Sunggyu was stressed and could feel the stiffness in his muscles while editing a report. He took in a deep, ragged breath and placed his hands, enclosed together, onto the table.

The Marketing Department was going to have an important presentation the following week. They were responsible for launching a new product and enhancing the sales and profits of Kim Corporate during the Christmas season.

He fought to be in the Marketing Department instead of the Sales Department because Taehyun used to tell him that the heart of a business’s success lies in its marketing. He wanted to prove his capability to his father but apparently, he was still lacking somewhere and it resulted in their competitor taking over them.

And that was the reason why he was losing confidence and his mind was constantly regurgitating the worries that the product wasn’t perfect enough.

“Woohyun,” Sunggyu called the intern sharply, causing him to get startled in the middle of his work. No, wait, scratch that. He had dozed off a few minutes ago while he was scanning the boring analysis needed for the meeting later.

“Wae?” He rubbed his sleepy eyes and turned his head to face his boss. Is he going to scold me for lazing around?

“How are you going to steal the YJ company's information?” Sunggyu asked. Who’s YJ Company? Aren’t I in Kim Corporate now? It took Woohyun a while to come to his senses that it was their rival.

“Hmmm...” He rubbed the tip of his index finger against his chin, thinking carefully while he visualised himself in the cave having a meeting with Sungyeol and Howon.

“Hyun, you can kidnap the chairman of YJ Company and force him to give you the company’s data!” Sungyeol suggested with a wide grin.

“No, that’s too risky! What if the Chairman recognises his voice and hunts him down? Don’t forget that Kim Sunggyu won’t take responsibility for Hyun’s safety.” Howon rejected instantly, he didn’t want Woohyun to be in danger.

“Fine, then what about breaking into their company and stealing their data like how we usually purloin money?”

Jungyeop stepped into the cave after he overheard their conversation from outside and hit Sungyeol’s head.

“Old man, what’s that for?” He whined while rubbing the sore area.

“Your ideas are absurd! I’ve taught you guys so many things since young and these are what you can think of?” Jungyeop scolded.

“Old man, then what do you think I should do?” Woohyun asked, he resembled a lost child.

“You should avoid doing things that involve taking high risks and will cause you to get caught again.” Jungyeop replied shortly.

Before Woohyun could query further, he was snapped out of his trance by Sunggyu’s voice.

“Yah I’m asking you a question! Has the cat got your tongue?” Sunggyu’s face flushed red, he was annoyed when the thief stayed silent. Woohyun rolled his eyes, he was so close to getting the answer from Jungyeop. 

What does old man mean by that? Woohyun pondered, trying to remember everything that Jungyeop had taught him.

“Oh right, I can hack into their system!” Woohyun blurted out and Sunggyu lifted his gaze from his file in amusement.

“You know how to do that?” Woohyun felt like he had won the lottery when Sunggyu was impressed. Youthful confidence wore in a slight raise of his eyebrows above his quizzical, joyful eyes. Now that he recalled, he has indeed learned a lot of things; stealing, lying, hacking, picking locks and reading maps.

“Yup, old man ensures that all of us know the basics at least, although Yeollie and Seungie are the ones in charge of IT.” Woohyun explained with a slight curve at the corner of his mouth before his facial expression changed immediately. ! Why did I tell him that? What if he harms Sungyeol and Hyunseung? He panicked internally when he was aware that he has let his guard down a little. His action was unusual though, normally he would’ve been more cautious around a stranger.

“Old man?” Sunggyu scrunched his eyebrows in confusion. This was the first time he heard titbits about Woohyun, other than his name and age. It’s not like he can use these details to find them, right? Besides, there’s no documentary evidence of a man adopting a bunch of orphans and furthermore, we’re living in a forest, the chances of discovering our hideout are very slim.

“He’s like our guardian.” Woohyun replied shortly. “He must be very old then?” He reminisced about Jungyeop’s hilarious reaction when they called him ‘old man’ for the first time and chuckled. “Not really.” Initially, Jungyeop was annoyed to be reminded of his age constantly, until he slowly grew used to it. The origin of the name was from the prankster none other than Lee Sungyeol.

His dimple is there again. There was something about Woohyun that Sunggyu couldn’t tear his gaze away, like how he looked adorable with the laugh in his eyes and the way his face changed into a vision of relaxed joy and unrestrained mirth. He’s very cheerful when mentioning this man.

“So, you guys are not related to him?” Sunggyu’s curiosity was building and he wanted to know more. He’s not entirely a bad person, judging from the way how he treats that ajumma with affection. He said he’ll release me after I help him, he seems like a man of his word.

