The sound of growing footsteps alarms the two assassins. Just barely does Yunho pick up the silhouettes of a group of men surrounding the detective and his fellow comrade. Panic falls on the usually calm man and he can’t help but look back momentarily to his younger brother. Changmin picks up on the situation quickly and nods.

 

 

 

“Formation C.Y.K.” Is what Yunho’s action tells him. Yunho turns back to face the carnage as soon as he receives the younger are reply. He looks on, waiting for an opening safe enough for the younger to pass through without much of a struggle. Yunho watches as Sunggyu manages to take down each man one by one somewhat easily without breaking much sweat.

 

There’s a lot of waiting but it’s all in their heads as barely a minute has passed in real time. He can feel the impatience radiating off his brother and for a second it breaks his concentration. As soon as he feels hopeless, Yunho shouts.

 

 

 

“GO!” So Changmin does. He feels his heart beat fast in his chest but that doesn’t stop him from running towards the fire zone. The men miss him, dazed at the fact that something just ran past them so far, they couldn’t even properly register it until a bullet if lodged somewhere in their body. By now, Yunho decides to move in, running towards the doorway enough to have a strong mark on the enemy but with enough hiding space to duck back into in case they decide to fire. His back’s pressed against the wall and he can feel droplets of sweat fall from his forehead just from the adrenaline (and not from hard labour).

 

Once Kyuhyun is in sight Changmin’s heart drops into his stomach. Excitement, joy, relief as well as grief, guilt and anger rush in all at once. He doesn’t know how to feel seeing the boy he loves on the ground standing on a thin line between life and death. He bites his bottom lip to stop himself from crying out loud. The assassin slides towards his friend, stopping just in front of him like a wall protecting him from the others.

 

 

 

“Kyu…” He calls out softly and the boy immediately looks up to the other. His eyes twinkle with an large glow and for so long, Changmin realising just how much he had missed seeing just that.

 

 

 

“Changmin?” It’s comes out as a question as the younger feels himself questioning if it really was the said boy in front of him. A smile comes to Changmin’s lips and Kyuhyun swears it’s one of the brightest smiles he’s seen on the other.  But the smile doesn’t last long with the sounds of bullets ricocheting from all sides. Changmin turns, not bothering to attack anyone who comes for him as Yunho has his back on tight watch. (Part of him feels the gaze and it’s so strong, he wishes it would soften a little.)

 

 

 

“Who-?” Sunggyu goes to ask but stops once their gaze meet and he realises its Changmin. The younger give a nod to acknowledge the elder. Their eyes meet for a second longer and Sunggyu understands what the younger is saying despite the unspoken words. The detective passes his dagger to the younger and moves in front of him in a protective battle stance.

 

 

 

“Changmin ssi!” He hears the chief call his name multiple times through the earpiece but chooses to ignore it.

 

 

 

“Take care of him.” He says, running towards the enemies that stood before him in a round of continuous attacks. Changmin takes the dagger and looks it around the metal bindings around Kyuhyun’s wrist. He hears a sharp intake of breath for a second as the chains tighten a little around the sore and bruised wrists. Stabbing the dagger to the ground, he uses on hand to hold onto the tip on the other is pressed firmly on the handle. As through chopping garlic, he pushes down on the handle with all of his weight. A clink is heard as the chain breaks a little. Seeing hope, he lifts the handle and then pushes it down once more, twice more and finally the clanging of the chains is all he hears. He slides the cold chain off Kyuhyun’s wrist causing the younger to fall forward as that was all that was keeping him up.

 

 

 

“Kyuhyun? Come on, I’ve got you.” He says softly, holding the boy by the waist while the other’s face is buried in the crook of his neck. Changmin feels Kyuhyun breathing against his nape and it sends shivers down his spine. It takes everything for him not to fall into a sudden gloop as he lifts the boy up by the waist.

 

 

 

“CHANGMIN SSI, YUNHO SSI! YOU NEED TO GET OUT NOW!” The voice of Woohyun followed by a loud screech strikes his eardrum hard and he finds himself letting go of Kyuhyun while clutching his ear in pain. Everything goes blurry for a second before he finds himself meeting his gaze with his elder brother. Not a second later, the sound of several loud bangs reach his ear.

 

“THEY’RE HERE! THE SECRET SERVICE IS HERE TO WIPE EVERYONE OUT AND WON’T HAVE MERCY ON ANYONE! LEAVE NOW!” Woohyun shouted as he watched the mass amount of soldiers enter the building. He had heard that they were going to start wiping out the underground operations from the informants he had contact with but they were scheduled for later. He didn’t doubt the information he received as it came from very reliable sources and the fact that they would lie was zero to none. Wiping out the underground would mean wiping out their livelihoods.

