As if it wasn’t enough that Jinyoung had to pretend he never heard about Mark’s situation, the dinner with Youngjae and Suzy went horrible. The stress Suzy had put him through made him realized there will be no hope for a friendship between them in the future. Not only was Suzy making indirect jabs at Mark, she also wore such a judgmental face the whole night. Out of respect for his best friend, Jinyoung maintained a strained smile and said nothing more than a couple of basic sentences to her. On the other hand, Mark seemed completely calm and polite like his usual self. Mark managed to make small talks with Suzy after seeing how uncomfortable Youngjae was because of his of a girlfriend.

    The young master plopped down on the couch with a sigh. His heart still shook from that dinner. His mind running a thousand miles per minute of useless thoughts. Insecurity knocked at his poor heart again. Jinyoung didn’t know what to feel after that. Should there be anger? Sadness? Fear? All of the above? What was the right emotion?

    “Hey, drink some water, love,” Mark handed Jinyoung a glass of water as he settled down next to him. “How are you?”

    Jinyoung finished the entire glass in one huge sip. “Feeling a bit better after the water. Thank you.” He set the glass on the table and laid his head on his boyfriend’s shoulder. “I’m sorry.”

    “For?”

    “I don’t know… Everything, I guess.”

    Mark quirked an eyebrow while his fingers running through Jinyoung’s hair, “what do you mean? I don’t think you did anything wrong.”

    An exasperated sigh left Jinyoung’s mouth. “It’s just… Youngjae is my best friend, and Suzy is his girlfriend… And tonight was… God, tonight was horrific. I’m sorry you had to sit through all that. I shouldn’t have brought you over. Even if I did, I should have it just be you, me, and Youngjae. I didn’t know what was I thinking for suggesting with Youngjae to also have Suzy at the table. She pisses me off. After what she had done to you… How could I be so insensitive.”

    Rather than adding fuel to fire, Mark chuckled and kissed his lover’s head, “it’s fine. I don’t blame you, and I don’t hold grudges. I know you didn’t expect it to turn out bad, but on the bright side, you’re with me. Dinner was nice, minus the whole Suzy jazz. Also, I didn’t know Youngjae could cook that good.”

    “I’m scared…”

    Just those words alone got Mark pulling Jinyoung into a full embrace. He didn’t say anything. He wanted to let Jinyoung think in silence for a bit. This had never happened to Jinyoung before, so fear was normal. They weren’t in a rush. Jinyoung can have all the time he needs.

    “You know me, I’m not like this at all. I kill people without blinking. But when it comes to you and I, us, I’m always scared. I know I shouldn’t care about what others think, but I couldn’t help but feel like a burden to you. I’m not embarrassed of us. I’m more embarrassed of myself. I keep thinking that maybe if it was another person sitting next to you earlier, then Suzy wouldn’t have said and acted the way she did. I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean to put you in a difficult position.” Jinyoung burried his face into Mark’s chest. “I’m sorry I’m acting so pathetic right now. I wish there was another way to explain how I feel about us.”

    “You don’t have to blame it on yourself, Jinyoung-ah,” Mark said, softly rubbing circles on Jinyoung’s back to offer more comfort. “Suzy acted the way she did because she’s problematic herself. NOT because of you. She’s got a lot of things on her plate at the moment. I’m sure of it. Seeing how she hasn’t been promoted, they played her. And that’s her karma. Don’t worry about her. Right now, and probably for a while, she won’t be able to do anything relevant enough to affect you and I. With that being said, I don’t really care what other people think. Unless you’re being introduced as the Chairman, then I’ll revert back to our normal positions as before. I don’t want people to use your loved ones against you, especially if that person is me. Other than that, as long as you are Park Jinyoung, then I’ll always be your Mark Tuan.”

    Wrapping his arms tightly around Mark’s neck, Jinyoung whined a little, “you always say things I want to hear. I hate your sweet tongue so much.”

    “Remember I said we’ll take it slow? I really do mean it. I know it’s new to you, and I honestly don’t mind going through it with you. If I ever minded it, I would have left a long time ago and never looked back. You were raised differently from me, and yes, you were nothing but a troublemaker. I don’t expect you to suddenly be fine with the drastic changes society will be giving you. I had to go through it as well. It’s pretty ed up, but I didn’t have anyone before. Now, you have me. I’ll be your shield.”

    “Don’t say that. I don’t want you to be. I can take care of myself. You don’t have to worry about me.”

    At this, Mark laughed, “you’re starting to sound like me. We’ve only been dating for two months!”

