In which money basically control everyone

Narrowed eyes glanced around, as he pushed himself back to lean against the cold wet wall. The winter was just around the corner and the humidity was at its highest, making everything appear wet even if the rain had stopped for a short while. The cold made his breath come out like mist even when he was not releasing cigarette smoke, his fingers clenched into fists in his old jacket’s pockets.

“Hey, you! How much do you want?”

His eyes looked up, a narrow stare piercing the man standing in front of him before a knowing smirk slowly slid across his face—a little too promising.

“Just answer me already!” The frustrated man hissed and Jongin took too much pleasure in torturing him with no answer. The man had been trying to pull a sound from him for a couple minutes already but, instead of answering, Jongin had lit a cigarette. “Seriously!”

“Depends.” Jongin mussed, his eyes glancing at the other under heavy eyelids. “What do you want me for?”

The man clicked his tongue, looking away and then back at him, hand flying out to grab the hair at the top of Jongin’s head. “You know what.” The man his dry lips, eyeing him up and down. “How much?”

Jongin was used to such a stare and he only blew some cigarette smoke in the man’s face, a smirk playing on his lips. “How much do you have?”

**

If one asked where Jongin got the confidence from, he would say he’d had it since birth. If one asked when Jongin was born, he would say he had forgotten.

It had been a long time since he had grown up, kicked into the adult world a little too suddenly and a little too harshly. His face was pushed into a world he had no idea of, shoved inside a hallway only to have the door locked behind him when he tried to escape. He could keep hitting with his fist on the shut door, asking to be taken back, back to his ignorant, innocent years of his life, as few as they were. Or he could just turn and face the hallway, filled with doors which were all too rusty and probably creaked due to the use.

He preferred to face the truth and start walking down the hallway which seemed that had been walked on countless times already, searching for the end which seemed to never come.

Hoping that everything would come to a final line.

**

He peaked over his shoulder, jogging slightly ahead, eyes searching for a car that he had asked to look for. The black Mercedes, the expensive piece of luxury he barely even dreamed of when he was asleep—that was what his eyes tried to find.

His feet came to a halt when he caught the sight of the car’s shiny reflection down the street, wondering why on Earth it had been so damn far. He broke into a light jog, half-wanting to reach there faster so he could leave sooner and half-hoping that his body would stop trembling under the bone-piercing cold.

Once closer, he noted how the windows were too tinted and he couldn’t even make out if there was some kind of light on the other side. Either way, he grabbed the handle of the back, pulling the door open and sliding in quickly. Sudden warmth surrounded him. He glanced at the man sitting on the other end of the backseats—freaking beige leather seats—and he eyed him with a smirk playing on his lips.

The blonde’s eyes kept staring on him, a stare so strong that Jongin could feel the slightest self-conscious. “Shall we go somewhere private?”

Jongin nodded his head, his body leaning back and making himself comfortable. It felt like it would be a long ride and when he was offered a glass of some questioning liquid he guessed to be some kind of alcohol, Jongin didn’t even hesitate before taking it and gulping it as if it was some sort of drug he was craving for.

Maybe it had the same effect on him.

**

If one asked Jongin when he had lost track of time, he would not be able to answer. Everything seemed like a blur passing him by and leaving him behind, lost and alone to find the right way again.

Problem was, Jongin didn’t even know what was considered right anymore.

**

When his eyelids parted open, he found himself snuggled in a huge comfortable bed and he couldn’t even believe that he had stayed overnight. The room was unknown to him yet at the same time, some places were all too familiar to him. For example that part of the wall next to the door, that armchair placed in the far corner, that dark wood dresser with the huge mirror above. And of course, the bed he lay in.

But he couldn’t find it in himself to jump off it just yet and he figured that it must have been the reason why he was still there at the breaking of the new day. He kept stiff, silently feeling his spine being swallowed deep into the mattress until he heard heavy steps on wooden floor. Raising his head just the slightest to gaze at the sound, he found the same blonde from the previous night in suit pants and an ed shirt that hung loosely on him as he walked out of the bathroom the room was attached to.

“You seem pretty comfortable there,” the man voiced with a hint of amusement and Jongin resented it just the slightest—because the blonde man had a very soft and beautiful voice. And it turned him on.

