Brother.

The word rings in your mind long after Taemin’s revealing of it. You spend a little more time together, talking, cuddling. At this proximity, it’s almost like you can feel the strength in his bones faltering, how he needs you to keep him upright, how he’s telling you in all but words that you’ve been his strength all along.

That as much as he’s afraid of falling apart when you’re in vicinity – for a multitude of reasons, he needs to. Even if only for a night.  

If only the two of you could find a hideout, one that isn’t being spied on by Taemin’s father and his cronies and run away to it for a couple of hours.

But what’s the chance of that?

Even with something as simple and innocent as a tree house, his father will find a way to destroy the beauty and simplicity of it, over complicate it. Make it feel unsafe.

Unsteady.  

It didn’t even need to be said, at least to you, the ordeal with the tree house.

Abused children tend to have gaps in their memory, sometimes details are recalled incorrectly, mixed up. You have no doubt in your mind that Taemin is extra careful to not mess any details up, as hard as that might be sometimes, and especially with the further abuse he’s experienced, being ‘wrong’ likely isn’t an option in his household.  

Taemin’s father wants him questioning himself, to the very minute detail, even over something as clear in his mind as the memories of the tree house he’d discovered in New Zealand. The innocent little tree house he’d run away to play in during his younger years.

One good thing in the midst of all the bad things happening to and around him.

Taemin didn’t remember wrong at all, which is what is so heinous about it. His father has literally gone out of his way to plant a replica of that same tree house in a different location so Taemin could assume he knew where he was, what his bearings were, only to twist everything he knew on its head and have him as lost as everyone else.

But with an added topping of doubting his already fragmented memories.

You puff out a deep, exhausted breath. Just when would it be enough? What was Taemin allowed to have here?  

You tell him, in all the words you can muster that no matter what happens, you’ll be there, that these walls he feels he must keep up to protect you, they’re not necessary any more because you refuse to go down without a fight.

That it’s not your safety you fear for. It’s probably the most alienating and terrifying thing for your best friend to hear, especially when his primary goal for so long has been exactly that, keeping you safe.  Even at his own expense.

Keeping you blinded to the truths of this life, the evil secrets of his household… because blind is better than endangered.  

If you’re blinded you’re not an accomplice, and if you’re not an accomplice to the imaginary crimes his parents are holding him ransom for, you’re safe, right?

But no more. Even if it puts you at risk. God, especially if it puts you at risk and keeps Taemin out of harm’s way.

No one should have to go through what Taemin’s going through alone.    

No matter what his father says, implies or attempts, you’re not going to scare easily. Even if fear begins to seep into every inch of your being, you refuse to fall victim to it.

The suffering your best friend has been put through and him thinking he deserves it, is all the reason to stand your ground. The hatred that’s pooled between him and his half brother is all the reason to question and fight against it.

They didn’t always hate each other, and they shouldn’t have to.

Taemin, Jongin.

Jongin, Taemin.

Regardless of how the curtain falls, who’s mentioned first, what your relationship with either one is or becomes, they’re two individual people, both equally deserving of love, friendship and happiness.  

Not just seeds of the same father, forced into a never ending battle neither signed up for.

Not mortal enemies for a reason no one seems to know, like this society would have you believe.

Whole people, in their own right. The real victims in the situation, both forced into a mindset where they believe the other is better off or has had it easier, when at the heart of the matter, their suffering isn’t a competition.

Their lives aren’t a competition.

Both of them now, likely sitting there, thinking it’s you that needs to be protected and shielded. That every threat Lee Taewon makes against you, is something he’s assuring them he’ll go through with, yet they’re too involved to see that you’re literally the pawn that he’s using to distract them. To keep their attention divided, away from his real goal.

Taemin’s father is a lot of things, but at the heart of it, he’s a coward.  A coward who’s been playing mind games with the two of them since before they knew what the word competition meant.

Instilling false narratives in their mind.    

That life is a battle that only one child can win.

Where one child will eat, the other will starve.

Their places may swap in different situations, but it won’t change the fact that one of them will always have what the other doesn’t, in some format.  Some way, somehow.

And they’ll hate that they’ll think about the other side of the coin from time to time. The aspect they don’t have. The black to the white, the white to the black. No gray anywhere, at least not for each other.

Which at the heart of it, hurts more than they can say, because they once mattered to each other, and likely still do, underneath the twisted layers of abuse, deceit and useless competition.

