Archive of Our Own ^beta

They are paid upfront. The entire sum appears on Jaehyun’s account as soon as he hangs up, the numerous zeroes blinking at him from the computer screen. They are given a lot of information about the target via email soon after that, so Johnny doesn’t have to search hard to organise the espionage. It’s a plus - they weren’t given much time to prepare and they have to travel to China quite soon, but since the money is already there, there’s no harm in trying; they’ve done better on worse terms. They only need to hire a few more people to form a temporary team and truth be told, they never had any trouble finding and recruiting volunteers. They switch their employees often, relying only on each other in the long run. Everyone wants to be on their team, everyone wants to try diving with the most famous duo. Seo Johnny and Jung Jaehyun have reached a point where they are internationally recognized, if you’re interested in their line of work you must have heard of them. They have a reputation and there’s an air of respect surrounding their names. They’re called the best Extractors and neither of them are the slightest bit inclined to deny it. Jaehyun’s face alone makes a few people he’s met along the way tense up, even if they were the ones hiring him, not his targets. They’ve seen what he’s capable of and would be rightfully frightened by his mere presence. No one likes to be in the palm of someone’s hand, bare and vulnerable, and Jaehyun is able to reduce most to such a state once he gets to work.

He and Johnny train the lucky chosen ones in the span of a single week. The two of them are completely green, local, fresh to the scene and excited about their work. Both put a lot of effort into preparing themselves and they perform excellently when under. Both are Chinese students from the nearby university and had found out about the job together. One of them wants to build and renovate cathedrals, the other takes an interest in the chemical balance of a human - they are perfect. They work well as a team, adapt very quickly, know how to behave down under even if only one of them is supposed to take the dive.

Next friday comes and finds them ready.

Or so they think, when their target, Moon Taeil, falls asleep and Chenle’s careful hands sneak up his arm to press the needle connected to the PASIV device in a suitcase he’d brought along. They’re above a noisy club in one of the secluded, small, extra-paid rooms. When Jaehyun enters the place, closing the door after him and Johnny, Renjun is already down under. His eyes are moving rapidly under the closed lids even if his body isn’t tense at all, his arms relaxed at his sides as he faces the ceiling with his head perched up on the leather backrest. With the dimmed lights of the room he looks almost like a human-sized doll, dressed up for a night out. Down there, he’s diligently preparing the location for them and while Jaehyun has a vague idea of how it looks like because of all the trials they had gone through, he’s interested to see the detailed version be put to actual use, unlike during the dress rehearsals. Moon’s mind is about to bring to life what Renjun has created.

Soon, Jaehyun’s plugged in as well, closing his eyes and feeling his consciousness shimmer and sieve into the dream realm, Johnny at his side releasing the last deep breath before they both get pulled under into the shared creation.

All goes well until it doesn’t.

Deep brown eyes, filled with betrayal.

An umbrella tumbling on the pavement.

A stop sign, glaring red.

Shimmering lights.

Jaehyun wakes up with a start, his back hitting the leather backrest behind him.; A few mere, drowsy blinks pass before he realises he’s staring straight into the barrel of a gun. Inhaling sharply, he tries to back out on pure instinct, but there is no way to move in the small VIP room they reside in, with the big half-moon sofa filling nearly all of the space. In the corner of his eye he sees Johnny calmly looking up at the blond man standing in front of them, eyes clear and unmoving, his friend’s pursed lips the only visible sign of distress. No one dares to speak, the noises from the party downstairs fill the silence hanging heavy between the six men, four sitting down and two standing.

Their Architect is sitting on the opposite side of Jaehyun and Johnny, his forehead shiny with perspiration and his big doe eyes stretched wide in fear. He’s trembling slightly, trying to swallow against the blade that’s pressing against his throat.

Mister Moon smiles, shaking his head slowly as he tightens his grip on the knife. “Incredible. You’re quite something else, mister Jung.”

Jaehyun swallows down a curse and speaks up slowly. “Please, let Renjun go. Him and Chenle. They have nothing to do with this.” His eyes dart to their Chemist by the entrance, paralyzed in his spot as he stares at his friend with fear painted on his features. He’s so close to the door, standing there as if he stumbled upon the situation by accident. He could easily run and save himself but it was clear he wouldn’t leave without the Architect.

The businessman hums, watching as the blade he’s holding reflects the red light of the room, glistening. “You only hired them for this heist, I assume?”

Jaehyun gulps. “Correct. It was their first time.” Technically, that isn’t true; both Renjun and Chenle underwent a preparation process and have dived in many times. This, however, is their first mission, their first time sharing a dream with someone who didn’t even know he was dreaming with intruders, sharing the dream with someone else.

Or at least, who wasn’t supposed to know about it.

Moon cocks his head to the side. “That’s not a very reliable team, if I’m being honest.” Jaehyun keeps quiet, so the man continues. “You still managed to trick me well enough, though. I almost caved in. Believed I wasn’t dreaming for a while. That’s very impressive. No wonder everyone spoke so highly of you.”

Everyone speaks highly of me because they know better than to make me their enemy, Jaehyun thinks briefly. I’ve extracted from too many of them to be treated with anything but respect.

“Thank you,” he chooses to say.

Moon lets out a chuckle and lowers the knife. Renjun inhales loudly, his hands flying up to touch his throat, Chenle running to his side in a flash to check up on him. The blond man pointing his gun at Jaehyun and Johnny remains unmoving, his face hard, made of stone. Not even his eyelids move for a second to blink.

Moon smiles, his eyes squinting into crescents. It’s a polite smile. “You two, leave now before I change my mind.” Renjun and Chenle scramble out, not risking a glance back. Jaehyun can’t blame them. “Very well. We really won’t find anyone better than you, can we? No one else has come so far. Maybe if it wasn’t for Sicheng over here, you would have escaped. I think you’ve passed the test.”

Jaehyun’s train of thought comes to a screeching halt.

“The test…?”

“Yes!” Moon clasps his hands together. “I need to hire only the most skilled Extractor. Others weren’t even able to convince me I’m not dreaming and trust me, I’ve tested many. Most of them panicked so easily but not you, mister Jung. You know your way around… down there.”

Johnny takes a quiet but sharp inhale. “It’s you who hired us for this heist. You paid us to extract the information from yourself.”

“Precisely,” Moon nods his head. “I had to see for myself just how good you two are. If you two are the best team as everyone says, I might as well be one of your best opponents. I’m difficult to work against. No one has ever stolen anything from me.” He says with pride, tapping his temple with a finger.

Jaehyun lets himself take on a more relaxed position but isn’t letting his guard down just yet. “So, you wanted to hire the best team. Can I ask, what’s the extraction you want us to perform? We have the right to refuse your offer.” He says as if there isn’t a gun pointed at the spot between his eyes.

Moon leans back, resting his head on the leather couch. His eyelids lower. “Sicheng, could you fetch me a drink? I always wake up thirsty.” The gunman lowers his weapon and stuffs it in the back of his pants, barely hiding it from plain sight. He sends a pointed look towards Jaehyun and Johnny before he leaves the room, letting the loud music in for two seconds. Moon coughs. “See, here’s the thing. Extraction isn’t the thing I need from you, actually. I’m not interested in finding any information down there. Rather than that, I want you to insert something new while you’re there. Hence I need the best men to perform the operation.”

Silence. Then Johnny laughs. His shoulders shake.

“You want inception?” He asks, disbelief and amusement evident in his voice. “You’re a daring man, mister Moon. Inception isn’t exactly on our to-go list. I don’t think any Extractors I’ve heard of have done it with a success. It’s nearly impossible to perform it well.”

“They used to say the same about sharing dreams,” Moon points out “and now here we are. Manipulating someone else’s consciousness because we intrude there. Nearly impossible means there’s a slight chance, right? If nowadays it’s so simple to enter someone’s mind, bend it to our will to get what we want, what’s stopping us from taking a few steps more and changing a thing or two while we’re already there?”

Johnny’s lips quirk up, an uncomfortable smile appearing on his face. “Technically there’s nothing stopping us. We’ve performed inception, actually.” His eyes dart to Jaehyun for a split second before they’re back on Moon. “But it wasn’t a clean operation. It failed. There aren’t any methods to incept something in someone’s mind without repercussions. Either it gets rejected like a bad transplant, the body recognizing the foreign idea like a virus, or the information we wanted to put there gets twisted and absorbed in a way that wasn’t planned. It’s delicate. While we sleep, we’re the most defenseless and that’s why it’s the easiest way to get the information, but also the easiest way to mess with our mind. We have to be careful. We can’t leave any trace while we only visit, let alone leave something there on purpose. We’re good at mind games but there are limits.”

To the surprise of everyone, Moon snorts out loud. Johnny blinks at him, almost offended, as the older man chuckles behind his hand, shaking his head. “And you want me to believe that after you’ve failed you just decided to stop trying? You two? The famous Extractor and his Point Man? Please, I’m no fool. You’ve worked with the Chemist who manufactured the formula for longer shared dreams without damaging the body of Dreamers. You’re one of the few who actually entered a dream in a dream. You were in the first team who stayed under for a while after the Dreamer woke up! Should I list your accomplishments further? Here’s what I think. I think you thrive to stay the best. To outdo yourself. You’ve already been first to perform certain things, I know you wouldn’t treat one failure as a sign to stop trying going in this direction.”

Jaehyun doesn’t even realize he’s clenching his fists until he looks down. He immediately forces his body to relax, to stay blank. “I never agree to inception. Not after the last time we tried it. It costed us too much.”

Moon looks at him with an unreadable expression. On the first sight he doesn’t seem like a dangerous man; he’s short, has a friendly face and and a slight built, but there’s something in his stare that makes him look threatening, makes you feel like you should be careful around him or he’s going to see a chance to launch. He leans forward. “So what they say is true, isn’t it? About your fiance. How you lost him.”

“I don’t think you are in any position to talk about it,” Johnny speaks up. There’s ice in his voice and in his glare. Jaehyun wants to touch his shoulder to let him know it’s okay but doesn’t find it in himself to move. Somehow he’s paralyzed, never breaking eye contact with Moon.

The man doesn’t seem to notice he’s walking on a forbidden territory. There’s a glint in his eye that makes Jaehyun feel uneasy but at the same time he can’t look away. Moon ignores Johnny and speaks up. “It was him, right? The man in the dream. The pink haired one. He doesn’t look like someone my consciousness would just put in the crowd. It was a Shade you brought with yourself, right?”

There it is. The only drawback in all work Jaehyun and Johnny do.

The Shade of Taeyong constantly appearing whenever Jaehyun goes under ever since Taeyong has been murdered twenty months ago.

The deep brown eyes, the stop sign, the umbrella, all small reminders of Taeyong, all accompanying his Shade.

The Shade that can either just observe from afar, merging with the background, or can try to sabotage Jaehyun, putting him out of focus and making the target realize something’s off.

The fatal flaw of Jaehyun - the love of his life.

“Is there a point in this?” Jaehyun asks at last, his voice void of any emotion. He’s gripping his knee again. His jaw is set. “We said no. You bringing up my fiance won’t change much. You can’t manipulate me using him, he’s dead, as you know. This is going nowhere.”

Mister Moon stretches his lips out in a smile, but it’s not an awkward or apologetic smile that Jaehyun would have expected. His lips and eyes seem to be signalling that he knows something that the other two don’t. Jaehyun, despite all odds, is so transfixed on it he doesn’t even notice when Sicheng slips back in, one glass in his hand that he soon passes to Moon. The man takes a sip before he bothers to speak up.

“What if I told you you can see him again?” He finally asks, glass still close to his lips.

“I would say you’re crazy and sadistic and Jaehyun would agree,” Johnny’s facial expression is unpleasant. He gets down on the floor and starts packing up the suitcase, whirring back the tubes with disposable needles. “You’re trying to play mind games with professional mind tricksters? Please.”

The ice in the glass of water clinks. Moon sighs. “You’ve never seen the body. You just trusted the police when they told you he’s dead. You disappeared from South Korea soon after and never returned, correct?”

Jaehyun’s face shifts. He feels uncomfortable. This man has much more knowledge about him than he should, as if he’s done his background research when they did theirs. “Yes, that’s correct. Where are you going with this?”

“You believed your fiance is gone based on a word of a stranger. Isn’t that a little naive? Well, technically police is to be trusted,” Moon muses, pursing his lips “but in your line of work, is anyone, really? For someone who’s so careful and calculated down under you acted pretty hastily on that.”

Jaehyun’s nostrils flare. He huffs, feeling his blood boil. “Drop your act. We’re going to leave.”

“Your Taeyong isn’t dead. He’s been taken.”

Johnny’s hand slips on the latch and he curses, grasping his palm with the other one. Jaehyun sits still.

“I’ve seen him three weeks ago. Your Shade only confirmed what I’ve already figured out. That scar next to his right eye is too characteristic. I asked around to be sure but now that I’ve seen him as your Shade I have no doubts left. Your fiance is alive but held hostage.”

