He disliked going to school immensely. He would even go as far as hating it.

But it was mandatory and he had nothing else better to do.

So he went.

Every day was the same routine over and over.

Nothing new ever changed. Nothing exciting ever happened. Nothing extraordinary worth his attention.

But he was beginning his last year at this mundane monotonous high school. And all he had to go through was one more year.

Outside of school was much more interesting. When he met up with his other two close friends, life was much more interesting. He felt invigorated, enlightened, a new him.

He would even skip school altogether, but someone he would call his first good friend, Hakyeon, convinced him to stay at school.

“You’ll be more accessible,” he had told him.

Taehyun, his second good friend, didn’t voice his opinion but it was inferred that he agreed or instead simply listened what Hakyeon had said.

He imagined that having them both attending his school would make it that much more appealing, but alas; they both went to the different high school in the city.

So he begrudgingly attended the place which could rival a prison.

A prison. That’s what he felt the place was like when he set foot on the grounds.

Where they would whisk him into enclosed compartments and force-feed him useless information. Information that he already knew.

And his cell mates were no better. People who would willingly and dutifully listen to what the warden in front would say.

But that’s not why he didn’t exactly like them. He understood that they had to learn. That they weren’t as intelligent as him. He couldn’t blame them for their lack of intellect on common subjects.

No, what he disliked about them was their personalities. Their thinking that each one was better than the person next to them, whether he was friend or foe.

And what he disliked more than that was when they approached him. Especially the female ones.

He wasn’t deaf; he was far from that. He was trained to listen to meaningless conversations for any useful information. Though most of the times it was useless rather than useful.

But because of that, he knew their gossip, which more than not included him.

He assumed that ninety percent of his classmates were afraid of him, already hearing the rumors of him. Five percent didn’t care about him, feeling that he was merely another classmate. And the last five percent was those who were curious about him. And he included all those who were curious about him and what he did in a fearful way, and those who were curious and thought that he was simply shy and actually warm-hearted in contrast of his cold exterior, in the same classification.

And typically those who thought the later of the last five percent were female.

Which is why he had some approach him in the beginning of the year with their delusional fantasies hoping that they would be the one who changed him. He had even gotten some bold ones who confessed to him right on the spot.

But he crushed their hopes and expectations with his sharp blunt words, telling one that she looked like a clown with all the hideous make-up on her face. He had told another that her fakeness was showing, and he that he knew her dirty little secret of backstabbing her best friend and stealing her boyfriend. And she wanted a new one? The audacity.

After that no one would approach him so casually. After all, who would want him blatantly spilling their secrets that he somehow knew?

But he was more interested in the first half of the five percent who were curious about him. A sort of morbid curiosity but that’s what they fed on, him and his two other friends.

So when he had slinked away during lunch break, trying to find a desolate place where he wouldn’t be bothered, he knew which category this male who followed him oh-so-secretly fitted in.

He knew when he shouted his name so hesitantly, so cautiously, so desperately.

Because he was trained to know and he was trained to show him the way.

He didn’t like everything Hakyeon did. His ideals, his methods, his ideas of satisfactory entertainment.

But he never refuted his friend even if he disagreed with his actions because he couldn’t. Not after meeting someone who could make him feel like he wasn't alone anymore.

He had first met Hakyeon when he was in middle school where he went to the park for no apparent reason but that he could. And there was a lone boy sitting on the swings dragging his feet in the sand.

He wasn’t going to approach him, but he looked so bored and lonely, so much like himself, that he did.

And they instantly found each other similar, fascinating, likeable.

He thought Hakyeon was the most interesting person he had ever met. He was smart, not book smart, but cunning smart. Just talking to Hakyeon made him feel like he opened a new world for him. He felt like he had finally met someone with the same intellect.

But he also learned a deeper side of him. Hakyeon came from a dysfunctional family where he was met with an empty dark house every night. School had treated him no better. Even when Hakyeon wanted to know topics unrelated to school, he was scolded for talking out of turn and disrupting class. His classmates for being a know-it-all and took every opportunity to make him suffer.