So much that they’ll come to unspoken agreements on the matter. Even if it’s out of spite. To stop themselves having to fight about these things, like they’ve been taught to.

‘You can have this thing and I’ll have this other thing. I stay away from yours, you stay away from mine.’

That way they don’t get in the way of each other, or the other’s things. They make a note not to.

And up until you and that fateful day in the classroom all those months ago, it’d kind of been working perfectly.

And now it isn’t.

Because you’ve become the mid point between all of that. Which works perfectly in Taewon’s favor, surprising as it must’ve been at first.

You used to be some no name, inconsequential best friend of his first son, no relevance whatsoever to his second son. He might’ve seen you around, but he had no reason to pay attention to you.

No one had gotten close to them at the same time, thanks to his meticulous meddling. And without his intervention, case: Min-seo… no one would.

As mangled and false as that closeness might be for Taemin and Min-seo, all that mattered was it reached Jongin’s eyes and ears.

So when that didn’t go as plan, and Jongin didn’t react the way Taewon wanted him to, of course you, said inconsequential best friend of his first son... you wouldn’t be the one to rock the boat, now would you, considering your position in Taemin’s life?

Apparently Taewon’s crystal ball is a dud, because you did exactly that, being no relation whatsoever to him or his meddling.

 

To Taewon, it was simple. The way it had always been.

Jongin knew not to mess with Taemin’s things. Taemin knew not to mess with Jongin’s things.

And when one’s been abused and manipulated and gaslighted to the degree they have throughout their lives, of course that’s going to extend to people.

Min-seo was Taewon’s test piece, initially, but you unknowingly set his every plan into motion. Just by daring to be Taemin’s best friend and talk to Jongin. By somehow piquing Jongin’s interest enough to make him break his unspoken code of honor with Taemin.

Clearly Taewon isn’t happy about how it all came to be right under his nose, because that takes a fragment of his control away, but he has every intention of navigating it so he can use you for his benefit.  

You’re here because he wants to see how far they’ll go to keep you on their ‘side’. See how far they’ll compete for something they supposedly both care about…

Whether it’s ‘rightful’ inheritance. A friend slash almost lover. A father’s love; or if he’s incapable of it, at the very least, his attention.

After working so hard to deny them of the aforementioned, in whatever way he saw fit.

Keeping them on the edge of their seats until they’re primped and polished for his big finale.

Which will commence on this two week ‘vacation’.  

 

Once the two of you have calmed down from all the anxieties, the fears, the revelations, Taemin tells you to go ahead and catch some sleep, noticing your fluttering eyelids, heavy from the day’s events.

You want to protest, tell him you have all night, that the last thing you plan to do is fall asleep, that you’ve been waiting for a day like this for a long while now, but before you can, the sound of Kyungsoo’s footsteps stop you in your tracks. He stands in the doorway, peering at you.  

He blinks, eyeing the distance between the two of you, or the lack, thereof. Where his eyes would’ve once swam with curiosity and devious intent, there’s almost a sadness this time. Like he regrets how all of this came to pass.

Like he misses Jongin as much as Jongin misses him. Like he sees a reflection of he and Jongin in you and Taemin.

You run a tired hand through your hair, wondering how you all got roped into this, how it’s playing out perfectly for Taewon. Even you, someone he’s not been actively stalking and manipulating, or hadn’t been until you started hanging around with his second son as well as his first…

Even you.

Walking into his trap. Laying his plans in motion. Truly, it’s sickening, how well it’s worked out for Taewon.

As you lose yourself in your thoughts, mindlessly placing one foot in front of the other, Taemin and Kyungsoo bid you adieu, the latter coming as a surprise, though not really. He’s clearly been playing up the shady journalist persona since you first met, it’s obvious it’s not who he really is and he’s just lost himself along the way, like Jongin said.

There’s still hope for a Jongin and Kyungsoo reconciliation, if they just swallow their pride and speak to each other. It’s Taemin and Jongin you worry for. With how deep rooted their issues are… god, it may take years.

And there’s you, walking on a thin line of ice like it’s a tightrope, trying to navigate between them, having not realized this could’ve been the final straw for your best friend all those months ago, the reason your life long friendship reached its end.

Yet… it wasn’t. Granted, he knows things aren’t ‘real’ between Jongin and yourself now, but even when he didn’t, he didn’t just throw you to the side like you’d irreversibly betrayed him, like everyone else seemed to expect.