 

 

 

“CHANGMIN! CHANGMIN!” Upon hearing this, Yunho made a forward dash towards the trio. Yunho calls his brother’s name but from what he could see, Changmin was still in daze from the sudden intrusion of their earpieces. Unable to get to the boy in time, Sunggyu jumped in as he was closer. Dragging the boy down as they landed on the floor, he landed swiftly on top of him. Sunggyu pressed he body tightly against the younger as the gunshots were fired. Yunho had managed to reach Kyuhyun in time on the other hand and dragged him away to a safe place.

 

“TAKE HIM AND GO!” Yunho shouted to the detective who nodded, quickly grabbed onto the younger and ran towards the exit.

 

 

 

“No… NO! KYU-!” The younger shouted but was dragged harshly when Sunggyu noticed his hesitance. Yunho teared his gaze away from his brother and quickly went to help Kyuhyun up.

 

 

 

“Hyung?” The boy said, not really knowing what was happening.

 

 

 

“We have to leave.” Yunho said in the calmest possible voice he could muster. Without letting Kyuhyun question why, he began running towards the exit, hand in hand with Kyuhyun. He felt his heart stop as the younger’s warm fingers intertwined against his. As they ran forward, Kyuhyun found himself looking back. He scanned the area and saw the amount of soldiers in the secret service uniform in the building. Many of them wore the uniform from his father’s specially assigned group and many were men he knew. One by one, he saw the enemies that bound him go down. He swore he heard Park Minjun’s voice in a terrified scream but that only lasted a couple of seconds before it stopped. A familiar back was caught in his sight and Kyuhyun’s eyes grew wide. The feeling of the sun was close enough for his skin to feel it but he knew it wasn’t meant to happen. Instead, he turned to face Yunho, the back of his head in view.

 

 

 

“I’m sorry, hyung.” He whispered but his apology was not heard from the elder.

 

 

 

“Kyu-“ Yunho called as he left the building but the only thing he noticed was the slipping of the boy’s fingers around his. He turned abruptly on his heel and noticed that while he was outside, Kyuhyun was still inside the building.

 

“What are you doing Kyuhyun?” The look in Kyuhyun’s eyes told him exactly just what the younger was thinking.

 

 

 

“These people are my men. They won’t harm me.” He said with a smile. Just before he was about to close the door, Changmin pushed through and grabbed the younger’s hand. With his other, he pushed the door open wide with great force causing it to open completely. Kyuhyun looked at his friend in shock as he was pulled into a tight embrace.

 

 

 

“Ch-changmin?”

 

 

 

“I won’t let you. I won’t let you be taken away from me again. Not after I just got you back.” He confessed, bringing the boy close if it was even possible. Kyuhyun felt his cheeks grow hot and he looks away to stop himself from melting in the hug.

 

 

 

“Kyuhyun?!” He hears a low voice call his name from inside the warehouse and immediately, Kyuhyun pushes his friend away. He turns towards the voice, knowing that he’ll have to face the man eventually after what he’s witnessed.

 

 

 

“Father.” He calls out, the pain and fatigues of his body no longer an issue. The other three notices and quickly looks to where the younger was looking and there, stood the president of South Korea.

 

 

 

“Hold fire! Wh-what are you doing here?” The president looked flustered at the appearance of his son just after stopping the men from firing at his own son. He had not known that Kyuhyun would be in this faculty that Minjun was running. All he knew was that there was a tip from someone saying that it was the perfect time to stop the bastard before he finished his deeds in stopping his plans.

 

 

 

“I can ask the same about you.” Kyuhyun answered back snarky way. It was then he noticed the dead body beside his father’s feet, confirming the scream from a little while back did indeed belong to Minjun.

 

“Is it true, everything that Park Minjun said?” His father looked down at the dead man beneath him and quickly went to defend himself as thought tell his only son that his actions were justified.

 

 

 

“He’s a liar! Y-you should not trust that man. Now come, my son. We need to get you home.” If only Younghwan knew who his son really was, it would have been easier to lay the truth out as it was. But lying was something Kyuhyun hated after being forced to do so for so many years. The lies his father told were obvious and his eyes told him everything. He hated himself for pitying his sister’s killer but that his moment, his felt it. And in this moment, he believed himself to be somewhat a murderer or part of the murder of the Park family. I’m sorry Park Gyuri ssi.

 

 

 

“He’s not leaving with you. We’re taking him back home with us.” Changmin voice came out of nowhere as the other inched his way closer to his friend. The men around Younghwan began to feel weary, knowing full well the boy’s identity.

 

 

 

“Shut your mouth, kid.” One spat, only to receive the same amount of hatred from the high schooler.

 

 

 

“ off.” Changmin swore. In a fit of rage, the man raised his gun up and aimed it at the assassin. Changmin was too late to reach as the trigger was pressed and the bullet was making it way straight for him. The multiple shouts came to his head but it was all a blur.