Jaehyun releases a shaky breath. His heartbeat picks up and his hands start to sweat.

“If this is some sort of game… If you do it just because you enjoy messing with people then know I will get back at you to even this out…”

“Oh, there’s no need for that,” Moon raises one hand with his palm open as he puts down the glass and snaps his fingers at Sicheng. The man pulls out a folder from underneath his jacket. “I know this is a lot to take in. And I’ve just nagged you about believing a word without any evidence backing it up, so please know I didn’t come empty-handed. There you go.”

Sicheng hands the file towards them. Johnny looks at it with mixed emotions painted on his features as Jaehyun with shaking fingers takes it into his hands. He opens the folder and feels his breath being punched out of him by an invisible force.

There, on a grainy candid picture taken on an unfamiliar street, stands Taeyong. He’s looking to his side, his eyebrows raised as he’s looking at something, maybe expecting someone. He looks tired and has black hair, a sight unusual for his bright choices. The scar shaped like a flower is pretty visible even if the quality of the picture isn’t the most perfect.

The nose, the jawline, the lips. It’s him. There’s no doubt in that.

Jaehyun feels himself shudder as emotions start to shake him up from inside. “Where did you get this from? Where is he?” His breath hitches. He can’t believe what he’s seeing. After twenty months of mourning and healing his wound is being ripped open again. The skin is torn apart and there’s the worst kind of medicine being applied to it - hope.

“He’s a part of what I want to hire you for,” Moon’s holding the glass again, his gaze shifting from Johnny to Jaehyun and back. Both men don’t move. “I met him at a summit I attended not long ago, he was introduced as Kim Jaejoong but didn’t react to the name afterwards. I knew something wasn’t right so I digged a bit since it could have helped my cause. I believe he’s working for one of Nakamoto’s partners as an Extractor. You see, Nakamoto Yuta is the man I want you to perform inception on.”

“Is he involved in this? Does this Nakamoto guy know where to find Taeyong?” Jaehyun stutters out, torn between looking up at Moon and staring down at the picture of his fiance. A single picture that causes him to feel more at once than he had in over a year. His chest feels so full it’s almost uncomfortable.

Moon bites his lip. “I don’t think he knows, no. He’s young, fairly innocent and caught in the middle. He inherited his father’s company and leads it well but is way too gullible for his own sake. There are too many snakes around him and he’s not seeing things they’re doing behind his back.” His eyes shine. “I want him to see what’s happening and take action and I can’t do it without his partners realising I’m trying to speak to him. They know I’m onto them.” His gaze shifts onto Jaehyun. “One of them is Hirai, the man in whose dream you tried to perform inception. The one who you thought killed your fiance, am I correct?”

Jaehyun stops shaking. His veins ice up. A bitter taste appears on his tongue. A few captured moments flash before his eyes: the man’s face when he woke up and realised someone tried to mess with his mind, then the letter Jaehyun received before the worst event of his life had happened. The umbrella that tumbled on the pavement as Jaehyun hurried home only to find it empty. The red stop sign that almost got bent by Jaehyun’s car, speeding off after the van that took off from his front yard as soon as he stepped onto his lawn.

“It’s him, yes.” He absentmindedly caresses his fiance’s silhouette on the picture on his lap. “That man took him away from me. He warned me he’ll come after me but I was too proud to admit defeat. I thought we were safe. But he came after Taeyong and crushed me. Said to never come back to SK or he’ll keep targeting my other loved ones… I couldn’t even imagine what else could he do. After I’ve lost Taeyong it felt like nothing ever will touch me again. That my limit was crossed. That I-I’ll never be whole again.”

His own words clog his throat. He struggles to breathe. It feels like there’s too much happening at once. He’s suffocating on memories. Soon there’s a comforting hand on his shoulder as Johnny takes the seat next to him and glances down at the picture of Taeyong. His eyes soften immediately and there’s a small smile tugging on his lips. He seems lighter. “He’s not gone, Jae. Taeyong is alive and we can get him back.” He looks up at Moon. “How can we do it?”

The man glances towards his guard again. Sicheng nods and leaves the room. “Nakamoto Enterprises is planning to buy a building located in a region that’s already heavily infiltrated by them. I’m certain this is to help their business flow better and that’s how Nakamoto himself sees it, but I also know that it’s connected to all the illegal trade and money laundering his partners are invested in. They’re using his power. It’s just a building but I think we can use it as an opportunity to make Nakamoto see he’s being used as a cover-up and shouldn’t trust his associates.” Moon shakes his head. “I’d love to work with him. He’s brilliant and has great ideas, and I know we’d be powerful as a team. But I can’t have his entire background taint whatever business we’d do together.”

“So you’re just helping us because you like the guy?” Johnny chuckles. “This seems much bigger for us than it’s for you.”

“Oh, don’t get me wrong,” Moon returns the chuckle. “It’s a fair trade. I’m no small business owner but with Nakamoto and I joining forces we could be unstoppable. It would increase my income while not keeping me up at night, having me think about all the terrible things happening that I know of but can’t do anything about. He needs to put a stop to it but he won’t do it without the two of you.”

The gunman returns, carrying a suitcase only a bit thinner than the PASIV one. He places it at Jaehyun and Johnny’s feet and unclasps the latches with a click, raising the lid towards him. Inside it there are various folders and items, pictures and papers.

“The suitcase contains all necessary information on Nakamoto and his partners,” Moon explains “anything that I deemed important for you to know should be there. In case you need something more you will contact me through Sicheng. Your pay will be double the amount you’ve received this time because one, I know it’s more difficult, and two, I want you to carry out the task with a more reliable team. Someone you’d trust with the life of your loved one.”

Jaehyun nods. He’s already thinking of a few people to contact and knows Johnny has some friends he’s going to call soon. “We’ll let you know when we’re ready.”

Moon grimaces. “Great, but also I need you to know that you have less than three weeks to prepare. Nakamoto Yuta is a busy man, constantly watched by his partners and their employees to ensure he’s not getting corrupted. I managed to arrange a place for you to work. He’s going to be on a cruise in 19 days, my trusted friend on the inside owns the ship and will make sure you aren’t bothered while you go under.”

Johnny tsks. “That’s not much time.”

“I want to take the risk.” Jaehyun says hurriedly, clutching the picture in his hands. It’s creasing but he doesn’t notice. “It’s our chance.”

“Once Nakamoto severs the ties with his partners, they’ll be vulnerable. In shambles. He’s the most influential of them all and they all just latch onto him.” Moon stands up. “This is when you can try to get your fiance back. I’ll know where to find him and Hirai will be too focused on protecting his own back to care about someone who’s dead in the eyes of the world.”

“I’ll have him back.” Jaehyun whispers.

Moon smiles. It’s the most gentle smile to appear on his lips the entire evening. He grabs his empty glass and heads towards the exit, Sicheng stepping to the side to let him pass. “Oh, one more thing. Since Nakamoto is so vital to their team, he’s protected at all costs. I can get rid of his guards up above but once you’re down there, everything’s up to you. I’m not that worried, though. He’s been trained by your fiance, after all.”

They’re departing at the airport three days later, their luggage small enough for a short travel. They don’t intend on staying there for too long. Johnny is flying to Thailand where he knows two of their friends are currently residing in, so he can ask them face to face to join. They used to work together and have joined forces on different occasions so both him and Jaehyun expect the two to agree, especially with all their shared memories and the prize at stake.

They both have met Taeyong. They loved him as much as anyone who’s ever met him did. The four of them might not have seen each other for a while but this was a reason for them all to reunite.

Jaehyun himself is headed to New York. He hasn’t set his foot there in a long time but has someone there whom he needs to visit. An old friend. Someone who might be willing to help out.

Lee Minhyung. Mark Lee. The younger stepbrother of Taeyong. Jaehyun’s almost-brother-in-law.

They haven’t seen each other in more than two years. At first their schedules clashed too much, with Jaehyun working irregular hours and Mark studying abroad. Then, when Jaehyun moved into the same country after the incident in South Korea, it had already become too delicate. The rope bridge that bound them together has been ripped out and thrown away and the gaping hole that was left made it impossibly hard for Jaehyun to reach out across. He was too scared. Too fragile to see his own tragedy mirrored. He knew Mark was informed about Taeyong’s “death” but never made any effort to contact him. The wound was too fresh and as strong as he was, Jaehyun could easily see how he would crumble upon meeting Mark’s gaze, his eyes too painfully similar and full of emotion. So he avoided him, until now.

Now he’s got a purpose. Now Mark is needed.

Finding out about Mark’s whereabouts was easy; Jaehyun’s skilled in extracting information from both above and under, experience and personal charm the main factors. The door to the classroom where his friend’s lecture is taking place is partially made of glass, so Jaehyun can peek in and drag his gaze across all faces staring blankly at the board, various stages of boredom present on the features of students.

He quickly spots Mark. The boy has barely changed since he last time saw him. The same small nose, even the same haircut. His eyes are quickly scanning whatever’s being displayed on the board as he writes down the notes without lowering his gaze. Jaehyun moves to the side, opting to wait by the door for the remaining few minutes of the class.

Soon the students start spilling out of the room, the chatter filling up the empty university corridors. When Mark exits and turns left, a notebook under his arm as he uses his free hand to thumb over his phone screen, he suddenly freezes, his steps halting. He looks sideways, right at Jaehyun who’s leaning against the wall. He zeroes in on him as if he felt his presence, a pull of sorts.

Mark inhales. His expression is not one easy to read. “Oh. Hyung.”

“Hello, Mark,” Jaehyun allows himself to smile. Mark hasn’t jumped his ass first second after seeing him so maybe he’s not mad about his sudden appearance after radio silence, at least for now. “Long time no see.”

Mark blinks at him. The rest of the students move past him and walk away without a second stare towards the two men. The silence from before spreads between the two of them now, palpable and uncomfortable. Mark’s forehead creases, he looks like he’s chewing on his own words, trying them out before he finally settles on: “Did something happen?”

Jaehyun takes a few seconds to answer. “What do you mean?”

“With mom? Or uncle? I don’t think you’d be here otherwise,” he smiles, but it’s an empty smile. A bitter one, overshadowed by the worry slowly blooming in dark shades on his young face. “It’s been two years. You wouldn’t just seek me without a reason. You’re not the type to do so, hyung. You’re obviously not here to just catch up.”

Jaehyun breathes out, impressed. “I forgot how good you can be at reading people.”

“I just know you, hyung. Even if you don’t expect me to, after this time.” Mark’s mouth twitches. “Now tell me what brought you here. Or rather, who did. You’re worrying me.”

Jaehyun doesn’t break the eye contact but neither does he step closer. He merely straightens his posture as he says, “Taeyong.”

Now it’s Mark’s turn to be at loss of words. He blinks a few times, eyebrows furrowing as he looks Jaehyun up and down. “I don’t think I know what you want from me here, man. I thought he was the reason you were gone. Now you’re back?”

“He’s alive.”

A beat. Two beats. A few blinks. A janitor turning around the corner a few feet away, his feet shuffling against the tiled floor.

“Taeyong’s…. alive?” Mark utters out. His body is seemingly tensing and relaxing at the same time. “How would that be even possible? I thought he- that they-”

“He’s been alive this whole time,” Jaehyun jumps in, his voice ushered as if he was sharing a secret. In a way, it was just the case: the information has been kept hidden for so long Jaehyun still doesn’t feel it’s actually real. It’s too surreal. Feels too perfect. He steps closer. “They took him. They took him away and made us believe he’s dead just to scare me off. Just to make me run away and let them free-reign in the country. They knew threatening me never worked so they aimed for Taeyong and-” his voice hitches. He’s been through it too many times. The guilt, the hurt, the risk he took, the should-have-known-betters. He carried the dark burden of being the indirect killer for the past two years. Now there was a light again. “They made it look like he was gone for good, but no one ever saw the body. The police is too easy to corrupt, staging that was like a snap of fingers for them.”

Jaehyun takes a shaky breath, hand moving to rest on Mark’s shoulder. “I wouldn’t have come if I wasn’t certain. Taeyong is out there alive and well. And we can get him back. There’s a way but I might need you.”

Mark’s eyes shine in an indescribable way. “I’ll help. I’ll do what I can. I want my hyung back.”

Jaehyun allows himself to smile. His heart feels lighter even if it’s just the beginning. “What I’m going to do to get him back isn’t exactly legal…”

“Oh, please,” Mark scoffs. “As if you have done anything legal ever since Taeyong and you became Extractors for hire. I know the espionage is illegal. Just tell me where you see me in this plan you have. What do you want me to do?”

Jaehyun takes a breath.

“I want you to build.”