Hakyeon hated it. Hated his family, hated his peers. But he brightened up and told him that he was glad he met someone who could understand his mind.

They became good friends after that, meeting each other when they could. They unfortunately did not go to the same school, but they live somewhat close to each other so they managed.

It wasn’t after a few months that Hakyeon introduced Taehyun to him after having Taehyun defend Hakyeon when he was being picked on.

Taehyun didn’t talk much opting out for actions rather than words, but he felt like the new friend had a good heart. He wasn’t as brilliant as Hakyeon, but he had a sense of street smartness on him. He knew his way around places. So he welcomed Taehyun into their little circle of friends, and they were all thick as thieves.

School for him back then was boring, but it became better when it ended and he could meet his friends.

No one in school approached him because he purposely gave out a solitary vibe asking not to be involved with anyone. He had tried before in previous years, but he had found out that this was the best way to live his school life.

And now that he had two friends who understood him better than his own family, though he loved his family, it found it more unnecessary to associate with his schoolmates unless needed.

And his classmates left him alone because they were simply to afraid of the isolated boy who would only give cold glares to anyone who dared meet his eyes.

Given that he attended a different middle school than the rest of the two, it was understandable that he had no idea of what went on in their school.

So one rather sweltering day, he went to find his two friends, thinking that they all could get some ice cream from the local vendor.

But when he couldn’t find them in their regular meeting spot, he felt that there was something amiss.  

Listening to his gut instinct, he headed toward to the direction of their school. Once he got in the vicinity, he searched for them again in more isolated areas, and he finally found them.

Being attacked.

A group of four older boys were beating up two younger ones in front of an abandoned warehouse, though Taehyun was putting up a good fight.

He ran up to the linked fence and crashed in it making the fence sway and clink with noise and screamed at them, telling to leave them alone. But they only merely glanced at him and continued, not bothering with the boy who they thought couldn’t possibly do anything.

It hurt. Seeing two people he cared about. Two people who he could engage in a lively conversation.

He wasn’t one prone to join fights, but in this case, he saw no alternative.

He quickly jumped the fence and aided his two friends.

It was difficult, of course, being outnumbered by amount and strength but with wit and persistence on their side, the three of them managed to give their assailants many bruises while they fled from the place. All three of them panting, laughing, and with their fair amount of injuries.

He never really thought much about them afterwards, the group who ganged up on his friends. He did ask his friends is they bothered with them again, but both denied it. And he would have to simply trust their word for it.

However, he never expected his friendship with them to turn out this way. To turn out to be the foundation of something crueler, eviler.

By the end of middle school, he had taken up computer programming as a hobby. Not exactly what a boy preparing to enter to high school should have as a hobby, but it allowed him to use in intellect in a more imaginative way.

In fact, he had gotten so good at what he did, that hacking into the government system didn’t seem so far-fetched for him, but he found that rather distasteful.

With his trusty laptop that he carried around, it was his source of entertainment and relief of boredom. Because to him, boredom was more hazardous to his health than alcohol or drugs.

But his ability with technology and programming never seemed to be such an importance to his friends until that fateful day.

It was right after they finally graduated middle school. He was delighted to have been finally released of the facility that generated boredom to him on an every-day basis. There was now a period of time where they were free to do whatever they wanted before they were shipped off to high school.

And like any other day, he was waiting for his friends, but this time with his computer on his lap. He liked trying to crack algorithms for fun, giving his brain something to work on.

He felt the presence of someone else sit next to him, stealthily, quietly. He looked over once to see Taehyun. “Back from your family’s boxing center?” he questioned, eyes still on his computer.

Taehyun nodded his head mutely. He might not of talked much, but neither his two friends minded.

Hakyeon was always the talker, the persuader, the cunning mind behind everything. But he was a lively boy, the leader type, the one who took the other two on adventures, made them do things they wouldn’t have done themselves.

