"What--what's up with your face? Did something happen?" Niel asked, pointing a finger of accusation at Woohyun. Usually, Woohyun wasn't good at masking his expressions. When he disliked something, it was obvious, and when he favoured something, it was obvious too. But this time, he face showed neither good nor bad. He looked as if he was just waiting for the boys to return. 

"There's something that you need to see." Woohyun said plainly, waiting until the three boys had gathered in front of him before opening the door to the hospital room. 

Jonghyun entered first, then Niel, and last was Chanhee. When Jonghyun saw what was in front of him, he went pale, his mouth dropped, and his eyes widened. Niel had a similar reaction, but he rushed forward. Chanhee, seeing their reactions, started worrying. His heart sank, his nails digging into his palm. He's dead…Byunghun's passed away and that's why they're acting like that. God, I knew I shouldn't have left him, I knew I should have been there!

Chanhee felt a sob threatening to escape his throat, as his eyes started watering. The pain started spreading in his chest before he even entered the room. And when he did, he was prepared to be welcomed with the news that Byunghun was no longer breathing, that he had stopped fighting. And then how would he live with himself? He could barely survive knowing that Byunghun was in a coma, how could he survive if he knew that Byunghun was…dead? 

He couldn't. He couldn't survive. He didn't want to be without him, he couldn't stand that kind of reality. 

He clenched his fists, turning around to look at the occupant of the bed. 

But he was in for a surprise. 

Byunghun was there. Sitting on the bed, with new clothes, damp hair. Changhyun was clinging onto his arm, crying and sobbing for him. Jonghyun was even crying, but on the edge of the bed, with his back towards Byunghun. Niel was giving him a hard time, scolding him for being so irresponsible and getting himself in this mess, but anyone could see how happy he was that Byunghun was awake and well. 

Byunghun's eyes jerked upwards, and he locked gazes with Chanhee, who stood there shocked and speechless. Even his tears had stopped temporarily, within those few seconds. A smile crept up on Byunghun's lips. "Chanhee," he breathed out in anticipation. He hadn't even finished his sentence before Chanhee ran over, engulfing the other in a hug. Chanhee was mumbling words through his tears and in-between sobs, burying his face in Byunghun's neck and basking in the warmth that he hadn't been able to find comfort in in a long time. 

With Changhyun bawling his eyes out, and Chanhee nearly trembling because of how hard he was crying, Byunghun was squished. He caught the eye of Woohyun, and playfully pleaded out for help. Woohyun grinned, slapping the other boy's shoulder. "Do you know how much those two worried for you? They cried every single day." 

Byunghun's smile faltered a bit, at the thought of Chanhee crying. Of course, Changhyun crying wasn't good, either. But Byunghun's heart hurt, and he felt guilty for putting Chanhee through so much…trauma. The doctor told him, once he had taken a shower and washed up, that the staff didn't know what his mental condition would be when he woke up. "There was a high chance that you weren't going to have any memories of Chanhee-ssi, or any of the other boys, for that matter." 

"Chanhee." Byunghun softly said, using his free arm to rub Chanhee's back lightly with his palm, trying to soothe him a bit. Chanhee hummed shakily in response, gripping onto Byunghun's shirt. This was so surreal to him, so surreal and perfect that it felt like a dream. Chanhee begged, he pleaded mentally that this was real. That when he opened his eyes, Byunghun would still be there, alive, speaking, laughing. 

"Stop crying now, okay?" 

At the same time, Niel was trying to get Changhyun to stop crying, using a much more aggressive approach. "Yah, you idiot! Stop crying! It's bad for you! You cry when he's sleeping, you cry when's awake, what the hell will make you stop?!" 

Jonghyun and Woohyun were in the corner, scolding Niel silently to themselves and his tactics. That made Changhyun cry even more. The entire right-shoulder cloth of Byunghun's shirt was wet with tears. Byunghun scowled. "Niel. what's wrong with you? Don't yell at him." 

Byunghun arduously tried comforting both boys, first uttering some soothing words to Changhyun, and using a much more intimate and loving approach with Chanhee. It took a while for both boys to calm down enough for Woohyun to continue telling him further news.

"The doctor says that he's already ready to be discharged. He has to come back in two weeks later for a check up, but other than that, he's should be fine." Woohyun said with a smile, ushering the other boys out the of the room. He directed his attention towards Byunghun and Chanhee. "Come on, you two. Let's get home."

****

As soon as the boys returned to Woohyun's apartment, Byunghun was forced to lie down. "If you need anything, call for us. Don't over exert yourself--just lie still and rest." 

Byunghun gave Jonghyun a look, rubbing his lips together in discontent. "I don't need to lie down, I'm fine. I've been lying down for the past few weeks." 

