Author’s Note: Hey guys, sorry for the late update. I’m participating in two Christmas challenges (one is WonKyu Christmas Contest on AFF and the other one is Secret Santa in Hug) so let’s just say I’m rushing to get them done before the requested date and thus this fic is not in my first priority, at least until Christmas is over. Anyway, as a salvation from the previous chapter where I described graphic torture scenes which some people found terribly disturbing, this time I’m presenting fluffy scenes of Jungsu.

 

Special thanks to flying13bear on LiveJournal who has helped me construct this chapter! :D

 

I also received a question from a reader about the fact that they are immortal and whether it has anything to do with the plot at all. Well to be honest I’ve made them immortal just so that they’ll stop growing old at some point and thus Kangin and Jungsu (later Leeteuk) won’t have a HUGE difference in appearance. But that’s it, they don’t have any special superpowers or anything and obviously they can still be killed by mortal weapons. If you find all this confusing just ignore the fact that they are immortal and accept that they won’t grow old.

 

 

Chapter Nine

By: zielddhy/Sharl

 

 

There was a knock on the door, and Hangeng didn’t even bother to raise his head before answering, “Come in.” A second later, he had his arms full with a bouncing Jungsu. The kid had his monkey plush toy with him this time instead the lion one he usually brought everywhere.

 

“Hangeng-hyung, I’ve missed you!” Jungsu's small arms wounded themselves tightly around Hangeng’s waist, squeezing him to the point that the older man actually winced because the wound hadn't healed completely yet.

 

“Jungsu, don’t hug him too tight,” Jaejoong walked in, obviously having seen Hangeng’s uncomfortable wince. The author had some bags with him and looked rather tired. Heechul eyed the bags with sparkling hope, praying that Jaejoong brought some foods with him, preferably homemade because really, hospital food are really bland. Not that he would tell Yunho this, because he owed the man his life and he rather liked his life, thank you very much.

 

Jaejoong noticed Heechul’s hopeful expression and smiled. “Yes Chullie, I’ve brought you some food.” Heechul let out a happy squeal and sat up on his bed, impatiently waiting for Jaejoong to dump his bag. “Don’t tell Yunho,” the author added with a warning glare.

 

Heechul hummed in response, hands already busy opening a few food containers. Delicious smells immediately filled the room. Jaejoong had made them Japanese mushroom rice, rolls and rolls of sushi, a few salmon roe-filled onigiri, beef cooked with teriyaki sauce, and finally some ice cream mochi (bought, obviously, but Heechul wasn’t going to complain). Sending Jaejoong a grateful smile, he picked up chopsticks and began to eat.

 

Hangeng’s mouth watered at the sight of so much delicious food and he wanted to eat as well. Unfortunately Jungsu still had his little arms wrapped around him, making Hangeng unable to move. He shot Jaejoong a look, which the author understood at once.

 

“Jungsu, what did I say?”

 

The boy pouted at being reprimanded, but let go of Hangeng. Slightly. “Jungsu,” Jaejoong called again.

 

“But I haven’t seen hyung for three days now and I missed him,” Jungsu whined.

 

“I know sweetie, but I need to eat,” Hangeng cooed, “why don’t you eat with me, hmm? I think there's some chocolate mochi in there somewhere.”

 

At the mention of chocolate Jungsu immediately wriggled out of Hangeng’s lap and began rummaging through the dessert box. After seeing the boy’s confused frown at the many mochis inside, Jaejoong scooted closer to help him pick out the chocolate ones. Thankfully the store had conveniently put some chocolate powder on the outside to distinguish them from the rest of the mochi and Jaejoong picked one, handing it to Jungsu.

 

Hangeng, now free to get his own meal, picked up an onigiri. He nearly moaned at the taste, it had been so long since he'd eaten real food. For a few moments, none of them spoke, aside from Jaejoong telling Jungsu not to eat too much dessert or he would reach a sugar high soon.

 

“Did Yunho mention when you guys get to go home?”

 

“Tomorrow,” Heechul answered through a mouthful of sushi. “He gave very strict instructions about our schedules though, saying we have to be at the mansion for at least a week before going out and it'll be another two before we're allowed to travel out of the country.”

 

Jaejoong frowned. “Well that’s tough. Somebody will have to fill out your position in China then, Hangeng, aren’t you supposed to be there next week?”

 

Hangeng nodded, “I guess Kangin will have to send out Siwon, or maybe he’ll go there himself.” He let out a sigh and swallowed the last of his onigiri before taking a sushi roll. “At times like these I wish it was like before, when the whole Family was together.”

 

“It’d be great if Changmin stayed permanently and become a member again though, has Kangin spoken to him about it?” Heechul asked.