Jaehyun doesn’t really spend too much time in one place. He keeps getting hired all around the world and on top of that, he can’t really go back to his real home in South Korea, the one he shared with Taeyong. During his visit in the States he doesn’t even bother to go to his current house in Connecticut. Nothing awaits him there. He goes there maybe once a month. Doesn’t own any plant or animals. He’s always on the road, in the whirr of work. Johnny sometimes longs to go back but doesn’t feel like letting Jaehyun take up offers by himself, so he either bites his tongue and joins him or straight up forces his friend to go to his family house with him. Planes became the place where Jaehyun finds himself most often. He’s so used to them he doesn’t even realize he should warn Mark about the change of pressure during the flight or maybe entertain him on the way. Luckily there’s no need; Mark is transfixed on the view outside the window, his eyes never leaving the ever-changing colors of clouds and the sky. They both fall asleep soon and wake up when the plane’s wheels touch the airstrip in Japan.

They have a place here, Johnny and Jaehyun. A safehouse of sorts. Warehouse big enough to pose as a small house, with separate rooms divided by rusty walls you could move in their tracks, opening them up like a wardrobe. The air there is heavy and the smell is tangy but it does its job as a temporary hideout. Is secluded enough not to raise suspicion when suddenly it stops being empty and people begin to disappear inside for different intervals of time. Looks deserted. Serves well for meetings like the one Jaehyun and Mark walk into.

The younger stays two steps behind Jaehyun as they enter. The doors groan heavily when Jaehyun opens them, making people gathered inside look towards the source of noise.

Everyone is already here, Jaehyun notices. Johnny’s setting up chairs in a circle, his sleeves cuffed and blazer missing. Doyoung is spreading the contents of the suitcase they received from Moon on a big wooden table in the middle, putting the papers in neat stacks and arranging the pictures so all of them face upwards, showing the people they capture. Ten sits near the table, palms tucked under his thighs as he watches Doyoung’s work with anticipation, his feet tapping the floor. Even Sicheng the gunman stands close, near a big blackboard on wheels, his face as blank as it was the last time Jaehyun saw him. They all must have just gotten here recently.

All four faces are now looking towards them and Jaehyun hears Mark behind him shift from one foot to the other. He’s nervous, stepping into a foreign territory.

Jaehyun breathes out. “Doyoung, Ten. Good to see you here.”

“What, I don’t get a greeting?” Johnny asks, quirking one eyebrow. Jaehyun ignores him.

Doyoung smiles, straightening up. “Good to see you too, Jae.”

“What’s the kid doing here? Bringing coffee?” Ten chuckles, putting his feet up on the table for a brief second before Doyoung pushes them off with a scowl, gathering the papers Ten crumpled and scattered in the process.

Mark looks down, sheepish, but Jaehyun puts his hand on the boy’s shoulder and squeezes it to reassure him. He gently pushes him forward. “This is Mark. Our new Architect.”

Something flashes across Ten’s face, something that’s usually dangerous if you’re not on his side. “Oh? And we’re sure he can suffice in the job? Because from what I see, that’s Taeyong’s brother and I’m pretty sure I would have heard if he appeared in the field of our work before, so he must be very fresh to the scene.”

Jaehyun can’t hold back a smile. Ten is a people’s person in various senses of it. He has connections and lots of information on his hands so of course he is able to recognize the younger Lee brother even if he has never personally met him before, since Taeyong tried to keep him out of the scene. Ten’s observant and quick-witted and that’s why Jaehyun loves having him on board and cherishes as a friend. He’s the most insightful and perceptive person he’s ever met. “Yes, Mark has never dived before, but we all had to start somewhere. I was there during Taeyong’s first Dive and despite it being only a short session, Taeyong has managed to create an entire city on his own. And the Architect doesn’t even have to dive as long as we carry on his plans.” He glances at Mark. “Taeyong was talented and Mark here? He’s got the brains we need. He created an entire graphic video game on his own. At age twenty. Not a level, a whole story with possible scenarios.”

Mark flushes bright red. “It’s not a whole story, not even a half, the game’s a work in progress for now and I have a lot of help, we’re still deciding on various aspects while upgrading and coding what we have, we started working on it two years ago and-”

“But you’ve designed it,” Jaehyun firmly interrupts, glancing at the rest of the team. They’re all staring at Mark and there’s no malice or disinterest in their gazes; they all seem curious, even impressed. “You planned out the entire story, you mapped it out. And you did it in real world where it takes coding, proof-checking and many hours to create even a part of the space you’ve imagined so of course it’s not done yet. Down there, imagination is essentially all you need for it all to become three-dimensional. You think up stuff and then it’s all there, where you want it to be, as soon as you want it.”

“Moreover, bugs are allowed,” Johnny adds, “If there’s a hole, something that wouldn’t happen in real life and would be perceived as a glitch in a game, the mind of the Subject, the one whose mind we’re in, takes care of it. Not everything there makes sense but it doesn’t have to if it’s not vital. Some things can be left incomplete.” He quips a smile. “Make no mistake, it doesn’t mean it’s easy, especially in our line of work where stealth matters. One wrong move and the Subject might realise it’s all a dream and wake up. A single detail can ruin the entire mission, so we have to know where the bugs are allowed and where everything has to be spotless. Squeaky clean and precise.”

Mark gulps loud enough for Jaehyun to hear it but takes on a brave facade nonetheless. “I don’t settle for less than perfect. I want to help you as well as I can. I-I want to learn. I’m willing to do whatever it takes. I just want my brother back and if Jaehyun says I can help in getting him back then I’m on board. I owe it both to him and myself.”

Everyone falls silent as Ten’s chair scrapes against the floor. His face stays passive. He stands up from the chair and walks up to Mark who tenses up.

They stay at each other for a while. Finally, Ten’s face breaks into a grin.

“That’s the spirit. Welcome.” He pats Mark’s shoulder. “I’m sure you’ll do great things… Hey, Doie, where did you put the glasses? I want to have a drink with the newbie.”

Doyoung lets out a long sigh. He pinches the bridge of his nose. “You brought them with you. I told you to make space for my vials and you said I can shove them up my ass.”

“Oh yeah, that I did,” Ten chuckles, rubbing his chin. “Come, kid. We’ll discuss some things. I’m sure Jaehyun has barely touched the weight of your job, let me introduce you further and let the boring dads do the plotting.”

He grabs Mark by the elbow and leads him behind one of the moving walls. Mark looks at Jaehyun one last time before he’s pulled inside and Ten shuts the entrance behind them, dragging the wall noisily. Jaehyun tugs at the luggage and carries it further into the building. Johnny soon appears at his side, walking soundlessly.

“He really agreed, huh?” He huffs out. Jaehyun’s thankful he’s not bugging him for dragging Mark into the mission despite Taeyong’s constant pleas to leave him out. It was dangerous but he somehow felt that he owed it to the younger. The chance to partake in getting Taeyong back.

Jaehyun nods. “He even said he can go under to make sure we don’t butcher his vision when I told him we can carry out his ideas while he stays above. He’s stubborn like that. I’m not sure I want him to go under, though. It’s a risky thing and he’s really new and inexperienced.”

“Well,” Johnny’s lips curl up into a smile. “We have time. If he has even half of the raw talent Taeyong had, Mark might turn up to be the next big Architect. We’ll see. We’ll train him well. Doyoung brought enough Somnacin for us to practice.”

“I hear you distributing my Somnacin!” Doyoung shouts from where he’s kneeling by the suitcase. He’s sending them a dirty look but it lacks the malice he’s able to paint his features with. “Johnny’s right, though. I brought a lot. Freshly made. Had to bat Ten away since it smells sweet. I’ve also been experimenting a bit and this new formula… I’m going to call it Aposomnacin cause it’s different from what you know. You’ll have to see it for yourself. Ten says everything’s more vivid. Clear. Lasts a tad bit longer, too. I had to Kick him more often than not. It was kinda satisfying, I must admit.”

Jaehyun smiles. “It’s so good to have you on board, Doie.”

Doyoung snorts as he stands up, knees cracking, and walks up to them. “You say ‘good’ but we all know you mean ‘necessary’. You have no other sources of Somnacin aside from me. Besides, from what I could read up in the files, this particular work requires at least two levels down. Knowing you, even three to play it safe.” He smiles. “If going deeper into someone’s consciousness can be called ‘safe’, that is.”

Jaehyun huffs out a laugh. “You’re right. I want to dive deeper so the seed we plant there can grow wide closer to the surface. It’s better to perform inception lower. It won’t be the first time we reach so deep, too.”

“And yet you two are still the only ones who dare to enter dreams in dreams within dreams.” Doyoung shakes his head. He’s masking his respect towards Jaehyun with amusement. “I can’t decide if you’re brave or crazy. Maybe both. Unusual, that’s for sure.”

“Can’t say, too. But it surely makes you want to work with us.” Jaehyun flashes a smile. Doyoung squints at him.

“I’m here because I don’t want any of you to mess up the chance of getting Taeyong back by botching my Aposomnacin the very second you go under.” He corrects and Jaehyun’s heart jumps a beat. “I brought the regular Somnacin, too, but the target has been trained by an Extractor so the usual formula won’t work, he’d most likely realise what’s happening and we’ll be screwed. That’s why you need me to go at least one level down with you. Lower it won’t matter as much, hopefully, but we have to be really careful near the surface. I have to be there to let you dive deeper.”

Johnny gasps quietly, his eyes filled with surprise. “You’re going to dive with us?”

“Yeah, dingus,” Doyoung sighs. “I don’t have any choice this time. I’d rather stay above where everything is certain and clear but someone has to watch over. Ten is the only one here who used my new formula but he probably doesn’t remember anything about it. Had to remind him not to shoot his brains out from boredom the last time he went under even if he should have already known it by then.”

“Wait,” Jaehyun furrows his brows, “why couldn’t he? Does it not work on Aposomnacin?”

“Yes, it doesn’t wake you up, but that’s not everything,” Doyoung exhales, carding fingers through his hair. “It also sends you deeper. Like, way deeper. I’m pretty sure once you die even one level down, it propels you straight into the void. To Limbo. And I know you two are daring and cross boundaries a lot, but please. Don’t drop down there. None of us know how to get back from there. Some depths are better off unknown and unexplored.”

“You don’t have to tell me,” Jaehyun murmurs, casting his gaze downwards. “We will just use Kicks on each level. Our plan has to be precise. No room for what-ifs and trial, maybe just a little improv but that’s all. This is going to be our most difficult job but also the most rewarding one.”

One of the walls moves with an ear-splitting sound and Ten’s head pops up from behind it. “Doie! I want to dive with Mark. I think he’s ready for a test run.”

Mark walks out, looking pale but determined. He’s clenching his fists and jutting his jaw out even if he’s shaking. “I want to see it for myself before I get to work. So I know better what I’m working with.”

“I can be the Subject!” Ten grins. “So I can show Marky around.”

“No way,” Doyoung huffs, crossing his arms on his chest. “Your conscience is way too heavily guarded and misleading, everyone who worked with you says so. Your Projections would kill him in a matter of seconds. Just stay as one of the Dreamers. Jaehyun will take you both under if you two want to play so much.” He looks up at his friend, a shadow of a smile dancing on his lips. “He’s the reason we’re all here.”

Mark’s first Dive goes fairly well.

At first, he doesn’t even realise he’s dreaming, even if the place Jaehyun takes him and Ten to would clash with the Japanese culture they currently reside in. It’s more of an urban, american picture. Mark doesn’t remember falling asleep. The Somnacin Doyoung let them use might be “just regular” but still does wonders, especially to people who have never went under before.

Mark walks slowly along the pavement. It’s not a real place, but it never is; Jaehyun knows better than to bring places he’s been to down under, where memories and things he associates with it can randomly pop up and destroy the illusion of it taking place up above. It’s always risky to connect memories with dreams and he makes sure to warn Mark about it. To stress out the importance of creation as opposed to recreating things one’s familiar with.

The younger watches the tall buildings. Squints at the sun. Passes trees and lanterns on his way. Walks through a crowd of people, bumping into them and apologising even if there’s no need. Ten chuckles, hands deep in his pockets and for a second Jaehyun thinks something silver flashes from there but trusts his friend enough not to bring this up. He knows once Mark gets to work, he and Ten might have to defend themselves from Jaehyun’s own conscience if he doesn’t focus hard enough.

After a while Mark stops walking. He’s standing in front of a row of skyscrapers, five or so looking similar enough for Jaehyun to feel sheepish about it. He and Ten are standing a few feet away, feeling more than knowing that Mark’s about to make his first input.

Soon the ground begins to tremble. It gets loud, louder and the buildings start to shake, all but the one in the middle. Mark keeps staring at it as the rest of the skyscrapers in front of him begin to shrink, trembling as if there was no foundation holding them down and they were just a bunch of blocks scattered around. The ground swallows their lowest floors. Their windows dance rapidly, switching places, changing sizes. A variety of colors flashes through the dwindling buildings, creating the effect of a rainbow, going from right to left. Soon they’re all colorful, mismatched, barely a few feet tall.

