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Chapter Text

Riki groaned and rolled onto his side as his phone alarm echoed in his ears. The Japanese boy reluctantly shut off his alarm and sat up in his bed. He forced himself up off his bed and into the bathroom to get ready for the day.

‘First day of Junior year. I’m overjoyed,’ he internally rolled his eyes.

Riki had decided to move to Korea over three years ago at this point, the dance and photography opportunities and programmes in both high school and college were exceptional and far too good for him to pass up.

His parents weren’t too keen on sending him to live in a foreign country on his own but they eventually agreed, Riki missed them a lot, he wished they were still around.

He shook his head briefly to clear his head of the thoughts that wanted to cast a gloomy shadow over him, Riki didn’t want to make this day tougher than it would be. Riki was by no means a bullying victim but there were a group of kids at the school who seemed to have something out for him ever since his freshman year.

Back then, Riki was short and skinny. He didn’t really know Korean and had no friends to stand up for him, then the next year he had a huge growth spurt and started dancing in the school’s club. It gave him a more intimidating figure and the bullies left him alone for the most part besides the taunting sometimes which he could more than handle with his quick wit and sharp tongue.

Friends however, were another issue, Riki had a difficult time opening up to people. But there were some people who managed to break through his walls just enough and he’s glad he let them in. He wasn’t an outcast, not necessarily, being on the dance team and the photographer for school events made him quite well known. He even had his own nickname from the dance team, Ni-ki. It’s what a lot of people called him and knew him as.

However Riki really didn’t just let anyone in, sure maybe he had trust issues, but he’d rather have only a few close friends he could genuinely trust than many who he’d always have to watch his back around.

The teenager quickly got dressed into his school uniform and grabbed a granola bar from the kitchen before picking up his bag and leaving his apartment.

Riki put in his earphones and began walking towards the school. Luckily for him he found an apartment complex only 7 blocks away from the school campus and for him walking was just refreshing, it allowed him to clear his head.

He stopped at the last crosswalk before he got to the school and noticed two guys on matching motorcycles go by ‘Cute, what friendship goals,’ he thought to himself with a small only somewhat sarcastic smile on his face; they were nice bikes after all the dudes had taste.

Riki noticed them heading towards the school as the light finally changed for him to cross and raised an eyebrow a little. No one at the school had motorcycles as far as he remembered, he may be socially out of the loop but he wasn’t an unobservant dumbass. He started wondering if those two guys could be new.

In all his thinking, he didn’t realize he had reached the school. The boy drew in a deep breath before stepping through the imposing wrought-iron gate. The school genuinely looked more like a college than a high school.

A large green courtyard that spanned a few thousand feet across and several buildings in a dusty coral colour that’s been kept and repainted since the original construction back in the late 1890’s. The place almost looked like a palace yet on the inside was incredibly modern, from the lighting fixtures to monochromatic beige hallways with white tiles.

As Riki was heading towards the main building suddenly he felt a hand on his shoulder and reluctantly took out his headphones and turned around, only to be greeted by the sight of Park Dohyun.

“Oh my fucking god, not you,” Riki groaned.

Dohyun had harassed Riki all of freshman year till now, he used to hit him back in his first and second year until a wonderful thing called puberty came around and gave Riki a massive growth spurt that had him standing over 6 feet now with some decent muscle to him from the dancing he did and the bully laid off quite a bit.

However the asshole in front of him either had steroids from the soccer team or terribly good genes as he was almost the same height as Riki now and was nearly twice his size in terms of muscle.

“I was actually having a good morning, then you had to show up with your ugly ass,” the teenager dissed the senior.

“All bark and no bite as always Nishimura,” Dohyun commented, “How’re the parents?” the asshole sneered.

Riki felt his blood boil, “You shut the fuck up. Don’t ever talk about my family.”

Riki knew if he stayed the elder boy would just piss him off more so he turned around and started walking away but the other boy grabbed his wrist harshly.

“Don’t you fucking walk away from me Nishimura. People like you are exactly why this school is going to shit, you foreigners just come and take up space and leave nothing for us. You’re worthless and I may have backed off on you when you suddenly grew a foot but not anymore, you better watch your back,” Dohyun growled at him.

“I earned my spot here unlike someone who just was able to throw daddy’s money around and get everything they wanted. Now get the fuck off of me,” he gritted out as he ripped his arm away.

Dohyun was fuming but luckily the warning bell that indicated there were five minutes left until homeroom rang out and the senior backed off.

“This isn’t over Nishimura,” the boy threatened.

“Yeah, yeah get some new lines you cartoonishly evil asshole,” Riki sniped before walking away.

He failed to notice the curious and somewhat concerned eyes on him from across the courtyard as he headed into the main building.

“Riki oppa!” a familiar voice called from the back of the classroom when the boy enters.

He smiles a little to himself and heads towards the person who called for him.

“Hey Eunchae-yah, how’re you?” he greeted.

The pale girl smiles at him and pats his shoulder, “I’ve been good, I missed you over the summer you completely disappeared on me.”

“I know, I was just… handling stuff,” Riki replied as he stared down at his lap.

Eunchae gave him a sympathetic smile and gently squeezed his hand, knowing exactly what he was talking about. This is why Riki let her in, the younger girl was so understanding and extremely intelligent, (hence why she was nearly a year younger than Riki yet already a junior). She understood him without him needing to explain himself a lot of time and let Riki come to her whenever he needed. She truly was his best friend.

“I see you decided to get bangs,” he commented as he glanced at her long dark hair which now had full bangs resting on her forehead.

“Yeah, I did. I wasn’t sure about them but Yunjin-unnie convinced me a lot and she said they look good. Still not sure if she lied to me about that as yet,” Eunchae mused.

Riki chuckled, “Yunjin-ssi doesn’t usually lie about that, she’s right. They suit you, you look a little less like a potato now,” he teased.

The girl gasped in offense before taking her text book and smacking Riki on the arm, “Fuck you Nishimura. I do not look like a potato,” she shot back.

“Sure you don’t Chae-chae, sure you don’t,” he teased.

Before the girl could open her mouth again, the door swung open to reveal two guys who Riki knows he never saw in the school before. They’re definitely shorter than Riki but by no means short, both are pale and have black hair. One has these bright eyes that look so much like a cat’s and one has soft facial features yet sharp eyes and round cheeks that remind Riki a lot of a peach. Now Riki knows he has round cheeks too but according to Eunchae they’re more like dumplings and he’s just come to accept that.

Despite their cute faces there’s something interesting and mysterious about their auras and Riki is slightly intrigued. They’re also really fucking pretty and Riki’s pansexual heart is having a hard time handling it.

The cat-eyed boy makes eye contact with him and shoots him a small friendly smile and Riki thinks he might die. The boy has such a cute smile and with his bright boba eyes looks even more like a cute kitten. The peach-cheeked boy sends him a small wave as well. Riki shoots a small smile back to not be rude before the boys actually come over and sit in the two seats just in front of him and his friend.

Eunchae and Riki share a look silently debating whether they start conversation or wait because these boys are new but they are both rather socially awkward. Before they can decide however the new boys turn around.

“Hey you two don’t mind if we sit here right?” the cat-eyed boy asked.

‘Not at all, this is a great fucking view. Two pretty boys in front of me, my soul will be fine,’ Riki thinks. Instead he musters up his courage and swallows down his gay panic.

“Hi, no we don’t mind at all, right Chae?” Riki answered as he scanned the girl to his right for any signs of discomfort. Despite being socially awkward himself, Eunchae was still the introvert and like his little sister and he could tell she wasn’t too up to talking as yet, so he’d gladly look out for her.

“No I don’t mind,” she replied to him quietly, mostly just for him to hear.

“She’s okay with it too. That’s Eunchae by the way,” he gestured to the girl who smiles and gives the two boys a brief wave.

“Hong Eunchae, nice to meet you both,” she speaks up.

“I’m Riki,” the boy introduced himself.

The two boys smile and nod.

“I’m Jungwon, Yang Jungwon,” the cat-eyed boy introduces himself.

“And I’m Kim Sunoo,” the peach-cheek boy waves, “Riki doesn’t sound Korean, if you don’t mind me asking, where are you from?”

“Japan, my full name’s Nishimura Riki, my nickname’s Ni-ki from the dance team and it’s kind of what a lot of people call me but you guys can call me Riki. I prefer it anyway,” Riki rambled.

Fuck, he was rambling. But he only really did that when he was really nervous or trusted people and despite the initial nerves the boys seemed really friendly and didn’t have any weird vibes to them. Riki credited himself a lot for being perceptive and able to read people and situations really well. From what he could tell, these boys actually seemed alright.

“Oh you’re from Japan? That’s really cool, I’ve always wanted to visit,” Sunoo commented.

“It’s a beautiful country, I’m sure you’d get to see it someday,” Riki smiled at the boy.

“And you dance?” Jungwon asked.

Riki nodded in response.

“Oh so pretty and talented, noted,” Jungwon commented under his breath.

Riki almost thought he misheard the older and felt heat rush to his cheeks but when he glanced over at Eunchae the girl gave him a small smirk indicating that she heard it too.

“So random question while we get to know each other, when were you guys born?” Jungwon asked, making the two return their attention to the new boys.

“ 05, I’m turning 17 in December,” Riki answered.

“ 06, I’ll be 16 in November,” Eunchae replied.

“Aww you guys are babies,” Jungwon cooed, “We’re both 04’s we’re 17 turning 18 in December.”

“Damn I feel old when you say that Wonie,” Sunoo stated.

“Well we are kind of old for juniors Sunoo-yah,” Jungwon told him.

Riki was thinking the same thing however he didn’t want to bring it up and be rude, there’s no right age to start getting an education.

“Ah, so you’re both old,” Riki commented teasingly.

Sunoo chuckled a bit, “Sure we’re old but that just means you can call us hyung,” he smirked at Riki, making the boy feel that heat return to his cheeks again.

“We both started school a year later because of me and some health issues, but I’m great now, never been better,” Sunoo told him.

“Oh so you guys are brothers?” Riki asked a little confused because they both had different last names.

“No, no just really close friends, we always have been. We didn’t want to go to school without each other,” Jungwon said.

“Aww that’s actually really sweet,” Eunchae spoke up.

“Yeah, he’s an annoying little shit but I’ve learned to put up with him over the years,” Sunoo told them in a stage whisper making both Riki and Eunchae giggle as the younger boy slaps his friend over the head.

Before anymore conversation could take place, the homeroom and English teacher Ms. Kim entered and called for quiet. Everyone turned their attention to the woman who was only in her mid twenties but was an incredible teacher and authoritative figure in the school.

“So I know we have two new students this year, boys go ahead an introduce yourselves,” the woman said kindly as she looked over at Jungwon and Sunoo.

The two new boys introduced themselves to the class before sitting down once again.

Ms Kim announced that there wouldn’t be much teaching that day but did tell them about a project they’ll have to do in groups for the end of term on the significance and relevance of a chosen book and that they’ll have to pick their groups by the next week.

“We have 32 students so I say go with eight groups of four,” the woman said.

Riki and Eunchae both exchanged a look as they were really not close enough with two other people in the class to do this project with, but then the two boys in front of them turned to face them and smirked.

“Oh fuck yeah. This is a perfect group,” Riki said quietly.

“Great, we’ll work out all the kinks by next week?” Jungwon asked.

Riki and Eunchae nodded before the quartet turned their attention back to their teacher.

Class went by surprisingly quick that morning and soon enough lunch came around. Riki was texting Eunchae about where to meet up for lunch as he walked through the hallway.

He passed by four unfamiliar guys, who definitely both looked new and like seniors and just bowed his head respectfully before continuing past them and the four boys gave him nods and small smiles in return.

After he walked by them, suddenly someone yanked him on the arm hard and pulled him into one of the bathrooms, making Riki yelp in surprise. He looked up to see none other than Dohyun.

“My fucking god not you again,” Riki groaned.

“I told you that this wasn’t over,” the slightly shorter boy snarled at him as he pinned him against the wall adjacent to the door.

“What the hell is your problem with me? Bitch I breathed and you decided that I was a good punching bag to take out your daddy issues on. Listen you have enough money, try telling daddy to spend it on some goddamn therapy instead of paying you out of trouble in this school you dickhead,” Riki snapped.

He shoved Dohyun off of him and went to grab the door knob but the senior grabbed his wrist and yanked him back before slamming his back against one of the stalls which unfortunately had some sharp metal from the frames jutting out as Riki felt a sharp pain on the lower side of his back and was almost one hundred percent sure he could feel some blood on his back.

Riki bit his tongue and did his best not to wince as to not show the bully in front of him any weakness.

“I’m really fucking tired of you disrespecting me Nishimura. I’m really, really fucking tired of you. You come into this school and just take over everything and think you’re hot shit,” Dohyun spat at him.

“That’s called projecting babes, therapy would really do you some good,” Riki shot back as he tried to push the boy off again but to no avail.

Suddenly his head snapped to his right and Riki could feel an ache in his cheek and grimaced slightly, ‘That one might bruise.’

Riki shoved Dohyun again to try and free himself from the boy’s hold but the idiot really got way stronger and he pulled back his fist again but before he could throw a punch the door to the bathroom creaked as it opened.

“Riki?” an alarmed voice asked.

Chapter Text

Riki’s head snapped towards the door to see none other than Jungwon and Sunoo and recognized the third boy with them as one of the seniors he just passed by in the hall.

“Get the fuck out of here. I’d recommend walking away if you know what’s good for you,” Dohyun snapped at the three boys who entered the bathroom.

“Who the fuck do you think you are bullying someone you asshole? We’re not threatened by you, let him go,” the senior with his two classmates spoke up.

The boy was taller than Jungwon and Sunoo and had a sharp jawline and tanner skin. He also had dark hair that was slicked back with a little bit falling on his forehead and Riki couldn’t help but notice the muscles on his arms. Quite frankly he was extremely hot but Riki could focus on that more later, when he wasn’t getting bullied by an asshole in the school bathroom.

Dohyun glanced between Riki and the three boys before actually using the two braincells in his head and shoving Riki against the door frame of the stall which made the piece of metal dig into his back just a slight bit more before pushing past the boys and out of the bathroom in a huff.

Riki released a breath he hadn’t known he’d been holding before moving forward and falling a little as he didn’t realize how weak his knees felt at the moment but he grabbed the counter before he could hit the floor.

The three boys rushed over to him and quickly began checking him over.

“Are you okay Riki-yah? Did he hurt you?” Sunoo asked worriedly as he placed a hand on Riki’s back.

“You guys know him?” the senior asked Jungwon and Sunoo.

“Yeah he’s our classmate,” Jungwon responded quickly.

“Riki, are you hurt?” Jungwon asked again.

“Just a little, he shoved me hard against the door frame there was some metal thing sticking out and I’m pretty sure I hurt my back,” Riki told them as he gestured to the broken piece of metal sticking out of the door frame which had some fabric from his school blazer hanging on it.

“Shit let us see,” the senior boy muttered as he gently turned Riki around so his back was facing all of them.

“Is this okay?” he asked gently as he took off Riki’s blazer.

If Riki was not in as much pain as he was he definitely would’ve been blushing like crazy and losing his shit at this very attractive senior taking to him in his ear in that really smooth, deep voice as he took off his blazer. But his brain could be gay later, he really needed a little help.

“Yeah, yeah it’s fine,” he answered only blushing a slight bit.

The boys all grimaced at the sight of the lower left side of Riki’s shirt, there was some blood staining the white shirt, not a lot but there was a red patch on the white material and a hole in the shirt.

“Yikes, let’s get you to the nurse. It doesn’t look terrible but it doesn’t look great either,” Sunoo commented.

Riki nodded in agreement and Sunoo went and grabbed Riki’s bag from where it had fallen on the floor.

“You don’t have to do that Sunoo-ssi,” Riki protested.

“Nonsense, you’re hurt, also call me hyung. Now let’s go,” the elder told him.

Jungwon and their friend came on either side of Riki to help him walk along considering how the boy nearly face-planted into the tile earlier. The four left the bathroom and turned left to head towards the nurse’s office.

“That’s Jay or Jongseong by the way, he’s our friend and a senior,” Jungwon told Riki suddenly.

“Park Jongseong but like Jungwon said call me Jay. I take care of these two gremlins a lot of the time,” Jay said in a teasing tone.

“Yeah yeah, whatever Jay-ah,” Sunoo rolled his eyes.

“Nice to meet you Jay-ssi, I’m Riki. Nishimura Riki,” Riki said with a slight grimace as a pang of pain went through his back.

“Hey if you’re Wonie and Sunoo’s friend, you’re also mine. You can call me hyung,” Jay told him with a smile.

“Alright Jay-ssi,” Riki nodded.

“We’ll work on that,” the elder smirked at him a little before the group reached the nurse’s office.

Sunoo opened the door and the woman looked up at the sight of the four.

“Goodness, what happened?” Ms. Nam said as she stood up from her desk and came over to them.

“He-” Jay began.

“I just fell and landed on a sharp rock, Ms. Nam,” Riki cut the eldest boy off making the other three look at him questioningly.

“I was hoping to not see you in here at all this year Nishimura, yet it’s the first day and here you are. You’re very accident prone for a dancer,” the nurse told him with a knowing look as Jay and Jungwon sat him down on the bed.

“I know Ms. Nam, I know. Sorry to bother you with showing up here,” Riki apologized.

The woman hummed before telling Riki to lift his shirt and coming over with her medical supplies.

The three other boys stood to the side and watched as the woman moved Riki’s shirt out of the way to reveal a wound.

It was about 2 inches long but they couldn’t tell how deep it was from where they were standing.

“Aish, Riki-yah, you’re lucky I don’t have to stitch this,” Ms. Nam said as she felt along the gash which made Riki wince in pain.

“Seriously?” he asked.

“Yes seriously, this one’s bad but not the worst,” the woman told him.

“This is definitely not from a rock,” she whispered to him, “Is that kid still bothering you?”

“Ms. Nam it’s fine really I can handle it,” Riki answered knowing the nurse would have seen through his lie.

She grabbed a bottle of hydrogen peroxide and some cotton.

“This is going to hurt quite a bit. Are you ready?” she asked.

“Riki-yah? Do you want me to hold your hand?” Sunoo suddenly asked.

Riki looked over to the boy who asked and noticed the other two giving him looks that he couldn’t quite decipher. He’d rather have the moral support just in case but couldn’t help the dumb panicked gay thoughts that entered his brain at holding hands with the pretty ass boy that is Kim Sunoo.

“Y-yeah, um t-thanks Sunoo-ssi,” Riki nodded.

The elder boy came over and took Riki’s hand in his own. Now Riki knew he had small hands considering his height but were they really so small that they almost looked like a baby’s in Sunoo’s? The older’s hands were warm yet had a few calluses to them, quite the contrast from Riki’s smooth ones.

“Your hands are really soft you know,” Sunoo said suddenly, breaking Riki out of his thoughts.

The dancer almost choked on his spit, “U-um t-thank you?” he stuttered out.

“They also fit quite well in mine,” the elder told him in a sweet tone.

Riki blushed and just decided to stare down at his lap at the flirting from this boy. Was he always this bold or was he just fucking around with Riki? He couldn’t really focus on that thought for long as suddenly there was a sharp pain in his back as Ms. Nam began cleaning the wound which made him wince and squeeze Sunoo’s hand hard.

“Shit, sorry,” Riki muttered when he realized he was basically holding the elder in a vice grip and loosened it a little as Ms. Nam continued cleaning.

“Hey, it’s okay,” Sunoo assured him as he rubbed circles with his thumb over Riki’s hand, “I’m fine really, squeeze as hard as you need to.”

Riki nodded and gave the elder boy’s hand intermittent squeezes as the nurse continued cleaning his wound. After a few more moments she appeared in front of him.

“That’s the hard part done, I’m just going to put a bandage over it now and young man please be careful. I don’t want to see your ass in my office for the rest of the year,” she said in a stern yet affectionate tone.

“Yes ma’am,” he said mockingly.

The nurse rolled her eyes at him fondly while going over to grab some bandages before coming over and cutting it accordingly to cover his cut.

“Sorry for interrupting you guys’ lunch,” Riki apologized as he looked guiltily at the three boys in the room.

Jay and Jungwon both gave him gentle smiles and Sunoo squeezed his hand which Riki forgot that the elder was still holding.

“It’s really no problem Riki-yah. We don’t mind at all,” Jungwon smiled at him.

“We’re just glad that you’re not anymore hurt than you could’ve been,” Jay said.

Riki blushed slightly, he was really touched that three strangers had shown him so much kindness for no other reason than they seemingly just wanted to. Usually people would just walk away from any situation where they saw Dohyun bullying anyone because the dude’s family had a huge influence in the school. But these boys stuck around and Riki couldn’t help but think that they really didn’t seem to have any underlying reasons to do so.

Suddenly his phone rang, snapping him out of his thoughts and he took his hand from Sunoo’s, missing the way the elder boy pouted before schooling his expression again at the loss of contact.

Riki pulled his phone out to see none other than Eunchae calling him.

“Shit,” he muttered, realizing he left his best friend all alone during lunch and he didn’t show up to meet her.

“Hey Chae-yah,” he answered.

“Nishimura Riki! Where the hell are you? How could you leave my introverted ass all alone?” she yelled at him making him pull the phone away from his ear a little.

“I’m really sorry Eunchae, I just ran into some trouble and I forgot to text you, that’s my bad. I’m really sorry,” he apologized.

“Trouble?” Riki could practically hear her shaking her head through the phone, “On the first day oppa really? When is he going to leave you alone?”

Riki sighed, knowing that Eunchae would have figured out exactly what happened; after all she was the first person who stood up for him against Dohyun back in their freshman year.

“I don’t know Chae,” he sighed, knowing the girl was probably tired of talking about this with him.

“I’m coming to the nurse’s office, do you need a fresh shirt?” she asked.

“You know me oh so well Eunchae,” Riki smiled.

“Yeah well someone has to take care of your dumbass, I’ll be there in a minute,” he could already hear her running footsteps before she hung up the call.

“Alright, that’s it,” Nurse Nam said.

“You’re an angel as always Ms. Nam,” the boy smiled at her.

“Yeah yeah, I better not see you in here again Riki-yah, I mean it. Is Eunchae on her way?”

“As usual,” he nodded.

Only seconds after that, Eunchae came in with a clean white shirt in hand and panting like she ran in the Olympics.

“Did you run all the way from across the school?” Riki asked knowingly.

“No dumbass, I ran from only half way across the school. Did you forget where the cafeteria is?” she responded.

“Oh hi Jungwon-ssi, Sunoo-ssi and hello sunbaenim,” she bowed noticing the other three boys in the room.

“Park Jongseong, call me Jay,” the senior boy introduces himself to the girl.

“I’ll give you guys a few minutes,” Nurse Nam said before going back to her front desk in the small room in the front of the office.

Eunchae came over, making Sunoo reluctantly step away from Riki and go stand over by his friends.

“Thanks for coming here for me Chae,” Riki said sincerely.

“Of course Ki oppa, you’re my best friend after all. Someone has to look out for you,” she smiles sweetly at him and pats his shoulder before handing him the clean white shirt in her hands.

“Thanks,” he mutters.

Riki stands up off the bed and places the shirt down before beginning to unbutton the one he’s wearing. Eunchae already turned away yet the three boys who brought him here still had their eyes on him.

“Um, do you guys mind? I know I’m hot as hell but also privacy is appreciated,” Riki said with a hint of sass.

“Oh shit, sorry,” Jay said suddenly snapping out of whatever daze he was in and turning around.

Riki noticed Jungwon’s cheeks flush for a second before he turned around as well. He was also pretty sure he heard Sunoo mutter ‘definitely very hot’ before he also turned around and his suspicion seemed to be confirmed slightly when he noticed Jungwon hit his back a tiny bit.

Eunchae also seemed to hear it and glanced at him briefly, giving him a knowing look before looking away again.

The boy quietly scoffed and was glad they couldn’t see the blush in his cheeks, before taking off his ruined school shirt and tossing it into the bin nearby and buttoning up the spare one Eunchae brought him, rolling the sleeves up to his elbows so he wouldn’t overheat with the still terribly hot temperatures.

“Okay you guys can turn around now,” Riki said once he was decent.

“Still looking just as good,” Jay winked at him as he looked Riki up and down making the youngest boy blush.

“T-thanks,” he stuttered, flustered by the senior so openly checking him out. He went over to the chair that Sunoo placed his bag on and put it on the uninjured side of his back. He picked up his blazer and looked at the hole in it examining it before reminding himself to sew it later.

“So, how about lunch on me? Considering I took up about ten minutes of it already,” Riki offered as he turned to the others in the room.

“I hear free food, I’m down,” Eunchae agreed.

“You don’t have to do that Riki-yah, seriously we’re your hyungs we should be treating you,” Jungwon protested.

“I’ll call all of you ‘ssi’ if you don’t let me buy you lunch,” the youngest boy threatened while giving them a look daring them to disagree.

“What the fuck?” Sunoo asked with a laugh, “That’s literally manipulation!”

“It’s the final deal, take it or leave it,” Riki smirked.

The three older boys looked at each other before turning back to the Japanese boy in front of them.

“Fine,” they chorused.

“Great, let’s go…hyungs,” Riki said before leaving the room with Eunchae by his side, completely missing the blushes and fond looks staring after him as he walked ahead with his friend.

“Thanks for treating us Riki-yah,” Jungwon said as the group all walked out of the cafeteria holding their trays towards a table in the garden seating.

“It’s no problem Jungwon-hyung, you guys helped me out. The least I could do was repay you,” Riki told him with a small smile.

They all eventually reached a table before sitting down, Eunchae and Sunoo to his right while Jay and Jungwon sat next to each other on the other side.

“So Riki, I’m assuming your Japanese? The name sounds like it, unless I’m wrong?” Jay asked him in Japanese which completely stunned the boy.

He had no clue the elder spoke his native language and felt a slight pang of homesickness and longing for his family at hearing his mother language.

“Holy shit, you speak Japanese? Are you fluent?” Riki responded in his mother tongue that he hasn’t used in ages.

“Not quite but very conversational, I’d love to be fluent though,” Jay said.

Riki thought his heart would burst at hearing the familiar syllables that he hasn’t heard in ages, not since he lost his parents. Riki quickly shook the thought out of his head and refocused on his conversation with Jay.

“Your accent’s great first of all and yes I’m Japanese. I was born in Okayama, I moved here when I was 13 for the dance and photography programmes. It made sense for what I wanted to do,” he explained.

“Hey, we know like one quarter of what you guys are saying. Jay-hyung stop hogging Riki we want to get to know him too,” Sunoo pouted at the eldest on the table as he gestured between him and Jungwon.

“Jokes on you guys I know the important bits of what they’re talking about,” Eunchae teased the older boys.

“Oh fuck you. You know Japanese too?” Jungwon groaned.

“Aye fuck you too,” Eunchae shot back teasingly, “And I know enough from Riki, I was kind of his Korean teacher when he got here.”

“It’s true she was, she’s also insanely smart and picks up on things really quickly so she knows most of what I’m saying,” Riki nods.

“Well can we please be let in on the loop?” Jungwon asked while blinking his cat eyes. Riki couldn’t help but think about how pretty he looked.

Before he could say anything a voice cut him off.

“Hey Jongseong!” an unfamiliar voice called out.

The group all turned around to see the other three senior boys Riki had passed by in the hallway earlier, he remembered seeing Jay with them but when they left the bathroom to head to the nurse they were gone.

The first one was tall, just a little shorter than Riki from the looks of it and had a high nose bridge and round doe eyes with dark hair in a middle part and only slightly pushed away from his forehead. The second was about Sunoo’s height and had bangs over his forehead and a round yet still sculpted jaw and high nose bridge; his skin also had a tan to it like Jay’s. The last boy looked around the same height as Jay and had sharp round eyes, a slim nose and there was a mole on the left side of his nose as well as under his eye. He truly looked like a prince, they all did but something about his almost icy stare looked like he was staring into the depths of Riki’s soul.

The three all had an interesting aura to them, one that screamed authoritative yet still gentle. If he was being honest, all the boys he had met today had that aura and a mysterious air to them that Riki couldn’t figure out what it was about.

Also they were all incredibly attractive and Riki was fighting the gay in him to not panic at them coming closer to the table. The first boy sat on the seat at the end of the table while the other two slid in next to Jay and Jungwon.

Riki and Eunchae glanced at each other questioningly as Sunoo and Jungwon waved to the new additions to the table indicating they clearly knew them.

“Oh hi, sorry, how rude of us to not introduce ourselves,” the doe-eyed boy said as he looked at Riki and Eunchae.

“I’m Lee Heeseung, I’m 18 going on 19 and a senior,” the boy bowed his head.

“Hey you guys, Sim Jaeyun, just call me Jake. I’m 18, born in 04 just like these guys. I’m from Australia and also a senior,” the boy to the left of Jay introduced himself giving the younger two a friendly smile which reminded Riki a lot of a golden retriever.

“Park Sunghoon, nice to meet you guys, also 17 and a senior,” the last boy said quietly with a small wave.

Riki’s brain was stuttering a bit from gay panic at the moment that he was surrounded by six really, really attractive guys but Eunchae seemed to pick up on it and help him out a little.

“Hi you guys, I’m Hong Eunchae, I’m a junior, and I’m 15, born in 06,” she greeted them which made Riki snap out of his gay stupor.

“Hi everyone, I’m Riki. Nishimura Riki. I’m 16 and 05,” he introduced himself.

“Pretty name,” Jake commented as he glanced at the boy.

Riki couldn’t help but notice the way all three of the new boys seemed to be staring at him almost studying his face. ‘Were they actually checking him out?’ he thought. Maybe the gay panic had fried his brain and made him absolutely delusional and hoping these six hot boys were checking him out.

“You two are really young,” Heeseung commented, breaking Riki out of his thoughts.

“Or maybe you’re just old hyung,” Sunghoon teased, making the other four boys laugh.

Riki was blushing a little from Jake’s comment prior and stared down at his food to try and hide it when Sunghoon spoke up.

“You three all abandoned us. How does it take you so long to piss?” he directed the question to Riki’s new found friends.

“We.. uh,” Jay stuttered glancing at Riki to see if telling the truth was okay, the boy just waved a hand not really embarrassed about what happened considering Dohyun was just a massive asshole with a too big ego.

“Riki here was having a little trouble with some asshole in the bathroom. He got a little banged up so we just took him to the nurse to get him checked out and Eunchae had showed up there to meet him,” Jungwon explained.

“Eunchae and Riki are also our classmates by the way,” Sunoo added.

“You got ‘banged up’, how bad? Are you okay?” Jake asked the youngest boy, his voice holding a lot of concern which surprised Riki considering they just met, but he was touched at how concerned for him Jake sounded.

“I’m fine just a cut on my back, he’s just an asshole with some severe daddy issues and in need of a lot of therapy,” Riki rolled his eyes with a joking tone, “I’m immune to his bullshit at this point.”

The boys all smiled at Riki’s snark a little before Heeseung spoke up, “Hey just because you say it doesn’t bother you doesn’t mean he isn’t a dick. Just be careful okay?” he told Riki in a caring voice.

Riki smiled at the elder a little and nodded,
“I’ll try.”

“Now ignoring those losers, you two were leaving us out of your conversation by speaking in Japanese,” Sunoo pointed to Jay and Riki.

“Oh you’re Japanese?” Jake asked.

Riki simply nodded in response before turning to Sunoo and Jungwon, “Right, sorry you guys. I haven’t spoken Japanese in a really long time, I just got excited,” Riki apologized.

“How come you haven’t spoken it in a while? Don’t you speak it at home with your parents?” Sunghoon asked, tone not offensive or rude but just curious.

The other boys all hummed and stared at Riki curiously as well.

