Junmyeon’s solution was almost too good to be true. Granted, you didn’t know exactly how well it would work. This entire trip could be pointless, but at least you would get to see them. When Junmyeon had told you about his idea, you’d burst into sobs. Never had it occurred to you that you might be able to hug your family again.

You were nearing tears again the closer the vehicle got to the old apartment building you used to call home.

The idea was for you to talk to Taegun and Hyunmin personally and let them know that Junmyeon’s men were there to protect them. The prejudices they held against him would be hard to fight through, but you believed you could do it, especially when they saw that you were okay with their own eyes.

For the first time, you saw Junmyeon get behind the wheel. He thought it best if it was just the two of you who went, although he would stay behind in the car to give you some privacy with your family. He stopped the car in front of the building, pulling into a street parking spot.

“I’ll be down here,” he sighed as he turned to look at you. “Do you have your cell phone just in case?”

You nodded. “Yeah. I’ll try not to be too long.”

“Take your time.”

With one last smile, you pushed open the door and went inside, taking the elevator to that familiar floor. After knocking on the apartment door - being keyless since you hadn’t been able to take them with you when you left - you waited, trying to remain calm and stoic. The door squeaked open, only letting a few centimeters be exposed.

“Who is it?”

You swallowed back tears. “It’s me, Mom. It’s (y/n).”

The door swung open the rest of the way and Hyunmin threw her arms around you and pulled you back into the apartment.

“(y/n)!”

Another pair of arms joined the reunion. Taegun sobbed in your ear, his hand gripping your shirt with such force you thought he might rip the fabric. Hyunmin pulled away just a bit and took your face in her hands.

“What are you doing here?”

You leaned into her touch, smiling at her. “Junmyeon brought me so I could make sure you were okay.”

Taegun scoffed at the mention of your fiancé and stomped over to the kitchen table, scraping the chair against the tile and sitting down.

Following quietly, you sat adjacent from him, grabbing his hand in yours. “Papa, it wasn’t Junmyeon who did this.” That just made him laugh humorlessly. Hyunmin sat on your other side, wrapping her fingers around your forearm. “I know he didn’t. His men that have been following you have been trying to protect you. Both of you. It was Junko’s men who found you and attacked you.”

Hyunmin gasped and Taegun stiffened as soon as you said Junko’s name.

You sighed. “You know who that is, don’t you?”

Taegun nodded. “His father and yours were close. He was also your father’s biggest client. Junko was the one you were originally promised to.”

“So I’ve been told,” you said bitterly. “I’ve met him. And he threatened to harm you if I didn’t break it off with Junmyeon and go to him. I told him no. With the… contract I can’t just break it off like a normal engagement. I have to keep that obligation.” You shifted uncomfortably in your seat, avoiding their eyes for the moment. “Even so, I don’t mind where I’m at and I woulnd’t want to go to Junko anyway.”

Turning to Hyunmin, you met her gaze. She looked at you with studying eyes, trying to read something in your face.

“You have to let Junmyeon protect you,” you urged, getting back on track. “He promised me he would make sure this didn’t happen again and I trust him. I know you think it would be better for them to just stay away, but who knows how many times others have come after you just to be scared off by Junmyeon’s men?”

Five times, actually. According to the reports he let you read last night, anyway.

“How has he been treating you?” Hyunmin asked hesitantly.

“With nothing but respect,” you answered truthfully. “We’ve butted heads a few times, but things have gotten better. I don’t mind being there, actually.” You bit your tongue before you could admit that you liked being there, given the circumstances. While you missed your family every day, considering what could have been your future, you counted yourself lucky. Very lucky, indeed. “He’s promised to take me traveling like I’ve always wanted to do. I like talking to him, when he’s around.”

“You seem–” Hyunmin bit her bottom lip, furrowing her eyebrows. “You seem happy.”

You cleared your throat and scratched the back of your head nervously. “Well, I mean, I’m not unhappy there. I’ve kind of made friends with the guys that take turns watching over me.”

“They are not your friends!” Taegun snapped, pounding his fist against the table, causing the trinkets in the center to rattle. “They are killers and criminals. Do not let them fool you into thinking they are normal people. They may be there to protect you from Junko, but you should never let your guard down!”

