"..."
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"So. If I can ask..." Changkyun started, chugging the last of their apparently shared coffee. "What did Jeongwoo talk about the other day. About you hiding?" The younger asked carefully, clearly not sure whether it was a sensitive topic.
"Uh. Well." Hyungwon said, tilting his head a bit. "You'll find out in today's meeting, so... It's not like it's life threathen– Okay, well it might be." Hyungwon rambled, scratching his head.
His ramblings seemed to confuse the other man a bit more. Hyungwon smiled a bit crookedly at the younger. "But the main point is, I'd rather... I guess explain it to everyone at once rather than three or more times separately." Hyungwon finished as simply as he could and shrugged.
The younger nodded his head. "Sounds fair." The man said and stood up. "Anyways. I'm gonna go get more coffee." He hummed, shaking the cup before smiling and heading back in.
"Yah! That's my mug!" Hyungwon yelled and followed the other. As he sped past the younger he snatched the mug from the man and shoved his tongue at him. Changkyun scoffed and attempted to get the mug back but Hyungwon raised it in the air, smiling victoriously.
Changkyun scoffed. "Not fair." He said. Hyungwon walked backward. "It is. It's not my fault you're so short." He teased. The other man scoffed again, more offended this time. "Now you've done it. C'mere!"
The younger charged at the hitman who started running away. "You cockroach!" Changkyun screeched. Hyungwon laughed and ran into the kitchen, spotting Shownu at the fridge. He ran to the older, pulling him in front of him as a shield.
"The hell are you two doing?" The oldest asked, chuckling softly when he saw Changkyun ready to crush the taller like a bug.
"He called me short!" The youngest hissed. "Hyung move out of the way." He continued trying to move past the muscled man shield. The oldest of the three was visibly confused and slightly startled by the noodle-armed hitman was moving him around with no issue.
"And you're arguing over this at... 8 am?" the older asked, making Changkyun huff. "Yes. Obviously." The guy grumbled, eventually giving up trying to get to the hitman. "Kids..." Shownu mumbled, shaking his head a little. Hyungwon let go of the man once he was sure the younger wouldn't come at him again. "I win." He snickered, earning a joking glare from the younger. "This once."
"Why are you being so loud this early? I could hear it all the way from the stairs." Kihyun complained as he walked into the room. "Changkyun's fault." Hyungwon commented before the younger could even blink. "What?" Kihyun asked, clearly confused.
"Hyung don't listen to him.." The youngest complained and went to hug his lover. Hyungwon sent the man a devilish smirk before getting himself another cup of coffee.
Kihyun glanced over at Shownu, who was just as confused by the two younger members. "Just ignore them.." Shownu chuckled and shrugged his shoulders. Kihyun nodded in agreement.
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Hours later the seven members have gathered in the meeting room.
"We don't have to come up with a full plan today, yet. But just an emergency plan if they attack sooner than we expect." Wonho said, leaning back in his swivel chair. The man sighed and looked at the others. "We need to tell all of our allies that they might have to prepare for war... Of course, that is the worst-case scenario." He then continued.
The others stayed quiet, not really sure of what to add.
Hyungwon tapped the desk with his fingers. "It might seem impossible, but we need to get to know their inner workings and also all their allies," Hyungwon spoke up, shaking his head a bit. "Yeah, but how? I don't think the dude is up for a conversation about his secrets." Minhyuk noted, looking at the newest recruit. "You would know." Hyungwon frowned at the statement. Hyungwon pulled his lips into a line and nodded his head at the elder.
"Yeah. But at the moment the most important thing we need to know is when they could attack." Shownu stated calmly rubbing his hands together.
"Are we going to ignore the topic of Hyungwon knowing the leader of Devil's Choir?" Kihyun commented on the brushed-off conversation. The others glanced at him. "It's not that I know him." Hyungwon chuckled and scratched his head. "Uh... You know... We have a history?"
Why was it so hard to just say it?
