fortyfour
Yes, I'm HeroIndex:
(BH) – Baekhyun speaking
(YJ) – Young Jae speaking
(DH) – Daehyun speaking
(BY) – Yongguk speaking
(V) – Taehyung speaking
(JU) – Jongup speaking
(K) – Jongin speaking
(Z) – Zelo speaking
(JI) – Jin speaking
(HK) – Hyunki speaking
(HB) – Hanbi speaking
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Jin sighed as he sat there in one of the closets. He had been sitting here for… well, he didn’t really know, but they had locked him up in here for being crazy. He had told them the truth about why they were locked up and for some reason; they didn’t seem to believe him. Okay, so he didn’t really have an explanation behind his reason, but that still didn’t mean that he was lying! Why was it so hard for them to believe his explanation?
Meanwhile, the other four males were sitting in the living room, trying to decide on what to do. On one hand, they could go with Jin’s words and believe that they were in trouble. On the other hand, they could just believe that Jin is bull ting everything and that they were locked in here for someone’s amusement. It was difficult, but it was also possible.
“Why should we believe him?” (K)
“I know my cousin! He wouldn’t want us getting hurt.” (BH)
“And I know your cousin too and I say that he’s still following orders!” (Z) It was constant back and forth between Baekhyun and Zelo. No matter what one said, the other always seemed to have some sort of counter. Jongup and Jongin probably would’ve given their input, but it would’ve still been split between the two. The only difference was that Jongin didn’t believe that Taehyung was involved altogether while Jongup wasn’t sure what to believe. Both sides had valid arguments, but if anyone knew the truth, then it was Taehyung.
“Can’t we just give him the benefit of the doubt? Jin wouldn’t lie about this.” (JU)
“Yeah, but Taehyung could have lied to Jin! We don’t know what his ulterior motive is for helping us. For all we know, this is just a setup to get us to die or close to it!” (Z) Baekhyun let out a groan as he began pacing back and forth. How was he supposed to convince them that his cousin was a good person?! There was no way that Taehyung would’ve hid them away to safety if they were just going to end up getting killed anyway!
“Let’s say that he really is helping us. What would he gain from it?” (K) Baekhyun paused for a moment before folding his arms and leaning against the wall behind him. That was probably a good question to be asking. What, exactly, did Taehyung gain from helping them? “We already know that he’s been hired to get closer to us. He gains money and a good standing with his employer. But helping us? Why?” (K)
“Well… Jin said that he’s coming back, right? Couldn’t we ask him if he does show up?” (JU) If he really does come back, then maybe that would mean that Jin was telling the truth. Zelo was a little reluctant to believe that it would be a positive thing, but Baekhyun and Jongin seemed to be all for waiting for Taehyung to show up once more.
“Alright. We wait.” (K)
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“Hey. Cheer up, okay?” (DH) How did it end up with Daehyun being the one trying to cheer up Young Jae? Young Jae felt bad for making Daehyun worry even more with his own emotions, but he couldn’t help it. It was difficult to act normal when their friends were missing. “Come on. You have a test to study for. You can’t be like this now.” (DH)
“Sorry…” (YJ) He just needed to keep a strong front and hope for the best. With his mother’s informants as well as his own, there was no way that they weren’t going to be getting word on their friend’s whereabouts. Young Jae just wished that they would be a little faster on gathering this information.
“Well… I guess we’ve been working hard already for two hours. Let’s take a break then, yeah?” (DH) Young Jae nodded before pushing himself up to his feet and stretching. Daehyun smiled a bit as he cleaned up the paperwork a bit before getting to his feet as well. “Should we do some of the grocery shopping? Your help would be appreciated.” (DH)
“Grocery shopping? Mm… Okay.” (YJ) He couldn’t really think of anything else to do, but at least doing some grocery shopping would be productive at the very least. Plus, it would be helpful to increase his knowledge on what kinds of foods Young Jae liked and didn’t like. It wouldn’t exactly be the greatest thing in the world if he cooked something that Young Jae disliked.
Once the two had gotten ready for the weather, they stepped out of the house before making their way to the town car. Young Jae wanted to take the limousine, but Daehyun said that he wanted to drive for a bit. They would’ve taken Daehyun’s truck, but it was currently raining and the groceries would’ve ended up getting wet in the back.