Eunchae gave the elder boy a warning look telling him to drop the conversation as Riki stared down at the table.

“I live alone. I speak it with my sister sometimes,” Riki answered simply. Did he want to tell them the truth, that his parents weren’t alive anymore? That they hadn’t been for the past few months and the last time that he saw them alive was almost a year ago?

The boys could tell there was more to it yet from the murderous look that Eunchae was giving them they seemed to know to back off.

“Um, sorry for prying Riki-yah. If it’s personal…” Sunghoon apologized.

“No, no it’s fine,” Riki shook his head, he couldn’t believe he was going to say this but something about these guys just made him want to be honest, maybe it was because his brain was malfunctioning because they were all really cute but there was also something about them that was weirdly trustworthy although they all seemed just a bit mysterious.

“Riki…” Eunchae said quietly placing a hand on his shoulder.

“It’s okay, Eunchae. I’m okay,” he told her quietly.

“My parents died in June, it’s just me and my sisters. They’re in Japan and my oldest is my youngest sister’s legal guardian. I moved here for school before freshman year because of the dance and photography opportunities,” Riki explained.

The lighthearted atmosphere at the table suddenly got really somber and Riki immediately felt bad. This is why Eunchae was his only friend, he always seemed to kill the mood somehow. He meets new people and manages to completely push them within a few minutes.

“Shit, I’m sorry for just dropping that on all you,” Riki muttered.

This is why he didn’t open up to people he always just dropped it and no one knew what to do or say, he was a complete idiot for thinking he could just be so open and honest with these people he barely knew.

“No, no Riki-yah it’s okay. It’s okay, sometimes it’s good to talk about it,” Sunoo said as he reached over the table and squeezed Riki’s hand which made the Japanese boy look at him.

“Still I’m sorry,” Riki apologized.

“You really don’t have to apologize, our parents aren’t really around either, the six of us live together,” Jay assured him.

The revelation surprised Riki a bit but also made him feel far less guilty and he smiled a bit.

“Six teenaged boys living together? Sounds like a glorified frat house,” he joked.

Everyone at the table cracked up, laughter filling the air at Riki’s joke and he felt a lot less shitty at hearing that. These boys all had really nice laughs and extremely pretty smiles.

“It basically is,” Heeseung chuckled at him.

“True, I’m the only semblance of order in that fucking place,” Jay rolled his eyes jokingly.

“Hey, what about me?” Jungwon protested.

“Yeah, yeah you too Wonie,” Jay agreed.

Riki smiled to himself a little as the conversation and banter picked up whilst everyone ate their lunch. He thought he had initially completely killed the mood by mentioning his family, yet the boys were not only understanding yet they also related to him.

Maybe opening up to people wasn’t so bad, these guys have genuinely been nothing short of extremely sweet to him without even knowing him. They make Riki think that maybe, just maybe he could actually open up to someone other than Eunchae.

Though there was one thought in the back of his mind which just seemed to latch and not want to let go. There was something mysterious about these boys, yet Riki really had no clue what.

Chapter Text

“Alright everyone, that’s it! Good job today guys and remember to keep practicing for club day next week,” Riki announced to the members of the dance club after practice.

The students all groaned from where they were panting on the floor but also gave him thumbs-up and small nods before picking themselves up and moving around to leave, waving at Riki on the way out.

It was Tuesday which meant Riki had dance practice, like he usually did every Tuesday and Friday. Wednesday and Thursday were his photography club days.

“You’re going to kill them before next week Thursday you know?” Haruto chuckled at him.

Riki turned to other Japanese boy and shook his head, “Nah, they’ll be fine. They’ve been putting up with me since the end of last year.”

The senior laughed again, “Yeah you’re right, making you the dance captain for this year was a great fucking idea. I’m glad Yeonjun instated you before he left.”

“Me too, I’m sorry I made you take on the captain responsibilities for me at the end of last term I just had to-”

“Handle some things, I know Ni-ki~san. I know, I’m just glad you’re back, you still out-dance the entire club. Our own personal prodigy,” the other male smiled at him before patting Riki’s shoulder.

“Let’s get cleaning, this room smells like sweat and there are literally some puddles on the floor,” the junior commented as he went over to the cleaning supplies closet in the corner and took out a bucket and broom.

“Where the fuck is the mop?” he asked Haruto.

“Oh right, someone broke it last semester and we haven’t gotten a new one yet,” the elder told him.

“Great,” Riki rolled his eyes sarcastically, “Can you go get one from the janitor’s closet and fill up the bucket?”

Haruto nodded, “I’ll be back in a few,” he winked at the younger boy before heading out of the dance studio.

Riki sighed to himself and relaxed a little bit, dancing always seemed to help him clear his head. He hadn’t really danced since losing his parents yet that day he was able to just put all the emotions he was feeling into his moves. He restarted the music and decided to give the group dance he had choreographed for the club’s presentation at club day the week after a quick run-through.

The familiar melody of BTS’ Dionysus filtered through the speaker and Riki just allowed his body to move to the music and let himself feel free. He’d really missed dancing, he decided it would be best to continue in honor of his parents who were his biggest inspirations in pursuing his passion. Riki almost felt like they were still there when he danced.

Eventually the music came to an end as Riki did the final pose and heard the door swing open.

“Did you get the mop…” his words died in his throat when he turned around to see Dohyun along with three schmucks whose names he couldn’t be bothered knowing. But he wasn’t even paying attention to them.

Riki was looking at the one asshole who had a vice grip on Eunchae’s arm while the girl kept trying to pull away from him.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” he barked as he got closer to the group.

“Eunchae, you okay?” Riki asked the younger girl, eyes softening for only a second as he looked at her.

Eunchae looked up and met his eyes and Riki’s breath hitched in his throat. There was blood on Eunchae’s lip, there was fucking blood.

“Did you dickheads fucking hit her?” he snapped.

“How fucking dare you put your hands on her,” Riki growled as he grabbed Dohyun by his shirt and pulled the guy close to him.

“Oh so you do have a bit of a temper,” Dohyun sneered at him.

“I’m not going to even dignify that bullshit with a response, let her go. Now,” he snarled.

“You fucking humiliated me yesterday, this is your lesson,” Dohyun seethed as he shoved Riki back.

Riki didn’t give a shit about how much these guys bothered him, but they fucking hurt Eunchae and the only thing keeping him from seeing completely red was the fact that Dohyun’s minion still had his hands on her.

“You humiliated yourself with your very existence. Every other day that goes by I wish your mother knew abortion was a fucking choice,” Riki snarled as he shoved Dohyun back and went over to the guy holding Eunchae.

He took her hand and pushed the guy back hard, making him hit the wall and let go of the shorter girl who Riki instantly wrapped his arms around and pushed behind himself protectively.

“Listen here assholes, fuck with me all you want, but don’t you dare put your fucking hands on Eunchae,” he threatened them.

“Just like always, all bark and no bite. Nishimura, I’m disappointed that you didn’t throw a punch,” the bully smirked at him, “But really that’s not a problem because I will.”

“Really, four on one? You’re that much of a coward that you can’t even handle me on your own?” Riki seethed at the senior.

“So the bathroom yesterday was a fair fight? When all your little friends showed up?” Dohyun shot back.

“They didn’t even put their hands on you. You ran away like a fucking pussy. Just like you always do,” Riki snapped at him, “Too bad that from all the acting like hot shit that you do, you haven’t learned how to grow a fucking spine.”

“Eunchae let’s go,” Riki said as he turned his back on the group to grab his phone and bag, however that was clearly a mistake as suddenly he was grabbed by the shoulders and yanked back so hard he fell onto his back.

“Riki!” Eunchae yelled.

“I’m really fucking tired of your mouth Nishimura. You can talk all that shit yet can never back it up,” Dohyun gritted out as he grabbed Riki by the front of the shirt and punched him straight across the face.

Riki tasted blood on his tongue but he also had enough of this asshole’s shit and was glad for his strong legs from dancing as he kicked the elder boy in the side which knocked the boy off of him and sent him stumbling but he was still on his feet.

Riki quickly got up off the floor but with Dohyun’s history in boxing, his recovery was a bit faster and right as the junior stood upright, the bully punched him again, the blow landing right on his ribs.

He grimaced but threw a hard blow of his own right to Dohyun’s face and heard a crack as his fist hit the boy’s nose and sent him stumbling back, holding the appendage.

“Dohyun!” one of his minions yelled and rushed over to the boy who was doubled over holding his nose.

“You fucking asshole, I think you broke my nose. You idiots do something!” Dohyun yelled.

The other two minions both approached Riki and he blocked the punch the first one threw but the second guy kicked him in the knee, hard, before punching him in the ribs again. Those were definitely going to bruise.

However, Riki used his height and agility as well as old experience in martial arts training to sweep the first guy’s foot from underneath him before punching him in the jaw which sent him onto his back, winding him. The second guy though was big, he had sheer size on Riki and was almost his height. He shoved Riki back before pinning him against the wall and punching him straight in the stomach.

It hurt like hell, but Riki was so over dealing with this and elbowed the guy in the stomach which unfortunately didn’t affect him much as he jabbed Riki right in his eye before kicking him in the same knee as earlier and punching him in the side and Riki could swear the dude probably made his cut from yesterday bleed again.

Riki winced in pain and hesitated for a moment too long as suddenly he was shoved back harshly again and he lost his balance and fell onto his side.

The guy approached and kicked Riki in his certainly already bruised ribs before he drew back his fist, ready to throw a punch but was stopped by the sound of the door opening.

Riki expected to see Haruto with the mop looking terribly confused at the situation, but instead saw six very attractive guys who looked absolutely fuming.

“Not this asshole again,” Jay rolled his eyes at Dohyun who was holding his nose.

“You know these guys?” Heeseung asked.

“We know that fucker with the bloody nose, he was the one fucking with Riki yesterday. I assume these dickheads are his minions,” Jungwon replied to the eldest.

The group’s eyes traveled around the room, spotting Eunchae who had a shaken expression on her face and a bloody lip which concerned them but what concerned them the most was the sight of Riki on the floor being loomed over by some asshole who looked like he was going to punch him before they walked in.

“Hey!” Sunghoon yelled as he moved forward with Jake hot on his tail as he headed towards Riki, “Leave him the fuck alone,” the elder seethed as he grabbed Riki’s attacker by the arm and bent it in a painful grip behind his back, making the bully groan and whimper in pain.

Jake grabbed the boy Riki had knocked down and yanked him up by the back of his hair which made the boy howl in pain.

“You just like to fuck with kids who are younger and smaller than you don’t you?” Jay seethed at all the bullies.

Jungwon stepped forward and grabbed the minion Dohyun was hanging onto and gripped his arms in a different yet equally as painful-looking grip as the one Sunghoon had his attacker in before Jay stepped forward and held Dohyun by his shirt.

“Listen here you dickhead, leave Riki and Eunchae alone because if you don’t, I promise you I won’t regret painting you black and blue. That goes for you and your lackeys,” Jay basically growled at the other senior who seemed to be cowering under his stare.

Eunchae seemed to snap out of her shock a little and came over to Riki and wrapped her arm around his shoulders as the two looked on at their new found friends who were threatening the guy who’s bullied Riki for years.

Riki even felt rather intimidated himself, these guys had all been so incredibly friendly and gentle around him yet now they were even scaring Riki a little with the sheer intimidation and fury on their face and he internally prayed that he would never be on the receiving end of that anger.

“I’m not fucking afraid of you idiots,” Dohyun spat back at Jay.

“That’s your mistake then,” Jay hissed at him before releasing the boy.

“Also your nose isn’t broken,” Heeseung piped up suddenly.

Riki watched as the older boy moved toward Dohyun before punching him right in the nose which made a crack echo through the room.

“Now it is.”

The bully whimpered and whined in pain before running out of the room while Jake, Jungwon and Sunghoon released the grips they had on the minions who also dashed out as the group stared after the bullies scampering out of the room.

Riki drew in a shaky breath he hadn’t known he’d been holding and ended up letting out a small yelp as he moved to sit up against the wall due to his certainly bruised ribs that were protesting to him shifting around.

“Shit, Riki did they break something?” Eunchae asked him worriedly as she held his shoulders and looked him over.

The rest of the boys all snapped their attention back to the youngest two in the room as they all rushed over and crouched in front of them. Jake and Sunghoon obviously sitting first as they were the closest.

“They hurt you. Are you okay?” Riki asked as he gently brought a thumb to the girl’s lip which made her wince slightly but she took his hand in her own.

“I’m fine, stop being such a selfless dumbass and worry about yourself right now,” Eunchae told him as she squeezed his hand.

If Riki was paying attention he would’ve noticed the odd, brief looks that the other boys directed at Eunchae and his clasped hands before they quickly shook them off their faces.

“Riki-yah, are you okay?” Sunghoon asked as he cupped Riki’s left cheek, the youngest boy could only pray they didn’t notice the blush on his face at the moment or if they did they hadn’t commented on it.

“I’m fine really, I think Dohyun’s definitely worse off than me,” Riki said giving a them a half-assed smile.

“Yeah, yeah Mr. Tough Guy, we can tell your ribs are killing you,” Jake told him.

Riki winced, knowing the elder was right, “Yeah maybe a little bit.”

“Shit you’re bleeding,” Sunghoon muttered as he took out a handkerchief from his pocket and brought it up to Riki’s eyebrow which he didn’t even realize had blood falling from it.

Riki winced and retracted a bit from the contact on his wound.

“Sorry Riki-yah. Just relax a little bit okay?” Sunghoon said reassuringly before holding the cloth back over his eyebrow.

“Thanks Hoon-hyungie,” the dancer smiled at the senior, the nickname just slipping off his tongue.

He certainly didn’t miss the way the older boy seemed to blush before shaking the look off his face a bit.

“Damn no fair Riki-yah. How come Sunghoon gets a nickname already? We met you first,” Sunoo whined.

“Alright Noo-hyung,” Riki said with a smirk.

“Oh you little shit,” Jake chuckled, “We all need nicknames now.”

“Your name is Jake, Jake-hyung,” Riki tells the older in the most monotone manner, “What the fuck am I supposed to do with that besides Jakey?”

The elder boy still smiles at hearing the nickname from the youngest boy and mutters a short, “I’ll take what I can get,” while the other three boys stared at him expectantly.

“Well we need our nicknames now too,” Heeseung prompted as he gave Riki a smirk that sent butterflies shifting through his stomach, or perhaps that was just the pain in his side.

“Okay Hee-hyung, Wonie-hyung and Seong-hyungie,” Riki said with a knowing gaze.

He got the reaction he was looking for as the three older boys all smiled contentedly and stared at him a fond way which made Riki feel like his heart was on fire. Why the fuck did these boys have such an effect on him? Riki’s so gay and so deprived of a love life.

“Back to the topic at hand, what the fuck was his problem?” Jake asked as he pulled out a tissue from who knows where to wipe some blood from Riki’s mouth.

“I pissed him off since freshman year when I entered the school. He’s just an asshole with a lot of issues like I told you yesterday and thinks I’m a good punching bag,” Riki explained.

“How’d you guys know we were here anyway?” he questioned them, curious as to them just showing up.

“We had a meeting with the dean about starting the new year since we missed the orientation usually held for new transfers,” Heeseung explained.

“We heard some yelling from across the courtyard as we were standing outside the office finishing talking to the guy and we saw that idiot pulling Eunchae somewhere, we got worried but the dean hadn’t noticed. We kind of hurried in finishing off the conversation and followed after them after a minute,” Jungwon finished recounting.

“Dohyun was mad about yesterday,” Eunchae piped up suddenly, “He came up to me and said some shit about how ‘Riki and his little friends humiliated him and he wanted to teach him a lesson’. ”

Riki could feel his blood boil as his friend explained what happened to her, feeling absolutely fuming that Dohyun would even look at Eunchae much less put his hands on her.

“He wanted to see if Riki would actually fight him since Riki’s never actually thrown a punch at the guy, he usually just snarks at him. He knew he could use me to try and get to him,” Eunchae explained.

“I tried to run b-but he g-grabbed me and h-he s-slapped me, t-then his guy grabbed me a-and,” her breathing picked up recalling the event and quickly grabbed both of Eunchae’s hands to ground her so she wouldn’t get worked up into a panic attack.

“Chae-yah breathe, breathe. In for four, hold for four, out for four, just like we’ve talked about. It’s okay, I’m here. You’re okay, I’m right here,” Riki told her gently as he rubbed his thumbs over the girl’s hands.

He had his full attention on Eunchae and completely missed the slight glares the other six boys shot towards the youngest two’s intertwined hands before shaking some sense into their heads as the girl was close to having a panic attack and Riki was her best friend. Why the fuck would they be upset about them holding hands when he’s trying to comfort her?

Eunchae eventually calmed down with Riki’s guidance through her breathing and slumped forward a little, clearly tired from the events of the day.

“There you go Chae, you feeling okay?” Riki asked.

“Just a little tired,” she responded.

“It’s okay, you can rest a little,” Riki assured her as he wrapped his arm around the girl’s shoulders and leaned her head on his shoulder to let her rest.

“Is she okay?” Sunoo asked kindly.

“She will be, she just needs some rest,” Riki nodded.

“And you clearly need some medical attention, I think you’re going to have to disappoint the nurse,” Jungwon told him in a half-joking tone.

“Fuck, no this is not important enough for Ms. Nam to deal with and also she’s not here, she leaves early on Tuesdays,” the youngest boy responded.

“Not important my ass, but we’re not just leaving you alone in your condition,” Sunghoon said seriously with a hint of protectiveness in his voice which touched Riki a bit, these guys really did seem to care for him.

“Alright alright, I’ll let you guys come with me to my apartment, it’s nearby enough anyway. I hope that asshole didn’t fuck up my knee, I have a dance to do next week,” Riki groaned.

“We’ll make sure you’re alright. Can’t let a stupid knee stop us from seeing what an incredible dancer you surely are,” Jungwon winked at him or tried to at least.

“Was that supposed to be a fucking wink?” Riki chuckled, trying not to laugh too hard and jostle Eunchae.

“Fuck off, I tried okay,” the elder boy rolled his eyes playfully at him.

“Think you gotta try harder than that Wonie-hyung,” Riki giggled.

“Come on, let’s get you up,” Jake said.

Riki glanced at Eunchae who was almost completely asleep on his shoulder and felt guilty just thinking about waking the girl up after the shit she had to deal with today.

“Do one of you mind carrying her? I would but I don’t trust myself to hold her up right now,” he asked sheepishly.

“Hey it’s no problem, none at all,” Sunoo shook his head.

The boy quickly moved over and tapped Eunchae’s arm a little before quietly asking her if it was okay to carry her. Riki noticed her just give a small nod and leaning off of him just a little as Sunoo crouched down and let her climb on his back.

Riki was mildly impressed to say the least, the dude definitely had some muscles despite his extremely cute face and only having a few inches on Eunchae in terms of height.

“Thanks for that Sunoo-hyung,” he smiled graciously at the older who waved his hand a bit as if to tell him ‘no problem’ before readjusting it to hold up under Eunchae’s knees.

“Your turn Riki-yah,” Jake said and that was the only warning Riki got before he was yanked up onto the older’s back which made him yelp in pain considering how bad his stomach hurt at the moment.

“Fucking hell Jake, are you trying to hurt him more?” Jay scolded his friend.

“I’ll hold him,” Sunghoon piped up before gently plucking Riki off Jake’s back and holding him in a princess carry.

Dear god, this is either had had to be an extreme low for Riki or a great moment for his gay heart. He was being princess carried after being beat up by his high school bully. At least the guy carrying him was ridiculously handsome and it was Sunghoon who literally looked like an ice prince and swooped in to save him for Christ’s sake; he certainly didn’t mind being the princess.

And wow he had really great muscles.

“Oh thank you, glad you noticed,” Sunghoon told him as they began heading out the door, the eldest two holding both Riki and Eunchae’s bags.

“Oh fuck me, I said that out loud,” Riki groaned, beyond embarrassed.

“Yeah you kinda did princess,” the boy carrying him said with a smirk at the end.

The nickname sent heat to Riki’s cheeks. Why were all of these guys just ragingly, flirtatious, confident gays? Well, Riki at least had a 98% reading on his gaydar considering almost all of them had openly flirted with him or checked him out in the past day.

“Do all of you just flirt with everyone you meet or do you just enjoy fucking with me?” Riki said in a half-serious tone.

“Nah we don’t flirt with everyone we meet. We only flirt with the guys we find really cute,” Heeseung told him confidently as he stared at Riki while all the other boys gave him matching looks.

Holy shit, six extremely attractive yet mysterious and somewhat intimidating guys he met happened to find him cute. What the fuck was going on with Riki’s life, where did these guys come from first of all and why did he have these weird unfamiliar feelings in his body every time they flirted with or even just smiled at him?

Riki unlocked the door to his apartment and pushed the door open. He’d insisted Sunghoon set him down and just let him walk which the older greatly protested but Riki was able to get him to give him.

He had a slight limp as he walked inside due to his injured knee and he prayed to every God imaginable that it would heal before the next Thursday, because Riki needed to do that performance for his club.

“Set Eunchae down on the couch,” he instructed Sunoo who was marveling at Riki’s apartment along with the other boys.

The space was much bigger than typical apartments with an open floor plan, the kitchen just to the left of where they entered in the doorway with an island with two chairs by it and gray laminated floors spanning throughout.

There was a gray couch and an armchair along with a coffee table and there was a soft blue rug in the space that was clearly the living room.

Sunoo followed Riki’s instructions and gently placed the now asleep girl on the couch before putting the blanket that was draped over the back of it onto her.

“Thanks Sunoo,” Riki said.

“No problem,” the elder smiled at him, “now let’s get you taken care of Nishimura.”

Riki just nodded in agreement and lead the boys down the hall past the living room to his bedroom. He slid the door open and the boys all followed him inside and all of them looked around seemingly interested in their new friend’s abode.

Riki flopped onto his bed and sunk into the navy blue sheets that were currently on the incredibly comfy mattress, feeling a strong urge to just fall asleep.

“There’s a first aid kit in the bathroom,” he mentioned as he pointed to the door just next to the TV stand he had against the wall which had his console and some of his old games from Japan in a gray storage basket under it.

Sunoo opened the door and headed into the room while the others looked around his room, looking at the art pieces on the walls and the bulletin board which had several photos and ticket stumps along with a few stickers on it, seemingly full of memories.

“I’ll go grab an ice pack for your knee,” Heeseung piped up suddenly.

Riki sat up on the bed and noticed the four present in the room looking at his memory board above his desk. He noticed them looking at a particular picture and when he looked closer he frowned, it was the last picture he had with his parents. It was from when he had went home for Christmas the year prior.

Him and his sisters loved the picture of the three of them with their parents as Riki and his siblings were creating a disaster of Christmas cookies in their kitchen while their mom laughed at them and his dad had taken the picture on his phone, smiling at the edge of the frame.

Riki could remember it like it was just yesterday.

“Sola, that’s too much icing,” Konon scolded their youngest sister playfully.

“Konon-chan, there’s no such thing as too much icing,” Sola protested.

“I think there is in this case Sol, if we add all that we’re not going to taste the cookies,” Riki laughed at her.

“Well we can’t waste all of it,” Sola said mischievously before scooping some icing onto Riki’s nose.

“Aye you brat,” Riki laughed before smearing some on his baby sister’s face.

“My goodness why did I think baking with you two was a good idea?” Konon groaned yet her eyes were soft and fond as she looked at her two younger siblings.

“It’s okay Kon, you can be just like us,” Sola laughed before tossing a handful of icing at Konon’s face.

The eldest had thrown some back at her younger two siblings and thus the kitchen counter had more icing on it than any of the cookies the three siblings had made and all of them were cracking up when their parents walked into the room.

“My my, what happened here? Did it snow?” their mother asked in a joking tone at the sight of white icing all around the kitchen.

“Why did we leave you kids to bake alone? The poor kitchen,” their father shook his head affectionately.

“Sorry mom and dad we’ll clean it up after, we promise,” Konon apologized.

“We’re just glad to see you guys having fun. We’re glad to have all of our kids here, you guys are growing up too fast,” his mother had said as she came closer and took the spatula to taste some of the icing.

“We’re still your babies mom,” Riki reminded her.

“Always, you’ll always be my babies. You may not actually be babies but you’re your father and I’s babies that’s all that matters to us,” she smiled as she licked some icing from the utensil and ended up getting some on her nose.

The siblings all burst into laughter at the icing ending up on their mom’s nose and she brought a hand up to her face only to see icing come off on her finger when she touched her nose and ended up laughing with her kids too.

Their dad had smiled wide and snapped the picture with his beaming smile in the corner of the frame and the rest of the family laughing in their disaster of the kitchen from the Nishimura siblings attempt at baking.

Riki hadn’t thought about that moment in a long time, it was the last time he had all of his family in one place. He wished he could go back and still have his parents, he wished that he saw them one last time.

“Ki, you okay?” Jay asked seeing the boy just staring at the picture behind them.

Said boy quickly shook his head at the sound of the older male’s voice and looked around to see all of the guys staring at him with matching looks of concern.

“Yeah, yeah I’m fine. Sorry I just zoned out a little,” Riki brushed it off before turning back around, to where Sunoo and Heeseung were both holding the supplies they went to get.

The boys could tell there was more to it but didn’t want to overstep despite how close they had all gotten in a little over a day, they didn’t want to push too hard and scare Riki off so they decided to drop it.

“Well we got the stuff for you. You don’t mind us treating you?” the eldest asked.

Riki nodded his head, “Yeah it’s fine hyung.”

Riki decided that taking off his sweatpants to ice his knee seemed like the best bet instead of having to try and roll them up so he scooted to the edge of the bed and began slipping them off.

The other guys’ eyes all widened and they blushed bright red as they looked away and Riki laughed at all of them.

“I appreciate the attempt at giving me privacy but I wear shorts under my sweatpants,” he chuckled as he slipped off the loose gray fabric to reveal the black shorts he had on underneath that landed around his mid-thigh.

“Oh phew, don’t want a repeat of yesterday,” Jay chuckled.

“The fuck happened yesterday?” Jake asked as he, Sunghoon and Heeseung looked at the other three confused.

“They’re a bunch of pervs and wanted to look at me take my shirt off since my other one had blood on it,” Riki said before the other three could get a word out.

“I- we…” Jungwon stammered.

“Hey you don’t have to apologize, I know I’m hot but at least buy me a coffee first,” Riki teased the older three boys who went completely red faced while the other three laughed at them.

“C’mon Jay what are you teaching them?” Heeseung laughed at him.

“I- how is it my fault? Why am I suddenly responsible for them?” the senior argued back.

“Because you’re the one who’s easiest to blame for their behavior,” Sunghoon smirked at him.

“Aish, I can’t get a break with you people,” the tormented senior sighed.

After the laughter died down they all turned their attention back to Riki who had swung his right leg up onto the bed while the other hung over the side.

Heeseung came close with an ice pack wrapped in a towel that Riki kept for any emergencies and placed it over his knee.

“Is that okay?” he asked gently.

“It’s good, thanks hyung,” the youngest nodded.

“Let’s check out that face, can’t have anything making you look less pretty, not that you look any less pretty that is,” Sunoo commented as he sat in front of him and Riki felt heat flush to his cheeks again at the Kim Sunoo, someone who looked like that calling him pretty.

The elder sat extremely close to Riki and the boy could feel his heart going so fast he could only pray that Sunoo wasn’t hearing it.

“This might sting a little,” he said gently as he poured a bit of rubbing alcohol on a cotton pad before lifting it to Riki’s eyebrow, leaning in so close that their faces were only inches apart.

Riki could feel his breath hitch as the elder boy swiped the cotton pad over his eyebrow to clean it before throwing it into the bin next to Riki’s bed and repeating the step with the cut on the corner of his lip before proceeding to put a butterfly bandage on his eyebrow.

“They got you pretty good didn’t they,” Sunoo mused as he rubbed some bruise ointment on Riki’s cheek and under his eye where he could see some redness from the hits he took.

“Yeah, I’m not much of a fighter,” Riki chuckled dryly.

“Not everyone is. Dickheads like that are a waste of energy on anyways and that wasn’t a fair fight even though fights usually aren’t fair,” the elder commented.

“The one thing you have on them is height and longer limbs. I’m not saying to pick a fight with them but you’re a dancer. You’re much more graceful and agile, use it to your advantage and try using your legs a little more,” Sunoo advised him.

Riki glanced at the boy questioningly as he sounded pretty experienced in fights but he also didn’t really want to pry if those weren’t necessarily great experiences for Sunoo. Riki was a proper pacifist after all, he was a lot of bark and never really fought anyone but he wasn’t going to allow himself to be a punching bag that day, not when Eunchae was also there and in trouble. He isn’t a fighter but he’s a protector, he’ll fight for those he cares about.

“Thanks for the advice, hopefully I won’t have to use it,” Riki said slowly.

“Well now you have us, we’ll look out for you and Eunchae. Those assholes will leave you alone once we’re around and if they don’t you can just tell us,” Jay piped up with a fierce protectiveness to his voice.

“I’m not a damsel in distress. I don’t want to call you guys whenever I’m in trouble. I can handle myself,” Riki scoffed, slightly offended.

“We’re not saying you can’t Ki, but like you said you’re not much of a fighter. You shouldn’t have to deal with an asshole like that by yourself either. We’re more than willing to help you out,” Jungwon assured him.

Riki just stayed quiet, not wanting to have to rely on some other people to help him out whenever he was in trouble and burdening them with his problems of the school bully. It wasn’t their issue to deal with, they just met him, they shouldn’t have to carry his baggage.

“Riki-yah seriously, we want to help you. And if you won’t accept our help for yourself, accept it for Eunchae. That asshole’s clearly not above going after her again just to fuck with you,” Sunghoon said despite knowing it was a little low to mention the girl Riki clearly had a soft spot for.

Riki’s brows furrowed, “That’s a low blow mentioning Eunchae and you know it.”

“Did it work though?” Sunghoon raised his eyebrows at him.

The dancer huffed and rolled his eyes because as soon as the elder mentioned Eunchae, his brain flashed-back to seeing her being manhandled into the dance studio with a split lip and nearly having a panic attack because of those guys attacking her. Sunghoon was a little shit for knowing how to get to Riki yet it worked.

“You know it did, asshole,” Riki told him but his voice didn’t hold much bite in it at all.

“Good, we’re your friends now Riki-yah, you and Eunchae’s. You don’t have to handle this shit alone,” Jake told him.

Friends, Riki thought to himself. They saw himself as his friends and Riki couldn’t lie he started to see the boys the same way, the constant flirting aside. It was nice to have people who genuinely seemed to care for him and wanted to be around him.

“Well thank you guys, for being my friends,” Riki smiled at them gratefully.

Heeseung opened his mouth to say something when suddenly three beeps came from Jungwon’s phone and he glanced at the device before keeping a blank face and glancing at the other five boys.

“We have to go, sorry to leave so abruptly Riki-yah,” the cat-eyed apologized.

Riki found their sudden shift in behavior very strange and wanted to know what was up but the urgency in Jungwon’s voice and the cold look that had graced his friendly, gentle face didn’t look like one he should pry about.

“Okay…” he said slowly, “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah just something at work, they need us,” the boy said before waving to him and leaving the room, the rest of the boys quickly following suit as they bid him goodbye and sped out of his house.

Trouble with work? That all six of them had to leave so abruptly to handle. Riki didn’t really buy it, as sweet and great as the new boys had been to him, that gnawing feeling that Riki has had since he first met them returned. There was something mysterious about them and now he was almost certain that they were hiding something. Riki only had one question on his mind.

“What the fuck is up with those guys?”

Chapter Text

“Then they said ‘we have to go’ and just left so abruptly,” Riki finished explaining what had happened with the boys earlier to Eunchae as the two sat in his kitchen eating ramyeon.

