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"How are you holding up?"
"Badly."
Silence fell on the deadly-scented room, while the two men took a first breath after unceremoniously rampaging the guards-filled room. Most of these guards, if not for Sooil's restrain on his friend, would have died. A handful already had. There was no stopping, no pity, only fiery rage.
"Shit. Fuck this, fuck all of this. Fuck this all, I'm gonna lose my fucking mind", Yein kept muttering, running in the corridors. It was rare for the most elegant member of the triad to lose his cool like this. It wasn't rare that he was endangering his environment, as a vigilante that was his job, but it was the first time he had been away from his partner – moments he could never get back. Strands of time cut from the root, reflections already past on a broken mirror. He was out of his mind, in a harming rage Sooil had never seen. They had their fair share of villains, of adventures and disarrays, yet this was a first. Never the members of the triad had gone alone on missions, despite many lone wolves trying their best. Yein was like that, at first, silent and focused on his goals. The heads of the triad had assigned him to the UP team ; meaning he'd always be in action and on the field, with someone else next to him. If not for that stupid deal of his superiors when they recruited him, Yein would not be here. Neither would Sooil. Neither would his partner – both in crime and in personal life.
When had Yein last longed for love? Never before had he felt such a feeling as the first time meeting Wooseok. A shock that went through his body upon their first encounter. A summer warmth upon their first kiss. An endless freedom upon their first "one night stand". Wooseok made him feel everything he had never known and he made Wooseok feel real, they both completed each other. Though never officially recognised as a pair, everyone knew how close they were.
"This fucking idiot is gonna hear from me, I swear", Yein gritted through his teeth as Sooil and him ran, the oldest watching him closely if he ever went loose. Yein didn't have a history of going crazy and shooting everyone in the room (not unlike someone else in the UP team) whenever he was angry, but this – this was more than anger. It was painstaking hatred, unsoiled fury, madness that were painted on his face. Yein was not here "for funsies", like Wooseok would joke.
Wooseok on a solo mission, oh the laughs he had. The always-so-clumsy and carefree Wooseok taking down the new hottest villain in town. Villains, heroes, they would take down whichever caused more trouble to the city, or simply to them and their interest, but solo missions, that never happened. Every time Yein had tried going on one, the triad had tracked him down a way or another – he never knew how they caught him. So for negligent, motley Wooseok to get past their security system, and for him to get kidnapped by the enemy, this was a fucking new one.
Yein's emotions matched his behaviour. Sooil did not speak much while accompanying him in the underground complex, "you know, the one Minsoo and I go to when Jinwook searches for us, would make a great hideout if anything happens to us", Wooseok had once told Yein. The bitter irony was marked in every step the youngest took. Running like a madman but with a composed look to it, probably because if he ever let his anger get even more place in his already vehement mind, Yein would burn the entire place down without a doubt. Everyone included, even the one he was trying to save.
"What a fucking moron, why the fuck would he do that," Yein almost yelled before they arrived at a dead-end. Stopping for a mere second, breathing a bit more, before running in another direction.
Sooil and him soon reached an empty room. A trap, obviously, Sooil thought. Yein knew that as well. Yet they both went in. No regrets, no decision making, only getting to the point and rescuing Wooseok before they killed him. Yein was told to leave all hopes behind when he learnt what had happened – a day ago. Don't have false hopes, they said, you'll only end up hurting yourself. If he's not dead, he's an hostage, then you can figure shit out, if he's dead, you can kill them all, they're of no use anymore. Fine, Yein had replied, but held back what he truly wanted to say in his mind.
The man who made him love again, the man who accompanied him, the only person he cared about in his life, the only one who made worth his delinquent past and vigilante present worth living. Fuck life, if I'm not getting Wooseok back. This man who supported him through all his major and minor life events, the man he had supported when his family died, Kim Wooseok, the only man Yein ever loved. Screw standards, screw his mannered speech, when Yein was near him, it was laughs, it was tears, it was humming, it was having sex, the outbursts, the noodle shops, the summer afternoons in the park, the chilly autumn mornings on the train, it was whatever they could do together. They had both in common being a vigilante, and even if never the same, they knew how to respond to the other, how their bond worked, they knew what to expect of the other, they knew how to deal with arguments, they were – they are a blessed bond, as Wooseok said. To me, we're more of a cursed one, Yein would reply.
"Why is that?" Wooseok had asked, curiously.
"Our pasts, our sadness… They led to us carrying on legacies we never wanted. We're not vigilantes for fun."
"I know. Shit lives, right. But together we're helping each other! It seems I have a whole new life with you. We're blessed because we bless each other."
Wooseok's voice. Oh, Yein wish he had heard more of Wooseok's voice before he got kidnapped. A day, more than a day even, without any signs of Wooseok, was automatically a bad day, but his voice, his presence, his constant winks, Yein missed them so much. He had went through a separation of a day before, that was badly lived by the both of them. Upon reuniting, they had hugged during ten minutes and held hands until the day was over. Wooseok would've snapped if anything had happened to Yein during that time, Yein used to say, they couldn't control their feelings but it wouldn't do anyone any good if they were a pair on missions.
