The doorbell rang, again and again, sounding very much like a broken recorder. Myungsoo bit back a sigh as he went to answer the door. As he opened it, his expression became flat, “What are you guys doing here?”

Without waiting for an answer, Myungsoo tried to close the door, “Leave me alone.”

Woohyun jammed his shoe forward, blocking the door, “C’mon, Myungsoo. Don’t be like that. We just want to talk. It’s been a week since we’ve seen you, you know.”

Myungsoo shot him a cold look, “I’m not a member of Infinite anymore. I’ve withdrawn from Infinite High.”

“It doesn’t matter whether you’re a member of Infinite, you’re still our best friend.” Hoya pointed out quietly. He reached out to hold Myungsoo by the shoulder, but Myungsoo pulled away, his face just as icy as before, “I’ve already told you all, I don’t want to talk to you. Why don’t you guys just leave me alone?”

There was a pause as the other members of Infinite exchanged glances. Sungyeol nudged Sunggyu furtively. Myungsoo’s eyes narrowed, “What is it?”

Sunggyu coughed awkwardly as he stepped forward, “…UEE says she saw you going into the brothel, Myungsoo. What-”

There was an abrupt change in Myungsoo’s expression; at once, he pushed Sunggyu back, “No. Get out. I don’t want to listen to you. Get OUT!” He gave them a final shove and slammed the door shut.

Woohyun’s voice drifted in, a little angry, a little frustrated, “We just want to help you, bro!”

Myungsoo leaned his head against the door, closing his eyes as his fists clenched.

There was the sound of soft footsteps, and his mother hobbled out of her room. Myungsoo’s eyes widened; he hurried to support her, his voice soft and slightly reprimanding, “Mother! You shouldn’t be coming out, not when you’re still not feeling well!”

Mrs Kim gave a small, weak smile, “It’s all right, Myungsoo. It’s not like I’m going a cripple. Was that your friends? What did they want?”

Myungsoo glanced back at the door, then turned to face his mother again, “It’s nothing, Mother. They…they wanted me to go out with them, but I told them I had to study.”

“Oh.” Mrs Kim ruffled her son’s hair gently, “What a good boy I have.” She frowned, as a thought suddenly struck her, “That’s right…your fees for Infinite High haven’t been paid yet, have they? I have to pay for them…”

“That’s all right, Mother. I’ve paid for my school fees already, so you don’t have to worry.” Myungsoo quickly reassured her, seating her on their old, tattered sofa.

“…When is your father coming home, Myungsoo? I haven’t seen him in a long time…Mrs Kim looked up at her son. Myungsoo’s smile became strained, “Father…Father’s away on an important business trip, remember? He’ll…he’ll be gone for a while.”

Mrs Kim looked forlorn at her son’s words. Myungsoo straightened up, forcing his tears back as he tried to keep his voice steady, “I’ll-I’ll be going back to my room to study now.”

Mrs Kim nodded happily, “Yes, you do that. Study hard, Myungsoo!”

Slowly, Myungsoo trudged back to his room. He shut the door gently and locked it before collapsing into a heap in front of the door. He buried his face in his arms, trying desperately to silence the sobs and tears that just kept on coming.

Father. Father…

“Those damn debtors. Father already told them he’d pay them back. Why do they keep on harassing us?” Myungsoo muttered under his breath as the chauffeur opened the door of the car for him. Myungsoo got out of the car, slinging his bag over his shoulder. As he entered the front door, Mrs Kim noticed his glum expression, “What’s wrong, son? Why do you look so upset?”

“The debtors turned up at Infinite High today. Nearly made me die of embarrassment.” Myungsoo responded, frowning. Mrs Kim tutted, “Oh dear…I hope the school doesn’t mind. Your father should hurry up and repay those debts already. I’ll talk to him later. Are you going out with your friends now?”

“Yeah, Hoya’s coming to fetch me in about fifteen minutes. You know, Mother, why can’t you guys just get me a car? I mean, all the others have cars of their own.” Myungsoo put on his most winning expression, but Mrs Kim was not swayed, “You know we’re having a little financial difficulty now, Myungsoo. Maybe after we get through this rough patch.”

Myungsoo bit back a sigh, “Whatever.” He hurried to his room on the second level of the mansion to get changed.

Before long, he heard a car pulling over outside, and he poked his head out of the window. As expected, it was Hoya in his Mercedes, leaning out of his car window as he shouted to Myungsoo, “Yah, hurry up or we’ll be late for the party!”

Myungsoo grinned. He grabbed his phone and hurried out of the house, calling a quick goodbye to his mother. He got into the shotgun seat, glancing at the backseat of the car, “I thought Eunji was coming too.”

“Eunji’s not feeling well, that pabo. Apparently she and Hyomin were having “fun in the rain” yesterday, so Hyomin ended up falling ill too.” Hoya snorted. He turned up the music, “Put on your seatbelt, buddy. I’m speeding up.”

A mere fifteen minutes later, they had arrived at their destination. Both boys leapt out of the car with whoops as they ran towards their fellow Infinite members. Sungyeol gave Myungsoo a high-five, while Dongwoo and Hoya fist-bumped. Myungsoo turned around, “So where’s the hostess? Yah, Jessica!”

