Myungsoo’s been avoiding him.

It took him a while to notice. A whole week in fact. But amidst all the tension and worry, he’d finally managed to see that Myungsoo hadn’t once hugged him or sat next to him or even spoken more than two sentences to him. In fact, the younger boy seemed to spend most of his time staring at him with a sorrowful distressed face, only looking away when Sunggyu raised an eyebrow at him.

Sunggyu sighed and flicked the kettle on. Was it his fault? Had he snapped at Myungsoo at some point? It was just like the younger boy to get his feelings hurt and keep it in without telling anyone.

He was just about to reach up for the teabags when Myungsoo entered the kitchen, wearing his black pyjamas.

“Morning,” Sunggyu said quietly.

Myungsoo raised his head, looking suddenly stricken. “Ah. Uh. Morning, hyung.”

Sunggyu stifled a sigh. The headache that seemed to constantly throb behind his temples sharpened.

“Myungsoo ah...are you angry at hyung?”

Myungsoo’s shoulders stiffened and he hurried to do to the dishes, which confirmed to Sunggyu that something was wrong. Myungsoo never did housework.

“No hyung,” Myungsoo said shakily. “Why would you think that?”

Sunggyu bit his lip and cradled his tea cup in his hand. “Hyung is sorry. I wish I can be the sort of leader you deserve, Myungsoo ah. I’m trying my best...Really.”

He walked out, ignoring Myungsoo’s sharp intake of breath and whispered “Hyung no – “. He carried his tea and sat down in the spot he had made for himself in the living room. Opening his laptop, he tried not to groan out loud to see the tiny Times New Roman font that greeted him.

God, this headache was killing him.

Myungsoo came out of the kitchen, his hands still soaking with suds and his face tearstained. “Hyung! I never said you’re not a bad leader!”

Trust Myungsoo, Sunggyu sighed, to get overly emotional about these sort of statements. He fought the urge to roll his eyes as all the other members appeared from their rooms, drawn by the shrill scream.

“I just don’t understand,” Myungsoo said, “why you’re working with the Inspector Xioumin or why you sound like you hate Sungjong and Hoya! You even called Sungjong a when you were on the phone!”

Oh.

Well now it made sense.

The other members looked at him as though he had just taken their hearts out from their chests and stepped on them.

Sunggyu sighed and spoke sharply. “Quiet. All of you. Sit down here and listen.”

No one had ever dared to disobey the commanding voice when it got so stern and they rushed to sit before him. Sunggyu raised an eyebrow at Myungsoo, who was still half glaring, half pouting at him.

“You think I want Jongie to be put in prison? You think I want Hoya to be bleeding out dead somewhere? You think I want the police to find them?” Sunggyu’s voice rose with each question. “Myungsoo! I’m the leader! I’m in charge for all of you, and I love all of you, if you ever doubt that, come and talk to me about it!”

Myungsoo lowered his head. He’d always been sensitive to people yelling at him.

Sunggyu took a deep breath. He could see that the others were waiting for him to speak,

So he told them everything.

 From the day their lives had gone to hell –

Maybe it was from those years he lived by himself. Those horrid years where no one cared about him and even his parents deserted him. But Sunggyu grew a skill in knowing exactly who a person was the moment he saw them.

For example, the old man who had employed him was kind, sweet and lovely, despite his rough, angry outer appearance. He’d seen it in the old man’s laughter lines around the eyes, the old man’s gentleness when talking to a pregnant woman, the old man’s tenderness as he bandaged Sunggyu’s burns from the stove.

He even developed the skill as he became an idol.

Lee Jungyeol was a man who was strict and didn’t stand for imperfection. He had mellowed over the years though.

Kim Gura would treat you well if you were a younger male who constantly expressed your affection and respect of him.

Lee Sangmin was a sly and smart man, who got through most of his life through loopholes and the right words. He was also a man incredibly weak to the idea of a junior idolising him.