 

 

 

“NO!” That was Kyuhyun, Changmin recalled while the other was a mix Yunho and someone else.

 

 

 

“KYUHYUN!” The boy flumped over, his body falling into his friends arm as the bullet entered his body and stayed lodged inside. Only then does Changmin remember to move and it was only to catch the love of his life in his arms. The warm red liquid painted his cold hands and it was then, only then did Changmin realise what had just happened.

 

 

 

“Wh-what? Kyu? No…no…please...NO!” He cried out, falling on knees as he held Kyuhyun’s back close to his chest. The blood poured onto the ground creating a small pool beneath them. The tears Changmin had been holding in fell onto the boy’s cheeks as he cried out for his love.

 

 

 

“Changmin, get back!” Yunho called, trying to drag the two of them to safety as well as to get a proper look at where Kyuhyun was shot.

 

 

 

“NO! KYUHYUN, HE’S HURT. HYUNG HE’S LOSING A LOT OF BLOOD! PLEASE! HIS HEART, THEY SHOT HIM THERE. PLEASE STOP THE BLOOD HYUNG!” Changmin’s hysteric screams echoed in the warehouse. Sunggyu was the first to fall after hearing where Kyuhyun had been shot. Changmin by now was pressing down on the wound to stop the blood.

 

 

 

“SON!” Younghwan cried out, running towards his fallen son.

 

“TAKE HIM!” He ordered. Quickly a group of men began running towards the injured Kyuhyun while another group surrounded the man who shot the gun.

 

 

 

“NO! LEAVE HIM ALONE! HE’S COMING HOME WITH US!” Changmin shouted as he watched the men get closer. Yunho and Sunggyu ran in to protect the two but were stopped immediately.

 

 

 

“I love you, Minnie.” Kyuhyun whispered, barely managing to speak as he coughed out a large amount of blood in the process. Changmin’s looked down at his friend, returning the words of love with a smile as the tears streamed down his face. It felt like it was the end but Changmin promised he wasn’t going to allow that. Non the less, it was not for him to decide.  

 

 

 

“Put him to sleep.” Someone said. The next thing Changmin remembers if waking up in his room alone and broken.

 

 

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

 

 

It had been a month since the incident. The death of Cho Ahra was the top new for quite a while as well as the death of former minister of public safety and security. According to the media, the death of the former minister was accidental after taking a sleeping pill (thinking it was a painkiller) just before a bath. Death was by drowning, the coroner announced. Ahra’s death on the other hand was not announced as the president wishes to keep her living self the only memory to the public. It was shortly after the news broke out that Younghwan stepped down from his role.

 

They weren’t meant to know but someone had leaked the information and Woohyun being who he was, had managed to hear what had happened to Kyuhyun. The story was not a good ending for weeks he contemplated telling his lover, Yunho and Changmin. In the end, he sat the three down and told them what had happened.

 

 

 

“I’m so sorry. Kyuhyun… He didn’t make it.” Once again Sunggyu was the first to break, falling into Woohyun’s arms as he heard that Kyuhyun was no longer in this world. The two sat there in shock, unable to believe the truth.

 

 

 

“Please, tell me this isn’t true!” Sunggyu cried, grabbing onto Woohyun’s shirt as he did so.

 

 

 

“H-he passed away at the hospital from blood loss. He didn’t make it. I’m so sorry.” It was a first for the both of them as Yunho was the one to leave first. That night he didn’t come back home, leaving Changmin alone in the house. The next morning he came back hungover with someone else’s perfume on him.

 

 

 

They had told the school a half false half true story for their absence. Kyuhyun’s death was something they didn’t want to lie about, knowing the boy hated lying more than anything, they decided to make his death known to stop him passing on one last lie. They give a month of grieving and during that time, the two do a lot of thinking alone but less bonding together. One thing remained the same and that they always had breakfast together. (Changmin suspects that it was to make sure he would come out of his room alive every morning to stop him from doing anything stupid.) After careful consideration, Yunho decides it time to hand up their guns and stop their secret lives once and for all.

 

 

 

“Are you sure about this, hyung?” Yunho doesn’t know why but he laughs at the fact that it’s Changmin that’s the one asking and not the other way around.

 

 

 

“I’m sure Changmin. Let’s stop and live normal lives from now on. We’re no longer a full team without Kyuhyun.”

 

 

 

“Ok then. I’ll follow you in all your decisions.” Yunho remembers that it was the first time Changmin smiled after that day. Much to Changmin’s dismay, Yunho ends up throwing his arms around the younger and pulling him in for a tight long hug. The younger struggles at firs but eventually gives up, returning the gesture as he feels the tears of his hyung on his back. They don’t say anything but there is no need.

 

 

 

Tomorrow they would return to school with a bright smile is what they promised each other. Today was the last day of their grieving rest and Yunho hates to admit it but he can’t wait to go back. Despite all the classes he needs to prepare and the catch up Changmin needs to do, they clear their morning for one last mission as Y.C.K.