“That’s… weird but maybe there really was an emergency?” Eunchae said unsurely.

Riki hummed in thought, the way the boys’ entire demeanour changed as soon as Jungwon’s phone went off was jarring. Their sweet and gentle faces as they looked after Riki just completely changed before they dashed out of his apartment.

“I don’t know Chae, it just feels like they’re hiding something and not something small either,” he said slowly, “I know we’ve only known them for a little over a day and can’t expect them to share everything with us at all, but there’s something mysterious about them… not necessarily bad but definitely something they’re trying to keep private,” Riki said thoughtfully.

Eunchae nodded slowly while eating another mouthful of ramyeon, “I can’t say I disagree with you oppa, there definitely seems to be something pretty secretive about them. But I also don’t distrust them? I mean they’ve been incredibly nice to both of us and even offered to help and protect us in a way even if they don’t have to. They treat us like their friends and friends are supposed to trust each other. Maybe with time we’ll find out what might be so mysterious about them or maybe it’s just us being paranoid because we’ve been each other’s only true friends for so long. But I think we have to give them time.”

Eunchae seemed right, maybe their suspicions about their new found friends could just be their trust issues and paranoia about letting new people into their very limited circle. Sure they were both friendly and social with other people from school but the pair were truly each other’s closest friends and confidants for the past three years. It’s fair that they have their reservations and hesitations about new people.

“Yeah, Chae-yah. I think you’re right,” Riki agreed, “That actually makes a lot of sense. You’re so wise you know that?”

The girl smirked, “Of course I am, the universe knew you needed a wise bitch as a best friend for some guidance in your life. You were lucky to get me,” she said as she tossed her hair over her shoulder jokingly.

“Don’t get your head any bigger Chae, it might explode,” he teased.

Eunchae just rolled her eyes, “You’re lucky you're hurt or else I would’ve thrown something at you.”

Riki’s face fell a little when she mentioned his injuries and glanced at the cut on Eunchae’s lip that he put a little antibiotic crème on earlier.

“How’s the lip?” he asked quietly.

“It’s fine oppa, really. Don’t worry about me,” she told him seriously, “How do your ribs and knee feel?”

“Well I put some bruise ointment on my ribs and stomach after the guys left and it hurts less now. I also iced my knee a bit, I’m alright Chae. Either way I better be good for next Thursday because those assholes aren’t ruining the club day presentation I’ve been preparing for weeks,” Riki said determinedly.

“Nothing can get in the way of you and dance,” Eunchae smirked at him before taking a sip of water.

Riki chuckled knowing that she was right, he almost danced more than he walked, it was his passion and he wouldn’t let it go.

After dinner the two opted to head to bed, Eunchae’s parents allowing her to stay over at Riki’s since they trusted the boy a significant amount and his apartment was close to their school anyway.

The two were standing in the living room having a half-serious argument about sleeping arrangements. Riki wanted to let Eunchae take his bed while he slept on the couch but the girl refused, stating that it was his home.

“Eunchae-yah, I’m pulling my oppa card. Sleep in my bed, we’re not arguing about this,” Riki said seriously.

“Riki oppa,” the girl whined, “I’ll feel bad,” she pouted at him. The sight was quite endearing due to her round face and potato-like cheeks.

“Bed. Now, Hong Eunchae,” Riki said with finality.

“Fine, fine,” she relented before heading down the hall and opening the door to his bedroom.

“Thanks for looking out for me today Riki oppa,” she said sincerely, “Goodnight.”

Riki’s eyes softened a bit as he stared at the girl he’d come to see as his own sister in the last few years, “It’s no problem Chae-yah, goodnight.”

Riki was slightly sore as he and Eunchae walked towards their school the next morning, however it’s definitely not the worse he felt. His side hurt a little and the bruises had definitely formed but the soreness he felt was only comparable to after he did an intense dance practice, so basically, he was almost normal.

The only giveaways were the slight limp in his step that you would notice if you looked long enough and the discoloured bruise on his cheek and purplish-yellow bruise under his eye and the fresh bandage over his eyebrow. He was hoping people wouldn’t ask too many questions but knew that if people noticed they certainly would, but maybe he’d say he walked into a wall or something.

Riki and Eunchae walked through the parking lot and he noticed the slight anxiety radiating off the girl but he couldn’t fault her at all. The day prior had been pretty rough and that was the first time ever that Dohyun actually put his hands on her. Eunchae was also generally well liked throughout the school despite being an introvert due to her sweet and generous personality. Due to that no one ever really had any issues with her. Dohyun was the first person to actually mess with her and Riki can’t help but partially feel like it’s his fault.

“Eunchae-yah, you feeling okay?” he asked her gently as they stood in the parking lot.

“I’m just a little on edge, it’s stupid Riki oppa don’t worry about it,” she brushed him off.

“Hey, it’s not stupid. What happened yesterday was terrible, you’re allowed to feel affected by it Chae. It’s fine if you don’t feel okay, but just tell me alright? I’m here for you,” he assured her.

Eunchae gave him a grateful smile and nodded, her best friend’s words offered her some comfort and reassurance.

The pair’s head turned at the sound of some engines revving as they turned to see the same guys Riki had spotted on the motorcycles yesterday and a black car following behind them as they pulled up into the two spots near the friends.

The guys on the bike’s removed their helmets and Riki was surprised to see Jay and Sunghoon while Heeseung, Jake, Sunoo and Jungwon stepped out of the car.

“Hey Eunchae, hey Riki,” Sunghoon waved to the pair.

Riki and Eunchae walked over to the group of boys.

“Hi you guys. So you two were the guys I saw on the bikes on the first day,” Riki said with realization as he stared at Jay and Sunghoon’s bikes.

They were really nice and up close, Riki realized they looked a lot like the bike that his dad used to have in their garage back in Japan, just newer versions. The silver and black bodies were smooth and shiny while the design was really sleek.

“You saw us?” Jay asked him.

“Yeah I did, obviously I didn’t know it was you guys at the time,” Riki responded.

“Nice bikes,” Eunchae piped up.

“I don’t know how those two get on those things every morning. I tried once and I just know I never wanna do it again,” Heeseung spoke up.

“Agreed,” Jake nodded.

“Those two willingly get on those deathtraps every morning. Fucking weirdos,” Jungwon shook his head at the pair.

“I think they got some taste,” Riki said with a small smile on his face, “my dad used to own a bike like these. They’re really nice,” he mused as he ran a hand over the leather seating.

“You ever driven one?” Sunghoon asked.

“I’m 16 Hoon-hyung, of course I haven’t,” Riki said with a slight scoff but still keeping a playful edge to his voice, “I’d like to though, I’ve ridden on my dad’s way back in the past. I’d love to go on one again.”

“Well I’d gladly take you for a ride, maybe we could go somewhere and I can even teach you a little,” Jay suggested with an almost flirtatious sounding tone in his voice and a sweet smile on his face which made those stupid butterflies flutter in Riki’s stomach again.

“Y-yeah, I’d like that,” Riki agreed, cursing himself internally for stuttering.

There was a comfortable silence within the group for a moment before Jake broke it.

“How are you two doing?” Jake asked the youngest two, tone turned serious and eyes filled with concern

“I’m fine honestly, just a little sore,” Riki replied.

Eunchae was quiet for a moment and Riki could notice her shuffling her feet a bit which was a nervous habit of hers.

“Eunchae?” Sunoo called the girl gently.

“Sorry, Sunoo-ssi. I’m just a bit on edge, yesterday was… something,” she admitted.

The boys all frowned at the girl’s anxious behavior and the nervous edge to her voice. Yesterday was terrible and they felt sorry they weren’t able to help the youngest two out sooner since the dean had been speaking to them.

“We get it Eunchae. We’re here for you if you want to talk and of course you have Riki-yah to talk to, since you just met us. But we’ll help you out, obviously if you’re okay with that,” Sunoo told her kindly while the other boys nodded in agreement.

“Thank you Sunoo-ssi,” she said genuinely.

Riki was touched that these guys were looking out for Eunchae now, they only met him and his best friend a few days ago but they’ve been so kind to them with no obligation to. He was honestly a bit thankful to the universe for bringing these guys here because as protective as he was of Eunchae, he was glad they were here to help her too and him as well, because Sunghoon’s a little shit and mentioned the girl to convince Riki into accepting their help.

“Call us oppa, Eunchae-yah, I mean we’re your friends now,” Jungwon told the girl kindly while the other guys nodded in agreement and shot the girl friendly smiles.

Eunchae cracked a small smile of her own and nodded a bit, “Well thank you… oppas.”

The warning bell rang out indicating the group had five minutes until class.

“What class do you have, Chae?” Riki questioned.

“Math, in building A,” she told him.

“Sunoo and I have math too, we can walk together,” Jungwon suggested.

Eunchae nodded and gave Riki a quick hug which he returned before she walked off with Sunoo and Jungwon, the two surprisingly seeming to coax the girl into conversation and Riki noticed the girl laughing a bit. He felt a bit more relieved seeing Eunchae doing better than she was that morning and smiled fondly after her as she headed into the building along with their new friends.

Riki turned back around to see the other boys staring at him expectantly.

“So what class do you have Riki-yah?” Heeseung asked him.

“Art in building C,” he informed them.

“Oh I think I have-”

“Ni-ki!” a voice called out for him across the courtyard.

The boys all whipped their heads around to see Haruto speed walking towards Riki while giving him a small wave.

“Hey Haruto-san,” Riki greeted when the older boy stood in front of him.

“Hey, you completely disappeared yesterday. When I came back with the mop you were gone,” the senior Japanese boy told him quickly.

Riki cursed internally, he completely forgot about Haruto the day prior and just left him without a word.

“Shit, I’m sorry about that Haru, something came up,” he apologized.

“Something came up?,” he asked, “Wait what happened to your eye?” he asked as gently placed a hand on Riki’s cheek to inspect his injuries with a worried look on his face.

“I’m fine Haru, seriously. Don’t worry about it,” Riki told him as he took the elder’s hand and moved it from his face.

He and Haruto were friends, sure but were certainly not on a high level of skin-ship and with one another, at least in Riki’s view. He really only allowed that with Eunchae… and the cute new boys he met he supposed.

Riki glanced to his right to see the four older boys directing cold stares at Haruto as they watched the two Japanese boys interact. ‘What was that about?’ he thought to himself.

The elder four didn’t know why they had this weird protective instinct for Riki and why they felt this weird feeling bubbling in their stomachs as they watched Haruto touch Riki’s face and talk to him. They can’t be jealous right? There’s no way. They just met Riki and he was his own person, they had no sort of claim to him.

“Eunchae came to the dance studio and she wasn’t feeling well so I took her home. I was just taking care of her and I forgot to text you that I left. And don’t mind the injuries, I fell in the bathroom and smacked the side of my face on the counter,” Riki lied.

The senior gave him a sceptical look before nodding and seeming to back off a bit, “Okay but please be more careful Ni-ki~ah, we need you for next week.”

“I know Haru, I’ll see you at practice Friday okay?” Riki waved him off as the boy walked across the courtyard to the building he had to head to for class.

He turned his attention back to the other boys and sighed.

“Who was that?” Jay asked with a slightly cold edge to his voice.

“Just Haruto, he’s in the dance club with me,” Riki explained.

The older four boys all nodded slowly before hearing the bell go off.

“Shit, we’re going to be late,” Sunghoon muttered.

“Well you guys get going. I’ll see you at lunch?” Riki asked them.

The boys all nodded and their faces brightened up a bit at Riki bringing up lunch and he waved goodbye to all of them before heading towards his building but was stopped in his tracks by Heeseung calling for and following after him.

“I was going to tell you, before we got interrupted, that I have chemistry in Building C, so I’ll walk with you,” the eldest told him as he fell into step beside Riki.

“Thanks hyung, I appreciate the company,” the younger male told him sincerely as the two headed towards their building.

They walked in comfortable silence but the lack of conversation just made the question that had been replaying itself in his head from the past day come up. Where did they all run off to yesterday and why does it feel like they’re hiding something?

Chapter Text

Riki couldn’t help but think about the boys through his art class. He was really extremely curious about them and certainly had far more questions than answers. Why were these boys so mysterious?

He tried to shake the thoughts out of his head and focus on what he was creating. The prompt from his art teacher, Mr. Hwang, was ‘a picture of your passion’ which for Riki was far too obvious what it would be about.

He sketched along the canvas, ensuring all the lines were clean as he drew in the figure of himself dancing with two, small figures in the corner. Riki couldn’t create this work without including the very people who inspired his passion.

“Very nice Ni-ki~ah,” Mr. Hwang’s voice told him suddenly and Riki glanced up to see the teacher standing next to him as he drew, examining his canvas.

“It’s not even half done yet but thank you sir,” Riki bowed his head slightly.

“It doesn’t need to be a completed piece for it to still be art,” Mr. Hwang reminded him with a small smile before walking away.

Riki continued on his piece throughout the rest of his double period but still couldn’t completely finish it. He still had some shading to do and details to add, so he asked Mr. Hwang if he could come by during the week to finish it up, which his teacher gladly agreed to.

After class, he bid his teacher goodbye and left the classroom, he saw something unexpected.

It was Heeseung posted up outside the art room seemingly waiting for him.

“Were you waiting for me, Hee-hyung?” Riki asked the older boy as he got closer to him.

Heeseung gave him a small smile and nodded a bit sheepishly, “Yeah, my chemistry class finished a bit early and I wanted to wait for you.”

Riki blushed a bit before bowing his head so the older male wouldn’t notice. He truly didn’t want to pry but the curiosity in him was itching and he spoke before even thinking it over again.

“Heeseung-hyung?” Riki called the elder male’s attention as they walked down the hall.

“Yeah Riki-yah?” the slightly shorter male responded.

“I have a question… and you totally don’t have to answer if you don’t want to but I’m curious. Where did you guys go yesterday? I mean you all dipped out really fast,” the Japanese boy asked.

Heeseung hummed for a moment before responding, “There was a problem at the warehouse,” he told him.

“You guys work at a warehouse?” Riki asked.

“Yeah part time job, a shipment came in and they needed us to help out, sorry that we didn’t say anything else. They said it was urgent and it's a part-time job for all of us and we can’t really afford to lose it,” the elder explained.

Riki nodded slowly but there was something in him that was telling him that there was more to it than Heeseung was telling him. Despite his long answer his words were still strangely vague, like he was being very particular in what he said to not give something away. Riki scoffed internally, why was he still suspicious of these people despite how good they’ve been to him and Eunchae?

They’re the first people who have shown him such kindness and compassion in years yet Riki was still doubting them so much. He felt guilty for thinking they were hiding something despite only just meeting them, of course they had a right to not telling him everything, however he couldn’t help the gnawing suspicion in the back of his mind that these boys were hiding something else.

“I understand hyung, sorry for asking, I don’t mean to pry, I was just curious,” Riki apologized.

“Don’t worry about it Ki,” he said gently, “we did kind of run out like bats out of hell with hardly any explanation, I understand you being curious.”

After that they fell into a comfortable silence once more as Heeseung walked with Riki to his next class and dropped him off before speeding away and telling the boy that he would see him at lunch.

Riki waved goodbye to the elder as he dashed down the hall to get to the other building for his class, but he still couldn’t help the thoughts ringing in his mind. Riki was a perceptive person, he’s always been able to read people well and Heeseung’s vagueness while giving him an answer as to where he and the others ran off to only served to heighten his hunch a little more. Those boys were hiding something, Riki was almost certain of it. His only question was what the hell it was.

“Riki-yah!” Sunoo waved to him from across the garden at the table where all of his friends were sitting.

Riki was the last person out of the group to finish class because his biology teacher is one of those ‘the bell doesn’t dismiss you i do’ kind of bitches which honestly annoyed him a bit, but he was already put in a better mood seeing his friends waving him over to their table as he walked towards the garden. Fortunately for him, Eunchae had grabbed him food so he didn’t have to spend a while in the line getting food and could just focus on going over to them.

Suddenly, Riki felt a hand on his arm and was half-expecting to turn around and see Dohyun coming to be an asshole and mess with him but instead he saw someone extremely unexpected.

“Siwoo?” Riki addressed the senior who had grabbed his arm out of nowhere.

Riki hadn’t seen Siwoo in months, not since the last semester where he spent nearly half the semester trying to ask Riki out on a date. The Japanese boy was far from interested, he truly only saw the senior as a fellow student and nothing more as he worked alongside him in the school’s photography club.

Siwoo was essentially far too persistent and no matter how many times Riki rejected him, the guy just seemed to keep pushing. It certainly didn’t help that he hung around with Dohyun sometimes and he’d harassed Riki back in freshman year before changing his tune and giving Riki a half-assed apology at the end of freshman year in his view.

After that the guy desperately tried to act all friendly but Riki could tell it was an act and he trusted Siwoo about as far as he could throw him which was probably only about a foot, so that just goes to tell you all you need to know about him. In all his acting friendly to Riki, the attempts to ask him out on dates came after, during his second half of sophomore year. He could only pray that the guy wasn’t going to bother him for something again.

“Hey Riki-ah, it’s good to see you back,” the senior told him while giving him a smile.

‘I wish I could say it’s good to see you’ Riki thought to himself but decided against being rude since he really didn’t want to deal with any type of confrontation today.

“Hi Siwoo,” Riki said flatly before going to turn but the guy kept a firm grip on his shoulder and turned him back to face him.

“Oh come on Riki, don’t be like that you disappeared at the end of last semester and now you don’t even want to talk to me? C’mon we’re friends,” Siwoo said with a smile that Riki just wanted to knock off the guy’s face.

“We’re not friends Siwoo, you harassed me my first year here and gave me a half-assed apology only to start acting like my friend and attempt to ask me out several times,” Riki told him matter-of-factly.

He noticed Siwoo’s face turned into a scowl, but Riki really couldn’t be bothered and tried to walk away when the collar of his shirt was grabbed and he was tugged back harshly.

“What the fuck?” Riki said angrily as he twisted himself around to face Siwoo.

“You know Dohyun’s fucking right about you, about how you keep acting like hot shit and like you’re better than everyone else in this school. I show you kindness and this is how you fucking treat me,” Siwoo snarled as he held Riki’s wrist in a tight grip.

“I see you’ve actually fallen back into your old ways, though I can’t say I’m surprised. You were always like a dumbass loyal dog to Dohyun and listened to every word he said. Thanks for confirming my suspicions that you don’t have a brain of your own. Leave me the fuck alone,” Riki shot back.

Siwoo gripped his wrist tighter and Riki had to hold back a wince as the senior pulled him closer but before Riki could do anything, Siwoo was shoved away and Riki nearly lost his balance if a hand didn’t grab his shoulders and keep him upright.

“Do you have a fucking problem?” Sunghoon snarled at the other senior as he stood between him and Riki.

The junior looked to his right to see that Jake was the one who wrapped an arm around his shoulders and could see the furious looks on his other friends’ faces as they stared across the garden at the altercation.

“This isn’t any of your business. I was just having a conversation with Riki,” Siwoo told the other senior coldly.

“Well your ‘conversation’ looked a lot like you were harassing him,” Jake snapped from Riki’s side.

“Leave him the fuck alone, it was clear from the get-go that he didn’t want to talk to you,” Sunghoon spat at the other boy.

Siwoo scowled before his face twisted into a sinister smirk as he glared at Riki, “Wow so you can’t even deal with me on your own. Do you need somebody to do everything for you? You’re truly pathetic Nishimura, no wonder your parents decided to leave you; of course they got tired of having to do everything for your pathetic ass.”

Riki saw fucking red at this asshole speaking about his family and ripped himself from Jake’s grip and walked past Sunghoon to punch Siwoo straight across the face. The other boy recoiled from the hit and his hands flew up to hold his face as he groaned in pain and swore at Riki. He could faintly hear the two boys behind him let out brief shocked gasps.

“Don’t you ever speak about my family you fucking asshole. You don’t know anything about me and you definitely don’t know anything about my parents you goddamn piece of shit,” Riki gritted out before shoving the boy back.

He turned on his heel and stormed past Sunghoon and Jake whose expressions morphed into ones of concern as they followed Riki who was walking over to their table and plopped down next to Eunchae with a thud.

“Riki oppa? Are you okay?” Eunchae asked gently.

Jake slid into his seat to Riki’s right whilst Sunghoon sat next to the eldest two and Jungwon across the table from Riki whilst everyone stared at the youngest boy with matching looks of concern on their face yet Jake and Sunghoon’s were the only ones that also held some fury.

“I’m fine,” Riki said in a clipped tone, not wanting to say anything else because he knew he needed to cool down before talking to them, because he really didn’t want to snap at them.

He was furious at Siwoo for bringing up his parents especially when he knew absolutely fucking nothing. The dude was a huge asshole and Riki was angry at him, he didn’t want to take it out on his friends.

“Riki-yah, are you really okay?” Jake asked him in a gentle tone as he put a hand on his shoulder.

At the sound of Jake’s sweet, honey-soft voice, the fury in him simmered down a bit and suddenly was mixed with some sadness at the thought of how much he missed his parents, while anger still burned in him for Siwoo using his parents’ deaths to taunt him.

“I-” Riki stuttered, feeling his breath catch in his throat and a tear he hadn’t even realized welled in his eye slip down his cheek.

“Oh Kiki,” Jake sighed as he wrapped an arm around his shoulders and tugged him into his side.

Riki really didn’t want to cry, not here and not now in front of six people who he just met. The only person he cried with about his parent’s deaths was Eunchae when she called him after he disappeared from school while he was getting ready to fly to Japan for their funeral.

He didn’t even cry when he went back and visited his old family house or saw their bodies in their caskets while he held his sisters who wailed in his arms. But now he was feeling everything he didn’t let himself feel months ago all because of some asshole at his school and the dam that had been in him for months broke.

Riki felt hot tears fall down his face rapidly as he leaned his head on Jake’s shoulder and tilted it downwards to hide his face. He couldn’t believe he was breaking down like this so publicly but his heart ached and he couldn’t help the sniffles he let out as he cried and saw the tears drip down onto Jake’s lap.

He felt Eunchae wrap one arm around his torso and rest her chin on his shoulder while she carded a hand through his hair. She didn’t say anything but Riki knew she understood.

Sunghoon reached forward and took Riki’s hand that was on the table and intertwined it with his own while rubbing his thumb over the boy’s hand in a way to try and offer his comfort.

The boys around the table stared at Riki sympathetically as Jake and Eunchae held him while he cried. They desperately wanted to offer comfort to him but they were also not too sure how as none of them besides Sunghoon and Jake knew what got Riki to this state.

“I’m sorry, you guys shouldn’t have to deal with me like this,” Riki sniffled, feeling guilty for burdening them with his emotions.

“Hey, Riki, you’re not burdening us. You’re our friend and we care about you. Do you want to talk about it?” Sunoo asked him gently.

Truthfully, Riki did, he wanted to yet he wasn’t sure how he would get through it without crying much more and so he glanced at Jake who seemed to understand what he wanted.

“That asshole was harassing Riki for some reason like we all saw, hence why we came over,” Jake explained, addressing the last part to the boy leaning on him.

“Hoon defended Riki then the dickhead went and said that. Riki was too pathetic to stand up for himself and said “no wonder your parents decided to leave you; of course they got tired of having to do everything for your pathetic ass,” Jake recounted the event sounding angrier with every word he quoted from the dude who insulted Riki.

“What the fuck?” Heeseung growled out.

“Piece of shit,” Sunoo and Jungwon muttered simultaneously, with fury coating their voices.

“Dick,” Jay scoffed.

“That fucking asshole,” Eunchae hissed from Riki’s side.

“That’s why you hit him isn’t it?” Jungwon directed the question to Riki as he clenched his fist angrily.

Riki nodded in response before looking down at his lap.

“I just got so pissed off, I couldn’t help it,” he said.

“You had every right to get angry, Riki, he was way out of line,” Sunghoon assured him while giving his hand a squeeze, which sent a little comforting warmth through Riki’s body.

“He had absolutely no fucking right to speak about your family like that. Absolutely none,” Sunoo said fiercely.

“Sorry for breaking down like this guys,” Riki apologized again as he wiped the tears that fell from his cheeks with his free hand, feeling slightly embarrassed about just letting go of his emotions like that.

“Don’t apologize Riki-yah, seriously. What he said was insanely shitty, he shouldn’t have done that. Anyone would break down like that if someone used someone’s dead parents to insult them. Never apologize for your feelings,” Jake spoke sweetly as he squeezed his shoulder.

“I’m here for you Riki oppa, whenever you need or want us, if you don’t want to talk about it that’s fine and if you do, I’m here and I think these guys are too,” Eunchae told him assuringly.

“Thanks guys, really. Thank you,” Riki said gratefully.

“No problem Riki, we’ve got you,” Sunoo smiled at him softly.

‘We’ve got you.’

The words echoed in Riki’s head, spoken with so much assurance and honesty : ‘we’. For the longest time, Eunchae was all he had here in Korea but over the past few days it changed. Of course Riki didn’t want to just be vulnerable with these guys all at once, but it was nice to see that they cared, they cared about Riki and saw him as their friend. It was kind of nice to have a ‘we’.

Chapter Text

Riki stared at the canvas with an intense focus as he shaded some areas and added details to his drawing. He was finally working on it after abandoning the piece for a whole week since the previous Wednesday. After Siwoo’s comment in the cafeteria, Riki hated to admit it but it really got to him and dampened his mood for the remainder of his first week.

Luckily his friends were there, Eunchae and all the new boys were kind and understanding. They didn’t push Riki to talk about whatever was going on in his head, but instead opted to talk about other topics and joke around whenever they were together to brighten up Riki’s mood. All the boys felt extremely accomplished whenever they were able to lift Riki’s mood.

Speaking of the guys, they hadn’t ever run off like they did the week prior at any time during the past week and Riki’s suspicions about them settled down, just a little bit. There was still something mysterious about those guys, yet they’re really weaselling their ways into Riki’s heart with their amazing personalities and caring souls, not to mention they also look out for Eunchae who’s like his little sister which in Riki’s eyes is a complete win.

Riki also got to know some more about them as well. Jay was actually from America which explained both the western name as well as the tan to his skin and he was also an only child growing up. Heeseung was extremely intelligent, he was extremely calculated in almost everything he said and did and according to the other guys was ridiculously good at everything.

Jay was one hundred percent like a ‘mom friend’. He looked out for everyone, ensuring everyone ate during lunch and nearly always had extra snacks and water in his bag. Last Friday he brought a literal pot of homemade ramyeon to their lunch table and shared it among everyone and it was absolutely incredible. The elder ensured everyone took food before himself and that everybody ate enough. He was truly a sweetheart.

Jake was even more like a golden retriever than Riki initially thought, the Aussie was affectionate and gentle both in what he said and did and was also extremely attentive. Riki would catch him just staring at him unwaveringly whenever he was telling a story or even just a joke, Jake paid a lot of attention to people, it was genuinely extremely sweet.

Sunghoon ice skates which backs up Riki’s ‘ice prince’ thoughts a tiny bit, yet was also almost the opposite of his intimidating and almost cold appearance. He was quietly caring as Riki liked to call him, always looking out for and paying close attention to everyone and doing small things in his own ways to look out for them. One time the elder noticed that Eunchae had some lint on her sweater and gently plucked it off and tossed it aside without the girl even noticing. Riki saw it however and gave the elder a small smile when their eyes met.

Sunoo was a ball of sunshine, he genuinely was a bit like a happy pill. He was the main one who really cheered up Riki when he was a little down the past week, he distracted Riki with dumb stories from his childhood and his gentle smile and soft voice, they filled Riki with warmth and energized Riki just a tiny bit more.

Jungwon was extremely interesting to him. Despite his adorable face, there was an air of authority to him. He could make everyone pay attention to him whenever he spoke and was extremely attentive and understanding. Jake and Jay were bickering over something and it got a bit heated but the second youngest guy easily calmed them down and mediated the disagreement between them and only five minutes later they were smiling at each other and joking around again.

The group of boys were truly something great and Riki was thankful that they came into his life as they genuinely showed Riki that having friends and letting new people in wasn’t a bad thing.

Now, here Riki was after four on a Wednesday afternoon after his photography club meeting, drawing, (another passion of his) and allowing himself to relax and lose himself in his art.

He heard the door creak open and glanced over expecting to see Mr. Hwang considering the teacher usually stayed at the school long after hours but instead, he saw Jake and Sunghoon coming inside the room and he raised an eyebrow.

“You know if I didn’t know any better I’d think you guys were stalking me,” Riki said in a half teasing tone, as he kept his attention on his art.

“We’re not, we just knew you had your photography club today and wanted to walk you home after. Then we saw you weren’t there and we remembered you talking about your art piece so we showed up here,” Sunghoon told him as the elder two brought stools and sat by Riki glancing over his shoulder at his art.

“Where are the others?” Riki questioned.

“Jay and Heeseung-hyung have a bunch of homework and Jungwon and Sunoo are studying for a math test with Eunchae,” Jake told him.

Riki hummed, “I thought you guys would have work.”

“Nah, we make our own hours, it’s an old family business that our parents used to run so we kind of run the place ourselves,” Sunghoon explained.

“Damn entrepreneurs at your young ages, can’t say I’m not impressed,” Riki smirked as he picked up a different pencil to continue shading but paused when he remembered something, “Wait hold on, when I asked Heeseung-hyung he said you guys have a part-time job. That ain’t adding up,” he narrowed his eyes at the elder two somewhat.

“That’s Heeseung-hyung for you, he’ll try and downplay things to sound a bit more humble but we basically run the business. We just don’t flaunt it since it was something our parents used to do in private and made a lot of money out of. They passed it down to us so we would be alright through high school and college,” Sunghoon explained, to put the suspicions the youngest boy clearly had at ease.

Riki nodded slowly in understanding, these guys were odd in some ways sometimes. Why wouldn’t Heeseung just say that from the beginning? But he also understands where Heeseung was coming from in a way. His parents left him a lot of money when they died but Riki never flaunted it either as he was private and that was his business, so he couldn’t entirely fault Heeseung despite the weird feeling he had in the back of his mind.

“Wow, that looks really good,” Jake gaped at his drawing, suddenly sounding much closer.

Riki looked to his left to see Jake almost resting his chin on his shoulder and blushed slightly at how close the other boy’s face was to his.

“Thanks Jake-hyung,” the youngest boy said, keeping his eyes on the canvas to hide his blush.

“You’re quite the talent Riki-yah, you can draw and dance, what can’t you do?” Sunghoon asked him with a small smirk.

“Cook,” Riki deadpanned, which made the other two crack up.

Riki cracked a small grin at hearing the other two laugh and shook his head affectionately,

“Well I can cook, I don’t necessarily like to but I live on my own and would rather not go broke buying food. Also you guys have never seen me dance, I could be awful for all you know,” he told them.

“Nah, you and awful are antonyms, polar opposites. I don’t think you could ever be awful,” Jake protested, voice fond and filled with something Riki couldn’t quite place as the senior stared at him.

“Besides we’ll get to see you dance tomorrow at club day. I’m sure you’ll blow us away,” Sunghoon said confidently.

“Well I guess you guys will have to wait and see,” Riki told them knowingly before refocusing on his drawing.

The trio fell into a comfortable silence after, only Jake and Sunghoon’s soft voices talking about things Riki wasn’t too focused on unless they addressed him and he would respond. They stayed like that as the sun shifted in the sky and started coming through the window, bathing the room in a golden light, which hit the right side of Riki’s face yet didn’t deter him from his art.

Soon enough, the last detail was added and it was done. Riki sat back in his stool and slumped down a little as he admired his work with a contented sigh. He turned to the elder two and shifted the canvas a bit so they could see it straight on.

The sun on his face was warming him up a bit in the air-conditioned art room and felt nice against his skin as it almost gave him a glow.

