2

 

 

 

TORONTO, CANADA, 11:30AM

The whole crowd cheer for him as he took his fighting stance, some were cheering for him while some were cursing at him. This was unusual from the not much difference from the usual way the crowds use to cheer for him when he was younger.

He got into an active stance while not losing eye-contact with his opponent that were glaring at him. he turned his body to the side while his dominant side is far away from the opponent.

His fists were onto his cheek level where some slight bruises could be seen on his face. He would be easily able to throw some punches while at the same time to being able to defend himself.

His opponent spat out some blood and wipe some blood off the corner of his mouth.

His opponent moved faster towards him and threw a fist at him, but he easily dodged it. While doing so, he kicked the guy on his legs thus making him to lose his balance and falling on the ground. With his opponent down, he took the opportunity to kick him on his face knocking the man down.

With one down, the referee then started to do his countdown, but the man was obviously knocked out already.

“With him down, we have again our undefeated winner, Mark Lee.” The referee exclaimed as he put his hand up. Mark was just calm and just nodded a bit at the crowd.

 

He has been doing this for few years already.

 

He went off the ring and went inside a sort of room. He sat down exhausted on a chair and lean his head back. He closed his eyes and exhale. He opened then back and lean forward and drink some water. All around him, the furniture was broken. The whole place was messy and dusty but that was how his life have been for the past few years.

 

Mark Lee, the Canadian rapper of NCT and SuperM was now one of the most infamous underground fighters of Toronto.

He scoffed a bit; life really do work in the most weirdest ways.

 

He picked up his bag and sling it over one of his shoulder, he opened the door and started to make his way out of this place.

As he walked on the streets, he felt the warm breeze on his face which made him to relax a bit, but he was still were aware that some people were giving him some looks as he passed by.

That was quite expected, as his face had some slight bruises over his face and both of his hands were wrapped in bandages and the one on his right, it was stained with blood.

Not his own, don’t worry.

 

*******

 

Back in the days he could barely watched a horror movie without snuggling up next to Baekhyun and Kai to sleep and now he is facing the horrors of real life which was much more terrifying.

He arrived back at his small apartment in one of the worst ghettos in the whole of Toronto and threw his bag on a chair as he crashed down on his bed with a tired sigh.

He fell asleep for few hours before being awoken by the sound of his alarm ringing on his phone.

 

Yeah, let me introduce you to some, to some
New thangs (ay yo), new thangs (ay, woah), new thangs (hoo)
Bass kick swingin' like I'm Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee (ay yo), Bruce Lee (you want it?)

 

The irony of this whole situation is that he ended up to indeed becoming someone who is really good at fighting. Now he was much more older, but he didn’t forgot his roots, what made him who he is now.

Although it destroyed him in the end.

But it was worth it.

 

It was now 6pm, he woke up and went to his shower. He removed off his clothes as he entered the shower. He opened it and as the warm water felt over his tired and a bit bruised body, he exhaled.

His body had some scars some big and some small, but he was never bothered by it. All of them has now become his strength, the reason for him to become more stronger.

In addition, his body became much more stronger, not only by the looks but also by the strength. It was more well-built and well defined. His muscles more defined and much firmer. His biceps even got bigger much stronger.

He could even compete with Johnny or Lucas.

He laughed a bit at this thought.

He really missed them as well as everyone else a lot.

But what had happened in each of their own life had changed them a lot.

After that tragedy that had befallen them, something changed, and they all went their separate ways with only the good memories of the old.

Most of the time, he would catch himself walking down his memory lane.

Most of his life, he was now spending it in the underground. He was an infamous fighter now. But from time to time, he was still doing what he was doing back in the days, being a talented rapper.

He was on his way to an underground rapping contest where the winner will win a good amount of money. Well that was how he was earning the money to survive.

 

When his life has crashed down to this, it was just a few weeks after the death of Taeyong.

 

He had no one he could turn to for help, he had been set up. Someone has caused his whole group to had no choice but to disband.

What?

Of course, they didn’t disband by choice.

They were force to do so, they were threatened, and they had no other choice. But only he knew that Lee Taeyong went against it and he went to talk to their company.

On the day that they decided to meet, Taeyong had messaged Mark telling him that they were given the rights to perform one last song, but it all came crashing down after they heard the news of his death.

They all were given a threat and had no choice towards it, some didn’t even had the courage to tell what it was.

Those who had the audacity of not obeying had their life completely broken. But for Mark, it was like a slow time ticking bomb that exploded few weeks after Taeyong’s death.

 

*******

 

He wanted to end it all, but as he was laying on the cold hard ground in an alleyway after having being beaten down by a group of thugs with the rain pouring harshly over his tired and bloody bruised body.

