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"You're fucking joking, right?" He hissed, throwing the folder onto the desk. His underling jumped back slightly, unlucky to witness his outburst. He smashed his hands on the wooden desk, hearing a loud crack coming from it.
Whatever; he needed a new desk anyway.
"I'm sorry, sir. We tried to stop them but they had an escape plan." the poor man said out, clearly doing his best to keep his voice as stable as he could. A chuckle bubbled out of the boss's mouth, tasting bitter in his mouth. "Try harder next time, yeah? They've been fucking up our plans continuously for the past year now! We look like a fucking joke to them, Mr. Kim!" He yelled at the bastard, nodding toward his door. "Get the fuck out."
The man was quick to follow his order, the door slamming shut within seconds. He crashed down on the chair behind him, angry exhaled coming out of his nose. "Chae fucking Hyungwon. I will choke you the next time I see you," he muttered out, hands squeezing into fists.
Chae Hyungwon, or as Wonho liked to call him, Princess. Currently, he was the leader of the Black Crown and more frustrating than anyone Wonho had ever had the displeasure of meeting. He thought of himself so highly. He acted like he owned the city and everyone in it; including Wonho. Although undeniably beautiful, the man was ruthless, cold, and blood-thirsty even if he was rarely out on the field himself. Many of Wonho's men that he had sent to tail the man disappeared out of the blue only to have their bodies found on the outskirts of Seoul or washed up on a beach. The leader did all the dirty work behind the wall of men he had.
Wonho had met him in person only a few times that was not on a battlefield. The leader held his head high, looking down at everyone, literally due to his height. And just from the first meeting, Wonho knew; there was no fixing this war between their groups unless Hyungwon wanted that. So far, he didn't seem too willing and with that, he lost his willingness too.
If he just could squeeze every last inch of breath out of the younger man, he would. And he would do it immediately.
The door opened suddenly and in walked a familiar man whose presence was honestly a relief. "What is it Kihyun?" He asked as the man walked over to his desk, placing down a new folder. "Nothing, really. I know you're stressed but I got this from some contacts from Busan." The younger spoke and the leader grabbed the folder and opened it.
I was about another gang moving to Seoul so he closed it and nodded his head. "Thanks. I'll look into this soon." he just said and placed it down with a deep sigh. "Can you look into Chae's activities? I want to avoid his territory for now because I will slaughter him if I see him." "Consider it done, boss." Kihyun chuckled and walked to the door.
"Go home tonight, will you? You've stayed up for three nights by now and I'm saying this as your right hand; you'll drop dead before Chae does at this rate." The man laughed and walked out, closing the door behind him. His eyes wandered to the clock on his desk. It was already nearing seven and Kihyun was right. he had stayed up for way too long. "Just a few more hours. Then go home." It was always a few more hours that turned into four, six, seven... Until he decided he didn't want to drop dead until Chae did. That wasn't an option; the other would consider himself and his family the winners of this fight. Which they were not.
He did as he promised and was out of the headquarters building at eight-thirty. He could've stayed in the sleeping area there and not risked his life venturing out, but he enjoyed the comfort of his apartment better. It was more secure for him to stay there and he wouldn't risk his men's lives.
He was about to get into his car when his phone started ringing. He took it out from the pocket of his jacket, raising his eyebrows at the unknown number. He accepted the call bringing the device to his ear. "Shin Wonho, who is this?" He asked, getting into the driver's seat of his car.
"I love how professional you are with your phone calls." An annoyingly familiar, low-toned, yet somehow flirty voice came through the speaker, making Wonho grip the phone in his hands. "So we're on the level of making phone calls now? I see how you roll, Chae." he scoffed, turning the car engine on.
"Oh, please Wonho-ssi. Call me Hyungwon." The younger man chuckled and he could hear a chair creak in the background. "I guess you're mad about today, I'm sorry." It wasn't a genuine apology and Wonho knew that. The other's tone was mocking and it made him even more pissed off.
"Listen up, you motherfucker. You better keep your grimy fingers out of my business or I'll.." "Or you'll what? Kill me? I know you wouldn't do that because that would be a big, fat bounty on your head next." The younger interrupted him before laughing. Wonho knew that. It was the exact same reason his father died; In a haze of rage, the old man killed the old leader of the Black Crown and got himself killed by a hitman of said group. Or that is how the story goes.
The death of the two old leaders didn't stop the fight between the two gangs. The two sons were even more ruthless, sabotaging everything they could and killing off men. Yet their hands had stayed away from each other, having learned from their fathers' mistakes. "I considered leaving it, but my client paid a good price for that hit so... I couldn't help it."
Greedy fucker.