“What do you guys think?” Riki asked as he looked at the two seniors before looking back at his drawing.

“It’s pretty,” Jake spoke up after a moment, which made him turn his attention to the elder boy who was staring at… Riki.

“Jake’s right,” Sunghoon nodded as he glanced at the drawing before his eyes seemed to fall back on Riki, “really fucking pretty.”

Riki felt his heart flutter, these guys who were certainly the most attractive people who he’s ever seen were calling him pretty. They were literally staring at him and calling him pretty, ‘Holy shit, what was his life?’ Riki thought to himself. Why did them complimenting him like that make his heart speed up in his chest and butterflies flutter in his stomach?

It wasn’t just with Jake and Sunghoon either, it was all of these guys. Was Riki into… all of them? He knew of polyamory but never actually experienced having feelings like this for several people at once. Wait hold on, did he like all six of them? There was no way, Riki had only known them more than a week, there was no way he liked all of them and he doubted that they were attracted to him.

He shook the thought out of his head and tried to focus on the guys in front of him.

“Thanks guys and thank you for keeping me company, sorry I made you guys stay back for so long though,” he addressed the two boys.

“Hey we don’t mind at all Ki, it’s actually kind of cool to see you so focused on what you do,” Jake brushed off his apology as the seniors stood up off their chairs and slung their bags on.

Riki smiled appreciatively and took the canvas and signed his signature on the bottom before carrying it over to the table in the back of the room and placing a sheet over it. He packed up his supplies and placed them in his bag before heading over to the older boys who were standing by the door.

“After you princess,” Sunghoon said teasingly as he pushed the door open and held it for Riki.

The youngest boy rolled his eyes and shook his head affectionately at the nickname before walking past the two and out of the room.
The school was quiet at this hour as the trio walked through the halls and out to the courtyard as the sky was shifting into a dusky blue.

“What do you guys say we get some ice cream?” Riki asked the elder two.

“Yeah that sounds good to me,” Jake agreed with the youngest.

“I’m down as well,” Sunghoon nodded.

“Great, I know a really good spot, come on,” Riki said as he led them down the street.

He’d been to the area a few times for ice-cream from this small stand where a guy with many tattoos made his own homemade stuff.
Admittedly there were some characters in the area yet Riki usually avoided them with ease, though there was a time he certainly witnessed someone taking a few punches in an alleyway.

Riki walked along ahead knowing the path he was going by heart and doing his best to not make eye contact with any of the shadier-looking people he saw.

“Riki are you sure-” Jake piped up.

“It’s right around here hyung, I know where we’re going,” Riki assured the elder boy who sounded a bit hesitant.

He couldn’t really blame him, the place wasn’t the best lit later in the night and filled with some interesting people, but during the day it was usually fine. It wasn’t upscale but well maintained in terms of the buildings and streets. The day time is usually when he came by here anyway and he didn’t stick around any longer than he had to, but he could understand Jake’s uncertainty.

“Riki, I really don’t know if-”

“It’s right here hyung,” Riki said, grabbing both their wrists as he gestured to the familiar dusty blue ice cream street stand about only about 10 metres away from them now.

The other two boys stayed silent as Riki pulled them along and over to the truck.

“Aye, Riki-ssi, how you doing?” the tall tattooed man greeted him in a gravelly tone

“Hey Mandu, I’m alright,” Riki replied.

“Oh hey boss boys,” he addressed the two senior boys behind Riki absentmindedly, when he noticed them.

Riki’s brows furrowed at how Mandu addressed Jake and Sunghoon. ‘Boss boys’? Did they know this guy, did Mandu work for them? They were acting pretty strange when Riki was basically dragging them along the road.

“You know the hyungs?” Riki asked the vendor.

“Yeah, I work for them,” he smiled kindly at the teenager as he began scooping out Riki’s usually order of a strawberry and chocolate swirl in a cup.

“What do you want bosses?” the vendor asked the older two.

“Just the usual for both of us, Mandu,” Sunghoon said briefly as he and Jake leaned against the lamppost nearby.

Riki was even more suspicious now, what was with their strange behaviour? Did they also frequent this area sometimes, they had to have right? Considering their dodgy behaviour as soon as Riki brought them into the neighbourhood and how they almost seemed to be trying to stop him earlier.

He took their ice creams and handed Mandu a few thousand Won before going over to the older boys whose behaviour was extremely weird to him.

He handed them their orders and stared at them for a moment before deciding to speak up.

“You guys are acting fucking weird,” Riki said bluntly but not too loud.

“Nah everything’s cool Ki, come on,” Jake said as the two stood on either side of him and began walking back the direction they came from.

“I really can’t believe that Jake-hyung. First of all you guys kept trying to stop me when we were coming here, then second of all Mandu knows you guys and calls you his bosses and you guys got all strange around him. This might sound dramatic, but there definitely seems to be more to the story here. What the fuck is going on?” he asked them.

“Nothing is going on Ki, Mandu is just one of our employees and we know this isn’t the best area, we don’t want to stick around here too long,” Sunghoon said in a clipped tone.

Riki felt himself growing more irritated, despite their even tones, the dancer could tell there was far more to it and that his friends were not being honest at all.

“I really can’t believe that Hoon, I can’t. First it’s the running out of my apartment, the almost secretive behaviour from you guys and Heeseung and now your super dodgy behaviour which I really don’t think stems from you guys ‘just not feeling comfortable’ here. I’m not an idiot and I can tell there’s more to this,” Riki said as he stopped in his tracks and turned to face them as they stood in front of a lit pharmacy.

“Riki-san, can we not do this now?” Jake asked him.

“What do you mean ‘not do this now’, so that just means that there is something to talk about? Listen hyungs I know we haven’t known each other for the longest time yet I’ve opened up to you guys way more than I’ve ever been comfortable with after knowing people for a little over a week. But it almost feels like you guys don’t trust me at all, like realistically I know almost nothing about you. You guys are so purposely vague all the time,” he went on in an irritated tone.

“Riki-”

“Well look who we have here,” an unfamiliar voice sounded from behind him. Riki whipped around to see four muscular and very tall guys all with varying tattoos standing barely a foot behind him.

Sunghoon and Jake’s brows both furrowed and he was suddenly yanked and put behind both of them, the two staring at the strangers with fierce expressions on their faces. ‘What the actual fuck was going on?’ Riki thought to himself.

“Well if it isn’t the infamous Jake and Sunghoon,” the guy with a rose on his hand sneered at his two hyungs.

“What the fuck are you doing here Minjun?” Jake snarled at the guy.

“We’re just paying a visit to the area, we wanted a change of scenery,” the guy smirked.

“Who’s the pretty boy?” he asked as he gave Riki a stare which made his skin crawl. This guy really gave him an awful vibe and he was starting to wish he had listened to Jake and Sunghoon.

“None of your fucking business,” Sunghoon gritted at the other man.

“Oh don’t be like that Sunghoon-ssi, what did you two do to snag a pretty thing like that?” he asked as he kept his eyes trained on Riki.

“He’s a person, you objectifying asshole and he’s our friend. Now get out of our way Minjun and if you know what’s good for you then get out of the neighbourhood,” Jake snarled at the guy.

The guy scoffed and stared the trio down one last time before walking past them and disappearing down the street.

Riki released a breath he didn’t know he was holding and stared at the elder two. He had only one thought on his mind.

“What the fuck?”

Riki stared at the two boys in front of him in disbelief as he sat on a bench in a park nearby his apartment which he visited frequently.
They’d said nothing and just took his hands and lead him there and Riki was now sitting on the bench staring at the two elder boys with far too many questions running through his head.

He took a deep breath and collected himself as best as he could.

“Okay so, I’m sorry but you guys really have some fucking explaining to do because, what the actual fuck was that about?” Riki asked as he glanced between the two of them.

“You might not believe us,” Jake said simply.

“I’d believe you guys if you said that you are like literal mob bosses or in a gang after that shit because that’s not normal!” Riki said to them.

The elder two boys exchanged a knowing look before looking back at Riki and giving him a small nod.

“Oh my fucking god, you’re in a gang. You guys are actually in a gang? Holy shit, what the fuck is my life?” Riki said exasperatedly as he ran a hand through his hair.

“Okay Ki, we know it sounds like a lot and probably doesn’t sound great but let us explain,” Sunghoon told him softly.

“Gladly, I’ll gladly let you explain,” Riki said as the two boys sat on either side of him.

“Okay well there’s quite a bit to say,” Jake began.

“Trust me, I’m listening,” Riki nodded.

“Okay, so yes we’re in a gang, well technically we are the gang. You’ve heard of Enhypen right?” Jake asked.

Riki gasped, “Holy shit, that’s you guys? There’s always reports about you guys on the news but no one knows what any of you look like.”

Enhypen were notorious as hell throughout the almost entirety of Korea, the gang were considered as the ‘Robin Hood’ of the country. They were known to steal money from huge companies then expose them as corrupt for scamming people out of their money and causing them to go almost bankrupt.

They would then take the cash they nabbed and give it back to impoverished communities to improve them. Rich people detested them pretty much but less fortunate communities saw them as heroes. Riki couldn’t lie, he respected what they did, they got rid of at least some of the greedy assholes in the world.

“Half the country sees you guys as heroes,” Riki gaped at them.

Sunghoon and Jake looked a bit bashful before continuing.

“What do you see us as if you don’t mind us asking? If you say that you see us differently… we would get it,” Sunghoon said, a little downtrodden.

Riki glanced at both of them, yes he knew gangs were not supposed to be good things in the slightest, yet he couldn’t believe that these guys were bad people or untrustworthy for some reason despite knowing they’ve probably done some not-so-great things.

“I don’t, not really. I mean I know you guys have done things that are objectively against the law but for the right reasons, like the things you’ve done for some people in this country are incredible but I also know you guys have done some not great things,” Riki said slowly.

The two boys beside him sighed and nodded understandingly.

“We might as well be honest, we have… killed people. They are people who hurt others and killed other people but we don’t ever want it to consume us, we don’t enjoy it or take any pride in it ever. We never do it for vengeance or for selfish reasons,” Sunghoon said slowly.

Riki wasn’t necessarily surprised at the revelation, he’s seen the news reports of them killing corrupt businessmen whose products caused the death of more than a hundred people and reported gang members being found dead, yet it still made his skin crawl a tiny bit.

Yet when he looked at the guys in front of him, he didn’t see killers or people who were morally corrupt in any way, he saw his friends, he saw people that he still trusted and let into his life and… cared about.

Riki ran a hand through his hair. Was his moral compass fucked up for thinking that they weren’t terrible people or that what they did was wrong?

“This is a lot,” Riki sighed, “there’s a lot to unpack here. But I do want to say one thing… I don’t hate you guys at all and I don’t think you’re bad people.”

“Maybe I’m a little fucked up for thinking this, yet I don’t think you guys are in the wrong, not really. I just, I think I need to process this a bit,” Riki said as he stood up off the bench to look at the two boys.

The two had downcast looks at Riki’s words but also nodded in understanding knowing that they just dropped a lot on Riki in just a few minutes.

“I’ll see you guys tomorrow,” Riki waved to them as he left the park and headed home to his apartment.

Riki flopped onto his bed after showering and changing into his pajamas. There were so many thoughts racing through his head and he didn’t really want to handle them alone. He needed to talk to someone, maybe needed someone to tell him that he was fucked up for not thinking the sweet, attractive boys who he has come to see as friends were literal gang members.

He knew it could easily be considered betraying all the guys’ trust but if there was anyone he could talk to and rely on, it was Eunchae.

He quickly dialed her number and put the phone on speaker and sat it on the nightstand next to him as he stared at the blank TV in front of him.

“Hey Riki oppa,” she greeted when she answered.

“Hi Chae-yah, how are you?” he greeted back half zoned out.

“Is everything alright Riki?” Eunchae questioned noticing his tone.

“You answer first Eunchae,” he told her.

“Well I’m okay, I was studying with Jungwon and Sunoo oppa after school in the library earlier for our math test tomorrow. I’ll tell you what comes on it so you don’t fail,” she teased at the end.

Riki let out a short laugh at the girl’s statement, “Thanks Chae-yah, I appreciate it.”

“No problem oppa, now can you tell me what’s up?” she asked.

“You’re alone now right?” Riki asked.

“Yeah, I have my headphones in and I’m in my room. Mom and dad are downstairs watching something,” she replied.

“Alright, just don’t interrupt okay,” he told her.

She hummed before going quiet to let the boy speak.

“Okay so Jake and Sunghoon came and found me in the art room earlier and we were just hanging out while I finished my piece,” Riki began, “Afterwards, I suggested we go for ice cream in that kind of sketchy neighborhood I always go to,” Riki recounted.

The girl hummed to let him know she still knew what he was talking about.

“So I took them but on the way they were like really hesitant and kept saying like they didn’t think we should be going there but I just brushed them off and pulled them along. We got to the place and Mandu knew them and called them both boss and said he worked for them,” Riki told her.

“They were both so dodgy, like they really didn’t want me there and when I asked them they said nothing was up and just pulled me to leave. So I stopped us in front of a pharmacy and I asked them about what was up but they both said they didn’t want to talk about it. I got kind of pissed and went off about how I felt like they didn’t trust me and that they were definitely hiding something,” he explained.

“Definitely sounds like they’re hiding something,” Eunchae piped up.

“Well here’s the good part : these guys showed up they were tall and muscular and had tattoos. Sunghoon and Jake pulled me behind them and got super intimidating towards the guy. The guy was eyeing me weirdly and I had a really off vibe from them. Jake and Sunghoon got super defensive and told the guy to get out of the neighbourhood if they knew what was good for them,” Riki recalled the events from earlier.

“The guys dipped and the whole thing was insanely wild so I asked what the fuck was up obviously.”

“Obviously,” Eunchae agreed.

“So we went to this park and you won’t believe what they told me, but I promise it’s the truth,” Riki swore to his friend.

“I’m listening,” she assured him.

“These motherfuckers say that they are Enhypen as in the gang, like that’s them,” Riki told her.

“Shut the fuck up!” Eunchae said incredulously.

“I’m deadass Chae, these guys are Enhypen and I thought it’s definitely insane but we both thought they were mysterious and hiding something big, just not you know ‘one of the most notorious gangs in Korea’ big,” he stated.

“Then Sunghoon brought up the fact that they do kill people but it’s only corrupt businessmen and people who have killed and caused harm to others,” Riki said.

“I mean, with some of the people who it’s been said Enhypen killed, I… get it. Like that businessman Song Hoseok who sold prescription drugs completely laced with fentanyl knowingly and caused the deaths of nearly a hundred people to pay some drug lords before he was found dead,” she said slowly.

Riki thought back to earlier that year when that news dropped and he remembered that story, the guy kind of did have what was coming to him.

“Oh great so I’m not an asshole with an awful moral compass for thinking that they’re not insane and bad people?” he asked.

“Eunchae… I can’t see them as awful people or killers, I’m trying to yet I can’t, not after actually knowing them. They’re such good people and they’ve been so kind to the both of us. Sure we could be biased as fuck but they’ve protected us and shown us so much kindness without any obligation to. I don’t think bad people would do something like that,” Riki stated with certainty in his voice.

These guys reminded Riki a lot of something his father used to say, “Judge someone not by what is said about them but of the actions they do out of their heart.”

He could hear his father’s words echoing in his head, the man who always taught him and told him to have good judgement and not preemptively judge people and allow them to show their own character. Despite not knowing the boys for long Riki felt like he knew what kind of people they were and they weren’t bad ones, not in the slightest.

“Ki, if your moral compass is fucked, then so is mine because I don’t think they’re bad people either. I think they’re our friends,” Eunchae told him kindly and he could hear the smile in her voice.

“So I guess we’re both fucked up then?” Riki chuckled to her.

Eunchae returned a small giggle of her own, “Maybe we are.”

Chapter Text

Riki drummed his fingers on the bench as he sat in the school’s courtyard the next morning. After his conversation with Eunchae and a long night of rest his mind was certainly made up. He didn’t hate the Enhypen boys, or see them any differently, not at all.

His possible biases aside, just seeing them interact with other people at the school at times and after everything they’ve done for him and Eunchae in less than two weeks, Riki couldn’t believe that they were untrustworthy or dangerous people. He had texted Jake and Sunghoon earlier that morning to get to school early with all the guys so they could talk. Riki picked a secluded spot under a large willow tree in the courtyard so people wouldn’t overhear the conversation and they could have privacy.

He hoped they weren’t too upset at him for dipping out the night prior, but he really needed to clear his head and now that his thoughts were in order, he felt that he could handle this conversation. Eunchae wouldn’t be at school until later but she sent him her support and encouragement to deal with the situation.

“Riki?” a voice called to him.

The boy looked up to see Jake and Sunghoon leading the rest of the guys with them, all of them having strangely downcast expressions which made his chest pang a little, he didn’t want them to think he was upset with them.

Jake and Sunghoon sat on either side of him on the bench while the other four took a seat on the grass in front of them. The air was a little tense as all the boys looked from each other to Riki and he really couldn’t stand seeing them looking so nervous around him.

“My god you all look like kicked puppies, lighten the fuck up I beg, I do not hate you and I’m not upset with you,” Riki said with a slight teasing to his tone.

At the youngest’s words, the boys all let out small chuckles before giving him the gentle smiles that Riki has grown to like a lot in the past week.

“Thanks for that Ki… for reassuring us I mean,” Jungwon said kindly.

“Of course, you guys looked like you thought I hate you or something but I definitely don’t,” Riki assured them.

“It was definitely a lot to find out but Eunchae and I did figure that you guys seemed to be hiding something we just didn’t think it was ‘most notable gang in Seoul something’, ” Riki added with a laugh at the end.

“I don’t see you guys any differently,” he continued, “Some people could say I’m morally fucked but I don’t think I am, I know what you guys are actually like and how you interact with people. If you were pieces of shit I don’t think you’d go around helping poor communities in Seoul or helping out and protecting two kids you hardly know on your first day here.”

“Shitty people wouldn’t do that,” Riki said with certainty as all the boys stared at him with nothing short of fondness and awe at the boy’s words.

“We’re still getting to know each other but I trust you guys, I do. You’re the first people who I’ve actually actively made an effort to befriend in years, because you actually gave a fuck and aren’t just pretentious assholes. I really like you guys and I want you to stick around, I wanna stick around you,” Riki finished his speech.

The older boys stared at him with nothing short of fondness and awe in their eyes at how genuine and certain Riki sounded about them. It touched their hearts that this sweet, amazing guy wanted to stay around them even after knowing the truth which they were terrified of letting out in fear that it would push him away. Yet here he was saying it almost did the exact opposite.

“You are fucking unreal Nishimura Riki,” Jay said with a smile which had something behind it which the youngest couldn’t quite place.

“Jay-ah’s right. You’re literally a gem for wanting to stick around us even after knowing the truth,” Sunoo nodded.

“Thank you Riki-yah, for telling us all of this,” Jake said from his side.

Everyone was staring at him with grateful and sweet smiles plastered on their face, a complete opposite to their downtrodden mood earlier.

“Can I hug you guys?” Riki questioned a little bashfully.

The boys were on him in an instant, wrapping him up in their secure and warm holds. He was sandwiched between all of them, not that Riki minded at all. They felt so comforting and he almost felt safe in their arms as he took in all their scents at once.

After a few moments they pulled away and Riki admittedly felt a little disappointed at the loss of contact, he kind of wanted to stay wrapped up in their arms.

“Thank you for trusting us Riki-yah, even when we haven’t been the most honest with you. We’re sorry for that,” Heeseung told him while the other boys nodded in agreement.

“But now that you know, we don’t have to hide from you as much. Yesterday you said you felt like we didn’t trust you, I think you’re the first person that we’ve trusted to the point where we actually wanted to tell you. We want to be more honest and open with you, because we do trust you and we’re sorry for making you think otherwise,” Sunghoon said.

Riki gave the elder a small smile and a nod. He seriously looked forward to getting to know these boys more, now that they didn’t have to keep a huge secret from him.

“Eunchae knows by the way,” he informed them.

“Wait what?” Sunoo asked, a little surprised.

“Oh don’t look at me like that, she’s my best friend and I was kind of losing my shit. Obviously she isn’t going to tell anyone, I trust Eunchae and she likes you guys, she doesn’t see you any differently either by the way,” Riki explained.

The other boys chuckled a bit before nodding understandingly, they did kind of drop something huge on Riki yesterday, but they did trust Eunchae to keep their secret as well so they didn’t see much of an issue.

“Well we have some time before class and I assume you must have some questions,” Jay addressed Riki.

Riki instantly nodded, “I definitely do. The first one is how did you guys get into all of this?”

“It started with our parents,” Jungwon began, “they grew up poor and the corrupt and greedy assholes in this country made sure they got richer and the poor stayed poorer. They all developed different skills throughout life and some even had training and experience in law enforcement.”

“After those experiences they saw how deep all this shit went into the system and they wanted to make a change. Their first job was back in the ninety’s, there was a corrupt asshole named Bo Sejong running for mayor of Busan. He basically made a huge show of ‘being a man of the people’ and went out to the streets and impoverished neighbourhoods to try and get votes.”

“He promised the poorer areas improved housing and water systems even if he wasn’t voted in. He got huge donations from the public to support those projects but he was embezzling funds from his campaign into his personal account and severely underpaying and abusing his staff as well as leaving those people he promised shit absolutely nothing,” Jungwon explained.

“When people complained and asked why he wasn’t doing anything he promised, he just shut them up. Gave them a few thousand Won for a day’s worth of food at best as hush-money and left them in the dust,” Sunghoon continued.

“My dad used to live there and his parents still lived in that area too. He took that shit personally and all of our parents were so close so when he came up with an idea to steal the cash back and give back to the community in some way they were all on board,” the ice-prince said.

“They pulled it off, then under the guise of ‘anonymous donations’ through their business where they basically wholesale and provide storage for products and invested it all into the neighbourhoods. They fixed the water supply, the apartments, even built a new primary school in the area. They did a lot of good and exposed everything Sejong did in the process. I’m pretty sure he’s still in jail,” Jay finished the story.

“Goddamn, that’s insane but also really impressive that they pulled that off,” Riki commented, amazed.

“How did they never get caught?” he asked curiously.

“Like we mentioned, they had history in the police and military, they knew what a crime scene looked like and more importantly knew how to not leave evidence,” the eldest winked at him.

“Damn, so when did you guys find out about what they did?” he questioned.

“It was back when Jungwon turned 13, our parents thought we were old enough to know what they actually did. We always had our suspicions that there was something more to them and how nearly all of them would disappear from our houses around the same time. When we got older our parents knew we’d eventually figure it out and told us,” Jake responded.

Sunoo spoke next, “At first we all didn’t really like it because obviously what they didn’t wasn’t legal. We thought of them as criminals for a while,” he sounded somewhat guilty when saying the last sentence, “But then they showed us what they did, how they helped people and we understood and they inspired us.”

“We’re well aware what we do isn’t legal or safe in many regards, but our parents brought so much good with what they did even though people would say them being a gang was objectively bad. But just seeing how they helped people encouraged all of us into doing some good as well.”

Riki was stunned, this was the most honest that these guys have ever been with him and he was touched that they trusted him enough to share it. He understood them a bit better now, Enhypen was a gang and technically criminals, sure. Yet everything they did was for good reasons. Riki could definitely see past the illegal actions quite a bit because he could tell they did what they did for a bigger reason, they did it because they cared.

“Wow… thank you guys for sharing that with me. I think I understand you guys a bit better now,” he told them.

“So you don’t think we’re a bunch of lowlife criminals?” Sunghoon asked in a teasing tone.

“Nah, I think you guys are people who care about others. Sure maybe you go about it in a roundabout way but just do me a favour and don’t get killed or caught,” Riki smiled at the older boys, “I like having you guys around,” he added quietly.

“Well now we have to be careful to stick around. We can’t disappoint a pretty face like that,” Jake said while all the boys gave him matching smirks.

Riki felt himself blush from all of their stares and looked down at his lap to avoid their gazes.

“Oh come on Riki-yah, don’t hide that cute face from us,” Jake told him gently as he put a hand under the youngest’s chin and tilted his head up so their eyes met.

‘Oh my god, what the fuck. I’m so goddamn gay,’ Riki thought to himself as his and Jake’s eyes met, the elder staring directly at him confidently. Riki could literally feel himself turning bright pink and his brain malfunction, he needed to leave so he didn’t embarrass himself at this moment because he could feel everyone staring at him and Jake looking him dead in the eyes was making his heart go faster than Lewis Hamilton on a Formula 1 track.

“U-um I’ll s-see you guys at l-lunch. Have a good day b-bye,” Riki said as he hurriedly grabbed his bag and sped off from the group.

Riki’s brain was completely fried from that whole situation. What the fuck was with those boys and why did they send the whole goddamn zoo through his stomach whenever he was around them?

Riki arrived at his math class and took a seat in the back near the window, his nerves from the interaction with the guys finally calming down. Math wasn’t his best subject but his grades were actually good, he only hated the class because a certain asshole named Jung Siwoo was in his class.

Yes the guy was a senior but he was so stupid that he completely failed his junior year math class and was forced to redo it. He scraped by in other classes which was why he was put in the senior class of that year, but he still had to do his senior math class after he graduated next spring.

Riki certainly didn’t look forward to seeing the guy after the previous week but also had probably foolish hopes that Siwoo would leave him alone for today after he punched him. To the Japanese boy’s pleasant surprise, when the blonde senior entered he briefly glanced at the junior before taking a seat near the door, as far from Riki as possible.

The dancer let out a small sigh of relief and relaxed in his chair. After a few minutes the teacher came in and began her lesson for the day. Riki was only half paying attention as his mind drifted off to the club fair later today and the dance team’s performance.

He knew he was a bit of a perfectionist and despite it just being a demonstration for a school event. Riki just wanted everything to go perfectly. It was his first time really dancing in front of an audience since he lost his parents and admittedly he was slightly nervous. He hoped he could still perform like he used to.

“How did those two just disappear when we have Literature?” Eunchae asked Riki as the pair left the classroom.

“They were here this morning for math and now they’re gone and we barely got to work on our final project,” she said.

The two she was referring to were Sunoo and Jungwon who never showed up to the class. They were both a little concerned but tried to think rationally that the guys probably had something to handle with their ‘business’. They just hoped they were alright and not in any serious trouble.

“Something probably came up like last week,” Riki told her, “they might be at lunch already or they’ll be back later.”

Eunchae hummed in agreement, “I just hope they’re back for your performance later. Jungwon oppa and Sunoo oppa have been so excited to see you dance. During our break in our study session yesterday they were trying to beg me to show you some of your dancing videos but I told them to wait to see the real thing.”

Riki blushed slightly at Eunchae’s story, these guys really seemed to be interested in Riki and what he did; he was kind of touched that they were so excited to see him perform.

“Aish look at you blushing,” she teased her friend when she noticed his flushed cheeks.

“I’m not blushing,” Riki denied.

“You definitely are oppa and I understand why. Those guys seem whipped for you after all and I mean all of them,” she said while staring at Riki seriously.

“Oh please, they’re not,” he refuted her claim.

“Mhmm, sure Ki, sure,” Eunchae replied.

The two left the conversation at that. Riki really didn’t want to continue talking about the idea that the guys were whipped for him. They’re friends, they really are, all the flirting from the older guys aside that is. But Riki wasn’t even sure if they were being serious half the time or just doing shit to fluster him.

Jake and Sunghoon calling him pretty in the art room the day before seemed pretty sincere, yet earlier that morning when Jake grabbed his chin there was a playful gleam in his eye, like he was just enjoying teasing Riki. Besides, after the huge reveal of these guys, the Japanese boy felt like he was finally actually getting to know them and vice versa.

There’s no way the guys were interested him, Eunchae was fucking with him, she had to be. Though there was the tiny part in the back of his brain that really wanted what Eunchae was saying to be true.

When the guys didn’t show up and lunch was coming to its end however, the two juniors grew more concerned.

“Where the hell have they disappeared off to now? They’ve been gone for nearly 2 hours at this point,” Riki said as he and Eunchae gathered their things.

Riki was worried about the guys’ sudden disappearance. He didn’t want to seem like an overly worried or invasive friend but none of the guys had even answered his or Eunchae’s calls or messages, which was extremely unlike them.

“I don’t know oppa, we just have to wait for them to get back I guess, whenever they’ll show up that is,” he sighed.

Eunchae noticed how her friend seemed to be worried and somewhat anxious and she also shared the feelings but didn’t want to stress Riki out at the moment with everything else he had going on.

“I’m sure they’re fine Ki,” she said, trying to sound as certain as possible.

“You need to not stress yourself out right now. You already have enough on your plate,” the girl reminded him.

Riki knew that Eunchae was right, like she is most of the time, but knowing what the Enhypen guys actually did and the situations that their life could get them in still concerned him and he really hoped that they hadn’t run into any trouble. However, his best friend was right, Riki had responsibilities to take care of and needed to focus.

“You go get ready. I promise I’ll text you if they show up,” Eunchae assured him.

Her assurances eased Riki a bit and he nodded before waving goodbye to his friend who had to head to her sixth period class as her last one for the day. All the heads of clubs got exemptions to set up for the club fair so the dance captain had to meet with his vice-captain, Haruto in the studio before heading out to the courtyard to help set up with the other students.

Setting up their tent and banners, along with the tables and collecting sign up sheets helped to distract Riki from his missing friends for a while as almost everything was in place for the club day to start. He still had some worry gnawing at the bank of his mind and was slightly zoned out at times, prompting Haruto to ask if he was okay which the younger Japanese boy simply brushed off and stated he was fine.

After changing into the simple performance outfit that had been decided on which was a white button up shirt and black pants. Riki was sitting under the tent with his vice-captain as all the heads of clubs waited for the event to start.

“Riki-ah, are you really feeling okay? You’ve seemed nervous for the past while,” the elder inquired gently.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Riki brushed him off.

“That’s bullshit Riki, I don’t think I have ever seen you so nervous. You’re usually always so calm. Are you nervous about the performance?” Haruto questioned.

Riki sighed, “Yeah a little.”

And it wasn’t a complete lie. It was his first performance in front of an audience in months, even if it was only the student body at his high school and the dance team had performed at nationwide competitions in front of hundreds of people. He was slightly nervous about dancing, but he was really just worried about the Enhypen boys completely disappearing on him.

“Riki-yah, you are a born performer,” Haruto spoke up, breaking him out of those thoughts.

“No matter how long you haven’t danced or performed in front of a crowd, you are going to kill it. You were born to be on stage, you’re an incredible dancer Riki-san. Just do what you do best and dance and as always you’ll fucking kill it. This whole team knows that, you’re incredible and you’re going to be incredible,” the senior assured him sincerely and Riki felt touched by the guy’s reassuring words.

Haruto really did have a lot of faith in him and he saw how talented Riki was. The guy really did care and it showed. It actually made the boy feel a little guilty for treating the elder more like a colleague at times than a friend. The younger male even thought back to the previous term with how Haruto checked on him after he disappeared from school and took care of the dance team for him and always updated him on how things were going.

Riki felt a tiny bit like an asshole for how he’s seen the guy as not so much of a friend. But he was, Riki had just been so used to people not actually wanting to get close to him but in a way, was subconsciously lumping Haruto in with everyone else when the guy really wasn’t like that. He made a mental note to be friendlier to Haruto, the older was truly a pretty good friend.

“Thank you Haru-hyung,” Riki said genuinely, “I really appreciate it.”

The elder gave him a smile and patted his shoulder and his hand lingered for a second but Riki just brushed it off, it wasn’t anything serious.

Suddenly his phone buzzed in his pocket and he took it out to see a message from Eunchae.

potato-chae
the guys are back!! and they said sorry for worrying you. they’re okay btw, no injuries (at least physical ones) and they said good luck. you’re gonna kill it oppa, fighting!

