7. Nocere et Cruentis

Nocere et Cruentis: "Hurt and Bleeding"



"Should I just stop and give up now?"


You're powerless when you're nocere et cruentis.


"Or should I fight for just one more time before I collapse?"



= = = Soundtrack: SHINee - Lucifer = = =

 

Everything was happening too fast.

"Taemin-sshi, run!" I shouted to my colleague as I tugged on his wrist even more to make him catch up with my pace. We turned sharply to the left as we were being chased in different hallways of the hotel. We were climbing stairs, running along different floors, and navigating through the confusing halls and opened conference rooms with a group of 5 men hot on our heels.

"Here." I heard Taemin-sshi say as we turned to the right again, struggling to outrun the group. Luckily, the men had just been running after us, and they weren't doing anything else besides chasing us.

I guess they can't use their guns while running.

But as sudden as the thought went through my brain, a bullet went past the side of my head, hitting the wall to my right side.

Aish.

I thought too soon.

Taemin-sshi was still near me, though not exactly beside me as he couldn't run as fast as I can, except that now, I opted to release his wrist and let him run without my help. It will take its toll on me later on if I don't stop it anyways.

My mind shifted into a hyperly agitated mode as the danger of the situation hit me.

If I don't dodge the bullets from the men, I would never be able to exit this building alive.

I quickly took my gun from my purse and looked back at our pursuers, aiming at them while running. I had managed to shoot one in the leg, which made him stop running, while the others I hit in the arms, slightly making them unable to use their guns. The aiming and proper shooting made me decrease my pace a bit, which placed me on equal footing with Taemin-sshi.

Satisfied with the somehow sharp shooting I had managed, I turned back again and once again quickened my steps while once again placing the gun inside my purse. After all of the running, we found ourselves at the first floor, running towards the parking lot, where a motorbike was.

I remembered Jaejoong-sshi's words regarding that one.

"I will send some men of mine to help you prepare for this event when you get there. They will be leaving a motorbike in the ground floor parking of Hotel Thornefille with the key in the ignition an hour before your mission starts. When the need arises for you to have a quick escape, run to the E-block of the parking lot and use it."

I looked at Taemin-sshi as Jaejoong-sshi explained his plan then, and the younger male just listened with a straight face before nodding a few times briefly at the end of his hyung's statement. At that, I took the plan in and analyzed the possibilities.

We might be needing that escape method, I thought back then, not really realizing that I was right all along with the idea.

= = =

"Taemin-sshi, you maneuver the vehicle!" I shouted as both my partner and I mounted the motorbike, with Taemin-sshi driving and me wrapping my arms around his waist for my support.

We were already a distance away from the group approaching us when suddenly a sharp pain went through my right side, and I involuntarily let my hold on Taemin-sshi loose, causing me to fall from the motorbike with me releasing a loud cry of pain in the process.

"Shirin-sshi!" I heard Taemin-sshi exclaim as he tried to make the bike halt. But knowing that if he comes back for me now, he won't be able to escape again, and I'd rather that one comes back to report about the situation than no one comes back to say anything, I shouted with all my might to prevent Taemin-sshi from going back to where I was.

"DON'T! Just get back to my Oppas and tell them about this! I can manage!"

I tried to stand up, and I admit my strength was beginning to fail me because of the blood and the bullet, and looked at Taemin-sshi pleadingly. Fortunately, he understood me. So, he hesitantly sped away.

From a distance, I could see the group of men now slowing their running pace to a walk, knowing that I could not do much any longer.

What shocked me, though, was that at the frontline of men, there was Jongin-sshi, unharmed and smirking as he held onto a gun while going to my direction.

I managed to get to my feet a few moments before Jongin-sshi finally stood in front of me.

"So, we meet for the third time, beautiful lady." He said, but I knew better. With shaking hands and bleeding side, I took my gun and pointed it to his chest.

"Are you sure you could do that in your state, Miss? You look like you would collapse any second now." He teasingly remarked as he himself took a step closer to me, let the end of my gun touch his clothing, and made me stare into his eyes.

That's when I felt all of my strength leave me as I saw through his eyes a smaller yet a more powerful version of a black hole. It had a quality that can make you lose yourself in its depths. I hadn't really stared into it back when he scared me on my walk home, nor when I had a chance to meet him in the past war, and somehow I felt a sense of gratefulness that I had done so. If I had looked through it back then, I wouldn't have had courage to actually point a gun to his face.

Was this his weapon in charming the ladies in the ballroom earlier?

