Go Kick in the

Kyuhyun kept his gaze on the crowd, fidgeting nervously with his glass of red wine before gazing down to watch the maroon liquid swirl. He glanced around the ballroom, easily identifying who exactly were the trainees and who were the higher-up executives by the amount of tension in the air.

He knew he should be chatting up the business executives; hoping that one of them will be so blown away by his charisma, that they will promise him an early debut. But he couldn’t find it within himself to move away from the snack table, not when he knew how undeniably awkward he could be.

He took a tentative sip of his drink, watching the sea of unfamiliar faces mingling around with ease, poise, and practice. Deciding to stop monopolizing the snack table, he moved towards a vacant table in the corner, having a better view to people-watch to pass the time.

Leisurely, he sipped the remnants of his drink, unamused by the boisterous noise coming from the dance floor. He hated parties; everyone was too noisy, the music was always awful and wearing a stiff suit was suffocating. He’d rather be home playing video games. Speaking of home…

Not bothering to hide the longing, he eyed the entrance doors, wondering if he should make a break for it and go home. It’s not like anyone would he was missing-

“Kyuhyun-ah, I was looking everywhere for you!”

Kyuhyun cursed under his breath, watching as Siwon weaved his way through the crowd towards his table.

“Hey, Siwon-sshi,” Kyuhyun greeted reluctantly, bitter at the loss of his chance to escape.

“I told you to call me, Siwon-hyung,” Siwon smiled brightly, completely ignoring Kyuhyun’s rude attitude. Kyuhyun frowned, wondering how the guy could be so happy all the time. “What are you doing here, sitting all by yourself?”

“Praying.”

“For what?”

“For this night to be over.”

Siwon rolled his eyes, “It’s not that bad, Kyuhyun. You just need to start talking to people.”

“I don’t want to talk to anybody! I just want to go home.” Kyuhyun stood up, heading back to the snack table to get a refill for his empty wine glass. He wasn’t surprised when Siwon followed him, carefully watching his every move.

“How many drinks have you had tonight?”

“I don’t know I stopped counting after the second glass,” The younger man shrugged, glancing around the room before meeting Siwon’s stern gaze.

“You should really stop drinking so much, Kyuhyun-ah.”

“Relax, Hyung, I’m not even tipsy yet. It’s not like they pour that much anyway.” Kyuhyun mumbled under his breath, “Plus, it’s helping me calm down.”

“Talking to people isn’t that scary. You just need to get out more,” Siwon shook his head, watching as his dongsaeng took a long sip of wine. He was prepared to lecture Kyuhyun about why having a social life was important until he spotted his reason for looking for the young man. “Ah, Kyuhyun, I almost forgot, I want to introduce you to one of my acting sunbaes. He rarely ever attends these company parties because he’s so busy, but he finally came this time.”

“Do I have to?”

“I would like you to. I think you would both would get along great, in fact.” Siwon grinned, “He’s a bit quirky, snarky and dramatic but he’s a great hyung. He likes to play video games too.”

Kyuhyun frowned because despite his best efforts, he was kind of interested in meeting this person and Siwon knew it too. “Fine.”

Siwon smiled victoriously, throwing his arm around Kyuhyun’s shoulder and dragging him across the ballroom. Kyuhyun watched as Siwon waved at a couple leaning against the wall, the handsome man with sharp eyes, staring at both of them with blatant intrigue.

“Heechul-hyung, I would like you to meet my dongsaeng, Cho Kyuhyun,” Siwon introduced him, “Kyuhyun-ah, this is Kim Heechul. He’s a trainee like us, except he’s been at the company way longer than us.”

“Yah, you say it like it’s a good thing,” Heechul smacked Siwon’s arm.

Kyuhyun stared at the man, surprised by how sharp, almost feline his facial features were. The man was unusually pretty, too pretty at that. “You’re a trainee too?”

“Yes,” Heechul smirked at him. “I’m training to become an actor. Although Siwon insists I train to become a singer too.”

“You should. Your voice is lovely,” Siwon insisted. “Although Kyuhyun has a pretty good voice too.”

“I bet mine is better,” Heechul teased, amused at how offended Kyuhyun was.

Kyuhyun opened his mouth, a snarky remark prepared until he was stunned to silence by the beauty standing next to Heechul. She was stunning; long wavy brown hair framing her face, almond eyes fixated towards the crowd with a thoughtful expression and red lips unconsciously pursed.

Heechul followed his gaze, grinning wider when he realized what got Kyuhyun so distracted. Heechul wrapped his arm around the girl’s waist, pulling her closer to him. The girl’s eyes widened, miffed at being manhandled but was otherwise ignored by Heechul. She turned her gaze towards Kyuhyun and Siwon as if noticing them before for the first time.

