Chen plopped down on the couch, loosening his tie and throwing off his jacket almost as soon as you were through the door of the penthouse.

“I hate wearing this,” he complained.

Snorting, your mood was slowly lifting now that you were back in a place you deemed safe. “You think you have it bad?” You motioned to the dress you were still stuck in and the shoes that you had kicked off the moment you walked through the door. “I’m getting out of this right now.”

Chen raised an eyebrow cheekily. “Right here in the living room?”

Throwing a shoe at him playfully, you warned, “You’d better watch what you say. Junmyeon might shoot you.”

The grin slipped from his face. Clearing his throat, Chen scratched the back of his neck. “You’d better go get changed. If you want, we can watch a movie until the others get back.”

In all honesty, you’d watched more movies than you ever thought you would care to since being here, but you didn’t have the energy to do anything else nor did you really want to shut yourself in your room. You were too wired up to try and sleep. A small part of you wanted to stay up for Junmyeon, to see if he’d had another run in with Junko.

Once you were in a much more comfortable oversized T-shirt and sleep shorts, as well as washed your face and brushed your teeth, you went back into the living room. Grabbing the blanket that was thrown on the recliner, you sat down next to Chen. You’d grown so used to platonic affection with the boys that you were confused when Chen scooted over, creating a large space in between you rather than letting you rest into his side like normal.

You pouted a little, thinking that now would be the time for any of the boys to give you a little bit of comfort after the night you’d had. Perhaps you’d grown too used to them doting on you and now they were getting bored or uncomfortable with it.

Not caring about the selection, Chen put on some melodrama involving a fighter and a blind woman. You didn’t pay too much attention to the couple’s plight. Instead, you tried to figure out why Junmyeon made you go tonight. Why did he say that he needed you there? He didn’t keep you by his side - in fact he dropped you off like a child at daycare as soon as you arrived. Your only guess was he knew that Junko would be there, but hadn’t meant for things to escalate like that.

You made it through the first movie only to see that Chen had fallen asleep. His face was innocent in his sleep, like most people, and you kind of preferred it to his usual flirty demeanor.

Getting warm, you kicked off the blanket and placed it over Chen, careful not to wake him. It was well past midnight now and still no one had come back from the event. Chen had said they usually stay out well into the night, but you decided you would wait up for them, just to make sure that nothing bad happened.

**

Junmyeon could hardly concentrate on what the man across the table from him was rambling on about. They were supposed to be brokering a deal on a weapons shipment, but Sehun was having to do most of the talking. The man would have gotten away with an extra million won if Sehun hadn’t stepped in.

Junko’s threat plagued his mind. Would he really go that far for a conversation that had taken place twenty years ago?

Junmyeon would do everything in his power not to let anything happen your adoptive family, but Junko had resources that Junmyeon could only dream of. It wasn’t going to be easy to keep his promise.

If he was forced to be honest, Junko wasn’t the only thing that was making Junmyeon down the whiskey sours.

Something had stirred inside him when you had clung to his sleeve, begging not to be left alone. He’d never encountered someone who grew anxious because of large groups of people and he was at a complete loss of how to handle it.

At first, he thought you were scared of the occupants since they were all here for illegal dealings. But then you explained how it was the sheer amount of people in the room. It was slightly understandable considering there were over a hundred gamblers milling about.

The look in your eyes as you pleaded to not be abandoned had moved him. Or maybe it was more like a shove to comfort you. This morning had shown him a glimpse of what your lives together could be like and he’d actually enjoyed it. Earlier - before you ran to Yixing without hesitation - you’d felt so warm in his arms. He didn’t want to let you go. But he had business to attend to and he couldn’t drop it for anyone, even you.

He kept the two of you in his line of sight, though. The way you were relaxed with Yixing as you danced slowly to the music had caused Junmyeon’s blood to boil. The doctor was a natural comforter; he probably didn’t even realize how affectionate it looked from afar.

But if Junmyeon had noticed it, then so could have Junko. It was something he could exploit, to hold over you if needed. At least, that was the reason Junmyeon kept repeating to himself.  