“You don’t even know them!” you yelled back, jumping to your feet in the process. “I know what they do! I know what they are, but they are still people! They’re not animals that just snarl and bite anything that looks in their direction! They laugh, they make stupid jokes, and they watch out for each other. Sometimes they seem more like a family than I’ve ever had.”

Taegun’s eyes widened and Hyunmin went still.

You, too, were horrified at what you had just said. You’d never once complained about your circumstances. You loved your adoptive family. But your siblings were never around anymore nor did they care too much to spend time with you as you all had gotten older. Hyunmin kept you close, but Taegun - well after you’d hit puberty, he stopped taking you out for treats and spending time with you one-on-one. The last time you went out on a family vacation with everyone together, you’d barely entered high school.

“I’m sorry,” you sighed. The hurt in their eyes made you want to cover up you slip. “I don’t know where that came from. I know you’ve only ever tried your best to make me feel like one of your own. I didn’t mean that.”

“We know, sweetheart,” Hyunmin hummed. “You were just upset. But, (y/n), I can’t help but notice….” She gently pulled your chin to have you looking at her. “Honey, there’s something in your eyes I’ve never seen before. Are you – well, are you in love him?”

You jerked back. “What? No! I still barely know him.”

“Yes, but you’ve always been one to have your head in the clouds. You never gave any boys at school the time of day because they were too ordinary, too simple for you.”

“I didn’t talk to any of them because they were too busy chasing after girls like Minah,” you corrected her. “They never wanted me.” Only in movies did the girls like you get any sort of attention from boys.

“You forget that I would get together with several other mothers,” Hyunmin patted your head. Perhaps it was because she was you mother, but you didn’t quite like it when she did that, making you feel like a child again. Not like when Junmyeon did it. “A few of the boys had a small crush on you, but you never looked up from your books.”

“I’ve had boyfriends before, Mom,” you argued. Why was this even a conversation you were having right now? “And none of them were members of an organized crime ring, if I recall.”

“But just now… it just seems, you are protective of him.”

“That’s just because he’s been nice to me even though he could just ignore me or lock me in my room,” you insisted.

You’d tried so hard not to go down that road. Allowed yourself to be a little attracted? Sure. Did you flirt with him? Well, you weren’t exactly good at batting you eyelashes, but you would do things to make him smile because watching him light up as the corners of his eyes crinkled gave you a small bit of warmth inside.

But in love with Junmyeon? Not possible. Hyunmin was right, your head usually wasn’t firmly planted on the ground, but you weren’t completely unrealistic. You refused to be the one to fold first. You would not fall in love with Junmyeon. Because, no matter how many flattering words or sultry eyes he threw your way, you knew, deep down, he would never actually fall in love with you. He was too hardened by the years of being in this business. Besides, you weren’t that special to make him turn one-eighty like that.

“Junmyeon and I get along because you two signed a contract for me to marry him so he can have access to the files when the time comes. We came to the conclusion that getting along and not fighting each other is the best way to get through this. It’ll make life easier in the long run. That is it. End of story.” Maybe if you said it out loud enough times, it would actually be true. On your part, at least.

Hyunmin’s face gave off the impression that she didn’t believe you, but Taegun seemed satisfied.

“Good,” Taegun grunted. “You deserved better. Perhaps, in a few years, he’ll let you go and you can marry someone much more suited for you.”

“Yeah, maybe,” I shrugged. “We could always hope.”

**

Junmyeon turned off the volume, unable to keep listening.

Kyungsoo had inserted a bug into your phone along with the GPS tracker. It was all for your safety, but Junmyeon couldn’t resist turning on the Bluetooth and listening in on what you were telling your adoptive parents. You seemed to be able to convince them that he really was trying to protect them, but they still hated him.

Things like this didn’t bother Junmyeon in the past. He didn’t care if insignificant people – or even those higher up than him – liked him or not. However, hearing the venom in Taegun’s voice stung a bit. But that was nothing compared to listening to you insist that you felt nothing for him.

He thought the two of you were making progress. You hugged him when he did things for you - like the phone and freedom to leave the apartment - and gave him smiles willingly now. You didn’t fight to the point of sore throats with acidic words tossed carelessly around. But while peace had come around the penthouse, you still didn’t feel strongly towards him. You simply wanted to “get along” in order to make cohabitation more bearable.