Mark tips his head higher. Even though he’s facing the other way, Jaehyun is almost sure he’s squinting in deep concentration. After a few seconds the middle, remaining skyscraper lets out a metallic groan and starts turning. Twisting. The first few turns take a while but then it’s spinning faster and faster, its first floor still firmly planted on the ground as the rest twirls around until it’s not thicker than a tree by a street.

After he’s done, Mark turns around to face Ten and Jaehyun. He’s grinning, his eyes shining brightly.

“It’s incredible!” He gushes, seemingly out of breath even if he didn’t move for the last few minutes. His chest is puffed out with pride.

“It’s ugly, is what you’re trying to say,” Ten snorts, a small, genuine smile on his lips. “Prove to me you can do better than this, Marky. I know you can, but show it. Do your own thing. Don’t make it bizarre. Make it new.”

Mark furrows his brows. He looks upset for a second before something flashes in his eyes. The glisten of an idea. All of sudden, thick walls spurt out from the ground around Ten, the motion so sudden he doesn’t have the time to react. A prison made of grey bricks rises up, caging him in with the rattle of blocks grinding and hitting against each other. After a few seconds a small rectangle opens up like a hatch on one of the walls, revealing the surprised face of the man inside.

“You cheeky bastard!” Ten chokes out and is met with a series of giggles from the younger Dreamer. “I see you don’t take criticism well!”

The walls turn clear, translucent, and fall down, splashing against the ground as water. The wet patches it leaves quickly dry off. Ten shakes his head as he puts his hands on his hips. “Enough with the child play. Now, take it seriously. Show us the game of yours, for example. I’m curious if you’re as creative as Jaehyun says you are.”

Mark nods, seemingly ready to work, but then his eye catches something behind Jaehyun and Ten and he promptly freezes. His eyes go wide and his mouth opens unwillingly as he keeps staring, at loss of words. Jaehyun doesn’t have to turn around to know what he’s seeing.

“We call it a Shade,” he says, beginning to hear footsteps approaching him slowly from behind. “It’s a Projection, a shadow of a memory one of the Dreamers unintentionally brings along. Usually a person, someone close or from the past, holding a meaning. It can also be an object that matters.”

“If you see a random umbrella tumbling somewhere around us don’t get surprised,” Ten adds. “Jaehyun’s an amazing Dreamer, the best dare I say, but even he can’t keep his Shades intact.”

The Shade of Taeyong halts between the duo. It’s looking at Mark with the saddest gaze, its eyes full of raw emotion. It seems thin, its cheekbones protruding even if the Taeyong of Jaehyun’s latest memory wasn’t like this. Its pink hair is a mess although there’s no wind.

Even if the Taeyong he sees is just a deformed version of reality, Mark still says quietly, “He looks so real. I know it’s just a dream but- he looks the same.”

“He does,” Jaehyun sighs, feeling something tug at his heart as he glances at the Projection of his fiance standing next to him. The flower scar near its eye is there, on his side, in full view. “He follows me wherever I go. Sometimes even doesn’t let me execute the extraction. Bothers me when I need to focus. To be frank, I thought he’d be gone now that I know Taeyong’s alive, know that I can get him back and I didn’t cause his death, but I guess I was wrong.” The Shade finally looks at him with the same sad eyes it was giving to Mark, only now its expression turns even more painful. Jaehyun’s heart sinks into his stomach and he reminds himself to get a grip. “Well, since he’s not going anywhere, I guess we should just try not to mind him much. Mark, show us your game, but next time you’ll build something entirely new for us, okay? We need to start working on the Inception Dive soon.”

Mark tears his eyes off the Shade and nods his head at Jaehyun. “On it, hyung.”

“Mark is really talented,” Ten decides soon after they wake up, with the needle still up his arm. Mark himself is freshly out of the dream so he’s not fully contacting yet, looking lost and slightly confused. “That game he invented? It looks bomb as shit. I’d invest in it if I wasn’t spending all my money as soon as it appears on my account.”

“You big child,” Doyoung murmurs, walking up to Ten to unplug him from the PASIV Device. “But I’m glad you think he’s good. We need someone good.”

Mark blinks a few times, pulling the needle out himself with only a small grimace. He’s either brave or just faking it well, Jaehyun muses. “Thanks. I might have gotten a bit overwhelmed with all the… possibilities I had down there, but next time I’ll be better. I just need to practice.”

“It’s okay,” Johnny puts a hand on Mark’s shoulder and smiles down at him. “It was your first ever Dive, a big deal. You have time. You’ll learn.”

“Sicheng’s gone?” Jaehyun asks, seeing as there was no sign of the blonde gunman. Johnny and Doyoung both nod. “I sent him away soon after you guys went under. He’ll be back tomorrow,” Johnny explains.

“Do you think Moon will want him to go under with us, to see what we’re planning?” Jaehyun wonders, standing up from his chair and walking up to the table where Doyoung is packing up the PASIV. He gathers the used up needles with the help of a tissue and throws them into a container under the table.

Johnny hums. “I’m not sure. From what I know of him, Moon might want to go under with us himself. I did some further research on him and I guess we can trust him, but I’m not sure we need anyone else watching our hands as we’re under. We shouldn’t turn it into a whole school trip, the less people the better.”

“You researched him more after he let us go in China?” Jaehyun smiles, his dimples out on full display. “Our employer?”

Johnny raises his hands. He doesn’t look apologetic. “In my defence, he was our employer before that, too. Plus, he’s done my job on Nakamoto for me. I was bored, couldn’t find much more on the Target so I tried to make sure we aren’t siding up with the wrong guy. He’s not in the wrong, I checked. You’re welcome, by the way.” He finishes off with a tint of sarcasm but Jaehyun flashes him an even bigger smile than before.

“Okay, enough with that,” Doyoung waves his hand at them. He clasps the suitcase shut. “We should start working on the sole core of the mission we have on hands. What exactly are we trying to incept here and how are we going to do it? Since the idea can’t be too complicated if we don’t want it to get noticed and rejected.”

“I think it’s kinda simple,” Ten muses, still lying down on the chair. He’s gently rubbing the spot on his arm where needle has been. “The general idea is for Nakamoto to cut the ties with his associates because they are up to no good and he has no idea. We want him to stop trusting them so making him suspect something is not right is the way to go here.”

“Ten has a point,” Johnny nods, walking over to the blackboard and moving it closer. Its wheels squeak loudly. “Making him think they’re hiding something is what we’re gonna do, essentially, and it might be small enough. However, it might not grow out well. It’s too vague.” He starts drawing using a chalk, a bunch of thin roots at the bottom of the board. “We want him to distrust them but in order to do so, he needs to has a reason deeper than being left out of something.”

“We can put it higher,” Doyoung suggests, “start making him suspect something even on the first level down. So he’s easier to mold when you go deeper.”

Johnny points at Doyoung and nods vigorously, then proceeds to write something’s amiss at the top of the blackboard. Draws branches around it, adds leaves on them. No one interrupts him while he does so.

“We’ll start with this,” he says and then taps the middle of the board where the tree’s trunk should be. He looks at the rest of the team expectantly. “How do we proceed?”

“I say let’s go for the truth Moon gave us,” Jaehyun speaks up, “let him know about the building they’re going to buy. Make him suspicious about the reasons behind it.”

Johnny writes down what Jaehyun says. The trunk now reads the building “You think we should use it to make him know they’re working behind his back at the deepest level?”

“No, I don’t think it holds as much weight as we need, to be honest,” Jaehyun gnaws on his bottom lip. “Moon vouches he’s a noble man but we can’t just presume that. Nothing’s either white or black. He might wave that thought away or just want to join them. It can’t be just about him not being included, it has to be something against him to be strong enough for him to crumble.”

“What if we make him think they’re trying to throw him out?”

Everyone looks at Mark. The boy stutters, flushed. “I-I mean. I know the point is to make him get rid of them, but what if. What if he thinks they want to take his company away from him? That they’re not including him because they want him gone? And they’re trying to sabotage him, and that building they’re buying is just one of the many steps towards that. The only way to bounce from that would be to dump them before they dump you.”

“Doing business behind his back because they want to cut him off… this might work,” Jaehyun rubs his chin, slowly starting to nod. “We can do it. If we make him suspicious early on he might be convinced he’s been picking up signs about it for a while by himself, up above. That he’s been getting excluded more and more because they want him out of the picture.”

“We can make him see one of his associates crack and admit it,” Ten pipes in, a sly smile on his face. “I can play that part. Choose one of them for me and I’ll be on my merry way to do my research.”

“Ten’s research is different than Johnny’s,” Jaehyun rushes to explain to Mark. “Ten’s an actor down there. We call him and the likes Forgers. They’re like universal keys, fit everywhere. Ten observes and adapts. Impersonates people from your surroundings well enough you don’t notice it’s not actually them.”

“I just have a good eye,” Ten shrugs. “I’m good at noticing mannerisms, ticks and so on. This way the Subjects don’t see a difference and feel safe with me, trust me enough for me to get what I want from them. And since in the dream anything’s possible, I can change my face, too. I can become anyone.”

A rustle of papers. Doyoung brings one of the files to them. “Minatozaki Sana. She’s busy, but always in public places. Hardly ever has the time to join their meetings, I’d say. A very social person. I think she’ll be the easiest to observe. Can you do it?”

“Please,” Ten snorts, snatching the file from Doyoung’s hands and eyeing the blond woman whose pictures is attached to the first page. “You know I’m good at this. Give me two, three days and you’ll forget I had my own way of walking or talking. I’ll become miss Sana.”

“I’d like it if you did your two-day trip as soon as possible,” Jaehyun speaks up, getting a nod of confirmation from Ten in return. “So you can come back ready and we can all work while under. Before that, we’ll have to train Doyoung and Mark.”

“So I’m going under, after all?” Mark asks, a sparkle in his eye. Jaehyun hesitates. “Not certainly, but we do need you to create more down under so you can show the levels you create to us, so we can recreate them later. We will need three levels and we have to come up with them soon enough to work out all details. And by we, I mean mostly you, Mark. You and two Dreamers.”

“Oh, first level can be mine,” Doyoung volunteers, but Jaehyun isn’t sure about that offer.

“If we train you well enough by that time…”

“No, no ‘ifs’, I need to recreate my Aposomnacin and it’ll work faster if I’m the Dreamer,” Doyoung shakes his head. “Mark will help me with the setting, I’ll take care of the details. Leave that up to me, I’ll make it right.”

Jaehyun looks speechless. Yes, people oppose him from time to time but no one has ever straight up refused to do as he said. He maintains eye-contact with Doyoung and upon seeing the determination in his eyes that doesn’t seem to waver, he finally smiles. “If you say so. Johnny, will you take care of the second dream?”

“Of course,” Johnny nods. “I already have a few ideas I have to discuss with Mark.”

“Perfect.” Jaehyun clasps his hands together. “And I’ll take care of the deepest level.”

A short silence. No one moves.

“Are you sure?” Ten asks at last, carefully, when no one else dares to speak up. They’re all thinking the same but leave it to Ten to bring it up. “You know that once you touch the dream, the Shades will appear. Taeyong isn’t gone and Mark and I have just seen that. Additionally, since it’s the deepest level, it might get really dangerous.”

“I’m very much aware of that fact, yes,” Jaehyun replies slowly. “But Taeyong isn’t just a person from my history. Nakamoto knows him too, since he was trained by him to protect his mind. He won’t suspect a thing. If anything, that’s a familiar face for him that I can use to our advantage.” He inhales. “Trust me on that. I’ll know what I’m doing once I’m under.”

“If you say so, Divemaster,” Johnny shrugs. “You’ll lead us down under anyway. It’s all in your hands in the end.”

Ten leaves the next day. He complains about missing out the creation of the dreams but no one pays him more attention than necessary. For a professional Forger who has yet to be compromised, he surely can’t get what he wants from his own circle of friends.

While he’s gone, they all get to work. Doyoung tinkers with their suitcase, adding more tubes and installing a new container for his Aposomnacin so the material it’s made from doesn’t react badly with the fluid, rendering the formula useless. Johnny goes out and back, arranging their way to the cruise and making sure everything there works out fine once they’re on water. Maybe a day passes before he knows the names of each and every person that’s going to be on the ship with them. Mark’s sketching furiously, writing down his ideas for different levels all while being lead by Johnny and Doyoung, and the info they have on Nakamoto. Even Sicheng the gunman appears from time to time, observing them and going back to Moon to report what progress they’ve made. They dive a few times in different teams so Doyoung and Mark get used to being under and feel more comfortable working there. Jaehyun’s accompanied by Taeyong each time he goes with them, unsurprisingly. After a while Mark stops paying attention to the Shade of his brother and works without getting distracted, much to Jaehyun’s relief. Mark is fast and efficient and seems to be working alone the most of them, his inner perfectionism making him go through everything he came up with over and over again, to spot any bugs or overlooked possibilities. He has yet to design the last of the levels but he’s already rearranged the two others numerous times.

