“How’s your kid doing?”

“Fine. How ‘bout you mind your own business Hwang.”

“Distract me then.”

I knew this was leading up to something. No matter how much my answers signified that I was not in the mood to be toyed with, there he was, toying with me. . That came out wrong. Chansung and I were in the business of… protection. “Close protection officers”, if you’re feeling euphemistic. But bodyguards basically. I took care of this new-to-the-scene actress. She was petite, very small, very frail and very expensive. You know, the type actually worth protecting. Chansung on the other hand had this… idiot. He was unpredictable, permanently high on something and all around just not worth it. I knew he was involved with the more unsavory types in the industry and at the rate he’d been racking up scandals in the dark, sooner or later the pile would tip over and a few would come to life, like that Oh Young character.  The only difference between the two was one would still be alive in the end and one would die, hypothetically of course. But then again, that’s why Chan liked him so much, because he was “a challenge”. 

“Junho?”

“What.”

“You were talking to yourself.”

“Why do you like him so much?”

“Who? Wooyoung?”

“He who shall not be named.”

“Why do you hate him so much?”

“Because… “

“Because?”

“Because he’s stupid.”

“Childish. Even if he is. He’s the one paying me, indirectly, but paying me nonetheless, just so I can take you on a date one day.”

“Yuh huh.”

Our coffee was set down on the table in front of us, an overpowering, yet still delicious, dark roast for me and a blonde roast drowned in sugar, cinnamon and half&half for Chan.

“That’s not coffee.”

“Mm? I drink it because it reminds me of you. Warm. White. Creamy. With a hint of spice.”

“You’re literally disgusting.” I mumbled under my breath as he obscenely his lips, biting down on his lower one, knowing very well that my eyes would follow his every move.

“I think you’re the disgusting one. I was definitely talking about your skin, especially the skin on your inner thighs. I bet it would be so, so easy to have a mile of goose bumps decorating the most sensitive part o- I’m sorry you must feel uncomfortable.”

“Like hell I am.”

His response was to laugh and reach across the table to ruffle my hair but I flinched out of the way and he withdrew his hand.

“Notouchie.”

“Yestouchie.”

“Your hair is new. Always teasing the company regulations, are we?”

I had a perfect snarky response planned but Minjun came in with a grand bravado, swinging out a chair from a table and sitting on it backwards so that his chin rested on the back of the chair while he smiled up at us.

“Chansung ually harassing you isn't he?”

“As per usual.”

A waitress came over to scold Jun for stealing a chair but once he flashed her a pair of puppy dog eyes she was put in a flurry of trying to take his order. He winked and mouthed thank you and she mumbled something about a cappuccino. He was good.

“So remember when you guys said that the likeliness of me getting laid after getting my level 7 high security official job was very very low?”

“Yes.” We replied in unison.

“Well. I just slept with my client.”

Chansung’s head hit the table with a thud, slightly spilling both our drinks and worrying the waitress who came to give Minjun his own coffee.

“Jesus Christ, Kim Minjun. Are you an idiot?”

“Taecyeon is going to rip you to shreds.”

“He already has but he didn’t take my folder so… I’m good.”

“Chansung, I’m so sorry. You’re not disgusting. It seems your good friend Jun has stolen the tile from you.”

“Apology accepted Nuneo.”

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“Chiyoung. Stay in my sight and away from Wooyoung. Make sure I can see you at all times.”

“Okay. Okay. Okay, oppa. Can I go now?”

“Yes. Don’t take drinks from strangers!” but she had already run off to go dance with her friends.

 I hate parties. No. I hate parties where I have to work. The only reason we were here was because she had begged to come. “Oppa~ It’s a new club and all my friends will be there. I’ll be careful.” Now my charge was in the midst of a crowd while a roaring (read: hormone driven) lion was roaming about. Perfect. After Oh Young’s scandal had ripped through the industry I was wary of anything and anyone hat seemed like even the slightest threat. Nickhun had been the girl’s guard the night of the incident and Taec had torn into him as if he hadn’t eaten for days. He’d broken the curfew rule to his detriment. He was supposed to get her back before 10. Fired. Last time we saw him he was working in a police station with a desk job. In our world that was like going from head chef to pot washer. That wouldn’t be me. Not this time anyway. No way I was going to let some that put out his cigarette in his own birthday cake put his hands on my responsibility.

A pair of hands settled on my waist, their owner moving my hips in time with the music.

“Are you keeping an eye on your walking tsunami?”

“Why a tsunami?”

“It’s pretty big and impressive until it all comes crashing down.”