Riki smiled as he read Eunchae’s message and felt like a weight was lifted off his shoulders. The guys were back and they were okay which is all he needed to hear. He felt far less nervous and was relieved that now he only had to focus on his performance later which shouldn’t be too hard.

Soon enough, the school bell rang and thus students flooded out of all the surrounding buildings and onto the courtyard, all very glad for the shortened day of classes and looking forward to the afternoon’s activities.

Riki tried spotting his friends amongst the crowd but really struggled finding them amongst the hundreds of other students so he gave up and told himself they would come find him since they knew where he was.

The principal went up on the makeshift stage which was brought out onto the lawn for occasions like this and began speaking to the student body about the importance of extracurriculars and some shit about how they ‘unlock your true potential’. Riki really wasn’t listening, this was really just the guy’s attempt at getting freshmen and new students to join clubs.

When he was finished, everything finally commenced.

People were coming and going from the tent, some stopping by to ask questions and leave and some actually expressing interest in joining. As expected their tent was the slowest because most people either didn’t dance or didn’t have enough confidence for it.

Haruto was at the back table checking the music mix on the table at the back of the tent as Riki informed him they had a few minutes before they had to go on, so he was making sure everything was in order as well as sending a message to the club members to get to the tent for a quick headcount before they performed.

Riki was putting the sign up sheets and flyers into a stack and placing them back in their folder when a familiar voice reached his ears.

“Are you guys still accepting sign-ups?” Heeseung’s voice asked him and Riki could hear the teasing tone from the elder.

When he looked up to see none other than the Enhypen boys and Eunchae standing in front of him, a smile graced his face.

“Hey guys,” Riki greeted as he walked around the table to stand in front of them.

“Hi Riki-yah, you look good.. really good,” Sunoo said as he stared at him.

Riki fought the urge to blush, he was only in a simple outfit of a silky white shirt which was a bit loose on him and exposed his collarbone a bit and black pants. He honestly didn’t see what looked that good about his outfit but Sunoo was complimenting him and by god Riki would take it.

“Thank you Sunoo-hyung. Are you guys alright? You completely disappeared earlier,” Riki asked in a lowered voice.

“We’ll talk later okay? Worry about your performance now,” Jay said in a slightly more serious tone.

“Go fuck up the stage Riki-yah! We came to see you dance so go do that and grace us all with your talent,” Jungwon encouraged him with a sweet smile which reassured Riki, but Jay’s serious tone also made him a slight bit, but as the elder said he would worry about that after.

“There’s a great cafe that we normally go to. We can go there after all of this, if that’s cool with you?” Jake invited.

“Yeah, yeah that sounds good,” Riki agreed, “Eunchae you gonna come?”

Said girl shook her head, “I have some work to do oppa but you guys go ahead. Although I do expect the details later,” she said while eyeing all the boys. The boys all chuckled before nodding in agreement, knowing she would probably have their heads on a stake if they kept her out of the loop.

Before anyone could say anything else, Haruto called Riki over and said that they were ready for the performance.

“I’ve gotta go but I’ll see you guys in a few okay?” Riki told them.

“Riki fighting!” his friends all chorused enthusiastically.

Riki smiled at their support before walking over to his team at the side of the stage. Some of the members look a bit nervous and as their captain, he felt the need to give them a bit of encouragement before they got on stage.

“Alright everyone so this is technically our first performance of the year and I know it’s a big change without all our seniors from before, but every single one of you is so talented. So relax, take a deep breath and let go of whatever anxiety of whatever it is you’re feeling right now. When you get on stage do what you always do and feel the music. You’re gonna do great. Fighting!” he encouraged with a reassuring smile.

The members all seemed to relax a bit at Riki’s words and the Japanese boy was glad that he was able to actually give them some guidance.
As everyone lined up, Riki noticed Haruto staring at him with an expression that he couldn't quite place.

“What?” Riki asked.

“Nothing, you’re just a really good captain. I think you’re exactly what this team needs,” Haruto smiled at him.

Riki grew a bit bashful at the praise; he very much enjoyed hearing praise, he always had. It’s just been a long time since someone’s done that and Riki always grew just a bit embarrassed whenever people did.

“Thanks Haru and you’re a good vice-captain. You’ve really helped me out the past few months, I really owe you,” he told the elder male.

“Nah, you don’t owe me anything Riki. That’s what friends do,” Haruto brushed him off.

“Well thank you… for being a good friend,” Riki told the elder, hoping it could communicate what he was thinking earlier enough without a long conversation that Riki didn’t want to have.

The senior seemed to… ‘blush?’ Riki thought to himself before he patted his back briefly. Riki assumed it was just from the heat and ignored it as he turned their attention back to Mr. Hwang who was introducing the team. The guy certainly was the biggest appreciator of the arts in this school.

“Give a warm welcome to the Begonia High Dance Team,” Mr. Hwang cued themas he stepped off the stage.

The student body applauded and Riki could easily make out the voices of his friends cheering extra loud for him and was touched by the support as the team got into position. Once everything was set, Riki signalled for the music to begin and the familiar melody of BTS’ Dionysus filtered through the speakers.

Riki took a deep breath and just allowed himself to dance, moving with the beat with precision, grace and fluidity. As he moved all his worries from before completely dissipated, because this is what he loved and what he did best.

The crowd oohed and aahed when the music changed to Easy by DaniLeigh and Haruto and he started it off with a duet moment. The elder was really a great dancer and the two easily kept up with each other as the music shifted into the chorus and the whole club joined in.

When Riki was to the right of the stage, he spotted the Enhypen guys off to the side a bit staring straight at him with expressions of awe and the confidence boost from dancing got Riki brave enough to send them a wink, which they definitely noticed as their faces began morphing into a smile right as Riki changed positions for the ending and the music came to its close.

All the students applauded and cheered and the team bowed before leaving the stage. Riki could still feel all the excitement and adrenaline from dancing and was almost bouncing on his feet. It never failed to make him feel so alive and always felt right to him.

“Riki, you were great,” Haruto told him excitedly.

“Oh come on hyung, so were you. In fact the whole team did really well. I’m proud of all of you guys,” Riki smiled at him.

“We couldn’t have done it without you captain,” one of his members told him before walking off.

“Yeah, I might be nice and reward you guys for your hard work and shorten practice tomorrow,” Riki spoke up.

“Your generosity knows no bounds Riki-yah,” Haruto rolled his eyes sassily at him.

“Yah! I’m still your captain, you know. I’ll make you stay back and do pushups for that sass,” he teased the elder back.

“Forgive me for my transgressions oh great Riki-yah,” the elder male bowed his head, “You have somewhere to be or do you want to be a sweetheart and grab some coffee with me?” Haruto asked with a… flirtatious tone, Riki realized.

He internally cursed, there’s no way that was supposed to just be a friendly offer or maybe Riki was just overanalyzing shit. He was quite the over-thinker.

“Sorry Haru but I’m heading out with some friends. Another time maybe?” he said, trying not to be rude.

By the way, the elder male’s face fell before he schooled his expression, Riki thought he actually was not overthinking the guy’s question.

“I’ll hold you to that,” Haruto winked at him as Riki slung his bag on his shoulder and headed over to where he last saw his friends.

Shit, Riki definitely was not overthinking. He should have known, he should have fucking known. This isn’t the first time Haruto has asked him to coffee or anything of the sort as it had happened a few times the previous semester but Riki always turned it down gently.

The senior had always been a little extra friendly with him, he noticed. Haruto wasn’t usually one for skin-ship but the brushing hands and shoulders and lingering pats on his arm and back at practice and even today should have been a give away. He decided to try and forget about it as he spotted his friends a few feet away and looked forward to hanging out with them for the afternoon.

“Riki-yah!” Jay exclaimed when the boy got closer, “You were fucking amazing, I have never seen anyone dance like that.”

“Seriously, that was incredible,” Sunoo added excitedly, “and you made the choreography look so easy!”

“Not to mention the detail and fluidity, you’re absolutely insane!” Jake piped up.

“I seriously couldn’t take my eyes off you, that was a great performance,” Heeseung said.

“You’re really something special Ki, that was amazing,” Sunghoon praised.

“I was right about you being talented but you still managed to impress me even more even though I already expected you to be great,” Jungwon said.

Riki blushed at all the praise. His body filled with warmth once again at the sincere compliments and sheer excitement from all the guys as they kept talking about how incredible he was.

“Thank you guys. I appreciate the compliments,” Riki told them a bit bashfully.

Eunchae came and gave him a brief side hug, “You killed it as always oppa, you never fail to impress and I think you earned yourself six new fanboys,” she teased him at the end, making Riki blush further.

“Thanks Chae,” he smiled as he returned the hug.

“So are you ready to go?” Jake asked the youngest boy.

“School’s technically not over yet you know,” Riki reminded the elder.

“Yeah but who cares? I think we’ve broken more serious rules,” the Aussie winks at him.

Riki chuckles and shakes his head affectionately, “Well let’s go then.”

The group made their way out of the courtyard and out to the parking lot and all bid Eunchae goodbye as she headed to her father’s car at the gate. When they reached the boys’ vehicles Riki noticed something on the back of Jay’s bike… a second helmet.

Chapter Text

“Holy shit, you’re letting me ride with you?” Riki asked Jay excitedly.

“Well you did mention that you wanted to, so I found one of my old helmets for you, you know just in case you did say yes to hanging out with us,” Jay told him with a small smile.

The junior immediately wraps Jay in a hug and jumps up and down excitedly as he holds him, “This is literally so cool of you, thank you Jay-hyung.”

The boys all stared at the sight of Riki excitedly hugging Jay and smiled a little to themselves over how happy the boy was. They also don’t miss the way Jay leans into the taller boy’s hold and his cheeks flush a bit which they will certainly tease him about at a later time.

“Well, then let’s get going. Jay be careful, don’t get Riki hurt on your death trap okay?” Sunoo told him.

“Yeah, yeah Sun. I’m a very careful driver, I’ll take care of him.”

The guys took Riki’s bag along with Jay’s and Sunghoon’s to put in the trunk as they got in the car while the other two hopped on their bikes. Jay hands him the metallic silver helmet and Riki slips it on his head easily.

“Hold on, it’s a bit loose,” Jay commented as he pulled Riki closer by his waist before adjusting the strap underneath his chin. Riki tries to ignore the fact that the elder just grabbed his waist and that his heart immediately fluttered when he did and lets Jay adjust his helmet for him.

“That's good?” the senior asked.

“Yeah, it’s good,” Riki nodded as he got on the back of the bike. It felt so much like back when his dad used to take him on rides in Japan and they would spend hours just going around the city and seeing different places. His mother used to jokingly complain about his father ‘stealing her son away’ for hours at a time but truthfully loved seeing the bond that Riki had with his father.

“Hold on tight okay?” Jay told him after he started the engine, “I don’t want you to fall.”

Riki nodded and wrapped his arm around Jay’s torso and scooted up a bit closer to him. He prayed Jay couldn’t feel his heart beating extremely fast against his back while Riki held onto him, but if he did, he didn’t comment on it.

He looked over to his left and saw Sunghoon shoot him a smile and a thumbs-up from his bike before the group all headed out of the parking lot and left the school behind.

They were going slow at first considering they were still in the school and residential area, but once they hit the main roads they sped up a bit and Riki almost felt free as Jay accelerated along the streets. Feeling the breeze hit his face as they drove through the more residential parts of Seoul and further into the city was so refreshing and reminded Riki of all the times he used to do this.

It felt so liberating and he could feel the adrenaline in his veins as they sped along the roads.

“You having fun Riki-yah?” Jay questioned loudly.

“Yeah!” Riki yelled back over the noise of the roads, “This is great Jay-hyung.”

Riki held onto his hyung and enjoyed the ride which he certainly wished didn’t have to end, but soon enough they slowed down after turning onto a certain street and parked in front of a cafe.

The place had a few small shops around and Riki noticed the cafe had a paw print on the sign as he got up off Jay’s bike.

“Is this a pet cafe?” he asked excitedly.

“Oh yeah, we forgot to mention that part,” Jungwon replied after the other guys got out of their car.

“Holy shit this is the best day of my life, I’ve always wanted to go to one but I’ve never gotten to,” Riki told the guys.

“Well, we’re glad that we could bring you,” Jay winked at him as he unclipped Riki’s helmet and slipped it off his head.

Riki observed how all the guys had taken off their blazers which held the school logos on it and wondered if it was for privacy reasons but decided not to question it, since he was already far too excited at the prospect of seeing cute animals.

The group all went over to the entrance and Heeseung opened the door and let everyone in before shutting it behind them.

Riki looked around and he swore he was in heaven. There were tables and chairs against the windows and small booths around but his eyes were really on the adorable animals gathered in different pens in the centre of the room.

“I think I’ve died and gone to heaven,” he muttered.

The boys all chuckled before Jungwon and Sunoo pulled him along over to the pen of dogs that absolutely made Riki’s heart melt.

“Do you guys want your usual?” the elder boys asked Jungwon and Sunoo who both nodded in response.

“Riki, what do you want? We basically have everything here so just let us know,” Jake told him.

“Just a cookie and an iced coffee please,” he said absentmindedly as Jungwon pushed open the little fence to let the youngest three into the dog pen.

Riki sat down and all the dogs instantly moved over to him and began sniffing him before one that looked a lot like his dog Bisco let out a small bark at Riki and jumped up on his lap.

“Aww, hi little one,” Riki cooed.

“Oh come on,” Sunoo scoffed half-jokingly, “Yungmin literally never comes over to people and suddenly she likes you?”

“She literally barks and runs away from everyone all the time. Even us and we’re the ones who brought her here,” Jungwon rolled his eyes, actually sounding a bit annoyed.

“She has good taste, what can I say?” Riki smirked at the older boys.

“Can’t disagree there,” Jungwon muttered under his breath.

“What was that hyung?” the youngest questioned.

“Hmm? Oh nothing,” the elder replied quickly as Sunoo gave the second youngest a brief knowing look before turning back to Riki.

“You guys said you brought her here? She’s a rescue?” Riki asked.

“They all are actually. We decided to set up this place so they would have a nice home and get a lot of attention and love from people. Some even come and adopt,” Sunoo explained as he pet a golden retriever who reminded Riki a lot of Jake.

“Ahh so this is your business,” Riki said in realization.

“Yeah it is, we all love animals even though Jay-ah and I have cat allergies but it started with only two animals we found then the number grew. This place was actually Jake’s idea, he’s a huge pet lover,” Jungwon informed the youngest.

“Very on brand for Jake-hyung,” the dancer nodded with a smile as he continued to pet Yungmin.

The trio all played with the dogs while joking around and snapping pictures of each other before the eldest four called them over to a table.

Riki took his time in petting all of the cute dogs once more and bidding them a farewell before getting out of the pen.

“You are literally covered in dog hair,” the second youngest chuckled at him as he brushed some off of Riki’s clothes while they headed over to the table

“Hey it’s not my fault that they love me and they were all so cute. I had to pet all of them,” Riki laughed.

The three took a seat at the table, the seven of them being the only ones in the cafe besides the servers and cashiers behind the counter across the room.

“So Riki-yah, how long have you been dancing?” Heeseung questioned before taking a sip of his drink.

Riki swallowed the bite of the cookie that he had in his mouth before responding, “Since I was three actually. My parents owned a studio in Japan so my sisters and I grew up with dance, though they never pushed us into it. We all grew our passion for it on our own.”

“Oh so you just popped out of the womb and were ready to groove,” Jake joked.

Riki laughed at the admittedly slightly stupid joke, “Yeah, my dad played a Michael Jackson DVD for me when I was around that age and well shit just took off from there. I learned a lot of the dances to his songs and I am a certified fan boy.”

“Michael Jackson is as good an inspiration as any,” Sunghoon nodded at him.

“So how come you moved to Korea?” Sunoo asked.

“For the opportunities really,” the Japanese boy responded, “There were some great offers for dancing as well as photography which are two things I want to pursue at college, along with something else maybe, I’m not sure what yet.”

“But a few years ago I auditioned for a few things and I got to be a backup dancer for different performances. I was a part of SHINee Kids back in Japan a few years ago and even performed with them in Kyocera Dome . After that, some offers for me to join dance schools here and even idol agencies kept being sent to my parents which was extremely surprising,” Riki went on.

“A huge performing arts high school here offered me a scholarship and I wanted it so badly but I turned it down because of my family, especially my little sister. She was so young and I didn’t want to miss out on so much of her life. I was admittedly also a bit scared of leaving Japan behind even though the offer was everything I could’ve wanted. Both of my sisters yelled at me about it afterwards and they were the ones who actually convinced me to come here and not let all these opportunities and my talent go to waste,” Riki told them, smiling a bit at the memory of that conversation with Konon and Sola.

“I agreed because they’ve always believed in me so much and I wanted to make them and my parents proud because they always saw the best in me. I realized that I should pursue my passion and my dreams. Then suddenly I was on a plane here back in 2019 and the rest is history,” he finished.

“Wow,” Sunghoon said, amazed, “It’s incredibly brave of you to take that leap to move to a foreign country on your own, Riki-yah. It’s also insanely impressive that you were so determined on something so young.”

“Seriously, the fact that you were able to make a decision like that when you were like 13, is insanely courageous of you. I respect the confidence,” Heeseung agreed.

The other boys all nodded in agreement and Riki felt like he’s spoken so much and decided to turn the tables.

“Enough about me though,” Riki said, “I have questions for you guys. I feel like I do a lot of the talking in this friendship.”

“Ask away Riki-yah, we’ll answer whatever you want,” Jungwon told him.

“Okay, baseline question first : what are your hobbies?”

“I like to sing,” Heeseung said.

“Really?” Riki asked surprised.

“Yeah,” the eldest nodded, “I’ve always enjoyed singing and I write a little bit in my free time as well along with Jaeyun-ah.”

“Both of you write songs?” the Japanese boy questioned as he looked between the elder two.

“Yup, we work really well together. I also play soccer whenever I can convince these motherfuckers to join me. And Heeseung-hyung and I also like to fish along with Sunghoon whenever we can although we’re busy nowadays. We should do that soon,” Jake said thoughtfully while giving the other two fond smiles which they both returned.

“Oh cool, I like to fish as well. I’ve only done it a couple times but they’ve been fun,” Riki added.

“Then we can bring you along with us,” Sunghoon winked at him.

“Back to the question, I play guitar sometimes and I also love cooking which you might know already. I do it because these idiots would only eat ramyeon and tteokbokki if I wasn’t around but I genuinely enjoy it,” Jay piped up.

“You do it because you love us,” Jungwon smiled at the elder before turning to Riki, “I do taekwondo, I also train these fools on occasion when they’re not being lazy and whenever I can I usually watch movies with Sunoo.”

Sunoo smiled at the younger and patted his shoulder a bit, “He is the best movie buddy since he’s the only one who watches dramas with me; but other than that I usually play games and so do the other guys.”

“Ooh so what I’m hearing is that we should hang out and we should play some rounds of Mario Kart,” Riki gave them a sly smile.

“Definitely,” Sunghoon agreed, “and yah Kim Sunoo, we watch dramas with you all the time. Your favouritism for Wonie is showing” Sunghoon argued, “and well Ki, you know that I ice skate and well Jake mentioned another one of my hobbies as well. But whenever I can I also drag Jake and Jay shopping with me, not that they ever oppose.”

“I’d love to learn how to ice skate actually, it looks fun,” Riki told him.

“When it gets colder, I’ll gladly take you,” Sunghoon assured him gently and Riki would surely hold him to that.

Riki felt a little more content. He was glad that he got to know the guys a little more personally in terms of their hobbies and things they enjoyed doing but now he had to ask the question that had been gnawing at his mind since earlier.

“So where did you all disappear to before fifth period?” Riki questioned them.

The atmosphere at the table turned a little more serious as the guys all glanced at each other and scooted a bit closer, even though the employees at the cafe worked for them and no one else was around they usually tried to keep conversations like this as quiet as possible if they had to have them out in a public space.

“There’s been some issues,” Jake started, “you remember Minjun from yesterday right?”

“Yeah,” Riki nodded, recalling how the guy had been eyeing him in a way that made his skin crawl the night before.

“He’s part of another gang. A more malicious one, but they have a lot of resources and a lot of connections. They’ve been causing us some issues and encroaching on our territory and harassing and assaulting people in the neighbourhoods.”

“They want us to trade with them, they want the area to try and push their drugs, but that’s not the kind of shit we do. We don’t stand for it at all but they’ve been getting more violent. They attacked Mandu early this morning and he called us. We went and met with the guys to give them a warning. We don’t ever want to have to escalate things but we’re keeping an eye on it,” Jay explained.

Riki felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up a bit, at hearing that Mandu had gotten hurt, despite the tough appearance the guy was a huge sweetheart and always struck up friendly conversation with him whenever he went to the area.

“Is Mandu alright?” he asked concernedly.

“Some cuts and bruises but he’ll recover,” Jungwon spoke with certainty.

“Minjun is arrogant and rash but he’s not an idiot. We’re trying to settle things without causing a bigger issue but he wants problems. He hates us to put it bluntly and so do the people above them because some of them are the corrupt assholes that we steal from. His bosses aren’t happy with us,” Heeseung said.

“We have some of our friends from other gangs helping us out too but these guys seriously are looking for a big issue. They’re persistent, they want a fight,” Sunoo added.

“Holy shit,” Riki muttered.

The guys were handling something serious and from the sounds of it things weren’t necessarily going well. It worried Riki quite a bit but he also knew he had to have faith that these guys knew what they were doing after being in their business for years. It didn’t mean he wouldn’t look out for them though.

“Yeah so that’s where we disappeared to today. We’re sorry we didn’t say anything but we had to go to that meeting today,” Sunghoon informed him.

“What the actual fuck? That’s all absolutely insane, I know you guys are probably used to this but that doesn’t sound great. Please just be careful,” Riki said to them worriedly.

“Of course we will Riki-yah. But this situation is big and these guys are persistent if nothing else,” Jake assured him.

“Just be safe alright?” He repeated himself, “I don’t want anything to happen to you guys.”

Sunoo took Riki’s hand in his and rubbed a circle with his thumb, just like he did in the nurse’s office, while all the others stared at them with fond eyes.

“We’ll be careful Ki, we’ll try our best, that, we can promise.”

Riki should have known, he really should’ve fucking known that he couldn’t live in peace for that long. The rest of his second week of school proved to be fine and Riki was actually enjoying being at school for the first time in his high school life as he spent more time with the Enhypen boys and Eunchae.

They’d really formed their own friend group and had a great bond and their friendship was still developing with a lot more trust and openness. Things were going great and Riki felt something he really hadn’t felt in a while, he felt contentment and genuine happiness in his life in big part due to the people he was around and the things he was doing and it felt so refreshing after him going through a living hell during the majority of the year.

He just wished it fucking lasted.

Dohyun and his minions were not ones to back off, they might leave him alone for brief periods at a time before coming back worse but Riki, really, really pissed him off this time.

He had a pretty shitty day as Eunchae did not come to school because she was sick, then his history teacher took five marks off of his assignment which would have been an ‘A’ all because Riki spelt a word wrong and when Riki complained the woman told him to simply be better at Korean like a xenophobic bitch. Then the guys didn’t show up at lunch and never came back to school even after classes ended. So today was far down on Riki’s list of how well days went.

But now, it was especially bad as Dohyun, Siwoo and about five other guys were tailing him home. Riki was more than aware they were awful people after being the subject of their harassment and physical abuse over the years, but this was excessive even for him and was genuinely very gingerly toeing the line between being assholes and being borderline psychotic.

Riki knew he was in trouble, he couldn’t lead them back to his apartment because then they would know when he lived and if they were crazy enough to follow him out of the school and onto the streets, he certainly didn’t put it past them to come to his home and wait outside to harass him.

He decided the smartest decision would be to lead them on a wild goose chase and lose them somewhere in Mandu’s neighbourhood before circling back around. He knew the area and as much as these guys were idiots and acted like they were hot shit, from everything his friends had told him, the area had grown more dangerous and hopefully they would get the message to not stick around there for too long.

So here Riki was, weaving through other people and cutting through areas to avoid getting caught up to by Dohyun and his minions. He had already tried calling the guys multiple times and texted them in their group-chat which Eunchae was also in. Every message was delivered but nobody was responding to him.

“Fuck, fuck,” his heart was racing and his blood was thundering in his ears while his feet beat the pavement as he ran through the streets and through Mandu’s neighbourhood. Riki ducked into a seemingly empty alleyway and crouched behind a dumpster as he took a breath.

He didn’t hear the bullies anymore and thought he would be good to go in a few more minutes, after he calmed down from the anxiety he was feeling in every bone.

“Well hello there sweet thing,” a voice spoke in a sleazy tone causing Riki to look up and see the man from nearly a week ago when he came here with Jake and Sunghoon.

Riki ignored the guy, as he knew very well that he wasn’t good news and his blood was thundering in his ears while his heart raced and chest felt tight from the anxiety of his high school bullies already.

Riki took a deep breath and opened and closed his palms in time with his breathing to try and relax. He felt himself calm down a bit and went to leave but felt a firm grip on his wrist and he was turned around so that Minjun was blocking the way out of the alley.

“Now don’t be rude baby, I was just saying hello,” Minjun told him with a sinister smirk.

“Let go of me,” Riki said simply as he pulled his wrist, but the guy just tightened his grip.

“Now, now, don’t leave so soon,” the man spoke slowly, “What’s your name sweetheart?”

“Leave me alone,” Riki told him in a clipped tone as he yanked his wrist back.

“Don’t be like that sweetheart, I just want to get to know you,” the man spoke in a tone that made Riki’s very blood crawl.

He needed to get out of here, now.

Riki tried to push past Minjun but was grabbed by both his wrists and shoved back hard against the wall, pinning his arms to his sides.

“Now don’t fucking piss me off baby,” Minjun growled at him.

“I’m not your fucking baby. Get the fuck off of me,” Riki struggled and thrashed around, trying to get out of the man’s hold but the man didn’t budge at all.

Riki raised his knee and sent it straight into the man’s crotch which made him loosen his grip a little and he tried to run but Minjun recovered quickly and grabbed him by the throat before pinning him back against the wall.

“You have some fucking nerve, what if I just killed you right here? Maybe that would get your little boyfriends to finally listen to me, but you’re also quite pretty, baby, Maybe, I should just keep you for myself,” Minjun snarled at him as his palm pressed down on Riki’s windpipe causing less and less oxygen to enter his lungs.

Riki was terrified to say the least, he thought he escaped an awful situation only to run into another and the hand on his throat was unrelenting. He clawed at the man’s arm and weakly kicked his legs but his movements were getting weaker and weaker as his vision clouded at the edges. Riki was scared, he felt like he was dying and it was horrifying. He didn’t want to die, not now and not like this; yet every second that ticked by, he was taking in less and less air as his body grew more and more heavy.

His eyes were sliding open and shut and he was on the brink of unconsciousness when he heard a voice that sounded so close yet so far in the distance yell and footsteps that sounded like they were underwater rapidly approaching.

The weight on his body was ripped off and he collapsed to the ground but everything felt far away and sounded muffled. His vision was blurry and the black spots were taking over and Riki tried to fight it, but he couldn’t any longer and the world around him faded into a mute black.

Chapter Text

Riki shot awake suddenly like ice cold water had been poured over him and sat straight up and coughs and wheezes immediately wracked his frame as his throat burned and ached.

“Breathe Ki, breathe,” a familiar voice told him as he felt an arm around his back.

After a few moments, he looked up to see the concerned faces of Sunoo, Jake and Jungwon. Riki was confused, the room he was in was a bedroom but it certainly wasn’t his. How come the Enhypen boys were here too after they disappeared from school earlier?

“W-what are you guys doing h-here?” Riki questioned confusedly, his voice coming out as a weak, raspy sound. What had happened to his throat?

“You don’t remember what happened Ki?” Jake asked him.

Riki paused for a moment and tried to wrack his brain, he knew he had a shit day and that he left school and was walking home as usual, but then he remembered Dohyun, Siwoo and all his lackeys chasing after him and him cutting through… Mandu’s neighbourhood to lose them.

Then it hit him, the alleyway, Minjun, him being choked until everything went black but right before he passed out he heard someone yell and then rapid footsteps.

“Oh fuck,” he sighed, “Yeah I do.”

The other boys all gave him looks that held both sympathy and fury.

“Are you feeling okay?” Jungwon questioned.

Riki stayed silent for a moment, honestly he felt like shit. His entire day had been awful them he got chased down by bullies before getting choked out in an alleyway, so no, Riki was really not feeling okay.

“No, not really,” he croaked.

Sunoo sighed, “Do you want to talk about it?”

The youngest boy shook his head, he didn’t really want to talk about it now, both because it physically and mentally hurt to and he didn’t really know what to say. He was scared, in pain, sad and for some reason angry as well.

“Come on Ki, let’s go downstairs. The others made dinner and you should probably eat something to get your strength back,” Jake said.

The junior simply nodded and let the other three take him by the hand and guide him out of the room. The house looked nice, even though Riki knew he wasn’t necessarily taking it in properly as way too much was running through his head at the moment, but the beige walls and wood floors along with oak doors were nice and photos and paintings decorated the walls, some by artists and some that looked to be pictures of the boys and their families.

They got to a grandiose oak staircase that led downstairs to a foyer looking area with white marble flooring and high ceilings with a very expensive chandelier attached to it. The guys kept leading him until they turned left after getting down the stairs and moving down a short hallway that opened out into a kitchen and dining room area.

The other three guys who were there instantly turned around hearing footsteps and Heeseung and Jay looked at Riki in relief and concern while Sunghoon’s face held an expression that the Japanese boy couldn’t quite read.

“Riki-yah, you’re awake,” Jay sighed in relief as he came over and pat the boy’s shoulder.

Heeseung also came over but ruffled his hair a tiny bit while Sunghoon just stared at him before everyone sat at the table. Jay’s food was delicious as usual but everyone was silent, the mood was somber and Riki knew everyone was looking at him throughout the meal with different emotions painted on their face, but Sunghoon truly confused him the most, the elder was almost glaring at him and Riki truly didn’t understand why.

The youngest ate slowly as his throat was killing him but everyone patiently waited until he was done and when Riki finished his bowl, the eldest three went about cleaning up the dishes while Sunoo and Jungwon cleared the table of the mats and wiped off any crumbs before putting away dried dishes while Riki sat on top of a counter and Sunghoon leaned on one opposite to him just staring Riki down.

“I can’t believe you,” Sunghoon said suddenly addressing Riki.

His tone was harsh and cold almost like the one he had used that night with Minjun. Why was he angry with Riki? What had he done?

The others had all froze in what they were doing and glanced at the ice prince.

Sunghoon continued, “This is your problem Riki. You don’t fucking listen.”

Riki’s brow furrowed, what was the elder on about?

“What are you talking about?” Riki rasped.

“You know exactly what I’m talking about Riki. This, this is exactly why we didn’t want to fucking tell you!” Sunghoon snapped.

“Hoon-” Jay tried to interject but Sunghoon kept going.

“This shit is not a game Riki. What we do is fucking dangerous and it’s not safe for us, so what the fuck would make you think it’s safe for you?” the senior continued to bark at him.

“Sunghoon, that’s enough!” Heeseung yelled at him.

Riki could feel his skin crawl and clenched his palms into fists to try and fight off all the emotions he’s been feeling that want to bubble to the surface at the elder yelling at him for seemingly nothing.

“No hyung, it’s not enough,” he snapped back at the eldest.

Sunghoon walked closer to Riki, “We fucking told you Riki. Jake and I both told you, that neighbourhood is not goddamn safe, especially not now with Minjun’s gang lurking around but you didn’t fucking listen. You just had to go and be fucking stubborn after we warned you.”

