Changmin’s brown eyes flicked up to the ceiling hoping that the answer he was looking for would be hidden in the white paint and those bright lights that blinded his eyes. He needed to lie and do so fast. He couldn’t just lie either, it had to be a believable lie. One that would actually pass as the truth. Everyone could lie, the real talent layed in making it sound believable. Especially when the green, narrow eyes that were looking at him was looking for cracks in his face. The ceiling revealed nothing, not that Changmin had expected it to, it was just the old and tired ceiling of the North-Western Memorial Hospital. Changmin lowered his gaze to not look like a complete idiot and looked directly at the man that had approached him.

The man was dressed in a black suit with a white shirt under without wrinkles and a tie that matched his suit. It was obvious that the suit was tailored to fit the man, but if Changmin hadn’t been able to tell the suit was pricey, the cuffs that the man had been straightening right before he’d approached Changmin should’ve been the obvious hint that he wore expensive clothes. The suit was probably Italian, hand-sewn, and the cuffs had to be real rubies. It was a flashy way to dress, but Changmin assumed the man didn’t care for the attention. That he was probably seeking it out.

“Sorry,” Changmin asked him – as he hadn’t heard the man. Of course, he had, but he had to play the oblivious doctor part to a T if this was going to work out. He wasn’t actually a doctor yet, by the end of the summer he would’ve finished his training and be a licenced doctor. However, right now, Changmin was just a trainee. “A mister Jung?” he asked. “I don’t think he’s part of the staff, but let me check the patient list for you,” he continued. The man huffed; Changmin went to move out of the staircase he was trapped in. He’d taken a shortcut between the fourth and fifth floor. No one really used these stairs, not when the hospital had several working elevators. However, Changmin had never liked to wait for the elevator, and what was worse was if the elevator was full. So, occasionally he took the stairs. Especially, if it was just one floor. That had been a mistake today though, there had been a man waiting for Changmin here. When the man had moved Changmin had caught the outline of a gun tucked against his side, covered by the suit jacket. He’d pretended to not see it.

Of course, he had to pretend he was just a poor innocent doctor in training and not involved with Chicago’s mobster underworld. That he wasn’t the second in command for Cho Kyuhyun’s notorious gang. If he did, he knew he would end up severely hurt, or dead. The plan of moving them back to the open hospital floors had failed. Changmin would’ve been safe there because the man here wasn’t dumb enough to try something where there were thousands of witnesses. Thus, why he was on an empty staircase, and not in the open hospital hall. As Changmin went to move the man in the black suit went to stop him.

“Mister Shim,” he said. His voice sounded raspy as if he smoked a lot. Changmin didn’t doubt that he did. “I wouldn’t move if I were you,” his left hand moved his suit jacket slightly and revealed the gun Changmin already knew was there. “And I would recommend not lying to me.” Changmin remained silent and scanned the man, then his possibilities. The man had cornered him, and there wasn’t much room to move. Changmin had to get past him to move either up or down. He didn’t have endless possibilities to move when his back was pressed into the white-painted wall. The man was shorter than him, but most people were. Changmin was only a few centimetres from being 1.90, he towered over most people. Including this mobster. The man was older than himself and less trained. What he really had going for him was the gun in his hand. While all Changmin had was a stethoscope around his neck.

“I saw the two of you together, yesterday,” the man pressed. Changmin resisted the urge to roll his eyes and tried to school his face into an expressionless one. Over the years he’d gotten quite good at it. “Now, it’s quite simple. I just want you to tell me where I can find Jung Yunho, and then I’ll let you go. No one gets hurt,” the way he explained it made it seem so easy. Changmin wasn’t so dumb that he believed his words though. Of course, he knew what would happen if he told him where he could find Yunho.

“I don’t know where he is,” Changmin tried to lie again. It was the truth in a way. He didn’t know where Yunho was right now, but of course, Changmin could take an educated guess.

“Don’t lie,” the man in the suit seemed to lose his temper and suddenly he was pointing the gun at Changmin. Changmin cursed inwardly; his clothes were hardly suitable for fighting. He didn’t doubt that he could survive this, but it would’ve been easier to defend himself if he wasn’t wearing black jeans, a black shirt and an inconveniently long white coat that was stereotypical for doctors. Changmin bent his knees slightly before his right hand and quickly punched the man’s right hand so forcefully that the man had no choice but to drop the gun. With the gun lying on the floor, Changmin felt more comfortable fighting, and he stopped an incoming punch from the man. It was easy to tell from the man’s brute fighting style he was far too dependent on the gun and wasn’t much of an opponent when it came to hand combat. Changmin kicked the gun away for good measure before he kicked the man in the side who was trying to land a punch on Changmin. The man in the suit tumbled backwards but regained his balance right before he fell down the stairs.

