3^rd January, 2019

“For Miss Oh, one Non Fat Vanilla Double Shots Iced Shaken Espresso! For Mister Kim, one Grande Caramel Macchiato! Thank you!”

“Allow me,” Jongin answers while standing up, stopping you from taking your ready-to-drink coffees from the coffee shop’s pick-up bar. Casually, he walks to the pick-up bar, smiled at the swooned female barista, then goes back to your seat.

            “She likes you.” You says, while watching the female barista running towards her barista friends and giggling. Probably talking about how charming Jongin was. The other baristas looks very interested and starts chatting in excitement.

            “You jealous?” Jongin asks, then laughs when you smacks him with the newspaper right on his forehead.

            “Stop joking. I thought we came here to discuss something important? Like, my brother’s life?”
            “After all these years and you still loves ruining the fun. Boo.” Answers Jongin while pouting. “I chose coffee shop because I think we’ll need to relax first before getting to the serious parts. And I know how coffee is always able to lift your mood so high than ever before. Coffee, and vanilla syrup. And cinnamon roll.”

            You admit that you were in awe after he cooly remembers all of your favorite things from your childhood – but everytime you got reminded of your childhood, Sehun’s face appears, and all the distractions vanishes.

            “Jongin.”

            Jongin sighs, then take a sip of his Caramel Macchiato. “Okay, okay. Now, since I’m pretty sure that you still hate long, narrative, not on-the-point story just like how you hate your teachers back then when we were in school, I’ll just let you ask me questions, and I’ll answer. Go on. Ask away.”

            You suspiciously glances at him, but his cold, brown eyes stares back at you without shaking.

            You exhales, and take another sip of your coffee.

            “Okay. So. First.

            “Who made all of these happened?”

            “Right to the point. One of many things that I love about you, Soo.”

            “One more time you throw another flirtatious sentences at me, and this fork will fly through your eyeballs, Kim Jongin.”

            “But seriously,” Jongin shrugs as he took your threat as nothing but chihuahua’s bark – “I thought all those documents that I’ve shown you before already explains everything? At least you must have recognized one name, right?”

            “Minho-ssi?” you repeats the name that was written on the bottom of the asylum record that caged Jongin for years, “okay, let me recap. So, you’re actually not running away on the day Sehun did the attack. You were admitted by force, by Minho, to the asylum. That’s why you couldn’t reach Sehun. The reason why Minho admitted you by force..is definitely not because you have mental issues since your health records said so. Someone, probably Minho, beat you up and set up a scheme on you so that you would looked like you have mental issues. So, my first question: Why? Why would Minho admitted you by force, and let someone beat you up and also set up a scheme on you?”

            “Such a smart girl!” Jongin chirps happily – “you understood quickly. Okay, so to answer your question…”

            Jongin’ smiles fades away as he glances down to his cup and stirs his coffee.

            “It’s only a small part of another big scheme that have been going on in Sooman clan. It’s only a small part of a betrayal.”

            Your eyes widens as you heard the word.

            Betrayal?

            “…Jongin, what?”

            “Do you know who ruled Seoul and the whole South Korea back then before Lee Sooman came to the city?” asks Jongin.

            “I-I don’t know. dude, I wasn’t even born back then.”

            “Tch, the legendary mogul?”

            The mogul word spikes a name on your brain.

            “Wait, you’re talking about Cheil Jedang? Cheil Jedang Enterprises whose assets were spread all over South Korea?”

            “You learnt your history pretty well. Yeah, it’s Cheil Jedang. And of course, now that you’ve saw the side of mafia in this country, you of course knew that Cheil Jedang is not only an ‘enterprises’.”

            “Okay, so they’re mafia.”

            “Right. Mafia. Who have coverage all over South Korea. The mogul, the one who ruled over everything back then.”

            “..Damn.”

            “Until Lee Sooman decided to raise his own clan and his first families; Moon family and Ahn family. Until the clan gained fame due to the ‘Legend’ killing and how they strongly influenced the teenagers back then with our friendly approach. Until another clans started popping out one by one; pushing Cheil Jedang to the edge since all that they got back then was distrust, hatred, and anger from South Koreans since the civilians saw how mafia can actually work in a much more nicer way than how Cheil Jedang used to be.”

            “Let me guess. They fell to bankruptcy?”

            “You’re right. Way too many debts, too many unloyal subordinates, and the used-to-be-so-mighty clan fell.”

            “Okay. So..?”

            “Cheil Jedang fell, but the people behind it are still alive; still filled with grudge and hatred towards the other clans who pushed them to the edge. Especially ours. They started building themselves up underground few years ago, with only one objective: to be back as South Korea’s one and only mafia clan. They targeted clans, just like what I’ve explained. You remembered how Taesong clan desperately clinged to us few years ago for partnership? Because they were threatened by Cheil Jedang back then. But it was too late, and the clan got eliminated by Cheil Jedang’s new families and members. It also happened to Yonggeun clan – they attacked after Sehun made the clan vulnerable, and successfully wiped them out from the business.”