    Jinyoung rolled his eyes and pulled himself away, so he can take a look at his favorite person. “Only two months? I really thought we were together for longer. Feels a lot longer after everything we’ve been through.” He reached up to held Mark’s face in his hands. How was he still breathing was beyond his understanding. Never in his life had he felt this way. The peace rested in his heart lulled him to a neverending sweet dream he wished he had since he was little. All that fear from earlier dissolved as he stared deeper and longer into Mark’s eyes. The security warmed every inch of his body. He never knew he was someone who could deserve to experience this type of serenity. “Wow… I’m really holding the world in my hands.”

    For all his life, Mark never asked for anything. But right in this moment, he begged for the eternity of their love. Nothing will ever heal him like being with Jinyoung. “I thought I’m supposed to be the cheesy one. Why are you getting sappy on me…”

    “Are you… Mark, are you, perhaps… Blushing?”

    “I-“ Before Mark could defend himself, Jinyoung already made the move to pinch his cheeks.

    “THAT’S SO CUTE!!! DO IT AGAIN!” Jinyoung excitedly knocked Mark over on the couch and climbed on top, hands still pinching at his boyfriend’s cheeks. His smile grew wider and wider whenever Mark’s face turned a bit redder. Finally, he’s not the one who’s flustering in embarrassment. Mark got to taste his own medicine.

    Of course, Mark wasn’t going down without a fight. He grabbed Jinyoung’s wrists and pulled them away, making the younger lost his balance and fell over. Their lips crashed together a little bit too harshly. Mark smirked, holding Jinyoung’s wrists against the cushion of the couch on either side of his head. Jinyoung struggled to pull himself back up, only to be held firmly in place and unable to wiggle his way out the moment Mark’s teeth caught his bottom lip. A sharp gasped escape the young master’s mouth. His lover beneath bit down a little harder. Jinyoung whimpered softly and puckered his lips to deliver a kiss as a sincere apology.

    Only after a few more kisses did Mark released his grip on Jinyoung’s wrists. A pout appeared on Jinyoung’s lips as he pulled himself back up. He looked down at the annoying, but insanely adorable, grin below. Swollen lips seemed to be such a good look on Mark. Giving up, Jinyoung leaned down and let them both drowned in the sweetness of each other’s tongues. It was already a fact that Park Jinyoung can never, and will never, be able to stay mad at Mark Tuan.

    They kissed some more, turning the entire couch into a mess from their needy movements. With them, there were no such things as innocent kisses. Only passion and desire. And loads and loads of affection. Their love for each other was the only things that was pure.

    “Are you staying tonight?” Jinyoung asked, lips never leaving Mark’s.

    Realization dawned on Mark with Jinyoung’s question. He gave one final kiss before attempting to stop their pre-. Jinyoung refused to let go as he moved to straddle him. Mark smiled and gently pushed his pouty lover’s face away. “I have to go back.”

    “No, you don’t.”

    “Sweetheart, I have an early meeting tomorrow with-“

    “So? You can stay the night and get there in the morning.”

    “Yeah, but I will need to sleep early.” Mark eyes pooled with adoration while he watched Jinyoung battling with decisions in the younger’s own head. Without any words, Mark already knew what this cute lover of his was thinking about. “I’ll stay tomorrow.”

    “Okay, I’ll let you sleep,” a sigh immediately followed after that painful decision.

    “Really?”

    “Yeah… I just want you to be with me.”

    “Promise?”

    “Yes…” Jinyoung removed himself from Mark’s lap and settled on the couch. His eyes fixated on the empty glass of water in front. “I can’t sleep without you next to me. I get nightmares…”

    This was news. Mark dropped the playful tone. “Nightmares? What’s wrong? You never told me this…”

    Jinyoung sighed, feeling that urge to cry bubbling up his throat. “I thought it would scare you away… Because we’re back in Seoul, yet I still get nightmares… I thought you would judge me a-and… Thought you would leave me…”

    “No, Jinyoung-ah, how could you think like that? There is no way,” Mark hugged Jinyoung, whose body started to shake a little from the sudden burst of anxiety and emotions. “I would like it if you told me, so I can help you. Why would I be scared away by something like this? This affects you so much. It hurts me to know you’re going through this alone. You have to tell me, Jinyoung-ah. Let me share the burdens with you. We’re in this together, remember?”

    “I’m sorry…”

    “It’s okay. Don’t apologize. You did nothing wrong. I just want us to communicate better. I want to love you properly.”