The members, when he met them were easy. Dongwoo’s wide grin instantly reflected his bright personality. Woohyun had a stubborn tilt to his chin that screamed out both pride and a softer vulnerability he was trying to hide. Hoya carried himself with the same defensiveness and past hurts that Sunggyu could relate to. Sungyeol was still a pure child despite being the same age as Hoya, equal parts adorable and fondly exasperating. Myungsoo was a shy, weird child with a soft heart despite the cool facade. And Sungjong was a naive child with the potential to be older and wiser than all of them.

It was no wonder really, how easily he loved them all.

As Inspector Xioumin entered the interrogation room, Sunggyu got the measure of him instantly. Here was a man who had grown up wanting to be police officer, simply because he enjoyed the thrill of the chase. Going by Xioumin’s confident swagger, he was a man who lusted after power. The way Xioumin smirked slightly as he pulled out the seat opposite Sunggyu , and the way his eyes flicked quickly to his deputies by the door, showed that he enjoyed these moments simply because he enjoyed basking in the open admiration of his juniors.

Power hungry. Hyper masculine. Homophobic. Arrogant. A show off. Sunggyu rattled off in his head.

He narrowed his eyes at Xioumin. A show off...

He could use that.

“Hyungnim,” Sunggyu pushed his chair back and bowed deeply.

Xioumin’s eyebrows furrowed instantly. “Do you understand what’s going on here, you brat?”

Sunggyu sat down with a heavy sigh and laid his head on the table for a few seconds before raising it again.

“Hyung, really, I’m so sorry for the trouble we’ve caused.” He widened his eyes as far as he could, injecting a rawness to his words so that he could seem more honest. These were the times being the youngest in the family had its advantages. How many times had he acted cute to get out of trouble? “I really didn’t want to cause you any trouble, hyung. Really!”

Xioumin scoffed. “It took four men to drag you away from the door. You’re telling me that wasn’t on purpose?”

Sunggyu sighed exaggeratedly and did a mock pout. “Ah hyung. What else was I supposed to do? I needed to show the public that I’m a good protective leader. I can’t just be shown as a leader who’s happy his dongsaeng is being carted to jail! I even had to touch the ’s hand!”

Xioumin frowned. “So you’re on our side?”

“Of course,” Sunggyu said decisively. “I’m so thankful you’ve helped me get rid of Sungjong from the team at least. Though it’s a shame Howon had to go too. He was a good dancer.”

Xioumin pursed his lips, contemplating hard about Sunggyu’s words. But Sunggyu kept smiling at him, nothing but the perfect picture of innocence -

“So since then, I kept in touch with him,” Sunggyu said. “Staying friendly and obedient, and giving him far too many compliments than he deserve.”

“But why?” Woohyun asked, scatching the back of his head. “Why go through all that effort just to be friendly with that monster.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Sunggyu asked. “I’m going to use Myungsoo’s camera, hide it, speak to Xioumin, and get a confession out of him that we can show at court.”

It seemed easy enough in his head but the members’ faces paled instantly.

“Hyung! You can’t!” Woohyun yelled.

“It’s too dangerous!” Sungyeol said, lunging forward to hug Sunggyu’s shoulders in a way that would have been touching if Sunggyu didn’t feel as though he was being half strangled. “Hyung what if he arrests you for spying? You can’t!”

“There’s no better idea, is there?” Sunggyu said. “This is the practical option. I’m doing it this afternoon. All of you can wait till I get home okay?”

They didn’t like the idea. But Sunggyu had no choice.

The maknae needed to be saved.

And who better to save the youngest, than the oldest?

He made his way to Xioumin’s police station easily enough, shrouded in a tattered hoodie and a mask and sunglasses that seemed to completely cover his face. No one recognised him on the public transport and not even the policeman who showed him to Xioumin’s office seemed to have a clue.