 

 

 

“Yunho ssi? Changmin ssi? What brings you here?  Shouldn’t you be going back to school tomorrow?” Sunggyu is the first they see when they enter the station. It normally doesn’t happen since he’s normally with the chief, making him the second busiest man in the building. They exchange greetings and Yunho shyly scratches the back of his neck, trying to get the words to come.

 

 

 

“Hmm, what do I see here?” A chuckle is followed as Woohyun comes from one of the offices on the ground floor. He finds his way next to Sunggyu, the two standing face to face with the two assassins. Changmin looks over at his brother who’s still short for words and Woohyun is the first to notice.

 

“Should we take this somewhere more private?” Woohyun asks, nodding his head in the direction of an empty meeting room. Sunggyu notices then, the eyes of his follow colleagues staring at the four of them with curiosity and giggles at their gossip loving ears. Of course they would be curious if the chief is here casually talking to people they don’t know. (Those who are acquainted with the assassins were moved to another station for ease of access for them.)

 

 

 

“I think that’s a good idea.” Yunho replies with Sunggyu leading them into an empty room. The elder is more nervous that the younger and to be honest, he has no idea why he would be in the first place. He knew Woohyun and Sunggyu well after the incident and they had kept in touch a great deal of the time. Woohyun remained apologetic, thinking that it was all his fault but the two assured him it wasn’t. Sunggyu was forced to remain in the dark for security reasons and the latter understood despite wanting to know so badly.

 

 

 

“I just wanted to thank you both for everything. After the mission, there wasn’t much we could do and wanted to do.  The two of you helped us a lot and we wanted to say, thank you.”

 

 

 

“Thank you Woohyun hyung, Sunggyu hyung.” Changmin smiled.

 

 

 

“There’s no need to thank us! Instead we should be thank you for all you’ve done. You’ve helped us a lot throughout the years and there isn’t anything we won’t do to help you.” Woohyun stood up and bowed, causing the two to panic and tell the chief to take his seat.

 

 

 

“We’ve decided to pack our guns and leave the assassin life behind but if you ever need us for a super important mission, just talk to hyung and I’m sure he’ll cave in.” Changmin laughed with the other’s joining in. Yunho pouted at the last statement, knowing it was the truth made it difficult for him to deny it (despite it being his choice to stop the double life).

 

 

 

“We respect your decision so we’ll do our best to request for your guy as little as possible.” There wasn’t a set theme to their talk, just throwing in random comments and input about things they were interested in. The four continued to talk for a while, not noticing as the time went ticking by. A knock on the door told them it was time to separate. They left with not goodbyes but a see you later. When the duo left, they felt lighter, more in touch with themselves. Accepting Kyuhyun’s death was hard but it was easier with help from the people around them. Although Changmin says it’s fine to continue, Yunho knows the younger will miss having the other by his side in classes and for lunch during schooling hour s.

 

 

 

“I’m hungry hyung!”

 

 

 

“What, you ate not too long ago!” Yunho laughed at his younger brother’s never ending stomach.

 

As they left, Yunho turned to his head in the direction of the other side of the road. He could see a young girl running with a bright smile on her face and a yellow sunflower in hand. She ran towards a figure whose back was facing the former assassin, a young man, calling them fondly. The man crouched down and received the flower before patting the girl on the head lightly. She smiled again, brightening up more after the affectionate gesture before running back to where she came from. Yunho kept his eyes on the girl, only moving them back to the man after she was out of sight. By then the man had stood up and proceeded to bring the flower up to his nose to take in the sweet fragrance. As he did so, the man turned around and it was then Yunho felt his heart skip a beat.

 

 

 

“KYU-“ He reached out, moving forward to the other side. He didn’t hear the loud horning of the lorry that was coming for him as his eyes were fixated on the look-a-like on the other side of the road.

 

 

 

“HYUNG!” Changmin called out, grabbing the back of his brother’s collar, pulling the man back.

 

“Hyung! What were you doing!?” The boy shouted as Yunho landed on the floor. The younger’s shouting didn’t reach the man as lorry drove passed the man, breaking his concentration.

 

 

 

“Hurry, move!” He muttered, waiting for the lorry to pass.

 

 

 

“Hyung?” Nothing, there was no one on the other side once the lorry was out of sight. Worried, Changmin moved in front of the elder, draging him by the cheeks and lifted his head upwards. A chuckle was what he got as a reply as the elder stood up and brushed awaty his younger brother’s hand.

 

 

“Are you alright hyung?”

 

 

 

“Yeah, I thought I saw someone I recognised but it was just my imagination.” Changmin didn’t question it and Yunho was thankful for that. They made their way back to their house with words of dishes as their main topic of conversation.