The minutes and hours pass like that. Arriving in the morning to service an instrument for the day, and almost inexplicably running into Lee JInki at least once each time. The two bodyguards are never far behind their charge, although I'm beginning to think that their duties resemble those of a pair of babysitters rather than his protectors. During a time when I'm scrubbing down a collection of harps, I ask Lee Jinki about the relationship between him, Kim Jonghyun and Kim Kibum.

"The three of us... grew up together, more or less. They're the brothers I never had," he tells me with his carefree attitude.

"Are you an only child then?"

The light in his eyes dims a little, and the bass tone of his voice goes even deeper as he stares past me with a melancholy gaze.

"I am. It's always been our little trio, so even as kids Key and Jonghyun have looked out for me."

"They do seem very protective of you."

The smile returns and his eyes glow again as he replies

"Yeah, they are, aren't they?"

Lee Jinki. I learn many things about him, petty, insignificant things that I shouldn't remember every time I see him. I remember that he likes peach tea in the mornings, his opinion on celebrity culture, but there is one thing that I notice the most. Perhaps it is the one thing I noticed that led me to catch sight of the other. Whenever he is in amongst his fellow students or in a group of people, the expression on Lee Jinki's face is not a real one. He dons a smile that isn't entirely forced - it is more like a mask that he wears. I recognise it because it's the same smile I practise in the mirror every morning.

Sometimes when I am alone with Lee Jinki, the mask will slip and melt away to reveal what I've come to know as his signature smile. His 'Onew smile', so to speak. Yet, even as the mature adult he is, I notice that whenever there are others around, Lee Jinki is distinctly insecure and self-conscious under the mask of smiles and laughter. The reason why is made clear one afternoon by the two bodyguards themselves.

"Onew likes you," Kim Jonghyun states matter-of-factly.

"Well, I'm, er... glad to hear that?" I reply uncertainly.

Kim Jonghyun sighs, as if I'm missing the point. He glances sharply at his blonde-haired partner before returning his assessing gaze to me.

"Is there something wrong with Onew-hyung?" A useless inquiry perhaps, as I'm fully aware of what the answer will be.

"Onew himself is fine. You've noticed though, haven't you, Jiwoo-sshi? Don't you ever wonder why he hardly speaks to people here? But how is it," he demands, stepping closer to me, "that you're getting so close to him so quickly?"

"That, I think, is something to ask Onew-hyung himself."

Lowering my eyes, I admit calmly,

"Yes, Jonghyun-sshi, what you say is true. I've often guessed as to the reason for his lack of friends."

Kim Kibum only nods impassively, but an indiscernible look briefly flickers on Kim Jonghyun's face before disappearing like a shadow.

"I know that the both of you care for hyung a lot, but I don't really understand what you're trying to say-"

"What Jonghyun here is trying to say," begins Kim Kibum, "is that we don't really know who you are, Jiwoo-sshi, and neither does Onew. He's been hurt before, and his situation is... unique."

My face changes to the appropriately confused expression, prompting Kim Kibum to justify his words.

"It's not something we can talk about. If Onew decides to let you know, then we won't stop him."

"Don't count on it though," Kim Jonghyun adds, "you guys aren't staying in South Korea for long, are you? There's no point in having friends who let you down, so save Onew some pain and stay away from him."

He storms out of the room without a backward glance, leaving a bemused blonde behind in his wake.

"Try not to let Jonghyun get to you," he advises with a sigh, "he's just hot-headed when it comes to Onew, but-"

"But what everything he says is true. You should go, Kibum-sshi, or Onew-hyung will worry."

He doesn't go, and just stays there, looking at my pityingly. For a long moment, my own mask feels like it's slipping as my instincts tingle under his stare.

Then he leaves, shutting the door softly behind him. A breath of air rushes out of my lungs as I relax. It suddenly occurs to me what that fleeting look on Kim Jonghyun's face was.

Guilt. The expression that flickered on Kim Jonghyun's face was one of shame.
 

The glass slides up; hands on the window sill to support a leap over the stove, and landing soundlessly before the fridge.

"Careful. Make any more noise and you'll have the whole block knocking at our door."

The laptop casts a deathly blue glow over Minho's face, fingers tapping away like they're possessed with eyes fixed firmly at the screen. I elect to swallow the mocking retort as I remove the traces of my midnight excursion from the kitchen floor.

"Can you manage a bit of professionalism, Cobalt? Have you got anything for me yet?"

"Yeah, we're up live and running. Every inch of Mr. Playboy's mansion is covered and he doesn't know a thing. Can you really not go back and plant some mics around?"

"Those need to go inside the house, not outside it. We're using those to eavesdrop on the Lees, not on the security guards whilst you sit here munching popcorn. You should clean up after yourself better."

As he swipes the tell-tale crumbs off his keyboard, I'm beginning to wonder if I should allow Minho to waste so much money on snacks.

"Talking of intel, I've got into some of Daddy Lee's bank accounts and assets."

"Legal?"

"Mostly. There're a few financial black holes that need a bit more digging into. Especially this one involving a guy called Wu Yifan. Since seven months ago, he's been getting some big slices of cake."

We share a loaded glance as our minds go back to the fall of the academy.

"I'll go check him out," I say into the gloomy silence.

The fingers slow over the keyboard, but his gaze has returned to the screen in front of him.

"I'll handle this one. You still need to work on the target for now."

"You're a hacker, so leave Wu Yifan and Onew-hyung to me. I'll get everything we need, Minhyuk."

I realise my mistake too late; I can't take back the treacherous words now. Walking towards my room, every step I take seems magnified in the unnatural silence.

"So it's 'Onew-hyung' now? Well, it looks like I underestimated your social skills, Jiwoo."

"Minho-"

"Hey, do you remember what happened at Bangkok? No, actually-" he rises abruptly, laptop abandoned, "-do you remember what happened after Bangkok?"

His glare smoulders and sparks as if he's trying to inflict me into shame. I refuse to meet his gaze, searching for an answer that isn't torn between logic and defiance.

"You know I do."

Fifteen years old, the two of us, just returned home from Thailand. Unknown to us though, we were also about to experience our first punishment for failing a mission. The crime? Refusing to slaughter the lone witness to the destruction we wrecked in his home. A boy, no more than half our age, whose parents went in too deep with the Chinese triads and needed immediate, effective removal. I did not want to deny the chance for an innocent life when I never had one of my own. So I convinced Minho to leave the child alone and thought, in my naïvety, that we could get away with it. That I could have been something else instead of an assassin. What followed, the broken bones, the burnt flesh and the beatings served as a reminder to not have any mercy.

That doesn't mean I still don't try. I've grown smart too, so now I know how to make people disappear without having to shed any blood. I don't kill children, nor do I cause unnecessary pain, where it can be avoided.

As for Minho, I'm not too sure whether he still blames for what happened. But he's like me in that aspect; he doesn't like to depend on anyone, including me. It's business first, as always.

"Don't forget what we are, Jiyeon. You of all people should know this better than anyone. We're assassins, forced to live by a creed that's different from the rest of the world. We can look, talk, and act like one of them, but we can never be one of them. It's not who we're meant to be."


 

A/N: I'm back after a month in Hong Kong! At least, you know now that I haven't been entirely idle (;

18.08.12