“Mino is going all alone over there right?” Jinwoo asked worriedly.

 

“We have a plan in place.” Seunghyun answered.

 

“We do? Why did we not know anything about this plan of yours?”

 

Seungyoon’s last remark was ignored. “He contacted Minho… We have his number on Minho’s cell phone.” Seunghyun continued on.

 

“So?”

 

“I will be contacting Changmin. He can, from what I gather, control missiles off site. He can also basically track the cell phone or any of the electronic devices that Kihoon is using. He is just good with electronics really.”

 

“I still cannot believe it is Kihoon hyung!” Seunghoon muttered.

 

“Why? He fits into all the description and information plus background that we have on him.”

 

“I have no idea but I still cannot believe that it was him.” Seunghoon scratched his head.

 

“I hope Taehyunie is okay.” Jinwoo murmured worriedly.

 

~~~~~~~~~~

 

Mino flipped his cell phone shut as he continued to race down the street. He just finished his last conversation and immediately Taehyun’s picture popped up again. His lips were set in a thin grim line as he stared out into the street and back at the picture. He was all ready to tear the bastard apart…

 

All ready to tear him up into little pieces and to punch and beat the living daylights out of him. It was his boyfriend! No, it was his partner! His Taehyun! If anyone dared to lay a finger, if anyone dared to hurt him, if anyone dared to…

 

Mino squeezed his eyes shut and yelled out loud in frustration. He gripped tightly to the steering wheel. The speed of the car increased by another 10 kilometers as it lurched forward down the street.

 

It took him exactly fifteen minutes to arrive at the destination that the text had specified. His car stopped with screeching tires in front of the old office building. Mino almost rammed the main entrance. He wished he did ram that main entrance because the idea of destroying something suddenly became very appealing to him…

 

Mino got out of the car and took a good hard look at the building in front of him.

 

It was an unfinished and abandoned construction building. Well, people did work on it but the day being a Saturday meant that nobody was there at that time.

 

What caught his attention most was that the building was actually a skyscraper. It must have been at least a ninety-storey building. It was the perfect location for a kidnapping. The building was located at one of Seoul’s many office buildings and industrial quarters.  A building located away from prying eyes, from neighbors or from the general public.

 

Mino knew it was a stupid idea. It was a downright incredibly stupid idea.

 

Mino was risking his head, his bloodline and the country’s future.

 

Mino knew that the guy inside the building right at that moment was prepared for anything, yet himself, the Prince, had prepared for nothing, and yet here he was, a lone ranger…

 

He was drawn inside. It was because of Nam Taehyun. Because of him, Mino would do anything. Even if it meant knowing fully well that he may not be able to come out of this siutation in one piece.

 

That guy knew it. Oh, he knew it very well … The man called Kihoon…

 

Manager hyung...

 

Mino almost tore the remains of the main entrance door down. He found himself in a huge and grey-ish lobby. The counter was still there but parts of the high roof were missing and light was streaming inside, filtered and dirty but there was light nonetheless. A staircase lead upwards into the building and empty doors as well.

 

A double door was there… was it the elevator?

 

Maybe Kihoon did not know that Mino had reached the location?

 

So he could actually slipped to get Taehyun out without any detection?

 

However, that hope was quickly killed off by the voice that came on next.

 

“Your Highness. Eighty-ninth floor please.” Someone called out via the building’s public announcement system. The voice that floated through had a strange and eerie quality to it.

 

Of course, he would know if Mino had physically arrived or not… He would know…

 

Mino moved towards the stairwell, ready to climb all the way up. However, the doors to the elevator suddenly opened with an audible “Ding”.

 

Apparently, some of the things in that old building were already working.

 

 Mino hesitated about stepping in.

 

“Don’t worry, I am not going to blow up the elevator. We are going to have a nice little conversation. Then, we will see how it goes from there…” The voice said.

 

Still, Mino hesitated. He was really uneasy and unsure about this…

 

“I could have easily just blown up the entire building once you stepped through the front doors. If I really wanted to kill you immediately, you know…”

 

“Is he alive?” Mino called out, not sure if Kihoon was going to hear him or not.

 

“He is but unconscious. Didn’t you read my text?” The speaker that was hidden somewhere in the building, cackled.

 

Left with not much of a choice, Mino stepped into the elevator and pressed the number 89. The doors of the elevator rolled shut and dinged again. Then, the small room moved up the building without any further interruptions.

 