And after he realized that his current skill level as a boxer never seemed to serve much, Taehyun took the opportunity that his father owned a boxing center and trained himself better. Hakyeon and him would sometimes come along with Taehyun and practice they own skills, so they were fairly well at defending themselves if the occasion should ever arise.

And him, well, he had his computer and that is what he specialized in. Finding information was easy for him as simple math was to him. The whole wide web was at his fingertips, and it was simply a matter of digging a little deeper.

Despite their differences, their similarities helped them stay friends, pushed by the feeling like no one else could understand them.

And Taehyun simply watched as he typed away series of letters, numbers, and symbols which probably made no sense to Taehyun whatsoever, but his friend was content on watching him type away furiously.

They both knew that their other friend would be late, for the last few weeks he was shrouded with mystery. He would come late to their gatherings, he was unreachable at times, and he seemed to be distracted more often of late. He wouldn’t tell them what exactly he was doing, but he promised to reveal with due time.

That peaceful moment only lasted awhile until Hakyeon came upon them, bounding with excitement in his run and expression.

Taehyun looked at him with a subtle curious glance and the boy sitting next to him closed his laptop screen and took the liberty of asking, “What’s wrong with you?”

Hakyeon smirked, “I found it!”

“Found what exactly?”

“How they did it! How they managed to keep their enemies in line. How they managed to make them fear them!” Hakyeon cackled gleefully.

The two friends sitting down glanced at each other and the one with the computer asked, “Who’s they?”

The boy in front of them waved his hand at that. “Doesn’t matter who. They have been long gone since. What matters now is this!” he cried, taking out four photos and holding them like trading cards.

Taehyun stared at them in recognition. “That’s them,” he mumbled quietly but with surprise.

“Who?” the other boy asked, leaning closer to get a better look.

“You remember, those who ganged up on us the last time but we managed to escape?” Taehyun explained.

Recognition dawned on his face. “Ah, them. I thought they stopped bothering you?”

Hakyeon scoffed. “They did. Sort of. They bullied us in a less obvious ways and more childish ways. Like tripping us and sorts like that.  Luckily for us, they’re a year ahead of us, so this last year was tolerable.” He glared at the photos and then smiled. A smile that sent shivers down the other boy’s spine as he clenched the computer on his lap. “But we just happen to be going to the same high school as them. Why don’t we give a little welcoming surprise for them? A sort of congratulatory present?”

Taehyun frowned, “What are you thinking of?”

“Just a little retribution for what they did,” Hakyeon smiled. “But first, I’ll need your expertise,” he said, pointing to the boy sitting next to Taehyun.

“Me?” he asked, pointing at himself.

“Yes. Your skill with computers and its components are exceptional. I wouldn’t be surprised if you could dig up some secrets our dear friends and possibly their families were hiding.”

“You want me to find information on them?” he asked with disbelief. “You want information so you can blackmail them?”

The boy in front of him tsked. “Blackmail is such a harsh word. More persuasion of a sort, I would say.”

“I don’t know about this. I may not have liked what they have done with you, but I don’t think this is the right approach.”

Hakyeon narrowed his eyes at him. “You don’t know what they have done to us,” he hissed darkly. “We had to suffer most of our school lives under their pressure. I always thought we couldn’t do anything to them. We were too young, too weak, too unprepared. But that’s all changed. We’re nothing like them. They were dumbwits who couldn’t tell left from right. We can fight back. And as our friend, you will help us, right?”

He hesitated. He obviously didn’t think that this was the most moral thing to do. But they were his friends. They were the people who understood him, made him feel like he wasn’t the only person in the world, that he wasn’t as lonely as he thought he was.

He looked at Taehyun. “You feel the same way too?”

Taehyun looked him and then at Hakyeon. “Only this time?”

Hakyeon smiled. “Only this time.”

He sighed. “Okay, I’ll help. I’ll probably get you some information on them. Two days maximum.”

Hakyeon grinned. “I knew I could count on you.”

