“…”

 

It was a Friday night. A figure, unbeknownst to anyone walking around the busy streets, being obnoxiously loud blabbering on about whatever hit thing was the next big thing in life, was catching his breath in a dark alley.

 

Dropping the hoodie from his head and face that had allowed him to conceal himself to his surroundings, he made sure to wipe away the blood from his knife and discard the damning evidence of it further into the shadows.

 

A simple transaction was what was needed of him tonight. One simple kill that would reward him with the income for at least a couple of weeks. A smile crept on his face as he was gasping out in pure joy how everything had gone right. But it wasn’t like things ever went wrong for him in this line of duty. He wasn’t as skilled as he was for no reason.

 

Wiping off the sweat from his brow, he straightened himself, folded the blade and placed it in a pocket that was very out of sight from the rest of the world. But he knew it was there and it thrilled him to always have that cold object brush against his skin. It felt like a safety net for him and as he walked into the throngs of people and joined in with the careless world, his clothes dark and marking just how much he looked like a model to the outside world, without a care in life, he disappeared as another face in the crowd for another night.

 

====

 

Weeks melded into each other and Zhou Mi’s next assignment had been carefully shoved under his door one day.

 

Pausing and raising an eyebrow as if the envelope was going to open itself and reveal the contents to him, he stood from his sofa and swiftly bent to pick up the new orders.

 

He skimmed the papers inside the envelope and noticed that his next victim, Cho Kyuhyun, age 24 had been marked to die next by some unknown.

 

The picture included with the papers that gave a brief description of his going ons, had caught his eye. It wasn’t like Zhou Mi ever really paid much attention to whoever he was meant to kill. No, that never happened. Yet there was something about the eyes that looked back up at him that remained in his head long after he had burned the envelope in his fireplace.

 

=====

 

He had spotted Kyuhyun as he made his way to his favorite internet cafe, as it was mentioned. Taking a seat a few rows away from the man yet having him well within his sight, Zhou Mi tried to meander online as he willed away the long hours keeping an eye on his victim.

 

A few days continued with following this routine. There wasn’t really much that he had seen for Kyuhyun to require such a drastic order of death, he thought but a job was a job and Kyuhyun’s time was running short.

 

After taking a small bathroom break, Zhou Mi had sat down on his computer and had noticed that Kyuhyun had suddenly gone missing. Scouring the the area, he was shocked to see that Kyuhyun was sitting right next to him mumbling incoherent things at the screen as Zhou Mi noticed those fast fingers click away at the mouse and the keyboard in front of him.

 

Relax, Zhou Mi told himself and claimed his spot right next to Kyuhyun.

 

He had tried to make himself as uninteresting and just be a normal person browsing fashion sites, the news, catching up on social media. Zhou Mi didn’t allow himself to pay too much attention to Kyuhyun and his antics against mobs of characters that kept flashing around in the screen in front of him. Every once in a while, he could feel that Kyuhyun was taking mild note of what he was doing whenever he had a moment of reprieve.

 

The next day was pretty much a repeat of the previous. Zhou Mi disappearing to order a snack to eat and finding Kyuhyun suddenly parked in the computer right next to him.

 

“You’ve been following me, haven’t you?” Kyuhyun had suddenly grumbled as he continued to pay his screen so much attention as his troops had been in distress. His teeth biting down on his lip and had he continued to do in a harsher manner, Zhou Mi could swear that he was bound to spot blood trickling down that interesting face.

 

Zhou Mi cleared his throat and nodded lightly at his side. He was wondering where exactly he had gone wrong that he had been spotted so easily.

 

“I knew it,” Kyuhyun uttered. “I could feel someone’s presence nearby often. What do you want?”

 

Never taking his sight away from his screen, and Zhou Mi know paying as much attention to what was going on in it as well, “I was sent for you.”

 

Kyuhyun grunted at both Zhou Mi’s words and the fact that his faction had taken a drastic loss once again. “Who sent you?”

 

Zhou Mi shrugged, “I’m never really told who asks for these jobs. I just go and do, get paid and continue on with my life.”

 

Some noise was heard from Kyuhyun as he continued to build up his ranks once again. Hours passed and there had been no more words uttered.

 

As Kyuhyun had finally finished for the day, Zhou Mi had tried to keep a safe walking distance between the two of them until Kyuhyun had stopped abruptly and Zhou Mi just about knocked the younger man down.

 

“I’m starved,” Kyuhyun said and proceeded into the convenience store they had stopped in front of.

 

Zhou Mi blinked and followed. Kyuhyun had warmed up some instant ramen and Zhou Mi had grabbed a mindless snack. They both sat looking out into the world from the window. Seats apart that felt like worlds apart to Zhou Mi. He was baffled at how careless he was being.

 

Food discarded and Kyuhyun had continued with his trek to his apartment. Noticing Kyuhyun slink away back into his life, Zhou Mi had made sure to wander to a hiding spot in the parking garage just across from Kyuhyun’s place. He watched as the lights to different area in the apartment were and off after a few minutes. He watched as Kyuhyun had pulled back the curtains from the window that was his room and how his target had noticed him from across the way.

