"Where is he?!!!" Jackson barged into the front door of his house, panting and breathing heavily, all the anger he had held in last night came flooding out once he left Mark's apartment, he hadn't been able to sleep a wink and had snuck out at the break of dawn before Mark could wake up. "Dad!! Dad!!" he yelled running up the long flight of stairs toward his father's home office, he run into his mother at the top of the stairs.

"What is the rucus about this early in the morning...good lord the sun is barely up" the woman cupped his son's face in her hands and looked at him "...look at you, did you even sleep?" she pecked his lips.

"Where is your husband?" Jackson took his mom's hand off his face gently even though his voice was angry.

"Your father." The woman said firmly

"Is he?! ...that son of a is not my father... He's a monster, an animal who prey on..." Jackson's words were cut short by a slap to his face, this was the first time his mother had hit him in his entire life.

"You may despise your father or even hate him all you want but you will respect him. Am i clear?!" The woman's hands shook from the remorse of having struck his son, but he had crossed the line and he wasn't too old to be disciplined.

Jackson let out a dry laugh "You always take his side!" he screamed at his mother "You've become so blinded by the money and the power that you don't even realize the kind of man you are married to!!" he smiled at his mom with warm eyes "he is going to go down sooner or later and if you don't leave him while you still can you will go down with him" he walked past her and barged into his father's office. His mom started to follow after him calling out his name, but stopped and turned around deciding she wasn't in the mood to deal with those two, nobody ever listened to her anyway.

He barged into his dad's office and was restrained by two of his dad's guards "Get your ing hands off me!!" he yelled throwing his fist and missing the face of one. His dad motioned for the guards to let go of him and they let him go "was it you?!" he kicked one of the guards in the shin "you?" he kicked another one "Which one of you bastards hit my boyfriend in the head?...won't you talk?" he kept hitting one guard after the other.

"Enough" his father's voice was calm "Enough!!" he raised his voice which stopped Jackson from kicking the guards.

"Is this how we're going to do this? hmm?" Jackson moved closer to his father's desk glaring at him.

"I simply wanted to talk to the boy" his dad got out of is seat and poured two glasses of whiskey, he pushed one glass to the edge closer to Jackson.

"You kidnapped him!!" Jackson bellowed unable to control his anger.

"is that what he told you?" His father sat back down.

Jackson rolled his eyes behind closed lids and run his hand through his hair, he grabbed the glass of whiskey and sat down in the chair across from his dad "You had him followed, had his apartment torn apart...dad, please i'm begging you lay off him" Jackson tried to reason with his dad.

"No" His father's answer was short and blunt.

"No." Jackson repeated to which his father nodded " then you leave me no choice...I will go to the police with everything i know about you... i will go to the press about you and the prime minister" Jackson threatened.

His father laughed "You can't talk about my dealings with the prime minister without implicating yourself, you were there that night and you were my alibi when the police came calling" he stared dead straight at his son looking for the slightest flinch but he was impressed when he saw no reaction.

"I was a minor, you manipulated me i won't be charged for nothing" Jackson stared back at his dad keeping his composure even though he didn't believe his own words.

"Try it and we will both go down" his father broke their eye contact "I wonder what your pretty little sissy will think when he finds out what you did for me or rather with me" he noticed the quick change in Jackson's face before he put his poker face back on and smiled knowing he'd hit the right nerve.

"I had no hand in what you did that night" Jackson stood up "and his name is Mark" he turned around to leave.

"he left unharmed the last time" his father's voice stopped Jackson in his tracks "next time, i'm not so sure"

Jackson turned to face his father "If you think i'm going to sit and watch you hurt him then you've got it wrong"