"You bastard. Stay the fuck away from our territory. You'll see what happens when you step foot here again." He spat and ended the call, not giving the other leader a chance to retort. He knew Chae hated being cut off when he was talking. He then threw the device into the passenger seat on his side, his other hand gripping the steering wheel.
His phone rang again and when he glanced at it, it was the same number. A smirk grew on his face, knowing he had annoyed the other enough. But he ignored the ringing, focusing on getting home. After the third call, the other leader moved to angrily message him judging by the constant vibrations coming from the device. "A little too desperate there, huh?" he chuckled to himself, shaking his head a little.
He arrived at his apartment building and grabbed his phone. He let out a genuine laugh when he saw the plethora of angry messages on his phone. He swiped them away from the screen and got out of his car, breathing in some fresh night air.
He lived away from the most hectic part of Seoul, mostly just to get peace of mind from everything. He greeted the security guards, that he had hired, at the lobby door as he walked in. He headed straight for the elevator, calling it down.
He glanced at his phone to make sure Chae had calmed down and he had, thankfully. He stepped into the metal box, eyes quickly flashing to the person who walked out. he was wearing all black clothes, a hood on and a mask on his face making the man squint his eyes a little bit. He hadn't seen anyone like that around.
He glanced at his phone and opened the display after pressing the button that would take him to his floor. Kihyun was already probably asleep, but he messaged the man anyway, telling him to get the security footage for his apartment building. Chae had probably sent one of his men to spy on him and Wonho wouldn't have any of that.
He then moved on to the messages that Chae had sent him earlier, quickly scrolling through the twenty or so chat bubbles. Most of the messages were cursing him out and it made the older chuckle slightly. He clicked the message bar, typing in a simple message and sending it before blocking the unsaved number and shutting the screen off.
He could contact his right-hand man if he wanted a chance of discussing their peace; sending him pissy messages wouldn't do the job.
He got out of the elevator and walked to his door. His eyebrows furrowed slightly when he found it cracked open. The hooded hooligan must've broken in. Luckily, he had nothing of value inside his home. No files or anything so, Chae's lemming was out of luck.
He walked in, letting the door fall shut behind him. He walked deeper into the apartment, turning on the lights as he did. Nothing seemed to be off and he felt his body relax. He had expected the worse.
He walked into the bedroom, ready to just crash but as he turned the lights on, he was met by an interesting sight. If he had been any regular person, he would be blowing chunks all over his nice wooden floor but the sight or smell of blood was nothing new to him.
Written on the wall with blood in bold letters was a simple threat that honestly made him chuckle.
'Step down or feel the storm.'
A sigh came from his lips as he took out his phone, calling Kihyun. His right hand responded surprisingly fast. "I might need that footage sooner than tomorrow." He said into the speaker, walking over to his bed where there were some items.
A bloodied knife and a dismembered right hand. "And send someone from our forensic team to my house." Kihyun hummed and Hoseok heard a small shuffle. "What's happening?" The man asked, not sounding too concerned but the leader knew he must have been freaking out.
"I think it's better if I show you. I'll come back to the HQ." He got an approving hum from the other man and ended the call. He took a few steps back, opening the camera to take photos of everything. There was only one thing he knew for sure.
This was not the Black Crown's doing.
No matter how far they had gone during their fights or arguments this had never happened. Their signature was a crown and this was different from their usual attacking style so much.
"What a mess..."
Wonho entered his office, throwing his suit jacket onto a coat stand with an annoyed huff. He noticed, both, Minhyuk and Kihyun standing near his desk with troubled looks on their faces. "You're not hurt, right?" The older of the pair spoke up when he walked over.
"Yeah. I think he panicked when he saw me entering the elevator and asked." He spoke, sitting back down he had gotten up from barely an hour ago. What a waste of gas that trip was. Not that he had any shortage of money to fill the car back up, but still. What a waste.
"Well, nonetheless. He was caught on the cameras." Kihyun stated and nodded at Hoseok's computer monitor as he crossed his arms. The leader turned to the screen eyes scanning the looping security footage.
"Sadly, until we get anything else that might help us identify him, we're stuck." Kihyun finally continued, making the leader frown a little bit. Puzzling indeed.
Wonho leaned back in his chair, eyes snapping to the door when a knock echoed on the wooden surface. He waved at one of the two other men to go open the door and Minhyuk was the first one to move wordlessly.
When the door was opened, in walked one of their informants, holding an envelope. "What is it? We're busy." The big man spoke quite bluntly as the others made their way back to the desk. The informant slid the envelope onto the desk and Wonho immediately reached for it while still expecting the interrupter to talk.
"There was an incident with the Black Crown a few hours go." The man spoke as the leader pulled out the contents of the envelope. "One of our contacts only managed to catch a few photos of the aftermath, but Chae was spotted coming out of his apartment building injured." He only listened while looking at the photos of his enemy. Of course, he wasn't alone but with his good old right-hand man.
