Chapter 12

 

It was a quiet and sunny morning. Birds were chirping and from a distance, you could hear the indistinct yet soothing sound of water flowing down the small canal which ran over the whole perimeter of the house's garden. Some had probably wondered how such artificial landscape could be kept so naturally. Even the birds were guests of this place; they sang happily as they knew no one would try to harm them, as they knew they were safe there.

But no one was ever safe anywhere, Minho thought as he pointed the gun towards the bull's eye and pulled the trigger. And just as he did so, there was no singing anymore. The only noise was the loud bang followed by the rushed beat of wings of birds.

Minho looked up at them as they flew away faster and faster, leaving the garden unoccupied with no intention of returning. If only I had wings too.

He kept shooting for the target. He had gotten better at it now; he could shoot with one hand only and his position was flawless. Of course it is, Jinki taught you. And as the thought fleeted through Minho’s mind, he pulled the trigger with fury. Again, he was thinking of Jinki. He had promised himself that he would stop. He had said to himself that he would never give that guy the pleasure to admit that he had been successful at fooling a fool.

It had probably been his plan all along. Minho wasn't a dreamer, he knew that their was just that: ual. He also knew that sooner or later, Jinki would have taken him, somehow. But he didn't think he would be so spiteful to have humiliated Minho that way. He had felt so used. Minho felt no less than an air doll: the common ones that sells cheap in shops with their mouths and arseholes open. What made Minho even more frustrated was that he had only realized it later. He and Jinki had had one of the most mind-blowing in all of Minho's life. Their chemistry had been so perfect that Minho had actually wanted to go on all night. If only Jinki hadn't threw him away like filthy garbage.

Minho remembered perfectly what he had felt at that time: shame. His pride had, once again, been shattered into pieces and he had had to collect every single piece before finding the courage to move out of that room, only to silently cry at the closed door for being the idiot he was.

And now, with no single instant of sleep he was out in the garden, taking out his frustration with a gun. Minho focused on the target once again, his gun ready to shoot. Even though his eyes were looking at the bull's eye, that was not what Minho was actually seeing. His mind was full with images of last night: of their entwined bodies, of Jinki pulsing into him… Minho closed his eyes and shook his head. He had to stop the thoughts; he pulled the trigger and screamed out loud. The bang that followed was the only thing that made the images stop wandering around his mind.

Minho panted softly, his heart beating fast. He despised Lee Jinki and he hated every single moment that happened last night. He regretted them.

He was already ready to fire another bullet when a voice interrupted him, "You’re getting better." It was the unmistakable voice of Lee Do Hyun, also known as Mr. Lee, the head of the household and Minho's boss. And Jinki's father.

Minho immediately bowed respectfully to his boss, lowering down his gun. "Sir, I didn't know you were here." Minho blushed at the thought of his boss witnessing his crisis over his son. He tried to remember if he had said (or shouted) Jinki's name in between his cries, and he realized he might have once or twice. Damn you, Lee Jinki.

Mr. Lee arched his right eyebrow. Minho noted, with a sigh, that his eyebrows resembled Jinki's so much. "Kyuhyun told me I could find you here,” Mr. Lee said with a curious tone. Maybe he was hoping Minho would tell him why he looked so frustrated.

Not a damn chance am I gonna tell my boss that his son had ed me and threw me out with the same intensity he had screwed me with. Minho's mind was totally ed up. "Is there something you need me to do, sir?" There must have been a very fair reason if his boss had come all the way down to talk to him.

Mr. Lee sighed, looking worried. "There is," he replied, but he immediately changed his expression, as if he sensed Minho's tensing body. "How about we go for a walk? This garden seems so useless when no one cares to admire its beauty…"

Minho nodded slowly and they started walking down the green grass that covered the whole garden. "What I want you to know…" Mr. Lee started, "…is that by no means have I ever held you responsible for blowing up the deal with Mr. Park." Minho gulped. The whole situation was awkward and tense and Minho realized his heart was pounding fast. "Mr. Park has, however, called me last night requesting for the deal to be discussed further. To be quite honest, I was taken aback. But then, Mr. Park said that he couldn't trust my son. He also said I shouldn't be trusting him." Minho's eyes widened. Why would Mr. Park say something like that? Mr. Lee continued, "Mr. Park must have taken a fancy on you. He has requested to make an arrangement for a new deal and he wants you, and only you, to carry it on."