    “No, I’m sorry for being such a monster-“

    This was the last straw. “Jinyoung, stop it.” Mark pulled Jinyoung from the hug and looked into his, now empty, eyes. “I wasn’t going to say anything about what happened in Jeju. You need to understand that being with you is a choice that I’ve made. I can just get up and leave right now. But no, I chose to stay with you. I chose to accept and acknowledge you and everything related to you. You’re not a monster. Very, very, very far from one. I love you and every single pieces of you. They’re all the same to me. They all made up the Jinyoung I love. I know it’s hard on you. But sweetheart, you have to learn self-compassion and self-forgiveness before all else. And I am here to help you. Your self-hatred runs too deep in your blood, but it is never impossible to turn a new leaf. Before I die, I swear to make you believe in self-love again.”

    “Don’t say that!” Jinyoung snapped, life flown back into his eyes. “Don’t say that like you’re going to die soon! Who told you that you could die?” A new form of fear etched across Jinyoung’s face. Everything Mark said, he heard it, but none of that smacked his skull harder than that last sentence. The thought of losing Mark terrified him. He almost lost his love once, and that nearly left him scarred. He can’t stand going through that horrifying feeling of losing Mark again.

    Jinyoung can’t let that happen.

    He’ll kill anyone before they can laid their hands on Mark.

    He’ll rip them to shreds with his bare hands.

    He’ll-

    “Okay, okay, okay, I used the wrong words!” Mark quickly hugged Jinyoung seconds away from the younger’s anger stemmed from an uncontrollable panic. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that! I didn’t mean to word it like that!” For a second there, Mark thought he was going to lose his head. The switch between Park Jinyoung and Chairman Park happened in a blink of an eye. Sometimes, he forgot how insane the fierceness swirling within the eyes of the Chairman was.

    “I really hate you.”

    “You know what I mean, right?”

    “How could you say something like that so casually…”

    “I really didn’t mean-“

    “I WILL BRING YOU BACK FROM THE DEAD!”

    “Please, no-“

    “I don’t care!”

    “All right, that’s enough awake hours for the night. We’re going to bed.” Mark made one swift movement and Jinyoung ended up bridal style in his arms. “You’re lacking sleep that’s why you’re talking crazy.” He carried his childish boyfriend up the stairs, ignoring all the objections from the spoiled little prince.

    “I’m not talking crazy! You can’t leave me until I’m bored of you and throw you away!”

    A slight sting poked at Mark’s heart by those words. “Yep. You’re definitely talking crazy.”

    Everyone knows Jinyoung will never get bored of Mark and throws him away. That’s clearly crazy talk.

+

+

+

    “I think it is time to bring Agent Tuan back.”

    “Ma’am, with all due respect, please look over this,” C.I.A. Unit 7 Captain Wang presented a thick folder in front of the higher-ups. “This newfound information collected by Captain Tuan and I over the past month. Please, take a look and give Captain Tuan a longer deadline.”

    With doubts evident obviously in her eyes, the Director almost didn’t take up the folder. However, she wasn’t as heartless as the underlings love to describe her so. But she also didn’t put a lot of faith in this operation that one of the nation’s best agents cooked up. After a few minutes of flipping through pages of endless theories and resources, a decision needed to be made. The Director passed the folder to his left, letting the other people in the room have a peek. She then turned her attention back on Captain Wang. “You sure are quite enthusiastic today, Wang.”

    Jackson held a stern face, eyes blazing with a purpose, “we are working hard, ma’am.”

    “Working hard?”

    “Yes, ma’am.”

    At this, the Director burst out laughing, startling a few other higher-ranking figures in the room. “I admire the energy you youngsters have.”

    “Thank you, ma’am.”

    The folder made its way back to the hands of the main woman. She laid in front of her, a little unpredictable smile danced on her lips. A month ago, the decision for Agent Tuan’s return never got to her ears until a couple days later. Although she knew the capability of the agent, based on those fruitless results, she had to agree with the majority. There was no need for Agent Tuan to be sitting idle in South Korea. So when Agent Wang came in with a determined look on his face and hand clutched onto a folder, she knew they made progress.

    Everyone in the room anticipated the final call of the highest-rank authority within the department. Jackson held his head high as he hung onto the last string of hope. The expressionless look on the young agent’s face could fool others but not the Director. His nervousness didn’t get past her eyes. “How about this, three years?”

    Jackson prepared himself for rejection when he decided to step inside this meeting room, not this surprise gift. “E-excuse me, ma’am?”

    “Is three years enough for Agent Tuan?”

    Without another second of hesitation, Jackson nodded and a smile spread across his face. “Yes, ma’am!”