 

“Kangin asked Yunho to talk to Changmin about that. He’s hoping that Yunho can… bring him around, I guess,” Jaejoong stretched in his seat. “Apparently Changmin is still not over that incident, even though it has been so long.”

 

Hangeng exchanged a look with Heechul, who shook his head, signaling that they shouldn’t talk about it now that Jungsu was in the room. Children can be very perceptive and they might pick up some unnecessary things. Hangeng nodded his head and glanced at Jungsu who was hugging his monkey plushie once more, obviously content after eating the chocolates that Jaejoong had allowed him.

 

“Where's Leon?” Hangeng asked absentmindedly.

 

Jungsu smiled brightly. “I left him with Kangin-hyung to keep him company. Hyung looks so tired so I thought Leon will help him fall asleep.”

 

Heechul wanted to reply ‘Kangin-hyung just needs to get laid, after that he'd get some sleep’ but one look from Jaejoong shut him up. Obviously the author hadn’t forgotten the whole incident when Jungsu was exposed to the birds and the bees thing, courtesy of Heechul and Hangeng.

 

“By the way Jungsu, aren’t you going to hug me? Or have you already forgotten about this old man?” Heechul asked with a mock pout.

 

The boy let out a giggle and shook his head. Jungsu scooted closer and settled himself on Heechul’s lap, facing the older man. His small arms came up and wound themselves around Heechul’s neck. “I’m sorry, hyung. I didn’t mean to forget about you but Jaejoong-hyung said that I can’t hug you on the waist because that’s where you’re hurt. Forgive me?” he muttered shyly.

 

Heechul smiled. “Of course kiddo, but I’m afraid I have to give you a punishment.”

 

Jungsu’s pout returned.

 

“You have to kiss me, right here.” Heechul pointed at his cheek.

 

Jungsu giggled some more and placed a small kiss on the older man’s cheek as requested. Hangeng and Jaejoong smiled; Heechul could be a , a pain in the and the man was undoubtedly selfish, but he had a few soft spots and apparently Jungsu was one of them now.

 

 

*************************************************

 

 

Yunho smiled charmingly at the receptionist, trying not to roll his eyes when the perky girl blushed as expected. Really, what was it with girls, they always did that when he smiled. Couldn’t they be more like Jaejoong? The author actually scoffed and merely raised an eyebrow the first time Yunho smiled at him. But then again maybe that was what he'd found attractive in Jaejoong, and he didn't regret it.

 

The surgeon looked around at the modern lobby before settling in one of those weird-shaped-and-not-very-comfortable-sofas. He was at Changmin’s lab or more appropriately the lab where Changmin worked, seeing that Changmin wasn’t the one who owned it.

 

His mind wandered to what had happened at breakfast this morning. Kangin had asked him to talk to Changmin, hoping that Yunho could convince the genius to rejoin their ranks as a main member. Changmin had proven himself to be of invaluable help after the whole incident with the Jung Family. And now with Hangeng and Heechul still hospitalized, they would need all the manpower they had to resume their duties. Changmin was not only a genius wits technology, but he was also a capable negotiator. Having him on as a main member once more would definitely be of help. Unfortunately as soon as the assault on Jung Family –his Family, Yunho’s heart clenched– had been finished, Changmin had gone back downtown, not even giving Kangin a chance to thank him properly.

 

But Yunho was not only here to convey Kangin’s thanks, but also to convince the other to rejoin the Family. The surgeon realized this would not be an easy task, especially since Changmin did not need any help from the Family, unlike Yunho and Jaejoong who needed help protecting Jungsu.

 

“Hyung?” Changmin’s voice brought Yunho out of his musings. “What a pleasant surprise, but not completely unexpected, of course.”

 

Yunho hid a smile hearing that. Changmin was arrogant as always, not bothering to hide his superiority. But Yunho was used to that, he knew it was just one of Changmin’s many attractive qualities. Or one of Changmin’s few attractive qualities, according to some people. He then stood up, following the other, who led the way.

 

Changmin opened the door to his private office. As one of the main researchers in the facility, he was given the privilege of his own office, although it was rather small. Still, it was one of the few things he was proud of. His office might be not be very big but it was comfortable and it provided him with a sense of privacy among the otherwise crowded lab facilities. Gesturing to Yunho to take a seat, Changmin walked to his desk and plopped down onto his plush chair.

 

“So what brings you here?” Changmin was never one for pleasantries, really; he’d rather get down to business as soon as possible. Plus, he had a feeling that this discussion would not be easy; there was something that Yunho wanted and Changmin could not give it.

