Safe (Lost Memory) - Part V
Title: Safe (Lost Memory)
Pairing: Sehun/Kai
Rating: PG
Summary: He always carries a gun. He probably carries a code. He has never wanted to protect a man all his life. Until he is lost. Who is he protecting? And who is he protecting him from?
Sehun stepped out of the car and stopped in front of a prestigious looking hotel. "We're dining in a 5-star hotel. Classy."
"The security here is tight." Kai shrugged.
Sehun approved. "I wonder how you are towards your girlfriend."
Kai simply ignored him and escorted him to the door.
"I've saved ourselves a seat." Kai checked his phone for calls. "Do you mind if you go up the 8th floor ahead, I'll be coming up soon. I just need to make this call."
"Okay." They stopped in front of an elevator and Sehun stepped in. Kai pushed the buttons for him, making sure he was fine. He stepped out and gave him a small smile. As soon as he turned his back, he dialed a number and put his phone on his ear. A few steps away from the elevator, he passed by a man going the other way. He didn't mind at first until his instinct told him something was wrong. He immediately turned around and saw the elevator closing, the man hit Sehun on the stomach and he limped. It was too late when Kai had ran back, the doors had closed.
Kai dragged his legs faster as he ran up the nearest staircase, stopping at every floor to check on the elevator. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6th. The elevator hasn't stopped. His heartbeat accelerated as he imagined what could be happening inside the metal box, blaming himself mentally and promising to deal with himself later. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11th. He had ran up almost the entire half of the hotel. But the elevator never opened. 19. 20. 21. Until he reached the topmost floor, the parking space. Kai was out of breath and he pointed the gun on time when the elevator doors bore the unknown man and Sehun.
The man had Sehun locked in one arm while the other held a gun pointed at Kai. It was one of those Japanese drug dealers.
"Put your gun down." Kai shouted, his body in position and at the ready.
The Japanese shifted his hand and pointed it at Sehun. Sehun flinched as he looked scared yet still struggling to free himself.
"Shoot. He'll be dead." The Japanese warned Kai. The cop froze for a while before throwing himself at the two. He caught the hand of the Japanese man holding the gun and he kicked it hard causing him to drop it. He gave him a punch and pulled Sehun away from his grasp. He fought with him barehanded and Sehun just limped at the side. When Kai had finally drawn out his gun again and had pointed it at the Japanese, a scream echoed in the dark parking space.
Kai immediately whipped his head and saw three men dragging Sehun away. He was about to run for him when the chaos happened. Cars flew out from everywhere. And then there were gunshots. Kai saw the people taking Sehun away, but something else caught his eye. The newcomers weren't the Japanese drug dealers, they were the most sought-after syndicate. They were there to take Sehun too, but the Japanese had come before them. The Japanese men had finally reached their van. Soon after, police sirens echoed along the floor. The backup Kai had called earlier had come. The syndicate took a turn to escape. So did the other Japanese men who were now running to their van. Kai was rooted on the spot. He was torn. Sehun was still screaming and struggling, but the people he had come back for in Korea are running away. His mind can't process what to do. Soon he will lose both.
As if the clock is ticking, Kai's heart beat loudly in his ears. He can hear Sehun's screams, and wheels screeching from the other side. Cold sweat ran down Kai's face as he picked a decision. He closed his eyes for a moment. And then he locked eyes with Sehun who was crying out for him.
"KAI!" Sehun was forced into the van. He looked very scared. "KAI!"
Kai swallowed very hard and almost, he almost wished he didn't see Sehun's face. He closed his eyes heavily and turned to run to the other direction leaving Sehun behind. To the syndicate. To his dream. Catching them would mean he has solved the case. A string of thoughts ran into his mind. He saw himself flying back to America. Giving a salute to the officials who are proud of him. A new medal to award to him. All of them flashed in Kai's eyes as he ran with his gun in his hand. He willed himself to run faster. And then Sehun's smiling face appeared in his mind. His happy young face, his soft laugh rang in his ears. And then his face vanished and was replaced by the one he just saw. His eyes full of fear. His lips read "Kai". Kai shook his head as his heart felt like it was crushed. He was running towards his dream, but he isn't happy. He will never be happy. He stopped running. Kai took heavy breaths as he felt like collapsing due to lack of oxygen. He bent his head down and supported himself using his knees. He gasped for air, sweat all over his face. He was frustrated. He was never forced to choose between two things that matter to him the most. And for the first time as well, he thinks he made the wrong choice.