So doesn’t that, in itself, tell you that he realizes there’s something wrong with this mentality in itself? That there needs to be a change?

And a change has to start somewhere, doesn’t it? They can’t live their entire lives thinking people are banned from them simply because the other knew them first.

You understand where it’s come from, of course you do, but it’s not a healthy mentality and this awful society has done nothing to challenge it, rather egg it on further.

That’s got to stop. Even if that makes you ‘public enemy number one’, it’s not the public you’re here to please or befriend. It’s not the public who’s going to need the therapy and years of unlearning unhealthy coping mechanisms and challenge the abusive mindsets they’ve had shoved down their throats since before they could walk.

It’s your best friend and it’s Jongin… your other friend. A Jongin you’re not afraid to say you care about also. A Jongin who’s well being matters as much as Taemin’s does.

A Jongin you have every intention of fighting for, just as you’ll fight for Taemin.

If it makes you the odd one out, the biggest fool alive, for daring to challenge archaic class systems and heinous, power crazy fat cats, so be it.  

You’ll take it to falling in line with the rest of the sheep, living lies, furthering destructive systems. Cowering in fear.

You might be just a girl in Taewon’s eyes, but you’re a girl that can do a lot more than he assumes she can.

 

As you make your way into yours and Jongin’s room, cursing the ridiculous method of entering, you wonder if he’ll still be up. It’s been hours since you left the premiere, hours since you hastily made your way out first, Taemin in toll.

He reads you like a book as it is, but you know you have to keep what you’ve just found out about them being brothers on the down low. You can’t talk about it with him, not yet. 

You can’t even talk about the fact that Taewon showed obvious favoritism because now you’re aware of the reason why, you’re sure the thoughts will play out on your facial expressions and he’ll notice the change. Where confusion and that slight pinch of curiosity used to be, there’ll be something a lot more sinister in its place. Something much more… involved.

Which will be impossible to hide. Especially around Jongin.

When Jongin said truths can co-exist, he wasn’t wrong. Taewon favors Jongin, but that doesn’t mean Jongin’s any better off. Or that Jongin’s any safer around Taewon.

That level of obsessive focus can’t lie… he doesn’t just want him to take over the company, he wants a relationship with him. By any means necessary. He’s mad that Jongin’s cut him out of his life.

Taewon’s need for this relationship, this bond, this connection… it’s Jongin’s leverage, which Jongin’s well aware of.

And has become his control. Jongin’s forced himself to go against everything Taewon is and has offered him, willed himself to survive, even if the odds were stacked against him for a long time, trained himself to become the lone wolf, because Taewon’s primary goal is having total control over both sons.

Having them terrified to make a move without him, his guidance, his assistance.

And Jongin’s primary goal is to reject everything Taewon is, to the point he doesn’t even want to think about his mother’s connection with him. That he’d rather see himself as fatherless than claiming a father like Taewon.

You’re never going to find out how this all came to be if you ask him, you know that. It’s something he can’t be unbiased about. He’ll tell you the truths, of course he will, you don’t doubt that, but they’ll be truths clouded in pain, anger, frustration, hatred.

Understandably. Plus it’s not a wound you want to force him to reopen. He may have told you to come to him for things like this, to simply ask him what you want to know, but this…

It’s not fair to.

If you take into account how much he hates being from Taewon, knowing his mother was a good person, likely too good, you’ll know he idolizes her. Maybe even mythologizes her to some degree, especially because she was taken away from him so soon and he’d experienced so much that was bad that he needed something that was entirely good, pure, whole, in the midst of it.  

Because of that, he’ll refuse to see all the ways she’s been involved with the darkness of this tale and you hate to say it because she clearly was a good person, but her tale with Taewon includes infidelity.  

Jongin’s existence stems from infidelity and that’s not a reminder anyone needs to be hearing. It’s not what anyone should be basing their opinion of themselves off of, either.

It’s not something they should think a close friend or confidant -- or whatever Jongin views you as -- also believes them to be. Because you don’t. You really don’t.

He’s had too much of this, being pulled back and forth by people, feeling like he means something to them one day, then nothing the next. You might be different in that sense, your dynamic may be wholly different in that sense as well, but it just feels… wrong. Sitting there asking him about information like this, whilst he sits before you, having to hide what will be a very obvious pain, knowing you’ll be the reason these old, painful wounds are being reopened.

