Soora's POV

I almost choked on my spit in disbelief. “Are you kidding me? You think I'd join your sick psycho-games? You think I'd kill people for you?”

Sleepy pouted, resting his head on his palm. “I've got enough people who'd do the dirty work. No, I want you to use your connections. It'd be good to have you with us, I'm sure of that. You'd just have to lead us to people of a certain status from time to time. Nobody will know, we'll make sure they keep quiet.” He raised and eyebrow. “What do you say?”

I wanted to decline right away, but stopped myself to contemplate what Sleepy had said. It was an actual opportunity. I could save Junhong's life, I could save myself and protect the ones I love. My gaze softened a bit and I could see how Sleepy thought that he had won. But the price is so high... I'd mislead many innocent people just because they were wealthy. And most importantly, I'd still have to turn Junhong in. Even if they wouldn't kill him.

I caught for breath before speaking up. “Junhong would never forgive me”, I whispered silently, causing Sleepy to his lips. He was close to convincing me, we both knew that.

“He'd understand”, he replied and his voice sounded as if he was actually caring. It would be so easy if I just did as he said... “I had to give up on many things on my way to the top, too. It's natural.” I blinked a few times, finally breaking the hypnotizing eye-contact.

I shook my head a bit. “He wouldn't understand.” If what Sleepy had said before, Junhong would really come here and then he would hate me for what I had agreed to. The reasons wouldn't matter then. I turned my head towards Youngjae who flinched at the sudden eye-contact. “I don't want to be a person like Youngjae.” I was convincing myself by saying these things. Youngjae's eyes begged me to do something, but I didn't know what. Give up? Or say no? I blinked a few times, directing my gaze towards Sleepy again who stood up. “I'm different. I won't kneel in front of you like he does.”

“Then you're foolish”, Sleepy uttered and I shook my head again, this time with more will power.

“I'm young. I still have a lot to do before I throw away my freedom.” I managed to smile and it was a real smile, because I was proud of myself. Sleepy wouldn't break me with nice words and offers. He wouldn't make me give in by just saying nice things and-

“Too bad.”

Suddenly, his fist punched my face and I gasped, needing a few seconds to sort my thoughts and found Sleepy glaring at me, anger to be found in his eyes. “Because you're so young I think you should be taught a lesson like a good student. Leave.” Without even looking, the other gang-members understood and walked out of the room. “V and Suga stay.” Said men stopped and the satisfaction in Suga's eyes made me uncomfortable. It wasn't good that he was allowed to stay. Not at all. Youngjae glanced back at me for a moment before leaving. The other guy, V, was the one who had checked on me when I woke up in this storehouse, the one with brownish hair.

Sleepy placed his left hand under my chin, forcing me to look at him. My ears were ringing and there were a few darker spots in my field of vision. I didn't know how much being punched actually hurt. It was a lot worse than I had imagined it. “You're not going to do as we say?”

I glared at him, tried to stare him down with the last bit of will power I had left. “Never.” I knew what would come and tried to prepare myself this time. Sleepy hauled off and slapped me with all his might, causing my head to flick to the side. The pain in my throbbing cheek was horrible and I hissed while trying not to concentrate on the burning skin too much. It was so painful.

I wanted to keep looking away, but Sleepy grabbed my chin again and I tried to hold back the tears. He won't see me cry. He mustn't see me cry. He landed another hit, his eyebrows raised as another wince escaped my lips. My head was aching and I just couldn't hold back the salty liquid coming from my eyes. I'm weak. So weak, I thought over and over again, preparing for the next punch, but there was none. “V. Untie her. Make sure she doesn't run off.” I wouldn't find the strength to run anyway. I'd probably have run into a wall and collapsed again. The brown-haired male did as he was told, loosening the rope and I could feel the blood run through my hands again. “Stand up, girl.”

I was panting, but I couldn't object. I was afraid of him. V stood at the door now, which was probably my only way out, and I swallowed between two deep breaths. Sleepy didn't give me a chance to calm down. “You should have accepted my offer.” His finger twitched and Suga got the signal, sprinting towards me with that mad grin plastered over his face, pressing me against the containers behind me with his arm against my throat. His face remained only one or two centimeters in front of mine, his big eyes being all I could see as he applied some pressure to his arm.

