Chapter II

“You would be surprised what poison is

often hidden in the most beautiful camouflage"

Evelyn Klebert

Although Seunghyun had expected to hear that kind of answer, he could not explain the reaction that came with it. He clenched his jaw and hid his hands deeper inside his pockets. Maybe he was feeling guilty or maybe he was getting conscious about the things that answer involved.

“I’m sorry for your loss sir,” was the only thing he could come up with whilst doing what was supposed to be a respectful bow.

“Kwon Jiyong. You can call me Jiyong,” answered the man, ignoring Seunghyun’s condolences and instead staring at him apparently disgusted, averting his eyes towards Daesung, who instantly tried to hide the fidgety grin over his face.

“Can we talk inside? It's freezing here,” he suggested while pointing at the house in front of them. Daesung nodded and followed behind Jiyong’s steps not without sending a warning glance to Seunghyun's area.

The warned male watched Jiyong’s back moving between the garden pine trees, intrigued by the confidence the guy showed. Why would someone like him need his help? His attitude wasn’t even close to that one of the rest of his clients. He was acting too unexpectedly normal.

“I haven’t come to this house for a while,” said Jiyong when reaching the door, his face showing a strange discomfort, “I apologize for how untidy it might be.”

Daesung made a movement with his hand, signaling its irrelevance but Seunghyun’s attention got caught rather to the way Jiyong’s right hand trembled while trying to hold the keys steady when trying to open the door, and how quickly he hid his hand under his coat when he noticed the attentive male’s eyes focused on him.

The house’s interior was, as Seunghyun had imagined before when waiting inside Daesung’s car, like that of a cottage. Wooden panels upholstered the walls, floor and ceiling, a combination of grayish black and beige furniture contrasted with the bright light entering through the enormous window in the living room and various toys and figures were scattered here and there throughout the house. Bearbricks, recognized Seunghyun when he gave a closer look. The walls were decorated by multiple strange paintings: all of them distorted canvas portraits.

“He bought all of them,” explained Jiyong, eyes on Seunghyun’s back who had stepped away from them and was looking at those paintings with interest,  “He liked buying strange things.”

Seunghyun recorded that piece of information inside his mind in an attempt to collect all little, unwillingly given scraps of identity that once had comprised what Choi Seunghyun had been.

“So, what did you want to ask before?” hinted Daesung trying to draw Jiyong’s attention away from Seunghyun’s back. Jiyong’s eyes flashed one last cold gaze towards Seunghyun before turning away.

“Oh, yes. Sure. Please take a seat. May I offer you something?” Jiyong suggested while rummaging through the shelves from one small canteen placed next to the window. “I’m afraid I have not much to offer… Can I offer you a glass of whiskey?” he asked, holding an amber-glass tinted bottle in his right hand.

“Water is okay, thank you,” answered Daesung shaking his head while sitting down on one of those beige-leather sofas.

“And you?” asked Jiyong lifting one of his eyebrows looking directly at Seunghyun, who had just stopped looking at the paintings and was now glancing around the house with visible curiosity.

“I will accept the glass of whiskey, thank you.”

An uncomfortable silent atmosphere surrounded the three, disturbed only by the tinkling sound of the glass and the whooshing of the wind against the window. After what seemed to be a long time, Jiyong placed two glasses over the coffee table between them and sat down on the farthest armchair inside the living room, folding his legs elegantly.

“I actually don’t know how this works,” he confessed. “What is he allowed or not allowed to do?” he questioned Daesung pointing with his hand to Seunghyun, with one face that looked for the first time sincerely confused. A significant change from his proud expressions.

Daesung breathed out a sigh of relief and drew a shy smile on his lips. Seunghyun frowned, knowing the reason; if there was something Daesung enjoyed doing, it was explaining and enlightening people about the functions, rules, conditions and all other particularities around been a Supplanter. Jiyong listened to him carefully throughout the whole speech without turning his eyes away from him even once.

Seunghyun watched the both of them and then his glass of whiskey, now between both hands, feeling ignored and dismissed of the conversation. Ultimately, he was conscious that he was nothing but a piece for sale. He shook his head mentally, trying to sweep away those useless thoughts that would not lead him to a good outcome.

“So, yes, you can ask Seunghyun to do whatever you want as long as it does not attempt with his security or integrity,” Daesung concluded with a proud grin over his face, sliding the contract over the table towards the customer, “The contract is valid for one year, after it he can’t stay any longer with you.”

Jiyong grabbed the piece of paper with his right hand and read it thoroughly with interest, after which he nodded, pulling out a pen from his interior coat pocket but before signing it, he gave Seunghyun one last look whose eyes fell to the ground.