“You little !” he cursed Changmin out, but the brunet ignored the insult in favour of landing another solid kick in the man’s stomach. This one sent him down the stairs in a matter of seconds. He hit his head against the wall, but Changmin wasn’t sure if he passed out or not until he heard the man loudly groan. It sounded like he had the wind knocked out of him by the way he was gasping for air, Changmin collected the gun; it felt heavy in his hand before he approached the man in the suit. They locked eyes, and Changmin felt his own expression harden.

“Leave the hospital, and don’t come back,” he aimed the gun at the man, “or I’ll make sure you leave in a body bag. If I ever see you again, I won’t hesitate to put a bullet in you.” The man quivered under Changmin’s hard glace, and even with his injuries, he got up from the floor – admittedly with a bit of trouble – before he was running down the stairs as fast as he could. Which wasn’t very fast at all. Changmin didn’t doubt that he’d continue to look for Yunho, but the man wasn’t his problem anymore. Besides, Yunho was a big boy; he could take care of himself. He watched the man leave until he could hear the door on the first floor slam shut. He had a feeling the man wouldn’t come back.

His brown eyes flickered to the gun in his hand. He had to get rid of it somehow. He couldn’t walk around in the hospital with a gun, obviously, and he could just leave it here to be found. Changmin chewed on his bottom lip as if the answer would just appear out of thin air. Much like the answer hadn’t been written on the ceiling, nothing came to him. He couldn’t stay here with it, but he couldn’t leave it either. It felt like Changmin was trapped between a rock and hard place, only that whatever he chose would be the wrong decision. The only way Changmin would get out of this scot-free was if the gun magically disappeared. As much as that thought was nice, it was impossible. Unless, of course, he could just hand the gun over to someone else who could make the gun disappear. In a sort of sense, disappearing and dropping it in Lake Michigan was in many ways, the same thing. The law enforcement wouldn’t find it. The idea that someone could aid Changmin gave the tall burnet an idea, and he fished his phone up from his pocket and quickly scrolled through his contacts to find the number he was looking for.

He put the phone next to his ear and listened to it ring for a few seconds until the person on the other side of the line picked up. “Hey, Yunho?” he asked after he’d heard a small greeting from the other man. He wondered if it was a bad time to be calling or not, but Changmin discarded the idea quickly. He knew that Yunho had a bad habit of making time for Changmin whether or not it was a good time. If it was a really bad time Yunho would tell him, but he would still fix his problems. Changmin was aware he was the only one who got this sort of treatment and tried not to misuse it. This time he was in a really tight spot though.

“Yeah,” the older man confirmed, although Changmin knew it would be impossible that it could’ve been anyone else. He’d called Yunho, and no one else had access to Yunho’s phone. The older man was too careful to randomly just lose his phone.

“Are you busy?” Changmin asked and found himself chewing on his bottom lip again. He would feel bad if he was disturbing him, but not so bad that he would hang up and tell Yunho to forget it. He did need Yunho’s help, and if Yunho didn’t aid him, he would be forced to call Kyuhyun or someone else. Of course, he trusted Kyuhyun to help him, but whereas Yunho would get here himself Kyuhyun would just send someone in his place. Changmin didn’t know who he’d send, and he didn’t trust them to be discreet enough. He wasn’t involved in Leeteuk’s gang, so he knew Kyuhyun wouldn’t send someone from that gang, in this potential scenario. Unlike Leeteuk, Changmin didn’t go to extended lengths to keep his identity hidden, but he didn’t go around advocating for it either. He tried to keep his non-criminal life away from his criminal one, and so far, he’d been quite successful at that. Looking away from the man that had approached him today. Of course, a handful of people knew, again it wasn’t like Changmin tried to keep it a secret. He just tried to keep it low-key. He didn’t really care if people knew he was a doctor in training or not, he just didn’t want the news of his criminal life to get to the hospital.

“Sorta,” Yunho replied. Changmin could interpret that easily. It meant that if it was important enough Yunho would drop his business to help Changmin. However, if Changmin was just looking for someone to have coffee with – not that he ever did – Yunho was too busy for that. Then again, Yunho should’ve known that Changmin didn’t call him to hang out. It was strictly business between them. Well, at least for Changmin.

“I need your help…” he began but paused. Waiting for Yunho to either accept or decline his request.

“Alright, with that?” He asked, and with that accepting Changmin’s request. Yunho offered to help him, but Changmin had expected that.

He breathed in before he began. “I need you to come to the hospital where I’m working, east wing, in the staircase between the fourth and fifth floor,” he told Yunho with a sense of urgency in his voice. Changmin was sure that Yunho could sense his slight panic through the phone. However, Changmin didn’t think he could be blamed here. He was holding a gun hidden in his workplace, if someone found him here Changmin couldn’t imagine even half of the trouble he would be in. The worst thing was that the man that had attacked him and was the reason why Changmin was kind of in trouble, hadn’t even been looking for him. If he was found now, he’d lose his practicum here, that was for sure. Actually, Changmin was pretty sure he’d lose all sort of medical training and license he had. That would be almost seven years straight down the drain.