•
Amongst the buzz in the area, while everyone seemed to be busy tracking the syndicate's whereabouts at the moment, after ten minutes of patrolling the vicinity, behind all the cops in Seoul, Kai was leaning on a wall with his head bowed down. He doesn't have the energy to go around looking for them. He doesn't have the heart to run after them when he knows Sehun is in danger. In great danger. He felt stupid, useless, most of all, he felt hatred towards himself. Who was he to choose his dream over a life? Who was he to abandon Sehun? Who was he to give him up?
Kai looked up rashly, hitting the back of his head on the wall in the process, mentally cursing himself for his action. No one paid attention to him. He made it clear that he doesn't want to talk to any of them anyway. His phone beeped. It was Chanyeol.
I heard what happened. Go after Sehun. Diamonds may just be our keys. But the diamonds need us. I may not have the right to give you an order, but as a cop aspiring to be like you, I'd like to think I'm following the right kind of guy. Sir.
Kai clutched his handphone tightly. Chanyeol is right. He also knows he doesn't need telling. But where does he start? Just as he was gaining back his confidence, his phone rang. An unregistered number flashed on the screen. He walked a little away from all the other cops and when he finally made sure he was at a good distance from them, he answered the phone.
"Where is the code?" A man's voice with a thick Japanese accent spoke through the piece.
"Where is Sehun?" Kai answered just as business-like.
"Give me the code. I give you the boy."
"Give me the place."
The Japanese dropped the name of the place, as well as the time. Kai had known that place. The same place he first met Sehun. That old warehouse.
"Alone. Or the boy dies." He gave the last reminder before hanging up on Kai.
He never planned to disobey.
•
Kai drove alone to the warehouse, determined. Even without the code, he would bring Sehun home. On his way, he left Chanyeol a message.
I'm on my way. If I don't respond after an hour, promise me you'll look for Sehun.
He gripped the wheel hard and turned to the warehouse entrance. He prepared himself for anything.
It was dark and his shadow was painted on the ground before him, the moon cast it from behind. He stood by the gate, blind and at a great disadvantage from the blackness of the hall. He heard a click of a gun and a shuffling of feet, soon enough two figures emerge from the shadows.
"The code." It was the same Japanese who held Sehun hostage in the elevator. Binded to his arm was Sehun, a gun pointed at him.
"Give me Sehun."
"No negotiations. The code."
"I don't have the code."
A growl came out of the hostage taker's lips. Sehun couldn't look at Kai. All the hurt he felt after the incident welled up in him. Kai wasn't looking at him either. But Sehun was praying in his mind that nothing happens to both of them.
"You do not come here to play."
"I came to get him." Kai said firmly.
"Bring down your gun." The Japanese ordered.
It was the first time Sehun looked at Kai. There was dread in his eyes. Kai still avoided his gaze. Instead he looked directly at the Japanese.
"Give. Me. Sehun."
"You bring the gun down or we all dispose of both of you." Three more men emerged out of the darkness, holding larger calibrated guns, all directed towards Kai.
Sehun looked at Kai pleadingly but the latter still didn't look at him back.
"As long as you will give him back." Kai pulled out his gun and slowly bent down to put it on the ground. Sehun's eyes widened.
The Japanese laughed. "Fool."
Sehun couldn't hold it any longer. "I know the code. Let him go. You can just take me. I can give you the code." He begged. He looked at Kai.
"Kai..."
"Your wish is my command." The Japanese man spoke. "After we get rid of this guy."
Without a warning, he pulled the trigger. Sehun's scream echoed in the place.
"KAI!"