            You take another sip of your coffee, anxious because of the story. “Damn, they’re serious, aren’t they?”

            “Of course they are.”

            “But I never heard any news about attacks from another clan to you guys? I mean, ever since Sehun was still here.”

            “Because they’re not stupid, Soo. Because they knew that attacking us right from upfront only means suicide. Sooman is the current biggest and strongest clan across South Korea, after all; probably even Asia. That’s why they’re attacking from the inside – pulling the strings on some of our clan’s best fighters. Minho fell to their sweet words.”

            You squints your eyes, feeling tired all of the sudden. Caused by too much information in one day, possibly.

            “, Jongin – this is way too complicated. How can we release Sehun, then? Too many other parties involved – both internally and externally. I believe that’s our main concern right now – How can we free Sehun?”

            Jongin bites his lips – his habit when he’s nervous and sometimes anxious.

            “All these years, I’ve been looking for it, Soo. I’ve been looking for the way on how can I release Sehun from that death penalty. I’ve been thinking about breaking to the ward, about killing the whole Cheil Jedang – but I realized that I cannot act blindly, I need to know the whole truth first and how to strike from that hole, and I need the power to do that. That’s why I’ve been climbing the ladder. Now that I’m first lieutenant and Chairman already promised me a position as Kim family’s head of patriarch, I can be closer and closer to the time when I can do anything that I want, which I’m sure, including freeing Sehun. Power is what I, no, we need right now.”

            “Just how much power that you need? Is being first lieutenant still makes it difficult?”

            “I’m still not on par with those who directly involved in the scheme. I can only hear what’s happening, but I still cannot act and make my move in that scheme. That’s why I need to be the head of patriarch first. But Gramps is being so hard right now..”

            You smiled a little when you heard him saying the word “Gramps”. The way he calls his foster dad – whom supposed to be the current head of patriarch for Kim family.

            “Why? What did our old man do?”

            Jongin rolls his eyes in irritation, then stirs his coffee and take another sip again.

            “He’s been really annoying. Throwing various weird terms and conditions to me that I need to pass so that I can be qualified to be the head of patriarch. Like, some of them are so ridiculous and not even related to mafia business at all?!” Jongin complains.

            “What kind of unrelated terms and conditions?”

            “Like, well, I can understand it if he wants me to overpowers 10 families first and bring them to join our clan; I can understand it if he wants to me to at least owns few enterprises,” His hand reachs out inside his blazer’s pocket, and his long fingers takes out a pack of red Marlboro and a little platinum-colored match, “but he even asked me to get m-“

            “Jongin!”
            “What?” Jongin asks cluelessly as he put one of the cigarette on his lips, and his fingers busy litting up the match to create the fire. His eyes widens in surprise as you quickly snatches the cigarette from his lips and throw it across the room.

            “You smoked again?”

            Jongin raises his eyebrows as now he understood the situation, and a little regretful smirk spreads across his beautiful lips. “Ah, yeah… since that massacre day.”

            “You’ve stopped for years! You and Sehun even already made a promise that if any of you ever catch each other smoking again, Sehun will throw away all of your comic books and you willl throw away all of Sehun’s Gundams?”

            “Soo-“ Jongin’s eyes stares deeply at yours, trying to be comforting, “well yeah I did YEARS ago, but things changes. And now I’m at my limit since I haven’t smoke since 2 days ago. At least, one?”
            “No.”

            “Soo. Please.”

            “You can’t even keep this little promise?”
            Jongin exhales in frustration as he slams his head back to the sofa’s cushion. “Damn, here comes your naggings that I haven’t heard for years.”

            “Well, you don’t have to worry though. We won’t live and spend our lives together so at least probably this is the last nagging you will ever had from me.”

            Jongin somehow froze after he listened to your words; proven by how his fingers stopped looking for a new cigarette and how he stares at you in somehow, a surprised look.

Realizing that it is indeed a strange action from him, you raise your eyebrows. “What? Finally come to a realization that smoking is a bad habit?”

And all of the sudden, that smug Jongin smirk spreads across his beautiful face again. He puts his cigarette back to the box, as he leans towards you- one hand slowly reachs out to you and gently grab your chin.

“Now that you mention it,” he speaks calmly, eyes staring at yours in unreadable way and still with the same smirk plastered on his lips,”that could work.”

Realizing your position, you snapped his hand away from your chin, eyes glaring at his. “Seriously Jongin, stop doing things just as you li-“

“Soo, let’s get married?”

              The ?

A/N: ....so, I guess I'm back? (.__.  )(   .__.)