    The Director chuckled and shook her head, “I’m sure that is plenty of time for Agent Tuan to wrap up everything once and for all. But he doesn’t, I will have no choice but to go through with the initial punishment and demote him. Do you understand me, Agent Wang?”

    “Yes, ma’am! Thank you for giving him another chance!”

    “I entrust you the job to relay the new orders back to Agent Tuan. You will receive an email in about half an hour on all the instructions you two need to follow from today onwards for the next three years. Of course, the operation is one hundred percent Agent Tuan’s control. We won’t be interfering any more. He is on his own now. If he comes back three years later empty-handed, then there will be repercussion. His stay in South Korea is exhausting the budget of the Special Ops of the Secret Services, so we want the case to be solved if we’re spending so much on just him alone over there. Give us anything less than what we asked for? Might as well never step foot back into this building. Are we clear on this, Agent Wang?”

    “Absolutely, ma’am!”

    “Good. Well, this concludes today’s meeting regarding the matters of Agent Tuan. Let’s all stay positive and hope this case closes.”

    Captain Wang quietly exited the room when the higher-ups began talking about other national security things. The moment the doors closed behind him, he fist pumped the air. Their hard work this past month paid off well. Still a very long way to go, but at least, the time got extended dramatically. Jackson really was going to ask for six more months, but what was offered back to him seemed too good to be truth. But why three years? Why so long…?

    Swatting those thoughts from his mind, Jackson hurried to the elevators. No time to be thinking those type of meaningless things when he had news to break to a certain someone.

+

+

+

    “So I heard,” Jaebum caught up to his best friend, “congratulations, you get to stay here longer and deal with Jinyoung for me.”

    “That’s the good part,” Mark entered the elevator with Jaebum following behind, “the bad part is that I now have a very huge boulder on my shoulders. They expect me to solve this within three years or I’ll lose my current position, which isn’t exactly a bad thing… Buuuut it means I won’t be able to have the kind of protection I have as an E.C.I. Captain. I’ve already made Jeju my enemy. Pretty damn sure I’ve angered some people here in Seoul, too. When they strip that protection from me, it’ll be harder for me to come back to South Korea.”

    The elevator’s doors opened when it reached the first floor. Both agents stepped out into the empty lobby. It was midnight. The only people around were the few night shift workers and the security guards. Mark didn’t have to ask, he knew Jaebum wanted to stick around with him longer. So in silence, they headed up to the suite where Mark was staying.

    Jaebum took off his suit jacket and tie as soon as his foot stepped past the suite’s door. He went over to the fridge and fetched out two bottles of soju. “Not staying over at Jinyoung’s tonight?”

    Also shredding the same two clothing items as Jaebum, Mark shook his head and threw himself on the couch with closed eyes. “No, he’s busy with his best friend. We thought that issue was over last week, but it started up again after that dinner on that same week. Jinyoung’s been really stressed, so I thank you in his place for not giving him an attitude at work.”

    Handing Mark a bottle, Jaebum rolled his eyes, “I’m not heartless. I can tell he had a lot on his mind. Besides, when he’s like that, it’s very easy for that person to jump out. And the last thing I need is for that monster to burn me alive.”

    “Hey, don’t say that about him.”

    “All jokes. Chairman Park is the reason I’m living a comfortable life without my parents’ help. I could never say about him. I’ve doubted him before when he first sat on the throne his parents left for him, but he did very well raising his own self up. Got all my respect. Thank God I decided to buy stocks from Park Group.”

    “I don’t get you business people at all. I’m just trying to settle down.”

    Jaebum laughed, bringing the soju bottle to his lips and took a long swig. “Have you ever thought about Kris?”

    Mark looked over at his best friend with a consfused gaze. “Why are we talking about him again?”

    “I don’t know. He’s Jinyoung’s cousin, you know. Supposedly, if he didn’t ran off, Jinyoung probably would still be that rebellious Young Master everyone s on. Kris would have taken over Park Group and made it even better. Without all the illegal s.”

    “You knew?”

    “Of course, I knew. Jinyoung and I might not get along well personally, but as business partners, or partners in general, we understood one another through simple stares. No, he never told me about it, but I have my ways of knowing. If I’m going to shake someone’s hand, then I’ll have to know a little thing or two about them.”

    Agreeing, Mark nodded and took a drink from his bottle. He wasn’t surprised at all that Jaebum knew what Jinyoung had been doing to keep Park Group afloat. Wasn’t surprised that Jaebum kept it a secret as well. “Thank you.”