Sunggyu wondered at the butterflies in his stomach. He’d never felt so nervous. Not even when auditioning for SM or that first debut stage they did. The stage had always been his second home after all.

But now. Everything rested on this. Everything.

He sat on the sofa, scrambling to take the camera out of his pocket and taping it to the underside of the coffee table in front of them. He made sure it was recording before covering it with his woolly scarf so that the only thing visible through the scarf’s holes was the camera lens. Sunggyu bit his lips, hastily trying to rearrange the scarf so that it looked like he had purposefully thrown the scarf on the table.

“Sunggyu!” The office door opened and Xioumin strode into his room. He beamed to see Sunggyu and opened his arms wide.

Sunggyu stretched his lips into a smile and bowed deeply before being embraced tight into a hug. He ignored the roll of his stomach at the feel of an enemy being so close, focusing instead on slightly pouting his lips. “Ah hyung, I wasn’t sure if you’d be able to see me! You’re so busy all the time!”

Xioumin laughed heartily and manoeuvred Sunggyu to sit down on the sofa. Sunggyu quickly sat on the left so that the camera’s full focus would be on Xioumin.

“I’ve got time for my favourite dongsaeng,” Xioumin said, picking up the bottle of wine Sunggyu brought for him and checking its brand. His expression turned serious. “Though Sunggyu, you really do need to step it up. What happened to that lead you were following on how the big lipped boy knows where the is hiding?”

Sunggyu sighed and shook his head regrettably. “Sorry hyung, Dongwoo’s just useless. He has no idea about anything.” He reached forward and clasped Xioumin’s hand, staring right into the man’s eyes. “But I promise, hyung, I’ll keep trying. I wish I could work even a fraction of how well you do.”

Xioumin nodded slowly. “This sort of skill takes time, Sunggyu-ah. You can’t just suddenly expect to be good at it.”

Sunggyu sighed again and looked down, as though he didn’t want Xioumin to see the sheer disappointment in his face. It worked as Xioumin clamped a hand on his shoulder and squeezed gently.

“Dont be too disappointed. You’re the one who told me about them being in the Gwangmyeong region.”

“But I couldn’t find more details for you, hyung. That’s why you’re still searching.”

Xioumin shrugged. “It’s only a matter of time.”

Sunggyu pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. “To think a ’s been on my team for this many years. Ugh, it makes me sick to even think of it. And if you, hyung, didn’t come in to charge him with the hacking, he’d still be on the team.”

Xioumin grinned and leaned closer to Sunggyu. “Well you’ve got your SM CEO to thank for that.”

Sunggyu purposefully furrowed his eyebrows. “Ah, what do you mean Hyung?”

“Parksoo’s the one who put me on the case,” Xioumin said nonchalantly, as he poured alcohol into two cups. “He gave me a nice bonus if I could fit up the on your team.”

Sunggyu opened his mouth and widened his eyes in an expression of admiration. “Wow hyung, you must’ve had to work hard to find something that’d fit.”

“It was easy,” Xioumin smiled, patting Sunggyu’s shoulder. “You just put a laptop into his room and control the hacking from here.”

Sunggyu lowered his voice, giggling as he stumbled out the sentence. “Hyung, can faggots even hack?”

Xioumin burst into laughter and patted Sunggyu’s knee. “What do you think, Sunggyu-ah? They can’t even do their nails properly.”

Sunggyu felt almost nauseous as he imitated the laughter and made jokes with Xioumin. His tongue felt hot as though he was literally spewing acid about Sungjong behind his back.

“We just need to wait for the courtdate, huh hyung?” Sunggyu said. “Then the can go behind bars forever.”

Xioumin rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “I might have some fun with him first actually. You know, Sunggyu-ah, there’s nothing more sweeter than the sound of a screaming when you pull off their fingernail.”

Bile hit the back of Sunggyu’s throat and he tried not to throw away the man’s hand resting on his knee. “You sound like you’ve done this before, hyung.”