Minho honestly didn’t know what to say. He had ed things up and now that man was requesting to settle the deal with him. It was rather…

"Odd, right?" Mr. Lee voiced out. Yes, everything about this situation seemed weird and totally out of the ordinary. "The thing is, Minho…I need to settle this deal. I know it's extremely risky to send you to whatever place they decide on alone, but I also know that you need to step up. You can't hide forever behind Jonghyun or Jinki's back. Jinki was totally against you being my right man and I'm sure we both want to make him change his mind."

Mr. Lee stopped in front of him and held both Minho's shoulder. To Minho, he looked like a father who was reassuring his son. He had missed the feeling. Or rather, he had never experienced it. Either way, it was quite relaxing and Minho felt like he could do anything in that moment: even going through a dangerous mission that could cost him his life.

Yes, he did want to prove to Jinki that he wasn't the man he had thrown out yesterday, that he could be much more than that. And maybe, this was the start of his revenge. Minho looked up at Mr. Lee, his eyes determined. "I'm ready to settle this deal, sir." There was no uncertainty, no hesitation in his voice. If he had to die, at least he would do it proving to the world he could be much more than just Lee Jinki's .

Mr. Lee smiled proudly at him and nodded firmly. "I know you won't disappoint me, boy." With a final nod, he asked Minho to meet him in his office later to finalize the details with Mr. Park and he went back towards the house, leaving Minho standing in the middle of the garden.

"I won't disappoint you anymore," Jinki.

-----

A finger was slowly tapping on the hard cold white surface of the bathtub; Kibum's body was immersed in the steamy water full of scented bubbles. The back of his head was reclined on the hard surface too, his eyes closed as he enjoyed the only time of the day he could be totally relaxed in his solitude.

He sighed, his eyes still shut. He still remembered the hot bath he had had with the maids helping him. It had been the first of the several baths he had had in his room. The first day he had moved there, there was a paper with some questions for him, as if he was an important guest. Kibum had to write what kind of bath products he used, lotions and all kinds of things he had needed and the next day, he had found everything in his bathroom, including those foreign products he usually bought online.

Kibum had been utterly surprised then, but there was not a single person who had explained to him why they were treating him like that despite the numerous times he had asked so he had finally given up. He had to live there after all. They didn’t let him go outside even for a second and the only thing Kibum could enjoy there was locking himself in his room and keeping himself (and his skin) healthy with long baths.

No matter how much he felt good in that warmth, he still couldn’t feel peaceful with himself. His mind kept repeating the conversation Mr. Kim had made him listen to (yes, Kibum was totally convinced his presence in that room in that moment was calculated); Minho…he was alive, but not for long. The only person that could have explained everything to him was going to get killed and Kibum could do absolutely nothing about it.

Kibum bit hard on his lower lip to not let himself cry. He was working under the men who had killed Jonghyun and they were going after Minho now. And Kibum was enjoying steamy baths in the house owned by those ing mobsters.

He slowly opened his eyes, and looked at the white bubbles spread in the bathtub, he then looked at his own legs. Just a few days ago Mr. Kim had finally made clear his intentions about Kibum being treated so expensively. He should have thought of it sooner but then, for many weeks he had believed that they were going to kill him sooner or later. But as days passed, Mr. Kim had made his actions towards Kibum more and more daring. Just a few days ago, he had tried to kiss Kibum and get him undressed.

Kibum had escaped him before he could lay his dirty hands on him, but how long can Kibum escape before he gets attacked in the middle of the night? Yes, he had the habit to close the door every single time he was inside but his door required a code that anyone, besides him, possessed, and the only thing Kibum could defend himself with was a knife taken from the kitchen the second day he had been sent there to work.

Many times had Kibum thought about killing himself by drowning in the water. Actually, every single night he goes completely underwater hoping to finally find the courage to let himself go but human nature had never been this easy. Kibum had nothing to lose but he still clung to the hope that everything was a dream.

Maybe, if he killed himself, he would finally wake up to find himself in his bed or on his favorite couch at the gamble club, his head resting on Jonghyun's firm chest.

With that thought Kibum finally stood up, reaching for his bathrobe, his feet wetting the rug right beside the bathtub. Kibum approached the sink and looked at himself on the clouded up mirror. All he could see was a blonde boy, most likely a university student, with empty eyes and ugly face. He had never considered himself the most beautiful man, but his self-esteem had been very low lately. You don't need a pretty face to be a , Kibum he kept repeating that to himself.