“But he has a voice, right? He decides whether he wants to do something or not, correct?” he asked and this time his eyes were focused on Seunghyun as if forcing him to answer that question. Seunghyun lifted up his eyes and exchanged a cold, deep stare with the man.

“I can, but personally I have no problem with doing whatever you ask me to,” answered Seunghyun in slurred speech, “As long as it does not act against my life.”

Jiyong nodded and looked contemplatively at the contract in front of him, causing Daesung to squirm anxiously on the sofa, looking at the male’s unreadable features with worry. Seunghyun kept looking down, though not in shyness but in anger. An inexplainable anger.

“I want you to move here with me. You can bring some of your things tomorrow,” Jiyong finally requested whilst signing the paper and pushing it away still with a disgusted grin over his face. Daesung reached for the paper and smiled.

Seunghyun nodded in silence and opened his mouth hesitantly, attempting to get rid of the inexplicable growing anger inside his mind but no matter what he said, he had to bear with moving there, in spite of how much he hated the idea. Jiyong lifted himself up from the sofa and walked over towards the window.

“May I ask why did you say before that you haven’t been inside this house for some time?” asked Seunghyun, restraining his words.

Jiyong did not answer right away; he was looking out the window, “I lived with him in this house. I just took some time away from here, that’s all,” he answered with little details. “I need to organize some things in here, please come tomorrow.”

Nothing else was left to say so Seunghyun lifted himself up from the couch followed by Daesung and headed for the door.

“Thanks for accepting to do this,” Jiyong said unexpectedly stepping closer to where Seunghyun was and extending his hand whilst taking off his shades. Seunghyun felt a lump in his throat upon watching the agony shining on that pair of hazel eyes, inside those eyes were a hidden torment in the most pure and yet most cruel possible way. “Thank you,” said Jiyong once again.

“I hope I can be somehow helpful,”  Seunghyun smiled, pitying the sadness that soul in front of him was restraining. Jiyong did not smile, though Seunghyun had not expected him to do so thus they both just stared at their clasped hands in silence.

“ I just hope the best for you, Seunghyun. If something goes wrong tell me and I will find a way to stop it, ok?” Daesung had told him  as soon as they were back to the car. While Seunghyun did feel uncomfortable with that case, it wasn’t as strong as the curiosity he now had.

Who was this Kwon Jiyong? Why did his hands tremble that way? What was he hiding? Why until now? Too many questions swirled inside his head, creating mysterious webs that Seungri wanted to clarify as fast as possible.

Meanwhile a guy with a beige coat looked out the window with eyes filled with agonizing tears. The delicate wood fragance of what used to be his home was intoxicating him with memories. He turned himself to face the furniture, those walls, the atmosphere he once shared with him. He fell on his knees and rested one of his cheeks over the wooden floor feeling his elaborated strength fading away. There was no life in his eyes but tears rolling over his cheeks to the floor.

“You will catch a cold,” said a deep, hoarse voice approaching to him. He looked up where the figure of a told man was smiling at him in return.

“I like this floor, I could sleep over it if you only let me,” he answered, closing his eyes but a pair of strong arms lifted him up from the floor and embraced him in a warmth hug. Jiyong inhaled the pleasant fragrance coming from the man in front of him.

“I prefer you sleep with me,” said the man, caressing one of his cheeks to which Jiyong plastered a silly smile over his face, “Want to come with me?”

Jiyong shook his head, excusing himself, “I got work to do. I must finish those songs for tomorrow morning.”

The man smiled and nodded, placing his lips over Jiyong’s smooth ones. Jiyong allowed his mind flow freely around, letting himself be overwhelmed by every single feeling. He moaned wanting more, expecting more, but the man stopped the kiss and whispered in his ear, “See you tonight.”

The man walked away with the confidence only possible to be found in someone who knows himself powerful... His tailored suit, designer clothes. Jiyong smirked, shaking his head unimpressed.

“I love you, Seunghyun,” he whispered with a voice only intended for him to hear, but as always, it came out louder than expected.

“I love you,” murmured Jiyong again, increasing the volume of his voice urging the man to answer. The palm of his hand extended over the floor, his soul trying to hold onto that fading image of a man. Jiyong waited and waited, but the answer never came. This time Choi Seunghyun didn’t answer.

“I love you too, Jiyong-ah.”

Hi there! JessRa here... Thank you all who have suscribed and read this story. I solved the "beta" problem so I think I will be able to update regularly (meaning one chapter per week) ^.^

Please look forward to this story and to my creepiness.. yess.. I know this story is somehow creepy.. But What can I do?? =) Please leave some comments about what do you think of the story so far... See ya!!

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