Talking about this to him, not with him, because it won’t be him coming to you with the answers to the questions, it’ll be you asking the questions and him providing answers, which doesn’t seem like that big a difference, but it is.

No matter what he’s said about you not going out to find information on your own and the dangers of it, this time, it’s only going to remind him of all his insecurities, pains and fears.

And what kind of friend – or whatever the two of you are – would do that? Especially when you do care about him, and you’re at a point where you’re okay with admitting that.  

The harsh truth is you need to know these things, to know where the issues stem from to figure out how to work around them.

But there’s no reason to force the information out of Jongin or Taemin, even if they’d say they weren’t being forced to tell you… this is their lives. These are their wounds.

And in this environment, the process of uncovering this information is, whether you like it or not, forced. It’s artificial, it’s not a sweet little heart to heart between two people who genuinely care about each other, it’s that, sure but with an added bonus.

A twisted overseer, who’s always watching, always listening, who’s going to make the remainder of these two weeks as awful and painful as possible. Who needs to be the one in control of the information, when it’s revealed, how it’s revealed… or his sons suffer.  

So maybe it’s not as trained as Jongin’s but you have a good eye for manipulation and bull, you don’t mind having to go to the source to find out this stuff. To hear the full tale.

He won’t trick you, if you don’t allow yourself to be tricked. He won’t intimidate you, if you don’t allow yourself to be intimidated.

You can hold your own, you just wish you knew how to tell Taemin and Jongin that, without them putting you on lock down.

 

Jongin’s up. And though he disguises it well, it’s as if he’s been waiting on you.  

With his eyes glued to the pages of an opened notebook to his right, two buttons of his shirt undone and hair mussed up by the pillows, he looks like an exhausted scholar doing overtime.

His eyes leave the pages of the notebook and meet your own, not a moment later.  

“Hi,” he says, ever so softly. There’s an emotion behind his irises you can’t precisely place, but it makes you feel sad. Like you should take him in your arms and tell him you’re back, that you didn’t run very far.

“Hi,” you reply instead, taking that same tone.

His gaze stays locked with your own for a couple of moments before he pats the space beside him.

As you take a seat, you make sure you don’t mess up the notebook on your way of doing so. You glance at each other for a second, as if assessing the vibe and atmosphere.  

Before either of you knows it, his arms wrap around you, encasing you like you’ll disappear if he lets go.  He rests his head on your shoulder, snuggling into the nape of your neck.  

You stay like this for a while, safe in his embrace, still unable to find the words to bridge this awful, deafening distance that’s been manifesting between the two of you the entire day.

Eventually, you pull away, getting up and making your way to the room’s window. Jongin watches as you gaze out of the window and out at the night sky.

“Want to see them?”

You think of the line in ‘Taemin’s’ note. Moonlit walks with your favorite person in the world, feeling the hate that pools within you at the thought of Taewon intensify.

He knew you’d be ruminating over this for days, didn’t he? He knew there’d be a million and one options for you and Jongin to take a moonlit walk, yet he’d navigate New Zealand so Taemin and yourself wouldn’t get to, or better yet ‘forget to’. Then Jongin would turn around tomorrow and talk about it, because he’d want to talk about something that excited him, finally feeling secure enough to do so, and Taemin would freeze in place.

And a simple thing like seeing the moon and starry night sky with someone you care about would take on a whole other meaning for the both of them.  

So you consider staying there, turning this offer down. Then you think of all the ways Jongin likely hasn’t gotten to experience things like this, late night walks, playful days in the sun, pushing each other on the swings… and you think, screw it, if a moonlit walk is the first thing the two of them will have to share, then so be it.

“Let’s see the stars.”

His smile lights up his features, almost like he can’t contain the happiness at your response.

His hand links with yours on the way down to ground level, and though he’s vigilant during the journey to the nearby beach, it’s like the giddiness bubbling off of him is overpowering that and he’s finally letting go of all apprehension and all thoughts of what his father might be planning.  

Like none of that has power any more, not when it’s your time to be focused on. Something he has a natural ability with, making you feel like the only person in the world.

And you’re not the one he’s in love with, so imagine actually being the one he loves and walking away from that.

Part of you really hopes he comes to the realization he deserves better. Much, much better.