He did what he promised and delivered dirty secrets on all four of them, or what he could. And honesty these four had secrets that he never would have imagined. He had to dig a little deeper and ask for some help from Taehyun to do some little leg work. But he found their secrets.

He was there when Hakyeon brought them, using his smooth words to persuade them to come. With a smiling face and a snake’s tongue, he lured them to the abandoned warehouse where they had their old scuffle. A somewhat mockery of making them pay in the same place where they had tried to injure them.

Hakyeon was smarter, not tormenting them in front of the warehouse like they did to them. Instead, he had picked the lock on the massive doors and brought them inside, turning on the dim lights, and casually closing the doors behind them.

“I thought you said you had something for us,” one of them gruffly mentioned.

“I do,” Hakyeon said with a smile and with that, all four were on the floor in brief pain having being tased two each by Taehyun and Hakyeon. The other boy watched from the wall, telling his friends beforehand that he was uncomfortable with hurting them and refused to inflict harm on them. But he still watched with a slight frown on his face.

“Surprise!” Hakyeon cried sarcastically. “This is your present for constantly tormenting us over the last few years.”

“You little fu-” one of them mumbled laboriously. He stopped short when he realized that he hands were handcuffed. “What the hell?”

Hakyeon smiled. “Ah. Those are to make sure you won’t anything dangerous. As well as those zip-ties around your ankles. In a fluid motion while they were still on the floor, Hakyeon had managed to keep all four restrained.

“Let’s start with the appetizers, shall we?” Hakyeon smiled. He then glared at one and kicked him harshly in the stomach. He crouched down and whispered, “Hurts, doesn’t it? I got these boots ordered especially with these studs on them. Beauties, aren’t they?”

As he was talking, one of the others managed to crawl behind him and was about to attack Hakyeon when Taehyun held him firmly back.

“Oh! Taehyun. Don’t hold back. Let him feel your anger as well,” Hakyeon laughed.

Taehyun kept his grip on the boy and hesitated slightly. But the boy watching his friends could see a flash of raw anger cross Taehyun’s eyes before he slugged the boy in the face.

Hakyeon laughed darkly as he and Taehyun let their anger run wild, pouring their hate into every punch, every kick, every injury they laid upon them.

The boy watching had to eventually close his eyes at the end, unable to continue watching his friends go mad with anger, inflicting pain on each of the restrained boys. He kept thinking to himself, “Just this once. Because they deserve the same pain they inflicted on them.”

But truthfully their beating only lasted for a short while. Because Hakyeon wanted them conscious when he started the next course. After they allowed their victims a few broken bones and cuts, Hakyeon smiled again. “Well, how’s that for appetizers? We better move on to the main course.”

He pulled out a four manila folders, each with their names on them. He dropped each one of the folders in front of each of the four’s faces with their respective name.

He picked up the first one. “Im. Young. Pyo,” he said as he enunciated each syllable. He opened the folder. “Hmm. Respectable family. Looks like you’re rich as well. I guess that means you have time bullying other students,” he read as he gave the boy a dark look. “Father is a respected businessman. Mother is a loving wife who works with charities. Older brother in medical school. Overall, a good family. Makes me wonder why you turned out so bad.”

He looked down at the boy who was breathing hard, glaring at him. “Oh, don’t look like that! We haven’t gotten to the best part yet!” He turned the page. “But what’s this? It looks like your father is quite the lawbreaker. It turns out that your father embezzled millions of money from his company. More money than you would ever see in your natural life.”

He glanced at him. “Oh, what’s with that look? You didn’t know? Looks like Daddy dearest has been providing you money with his dirty ways. There’s proof here. Well honestly, I don’t completely understand what these statistics show. But I assure you, I trust my source of info completely.”

He gave one last smile at the boy. “I would hate to see what would happen if this information happened to be accidently released to the public. Your perfect little family wouldn’t be perfect anymore, would it?” He laughed menacingly and kicked him.