Kai's breath hitched, and that's the time he looked at Sehun. As if the world played by Sehun's eyes in slow motion, he watched as Kai slowly drops to the floor, face first, then came his knees then his whole body. He doesn't move. There was a silent heartbeat, until Sehun found his voice again.
"KAI!" He screamed at the top of his lungs. The agony in his voice made him more scared. He wasn't moving. "KAI!" He struggled to pull free, but he was being dragged back. He fought the arms restraining him but he had nothing left.
"KAI!" He kept calling while the darkness ate him. But he never responded.
Sehun kicked and struggled as his eyes blinded with tears. He couldn't believe it. He couldn't believe that the mighty Kai, the one who is secretly full of himself, had just fallen in front of his eyes. He couldn't believe that the Kai he cared for the most is gone. He sobbed while the Japanese was taking him away. And then, the whole scene replayed in his head. Kai leaving him for his dream. Kai coming back to get him. Kai avoiding him. Kai trading his life for him. And finally, him losing Kai.
Sehun eventually gave up struggling. He was effortlessly pulled towards the van as he lost all the force he has. The gunshot still echoed in his mind, fresh. He closed his eyes and that's when it happened. He saw himself face to face a man he doesn't know. It was dark. There was a man was whispering behind him but he couldn't make out the words yet, his vision is also blurred. There was an eerie moment, Sehun felt scared but in his mind he isn't. He raised a gun, his own hands did. And then without hesitation, he shot it.
Sehun screamed. His head ached so bad as if it was about to crack open. He writhed in pain and all the Japanese men held him. Sehun kept screaming. His head hurt like mad. It took him 2 minutes before he can open his eyes. But the pain didn't lessen. The guys holding him were too stunned to react. They never knew about his amnesia.
"What is happening to him?" Whispers between the confused Japanese men echoed in the silent hall.
Sehun clutched his head tightly and crippled. The men forcefully dragged him to the side door of the van when something hit the side of the van. The men turned around to see Kai pointing the gun towards them, clutching his shoulder with his other hand. He shot the first one who pulled out a gun. And the other. Sehun forced himself to open his eyes again. He saw Kai standing a few meters away from them, alive and only slightly hurt. When his mind registered Kai's image, it's as if his head had resisted the excruciating pain by itself. His heart leapt, not sure whether he wanted to laugh or cry. Instead, he ran towards him. Kai quickly met him halfway and shielded him with his body against the Japanese men. The one right across them raised his gun. Kai did the same. Sehun, who was standing behind him, clutched the hem of Kai's shirt.
A gunshot.
Sehun didn't realize he closed his eyes. When he opened them again, the Japanese guy was on the ground with his own blood. Fear and relief gushed out of his system and he loosened his hold on Kai's shirt. But Kai acted differently. He immediately turned around, pulled Sehun into him, bound him to him, and covered him with his own hand. He looked up and seeked for something from above. He was sure that's where he heard it.
"What is it?" Sehun's face was pushed to Kai's collar. Kai was shielding him from something.
"Someone else is there. I didn't shoot. It wasn't me." Kai's voice was in panic. He had a feeling someone else out there is seeking Sehun, and it's bad.
Before Sehun's eyes, he saw another Japanese man fall. He gasped and buried his face deeper onto Kai's collar.
Kai cursed. And then he found it. It looked similar to the shootout at the hospital. The same sniper from before. He prepared to shoot. Until a radio echoed around. And a flock of police came out, guns at the ready, surrounding them. All the left Japanese men raised their hands in surrender. Kai watched as the sniper disappear from view. He had definitely ran away. But he pushed it to the back of his mind for the meantime. What's important is that Sehun is with him. He's back with him.
•
45 minutes later, Kai was faced with Chanyeol.
"I couldn't wait for an hour." The taller of the two commented when a resident nurse finished looking after Kai's bruise. Luckily he was wearing his bullet proof vest.
Kai acknowledged it and nodded. "Thank you."
Chanyeol laughed slightly. "I might have to rethink about following your steps." He leaned on the same shelf Kai was leaning onto. Kai listened. He expected him to say something between the lines of him being irresponsible, selfish, or worse stupid. But his next words caught him off guard. "You are someone not anyone can just follow. It's hard to be like you, and I respect you more for that."