“Oh, hello,” The girl replied softly, her voice higher than Kyuhyun expected.

"Ryeona,” Heechul pulled his date closer until she was pressed against him. “You already met Siwonnie, right? I would like to introduce you to his dongsaeng, Cho Kyuhyun.”

“Hello, Kyuhyun-sshi. Nice to meet you,” Ryeona greeted him with a small smile, a swift quirk of her lips before gazing back at the dancing crowd. Even though it was only for a second, Kyuhyun couldn’t stop blushing at how beautiful she was when she smiled.                    

“You’ll have to excuse her for her…unfriendly behavior, Kyuhyun. Ryeona doesn’t like going to these kinds of parties,” Heechul explained, gazing amusedly at his partner. 

“I don’t like going to parties either,” Kyuhyun spoke a little louder, hoping to peek Ryeona’s interest enough to join the conversation. He flinched slightly when the woman quickly glimpsed in his direction.

“Kyuhyun is antisocial, Hyung,” Siwon interjected, “He’d rather be playing video games than be here. What was the name of that game you like to play? Star Draft?”

"Starcraft,” Kyuhyun hissed out a habit. Siwon never remembered his favorite game and by instinct, he always made sure to correct the man. It wasn’t until he glared away from his hyung long enough to peek at Ryeona did he realize his grave mistake.

He held back a groan at having destroyed his own cool image in front of a very beautiful girl. His chances were dropping rapidly with each second and he briefly wondered if he ever had a chance with her.

“You play video games, too?” Heechul smirked at him, “I knew I liked you, Joohyun! I’m more of a League of Legends kind of guy, but I like playing StarCraft too.”

“It’s Kyuhyun,” Kyuhyun corrected, only to be ignored by Heechul.

They began to discuss other video games, throwing in comments while exchanging tips to pass certain levels and obtain unique items. Siwon commented here and there, trying to grasp the video game concepts while Heechul and Kyuhyun eagerly explained the basics of StarCraft.

In the midst of their conversation, Kyuhyun watched as Ryeona tugged on Heechul’s sleeve, leaning forward to whisper in his ear. He couldn’t help but feel a little envious, wishing that it could be him instead of Heechul. He wasn’t even paying attention to Siwon’s speech anymore, too captivated to look away.

Ryeona quietly separated from the group, disappearing into the crowded room. As soon as she disappeared, Kyuhyun turned away, surprised to find Heechul staring at him so critically. Unlike before there was no trace of humor, only an unreadable gaze as he stared at Kyuhyun.

“What’s wrong, Kyuhyun?” Heechul asked, words spoken calmly despite the strong intensity of his gaze.

Kyuhyun gulped nervously, wondering if it was really safe to ask. “Where did Ryeona-sshi go?”

“To make a phone call.”

“Oh.” Kyuhyun mumbled disappointedly into his drink, taking a sip to prevent from pouting. He decided to excuse himself to head to the restroom, handing his drink to Siwon before making his way through the crowd.

He let out a sigh of relief the second he stepped out of the overcrowded ballroom. He glanced around the empty corridor, silently thankful that there was no one around to keep up pretenses.

He headed towards the men’s restroom at the end of the corridor, pushing aside the polished door to reveal a classy, well-designed restroom. Although he only had to pee, Kyuhyun decided to head to the nearest stall rather than using the urinals. He really didn’t like it when other men used the urinals, trying to discreetly size him up in the middle of a piss. It was uncomfortable, awkward and Kyuhyun would rather just hide in a stall than deal with that.

When he finished, he flushed the toilet, trying to pull up his zipper as he did so. Just as he was about to unlock the door, the restroom door slammed open, followed by the sound of hasty footsteps and giggling.

“Oppa, this is the men’s bathroom!”

Kyuhyun gulped uneasily, fingers hovering above the stall lock. What’s a woman doing in the men’s restroom?

“Don’t worry, beautiful. No one is here,” A deep, gruff voice reassured her, his words mildly slurred. Kyuhyun listened to the sound of clothes shuffling, followed by the lock clicking into place – the sound echoing throughout the tiled bathroom and officially sealing Kyuhyun’s horrible fate.

He inwardly groaned, regretting his hesitance to make his presence known earlier. If he stepped out now, not only would it be terribly awkward and embarrassing but the man could possibly be an influential person in the music industry and as a trainee, Kyuhyun didn’t want to get on his bad side by ruining the moment. But then again, he really didn’t want to stay and listen to people having on the restroom counter.

He bit his cheek, wondering if he could escape when they aren’t looking.

“I don’t know, Oppa.”

Kyuhyun’s stomach began to churn as he found that voice oddly familiar. No, it can’t be.