 

You’re both giggly as you make your way to the beach, actually so thankful you decided to take him up on his offer. You might not have noticed it because you were being distracted by other things, but being cooped up in the same place all day does leave you a little agitated.

The moon is in perfect view, sitting pretty in her bed of stars, glimmering down at the ocean waves she takes under her wing.  The sand is a little coarse under your toes, but it’s the most free you’ve felt since getting here.

After your walk along the sands, hand in hand, you decide to find an area to perch against for a little while, not quite ready to return to the hotel room.

It’s a little chillier than it had been, and neither of you brought a towel to sit on, so you make a beeline for a nearby palm tree. A nikau palm to be precise, if your quick research of New Zealand prior to departure is anything to go by.

Yes, you searched it because yes, you’ve always been excited at the prospect of seeing a palm tree. It’s not your fault Google likes to give too much information on questions that could suffice with one word answers, alright. 

You perch against it, as you gaze out at the night sky.  

You talk of constellations; the difference between the Southern and Northern hemisphere, Jongin seeming to know a lot about this topic in particular.

The conversation then turns to a time long before, theorizing about those who once stood exactly where you are right now, the exact same spot, yet lived a completely different life. What’s changed, what’s stayed the same.

As that conversation fizzles out, a comfortable silence ensues.

The breeze blows your hair into your eyes and you grumble as you force it away. 

Jongin eyes don’t leave your face, for a time. As if he’s searching for something, a confirmation that things are okay between the two of you again, perhaps.

He wears a soft, gentle expression. Possibly the softest you’ve ever seen from him.

So you decide to voice something you’ve wanted to since the morning.  

“I know you don’t want me to point it out, because it was the right thing to do, but it was really nice of you to do what you did today.”

He nods, watching your expression closely. For any slight change, or underlying meaning. When he can’t find any, his lips purse.  

Your eyes narrow in contemplation.

“Would it still be nice of me if I said I would’ve rather rescued you?”  

“I didn’t need rescuing.” Looking up at him through your lashes. “But I appreciate the sentiment.”

He edges closer, backing you up against the lean of the tree, to the point your bodies are almost touching. “Maybe so,” he murmurs. “But do you think I’d object to spending thirty minutes with you in my arms if I had a choice in the matter?”

He wants to connect your lips as you much as you want him to, you can see it in his eyes, but he instead tilts your chin up and peers at the sleepiness that’s pooling into your own eyes.  

“If you’re this tired, why’d you agree to this?”   

“Overtired,” you mumble, shrugging. “Besides, I’ve pulled my fair share of all nighters. This is nothing.”

He hums, eyes still fluently capturing your own. “You’re not afraid to fall asleep are you?” 

You break the eye contact at this, chewing at your lip. “Not necessarily.”

“I won’t let anything happen, you know that, right?”

You nod. But what about him? Taemin? Who’s looking after them? Who’s making sure they’re not being tormented on the sly? Who’s not to say they’re not being sent notes at all kinds of hours by Taewon, not just when it’s a ‘let’s torment the group’ challenge.

Scratch that, Jongin’s been receiving notes all along, hasn’t he? The orphanage…

You take a deep breath, willing the anger away. When you think back to his reaction on that day, it’s clear Taemin’s not the only who thinks he has to go through things alone.

Jongin’s entire life has consisted of it too, hasn’t it?

Taking his hand in yours, you send him a smile, soft, reassuring. “Let’s go back, then.” He likely needs sleep as much as you do and as much as you refuse to compliment Taewon and his establishments, the bath does look divine.

You’ve been itching to try it out.

 

Once you’ve tried out the bath and forced yourself out of it, knowing you’d be happy to doze off in the damn thing, you change into some pajamas. They’re nothing special, ridiculous in comparison to everything else you own, but they’re comfy.

Jongin’s goofy smile in response to your attire tells you he doesn’t mind what you’re wearing and is probably contemplating whether calling you cute would gain him a black eye, before he freezes in place.

You blink before raising an eyebrow.

“Something’s different,” he then says. His eyes dart around the room, movement a little frantic. 

You stay in place, feeling that same apprehension that’s been following you since you arrived come back once again.

“Stay here,” he hastily says, making his way out of the door.  He glances around the hallway, even going as far as to check around the floor. After a couple of minutes he makes his way back inside.

“Find anything?”

