With just forty minutes until Christmas, the party had come to the full swing. Sung Gyu and Eunji were back inside the party hall. Eunji sitting in the lawyers’ table as Sung Gyu sat in the bar, watching her from the distance. Sung Jong approached him and placed a glass of whiskey in front of him.

“They’re going to pick the batch king and queen in a while”

“What the hell is a batch kind and queen?” 

“The best man of the batch and the best woman of the batch” Sung Jong raised his brows as he looked down at him. “There was a vote, and the word is, a lot of people voted for you”

“For me?” He spluttered looking at the other. “But why?”

“Because they think you’re handsome. Which is ridiculous. I’m guessing everyone has gone collectively blind”

“That would be if they voted for you”

Sung Jong rolled his eyes. “What happened to your psychopath?”

“Still on the lose” Sung Gyu sighed. “I’m on a lookout” He turned to the other. “Did he come by here by any chance?

“Didn’t see him” Sung Jong narrowed his eyes. “What did you do?”

Sung Gyu shrugged. “I shot him”

“Hyung!”

“It’s a mild injury, not to worry” Sung gyu muttered and had a sip of his drink. “My fear is he would come in and make a ruckas any moment now” 

Sung Jong stared at him quietly for a moment and let out a small, dark laughter. “You’re really a soldier now, aren’t you?”

Sung Gyu didn’t want to be conceited about it, but hearing that a lot from the people around him was a serious ego booster. 

“When is this batch king and queen thing going to start?” Sung Gyu asked the other, changing the conversation. Sung Gyu figured, if the selection of king and queen was to happen, it was a kind of event the main organizer would be present for. If its happening, it also meant Jaehyun was already there backstage.

“They wrapped up the voting a while ago, while you were away” Sung Jong placed a couple of jugs of beer which one of the waiters carried away. “Everyone else voted for you. I voted for myself”

“Good for you” Sung Gyu sighed. But the fact that people voted him was starting to bother him now. For one, he may be handsome but definitely not the most handsome person in the hall tonight. And he was hardly interacting with anyone. He wasn’t even inside the hall half the time to begin with.

“Hey, Sung Jong, how did my name come up, anyway?”

Sung Jong shrugged. “I don’t know. Think one of the ladies from the front table? They were the ones handling the voting business”

Sung gyu recalled to his strange interaction with the front table woman, the way she spoke to him, her flirtatious tone. He didn’t think much of it at that time, but now it’s all beginning to make sense. It was all a part of Jaehyun’s plan.

He had a surprise for everyone, Eunji had told him. And now Sung Gyu couldn’t help thinking, maybe, the plan wasn’t to kill everyone in the hall or turn them into lab rats after all. Maybe the plan was to turn him into a lab rat infront of everyone. Execute him in front of the love of his life.

Sung Gyu reached for his glass and downed it in one go because it was indeed a problem that he wanted to have a drink to deal with. Then he tapped his earpiece, directing a call to his newest team mate.

“Eunji-ah, there’s a change of plan”

“I thought there might be” Eunji’s quiet voice returned in his ear. Sung Gyu narrowed his eyes.

“What does that mean?”

“People around the table say you’d be the batch king and I’d be the batch queen”

Sung Gyu glanced at Eunji’s direction across the hall. He couldn’t really see her beyond dozens of dancing bodies in the middle. But he could catch the concern in her voice. The worry was mutual. She’d caught Jaehyun’s end of the plan.

Of course, if it was a contagion, Jaehyun wouldn’t need to inject the chemical to everyone. Injecting it to just the two of them would be more than enough.

“I think its a part of his plan” Sung Gyu told her. “So listen, this is what we’ve got to do…”

After Sung Gyu had quickly and briefly recounted to Eunji what needed to change in their initial plan, Sung Gyu turned back to Sung Jong, who was busy pouring out a bunch of beer bombs.

“Hey, Sung Jong”

“What do you want?” Sung Jong called back as he concentratedly poured a bottle of soju over the neatly placed short glasses.