“Wow, wow, wow. Calm down,” Yunho told him through the phone. Changmin was sure he could hear him smiling. As if Changmin’s distressed state humoured him somehow. “What’s the rush?”

“The rush is that I have a gun in my hand, and I should be working. And it’s not like I can just take it with me to the operating room. And I can’t leave it here, it’s got my fingerprints all over it. Not to think what could happen if someone found it,” Changmin explained curtly to Yunho. He noticed his own tone was more annoyed than it should be. It wasn’t like he expected Yunho to have this knowledge, it was impossible for him to have it. However, Changmin couldn’t do anything about it. He was too stressed to even talk in a calm manner. Anyone could use the stairs if they wanted to. The fact that no one had done so yet, was just a goddamn miracle.

“Alright, I see the problem. Why’d ya take a gun with you to work?” Yunho still found the situation humorous, and Changmin found himself rolling his eyes even if Yunho couldn’t see it.

“It’s not mine!” he said outraged as if the mere assumption was offensive. Of course, he could see why Yunho would assume it was his own gun. Again, Yunho didn’t know the full story, and Changmin did own a few guns. It was probable that the gun he needed to get rid of was his own. Although Changmin wouldn’t have brought a gun to his legal work.

“Yeah, because I should’ve known that,” Yunho’s voice was dripping off sarcasm. They spent so much time around each other that Yunho was taking after Changmin. Yunho never used much sarcasm in New York. Sarcasm had always been one of Changmin’s primary traits. But then again, Changmin took after Yunho too. Changmin hadn’t been in the criminal business until Yunho had introduced him to it. “Changminnie, it’s you. What should I have thought?” Yunho defended himself, but Changmin didn’t reply to it. He could easily understand why Yunho had thought it was his, but that wasn’t what mattered right now. Right now, the thing that mattered was getting rid of the gun.

“Why do you have a gun?” Yunho asked when Changmin offered him no answer to what Yunho should’ve thought. Changmin doubted the older had wanted an answer either way. The question had seemed like a rhetorical one.

“A guy attacked me,” Changmin replied shortly. Yunho would get the full story out of him whether he wanted to or not. However, Changmin preferred that he told the story when they were face to face. Not because details could be lost over the phone. But because then he could give the gun to Yunho, and the problem would be out of his way.

“You?” Yunho sounded surprised. Changmin wouldn’t put it past him. He too was surprised that he’d been attacked in the hospital. This was supposed to be a safe space from the mob world. He felt unprotected here. Never in the almost three years, Changmin had lived in Chicago had he once been attacked at the hospital. Kyuhyun had picked him up a few times or sent people to do so. Yunho had met him a few times in the parking lot, but aside from that his two worlds never really mixed. Just like Changmin preferred it. The whole point of living in two different worlds was to keep them separate. “In the hospital?” Yunho continued equally as surprised. As if he had a hard believing that the mob world wouldn’t find him in the hospital. It had been inventible really, but Changmin had still preferred if they didn’t mix. This time he’d handled it, but what would happen next time? Changmin didn’t want to take those chances.

“Did I stutter?” He asked Yunho sarcastically. To which the older didn’t reply at all. “Just get here already! Before they start looking for me,” he ordered the older. He wouldn’t be surprised if someone wasn’t looking for him already. He was technically still working; he couldn’t just hide away like this. Even if he hadn’t been hiding a gun it was unacceptable behaviour to just disappear.

“I’m on my way,” Yunho reassured him, and Changmin didn’t doubt it. That was one of his favourite features with the older. How dependable he was. If Changmin wasn’t mistaken Yunho was probably already driving towards him right now. He hoped Yunho was just a few minutes away. He hoped that Yunho stayed true to his bad habit and sped just to get here faster. Changmin hung up and waited for Yunho to arrive. He took a seat on one of the stairs and shifted slightly to make it comfortable to sit with his long. Changmin entertained himself by taking out the magazine, taking out every bullet and then putting it into the gun again. Yunho had been the one to teach him back in New York. Changmin could still remember how painstakingly long it had taken him to do it fast enough to Yunho’s liking. The echo of Yunho ordering him to do it, again and again, was still fresh in his memory.

“Again,” was what Yunho always said when he wasn’t satisfied with how Changmin performed. He would never say anything more than just that one word. He would bark it out until he was satisfied or realised it was as good as it was going to get until Changmin got more experienced.

It was a long time since then. Changmin had learnt a lot since New York. He could fill a magazine with bullets at a record speed now. The motion was so internalized Changmin barely recognized he did it, too caught up on other thoughts. He didn’t even realise Yunho had arrived and was standing over him until the older man spoke.

“So, this is why you never let me see you in your uniform?” he said in a half-flirting, half-joking manner. Changmin never understood if Yunho meant it or not when he said it like that. In one sense, it seemed like he was flirting with him. On the other, taking their history into account as sort of exes it didn’t make sense that Yunho was flirting with him now. Why would he? They’d been kind of dating but not really dating for almost four years in New York. Why would Yunho flirt with him now in Chicago when he’d had the chance to make Changmin his for almost four years. Changmin couldn’t make sense of it, so he ignored it. It had always been his tactic at these such matters. Not that they really worked.