His hair was annoyingly dripping down his face as he reached for the towel to make it stop. He tried to take a deep breath but he realized that the air was too thick and he was almost suffocating. He rushed out of the bathroom, his eyes and hair covered with the large towel.

It came with a horrendous surprise to find Kim Youngwoon sprawled out on his bed, an obvious smirk safely placed on his face. "Why hello there, Kibummie," he said as Kibum gasped loudly. He froze for a moment before finally reacting, trying to go back into the bathroom. Too bad that he was wearing a bathrobe. Youngwoon had easily reached for him, his hand gripping firmly on Kibum's wrist.

Kibum struggled yelling out a series of "Let me go, you bastard"'s, but the man was obviously stronger than him; he was dragged and thrown on the bed with such a strength that Kibum was almost hurt by the soft surface.

Kibum had forgotten what real fear was before he felt Youngwoon sprawling himself in between his legs, hovering over Kibum with his nauseating breath and his disgusting smirk. "Now, you going to stop struggling? Because I have other ways to make you ing still and you don't want to try them, I assure you." His words were like needles which were ing up Kibum's mind with torturous pictures.

Although he was trembling and panting, he let himself calm down and stop fighting a lost battle. He swallowed and looked at Youngwoon. His heart was threatening to stop any time soon. "W-What do you want!" he managed to yell, still panting. He felt like all his words wouldn't come out except those. He had wanted to tell that vicious man to not touch him, or to leave him alone, but he was too scared to say them loud.

Youngwoon pressed more against Kibum's legs, so much that they were spread apart in a way that one would consider ual-oriented. Kibum didn't feel less than an abused in that moment. The man looked satisfied by Kibum's compliance but he never let him go. "As much as I would really want to say what I want," he started, his expression was a mix of disappointment, frustration and amusement, "my visit here is about what my brother, Jongwoon wants."

Kibum was utterly confused. What was this man playing at? Coming into his room uninvited, restraining him to bed with his own body and talking about his ing brother? If that had been a different situation Kibum would have laughed. Instead, he kept silent, waiting to actually understand what Youngwoon was getting at.

He didn't fail to notice fingers the inside of his thigh. His bathrobe was totally useless; it was almost open so if Youngwoon had wanted to him right then it would have taken him less than ten seconds to do it. Kibum got goosebumps every time those rough fingers his sensitive skin. "And what Jongwoon wants, my dear Kibum, is you." Youngwoon whispered, leaning closer to Kibum. "He wants you to be his personal , which I believe is a total waste."

His hands were now near Kibum's crotch area. Kibum felt the urge to start struggling again, and scream if he could. "I am no one's ," he managed to reply, as coldly as he could. That made Youngwoon laugh hard, and finally his hand was removed just so that he could make himself more comfortable over Kibum.

"That's what I think, Kibum. You are the of no one, you are just the , you belong to no one," Youngwoon whispered and then Kibum's earlobe. Tears started flowing down Kibum's face. He didn't dare make a sound though, he was still too prideful for that.

When it felt like an eternity, Youngwoon finally stood up, adjusted his suit, and reached for the door. "You need a goodnight sleep, Kibum. Tomorrow is going to be a long day, and you don't want to look indecent in front of your old friend Minho, right?" Youngwoon looked totally amused by his own revelation. And from the look in his eyes, Kibum's expression must have looked priceless to him as well. His gaze went Kibum's body once again, before he smirked and left the room as quietly as he had entered.

------

The strained moans coming from Jonghyun were always followed by the clinging sound of metals bumping against each other. It took all Jonghyun's strength move his arms up and down with the whole weights hovering over his chest. Sweat covered his face entirely and he grimaced as he tried to break his personal record of weightlifting.

Ever since he had discovered the gym in that huge house, Jonghyun's routine had abruptly changed: instead of wandering from his room to Jinki's office (which had been made his office too temporarily) and then back to his room, he was now spending the rest of his time, when he was not sleeping or eating or hanging around in his office, exercising at the gym.

It was kind of huge. Jinki had told him that it was a gift from Mr. Lee for his eighteenth birthday but Jinki never put foot inside. At least the maids there took care of it thinking someone was actually using it. Jonghyun was absolutely in love with it. When he had the gamble club to take care of, he could only go to the public gym once or twice a week. Now, after just a couple of weeks, he could feel his muscles pumped up. If he could have done nothing for his height, he would have gained on his weight.