He shakes his head, running a tired hand through his hair. It’s a movement tic you share, actually. You wonder who does it more and who rubbed off on who first. “Probably overthinking.”

Though you both know that isn’t the case.

You reach over and pat his hand reassuringly, not entirely realizing you let your hands rest there. When Jongin notices, he doesn’t move them.

“Don’t let it stop you from sleeping.”

He meets your eyes, nodding, but the movement is a little delayed.

You narrow your eyes at him. “Promise?”

“Promise,” he replies, chuckling. “I’m taking a shower before I sleep, though.”

“If there’s an offer to join you in that, I’m going to have to refuse. I’ve spent the better half of the day in and under water so…”

He snorts, flicking your hands off him. “There wasn’t.”

 

It’s a few hours later as you’re shuffling your positioning in your bed, when your finger runs over and pokes a jagged edge of... something. You wince. Quietly making a move to grab your phone, you place it under the covers and use the light emanating from it to see what your hand ran over.

It’s a card. Your eyes fall on the infamous scrawl and you resist the urge to groan.

‘____,

I think it’s time to have a talk, face to face. 
You are welcome to ask me anything you wish, any question you desire the answer to, knowing I promise utmost truth. Neither Jongin nor Taemin’s heart will break, if I am the one giving you the answers and we keep this on the down low. 
Come alone or don’t come at all. That’s all I ask.  
– Taewon.’

First you stare at the card like it’s about to poison you, rolling your eyes for even contemplating this.

Then you turn the card around, ready to place it on the bedside table, before you notice there’s writing on the other side as well.

‘If you come, I will clear tomorrow’s scheduled events, giving everyone the holiday they so desire. I will be in Conference room one, the one you congregated in previously.’

Why was this sounding more and more like a solicitation offer? You may very well be attracted to both of his sons, but that doesn’t mean you’d be jumping at the chance of taking your clothes off for him too.

You grumble to yourself, hating the fact you’re considering going even more so now because of how desperately you want to spend a day just seeing the sights with your best friend, even with Jongin. Better yet, with the both of them.

Operation: get Jongin and Taemin to realize they still care about each other needs to start at some point.

You double, then triple check on Jongin, waving your hand in front of his face to see if he’s feigning sleep and knows what you’re about to do, but he makes no move. You hope this won’t be the last time you see him, as peaceful and beautiful as he looks right now.

But then you shake your head at yourself. Would Mr. Taewon I-have-too-much-won Lee really risk that? Okay yeah, it’s the perfect set up, isolating you from the two who’ve promised to protect you and the one who’s obligated to protect you, and he did consider titling your movie ‘curiosity killed the cat’ and all, but… you can’t wash away the feeling that it’s all just talk.

Bark, bark and more bark.

So you decide to risk it. And if you’re taken out, at least everyone gets a day off, right?

You’re a hero either way.

You try to disguise your shameless chuckle at yourself so you don’t wake Jongin, as you sneak out of the room and make your way to Conference room one, as quietly as you possibly can.

 

Sometimes you expect a looming, monstrous figure when you encounter a profound evil. One with jagged edges and razor sharp teeth, elongated claws that could reach out and snag your jugular in a second, but that’s not what you’re faced with when you meet Lee Taewon in person for the very first time.

He’s human, at least somewhere in that dark, twisted soul of his. Human, and as much as you hate to say it, an attractive human, at least on the surface. This was the father of the two men you’d be happy to get with without a second thought, so maybe you’re honing in on the traits of them you can see in him, but the similarities aren’t few in number.

He may be older, but there’s no denying their blood relation now.  Not at this proximity.

He’s taller than you’re expecting, which makes sense, now you know who his second son is, but this wasn’t the height you’d envisioned for him when you didn’t know that. His hair is dark and you know this because it was dark in the animated tape he sent you, but you assumed it’d be grayer than it is. It’s well looked after, a healthy, sleek sheen to it. His posture is more poised than you’re expecting, but that’s something you should be expecting, considering who he is. 

He’s lean and long like your best friend, but his tailored suit fits him like it’d fit… Jongin. The facial bone structure, the way he’s carrying himself, he certainly favors the second son, and not just in his obsession with him.  

“_____.” He’s all smiles, his pearly whites blinding. “My underdog. Welcome.”

His eyes trail your form, though no aspect of it is ual in nature, he seems to only be taking note of your attire. The pajamas you didn’t change out of. But then he says, “you didn’t dress up.”