Junmyeon banged a fist against the steering wheel, your words agreeing with Taegun that you could leave him in the future and be with someone else once Junmyeon got what he wanted – what he’d originally went into this agreement for – haunted him.

None of this was ever about money. The original plan – before he found out about you – was to just give that damn CEO a warning and then give him some time to come up with a different way to pay off the debt. Junmyeon didn’t care; there were others who owed him more. But then Jung mentioned that he knew where the Closer’s daughter was. That caught his attention. It was the leg up Junmyeon needed on Junko. Everyone in the underworld had lost track of you years ago, thinking you were still in the States. With a little research from Baekhyun, they had you.

But Junmyeon’s expectation was of a spoiled, bratty girl who only cared about the materialistic joys in life. Going from one corporate lawyer to another as a father that just seemed the natural way your personality would go. Then he started following you from work and other places you visited, trying to figure out how to get to you and to the files before they came to the marriage agreement in the negotiations.

Little did you know that originally footnote that was Taegun’s stipulation.

Junmyeon simply wanted to keep you in his penthouse until your birthday to make sure you didn’t disappear again. After that, he would take you to New York once the sealed will revealed the name of the bank, have you retrieve the files, and then let you go your own way. But Taegun knew that was putting a target on your back, a side effect that Junmyeon didn’t really care about. It didn’t affect him and it was obvious that he wasn’t giving an afterthought to your wellbeing. So, Taegun had insisted in giving you the best protection possible. Junmyeon was resistant at first, trying any other method to come to an agreement, but Taegun held his ground. And now here he was, acting like his arm had been twisted into the final contract. His wife didn’t even know the truth. Just so he could remain the good guy in this situation.

Leaning forward, Junmyeon ran his hands through his hair, letting out a long breath as he tried to control his temper.

Would he ever let you go?

Yes.

Once he knew you were safe, he’d let you leave. Once he’d dismantled Junko’s empire and destroyed that family’s power, you’d be safe. It just might kill him, but if you wished to go, he’d put you on the plane himself.

A knock on the passenger window brought him back to the present, making his hand for the gun in the middle console. It was just you, waiting patiently outside for him to unlock the car. Relieved, he let go of the gun, thankful that he never actually pulled it out, and unlocked the door for you.

“Are you okay?” you asked as soon as you sat down. A harsh line formed just above your nose, conveying your concern.

He gave you a small smile, fascinated how easily you could read him and how you were always quick to try and comfort him if something was wrong. Could he really believe what you had said upstairs?

“Perfectly fine,” he lied. The frown on your mouth said you didn’t completely believe him, but you didn’t push.

“Okay.” You put on your seatbelt without further inquiry.

Junmyeon almost laughed, remembering you yelling at him to do the same before coming here.

“They’re going to cooperate now,” you told him, “just so you know. They understand that you’re trying to protect them and that Junko is the one threatening them. They also agreed to call me if they think anything suspicious is going on.”

Starting the car, Junmyeon pulled out into the street. “Good. Did you talk about anything else?”

For a moment you didn’t answer. You your lips and them in. Then you shrugged. “We just caught up. Taegun found a better job, pays more and the CEO supposedly isn’t a giant jerk. I let them know that I wasn’t being held in a dark dungeon and that I was being well taken care of. They, um….” you swallowed.

Were you about to tell him about the conversation? Would you really bring that up?

“They’re still concerned, but they’re just being parents. I promised to keep them updated. They do want to have dinner for my birthday. Before we, you know, go.”

Junmyeon said nothing, simply nodding to the arrangement.

Of course he had no problem going to dinner, although Chanyeol would be a nightmare getting the security taken care of for it. You looked at him out of the corner of your eye, almost expecting something. When you didn’t get any reply, you sighed and stared out the window, watching the people and the street lights go by.

Feeling a bit brave and with his hand itching to touch you again, Junmyeon reached out with his right hand and grasped your left one that was resting on your leg. You jumped at the sudden contact but didn’t pull away, letting him continue to hold on.

Why he was doing this, he wasn’t sure. Was it to prove something to himself? To you?