    “Don’t thank me. As of the moment, I’m not rooting for Jinyoung. The fact that he turned to walk in the dark out of desperation does not sit well with me. But he had to do what he had to do, and I understand that completely. I think if Kris was in charge, things wouldn’t have gotten this bad. Kris was more knowledgable, more mature, more patient than Jinyoung. that SOMEONE ruined Kris’s golden opportunity.”

    “Okay, it was my fault. I’m sorry. Can we move on from this? It’s all in the past.”

    “Did you really not like him? Not even one bit?”

    “No, I did not. He could have been a great friend, but he was asking for too much of me. You know this, during that time, I just got out of a relationship. I wasn’t ready to get into another one nor I wanted to be with someone from that world.” Mark finished the entire bottle.

    “Now, you ended up head-over-heels for his cousin.” Jaebum also finished the bottle. “Must be karma.”

    A whole box of soju later, Jaebum knocked out on the couch while Mark cleaned up before hitting the sheets. They didn’t talk about anything much, more drinking in silence than anything. One out of the many things Mark appreciated from their friendship was how comfortable they were with each other even in complete silence. Their type of friendship don’t require any nourishment within itself. Just some occasional drinking sessions together and small talks proved to work beautifully.

    Before heading to the bedroom, Mark draped a thick blanket over his best friend’s starfish sleep formation. He contemplated whether or not he should carry this drunken idiot of a friend to his bed a few minutes earlier. But seeing how invasive drunk Im Jaebum’s style of sleeping was, Mark patted his best friend’s head and walked off.

He can’t afford to wake up the next morning on the floor. Maybe next time.

    Exhaustion begged Mark to sleep right away, but hygiene won over his mind. To reach an agreement, Mark took a quick shower and brushed his teeth in less than ten minutes. A yawn escaped his mouth when he exited the bathroom. He climbed on the bed and pulled the blanket over himself. His eyelids wasted no time to weight down on him. Sleep slowly seeped through the veins on his body. Mark sighed and relaxed himself for a deep slumber.

    Though, someone else had other plans.

    The second ring of the empathetic device caused Mark to groan in annoyance. “Who the …” He rolled over to the other side to grab his phone on the nightstand. “Hello? Do you know what time it is? Why can’t you call me earlier when I’m still AWAKE? Who the are you-“

    “Mark?”

    “-JINYOUNG!” Mark’s eyes snapped open, fully awake and energized now from just his name rolling off his lover’s tongue. “Yes, baby? What’s wrong? Can’t sleep?”

    “I’m sorry… I didn’t mean to wake you up.”

    “No, no, no problem AT ALL. So what’s up?” A sigh reached Mark’s ear, causing him to frown. “I’m here for you, sweetheart.”

    “I just got done putting Youngjae to bed. We were talking and drinking after dinner. And… . I don’t know what else to say to him. He’s so broken and this relationship they share is turning toxic. But Youngjae won’t let go. Suzy hasn’t been home for about two days now. Youngjae is not holding up so well. She got him wrapped around her finger. I’m so upset right now, yet I can’t do anything about it. If I harm Suzy, I will lose Youngjae.”

    Mark listened, the shakiness of Jinyoung’s voice hurts his heart. He wished he could have Jinyoung in his arms to make Jinyoung feels better. “The best you can do is listen, and you’re doing a perfect job at it already. Everything else can’t be help, so keep restraining yourself. Youngjae is in pain inflicted by a person he loves and trusts dearly, he wants you to listen.”

    Another sigh from Jinyoung. “Babe, he’s planning on proposing next month.”

    “He what?!”

    “Yes, Youngjae is going to propose to Suzy next month despite all this bull that’s happening between them. I’m so sick of it. I cannot take anymore of this dumb . I want to leave this place and go to you so bad. What kind of witchcraft did Suzy fed Youngjae with that he’s this blinded.”

    Mark almost laughed at that, “you’re the one to talk.”

    “Ugh, this isn’t about me.”

    “Definitely not about you, babe.”

    “I called you because I want cuddles and kisses not this!”

    “Then come over, I’ll give you as much cuddles and kisses as you want.”

    The line went silent for a bit, even Mark questioned if Jinyoung suddenly hung up. A drawn out sigh finally interrupted the stillness through the line. “Don’t tempt me.”

    “I’m not tempting you. I’m serious.”

    Silence.

    “I could use some cuddles and kisses as well. Jaebum’s snoring will not get me through the night-“

    “Why the is Jaebum with you?”

    “Well, we were drinking and-“

    “I’m coming over. See you in a bit.”

    “Wait, Jinyoung-“ The line went dead before Mark could utter another word. He totally regretted that.

    Not really.

    With a wide smile plastered on his face, Mark got out of bed and headed to wait at the door.