“What do you mean?” Changmin gazed up to meet Yunho’s eye, but he didn’t get up from his seat on the stairs.

“You know, Changminnie,” Yunho continued, his voice still heavy with a joking tone. “Most people go for y nurse, but you pull off the y doctor act quite well,” Yunho added as if Changmin was dressed up like that because it was a part of a kink and not his uniform. Even so, Changmin was certain he was blushing a little. He had a horrible habit of blushing too easily.

“Yunho, it’s my uniform not one of your ual fantasies,” he told Yunho curtly and got up from his seat so he could send Yunho an annoyed look. They were almost the same height; Changmin was only a little taller. That made making eye contact with the older man quite an easy task.

“Meh, looks the same to me,” the older shrugged, and Changmin sent him an angry glare. Sadly, it didn’t have the effect Changmin had hoped for, because Yunho was still smiling.

“Aside from the fact that you were looking a bit more … inviting,” Yunho continued with his teasing, and Changmin restrained himself from rolling his eyes. He hoped Yunho was joking and that Yunho didn’t have ual fantasies about him, but he dared not ask.

“Just take the gun and get out of here,” he told Yunho irritated and pushed the gun out of his own hands and into Yunho’s. The older took the gun without problems. He shouldn’t have a problem with it. He was a weapon dealer after all. Yunho took the gun, but he made no motion that indicated that he was going to leave. Instead, he leaned against the white painted wall and studied Changmin. The brunet knew the black-haired male had something to say, so he waited patiently for Yunho to speak.

Changmin didn’t have to wait long before Yunho said, “So, you got attacked in the hospital?”

“Yeah, he just approached me right here,” Changmin confirmed to Yunho. The older seemed a bit surprised, but the expression was gone as quickly as it had appeared.

“Where is he now?” Yunho continued with his questioning. Changmin so no reason to not answer Yunho. So, he answered him truthfully.

“I don’t know, I let him go, but I threatened to kill him if I saw him again.” The answer seemed to satisfy Yunho, as Changmin could see a small trace of a smirk around the older man’s lips.

“What did he want?” Yunho continued. Still not clear to leave until he had every detail down that he deemed necessary. Changmin didn’t mind the questioning at all, he’d known Yunho for almost seven years, and he had long since gotten accustomed to Yunho’s way of doing things.

“To see you.”

“Me?”

“Yeah, he told me to tell him where you were,” Changmin explained in further detail. In all honesty, Changmin hadn’t taken the time to get a good look at him or find out his true motives. Like exactly what he wanted with Yunho, but he knew it could be nothing good. Changmin had been a part of this world long enough to recognize the good and bad signs. The man had been bad news all from the start, and Changmin had learnt that the shoot first ask questions later tactic was the one that insured survival. Changmin knew the man was bad news, so he’d defended himself. He doubted Yunho would hold that against him.

“And what did you say?” Changmin hated the way Yunho needed to check Changmin’s answer. Of course, he understood that it was a safety precaution, but he’d known Yunho since he was eighteen years old, Yunho should know what Changmin would answer. And if he didn’t, he should’ve been able to resonate himself to right the answer. Changmin wasn’t dumb, and he was loyal. Of course, he wouldn’t reveal Yunho’s position, even if the man was able to find it on his own. But at least, the man wasn’t going to get it out of Changmin.

“What do you think?” he asked his voice sounded irritated in his own ears, but Changmin thought it was justified. “I told him to shove it,” he told Yunho as if it hadn’t been clear already.

“Good.”

“I don’t like being approached by those kinds of people in the hospital. Especially when they’re trying to get to you. I mean, I can handle it but-…” Changmin began, but he interrupted himself. He didn’t like the fact that mobsters and criminals were able to find him here. What was worse was if they were there for Yunho and not himself. Because that meant Changmin was being put at risk for someone else. If people were looking for Kyuhyun it was sort of fair, because Changmin was working for him. Kyuhyun was paying him, but Yunho wasn’t. He was just a business associate, who also was his kind-of-ex. He was risking losing his alias, losing his status as a doctor and going to jail for something that wasn’t even about him. Not to mention that you never knew what would happen next time. Next time they could actually go in to the reception. They could hurt people, and kill innocent people all because of Changmin. Changmin would rather avoid it if he could.

“No, I get it, you never know what can happen next time. Things could escalate,” Yunho answered. Changmin was grateful that they’d spent so many years together that Yunho could understand him even when Changmin barely made sense. Just like Changmin could read Yunho as easily as the children’s books they had in the children's department here in the hospital. Although that could be a blessing in disguise sometimes. “It won’t happen again. I can assure you of that,” Yunho told him, and Changmin rolled his eyes. Yunho couldn’t guarantee things like that. It wasn’t like he controlled the entire Chicago mob world. He couldn’t just decide what criminals would and wouldn’t do. Even if Yunho did have some influence, it wasn’t enough to assure that Changmin would remain completely safe. Changmin wasn’t sure anyone had that sort of power.