"If you think i'm going to sit and watch my son become a then you've got it wrong!" His father raised his voice. Jackson turned around and stormed out of the office pushing a guard out of his way.

~~~7777777~~~

Mark slowly drifted out of his deep slumber, he hadn't slept that good in a long time not since he met Jackson's mom and with everything that happened, but after last night he felt light, like Jackson just took all his pain and burdens away. He reached out his arm touching Jackson's side of the bed, it was empty and cold, he figured he had been out of bed for a long time. He got out of bed wondering where Jackson had gone that early in the morning, he still wasn't used to Jackson's morning energy, he shuffled around the apartment eyes half closed. He stumbled to the kicthen and grabbed the cat feed, he knealt down beside the cusions and filled five bowls with cat food " where did your dad run off to?" he yawned rubbing the neck of the cats as they ate. He pulled out his phone and called Jackson.

"Where are you?" he placed the bag of cat food back into the kitchen and walked toward the front door when he heard the keypad beep.

"Here" Jackson replied walking in the front door, he set the box and coffee cups he had in his hands on the kicthen counter "come here" he reached for Mark's waist and pulled him towards him, he kissed his lips tenderly and hugged him, holding his head to his chest. Mark wrapped his arms around Jackson's back "are you ok?" he spoke into his chest.

"I'm ok now, holding you so close makes everything ok" Jackson spoke softly.

"Why?" Mark lifted his head off Jackson chest "Did something happen? where did you go so early on a saturday?..hmm?" he brushed a brown lock of hair off Jackson's forhead and tucked it behind his ear, he always liked it when Jackson just let his hair fall to his face like that.

"I just wanted to grab you breakfast" Jackson kissed Mark's cheek before letting go off him "here, smell that" Jackson opened the box and put it under Mark's nose.

"mm...god. doughnuts!... where is the head of the bear?" Mark took the box from Jackson 

"That met his demise in the car" Jackson laughed handing Mark his coffee.

"But that's my favorite part of the bear" Mark pouted.

"I left you the strawberry ones though"

"That's cos chocolate is your favorite"

"Oh...that's true...sorry about the head...it was so good" Jackson grinned.

"I hate you" Mark laughed.

"What should we do today?" Jackson asked as they ate their breakfast.

"I don't know" Mark's face was stuffed with doughnut.

"I'll take you somewhere, come. let's go wash up" Jackson pulled Mark to his feet.

"I'm not done!" Mark protested taking one last bite of his strawberry frosted doughnut before being dragged away by Jackson.

~~~7777777~~~

Jackson had one hand on the steering wheel and one hand intertwined with Mark's on his lap, he stole sideways glances at Mark who was looking out the window at the countryside view, he watched as the big trees lining the winding mountain way cast shadows on Mark's face, and the way the lights of the intermitent sunshine seeping through the thick greens made Mark's skin glow, he felt something tug at the corners of his heart as his stomach filled with butterflies.

"Keep your eyes on the road" Mark laughed softly without turning his face from the window.

"Not when you look like that" Jackson grinned.

"Are we there yet? Still won't tell me where we're going?"

"We're almost there and it's called a surprise for a reason,love"

"After two hours in the car, it better be a good one" Mark turned away from the window and looked at Jackson who glanced sideways, Mark pointed to the road chuckling.

"Yes boss." Jackson smiled turning to the road.

Half an hour later they arrived at their location. "Finally" Mark streched his back "Cheonjeyeon" he read of the sign aloud.

"Come on, come on" Jackson came around the car and grabbed Mark's hand, he started running pulling him along.

"Where are we going, slow down" Mark run harder and caught up with Jackson, they run through the bushes giggling and laughing like kids, feeling the wind in their hair and on their faces, and in that moment forgetting the rest of the world. Jackson stopped abruptly causing Mark to bump into his back.

"Ouch, !" Mark rubbed his forhead.

"Look!" Jackson pointed "Look!"

"What?" 

Jackson held the back of Mark's head and turned it "there" he pointed and wacthed as the delight took over Mark's face, he followed as Mark's walk slowly turned into a jog then a run toward the water fall. It was a large sink in the mountain with the whitest waterfall and the bluest water. They splashed around  in the water, catching eachother and letting go, their laughter echoed in the sink. After tiring themselves out, they sat on a large rock in the middle of the pool of water under the waterfall.

"This place is paradise" Mark tried to catch his breath.

"You like it?" 

"I love it"

"Good" Jackson laid back on the rock and gestured for Mark to lay beside him.

"It's so peaceful here...I wish today would never end" Mark folded his arms behind his head, closed his eyes and listened to the sound of the water crushing into the pool.

"We can come back here anytime you want, it can be our little sanctuary"

"I like the sound of that" Mark chuckled. 

Jackson his side and looked at Mark, he didn't know how he was going to fight his dad, he was so afraid of losing Mark, he closed the gap between them and placed his head on Mark's chest, he wrapped his arms around him and they laid there until it got too cold.