Hyungwon heard Minhyuk tsk quietly before sighing. "He was in The Black Rose, conversation over. Back to the actual topic at hand." Minhyuk said as if it was nothing big. Hyungwon stared at the elder who just mouthed a 'what?'. Hyungwon shook his head. It was easier for someone else to say it than him.
Kihyun just nodded his head slowly and leaned back in his chair.
"On that topic." Hyungwon started. "I contacted a person I know would not have cowered under the Devil's Choir's pressure and he wanted to talk to you, Wonho." He said. The elder raised his eyebrows a little. "Who?"
"Sungjin..." Hyungwon stopped himself and cleared his throat. "Park Sungjin." he corrected himself. Gotta be professional, you know? "He's the leader of a group called D6. I don't know how big they are nowadays but they are a hacktivist group." Hyungwon then continued, pulling out a folded piece of paper with the right phone number on it.
Hyungwon passes the paper to the man who says a soft thanks before placing the paper down. "I'll contact him later," Wonho reassured.
"We need to go to Gwangju." Jooheon decided to take his chance of speaking up. "What?" "Well, not all of us. Like three or two. Find their base, sneak in and put a listening device into their meeting room or something." The guy explained, making it sound much easier in theory than it would be in reality. The rest stared at the blonde man in silence, processing the thought.
"Do you even know how dumb that is? We don't even know if their main building is in Gwangju anymore. They could have moved to Seoul for all we know. Just like how Mr. Lee moved the X-crew from Gunpo to here." Minhyuk argued, furrowing his eyebrows. Hyungwon could see why the man would think the younger man sounded insane.
Getting inside would be hard and getting out would be even harder to get out.
"Yes, but Gunpo isn't far from Seoul. Unlike Gwangju. Plus it's a smaller city. A group like that would be better hiding away in a more countryside-like area." Jooheon explained. Hyungwon sighed, scratching his head.
The ex-hitman tilted his head after considering it for a short moment. "Jooheon has a point." he started. "Minhyuk, do they know you joined X-Crew?" He asked the guy who parted his lips, shocked that this plot was even an option. "You seriously can't be considering this?" The silver head asked, flabbergasted and turned to Wonho.
"It's the only way we could find out their plans easily." The leader hummed. The calmness in his voice drew a pissed laugh out of Minhyuk who clearly wasn't pleased by the idea. "No, they don't. They probably think I'm dead."
Hyungwon hummed at this nodding his head. "From what I remember, they have fingerprint scanners to open the front door. Would they have deleted the files for yours?" Hyungwon then asked. Minhyuk slumped in his seat in defeat. "I don't know. If there's a small chance I'm alive, then yes. If they are 100% sure I was dead then probably not." The man explained, giving in. Minhyuk pinched the bridge of his nose, clearly frustrated.
"Hyungwon. What are you thinking?" Wonho asked curiously. Hyungwon sighed softly. Yes, the idea might sound insane when spoken out loud but it really could work if done really well. And even the thought scared him a little.
Going there could be a suicide mission.
Hyungwon cleared his throat. "Me, Minhyuk, and whoever else will head to Gwangju. We find their location and sneak in. With the possibility of Minhyuk's identification things still being in their system, getting in would get a lot easier. I'm used to sneaking around from my time as a hitman and then we'd just need a getaway driver; the third person."
Everyone sat quietly, listening to the ex-hitman talk in a calm tone.
"It sounds crazy, I know. It's only a matter of if we're willing to risk it.." The man finished, glancing at the others.
"I'll allow it," Wonho stated, making Minhyuk slam his hands on the table. Hyungwon jumped a bit at the loud sound resonating in the room. "Are you out of your mind?! Once one of us goes inside how are we meant to secure their safety?!" Kihyun raised his voice before Minhyuk could.
"If they realize who he is or there's an intruder, do you think he'll emerge from there in one piece or at least unharmed?" Minhyuk asked, his tone serious. Wonho sighed, rubbing his face a little. "Do you have better ideas? We don't know any of their allies and if we keep taking in their members and getting rid of them, they'll start tracking the disappearing men." The boss asked before looking up at Minhyuk. "I get why you're worried, but honestly we don't have anything else."