“It’s been raining a lot lately. March weather is pretty scary sometimes.” (DH)
“Yeah… I guess so.” (YJ) As they drove, any sort of conversational topic that could have been there just didn’t seem to want to make itself known to the two. They drove in silence, unable to think of what to say to the other. Young Jae would glance over at Daehyun every now and then; examining Daehyun’s features a little closer. He could see the bags under Daehyun’s eyes, displaying the lack of sleep that Daehyun was having. Sure, he was getting better as the day progressed, but who knows what was currently going on through Daehyun’s head. “Do you… really want to become a doctor?” (YJ)
“Hm?” (DH) Daehyun briefly glanced at Young Jae before replaying the words in his head. “Yeah, I do. It’s been my goal for a while now. I mean, being able to save people… I could have become a fire fighter, a police officer, maybe even a secret agent! Man… that would’ve been exciting, but… I want to help people recover from their injuries, just like the doctors who tried to save my parents…” (DH)
Daehyun paused for a moment before letting out a heavy sigh. Young Jae frowned as he looked at Daehyun. Reaching forward, Young Jae hesitated for a moment before putting his hand on Daehyun’s shoulder. Daehyun looked down at Young Jae’s hand before flashing a small smile to Young Jae. “But yeah… I want to become a doctor so much. No matter how long it takes, I will become a doctor.” (DH)
Words may have been able to form, but they weren’t able to form sentences that made any sense. So, instead, Young Jae remained silent as he gave Daehyun’s shoulder a comforting squeeze. A party probably wouldn’t be appropriate to hold at the moment, but maybe it would be alright if they had a little hangout with their friends. It might be able to take Daehyun’s mind off of things, plus… it was the only thing that he could think of.
Maybe a surprise hangout would be a good idea.
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“Hyunki. Is there any news of them yet?” (HB)
“No ma’am.” (HK) Hanbi leaned back in her seat as she put a finger to her chin. Her people were usually reliable when it comes to gathering information, especially on a missing person. The fact that they couldn’t find any bit of information with not just one, but five men, was a bit disconcerting.
“I see… That is all.” (HB) Hyunki bowed before making his way back into the house. Once she was alone, Hanbi let out a small sigh before adjusting her shawl a bit. Despite the fact that it was raining, Hanbi still enjoyed sitting outside whenever she can. It helped that there was at least a roof for her to sit under and the screen in front of her kept her from getting wet, especially with the distance made between her and the screen.
Either way, the rain was at least soothing to listen to. Her thoughts weren’t jumbled, but without the information necessary to find those boys, there was just simply no way for her to make her next move. So… all she could do was wait and see if her informants could find anything on those boys.
The sound of the door opening quickly drew Hanbi’s attention. Turning towards the door, she could see Hyunki entering the area once more. This time, however, it seemed like he actually had something this to inform her on just based on his facial expression. With an anxious look on her face, Hanbi sat up as she waited for Hyunki to stand by her side once more. “Ma’am… We have images from a security camera from a grocery market the date of the disappearance.” (HK)
Pulling out a manila folder from his jacket, Hyunki set it neatly on the table in front of Hanbi before opening it up. Leaning forward, Hanbi took a moment to look at the people within the picture. It took her a moment to recognize them, but with the help of the pictures of each of the boys on the left side, she was able to mix and match faces with no problem. Of course… the one face that she definitely recognized in an instant brought out a gasp from her.
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“I can do this… I can do this… I have to do this…” (V) Taehyung kept talking to himself, trying to reassure himself over and over again that everything would be okay. They were still there and hopefully, they were alright. Today was his day off, so it was the best time to go and get his friends. Since he hadn’t checked up on them for the past week, most likely, they won’t have much food left.
Would it be safe to go though? He had been missing for a whole week then suddenly, he shows up? Did they even know what was happening? Taehyung didn’t know if he was going to be able to even convince them to come with him to a different location, but he had to try. Yes, they were missing school, but he had already convinced the school to excuse the boys while they were ‘missing’. Of course, he had also managed to come up with an alternative for them. Online courses were still plausible and being able to attend class online is still a thing. With the new place that they were all going to, Taehyung was certain that they’d be able to live a safe and easier life there.
Bringing his car to a stop, Taehyung let out a heavy sigh as he stared at the cellar doors. The lock wasn’t on the outside, so he would have to knock and hope that Jin could open the doors. But… what if Jin doesn’t let him in? What if someone else answers his knock? What was he supposed to say?