Riki could feel himself boiling, why was Sunghoon blaming him like this for something that wasn’t his fault? Why was he so angry and just being so harsh towards him? Maybe if Riki was thinking clearly he would’ve heard the concerned underlying tone in the elder’s voice, but he didn’t and he snapped.

“So what it’s my fucking fault?” Riki snapped as he hopped off the counter.

The boys were all stunned by Riki’s outburst, they’d never seen the boy truly angry besides his outburst at Siwoo. They’d all seen him annoyed and irritated and even seen him cry yet this was the first time they’d seen his anger directed at one of them and even to them, it was intimidating.

“I fucking asked for this Sunghoon? I asked to be attacked by an asshole in an alleyway all because I ‘didn’t listen to your warnings’ about the fucking place?” he yelled weakly as his voice rasped and cracked yet he didn’t falter.

“Well you clearly fucking didn’t or else we wouldn’t be here!” the elder shot back at him.

“Fuck no! You are not going to blame me for this. This isn’t my fucking fault, I’ve listened to you since day one. I’ve listened to all of you tell me fucking lies about your life because it seemed like you didn’t trust me despite everything. I listened to Sunoo’s advice about Dohyun and I fucking listened to you after you and Jake both kept trying to hide the truth from me until you were basically forced to tell me!” Riki yelled furiously despite the tears that were coming out from his eyes both from straining his voice and throat and from sadness and frustration.

If Riki wasn’t so blinded by all his emotions he would have seen how the elder’s eyes softened and he stepped back but he didn’t see anything right now, so he kept going.

“I fucking listened to you Sunghoon,” Riki said, voice breaking as more tears fell, “I didn’t want to go back there because I knew it was dangerous but if you fucking asked and just listened to me you would’ve known. I had a shit day today, Eunchae was sick, you guys all fucking disappeared without a word and I only ended up in Mandu’s neighbourhood because Dohyun, Siwoo and a bunch of their fucking lackeys chased me down after I left school and I wasn’t going to let them follow me home.”

Riki felt hot tears slipping down his cheeks, “I wasn’t thinking straight because I was so scared and I didn’t have any other options so I panicked, t-then I ducked into an alley and Minjun was there and I thought I was going to fucking die,” Riki’s voice softened.

“I was scared, I am scared and I was alone. I was fucking alone,” he sobbed, no longer angry but just devastated, scared and feeling that horrible feeling of crushing loneliness despite being surrounded by six of his friends.

Suddenly there were arms wrapped around him as Riki was held in six tight embraces and allowed himself to cry. Sunghoon had hugged him first and was holding him the tightest as he ran a hand through the youngest’s hair.

“Forgive me Riki-yah, I’m so sorry,” he apologized and Riki knew he meant it, but he was just too exhausted to think about all of it right now as he felt his legs giving out.

“Whoa Riki-yah!” Jay exclaimed as everyone stepped back from the hug while the second eldest held the boy in his arms.

“Are you okay?” he asked worriedly as he looked at the boy who looked far beyond exhausted.

“Sorry, I just got lightheaded,” Riki rasped his voice barely above a whisper now. His screaming match with Sunghoon certainly did his throat no favours.

“Take him to bed Jay-ah,” Jungwon instructed.

The elder nodded before gently picking Riki up which garnered no protests from said boy as he seemed to be almost passed out on Jay’s shoulder as the senior carried him upstairs and back to the room he was in earlier and gently laid him on the bed.

“I doubt that uniform is comfy to sleep in, do you want to change?” Jay asked Riki.

Riki hummed in agreement and let Jay help him sit up on the bed as the guy rummaged through the drawers in the room for a second before pulling out a black hoodie and grey sweatpants.

“These should fit you, they’re Heeseung’s and you guys are around the same height,” the elder told him.

Riki hummed, every bone in his body was exhausted and he didn’t think he could get himself up to change his own clothes at the moment.

“Can you do it for me? If you don’t mind that is,” the Japanese boy requested sheepishly.

In the low light of the yellow lit room from the lamp on the top of the drawers, Jay blushed a bit before agreeing.

“Tell me if at any moment, you’re uncomfortable,” Jay told him.

Riki nodded in response and let the elder unbutton his white shirt as he kept his eyes averted and placed it to the side. Jay didn’t miss how the forming bruises and small cuts on Riki’s neck looked and he knew they would look far worse in the morning. He felt angry at himself for not being there and so horribly guilty hearing Riki’s words of how he felt so alone echo in his head as he gently slipped the hoodie onto the boy’s frame.

Riki slipped out of the school’s black pants himself as Jay helped him slide the soft material of the sweatpants onto his hips before laying the boy back down on the bed.

“Thank you Jay-hyung,” Riki whispered to him.

“Of course sweetheart,” Jay responded, the pet name just slipping out.

Riki heard it and felt his heart flutter and his body fill with warmth at the term of endearment.

“Goodnight Riki-yah,” Jay said before going to turn off the light and plunging the room into darkness.

Before the elder could reach the door, Riki stopped him, “Jay-hyung, can you stay, please? I don’t want to be alone.”

Jay felt his heart sink in his chest a bit at how small Riki sounded but he agreed, turning back around and slowly crawling into the bed behind Riki who was facing the wall and putting a gentle but secure arm around the boy’s waist.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t there Riki-yah,” he apologized.

Riki hummed, earlier he was angry but irrationally so. He wasn’t really angry at them but it was the feeling of being abandoned and alone when the guys all disappeared from school without a word and then the overwhelming loneliness and fear he felt when Minjun was crushing his windpipe in his hand. It was the same feelings he had when his parents were taken from this world too soon.

But he knew it wasn’t the boys’ fault, he didn’t blame them but all the emotions came out at once and he snapped. After thinking about it for a second, it seemed something similar happened with Sunghoon after thinking about their argument in the kitchen once again and how the elder seemed to step back and soften up when Riki got upset and he knew he would have to talk to the elder in the morning.

“It’s not your fault hyung, it’s not any of your faults,” Riki whispered as he felt himself drift off to sleep.

Riki awoke to sunlight pouring through the window the next morning. His neck ached and he brought a hand up to it but a hand on his wrist stopped him and he turned around to see Jay laying next to him very much awake. Last night he was too tired to function but now as he looked at Jay whose tan skin was basically glowing from the light, the elder looked truly ethereal and Riki registered the weight over his waist that was Jay’s arm.

Usually he’d been panicking in gay and he still felt his heart beat a little faster than normal and butterflies fluttering in his stomach, but he also felt safe and calm, like one would feel with a partner as this moment felt so beautifully… domestic as they both laid in a bed cuddling close to one another. Riki couldn’t help but think about how he would like to get used to this, not just with Jay but the other guys too.

‘God, calm the fuck down Nishimura you’ve known them for 3 weeks now,’ he chided himself internally.

“Good morning,” Jay greeted him in his raspy morning voice which was even deeper than usual and very attractive.

“Morning Jay,” Riki rasped back.

“Does your throat hurt?” the elder questioned, to which Riki nodded a bit in response.

Jay’s brow furrowed, “Sunoo had told us it wasn’t good but it wasn’t horrible either. Your vocal chords got a bit damaged but your windpipe is okay which was a complete relief. He said once you don’t strain your voice too much it should heal in a few days.”

Riki just nodded slowly, “Should we head downstairs?” he whispered.

“Yeah, we should, I should probably make breakfast for those goblins I live with or else they’ll starve,” Jay joked which made the younger boy crack a smile before he realized something.

“What about school?” he asked.

Jay shook his head, “You’re certainly not going in your condition and we’re not leaving you alone, we already called in sick.”

Riki allowed Jay to take him by the hand and pull him out of bed as the pair walked hand in hand down the hall which looked just as lovely as the night prior as Riki allowed himself to properly take it in after being so out of it the night prior. The guys had a gorgeous home and it was certainly expensive from the looks of it.

Jay lead him to the kitchen and the sight surprised him, breakfast was already prepared but what truly surprised Riki was Heeseung back-hugging Jake and pressing kisses to the other guy’s cheek and shoulders as they giggled with one another standing in the middle of the kitchen.

Riki was surprised to say the least, he really didn’t see any indications that the two were dating at all and he felt a little bit of disappointment as well as stupid as it may have sounded. He had gotten his hopes up from all the guys being flirty and sweet towards him while Jake and Heeseung were clearly something, Riki couldn’t help but feel a bit like a home-wrecker.

Jay walked closer to them and cleared his throat while Riki hung back near the doorway to alert the elder two of their presence, “In the kitchen you two? Have some decency,” he scolded them in an unserious tone, a small smile prying at his lips.

“Oh come on love, we only get to be like this at home,” Jake smiled at the elder as he pressed a kiss to the taller boy’s cheek which Jay seemed to melt into for a moment before sobering up.

And oh, the three of them were a thing. The scene was sweet honestly and Riki thought they looked cute together but couldn’t help the sinking feeling he had in his stomach, both for getting his hopes up and now for feeling like even more of a home-wrecker and like an outsider for being interested in these guys, there was really no use in denying it.

He thought all of them were attractive and sweet and couldn’t help but think about them in a romantic sense, yet here three of them were clearly in a happy relationship and Riki felt like an intruder.

He couldn’t help but feel somewhat led on either especially after the bold flirting, the physical contact, even the night before with Jay holding him close and calling him a sweet term of endearment that made Riki’s heart flutter. But he brushed off the thought, who was he to feel upset about their relationship? They just met him and he was their friend, just their friend.

“Guys, Riki’s here,” Jay told them as he eyed both of them before glancing at Riki.

The other two’s eyes widened for a second before looking at Riki who was standing in the doorway. All three of their eyes were filled with… sympathy? That couldn’t be it. Why would they be sympathetic right now? They were happy together and shouldn’t feel bad for that. The youngest gave them a smile that he prayed didn’t look too forced and gave them a small wave.

“Hey guys,” he croaked.

Jake glanced down at the floor and shuffled his feet awkwardly, “Sorry about that Riki-san we didn’t see you there.”

“It’s totally fine, don’t feel bad. After all it is your house, I’m just a guest,” Riki said, as at this moment he felt like a complete intruder.

“You guys are really cute together,” he told them, hoping it didn’t sound forced.

The older three smiled at him before Heeseung spoke up, “Thank you, Riki-yah.”

“So are you three a thing? You’re dating?” Riki asked.

God why did he sound so invasive right now? Why did he care so much? It wasn’t fair of him, he just waltzed into their lives a few weeks ago, they’ve all known each other for years, Riki has no right to be upset about their relationship, he can’t be so selfish.

“Well not just the three of us,” Heeseung admitted sheepishly.

And Riki understood exactly what he meant, all of them, all six of the guys were dating. Riki wasn’t just a home-wrecker, he was the whole demolition team.

“Oh,” he said dumbly, before trying to collect himself.

“That’s really cool. So all six of you are boyfriends?” he questioned even though it was obvious wasn’t it?

“Yeah, we’re all dating,” Jay responded to him with a smile but there was something in his voice Riki couldn’t place, but at the moment, he didn’t really want to.

“That’s great,” Riki told them, hoping he could blame the strain in his voice on his damaged throat.

“Well Heeseung-hyung and I made breakfast so there are lots of pancakes so you two can eat up,” Jake told the two who just entered.

Heeseung picked up his mug of coffee before tugging Jake along with him to the kitchen doorway, “Oh and Riki, Sunghoon said he wants to talk to you after breakfast. He’s on the roof and he said to come whenever you’re ready.”

Riki nodded, “Thanks Heeseung-hyung.”

The elder smiled before speeding off with Jake in tow as they left, leaving a strangely awkward atmosphere in the kitchen as Riki quietly got a plate and took two pancakes as he knew he wouldn’t be able to stomach much else.

He quietly sat at the table and ate for a minute until Jay sat across from him with his own plate.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you,” he spoke suddenly.

Riki looked up and gave the guy a questioning look.

“About all of us I mean. Usually we just keep it private because we have to but you’re different,” Jay said emphasizing the last word like he meant something else with it yet Riki had no clue what.

“Especially after everything you said about trust last night, I want you to know that I trust you, we all do. I wish you didn’t have to find out about us like this,” the elder told thoughtfully with a hint of remorse to his tone.

“Hey, Jay-hyung don’t worry about it really,” Riki assured him, not wanting the guy to apologize for who he loves.

“I’m glad you all told me and it makes sense, you guys all fit each other,” Riki rasped out.

And that was the truth. They did, they all fit, the six of them, easily able to balance each other out, they made sense and Riki was just their friend, an outsider and that was okay.

“Thank you Ki,” Jay told him, yet he sounded almost sad.

Why would Jay be sad? Should Riki have not asked? It might have been better if he shut up earlier instead of just saying shit and probably making them feel pressured into admitting their relationship. The two spent the rest of the meal in silence before Riki decided to go see Sunghoon, he didn’t really want to keep the guy waiting and he did want to talk to him.

But now, there was also that underlying feeling of knowing he was with the other guys, Riki couldn’t have him in the way he has thought about. Hell he couldn’t have any of them like that, the thought replayed itself as he decided to head back to the bedroom he slept in the night before and take a warm shower to try and calm his nerves as he thought about the argument he had with Sunghoon the night prior.

He did feel guilty for yelling but not for what he said, because he truly did mean it, he just didn’t want to get angry at Sunghoon, he never wanted to get angry at any of them but all the emotions piling up just made him snap.

After his shower, he luckily found an unopened deodorant in the cabinet that the guys hopefully wouldn’t mind him using before grabbing a fresh white t-shirt from the drawer in the room and putting on the same sweatpants and hoodie he slept in after drying his hair.

It was only now he realized that the hoodie smelt so much like Heeseung which didn’t help Riki’s agenda of not trying to think about the really attractive guys he meant and developed an interest in but are all dating each other.

As he left the room, it was only then he realized he had no clue how to get to the roof and would probably have to go back downstairs and ask Jay. While Riki began heading down the hall to the stairs, a door to the left of him opened and out came Sunoo.

“Oh, hi Riki-yah,” he said with his beautiful bright smile which never failed to give Riki a feeling of warmth on the inside.

“Good morning Sunoo-hyung,” Riki greeted.

“How are you feeling? How’s your neck?” the shorter boy asked as he came forward and gently pushed the neck of Riki’s hoodie down a bit to see his neck.

“Shit, the bruises still look bad, the small cuts not so much,” Sunoo muttered so close to him that Riki could feel his breath hit his neck

Riki shivered slightly from the feeling as his heart beat fast from how Sunoo was nearly pressing against him as he examined his neck. But he kept his composure as best as he could until the elder pulled back.

“I have to put some ointment on the bruises, the cuts are okay though, come here,” the older said as he pulled Riki into his room.

“Babe did you forget something?” Jungwon asked as he heard the door reopen and turned around to see Sunoo and Riki.

“Jungwon,” the eldest in the room sighed.

Riki looked down at the floor and shuffled awkwardly, “Don’t worry guys, I know.”

“Oh.. you do,” Jungwon spoke as he and Sunoo looked a bit remorseful. Why did everyone look like that after he found out?

Riki nodded slowly, “Heeseung and Jake were being all sweet in the kitchen when Jay and I walked in, then Jake kissed Jay since he didn’t realize I was there. They told me, I have no problem with it by the way, you guys are really cute.”

The other two gave him small smiles, “Well we wanted you to know eventually, but I guess it’s good that we’re not keeping secrets,” Sunoo told him before guiding Riki to sit on the bed.

“Does your neck hurt Ki?” Jungwon asked.

“It aches quite a bit, my throat is really killing me though,” he croaked.

Sunoo hummed as he pulled out a first aid kit and took a small tube of ointment from it, “I know, I assume Jay told you that your vocal chords are a bit damaged but once you don’t yell again or strain too much you should be okay.”

Riki nodded before letting Sunoo do what he had to and apply the ointment while silence fell over the room.

“Heeseung-hyung told me Sunghoon was on the roof and he wanted to talk to me but I have no idea how to get there,” Riki whispered.

“Jungwonie can take you, I’m almost done… and there,” Sunoo said as he stepped away and put everything back in its place.

“Thank you Noo-hyung,” Riki gave him a grateful smile.

“No problem Ki.”

“Come on Riki-yah,” Jungwon piped up from behind Sunoo.

Riki waved to the eldest junior before following Jungwon out and down the hall past the room he slept in and to a small staircase at the end of the hall.

“It’s right up there, through the door,” the elder told him.

Riki glanced up at the stairs knowing he would have to face Sunghoon now and nodded, “Thanks Wonie-hyung.”

The elder patted him on the shoulder before turning and walking back down the hall. Riki felt his anxiety building with each step he took up to the door, but why was he anxious? Him and Sunghoon were friends and friends argue sometimes, but they could resolve this. After all it’s Sunghoon, someone so wonderfully although quietly caring. Riki could talk to him.

He eased placed his hand on the door knob and turned it as he pushed it open. The sun provided a nice warmth up here although the weather was shifting into autumn. The roof was just concrete with the peaks of other roofs of areas in this giant house that were a bit higher slanting down and almost creating a nice enclosed rectangular area in the middle.

He spotted Sunghoon standing by the edge, leaning on barrier as he looked out on the view and walked over to him. It was shocking to say the least, trees spanned a beautifully maintained lawned with gardens and a view of the driveway and entry way down below. Looking out straight ahead, Riki could spot the skyline of Seoul some miles away and he let out a small gasp from the absolutely stunning sight.

“It’s beautiful isn’t it?” the elder asked him as Riki came to his side.

“Yeah, it’s gorgeous. Wow,” Riki marveled breathlessly.

“I remember my first time seeing it, even after living here for years, I’m still not over it,” Sunghoon told him.

“I would spend hours up here if I lived here, seems like a great spot to see the stars. You can never see them in the city because of all the light pollution. That’s just another thing I miss about Japan, I was always able to see the stars from home,” Riki mused.

There was silence between the two for a moment before Sunghoon spoke up.

“Riki, I’m sorry about last night.”

The dancer turned his body to face Sunghoon who was already staring straight at him.

The older male sighed, “I shouldn’t have said all that and you were right, I should have listened to you and I know this may sound ironic after you telling me I didn’t listen last night but I want to explain.”

“I’m listening,” Riki said softly.

“Last night when Mandu brought you here unconscious and with bruises and cuts forming around your neck, I got so worried,” Sunghoon began.

Well that answered Riki’s question to who brought him here, but he stayed quiet as he was curious as to what else Sunghoon had to say.

He continued, “I was worried and scared but after Mandu explained everything I got so angry. I was angry that I wasn’t there to protect you and I was furious at Minjun for hurting you.”

“It all just festered and then I took it out on you when I saw you when it wasn’t even you I was angry at but Minjun for coming after you,” Sunghoon explained.

Riki understood because something similar happened with him, all the emotions just festered at once and came out as anger, he understood why Sunghoon said everything he did and why he yelled at him and he forgave him.

“I’m sorry for blaming you, that was so fucked up of me. What happened wasn’t your fault Riki and it will never be your fault. The guys and I are also so so sorry that we disappeared on you yesterday and left you alone. I promise Nishimura Riki,” Sunghoon said as he took the younger’s hands in his, “I promise that I’m never going to let you feel alone, not again.”

Riki savoured the feeling of Sunghoon’s warm and bigger hands holding his and despite everything that happened this morning, he decided to be selfish and let himself enjoy this, just for this moment.

“I understand Hoon-hyung,” Riki told him, “I understand and I forgive you. I know you guys left yesterday for a reason, but yesterday was just awful and as much as sometimes I act like I don’t need people I really do,” Riki admitted feeling a tear fall down his cheek.

“Everyone was gone yesterday and you guys and Eunchae are all I have here in Korea and I was scared and I felt so alone. Then I was angry because I hate feeling alone, I hate feeling abandoned, I just don’t want anyone else to leave me,” he said honestly as another tear fell.

“You’re not alone Ki,” Sunghoon said as he pulled the boy closer by his hands and leaned his forehead against Riki’s and the Japanese boy both felt that nagging guilt because Sunghoon wasn’t his, yet was holding him so softly and gently like one would a partner, but Riki felt so incredibly cared for as one of the people he felt more than platonic feelings for was here with him like this and decided to bask in this moment, wishing he could encase it in time and just stay here like this with Sunghoon.

“You’re not alone,” the elder repeated, softer and sounding more like a promise, “You’ll never be alone.”

They stayed there, just like that for a few more minutes just enjoying this moment with one another before they both pulled away even though it felt reluctant from both parties or maybe Riki was just projecting to feel less stupid about his feelings for the six new guys he met who are all in a relationship.

“You can come here and look at the stars sometime. We can watch them together if you would like to,” Sunghoon offered, referring to Riki’s comment from earlier.

Riki gave Sunghoon a small smile and nodded, “Yeah, I’d like that.”

He would like to see the stars again, Riki hoped with everything in him that they would be as bright as he remembered.

Chapter Text

The next day Riki left the Enhypen house after lunch. He insisted against everyone else’s protests but Sunghoon had insisted that the younger boy allow him to take him home. Riki didn’t want to argue with the elder again and agreed after bidding everyone goodbye.

The pair got on Sunghoon’s bike and headed on the road to head back into Seoul. The ride was quiet, not like they could talk too much over the loud noise of the bike and the sounds of the city until they arrived at the Japanese boy’s apartment. Riki removed his helmet and handed it to the elder.

“Thank you for the ride Hoon-hyung,” Riki said simply before grabbing his bag.

“It’s no problem Riki-yah. Are you sure you’re gonna be okay on your own? I can always take you back with me and let you stay with us for the weekend,” Sunghoon offered as he looked at Riki with a caring and gentle gaze.

Riki couldn’t stand that look, not now, not when he knew that Sunghoon had five boyfriends at home waiting for him. He couldn’t stand that look because it made him so desperately want to stay in the elder’s arms like he did yesterday, when he allowed himself a moment to be selfish and bask in his feelings for someone who wasn’t his and who couldn’t be his.

“I’ll be okay hyung, really. I’ll see you Monday,” Riki said before heading into the building, watching Sunghoon wave at him through the glass door before almost looking reluctant as he got on his bike and rode away.

Riki headed up to his apartment and bolted straight to his room before collapsing on his bed. He would’ve liked to stay with the guys, he really would have, their house was huge but all their personalities and auras reached every corner and made Riki feel not so lonely, unlike his apartment that despite having one bedroom always felt too big for him to fill by himself.

His parents' deaths just left a void for Riki and with his sisters staying in Japan and the both of them being busy, with school for Sola and work for Konon as she tries her best to make sure that Sola can keep her childhood they can’t talk much. All of that left a gap for him and made him feel this overwhelming wave of loneliness sometimes.

At times it would be repetitive, striking him down and holding him under for days or weeks at a time but lately, the sea has been calm. Eunchae, Jungwon, Sunoo, Sunghoon, Jake, Jay and Heeseung, all of them managed to keep him above the waves and make Riki feel not so horribly lonely being so far away from home.

He knew he still had the guys in his life, of course he did. Riki knew they cared about him so incredibly much, yet he couldn’t be around them at the moment, not after seeing all of them so happy and in love with one another. No he didn’t hate them for being in love and happy with each other, how could Riki ever hate that?

He hated how he fell for these guys because they all managed to infiltrate his heart and make a place there. Riki hated that all the flirting, the touches, the comfort and wiping his tears when he cried and holding him when he broke down and putting the pieces back together made him feel as though he had a chance for something. He hated how all of it made him get his hopes up when in the end they all had each other and Riki was just the outsider, an intruder for so selfishly wanting something that wasn’t his, that wouldn’t be his.

“God I sound like such a fucking angsty teenager. Get a fucking grip Nishimura, your parents died and you’re whining to yourself about your unrequited love in high school, be for real,” he chided himself.

Riki knew what he needed, he needed someone to talk to or just a distraction and a certain Ms. Hong Eunchae would be the woman for the job. He grabbed his phone off the nightstand and shot a quick message to the girl.

little michael jackson 🕺
you home?

Luckily for Riki, the girl replied almost instantly.

potato-chae
yeah still a little sick tho but i told mom and dad to go ahead to the hospital, you have doctors for parents and as soon as you cough they’re ready to put you in the emergency room :|

Riki let out a little laugh at that before sending another message.

little michael jackson 🕺
i’ll be there in 10

potato-chae
oppa bring ice cream please!

little michael jackson 🕺
make that 15

Riki quickly changed out of the clothes Heeseung let him keep and grabbed a shirt that would hide his neck enough and shorts from his own closet and pocketed his phone, wallet and keys before heading out of the apartment.

He stopped at the convenience store just a two minute walk away from him before turning around and heading back in the other direction, passed the school to Eunchae’s house. Riki decided to listen to music to let it drown out his thoughts on his walk to his best friend’s home and it proved to work.

Soon enough though, he arrived at the familiar sight of Eunchae’s house and headed straight to the front door but before he even rang the bell it swung open so he stepped inside.

“Were you waiting for me?” he asked the girl amusedly.

Eunchae shrugged and spoke in a faux innocent tone, “I certainly was not, I just have telepathic abilities to know when someone is at my door.”

Riki rolled his eyes at his best friend before heading over to the living room where the girl has clearly taken up residence judging by the blankets on the couch and the tissues collected in a bin by the coffee table along with the drama paused on the screen.

The elder boy plopped straight down on the couch and immediately snatched one of the several blankets for himself before extracting the two pints of ice cream he bought from the bag.

Eunchae came in with a spoon and gave him a look as she sat down, “Are you okay Riki? You look kind of upset…Oh my god your neck oppa,” she gasped when she finally noticed the bruises, “What happened?”

Riki sighed, for at least a few minutes he wanted to forget about his stupid feelings and Thursday when he got attacked by Minjun. So he just plucked the spoon that she had outstretched to him from her hand and opened his pint of chocolate chip ice cream. Eunchae seemed to understand as she picked up her own whilst giving the elder a wary glance before she restarted the show.

He sat there with Eunchae, swaddled in cozy blankets as they watched the drama and ate their ice cream which the girl probably shouldn’t be eating considering she had a cold. The show didn’t help much either, it was about a girl who fell for someone yet he liked someone else; this shit just had to line up with his life at the moment didn’t it.

“Huh she’s just like me for real,” Riki commented, attempting to sound joking but it just came out raspy and sad when a scene of the protagonist seeing the love interest with his girlfriend whilst being supportive and hiding her pain which was scarily relatable for the guy at the moment.

Eunchae looked at him in concern before pausing the show and turning to look at him.

“Riki oppa, you know that I don’t ever push you to talk to me, but what’s going on?” she asked him.

Riki sighed before turning to face the girl.

“You won’t think it’s stupid right?” he questioned uncertainly.

Eunchae sighed before scooting closer to him, “Riki, you could tell me you were from a different planet and I wouldn’t find that shit stupid. You’re my best friend and I love you, you can tell me what’s going on.”

And those sweet words from the younger girl allowed Riki to spill what was going on inside his head.

He talked about everything, from the bullies chasing him down, to getting attacked by Minjun and everything that happened with the boys, to the awful feelings of loneliness that were overwhelming him for the past few days. Riki didn’t miss a single detail as Eunchae looked at him intently and listened to every word he said.

After he explained everything, the girl leaned forward and wiped a tear he didn’t even realize had fallen down his cheek.

“I guess you were wrong Chae-yah,” Riki laughed dryly, “they’re definitely not whipped for me.”

Eunchae stared at him with her own thoughts running through her head. This didn’t make sense to her; from day one these guys came in and flirted with Riki and seemed to be doing almost everything in them to charm her best friend. Then Riki finds out all of them are dating one another after how they all treated him like they were interested. Truthfully, she was a bit pissed off because they really seemed to lead Riki on although it didn’t seem intentional.

“It’s so stupid, I fell for them so fast like a dumbass and I’m upset because they’re all dating. They’re happy and I’m happy for them too but I don’t know… I shouldn’t be upset because of that,” Riki sniffled.

Eunchae moved closer before tugging Riki into a hug and letting her best friend cry on her shoulder. She saw it all, she saw how Riki fell for these guys and she saw how they all seemed to be interested in him and cared for him in a way that looked like their feelings for the boy went far beyond platonic. But she also saw how those guys looked at Riki.

They stared at him with stars in their eyes and the most fond and warmest smiles, like they all wanted Riki for themselves. She wished her best friend saw it too. But alas it wasn’t her place to say and obviously she wasn’t in the Enhypen boys’ heads and shouldn’t be the person to say what other people were feeling. For all she knows she could be horribly misreading their actions, so for now, she’d hold him close and comfort him the best she could.

“You’re not stupid Riki, not at all. You’ll never be a dumbass or wrong or any of that for having feelings,” she said sternly but with a caring tone so he listened to what she was saying.

Eunchae sighed deeply as she ran a hand over Riki’s arm which brought the boy some comfort to be held by his best friend and given the reassurance that he desperately needed.

“I think your best bet might just be trying to forget about it,” she suggested which made Riki look up at her with a furrowed brow wondering what she could mean.

“What do you mean?” he asked.

The girl sighed, “I mean, just try and allow yourself to forget about those feelings and if they all try and act flirty with you, don’t react or reciprocate. If they’re just playing around with you, you shouldn’t let them mess with your feelings like that. Shut that shit down and if they don’t, talk to them about it and tell them to stop.”

Riki hummed, the flirting, the caring touches, the way they opened up to him, everything was always so sweet and special, the guys just seemed to care so much but he knew that they all had each other, they couldn’t want him. Riki was their friend, he didn’t want to get himself hurt or disappointed by falling more for these guys when he couldn’t have them.

“Okay,” he agreed.

“Don’t try and distract yourself from your feelings and definitely don’t distance yourself. They’re still your friends you know,” Eunchae advised.

Riki nodded, “I know, I don’t think I could stay away from them if I even tried honestly.”

“Just protect your feelings oppa and whenever you need to talk, I’m here. I’m always right here,” she assured him.

Those last four words were so simple, but Eunchae spoke them so genuinely and like it was law, like she was making a promise. But she had made a promise, a commitment in a way, far back in freshman year when she protected Riki from Dohyun and cared for him. When she stuck around and proved to be his friend. Riki could only thank the universe for giving him the most wonderful friend in Hong Eunchae.

Monday came once again far too quickly for Riki’s liking and he was once again walking to school and knew he would have to see the guys after the weekend. However Eunchae’s advice to him echoed through his head and the boy knew he would put it to use for the sake of his heart.

As he was heading to the school he saw a car which he definitely didn’t want to see, one he didn’t want to see for a very long time, hopefully forever parked near the main gate. Riki sped up his walk hoping to go straight pass it, but there was no such luck as a man hopped out before he even passed the car and stood straight in his way.

“Move,” he said simply.

“Good morning to you too Nishimura-ssi,” the man said with a smirk on his face.

“What do you want, officer? Or should I say ex-officer Nakamoto?” Riki asked irritatedly.

Mr. Nakamoto was a Japanese-Korean who launched a private investigation on his own without any permission from either the Japanese or Korean police forces into the case surrounding his parents’ deaths. Riki wasn’t the guy’s biggest fan at all, not after he tried to harass Riki into seeing that there was some huge conspiracy involved in his parents’ deaths.

The first piece of evidence was reliable, that it looked like another car impacted the one of his parents’ in the side even though there had been no sign of another vehicle at the crash site or any records of it in the official police reports that Riki had read.

But then he started talking about the theory he had that the car had been tampered with in some way which Riki thought was ridiculous because his parents truly had no enemies or anyone who would look to harm them.

He almost entertained the man’s theory until he talked about how his parents never left the house up to a week before the accident and he accused Riki and his sisters of being possible suspects to earn their parents fortune and gain social and financial independence which was completely outlandish and that was when he completely cut the man off.