"The point is to stay in the shadows, Minhyuk-ssi. I wouldn't just waltz in, guns blazing." Hyungwon states and sighed. Going in guns blazing sounded like a nice thought but it definitely would cause more harm than good. "I know how to sneak around like a fucking mouse. I wouldn't be sitting here if I didn't." He wasn't sure why he was defending this idea as it was a huge risk for their safety...
And his life.
But it was a risk he was willing to take if it came to it. As long as the leader wouldn't be there.
"What happened to making subtle movements?" Shownu then chuckled. Jooheon crossed his arms. "Who says we have to reveal who we are? The bastards have a lot of enemies so they have a list of people to go through. Plus even if they see the door was opened by Minhyuk, do they have proof that he is in any group? Same with Hyungwon. They'll have to dig into it and we'll know." He argued with the ones who were against the plan.
Hyungwon bit his tongue though maybe this time he should have once opened up his mouth and say what he was thinking of.
The opinions on this were very much split yet Wonho's world would be the final verdict. The only one whose opinion wasn't clear was Changkyun. Hyungwon sighed softly. "I'm willing to risk my own life for this..." He mumbled quietly and looked down. "Even if I end up having to go alone."
"You aren't going alone," Wonho stated sternly sending a glare towards the newest member. The idea was risky even with three or more people going, it was idiotic for him to even consider going alone. The leader let out a huff. "If nothing else, then I'm going with him."
"No. You're not risking your head for this." Minhyuk spat once the words had left Wonho's mouth. "I'll go." He then agreed reluctantly. Wonho nodded his head. Changkyun raised his hand. "Me too." The youngest said and Kihyun immediately pulled his hand down. "Hell no."
"It's decided then," Wonho spoke up, making Kihyun turn to him shocked. "Hyung!" The man snapped obviously not open to the idea of having his lover walk into a possible death trap. No sane person would be. "I see this as the best option currently. While they are in Gwangju, we'll work on things here, okay?"
Everyone stayed quiet, clearly hesitant.
Hyungwon nodded his head. "The worst that could happen is death." The ex-hitman said bluntly. There was no need to sugar coat it or circle around the fact that one of them could die. It was a fact that in their line of work death was always around the corner.
"And I won't let that happen..."
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"I can't believe we're actually doing this..." Minhyuk muttered as he looked out of the window into the night that was lit up by a neon sign, eyeing the parking lot their car had stood in for the past five hours. Hyungwon sighed softly, leaning his head on the window. "Seems insane, really.." The youngest of the three muttered in the driver's seat.
"They're coming out," Minhyuk murmured as three men exited the club they were keeping an eye on, making Hyungwon pull out his phone. The hitman raised his head and opened a tracking application and watched as the men got into the car.
Hyungwon carefully got out of the car before walking up to the black BMW parked near their own vehicle. The ex-hitman looked around, eyes scanning the area for anyone who could be watching him. He then crouched down attaching a tracker to the bottom of the car before hurrying back to their car. "And now... We wait."
The red dot on his phone screen started moving as the other car left the parking lot. Hyungwon put the phone on the stand attached to the window. "Follow them slowly. We can't show that they're being tailed... Doesn't matter if we lose them." He mumbled and pulled his seatbelt on.
Changkyun nodded his head and started up the car. He then began driving after the other car. Hyungwon was tapping on his thighs with his hands. He felt anxious and the silence between them didn't help him.
What if everything went wrong? What if he fucked something up? What if Minhyuk or Changkyun gets hurt? What if they recognize him? What if they're all caught? All the what-ifs...
"Hyungwon!" The man was snapped out of his thoughts by Minhyuk's yell. He shook his head and looked over to his shoulder. "What?" Minhyuk furrowed his eyebrows. "Are you okay? You're pale.."
Hyungwon nodded slowly. "Just overthinking..." he responded, turning back around. The man glanced over to the tracker. The other car was still in movement, quite far ahead of them.
