CHAPTER THIRTEEN; 

"What?" Yuri whined. "No marshmallows?"

"So?" He furrowed his brows while sipping his cup.

"Lu Han, this is hot chocolate. How the do you not put mini marshmallows on top?" She said it as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. 

"Like this," He chuckled and loudly slurped his drink.

" you," She scoffed and drank her chocolate drink with a pout. He held her wrist and pulled her entire body flushed against his, making sure not to spill the mug's contents.

"You may," He smirked which earned him a smack on the shoulder. 

"Be careful with that mouth of yours or else I won't save you next time," She raised her chin and walked away, but he never let her leave that easily. His hand, naughty as always, gripped her and pulled her back. She gasped and he placed both their cups down because he had a feeling that things could get messy.

"You won't save me?" He chuckled darkly and her heart fluttered at the sound. "Tianshi, we both know that you will no matter what," He leaned down and grazed the surface of her lips with his, making her whimper and try to press them together- too bad she was shorter than him.

"Lu Han!" She whined again and stood on her toes. 

"You can't blame me for being short," He chuckled and picked her up, placing both legs around his waist but purposely kept her low so she still couldn't reach his lips.

"You're such a !" She giggled and tried to wiggle away which caused him to groan.

"Tianshi," His voice was strained. "I suggest you not do that especially when we're in this position," 

"Well someone's ," She chuckled and pushed him off, pretending not to notice the bump in his pants. "Have fun calming 'it' down," She smirked.

"Oh no," He pulled her back. "You're staying and helping!" 

"Lu Han!" She exclaimed and giggled at the same time yet she didn't try to move away from him. 

He started assaulting her face with kisses before nipping her lips. He moved down to her collarbone where he lightly sunk his teeth into her skin, giving her a mixture of pain and pleasure. She started his name in no time flat, making him smirk in victory. 

"That's not fair," She whined when her hands laced themselves into his hair. 

He smirked lightly. "What isn't fair?" He asked huskily, letting his lips trail over the span of her neck.

"You taking the lead," She rolled her eyes. 

"And what are you going to do about it?" He asked in a challenging tone which was a bad idea considering it was Yuri he was talking to.

"This," It was her turn to smirk and he always did like it when she smirked. 

Without further ado, she grabbed the collar of his shirt and dragged him to the bedroom where she threw him onto the bed. Like a predator, she walked around him, assessing him with her eyes. 

"How about a game?" She offered and he raised a brow.

"Depends on what it is," 

"If you can control your hands, I'll be all yours for tonight," She explained. "I can do whatever I want and you cannot touch me, got it?" He nodded sceptically. "You have 2 minutes and if you fail, we go to sleep,"

"We go to sleep?" He repeated.

"We go to sleep," She confirmed.

"Just two minutes?" He asked and she nodded. "Alright, that seems easy enough," He chuckled and placed his hands behind his hand. "Hit me with your best shot," He smirked, challenging her in many ways. 

"Just, give me a second to get ready," She uttered softly and too innocently for that matter. Nevertheless, he nodded and waited patiently.

What he didn't know was that she had a whole plan in the making and she was going to ensure that it would not fail. She turned her back to him and started lifting the t-shirt he borrowed her over her head, baring her undergarment clad backside to him. She threw the shirt to the side and stalked her way to him. Yuri grabbed his phone from the side table and started the timer.

"Your two minutes start now," She purred and started nibbling on his lips. 

Lu Han had never struggled so badly in his entire life. He was fighting against himself so that he would win the damn game. He gripped onto the bed banister and he was sure that it was about to break any second. Yuri enjoyed watching him suffer as she awoke everything inside of him. 

During the first minute, he lost his shirt, pants and possibly his sanity. She was giving him her all; kissing every exposed part of his body, pulling at his hair, running her hand dangerously near his 'danger zone' and whispering his name breathlessly into his ear. 

"Give in, Lu Han," She whispered, kissing right under his ear. "You know you want to..." She sang. 

"Tianshi," He groaned. "GOD, YURI!" 

All of the sudden, a little 'ding' was heard beside them which made both of them freeze. She stared at the phone with agape and she could just sense the smirk forming on his lips before she felt his fingers dig into her hips. She mouthed a curse as he pinned her.

