy's waiting to ambush us."
A slow grin drew itself on Heechul's features. "A standoff, then? I like it." Leaning his back against the windowsill, he contemplated their options. There was always barging in and getting the shit kicked out of them, but he didn't feel demonstrative. "Eeteuk told us to leave. It's on his head. Literally." He smirked at his own, inappropriate pun and resumed his pacing, the flickering flame on his lighter setting the pace.
"Kangin'll kill me, then what will you do with yourself?" Siwon commented. No news was good news, he repeated to himself, the rhythmic click and hiss emanating from Heechul's hand grating his nerves. "Stop that."
"He won't kill you," Heechul replied pointedly, blowing into the flame until it died. "It's for the greater good, remember?" Everything was; including bringing contract killers to meet the boss when said contract killers were out for his blood. Heechul darted another look toward the closed door. "He'll be made an offer he can't refuse and everything'll be fine." A chuckle. "Or Kangin'll rip him to shreds."
"Or Kangin'll rip us to shreds." he laughed, catching Heechul's wrist when the other man crossed his path. "Do you think we can trust this one? You saw what he did to that guy."
"It's no worse than what Henry does to most guys," Heechul answered without missing a beat. Except it was, much worse. Henry was one of them, this guy... "Not our call to make, anyway." So no point in discussing it any further.
Siwon snorted, Henry was a bad example. The boy was also new--and far too quiet for others to trust. Resigned, he tugged at Heechul's wrist and pulled him into his lap. "He should've let us stay."
"He knows best," came the subtle rebuttal, the challenge without answer. In Heechul's eyes, Eeteuk rarely, if ever, made a bad call. "He probably thinks Hankyung's manageable," he amended with a smirk against familiar lips. "He'll call us in if he needs us."
"He'll call me, if he needs to." Siwon bit lightly on Heechul's bottom lip, smiling. "If I remember correctly, your job is done here."
"I've got a hole in my calendar," Heechul breathed, looping his arms around strong shoulders but drawing slightly back. "Besides, I heard there's this guy who cuts hands if you piss him off. Thought I'd stick around for the show if he gets shiv-happy on your ass."
"Self made or did you lose another contact?" he countered, clasping his hands behind Heechul's waist.
A hand fisted in dark hair. "You don't believe in coincidence?" Next time, Heechul decided, he was letting Siwon handle hitmen all on his own. Even if he'd probably encounter no problem, it would give the older man satisfaction. And an ulcer.
"No, that's why I have you." he grinned, hooking his thumb into the chain fastened to the back of Heechul's jacket.
Heechul smirked, a half smile full off mirth and condescension on his lips as he felt hands at his back, effectively trapping him. "Bite me."
Siwon bared his teeth playfully and let go of the other man. "Later."
From the doorway, a soft cough echoed, effectively drawing their attention.
Heechul stood from his lover's lap gracefully, unabashed and threw the newcomer a measuring look. No change since he went in, no blood dripping from any gaping wound. None on his hands either. "I lose. Isn't that a shame?"
"Heartbreaking." Siwon grinned as he stood, reaching out to tug at bright crimson hair as he appraised the man standing in front of them. "So? Are you one of us?"
The blond smiled, looking at one and then the other. "Hankyung," he finally introduced himself, choosing to answer the question in that manner. The only people who knew his name were those he could trust, or would not live to tell it to anyone else.
"No more mystery man, then?" Heechul returned with ease, draping an arm around Siwon's waist. "Must say I'm a little disappointed," he grinned into a tan shoulder. "Still, bet you're glad you came with us instead of chopping us up, aren't you?"
"This could be fine too." Hankyung said in a soft monotone. While Eeteuk was persuasive in his discussion, the fact still remained that he was the highest bidder. He watched the pair guardedly, still taken aback by how little personal space was valued in this organization. Something to grow used to, he supposed.
Siwon reached behind him to tangle his fingers between blood-red hair, a small laugh at Hankyung's answer. "Trust me, more than fine."
***
He couldn't help wonder about getting an implant of his own, no matter what Kyuhyun said on the off chance that Heechul was even around to hear it. It was always the same thing; like waiting for the Oracle to speak and he couldn't be bothered to make the effort. Eeteuk just about told him to get lost anyway, so it wasn't for lack of empathy that he slid down the banister to the dilapidated ground floor, wrinkling his nose in disgust at the decor.
What to do? Siwon would be out and he didn't feel like tracking him down.
There was always church, of course, but even faith had its limits. His fingers reached for his lighter unconsciously, flipping it open. Good one today. He hadn't even looked before leaving in the morning, just picked one at random, under Siwon's heavy gaze. Good one today. Another time for the blood and gore then.