Ten barges in three days later, wearing high heels. He’s walking like he’s on a fashion show, his shoes clacking against the concrete floor rather loudly but no one bats an eye. Everyone’s elbows-deep into work so Ten just sighs and joins them in the whir of preparations.

A week into planning Jaehyun hears the jingle of keys when Johnny passes him by on his way out, going to get them something to eat. It’s then when he realises he has something to discuss with Mark. Something so natural for all Divers he’s safe to assume no one else has brought it up so far.

“Mark, do you have a moment?” He asks, walking up to the boy surrounded by spatial projects of the dreams he’s created so far. Mark hurriedly covers them with a cloth; he’s been warned that he shouldn’t show everything to Jaehyun in case his Shade decides to show up and compromise them. Jaehyun knows what each of the levels is like, but doesn’t know the details or places to hide, scattered throughout all levels for safety reasons.

“Yeah, sure. What’s up?” Mark’s eyebrows shoot up. He looks tired, has been working on designing the levels deep into nights and early in the mornings to make sure everything’s perfect and serves them well while fooling the Target. He really invented new places from the scratch and made them look real. Jaehyun feels proud and despite what his fiance could have been saying, he knows Taeyong would be proud, too.

He clears his throat. “Has anyone told you to bring a Totem?”

“A Totem?” Mark asks back. He seems to be carding his mind, going through everything they have taught him so far, but comes up empty-handed. “I don’t think I know what that is.”

“Thought so,” Jaehyun sighs and reaches into his breast pocket. He pulls out a small object and shows it to Mark, pinching it between his forefinger and thumb. The boy squints.

“A ring?”

“Yes, one special to me,” Jaehyun nods, putting it back into his pocket. “A Totem is an object that only you know well. One that couldn’t be recreated by someone else because it’s just so characteristic. The feel, the weight, the little details. It’s something to anchor you.”

“Why would I need it?” Mark asks but before Jaehyun gets to answer, the boy inhales sharply, the realisation dawning upon him. “So I can know if I’m in someone else’s dream? Because other Dreamers wouldn’t be able to know everything about it?”

“Yes, precisely,” Jaehyun smiles, fondness and pride swelling his chest. “We can’t know if we’re dreaming or not, but once we suspect we’re in a dream we can check if it’s someone else’s dream and we were pulled under without our knowledge. Hopefully then we can wake up and escape.”

“You think I’ll need it on the ship? I know we’re entering someone else’s dreams, it wouldn’t work anyway.”

Jaehyun hesitates. “It’s in case… something goes wrong. And we have to dive again. Or we’re made to dive. It’s a precaution. A reminder. To feel a bit more sanity when the dream gets too heavy for us.”

Mark stares at Jaehyun’s chest for a while, eyeing the breast pocket. “Taeyong had one exactly like this, didn’t he. Is this your engagement ring?”

Jaehyun guffaws, impressed. Mark kept on proving his worth with each day. “You’re too good at this. Yes, you’re right. We got matching engraved rings.” He touches the ring through the material of his shirt. “I’m not showing you this, but our rings were a bit different. Just in case. To have something special each.”

“So all of you have Totems and don’t know what the others have?”

“We’ve seen each other check the Totems from time to time,” Jaehyun recalls, “so I know what they have. I just don’t know the details, like with the dream levels you and others came up with. This way it feels safer. In the end, if anything goes unplanned, we should rely on ourselves the most, and only ourselves. That’s why Johnny and I don’t have a big team on the regular. The less people, the more you can depend on yourself.”

At this moment, he wonders. Wonders about how Taeyong’s training might influence extraction performed by him. He said he’ll take care of it but he can’t help thinking there are things that he can’t know for sure. Will Nakamoto be prepared? Was he trained how to proceed in case Jaehyun himself shows up?

Everything was going to be set soon. In 10 days they were boarding on the ship to try and perform the first successful inception of their lives, and the history.

“I will kill you in real life!” Doyoung hisses loudly, clasping his injured arm as blood slowly drips from between his pale fingers and stains his otherwise white sleeve. Ten barely spares him a chuckle before he drops both his pistols down with a clamor, reaches behind his back and pulls out a katana with a shimmer of light reflected in his eyes. He grins and runs fingers of his left hand along the blade, dancing on it without really touching, his movement slow and feather-like until someone from Johnny’s conscience nears him. Then he moves lightning-fast, slicing the thought-up man in half before the creation can even try to hurt him.

Ten is good with long-distance weapons but sometimes, especially during trials, he prefers to indulge in more hands-on ways of combat. Likes to see up close. Even if up above he would turn the other way at the merest sight of blood. He loves it down under. “All moves are allowed here,” he always says. He seems reckless, even childlike with how careless he gets during their practice dreams but all of them know that once they go under for the mission, Ten will turn deadly professional. He might goof around when he gets the chance but he always executes the tasks he’s given.

Jaehyun sometimes wonders what Ten would do if he didn’t become a Forger. Would he be a regular con-artist? Or would he live a normal life with a normal job? Would Johnny still be in military? Would Doyoung teach at universities? What would any of them do, in different circumstances? If the military didn’t invent Somnacin and the technique of sharing dreams? Would they be safer? Would they be just plain people? Jaehyun can’t really see himself having a normal full-time job. The idea itself seems so foreign to him. Even if he’s an illegal Extractor, working overlooked by the eyes of normies, he feels he fits there the best. He’s good at it. He’s in his element. He works in a team that he trusts, a team that trusts him.

It’s an odd job but even after all this time, after all those things that have happened, Jaehyun wouldn’t have it any other way.

He quickly steps in front of Mark when he sees the guy panicking, his hands empty despite facing an opponent. It’s one of his first encounters with Projections of the Subject present and he wasn’t prepared to defend himself at all. Jaehyun shoots the Projection closest to them with his glock and watches the artificial man fall on his knees and slowly dissolve into thin air.

“Focus! Grab any weapon you can think of and defend yourself with it, you can’t have even the smallest moment of hesitation!” Jaehyun shouts, already aiming at two other Projections nearing them, this time both armed. Mark inhales sharply and visibly shakes.

“I’m sorry! I was caught off-guard!”

“You can’t let yourself be caught off-guard, Mark! That’s why we practice!” Jaehyun reaches towards his back pocket to pull out a different gun but Mark works faster this time. His new flamethrower sets their opponents ablaze and soon they disappear with a sizzle. “You have to think and move fast if you really want to go under with us! If you die, we won’t get you out! Do better!” Jaehyun hisses.

“I’m trying!” Mark yells, anger flaring out his nostrils. He shoots fire using his flamethrower again, the impact making him lose balance for a second before he regains his stance, feet planted firmly on the ground now. He looks determined even if still a little panicked. “I didn’t know Johnny’s mind would be so hostile!”

“You’re trespassing!” Johnny laughs from where he’s watching them on a balcony, two stories up. He doesn’t really participate in the picture. “It’s all self-defense!”

Ten throws a knife at him but Johnny ducks in time. He wheezes out another laugh, clearly amused. “Why so aggressive, Tennie!”

“I just got tired of hearing you up from above like you’re my voice of reason, or something,” Ten replies, sounding casual as if he wasn’t just choke-holding someone using one arm only. He’s not even struggling with it. “It pisses me off.”

“What a relief you don’t hear the voice of reason in actual life, isn’t it?” Doyoung snarls. He’s patched himself up pretty nicely, his arm secured as he shoots a gun using his unharmed hand.

Ten grins broadly, dropping the now lifeless artificial body to the ground. “I don’t need an inner voice when I have you, Doie.”

“Watch it, he can shoot you to get revenge,” Jaehyun warns, amusement seeping into his tone. Mark is doing well enough with the flamethrower so he allows himself to stop watching him for a second. The Projections are mostly gone and he thinks about asking Johnny to release more of them but decides against it. They would be waking up soon, it was time. They practiced enough.

Mark breathes heavily at his side, now holding a bazooka while his flamethrower lies on the ground nearby, dropped and forgotten. Sweat is sticking his hair to his forehead and shining off his cheeks.

“You can go for lighter weaponry, you know,” Jaehyun suggests, nudging the bazooka. “So you don’t exhaust yourself next time.”

“I wanted to shoot less, do more,” Mark muses, looking around to spot the remaining Projections before his eyebrows shoot up. “Is that a freaking tank?”

Jaehyun looks up and blanches. “Ten, for the love of God! No tanks! We were supposed to keep it as lowkey as possible!”

The vault on the top of the tank opens up with a hiss and Ten emerges, looking disgruntled. “How is a bazooka allowed but a tank isn’t?”

“I'm pretty sure tanks are a bit bigger than weapons you can carry in your arms,” Johnny points out. He squints for a second, looking at the city panorama spreading before his eyes; his own creation. “The song is nearing the end. We’re going to wake up really soon.”

Ten pouts, jumping off the tank with grace. “Bummer.”

“I think there was a lot of progress,” Doyoung says, “Mark managed to defend himself. He’s getting better at it, even if he still panics at moments. We can work it through. Two, three sessions and he’ll be able to be left on his own if necessary.”

“You, on the other hand,” Ten sighs, shaking his head. “You still need a babysitter. You got shot as the only one here. How lame.”

“Because you shot me!” Doyoung yells, suddenly pointing a silver blade at Ten. “Why in the world did you think this would be a good idea! To inflict pain on one of yours! Especially since you know that hurts like a motherfucker and won’t stop until we wake up!”

Ten grins brightly, his hands raised in surrender but his eyes challenging. “I appreciate that you’re using a knife against me. You know how I love them.”

Doyoung groans loudly and swiftly buries the blade in Ten’s chest, striking his heart. Ten gasps out loud before life slips out of him as blood trickles out from the wound. Somewhere above he wakes up, clutching his chest and swearing like a sailor, but they don’t see it.

Their Chemist drops the knife and crosses his arms. “He had it coming.”

“No one says otherwise,” Johnny chuckles. He seems impressed and has every right to. “We all want him to shut up sometimes but none of us has stabbed him so far.”

“Well, you don’t deal with him as often as I do,” Doyoung points out. “And he shot me. He asked for it.”

“You two are the weirdest couple I’ve seen,” Mark huffs out, amused. Johnny looks down at him with wide eyes, Jaehyun covers his mouth to hide a smile. Doyoung inhales sharply, looking downright offended. His face twists in shock.

“Excuse me-?!”

The Somnacin wears off. They all wake up, blinking back into reality, leaving the city Johnny welcomed them in behind. “Don’t Rain On My Parade” starts to play from the beginning on its own, no longer signalling the last three minutes of the Dive. Doyoung looks like he wants to continue saying what he started down under but gets interrupted by Ten, who’s kicking his shin and demanding an apology. Jaehyun looks towards Mark and expects him to look smug but the boy just smiles at the bickering duo.

Jaehyun realises he must have genuinely meant what he said there. He didn’t do it to annoy Doyoung, he just really thinks he’s dating Ten. Mark is just pure. Honest and dedicated. Wants to do good. To help.

And that’s why Taeyong didn’t want to drag him into illegal espionage even if the boy was talented and had the potential to excel. He didn’t want him to see the things they have to do. The mind bending. The lying and stealing. He wanted Mark to not get corrupted. To stay out of the scene where it’s dangerous.

And Jaehyun pulled him right into the middle of it. But Mark made it his place, too. He fit right in. He stayed himself even if the weight of what they were about to do is hanging above his head and should have crushed him by now.

It’s then when Jaehyun decides he’s going to let Mark dive with them. So he can see what it’s like for himself. It’s not responsible and Taeyong would have his head for it, but Jaehyun feels there’s no other way to do it, and there hasn’t been one ever since Mark joined the team. He might now need someone to stay above and put them to sleep, but Mark is going to dive for sure.

It was bound to happen.

Mark was going to join them one way or another.

Ten joked Nakamoto Yuta’s pics look like they belong to a model’s portfolio because the man looked good on all of them. All of his angles compliment him. He looks sculpted, artistic.

None of it compares to seeing him in real life.

A man so beautiful has to be naive, Jaehyun decides. It’s only fair. We can’t have it all.

Nakamoto is not only handsome but also a social butterfly. He talks to and laughs with seemingly everyone he meets on his way, and there are many people on board. Thanks to that, all of Jaehyun’s team mingle easily with the crowd. Each of them plays a part well, looking rich and influential like all of the businessman and businesswoman with their noses up high and their wallets weighing them down.

Jaehyun’s tempted to have a stroll along the railings but doesn’t feel safe enough for it. According to Moon, Hirai isn’t on the cruise ship. His oldest daughter, Momo, is present as a representative instead, and she shouldn’t be able to recognize him, but Jaehyun doesn’t want to risk it. He stays close to the crowd, sunglasses perched on his nose and freshly bleached hair slicked back, exposing his forehead.

He looks like he belongs even if he despises almost everyone that he’s surrounded with.

Mark passes him by, carrying a trail full of champagne glasses, the liquid sparkling and trembling with each of his steps. He looks positively dapper in the waiter outfit. All of the team decided Mark was too young to look convincing as a businessman and while the youngest protested, even he couldn’t deny he had no idea what he could talk about to seem sophisticated enough for the crowd to not suspect anything.