Woohyun made a noise of disagreement, shaking his head. "Byunghun, you're going to lie down and rest, at least just for today. Just so that we know that you're really okay." 

"It's boring, though. Where's Chanhee?" 

"Chanhee's washing up. Please, try not to cause trouble. And, God forbid it happen but, if anything goes wrong, can you do the decency of letting us know? I don't want a repeat of what just happened." Woohyun grumbled, jabbing Byunghun's forehead; the force causing Byunghun to lie on his back. The covers were wrapped around him, and humidifier working in full steam. "You should be okay. I'll get Chanhee in here, after he's done, although I don't know how long he'll stand to stay in here, it's stuffy as hell." Woohyun complained, pushing Jonghyun out the door and following close after, shutting the door behind him.

Byunghun didn't want to be left alone. He wanted to be occupied, to have something to do. At least that way, he wouldn't think so much. Being left alone with his thoughts, his memories…it wasn't good. 

He tried not to think abut it. He tried to focus on other details--the window that was scarily clean and shining, the walls; the cream wallpaper slightly starting to peel at the corners, the general layout of the room. It was an inefficient use of space. The bed was placed against the middle of the side wall, the closet on the wall in front of it. The door to the bathroom was beside the door to the closet, and there was a third door beside the bed, that led out. 

"Woohyun's really something…" Byunghun muttered, shifting in his place to try to get more comfortable. He exhaled, trying to keep his mind from flittering. He didn't want to think about…that. Or him.

Don't think about it. Focus on something else. Count the number of swirls on the ceiling. 

That only worked for a while. But, in the midst of that, Byunghun's mind began unconsciously drifting back to what had happened. Chunji. What the hell had happened, that night? Why did it happen? Byunghun had always assumed that he was safe, at least temporarily, from Chunji's wrath. It seemed as if Chunji needed him, to do his dirty work, and it was usually stupid things, mundane things. 

That look Chunji had in his eyes…the look of pure murder. It was burned into Byunghun's mind, and truthfully, he was terrified. Even seeing Chunji again would make him cringe. He let in a shaky breath. He never thought that Chunji would hurt him. Sure, Chunji was crazy. He was sadistic, and he fed off of killing people. But Byunghun made the mistake of believing that he was excluded from that. 

What would happen if Chunji saw him again? Was Chunji trying to kill him? What happened while he was asleep? 

The fear started pumping through him, his heart beating in anxiety. This wasn't ordinary fear. The pain, the feeling of suffocating and hurting so much he wanted to end his own life…those feelings wouldn't just go away. Byunghun could still feel them, even now. He could feel it, like it had just happened yesterday. His lungs, gasping for something, anything. Anything to fill his burning desire for air. 

Byunghun jerked up, sitting in a cold sweat. 

****

"This way, ma'am." A young, female attendant softly whispered, her slim arm elegantly gesturing down the red-carpeted hallway. 

Miyoung sighed, pivoting to look into the mirror one final time, patting down her hair before proceeding down the hallway, her heels going thump against the carpet. Her father had sent her, to see the executer of the mission. She had never met him before, nor had any interest to, but her father insisted it. 

In a sheer teal blouse, a considerably short pencil skirt and black mesh platform heels, she took in a deep breath before rapping her knuckles against the wooden door in precise. A faint voice answered from the other side: "Come in." 

Her perfectly manicured white nails accentuated the hand that turned the knob. She was met with a surprise. 

"Chanhee-ssi?" She panicked momentarily. Maybe she was in the wrong room. What if Chanhee knew, about the plan? 

The boy wolfishly grinned, gesturing for her to close the door and take a seat, as he took a seat himself. Miyoung swallowed thickly, shutting the door noisily behind her as she took a seat at a leather chair, in front of his desk layered with papers. He looked a lot more put together, than she remembered. 

"I'm Chunji, it's a pleasure. You're Mr. Hwang's daughter, right?" He asked, a twinkle of amusement in his eyes. 

Miyoung gritted her teeth, her hands gripping her clutch. "I don't know what game you're playing, but stop. I was supposed to meet someone." 

Chunji bellowed out a dry laugh, his elbows placed against his desk as he rested his chin against his open palms. "It doesn't seem like you understand, Ms. Hwang. I'm Chunji, Chanhee's twin. Your father purposely hired me for this mission, for reasons that should be obvious. He didn't tell you, I presume?" 

Miyoung just shook her head, a leg crossed over the other as she loosened her grip. He seemed different than Chanhee, that was for sure. More…bold. Aggressive. 