It felt like an endless moment, trying to break away from the silent spell his eyes had cast on me. But ultimately, I knew that it wouldn't last for long as another shot of pain ran through my veins due to the pressure exerted by Jongin-sshi's hand on my injured waist, and everything faded to black.

The last thing my mind registered before I fully lost consciousness was the question a man from the group asked Jongin-sshi.

"So, what are you planning to do with her now, Kai-yah?"

= = =

The next moment that my eyes had seen with clear vision, I learned that I was in a small room, and that I was laid on top of a bed with the clotting blood from the right side of my waist staining its white sheets. The wound was bandaged, surprisingly. However, it did nothing to stop the bleeding. The bandage was so soaked the the blood still found its way to the clean sheets, partially painting it red.

I could only grunt in discomfort as I felt my whole body go under the sensation of being numb, with emphasis to the intense feeling of pins and needles on my right shoulder and side. I was still dressed in the clothes I was wearing when they found me, the group of men I mean. I tried sitting up, which I was surprisingly able to do because no bond was holding me. No rope was around my wrist, nor were there shackles around my ankles.

When I finally got into a slightly comfortable position, I looked at my surroundings. Besides the bed with its white sheets getting stained by my blood, nothing else was present in the room. There was no drawer, no cabinet whatsoever. It was stripped of everything else except the bed, door, and a window which [I'm pretty sure about this] cannot be opened even by using force. I didn't see any window locks or materials that can open it.

I reached upwards and tried to touch my numb shoulder, and flinched at the pain that shot through my system from my right side. To think that my hand hasn't even made contact with the clothes I'm wearing and I'm already close to writhing due to the pain... this is bad.

I had only managed a sigh at my helplessness, which was cut short by the room door opening. With the swing of the wood, it revealed Jongin-sshi, now in a very casual type of clothing. It struck me that his image changes along with the type of outfit he has. Back when I first saw him, he radiated a mischievous aura. When we met in the war, he projected a fearsome bad boy image. When I saw him at Kyuhyun-sshi's party, he looked more of a mature and sophisticated person. And now, he appears more like a dangerous young man, noting that this is of a mature image than the bad boy aura he carried back when I was rescued by Changjo-yah.

"I see that you're finally awake." His low and husky voice echoed inside the room as he went inside and closed the door. He took a few cautious steps towards my direction, and noticing that I don't have the energy to even scowl at him, he boldly sat on the edge of the bed, placing himself beside me.

"It's none of your business." I muttered weakly as I tried to glare at him, but my lack of energy and blood made it difficult for me. I could only look at him, but I am unable to do anything else.

"Your sheets have been stained with blood, honey. Come here so that it will be easier for me to change the beddings." He said in a surprisingly natural tone, like there was nothing wrong with what's happening. It was as if he was actually taking care of me.

I didn't move. I didn't even look at him as he said this, even when he stood up again and stayed near the bed's edge. I only felt slowly through the fabric of my dress, reaching out to hold the switchknife Taemin-sshi gave me inside the secret pocket of my clothes.

I was facing a life-or-death crisis. If I choose to fight him in this state, I surely wouldn't last for more than ten seconds. If I don't fight back him, however, I might be taken advantage of. And I swore that I wouldn't let myself experience that.

I gripped at the still closed switchknife inside my pocket and looked straight into Jongin-sshi's eyes, building my resolve to not give in to his magnetic gaze again.

Should I... or should I not?

= = = = = = = = 

PLEASE DON'T SKIP THIS PART.

First off, I'd like to thank geec_ll for subscribing to my story. =]

Next, I'd be updating perhaps two days from today. If not, I'll be sure that I will update earlier so that you guys won't miss your dose of "GangWars". =]

And... I've decided to do double links on the soundtracks in the story. So that if the youtube video embedded isn't working, you can just click the "Soundtrack" part and just open the video in another window or tab.

Also, I need you guys to look at the story feed pretty often so that you'll know whatever else I need you guys to know. Thanks. <3

So, how do you find the story so far? What do you think of Jongin-sshi in this chapter? Tell it to me in the comment box. I'd be more than happy to talk to you through it. =]

There. =] <3

Important Note:

[credits for taemin pictures are given to fy!leetaemin. Taken from tumblr and google.]

[credits for shirin's wardrobe pictures are given to various fictions, yesstyle.com and SPICY HOLIC.]

[credits for kai pictures are given to yeah-exo, fykimjongin and flawless-exo tumblr sites, as well as facebook.]

All pictures used are for the sake of clothing recognition and venue identification, which aids in better visualization of the story. The pictures are not mine, and I stake no claim on them. No copyright infringement intended. Were only re-uploaded for the sake of complation and assurance of long-lasting viewing activity. Thank you.