 

The surgeon looked at the others face, trying to read the expressions underneath that emotionless mask and in the man’s body language. But Changmin was too good. Although it had been years since he was last involved with the whole Family business he still remembered how to not let any trace of feeling show. Finally Yunho opted to skip the pleasantries as well. “Kangin wants you to rejoin us again.”

 

Changmin scoffed. Just as he had expected. He glared back at Yunho and firmly replied, “No.”

 

Yunho tried not to smile. Just as he had expected. “I figured you’d say that. May I ask why?”

 

“I’ve quit,” came the short response.

 

“Thus the word he used was ‘rejoin’, Min. Not ‘join’.”

 

Changmin threw him a withering glare. He picked up a pen and began to twirl it around, obviously looking for better reasons. When he finally found none, the researcher had no other choice but said in a low tone, “It holds far too many memories.” Painful memories, his heart whispered.

 

Yunho sneaked a glance at the younger. The man’s emotionless mask had slipped off involuntarily for a moment, allowing an expression of reminiscence go through that handsome face for a split second before the blankness covered it again. But it was enough for Yunho to know what was going through Changmin’s mind. “It wasn’t your fault you know, whatever happened to Yoochun shouldn’t come between you and Junsu.”

 

The researcher’s face hardened and he spat out the words, “You mean like you and Jae-hyung? You’re lucky he wasn't in that car that time.”

 

Yunho’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t even think of going there, dongsaeng.”

 

Changmin sighed. “I’m sorry, hyung. I apologize, that was low of me.” He turned around to re-stack a few papers and pick up some, wanting to look at them, but then again Yunho had known him long enough to understand when the researcher was only pretending.

 

“Changmin,” Yunho started again, “it wasn’t your fault, you know.”

 

“I know,” Changmin whispered, “but he doesn’t.” He let out a deep breath and looked at Yunho in the eyes again. “Anyway, I refuse to rejoin the Family. But do contact me anytime you guys want my help, I promise I’ll do my best, just like the other day.”

 

Yunho was the one who sighed this time. “Guess I don’t have a choice. I’ll tell Kangin your answer. Nice to see you again, Min. Keep in touch, okay?” He stood up and made his way towards the door. He was just about to turn the doorknob when Changmin’s voice interrupted him.

 

“How about you Hyung, are you okay?”

 

Yunho turned. “What do you mean?” Changmin didn’t answer, merely gave him a look. The surgeon sighed. He knew what Changmin meant and acting as if he didn’t understand wouldn’t help him at all. “I’m fine Min. It’s not as if I haven’t lost my whole Family before. Discovering them to be alive for one day didn’t change anything. This was merely a repeat of history, that’s all.”

 

 

*************************************************

 

 

Kangin didn’t bother to suppress a yawn and let it escaped him. He rubbed his eyes tiredly and tried once more to concentrate, rereading the same line for the fifth time. The fact that the whole room was silent except for Yesung who was seated in front of him also didn’t help.

 

Yesung eyed his boss, noting the dark circles around the eyes and how the Don looked so tired. It had been two days since the whole incident with Jung Family and Kangin hadn’t slept since. Of course he and his fellow members had tried to convince the Don to take a rest and just sleep, but Kangin replied that he couldn't sleep, no matter how long he lay in his bed. Siwon swore that if the condition continued for the next three days he would force Kangin to visit a therapist or at least get some sleeping pills.

 

“So,” Kangin said suddenly, “our income from the Busan area has diminished to a half of what it was two weeks ago. What happened and why haven’t I been informed sooner?”

 

“It's because the man who's in charge there is new, sir, so he needed time to adjust. But he reported that the income has gone back up again. It’s there in, um,” he added uncomfortably, “about four paragraphs up from the one you’re currently reading, boss.”

 

The Don looked back up to the mentioned paragraph and sure enough, there it was, even underlined carefully. Kangin cursed, how could he have missed that? He must be very tired, more tired than he'd thought.

 

Apparently Yesung was thinking along the same lines, but he decided not to ask about it just yet. “You look like you could do with a bit of rest, sir.”

 

“Don’t I know it,” Kangin drily replied.

 

Neither of them spoke for a few moments, with the Don going back to reading the report while Yesung wisely shut his mouth. He knew better than to disturb his boss while he was working, especially since the said boss was now in a very bad mood due to the lack of sleep. Kangin was the one who broke the silence. “What about movements from the Kang Family? Any news?”

 

Yesung shook his head, “No, sir, they have been very quiet lately. And so are the Choi, they didn’t claim any responsibility for the Jung Family incident. It’s on page 12, sir, two pages from there.”