The doors opened again when it reached the destination.

 

Mino found himself standing in a very big and very empty room that was divided by bare and ugly pillars. No walls were built, no carpets. It was just nothing. It was just grey concrete everywhere, like a corpse without an ounce of muscle or flesh. At the end of the room, he could see Taehyun, sitting on a chair.

 

Whoever that kidnapped him was no where in plain sight.

 

"Taehyun?” Mino called out carefully to him.

 

The urge was so strong to just run over and hug him. However, Mino knew he had to be really careful, to thread with caution.

 

“Taehyun-ah!” He called out once again.

 

Still, he was unable to spot Kihoon anywhere.

 

Mino could see lights coming out from the glaring windows, feel the dust crunched under his feet. He could also feel Taehyun’s presence and that of someone else.

 

To Mino’s surprise, Taehyun was not bound to the chair, he was just seated on it. He just sat there, breathing unevenly. Someone had drugged him. His eyelids fluttered, tried to concentrate but he just could not focus.

 

“Taehyun-ah…” Mino whispered, kneeling in front of him.

 

He did not say anything in reply. His head just rolled, his chin on his clavicle, as the younger guy tried to focus on him. His pupils were unnaturally wide and grew even wider when he noticed him.

 

“Mino…” Taehyun whispered, his voice so soft and so young. Mino felt his heart constrict painfully and the ache within him was almost unbearable. He looked like a child, tiny and fragile as he sat on that chair.

 

A wave of protectiveness welled up within Mino.

 

“It is all good.” Mino whispered as he held Taehyun’s hand. Mino gave a soft, very little tug. Taehyun, immediately, like a puppet, fell towards him.

 

Mino felt Taehyun’s breath against his shirt, breathing was heavy, his arms were lifeless and his legs were like pudding.

 

“You will not be able to escape from me. Not with him in this current state.” Kihoon said as he emerged behind from one of pillars.

 

Mino saw that Taehyun could not move. Something was paralyzing his muscles. However, while leaning against his chest, Mino could see his eyes move to look at Kihoon.

 

In those eyes of the younger guy, Mino could see the fear and horror in them.

 

“What did you do to him? Is he dying?” Mino asked angrily.

 

“He is just really weak. He will come along eventually. That is if he were to leave this building alive. That is…” Kihoon answered while circling the both of them like a wild animal would.

 

“You want me. I am offering myself for him. Why are you dragging him into this mess?” Mino felt Taehyun’s breath grew even more uneven but he ignored it and just stared at Kihoon.

 

“Actually you dragged him into this. By hiding with him in that attic. But now, I cannot be sure.”

 

“Cannot be sure about what?” Mino asked.

 

He needed to distract him. Mino needed to get closer to the window.

 

Looking down at Taehyun, Mino could see how Taehyun tried to move his lips, he could see the pleading in the younger’ eyes and his heart got its first few cracks.

 

It was to save Taehyun...

 

It was to make sure he got out alive...

 

It was to let him live.

 

Mino could see Taehyun trying to shake his head, just a tiny bit. It was as though he was trying to tell him not to do it. Mino tried to be impassive but Taehyun looked right through him and tears emerged in his eyes.

 

The pain cut right deep into his soul when Mino saw him trying to move, trying to stop him but could not because his body just would not allow it.

 

“Do you know that I would not have bothered any of you because of this? That I would have never done any of this?” Kihoon continued to talk.

 

“Then why are you doing this?” Mino asked. He pressed Taehyun’s body closer to his and looked down at the guy and raised an eyebrow.

 

Prepare yourself.

 

However, the glance he received from Taehyun was one out of fear and confusion. His weak fingers curled just slightly around his lower arms…

 

“Do you even know that we are actually related?” Kihoon asked.

 

“That you are my long lost cousin?” Mino could not help but smirk. He was discreetly moving and inching away from Kihoon who started to walk towards him.

 

The man kept something hidden behind his back and Mino was absolutely sure that it could not be anything good.

 

“Well, it was something like that. I actually have equal claim to the throne but I did not want it.” Kihoon answered smiling.

 

“The equal claim?”

 

“Nonsense! The throne, of course.” The man said.

 

“To be king is a good thing. Well, that is if you do it correctly…” Kihoon smiled again. This time the smile broke into a maniac laugh.

 

“But anyway that is not important anymore…”

 

The thing the man kept hidden behind his back was a gun. It was a strangely shaped gun with a weird barrel. He pointed once…

 

Mino felt Taehyun tensed as he turned them around so that Mino’s back was facing Kihoon.

 

There was no loud bang, no sharp and rippling pain. Instead, there was a small puncture on a part of his shoulder. It was a dull and aching pain that radiated within his body.

 

