(Jisung's POV)
A high pitched battle cry pierces the quietude.
Jisung takes it as cue to push off the wall he's leaning against to approach the shrill noise.
Peace lasted approximately... 45 minutes since he had left the room? He could only guess that the effects of chloroform had worn off, thus the newfound ruckus echoing down the corridor.
Arriving at the steel door, he opens it with a grunt, fully expecting you to be putting up a fight and Hyunjin restraining you in some way or form inside the room.
Tsk. This is what happens when we don't tie them up.
"The hell?" he mutters, staring in from his spot incredulously.
He was all but wrong.
There you were on the ground, straddling Hyunjin, your hands gripping fistfuls of his shirt. It appeared you had the upper hand, not the other way around.
"You pointed a gun at me!" you fume at the boy lying still beneath you.
"It was never loaded," Hyunjin murmurs calmly.
Your knuckles turn white from tugging at the shirt against his chest even more furiously. "Why did you drug me?" you seethe through clenched teeth.
"Because there was no time," Jisung answers casually from the doorway. "You wouldn't have come willingly, even if he explained everything to you."
Your head snaps up to finally meet him.
Though your face is rather pale, the rage and hostility in your eyes are unmistakably there.
"Who are you?" you practically snarl, your eyes darting back and forth between him and Hyunjin as if trying to gauge the next course of action.
"Jisung," is his simple reply as he saunters over. "Missy, as much as Hyunjin probably enjoys you being on top of him, you need to let go." He civilly reaches down to help you up but you're swift to retaliate.
"Don't touch me!" you hiss, pushing off of Hyunjin's body and leaping a couple of feet back from both males.
Once your weight is gone from his pelvis, Hyunjin peels his back off the unforgiving concrete, propping himself on his elbows. He subtly winces, favoring his left forearm to lean into.
Jisung then knew Hyunjin had let himself get tackled to the ground. There was no way you, or anyone else, could've bested him with a head on attack from such a close range.
"Sorry, should I not have interrupted?" Jisung cocks his head down at Hyunjin, feigning awkwardness when he was actually amused. "You look a little disappointed down there."
Hyunjin briefly closes his eyes in silent exasperation before throwing him the dirtiest glare in existence.
◈ ◈ ◈
(Your POV)
You are long past denial at this point.
Now, only anger stirs within you. That and your damn will to escape wherever this is. Twice—freakin' twice did Hyunjin drug you to unconsciousness; there would not be a third time. But outrunning these two wasn't an option as they had longer limbs, so you'd have to outsmart them somehow.
Keeping a wary distance from the two boys standing before you, you sidestep to the right as your eyes flicker to the open door behind them. If you could just make it out of this room first, you'd be able to trap them in here with the outside locking mechanism.
The boy with brown hair and full cheeks crosses his arms, clearly annoyed as he says, "Try anything funny and I will personally chain you to that bed post."
You blanch at the threat.
"Cut it out." Hyunjin gestures for the brunet to stand down before turning to you with a softer expression. "You don't have to be so on guard. I know it's difficult to believe, but I'm only trying to keep you safe. If we wanted to harm you, we would've done so already."
Logically, yes, that sounded rational. But you still keep a defensive stance, not knowing what to make of this entire situation.
"What I do for a living... it's not something you'd understand," Hyunjin begins slowly.
You eye him suspiciously. "What are you talking about?"
Jisung groans and throws his head back impatiently. "Look—we've known you were the daughter of some big shot Pharma CEO, and our job was to hunt you down for a hefty ass ransom," he blurts out tactlessly. Hyunjin winces at the harsh, condensed explanation but he doesn't exactly deny it.
"...Ransom?" you breathe.
"It's true," Hyunjin admits somberly, "that night when we met—it wasn't by chance, I was there waiting for you."
"But," you pause, brows furrowing as you think back to the events of that autumn night—something still didn't make sense. "There was someone tailing me... and it couldn't have been you..."
"That was me, I'm afraid," Jisung chimes in. "We work together, this guy and I. Albeit, he chose to ruin our foolproof plan that night," he adds sourly. "Hence, here we all are..."
So... it had all been a ruse, ever since the beginning? Running into Hyunjin that night—you thought he had unknowing saved you from a lurking predator when in reality, he was there waiting for you as a wolf in sheep's skin.
"So, why didn't you... back then, w-why didn't you..." you stammer in disbelief, your thoughts reeling.
Hyunjin averts his gaze; he doesn't answer. Neither of them do.
You can only draw your own conclusion: A cat playing with a mouse it has caught before going in for the kill—that's what this was. It's all been a game to him. You were just entertainment while it lasted.
You stand idly, staring emptily into space. Hurt seeps into the deepest parts of you as every moment you had with him suddenly felt completely disingenuous, tainted even.
"It wasn't my plan to lie to you for this long. But I did, and I know I've hurt you. I'm sorry," Hyunjin apologizes in a voice barely above a whisper, his expression torn but sincere.
It didn't matter though. Your trust in him has completely, irrevocably shattered. Nothing he says or does could mend your broken heart. Nothing.
"You hate me, you have every right to. But just let me help you this once—let me keep you safe, and then afterwards... I promise you won't ever have to see me again," Hyunjin says firmly, conveying a desperation you're not used to, and you try not to let it affect you.
"Keep me safe from what?" you spit callously. You absolutely hate how his promise causes more pain to gnaw at whatever's left of your heart.
"Minho."
After everything that's happened today, this doesn't come as a total shock to you. You press your dry lips together before speaking again. "He's not your friend, is he?" you ask blandly.
Hyunjin shakes his head. "He's..."
"He's our boss," Jisung explains candidly. "And he's ordered Hyunjin to bring you to him within 12 hours."
Great. Their boss was out for your blood?
And 12 hours??
You had just met Minho... give or take... well, shit, about 12 hours ago. Your sense of time has flown out the window after being put to sleep, but you're fairly sure it's been about that long.
Oh, crap.
You begin backtracking until you hit a wall to sink against. Crumpled on the ground, you put your forehead into your shaky, clammy hands as you try to minimize the tiny, black dots threatening to overtake your vision.
Jisung glances at Hyunjin before whispering, "Is she crying?"
Hyunjjn walks over carefully and crouches down in front of you. He reaches for your wrists, gently prying your hands away from your face. "Please talk to me," he says worriedly.
Your eyes are glazed over as all the physical and mental stress only added to your severely depleted energy and low blood sugar, putting you at the mercy of the two souls in the room.
"Hungry," is all you can muster.
✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ◈ ◈ ◈ *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧
⤠ a/n: thx for reading lovelies <33
hope you all had a nice summer, mine was quite rainy...
but we're slowly entering spooky season and i'm here for it :' )