They stopped to do some grocerry shopping on their way back to Seoul, they stood in the parking garage,behind the booth of the car, crouched low as they filled it with goods from their cart.

"Where is the Kimchi?" Mark asked

"We didn't buy Kimchi" Jackson rolled his eyes.

"Yes we did" Mark opened all the bags and checked

"I guess i'm going back in there" Jackson cocked his head to the side and grimaced.

"yes hon, thank you" Mark smiled

"Shoot!! I think i left my wallet at the counter as well" Jackson said patting down his pockets.

"Well, go check and don't forget the kimchi, i'll send you back if you do"

"ok.ok...I'll be right back" Jackson pecked Mark's cheek and run back to the shop.

Mark shook his head smiling, that was so typical Jackson "hey!!" he heard a voice behind him. He turned and found himself staring down the barrel of a gun and a heavy set masked man towering over him.

"Pl..please...take whatever you want....do..don't.." Mark stuttered holding his hands up.

"Shut up" the masked man growled "over there" he pointed the gun toward a dark corner, Mark moved slowly toward the corner shaking, "faster!" the man shoved the gun in Mark's back. He placed his elbow under Mark's chin pinning him against the wall, he cocked the gun and placed it on his forhead. Mark let out a whimper as he felt the hard, cold, metal against his skin, he shut his eyes tight, his tears falling freely.

"Please...you don't have to do this...just take whatever you want" his voice shook as the words raced out of his trembling mouth.

"This is your last warning" the man pressed the gun harder to Mark's forhead and pushed into his throat choking Mark "Stay...away...from Jackson" the man paused on his words for emphasis, Mark choked clutching at the man's arm, he couldn't breathe "Nod if you understand" the man growled. Mark nodded scratching at the man's arm. The man let go off him and dissapeared into the darkness, Mark fell to the floor wheezing and clucthing his throat as he took deep breaths.

Jackson run out of the store and panicked when he didn't see Mark at the car, he felt the hairs on his skin stand up, he just knew Mark was in trouble. He turned around in circles looking franctically in every direction. "Mark?!!" he screamed looking, he dropped the bag in his hand "Mark! Mark!" he spotted him and run toward Mark crouching on the floor in the corner of the parking lot shaking all over.

"Jackson!" Mark almost knocked both of them over given the speed and force with which he run into his arms.

"It's ok, it's ok,it's ok...i'm here now, i'm here" Jackson held the sobbing Mark in his arms. Mark was so shaken he would have fallen to the ground if Jackson wasn't holding him. Jackson knew he wasn't going to get anything out of Mark in that state, he put his arm behind his knee and carried him to the car. When they got home, Mark was running a fever, he was drifting in and out of consciosness, shaking and mumbling in his sleep. Jackson left the groceries in the car and carried Mark upstairs, he got a towel and water to try and bring his fever down, he saw the red bruises on his neck as he wiped his forhead. He cried softly as he nursed Mark throughout the night, his heart was breaking knowing that it was because of him.

~~~7777777~~~

Jackson stood behind the couch in the private detective's office looking out the window, it was the first week of october and the leaves were already changing, he couldn't believe it had been only a month since his parents had come barging into his life, it felt like a century. It had been almost two weeks since the incident at the shopping center, Mark told him someone had tried to rob him and had run off when they realized he didn't have anything on him, but of course he knew Mark would do that, try to protect him and deal with everything on his own.

"Jackson, are you listening to me?" 

"yes, yes...but i was a minor then"

" That's true, but such cases are dicey..besides your father has his political allies protecting him..with the prime minister in his pocket he is untouchable"

"So what do you think i should do?"

"You can't take him down, try to reach a compromise"

"I can't!! I won't!...he want's to take away the only thing that matters to me in this world and i won't let that happen"

"The very person you are trying to protect is the only one who is going to get hurt in this...If you really want to help him then you should let him go...you know this better than anyone"

"No!...I'll find a way" Jackson raised his voice glaring at the detective, he was angry mostly because the middle aged man was right and he hated to admit the truth, he wasn't ready to accept that truth, they belonged with eachother, there is no way he was going to let go off him,never!.

Jackson returned to work and went straight to find Mark, he found him in the dancing studio doing what he does best, he watched from the door way for a while, just adoring the way his body moved.

"hey" Mark waved him over when he saw him "how long have you been watch