 

Kangin fixed his subordinate with a glare at the apparent show of disrespect, but Yesung –like many other main members– had developed immunity towards their boss’ glare. He fought to keep his face a blank of expression, but apparently the Don sensed his amusement because the glare only intensified.

 

Finally Yesung sighed. “Sir, if you have a hard time sleeping just cuddle with Jungsu.”

 

At this Kangin's head shot up and he growled, “You know that line you’re not supposed to cross when you’re talking to your boss?”

 

Yesung gulped. Okay, so perhaps his boss was really mad right now. Still, he tried to fix the situation by sheepishly replying, “I’m only a few dangerous steps away from it, right?”

 

Kangin shook his head, “Look behind you.”

 

The subordinate nodded, as an unspoken apology and a sign that yes, he understood the implication and would keep quiet unless he was spoken to. And when that happened he would of course gladly answer with utmost respect, sir.

 

Suddenly the door flung open and in came Ryeowook. He usually didn’t just barge into his boss’ office like this, but he knew it was only Yesung there and the possibility that they were discussing something secretive was very slim. “Has anyone seen Jungsu?” He sounded breathless and a bit frustrated, but Yesung didn’t detect any panic in his lover’s tone of voice.

 

Kangin immediately sat up. “Why? Where is he?”

 

Noting the sudden change in his boss’ attitude, Ryeowook immediately corrected his mistake and gave a dismissing wave. “No no no, it’s okay, we’re just playing hide and seek. And well, he's been hiding for about two hours now. No worries though, we’ve limited the hiding area to the mansion only and nobody could possibly kidnap him or something, so it’s okay.”

 

The Don visibly relaxed. “Okay, but if you haven’t found him within the next three hours we have to get a search party going.”

 

Ryeowook nodded. “Sure thing, boss. But you sure he hasn’t come in here is he?” At this both Kangin and Yesung shook their heads and Ryeowook apologized, “Okay then. Sorry for barging in like that, I’ll keep looking for him, then.” He then left the room.

 

Yesung couldn’t hide his amused smile. He knew that the Don had a soft spot for the boy, but he never really showed it. And whether the Don realized it or not, he just had: the slightest possibility of Jungsu being missing sent him in an obviously panicked state. Kangin, the fearsome leader of the Kim Family, was smitten.

 

 

*************************************

 

 

“You want to what?” Kangin blinked at Jaejoong.

 

The author rolled his eyes; he had been talking to the Don for the last ten minutes straight, but aside from occasional hum and nod, there was no other sign that Kangin had been listening, until finally he had enough of the lack of responses and decided to bring up Jungsu. Then the Don reacted. Figures. “I said I want to enroll him in a school.”

 

“Hmm,” Kangin thought about it for a moment. “Does this have anything to do with-?”

 

“No,” Jaejoong firmly interrupted, “It has absolutely nothing to do with… that.” He huffed and pouted a bit, obviously upset at being reminded of the slight incident that occurred during Jungsu and Ryeowook’s hide and seek -game yesterday. “I just think it’s best if he has opportunities to make friends his age, preferably the kind who are not in the Family. It will also improve his social and communication skills.”

 

“Is he ready?” the Don asked, “I mean usually kids his age already learn alphabets and numbers and stuff. Can he do that already?”

 

Jaejoong bit his lip. “That is Yunho’s main concern too; we began to teach him reading a few weeks back and although he’s made some tremendous progress it might not be enough.”

 

Kangin nodded. “That’s what I thought. I agree with your idea Jaejoong, we need to send him to a normal school to socialize, but let’s wait a year or two. Let him stay at the mansion for a while, we’ll get a private tutor for him to teach the necessary things.”

 

The author thought about it for a moment. It was not ideal because if they wait for another two years Jungsu would be significantly older than his peers. But then again he was somewhat skinny no matter how much Jaejoong fed him, so it might not be a problem. Finally he agreed. “I’ll start looking for the tutor tomorrow then.”

 

“Have our people check the background first, and make sure the tutor will be supervised 24/7 even after he or she has signed the confidentiality agreement,” Kangin reminded.

 

Jaejoong nodded, “I will make sure of that. Well then, I’d better get going, I’m going to meet my editor downtown soon. I’ll try to meet with a few of our informants to find out something about our beloved Choi Family,” he added sarcastically.

 

The Don chuckled. “Be careful, then. Oh by the way, speaking of Jungsu, where is he?”

 

“He’s in the pool. Don’t worry though, Kyuhyun is with him.”