He had to think about all of this later. For now, he had to bring his friends safely to the other area without being seen. Since this was a spare car that he rarely ever used, there shouldn’t be any sort of trackers on it in case Kyungsoo decided to become paranoid. If he could just get everything done quickly, then get himself back home all by today, then there wouldn’t be any problems.
Summoning up his courage, Taehyung stepped out of his car before running over to the cellar doors. As he attempted to swallow the lump in his throat, Taehyung began banging on the cellar doors in hopes that someone would hear him. “HEEYYY! Let me in!” (V)
Due to the rain, he couldn’t really hear if anything was happening on the inside. For all he knew, his friends could be all dead and it would’ve been entirely his fault. However, he soon saw and heard the cellar doors being pushed open, only to be prevented from doing so due to the lock from the inside. He could hear muffled words from inside, but it was hard to make out what was being said.
He waited for about ten, maybe fifteen minutes before finally, he heard movement once more. Why they waited so long, Taehyung didn’t know, but he was glad that they were finally opening the door. Had it not been for the rain poncho he was currently wearing, he probably would’ve been soaked to the bone. Of course… he wished the poncho had been long enough to cover the lower half of his legs as well, but he could ignore his soggy socks for now.
As the cellar doors began opening, he smiled and was about to greet his friends, but he was abruptly cut off the second arms pulled him inside. The doors were then immediately shut as these same arms dragged Taehyung into the living room. Taehyung looked around in confusion, but he was soon pushed into the couch before surrounded by the people within. Looking up with a surprised look on his face, he could see the faces of his friends staring back at him. “Uh…” (V)
“Don’t you UH us! Where the hell have you been? You locked us up in here to keep us safe?! What are you protecting us from?! It’s Kyungsoo, right?! You’re working for him after all!” (Z)
“Uh…” (V)
“You really just want to see us suffer, right?! Yo-” (Z)
“Shush. Let him explain.” (K) Zelo mumbled to himself and folded his arms as he looked away a bit. Once eyes were back on him, Taehyung’s eyes only seemed to grow larger as he held his breath. What was he supposed to say that would keep him from getting the crap beaten out of him? What was he supposed to say to convince his friends to believe his intentions? It was difficult, but one way or another, Taehyung had to say something.
“W-… Well… you see…” (V)
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The car slowed to a stop before the gear shifted into park. Once the key in the ignition was turned to shut the car off, Daehyun sat back in his seat before letting out a small sigh. It took him a moment or so to realize that Young Jae was still sitting next to him, forcing him to quickly sit up and form a small smile on his face as he looked at Young Jae. “Ready?” (DH)
“Are you?” (YJ) Daehyun nodded before taking hold of the umbrella and stepping outside. Making his way around the car, Daehyun made certain that the umbrella was protecting the car door from the rain before opening it. Young Jae looked up at Daehyun with a bit of surprise before smiling and stepping out of the car. “Thank you, but you didn’t have to do this.” (YJ)
“Well… we do only have one umbrella. Plus… I want to protect you, even if the rain is harmless.” (DH) Closing the car door, Daehyun turned towards the grocery store before wrapping his arm around Young Jae’s waist and leading him towards the building. Young Jae couldn’t help but turn a little red from how close they were, but he kept a strong look on his face for the remainder of the walk.
Once they were under a roof of sorts, Daehyun closed the umbrella and shook it a few times before wrapping it up and putting it within its sheath. Taking a hold of the driest cart there, Daehyun placed the umbrella inside before the two made their way into the building. “So, what do you feel like eating today?” (DH)
“Hm… Chicken cordon bleu?” (YJ)
“A… what?” (DH)
“I… uh… It’s… You know what? I’ll ask the chef for the recipe. I know what we need though… I think…” (YJ) Daehyun smiled a bit as he nodded. It sounded interesting, so he was willing to learn how to cook it if that’s what Young Jae wanted. If anything, this just means that he’s expanding his list of recipes. Who knows? Maybe becoming a chef might become an option if he couldn’t become a doctor. Then again… he technically already worked as a chef, so that option’s already been used.