“You don’t even know who it was! You don’t even know what he looks like. How are you going to make sure of that?” he asked Yunho, the disbelief as visible in his voice at it was on his face. Yunho seemed to find it humorous because he didn’t take Changmin’s words serious at all. Instead, he flashed him a small smile.

“Changmin, if I required that much information all the time, I’d never make it far in this sort of business,” he told Changmin. Not really answering his question, but Changmin could tell he wouldn’t get a proper answer even if he pressed the matter. “He was Italian, wasn’t he?” Yunho inquired further. He raised an eyebrow at Changmin, and his words together with the action stunned Changmin into silence for a few seconds. The man that had attacked him had been Italian, but how would Yunho know that?

“How did you-…” he began to question, but Yunho interrupted him.

“Because I’m me,” Yunho replied as if that was an answer to the question he didn’t even get to finish. Yunho's eyes flickered from Changmin’s face to the room they were in and then the gun that Changmin had given to him. “Don’t you have doctor work to do?” He smirked at Changmin as the brunet felt his eyes widen. He’d almost forgotten about that.

“Right,” Changmin told him. He really did have to get back, and he could spend any more time lingering here. Changmin walked up a few steps before he turned to Yunho. “Uhm bye and you know … thanks,” Yunho only flashed him a smile. It felt like an episode straight out of their New York time. Changmin being he’s geeky awkward self, and Yunho being the cool, older weapon dealer. Would Changmin ever grow out of his awkward phase? It seemed like he’d be forever stuck as the awkward eighteen-year-old he’d been when he’d met Yunho for the first time.

“I’ll call you,” Yunho promised him, and with that, they parted ways. For now.

When Changmin approached the observatory room, which he’d been on his way to over twenty minutes ago he got a few looks from the people in the room. No one said anything, and the surgeons who were oblivious to his late arrival continued with their operation. Hailey, a doctor in training just like him, who’d started here exactly the same year as Changmin gave him an odd look. When they’d stood there for a while, taking notes, she sent him another look and Changmin knew she wanted his attention. He knew he had no other choice but to grant her it and sent her a look.

“Where were you?” she whispered to him.

“Burn unit,” Changmin lied. Hailey shrugged and nodded in acceptance. Over their almost three years they both knew how much the burn unit was understaffed, and always needed help. On some days it was so bad that if they could get their hands on any of the doctors in training, they would drag them to their unit not caring for the trainees’ protests. No one else questioned his whereabouts and Changmin felt like a burden lifted off his shoulders. He was safe for now it seemed. This situation would pass as just a single episode, as long as no one else showed up at the hospital. Changmin finished his shift a few hours later and when to the parking lot where he’d parked his car. A black Audi. Technically, Changmin shouldn’t be able to afford a car, still being a sort of student. However, that wasn’t the only thing the man did for a living. He was able to excuse the car as a gift from his parents. People believed him. Why shouldn’t they? Changmin had no reason to lie. Besides, he'd attended Columbia. Only that said something about his parents’ finances. Or at least, that’s what people thought. Changmin let them believe that because it was much better than the alternative.

He drove away from the hospital and exhaled loudly as he was driving away from his workplace. The event from today was still unnerving and getting away from the hospital seemed to ease to worries Changmin didn’t realise he had had. Music played idly in the background, but Changmin barely paid it any attention – his mind way past comprehending lyrics or even noticing the varieties of notes changing. He was abruptly snapped out of his trance when he could hear his music stop to be interrupted by an incoming phone call, Changmin didn’t check the caller ID keeping his eyes on the road. It was probably Kyuhyun. Kyuhyun always called him after he was done with work if he needed something from him. Changmin hated talking on the phone, he preferred texting. Phone calls felt so demanding because you expected them to be free to speak with you right there and then. While texts felt more polite, people could reply in their own time. One of Kyuhyun’s many bad habits was preferring calls to texts.

“Hey,” Changmin said to the phone that was on speaker.

“Hey Changminnie,” and Changmin knew that the voice and the lame nickname – that he had on several occasions forbid the caller to call him, and yet the older never listened – could be no one else but Jung Yunho. Still, his eyes checked the caller ID the confirm it was Yunho. Even it was undoubtedly his voice. The phone already confirmed what he knew to be true.

“Yunho?” he still found himself asking, even if he knew it was the older. It was more out of surprise than the need to confirm that the older was calling him. Everything proved that it was in fact Yunho who was calling him.

“You sound surprised to hear from me,” Yunho noted. Not outright confirming it was him, but Changmin didn’t need him to do so either. “I told you I’d call,” he continued. Changmin could recollect Yunho had promised that right before they parted ways hours earlier. However, at that time Changmin hadn’t paid them much attention. Hadn’t expected Yunho to call so early. It wasn’t like they had the habit of speaking on a daily basis. If not more, Changmin would’ve expected at least a few days until Yunho called. What could Yunho possibly need to say to him which required only a few hours later? Changmin had certainly not expected a call so soon, and he told the older man as much.