Who just happened to have caught their little photographer by the last photo. Needless to say, the said contact they got these from wouldn't be alive when the sun rose.
Wonho sucked in his lips to hold back the grin that threatened to spread to his face. "He sure likes to go around getting stabbed," he stated under his breath followed by a small chuckle, placing the printed photos down and slowly moving to look at the informant. "Thank you, for this. Anything on the culprit?"
"We'll continue looking into it." The man stated. Wonho let out a hum of agreement before waving him off. He silently watched as the person left the office hurriedly before turning to the other two. "What do you suppose we do now?" Minhyuk asked and the leader tilted his head slightly.
"Let's wait until we get something from Chae. We shouldn't make this very public." Wonho stated, cracking his knuckles. This incident confirmed it wasn't Chae who sent someone to mess with him. So who did? Who in the city had the guts to pull such a heist?
"I agree. If breaking into your apartment was their first move, this must've been only the beginning. They want attention."
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'Next time, come yourself. Don't bother with the lemmings.'
"What?" he muttered under his breath, staring at the message on the screen. What lemmings? He dropped the phone onto the ebony table and ran his hand through his hair, leaning back in his chair as his eyebrows furrowed. He doesn't recall sending anyone after Wonho; not recently at least.
The last man he sent to shadow the other leader was sent back dead, mutilated beyond recognition. So after that, he hadn't done it again. Sure, he had planned on doing it in the future but had not sent anyone out for a suicide mission. He wasn't that stupid. If he was, He wouldn't be sitting where he was.
He tapped his fingers on the table, still thinking about the message he had been sent. Someone had slithered their way to wherever Shin Wonho was living and made it so that it seemed like it was one of their men.
Huh.
Hyungwon sucked his lips into his mouth, tilting his head a little bit. It seemed fishy, especially after what they had pulled off just previously that day. Did the other really think of him that lowly? That he'd send a petty spy after him after taking one of the biggest bounties just from his fingertips? There was no need for that and Hyungwon was sure that Shin Wonho knew that fact too.
He leaned forward to a mic attached to his desk, pressing a small button on it that would send his voice through the intercom. "I.M, would you please come into my office?" he requested, pulling away. He crossed his leg, glancing at the clock on his wall. It would take exactly three minutes for the younger to arrive in the office if he was in the training room, five if he was in the resting area or kitchen, and probably twenty minutes if he was chatting up Jooheon.
He watched the minutes tick by in silence and the door opened as soon as five minutes went by, the door opened. "Had a good rest?" he asked the man followed by a small chuckle. I.M, Changkyun, let the door fall shut as he moved forward. "It was alright." The man replied, voice still slightly rough.
"What do you need me to do?" Chankgyun then asked, crossing his arms. Hyungwon grabbed his phone and unlocked it before handing it to the other. "We didn't send anyone after him, did we?" he confirmed, and the other nodded his head. "No. I'd remember." He was the second in command, so Changkyun's opinion on what they should do was taken into high consideration when the leader made their plans.
"Exactly," Hyungwon said and snapped his fingers, taking his phone back when he was offered it. He then leaned his elbows on the desk, looking up at the sharp-featured man. "So, who did?" he placed the question down on the table, seeing the slight flash of confusion on the other's expression.
No one from a smaller unit would be dumb enough to send someone after Shin Wonho. The man wouldn't hesitate to snap the spy's neck but not before drawing out whatever information he wanted. Hyungwon, like an idiot, remembers idolizing this enemy of his when he was younger and still under his father's wing. Although now he'd deny this fact. He saw the older on a field operation once, working his way through guards easily. His hopes of getting to know this mysterious fighter was crushed when his father pointed out that it was an enemy.
And as he grew, he learned more about what was happening. They were in a decades-long fight with Blood Vibers. It had begun in the early 80s as a simple turf war eventually escalating into a fight about politics, territory, and mass slaughter.
Hyungwon learned to hate this enemy as soon as he heard that the leader of those enemies put a bullet in his grandfather's skull. And eventually his own father's. He had risen to power right when he turned 25 and there he still stood at the age of 32, seven years later. The fight was never-ending and Hyungwon wouldn't stop until Wonho stepped down or better, died. When they made a move against the other group and they pushed back tenfold.
Hyungwon could only imagine and laugh at the scene of Wonho ripping his hair out when he found out what had gone down this time. But he knew they would hit back eventually so he couldn't enjoy the calm before the storm for long.
"Is this your way of telling me to look into it?" Changkyun asked, tilting his head to the side a little. Hyungwon nodded his head. "Or put it on someone else's shoulders. Either or. As long as we find out something that'll give us the upper hand." the leader spoke, grabbing his keys from his table. "Anyway. I'll head home."