“I wanted to check in on you, I haven’t heard from you in months. I’m investigating privately and legally, which there is no issue with,” he said calmly.

“What are you here for then? Are you going to accuse me of causing my parents' deaths again?” Riki scoffed before trying to walk away but the man hopped in front of him again.

“No, I haven’t made any progress on the case,” Nakamoto explained.

“What case?” Riki nearly yelled at him, “The police solved this and handed me their entire report months ago. There is no case! There was a car accident, they died and they’re gone, stop trying to torment me with their deaths, please!”

“Riki, I’m not trying to torment you. But there was something wrong about that night, far beyond anything normal or accidental, they didn’t just drive off the road,” Nakamoto said gently.

“This is why the police department fired you because you just can’t let this go! You have been stuck on this and all your theories forever. It’s almost October, they died in June. It’s been nearly four months, for the love of God please let it go!” he said desperately.

Nakamoto took a step back, seemingly letting this go for the moment, “I’ll be in touch.”

“Leave me the fuck alone,” Riki told him before continuing towards the school.

Who the fuck did Nakamoto think he was just barging into his life again after Riki cut him off? He didn’t need this at all, he didn’t need the man coming and spewing all his theories at him in the hope that one of them was right. He didn’t need it despite that small, foolish voice way in the back of his head thinking that the investigator? Whatever the fuck it was telling him now that the man was right about the Nishimura parents’ death having something suspicious to it, Riki didn’t need it, not when he needed to heal.

Riki was overwhelmed by his thoughts and zoned out so he didn’t even realize he walked straight into Dohyun.

“For once I’m actually sorry about that,” he apologized only half sarcastically.

“Sure you fucking are Nishimura. You don’t know how to pay attention to where you’re going?” Dohyun snarled at him.

Riki rolled his eyes, “I certainly do but it seems you don’t know the fucking way home since you decided to follow me last Thursday you fucking psychopath. Here’s a hint : you live in the fucking opposite direction,” he snapped.

“I’m really tired of your fucking mouth Nishimura,” Dohyun gritted.

“And I’m tired of your existence Park, but I still have to see you everyday,” Riki sniped before moving to walk past him.

Dohyun however, grabbed his arm in a bruising grip and Riki was truly too tired to do this today.

“Fuck off,” he said as he shoved the senior back, causing him to stumble a bit.

Dohyun recovered quickly and got right in Riki’s face as he poked the junior’s chest harshly, “You really have some fucking nerve Nishimura, I ought to teach you a lesson since you’ve seemed to forget you’re fucking nothing around here.”

“Hey!” another voice called out before Riki could say anything and the two boys looked to their left to see the Enhypen boys approaching and Riki audibly heard the bully mutter ‘shit’ and couldn’t help but feel a little cocky.

“So that’s all it takes to scare you. You really are a fucking pussy Park Dohyun,” Riki said with a self-satisfied smirk.

Dohyun’s face turned red with rage and he went to grab Riki yet an arm stopped him.

“Didn’t we fucking tell you to leave Riki alone?” Jay gritted at the other senior as he held his wrist.

“Why do you dumbasses defend this little piece of shit?” Dohyun spat.

“The only piece of shit we see here is you. We defend him because you’re an insecure dickhead who likes to go after Riki for no reason. We will defend him because he’s our friend,” Sunghoon told the other senior in a cold tone.

Hearing Sunghoon refer to him as their friend in that moment shouldn’t have upset Riki, yet it did. Because that’s what he was, that’s what he would always be … a friend.

“You mess with Riki one more time and I’m telling you right now that I’ll make good on that promise to beat you black and blue. Get the fuck out of here,” Jay threatened lowly as he shoved Dohyun away.

Dohyun cursed at them before turning away like the coward he is and stalking off.

“You’re okay, right Riki-yah? He didn’t hurt you?” Sunoo questioned as he cupped Riki’s cheek and examined him for injuries as he looked at him with a gaze filled with warmth and care. Riki felt that warm feeling pass through him again but he needed to let go of it so he took the elder’s hand from his face lowered it before letting it go.

“I’m fine Sunoo-hyung. Thanks for helping me you guys,” he told them.

“Of course Ki, of course. We can’t let anything happen to that pretty face,” Jungwon told him with a smirk.

There it was again, that stupid flirting and that smirk that came with it. Riki couldn’t deal with this, not right now. Why were all of them like this when they were with each other? Them doing shit like this just fucked with Riki’s heart.

Riki just averted his eyes from Jungwon, “Yeah, thanks guys. I gotta go. Bye,” he said before walking away.

The Enhypen boys all watched Riki walk away after being so uncharacteristically brief and almost cold to them with bewildered and hurt expressions. Riki had always been kind and open with them, yet now he was so closed off? Although they couldn’t say they didn’t necessarily know why.

“I can’t help but feel like we fucked up,” Heeseung said despondently, voicing what the rest of the group was thinking.

Jake hummed thoughtfully, “I don’t know hyung, I really don’t know. We decided to be honest.”

“We can’t just bring him into this, not so easily, not with the life we live. He’s just friends with us and look at what Minjun did to him,” Jungwon told them all.

Jay sighed, “God I wish that we could go back and that he didn’t find out that way, not so out of the blue after everything.”

“It’s so soon too, I’m worried that we would just scare him away but it’s like we’re already losing him,” Sunoo added sadly.

“He isn’t even ours to lose, as much as we all want him. Riki isn’t ours and we don’t even know if he likes all of us. But above all, he’s already in so much danger being friends with us. I don’t know what I would do if something happened to him, something worse,” Sunghoon said.

The group all stood there in silence for a moment before heading off to their classes with far too many thoughts running through their heads about Riki’s almost cold attitude. All of them felt strangely empty without the presence of a certain black-haired Japanese boy. Without him around them, they almost felt like they’d lost something. But like Sunghoon said, Riki wasn’t theirs to lose.

Chapter Text

“Good job today guys, thank you all for attending,” Riki said as he closed off dance practice.

“Bye Ni-ki~sunbaenim,” some students waved before leaving.

Once everyone left, Riki sighed knowing he had to do his least favourite part of dance practice, that is cleaning the studio.

“Riki-kun, is everything alright? You seemed a bit stressed today,” Haruto asked him.

Riki knew he was a bit harsher than usual on his members. Since yesterday he had barely spoken to the Enhypen boys. They sat together at lunch but things were a lot quieter than usual and a lot more awkward. It sucked because things between him and the guys have never been awkward or uncomfortable.

Riki knew it was his fault after all, he was the one acting weird towards the guys even though Eunchae had advised him against it. She had even called him after they left school to talk to him and tell him to try a bit harder and he knew she was right so that day when he saw the guys he made an effort to be less cold. He spoke to them almost normally during lunch and it felt nice and comfortable.

It felt like usual and it helped Riki think that maybe in time, he would be able to get over all of them. The Enhypen boys were his friends, they’d all gotten so close and Riki knew he wasn’t going to throw that away because of some unreciprocated romantic feelings. They all mattered too much to him for that.

Riki turned to Haruto and shook his head, “Don’t worry about me Haru. I’m really alright, just a bit stressed from school,” he answered even though it was a lie, since Riki was currently doing great and the first month hadn’t ended.

“Somehow I don’t think that’s it,” the elder told him, seeming to see straight through his lie.

Riki sighed, “Well yeah you’re right it isn’t school just some personal stuff that’s stressing me out I guess.”

That was the truth, or as much of the truth that he would tell Haruto. He had already opened up and explained everything to Eunchae who was genuinely the person he trusted most. Haruto was his friend, Riki definitely saw him as one more now than ever, but he wasn’t on the same level that Riki would consider Eunchae and all the Enhypen guys. Even though it was a bit strange considering Riki’s very strong hunch that the elder liked him.

Haruto hummed, seeming to understand, “Well we can’t have our dance captain being overly stressed. Let’s get out of here and let you relax at least for a while.

Riki peaked at what the guy was suggesting, “Haru, you know we have to clean the studio.”

Haruto gave him a sly smirk, “No we do not. I may or may not have bribed some freshmen to come in here and clean up.”

Riki let out a surprised laugh at that, “Haru, you cannot bribe freshman, isn’t that like abuse of power or something?”

“Maybe it is, maybe not but I hate seeing you like this, let me take you out?” he asked, gone was the mischievous tone and it was replaced with one that was more gentle and sweet.

“Fine, let’s go. I did say I would go for a coffee with you sometime,” the junior agreed with a small smile as he grabbed his stuff.

“Let’s go then sweetheart,” the senior spoke with a smirk as he opened the door to let Riki out first.

The term of endearment was the same one Jay had used the night Riki was attacked by Minjun when the elder had stayed and slept with him. That day the pet name filled Riki with warmth and made his stomach flutter. Hearing it from Haruto, not so much, it just made Riki feel kind of awkward. Probably due to the fact that he had no romantic feelings for the guy at all and he hoped agreeing to go out with him like this didn’t give the elder Japanese male the wrong idea.

That aside, it was genuinely extremely sweet of Haruto to not only notice he wasn’t feeling his best but also making an active effort to try and cheer him up. Riki appreciated his caring and attentive nature quite a bit.

The pair walked through the school which was mostly empty at this hour besides others who stayed back for clubs and towards the parking lot. As they were entering the parking lot, Riki saw Jay and Sunghoon sitting on their bikes seemingly waiting while the other guys were sitting on the hood and back of their car.

“Oh Riki, hey!” Sunoo greeted him with a smile.

“Hi hyungs, what are you guys still doing here?” he questioned.

“We were waiting for you, we thought you may want a ride home,” Sunghoon told him.

Riki was kind of touched that the guys had waited over two hours for him but this really wasn’t a good time.

“Well thanks for waiting guys, but you remember Haruto right?” Riki questioned as he gestured to the guy behind him.

The guys’ faces all fell a bit as they glanced at the other senior cold stares like the ones they gave him the first time they met him were on their faces and only now Riki noticed Haruto’s face holding a stony expression.

“Yeah, we remember him,” Jay spoke almost coldly.

“Hello Haruto-ssi,” Heeseung greeted briefly.

Riki was weirded out by the tension between the guys and decided to speak again, “Well we’re just going to go out for some coffee, so no need for you guys to give me a ride. Thank you for waiting on me though.”

The Enhypen boys all nodded, “Yeah we understand. Have fun and get home safe Riki-san,” Jake said.

“I will Jake-hyung, I’ll see you guys tomorrow,” Riki waved as he patted Haruto’s arm to indicate for them to get going.

Once the two Japanese boys were out of earshot the guys’ cold expressions all turned into bitter and sour ones.

“Since when does he fucking ditch us after dance practice? We almost always drop him home,” Sunoo pouted.

“Seriously and I don’t like that Haruto guy, something’s weird about him,” Sunghoon huffed.

Jay grumbled, “Since when does he go out for coffee with fucking Watanabe Haruto?”

Jungwon decided to be the voice of reason amongst the guys even though he felt exactly what they were feeling at the moment, jealousy. He knew it was more than likely unfounded but it didn’t mean he liked seeing the guy he had a crush on, the guy they all had a crush on going out with someone else.

“Sunghoon, I don’t think you’re right about Haruto for once, he seems normal. I think we’re all just jealous,” Jungwon told them.

Heeseung sighed as he leaned onto Jake, “Yeah, Wonie’s right. Why the fuck are we jealous? Riki is allowed to have friends right.”

“That’s the thing I don’t think that Mr. Haruto sees Riki as just a friend. That’s what I meant when I said I think something is weird about him,” Sunghoon explained.

Jake agreed, “Hoon’s right, the way he looks at Riki doesn’t look like he sees him as a friend.”

And they all knew Jake was right because they saw the way Haruto looked at Riki. As if he was something absolutely precious and stared at him with stars in his eyes. They knew that look all too well, because that’s how they looked at Riki.

“Nice car,” Riki commented when they got to Haruto’s vehicle.

Haruto drove a classic red Mustang which was extremely sleek yet looked updated in the interior despite the body looking the same as it did whenever it would’ve been manufactured.

“Thanks,” Haruto said as he unlocked the car and they both climbed in.

“I got it at a car show for very little but I fixed it up and it runs like a beauty,” he told Riki as he started the engine.

“It’s cool as hell. Honestly, I’ve always wanted to see classic cars like this one but I never really got the chance. Classic bikes were my dad’s thing though, I saw a lot of those,” Riki said.

“Your dad owned bikes?” the elder asked as they pulled out of the parking lot.

“Yeah, he did. There was one in particular that was like Jay and Sunghoon-hyung’s bikes but older ; he used to take me for rides on it all the time back in Japan,” he mentioned, reminiscing on both the memories of riding with his dad and riding with Jay and Sunghoon.

All three of them were special moments that had created memories for him and he realized that his rides with his hyungs mattered to him a lot more than he initially admitted to himself. In a way they took Riki back to his old memories with his dad in a way no one else could.

“You and those guys are pretty close,” Haruto commented as he turned down a street, “Although I don’t think they like me very much.”

Riki gave an awkward chuckle, “I don’t think they dislike you, they’re just… very to themselves.”

“Huh,” the elder said simply, “I guess I could understand that.”

“They’re all very sweet but they just don’t talk to a lot of people but they’re great. They’re really good friends,” he explained.

Haruto nodded, “I’m sure they are, especially if you’re close to them. Someone like you wouldn’t hang out with a bunch of assholes.”

Riki chuckled, “You’re right about that.”

Soon enough the two arrived at a small cafe and Haruto opened the door before coming over to Riki’s side. The younger was reaching in the backseat to his bag but as he was grabbing for it, his hand smacked a piece of paper that made a crumpling sound under his hand. He lifted it to ensure it wasn’t anything important that he may have accidentally ripped and saw a logo.

It was a symbol, a diamond created by four point stars with the name “Treasure” but he didn’t get to read anything else before Haruto opened his door. Riki put the paper back in its place and quickly grabbed his bag before getting out.

“You’re such a gentleman, thank you,” he said in a teasing tone as Haruto shut the door behind him.

“Of course Riki-yah,” the elder winked at him.

Riki couldn’t help but feel somewhat curious as to what the sheet of paper in the car was about but it also wasn’t his place to ask as it was Haruto’s business and he shouldn’t pry.

The two entered the cafe and ordered their drinks before the cashier told them to take a seat and that they would be delivered shortly.

The boys spotted a booth near the back and decided to sit there.

“You really didn’t have to pay Haru,” Riki told the elder.

Haruto just brushed him off, “Riki-yah I offered to take you out with me and I’m your hyung, I’m supposed to treat you.”

“Well thank you Haru-hyung and thank you for cheering me up. I really appreciate it,” he smiled.

A waitress came and served the two their drinks before she left, so Riki decided to strike up some conversation.

“So Haru, what's everyday life like for you? I feel like we only ever really talk about dance and school,” Riki questioned.

Haruto took a sip of his drink before answering, “I work as a mechanic in my spare time and my bosses mostly let me make my own hours. It’s how I make some money on the side plus whatever my parents leave with me but they’re usually busy on business more often than not.”

Riki nodded, knowing what it’s like to not have his parents around that much, “I really didn’t know you were a mechanic, that’s honestly really cool. Your bosses must be really accommodating considering you’re a senior in high school and all.”

“They are mostly even though they can be a bit of hardasses sometimes but I like working with them,” the elder responded.

“How did you get to know the new guys?” he questioned.

“They kind of helped me out in a situation with Dohyun on the first day, well Jay, Sunoo and Jungwon did but then I met the rest of them at lunch,” the younger responded.

“I don’t know what they saw in me,” Riki laughed, well truthfully he does know, they see him as a friend despite their flirtatious behaviour, “but we all got close, including Eunchae and we’re just our own little group.”

“Huh, I’ve always thought there was something mysterious about them. For some reason all of them are very to themselves,” Haruto commented, sounding almost suspicious.

“There isn’t really anything mysterious, they all are just very to themselves yes, but I get where they would be coming from considering they entered in their junior and senior year, it would be harder to make friends,” Riki said evenly, giving a valid enough explanation to rid Haruto of whatever suspicions he may have.

“Yeah but they just gravitate to you which is strange considering you’re not the most open person,” Haruto commented.

Riki was slightly offended by that statement, the elder had gravitated to him despite him not being the most open person and decided to be friendly to him. Was it that unbelievable to the guy that other people decided to be friends with him?

“What? So people can’t want to befriend me?” Riki questioned, slightly miffed as he furrowed his brows.

“Shit, sorry I didn’t mean to offend you Riki. It’s just- never mind I worded that badly,” he backpedalled.

Riki decided to leave that conversation at that, not wanting to cause an issue even though it seemed from Haruto’s statement he almost thought he knew Riki better than he actually did despite that being so far from the actual case.

Haruto sighed, “I might as well be honest since I kind of fucked up. I got a little jealous seeing how close you got with those guys even though for so long you’ve treated me like a colleague instead of a friend.”

Riki’s brow furrowed, Haruto was jealous of his friendship with the Enhypen guys? In a way, he could understand considering he has never acted all buddy-buddy with Haruto despite them getting closer the year before, but they were friendly enough. Although Riki did remember his realization at Club day a few weeks ago when he resolved to treat the older Japanese boy more like a friend than he had since he met him.

However things were also different, Riki wasn’t the same as he was even a few months ago. There were various reasons he got close with the guys so fast and Haruto had to understand that not all friendships were the same; but truthfully Riki just trusted them more. Haruto was by no means untrustworthy but the two had never really gotten close because of differing schedules and the main thing they had in common being dance.

“Haru, all friendships are different. There are some things that I can talk about with them that I wouldn’t talk about with you and vice versa. Sure I’m really close with them but I also don’t have an obligation to be that close with you,” Riki said knowing it was blunt but that’s how he’s always been, someone straightforward and sometimes brutally honest.

“Yeah,” the guy said, sounding somewhat downtrodden, “I guess I thought we would get closer but I guess that was just wishful thinking on my part,” he said as he stood up.

Riki also stood, “Haru I’m sorry for being so straightforward but I do think we’ve gotten closer and I see you as a friend, I do.”

“I don’t just want to be your friend!” the elder blurted.

Riki was taken aback, not expecting Haruto to just say that out of the blue. Of course he had his suspicions but he didn’t expect Haruto to just say it just like that, “Haru I-”

“I know you don’t see me like that and it’s fine. I get that I’m not enough for you,” he spoke bitterly before walking out of the shop.

Riki quickly followed after him, “Haruto wait! Can we talk about this? You’re a great friend but I just don’t see you that way.”

“I know you don’t, you prefer those six dumbasses who you just met rather than someone who has actually made an effort to try and get close to you for years but you just shut me out,” the elder said as he unlocked his car.

“First of all don’t call them dumbasses and second of all, I know I wasn’t the most open to you but how the fuck do you expect me to just open up after I’ve spent years being completely friendless through high school besides Eunchae? That’s so fucking unfair and bitter of you to say to me,” Riki said defensively.

“Whatever Riki,” Haruto scoffed as he got in his car and drove off, leaving Riki standing in the street without a ride home.

“Fucking asshole,” he muttered.

Riki had no idea Haruto would act like that over a rejection. Some people are really just too petty and don’t realize people are not obligated to reciprocate their feelings. Riki’s living his own tale of unrequited love and as much as he may be upset about it, he’s not being a fucking asshole because the Enhypen boys don’t need to like him as much as he may want them to.

As the boy was debating between texting the guys or just calling an uber, the familiar vehicle belonging to none other than Mr. Nakamoto pulled up and the man got out of the car.

“Oh hell no, are you fucking stalking me? How the fuck are you here?” Riki snapped as he took a step back from the man.

“I am not stalking you Riki, this is my usual cafe I was not expecting to see you here at all,” he said.

Riki hummed, still feeling somewhat suspicious and uncomfortable and decided to keep his guard up but still questioned the guy, “Well then how’s the case going?”

Nakamoto looked a bit hesitant before looking Riki in the eye, “We shouldn’t talk about that out here.”

“So then you found something?” Riki questioned quietly.

“If you get in the car I can explain, I can give you a ride home too if you want,” Nakamoto offered.

Riki eyed the man hesitantly, he knew that the guy was working far under wraps but who could he be so worried about overhearing their conversation. He still didn’t fully trust the man but quickly sent his live location in the group chat with the guys and Eunchae so if anything weird happened, he would hopefully not be in too much trouble.

“Fine,” he agreed simply as he moved over to the passenger’s side and climbed in

Nakamoto got in the driver’s seat and started the car before driving them back the way he came. Riki kept an eye on all the streets and landmarks he passed just as a precaution.

“I’m not going to hurt you Riki-ssi,” the man told him.

“You’ve tried to accuse me of killing my parents before,” the boy replied as he kept an eye on the route they were taking, “So excuse me if I don’t necessarily trust you.”

Nakamoto sighed, “I had a contact in Japan, they found your parents’ car in a scrapyard as the police finally decided to release it and cited that it was no longer evidence of an active accident investigation as they closed the case.”

“Okay and?” Riki prompted.

“In everything that we have seen, everything we investigated there’s been the trace of the car that was never reported on anything, your parents bodies were badly injured and they were said to have skidded off the road from the rain,” the investigator recapped.

The Japanese boy nodded, “Yes we know all of this, what is your point?”

The two pulled up in front of Riki’s apartment, which the boy was more than glad to see despite the dark conversation that was being had between him and Nakamoto.

“My point is, my contact went to the scrapyard and found the car completely untouched from when it was taken from the scene and he poked around. Riki… there’s no easy way to tell you this but the car’s internal brake lines were tampered with for both the regular and emergency brakes.”

Riki felt his blood run cold, “What?”

“The folder on top of the dash, there’s your proof,” Nakamoto indicated.

Riki shakily reached for the folder and opened it to see pictures of the damaged car, then the ones of the hood and internal workings and he saw it, the brake lines looked out of place and one was cut. It was clear evidence right in front of his face and as much as he wanted to deny it, he couldn’t.

“Riki, I’m sorry, it was no accident. Your parents were murdered.”

Chapter Text

“No, no! It’s fucking insane. Why would someone want to hurt mom and dad?” Konon asked him over the phone, her voice strained with tears and anger, despite her trying to be quiet to not alert their youngest sister.

Riki had heavily debated telling his sister about the conversation he had with Nakamoto. He had snapped photos of the pictures that Nakamoto showed him and stared at them so many times when he went up to his apartment and mulled over whether or not he should call Konon.

He procrastinated calling her by pacing up and down the apartment and showering and changing out of his dance clothes, yet he couldn’t stop thinking about it and he made up his mind. They were her parents too and she had the right to know. They both agreed on not telling their youngest sister for the moment but here they were having a conversation fueled with emotions of sadness, anger and disbelief.

“I don’t know Konon-chan, I really have no idea but the proof is there. How could we just fucking deny that?” Riki replied.

“They owned a dance studio, a retail store and a warehouse for Christ’s sake! They were normal people and they were so kind to everyone. Why would someone kill them?” she went on and Riki could hear the sniffles from her as she was clearly crying.

“It doesn’t make sense to me either Konon, not for them. But we can’t deny it, not when we know,” Riki sighed.

“We lost them and for all this time we just thought it was a terrible accident. We thought it was just the universe deciding that they had to go but it wasn’t. Someone took them from us, Konon. Someone took them from you, from me and from Sola. They’re not here because someone decided to hurt them,” he spoke, hearing his voice crack and feeling a tear fall down his cheek.

He heard his big sister sniffle again and a stifled sob from her before she spoke again, “I’ve gotta go now Riki. Sola is calling me to make dinner.”

“Okay,” he sighed, “Take care okay? Of Sola and yourself and Konon… don’t hide this from her. They’re her parents too.”

“I love you both so much,” he said after a moment.

“I love you too Riki, so much, Sola loves you too,” she said before hanging up the call.

Riki sat on his bed after ending the call feeling so many overwhelming emotions, the main ones being sadness and anger. Just as he and his sisters are trying to heal from their parents’ deaths, Nakamoto had to come and throw all of that away. In a way Riki was also angry at the man because he kept digging and wouldn’t leave the case alone.

He was devastated because he missed them all over again and furious because someone intentionally ripped them away from him and his sisters far too soon. Riki felt hot tears cascade down his cheeks which soon enough developed into gut wrenching sobs. He wished he was there in Japan with his sisters holding and consoling them while he received comfort in return, but he wasn’t. Riki was alone while everything in him hurt so incredibly much.

Riki was not sure how long he laid there until he heard a knock at the door and wondered who the fuck it could be. He chose to ignore it but that didn’t work as whoever was there kept knocking and then his phone buzzed next to his head.

sunshine ☀️
riki, open the door or we’re kicking it down.

Riki sighed before dragging himself out of bed and down the hall to the front door, he didn’t bother trying to clean off his face because he felt horrible at the moment and internally was glad for the company. He looked through the peephole to see all of the Enhypen boys and Eunchae before he unlocked the door and swung in open, immediately grabbing Jay who was right in front and sobbing into his chest.

Everyone’s expression morphed into one of concern seeing Riki break down like this when they had no clue why and Jay picked the youngest boy up in a koala carry before moving over to the couch whilst everyone else followed.

None of them said anything, the only sound was Riki’s muffled sobs echoing through the apartment as he sat on Jay’s lap and the second eldest periodically shushed him and whispered sweet words of comfort.

After more than half an hour, Riki eventually calmed down, the sobs ceasing and replaced with sniffles as he looked up at Jay who was looking at him with those soft and caring eyes.

“Ki? What’s going on sweetheart?” he asked, his voice gentle and caring as he used that term of endearment that never failed to make Riki’s heart soar.

“You can talk to us Riki, whatever it is that’s got you so upset, we’ll listen,” Heeseung assured him.

And just like that, Riki launched into a tear-filled explanation of the investigator who privately launched his own investigation into the deaths of his parents and dug and dug until he finally reached something. Something that Riki almost wished he never knew. A secret that he wished died with his parents and never came back.

“I fucking hate Nakamoto. Just as I was starting to heal, as me and my sisters were starting to heal he ruined it all,” Riki sniffled as Eunchae took yet another tissue to wipe his face of the tears that fell.

The Enhypen boys all exchanged a look at hearing Riki mention the man’s name since he only referred to him as either ‘the investigator’ or ‘the man’ or any variations that weren’t his actual name throughout his story.

“Wait, Nakamoto?” Sunghoon asked him wanting to know if they heard the name right.

“Yeah, Jihoon Nakamoto, half-Korean, half-Japanese,” Eunchae replied with a furrowed brow knowing all about the guy since Riki had told her about him.

“Do you guys know him?” Riki questioned.

“Yeah, he’s an ex-police officer. He used to work with my dad years ago before my dad left the police force because of well you know reasons,” Jungwon answered.

“Dad said he was always a good cop and I’m pretty sure they have always kept in touch. Nakamoto kept talking to him about a case that the police in Japan were handling and my dad kept telling him to let it go,” the second youngest boy explained.

“He had never told me what the case was about but that was back in June around when you said your parents died… holy shit that’s the same case,” Jungwon spoke in realization.

Sunghoon nodded, “Riki, he- Nakamoto is not a private investigator, at least not a necessarily legal or recognized one.”

Riki’s brows furrowed, the guys knew something more about this man and he desperately needed to know.

“What is he then?” he questioned.

“A spy,” Jay piped up from behind him, “He’s a spy for our gang and has been since Jungwon’s dad met him back in the 90’s on the police force.”

Riki was stunned, so Nakamoto had been operating secretly and illegally outside of police or any legal organization and he worked for Enhypen. What the fuck was going on?

“Wait, so you mean to tell me that he’s a spy for you guys? What the fuck does he do?” Riki asked in disbelief.

“He spies on rival gangs for us, monitors their activity, checks what areas they are encroaching on and even gets inside information by infiltrating their hideouts or homes. He’s extremely good at what he does and has always been trustworthy,” Heeseung explained.

“But why the hell would he be investigating the deaths of your parents in Japan? It doesn’t make sense,” Jake said, voicing Riki’s thoughts exactly.

“Did he know your parents Riki?” Sunoo asked the youngest boy.

“No… maybe? I’m really not sure my parents were always friendly people. They owned a dance studio and other businesses like retailing and a storage and warehousing business.”

“They did a lot in the city and they were good people, I know that. They had friends who they trusted with their lives and who helped them with their business and even took care of me and my sisters but I never knew Nakamoto until some months ago. If they did know him, I had no clue that they did,” Riki answered.

“I was at all of their businesses growing up and my sisters and I even worked with them. If they were hiding something or doing something that would make someone hurt them, I feel like my sisters and I would have found something way before they ever died.”

The group all stayed silent for a moment. Riki wracked his brain for any time that it seemed like his parents may have been hiding something or on edge from anything. He thought back to the last Christmas he spent with them and his phone call with them which was two days before the accident. They were completely normal unless they were just pretending to be. The both of them asking him about school and dance and them talking for hours about just about anything.

Riki had replayed that conversation for the past almost four months in his mind but never pinpointed anything out of the blue. They were normal from what Riki remembered, everything seemed fine. Then two days later, they were dead in a ditch off the side of a quiet road and now Riki found out it wasn’t an accident because of the rain.

Everyone was quiet, seemingly at a complete loss for words after all of these revelations.

“How come all of you showed up here?” Riki questioned the others.

“You shared your live location earlier with absolutely no context and we kind of got worried, especially when it switched off so we came here to check on you,” Eunchae explained.

“Oh right, I think I have it set to turn off when I get home,” Riki told her.

“Maybe fix that because we were kind of scared shitless,” Jungwon told him with a laugh.

“Also how come Nakamoto dropped you home? Didn’t you go out with Haruto?” Jake asked in an emotionless tone.

Riki sighed, remembering his weird… argument? with Haruto earlier. He didn’t really want to explain the real reason as to why he got abandoned in front of a coffee shop because he knew the older guy was mostly upset and it wasn’t Riki’s place to talk about his feelings.

“He had an emergency so he had to leave then like I said Nakamoto came there,” he answered.

“Oh so he abandons you in front of a coffee shop, what a gentleman,” Sunoo scoffed.

“Seriously, he could’ve at least called you a ride or dropped you closer to your apartment instead of just ditching you like an asshole,” Jay huffed.

Riki was a little touched that their protective sides always seemed to come out around him and he felt those stupid butterflies flutter around his stomach from how much they cared ; but Haruto wasn’t usually like that so Riki would give the guy the benefit of the doubt.

“Guys, it’s fine. I got home safe in the end so don’t shit on him so much,” Riki said.

He didn’t miss the way all the boys looked slightly miffed about his statement and some of them seemed to grumble something under their breaths, but Riki just passed it off as them being protective friends and possibly being a bit petty.

“What are you going to do Riki, about the case and everything I mean?” Eunchae questioned him after a moment.

“I- I think I want to let Nakamoto pursue it. Now that I know, I don’t think I can just let it go. I want an explanation,” he said.

“It’s your choice Riki,” Jay nodded to him as he gave his waist a squeeze that reminded the boy that he was sitting on the elder’s lap and the thought made his skin heat up but he really didn’t want to think about his feelings for these stupid, pretty, incredible boys that showed up here along with Eunchae and comforted him while he broke down.

“We’re here every step of the way, we promise. Like I told you, you’re not alone. You have us, all of us,” Sunghoon assured him as he gestured around to everyone else.

Riki felt his heart fill with warmth because everyone in this room just cared about him so incredibly much and it made his heart soar. He wasn’t alone, they were here and they were going to make sure of it. It felt good to not be alone.

September ended quietly and the first few days of October went by. Riki utilized Eunchae’s advice since his breakdown about his unrequited love and stopped distancing himself from the guys as they had truly became his closest friends. He acted like he did before he found out and the guys were happy that Riki wasn’t being cold to them anymore but couldn’t help but find it strange how it switched but they were happy because they had their Riki back, even if he wasn’t theirs in the way they wanted.