My eyes widened and I tried to escape somehow, my hands coming up to push him away, but I was too weak. I felt myself run out of breath and thought of Youngjae's words. I know you won't hold back once you start. Suga couldn't kill me, right? Junhong hadn't even been informed yet, they still needed me, right?! Just when the black frame around my field of vision was growing a little bit too big the pressure against my throat lessened and I stumbled a few steps away from the orange-haired guy, careful not to lose my balance by holding onto the chair's back.

But they weren't done yet. Suga grabbed my wrist and pulled it back. Probably a martial arts technique; how many ways to fight did that guy know? It got more painful the further he twisted it and I let out a yelp, falling to the ground as my legs weren't able to support my body anymore. Sleepy stood in front of me, staring me down with cold eyes as his foot crashed against my stomach while Suga held me in place. I was sobbing, letting out a scream as he grabbed me by the hair to pull my head up. I could feel a warm stream of blood coming from my lower lip. “Where's your sassy attitude now, huh, lady?”, he growled with an evil grin, but I couldn't answer. My throat was hurting too much and I barely managed to breathe. “You're disappointing, it's no fun hurting you without anyone begging me to stop.” His palm hit my cheek once more, making me lose my orientation. “Make her sit, that's enough for now.” V ran up to Suga and they tied me to the chair again, the latter sulking a bit.

This was hell. I felt like I was burning. My ears were ringing, making me feel as if I was deaf, and my gaze was clouded as if I was blind.

I could only imagine how terrifying Junhong's life must have been. The way they were, I could finally understand why he hadn't wanted me to interfere; why he hadn't found the courage to tell anyone. It was all useless. Nothing would help. Why do people like them exist? “Go get the little one to watch over her.”

Suga raised an eyebrow again. “You want that kid to actually guard- I mean, sure.” He interrupted himself when he made eye-contact with Sleepy and swallowed.

“It's not like she would actually run away in that condition. Just give that kid something to do apart from his homework.” The two boys obeyed without making another sound and left. My tears kept flowing while Sleepy whipped a phone out of his pocket, dialing some number. “It's time for the fun part”, he grinned and I swallowed, wincing in pain.

It was so silent, I could hear what the person at the other end of the line said, the ringing in my ears slowly fading away. And it wasn't just anyone. It was Junhong's voice I heard. Junhong. I swallowed once more, trying to form words somehow, but it wouldn't work. “What do you want? It's getting late”, he asked and Sleepy grinned.

“Hey there, Junhong. I'm sure you'll be interested in what I've got to tell you.”

Junhong's POV

It took me some time to get to the place Jongup had pointed out on the map, the bus connection was horrible and I had to walk for about fifteen minutes to reach the house that was in the middle of some normal neighborhood. He lives surprisingly modest for some rich guy.

The closer I got to his home, the more nervous I got and the realization sank in. Once I was done talking to Daehyun, I'd have to pack my things and leave. Maybe I'd go to America, try to find my brother. It was a big continent and it would take some time, but at least I'd have something to do. And I wouldn't bother anyone anymore. I felt horrible when I reached the house. The sign above the bell said “Jung” and I remembered that this was Daehyun's last name. I didn't allow myself to hesitate and pressed the button.

A middle-aged woman opened the door and looked up at me with a raised eyebrow. “Yes?”

“I...I've got to talk to D-Daehyun, is he at home right now?” The woman frowned, cocking her head to the side as she examined me carefully.

“I haven't seen you before, why do you know my son? Are you a friend?”

I managed to utter a sad chuckle at that question. He'd murder me for saying this. “Yeah, kind of. So, is he at home?”

The woman – Daehyun's mother it seemed – shook her head before signalizing me to come in. “He's currently walking the dog, but he should be back in a few minutes, he's been out for a long time already. Come in, you can wait for him if you want to.”

It was my chance to leave. Say that it wasn't that important and just leave, but it would be cowardly. Face this like a man and don't run, Junhong. One last time. “That would be great, thanks.” I smiled at her and she grinned back while leading me into a nice living room.

“Daehyun never told me he had a new friend, what's your name?”, she asked curiously and I coughed to gain some time.