Missions that could never be solo.
And now, Yein was in a room, overly-lit room, trapped in some way surely, waiting for whichever moronic villain he would have to shoot upon sight to talk, act, whatever.
"Just fucking hurry up!" Yein shouted in impatience. "Where the fuck are you, you bastard?!"
"Tell us where Wooseok is", Sooil continued, albeit in a more serious, less angered voice, "we might let you go alive after you hand him over."
A total lie, since Yein would be ripping their guts the second he saw them. Sooil knew the pair enough – with Yein as his vigilante partner since a long time, he knew what set him off, which were mentions of his orphanage stay and badmouthing Wooseok, or doing worse things to him. Surprisingly, Wooseok never defended Yein the same way, instead being passive-aggressive the second Yein was in trouble. Sooil knew how much they counted on each other. They were his juniors and he actually liked taking care of them. He didn't mind Wooseok bothering Hwanhee for hours on end, he didn't mind Yein using the entire ammo for the ten unit members in one shooting session, he didn't mind the two of them kissing in front of the whole triad. What he cared about was both of their wellbeing – with Wooseok being the first source of worries.
"Agent Sunyoul, correct?" a voice emerged from a speaker in a corner of the room.
"Fuck the introductions, tell me where Wooseok is you piece of shit!"
"And agent Kuhn. You should really both work with us, you know? How you took down everyone in here was most impressive."
"Shut the fuck up, I will kill you you son of a b-"
"Listen to us", Sooil interrupted the flow of unsophisticated insults.
"We'll negotiate with you. Let us see Wooseok. He's alive… right?"
"He is. But I'm afraid agent Wooshin changed his mind."
"What the fuck did you say? Changed his mind? On what?" Yein interrogated, furious.
"Well… I have to let you see him, don't I? Maybe it'll convince you two – and maybe the rest of your pathetic vigilante organisation – to join us, for the greater cause."
"Fuck, you're that GX guy?! That's your means of negotiation? I'm gonna kill you motherfucker," Yein said again.
Sooil thought that if not for the context, Yein's endless stream of rage would have been funny to witness. Here, it was not. Not in the slightest.
"What can I say?" the voice laughed. "We'd make a great team. Look how well Wooseok's doing now."
The door on the other side of the empty room opened, revealing the larger part of the underground complex. An enormous room, lit with an artificial night sky ceiling, and a person sitting on a chair at the very end of that room, motionless.
Yein did not think. He ran. Wooseok. Wooseok, Wooseok, Wooseok. Is he okay? Is he alive? He must've been here the whole time, judging by the same clothes he wore a day ago. As Yein ran in the long and wide, almost infinite space, Wooseok got up. He's not tied, he saw me, fuck, thank god, he's getting up, he's—
Wooseok looked at him. Yein stopped, on instinct. What? Why is he not moving forward? Why is he not… smiling at me? This is not how he would react. What… happened?
A figure emerged from the shadows at the end of the room. That GX guy, yeah, Sooil thought. The one who had tried to bribe the triad into an alliance several times. An asshole, who had a devilish grin stuck on his face.
"Now, now", the known villain laughed, "lower your weapons, we still have to talk. I would advice not to approach agent Wooshin, still," he said in response to Yein pointing his gun at him.
"I don't fucking care. You took him hostage, you're gonna suffer from that, you bastard, I will send you to the seven layers of hell and beyond," Yein aimed for the head with his long-range rifle.
"Wait! Yein, wait," Sooil exclaimed. "Something's wrong with Wooseok."
Yein's eyes widened. He lowered his rifle, slowly.
"Seok-ah… Why are you looking at me like that?"
No answer.
"I'm here, don't... don't give me this look. You're scaring me."
Still silence.
"I love you, you know. We're here for you. I'm sorry, we're late, we— I'm so sorry, I'm here, let's kill this guy and get home, I love y—"
Yein's voice stopped abruptly.
Wooseok had raised a gun. His own gun. But not against the villain. Against Yein.
"Why… Why are you pointing your gun at me? Seok-ah, Wooseok, it's me. No, no, no Wooseok. It's me, it's me, it's only me, look at me," Yein started to tremble.
"Fuck." Sooil groaned, aiming at the villain. "Turn Wooseok back to normal. You have a minute to tell us how to do that."
As if dissociated from his own time, Yein didn't hear anything. Only his own disparate, uneven breathing.
"Put it down, Seok-ah. I'm sorry. We'll talk things over—put it down, please, Wooseok, my love. Please. Please, don't be…"
A cold stare only met his demands. Wooseok's eyes failed to reveal anything to the two agents. He had not spoken, not once, had not moved from his position. His murderous gaze weighing on Yein as the realisation hit the youngest.
"Don't do it, Wooseok. This guy—this guy is controlling you. It's not you. It's not you, it's not you, please, please Wooseok don't do this, don't, don't—don't do this, it's me, I'm here, I'm here," Yein started saying, panicked. Sooil shot at the villain, who avoided all rounds, and ordered Wooseok to shoot back at him. Which he did. Sooil dodged, moving Yein out of the way, who fell down in the sudden action.