“Nope, we’re orphans.” Woohyun replied briefly. I hope I didn’t make the wrong judgement, or else I’ll endanger the lives of Infinity Free Souls. I’ve to protect them.

“How did you-” Sunggyu’s question was interrupted by a knock and Woohyun was relieved.

“It’s time for the meeting,” the secretary reminded him with a schedule planner in his hand.

“Woohyun, can you make a trip to the Starbucks, please? You can buy yourself a drink too.” Dongwoo requested while taking out his wallet.

“Yahh why must he go?” Sunggyu objected with a frown. He didn’t like the idea of him away from the company.

“I felt it’ll be nice to have a cooling drink during the meeting and only Woohyun’s available.” Sunggyu hesitated, he doesn’t fully trust the thief yet.

“Boss, it’s not like I can run away when you’ve secured a leash on me.” Woohyun hoped that he’ll permit him.

“Alright,” the heir gave in and gathered his items.

“Do you want anything?” Woohyun asked him politely.

Sunggyu shook his head, “Make sure to get back here as soon as possible.” He verified that the earring was still attached on Woohyun’s earlobe before heading towards the meeting room. It seems like they’re slowly getting along. Dongwoo thought gleefully and passed Woohyun his credit card.

“I want a venti iced blended caramel macchiato. Thank you Woohyun ah!” He patted his shoulder and followed Sunggyu.

•••

Woohyun arrived at Starbucks. Their interior design was warm and cheery, with bright lights and colourful walls. The aroma of coffee beans and freshly baked lasagne filled his nostrils. He was in love with these scents. Whenever they had missions in the city, he’d sneak into one of their outlets, even though they weren’t allowed to linger around, and order a cup of green tea latte while Howon would drink an iced americano.

“One venti iced blended caramel macchiato and one grande hot green tea latte, thank you.” He placed his order at the counter.

“May I have your name?” The barista asked with a sweet smile. She was pretty.

“Hyun.” He answered and made his payment after she wrote his name on the cups using a black permanent marker.

“Hey, isn’t that the blond guy we saw yesterday?” Sungyeol whispered to Howon while elbowing his arm and eyeing the back of the guy. They were occupying the corner seats in the cafe.

“Quickly drink your coffee so we can leave,” Howon grumbled while gulping his iced americano. He wasn’t interested in anything unless it was related to Woohyun.

“Caramel macchiato and green tea latte for Hyun!” Howon and Sungyeol’s eyes widened at the announcement and immediately looked over to the counter. Woohyun picked his drinks with a bow to the barista. From that angle, they could see his face clearly. Howon was breathless as his heartbeat quickened. It’s really him.

“H-Hyun?” They exchanged stares and rushed over to Woohyun, giving him a tight hug. This caused the thief to get startled and alarmed since he didn’t catch a glimpse of their appearances.

“You are so handsome in blond hair!” Sungyeol praised and ruffled his hair.

“Yah! We’ve been searching for you everywhere! Stupid country bumpkin, why didn’t you send a message to let us know that you’re safe?” Howon reprimanded him, he was on the brink of tears. Woohyun’s face washed blank with confusion before shock was registered on it. He recognised his best friend’s voice.

“Hoya! Yeol! I miss you guys so much!” He returned their hug tightly in tears as his body slowly melted into theirs and every of his muscle lost its tension. They finally reunited after a painful separation.

Sunggyu checked his watch again with his fingertips tapping against the table repeatedly. It has been half an hour since the meeting started but Woohyun was still nowhere to be seen.

Where did he go? There’s no way he could possibly flee. He grew impatient and was about to detect his whereabouts through his laptop.

Suddenly, his phone chimed. He glanced at the screen, it was an incoming call from home. He excused himself and walked out of the meeting room.

“Young Master, she refuses to eat and keeps whining,” Krystal informed anxiously.

“Bwoh? Aish that girl! I’ll be right back.” Sunggyu ended the call and went back to the room. “I’m sorry but I’ve to leave the meeting now. You may proceed on without me,” He apologised to his colleagues. “Wae?” Dongwoo asked and wore a puzzled expression.

“Krystal told me that the baby isn’t feeling well,” Sunggyu explained with a sigh.

“President, you spoiled her too much that’s why she’s always behaving like this to get your attention.” Jonghyun snickered and shook his head in disapproval. Sunggyu ignored him. 

He packed his stuff hastily and left the office. He got into his Jaguar and drove home.

“Y-You must be kidding,” Woohyun choked out with tears forming in his eyes and he quickly blinked them away. Howon and Sungyeol had told him everything in a deserted park. The thought of leaving Infinity Free Souls terrified him.