I couldn't say 'Zelo', maybe he had said something bad about me. JunJun was too cute and I didn't want to say my full name just yet. “It's Jun. I, uhm, just moved here and we met by coincidence”, explained I after taking a deep breath.

Miss Jung nodded in understanding and smiled at me. “I see. He's always been a good boy, I'm sure he won't mind showing you the city if you ask him.” Many seconds passed, maybe minutes, until she spoke up again. “You're quite tall, aren't you?”

I grinned half-heartedly at that attempt to start a conversation. “I get that a lot.” My heart was beating furiously, praying that Daehyun didn't know about anything concerning my...mistake from Saturday.

Before I could say anything else, the front door opened and a sigh of relief escaped my lips when I heard the sound of a dog running through the corridor. I hurried to get up, bowed to Daehyun's mother and ran up to the front door where a familiar person was just about to come in. He froze when he saw me. “Oh, Daehyun, we've just been talking about you! This young man-”

“I'll talk to him outside, ahjumma, thanks for letting me wait here”, I exclaimed before dragging Daehyun out of the house again, making sure to close the door behind me.

I made it past two more houses until he ripped his wrist out of my grasp. “The are you doing here you bastard?!”, he shouted causing me to turn around with wide eyes. There was wrath in his eyes. Pure and unconcealed wrath. “And you dare to show up at my house?”

I didn't know why he was so angry, but I tried to say what I wanted to say to get this over with. “Daehyun, I have to talk to you about some-”

“You ing kissed Soora!”, he blurted out and I froze again, unable to say anything. He had found out already? “Do I need to remind you that she is my girlfriend?! I should have known. You're nothing but trouble you bastard!” Daehyun's head had run red while shouting and I my lips, wanting to say something, but no words came to my mind when I saw the despair and the anger in his eyes. He was broken. He knew.

I didn't even say anything when his fist sent me to the ground. I just sat there, staring at him while he was panting. “I love her so much and then....”, Daehyun growled silently, doing his best to control himself.

I swallowed and nodded slowly. I kind of felt like I knew how he was feeling. It was the same when I had seen him kiss her a few weeks ago. “So do I.”

“It's only been two months!”, he exclaimed, unable to keep his voice down. “You don't have the right to love her!”

I flinched at what he said and wanted to retort something, but as I thought about it, I found that he was somewhat right. I had said so myself. It was the reason why I'd leave after all. I just didn't deserve her. “I know.” I was surprised at how confident my voice sounded and Daehyun exhaled slowly. “I know I don't, okay?” I stood up, dusting off my pants before staring at him. “I had hoped you didn't know about anything yet.”

“Well, too bad I do.” His voice was bitter and his body language told me that he was ready to fight me anytime. “And she even lied to me. She didn't tell me a thing, I had to find out on my own!”

The hurt in his voice shocked me. “Wait, she didn't?” Daehyun nodded, his lower lip trembling a bit.

“Himchan-hyung tattled when she introduced me to him.”

“I-I'm sorry to hear that...” It was really the worst case I could have imagined. Not only had Soora acted as if nothing was wrong, but Daehyun had to find out through someone who didn't know anything about the reasons.

“Don't you lie to me too, I know you're not”, Daehyun muttered as he hauled off but stopped his hand in mid-air.

I sighed, raising my hands as if to surrender. “It's fine. Punch me. I deserve it after all.” He landed one more hit, but it was weak and I raised an eyebrow when he shook his head.

“It doesn't help. It's too late. I know I lost to you, fighting is of no use.”

I inhaled to say something, wanted to tell him that I'd leave and that he was the one who'd be the winner, but my phone rang. It was a ringtone I had set for one person only and I froze. It was Sleepy calling. “. I have to take this one. Sorry.” I took the phone out in a hurry, an idea forming in my head. One last way to show him that I had many reasons to leave this life behind. I could show him this last part of me before I abandoned it. “Listen, Daehyun. I'll put this call on speaker and I want you to listen closely. When this is over, I'll explain what's up and then I'll...I'll leave.” Sleepy would probably remind me that I was more than dead once they got me and maybe my rival would see that I just couldn't be by Soora's side. It was too dangerous for her. Daehyun frowned, but I accepted the call, his eyes watching me like a hawk's. “What do you want? It's getting late”, I groaned, activating the speaker mode. This was really my last chance to help Soora get her life back to the way it had been before she met me.