Mino grasped for it and found that he was holding a small dart with a red feathery end.

 

It was then he felt the weakness settling in…

 

It came off his shoulder in strong, persistent waves and Mino felt himself stumbling forward. Taehyun stared at him. His eyes wide and he tried to move his mouth but could not. He was still too weak while Mino slowly fell to his knees and felt his entire body gave up under him.

 

Kihoon strolled over to pluck the dart out of Mino’s hand.

 

“Why are you doing this? I have done nothing to you. Are you going to kill each one of us so that you could become king?” Mino whispered weakly.

 

Kihoon laughed and crouched in front of him. “I would have to kill a lot of people to be actually considered as a suitable claimant, no matter my blood.”

 

His face tensed. “No, sad to say that is not the reason.”

 

Mino felt his legs weaken … and his voice. He had to act quickly, otherwise …

 

Slowly, he crouched away from Kihoon.

 

“Because you did not want Siwon hyung to be the king?” Mino managed. Just a little more and he would reach the window. But Taehyun, he was so heavy in his arms and so afraid. Mino could feel him struggling weakly. He could…

 

“He wanted Korea to have a Japanese Queen.” Kihoon answered calmly.

 

Mino just stared at the man dumbly. “What?”

 

“Fuji Mina… it is unthinkable and you… You are gay. The only viable option would be Jiyong but Taeyeon… I am not sure what she does. It is unseemly.”

 

“You killed my brother because you did not like his fiancée and going to kill me because you are too narrow minded?” Mino growled. The anger he felt that moment transcended everything, flooded his entire being.

 

He felt his blood, hot and piercing. If he had been able to move properly, he would have broken his nose. “You killed him because …?”

 

“It does not matter,” Kihoon said. “I am not going to kill you… You could have left this building, but you choose to stay. Suffer the consequences, Prince Minho.” He smiled.

 

Mino did suffer the consequences…

 

Summoning the last ounce of strength he had left, he got to his feet. He felt Taehyun grasp his arm weakly, looking up at him, pleading.

 

For a moment, he was tempted: Break Kihoon’s nose or …

 

“Mino…” He heard Taehyun whispered weakly. “Please don’t…”

 

Mino hoisted him up into his arms, grasped the younger guy as tightly as possible, his legs aimlessly dangling against his and prayed to all the Gods willing to listen for strength.

 

“Taeyeon noona will make a wonderful Queen.” Mino whispered.

 

His legs buckled. His muscles screamed in protest. “Hold on as tightly as possible, Taehyun-ah.”

 

Then, he broke into a sprint towards the window.

 

It broke into a thousand pieces and he felt some of cut his face and his arm. Under him, eighty and more levels and the feeling of falling immediately grasped his heart.

 

Something tugged on his stomach and to his horror, it was desperation and panic, as he fell and fell, to the sound of Kihoon’s scream and the fear in Taehyun’s eyes.

 

Yanking his arm downwards, careful not to drop Taehyun, a cutting sound followed. The parachute opened.

 

They were yanked upwards and Mino heard him emit a little shout. 

 

“It’s all good, Nammie.” Mino whispered, his arms around Taehyun’s waist, his legs entangled with the younger’s. “It’s all good.”

 

He heard Seunghyun through the small microphone in his ear.

 

“Are you guys alright? We can see you!”

 

“I’m fine, as is Taehyun…” Mino managed, and then, an explosion ripped the ninety-over level of the building apart.

 

Parts of it rained down immediately and one of them hit Mino’s parachute.

 

It started to tumble immediately.

 

They fell, Taehyun clutched to him, Mino felt something hit his cheek …blood. Pain.

 

He felt so weak…

 

He felt himself fall to the ground.

 

The last thing he saw was Taehyun’s worried face, him touching his cheek and shaking him…

 

Mino was already unconscious when Seunghyun picked him up and the ambulance arrived, Yunho, Changmin, Jiwon and alongside with the worried Winner members.

 

"He is dying!" Taehyun managed, his voice broken. He clutched onto Mino's lifeless body tightly.

 

Seunghyun tried to peel the younger guy away from him. "He is dying!"

 

"He is not," Seunghyun promised, gently holding him and steering Taehyun towards his own doctors. "You need to get checked."

 

"I can't," Taehyun sobbed, his eyes only on the young man. "I need to go with him!"

 

He could barely stand by himself. Jinwoo and Seunghoon had to support him. "Let me go with him! Let me!" He cried.

 

"You need to go to the hospital, Taehyunie," Jinwoo whispered. "Come."

 

"No!" Tears emerged and he tried to struggle, but was too weak. "No, no, no! Let me go!" he shouted, before he finally succumbed to his weak state too.

 

The blackness took over...

 

~~~~~~~~~~

 

Hihi, Gong Xi Fa Cai! It is a surprisingly quiet Chinese New Year this year for my family... no visiting *yay! time to write*... well i hope you are all enjoying the nice holiday or break... no silent readers please... see you all on the next update!