He felt someone holding him, he could barely see anything as his vision was blurry.

As he was losing consciousness, he only heard few words.

“Live and survive!” It was like a command.

 

Few years later, that is what he is doing.

He is living and surviving because after that, the next thing he knew was that he woke up in the hospital with his medical bills already paid by someone who has chosen to stay anonymous.

Next to him was a bag that his savior has left for him, in it was some money and some clothes.

Until this day, he still had no idea who that person was but maybe one thing might be true. Guardian angel might indeed exist. And his, had just saved his life.

But that was not the only thing that made him to continue on fighting and surviving, it was also the will to take revenge against the one that destroyed his life as well of the ones of his friends.

In addition, to setting up the death of Taeyong as an accident. They didn’t want to destroy each other’s life more, so they went their separate ways.

 

Who is the one threatening them?

Oh come on it's really easy to guess who it is.....

SM Entertainment.

He was standing on stage, a simple black shirt with a green opened up hoodie and some black ripped jeans along with a cap. He was looking like how he was in the old days, but the old him had died years ago.

He closed his eyes as he started to hear the beat and losing himself into the rhythm.

 

The hands that steadied me when I was struggling.

The eyes that comforted me when I was crying.

The dream we dreamed together when we closed our eyes.

The dream we dreamed together when we closed our eyes.

 

If I had held on to that hand just a bit tighter, if I hadn’t let go,

would I be different from what I am now?

If I’d met those eyes just a bit longer, if I hadn’t avoided them,

would I still be flying now?

 

He was rapping with all his might and letting all his emotions out. With time, over the years, his voice has become a bit deep also that could have been caused by him smoking from time to time to release the stress. He had to win this competition, he had to live and survive for him.

 

My dreams came true earlier than I expected

and the despair found me earlier, too.

The happy moments might have stopped somewhere between the two.

I pray every night, and even if

I yell out, asking for an answer,

 

In the end every day is the same as yesterday.

The people who comfort me,

and the ones behind them who mock me,

nothing has changed at all.

I looked to the ground

more than the sky,

and at the footsteps I worked so hard to make being erased one by one.

 

There I fill with loneliness, collapsed,

And twenty-one hands reach out to me.

When I’m worn out, I hold tightly on to twenty-one hands.

When I’m worn out, I hold tightly on to twenty-one hands.

When I’m worn out, I hold tightly on to twenty-one hands.

 

He was thinking of his time as an idol. The happy moments with his team and how they celebrate each and every of their win together. How they were each other supports although they were divided into different units, they still made time to meet and support each other.

If one of them was in trouble, the whole team would come to help.

 

There’s nothing else to do, we just have to overcome it all.

I go over the dreams we had together from the very beginning,

and I raise my head.

 

The hate and betrayal filled my body,

And when I was worried whether

I could overcome the anxiety they held me tighter,

 

I can feel the warmth of the hands patting my head.

There are still so many hands here to hold on to me.

When I’m worn out, I hold tightly on to twenty one hands.

 

Having forgotten how to fly, I lean on those beside me,

Because even with broken wings, together we can fly higher.

We have to know to forgive and love.

With my eyes closed, I heard that person’s unfamiliar voice,

And I pray to that voice once again.

 

When I want to give up on everything and let it all go,

And! When I’m tired, I hold tightly on to twenty-one hands.

When I’m worn out, I hold tightly on to twenty-one hands.

 

After he was done, he raised his mic in the air like a reflex and was breathing heavily as he watched the crowd cheering for him. he kind of missed that. But now, he has to be not the nice one anymore.

This rap would hopefully gain him access to the last part which would be the diss competition. When he used to rap, he always kept it nice but this time he had no choice.

 

Live and Survive.

 

He had successfully passed the first round and he was now onto the second and final round.

After a lot of dissing he was onto the final one, he was onto against one Canadian guy who was actually not that bad but still, Mark was confident in his rapping. What he has learnt from the beginning was what he had taught himself.

 

*******

 

After the guy was done dissing him, it was now his turn. The amount of hate comment he got was already like a shield which is why he wasn’t affected much. The hate did kind of help.

He looked at the guy and took the mic up to his mouth. His opponent scoffed a bit, “Show us what you got er. Your song was quite pathetic. Had such a pathetic life, here it’s the real deal. Go home and hide under your mom’s skirt if you’re not ready to be harsh.”

 

Mark just smirk a bit, he felt like he was about to make Ten and Yangyang really proud of him, “Fake motherer this about to be tragic. I’m a legend, but your mouth flaps more than a sound level of a dying engine. I’m a true rap prodigy but the only thing your good at it biology class. your girl is all on top of me. is this your first time? cause you spitting gibberish.”