As far as he knew, you didn’t have feelings for him. So, then, why weren’t you pulling away?

His thumb rubbed your knuckles absentmindedly and, he was sure, if anyone were able to look in on them through the tinted, bulletproof glass, they would seem like any other couple just out and about on an ordinary Saturday. But they never would be. No matter how much Junmyeon wanted it.

**

Neither of you spoke as Junmyeon drove home. You were thankful for the silence so you could think, but with Junmyeon’s hand in yours, having his skin on yours, giving off its warmth and comfort, hardly any thoughts were connecting.

Hyunmin’s comment plagued your mind. You fiercely denied it, but the repudiation came too easily, like a shield. Your heart was pumping at a hundred miles an hour almost bringing a pain to your chest.

Focusing on breathing, you leaned your head against the cold glass of the window, frustrated as your breath fogged up the glass. This was your body’s reaction to a simple handhold. The pounding in your ears increased as different images danced across your closed eyelids.

They were scenarios that you’d read over and over again, but never had experienced. Now, you let your imagination take over, heat rising to your face as you wondered about life with Junmyeon.

You’re standing in the kitchen, getting dinner put together, a smile creeping up on your face as you hear the door open. A pair of arms snake around your waist while another pair of lips caress your neck, whispering hello just for you to hear. You ask him how his day was and he just shrugs. You eat dinner together, laughing and smiling. He says something that makes you blush. Once the dishes are clean, he leads you back to your shared bedroom and shows you how much he cares. Afterwards you just lie there, like that first night, your head resting on his chest until you both drifted off to sleep.

Junmyeon slammed on the breaks, pulling you out of the fantasy. The seat belt tightened on que, digging into your neck as it kept you from flying forward. The car in front of you had stopped suddenly, although there was no one else present on the street. Your hand was suddenly empty as Junmyeon threw the car in reverse and turned around, sending smoke in the air as the tires squealed against the asphalt. The driver of the vehicle stepped out and simply stared after you. He was unmoving as you watched him in the passenger’s side mirror. Two other vehicles appeared out the sides streets and stopped by the first car, but nothing else.

“Who was that?” you gasped as you turned around to try and get a better look at the man or the cars.

“Sit down!” Junmyeon growled, pushing down on your shoulder with force.

You did as you were told, shocked. It’d been a while since he’d snapped at you like that. You were practically cowering in your seat, clutching the belt in your fists as you stared out the window.

Junmyeon let out a hefty sigh. “I’m sorry.”

You just nodded, not looking back at him.

No one spoke again as he pulled into the garage and parked the obnoxious sports car at the end of his long line of vehicles. You followed him closely into the penthouse and then just stood on the outset of the entrance to the living room. Chen jumped up when he saw you enter, taking in your posture, arms around yourself to make yourself as small as possible.

“What happened?” he asked, looking between you and Junmyeon.

“Someone tried to pull a snatch and grab,” Junmyeon huffed. Chanyeol walked in from the kitchen holding a glass of water with Kyungsoo behind him. “D.O., I need you to access the black box in the Lexus and see if you can read the plate number on the car. Or better yet, identify the man who got out. I’d bet everything that it was one of Junko’s men.”

Kyungsoo nodded and left the penthouse. Chen walked up to you and looped an arm around your back, ushering you towards the kitchen.

“Chen,” Junmyeon hissed, his voice giving off some kind of warning.

The usual peppy informant threw a nasty look in his leader’s direction. Junmyeon’s face was a mixture of shock and irritation. Chen didn’t care though as he guided you out the tension filled room. He sat you down at the island and poured way too much red wine into a glass meant for something non-alcoholic.

“Drink up,” he ordered. “It’ll help.”

Frowning, you took several sips, cringing at the sour, dry taste. “You know, alcohol doesn’t fix everything.”

Chen smirked. “Yeah, yeah. I know you’re a regular saint, but indulge me.”

You rolled your eyes, continuing to slowly down the wine, not wanting to get tipsy on top of your already shaky state.

Chanyeol crept into the kitchen, barely sticking his head in. “Um, Jo- Chen. Junmyeon wants to see you in his office.”

Shaking his head, Chen sighed. “Fine. Call Yixing and tell him to get here fast and make sure that (y/n)’s okay.”

