Kyungsoo was already running halfway through his courtyard, bleeding arm clutched by his still fully functional left hand and gun weakly held by the other, when he casually came about a logical conclusion: a.) Sehun’s dumb, b.) Sehun ed up, therefore c.) Sehun’s a dumb. The injured man knew he was not doing so hot— being chased by policemen in his own villa like a lone rat cornered by stray cats for dinner— but he only genuinely hoped his right-hand man, said dumb, was going through worse. If he’s not yet left bleeding to death somewhere, Kyungsoo would personally go back to put a bullet through his thick skull after he gets himself out of his own tight spot.

 

Sehun thought they were going to hit it big, told his boss he found them a new client who’s going to pay enough money for Kyungsoo to buy a whole ing city in South Korea.

 

As he hobbled down the empty road behind his estate after jumping off the courtyard wall, breaking more of his body than he bargained for, Kyungsoo started to acknowledge his own faults that led to this irreversible chain reaction. He usually made level-headed decisions, knowing that his line of work is risky, but he really could not help himself. Without conducting a thorough background check, he already ordered his men to seal the deal with the client.

 

The only thing that was “sealed” that night, in Kyungsoo’s viewpoint, was his impending meeting with either death or justice and he already knew both would not be in his favor.

 

“I thought stupid policemen only existed in movies. Why did they corner only the front of the villa…”

 

Kyungsoo shrugged, which hurt his shoulders, because their incompetence was actually working to his advantage. What laid next to the barren road was an opening to a small forest, a basic go-to escape route. He was just about to cross when a car skirted from the left flank of the villa towards him in full speed with its lights glaring. Kyungsoo spoke too soon.

 

With his injured limbs and steady loss of blood, the drug lord had already accepted his lame way of dying when the car suddenly came to a halt a few inches away from his shuddering body, tires screeching.

 

Sehun poked his dumb head out of the window, waiting for Kyungsoo to realize it’s him as his eyes adjusted to the blinding headlights. When he recognized the taller man and the proud smirk he had on his face, Kyungsoo raised his gun— supporting his slightly broken hand with the other— and aimed it at his potential savior.

 

“Boss! Wha- Why are you pointing the gun at me?!”

 

“How the hell are you uninjured while I look ready to be shipped to the morgue.” Kyungsoo warily eyed his right-hand man. Of course Sehun would be strong enough to evade all possible attacks against him but not smart enough to know who’s an actual client and who’s an undercover agent. Kyungsoo so badly wanted to pull the trigger because Oh Sehun was born with a head but he was clearly not using it .

 

“I was at the warehouse! Police cars started coming so I discreetly drove out through the back!”

 

Policemen and their lack of understanding that there is a backside to everything, Kyungsoo thought. Then another realization struck him, making him even more infuriated with his employee slash now ex-friend. “So they got the ing warehouse where we keep our source of income and you-” The smaller man pointed the gun at Sehun with stronger intentions “-you ing ditched the place without even trying to protect it?!”

 

Before the man in the automobile could even get a word out of his already open mouth, sirens started to sound from an awfully close distance. Sehun decided that he would have to explain himself during their ride because the only words he was able to push out with his tongue were “Get in.”

 

Kyungsoo, for the first time that night, was thankful for Sehun’s existence. He dropped his aim at the guy and limped as fast as his injured legs could to the front passenger seat. Before he barely even settled himself inside the car he already barked at Sehun to floor it.

 

“Of all hiding spots you could have salvaged, you just had to choose the tiest of them all.”

 

Kyungsoo ended his sentence with a hiss as Sehun started dabbing cotton soaked with alcohol on the deep cuts he obtained on his legs. “, do it a bit gentler. It hurts like hell.”

 

Sehun decided to bite his tongue and apply the alcohol as gently as his boss wanted him to instead of getting another earful from him. Kyungsoo’s known to be a man of few words and Sehun could only pray for it to be true for everyone. Whenever the small punk had something to say, comment, or complain about, he used the right-hand man as the receiving end.

 

The taller man continued his task, disinfecting the cuts and wrapping gauze around them with gusto. When he was done, Kyungsoo looked like a mummy from the waist down. The drug lord stared at his lower half for a full minute before diverting his gaze to Sehun who was still crouched down in front of him.

 

“Is there anything you’re even remotely good at aside from breathing.”

 

Sehun merely shrugged, used to Kyungsoo’s sharp tongue. “With a face like mine, I could’ve been a runway model or something.” Kyungsoo had to resist the urge to roll his eyes because he’d heard this so many times before. “But nooo,” Sehun taunted with that goddamn annoying whiny voice of his. “my only audience consists of dead people staring at me after I shoot them in the head. They don’t even get to appreciate my good looks long enough.”

 

“May I remind you, you chose to work in this field.”

 

“I know. I’m just saying my sentiments so that you’d feel a bit guilty.”

 

The right-hand man moved to sit on the couch next to Kyungsoo, first aid kit in hand. He started doing the same thing he did on his boss’s lower limbs with his upper limbs.