"Well, it's my turn," He smirked victoriously.

***

As Lu Han prepared some drinks for them, Yuri came out of the bedroom with a sheer black shawl which did little to hide her equally black lingerie- not that it mattered anyways, he has already seen every part of her and vice versa. She stood behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist, laying tender kisses across the span of his back. 

"Do you want to stay like this or do you want your tea?" He chuckled. 

"That's a hard decision," She sighed. "Tea," She said without a second thought or any hint of hesitation. He pinched her nose and handed her a cup.

The both of them stood around the dining room where maps, various articles and pieces of paper were sprawled everywhere. She contemplated everything, formulating a plan in her mind while Lu Han placed a few things around in the hopes of helping. 

"How about we not go by list?" She suggested, pulling out the crumbled paper that he gave her in the very beginning, the one that listed all their names. "Half of them are on business trip so we might as well get those who are nearby,"

"Yeah, like Jung-Hwa or Kwang-Sun," He stated and she nodded, biting her lower lip nervously. "We could hit them up tomorrow at their office or-"

"I'll be back in a minute," She cut him off and left to the bathroom.

Lu Han frowned as he recalled the way she acted from the beginning. She had seemed very anxious for some reason and wouldn't stop fidgeting around. When he had named the two last people on the list, she was visibly uncomfortable; shifting her weight from one foot to the other, nibbling on her lips, casting her eyes from place to place and seeming lost in some trance.

Without hesitating, he ran after her and knocked on the door. At first, there was no reply, but at the 10th knock, she yelled a quick 'go away' and he could distinctly hear how hoarse her voice had become in a matter of seconds. He picked the lock easily and barged in to see her hunched over the sink with water dripping down her face.

"I told you-" The last remains of her phrase were cut off when he slammed her into his chest, hugging her.

"I know something's wrong so might as well tell me," He uttered while bringing her back outside to where the couch was.

"I don't feel like it," She sighed and rubbed her eyes tiredly. 

"Come on," He urged while letting her sit on his lap. "You know you'll feel better afterwards,"

She sighed loudly while looking off into the distance. "Where to begin..." She spoke- more to herself than him.

"Mommy? Daddy?" A young girl no older than 8 with pigtails bouncing around ran down the stairs. 

"In here, sweetheart," Her mother replied from the kitchen where there was a bunch of commotion. 

The little girl rushed to her parents and hid behind them when she felt the gaze of many people upon her. She looked through her long dark lashes at the men. From the limited numbers she knew, she counted 12 males in all. Some of them were a little older than her and others were the same age as her parents.

"Yuri, baby, this are our new friends," Her father spoke softly while picking her up and bringing her to the group. "They are going to help us get everything we want,"

"I'll get my princess castle?" She asked excitedly.

"You will get that and much more," One of the older men promised. "Hello, Yuri, my name is Yongchul,"

"Yong... Yonggie!" She had troubles pronouncing, but he didn't seem to mind. 

After a brief introduction, Yuri, the youngest of the threshold was left ot play with the younger ones who were at least 5 years and older than her; Yongchul, Minjoon, Yejoon and Jae. The reason why they were so young to be in the business industry was because of the death of their fathers'. The adults were discussing important things in the kitchen where everyone but Yuri knew what was going on.

A few years later, Yuri was beginning the early stages of her teenage life. She was still very attached to the men she was introduced to those years back. As her beauty continued to bloom, so was a sinister plan. 

"Hey, Yuri," Minjoon cooed while pinching her cheeks.

"Minnie, stop!" She whined and continued her work.

"Oh, you're no fun," He pouted and turned to the others who were finishing some business documents.

It was always like that. Yuri has matured but still kept her silly side throughout the years. The business men that surrounded her adored the little girl- well, that's what the Kwon's thought. Right behind their backs, there was absolutely no trust and nothing but greed. 

"How dare you?!" Mrs. Kwon's voice erupted through the house and Yuri shot to her feet, but the guys held her down.

"Jae, get off of me!" She screamed while squirming around.

"It's none of your business what goes on in there-" Yejoon tried to explain, but was cut off when the door suddenly opened.

"Yuri?" Jung-Hwa popped his head in and everyone immediately let go of her. "Come with me," He smiled and all but Yuri knew what was hiding behind that little facade of his. 