Behind their buyer, Junmyeon could see Jongin at the high stakes table and they made eye contact. The master card player scratched behind his left ear, signaling to Junmyeon that he was up ahead their previously discussed amount. Junmyeon nodded, telling Jongin to walk away with the winnings.

One by one, the others wrapped up their jobs for the night and met back up near the entrance. It was past three in the morning and they were all ready for a little shut eye. Outside, Chanyeol checked to make sure the coast was clear before they walked back to the cars. They piled in like normal, but Junmyeon stopped Yixing before he could take his spot.

All the doors were closed to make the appearance of a private conversation, but he knew all them would be listening to every word and hopefully the message would get across to them all.

“What is it, Junmyeon?” Yixing asked, perplexed.

“What is the rule when it comes to (y/n)?” Junmyeon made sure that every word resonated with his authority as the leader.

Yixing frowned. “Nothing is going on with me and (y/n). I swear.”

“Good.” Junmyeon tried to not look as relieved as he felt. Yixing wasn’t one to lie and he always followed the rules. “But from now on, I don’t want you to be so affectionate with her. People will begin to talk and I don’t need anyone doubting her ties to me.” He opened the door for Yixing to get inside. “All of you get home and get some rest. I’ll see you on Monday.”

Minseok stopped him from closing the door. “Junmyeon, where are you going?”

“Just on a walk,” he replied. “I’ll grab a cab home.”

“At least have Chanyeol or me go with you.”

Junmyeon shook his head. “I’ll be alright. Get going.”

He needed time alone, time to get his head back on straight before he saw you again.

Slamming the door closed, Junmyeon walked off in the opposite direction. The engines idled for a minute or two behind him before they finally drove off. After running his hand through his hair for about the fifth time tonight, Junmyeon took in a deep breath of mild night air, sighing.

He’d told you from the beginning that your marriage was to be purely a maneuvering choice. The files were the most important piece of his plan, everything else was just a secondary consequence.

The other side of getting married was that it proved his stability, showed everyone that he had roots and a reason to stay. A wife could also be a weakness, but Junmyeon had decided that certain measures had to be taken to assure that that would never be the case. One of those was to keep you at arms distance, to not show affectionate attachment towards you.

With a surge of rage, he kicked the brick wall of an abandoned warehouse.

Just a few weeks in, he was already losing it. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t get a sense of you. Normally, Junmyeon could read a person like an open book. But you… you were all over the place and he couldn’t get a grip on your thought process. At times, you could be sweet and quiet, but then you would lash out or throw some sarcastic remark his way. Perhaps it was that unpredictability that was drawing him in.

Most of the girls he’d seen in the past knew all about his line of work and the money in his pocket. They were straightforward and honest about being in it for the thrill of it or to hopefully get a hold of one of his credit cards. He knew their game and he wasn’t bothered about it. At least he wasn’t alone and they never lasted longer than a week or so, anyway.

But you didn’t care that he lived in a penthouse or had fancy cars or expensive suits. You were only there out of loyalty to your family and Junmyeon admired that. Part of him hoped that maybe there could be a small change in your reason for staying. Maybe… you could start to feel something for him?

“Now this wasn’t smart.”

Out of the shadow of an alleyway, Junko stepped out, smiling evilly at Junmyeon.

This was always a possibility when he decided to wander off on his own, Junmyeon knew it. Part of him was even hoping that it would happen. He couldn’t resist a chance to trade barbs with Junko.  

Putting his hands in his pockets, Junmyeon leaned up against the grime covered wall, not caring that it could ruin his tailored suit. “Can I help you with something, Junko?”

Taking a toothpick from his mouth, Junko twirled it between his fingers before flicking it away. “You know, our fathers hated each other, but I thought we at least could be friends.”

Junmyeon scoffed. “You’ve hated me since our days at private school. Friendship is the last thing on your mind. Now, my territory and control of the east shore, that, I’m sure, is really what you’re interested in.”