Jessica Jung turned around as she heard the call; she and Jonghyun walked over, hand in hand, “No need to yell, Myungsoo, I can hear just fine. You guys just got here?”

“Yep. You sure know how to throw a party, Sica. You’ve got booze, music, people – this is pretty awesome. You don’t happen to have drugs too, do you?” Hoya teased.

Jessica swatted him, “Shut up. Anyway, you guys have fun, I’m going to take a look at how the others are doing.”

There was a chorus of goodbyes as Jessica and Jonghyun strode away.

Time seemed to pass quickly as they partied. There was dancing, singing, even some people making out. Myungsoo stuck to the Infinite boys as they hung around Jessica’s bar, downing shot after shot until all of them were completely inebriated.

All of a sudden, Myungsoo felt a tap on his shoulder. He spun around, unsteady on his feet, his gaze blurring slightly before him, “Yeah? What’s up, man?”

It was Taeyeon, a senior from Jessica’s class. She looked uneasy, uncomfortable, as she held out her iPhone, “I…I thought you should see this.”

It was a news article, dated only five minutes ago. It took a few moments for Myungsoo to process what he was reading.

Taekyung Corps Gone Bankrupt

Myungsoo’s eyes widened in shock, “Father’s company…”

“…It says your father…your father was officially declared bankrupt an hour ago. Your house and possessions are being repo-”

Before Taeyeon could finish, Myungsoo had already zipped past her, wobbling unsteadily as he tried to get to Hoya’s car. He had only just reached when a hand landed on his shoulder, and he heard Jonghyun’s steady voice, “I’ll drive you, buddy. You’ll crash a hundred times in your state.”

He nodded and literally tumbled into the shotgun seat as Jonghyun grabbed the keys from Hoya and got in. Moments later, they were zooming off, heading for the Kim Mansion.

The moment Myungsoo got home, he could tell that there was something wrong. It was pretty obvious, after all. It was past midnight, and yet all the lights in the house were on, and there were people running and milling about in panic. Myungsoo jumped out of the car, nearly falling, before taking off at top speed towards the house. He threw the door open, then froze in shock, “Where’s my Mother?”

“She collapsed, sir. The chauffeur brought her to the hospital a while ago.” The butler replied, bowing.

“And my Father?”

There was a brief hesitation this time, “In his room, sir.”

“What’s he doing?”

Another pause, “We’re not sure. We tried knocking on the door, but there was no answer. The door was locked, too.”

Myungsoo shook his head, trying to clear it. Irritably, he demanded, “Don’t you have a key?”

“Yes, we do, but we weren’t sure whether or not-”

“Oh for god’s sake give me the damn key.” Myungsoo snapped, snatching away the key that the butler held out. He took the steps two at a time, the panic slowly growing in him. What the hell was his father doing in his room.

It took him a few moments to fit the key into the keyhole, and he cursed his drunkenness as he pushed the door open.

And froze in shock.

Father. Hanging from a beam on the ceiling.

Dead.

“Myungsoo? You have a friend here to see you.”

Myungsoo was jolted from his memories by his mother’s voice. He wiped the tears frantically, trying to hide all traces of his crying fit. He opened the door, then froze, his eyes narrowed, “What are you doing here?”

Jiyeon glanced at him, “I wanted to talk to you.” She hesitated for a moment, looking at Mrs Kim uncertainly. There was a pause before Myungsoo waved her into his room, “Come on, then.”

The moment the door was shut, Myungsoo grabbed Jiyeon by the shoulders, pushing her down onto his bed, “How the hell did you find me?”

“The school has every student’s address.” Jiyeon replied offhandedly, “I told the teacher I’d bring your homework to you, cos you weren’t feeling well?”

“Since when was I not feeling well?” Myungsoo demanded as he sat down on his chair next to his study table. Jiyeon shrugged, “That’s the excuse I used to cover for you, so you better back me up tomorrow or we’ll both be in trouble.”

Myungsoo scowled, “I don’t need you to “cover for me”.”

Jiyeon frowned, “That’s so ungrateful.” She glanced about the room, and Myungsoo growled, “Why? Think it’s not up to your standards?”

Jiyeon turned back to him, surprised, “No. I was surprised at how well you guys are living, actually. Your apartment is like twice as big as mine, and there’re three people in my family…”

Myungsoo sneered, “I bet if your parents worked harder instead of wasting their lives away, then you wouldn’t be as poor as you are now.”

He could tell from the sudden flash in her eyes that he’d angered her. Furiously, she jumped up, “I just wanted to be friendly, but I guess a rich, snobbish jerk like you wouldn’t get friendship and kindness even if it slapped you in the face! God, I don’t know why I bothered!” Without another word, she stormed right out of the house.

