The mission tonight involves breaking into a casino and wiping the place clean. There will be no mercy for those who attempt to outfox the Mafia, because no one ever will. The price for betrayal is death, and death is what the Mafia delivers.

In the gloom of near-night, Andy grabs Hyesung (he recognizes his silhouette even in the darkening sky) and takes him to the back of the group, waiting until their men clear the space. He does not miss the way Minwoo’s eyes flicker to him, unsmiling, sending an intense shiver down his spine. But he ignores Minwoo for the time being; he can’t do anything to him during missions anyway.

Instead, against the terrible, gnawing darkness in his stomach, Andy keeps Hyesung back. “Please be careful,” he begs, fingers clutching at Hyesung’s black-clad arm. “I really think Minwoo’s suspecting you.”

It was imminent, Andy knows, that they would have been outed, but he never expected it to be so soon. Hyesung meets his imploring gaze with a hint of sadness. “We’ll see,” he says softly,  taking Andy’s hand briefly (the warmth of his fingers, the heat of his palm). “I can’t promise anything.”

When the mission starts, Andy tries to push away all his thoughts about Hyesung. He’s leading a team in through the south wing of the building with Hyesung at the east and Minwoo at the west. The technical team, once again in charge of disabling cameras and security, will take the north. Andy waits in the neon-bright darkness, crouched uncomfortably behind a wall with all his men behind him. Then, suddenly, a whistle pierces the silence of the night, and Andy gestures, a quick ‘follow’ with his hand. His men fan out behind him, and the team steals into the building while Andy holds the door open. They creep along silent, harshly-lit hallways paved with tile, footsteps echoing off the colorful, graffitied walls. Someone takes in a sharp breath, and Andy’s head whips around.

Then, his ears pick up faint but cluttered footsteps from his right, and then from his left. Andy relaxes, beckoning his team forward to meet Hyesung and Minwoo in the empty lobby. He almost smiles, preparing to split into different teams again, but then, with a stony look on his face, Minwoo raises his arm, signals for his team, and begins to shoot.

Bullets spray, and Andy flings himself away. The gunshots come from all different directions, from Minwoo’s side, Andy’s side, and Hyesung’s side. Everyone is shooting at everyone else, although it’s obvious that Minwoo is targeting only Andy. Cold, paralyzing fear penetrates his body, and Andy can’t move, frozen in place as waves of bullets shower around him. Then, a strong hand grabs his wrist and wrenches him away.

He’s running, he and Hyesung, and bullets follow them. Alarms shriek, ringing deafeningly in Andy’s ears. Panicked casino employees spill out of private rooms, screaming for security, but ruthlessly, Hyesung pulls out his revolver and guns down anyone in their way. Gunshots and screams echo, and Hyesung pulls open a door, tugging Andy up a flight of enclosed stairs.

They burst out onto the rooftop, and Hyesung slams the door shut behind them. A taut rope extends from the edge of the roof to the next building over, and a harness lies crumpled in a heap. Hyesung grabs the harness, swiftly untangling its many lines and cables.

“He knew,” he puffs between breaths as Andy stands with his own gun pointed towards the door. “He was going to frame us, for betraying them, and obviously no one would know.” He taps Andy’s leg, pulling the harness up to wrap snugly around his waist. “Minwoo’s word will be truth, so I set this up.”

“So we need to escape.” Andy’s brain is a panicked mush. “We can get away, hide in another country--”

“No.” Hyesung cuts him off, hooking the harness up to the rope. He looks Andy right in the eye. “We can’t.”

“W-what do you mean?” Andy looks up to the rope, to the single harness on his body, and comes to a jarring realization. “Hyesung, no! I love you, you’ve been--”

“Defending you as I would any brother.” The door opens, and Hyesung only has just enough time to shove Andy off the rooftop before Minwoo fires. Andy plummets away, speeding towards freedom as Hyesung falls, crimson coloring the pavement beneath him. He screams, but the wind carries the sounds away, just as they carry Hyesung away, and with him, Andy’s heart.