With a very slow movement he tried to lift the weights for the 87th time. He was getting better and better at it but he could feel himself drowning in a bath of sweat. He had never had the chance to tell Minho about the amazing place yet.

He sighed. Thinking about his best friend had made him lose concentration so he just dropped the weights, panting hard. He had started going to the gym because of Minho as well; his best friend had completely disappeared from his sight. Jonghyun would have thought he had escaped if he didn't hear him late at night, retiring to their room just to sleep. When Jonghyun woke up the next morning, he was already gone.

Maybe he had found another place to hang around (since they couldn't go out anyway, not yet) but the last time Jonghyun saw him was at the shooting range, and from what he could see, Minho was getting better at shooting. He would have congratulated him, if Minho stopped avoiding him.

After regaining some breath he lifted himself up, grabbed his towel and put it around his shoulders as he left the gym. He was now too depressed to keep exercising. He wanted to find Minho and pull everything out from him. No matter how upset he was, they were best friends, they talked to each other about everything. That was the first rule when they decided to run the club together. Minho has told you so many lies already. Yes, and they had just led him to misery.

First, he was going to take a shower in his room. Second, go and find Minho, wherever he is, even if he was sleeping with the dogs outside. But luck was on his side for once: Minho was inside their room, rummaging through the linen closet, a bag full of clothes on his bed. It took Jonghyun exactly two seconds to get to the worst conclusion. "What the hell are you doing?" he asked, looking at Minho with wide and confused eyes.

Mihno didn't even look back at him. He acted as if he hadn’t heard Jonghyun at all. Jonghyun wasn't buying it, so he took Minho's arm so that Minho could not ignore him. "What do you think?" Minho finally replied, his tone cold and detached.

Was he leaving? But he can't. He couldn't. He wouldn't have left without Jonghyun. Minho was the one who had begged him to join the Thorn Bird, and now he was the one leaving? "Minho." He had to know what had happened to him. He wouldn't have let Minho go through that door if the taller man didn't explain to him what the hell was going on with him. "We don't see each other for days, you just come here to sleep at night, I have no idea where you are most of the days! What is wrong with you? Where are you going?!"

The last question was just a desperate plead to make Minho stop, but his best friend's eyes turned into pure fury. "What is wrong with me? With me?! What the hell is wrong with YOU, Jonghyun. You seem so holed up in your precious office with Jinki the boss that you even forgot that I was still here!" Minho was yelling now, gesturing with his hands towards himself. "Why do you care where I am going. You are Jinkiwinkie's shadow now so I am going to be my own and my brother's strength, just like I've always been doing for my whole life." Minho zipped his bag and placed it over his shoulder.

Jonghyun felt like his whole world had just turned upside down. His best friend thought he didn't give a and he was leaving. Jonghyun was so angry he would have punched him if Minho wasn’t so important to him. "Jinki was right. You are just a selfish . Now that you got your brother back you don't give a about me and Kibum." He wasn't even thinking about what he was saying, but Minho had hurt him. He was still hurting him; leaving Jonghyun meant that Minho's intention was never to help him get Kibum back.

Minho huffed and laughed a disgusted laugh. "I bet Jinki has a very sweet way with his words. I’ve had a taste of them." There was some kind of sadness in Minho's words, Jonghyun noticed. However, he was too out of his mind to actually ask him about it. Instead, Jonghyun just turned and went for the bathroom. “Have a good life," he said, before slamming the door shut. A few moments later, he heard the door of their room closing and he knew Minho was gone. Jonghyun cursed at himself and punched the door several times, ignoring the throbbing pain. "!"

He heard his cellphone ringing, he had left it on his bed before going to the gym. Jinki had given it to him and only he knew the number. Minho has probably seen it too he thought before reaching his bed and answering, "Hello, hyung?"

He heard nothing for a moment and he was about to hang up when Jinki spoke, "Something is up," he said, making Jonghyun frown. "Come to my office. I must find out why your stupid friend and my ing driver are meeting up in my ing garden right ing now." Jinki snarled.

Jonghyun didn't even have the time to reply, because the phone went dead.

 ❞

okay I'm really sorry for not upating for more than two months... but it was kind of good the way I let you wait xD Rereading all over again the minew *just joking* I'm really sorry everyoneˆˆ I hope you will enjoy this chapter :) 

oh btw, next chapter might be the last one of the first part of this series (yes, you haven't got rid of me xD There is a second part too u.u) followed by an epilogue. Second part will be posted here too :)