"You look like you don't believe me. Which is, of course, understandable. Ask your father, if you wish. He'd tell you the same thing." Chunji said, retracting his elbows as his eyes skimmed over his papers, attempting to organize them mentally somehow. She would need some time to process this, he assumed. So, while she was pondering over this in her head, might as well try to organize some of these sheets. 

He was placing some papers together when she spoke again.

"No, I believe you. How's Byunghun?" 

Chunji froze. Just momentarily, however, and he soon collected himself. "If I'm lucky, dead. If I'm not, then, probably at a hospital somewhere." 

Miyoung gasped, leaning forward towards the desk with angry slitted eyes. "Dead? Hospital? Those aren't the terms I agreed to!" 

With a nonchalant shrug and more shuffling of papers, Chunji replied. "Those are your fathers terms. I work for your father, not you." Chunji whistled as he rummaged through a drawer. Miyoung gave him a deadpan look, her fists tightly clenched as he scoffed. "I'm my father's only daughter. He'll listen to what I say. I never asked for Byunghun to be dead, I just asked my father to give him a little scare! I didn't want him to be hurt!" 

Chunji laughed dryly. "Exactly what kind of relationship do you have with Byunghun?" 

"I'm his girlfriend." 

Chunji raised a brow. Miyoung sighed, waving her hand dismissively. "His ex girlfriend, whatever. Same thing. I don't want you to hurt him, so stop. I'm telling my father to call it off. I never wanted him to be hurt!" 

"Listen, lady. Does it look like I'm happy about this? I don't want him dead just as much as you do, but now my life is on the line, and there's no way I'm giving up my life for anyone." Chunji hissed, slapping some papers into a file. 

Miyoung broke into a grin, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "You didn't need to tell me twice. I can tell." 

Chunji stared at her in disbelief. No, that wasn't possible. He was an expert in masking emotions. There was no way a girl like her could penetrate the years of training he received. Miyoung must have sensed this, because she quickly replied; "Right after dogs and babies, ladies are third for intuition. I'm not an idiot. Since you don't want him dead, and I don't want him dead--we need to team up and save his . And the rest of him. You know where I'm going with this." 

"What makes you think I'll help you? I need your father's money." 

"You would never pull the trigger on Byunghun." 

"No, not a trigger. Can't rule out a knife." 

Miyoung arched a perfectly shaped eyebrow, her glossed lips quirked. "Stop trying to save your reputation. We both want him alive, and I have a plan." 

Chunji tried to keep as pokerfaced as he could. But within him, a battle raged. On one hand, if Mr. Hwang found out that Chunji had any affiliation with this so called plan, he would kill him with no hesitation. On the other…Byunghun. He didn't want to think of the reasons as to why Byunghun got his own damn category.

Keeping a professional distance from your client was the first rule. The first. Chunji had adamantly kept that rule through all his years in the business. Then, one day, his streak was violently smashed, and now, he found himself in this situation. He had to kill Byunghun. He had to, those were the orders he was given. Yet, when he was given the chance to, he hadn't. Sure, the kid was probably on the edge of death, but Chunji could have done a lot worse but hadn't. The mere thought that he might have indescribable feelings for a certain now-black-haired boy angered him.

Chunji didn't 'fall' for anyone. He didn't 'crush' on anyone, 'fancy' anyone. He was an emotionless, ruthless bastard, and it was supposed to be that way until he died. 

So what the did Byunghun have that changed his entire mindset? To make him want to rebel against his own boss, that had been the primary source of income for him? 

Then, that lead Chunji to think of all the blood he had on his hands. All the people he had killed, for pieces of paper with monetary value. All the lives he had traded, just for the chance to own houses all across the country, and overseas. To have cars for any event and occasion. To buy whatever the hell he wanted, at any time. He wouldn't be able to keep this job forever. Soon enough, when he got old, he would have to leave this life behind. 

Yeah, he was pissed off as hell, for allowing himself to be put into this situation; to have to pick between his job and his heart. The heart he never knew he had. And he was even more pissed at what he ultimately chose, without admitting it. 

you, Lee Byunghun. Go to hell.

"…What's the plan?"

****

Chunji grimaced, his arms tightly crossed over his chest as he eyed the girl in front of him. This was ridiculous. This was a ridiculous plan. 

"You call this a plan?"

Miyoung tore her gaze away from the window painted with rain droplets, turning to face Chunji with a strong expression. "I don't see you coming up with anything better, Chunji. This is better than any plan you could have come up with. Besides, this is perfect; we can monitor Byunghun and what's going on elsewhere. He'll be safe." 

The car rested to a stop at a red light. 

"If you gave me more time, I could have created something better. Something with a higher chance of success, maybe?" 

Miyoung laughed, but it sounded too forced. She crossed her legs, pulling her black jacket closer around her. "Shut up, and think of how you're going to execute the first part of the plan."