“How do you like to be a part of the spy mission?”

“Do you pay?”

“Handsomely” Sung Gyu folded his arms on his chest. “If you survive”

Sung Jong laughed and tapped at one of the shot glasses which was placed on the top on a row. In perfect symphony, they all fell into their respective glasses of beer underneath.

“Assa! Count me in”

Selecting the Batch king and queen was the stupidest he had ever seen. They have set it out for exactly 12.00 am, like some celebratory, coming of christmas event; Everyone in the hall was being given christmas party hats and golden balloons. The excitement of the silly drunk batchmates was truly off putting, especially the way they started chanting his name, starting the law graduates table, as if he was some sort of a celebrity. Meanwhile, in his ear, Howon was asking him after the updates of the mission. He was none too happy to hear that the best sniper of the Hawks unit was the killer’s primary target because of his poor ego and jealousy.

“Hyung, why is it always you who gets tangled up in weird things like this?” Howon was saying in his in-ear. “We have exactly five soldiers in the Hawks unit. Its a pretty big number of assassins when you come to think of it. And whenever we get to hear about some silly mess, that’s going to be you”

“You can’t blame him for being so popular, Howon-Ssi” Jieun chipped in from her side. Sung Gyu could hear Yoonho’s voice in the background, singing along to christmas songs.

“Noona, didn’t you put the kids to sleep yet? It’s almost midnight”

“They’re staying up to catch santa tonight”

Sung Gyu rolled his eyes. How could they catch santa anyways when their santa was stuck in a stupid christmas party, waiting to kill a man who had planned to kill him?

“I’ve put all their presents in the backroom. Its a cardboard box under the bottom shelf of the book rack”

“Aw, thanks, Gyu. I thought they were still in your car” 

“I remembered them this morning”

Jieun sighed. “But still, poor kids, They won’t catch their santa tonight”

Trust his sister to try anything within her capacity to manipulate him. Sung Gyu pinched his brows and closed his eyes. “Noona…”

“Are you two done yet?” Howon finally interjected their family feuds. “We’re in the middle of a mission, hello?”

“You don’t have to worry about it, Eunji and I have set up a plan” Sung Gyu informed the other two. “But keep back up ready just in case, Howon. You never know what Jaehyun has up his sleeves”

“They’re all set” Howon reassured him. “We also have an ambulance and an infection control team set up, just in case”

“Cool” Sung Gyu prepared to put down his phone. “I’ll update you on what happens”

“And Gyu?” Jieun called.

“Noona…”

“Be careful, come home safe. Noona loves you”

Sung Gyu felt his heart tightening. He glanced down at the stone bracelet on his wrist and smiled.

“I love you too…”

As soon as Sung Gyu set down the phone, the crowd erupted with cheers. Sung Gyu looked up at the stage where a video had started to play. Christmas love songs were also being played in the background, that everyone started to move their balloons along with, like it was a concert.

It was just then that a crane started to descend from the top of the stage. Standing in that was Jaehyun, in a different suit, a massive smile on his face.

“Hello, hello everyone!”

The drunk people in the crowd started welcoming him with loud cheers.

“It’s finally christmas, the most joyful day of the year!”

Its funny how its also the day to murder people with a dangerous contagion for Lee Jaehyun. He truly was a sick psychopath. Sung Gyu patted in his pocket, ensuring that his gun was intact and looked across the room at Jung Eunji. She gave him a brief nod. 

Jaehyun’s crane lowered to the ground and he hopped onto the stage in flourish. In one of his hands was a cue card, the other buried in his pocket.

“First things first, let me announce the names of the raffle draw…”

Sung Gyu took a few cautious steps through the crowd, golden balloons hitting his face in the process. He made it close enough to the welded fire exit. On the opposite side of the room, Jung Eunji had done the same. In the mean time, Jaehyun called out names of winners of the raffle draw. It helped that everyone waved their balloons in the air every time a name was called, because that gave Sung Gyu the perfect cover to move further towards the fire exit.