Around forty minutes later they started driving down a gravel road. "Don't drive all the way there. Leave us halfway down the road and just ad wait there." Hyungwon instructed the driver and grabbed his phone. The other car had stopped moving, presumably, it had arrived where it was supposed to. "What if you can't get in?" Changkyun questioned. Hyungwon shrugged a little. "I'll just find another way in." He responded.
A few minutes later the driver stopped the car stopped. "Good luck. Please come back in one piece." The youngest says. Hyungwon sends the man a soft smile before pulling on a mask. "Stay safe out here." He said and pat Changkyun's shoulder before exiting the car.
Minhyuk got out too and the two men start walking down the road. "We can still turn back if you want to." The older said softly. Hyungwon laughed a bit and shook his head. "We already came this far... Might as well go all the way."
The two soon enough reach a building. Light's were shining from the inside and no visible security cameras, but knowing who they were dealing with; there were hidden cameras somewhere.
"Act confident," Minhyuk mumbled as they walked towards the front door. Hyungwon nodded his head while humming quietly.
Hyungwon wasn't regretting this. He was just afraid and he felt the fear grow with every step he took towards the mansion-esque building. This was a huge risk and all would be over if even a small thing went wrong. And it would be his fault... Again.
The front door was large and made of wood. Hyungwon glanced at the older and nodded. The older sighed and pressed his thumb on the scanner. It took a few seconds before it beeped and flashed green. Hyungwon opened the door, covering his hand with the sleeve of his hoodie before grabbing the handle. "Wait out here. I'll call if anything happens." Hyungwon said quietly.
Minhyuk nodded his head. "The meeting room is on the second floor at the end of the hall... Please stay hidden and safe." The older said. Hyungwon only hummed before entering the building anxiousness building up in his chest as the reality finally caught up to him.
The sound of the door closing behind him echoed in his ears as he stood there for a few seconds. He had walked through the gates of hell and returning from there might not be a possibility.
He let out a sigh and headed for the stairs. Minhyuk had tried his best to explain the layout of the building during the drive and Hyungwon had tried his best to try and memorize the things he had been told.
Hyungwon knew he didn't have a lot of time so he rushed up the stairs, constantly observing his surroundings. The building wasn't huge and couldn't fit many people when you think about it. It was highly likely that it was the hideaway for the boss' closest men; just like their set up.
He reached the top of the stairs quickly and started walking towards the end of the hallway. Suddenly one of the doors creaked open and Hyungwon hid in one of the rooms along the way, shutting the door behind him. "Fuck..." he muttered, feeling his heartbeat in his throat.
Hyungwon kept his back pressed against the door and held his breath. "They found Jeongwoo's body outside Seoul." "The guy had it coming, honestly... I heard he was fucked up."
Footsteps echoed in the hallway outside and Hyungwon waited until he couldn't hear them anymore before exiting the room. He eyed the hallway before basically running towards the door at the end of the hallway. Hyungwon pulled the door open and closed it behind him, turning the lock. Locking it would buy him time for hiding if anyone tried to enter.
Hyungwon moved to the front of the room quickly. He looked around a bit, trying to figure out a place where to put the small listening device. His eyes darted around the desk that most likely was the leaders' as it had a bunch of papers and other things on it. The man grabbed a paperweight that was on top of one of the paper piles and looked at the bottom of it. There was a small crevice in it where the wire would fit in perfectly. He put the device in place and put the paperweight back down.
"Bug set..." He said into the earpiece. "Great. Now come out." Minhyuk responded but it went unheard by Hyungwon as his eyes landed on a framed family photo and next to it a yellow folder. "I see he's a family man.." he muttered under his breath in a bitter and slightly sarcastic tone, recalling what Minhyuk had rambled on during their nightly conversation. Hyungwon spun around on his heels when he heard someone opening the lock. He muttered a curse under his breath and hid under the nearest desk.
"Who the hell locked that door?" A man's voice echoed in the room as light flooded in. A woman sighed. "I'm sure it's nothing. Anyways. What are we going to do?" The woman changed the topic completely. "What? Are you scared? I've got this, honey." The man responded gruffly.