“Yeah, I just didn’t expect it so soon.”

“Why?” Yunho asked in his useful cheery tone, and Changmin could practically imagine how Yunho looked right now. His long, black hair slicked back slightly. Cheekbones were still visible even if he was smiling, the smile had always been sort of small but always very gentle. Making him look gentle even if Changmin knew how dangerous he could be.

“No particular reason,” Changmin replied dryly. Not bothering to fall into a discussion of what their usual pattern was like. It would only lead down a conversation path Changmin was rather disinterested in taking. “Why are you calling?” He questioned the other, eyes locked on the road.

“Because you owe me, and I want to cash in on the favour,” he explained to him in an easy voice. Changmin couldn’t help but make a face and was happy that Yunho couldn’t see him right now.

“I don’t owe you,” Changmin denied even though he knew that was false. However, he disliked the word of choice. It made Changmin feel like he was heavily indebted to Yunho when it was really just about a simple favour. Yunho had helped Changmin, and now he expected Changmin’s help in return. It wasn’t all that hard to figure out, after all, that was how the underworld was run. Someone’s loyalty was much more worth than their money or values.

“Oh, but you do Minnie,” Yunho began. His voice was light, indicating that he wasn’t angry about Changmin’s denial. Changmin had discussed nicknames with him before, several times both in Chicago and in New York, but it didn’t seem to stick. However, Changmin didn’t feel like interrupting Yunho just to tell him he didn’t like nicknames. Yunho continued, “in fact, one could argue it’s your fault the Italians are after me in the first place.” That was stretching it too far, Changmin wasn’t responsible for the Italians. He really wasn’t. He had maybe been there and been the one to present the offer to Yunho. Made him sign the contract, and promised the amount of money, but that didn’t mean that Changmin was responsible for the deal. He’d done it on behalf of Kyuhyun and Leeteuk. If it was anyone’s fault, it was Leeteuk’s. Or the Italians for messing with Leeteuk’s gang in the first place. Changmin was just a mere messenger.

“I will not be blamed for a business transaction you willingly agreed to,” Changmin spat back. His annoyance was more visible in his voice than what he had intended the older to hear. Even so, Changmin didn’t apologize. Resonated himself that he didn’t owe Yunho an apology. Yunho might’ve agreed to the deal, but they both knew that Yunho really had no other choice. Unless he wanted Leeteuk after him as well. However, Changmin let that go unmentioned.

Only that Yunho didn’t. Changmin would’ve mentioned it had he been in Yunho’s position, he didn’t hold it against him. “I didn’t have much choice.”

Changmin gritted his teeth in aggravation, and he could hear himself huff in annoyance. His brown eyes didn’t leave the road, but he was well aware of the fact that his grip around the steering wheel hardened. Making his knuckles almost white in colour. “That might be true, but if so, that’s entirely on Leeteuk and Kyuhyun!” Changmin informed Yunho. He wouldn’t let the older blame him for being a messenger. He wasn’t responsible for Leeteuk’s decisions.

“Alright, I’m being unfair,” Yunho agreed, and Changmin was almost sure Yunho wore an easy smile right now. He hated how he could perfectly picture the other man even though he wasn’t within sight. How he just knew how Yunho would look and act even after all these years. Would Changmin ever get really over Yunho? “But still,” the older continued. “You owe me. For today,” he clarified as if that wasn’t obvious for the both of them. Changmin wanted to close his eyes and would’ve done so too hadn’t he’d been driving. Instead, he took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. He let the seconds tick by for a while, and all he could hear was Yunho’s breathing, slightly altered due to the static of the phone.

“What do you want Yunho?” Changmin asked calmly, but he couldn’t help from biting down on his bottom lip. For some reason, he expected the worst. Yunho was so easy to understand, and yet so hard to predict. Changmin had learnt a long time ago, that it was better to just expect the worst. He hit a red light, and he stopped his car while waiting for the light to turn green.

“I want you to have dinner with me,” Yunho answered him. Changmin was pretty certain that hadn’t been standing still he would’ve crashed. For a few seconds the brunet wasn’t able to answer, and just let his mouth hang open. His senses slowly returned to him, just as the light turned green and Changmin continued to drive.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” he told Yunho in a shaky voice. His voice was uncertain, but at the same time, he knew it was best if they didn’t. Nothing good would come out of a dinner between them. He knew there was a lot unresolved between them. Changmin wasn’t stupid, but he also knew the dangers of looking into it. It was better to leave it be and leave the tension between them. It was safer. Changmin didn’t care if it was cowardly, it was the better option in the long run. Even if there was a part of him that wanted to give into Yunho’s wishes. That part was of course pushed into the depth of his until he couldn’t hear it anymore.