For Hankyung, the lack of blood and gore was also evident, as well as little to do. While he could have gone out, found side 'work' outside of the Bottoms, Hankyung reasoned to himself that what he was doing was useful. He made a vantage point outside of the building's exit, watching as people entered and exited the building, observed body language as they interacted amongst themselves while ignoring his presence. It was at times like those when reading how a person carried their body spoke louder than any words they could spout from their lips.
Heechul exited into the gray, murky half-light feeling strangely antsy. It was usually a compliment to feel eyes on him, but not when those eyes didn't immediately turn appreciative or threatened. The blurry side in between unnerved him and he squared his jaw before rounding on the silent figure lingering by the exit. He thought he'd see Henry there, but then he wasn't the only silent, deadly little murderer in the gang. Hankyung was equally worth noting.
"Surprise, surprise," he grinned, clicking his tongue. "You look bored. No one to kill?"
"Not today...Heechul." Hankyung said with a slow smile, the other man's name rolling off of his tongue like a pleasant afterthought. "Nothing to burn?"
Sauntering over to his side even though he was probably unwelcome--hard to tell with such a man--Heechul flicked his lighter open anew. "There's always something to burn," he countered, turning the flame against palm without fanfare. Eeteuk's people knew him and his kinks and they usually left him to it, cringing as they went. Hankyung tended to defy the ways of the majority.
"Hm. A powerful element." Hankyung cut through the flame with his fingers before enclosing his fist around it. Settling back against the wall, he opened his hand to observe the faint marks left on his skin. "It rarely gets the respect it deserves."
"You have no idea," Heechul agreed, impressed but not showing it. He didn't need a playmate. "See anything interesting?" he pressed, for lack of a better idea.
A shrug. "People came, people left. Yesung's been shackled with another partner who is not long for this world and Kyuhyun is concealing something."
Heechul arched an eyebrow, flicking his lighter closed and stuffing it into a pocket, for once trying to break the annoying habit. "You need a hobby, you know that?" What did hitmen do for fun, Heechul had always wondered. Apparently, nothing.
"My profession is my hobby, there is little time for much else." Hankyung grinned, the tone in his voice teasing. "Disappointed?"
"Very," came the curt reply, Heechul turning to lean on one elbow against the wall. "I look forward to the day I become your target... see if it's as big a thrill as I've been told."
"If you've been told, it's never been from a target." Hankyung traced a line against the back of Heechul's neck, pinching the skin at the base.
The redhead smirked but didn't pull away. Hankyung needed longer nails for that to be truly painful, and even then he'd probably stick around, tempting fate. "No, because you never screw up, do you?" His grin turned self-satisfied. "Except that one time when we got to you before you could put a bullet in Eeteuk's head."
Hankyung made a face then laughed. "Guns are impersonal, I prefer other methods." he said, curling his fingers around long red strands of hair. "Eeteuk was not a screwup, merely a pause and move onto a better opportunity."
"You never feel like we're just wasting your talents out here?" Heechul pressed, licking his lips absently. "Or you're still pausing?" He shifted away from the blonde man, boots making a rough noise on the uneven ground. "I wonder what you'd do if you got a better offer..." He was careful not to shape the thought into a question. Either way, it wouldn't make any difference.
"More money, more power perhaps?" Hankyung queried, raising to his feet to fall into step behind Heechul. "Depends, most offers are empty promises out of desperation."
Yes, Heechul thought with a strange glimmer of satisfaction, the desperation of human beings you're sent to kill. "Not all. And sometimes the money is just that good." Judoh's mob bosses had every interest in buying Eeteuk's men, Heechul knew just how strong that drive was for them.
"And sometimes you gain enough money that it doesn't mean anything." Hankyung said, his shrug unseen. "As it stands, no one has yet to top Eeteuk's offer, and I doubt anyone will anytime soon."
Heechul grinned. "What you don' know is that I've been saving up. I want a hitman of my own for Christmas." He glanced at the blonde man's profile, surprisingly relaxed against a backdrop of famine and destruction. "Think I have a shot?"
"Doubtful."
***
"You could have allowed them to stay." Hankyung said after the door closed behind him. The thin male at the desk smiled and leaned back in his seat, barely giving any acknowledgment to the weapon at Hankyung's side.
"I have no illusions that makes little difference." Eeteuk waved his hand. "You could have killed me the moment you entered the room."
"Flattery?" he asked as his steps made it closer to the man's desk. The blond smiled up at him and shook his head.
"Honesty. I am curious to know why you had Death at hand but kept him at bay."
"You don't fear death." Hankyung noted. It was that observation that made him change his mind, a brief moment of indecision that he was certain Eeteuk saw.
Eeteuk nodded once and made a motion towards the chair in front of his desk. "Would you like to hear why people wish to kill me? If it bores you, do kill me at anytime."
"I'm listening."