When the sun starts to fall closer and closer to the line of water on the horizon, Nakamoto excuses himself and heads towards the cabin rooms located under the deck. Jaehyun watches him go, the man’s face tired and his eyelids heavy.

The spiked champagne started to work.

Ten meets Jaehyun’s eyes for a brief second before his focus switches back to the older man he is talking to, a mask of interest adorning his face. Johnny is looking in a different direction but he knows, too. He must. Doyoung is already somewhere below desk, waiting for Nakamoto to go into his cabin and fall asleep so he can inject him with Aposomnacin and keep him under.

Jaehyun grabs Mark’s elbow gently as the boy passes him again. “Excuse me, what champagne is this? I think I ordered a different brand.”

Mark goes wide-eyed for a moment before he composes himself, quick enough not to get noticed. “My apologies, sir. Please come with me.”

They both walk off deck together, heading towards the stairs and scurrying down once they’re out of sight. They hurry to Nakamoto’s cabin and when they reach the door Jaehyun knocks three times.

“Come in,” Doyoung replies from the other side.

They enter, finding Nakamoto passed out on the bed, one of his sleeves already rolled up. Doyoung’s wearing elastic gloves and gently attaching a needle to one of the tubes from the PASIV Device. Sicheng is there too, looking disinterested as ever. Jaehyun has no idea how he got on board but doesn’t question it. They need him here, and he agreed to watch them over after he puts them to sleep.

Ten is the next one to arrive. He’s shed his jacket and throws it on Nakamoto’s legs as soon as he steps inside.

“He looked cold,” he shrugs when Doyoung sends him an annoyed look. “Some guys on deck were talking about him, by the way. We really should stick to our time schedule and be careful in case they come here to check on him.”

“Of course,” Jaehyun says, throwing pillows on the ground. He aims for Ten’s head with one of them. “Plug in. The champagne might wear off in a few moments. We’re going under as soon as Johnny gets in. He’ll lock us here.”

Ten nods, getting down on the floor and rolling up his sleeves. Mark’s head is already on one of the pillows and he’s staring down at the needle in his arm. He seems deep in thought, his other hand clutching a rosary he’s been carrying in his pocket everywhere for a while now. Jaehyun nudges him. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” Mark inhales, blinking a few times. “Just. Nervous. But I’m ready. I’m not backing up.”

“I know you aren’t,” Jaehyun smiles. His eyes crinkle. Johnny steps in mere seconds after, closing the door behind him with an audible click. “See you on the other side, pal.”

Soon they’re all plugged in, lying around the PASIV suitcase in a circle. Sicheng throws one last glance at Jaehyun before he presses the grey button, already grabbing the mp3 player with “Don’t Rain On My Parade”.

They all go under, Jaehyun in the lead.

The ceiling is very high, its arches and curves far away but breathtaking nonetheless, especially decorated with all the yellow balloons and ribbons. It looks like everything is dipped in gold, shimmering and heavy. The ballroom seems to be straight out of a fairy tale, from a party in a castle thrown by a generous king and his good queen.

The crowd seems to move in unison. They’re all wearing rich dresses or expensive suits, mostly in darker colors, all merging together as they dance. The floor is polished, shining. One can almost see their own reflection in it. They wouldn’t be able to see their faces clearly, though. Everyone’s wearing a mask.

Jaehyun touches the one on his face. It’s a simple one, golden brown with a row of pearls running around the edges. It only covers his eyes and nose but he doesn’t need to hide more. He doesn’t matter in this setting.

There are a few waiters wandering about, making sure everyone is well fed and with a drink in their hand if needed. Jaehyun looks for the one wearing an elegant lion mask and spots him soon enough. Mark is busy picking up empty and half-empty glasses from the tables, putting way too many of them on the trail he’s carrying.

Perfect. According to the plan.

Ten and Johnny are nowhere to be seen but Jaehyun doesn't need to see them, they're here to be present in Nakamoto's line of vision, not even the center. Instead of looking for them, Jaehyun strains his neck to find someone with a fox mask, or at least he hopes he finds someone with it, if Johnny’s fun facts about Nakamoto do matter in the end.

He sees him after a few rounds of scanning the crowd. Bingo. Johnny is always right, after all.

Nakamoto is dancing with a lady in a silver dress and a silver raccoon mask. Jaehyun thinks it might be miss Hirai but isn’t too sure about it. Her identity isn’t important here. He starts walking towards them, getting rid of his working, focused expression and putting on a nicer face.

“May I?” he asks politely, offering his hand to the lady. She giggles.

“Momo’s dancing with me!” Nakamoto laughs, twirling his partner around. Jaehyun doesn’t drop his smile. He’s patient.

“I can see that, but I promised miss Hirai at least one dance and unfortunately, I have to get going soon.” He sighs, feigning self-pity. “I hoped I could steal her for this song. I’ll return her safely, I promise.”

Miss Hirai pouts as Nakamoto seems to think about it for a minute. “Alright, I guess you can have this one song. But just this one! No one else keeps up with me as well as Momo does!” He decides at least, letting go of the woman’s hands. Jaehyun takes them in his, smiles and slowly walks them away. They barely take a few steps before the waiter wearing a lion mask walks into Nakamoto, dumping all contents of his tray onto the poor man’s expensive outfit. The clatter of falling glasses causes a few people around to look towards them and Jaehyun holds his breath.

“Oh Gosh, I’m terribly sorry, sir,” Mark apologizes, trying to both bow down and fix the damage he’s done at the same time, dabbing a tissue at Nakamoto’s chest and brushing off any stray glass shards. “My deepest apologies. I wasn’t looking where I was going. I’ll pay for the cleaning, please forgive me.”

Nakamoto looks angered but composed. He sighs, looking down at the mess his suit and shirt have become. “It’s alright, it happens. Just point me towards a bathroom and bring me fresh towels, if you have any.”

“Of course, sir,” Mark continues to bow down rapidly, looking almost hilarious while doing it so many times. “Please, follow me.”

The two of them walk away from the crowd and head towards the doors leading to a more secluded part of the building. By the time Jaehyun gets rid of miss Hirai without irritating Nakamoto’s subconsciousness, they both have already ascended the stairs, walking past the nearest bathroom and going for the other one on the first floor, at the end of a long corridor. The one which lock is busted and once you lock yourself in, only someone from outside can let you out.

Mark is waiting for Jaehyun by the doors, his hands in his front pockets and the lion mask stuffed into his apron.

“Where’s Ten? He should have arrived before you,” Mark complains, his eyebrows furrowed and lips forming a tight line. He doesn’t seem angry, just nervous.

Jaehyun shakes his head, exasperated. “The partygoers are particularly annoying and clingy, he probably tries not to upset them so they don’t go after him. It’s a wonder the sub-army hasn’t attacked us so far, if I’m being honest.”

Mark sighs and reaches up to tug at his own hair. “He should hurry up.”

“Now, now. You shouldn’t rush a lady.”

The click of high heels announces Ten’s arrival. Johnny offers him his hand as they walk together but Ten ignores him, strutting in his glorious green dress with black mesh accents. There’s a bird mask in his hand, heavily adorned with glistening stones. He throws his hips to the side with each step, clearly exaggerating the walk. There’s a sly smirk on his glossy lips and he even goes as far as to throwing his long blonde locks behind his shoulder with a flick of his gloved hand.

“You’re such a show-off,” Jaehyun chuckles quietly, wary of Nakamoto behind the door. He didn’t start to wrestle with the lock so he must be still trying to get the wet stains off his clothes. “Ready for the act one?”

“Born ready, baby,” Ten blows him a kiss before he reaches down to his purse and pulls out a pack of cigarettes. He sighs loudly, reaching over to noisily open one of the windows. “Gosh, I hate crowds.”

“Tell me about it,” Johnny chuckles, his voice also much louder than the conversation Jaehyun and Mark held barely few minutes ago. “Especially the crowd you hang around with. I don’t really like their company.”

“Oh, please!” Ten giggles, flicking at his lighter to lit a cigarette. “You don’t like people in general. My associates are the crowd you should trust, you know. They always have my back, no matter what happens and when. I’d be nothing without them. We’re where we are all thanks to our partnership.” He whines after he’s done talking, taking off one shoe for a second. “These shoes are killing me. Either my feet grew bigger or someone marked them by mistake. They said it’s size 36 but it surely doesn’t feel like it.”

“Maybe you’ve been dancing too much,” Johnny hums, leaning back against the wall. “Also, about your associates. With all the stuff you guys do together I don’t think any of you could break out unharmed. You gotta stick together because you have no other choice. There’s too much stuff weighting you all down together.”

“Oh my God, quiet!” Ten shushes theatrically loud, taking a few heavy steps towards the staircase like he’s trying to make sure no one is hiding there. As if anyone would be eavesdropping. “You’re lucky everyone stays downstairs. I don’t really want anyone knowing I tell you about it. Any of it. Let alone have someone find out because we were being too damn loud.”

“Aren’t all of them informed about all of the work you do, anyway?” Johnny scoffs, looking towards the door of the bathroom. There’s no sound coming from there, no signs of getting out, but the hum of a working tap has stopped as well. Nakamoto must be listening. “You lot seem to be a tight knit.”

“Not everyone knows, no,” Ten replies quieter this time, but still way too loud for a hushed conversation. He exaggerates well. “Only six of them. Nakamoto is too green. He might get stupid ideas if we tell him too much. He’s cute but completely clueless, even moreso than his father. It’s safer when he thinks we’re just trying to increase his influences, by buying that one warehouse, for example.”

Johnny gasps. “So he doesn’t know-”

“No, he doesn’t. We keep him in the dark and we will as long as it’s necessary. I don’t even like him that much, to be completely honest. He’s too good. The type who probably ratted out everyone in the 8th grade just because he wanted to be on the teacher’s good side. Spineless, if you ask me.” Ten drops his half-finished cigarette and puts it out with the tip of his left shoe. “Let’s go. I’m thirsty.”

The clicks of his heels resonate against the walls loudly but slowly quiet down when Ten descends the stairs, this time with Mark in tow. The younger man is doing his best to imitate the way Johnny walked when he and Ten entered the corridor. The Point Man stays behind with Jaehyun this time, pulling out a white cloth and a bottle of chemicals from his pockets. When he smiles, his bear masks shifts.

Soon the doors to the bathroom begin to rattle. “Help! Somebody help!” Nakamoto yells out, pushing and banging against the door with his whole body, making it shake in its hinges. Jaehyun closes the distance between him and the bathroom unhurriedly. He grabs the doorknob, twists it and pulls, walking back in an arc and opening the door wider.

Nakamoto practically falls out of the bathroom, surprised at the entrance suddenly giving in. He barely notices he’s out before Johnny stands right in front of him, smiling broadly.

“Sleep well, Mister Nakamoto,” he sing-songs, grabbing the man by the back of his head as he pushes the wet cloth against his face. Jaehyun watches as Nakamoto tries to fight back, hitting Johnny’s chest and struggling in his grasp, but succumbs to sleep nonetheless after less than a minute. Johnny gently lies him down, casting the chloroform bottle and the cloth aside. He looks up at Jaehyun from where he’s crouching by the unmoving body.

“Legs or head?”

“Legs.”

Together they carry Nakamoto to the other end of the corridor, where a room with two doorway awaits them.

Once again, Doyoung is already there. His blue bunny mask is lying on the table next to a lamp, the only source of light in the place. Mark appears soon after, rolling in a cart with various dishes served on it. Doyoung reacher under it, under the tablecloth so long that it almost touches the ground. He pulls out the PASIV Device in the same time as Ten walks in.

“I don’t like this,” Ten huffs, a single hair clip hanging from his lips as he’s tying his long hair into a high ponytail. “It all went too smoothly. But he was trained, he must have been. This was too easy and it’s bugging me.”

Johnny nods, grabbing a handful of clean towels from underneath the cart to put them under Nakamoto’s head. “I agree. I have a bad feeling about this. We should hurry. You sure you’re good here, Doyoung? One of us can stay behind in case you need any help.”

“No, I’m good.” Doyoung shakes his head, snapping the band of an elastic glove on his wrist. “I don’t think they can find us too easily, the staircase Mark came from was a last minute addition and you have to get there through the kitchens. It would take them a while to find me, and if anything happens,” He reaches behind to pat one of his back pockets. “I’m prepared. I can defend myself.”

Jaehyun nods but can’t help feeling unsure about the situation. It was really too easy on this level so he has no idea what to expect from the deeper ones. Usually when someone is trained against involuntary dream-sharing, their sub-army protects them on the first level already. It’s because most Extractors try stealing from there, not used to diving deeper. This Subject wasn’t a usual one, though; Taeyong must have known there would be more daring Extractors trying to intrude in Nakamoto’s mind. Anything could be waiting for them when they dive again.