Wooseok adjusted his aim at Yein, who was now on the ground, looking distraught. The villain laughed, which Yein did not hear. He was only focused on Wooseok. No, this can't be happening, this can't, no, not Wooseok, why, why Wooseok, why him, why. He didn't feel Sooil shaking him and pleading him to go back to his normal state of consciousness, nor did he see him in his field of vision. It was only Wooseok. Threatening, menacing, a killer.
"Ah, this is a lot funnier than I thought it'd be", the villain finished laughing. "Now. To the serious business. You two can stay here with your friend, while I go and re-negotiate with your triad. Or you die trying to kill me, agent Wooshin, or running away."
"You fucking asshole," Sooil turned back to him instead of focusing on Yein. "What did you do to Wooseok?"
"Oh, nothing much, really. He only seems to prefer it how we deal with things here. See, this city—this country is in a state of disarray, of piteous melancholy, and GX is-"
"I don't fucking care about your ideologies, give us Wooseok back, we'll leave you alone, you'll do the same, no one dies, are you fucking with us?!" Sooil exclaimed back.
Yein was still on the ground, his gaze undetached from Wooseok. This can't be happening.
"Hey," the little, trembling voice of Yein interrupted the not-so-nice conversation between the two other men. "Hey, Wooseok," he almost choked on his words, "it's not you. You… You're here with me. I'm here. I'm here, Seok-ah, I'm here, don't kill me, don't kill me, don't do anything. It'll be alright, we'll both—we'll be fine."
As he got back up and Wooseok never lowered his arm, Sooil aimed at the villain once again. Fuck, if only he could contact the UP team. Only a signal, only one would help. But no option was there for him. Only waiting, if only he could think and not think of how it all happened, how he could've prevented it. Sooil was regretting everything. Attempting to run towards the villain, Sooil didn't notice how quickly Wooseok aimed at him and received a bullet in a leg, immediately making him fall and scream in pain.
Yein raised his rifle in and aimed at his lover in a split second before shouting. "Don't do this, Seok-ah! You're scaring me, don't hurt anyone, don't kill me, don't kill us, don't do anything, I'm here! This isn't you, this fucking isn't you, they brainwashed you, speak to me, tell me something, Seok-ah!"
A tear, two, a myriad fell down his face as his vision became blurrier than his thoughts. Yein only saw one solution from now on. Silently, he lowered his weapon, and walked towards Wooseok. Eyes on the ground, dragging his feet in despair. The villain looked at him amused, before Yein came close to Wooseok and aimed his rifle once more – too many times, already.
"Hahaha, you'll kill him then? You really are ruthless, not even an ounce of compassion for your partn-" his laugh stopped as Yein shot him. In the fraction of a second wherein the villain looked at him, Yein's eyes reflected all the pain in the world. From them, from these crystalline tears, the villain could decipher all the grief and loathing Yein held in himself. He coughed up blood, being hit near the heart. If he wasn't going to survive this one, neither would the two agents.
"Kill them," the villain uttered hoarsely before losing consciousness.
Sooil had stayed wincing in pain, speechless, witnessing it all. No, Yein, I know what you want to do. Don't do it.
"Seok-ah…" Yein's voice struggled to stay flat. It contained the sorrow of two lives. "I'm sorry that you have to do this. Please carry on my legacy, which you do not want. I love you, I love you so much. I love you so much, this is the reason why you're going to kill me. I'm sorry, Seok-ah. It was my fault. Don't kill Sooil after you kill me," his voice started to crack more than before, "this is my parting words' request. I love you, I will always love you, until you join me again in death, I will wait so take your time, please, Wooseok."
Wooseok's eye flinched for a second before he breathed deeply, and aimed at Yein's heart instead of his head.
"You've made it symbolic, huh? That's what you do. That's why I love you. I'm sorry I won't give you flowers each month from now on. Ask someone else to do it for me." The tears ran free while Yein tried to give a last, everlasting, forgiving smile to his lover.
"This isn't your fault. I'm not afraid, don't worry, it'll be fine. It'll be all over soon, you'll be happy even if I'm not here. No, I'll always be here for you, I'll be here right with you."
Wiping away his tears, uselessly as they came stronger and stronger, Yein lastly spoke.
"I love you, Seok-ah. I love you."
Yein shot in the air next to Wooseok's face, not even close to hitting him.
Wooseok shot Yein right in the heart, precisely. Yein fell while Wooseok's eyes widened in horror.
It took five seconds of silence before Wooseok dropped his weapon and ran to Yein in full panic.
"Yein-ah, Yein-ah, Yein," his voice betrayed his emotions again.
Yein's smile grew a bit more, his eyes noticing both Wooseok's alarmed face and the moon of the fake night sky ceiling, before his eyes closed.
What Sooil heard were cries and anger, regrets, curses, for what felt an eternity. Himself felt the rain on his face. Yein was right. Wooseok would snap out of it if anything bad happened to him. That's how it always worked.
That's how the two always worked. Looking out for each other. Yein was right, once again. Life had cursed them.