Myungsoo was startled by the sudden flaring of her temper, and, for the briefest moments, he felt a hint of regret. Never before had someone he didn’t know show so much concern for him. It made him feel appreciated…yet he pushed her away. It was just the way he was, and yet he felt slightly sorry…

There was a soft knock on his door as Mrs Kim entered, “Did you upset that girl, Myungsoo? You know you shouldn’t do such ungentlemanly things…”

Myungsoo forced a smile, “I know, I know, mother. I’ll apologise to her.”

Mrs Kim nodded, “That’s a good boy.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Myungsoo entered the classroom quietly, his bag slung over his shoulder as usual. Jiyeon had been laughing with one of her classmates, but at the sight of him, her smile immediately faded.

He half-expected her to turn away, but she waited until Myungsoo sat down before beginning to speak in a conciliatory tone, “So…about yesterday…I’m sorry I stormed out like that.”

Myungsoo looked up at her, slightly startled, “I thought you were pissed off?”

“…Perhaps it was a little unreasonable of me to be so angry…” Jiyeon gave a sheepish smile, but Myungsoo just looked even more confused, “But…I was the one who…” After a moment he regained his composure, staring at her with steely eyes, “Why do you keep bothering me?”

Jiyeon shrugged, “I’m a friendly person.” She stuck her hand out, “Come on, surely you want to have one friend in school?”

“…I don’t need friends.” Myungsoo replied, ignoring her hand as he pulled out his textbook. Jiyeon shrugged, looking unconcerned as she withdrew her hand, “Whatever. I’m not going to give up so easily, you know. Sooner or later you’re going to become my friend.”

Myungsoo didn’t even bother to answer.

Just then, their teacher entered. Jiyeon turned back to her desk, and they started another boring day of class.

A few hours later, Jiyeon started as she heard the sound of books being thrown into a bag; she glanced at her watch before turning around, “Yah, you’re playing truant again.”

Myungsoo ignored her as he got up to leave.

Jiyeon frowned, “Do you have an appointment or something? Why do you leave at the same time?”

Myungsoo shot her a cold look, “None of your business.”

He left the classroom without a second glance. Jiyeon glanced at her watch again, a small grin forming on her lips. She stuffed her books and pencil case into her bag hurriedly, and, without waiting, threw her bag over her shoulder and followed after Kim Myungsoo.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jiyeon followed Myungsoo as quietly as she could; he led her through a familiar neighbourhood, one that she’d lived in as a child. It was a neighbourhood full of poor and starving people, a situation that she knew well indeed. However, it was Myungsoo’s destination that surprised her.

At first, she was skeptical, but as she followed him, she became more and more certain that he was leading her to “that place”. The place that she’d always known to be for losers and erts, the place that her parents had warned her since young never to go near, no matter what happened to her.

The brothel. But why would Kim Myungsoo be going to that sort of place?

Myungsoo didn’t hesitate as he entered, going straight in as if he owned the place. She stared after him, confused and startled by what she had just seen.

Just as Jiyeon was about to follow him in, a familiar voice called her, “Jiyeon! Park Jiyeon! It’s you, isn’t it?”

Jiyeon whipped around, startled. She frowned, staring at the elderly man stooped in front of her, “You…you’re…” She hesitated, racking her brains as she tried to remember who this man was. All of a sudden, it came to her, “You’re the baker! You used to give me free buns all the time!”

The baker gave her a wide grin; Jiyeon registered missing and yellowed teeth. Time had taken its toll on her old friend. She responded with a smile as well, hugging the baker, “It’s so good to see you again, uncle!”

The baker returned the hug; as he pulled away, he pointed at the brothel, “Why’re you staring at that place, Jiyeon? Don’t tell me you want to work there?”

Jiyeon gave the baker the evil eye, “Don’t be ridiculous. That place is for sinful people. I just…” She hesitated for a moment, remembering Myungsoo. After a brief pause, she decided to ask, “Do you know who’s Kim Myungsoo?”

The baker frowned, his expression thoughtful, “Kim Myungsoo? You mean the son of that CEO guy who went bankrupt and committed suicide? The son of…what was it again…Taekyung Corps? Of course I know him. That rich kid was brought down to our level. And anyway, I see him almost every day walking by.”

Jiyeon started, “You see him every day? Do you know where he goes?”

“Why, the brothel, of course! Everyone on the street knows about his frequent visits to the brothel.” The baker replied in a matter-of-fact way.

“But why? Why does he go there? Is he looking for women or-” Jiyeon was just getting more and more confused by the baker’s words.

“Don’t you know? He works there as a gigolo now!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kim Myungsoo stepped out of the brothel, feeling like filth, dirt, the same feelings he had every time he stepped out. But always he came back. Forcing back the tears like he had all those other times, he wrapped his arms around himself. Then he stopped, his eyes wide, “You…”

The Infinite members stood in front of him; Sungyeol and Sunggyu’s eyes were teary, while the others had grim, grave faces. Hoya stepped forward, his expression graver than Myungsoo had seen in a long time, “Let’s talk.” 

-------------------------------------------------------

How many of you saw that coming? Horror of horrors, Myungsoo is a gigolo...

Either way, the Infinite members have now been informed, and Jiyeon knows too. Will they be able to save Myungsoo or not? Wait for the last chapter to find out!

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