“Maybe I’m planning to sleep some more,” Jongin purred lightly, stirring his body under the thin sheet, the warmth of the room too high that it made him a little sleepier.

“Get your pretty out of there. I need to leave soon and so need you.”

“Should I feel fluttered you find my pretty?” Jongin asked and the man glared at him. “Fine,” he muttered, moving to sit up. His body was still a little too sore from the adventures of the previous night. He had honestly lost track of counting the rounds.

“Money’s on the coffee table.”

“I know,” Jongin hissed lowly, pushing and pulling his clothes on him as soon as he gathered them from the floor. He watched from the corner of his eye as the blonde moved for the dresser, long thin fingers buttoning his shirt easily. Jongin pulled his worn leather jacket over himself, moving closer to the blonde and wrapping an arm around the elder’s waist, placing his lips close to his ear and lightly blowing air on it.

The man only turned to glare at him, pulling away from the feeling of his breath before he placed a hand over the sensitive spot. “Jongin, get lost.”

Jongin faked a pout and his eyes followed his fingers as they made their way up the man’s buttoned shirt. “It’s kind of frustrating that you bring me to motels every time.” He said lowly, feeling the elder ready to retort. “It’s not that I hate it, but I would like to take a look at your home, you know?”

“I am in a relationship,” the blonde stated and Jongin rolled his eyes.

That’s why I’m the one you ? was right at the tip of his tongue but he swallowed it down, knowing that it would only anger the other because, in fact, he was right and no one ever liked having the truth pointed out at them when they already knew it. “Fine, whatever,” he muttered instead, leaning down and claiming those lips that had touched every patch of his skin the previous night. He could feel the blonde’s hands grab onto his clothes and he smirked into the kiss, moving his body closer to the slightly shorter one.

He was about to deepen the kiss some more when the blonde pulled back, his eyes staring at him and jaw tightening. “Get lost before I change my mind.”

“I don’t mind,” Jongin replied lowly, almost seductively. But the blonde didn’t faze; his hands still pushed against his chest.

“Money’s on the coffee table.”

Huffing, Jongin accepted the defeat, heading out of the door and towards the pack of money the blonde owed him. Pushing it in the inside of his jacket, he stepped into his shoes and turned back in the direction of the corridor, shouting “See you next time, Joonmyun.”

“Mister! It’s Mister Joonmyun for you!”

But the door was already closed and the smirk on Jongin’s face only proved the fact that he loved to annoy the other.

**

Countless mornings would come and he would wonder where he was, what he did, who he really was.

His identity was long ago lost, buried already and resting somewhere not in this galaxy anymore. Jongin knew as a fact that whatever it had been, it had been a big part of him and now, that spot had been hollow for so long, asked to be filled with whatever, to have something fill the gap which pained him more every passing day.

But he had grown to ignore it. That and a lot of different kinds of pains.

That and his wrecked insides.

**

“Where have you been?”

He wasn’t sure if it was a good or a bad thing that he heard this even before he stepped into his home but, he didn’t have the time to decide either when the blonde only continued talking.

“I was worried sick.”

“You are lying,” Jongin replied nonchalantly and Sehun, his step-brother, nodded in agreement.

“Okay, I don’t give a damn about what you do. But you have never been off till this time. Do you know what time it is?”

“Yes,” Jongin muttered, stepping aside and shoving the other out of the apartment’s door, pushing the younger into the hallway. “Time for school. Get lost.”

“You’re an ,” Sehun snapped, passing one strap of his backpack over his shoulder, walking off since the elder had practically caught him while he exited their apartment.

“Yeah yeah, have fun.” The brunette waved without care, shutting the door and then the lock echoing down the hallway.

“Idiot,” Sehun grumbled with a roll of his eyes as he stepped down the countless stairs.

Inside, the apartment was just what Jongin had left it, give or take some new dirty clothes about the floor. In all seriousness, neither Jongin nor Sehun were actually fans of cleaning and they could just as well pass weeks without doing as much as lifting a smelly sock off the floor. Not even the stench annoyed their senses anymore and the only reason for them to actually clean some of their clothes was when they had nothing else to wear. Otherwise, Jongin was sure they would just rot in their filth.