Kyuhyun shifted on his feet, leaning closer to the stall wall to peek through the long crack provided by the door hinges. His wide widened in horror the moment he spotted Ryeona being pressed up against the wall by an old man leering at her, whispering things in her ear while his hands caressed her waist. Ryeona’s expression was unreadable, though there was a clear disgust in her stance.  

In utter revulsion, Kyuhyun stepped away from the door, trying to figure out what was happening. What was she doing here? Why wasn’t she with Heechul? Does she need help?

He glanced back at them, wondering if he should step out and even try to save her.

Can I even fight a drunk?

“So you want to be in a girl group, huh? Oppa can do that for you,” The old man promised, pressing sloppy kisses down Ryeona’s jaw to her neck. “But first, Oppa has to hear you sing.”

Kyuhyun felt bile rising up his throat at just what the old man was insinuating. He moved closer to the door with careful steps, trying to watch Ryeona’s reaction.

Ryeona pushed him away carefully, thin fingers sliding up his arms and resting on his shoulder. Brown eyes that once held warmth disappeared into a cold gaze as she slammed her knee into his groin, watching the drunken man collapse on the floor in pain. She pulled him up by the collar, dragging him towards the sinks. With strength that belied her thin body, she threw him against the counter, forcefully banging his head against it. Her expression held no remorse as she grabbed his arm, painfully twisting it behind his back.

“By the order of the NIS, Lee Ji Soon, you are officially under arrest for company embezzlement, ual assault and violating basic civil rights.” The beautiful melodic quality of Ryeona’s voice took on a steely edge quality, her voice becoming strangely deeper-

-like a man’s, Kyuhyun thought.

Ji Soon cackled aloud despite his face being pressed against the cold counter. “You think you can arrest me so easily?”

Ji Soon suddenly pushed back, shoving his way out of Ryeona’s firm grasp and grasping Ryeona’s hair. He tugged forcefully, expecting a sharp cry but he hadn’t expected it to be a wig, stunned by the real identity of his partner.

This time Kyuhyun couldn’t hold back the gasp that escaped past his lips.

Ryeona isn’t…She’s a…

“A man?” Ji Soon laughed again, tossing the wig on the floor. “You NIS agents really do go all out.”

“Well now that secret is out, I can finally take these fake s off,” Ryeona –no, that guy- reached into his dress, pulling out two bags of silicon and dropping them to the floor.

Kyuhyun felt like he was in some sort of horrible spy movie; the action scenes, the cliché dialogue and characters – he found it difficult to believe that this was actually reality and not a movie set. Only the horror of it all was that it was real and happening only a few inches away from him.

Ryeona moved first, in a flash of red and glitter as he kicked Ji Soon in the gut. He wedged his high heel into the man’s stomach before spinning around to deliver another kick in his chest. Ji Soon crashed against the wall, clutching his stomach in agony before tossing a trash can in Ryeona’s direction.

Ji Soon ran for the door, unlocking it and pushing open in a desperate attempt to flee.

“,” Ryeona cursed under his breath, chasing after the wanted criminal.

Kyuhyun waited till they left before unlocking the stall and moving to wash his hands. He jumped when he heard a loud thud against the wall and headed for the door. He opened the door a little bit, just enough to watch the fighting.

Ji Soon was somehow sprawled on the floor, unconscious. Ryeona was walking towards him, pulling out a pair of handcuffs from his chest before looming over the old man.

“Wook,” Someone shouted and Kyuhyun flinched again at the sound of running footsteps.

“I got him, Heechul. You were right though, he did try to run away again.” The agent admitted with a heavy sigh.

Heechul?

“He escaped us once, the idiot probably thought he could escape us again.” Heechul shrugged, as if fighting old executives weren’t anything new. “No one saw you, right?”

“There was no one in the restroom.”

“Good. We should go before anyone sees us,” Heechul looked around the corridor, taking in every detail. His eyes flickered towards the bathroom door and Kyuhyun flinched, feeling as those piercing eyes were staring directly at him. He quietly closed the door, feeling his heart beat increasing as he pressed his ear against the door.

“Okay, hyung.”

Kyuhyun didn’t really hear anything more other than a few grunts, the shuffling of clothes and heavy footsteps.

“By the way,” Heechul said rather teasingly, “You looked really cute in high heels.”

“Shut up, Heechul!”

Kyuhyun sat on the bathroom floor for ten minutes, a hand placed on his chest trying to steady his racing heart. He blinked repeatedly at the bent trashcan on the floor. This can’t be real. It can’t. Spies don’t exist.

He slowly stood up, ruffling his hair as he tried to form some coherent thought.

This entire thing was so absurd. He could only think of one logical explanation for it:

“I really need to stop drinking so much.”