“So dramatic.”

“But you like it so much.”

“I do.”

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Chansung. What’re you doing?”

“Getting us out of here.”

“I can’t leave. Chiyoung.”

“She’ll be fine. You know a group of girls like that at a party is impenetrable.”

He was pulling on my hand now, pulling me out into the cold, warm palms rubbing my arms to keep me warm.

“My place or yours?” I mumbled, so close to his lips he’d have to take in a deep breath to actually hear me.

“Who’s closer?’

“I am.”

“Your place it is. Did you ever replace that vase?”

“What, so that you can have the satisfaction of breaking it again?”

“Makes everything more dramatic.”

First time for this, first time for that but not the first time I’ve ever let Chan take me home, although this time it was a mistake. Every time you think you’ve got a pattern laid out it gets ed up, doesn’t it? And I forgot. I totally forgot that maybe I should’ve stayed longer and watched Chiyoung leave the party on Wooyoung’s arm so that none of this would have happened. I could’ve prevented the entire problem.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I woke up to the sound of my security system, screaming wildly, waking me but not Chansung, who I had to untangle myself from just to get out of bed.

“I’ve got to get this thing fixed.”

The slight limp was my fault for not telling Chan to cool his jets earlier in the evening but would be gone in a few hours. Hopefully. Fingers crossed.

What I expected was to go into the living room and turn it off before returning to my bed and possibly waking up my personal heater so I could snuggle under his arm like a child. What I didn’t expect was a silently sobbing Chiyoung to be dragging in an unconscious Wooyoung while the fingers of her other hand slid across the dial pad on the alarm, crimson liquid making it very difficult, both of them in blood stained clothes. Wooyoung’s white shirt and the white dress I had zipped her into before we left for the evening.

“I don’t know if he’s dead or not. I- I don’t know if he’s breathing… My nails… Blood under them… I can’t check. A lot of blood. They beat him I… I used the key you gave me. The alarm. It’s so loud.”

“Shush. Shush.” I took the dead weight from her hands and dragged him into the kitchen, hefting his body up onto the counter. Stay here. I’ll get first aid. Actually go sit on the couch. I’ll be back.”

I stormed, marched, somethinged into my bedroom, ripping the sheets off of Chansung’s form. It wasn’t as satisfying seeing as he wasn’t , a pair of sweatpants now adorning his extremely long legs. Anyway.

“Jesus Junho. It’s ing freezing.”

“Wake up. Wake the up. You ing idiot. I told you to keep an eye on your walking disaster.  So why is he on the island in my kitchen bleeding out?” I threw the first aid kit at his chest. “Fix it.”

Chansung just stared up at me, like I was crazy.

“I said fix it!”

 I took Chi’s phone from her hand and pushed her hair from her face.

“Who’re you texting, love?”

“Home. I want to go home.”

Traumatized. Of course. 

I ended up leaning back against the fridge, arms crossed and watching Chansung fumble foolishly with a roll of gauze around Wooyoung’s midsection. Not the way to help that kind of wound but I wasn’t about to stop it. I’d put Chi to bed, more or less, her eyes had been wide open but she was finally breathing normally, curled up in fetal position on my bed in a clean t-shirt.

What we didn’t know was that Wooyoung had developed a habit. But the thing with his habit was that he was bad at it. Kept missing his vein and, this is how he explained it, had to buy more and more and borrow and borrow and lie and lie and steal and steal until he got himself into the situation that he was in now. Half dead while Chansung did a rough job of patching it up.

“You ed up.”

“I ed up.”

“Walking tsunami.”

“Stop calling him that!” Chan spun on me, breath fanning across my face in a no too unpleasant way.

“He tries. It’s not his fault. He’s good. I swear he is. Just a little ed up. Every ing time you say like that, it puts these… these doubts in my head and I hate it! I ing hate it.”

I was holding my breath.

“Put more pressure on the wound. I’m going to bed.”

“Sleep tight.”

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“Chansung, you’re an idiot. Junho, you are also an idiot. Both of you are idiots.” Taecyeon picked up a random file off his desk and I braced myself knowing he would slam it down. Which he did, but then the folder exploded everywhere. “.” He scrambled around trying to get all the papers back into the file folder while still reprimanding us.

“Listen. Both of you. You’re our best so I’m not gong to suspend your contracts. Thank your lucky stars because that was my first choice.”

In his haste to get that last of what looked like confidential documents he spilled his coffee on the left side of his desk and on the papers that were still left on the floor. At that he promptly stood straight up and stared dead at us both. “Anyway. Because I’m awesome and can do whatever I want you two will be switching clients for the rest of the month. They’re working on the same film anyway.” The month had literally just started. He knew exactly what he was doing. 