And you bristle. 

“For you?” You try to hold your tongue as well, but it’s like the words fly out before you can stop them. “Listen, if you think I’m here for anything like that, you’re sorely mistaken. Your underlings might scare easily and fear a fist fight… fortunately, I don’t.”

“You misunderstand me,” he says, as level as ever. “I have no reason to seek out carbon copies of the woman I love. Especially with someone my…” he pauses, as if to gauge whether you know or not. So maybe you’re finally ahead of him in the scoreboard when you keep your facial expression blank. “Son’s age.”

You stay quiet, not trusting your mouth to not blab about all you do know.

“All I want is to turn back time.” He’s quiet for a little while longer himself. “To right my wrongs.”

“You might be there a while then.” 

He quietens, almost dangerously so, but then nods. “Will you sit?”

“Will I walk out of here in one piece?”

“If I can guarantee your physical safety for the next sixty years, will you sit?”

As you pull out a seat, your eyes scan over it, looking for any hidden trap or device that may be recording you. Once you’re sure there’s nothing, you gingerly take a seat.

He follows suit.

 

“Now,” he says, not breaking eye contact. You’ve never felt smaller than you do right now and you hope it doesn’t show. “I have every intention of holding up on my offer, so long as this stays between us. But I’m curious as to what you’ve figured out along the way.” 

You feel a coldness wash over you, and it’s not based on anything he just said, just at the prospect of sharing your findings with someone like him.

“In this light, the resemblance is uncanny,” you say instead, more levelly than you’re expecting. “I can see why you went to such lengths to keep them separated.” You swallow your gulp, because this is dangerous territory, he seems a lot less bark now, yet you don’t want to be decimated during this exchange. You refuse to let him have all the power. “At school and stuff. Up until the point they could make their own decisions about where they’d be studying.” 

You watch him pale. “He told you?”

The ‘he’ is specific. It doesn’t matter which son it is, this would be a surprise to him, meaning neither of them talk about this. It’s a secret they seal their lips about, regardless of how close someone may be to them. 

That likely means they’re not allowed to talk about it, which means punishment may be on the horizon if they do. So you decide there and then.  “No.”

“Then… you’re perceptive. More than I gave you credit for.”

Though your nails dig into your palms as you will the nerves away, hoping your voice stays level, “point is, I think we both know why I’m here. I’d be happy to let you speak about all of it, the entire thing, as long as you hold to your end of the deal. I just have one question.”

“Which is?”

“Correct me if I’m wrong, but I can’t shake the feeling that you’re about to tell me you were in love with Jongin’s mother. …Yet had her killed. Surely that fact in itself cancels out any love you claim to have for her.”

“I killed her?” He repeats, and you can see the change in his eyes, like a vault that’s been stuffed to the brim with unspoken anger… rage, how it’s ready to unfold right here, and right now. Maybe not directed your way, but there’s enough of it to make you pause, surreptitiously glancing for possible exits, if this is to take a bad turn.

He notices, and you watch as the fire in his eyes lessens. “I’m not here to hurt you, ____.”

“No,” you trail off, sarcastically. “Just for innocent little tea parties and building sandcastles on the beach, right?”

This earns you a chuckle and a calculated, half smile. But that same expression from before returns, something like sadness accompanying it.

You blink, affronted.

“Believe me when I say I would’ve killed for her.” 

“Then if that’s the case…” You trail off, feeling anger bubble within you.

Did he really think you’d fall for the tortured villain tale without a second thought? If he was telling the truth, how would he explain the mockery on Jongin’s day out – on the week leading up to the vacation?

The burned down orphanage.

If he cared the way he’s implying, surely that’d be a no go area, knowing what it meant to Jongin’s mother.  

And that note he sent him? You still shudder thinking about it.

“You must’ve cared enough at one point to also care about the things Jongin’s mother did, so why would you mock the orphanage, knowing what happened? If you didn’t set the fire, like you seem to be implying, and you genuinely did care about her… how could you turn around and… spit on her grave like that?”

The color drains from him once more, and it’s so clear as to why.

“So I shouldn’t have been there, huh? Was it wrong of Jongin to let me accompany him? Is he supposed to suffer through this alone, is that how you think you’ll monopolize him–” You know your voice is raising but at this point you don’t care. The things this man has gotten away with…

“If you wo