“Why? It’s just dinner,” Yunho said innocently, and Changmin rolled his eyes. Even knowing so was futile, Yunho couldn’t see him through the screen. The older couldn’t act dumb with him, he knew perfectly well why Changmin thought it was a bad idea. Changmin was pretty sure he’d even said so more than once on several occasions too. After all, it was almost never a good idea for exes to reunite. The idea could be romantic and tempting, but when you spent time together you were usually reminded of why you broke up in the first place.

“You know why,” Changmin replied. His voice sounded dejected even to himself, but he didn’t let himself linger on that for too long. Hoping Yunho would change his favour into something else. Of course, he shouldn’t have anticipated that. He knew how stubborn Yunho could be. Once the older man had set his mind on something he was hellbent on getting it. Yunho wouldn’t budge.

“You’re making this a bigger problem than it is, it’ll just be dinner between two friends,” he easily explained to Changmin. The way he proposed it he made it sound like something innocent and peaceful. Changmin knew it wasn’t. He could think of several scenarios on the spot on how things could go wrong. They were both two wanted, dangerous people with a difficult history. It was just an accident waiting to happen. Even so, Changmin couldn’t help but agree. Knowing he would get no way with Yunho, it was easier to just agree now than argue with him and waste time.

“Fine. As long as it’s just dinner,” Changmin was quick to emphasise. Hoping Yunho understood that his message was clear. He might agree to dinner, but that didn’t mean Changmin was interested in taking things further. He got the easy end of the bargain, Changmin knew this. A paid dinner in exchange for Yunho getting him out of deep was almost too good to pass up. Even so, Changmin couldn’t allow things to escalate further than just a nice dinner. He didn’t want a bad sequel of New York.

“It will be, I don’t see why you’re so worried,” Yunho assured him. Changmin had a hard time taking his word, but he didn’t vocalize this. If Changmin was forced to choose, he would say he trust Yunho with his life. Vocalizing his distrust of Yunho’s words would be a huge insult, and Changmin knew better than to speak his mind. “It’s as if you want me to kiss you,” Yunho continued to , and Changmin had to force himself not to screech at that comment. Even so, he could feel his face heat up and was once again immensely grateful that Yunho couldn’t see him.

“Goodbye Yunho!” He quickly said as he hung up, but he could still hear the older man’s laughter before he managed to hang up. The music returned seconds later, and Changmin huffed to no audience. He sat in silence and enjoyed the background noise but not for long until his music stopped. Indicating someone was calling. Changmin couldn’t stop himself from rolling his eyes and sighing. What could Yunho possibly want now? The brunet couldn’t possibly imagine he had something of importance to say. Regardless of that, he accepted the call.

“Stop calling when you have nothing important to say, I already agreed to have dinner with you!” he quickly told Yunho, eyes not leaving the road as he spoke. He wasn’t going to die just because Yunho decided to be an annoying and call him up when their conversation had already ended.

“Well, that’s one way to greet your best friend,” someone spoke through the phone speaker. Someone that was definitely not Yunho. Changmin could feel all colour drain from his face, and even though he recognized the voice his eyes couldn’t help but flicker to the phone screen.

“ Kyuhyun!” he cursed, and he was pretty sure that his already large brown eyes looked ridiculous now.

“Did you expect someone else?” Kyuhyun asked in a teasing tone, and Changmin wanted to curse him. Even if it was his own fault. He should’ve checked the caller ID. However, Changmin refused to recognize that the blame was his alone. “Forget that you clearly did,” Kyuhyun continued with his taunt. Obviously, finding this extremely funny. Changmin wished Kyuhyun was here just so he could hit him.

“What do you want?” he asked the other male in an exaggerated irritated voice.

“I need you to do something for me,” Kyuhyun began. His voice was calm, and Changmin felt himself cringe even if Kyuhyun hadn’t said anything at all. A bad feeling was settling in his stomach. Something told him he wasn’t going to like this.

“You always do,” he fake-complained to the other. Kyuhyun was sure to pick up on that. After all, they’d been best friends since they’d shared a dorm together in college. Since then, they’d been inseparable.

“Changmin I’m your boss,” Kyuhyun dead-panned, and Changmin couldn’t help but snort. However, he didn’t deny it. Kyuhyun was his boss, but he didn’t really seem like his boss. Sure, he was the one who gave him tasks, and paid him – but Kyuhyun didn’t have much authority in Changmin’s eyes. He had seen Kyuhyun being authoritative, but he rarely felt that Kyuhyun was above him in any way. It was hard to think of his college dormmate as his boss. Changmin knew him far too well for that.

“Whatever. Just tell me what you want me to do,” he told Kyuhyun. Not particularly interested in starting an argument about whether Kyuhyun could call himself Changmin’s boss or not. They’d had it before. Changmin couldn’t remember what the conclusion had been, but he could remember getting a headache from the discussion.

“There’s this guy, I want you to take care of,” Kyuhyun began, but before he could continue Changmin had interrupted. He breathed angrily out of his nose and couldn’t help but grip the steering wheel harder. The mere suggestion made Changmin clench his jaw in aggravation.