“Hey there, Junhong. I'm sure you'll be interested in what I've got to tell you.”

“I know there isn't much left, you promised me that we'd be done as soon as I turn 18, it can't be more than 200$. I'll pay them soon and then we're done.”

“That's not what we agreed on a few years ago. I won't give you any more time, but... Well, actually, you can just not pay the rest, it's fine.” I frowned, eyes wide as I stared at Daehyun who was just confused.

“Wh-what?”, I managed to breathe. He'd let me off? Why? After this damn game of hide and seek? There had to be something to that.

“You're free. We'll just keep your girlfriend in exchange that's all.”

Sleepy sounded amused and it was Daehyun's turn to frown as he couldn't really understand why I wanted him to listen. He mouthed a silent 'What girlfriend?' and I shrugged.

“I...don't have any girl I care about.” It was a lie and Daehyun cocked his head to the side with a questioning gaze, yet I didn't explain anything, signalizing him to keep quiet. The fact that Sleepy sounded overly excited made me wary. Something was not right. What girl?

The emotions in his voice were totally faked. “Oh, really? Hm, now that's awkward...” A short pause emitted and I could hear him take a few steps. “He says he doesn't care about anyone, Soora, that's good for him, right?”

Daehyun and I froze, staring at each other. Tell me this is just a nightmare. “Soora?”, I whispered, a lump forming in my throat.

I could hear someone cough before a well-known voice could be heard. “Junhong, stop...”, she said, sounding powerless and worn out. Daehyun's big eyes kept staring at me and I started to tremble. This wasn't going as planned at all. This was not good.

“You took Soora?! You damn bastard, why her?!” I ran out of breath while freaking out in front of Daehyun. He looked a bit pale. “Just because of some my father has done! It's not my fault!”

“I don't think I taught you these words, son.”

“Shut up, I'll kill you. I'll ing kill you and your whole gang.” My grasp around the phone tightened and Daehyun finally seemed to get a bit of what was up. “Just you wait.”

I heard Soora's voice whisper something I didn't understand before a muffled sound could be heard.

Sleepy sounded very pleased. “I'll be waiting.”

Then, the call was ended, leaving us in silence for a second. I couldn't believe it. I didn't want to believe it. Daehyun his lips. “What do you mean, Soora-”

“Why her?”, I whispered, clutching at my head in frustration before looking at my opponent. “When did you see her the last time?!”

“I-I don't know, maybe five hours ago? Well excuse me, but I was kind of busy processing that she betrayed me-”

“She was kidnapped. She was ing kidnapped by those bastards!”, I explained in panic, unable to watch my language. Daehyun's face lost the last bit of its color and I grabbed him by the collar. “Alright, now listen, Jung. You have one hour to get the cops to the old storage house in the southern suburbs.”

“But the police station is the other way, it'll take forever, we should just go and do this on our own-”

“No!”, I exclaimed, trying to remember how to breathe properly. “No, one of us has to get help, they are too many, believe me. Soora's life is in danger if you can't do that for me.” I didn't care if there would be people dying because of this anymore. The moment they had kidnapped Soora, the Untouchables made me lose control. I had to save her and that was all that mattered.

I let go of Daehyun and started running down the street when he shouted after me. “Wait, Zelo! What are you going to do?!”

I turned around, not even slowing down. “I'll buy as much time as I can, hurry!” Tears were forming in my eyes. I was probably running towards my death and had to entrust my life to my rival. All these years hadn't been of any use. All my hard work wouldn't pay off and I'd die.

But maybe I could die a hero. I could still save Soora.

And if she isn't worth dying for, nothing is.

I'm a horrible person, am I not? |D

It's really hard for me to write fights, I hope you could follow a bit, I did my best ^^" Also, this chapter is quite long, I'm afraid the next ones won't be that long...

Please keep supporting this story! Comments are appreciated and if you want to, you can even upvote~

Thanks for reading and have a nice week <3