If you haven't read the short story this fic was based on, I suggest you do. It's not long. This chapter is twice the length of that short story. So check it out: The Target

He could hear the music pumping faintly as soon as he stepped out of his red Ferrari F12. There were several skimpily clad women queuing by the entrance, accompanied by sleazy looking guys who clearly didn’t have the juice to get into the very exclusive club, Reveille. He couldn’t care less when the men shot him looks of pure hatred and the women devoured him with their eyes. There were some gutsy enough to wave at him. When he flashed them a smile, all squealed and swooned. It was a typical Saturday for the most eligible bachelor in Seoul.

“Sir, let me take that for you,” the valet driver said, gesturing to his car. He tossed him the key and marched inside without acknowledging anyone.

His arrival always elicited interesting responses from the crowd. Tonight, it was 'surprise'. It's been almost a month since he was last there. Everyone who was anyone knew who he was, and most likely knew the latest from South Korea's poster boy for the chaebol class. Which was why they were surprised -- they probably never expected him to be back partying when his status just elevated another notch. Just a week ago, his Grandfather held a press conference and announced that his one and only grandson was the brain behind the newest multi-million dollar project from Wang Gwan Group and would be spearheading the venture, himself. It made international news: his face was plastered all over The New York Times, UK's The Guardian, China's The People's Daily. That's what happens when Lee Kun Hee, one of the most powerful men in Asia -- the world, really -- opens his mouth. Everyone listens. 

'The beginning of a new era', the headlines said. 'The Prince finally takes the first step towards the crown.' His name was on top of the search engines for days. It baffled him. South Korea always romanticized the idea of the younger generation of chaebol children taking over the family businesses, as if it were written by destiny. Little did they know that that generation of chaebols they love fantasizing about were all in this club -- getting drunk, getting laid, getting high. 

Of course the whole venture coming from his brain was a bunch of crap. As a matter of fact, it was a group of boring WG employees who briefed him on the project that he's supposedly 'spearheading'. What he didn't know until his Grandfather's announcement was that HE was the one who thought the whole thing up. He wondered how that were possible, seeing as he was too busy signing documents he never reads, and going to the office everyday to take long naps.

The club people's initial suprise subsided. They stopped whispering now, and actually greeted him as he came inside. He recognized some of them since they were regulars, but they didn’t necessarily run in the same circles with him. He made his way up to the VVIP room on the second floor where he knew his friends would be.

As soon as he stepped inside, the first thing he saw was Ahn Jae Hyun by the glass walls, looking down at the packed dance floor. His friend always liked observing other people, he never understood why. He wondered if he was imagining another life for himself again. Park Min Woo, on the other hand, was on the couch, flanked by two women – one was poking his dimples while the other was busy running her hand up and down his leg. Min Ho scoffed at the self-satisfied look on his friend’s face and made his way to the private bar where his best friend just looked up from his drink.

“Well, look what the cat dragged in,” the tall, handsome man dressed in the latest Gucci leather jacket whistled. He had on the trademark smirk that complimented the mischievous look on his face. "What are they calling you nowadays? Golden Boy? Prince?"

“Lee Min Ho, you bastard! Where have you been all this time?” Jae Hyun turned around and raised his glass, grinning.

“Language, Jae Hyun. We have ladies here,” Min Woo fake-reprimanded his friend without taking his eyes off the giggling girls. He looked up for a moment to wiggle his eyebrows at Min Ho naughtily.

“Kim Woo Bin,” Min Ho gave his friend a wide smile and a brief hug before turning to the other guys. “Park Min Woo. Ahn Jae Hyun. Looks like you’re all leading boring lives without me.”

Woo Bin handed him an empty glass and quickly poured him a drink from the bottle of Bourbon that he was already enjoying. Min Ho took a sip and savored the slow burn. God, he needed that.

“Speak for yourself. You look terrible,” Woo Bin said, eyeing him curiously.

Jae Hyun approached the two men. He looked Min Ho up and down and smiled. “Stressed?”

Min Ho let out a grunt. “Ugh. Tell me about it. The old man’s been slave-driving me the whole week. He kept dragging me to all sorts of meetings. If he was planning to kill me, he’s certainly doing a great job boring me to death. It’s a really cruel method.”

“Get used to it bro,” Jae Hyun replied, putting a hand on his shoulder. “That’s what happens when you’re the heir to a multinational conglomerate. And yours just happens to be the biggest.”