“You’re wrong actually,” Junko taunted, taking a few steps towards Junmyeon. “Sure, those things are important, but they’re not my top priority right now. You see, the first couple of years after (y/n)’s parents sadly passed away, my father kept an eye on her to make sure she grew up well… until Taegun succeeded in hiding her. She was always meant to be mine.”

“I don’t think she really wants you,” Junmyeon mocked. “Anyway, stop playing the romantic hero. We all know that you only want the rights to the files.”

Junko set his jaw. “Isn’t that why you snatched her up first?”

Junmyeon shrugged, knowing that every word that was about to leave his mouth was going to set Junko off. “The files will always be most important, but,” he added in a smirk for effect, “I am also a man. (y/n)’s not bad on the eyes, so I guess you could say it’s an added bonus. Something warm to hold at night….”

That did it.

Junko lunged, hitting Junmyeon right below the eye with his fist. Junmyeon landed his own punch on Junko’s face, connecting with his jaw. Unfortunately, the latter’s limbs were longer and he was able to land more blows than Junmyeon could counter.

Finally, the punches stopped, with Junmyeon on his knees, balancing himself on his palms. Blood mixed with saliva sprayed when he spat out the liquid that was filling up his mouth. At least he was able to leave a few cuts and bruises on Junko’s face as well.

“One way or another,” Junko heaved, “I’ll have her. And your name will never leave her lips again.” Before leaving, he landed one more kick to Junmyeon’s stomach.

Once he was alone, Junmyeon slowly stood back up to his feet, holding his side to try and ease the pain. A slew of curses left his mouth with each step he took. If he hadn’t drank so much, he might have actually been able to hold his own a bit longer.

Junmyeon knew better than to pick a fight with Junko. In their school days, fighting between the two of them was common and Junko, thanks to his height, usually came out on top.

It took a while, but he was able to catch a cab back to the apartment building. The driver kept sending him skeptical looks through the rearview mirror, but he smartly kept his mouth shut.

Back in the penthouse, the lights were still on. Jongdae and you were fast asleep on the couch, but  for once Jongdae was sitting a good distance away from you. Good. That meant he saw the daggers Junmyeon was staring at Yixing. He wouldn’t need to have a separate talk.

It took a bit of force to shake his vanguard awake. A whine escaped from the sleeping gangster, but he jumped up once he saw the face of the interruption.

“Hyung!”

“Shh,” Junmyeon hissed. “You’ll wake her up. Come on.”

Jongdae followed him to the kitchen, where the clock read that it was nearly five in the morning. .

“What happened?” Jongdae whispered. “Where are the others?”

“I sent them home a few hours ago,” Junmyeon groaned, sitting down on a stool. “I needed to go on a walk, but I ran into Junko. I guess you know what they say about poking the sleeping bear.”

“You egged him on?” Jongdae scolded. He shook his head disapprovingly. “Did you not learn anything from school?”

Junmyeon smiled. That was the strongest aspect of his inner circle. They all knew each other from when they were young; it’s what made their bond so strong. Sometimes, however, that meant they could bring up the past. Not that Junmyeon ever really could forget their school days.

“I couldn’t help it,” he shrugged. “He kept talking about (y/n) and how he was supposed to have her. I just wanted him to shut up.”

Jongdae opened his mouth to say something, but thought better of the idea and closed it.

“Go home and get some rest,” Junmyeon ordered. Nodding, Jongdae sighed and exited the kitchen.

As quietly as he could, Junmyeon stood back up and walked over to the freezer to find something cold to press to his face. Moving the perishables around, however, made too much noise. He went still when he heard footsteps echoing in the hallway. So much for not waking you up.

“Are you just now getting home?” you asked sleepily.

Since his back was still to you, Junmyeon let himself grin at your gravelly, just-woken-up voice. It was cute and it pulled at his stomach, how innocent you sounded.

“Yeah,” he answered. “I had some… things to take care of.”

Your bare feet slapped against the tile and Junmyeon had to maneuver to try and keep you from seeing his face.

“Chen said you usually get home around three,” you commented hesitantly. Your voice sounded dejected. “Did you, um, did you go somewhere else? Or maybe… never mind.”

Junmyeon frowned. “Or maybe what?”