Hyungwon held his breath, listening in on the conversation. "Not that. Jeongwoo." The woman then scoffed. "Don't worry, they killed the guy so he isn't a problem anymore. Since when was he useful anyways?" Hyungwon turned on his end of the connection he had with Minhyuk and Changkyun so that the two men could hear everything.
"That's the leader and his wife... I'm surprised she's alive." he heard Minhyuk grumble quietly before being hushed by Changkyun. Hyungwon ruffled his hair a little, uncomfortable in the position he was in.
The woman stayed quiet for a moment before softly speaking up. "But you got their location, right?" Hyungwon's eyes widened a little hearing this. Did...? Jeongwoo had a tracker.
"Of course. But Wonho is expecting us to attack so let's let the kid get his hopes up." Another sigh came from the woman. "And? What about..." "I have no clue where he is, okay?! For all I know he was burnt to death in that fire!" The man suddenly snapped interrupting the woman, smashing his arm on the desk Hyungwon happened to be under. He flinched at the loud sound that made its way into his ears.
"Shit..." Changkyun cursed on the other end.
Suddenly the door busted open and light flooded into the dim room. "Sir!" a young-sounding guy gasped. "What? We are a little busy here." The man spat, displeased by the interruption. Whoever had entered the room took a few deep breaths before managing to get any words out. "We... The logs... Someone entered and... The logs said it was Lee Minhyuk.." The boy took a breath. "So we checked the footage and..." Footsteps walked past the desk Hyungwon was under.
"Who is the other guy?" "I don't know... But whoever it is; He's in the building... In this room." Hyungwon cursed in his head. Of course, there would be cameras in the hallway filming him entering. "Leave. Both of you."
"Get the hell out of there! Now!" Minhyuk yelled in his ear and Hyungwon turned his mic off. Hyungwon closed his eyes for a second and took out a gun he had been handed before they left. Now or never.
"You might need this. Just don't use it to kill, we don't need them to be anymore angrier." Shownu stated right before Hyungwon managed to walk out the door.
Hyungwon crawled out from under the table and shot the informant in the shoulder, making him fall down. A gun was pointed at him right away by the third man in the room. The clearly older man pulled the woman behind him to protect her.
What bullshit.
"I'm not going to shoot a woman." Hyungwon scoffed, his frown covered by the mask. "I'm not that low..." He continued, backing towards the door, gun pointed at the man. "Who are you?" The leader asked, walking closer. With every step that the old man took closer, Hyungwon stepped back towards the door. "Not important."
"You're playing with fire here, kid." The man spat. Hyungwon chuckled and nodded his head agreeing with the statement. "I'm sure I am." The ex-hitman responded snarkily, trying to not show how anxious he truly was.
However the leader noticed this slightly distraught state and charged at him, attempting to pull off the mask covering the lower portion of his face, but Hyungwon managed to grab his wrist and punched the man in the face.
"Hyungwon! Where the hell are you?! If you're not out I'm coming in!" The dark-haired man could hear Minhyuk hiss in his ear. Hyungwon rolled his eyes a little at the older's statement. As if he wasn't trying to get out.
Hyungwon charged at the leader. He needed to incapacitate the man for a while if he wanted to leave without getting shot in the back. The bulky man shoved the other back and Hyungwon groaned as his body crashed against the corner of a desk. A punch landed on his face, making it turn to the side from the force of the hit. Hyungwon took a deep breath, trying to calm down. He grabbed the older man's head and head-butted him. The man stumbled back a little and Hyungwon took the chance to kick him in the knee, in an attempt to get him to fall.
Hyungwon managed to shove the man onto the hard floor and kick the gun out of his hand. He kicked the man a few times until a gun cocking sound was heard. His head turned to the woman who was now aiming the gun. "Leave him the fuck alone!" She yelled, fear in her voice.
