“I…I don’t understand,” Shownu frowned, “I just……and Jooheon knows?”

“Yeah,” Hongbin nodded, “he knows.” Hongbin sighed after a moment, “I know it’s a lot to take in. A few minutes ago, you thought Hakyeon was dead. And now…..”

“Now I know that you all made Hyuk go through that bull,” Shownu scowled, glaring darkly at Hongbin, “I don’t care what reasons you had, you all put him through that……that thing out there.” Hongbin tried not to let that glare scare him. He believed that they did the right thing, the necessary thing. The silent threat from Shownu wasn’t going to change his mind on that.

“Keep your voice down,” Hongbin huffed, “Sanghyuk and Hakyeon need their rest.”

“He’s my partner,” Shownu huffed, voice lowered as asked, “and my friend. He’s your friend, too. Seeing him like that out there…….how could you stand it? Especially since you knew the truth. You’re his friend, Hongbin.”

“It needed to happen,” Hongbin replied, “you know he had to be there. If he wasn’t, the people who tried to kill Hakyeon would have been suspicious. They would have looked into things, seen if they could get people talking. How long do you think it would have been before they did? Before they found out Hakyeon was alive?”

“We could protect him,” Shownu argued, “We’re a family.”

“And what if some of that family is really on the side of the enemy?” Hongbin pressed, “I know you’ve suspected it since people started trashing our name, spilling secrets that they shouldn’t know about.”

“Hongbin,” Shownu hissed, “do you really think that someone in our family could have had a hand in this?”

“I don’t know,” Hongbin admitted, “but it is possible.” He glanced down the hall, at the door of Sanghyuk and Hakyeon’s bedroom, before continuing, “Taekwoon was wondering about it as well. But we have no proof one way or another so…….”

“Best to play it safe,” Shownu sighed, “I take it you haven’t told Sanghyuk and Hakyeon this theory.”

“You take it right,” was the reply, “Sanghyuk’s already in a horrible mental state. The idea that some of our family us, had a hand in trying to kill Hakyeon…..it would ruin him completely. And as for Hakyeon? He can’t mentally or psychically deal with this.”

“You know we can’t keep shut about it forever, right?” Shownu sighed after a long moment, “one of them is gonna figure it out eventually. No way they’re gonna just say it was a mail bomb and be done with it. Not when this almost cost Hakyeon his life. They’ll dig, they’ll search. That’s just the kind of people they are.”

“I know,” Hongbin nodded, “but for now…….for now Taekwoon feels like this is the best way to do things.”

“Fine,” Shownu said after a long moment of silence, “if that’s what the second in command wants to do, I’ll go along with it. But I am going to tell Wonho and the guys.”

“I see no problem with that,” Hongbin replied, “I trust them, too. I know that they had no part in this. Just make sure Taekwoon knows, ok?”

“Got it.”

Shownu still didn’t like any of this. He didn’t like keeping secrets from his family. He didn’t like not being able to trust his family. He didn’t like having to lie and pretend that one of his family was dead, especially when that lie was hurting the other members of his family. But if this was what Taekwoon thought was best, he would go along with it. He trusted Taekwoon, knew that his trust was well placed. He trusted that Taekwoon’s plan was what was best.

That wasn’t going to stop him from punching Taekwoon when he next saw him, though.

A/N: poor Shownu. He doesn’t at all like the lies and secrets and broken trust, but…..what can ya do? Taekwoon’s reasons are sound. Ya just gotta hope everything works out like it should.