“What? You can’t just- I- What?”

“Okay. Out.”

“But-“

“No buts. Out.”

As we were leaving, Taec stuck his head out of his office and smiled sheepishly at his secretary, who simply rolled his eyes and called for a janitor.

“Is it a bad mess?”

”A level 7. My mug broke and I may or may not have spilled it on some very important papers…” Eli looked as if he wanted to fondly break his boss’s nose.

“Jesus. We just bought you a new one. And those were copies anyway. I don’t trust you.

Not that I heard any of that conversation anyway because my baby was going to be in the hands of the Korean Ethan Hunt for a whole month while I was stuck with the mobile disaster that was Jang Wooyoung. Shoot me.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“He’s really good to me you know?”

“What?”

“Chansung. When I was sick once he spent the night.” My eye twitched.

“Well that’s nice of him.” The last time I was sick he laughed at the sound of my voice over the phone and hung up.

“You don’t like me.”

“Never said that.” I sighed very audibly and looked to the side where Chansung was standing beside a much better Chiyoung. She saw me watching and waved, her had moving wildly in the air. I couldn’t help but smile and give her a small wave in return

 “No, listen. It’s okay. I know you don’t. Chansung tells me all the time. Only ‘cause I ask.”

“I don’t know why he would do something like that.”

“I think he’s my best friend. At least on my end. It’s probably one-sided you know?”

“Yea, quite heartwarming.”

He nodded with a twisted sort of smile and walked away to film. I felt Chansung’s presence coming closer and started walking away.

”Junho. Wait!”

“Leave me alone. Go irritate Fei or something.”

“No, no. I want to talk to you.”

“Then talk.

“I’m sorry. You’re usually right you know.”

“I know.”

“It’s just that. I didn’t mean. And Woo’s really sorry.”

“He’s kind of cute, I’ll admit. Says you’re his best friend.”

“Did he really?” I nodded and glanced over at the set, looking away quickly when I realized it was a kissing scene. I had no idea where his hands had been and they were all up on her hips like he knew what he was doing.  And the man-made rain water was not of any assistance in setting the mood.

“Did you ever find out if they…?”

“What? Oh yea. Sorry.”

“I’m going to kill you. You let him defile my baby.”

“I said sorry. She's a grown woman.”

“Bull.”

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Chansung watched me as I picked through my take out.

“So, it’s been a month.”

“And?” His eyes followed a rice noodle into my mouth.

“He’s alright.”

“Just alright?”

“You should’ve let me pay for the coffee.”

“Back the off Wooyoung.”

“You never let me do anything for you.”

“Because you can’t do anything for yourself.”

“I can! I made it here on my own.”

“Did you really? I know everything about you. I know the name of every single person you’ve slept with.” I glanced over at him, blonde hair on the fritz even as he tried to tame it.

“And? That’s like mandatory.”

“Mandatory for you? You don’t have to sell yourself to get what you really want. If you want it enough you’ll get around yourself out.”

“You d-don’t get it do you? You’re so closed off, close-minded, really.You know, like, like when people say that your body is a temple? You know know that saying right?”

Wooyoung’s withdrawal had ripped through him like a summer storm and his tick  had this habit of showing up whenever he got worked up, leading to his words sounding like they were coming from a nervous 3 year old.

“Yea. I know the saying.” He took the coffee from my hand and sipped it as if it would help.”

“W-Well. It’s kind of the s-same except my kind? Our bodies are brothels.”

“Clever.”

“That’s what Chan said!”

“He’s tolerable.”

“Tolerable.”

“Get me fishcakes~”

“You’re supposed to be on a strict diet, no.”

“Please please please~” He started doing this thing where he’d knead my upper arm with his hands, his eyes deep and hopeless as if he would just die if I didn’t do what he wanted.

“Alright fine. Two. But when your shirtless scene comes around and you'renursing a food baby I don't want to hear it.”

“Three and I’ll wash your hair for you.”

“Damn you and your nimble fingers.”

Walking outside I ran into Chan who was on his way to the street vendor too.

“You really shouldn’t give in so easily.”

“His eyes. How can I say no?”

“Easy. No.”

“Shove it.”

“I like him.”

“Are you going to leave me for him?”

“Maybe.”

“Junho!”

“No you sasquatch.  I like you more.”

“More like you love me more.”

“Mm.”

“So…. That tsunami…”

“He’s like a little puddle now… A cute puddle.”