 

Minutes of staring at one another and Kyuhyun grinned and turned back and everything was silenced once again. Except for whatever was going on in Zhou Mi’s head. He was extremely unsure of what his next step was going to be.

 

====

 

Zhou Mi had arrived first at the internet cafe the next day. He took his usual spot although this time, he made sure to open up some mindless game to keep him busy as Kyuhyun slaved away at his usual game.

 

“Why are you here?”

 

“My answer hasn’t changed since I last gave it to you, Kyuhyun.”

 

Kyuhyun stopped momentarily at the sound of his name. He turned lightly to the side where Zhou Mi sat and took a second to stare at the eyes that were looking back at his. A glower was clearly on Kyuhyun’s face and Zhou Mi was more than taken back by what had just transpired as Kyuhyun continued with his game.

 

They had sat for hours in silence but it was broken soon enough as Kyuhyun let out a shout of despair as he had lost his campaign. “ing banelings!” Slamming his headphones against the counter, he scurried to get his belongings together, paid his fee and rushed out of the building.

 

“This is your ing fault! All of it!” He shouted back at the man that was following him.

 

“And just what did I do?” Zhou Mi asked as he had quickened his pace to reach the other man.

 

“Why are you following me? Who sent you? What do you want?”

 

Faltering in his steps, he stopped a while back and Kyuhyun had noticed it and was waiting for Zhou Mi to catch up to him once again.

 

“I was sent to kill you,” Zhou Mi confessed.

 

“WHY!?” Kyuhyun’s anger had clearly flared and Zhou Mi was trying his best to keep the other’s voice down.

 

“What the hell did I do in this ed up world to deserve to get killed? I just while away at my days sitting in front of a ing computer and trying my best to not get severely owned by ing newbs online! Does that warrant a ing assassination plot in your book?”

 

Zhou Mi blinked at Kyuhyun’s confession and he had started to shake his head.

 

“Then why are you still here?!”

 

Without warning, or much notice of where they had wandered too, Zhou Mi watched as Kyuhyun had entered the building where he lived. He remained there in front of it simply blinking at what has just transpired and being just as confused as his target was about his mission yet that didn’t stop him from getting back up in his usual place and staring at Kyuhyun as he had opened his curtains, glared at the man across the way and  closed them quickly. His anger clearly evident as Zhou Mi kept on questioning his current mission.

 

====

 

Zhou Mi had waited patiently for Kyuhyun to wander out of his building. They had both wandered to the usual convenience store and Zhou Mi cringed at the exaggerated sounds that came from Kyuhyun as he slurped away at his noodles. He felt the eyes behind them at such a loud display and sighed into his meal.

 

Sitting at their usual chairs, Zhou Mi found himself staring blankly at his computer screen for hours.

 

Kyuhyun mumbled and cursed at his screen before getting up and walking away mere hours after they had started it.

 

Zhou Mi followed, once again at a safe distance until Kyuhyun had suddenly turned into an alley and had followed him there with an eyebrow arched.

 

“If you’re going to do it, just ing get it over with,” Kyuhyun demanded as he leaned his back against the wall with his arms crossed on his chest.

 

“Why aren’t you afraid?” Zhou Mi asked approaching him tentatively.

 

Kyuhyun sighed and looked up at Zhou Mi, “I lead a pointless life. I’m still baffled as to who would want to kill me and why. I don’t have much money. I game for hours on end. I have no real friends or family to speak of and thus, just who’s toes have I stepped on to need to be murdered?”

 

Zhou Mi shrugged and leaned against the wall right next to Kyuhyun.

 

“And then there’s you. You’ve got this gorgeous set of eyes and I wonder how nice it would be to kiss you.”

 

Zhou Mi had all but slipped from his spot against the wall and Kyuhyun had made sure to catch him falling all the while getting dangerously close to the older man.

 

Kyuhyun watched as Zhou Mi had gulped harshly as their distance just kept dwindling down. He grinned as he saw how the taller man’s eyes fluttered softly as they closed and he took the chance to calm his curiosity by placing his lips on the other’s. Smiling into the kiss as he had felt the man cling onto the back of his shirt, he took a more daring step to bring them closer together and nudged the kiss deeper before breaking it off.

 

Zhou Mi was lost beyond belief but he liked it. He liked how this little nerdling had all but claimed him and he had wanted to know so much more with him. Screw his mission, he needed to save this man.

 

Taking a hold of one of Kyuhyun’s hands and holding it tightly, he had told Kyuhyun to wander back home and pack as much as he could take.

 

They needed to escape and escape they would into an unknown life full of Kyuhyun’s laptop being the third member of their relationship and silly laughs about how Kyuhyun easily lost his temper because of a simple video game and kisses that made the other explode with joy and rainbows and all the nice, glittery things in this world.

 

Something less complicated than killing strangers for a living.