Chanyeol nodded, his red hair flopping against the movement. Then you were left alone.

**

Junmyeon was eerily calm as he stood in his office, his hands behind his back. The lights were dimmed and no other sound echoed off the walls except for Jongdae’s footsteps as he got closer. The knock signaled his arrival and Junmyeon called out for him to enter.

“You wanted to see me.” It came out straight, none of his usual sarcasm or charm present.

Leaning against his desk, Junmyeon crossed his arms. “You know the rules, Jongdae.”

“Yeah, I do,” he scoffed. The vanguard was never one to sugarcoat things or hide his actual feelings, so this attitude was expected. “But I chose to ignore them because you were too busy spouting out orders to notice that your fiancé was shivering worse than a Chihuahua behind you.”

Junmyeon rolled his eyes. “Nothing actually happened. I got us out of there before any real danger occurred.”

Jongdae’s hands were in shaking fists, his jaw set. “To you! To you, nothing happened. But (y/n) didn’t grow up in this! I thought after spending time with her, you’d grown to be more sympathetic to her. In fact, I thought that you actually–”

“No!” Junmyeon snapped. He didn’t want it said out loud. After the indirect rejection he just endured, he didn’t want it acknowledged that he’d let himself go down that road. Even holding your hand in the car had been a mistake, he just wanted to see if it had any effect on you. Apparently, it hadn’t.

And now they tried to go after you directly this time. They saw the two of you together. Junmyeon had created the weakness that he’d sworn he would never have. He couldn’t let this go any further. He needed to stay the disconnected mafia leader that he was.

“Do not mistake anything that I am doing,” he growled. “Everything I do is to get us closer to our end goal, to get us out on top. That is it.”

Jongdae’ face said that he didn’t believe a word of it, but then again, that was his job. “Then why be so upset that I simply helped her? Huh? Why care if she seemed so happy dancing with Yixing? Or that Kyungsoo makes her meals? Or that Jongin lets her sleep on his lap on the couch? Kind of pointless, don’t you think?”

The images of each scenario he just described burned in Junmyeon’s mind, fueling his anger. It took all the discipline he had not to grab the closest object off his desk and throw it across the room. That would be giving in, admitting that it was true.

“I have my reasons,” he growled. “One of them being that I don’t need rumors going around about my men getting too close to my fiancé. How do you think that would look to the other leaders?”

Shaking his head, Jongdae said in a low voice, “You’re despicable. I mean, none of us are saints. We injure, we steal, we blackmail, but ultimately, it’s all with people who chose this life. But you’re just toying with her, using her like a pawn just to get to Junko. She was so close to being free and you caged her up.”

“I didn’t want to marry her in the first place. It was Taegun who made the condition.”

Jongdae’s eyes widened in surprise at the new development. Junmyeon hadn’t told anyone but Minseok, who was there during the signing as a witness, about how exactly the negotiations went down.

“You really think I wanted this?” he threw at Jongdae. “Settling down was never in the plan. I never wanted a chink in my armor. That’s all a wife is: a weakness that others can exploit. Negotiations not going well? Threaten the wife. Want a new piece of territory without having to fight for it? Kidnap the wife and hold her hostage. Affections like that just make you vulnerable. That’s why I never brought back the same girl twice. Show an attachment and your enemies will exploit it with all they’ve got. (Y/n) is a means to an end. If that means I have to be nice to get those files, then I’ll play nice. That is it.”

Jongdae nodded. There was still a defiance in his eyes, but the fight was gone. “Was there anything else you needed?”

“No,” Junmyeon replied, satisfied. “You’re dismissed.”

With slumped shoulders, Jongdae shuffled over to the door and opened it, but froze when the hallway was revealed.

It was you standing there, leaning with your back against the wall, your arms folded in front of you. A tear was leaving a watery trail down your cheek as you stared down at the floor. It didn’t take a genius to conclude that you’d heard everything.

Chanyeol came running down the hall, huffing. Afraid of being reprimanded, he grabbed your upper arm and gently tugged you away, apologizing profusely for not keeping you away. You didn’t fight against Chanyeol’s grip, simply meeting Junmyeon’s eye before walking away.