A/N: And after a month I'm back! I've been swamped with work, but finally an update! Thank you for all the heartwarming reviews; they really help me find inspiration to write even when I think I've got neither the time or energy to do so. 

Hope you enjoy the chapter!

Chapter V - No Joke

So close.

If he had been one second too late, that would have been Niel’s eye dripping blood and viscous fluid all over the floor.

And if that had happened, Jonghyun has no doubt he would’ve done something irreparably damaging, and he would’ve enjoyed every second of it, too. The shrill screams of terror and pain, the abject fear in his eyes as he pressed a thumb against a corner and slowly gouged them out one by one, ripping the connected nerves away and leaving two bloody holes that gaze into nothingness.

The thought makes him shiver.

He stares out of their shared cell vacantly, careful not to move. After bickering on the way back about how his latest misbehavior (“And that’s putting it lightly!” Niel had exclaimed) had cost them their meal, the had finally fallen asleep with both arms wound tightly against Jonghyun’s left arm and his head resting on his shoulder.  

It’s not such a bad thing to skip lunch, not with Niel wrapped around him like an early birthday present for everyone to see. His lips form a pout even in sleep, and Jonghyun allows himself to fantasise about stealing a kiss from them. He’s been careful not to touch that memory, not with the heady rush of adrenaline and impulsiveness it brings, not when it makes him want to slam Niel against the wall and finish what they had started that night, onlookers be damned.

“Ahn Daniel!” A deep voice cuts through his inner musings. Jonghyun raises his head to look at the speaker. Prison guard, well in his forties to early fifties judging from the deep lines etched on his face and the once black hair sporting flecks of silver. He’s short but still appears fit for his age, and the easy stance of one hand resting near the baton at his hip suggests he’s no stranger to disciplining unruly inmates. “Someone’s here to see you, kid.” 

Jonghyun jerks his head slightly to the left. “If you could do something about this…” He doesn’t really mean it, of course. Niel hasn’t gotten enough sleep the night before their transfer; he thinks he’s been clever, hiding it from him, but Jonghyun’s noticed. The body that lies next to him in bed is stiff and unyielding, not like the first night they’d slept together and he’d woken up pleasantly surprised to find their limbs tangled together as if they were a pair of lovers, not two strangers.

Still, it would be a shame to tell Niel that a visitor had dropped by right while he was having a nap, so Jonghyun volunteers to take his place. He’s also been curious to know who Niel’s been in contact with in the last week, so he figures it’s as good an opportunity as any.

Niel’s friend turns out to be a short guy with an equally short temper. He immediately gives Jonghyun a dark look as soon as he picks up the phone on the opposite side of the glass.

“Who the hell are you?” Jonghyun decides he doesn’t like the other man’s tone of voice. “And where’s Niel?” It’s nasally, borderline whiny, and there’s a familiarity in the way he calls Niel’s name that sets him on edge.

He bares his teeth in a facsimile of a smile. “Niel’s a little… preoccupied at the moment. I’m here to take any messages you might have for him.” Did Niel ever tell him about any college classmates or childhood friends? Jonghyun wrinkles his forehead. Most of the stories he’s heard revolve around Niel and his mom, but there were a few stories about a troublemaking upperclassman he called Chicken…

He blinks. “You’re Chicken?” He doesn’t even try to hide the incredulity in his voice. “You were the leader of the high school gang?”

Chicken. L. Joe. Gangster Joe, known by the moniker GangJoe. Niel’s stories made him sound like he’d be at least as tall as Jonghyun. He’s got a mean dropkick, Niel would say in utter seriousness, and the personality of a sadist.

Jonghyun didn’t quite expect him to be… so short. To be fair, the hair bleached a bloody red and numerous piercings on both ears should have been a dead giveaway that this friend was no ordinary classmate, but he was never one to set a standard for ‘normal’. 

L. Joe bristles at him. “Who are you and how did you know that?” A small hoop earring catches and reflects the light as he rushes to his feet. Jonghyun knows that earring, but he never thought he'd see it on an acquaintance of Niel's. The gold stands out from the other pieces all done in silver.

When he doesn’t answer right away, L. Joe barks out a laugh. “You’re the bastard who dragged Niel down with you.” Their eyes meet across the glass. His voice drops to a lower register, sounding more like the menace Niel had described him as. “Let him go.”

He shrugs, not bothering to reply. He’s never liked being ordered around. He never dragged Niel into anything; the shorty’s got his story backwards. Niel was a wrench thrown into his perfect plan of interrogation and discrete disposal of the rat from S&M, and Jonghyun hasn’t been able to shake the ’s hold on him ever since.

“You listen to me, Shinhwa heir.” The red-haired man’s voice is like steel. His eyes dart back to L. Joe’s angular face, momentarily startled. No one is supposed to know that. Not even Ricky knows he’s the successor to the group. How did this man find out? If he knows, then how far have the rumours spread? He holds out a hand.

“No, R. Joe, you listen.” 

“It’s L. Joe, you dumb brat.”

Jonghyun sneers at him. “Like I care. I came here to see if you had a message for Niel. Since you don’t, I’m leaving.” He hangs up, pointedly ignoring the other man’s protests. Apparently Niel hasn’t told him everything about this friend of his. Come to think of it, Niel didn’t mention how the two of them had met in the first place, either. A guy like him normally wouldn’t be caught hanging out with a punk like L. Joe. 

He frowns. The man could pose a threat to their continued safety if he spreads rumours that the next head of Shinhwa has already been announced. He decides not to worry about it any longer. Ricky’s visiting in a few days, after all. 

It’s about time to give him a new assignment.