“I wish we were, but it’s true. Jungyeop-ssi doesn’t care about us anymore. All he cares about are safety and money, we finally saw his true colours.” Sungyeol heaved a heavy sigh.

“I-I trust old man. We grew up with him together for many years, he isn’t that sort of person. I think you must’ve misunderstood him and made a rash decision.” Woohyun stated and controlled his shaky voice. He was trying to convince himself that it wasn’t true. Old man wouldn’t abandon me.

“Yah! Why are you siding with him? Does it mean that you don’t trust us? If it wasn’t because we care about you, we wouldn’t have left! That man doesn’t even bother to search for you.” Sungyeol raised his voice in anger, he was oblivious.

“Yeol, you know I don’t mean it that way. I-I just-” Howon cut Woohyun off by caressing his hand to calm him down. From the stuttering, he could tell that Woohyun’s emotions were unstable and he was having a hard time hiding it.

“Hyun, where have you been? Did you get yourself in any trouble? What happened?” He changed the topic. He was so grateful to see him in good shape.

“I’m currently working for Kim Corporate. I signed a contract with the President of that company, the man who caught me, and he promised to let me go after the deal terminates.” Woohyun explained softly.

“President? Who? Kim Myungsoo?” Sungyeol questioned with a snort of disgust, just by thinking about him caused his blood to boil.

“Ani, it’s Kim Sunggyu. I haven’t seen the President of Sales Department yet though.” He wondered what did Myungsoo look like. Maybe he’s much more attractive and nicer than his brother. And if I’m lucky, he’ll even persuade Sunggyu to let me off.

“He’s the most horrible person I’ve ever met on earth! It’s a good thing that you haven’t met him.” Sungyeol exclaimed and shattered Woohyun’s imagination of a friendlier version of Sunggyu.

“What contract is that? What did you have to do for him?” Howon began to worry that they might use Woohyun for human or drug trafficking.

“I’ve to steal information from their competitor.” Woohyun kept his voice low. It was strictly confidential.

“Why don’t you run away with us now?” Howon suggested.

“I can’t, he installed this GPS tracking device on me. It’s impossible to take it out.” Woohyun showed the earring to them and they tried to remove it but to no avail.

“I’ve a solution!” Woohyun turned his head to Sungyeol with his eyes lit up. He really wanted to leave this place and rush back to the forest to find Jungyeop. He needed an explanation from him and a reassurance that his old man was still the same person he knew.

“We have no choice but to sever your left ear lobe.” Sungyeol received a hard smack from Howon and whined in great pain.

“Yah! Stop hitting my head or else I’ll become stupid!” He groaned while soothing it in circles. “You already are!”

Woohyun guffawed, he missed seeing scenes like this. However, there was an empty feeling in his heart. He feared that Jungyeop was really gone from his life. Howon sensed his uneasiness.

“Hyun, wait for me, I’ll find ways to help you out.” Woohyun lied his head on Howon’s chest and the latter was hoping that he didn’t hear till his rapid heartbeat.

“Thank you so much for not giving up on me.”

“Chubs!” Sunggyu shouted once he opened the door.

“Young Master,” Krystal greeted him, she was holding a bowl filled with kibble.

“Where’s she?” She pointed at the hallway. Sunggyu took over the bowl and made his way there. An adolescent 8 weeks old munchkin kitten was lying on her stomach near the stairs, purring lowly. She sounded whiny and upset. He sat down behind her and placed the metal bowl on the ground.

“Chubs, what’s wrong? Are you still sick?” Her ears perked up after hearing his voice and her tail bolted up enthusiastically. He laughed when she jumped onto his lap in difficulty since she has very short legs.

“Did you miss me that badly?” He carried her in his arms and her white fur with light and dark brown coating tenderly. It was soft and fluffy. She rubbed her face against his stomach while producing a high-pitched sound. “Yeah, I miss you too.” His reply seemed to content her.

The first time he laid his eyes on Chubs was along the street of Gangnam District. It was as if he was fated to meet her. She was a stray kitten in a small box mewling sadly and this caught his attention. A note was stuck on the box. ‘Her name’s Chubs. If you want to be her owner, please take good care of her and feed her well.’ He wasn’t exactly a cat lover, yet he fell in love with her at first sight because of her deep blue eyes. They were so beautiful like the Antarctic ocean. Why would someone discard her?

Beside the box was a giant plastic bag containing toys and packets of food. There was a receipt in it and the date of purchase indicated that those things were bought recently. It led Sunggyu to wonder why did the owner leave Chubs when the person still cared about her. Nobody would still bother to buy things for a pet to abandon it somewhere.

