~I didn’t want to leave him. I want to help so badly.~

The thoughts swirled around in his head as he exited the room. He had left Taemin just laying there and the guilt was eating at him like always. He wondered about what the cameras saw and if anyone had wondered why he was crying. If anyone was in their right mind in this awful place, they would have known that he wasn’t okay and didn’t want to do his job anymore.

He trudged down to the elevator and pressed the button, staring at his own face in the gold doors. He sighed, making a cloud onto the door and swiftly wiping it off as he stared at himself intently. He looked so tired. It was obvious the stress and the guilt had taken a toll on him. He had dark bags under his eyes and his posture had slumped considerably. Minho ran a hand through his hair and stood back as the doors opened. He watched the other anesthesiologists walk past him and saw how emotionless their faces were.

Most of the people that looked the worst had been working here since before Mr. Kim had come to inherit the company. Their eyes looked dead. They didn’t look like they even registered anything that they were doing. Minho pitied them a bit, but then again, they had multiple specimens to take care of so they couldn’t be too emotional. Minho sighed and walked into an emptied elevator.

The elevator seemed to show how the company masked everything that they did from the world. It was plated in gold and was shined every day to gleaming and it could never be more opposite from what the company actually was. Minho looked at his reflection once again and found himself wishing that he could see Taemin’s next to him as well. He sighed before turning around and leaning against the wall, eyes closed as it moved down to his floor.

When the elevator finally touched the second floor, the doors opened and as Minho walked out, others filed in to go and do their inhumane rituals. Minho scoffed a little as the doors closed behind him, shaking his head before starting to walk down the long corridor to his room.

The hallways were essentially like the elevator, shining with a clean clinical glow that seemed to be ignorant of what this place actually was. Minho took his time, strolling down with his hands in his coat pockets. 

Moments later, he found himself at the door to his dorm room and walked in. It did not seem as if his other two roommates Jonghyun and Onew were in so he took the opportunity to just sit in his bed and contemplate everything. Everything that he had done, ways that he could help Taemin, anything that would get his mind off of the fact that he was doing these things to someone who didn’t deserve it.

He thought about what he had watched earlier today before he had gone into Taemin’s room to perform his duties. Minho always tried to forget this part but right now seemed like a time to think about it and what kinds of things he could do to help Taemin with them. He remembers watching Taemin writhing as they poked him with the various objects that created obvious scars and marks.

The shocks were always worse than that part though. Just thinking about it, Minho could practically feel the electricity running through him and making him suffer in pain. At least this time they made him fall asleep before they could get to the bigger shocks. When Taemin was first starting his tests they could go all the way up to six shocks and not even have to put him down like they had today.

But then again, getting put down early could be a blessing because Taemin wouldn’t have to see the lower body tests. Minho always hated the way that they just sliced his skin like it was nothing and just the thought of the stirrups made him cringe. They just poked him and prodded in places that should never be done by someone like them. Especially Onew. Minho swears that he saw him doing extra things to Taemin all with a sick grin on his. This is not even mentioning how many times he’s touched Taemin in ways that he didn’t like. It was disgusting and immoral in Minho’s eyes.

Sometimes Minho wished that he could be one of the people doing the tests so that he could be gentle and make sure that Taemin was okay throughout the entire thing just to make it a little bit easier on him. He would be sure to tell him everything that was happening to him even if he wasn’t going to remember, but at least to put him somewhat at ease with the situation. But then again Taemin would never remember him and he would most likely be taken advantage of by any other anesthesiologist that came to see him. Screw that.

A few minutes later he heard his pager chirp in his pocket and saw that he had been called down to the CEO’s office. The last time he had to go there was his first day on the job when he had met Taemin over a year ago. His stomach churned as he thought on what Mr. Kim Kibum would want with him. No one ever went in his office except for a few of his regular attendees like Jonghyun and Onew. Otherwise, you only went to him when you were in trouble or did something that the company did not want to see. But then again, if that had happened, you would be kicking and screaming while being held against your will.

Feeling pretty confused, he got up off of his bed and out his door, walking down the corridor again. Soon enough he came to the end where two big double doors had the Kim family crest: The letters K and I back to back with a fox in the middle surrounding the two letters. Minho pressed the button on the side of the doors and heard a small “Come in,” moments later.

The doors hissed and then were pulled open automatically and Minho hesitantly walked into the room where a man sat in front of a computer monitor.

"Choi Minho, correct?”

Minho nodded and said, “Yes, sir.”

The man turned around in his chair and Minho couldn’t see him fully.

"Oh, silly me, forgot the lights.”

The man then flipped a switch on his left and blindingly white floodlights came in making Minho squint as his eyes adjusted. As soon as they did, he saw the man coming towards him. He had a striped black button up shirt with the sleeves rolled up that was tucked into black slacks and his hair was done up with Minho assumed was hair gel. What really captured Minho’s attention, however, was the eyepatch he wore on his left eye.

It was lined in black rhinestones and the middle of it bore the Kim family crest. Minho couldn’t take his eyes off of it as the man drew closer. He didn’t even notice he was standing right in front of him until the man spoke.