Jongin stepped over clothes, empty pizza and fried chicken boxes, empty cans of beers, bottles of different kinds of alcohol and stains he wished were not blood or . Honestly, Jongin didn’t even know what Sehun was up to every night while he was out. But he wasn’t that eager to grab and ask the other either. He headed for the shared bedroom, two beds lined on each side of the wall and Jongin plopped face-first into his, growling when the mattress was too hard compared to the one he had woken up in.

Deciding that he could catch up on some of the lost sleep from the previous night, his body jerked at the feel of buzzing. Retrieving his cell phone from his jeans, he pushed the answer button without even looking, bringing it to his ear and waiting for the person calling to talk first.

“Jongin?”

“What?”

“Where the hell are you?” Jongin barely hummed in question. “I’ve been waiting you for an hour already.Get your here or I will tell Baekhyun that you were not with me when he wakes up.”

Eyes now widely open, he cursed under his breath and jumped off the bed, jogging for the door. “I’m on my way, keep your mouth shut.”

“If you don’t come fast enough, I will not reason you.”

“Thanks,” Jongin hissed, voice dripping sarcasm as he hung the call on the other, wishing him to keep quiet.

He rushed down the stairs, stepping out of the apartment building and mentally groaning because, obviously, he was catching on no sleep anytime soon. Waving a taxi over, he jumped in and said the hospital’s address in a rush, going through the pack of money which still was tucked into his jacket. He would have to thank Joonmyun the next time for finally paying him the whole price.

Minutes later, the car came to a stop at the side of the street and Jongin shot out of it after paying the man, running into the fancy building and almost crushing against the receptionist’s counter. “Byun Baekhyun?” he asked and mentally urged the woman to check the name faster.

“Fourth floor, room 417.”

Jongin was already off, the receptionist’s strange look following him until he was around the corner. He pushed the button for the elevator as soon as he was in front of it, staring wildly at the lit number which slowly decreased. Too long. Forgetting about the elevator, he ran for the stairs instead and by the time he reached the fourth floor, he was tired and panting. He made a mental note to exercise more because was not good enough, obviously. He walked the remaining distance, peaking at each door he passed for the number he was told to look for and when he found the door and pushed it open, two pair of eyes met his wrecked form.

“You’re so dead.”

Baekhyun’s voice was hoarse, barely audible from under the oxygen mask he wore over his mouth and nose—Jongin was hopeful it would at least keep him from talking all the time. He was pushed up to sit against the bed’s head, bathed in white sheets and wearing the white hospital gown. His hair were shoveled, his skin too pale and his eyes radiating some sort of exhaustion.

“I heard you begging Luhan too.”

“I’m glad to see you too, Baek.” Jongin smiled and shut the door before walking closer to his two friends—one? “How are you feeling?”

“Good enough to kill you.”

“That’s… good to hear, I guess.”

Baekhyun’s glare did not leave his form while he grabbed a chair and sat down next to Luhan, who plainly stared at him with a knowing smirk on his face.

“You had promised you would be here,” Baekhyun started and Jongin was sure that that mask did nothing against his big talkative mouth. “And you once again broke a promise. I don’t even know what I expected.”

“I was busy last night and forgot,” Jongin hissed, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Busy with what?”

The youngest only pursed his lips, eyes averted and staring on something not that interesting. “Busy with work.”

Luhan snorted, rolling his eyes at him. “You’re an idiot. Even Taehyun had been here with me.”

“See if I care about him,” Jongin hissed again and Baekhyun groaned loudly through the mask.

“Seriously, what’s up with you and that Joonmyun guy? You spend every night with him.”

“It’s not every night.” Jongin glanced at the elder. “Besides, I need to help you out with the hospital, no?”

Baekhyun bit his lip, looking away immediately and Jongin, although knew it was a sensitive subject, he couldn’t hide the truth either when the elder pointed at the same man who practically paid off his surgery fees. “Sorry.” Baekhyun apologized lowly and the silence became only heavier, making both ends of the conversation in an uncomfortable state. Luhan glanced from one to the other and sighed, deciding that none of them would talk so it was pretty much all thrown on him to fix the mood so