Doyoung putting a needle up his arm brings Jaehyun back to the reality he’s currently in. He tries to shake off the uncomfortable feeling and lies down, breathing deeply in and out.

“Stay safe, guys,” Doyoung murmurs to them when he shuffles on his knees to the suitcase they’re lying around.

“You too. Be careful.” Ten replies, sending Doyoung a watery smile. The Chemist stares at him for a second before he presses the big button and releases Aposomnacin into their circulatory systems.

“I wear size 36!” Sana exclaims cheerfully, holding onto the counter tightly. Her long, icy blue nails are on full exposure. “I hope they aren’t out of them!” The air she breathes out is foggily white and she shivers.

Nakamoto blinks, confused for a few seconds. The music and laughter from the ice rink seems to be only reaching him now. Johnny watches him from the corner of his eye as he’s going through the rows of shoes, looking for the size miss Minatozaki requested. He grabs a pair of ice skates and brings it to the window where the two are waiting for him. “There you go, miss. And what size are you, sir?”

Nakamoto looks up at him, a question on the tip of his tongue before he shakes out of it. “41, please.”

Johnny smiles politely and turns on his heel to look for a proper pair of ice skates. Sana is blabbing to Nakamoto about something he doesn’t seem particularly enthusiastic about, most likely because he can’t keep up with his companion. Even if she’s loud and chatty, Johnny’s trained eye still notes that this Minatozaki is just a Projection of their Target, who fell for the bait Ten provided him with one level up. He brought her along lower and now they can use it to their advantage.

On the other side of the rink Mark’s desperately clutching onto the hips-high band, looking down in panic. He’s not good at skating and can’t believe he agreed to such a setting. Johnny convinced him public places were the best to keep the illusion of it being a regular day, and Mark fell for it only to regret it now.

Jaehyun and Ten are a few meters away from the rink. Ten is putting on a thick black vest full of pockets, adding even more black elements to his already dark outfit. The both of them are between two one-level storehouses, out of the eye of the public who could think they look rather suspicious.

They don’t want to attract attention any longer than it’s necessary.

They stay hidden, waiting for Johnny’s sign that they can come out and approach the skating duo, ready to proceed.

People circle the rink, grasping onto each other, laughing, shrieking when someone slips or wobbles. It’s already dark but there are a few lanterns around the area, luminating the rink. There’s the gentle hum of the machinery and a funky tune playing through the speakers around.

Only a few minutes pass before Jaehyun sees him.

There’s a long scarf messily tied around his neck. The grey cloak he’s wearing is unbuttoned, revealing a soft, knitted beige sweater underneath. Despite the family friendly atmosphere, filled with laughter and cheery music, Taeyong’s face looks so passive it’s almost hostile.

Ten notices him, too. He tenses, looking around before he does a double take and glances back to the Projection. He squints “Why’s his hair brown? Wasn’t he always wearing it pink?”

“That’s because it’s not my Shade,” Jaehyun breathes out, standing up from the ground where he’s been crouching. “It’s the Taeyong Nakamoto knows. It’s his Projection. Most likely, the boss of his subconsciousness.”

The two of them stare at each other, suddenly feeling hot despite the low temperature. “We gotta go, fast.”

They bolt out towards the band surrounding the rink and walk hurriedly alongside it. They were supposed to wait until Nakamoto has once again been fed a fake combination of numbers to bring lower with him, but there’s no time for it now. They’ll have to improvise. Johnny spots them from the booth and furrows his eyebrows before he too notices Taeyong. His eyes grow wide before he hurries out.

It’s just a simple man on an ice rink but all of them know he's a sign everything’s about to get risky.

Jaehyun reaches the entry to the rink and holds out his hand, stopping the pair that’s skating towards them. “Mister Nakamoto, miss Minatozaki, I must ask you to get off the rink and follow me.”

Nakamoto looks surprised but comes to a stop, pulling his associate to a halt as well. “What’s happening? Who are you?”

“You are in no position to ask questions,” Ten hisses. Other people on the rink are looking towards them suspiciously, their eyes empty but observing them closely.

Ten and Jaehyun were supposed to gently ask Nakamoto and Minatozaki to come with them, sit them down and heavily imply Sana forgot she arranged a meeting with them, exposing that Nakamoto has been in the dark about things she’s been up to. Then they would suggest extracting from her soon as a way of making sure that the person who actually pays them knows what his money is being spent on. They’d actually enter Yuta’s dream on another level, making him discover something that he’s actually been fed all throughout the Dive.

Jaehyun and Ten were supposed to just be employees, not caring about the interests between the higher-ups, just making sure they get paid. The operation would last a few days. But there’s no time for that now. Nakamoto’s subconsciousness is already aware of their presence and might get hostile at any moment.

Jaehyun breathes out, trying to compose himself as best as he can. “You can walk with us willingly or we can make you walk, understood?”

Sana gasps, clutching onto Nakamoto’s arm. She’s looking at them with fear whereas the man at her side tries to seem braver, either for her sake or to save his face. “Lead the way.”

Grabbing him by the elbow, Jaehyun drags Nakamoto out of the rink, with miss Minatozaki hurrying after them, carefully watched by Ten who closes their little cortege.

They walk over to Ten and Jaehyun’s previous spot. As Nakamoto feigns bravery, puffing out his chest, his subconsciousness is being kept at bay. They’re only watching them but not making any moves. Was Nakamoto any less daring, his sub-army would have already jumped to attack them.

It doesn’t mean they’re any less in danger, though.

Jaehyun presses Nakamoto against one of the walls, not really paying attention to the challenging look the man throws his way. Minatozaki has Ten's firm grip on her shoulder and under his watch, she doesn’t dare to move.

Jaehyun weighs his choices. His mind is working so fast he can almost hear the cogs turning in his head. What should he do? What will save them the most time?

He looks sideways.

“Minatozaki,” the woman yelps quietly when he addresses her. “Call off the operation.”

“What operation?” The Projection of Sana asks, utterly bewildered. She tries to take a step back but Ten is blocking her way. “I have no idea what you mean.”

Jaehyun chuckles. He’s aware Ten is watching him, waiting for any signals or tips about his newest plan. To be frank, Jaehyun isn’t sure about it himself. He looks back at Nakamoto and meets his eyes. Smiles in a bitter way.

“Sir, you’re currently in a dream. Your mind is the scene of a crime.”

Someone inhales sharply. It might be Nakamoto, it might be Ten. It even might be Jaehyun himself. The Extractor feels nervous sweat running down his nape.

This plan is crazy. It’s the riskiest he’s ever did. But it might be the only chance to execute their mission.

Nakamoto looks him up and down, wary. “In a dream? As in, in a shared one?”

“Yes, someone’s trying to extract information from you, and that someone is your lovely partner and other associates.” Jaehyun’s grasping for anything now; since he’s already gone in an unpredictable direction, he decides to step even further. Seeing as Nakamoto is doubting him, he adds hurriedly, “I’m Jaehyun. I work for your subconsciousness.” He pauses for a second. “You must remember me. You’ve been trained to have me here.”

Nakamoto’s eyes move rapidly, scanning his face. Even if he can’t see it, Jaehyun knows Ten is looking at him like he’s a lunatic. Maybe he’s right. Jaehyun definitely isn’t feeling too sane in that particular moment.

Suddenly there’s realisation blooming on Nakamoto’s features. He seems to have connected the dots even if there actualy aren’t any. “I do remember you. You’re here to protect me from unwanted people trying to steal from my mind. Hirai hired someone to prepare me.”

“Yes, precisely,” Jaehyun breathes out. The relief washing over him is indescribable. “And that’s why I need you to get out of here, sir. You’re not safe. We need to secure you.”

“But what about her?” Nakamoto asks, looking at Minatozaki. Her face is twisted in fear, but as he looks at her, guilt begins to bleed out from her features.

He must have remembered the level up. That she shouldn’t be trusted, because there are things she’s not telling him.

If Jaehyun didn’t know Ten that well he wouldn’t be able to see the hint of respect on his otherwise perfectly composed and serious face.

“She’s coming with,” Jaehyun replies, tilting his head to let Ten know they better get going. “She knows how to call the entire thing off. She’ll have to listen to us if she doesn’t want to get hurt. She may not care what happens to you but we aren’t so low. We just need to be persuasive enough for her to see she has no other choice.”

“But what can happen to us? I thought you just wake up if you die in the dream,” Nakamoto murmurs, walking obediently where they lead him to.

Ten laugh out loud. “That’s true, but pain? Pain stays as long as you’re under. And it can be inflicted on any of us. She wouldn’t want it, would she?”

“Would you hurt a lady?” The Sana of Yuta’s mind utters out, baffled.

“Would a lady scheme and plot against her friend? Huh? Do us a favor and keep quiet.”

As soon as they exit the open corridor between the two buildings a van pulls up. Johnny walks out of it and goes to the back to open the doors. Mark hops off the seat as well, looking towards the four people approaching him. He furrows his eyebrows.

“Are we supposed to pull out our guns now?” He asks out loud while Jaehyun and Ten escort Nakamoto and Minatozaki to the back of the van.

“Yes,” Johnny doesn’t even spare him a look as he stuffs two pistols into his belt. Jaehyun and Ten gear up as well.

“Wait,” Mark speaks up again, holding up a palm. “Weren’t tanks not allowed?”

“What? What are you talking about?”

Mark points towards the ice rink. All of the heads turn that way.

Johnny inhales so sharply he almost chokes. “Holy shit. They’ve got a tank.”

Jaehyun feels like his eyes are about to pop out. His heartbeat is so loud he feels it in his ears. “Everyone in the car, NOW!”

They hurry inside, Johnny stepping on the gas pedal even before all of the doors are slammed shut. Mark almost falls off his seat. Just as they turn around, speeding off into the opposite direction of the tank - and possibly an entire army accompanying it - Jaehyun notices a Taeyong’s standing between the two buildings they used as their spot. It’s watching him from afar, looking sad and cold even from the distance. It’s the pink hair one. Jaehyun looks away before the tanks gets too close to it.

Ten pulls out a device akin to a walkie-talkie with a numeric keyboard. He extends the thin antenna and looks at miss Minatozaki expectantly. “Tell us the number.”

The imaginary woman trembles. “I don’t know any! This is one big misunderstanding and you’re going to pay for it!” She hisses at them but doesn’t stop shaking in fear.

Nakamoto looks at her with mixed emotions. The thread Jaehyun is holding onto is thin but he’s holding on tight.

“Just give us the four numbers, miss,” he says, pulling out a knife from one of his vest pockets. “We really don’t want to hurt you.”

“You psychos! I can’t give you what you want! Leave us alone before we all get killed!” She wails, breathing heavily.

“Four numbers. All we need. The four numbers to end the operation. Come on, you must know them. We know about the warehouse. We know you’re involved.”

“No!”

“Think harder!”

Luckily, it all clicks. The risk and insisting pay off. The realisation appears on Nakamoto’s face first, his eyes go wide when he remembers. Then Minatozaki inhales loudly.

“It’s 36!” She recalls, closing her eyes as if she's trying to remember better. “6, 8. 3668.”

“Was it that hard?” Ten murmurs, pressing the numbers on the walkie-talkie. It lets out a crackle, then another one, then falls silent. The connection doesn’t go through.

Jaehyun sighs, reaching under the seat to pull out the silver suitcase. “We have no other choice. This was our only way to make it stop. Now, we have to go under to find a different one.”

“We’re going to enter a dream in a dream?” Nakamoto asks, gripping his seat tighter. Jaehyun nods, opening up the suitcase and grabbing the gloves. “Yes. We will extract from miss Minatozaki. Steal something from her since she wanted to steal from you. You’ll do it, sir.”

“Me?” Nakamoto guffaws. “But I’m not an Extractor! I’ve only been taught how to protect myself!”

“Once you go lower, it’s easier.” Jaehyun looks up at Ten, who’s connecting the needles with the tubes. Mark stumbles to the back between the two front seats. “The deeper you are, the more vulnerable the mind is. You’ll know what to look for and miss Sana, if she wants to stay unharmed, will cooperate.” Miss Minatozaki sends him a nasty looks but doesn’t protest. “We will help you, sir. It’s what has to be done.”

Despite the constant movement of the car, they somehow manage to all plug in. Jaehyun throws Mark and Ten one last glance before he taps on Johnny’s seat. “Send us under. And stay safe.”

“Be careful. See you above,” Johnny replies, talking over the loud sounds of the car and the street noise. He reaches towards the wire that’s connected to the PASIV and presses the button.

There’s no time to spare. They don’t bother walking and just run through the forest, the place idly calm and bright in contrast to the general mood. The birds are chirping like they’re trying to mock the Dive team. Jaehyun curses himself for thinking such a setting would be a good idea. Now it just seems unnecessary.