As they walked through the store, Young Jae listed off what they needed while Daehyun made certain to select the best of each ingredient. Just as they began to pass the pastries in the fridges, Young Jae noticed Daehyun hungrily eyeing each and every pastry they passed. As he watched Daehyun’s reactions, he noticed that Daehyun’s gaze lingered a little longer on the cheesecakes. Raising a single brow, Young Jae paused for a moment before walking up to the fridge. Opening it up, Young Jae took two boxes of cheesecakes before looking at Daehyun, whom had a surprised look on his face. “I… wanted some cheesecake.” (YJ)
“Really…? Can I have some?” (DH)
“Nope. It’s all mine.” (YJ) Young Jae made his way over to Daehyun and was about to place the boxes of cheesecake into the cart, but Daehyun somehow managed to sidestep to block Young Jae’s way. Young Jae looked at Daehyun with a surprised look at first, but he soon raised a single brow as he tightened his hold on the boxes. “What?” (YJ)
“I can’t have some?” (DH) Daehyun’s eyes practically said it all. Despite how calm Daehyun seemed to be, it was clear that he was determined to get some cheesecake. Sure, he could have bought his own cheesecake, but it seemed like Daehyun wanted his specifically. Should he be worried about that? Probably not, but maybe he could have a little fun with it.
“Um… No.” (YJ)
“… Not even a little bit?” (DH) Young Jae shook his head before taking a step to the side to place the cheesecakes into the cart. However, to his surprise, Daehyun was much more persistent than he had anticipated as Daehyun soon blocked his way once more. Looking up at Daehyun, Young Jae noticed that Daehyun’s look had yet to change despite being told no three or four times already. “… Cant I take just a small, tiny bite?” (DH)
“Uh…” (YJ) Young Jae really didn’t know how to respond at this point. He could’ve just said no, but for some reason, Daehyun’s rather powerful eyes were keeping him from doing so. He didn’t know whether he was afraid or attracted by Daehyun’s eyes, but one way or another, Daehyun seemed to finally smile before taking hold of the cheesecake boxes and setting them carefully into the cart himself.
“I’ll take that as a yes! What else do we need?” (DH) As Daehyun began walking, Young Jae couldn’t help but stare at Daehyun with his mouth slightly agape. How was he supposed to react to that? How did Daehyun even manage to get him not to say no? It was odd, but Young Jae quickly snapped himself out of it before quickly catching up to Daehyun.
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As he drove, Taehyung looked up at the rearview mirror from time to time to look at everyone’s facial expressions. They didn’t seem all that happy, but none of them seemed to voice their concerns about it. He had explained everything to them and despite the hesitation that they each clearly held; they still seemed to trust him. Taehyung was grateful that they believed him, which only seemed to fill him with greater determination.
Hours passed before finally, they came to a stop.
“We’re here…” (V)
“Where are we?” (BH) Taehyung stepped out of the car, ignoring Baekhyun’s question for the time being. He smiled a bit as he placed his hands on his hips, looking up at the building with a grin. Taehyung had managed to buy this house under an alias, which meant that this place was most definitely safe enough for his friends. With it being far from the city, there was little to no worry about Kyungsoo ever finding out about this place.
“Woow… It’s by a cliff by the ocean! Is this where we’re staying?” (JI) Taehyung looked at Jin before nodding. The second Jin’s grin showed, Taehyung turned his attention back towards the house before he made his way up to the porch. As he made his way up the steps, Taehyung felt someone uncomfortably close to him. Turning his head towards his right, Taehyung raised a single brow as he questioned Jin’s lack of space. “So, is the house furnished?” (JI)
“Yes…? There’s furniture and food inside. There are also clothes in each room, so you guys will have to sort that out. I’ve also made certain that there are laptops, login information, and your other information is left in each of your rooms. You will have Internet access, television, video games, and there’s a car in the garage. HOWEVER, you can’t leave this town, alright?” (V) Jin nodded before swiping the key from Taehyung’s hand and unlocking the front door himself. Taehyung shook his head as he let out a small sigh, but he decided not to say anything as he followed Jin inside.
“Wooow… It’s better than my apartment! How’d you get this place?” (JI) Jin turned towards Taehyung, whom merely smirked as he walked past him. Jin couldn’t help but smile a bit, slowly wiping his bottom lip with his thumb as he stared at Taehyung’s backside. There was just something about him that made Taehyung very… attra-
“Hey! Where are our rooms at?” (Z) Taehyung turned around to see the remaining four filing into the house. Judging by the looks on their faces, it was evident that they were tired. Most likely, they probably wanted to head to bed before looking around the house, which is probably both weird and understandable.