 

“Wait, my sleeves are in the way.” Already having rid himself of his pants awhile ago, Kyungsoo started working on the buttons of his tattered white button-down that was already blood-stained. With great difficulty because he was certain he fractured his right arm even more when he tried to break his fall earlier, Kyungsoo was able to free himself from his confines.

 

Sehun whistled. “Boss, you need to work out a bit.”

 

“In case you’ve forgotten, I still have my gun with me. If you don’t want it down your throat and out yor , you would shut up.”

 

 

When Sehun was finally done with his bad attempt at performing first aid, he slumped down the couch next to his boss who’s about to drift to dreamland.

 

“Boss.” Sehun nudged him lightly but all he got was a hum in return.

 

“Boss.” Sehun nudged him again. He was about to call Kyungsoo for the third time but luckily, the shorter man finally decided to answer him.

 

“What.”

 

“What do we do now?”

 

Kyungsoo groaned. He did not want to think about their dilemma yet. His whole body’s decorated with cuts like he’s a sunken relief sculpture, his left arm was broken, and the Tylenol Sehun made him drink was already making him drowsy. “Let’s halt the operations in the other warehouses. We’ll hide here in Daegu for the meantime until the search for us dies down.”

 

He could already see Sehun’s grimace despite having his eyes closed. He also felt the same way. “I understand, Sehun. I don’t want to stay cooped up in this dingy house either.” In an attempt to make themselves feel better, Kyungsoo put his uninjured hand against his friend’s arm, giving it slow gentle .

 

“I don’t want to hide.”

 

“Hn. Neither do I.”

 

“You should get a job.”

 

Kyungsoo’s eyes shot open as he whipped his head, facing his employee, with a confused expression on his face. “What?”

 

Sehun turned his head so that he’d also be facing his boss. “Instead of hiding here and possibly rotting to death, why don’t we separate and try to blend in Daegu as ordinary citizens?”

 

Kyungsoo was pretty sure he drank two or three pain-killer pills a few minutes ago but his head started to ache pretty badly because of Sehun’s proposition. “That’s really risky. As we’re speaking right now, our identities are being leaked to the press and every other media outlet that exists. People will know who we are from a mile away even if we try to lay as low as possible.”

 

“Boss, we’re not in Seoul anymore. We’re in the countryside of Daegu. The people here are either really old or really old-fashioned. They wouldn’t know as long as we try to blend in.” Sehun answered as he forced a stare-down with Kyungsoo’s already hooded eyes.

 

“Yeah? And what if we get caught? Will you take responsibility for it the same way you did when you blew us out of the water?” Kyungsoo snapped back. Sehun was being impossible again and he was not in the mood for any of his bull.

 

Sehun frowned. “I’m sorry for what happened, boss. I really am.”

 

Kyungsoo turned his head back, eyeing the paint peeling off the ceiling for a bit before closing his eyes. “Whatever. If you weren’t my friend before you worked for me, no one knows what I would have done to you.” After a few minutes of silence, he could feel the spot next to him rise, indicating that Sehun abandoned his position next to Kyungsoo.

 

He heard footsteps padding their way to the front of the room, farther from his position in the couch. He heard the doorknob click, the door swing open like one would in a horror movie, the door swing back to close, and the doorknob click again. When Kyungsoo opened his eyes, he was all alone in his sorry excuse of a house. He could care less about what Sehun wanted to do with the rest of his criminal life. He could die for all he cared and Kyungsoo would still be in his couch, waiting for his arm to heal.

 

Heck, he should’ve pulled the trigger at Sehun earlier when he had the chance. It was the dumb’s fault they have to hide in the first place.

 

With the nice thought of having his own bullet from his own gun in his own employee’s head, Kyungsoo’s pills did their work and eased him to sleep.

 

 

 

 

A few hours passed by and only then did Kyungsoo’s eyes flutter open. When he could finally see more than just a thick mass of blurriness, the smaller man saw Sehun’s face eerily placed a few inches away from his own. He shouted, both arms burning after trying to swat his right-hand man’s ugly face away.

 

Sehun, using shrugging as his nonchalant go-to mechanism, raised a plastic bag with grocery items inside. “I went grocery shopping while you were being a sleeping beauty. You’re welcome.”

 

Kyungsoo was this close to finally giving Sehun, the bastard walking to the kitchen, a piece of his mind when he realized the man was able to casually walk inside a grocery store to buy ramen, junk food, and cereals.

 

Kyungsoo scoffed. Of course.

 

“See boss? I was able to walk around the area without anyone recognizing me. The lady working at the cashier even told me I’m handsome.”

 

He didn’t tell Sehun, but the drug lord felt a wave of relief wash over him. He would not have to lock himself up in the house all day to stay alive only to die because of Sehun’s poor grocery-shopping skills.

 

“That’s good news then.” He curtly answered.

 

“Really?” Sehun walked back to the living room, grinning from ear to ear. Kyungsoo knew that face all too well. The dumb did something stupid again. “I have even better news.”

 

“What.”

 

The grin in Sehun’s face was so wide, Kyungsoo wished the nerves in his face would cramp, freeze, and stay that way forever.

 

“I got you a job.”