They reach the house after a while; it’s a nice, secluded place with a small garden and a terrace with a swing. All of them hurry inside and through the corridor, its wooden floor creaking under their thunderous steps. They head towards the basement. There’s a safe there. Nakamoto thinks he’s going to find information about Minatozaki and his other associates inside; essentially, he’s right. He just doesn’t know that it’s all down there because it’s been placed, carefully, throughout the levels that have lead them to here.

Mark jumps off the stairs first, his feet causing a cloud of dirt to rise when they hit the floor. The ground here is wet and sandy, the basement isn’t a place that gets used often. It was designed to look forgotten.

Ten crouches down by the safe. He looks up at Minatozaki. Luckily Nakamoto’s subconsciousness has brought her with, and in here she looks even less terrified and even more upset. She’s crossing her arms and breathing very quickly.

“Give us the combination, miss,” Ten smiles sweetly at her, so sweet it could melt through walls like acid.

She huffs but then Nakamoto puts a firm hand on her shoulder. “What’s the combination, Sana. You know you have no other choice.”

“You won’t like what’s inside,” she mutters, kneeling down next to Ten and reaching for the knob. Three. Six. Six again. Eight. The heavy door gives out with a hiss and Nakamoto yanks it open before anyone else beats him to it.

Inside the vault there are papers. Lots of them. Hundreds of prints. They almost spill out, the paper towers wobbling. Nakamoto’s mind put it all there, the abundance of the clues and information he must have caught on and dismissed all this time because he trusted his partners. Now they start to matter. Turn into proof that he wasn’t being paranoid when he thought something’s amiss.

Jaehyun can’t believe how easy it was. Nakamoto’s associates might be terrible people, but they were right about something. The man is very gullible and easy to trick. Jaehyun almost feels bad for the guy, but knows it’s for the greater good.

Nakamoto looks through all the evidence, grasping at the papers and checking what’s written on them. His rustling is the only sound in the entire basement.

“They’ve had… so much happening under my nose… and I had no idea.” He chokes out, his eyes scanning over the contents of the vault. He’s reading a few lines off of all pages he gets his hands on before he throws them behind himself. There’s a pile of paper forming behind his back.

Nakamoto looks broken. He seems like a man who’s lost all hope and Jaehyun feels bad he has to deliver the final blow. “Look for a file that’s about the warehouse they are going to buy.”

Nakamoto nods and begins to search for the folder. A few short moments pass before he pulls out a grey envelope. After a slow inhale, he tears it open.

“What’s inside?” Ten asks quietly, shuffling closer.

Nakamoto’s eyebrows furrow. “It’s… it’s a contract.”

“What is it binding?”

“It’s between my associates… all of them,” he exhales through as his fingers start to shake. “They all signed up for… is that- that’s my company. They're taking it over?”

“They want to take it from you,” Jaehyun says, hands deep in his pockets as he observes Nakamoto crumble before his eyes. “Your empire. Everything your father has done.”

“They want to cut me off.” The young businessman drops his hands lower. His shaking has ceased. “They just wanted my power. My resources. They’ve done all those… horrible things and I enabled them. I let them do it all. I’m a part of it.”

Ten checks his watch and reaches into his pocket. “Think what you can do about it. To make it better. Cause you can make it right.”

With the last smile, he presses the button on the detonator he pulled out.

The explosives take the ground from under their feet. They began to free-fall.

Jaehyun barely gets to catch a breath back in the car before Johnny realises they woke up.

“Oh, thank God” he groans, his voice barely audible over gunshots and the thud of cannons. “I thought you might take a while longer down and, frankly, each second here it gets worse and worse.”

“Are you going to the rooftop parking lot?” Jaehyun asks, shuffling closer to the front seats and looking through the front window on the road. The car is slowly ascending.

Johnny hums, taking a turn. “For a second I hesitated if I really should, seeing how going up rather than further away may get us all killed, but. Yeah, here we go.”

They drive out onto the roof but Johnny doesn’t stop. He presses the gas pedal even as they near the edge of the building.

The car propels into the air, rendering them weightless.

Doyoung looks surprised when one by one they open eyes and sit up.

“Already?” He checks his watch. “The song didn’t even began to play. You had time.”

“Yeah, no. We really didn’t.” Ten sighs, rubbing his temples. “His subconsciousness got really nasty one level down. Jaehyun now wishes he allowed me to bring a tank.”

“I really don’t,” the Extractor breathes out, getting rid off the needle in his arm. He looks at Nakamoto who’s fast asleep. “His dose was bigger?”

Doyoung nods. Jaehyun closes his eyes, waiting for the uncomfortable weight to disappear from his shoulders.

He doesn’t want to jinx it by saying they did it, but. They did perform well. He dares to hope for success. He doesn’t do that often, but he feels pretty sure about the mission. Pretty good, even. Nakamoto was easy to mold. They made it out in one piece even if things could have turned nasty at any moment.

He sighs. “I’ll throw myself off the stairs first. Meet you all above.”

He walks out of the room, not even bothering to take his stuff with. They don’t matter. They’ll disappear in a second.

Jaehyun gets to the railing. Leans against it and looks down. It’s just two floors but should be enough for them to wake up before they die.

If not, he’ll come back for them into Limbo. He feels pretty invincible at the moment. Laughter rattles in his chest and he lets it out. He's really bringing it to an end soon.

“You allowed this to happen. You didn’t protect me.”

Jaehyun hangs his head lower. He takes a deep breath, then another one. Finally, he looks up and meets the gaze of his Shade.

“I know I still blame myself for it. You aren’t dead and I can’t describe how joyous it makes me feel, but I still feel this awful guilt whenever I think about the time we had to spend apart, hiding, because I was reckless. Because I couldn’t be there for you.” He wets his lips. “I’m the reason it all happened. I know it, and I can’t change it. It’s in the past but I won’t forget it. I just hope I’ll learn to accept it as the time passes, and I can move on.”

A shaky smile sneaks onto his face. He reaches up and touches the cheek of the image of his loved one.

“See you soon, love.”

Supporting himself with one hand still on the railing, he jumps over it and falls.

Sicheng’s engrossed in reading something so he doesn’t even notice Jaehyun’s awake until the man sits up. Even then he gets regarded with merely one raised eyebrow.

“Call Moon,” Jaehyun orders, waving his hand towards the mobile phone lying next to the gunman’s hip. “Everything’s set. He can call the police, Nakamoto will cooperate.”

Sicheng nods and picks up his cell from the floor. Jaehyun gets up on his feet and sees others slowly going back to the reality after him.

He lead them in and he accompanied them out.

The engagement ring feels particularly heavy in his breast pocket but he bats away the urge to roll it in his hand. It is real. It’s happening.

As he steps out on the deck a few minutes later, he can already hear and see police choppers swarming above their cruise ship. Someone is speaking through a megaphone. The crowd is panicking. They either fall to their knees, listening to the instructions from above, or try to escape with rather slim chances of getting away. A few jumps out as if that can stop police from getting them.

From one of the choppers rolls down a ladder made of rope. Up above mister Moon smiles at Jaehyun, shooting him a thumbs up. Jaehyun snorts and sends it back. He reaches out and grabs the rope, a giddy feeling warming up in his chest.

Once he’s there, he’ll know where to go next.

And it'll really be over.

The air is heavy in his chest. Breathing proves to be difficult when you’ve been running, chased only by the time. He skips a few stairs at a time, not really caring if he’s being reckless.

The doors to the apartment Moon informed him about are ajar, the light of the late evening seeping through the crack out to the corridor. For a second icy fear spreads through Jaehyun's veins, freezing him for a small moment before he bolts inside to check if he’s too late and someone got here before him.

He’s not late.

Taeyong’s big brown eyes meet with his, staring at him like they have been staring in all the dreams he came into for the past two years. Usually full of sadness, fear and accusation or betrayal, now they’re just surprised. Full of wonder. Taeyong blinks, his mouth hanging open.

“Jaehyun? How did you- What are you doing here?”

Jaehyun almost chokes on an inhale. “I came to get you back.”

The surprise on Taeyong’s face makes space for uncertainty. He shifts on his feet, playing with his fingers. “You shouldn’t be here… I don’t know how you found me but they must know you’re here, they’ll come after you…”

Jaehyun shakes his head, stepping closer. “No one will come. They’re all scattered. Compromised. Hirai fled the country from what the others told me. He’s going to watch his back from now on so looking for you won’t be high on his list of priorities.”

Taeyong looks up at him and even if he still looks like he doesn’t trust what’s happening, Jaehyun already feels like home. “Their entire circle is broken. We removed Nakamoto from the equation and they lost their biggest power source. They’ll need time to come back up and during that they won’t dwell on things and people from the past.” He smiles. “We can go. No one’s watching you. You’re free. They’re gone. We can be together again.”

Taeyong’s bottom lip wobbles but his eyes stay clear. His face slowly softens. “I can’t believe this is happening. It’s been almost two years and you’re saying I can go back?”

“We both can,” Jaehyun breathes out, taking a few steps closer. His arms ache to hold Taeyong again. “We can go home. We’re no longer anyone’s concern. I’ve made new friends and they’ll make sure we’re safe. We’ve won.”

A quiet sob rips out from between Taeyong’s lips. “Jaehyun…”

Jaehyun scoops him up into his arms in the next second. After so long he finally gets to hold his fiance close to his heart where he belongs. Taeyong trembles in his embrace but Jaehyun’s shivering as well so it doesn’t matter.

The room is heavy with emotion.

“Can I kiss you or should we get going?” Taeyong asks against Jaehyun’s neck. The Extractor quickly cups his fiance’s face and pulls it closer to his own.

“We have all the time now. No one’s going to steal it from us.”

When they kiss, it’s really like finding the missing part of you all over again. Jaehyun feels like all the lost moments disappear with each movement of Taeyong’s lips against his own. When he traces his hands on the expanse of his lover’s back, it’s like not much time has passed ever since he last held him like this. They fit together like they always have. Move in familiar patterns.

But the way they touch each other shows how long they’ve been separated.

When they pull away for a breath, Jaehyun traces his fingers along Taeyong’s cheekbone. Touches his scar. Can’t stop himself from smiling broadly.

“I’ve missed you. We’ve all missed you.” He inhales. “Everyone’s here. They’re waiting for us outside.”

“Who’s we?” Taeyong asks, not quite ready to let go of Jaehyun just yet. His fingers move through his lover’s hair, turning it into a mess. “That color looks good on you, by the way.”

“Thanks,” Jaehyun chuckles. “And I mean Johnny, Ten, Doyoung and Mark are here. They all helped with getting you back. We had to perform inception for this one businessman you will probably meet soon, and he helped me find you.”

Taeyong stills. “You’ve performed inception again?”

“And it worked,” Jaehyun grins, taking Taeyong’s hands into his and squeezing them. “We made it. We performed inception on Nakamoto so he could lead us to you. So he could make Hirai and others lose their footing. It all went well. We’ve succeeded.”

Taeyong huffs out a laugh. A smile appears on all of his features: smiling lips, smiling cheeks, smiling eyes. “You’ve made it. You really incepted something successfully to get me back, didn’t you.”

Jaehyun looks him deep into his eyes. “I love you, Taeyong. I had to save you. I would grab any chance I could just to have you back. And it worked. The team worked well, and it paid off. Now, let’s go see them.”

“But what about my things...?”

“Moon said all of your stuff will get shipped tomorrow. He wishes us everything good and hopes to be invited to the wedding.” Jaehyun chuckles, feeling the lightest he’s ever felt. He tugs at Taeyong’s hand and leads him to the staircase to meet everyone outside. “You don’t have to worry. You just have… to see your family again.”

“Even Mark is there, huh,” Taeyong gushes out, looking excited. But after a second, he suddenly freezes, pulling them to a stop. “Wait a minute, Mark’s here? Mark helped, too? Did you drag him into this? He went under with you?”

“He deserved to be here. To be a part of the team tasked with getting you back. I owed him that much, especially after letting him off the loop this entire time.” Jaehyun squeezes Taeyong’s hand, pulling at it lightly to make him walk again. “He’s done well. You should have seen it. He’s one of the best Architects I’ve worked with and he doesn’t even have a lot of experience. He could do great things, should he decide to pursue it further.” He pauses. “Unless you want him to drop out. He’d understand. He knows you worry. He just wanted to get you back, like all of us did.”

Taeyong seems to be weighing his words, looking conflicted. He bites on his lip in thought. “I can’t make him do anything, really. I didn’t want him working with us because I was worried, it’s a dangerous line of work as we experienced ourselves, but to be honest? If he really does want to become an Architect for diving teams, he couldn’t have started better than under your eye.” There’s a small smile dancing on Taeyong’s lips as he squeezes Jaehyun’s hand back. “You’re the best there ever was. He’s lucky to have you as his Divemaster. No one could have trained him better.”

Jaehyun’s heart does a funny dance. For the first time in a while, the growing and pushing feelings inside his chest aren’t painful. They’re welcome. And they’re here to stay. “Go tell that him yourself. He’s dying to see you again.”

Hand in hand, they walk outside together, their matching rings glistening on their fingers in the lights of the setting sun.