“Upstairs.” (V) Without another word, Zelo made his way upstairs, pulling Jongup along just to keep an eye on him. Jongin seemed to take a small look around before nodding to the others and following after Zelo and Jongup. Once it was just Baekhyun, Taehyung, and Jin left, the three had gone around the bottom floor separately before somehow managing to collect around in the kitchen. They stood there awkwardly for a moment before Jin finally decided to break the silence.
“Soo… This place is stocked with food, right?” (JI)
“Yeah. You can check for yourself.” (V) Jin nodded, though he didn’t do as Taehyung suggested. Baekhyun rubbed his arm, feeling a bit awkward just standing there. He didn’t know what to say and it was clear that neither did the other two. Baekhyun wanted to get more information, but he doubted that Taehyung was hiding anything else at this point. So… maybe it would be alright just to leave it as it is.
“I… uh… will go to bed. Night.” (BH)
“Night.” (JI & V) Once Baekhyun was gone, Jin and Taehyung were left alone. They stood in silence, though unlike Taehyung, Jin was waiting for Baekhyun’s footsteps to quiet down before making a move. Step after step, creak after creak, once Jin heard the sound of a door opening then closing, Jin placed his hands in his pockets and smiled slightly as he began walking up to Taehyung. Taehyung stared at Jin in slight confusion as he looked around in an attempt to look for whatever it was that Jin was walking towards.
“Hey… uh… I have a question for you.” (JI)
“… What is it?” (V) Coming to a stop a slightly comfortable distance away from Taehyung, Jin held his smile as he stared at Taehyung. Taehyung was starting to feel a bit uncomfortable, feeling as though Jin was planning something that he definitely wouldn’t like. However, Jin’s next question completely threw him off guard.
“Are you interested in men?” (JI) Taehyung scratched the side of his head as he looked away, not really certain how to answer that. He never really thought about it, but then again, the kind of job he was in just wasn’t the kind of job that really allowed him to date.
“I… don’t know…?” (V)
“Then… would you date me if I asked?” (JI) Taehyung’s eyes widened as his mouth hung there a bit. How was he supposed to respond to that?! He just said that he didn’t know if he would be interested in men, so why would he know if he would be okay with dating Jin?!
“Uh…” (V)
“I’ll let you think about it! Good night!” (JI) Without waiting for a response, Jin quickly his heels before fleeing from the kitchen as quickly as possible without running. Taehyung could only stare with disbelief as he took a few steps back before leaning against the counter. Placing his hands on the edge of the counter, he squeezed it for a bit as he used that to keep himself from completely sliding to the floor.
“D-… Dating… Jin?! How… why?! What...?!” (V) Taehyung couldn’t help but slap his forehead as he leaned his head back. How did this go from a dangerous situation to somehow finding someone who wants to date him?! He couldn’t help but find himself completely dumbfounded by the entire situation, but there wasn’t anything he could do about it. All he could do was tell Jin that he simply wasn’t interested in dating him.
Or… was he?
No, no! There was no way that he would ever be interested in the most talkative and annoying person in the group! Of course… Jin had believed him with little to no questions. He could’ve been lying and setting everyone up, but Jin just went along with it. So… could it be possible that he liked him?
Of course not! There was no way that he would ever like someone like him! In fact, why should he be interested in men? If anything, he should be focused on looking for a girlfriend. Wait, that wasn’t even anywhere near his main objective! All of this thinking can be held off until AFTER this problem has been sorted out.
With a sigh, Taehyung shook his head as he made his way over to the front door. Pulling out his keys, Taehyung stepped outside and made certain to lock the door before making his way to his car. He needed to head back before it becomes evident that he wasn’t home. As long as Kyungsoo was distracted, then he shouldn’t have to worry about getting caught.
Of course… Taehyung couldn’t help but think about Jin’s question once more.
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[[ My Own Thoughts:
Weeelll…
Seems like DaeJae aren’t the only ones sorting things out.
Does it feel forced?
I hope not.
I was planning to have Jin and Taehyung sorta… start something.
I just didn’t know how best to do it?
Especially with the things that I have planned… hehehe…
Anywho!
I hope everyone’s enjoying the fanfic thus far.
Comments are loved!
I love talking with everyone.
Plus, it is nice to know how I’m doing with each chapter. ]]
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