Kai stayed silent.
"You risked your life for him." It wasn't a question.
"I knew I wasn't going to die." Kai denied it.
"Right." Chanyeol crossed his legs with a slight smile. "You wouldn't really ask me to look for him if you're confident you'd come out alive." The smile was evident in his tone.
"It was a backup plan." Kai said nonchalantly.
"Your pride is still a problem though." Chanyeol shook his head. "However, with this new case I'm handling, I think I understand how you feel." He looked at him meaningfully. "I wish you'd understand it yourself soon, too."
Kai just blinked at what he meant. What was that that he still doesn't understand?
The drive home was painfully silent. Kai was back in good shape. He got wounded but he could live. Sehun was in a state of shock. Too many things happened in one day and he wasn't sure he was still coping up. He was too tired to speak as well as think. He watched the road absentmindedly, his brain too tired to function. Kai didn't invade his space either. He knew it's best if he just waits for him to talk to him. He was at fault anyway, and he hasn't forgotten how he /actually/ betrayed him in front of his eyes earlier. He'd wait until he's ready to talk.
Kai ushered him to his room, still with a huge silent bubble between them. He had a patch on his arm near his shoulder, where he was hit. His arm limped but Kai was used to getting injuries of the sort. He opened Sehun's room and waited until he has climbed up on his bed. He walked towards it to put the lamplight out. Sehun hasn't looked at him since being rescued. Kai didn't complain. He hesitated but he turned to Sehun anyway.
"If you need something, I'm just there." He gestured with his head towards the door.
Sehun just lowered his eyes and blinked, as if it's the new way of nodding.
Kai pursed his lips and reached out from the other end of the bed. He put the light out and shadows reflected in the room automatically. He moved away from the bed when a hand clasped against his wrist. He stopped. Sehun didn't speak but just held onto Kai. the cop sat on the side of the bed, that way they were face to face. But he could only see dark shadows on Sehun's face.
Sehun's heavy breaths echoed in the silent room. "I'm glad you're okay." His voice was a little shaky and he said it in a whisper, as if he was tired and on the verge of tears.
Kai noticed the glisten in Sehun's eyes.
"I was so scared." He confessed, his breathing going heavier and heavier.
"I'm sorry Sehun." Kai felt heavy. The sight of Sehun in this state made him want to protect him more than anything else. "I--"
A drop of tear fell out of his eye. Kai could clearly see it from the light coming from outside.
"Don't leave me. Not that way." He can hear Sehun's struggle to fight back his tears but it ended up into a small sob. He knew that way wasn't about how he abandoned him for his dream. It was about how he almost died in front of his eyes.
"I won't. I promise I won't." Kai unconsciously brought his hand up and wiped the tear from Sehun's face. "I won't leave you."
Sehun leaned in and hugged Kai, surprising the other. They sat there for a minute, Sehun in Kai's arms. It wasn't uncomfortable, but Kai was aware of everything around him. He patted the other's back and gave him a squeeze on the shoulder. Sehun silently sobbed. That meant one thing, he's forgiven. All this while, Sehun was only thinking of him, not of his own safety but of Kai's. He felt a wave of unfamiliar warm feeling washed through him. He patted Sehun on the head and rested his chin there.
"You idiot." Kai whispered on his hair.
Sehun pulled away, and looked down with a tear-strained face. "I got so worried."
"Next time, just worry for yourself." Kai lectured him, slightly lifting the atmosphere.
"You fell right in front of me." Sehun reasoned out.
"But I will never die." Kai said. "Not when you're there needing me."
"I need you." Sehun answered.
Kai looked at his face. And suddenly, he realized Chanyeol was right. He still has something yet to know and understand. He can feel it. It was strong. But whatever that is, the feeling is engulfing him and forcing him to do it. And Kai couldn't help but give in. He leaned in to kiss Sehun.
The night was silent, except for the gasp that brought surprise to Sehun's lips.