Even though Heechul is no longer in the business, he still keeps in contact with his old friends and helps them in times of need.

All of them, except Jungsoo.

He does ask Yesung to keep tabs on him, though, because he cannot stand not knowing what trouble his partner may be up to without him.

One day, Yesung sends an urgent message. "Injured badly, need backup now, location sending, J status unknown."

His location is close to where Heechul lives. Heechul jumps up, grits his teeth, curses Yesung to all hell and back, but goes.

He arrives just in time for the bullets to start spraying. Heechul curses and dives behind a car, aiming at the people shooting his friends.

Seeing Yesung struggling and cornered, fighting purely for his life now, is the one thing he cannot let pass. Heechul leaps up despite the danger and fights his way over.

Then, suddenly, he is knocked down from behind. Cursing, Heechul aims his gun backwards, only to be met with a soft stomach, one that he has prodded way too many times to be mistaken for someone else.

"Jungsoo," he whispers. Jungsoo presses a hand on his shoulder, murmurs something in Heechul's ear, and his weight disappears from Heechul's back.

Heechul hears Yesung's anguished, agonized cry, and he cannot stay still.

But Jungsoo is already on it, sacrificing himself to save his friend. Jungsoo, sweet Jungsoo, who pushed Yesung over to Han Geng, who ran, and pulled the pin on a grenade.

Sweet, beautiful Jungsoo, who died in a blaze of glory so that Heechul didn't have to.

"You won't have anything to do with this, I promise," he had vowed. "I'll keep you safe."

Yes, Heechul is safe, but at what cost? His best friend, his partner, the only one he's ever trusted with his life, the one who has given everything for him, even his life.

Heechul cries, and he regrets; he regrets everything, but it is already too late for anything.

I lied about not updating - apparently we're getting wifi today so I decided to go all out and update the last of the trilogy. The next one coming might take a while because I need to figure out how to get the picture link to work...