Min Ho rolled his eyes and swatted his friend’s hand away. “As if you know how I feel? It must feel good to be the second son of LG Corp. You get the perks while your brother does all the real work.”

Jae Hyun let out a chuckle. “Like I said, get used to it. My hyung is on the brink of breaking down. It could happen any day now. I predict you’ll break down soon enough.”

“Ha. I will never let that happen. I don’t give a about that company and you know that,” Min Ho replied, downing the rest of his drink.

Woo Bin nudged his arm. “I don’t get it. Forbes just named your Grandfather one of the most powerful men in the world. Not to mention, his net worth. How much is he worth now? Thirteen billion dollars?” He winced. “Why don’t you want that for yourself? Once you take over WG, you’ll have a chance to be even bigger than his legacy. If I were you, I’d take that and run away with it, man.”

“You know I never wanted those things,” he looked at his empty glass pensively.

“Exactly. I DON'T GET IT. Why don't you try though? I mean look at me, I started working for my Dad like he wanted. And I mean real work, not just showing up to the office like you do," Woo Bin took a sip from his drink. "It turned out pretty good. He’s off my back and haraboji just bought me a house in South of France like I asked. Plus I get to boss old people around. It’s actually fun.”

Min Ho shook his head. “No, thanks. I get to boss old people around with this job and I still hate it,” he replied, pouring himself another glass of Bourbon. “Besides, I’m not like you. You’re wired for this stuff, Woo Bin-ah.”

His best friend was the heir to the Hyundai Group’s fortune. While Min Ho’s grandfather’s company was more than twice as large, he envied his friend. He wished caring about their family business came naturally for him, too. If only his family wasn't so messed up then maybe.

"Now, can we please stop talking about work? I'm here to unwind, goddammit!" Min Ho exclaimed and the two guys chuckled as they clinked their glasses. Min Ho glanced at the couch where Min Woo was still busying himself with the women. That’s when he noticed the absence of the usual suited men around his friend.

“Ya Park Min Woo.”

“Wae?”

Min Ho narrowed his eyes at him. “Did your Mother finally get rid of your guards?”

Min Woo grinned. “Ani. President Park Geun Hye is still a hard and an overbearing Mother. I escaped from the suits.”

Min Ho’s eyes widened. “MEO? Do you want to die? What if the Blue House shuts this place down?”

“Relax, she knows where I am. She put a tail on me. She’s just scared of making a scene here and have tomorrow’s headlines splash: ‘Son of President of South Korea Partying in Luxurious Club with Stupid Chaebols.’

Woo Bin threw an ice cube at him. “YA! You’re a stupid chaebol, too!”

Min Ho smirked. “You used to be deathly afraid of your Mom. What happened? Did you finally grow a pair?” Woo Bin let out a laugh at Min Ho’s comment and gave him a high five. The girls Park Min Woo was flirting with also giggled lightly.

“Shut up. Being afraid of the dragon lady is perfectly understandable, okay? But that was before I realized that all this time I’m spending with you three might mean political leverage for me when I run for President one day. I think my Mom is secretly condoning my friendship with you, even though you people are such bad influence.”

Woo Bin laughed. “You don’t have the brain to be President, you babo!”

“You don’t need a brain to be a politician, stupid. You can hire people to think for you. What you need to be President is filthy rich friends. And filthy rich friends, I have,” he winked.

“Guys,” Jae Hyun interrupted. They looked to their left and noticed that Jae Hyun had walked near the glass walls again and resumed looking down at the dance floor. “You might want to see this. New arrival.”

The three guys strode to Jae Hyun’s side and followed his gaze. There was a woman snaking her way to the middle of the dance floor with two drinks in hand. Min Ho immediately recognized her from her CFs.

“Oh. That’s Moon Ha Rim, right? The actress,” Min Woo told them.

“Five million says she goes home with me,” Woo Bin declared as he sipped his drink and eyed the girl who began dancing seductively in the middle of the dance floor.

Jae Hyun sighed. “I’d love to get in on the action but I doubt my fiancé will want me sleeping with another girl. I only met her twice but she’s already quite taken with me. Can’t anger the daughter of Doosan Group,” he hissed. “Too bad though, because  we all know I’d win.”

“Don’t look at me,” Min Woo held his hands up. “The last thing my Mom’s approval rating needs right now is her son’s scandal with a B-list actress. Pass.”

Woo Bin scoffed