"Be safe," Changkyun said as he started walking to the door and the leader tapped his hip, signaling that he had his gun. "I always am," he replied and the other man rolled his eyes. "Yes, except that one time you got shot and almost died alone in your penthouse. I liked that place, by the way."
Hyungwon waved his hand at the guy. "I'll message you when I get home, mom," he said and pulled the door open. "See you tomorrow."
He made his way out of the building, greeting the people he met on the way and enjoying the way they all bowed to him. He had liked it ever since he was a young child, the power that such a simple action gave him.
As he got to his car he looked around a little, not spotting anything that felt off and got into the vehicle. He licked his lips, turned on the engine, and pulled out of the parking spot. He didn't live too far, finding a long distance between home and work inconvenient.
When he stopped at a red light his phone vibrated in his pocket and he took it out. Sure, it was against the law but so was basically his whole being; but there was nothing some money wouldn't fix. The police were already so corrupt that they could be bribed with a single sweet smile and a wad of cash. Or just a simple threat.
The notification was from his security app so he clicked it open. The cameras inside his apartment had alerted movement and a break-in in real-time. He watched the footage play as the light changed and he pressed the gas paddle down, speeding off. There was a man inside his room, painting the walls with text. If he made it in time, he could catch the culprit. He dropped the phone into his lap, diverting his attention to the road fully.
He barely turned the vehicle off as he arrived in the parking lot and got out, running inside. he lived only on the third floor so he took the stairs. He felt his legs burn but as he was making his way up the second set of stairs the culprit himself almost ran into him.
Hyungwon smirked slightly at the shock that he saw in the deep brown eyes staring back at him. "Caught you." He let out breathily as the other tried to back off, planning to run off in the other direction. the only other exit there was, was the fire exit but Hyungwon wouldn't allow him to run away. He lunged at the intruder, grabbing the hood of the black hoodie he was wearing in an attempt to pull it off.
He got kicked back and stumbled against the wall, holding his stomach in pain. "Who sent you?" He spat then, straightening himself. "Think about it." The man responded bluntly as he tried to get past him but the leader stopped that attempt by stepping in front of the guy. "Wonho? Doubt it. He'd never send anyone cloaked like this." He shot back and chuckled. Wonho, despite Hyungwon's dislike for the older, wasn't that bold.
A piercing pain ran through his abdomen without giving him time to react and Hyungwon grabbed onto the masked man's shoulders, squeezing them in pain. "You're not getting away." He whispered letting out a pained gasp when the knife sunk into his skin again. "Try me." It was clearly a challenge and Hyungwon smirked. He shoved the other back, glancing down at his bleeding stomach. Shit.
He raised his head, eyes meeting the gaze of the other man. There was something so familiar that it made his back tingle with shivers. He couldn't pinpoint where he could've met those eyes before, but it didn't matter. He could think about it later.
Hyungwon took a few shaky steps and locked the stranger between himself and the wall, grabbing him by his throat and squeezing it tightly. "You have a lot of guts to come here, huh? What did you think was going to happen?" He hissed, tightening his grasp on the other's throat. The man grabbed his wrists, desperately gasping for air.
The leader, then let go making sure to scratch the man's skin as he did. The bastard fell to the floor coughing and wheezing and Hyungwon squatted down, grabbing the knife from the man's hand. He took a tight hold of the man's wrist, opening up his palm and carving a recognizable image of a crown there. "Run to your boss. Tell him to fuck with me and see what happens." He spat, pushing himself up with a hiss and making the rest of the way up the stairs while holding his stomach.
He should've word a blade-proof vest. "Fuck this hurts." He muttered as he made it to his apartment, seeing the door unlocked. He walked inside and didn't even bother to make it to his bedroom before calling Changkyun. It only took a few beeps for the other to pick up and he started the conversation with a simple chuckle.
"So, about me being careful..."
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the urge to write a new gang/mafia au thing was way, way too irresistible so... here we are
hi again
welcome, or welcome back, to my fic!
i hope you liked the first chapter!
i was twirling around with the idea of writing another gang fic, because i fear that it'll be way too similar with sweet chaos (especially bc of the same pairing), but i shouldn't have many similar important plot points so i think i can make this work.
i want to do with this fic, what i failed to do in sweet chaos and that is more of the enemies to lovers trope that was in the original drafts of sweet chaos but faded as i worked on it. so i wanna have myself an attempt of redemption with this story :)
there isn't going to be a certain update schedule but i'll do my best to not have too long breaks but i am still updating like a fool regularly so this will be on the sidelines for now.
thank you for reading and feel free to leave feedback!
'til next time~