Beautiful Crime || DoTae

Chapter Four

"So much for being against the harming of innocent people. I was under the impression that the Namjeong Clan had at least some morals," said Doyoung, shaking his head lightly. "They're no better than the Tengzhi Mafia and Ziyhou Triad."

Taeyong reached into his waistcoat pocket and took out a box of cigarettes. Doyoung scowled as the older man lifted one between his lips and brought his flickering lighter to the tip until it was lit by blazing embers. After taking a drag, Taeyong dropped the Namjeong Clan pin into his pocket. "Morality doesn't exist in Cheongnam, and it most certainly doesn't exist inside of the Namjeong Clan. It's made up of people who prey on the weak for their own personal gain or to get a thrill out of it. If that isn't the case, then they're just bloodthirsty and heartless."

To Doyoung, it seemed as though the older man was referring to himself being bloodthirsty. Though he didn't say it aloud, "like me" was lingering on the tip of Taeyong's tongue for all those observant enough to recognise and threatening to slip at any moment. He frowned and let out a sigh. Doyoung found himself feeling the older man's pain—the uncertainty about himself that nobody could heal other than himself.

"What are we supposed to do now? We can't just stand around and let the Namjeong Clan push us around if we don't want to be seen as weak. If people think Noctis is weak, then they'll come here and harm more people," said Doyoung, and he glanced over in Kun's direction, where the latter was dealing with a group of residents. "People are going to lose trust in Noctis and we'll be driven out of Neo City if they group up and push us away."

"That should be obvious. I'm going to see Chairman Gwan, and I'm going to deal with this once and for all, and he's never going to undermine Noctis or me ever again," said Taeyong, clenching his jaw. "If he's gonna try and start a fight, then I'm willing to play his game. I don't like losing."

Taeil seemed to perk up at Taeyong's words, and he turned to face them both, his brow raised in alarm. "No. That's not happening, Taeyong. I heard what happened during the fight. You're not fit to throw yourself into another fight head-first and expect to come back alive. The Namjeong Clan doesn't have morality, you said that yourself. They're not going to go easy on you."

"I'm not fit to fight? I only have a couple of cuts, Taeil. It's not as though there's something wrong with me. I've fought almost my whole life, I don't need to have a cooldown between fights," said Taeyong, and he snickered.

"I'm not talking about your physical state. I don't think you should place yourself in a hostile environment while you're feeling vulnerable. You've not long come out of a withdrawal, and it sounds to me like you were losing control of yourself when you were fighting Jaehyun."

Doyoung turned to look at Taeil with a furrowed brow. He knew that something was different about Taeyong, but it wasn't something that concerned him much. He'd seen the older man in varying states since his release from prison, and it didn't leave him worried about his well being, it simply left him on-edge and feeling the need to tiptoe around him like he was a sleeping beast.

"You've got no idea what you're talking about, Taeil. I wasn't losing control of anything, I was just using the means at my disposal to win. If you weren't even there, then how the fuck can you even come to that conclusion? I was completely fine," said Taeyong.

Taeil didn't seem convinced, but he nodded. "And now?"

"I'm still fine. Do I look like I'm not to you?" he snapped. "You're treating me like a fucking loony. I have a problem or two, but I'm not crazy. I'm fine, and I'll be even better once I've beaten the ever-living shit out of Chairman Gwan."

Doyoung tuned out the ensuing argument about whether Taeyong should appear at the Namjeong Clan Headquarters, too busy contemplating the seed that Taeil had planted in his mind. He trusted the older man's judgement as though it was his own. If Taeil had a reason to be worried about what was going on inside of Taeyong's—frankly unpredictable—head, then Doyoung was going to believe that there was something wrong.