"I am Kim Kibum, CEO of Kim Industries, I believe you know me, correct?”

Minho broke out of his trance and nodded, repeating, “Yes, sir.”

"Good.” Mr. Kim turned back around and motioned for Minho to follow him all the way up to his desk. “Take a seat, Mr. Choi, I have some things I would like to discuss.”

Minho obeyed and sat down in a little chair that had been situated next to Mr. Kim’s in front of the computer monitors. It was showing the footage from another room where the anesthesiologist was doing his work.

This one looked as dead as the others, barely even talking to his specimen as he administered the pills. He even had one of those masks on that the testers wore. How comforting. Minho was staring into the screen for a bit when the CEO sat down in the bigger chair next to him.

"Do you know why I hired you, Mr. Choi?”

Minho looked over to see the other staring at the screen as well. “No, sir,” he replied. Mr. Kim turned to look at him and Minho found himself entranced by the eye patch yet again.

"You were perfect for the job in my eyes. Handsome, manly, strong. You seemed as if you could take on any job I gave you no problem.” He reached a hand down to touch Minho’s upper arm and Minho stiffened a little. “Oh, don’t be scared of me, I’m just your boss, after all.” The hand was removed in favor of taking the mouse and clicking on a different room camera; 528 was the one he chose and Minho almost choked on his spit.

There was Taemin with his tube in his mouth looking as beautiful as ever. HIs chest was barely lifting and falling but it was apparent that he was still alive.

"You see, Mr. Choi, this particular specimen is very dangerous and should never be let out into the world. It is very manipulative and is willing to do whatever it takes to get its way, even sabotage. That is exactly why we need to do as many tests as we have to. Our company believes that there may be something wrong with it that makes it be the way that it is, and through the tests, we can find some way to remove it. In doing that, the world will never have to be graced with his type of mentality ever again.” He clicked a button and the tape was rewound to earlier that day.

Minho just stared at the screen as it began to play again and Taemin was lying there suffering as the tester poked and prodded at his body with the rods and spears. He looked like he was in tears and Minho just couldn’t tear his eyes away from it. He felt guilty. So guilty. He wanted to be able to take it away. Take away Taemin’s pain.

"You seemed to be someone who would be less than caring about the specimen because of what he is. However, you look to have actually somehow found a way to care about it.” He pressed another button that went to the footage of Minho in Taemin’s room.

He was running his hands through Taemin’s hair like always and then after he had fallen asleep, Minho was staring down at him and looking as if he was about to cry. Minho didn’t want to live through this again. He didn’t want to be reminded of his role in Taemin’s suffering.

"Mr. Choi, our other anesthesiologists are not like you in the least and I believe that this shows why. It is okay to be different, but it is also something that I am inclined to worry about. If you really care about it, then you may want to ‘save’ it, might want to take it out of here.”

Minho turned his head to look at Mr. Kim and found him sweetly smiling down at him.

“Should I be worried about this, Mr. Choi? You tell me.”

Minho hesitantly shook his head. “No, sir.”

Mr. Kim ran a hand through his hair on the side of his eyepatch making some of the rhinestones on it glisten in the light of the screen.

"Can you repeat that just so I’m sure? Would you ever betray me and my company?”

Minho looked him in the eye and said as clear as he could, “No sir.” His voice was shaking a bit.

"So you’re saying that you would never consider helping your specimen get out into the world and wreak havoc on society.”

"No, sir.”

"And all of your ‘comforting’ is only because it is your job as a part of my company, correct?”

"Yes, sir.”

"Even if it begged you and there was possibly a way for it to escape would you do everything in your power to keep the specimen here?”

"Yes, sir.”

Mr. Kim paused for a moment.

"You don’t love the specimen, do you?”

Minho’s eyes started to tear up and he finally couldn’t hold his gaze anymore. He looked down into his lap and shook his head. “No sir, not at all.”

Mr. Kim finally smiled and sat back in his chair, looking at the screen. “Good, very good. That is all, please see yourself out.”

Minho nodded and stood before making his way out of the double doors again. The hot tears he had been holding in finally were let out as he walked down the hallway to his room. He wiped his face on his sleeve and sniffed as he reached his room. He opened the door quietly and hoped that his roommates weren’t there. Fortunately, they hadn’t returned yet.

He walked in and sat on his bed sitting straight for a moment, trying to regain his composure. He then sniffed as he sat straight just staring off into the darkness.

A/N: Oh my god, I am so sorry guys ;; 

I just realized that I have not updated this since May ;0; 

I have been so busy with two advanced placement classes, one honors class, and just things in general including an intersate move, so I hope you all understand /)(\

This chapter was even written a while back, I've just never had any time to post it ;;

Anyway, Kibum is an evil mastermind and although I have never taken a physcology class in my life, I suspect that his manipulation would be pretty effective *evil laugh*

Minho is super sad right now but I promise things will be better... Or will they *better evil laugh*

Next chapter may not be updated for a while as well, but I promise you I will never abandon this story. I have way too many ideas for it ^^

Thank you all so much for reading! Please leave a comment and subscribe to tell me what you thought!

Bye lovelies!! *hugs and waves*