“What?” he asked out in disbelief, “Kyuhyun what the , I got people who have people who can do that for you. Stop giving me dirty work,” he called Kyuhyun out. They both knew that ‘taking care of someone’ was dirty work. It was the kind of you put the new guys up to. It was way below Changmin, and just the suggestion that Changmin should do that was an insult. Especially when Kyuhyun had several men that could do the task.

“He’s been going around the Chicago underworld and flaunting my name. He’s saying he’s a part of my gang. You know, impostors like that get taken care of. I thought people would figure out he’s a fake and take care of it themselves. However, people’s too scared of me to do it. Even if they know he’s a fraud, they don’t dare take the chance of angering me.” Kyuhyun chuckled a morbid laughter, and Changmin didn’t comment on Kyuhyun’s sadistic god complex. “So, I need you to do it for me.” Changmin really wished Kyuhyun was here just so Changmin could hit him and tell him a piece of his mind. Instead, he was left with screaming at the telephone which wasn’t nearly as satisfying. Arguing with Yunho seemed like a zen meditation technique compared to this.

“Why me? I got tons of to do for you. Can’t you just send one of the dudes? Hell, I’ll send someone if you want me to,” Changmin tried again to reason with Kyuhyun. If it was just an imposter it should be easy enough. Imposters were rarely strong, which was why they lived off someone else’s name because they didn’t have the strength to make it themselves. Nor the brains.

“Changmin, it has to be you. I don’t trust someone else to do it for me. It has to be clean and scary; no one can do it like you,” Kyuhyun tried to flatter him. As if Changmin couldn’t see right through it at once. He told Kyuhyun as much.

“You’re full of , bad flatter will get you nowhere.”

“Changmin, I’m speaking the truth. You’re the best-…” Kyuhyun tried again, but Changmin interrupted him.

“Remember when I made you read The Prince by Machiavelli in college?” Changmin asked not really caring for Kyuhyun’s reply.

“Yeah,” Kyuhyun answered quickly, but Changmin continued without missing a beat.

“Remember the part when they said soldiers don’t have any trust in their leader if he has no military experience, and that they wouldn’t be loyal to him. And you know what, just forget it,” Changmin blabbered. He knew that no matter which philosopher he quoted or what way he tried to reason with Kyuhyun that he’d get nowhere. Kyuhyun was stubborn, and it was better to just give in than to argue with Kyuhyun. Arguing with Kyuhyun rarely got Changmin anywhere.

“So, you’ll do it?” Kyuhyun asked. His voice was quite monotonous, he wasn’t gleeful or excited that Changmin had accepted. He had anticipated that, after all. He was just checking if Changmin was on board or if he needed to convince Changmin more.

“I ing hate you so much, and I’ll make you pay me so much that you will remember next time that it’s easier and cheaper to hire someone else, because seriously? This dirty work belongs in New York,” Changmin continued to curse Kyuhyun out, but the man on the other line didn’t seem to care.

“Thanks, Min.” Kyuhyun thanked him, but Changmin was unsure if Kyuhyun was actually grateful, or if he just said it because he knew it would aggravate Changmin further if he didn’t thank him.

“ yourself,” Changmin replied back in a snarky tone.

“I have someone to do it for me you know,” Kyuhyun told him with ease. By his tone, it was easy to tell that he was quote with him pleased with himself. Changmin couldn’t tell whether it was because of his comeback or if it was because he had said partner. Changmin guessed it was the latter though.

“You’re disgusting,” he told Kyuhyun and made his face into a disgusted grimace even if the brunet couldn’t see him.

“Says you, Romeo? So, who’s the dinner date?” Kyuhyun quickly fired back. Changmin wasn’t particularly interested in telling Kyuhyun he was going to have dinner with Yunho. Even if Kyuhyun hadn’t annoyed him, he probably wouldn’t have told him.

“Your mom,” Changmin replied back. He felt like he was instantly back to middle school, but Changmin ignored how childish it was. Especially when he could hear Kyuhyun’s aggravated sigh on the other end, which was quite satisfactory. Kyuhyun probably realised that there was no way Changmin was going to give him a proper response. Which was correct, Changmin wasn’t planning on telling him Kyuhyun now nor when the dinner was over and done with.

“Wow, real mature,” Kyuhyun replied, and Changmin was quite pleased when he could hear the annoyance in Kyuhyun’s voice. Most people didn’t know how to get under Kyuhyun’s skin, but Changmin had found that he had quite the talent for it after all their shared years.

“Your mom’s real mature,” Changmin replied in a joking tone, and then he hung up on Kyuhyun. Recognizing that the conversation was over. He was almost back at his apartment, either way, so he would’ve ended it soon either way. Kyuhyun didn’t get to say goodbye, and Changmin didn’t say goodbye either. However, it had been a long time since Changmin had ended Kyuhyun’s phone calls in a polite way. If there had ever in a time like that.