“Chubs, you’ve to eat. Your previous owner must’ve wanted you to be chubby and healthy.” Sunggyu smiled as he pressed his lips against her crown.

Woohyun couldn’t control his emotions the moment he entered Sunggyu’s office. It was probably because there wasn’t anyone here and he didn’t have to hide his real feelings anymore. He felt a weight of sorrow upon his shoulders. Tears burst forth like water from a dam, spilling down his face. The emotions came like hands in the wheel of a car, taking him to somewhere different than the place he had expected.

His thoughts flashed back to the car accident. He stood along the road and wailed helplessly for hours. The car was damaged severely, and the bodies of his loved ones were burnt to ashes. He collapsed, his howls of misery worsening.

“Kid, are you okay?” He shifted his eyes away from the vehicle and that was the first time he met Jungyeop. The adult squatted down to Woohyun’s eye level and examined his bleeding palms.

“M-My parents and hyung are inside! Ajeossi, please save them!” Beads of water started falling one after another, without a sign of stopping. His hands opened and closed, rhythmically clenching as if there could be some violent solution to his pain if only he could find it. Jungyeop turned to the vehicle and knew that it was already impossible to rescue them. He pulled Woohyun into his embrace as he knew the child was in agony. “I know you’re having a hard time with this, I’m sorry that you’re hurting so much.”

Since then, Jungyeop brought him to his hut in the forest and took care of him, showering him with love. Woohyun was extremely defiant and he despised the fact that he was alive. He had attempted to commit suicide many times but failed. Jungyeop was very patient with him, “It has never happened to me before, but I can understand why you’re feeling this way.” And eventually, Woohyun’s walls came tumbling down brick by brick, he was rescued by Jungyeop and was the first member of Infinity Free Souls, followed by Howon.

Howon’s father was the breadwinner in the family. After Taehyun fired him, the family fell into bankruptcy. One day when Howon came home, he found out that all the furniture was gone. The house was completely empty. His jaw dropped, he was startled. A man walked in and claimed that he had paid for the house, so it belonged to him now. He ran everywhere to find them until he was lost, only to realise that they had vanished into thin air. Thankfully, he bumped into Jungyeop and Woohyun along the streets in Seoul.

Sungyeol’s family was demanding. His parents controlled Sungyeol like a puppet, instead of treating him as a human. Therefore, he ran away from the mansion, he wanted freedom. When he came across Woohyun and Howon, who were mischievously breaking into other people’s house, he decided that he wanted to be a part of them.

Woohyun was filled with gratitude towards Jungyeop for everything. Although he could never get over the suffering from the loss of his family completely, nevertheless, he enjoyed the moments spent together with the members.

Old man, it’s a lie, right? How could you abandon me?

•••

Sunggyu stepped into the office quietly. He has forgotten to bring home some important documents. He was taken aback when he saw Woohyun sitting on the couch in the middle of the night. He switched on the light.

“Why aren’t you asleep?” Sunggyu asked and received no response from the thief. He misinterpreted Woohyun’s behaviour as throwing tantrum, so he ignored him. However, he halted in his footsteps when he heard Woohyun sniffed and caught him brushing something away from his cheek swiftly. He was ducking his head down with his hoodie on, Sunggyu couldn’t see his face.

“Are you okay?” Woohyun nodded as he didn’t trust his own voice.

Sunggyu’s instinct told him that the thief was lying, so he made his way towards him. He grabbed onto the ends of the hoodie and tugged it, forcing Woohyun’s head to jerk up.

“What’s wrong?”

Sunggyu was shocked to see him in this state. His eyes were red and puffy. He has been crying. Woohyun buried his face in Sunggyu’s abdomen to shield his vulnerable side and sobbed unceasingly, hands clutching tightly to his shirt. Sunggyu wrapped an arm around his shoulders and pulled him close, gently rubbing his arm awkwardly to comfort him, “It’s okay, you’ll feel better after letting it out.”

He isn’t as strong as I thought he was.

He didn’t know what was tingling in his heart. Woohyun sunk into the warmth of Sunggyu’s side, appreciative of the simple gesture.

“Head, the policemen are tracking down your van! We have missed out a CCTV near the office building and it captured your license plates.”

“If they managed to find out about Infinity Free Souls, pass the document that I had prepared long ago to Taehyun. He’ll let us off after reading it.”

“But what if he doesn’t? He was incredibly furious, and I even heard him saying that he won’t let you guys off!”

“Trust me, Kibum. He will. Just remember to give him the folder.”

--------------------------------

Note: My next update will probably be slower because I’m currently busy with school. Nevertheless, thank you so much for reading and leaving a comment ♡