If you asked 19 year old Jung Daehyun when his life began, he wouldn't say his birthdate. 

What he had before The Family wasn't a life. It was too pathetic to be one, it was merely...an existence. Orphaned at a young age, he was beat up mercilessly by the other kids, even his roommate, and didn't have the energy, size, or strength to fight back. While he was housed in that hellhole, he gave up. The potential fosterparents that visited the orphanage to adopt could see it in his eyes, he was trouble, a broken boy, and they kept away from him. For 17 long years, nobody adopted Daehyun.

He felt like he was okay with that though, he wasn't made to be brought into a family that didn't feel right for him. He'd only had his parents for a year before their accident, yet his heart was still with them.

Orphanage life was boring, ever so boring, and miserable until his eighteenth birthday. This was the age that the orphanage was required to let you go, free, alone, into the big wide world. To Daehyun, this was better than any of the half-broken toys he'd recieved as birthday presents the years before. This freedom was what he'd always wanted. 

He didn't own many things. A small wallet filled with a tiny amount of pocket money, a tattered teddy bear that'd been a gift from his mother before her passing, a measly assortment of clothes containing only two shirts and one pair of jeans, socks if he was lucky, though they never matched. His roommate, a hefty boy that went by the name of Younghwan, was a year younger than him, and glared at him as he packed up his personal posessions in haste.

"You're leaving, finally," he paused and smirked at the teddy bear, "good riddance."

Daehyun said nothing. He wasn't about to let Younghwan ruin what was the best day of his life so far. His mood was far too good for that. It was the best mood he'd been in for years. He turned and smiled at Younghwan, his eyes becoming creases. It was a genuine smile, but not one of affection, one of ecstasy, as the shorter boy realised he'd never have to spend another night in the same room as this bully again.

"Bye, Younghwan. Good luck with adoption, you'll need it," he said cheerily, quickly picking up his items that were in a rucksack and swerving out of the door before Younghwan could catch him and give him some bruises to take with him on his journey onto the streets.

As he reached the bottom of the stairs, jumping down at the end to avoid the last step that creaked horribly, his careworker, an overly kind but strict and stressed woman, greeted him tiredly.

"Daehyun. You're ready, I pressume?"

Daehyun said nothing, but nodded fervently. He was sure the excitement was written all over his face. Her lips curved into a slight smile.

"Good. You'll take care of yourself, won't you? There's nobody to look after you out there. Are you sure you know where you're staying?" she raised an eyebrow, and surveyed the short boy's face for any signs of a lie.

"Of course, ma'am, I've had it planned out for two years, now. He'll be expecting me," Daehyun lied smoothly. Truthfully, he had no idea where he was going. He was just going to see where his feet took him and hoped it would turn out alright. Anything had to be better than that orphanage, surely no other place could be so depressing. He was jolted out of his thoughts when his careworker grabbed him and placed a light kiss on his forehead.

"I'm sorry I couldn't of done more for you, Daehyun. You're such a great kid. Stay safe," she whispered. Daehyun was one of her favourites, though she didn't show it. He was a nice boy, with good intentions and the need to help others. 

Daehyun looked up, shocked at the sudden affection. "O-of course, ma'am," he stammered, "I'll visit some time." 

She wiped her slightly wet eyes and nodded, gesturing to the door. 

The boy didn't need to be told twice, gripping the door handle, opening the door, and stepping out into the fresh air in one swift motion. It wasn't sunny like he'd hoped it would be, but there was no sign of rain, and the sky was a lovely shade of blue. He felt empowered. He looked back at his careworker and shot her one last wave, before walking along the path that led to the main road, ready for his real life to begin.

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It was after 4 hours straight of endless walking that Daehyun decided it might have been a better idea to actually plan out where he was going to go. What was he to do now? He was hopelessly lost in the busy streets of Seoul, the orphanage was far away and he had no idea how to get back, and to make matters worse, it had begun to rain. 

He slipped into an empty alleyway and leaned against the wall, catching his breath. He hadn't gotten this much exercise in his entire life. Looking up at the sky, he could see that it was getting dark quickly. It was winter, and the days were short and bitterly cold. He hugged his shivering frame tightly and sighed. Yep, definitely should of planned this out better, he thought to himself angrily, his teeth chattering.

He spent 20 long lonely minutes in the alleyway, desperately trying to get some warmth through his body but failing. Only when he was about to leave did he hear voices approaching. He ducked behind a nearby bin and waited. God knows what kind of people roamed the streets at this time. He wasn't dumb, he knew about stranger danger and all that jazz. He knew not everybody he'd bump into in Seoul was going to be a brittle old lady or a helpful mother with 3 kids. 

He could feel his pulse raise, the blood pumping through his veins so loudly he could hardly hear. A well-built man, probably in his early twenties, Daehyun guessed, squinting under the small amount of light he had to work with, entered his line of sight. Tattoes of all different kinds and shapes decorated his arms and neck, and the terrified boy could barely make out the words "The Family" on the back of his leather jacket. 

He gasped loudly, clapping a hand over his mouth afterwards as he realised his mistake, when the tattooed man grabbed a smaller man by the scruff of his neck and smashed him into the alley wall. 

"We had a deal, Myungsoo," he grunted, punching the man in the stomach, "we had a deal, and yet, I don't have the money."

The one called Myungsoo wailed, winded by the solid punch. He sank to the ground, whimpering out words that Daehyun couldn't make out.

"I don't like being played, Myungsoo. You should know this better than anyone," he grabbed Myungsoo by the back of his shirt and slung him against the wall again, wrapping a large hand, tattooes glittered across his knuckles, around the struggling man's throat.

"So tell me," the decorated hand wrapped tighter around his neck, crushing his windpipe, "where the is my money?"

Daehyun was watching through his fingers now. Was he really going to witness a murder? His first day on the streets and he was already wrapped up in trouble. Such was his luck.

"Useless. ing useless. Have it by Saturday or I'll be back," he let go, his grip on the bruised neck vanishing. Myungsoo fell to the ground gasping for air, tears dripping down his face and his pride hurt. "Oh, and don't think you can hide. You know I'll smell you out like a dog and have you destroyed."

"Y-yes, Jepp. My apologies. I'll h-have it by Saturday. All of it. P-promise," he stuttered, hands still his pained neck. Jepp turned away from him and Myungsoo took this as his cue to leave, fleeing the alleyway with shaky legs, almost falling over twice. Jepp stood there, watching him for a while, a sickly smirk on his face as though he enjoyed watching the suffering of others who disobeyed him.

He probably does, honestly. Daehyun thought to himself, watching the man's movements with newfound hatred.

"Hey, kid," came that deep voice, booming and echoing all through the alleyway. Daehyun froze in place, body numb with fear and dread. Is he talking to me? He panicked. He must be, there's nobody else here.

Jepp turned slowly to face Daehyun's hiding spot, smirk still on his face, "yeah, you. D'ya enjoy the show?"

Daehyun gulped.

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A/N; Cliffhanger~ I really hope this doesn't disappoint, it's a bit of a prologue, I guess, to ease you into the plot. ;w; Please let me know what you think, I know I'm not a great writer sobs gklfjdlgdjg;; Thanks for reading! (Oh, and just to clarify, Yongguk will be known by his predebut name Jepp Blackman for a while, until Daehyun gets to know him better!~)