“It doesn’t matter,” you whispered. “You should get some sleep.”

“No, (y/n),” Junmyeon tried not to be harsh. He already had a feeling as to where your thoughts were going. “What were you going to say?”

A few seconds of silence went by before you finally spoke up. “I mean, there were a lot of beautiful women there, so I thought that maybe you went home with one of them.”

By the end of the comment your voice was thick. You even tried to muffle a sniffle. Junmyeon’s shoulders dropped. Did you really care if he had gone home with someone else? The thought hadn’t even crossed his mind all evening, a first.

It was obvious that you had tried to wait up for him. You could have gone to bed, but you’d fallen asleep on the couch and had even asked Jongdae what time he usually came home. He never had a woman treat him that way. What were you doing to him?

His hand went to his face, knowing there really wasn’t any way he could hide this from you; not now or tomorrow. Turning around slowly, his eyes met yours and it was like a bolt of lightning hit him when shock and worry covered your face.

**

For a moment you were like a statue, unable to move, speak, or even breathe. Where you had expected lipstick smudges, there were bruises. Without even thinking, you ran forward, placing your hands on Junmyeon’s face, careful not to hurt him further.

“What happened?” you shrieked.

“I decided to try things your way and have a smart mouth,” he groaned, slightly bending at his waist.

As much as you wanted to hit him for that comment, you were too concerned about the split lip he was currently sporting. Shaking your head, you started moving him towards the hallway. “You need to lie down.”

It was a struggle, but you were able to hobble all the way to Junmyeon’s room, supporting as much of his weight that you could. You barely paid attention to how intricate the room was decorated as you sat him carefully down on his bed. If any blood got on the sheets you would wash them later.

“He might be sleeping, but I’ll call Yixing.” You started searching his pockets. “Where’s your cell phone?”

“No!” Junmyeon growled as he grabbed your wrist. His features softened at your stunned face. “I’m fine. I don’t need Yixing. There’s a first aid kit underneath my sink. Just bring that here.”

Reluctantly, you obeyed, running to the bathroom and tearing open the cabinet doors until you found the familiar white box under the sink.

When you got back to Junmyeon, he was in the middle of struggling to take off his jacket. Your heart hurt seeing the agonizing expression from such a simple action. Stepping in, you took the jacket the rest of the way off, throwing it in a random direction to be picked up later.

After you sat down next to him, you opened the kit and pulled out the peroxide. Once a small amount was soaked into a cotton pad, you gently dabbed at the cuts on Junmyeon’s skin. His eyes didn’t leave your own face as you worked at his wounds. He had his own supply of arnica gel and - learning from Yixing - you applied a small amount to the bruises on that were forming.

“Who did this?” you finally asked. The ach from seeing him so hurt was killing you.

“Your other fiancé,” he deadpanned.

“Junko,” you gasped. Your hands dropped to your lap and your eyes began to prickle. “So, this is my fault. He attacked you because of me.”

You hated how much you’ve cried in front of Junmyeon the past several hours. Why was everyone associated with you getting hurt or threatened? Why were you even affected by each injury you found on his face?

Junmyeon wrapped his arms around you, pulling you into his chest. “No, no. This is not your fault. I provoked him. I’m too cocky sometimes and I goaded him into it. No one’s to blame but me.”

When he started rubbing circles on your back you pushed away. Why was he being so kind to you? Staring up at Junmyeon in disbelief, you didn’t miss his flinching as he twisted his upper body.

You panicked. “Are you hurt somewhere else?”

He held his side, but he tried to play it like it was nothing. “I’m fine. I just need to sleep it off.”

Not putting up with his crap, you reached out and started ing his dress shirt.

He let out a noise somewhere between a cough and a laugh. “You know, all you have to do is ask if you want to go that far.”

As much as you wanted to punch him, you settled for a glare. Your jaw dropped when you opened his shirt. Dark purple bruises as large as your palm stuck out against his tanned skin. Reflexively, you reached out, letting only the tips of your fingers touch the blemishes. The skin stretched over the muscles was smooth and soft. How could he be beaten so badly if he was in such good shape?

