VENOM » SKZ Lee Know [mafia au]

01 - The Recruitment

"I'll let you go slowly, okay? No sudden moves."

She nodded vigorously. Like he promised, he got up, and the moment he was completely off of her, she slipped out of his hold and stood up quickly.

"Who are you?" she asked breathlessly, her hands raised to defend herself if necessary. She adjusted her eye patch as if it was out of habit, and her one revealed eye was drilling into his.

He realized that she probably found comfort in the eye patch, which was black with a minimalist flower design on it. Chances were, she adjusted it when she was nervous.

"You don't need to know that yet. Although..." he trailed off, tilting his head. "I could use somebody like you."

She slipped a knife out of her sleeve. "What do you mean by that?" He could tell that she was working very hard to stay calm, despite the panic in her eyes. "What. Do. You. Mean," she repeated, although her voice trembled.

He raised two arms. "Don't worry. I won't hurt you. Will you trust me?"

"No."

"Smart answer. Amuse me though. If you could join a gang, the deadliest gang in Korea, would you?" He spun his hand around, and somehow, a knife appeared in his hand.

"Stray Kids?" She raised an eyebrow. "Are you recruiting me for Stray Kids?"

"I am. And I'll give you half an hour to make a decision. I have liquor to buy."

She nodded. "I won't be going anywhere." But she already had her decision in mind.

He turned his back and finished the route to the liquor store. She was sneaky – he could already tell she would make a good spy. When he had entered that alley, he carefully scanned the area before entering, yet she surprised him anyway.

She was also able to knock him down. If she was any stronger, he could've been killed, right there and then.

🕸🕸🕷🕸🕸

Exactly half an hour passed when he returned to that alley, with a bottle of expensive alcohol in his hand. Again, he scanned the alley and saw nothing. He entered confidently.

The world suddenly flipped upside down, and he looked up to see one of his legs tied to a rope on one of the wires running across the top of the buildings.

He flipped his soju and it landed on the floor perfectly. A skill he learned from the younger members, namely Felix.

He moved his fingers quickly, and he now held a knife in what had appeared to be an empty hand. He curled at the stomach and sliced the rope that was tethering him to the wire.

The girl appeared from the shadows with a baffled expression. "You cut through my most expensive rope in two seconds!"

That was the least of Lee Know's concerns. He was impressed. "Your rope doesn't matter. It amazes me that I didn't see that. I let my guard down for sure."

Her brows furrowed, not liking that statement. "Or maybe I'm good enough to amaze you. Recruit me and I'll show you what else I can surprise you with." She had decided to join Stray Kids the moment he asked, but she didn't want to appear too eager by immediately agreeing.

She saw the approval in his eyes but maintained a neutral expression. He reached out to shake her hand but she just glanced at it dismissively.

"So you'll come with me?" he asked, his hand still hovering.

After a beat, she nodded and took his hand.

He had a tight grip on her hand as he observed her. "I want you to say it."

She huffed. "I'll go with you." She eyed him, and he could tell she was observing him. She looked at his dark brown hair, sharp nose, big eyes, and a mouth that reminded her of a bunny.

They shook on it, and he smirked. "Try to keep up with me as we get home."

We, she thought pleasantly, despite their banter. She hadn't been a part of anything for years. "I would beat you if I knew the way," she said confidently.

"Oh, really?" He handed her an old-fashioned map and stood behind her, and his body heat made her tense. She hadn't had any healthy or safe physical contact in years, and she wasn't going to trust a male now.

"Relax," he said, his voice low. "If I'm going to be your boss, you have to learn to trust me."

"I'll learn to trust you when you earn it."

His lips quirked up. "Good response. Now let me show you how to get to the base before we both get kidnapped standing here."

"Hah. Kidnapped with a Stray Kids member here," she said drily.

He reached over her shoulder and started to trace the map. The man smelled good. His smooth voice brought her back to reality. "We're here, in this alley. And here," he moved his finger, "is the Stray Kids base."

"In the middle of the city?" she asked, incredulous.

"Blending in," he replied. "And this is the path I take to get there." He traced the paper with his finger, and she realized with a snort that his hands were quite small. It was actually quite cute for a mafia boss.

He ignored her snort and then stepped away. "You got that, Yun-Yeong?"

"Yun," she corrected automatically. "And how do you know my name?"

His eyes twinkled but his expression remained neutral. "I know everything that I need to know about everybody. You can fill me in on everything else later." He looked at his watch, which she noted was gold. He looked like he was going to leave.

"Wait!" she called.

"What?"

"What's your name?"

Spinning his knife, he said nonchalantly, "Lee Minho, better known as Lee Know, at your service." He bowed mockingly.

He could tell she recognized the name by the way her mouth was open and her eyes were wide.

He tapped her chin and she closed her mouth in a rush.

"You–" she said, but he cut her off.

He handed her the map. "Meet you there."

In seconds, he was gone, but he didn't realize that she was already ahead of him.

While she ran, she tucked her hair into her hoodie and slung her backpack on. She took shortcuts that only she was aware of as she thought about Lee Know.

He was notoriously famous for being the boss of the most deadliest gang in Korea: Stray Kids. For being the most seductive killer around. For being the boss that could plan anything to get what he or his team wanted.

They were a powerful group, with bad and good on their record.

And she wanted to be a part of it.

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last night i went to stray kids' maniac concert and it was literally the peak of my life 😭 i have never been any happier. i was sitting all the way in the back but it was still SUPER fun and i lost my voice HAHA. i highly recommend you guys go when you have the chance <3