"Are we going to mom? I heard her shout-" She was suddenly pulled to a guest room. 

Jung-Hwa wasted no time to roam his large hands over her adolescent body. She squirmed around and tried to push him off, but he kept insisting that it was perfectly fine, it was perfectly normal. She sat quietly as she witnessed her favourite uncle touch in places where her mother told her were private. 

"You don't tell anyone, okay honey? Or else uncle Jung-Hwa will be taken away," He whispered into her ear as he dried her tears. "You don't want that, do you?"

"N-No..." She whimpered and hugged herself. 

"Good girl," He patted her head and fixed his tie. "The others will come and get you to play," He smiled and left.

The patter of footsteps approached her and Minjoon burst through the door. "You want to go outside?" He spoke as if it wasn't visible that she cried, as if she didn't seem distressed. She nodded meekly and stood up.

"HE WHAT?!" Lu Han broke her monologue in a thunderous tone. "That bastard!"

"He didn't do much... Just... Touching," She sighed and held him closer. 

"That still doesn't make things better!" He exploded and it took him a few minutes as well as a few kisses to calm him down.

Only a few months after the incident, things turned for the worst. Her parents were barely around anymore. It was a late night when Yuri was deep in sleep, but a large thud from downstairs made her jump from her bed. She could hear voices talking and she chose not to reveal her presence. 

"I've been waiting for this moment for so long," Joon-Ho spoke. 

"W-What are you doing?" Mr. Kwon grumbled, clearly in pain.

From the stair's banister, she could see her parents kneeling on the ground with roped tied around their limbs. Both of them were covered in dirt and bruises as well as some dried blood. Yuri gasped, but it wasn't loud enough to capture their attention- or so she thought.

"Look! The princess has decided to join us," Someone grabbed her arms and brought her down before throwing her in front of her parents.

"Yuri, baby, just keep quiet," Her mother whispered to her. "Everything will-"

"Not be okay," Yongchul cut her off. "Well, not for you guys,"

"What is the meaning of this? We are partners!" Her father shouted and received a blow to the head.

"Dad!" Yuri wanted to go and help him, but one of them pulled her by her hair.

"Don't touch her!" Her mother screamed. "Leave her alone! PLEASE!"

Things just started going to hell from there. Yuri sobbed as her mother begged for mercy while her father was getting beat ruthlessly. She wanted it all to stop, to know the reason for this betrayal and to know if they felt any remorse at all. She looked at those around her and they all avoided her gaze, but some were smirking or laughing as if they enjoyed torturing them.

"STOP!" Yuri cried out loud when they held her father's head back and placed a knife in front of his throat. "P-Please... Big bear..." She whimpered Yejoon's nickname and he froze, but only for a second before cutting her father's throat.

"NO!" She cried so much that her chest hurt and she felt like she was suffocating. 

Without a second to waste, a trigger was pulled and her mother fell right next to her husband's lifeless body. Yuri was traumatized, frozen in place as she watched the pool of blood approach her. She looked up, eyes teary, at the gun barrel pointed at her. Her look of despair turned to the one of pure anger as she glared at the monsters she had stupidly trusted.

"We always did like you, button," Woojin smiled sadistically while putting the gun away. "So we won't kill you right away," He smirked and walked away.

"Set the house on fire!" Joonsuh ordered and they all filed out, but not before tying Yuri to the banister next to her parents. 

It was at that moment that something inside her snapped, changed.

"Why did they do that?" He asked in a low tone.

"My family was wealthy and was stealing the others' business so it was logical for them to take us out," She muttered emotionlessly. 

"How... How did you get out?" He asked again.

"I don't know... Maybe they didn't know how to tie a knot, but I slipped free and jumped out of the house and I wish I didn't," She mumbled the last few words.

"What? Why?"

"I left my parents to burn..." A tear slipped from her eye.

"You didn't have a choice and I doubt that they would want you to end up like them," He wiped it away and kissed her forehead tenderly.

She didn't say anything and he took that as a sign to stop talking even when he had so many other things to ask. However, she did answer some of his questions. Now he knew why it was so hard to gain her trust, why she was constantly bitter and how she seemed to know those men. 

AUTHOR'S NOTE; 

Just some back story on Yuri. I hope you guys enjoyed it :3