“(y/n).”

His voice was barely above a whisper. You looked up at him and there was an unreadable expression in his eyes that you’d never seen before. He placed one hand the one of yours that was still settled on his stomach and cupped your jaw with the other.

“Are you scared?” His face was so close to yours that you could count the different shades of brown in his eyes. Unable trust yourself to lie, you nodded. The corners of his lips turned up a fraction. “Don’t be. I’ve had worse injuries. Really, a few hours rest and I’ll be fine.”

That wasn’t the only thing that terrified you, but you didn’t verbalize it.

“Can I–” You bit your bottom lip, surprised on what you wanted to request. You shouldn’t be this concerned. Nothing was going to happen to him, right? There wasn’t any reason you needed to watch over him, was there?

But you couldn’t help think about what if he didn’t make it through night. What would happen to you then? If there was a choice between Junmyeon or Junko, it was an easy decision. And… you wanted to comfort Junmyeon like how he comforted you back at the illegal casino. His presence was starting to do something to you. You couldn’t explain what it was, but it urged you to stick around and try to figure it out.

Junmyeon cocked his head. “Can you what?”

“Can I stay with you?” You could barely hear the words that left your mouth, but the smile on his face told you that he heard every word.

He nodded. “Of course.”

Testing out each movement, he removed his socks and belt, but kept his slacks on before dragging himself to the top of the bed. He slid under the covers and then patted the space next to him.

You could feel the heat rushing up to your cheeks. Granted, you weren’t completely clueless or inexperienced and nothing but rest was going to happen, but you were still unprepared for this kind of thing. You never imagined this situation when you first entered this house.

For a split second, you considered changing your mind and running back to your own bed, but you didn’t want to leave him alone. Giving in, you settled down on top of the covers until Junmyeon threw you a look.

“How am I supposed to sleep if you’re holding down the comforter?” he pointed out.

Huffing, you stood up and threw the blankets back. You cautiously slipped into the bed, lying down on your back and staring up at the ceiling.

“(y/n).”

You flipped over to your side to face Junmyeon. You held your head up, resting it in your palm as you propped up on your elbow. He held out a hand and let his fingers gently caress your cheek.

“Thank you,” he murmured.

With a heavy sigh, you pursed your lips. “Well, I couldn’t just sit back and let your wounds fester. You’re too stubborn to get help from the others.”

Junmyeon raised an eyebrow. “You presume to know me so well. It’s not like you’ve been around me for very long.”

It was true that he was hardly ever around for you to get to know him, but still…. “It doesn’t exactly take an expert to see how stubborn you are. But you’re right. I know the guys better than I know you.”

A crease appeared between his eyebrows. “Why don’t we change that? We could actually try to spend time together, get to know each other some more.”

“You don’t think we might kill each other?” you joked. While you meant it as a “haha”, you wondered if it might actually happen. Even breakfast only stayed peaceful for so long before it went to crap. Okay, it was mostly your own fault and how you reacted to the ring, but could you really be entirely blamed for it?

Junmyeon scooted closer to you, rubbing your upper arm. “I think we can get along, if we try.”

You actually gave it some thought. As much as you wanted to deny it, a small bit of you was attracted to him. And he wasn’t outright suggesting any sort of relationship, only that you try to get along and find out more about each other. That could make this sham of a marriage more bearable when the time came, right?

Internally, you snorted. Try to get along. Like a couple of kids forced into a playdate. Fighting over toys and what to watch on TV was inevitable, but the moments in between, you could make tolerable, maybe even memorable.

A wall was easy to build and hard to break down, but maybe the mortar hadn’t hardened yet. You certainly didn’t hate him as much you originally thought. You’d grown soft towards him, never really being the type that was good at holding grudges anyway.

Look at you, you were already tending to his wounds and watching over him. You could be such a bleeding heart sometimes.

“Okay,” you agreed. “I think I’d like that. But right now, I think you should get some sleep.”

Junmyeon laughed and then grimaced. “You’re right. You should get sleep, too.”

“Good night, Junmyeon.”

His smiled crookedly. “Good morning, (y/n).”