“And now…let’s move to the best part!” Lee Jaehyun’s voice boomed across the hallway, over the loud cheers of the congregation. Romantic christmas songs started to play, along with love hearts as lights, pink red and purple. Sung Gyu stared up at the stage, utterly confused by the display.

And the guy is supposedly jealous of me? Sung Gyu narrowed his eyes at the man on the stage. Maybe he was just gay and confused by how he was attracted to Sung Gyu, because there was no other explanation to how he had chosen to announce the Batch King and the queen tonight.

“Everyone, who do we think is the batch king of the year!?!”

A sole male voice exclaimed his name out, followed by everyone's loud screams and cheers. The cheers soon morphed into everyone yelling his name.

“Kim Sung Gyu! Kim Sung Gyu! Kim Sung Gyu!”

Not even at their college sports meet where he won a couple of gold medals did he see this level of affection. Sung Gyu slipped his hand into his jacket and wrapped his fingers around the gun.

“And who do you think is going to be the batch queen of the year!?!?”

In the same level of enthusiasm, everyone started to scream her name.

“Jung Eunji! Jung Eunji! Jung Eunji!”

“Are we set?” Sung Gyu whispered into his ear piece. On the other end, Jung Eunji muttered.

“Think we are”

“On the count of three…”

“And this years Batch king and queen will be…!!”

The crowd started screaming as celebratory music stated to play. Sung Gyu’s hand tightened around his gun, his eyes set on stage, when all of a sudden, 

A click. The entire crowd fell silent. The hall drowned in darkness. A second passed. Soon, a blindingly bright light fell on him.

Spotlights. ing spotlights. Jaehyun had arranged spotlights on them, the deranged psychopath.

“Eunji, now!”

It was the sound of Sung Gyu’s gun that echoed in the hall first. A loud explosion that created a moment of silence while everyone in the hall tried to make sense of what happened. Sung Gyu turned away from the now-destroyed fire exit door and raised his gun in the direction of the stage. The first swish of the bullet was a missed shot by Jaehyun’s reflexes that went completely unnoticed by the crowd. The second managed to hit him on his arm.

At the same time, another explosion on the other side of the hall as the right-end fire exit came undone. Eunji. Sung Gyu didn’t expect she would manage it. The crash course in gun use certainly came in handy. In that moment of distraction, Jaehyun took off in a run, a hand pressed onto his bleeding forearm. Sung Gyu climbed onto the stage and took off right after his primary target.

Inside the partyhall, it was a complete mayhem. More than one hundred men and women scrambled for the doors in every direction; at the same time, as planned, Lee SungJong broke open the fire alarm out in the corridor, turning on the water sprinklers and booming sirens echoing in the hall. It was one hell of celebration for the coming of Christmas; hundreds of drunk, screaming people streaming out to the minus-degree, snowy, winter night as the damp and destroyed Christmas decorations descended from high ceilings above. Loud sirens and the red and blue lights certainly added a nice touch to the festivities. In a distance, over the chime of Christmas bells from a nearby church, sirens of the fire brigade. If he wasn’t running, Sung Gyu would have patted himself on the back for executing the show of the decade, leaving a lot of things for Howon to answer to.

At the same time, their plan was going smoothly as anticipated. Jaehyun was right in his line of vision, pushing past the panicked event workers and ducking under the heavy equipment. Even if it was in the dark, Jaehyun was running from Sung Gyu like a fool. That was pretty telling of things about Jaehyun’s  planning and even the weapon in his hands. 

The most dangerous weapon, my foot. Sung Gyu thought as he finally caught up with the other in the corridor. Come and catch me if you want to kill me, Lee Jaehyun.

“Tired?” Sung Gyu asked, his brows raised as Jaehyun struggled to catch his breath. The bullet had bruised the man badly, and he was bleeding out down his arm to the floor. Yet, Jaehyun had enough energy to let out an evil laughter.