“I don’t even know how many I’ve fitted up,” Xioumin said silkily. “Maybe you can come along, Sunggyu-ah. When I have my session with Sungjong.”

Sunggyu forced a bright smile. “Could I, hyung? I have so much I need to take out on the brat. He’s given me too much headaches.”

Xioumin smiled an almost fatherlike smile and Sunggyu got up swiftly. His skin crawled to even be near this revolting creature.

“I need to go now, hyung,” Sunggyu said, bowing repeatedly. “We’ve got a dance practice.”

“Do well!” Xioumin said, starting to look slightly tipsy from the alcohol.

Sunggyu picked up the scarf, at the same time, subtly ripping the tape holding the camera to the table. He put his scarf under his arm, praying that the scarf completely shrouded the camera. His heart stopped as Xioumin’s eyes focused on the bundle Sunggyu held.

“Goodbye,” was all Xioumin said and Sunggyu breathed off a short sigh of relief.

An hour later, he was hammering on the dorm’s door and hurrying in as Myungsoo opened the door. He found all four of them clustered in the hall with their knees to their chests.

“How’d did go?” Woohyun asked breathlessly.

Sunggyu looked around at the other members’ expectant faces and held up the camera he had tightly gripped in his coat pocket. “I’ve got his confession on here! Completely! We just need to get it on a USB stick.”

They exploded into cheers and Sunggyu found himself being squeezed into tight hugs and getting pats on his back. But he couldn’t smile. Not until they got Sungjong permanently cleared of all charges, and not until he was sure that the public would be behind them.

He felt a pang in his heart at the thought of Sungjong. So many wanted to hurt to sweet boy, and Sunggyu felt almost breathless with his need to protect the maknae. He wished Sungjong was here now, just so he could hug the youngest and shield him from the evils with the like of Xioumin.

As if in answer, his phone rang and Sunggyu hastened to answer it as the name “Xioumin flashed across the phone screen. 

“Quiet!” Sunggyu roared and waited for silence before putting the phone to his ear. “Hyung?”

Heavy breathing greeted him and Sunggyu felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise. “Hyung?”

“You know,” Xioumin’s voice was a husky whisper, “I really liked you.”

Sunggyu’s heart dropped. “Hyung, I don’t understand – “

“I watched the office’s CCTV you miserable cockroach,” Xioumin said in a growl. “I saw how you recorded everything. Very smart.”

Sunggyu his suddenly dry lips. “Hyung – “

“You won’t get that camera or USB stick anywhere near the courtroom,” Xioumin said quietly, and somehow that was even more terrifying than if he’d shouted. “All your computers are being watched and anything you upload onto the internet will be destroyed. When you go for your performance next week, you’ll have a squadron of police watching your every move so don’t even think about passing the USB stick to someone else. Anyone you do give the USB or camera to will be brought in.”

“You can’t do this,” Sunggyu said, horrified to hear a catch in his voice. “You can’t. Sungjong’s innocent, you monster.”

“What a clever little boy you are, Sunggyu-ah,” the repressed anger was masked with a silly tone that send shivers down Sunggyu’s back. “You remind me a lot of myself actually...But I don’t like being lied to and played with. After the , I’m coming after you myself. I can’t wait to hear you scream when I flay the skin off your back, when I burn your lying tongue right out of your mouth – “

Sunggyu threw the phone away, not reacting when it crashed against the opposite wall. He turned to the other members, hating the looks of worry that had replaced their previously bright faces.

“Hyung?” Dongwoo came close to him and clasped his hand. “Hyung, you’re shaking.”

Sunggyu couldn’t speak against the fear that choked his throat. He looked down, taking comfort in the way the members wrapped themselves around him in a warm huddle.

“What do we do, hyung?” Woohyun asked.

Sunggyu wished he had an answer.

As always, please comment! =)

Next chapter:

Hoya: Danger