 

Sure enough, Kangin found Jungsu in the pool, playing with some water balloons Yunho had so graciously bought him. Kyuhyun was comfortably seated at one of the poolside benches, reading a book with sunglasses on. He made his way towards the technical analyst and gave him a shove as a greeting. Kyuhyun looked up from the book and brightened. “Finally someone else arrived! I need to get a new book, this one is almost finished and someone else needs to babysit him,” he gestured towards the now-splashing-around-Jungsu.

 

“And what makes you think I have time to babysit him?” Kangin asked drily.

 

Kyuhyun raised an eyebrow. “You’re here aren’t you? There can only be two reasons why: either you want to see me, which I don’t think is the case here, or you want to cuddle with Jungsu.”

 

The Don scowled as the image of him cuddling with Jungsu assaulted his brain once again. Seriously, what was wrong with s these days? He was the leader of the Kim Family, damn it, he didn't cuddle. No matter how cuddly Jungsu was. Kyuhyun didn’t seem to understand the meaning of the scowl though, or maybe he just chose to ignore it (Kangin seriously needed to reinforce the respect from the members, preferably anytime soon). “So I’m thinking you obviously have enough time to babysit him for a few minutes.”

 

“You spend too much time with Changmin.”

 

Kyuhyun let out a laugh, “Maybe. Well, I trust Jungsu in your capable hands then, boss.” With that he stood up and left, leaving Kangin to watch over the boy like a babysitter. The Don grimaced at the thought. From a mafia boss to a babysitter. He shuddered; not a very encouraging thought. Suddenly there was a loud splash from the water and when he looked over to see what happened, Kangin felt his blood run cold.

 

Jungsu was drowning.

 

In the next second Kangin had jumped into the pool, not caring that his thousand-dollar designer suit would be ruined by the chlorinated water. He reached the struggling boy in record time and swam to the edge of the pool. Once on firm ground, Jungsu coughed, trying to get rid of the water in his lungs. Kangin ran over to the mansion, Jungsu still in his arms.

 

, where the hell were Yunho and Ryeowook when you needed them? Yunho might be at the hospital now but the surgeon’s schedule changed almost weekly, so he could still be in the mansion right now. But unlike Yunho, Ryeowook almost never left the mansion so hopefully he could locate one of them. Thankfully he spotted one of his Family members and barked his orders. “Find me Yunho or Ryeowook, now!” The member who was given the order was young, perhaps a new recruit and obviously very afraid of the Don. The fact that the boss seemed upset also didn’t help. Kangin felt bad for scaring the young man but he had other urgent things to do. For now he needed to get rid of Jungsu's wet swimming trunks and dry him up.

 

Running to Jungsu’s room, he kicked the bathroom door open and deposited the boy in the bathtub. Opening the faucet for some hot water, he glanced at Jungsu who was only half-conscious now, but still shivering. Kangin removed the swimming trunks, noticing that Jungsu was still thin despite the endless amount of food the boy consumed every day. But that had to wait, for now he needed to make sure Jungsu was comfortably warm. He picked up the shower head and let the water warm up Jungsu’s small body. “Boss?” suddenly Ryeowook’s voice came from behind him.

 

Kangin looked at him with obvious relief. “Oh good you’re here. He was drowning in the pool  and I’ve removed the wet clothes but he’s still shivering.”

 

Ryeowook kneeled next to the bathtub at once. He took the shower head from Kangin and  started rubbing Jungsu's skin with the water, as if he was bathing him. Hopefully this friction would provide some heat for the boy. “Can you get him some clothes? I think Jaejoong has some of them in the closet over there. And some towels!” he called out to add as Kangin rushed to act. After handing Ryeowook the requested things, Kangin ran to his room to change his own clothes. It wouldn’t do anybody any good if he became sick, after all.

 

Ten minutes later Jungsu was lying on his bed, wrapped in pants and a heavy sweater, comfortably warm and dry. He was still shivering a bit so Ryeowook put some blankets on him as well. “Let him get some rest for now. I’ll go and make him some porridge; he might be hungry when he wakes up.”

 

Kangin merely nodded to show that he was listening, eyes never leaving Jungsu. The boy looked so fragile underneath the heavy blankets and the Don had this sudden urge to give him some comfort himself. And he did.

 

Without giving it a second thought, he slipped under the blankets. Jungsu, who sensed a source of heat nearby scooted closer until he finally snuggled against the older man. His little hands were clutching at the older man’s shirt. Kangin wondered how this little boy had become such a big part of his life. His mind was racing, the image of Jungsu drowning still clear, and Kangin felt his heart clench. Unconsciously he hugged Jungsu tighter.

 

A few hours later Jaejoong rushed home to find the Don deeply asleep, Jungsu tucked safely in his arms.

 

 

-End Chapter 9-