“Very much” He gasped, tilting his head. “Tired of you missing your ing aim, Angel. And here I thought you were the best sniper of the STF”

Sung Gyu smiled, raised the gun to his head, and without a second thought, he took an effortless shot which barely passed Jaehyun’s ear and hit the wall behind him. It left Jaehyun with a shock that lasted for a minute. The fear that appeared in his eyes gave Sung Gyu such an instant joy.

“I don’t kill infornt of an audience, Lee Jaehyun Ssi” he winked at the other and smiled. “Just as a principle”

“You could say you’re just a coward” Jaehyun hissed back at him. “There’s no such a  think as ing principles to killers”

“I could say the same about you” Sung Gyu took a step towards the other and slipped his gun back into the holster. “A coward, I mean. Not principled”

Jaehyun kept quiet, but his wrath was visible through the pain on his face. Sung Gyu gave him a smile. “Where is that chemical of yours, anyway?” With his brows furrowed, he added. “What did they tell me again? Oh, right, more lethal than RJ71…Now I’m beginning to seriously doubt that”

Jaehyun’s hand slipped into his pocket and he took out the vial gun. “If you’re so sure, why don’t you just come and check it yourself?”

“Very tempting”

“Why?” Jaehyun raised his brows. “Scared?”

“Of you? Or that?” Sung gyu nodded at the vial in his hand.

“For an assassin, you sure do too much talking”

“I’m just keeping the conversation going while you stall” Sung Gyu smiled. “Why don’t you tell me about it while we’re at this? What makes it special?” Sung Gyu buried his hands in his pochets and took a stride forward. “Is it contagious? Did you finally achieve your dream, Lee Jaehyun-Ssi?”

Jaehyun’s lips lifted in a sullen smirk. “I suggest you find out”

At the same moment, in near perfect timing, Jung Eunji appeared from the hallway and interjected the conversation. Everything after that happened so fast. Jaehyun reached out and grabbed her by the hair with his bad arm. With the other, he held the vial gun to her neck.

For a second, Sung Gyu did genuinely panic. What if he was wrong about the whole thing? What if it was indeed a dangerous chemical that Jaehyun was just too cowardly and scared to use? Jaehyun had never been a killer before, not at least to his knowledge. Of course he would be hesitant to administer it. But to someone that he had control over, Jaehyun would not hesitate to assert his dominance again.

“Come on now, Angel, don’t be a coward” Jaehyun hissed into Eunji’s hair. “Either you come and get it, or she dies”

Taking a cautious step forward, Sunggyu reached into his jacket for his gun.

“Aha! Not the gun! Bare armed now, Angel. Keep it fair”

Sung Gyu raised his hands up in the air.

“Let her go” He hissed under his breath. “Take your ing hands off her”

“Aw, too bad…” Jaehyun replied with a burst of lowly laughter. “I’ve had my hands all over her for months, lover boy”

Sung Gyu looked down at Eunji, at the way her lips trembled, how her hands kept fighting, clawing at the other. She was confident when they made this plan, but now, as the vial gun nearly touched her skin, there was genuine fear in her eyes. Every cell and bone in his body was urging him to run to her, destroy that man, and pull her into his arms. But her shaky eyes were reassuring to him. It’s okay, stick to the plan.

“Come on, Angel, closer now…”

Sung Gyu took one more step in their direction, and then another. At the same time, Eunji met his gaze and urgently nodded. Now.

Everything that happened next, happened in a matter of seconds. The best sniper in Sung Gyu was still not lost on him. In record time, he pulled his gun out of the holster, aimed at Jaehyun’s face, then raised it just an angle to shoot right through his hair, barely missing his head. At the same time, Jung Eunji who used to take Tae Kwondo lessons back in college, managed to kick Jaehyun on his shin, punch his injured arm hard enough that he let her go and dropped the vial gun at the same time. But Sung Gyu’s reflexes were good enough to catch it before it fell. Soon, in a matter of minutes, the two of them took off in a run.