The whole crowd was shook.

“Gavin ill bring you to an abandoned cabin and smash your head in with a goddamn cabinet. Ain't no average savage words a deadly pathogen.” The guy’s eyes went huge as Mark started to spit straight fire at him. the whole crowd went insane at Mark as he went on not stopping at all.

“I know it might be hard to comprehend. Need a bodyguard cause man we're not friends. Please tell me when i start to offend. Bars from start to end. don't try defend. Slap you in front of your friends. Had the whole world on their knees, with one world I could destroy. Start with me and that's a death sentence. Wait for depression to set in. You think you had a pathetic life? Huh? Lemme show you what’s real deal? Got myself beat up to a pulp but stood up and tore their organ with my teeth. Now I watched those motherers dying on the floor as a savor up their blood as my trophy.”

After everything, he was announced that he was the winner. He went back home with money and a kind of trophy.

He took his stuff and started to make his way to his place when someone called him out. He looked behind to see the guy who lost against him. but he had some other people behind him.

Mark sighed.

“Look man don’t you think I have humiliated you enough for today?” Mark looked at the guy.

The guy just scoffed, “I think that money belonged to me. Drop it here and leave if you don’t want your sorry little to get destroyed.”

Mark smirk as he adjusted the bag on his back, “Well try me.”

In one swift movement he leaned forward and punch him straight in his stomach which made the guy to bend down in pain while holding his stomach. Mark then jump and did a straight kick at his face sending the guy down.

The other three people tried to attacked him, but Mark was extremely good at defending himself now. He was dodging each and every of their move really easily. But then he felt a presence behind him and saw the guy, but it was too late.

He hit Mark who fell on the floor. He spitted some blood and glared at the guy but when he tried to stand up, he couldn’t as the other guys were holding him.

 

*******

 

“Now I think I will just finished the job; I don’t think anyone will care if you just disappear like that right? Don’t even have a family to run to.” He laughed a bit along with the other guys, but Mark didn’t flinched as he just continued on glaring at the guy.

The guy took a pocketknife, but Mark was still restrained in his movement. “See you in hell.” The guy raised his hand but as he was about to strike Mark, he winced in pain and drop the knife down on the floor as he got hit by another small knife straight at his wrist. That was some good precision.

They all look behind them to see a guy in all black wearing a facemask and a cap just looking at them with his hands in his pockets.

The unknown guy just laughed a bit, “Don’t you think its quite rude to take what doesn’t belong to you?”

They didn’t had time to respond as the guy just launched forward and kicking the guy straight in his face really harshly which made him to fall on the ground. The guy started to coughed out blood.

“Let me make your face more prettier.” He said chuckling a bit as he started to kick the guy face with his foot repeatedly without filching.

“Ah yeah. Now you look like how you should look.”

 

*******

 

The one guy that wasn’t holding Mark went forward to hit this mysterious guy, but the person was faster as he caught the guy’s punch. He grabbed onto his arm, “Oh wait I think something is wrong with your arm.”

He twisted it harshly making the guy to scream in pain but the main just laughed a bit, “Oh sorry I think I did it wrong.”

He then twisted it harshly into another direction making the man to fall on the floor.

The two-guy holding Mark flinched a bit as the guy started to approach them. they glared at him and the guy just sigh heavily leaning a bit back, “Didn’t your mother taught you its bad to stare at people like that?”

He took out two small knife and lunched forward. Getting what was going on, Mark just dodged down to the floor.

The unknown guy then harshly stabbed both knife into their eyes as he watched them screaming in pain before falling on the ground.

Mark look at the guy for a bit as he was confused on what to do. The guy shook his head and turn his attention towards Mark, “Oh damn. Its been a while Mark. How are you doing?”

Mark frowned as he didn’t knew the person.

The guy just sighed and shook his head, “Woah the great Mark Lee can really do anything right? From being an underground rapper to an underground fighter.”

He shook his head laughing a bit, “What is there you cannot do.”

Mark just stare at the person, “Who are you? How do you know my name?”

“Oh?” He exclaimed.

“You don’t recognize your old friend? Okay let me help you with that.”

The person the remove his cap and ruffle his brown locks.

He removed his mask and there was a scar next to his lips, it was upwards it was like a cut through it was not that big but it was still quite a noticeable scar.

The person smiled brightly at him, “Recognize me now? My dear Mork?”

Mark eyes widen in shock as he nearly lost his balance. This person, that once fragile figure was still slim, but he seems to be much more stronger than before. That smile, the one that people usually described at being able to rival against the sun itself.

"HAECHAN!" Mark excalimed in pure shock and disbelief.

 

(Lee Donghyuck aka Haechan or Hyuck)