For You

Chapter Four: Two Sides

Jihun’s POV.

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Baekhyun flew into a fit when I came home, almost a full twenty-four hours after leaving. Hands were immediately all over me, checking my face and hands before ping the hoodie and giving me a thorough pat down just to ensure there weren’t hidden injuries anywhere. He babbled on and on the whole time, tossing out about a dozen questions for me to answer all at once. I sighed, letting him do his thing and feeling entirely relieved that I was back home, even if only for a short while. 

“Sorry I worried you,” I finally hedged when he paused to breathe, drawing his attention from the old scar across my chest where the bullet had pierced. Baekhyun’s eyes seemed to calm slightly at hearing my voice, now satisfied that I had not been marked up in anyway. He nodded, and I knew that only relief that I was alive stood between me and his screaming mommy-rants filled with “how could you?”‘s and “I was worried sick!”‘s.

“Common,” he sighed, finally taking my hand and letting me get past our front entrance. Baekhyun was my best friend and rather clingy. Sometimes I felt like the boy was part dog with his constant need for attention and physical touch, but somehow because it was him I never minded. “Sit,” he instructed, pointing to a bar stool at our kitchen counter. I obeyed. “Coffee?” I nodded exuberantly, suddenly reminded that I hadn’t slept a wink in over thirty-six hours. Baekhyun was the absolute best sometimes. “Just give me one more moment,” he said and disappeared down the hall only to return with a pile of clothes in hand. My clothes. “Here you go.” I took them hungrily, hands already clawing away the flimsy, girl fabric I had been caged in for hours. An audible sigh pushed out of my mouth at the comfort soft sweatpants and a loose t-shirt provided; the horrible girl clothes were now discarded hatefully in a pile on the ground. 

“They didn’t know anything about her,” I finally said, leaning tiredly on the counter and watching my best friend measure out the coffee grinds. He sighed, body physically drooping a little and tossing a sympathetic look my way. “Or at least that’s what they said.” 

“I’m sorry.” I nodded. “So...” he looked hopeful. “Everything worked out okay? You managed to get in and...out?” The last bit was said hesitantly. He knew something must’ve gone wrong for me to be back a day later. I shook my head.

“Not exactly. I got in just fine, but Seungjun woke up before I was able to give him the hallucinogen.” Baekhyun’s eyes widened but remained silent as I continued on, rehashing everything tiredly. When I was done, a hot mug slid across the counter to me, and he sat in the stool adjacent, too stunned to really say anything. I sipped, immediately burning my tongue on the scalding, black coffee, but feeling immense relief as it slid down my throat. 

I needed this twenty hours ago. 

“That’s...” He trailed off, eyes wide and trained on me. I waited, knowing what was about to come next. “What are you going to do?”

“I don’t have much of an option.” He knew that, his face told me so already. 

“But still...” upset, b on fury clouded his eyes. “Spy on EXO?!”

“I know.” I chugged another hot sip down. “I’ll have to be careful.” 

“Be careful?!?” He was mad. “How can you carefully divest secret, personal information about YOUR OWN mafia to another?!?” 

And there it was- the question that had plagued my mind since I first opened the white folder. Unknowingly, Seungjun had asked me to betray my own family. I waited for Baekhyun to settle down before speaking, choosing my words carefully. 

“I don’t have to tell them anything important. I’ll just feed KNK little truths - just enough to appease them and keep them off my trail. When I have to, I’ll lie.” 

“But, what are we supposed to do?” The anger was still apparent in his eyes, though now his predominant emotion seemed to be hurt... like a kicked puppy.

“We?” 

He frowned. “Yeah WE, Jihun. I’m saying what about Sehun, Chanyeol, Yixing, Tao, Chen, Kai, the rest of the guys and myself?!?” I grimaced. Baekhyun must’ve already known the answer but didn’t want to say it. I tried to choose my words well, but there was really no nice way to put it.

“Only you know I’m still alive Baekhyun. Everyone else thinks I’m missing or dead.” Guilt dropped in my stomach even as I said it. After the incident a month ago, we had decided it was best to let them worry rather than tell them I was alright and risk my discovery from the wrong person. It was an uncomfortable truth. “I’ll stay undercover and weasel my way back into our friend pack at school. None of them will have any idea it’s me. I’ll pretend to spy on them and feed KNK tiny bits of useless information, lying where I have to. And while I’m doing it, I’ll build trust with Seungjun and try to find Hyomin.”

I looked down at the empty coffee mug in my hands, trying to slow the sudden clatter of my heartbeat. It happened whenever I said her name. “It’s the only way to keep everyone safe. It’s the only way out of this.” He was quiet.

“You could always come out of hiding and ask everyone for help. We could take out KNK. It would be easy to...” 

I shook my head. “No. Someone is still trying to kill me. I can’t return yet.”

Silence enfolded around us as the full weight of everything settled. It was incredibly dangerous. My whole life had been perfect before suddenly going to a month ago in the span of a day. Someone had done it intentionally. That much I knew. The large ‘K’ painted on the inside of my busted up apartment and the unique bullet shells both matched KNK... but the look in Seungjun’s eyes last night had told me that he wasn’t lying about having no knowledge of Hyomin. Or that he’s an exceptionally good liar... but I doubted that. Almost no one could convincingly lie to me. It was a trait I was known for. 

But who then? And why did they make it look like KNK? 

There was a chance it was someone from inside EXO.

That thought crushed against me. There was only one way to get to the bottom of anything... I had to keep walking forward, undercover and lying to everyone I knew aside from Baekhyun.

Perhaps it was actually a good idea. As someone else, I would get to see the inner workings of EXO - and watch how people acted when I wasn’t around. If there was a rat on the inside, hopefully he would slip, and say things to an innocent girl. Gross. The very thought had me shuddering in disgust. 

“Wow.” Baekhyun finally exhaled, looking back at me with a sort of resignation to the whole thing. “I can’t believe EXO’s best guy is about to double-agent his own mafia group.” He shook his head. “At least you’ll get to go back into kicking and punching for fun.”

It was a valid point. I had refused to have any mafia involvement while being with Hyomin for the past three years. A part of me had always missed it. My hands itched for the cold, steely feeling of having a gun squeezed between palm and fingers. 

A slight laugh broke through both of our grimaces, and we nodded to one another in a sort of agreement. It was decided.

“No matter what you do Jihun, you know I’ve always got your back. I’ll try and keep the rest of EXO off your trail for as long as possible.” He was sincere.

“Thanks Baekhyun.” 

“Just don’t get killed.” Mischievous eyes smiled at mine. “I’ll see you in school.”

I had three hours left before my allotted time to retrieve my belongings would end and I would be due to return to KNK as one of theirs. A strange feeling of anticipation and dread slithered into my soul.  

* * * 

For You.

Chapter Four Completed. 

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Note from Red:

You guys are way too smart, and I find it secretly hilarious (and wildly entertaining) how much dialogue is wrapped around Jihun's cross-dressing. lol. Keep your comments flowing. I'm loving them all. :)