He walked over to the boy next to him. “Kim. Soon. Kook,” he said as he picked up the folder. He flipped open his file. “Normal boy. Only child, I see. Father is an average worker, salesclerk? Mother is a housewife; normal. And you have a lover! Ah, look at that. But she’s no average woman, is she? She dropped a photo nonchalantly of a young woman, likely in her mid-twenties.” He smiled evilly at the boy. “She teaches, does she? At your school, no less! I wonder what would happen if the school found out? It’s likely she could be ‘let go’ to put it mildly, and you will face the stares and whispers of your peers.”

He nodded and kicked the boy in the stomach as well. “Not that bad, if I might add.”

He picked up the next folder. “Lee. Chi. Hoon.”

He opened the folder. “Let’s see what we have on you. Hmmm. Parents are divorced. Lives with good ‘ol mum, works hard for your own sake. But you on the other hand, aren’t exactly a good little boy. Underage drinking, underage smoking, and underage gambling,” he recited as he dropped pictures of the boy doing each of the said actions. “I hear the police aren’t so keen on children who break the law, though you don’t look the part. Must be why you were able to get in these places. And on so many accounts as well.”  He gave him a swift kick to the gut and moved on.

“Park. Jae. Hyun,” he murmured to the last boy. “It seemed like you were the most elusive one,” he said, tapping the folder into his palm. “But don’t think we didn’t find anything. You are also a normal boy from a middle-class family. Both parents work, has a younger sister and a younger brother. Ah, you’re the oldest.” He looked down at him. “But you seem to be coming into money over the last year. I wonder why. Oh, I know! Was it because you’re a drug dealer? Selling these illegal items to innocent children at your school? Corrupting them? Or perhaps they already were corrupted.” Hakyeon shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. But I do know that the police and the school won’t look kindly at these actions of yours.” He also gave a boy a kick in the stomach.

Hakyeon spun around extravagantly, laughing softly. He turned back to them with a disapproving look on his face. He looked at each one of the boys on the floor either cowering with fear or glaring with malice.

“Well, I think I deserve some of those looks on your faces. But I think you deserve this treatment as well. For what you’ve done to me. To my friend. To all of the people you picked on. My life was a living hell thanks to you,” he muttered angrily.

“What do you want?” the first boy asked. “I get that you’re doing this to for revenge; isn’t this enough? You beat us up, you have our secrets, and we’ll probably never mess with you again. Can’t you take pity and let us go?”

Hakyeon narrowed his eyes. “Pity? When I asked for mercy, you simply laughed and kept beating us up. So why should I? Plus, we haven’t even started dessert!”

He crouched down so was almost eye-level with the boys but still looking down at them. “These secrets of yours, I’ll be sure to keep them safe. But on one condition.” The boys stared at him and Hakyeon smiled. “I want you to work for us. In a sense, whenever we need your expertise, I’ll be sure to call on you. And you’ll be sure to answer my call. And don’t think about going to the authorities about telling on us. If you do, then I don’t know where these folders of ours will just happen to appear. Do we have an agreement?”

There was a silence before the second boy croaked, “If we do, you’ll promise that our secrets won’t be let out?”

Hakyeon grinned. “Cross my heart and hope to die.”

There was another silence before all four boys hesitantly agreed with a nod of their heads.

Then Hakyeon laughed, so happily, so maniacally. “Oh, how I longed for this moment.” His eyes gleamed with a sort of madness that the boy watching the whole event swore that was last he saw of his old friend Cha Hakyeon.

Because wherever that old part of him went, Myungsoo never saw it again.

A/N: Just so we’re all on the same page, Hakyeon is N from Vixx and Taehyun is K from Wonder Boyz, but I think you guys were smart enough to figure that out.

I didn’t want to split this chapter into two, but it was becoming so long that I had to. I also didn’t intend for N to become so cruel, but it sort of fits.

I’m not sure if you guys are okay with a special chapter, especially with it being two chapters long, but I hope you don’t mind. Do tell me what you thought. Oh, by the way, SC means Special Chapter.

Thanks for reading!