Hyungwon stared at her, shocked before pressing his foot on the man's chest. He heaved out a deep breath. "You..." He started before chuckling and raising his hands. "You're really protecting the fucker who..." Hyungwon couldn't continue speaking as the words got stuck in his throat. Hyungwon looked down at the man who was holding his stomach, not even trying to get up. "Motherfucker..." He muttered.
The woman walked closer until she managed to press the gun against his forehead. Hyungwon stared down at the shorter figure.
Suddenly a shocking pain ran through Hyungwon's body alongside the scarily familiar sound of a taser, forcing him to back up a bit right before falling onto the floor. A flood of curse words fell from his lips. The ex-hitman felt his body twitch a few times from the previous shock. He attempted to move in an attempt to get away with no results.
The woman took this chance to pull her husband up. After that, she walked to the man on the floor and crouched down to his level. "Who are you?" She asked, her voice stern. Hyungwon could only stare at her, dumbfounded as he couldn't move.
Had she really...
"What's this?" She asked reached for his ear, taking out the in-ear and standing up. "Give that.." Hyungwon muttered and tried to grab the small item from her. "Move and I'll blow your brains out." She spat and walked over to her husband. Hyungwon watched as the device was given to the real monster in the room.
When had she become this cold? Since when was she one to do anything for him?
The man had finally got himself together but had just followed the situation unfold. "Who's with you?" The man asked. Hyungwon shut his mouth and glared their way. Why was he asking? He knew the answer anyway. "You remind me of my kid." The man scoffed and walked closer.
Really? What a surprise. Hyungwon thought and could not help rolling his eyes
Hyungwon winced when the man grabbed his hair and pulled on it harshly. He felt the taser that had been used on him just a few minutes back being pressed against his neck. "Do you want to get out of here alive?"
"I never accounted for leaving alive," Hyungwon responded coldly. The man showed the other man the in-ear. "Tell me the people on the other side of this and I'll let you leave." "No thanks." This drew a laugh out of the old man. "You really are either resilient or an idiot."
Another shock ran through Hyungwon, drawing a pain-filled cry from him. Hyungwon gasped for air, looking up at the man. "You're... Y-You're not getting anything out of me." Hyungwon spat, trying to cover the slight fearful tone with anger. The man towering over him nodded his head a few times and let out a laugh, sending shivers down Hyungwon's back. "Alright. Have it your way then."
A kick landed on Hyungwon's face making him groan. "It's not like haven't killed intruders before. You are no different." Another kick. The old man shoved the Hyungwon to lie down on the floor and pressed his foot onto his throat. The ex-hitman brought his shaking hands up in a hasty attempt to move the limb.
Panic. He couldn't breathe; He couldn't move.
"Please stop it..!" ... "Dad please!!" ... "Make it stop!"
When the pressure was finally removed, Hyungwon's body jerked up and he started instantly gasping for air and coughing. His breathing was irregular and his body shook like a leaf that was hanging onto a branch with the last of its ability. Hyungwon tried to calm himself down but the buzzing of the taser made the panic peak again.
His body was forcefully turned to face the man who showed the taser as if it was a trophy of some kind. "You don't like this?" The devil asked, chuckling mockingly before pressing the taser's prongs against the boy's skin again. Hyungwon didn't respond; he couldn't. He was staring death himself in the eyes. "Let's see what's under here now, shall we?" The other sighed in a dramatic manner, reaching for the mask. Hyungwon frantically grabbed the man's wrist. "Hands.. off.." He muttered voice strained.
The older man laughed and freed his wrist without issue from the weak grip and reached over to pull the coughing man's mask down and this time succeeded. Hyungwon couldn't fight back, his body refused. Hyungwon instantly looked down in a desperate to hide his face. His chin was grabbed and his head was harshly turned upwards.
Hyungwon met the man's eyes and to say the shocked expression on the leader's face was hilarious would be an understatement.
"Chae Hyungwon..." He chuckled as the shock turned into a shit-eating grin, which made the man on the floor feel uneasy. Hyungwon swallowed nervously, his plump lips trembling a little as the words fell from his lips.
"Hi... Father."
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"Right is left, left is right"