Riki was not getting over his feelings, they’d honestly just grown stronger and it hurt more every time he saw the guys being lovey-dovey in their own discreet ways at school. Jay would usually have an arm on Jake’s shoulder and the latter would squeeze the elder’s thigh under the table at lunch on occasion. Jungwon and Sunoo were inseparable, usually always talking or bickering about something or just bothering the elder four who would stare at them with the fondest of smiles.

Sunghoon wasn’t one for much skin-ship from what Riki could tell, which was strange to him since the elder seemed to initiate physical contact with him more than once. But the ice prince would sometimes squeeze one of his boyfriends hands, usually Jungwon or Heeseung as those two sat closest to him and Heeseung would pat his back lightly or squeeze his shoulder.

They all showed each other affection in their own little ways to one another and Riki hated how he noticed and observed it more and how the feeling of longing seemed to grow in him by the day.

Haruto had also been avoiding him since their day at the cafe. Dance practices have been awkward, especially after their actual practice when they had to clean up with each other which would usually be filled with jokes and conversation but now they would only talk if they needed to.

Riki certainly thought that it was affecting the team since usually he and Haruto worked so well with one another and encouraged the team to work together ; but they were certainly setting a bad example when they wouldn’t communicate properly. He wanted to fix things for the sake of the team if nothing else. So when his final class finished early and he knew he had time before he had to meet Sunoo, Jungwon and Eunchae to work on their literature project and he saw Haruto across the courtyard sitting on a bench he made a beeline for the elder boy.

“Haruto, can we talk please?” Riki asked.

The elder looked up at him with an expression that looked somewhat guilty before nodding, “Sure Riki.”

Riki sat beside the elder boy and they were both quiet for a moment before Haruto spoke up.

“I’m sorry Riki-yah. I’ve been such a dickhead and it’s obviously no excuse but I just had a crush on you for such a long time and I was just upset from the rejection,” he apologized.

Riki sighed, “I get it kind of, it always sucks to not have your crush reciprocated but yes you could’ve handled it better and you certainly shouldn’t have let it affect the team. They need you, you know.”

“I know Riki,” Haruto sighed, “I was an idiot to say the least and I apologize. I won’t let my feelings affect the team and I’m really sorry for ditching you at the cafe.”

“Yeah that last part was a real asshole move but thank you for talking about this with me,” he told the elder gratefully.

“Of course Riki and once again I’m really sorry. Are we still friends?” Haruto asked while giving him a look that resembled a kicked puppy.

Riki was usually a sucker for that look especially from the Enhypen guys or Eunchae but not this time. He really had quite a few reservations about being friends with Haruto especially after how he acted.

“We're colleagues and teammates. After this whole thing I don’t think it would really be easy to be friends with you, but we work together so we should respect and be cordial with one another,” Riki said politely.

Haruto stared down at his lap and several emotions seemed to pass across his face all at once before he nodded, “I get that, you take care Riki.”

“I will, bye Haru,” Riki waved to the guy as he headed towards the parking lot.

In a way he felt relieved for setting those boundaries with the elder Japanese boy, they truly seemed necessary especially after his behaviour the week before. Riki had friends and he had great ones who were people that he could trust. He leaned on the hood of the guys’ car as he waited and just decided to check his phone.

Nakamoto had responded to his message when Riki unblocked his number about a week ago but told him that he had no further updates on the case but he would let Riki know. The Japanese boy had also apologized to the ‘investigator’ for his cold behaviour but Nakamoto was kind and understanding and told him that it was okay.

Riki saw Haruto pass by speaking to someone on his phone as he headed to his own car. He didn’t pay any attention to the guy’s conversation until he heard a name right as he went by… Minjun.

Riki froze and his blood ran cold, it had to be a coincidence right? There was no way that it was that Minjun, it couldn’t be. Was Haruto in a gang? More specifically Minjun’s gang? The rival gang of Enhypen?

‘What the actual fuck?’ he thought to himself as he impatiently waited for the guys to come out of the school because as much as Riki prayed that he was overthinking severely, he needed to talk to one of them because there was just the nagging feeling in his gut that this was exactly what he thought it was.

As soon as Riki saw the guys approaching along with Eunchae he told Heeseung to unlock the car, which the eldest did without any protests though he did raise his eyebrow and Riki shoved all seven of them in before shutting the doors.

“Um, Riki respectfully : what the fuck is going on with you?” Heeseung asked from the front with Jake while the other five were crammed into the back.

“Okay, maybe I am overthinking but maybe not : what the fuck is Minjun’s gang name?” he asked.

Jay gave him a questioning look, “Wait we haven’t told you?”

“No the fuck you haven’t for some reason but you need to tell me right now because I really need to know!” he told the guys frantically.

“Alright Ki, calm down. He belongs to a gang called Treasure,” Sunoo answered.

“Treasure, Treasure…” Riki muttered repeatedly to himself trying to wrack his brain from where he had heard or seen that name before. Then it clicked, the paper in the back of Haruto’s car the day he went to the cafe…

“Holy fuck, Haruto is a part of Treasure,” Riki said in realization.

Now it was everyone else’s turn to be shocked, “What?” they chorused incredulously.

“Haruto… the vice captain of the dance team I think he’s a member of Treasure. When he took me to the cafe, there was a piece of paper with a logo and the name under it was Treasure and just now I heard him say Minjun when he was on the phone with someone. I thought I was just overthinking but it doesn’t add up any other way,” Riki spoke in disbelief.

“I knew I had a weird feeling about that guy,” Sunghoon said bitterly, “Riki you have to stay away from him Treasure is bad news.”

“We knew about some of the people who are on the same level as us in Treasure but they have bosses above them. Meanwhile we’re really the big bosses even though we also tell our parents about whatever’s going on since it’s their organization,” Sunoo informed him.

“Wait so you guys knew but didn’t tell me I’m friends with a dangerous gang member?” Riki asked.

“No no Ki! We promise you we didn’t know,” Jay said honestly, “There was one of them who seemed to just disappear and we never got an identity. We knew the other nine but I guess we found the tenth.”

Riki ran a hand through his hair as he huffed, “What the fuck am I going to do? I have to see this guy twice a week at least, if I start acting weird I’m pretty sure he’s going to notice and think I suspect something.”

The other boys all exchanged a look, they would all like to keep Riki away from the guy completely, all their jealousy from previously aside. Treasure was dangerous and they were more than capable ; they slipped one of their own bosses in the school almost a year prior to them entering and none of them had noticed that he was right in front of their faces.

“Act normal Ki, that’s the most you can do,” Jungwon instructed.

“Do not spend time with him outside of dance and don’t go anywhere with him. You cannot trust him. One of us will start waiting outside the studio for you after your practice to either walk you to the car or home even if something comes up for the job. You’re important to us and we’re not going to let anything happen to you,” Jay stated, fierce determination coating every word.

“Thank you guys… for looking out for me,” Riki said to them genuinely.

“Well you looked out for all of us too, so thank you for that Ki,” Sunoo told him as he reached over and squeezed the youngest boy’s hand.

“You seriously don’t deserve to deal with all of this, you just knowing us has put you in danger so many fucking times,” Jungwon sighed, “All of us would understand if you and Eunchae want out of this or cut us off or anything. You say the word and we’ll be gone.”

Eunchae sighed before she looked at Riki, “These people have brought so much excitement into our lives, like damn. We used to be normal.”

“You’re right this is all absolutely fucking insane and it’s definitely a lot,” Riki agreed, noticing how all the guys faces fell when he said that.

“But we’re both well aware that what you guys do is ridiculously dangerous but I know what I signed up for when I decided that I still wanted to be friends with you the morning after I found out,” Riki said.

“And I did too,” Eunchae piped up.

“You’re not fucking getting rid of us, not that easily. I understand what you guys do and the dangerous shit that comes with it. But how I see it is that either way, just by knowing you I was going to be put in danger somehow. I understand the danger, I really do and I get that you guys want me to be safe but I’d rather have to be in danger and have you guys stay in my life than let you leave ; I care about all of you way too much for that. So don’t any of you try and get rid of me because I’m not going anywhere,” Riki told them with certainty.

The Enhypen boys all stared at Riki in awe ; this boy was truly a gem just as they thought those weeks ago when they told him the truth. Riki was stubborn in the best way and he was loyal and for them, his words flipped a switch in their brain. If he’s going to stay with them, if he’s going to be in danger either way : why hide their true feelings from him in the way they have?

“Thank you Ki, for wanting to stick around us,” Jake told him sincerely with a gentle smile.

“Thank you guys… for being people worth sticking around.”

Chapter Text

“So what is the real relevance and meaning of Animal Farm?” Sunoo addressed the question to Riki who was sitting across from him on the floor, reading through the book and typing out some of their project. The youngest boy proved to be the strongest out of the four juniors in literature.

After their wild conversation, the juniors of their little friend group headed to Riki’s apartment and were now in the boy’s room working on their end of semester literature project even though none of them were too focused on it after everything.

Riki cleared his head of all his other thoughts and answered the elder, “Well the entire book is an allegory for communism and the rise of a certain communist dictator and how it doesn’t work because man is too greedy and always wants more. It was all ideal at first before it fell apart because people lie and cheat in order to gain more.”

Sunoo nodded and gave Riki a small smile, “Thanks for that explanation. You’re really good at this.”

Riki blushed a bit but brushed him off, “Nah, once you read the book and really focus you would get it, you’re smart Sunoo-hyung.”

“Thanks but literature and writing analysis have never been my strong suit,” Sunoo protested.

“And Sunoo is right you are really good at this Riki-yah. You’re smart,” Jungwon complimented from where he was sitting next to his boyfriend.

“Riki oppa is honestly the reason I got an A in literature last year,” Eunchae piped up from her spot besides Riki.

Riki groaned from all of them showering him with compliments and making him out to be so smart, “Chae-yah, you would have done great without me.”

“But would I have gotten an A? The answer is ‘no’ so shush and let us compliment your brain,” Eunchae told him.

Riki couldn’t really argue with that and just huffed and playfully rolled his eyes before returning to typing up what they were working on. He asked Eunchae to pass her the notes she wrote to include it and finished up a rough draft of more than half the project before he saved what he wrote and shut his laptop.

“And done… well for now,” Riki announced.

“Yay!” the other three cheered playfully.

“I am relieved and I am also going to use the bathroom,” Eunchae said as she stood up before heading into the bathroom and shutting the door.

Riki let out a sigh as he leaned against the foot of the bed. He was trying to distract himself from the whole Haruto being in a rival gang situation by just working on the project with everyone but now it was really bugging him and sticking to the forefront of his mind.

“Are you okay Ki?” Jungwon asked him gently.

Riki shrugged, “Honestly yes and no. Obviously it’s really crazy to wrap my head around since I’ve known the guy for a while and I almost don’t want to believe it, but it doesn’t make sense trying to convince myself otherwise.”

“Yeah it’s a lot,” Jungwon agreed, “And you’re allowed to feel weird about it because it’s fucking unexpected and insane.”

Sunoo nodded, “None of us expect you to just be fine after finding out about all of that Riki-yah. You’ve seriously been just getting a lot thrown at you lately.”

“It is a lot and I’m mostly doing okay I guess for the most part?” he said with uncertainty, “but I’m glad I’m not handling this shit alone. I’m glad you guys are here,” Riki told them appreciatively.

“Of course Ki. We’ve got you,” Sunoo said as he and Jungwon both took one of Riki’s hands in their own and gave it a squeeze.

Riki felt his heart flutter from the contact and wondered briefly how these two had such big hands considering their height, but then again they were not necessarily short. Riki was just the height of a lamppost. He allowed himself to enjoy the physical contact with the two for a moment longer before the bathroom door opened, so he quickly took his hands from theirs as Eunchae came out and took a seat.

She gave him a knowing look before facing the other two, “So what were you guys talking about?” she asked.

“We were just asking Riki how he’s feeling about everything,” Sunoo answered honestly.

“What about you Eunchae? How are you doing with everything?” Jungwon asked the girl.

“Me? Honestly I’m overall pretty okay. I’m certainly not as close to all of this as Riki is so I guess it hasn’t really affected me as much.” she explained, “The Haruto thing was definitely a big reveal since I also kind of talked to him through Riki at times, but it’s just weird you know?”

The eldest two present both nodded before Sunoo spoke up.

“Well what we’re all in need of is some distraction I think and I have the perfect thing for all of us,” he said as he glanced at Jungwon with a knowing look.

“Okay what is it?” Riki asked.

“Heeseung-hyung’s birthday is next Friday and he’s turning nineteen. He’s been so busy with work that I’m pretty sure he doesn’t even know the date. We also have next Friday off for that teacher’s holiday, so we want to throw him a surprise party,” the eldest of the four stated.

Riki’s interest peaked at the idea, “I’m definitely in.”

“I’m in too, where are we doing it?” Eunchae queried.

“At our house outside of the city. So, this is your first official invite over to our place, Eunchae,” Jungwon told the girl with a teasing smile.

“Sounds good to me, I'm ready to see the mansion,” she said as she wriggled her eyebrows.

“So how do we pull off surprising someone who is both your boyfriend and would know you guys really well and a gang member?” Riki questioned them.

Sunoo and Jungwon gave him matching smirks, “It’s easier than you think Riki-yah. We’ve got Jake and Sunghoon who convinced him to go fishing with them next Friday and he doesn’t suspect a thing.”

“Well then great, do you guys need us to bring anything?” Riki asked.

“Well Riki since you do photography do you mind bringing your camera and getting some pictures?” Sunoo requested.

Riki gave the older two boys a smile and nodded, “Polaroids or digital?”

“Both?” Jungwon said unsurely.

“I can definitely do both.”

The rest of the evening went on with the four of them discussing plans for Heeseung’s birthday and talking about anything and everything besides any of the negative shit they had been dealing with. It was enjoyable, however one question plagued Riki.
‘What the hell was he going to get Heeseung for his birthday?’

That question found Riki in the mall on the day before Heeseung’s birthday searching desperately for a gift. He had walked around and brainstormed, even picked up new SD cards and a a few packs of the polaroid films for his camera to take pictures the following day. Yet he was still at a loss in terms of gift ideas.

He had asked the guys but all of them insisted that he didn’t need to get anything, however Riki brushed them all off. Pulling up to a birthday party with no gift was not the Nishimura way and he was not going to let his parents' teachings be put to waste.

As he was walking he spotted a jewellery store a few meters ahead and thought he might as well give it a shot since he hadn’t checked one already. The last person that Riki expected to see here, namely Haruto, was walking in his direction with his head glancing down at his phone.

‘Shit’ Riki thought to himself as the previous Friday and at practice this week he had successfully avoided the elder aside from dance practice and one of the guys was always there when practice was over to get Riki and take him either to the others or take him home.

The younger Japanese boy sped up and successfully managed to get into the jewellery store and turned his back to the elder and luckily the guy walked straight by. Riki released a sigh of relief as he went over to the displays and looked through some of the pieces but none of them screamed ‘Heeseung’.

But then he saw it, a silver chain with a microphone pendant attached and a charm that looked like a cassette tape pendant on display next to it. It reminded him of the elder mentioning his enjoyment of singing and music and Riki immediately knew it was the perfect gift. He glanced at the price tag and luckily it didn’t kill him right there so he quickly called over one of the employees.

“Hello young man, how can I help you?” the woman asked.

“I’d like the silver microphone necklace and the cassette pendant charm next to it as well please,” he requested.

“Of course young man, just a moment,” the woman told him kindly as she opened the case and took out the items before grabbing a gift box and placing them inside.

She guided him over to the cash register and rang him up for the items before Riki paid and she handed him the jewellery which she placed into a purple gift bag with white gift paper which gave Riki some relief that he wouldn’t have to wrap it.

“Thank you ma’am,” he waved as he left the store.

‘God I hope Heeseung likes this’ Riki thought to himself before heading out of the mall and towards his apartment.

As Riki left the mall however, Haruto was standing right to the side of the entrance smoking a cigarette and he spotted him before Riki could do anything.

“Riki, hey,” the elder greeted as he let out a puff.

“You smoke?” Riki asked in surprise.

Haruto hummed as he took another hit, “Yeah, I do. Sometimes.”

Riki nodded before moving to leave, “Wait,” the elder male called, stopping him in his tracks.

“Yes? Can I do something for you?” Riki asked, trying to keep the slight irritation out of his tone.

“I just wanted to remind you that we have to start practice for our competition in December,” Haruto told him.

Riki knew that already, he knew that the team had to start getting serious for that competition which was right before winter break. The school had emailed him that information before Haruto. The elder would’ve known that, obviously, he had to have.

“Yeah, I know. Thanks for the reminder, have a good weekend Haruto,” Riki said simply before walking away from the guy down the sidewalk.

Maybe Riki was overthinking but there was something underlying in the elder’s tone, something ominous. What was the guy playing at?

Riki shoved that question to the back of his mind the next afternoon when Jay called him to tell Riki that he was outside to bring him to the guys’ place.

He had dressed into a blueish-gray sweater that he tucked into a pair of black skinny with a silver link chain around his neck. It was casual yet stylish and Riki honestly thought he looked good and suitable for a party among just his friends.

He grabbed his cameras and extra polaroid film and SD card along with his phone, keys and wallet and placed them in his bag before gently placing Heeseung’s gift on top of everything before zipping it up to ensure that it would remain pristine.

Riki left his apartment and headed downstairs and out the door to see Jay waiting for him on his bike and the elder looked good. Jay always looked good but at the moment he was just wow. The black skinny jeans with rips he was wearing really showed off the definition in his legs and the sleeveless black shirt with a graphic on it that showed off his toned arms was making Riki ogle his muscles quite a bit.

“Wow,” Riki said, not even thinking before he opened his mouth.

Jay looked Riki up and down and smiled at him, “You look pretty ‘wow’ yourself,” he said with a wink which did not help Riki’s brain.

“God excuse my dumb brain I just spoke without thinking but yeah you look really good Jay-hyung,” Riki complimented as grabbed his helmet and climbed on the back of the bike.

Jay chuckled, “Don’t worry about it at all Riki. You look really good.”

“Really fucking good…” he said under his breath, but Riki still picked up on it.

He was glad Jay couldn’t see his blush as he wrapped his arms around the elder’s torso and they drove off and through the city on the same route Sunghoon took him on when he gave him a ride back home all those weeks ago.

They passed through the tree covered roads whose leaves were slowly shifting into hues of brown and red as the weather changed. The sunset cast a beautiful golden-orange light over everything which made the place appear as though it was glowing as they stopped at the security gate before it opened up for Jay and they passed through onto the property.

He spotted Sunoo and Eunchae getting out of the car with Jungwon while they took out bags of drinks and food.

“Hey Riki-yah,” Sunoo greeted with his bright smile as Jay pulled up next to them.

“Hey guys,” Riki waved as he got off the bike and slipped off his helmet.

“Oh Riki, you have a little something, just here,” Jay told him as he reached forward getting very close in Riki’s face and plucked a piece of dust from his hair before throwing it to the side.

“Thanks Jay-hyung,” Riki said quickly before making a beeline for the front door so no one saw his blush.

He held the door open as everyone came in and waited for the three people who actually lived here to let him know what to do.

“Over here, we decided we’re going to use the living room for the night,” Sunoo guided the group to the left side of the staircase and through the doorway to a massive living room adorned with couches and bean bag chairs and a giant TV mounted on the wall.

“Oh so y’all are rich-rich,” Eunchae commented as she set down the cake in her hands on a table that had clearly been brought in here and looked around the room.

The decorations clearly had to be the work of Sunoo and Jay due to the fact that those two were certainly the ones who cared the most about style and organization. Purple and white balloons decorated hung from the ceiling while a few sat on the floor and a banner saying “Happy Birthday Heeseung” was strung across the wall right when you came in, along with various streamers around the room.

“This place looks great, my bets are that Jay and Sunoo-hyung did it,” Riki commented in a teasing tone.

The two mentioned laughed and high-fived while Jungwon let out a whine, “Oh come on I helped!”

“You burst almost half a pack of balloons Wonie, I don’t know if that’s helping baby,” Jay told him.

“Whatever,” the second youngest boy scoffed, “you two are mean.”

“Aww Wonie, don’t be like that we still love you even if you can’t blow up balloons properly,” Sunoo told him as he pressed a kiss to the other boy’s cheek, Jay quickly following suit.

Riki’s smile dropped a bit and he averted his eyes and ended up looking over at Eunchae who gave him a sympathetic glance and a small smile. Riki really needed to do better at this whole ‘getting over his feelings for six guys who were already taken’ thing.

“So when are the other guys getting here?” Eunchae asked the other boys while Riki opened his bag and set Heeseung’s gift on the small table that clearly was for gifts considering the few other gift bags and boxes already on it.

“They’ll be here at seven,” Jay answered the girl.

Riki and Eunchae both hummed as the youngest boy took out his cameras and placed a fresh SD card in his digital one and one of the new films he bought in his polaroid camera.

“Great, then we have an hour,” she said as she glanced at the clock.

Riki moved back a bit to get a candid shot of his four friends with his polaroid camera and as soon as he did the flash caught their attention.

“Hey, I wasn’t ready!” Sunoo scolded the boy playfully.

Riki giggled, “That’s the point of candid shots hyung.”

Riki snapped a few shots of the decorations and the cake that Eunchae baked for Heeseung before realizing that the light outside was still nice enough to get some sunset shots.

“Hey guys, is it okay if I head outside and get some shots?” Riki asked the three older guys.

“Go for it,” Jungwon said kindly.

“Just come back inside soon so we don’t ruin the surprise okay?” Sunoo told him.

Riki nodded to them before heading outside, all the boys watching him go with fond and endeared looks on their faces, whilst Eunchae stared straight at them with a look on her face similar to the one she gave them when they asked about Riki’s parents the day they all met.

“What?” Jay asked the girl.

“Do not ‘what’ me Park Jongseong!” she scolded the elder.

“Jesus Chae I thought we were friends, what happened to ‘oppa’?”

“Fine oppa you three- in fact scratch that you six are the biggest clowns I have ever met- actually fuck that you are the whole circus!” Eunchae yelled at them since Riki definitely would not hear them from outside.

The other boys' faces all changed into ones of realization as they had a pretty good idea of what the girl was talking about.

“Seriously, Riki has handled enough shit and he does not need you guys leading him on, on top of that,” she began.

“All the flirting, the longing stares, the soft smiles? God when will you idiots grow a fucking spine and just tell him? I tried to pass it off as me just misreading it but you guys are so whipped for him and it’s obvious. I’m so tired of you guys dancing around him when it’s obvious you like him!” Eunchae stated.

“Seriously, if you’re not going to actually do anything about it, quit doing it please,” she said, her voice much softer now.

“Eunchae-yah,” Sunoo sighed, “I-”

“We like Riki,” Jungwon said as he stared at his two boyfriends.

“We do, all six of us do. We don’t want to fuck around with him at all because we like him a lot,” Jungwon admitted.

“We found him super attractive since we first met and then as we got to know him we all fell for him and we fell hard,” Jay explained.

“I mean how couldn’t we? Riki’s just so Riki. He’s amazing and he probably deserves better than us,” Sunoo told the girl in front of them.

“Who are you guys to decide what Riki deserves, huh?” Eunchae asked in a dead serious tone.

“That isn’t for any of you to decide for him. Riki knows what he deserves, no matter what may have happened to him because of him knowing you guys, he stuck by all of you. That was his choice, no one else’s,” she told all of them.

“I’m not telling you what you guys should or shouldn’t do but all I’ll say is this : tell him and quit hiding your actual feelings,” she said simply before turning away from them and plopping down on the couch.

The three all shared a look, they knew Eunchae was right. Whether or not they admitted it, in a way they have been leading Riki on and he deserved to know the truth. They had to tell him.

“Guys, they’re coming!” Riki called to the others as he re-entered the living room.

“Oh shit, everyone hide and Riki, get the lights!” Sunoo instructed.

Riki quickly hit the light switch right by the doorway before he pressed himself to the wall out off to the side of the doorway while the other three guys ducked under the table and Eunchae hid behind the couch.

He pressed the recording button on his camera so he would be able to capture the moment and listened as he heard the door open and three pairs of footsteps heading towards the living room.

Once Heeseung passed through the doorway after the other two Riki flicked the light on.

“Surprise!” Everyone chorused.

Heeseung gaped at the scene of the entire living room being decorated and his boyfriends and friends standing there waiting for him.

Riki made sure he took a picture of the dude’s surprised face, just for the reason of memories and smiled at how genuinely shocked and happy Heeseung looked.

“Happy birthday Heeseung!” everyone chorused as they all came over.

Riki made sure to snap some pictures of everyone, even Eunchae giving Heeseung hugs and telling him happy birthday before he put his cameras to the side and approached the eldest.

“Happy birthday Hee-hyung,” Riki said as he embraced the elder who squeezed Riki in his arms.

“Ahh thank you Riki-yah, thank you for being here,” he said sincerely.

“Of course hyung,” Riki told him as they both held each other until they noticed a flash.

Riki released the elder to see Jake holding his camera with a mischievous grin plastered on his face.

“Yah! Who said you can touch my baby?” Riki scolded him in a half-joking, half-serious tone.

“It was Sunghoon’s idea,” the Aussie blamed the boy next to him.

“Yah-”

And just like that, the night began with everyone bickering, chatting, eating and laughing as music played in the background and they enjoyed each other’s company in celebration of Heeseung.

The Mario Kart game finally took place as promised and Riki beat absolutely everyone in every round with all of them whining that Riki was far too good at this game and said boy just teasing them and telling them to be better.

He did notice Jay, Sunoo and Jungwon seemingly discussing something with the other three throughout various points of the night in hushed tones which made Riki curious but he realistically knew it wasn’t his business.

Soon enough, the time for cake and gifts arrived and Heeseung being the weirdo that he is, decided to open gifts before cutting the cake.

Jake and Sunghoon both gifted him a brand new fishing rod, while Jungwon and Sunoo got him some new journals for writing as well as an expensive-looking ring and Jay bought the eldest a watch.

Riki snapped pictures of Heeseung hugging and kissing all of them as he thanked them for his gifts and ignored the pang in his chest from seeing all of them being affectionate with one another. The night was not about him, it was about Heeseung. Riki’s feelings could fuck off for a while.

Riki grabbed his gift for Heeseung and went next to the elder as he handed it to him.

“Happy birthday Hee-hyung,” he said with a smile.

“Riki-yah, you didn’t have to get me anything,” the eldest said

“Heeseung, shut the fuck up and open it,” Riki told him affectionately.

The eldest laughed before taking the box out of the gift bag and opening it to see the chain and pendant that Riki had bought for him. When Riki saw the way Heeseung smiled and his eyes seemed to shine as he looked at it, he knew he was successful.

“Riki-yah I love it. Thank you,” he said sincerely.

“Can you put it on me?” Heeseung asked him as he put the cassette pendant on the chain before handing it to Riki.

“Of course hyung,” Riki agreed as he unclasped the necklace and clipped it around Heeseung’s neck.

It looked really good, Riki thought it truly suited him as he moved over to the other side of the table where all the guys were giving him fond smiles.

“Well Heeseung-oppa I did not buy you anything but I did bake the cake,” Eunchae told him kindly as she placed it in front of him with all the lit candles.

“Aww Eunchae-yah, thank you. It looks amazing!” the eldest commented.

The group all sang ‘happy birthday’ before Heeseung called all his boyfriends over to cut the cake with him before also trying to call Riki.

“It’s alright hyung, have this moment with your boyfriends,” Riki said with a small smile.

He missed how Heeseung’s face fell a bit as Sunoo handed the eldest a knife and all six of them basically put a finger on the knife as they cut it. Riki was happy for them, he really was but he couldn’t help the tightening feeling in his chest as he snapped pictures of all the boyfriends feeding each other cake and giving Heeseung kisses all while Eunchae stayed by his side and patted his back periodically as an offer of comfort, but it didn’t really help.

Riki needed a bit of a break.

“I’ll be back soon guys, I just need some air,” Riki said as he left the room before anyone could say anything and sped up the main staircase before turning down the hall and getting to the small staircase that led to the roof.

The boy pushed the door open as he let the fresh air enter his lungs and released a breath he hadn’t known he was holding. Riki leaned against the edge in the same way he did with Sunghoon those weeks ago and took in deep breaths to relax himself.

He just had to fall for these guys further after saying he would try and get over them. Now he was here and Riki couldn’t deny that it hurt as he stared up at the sky which was decorated with beautiful, bright stars. Riki was right about being able to see the stars from here, however they didn’t look as bright as he expected. Maybe it was because of the tears that were trying to blur his vision which he desperately swiped at which seemed to work to hold them off.

“It’s pretty up here isn’t it?” Sunghoon asked him.

Riki almost jumped, he hadn’t heard the older boy come up here at all.

“Jeez, are you always so sneaky?” Riki asked trying to be joking but it just came out flat.

“Are you okay?” Sunghoon asked.

’No, I like you and your boyfriends so much but I can never have you’ Riki thought to himself.

“I’m fine,” he lied.

Sunghoon gave him a knowing look, one that said that he saw right through him.

“I know that’s not true Ki. You just ran out of there before we could say anything. What’s going on?” he asked.

Riki sighed feeling his chest grow tighter, “I can’t tell you.”

“Why can’t you?” Sunghoon asked gently.

“Because I don’t want to get hurt!” Riki yelled suddenly.

The elder approached him slowly and took one of Riki’s hands in his own and Riki so desperately wanted to pull away but he couldn’t. When it came to the Enhypen boys, Riki was such a weak, weak man.

“Riki, nothing that you tell me will ever hurt you. I will never hurt you, no one here would ever hurt you, certainly not intentionally,” Sunghoon said as he stared up at the boy.

Riki stayed quiet, not wanting to just spill the truth and ruin the friendship he formed with these guys. He would rather keep it in and still have them in his life than tell them and push them away.

Sunghoon let out a sigh before he spoke, “You know the first day the guys and I saw you. We all saw you in the courtyard before class and we all said the same thing ‘Wow, he is so pretty’. ” the elder told him.

Riki froze. What was Sunghoon saying?

“Then we all saw Dohyun giving you a hard time and we all got kind of worried about you despite not knowing you. So when Sunoo and Jungwon were heading to their class, they both told us that they were hoping that they would get to meet the pretty boy from the courtyard,” Sunghoon said with a small laugh.

Riki felt himself blush and his heart fluttered slightly at the sound.

“Then we saw you sitting with Jay, Sunoo and Wonie at lunch and that moved us into really getting to know you. I remember how all of us couldn’t stop staring at you and then when we got home we all talked about you,” Sunghoon said as he stared at Riki with such a tender and fond gaze which he thought would make his heart absolutely melt.

“Then we really got to know you and you found out about us… When you told us that you wanted to stick around, that was the moment for all of us honestly. That was the moment we all realized Nishimura Riki is a fucking gem. This boy- you are so incredibly special,” Sunghoon told him with a shy smile.

Riki felt his heart speed up, he was not a fool, he was far from one in fact and he hoped beyond hope that this conversation was going where he wanted it to.

Sunghoon continued, “God, you were just amazing to us, to all of us in a way that we never experienced and I’m so glad that you pushed us to trust you and let you in because I think that it’s one of the best decisions we ever made.”

“We were all so scared after what happened with you and Minjun and I felt sick to my stomach when I saw what he did to you. We were so scared because we thought that you just being friends with us put you in danger,” the elder sighed.

Riki was just staring at him, waiting, anticipating and hanging onto every word. He knows, he knows what Sunghoon wants to say but he wants to- no needs to hear it from him.

“But then what you said last week really put it in perspective for all of us. You would be in danger no matter what just from knowing us. We’re so scared of losing you, so we might as well have you in the way that we want. And Nishimura Riki, we want you. We want you to be ours, our partner, a part of our relationship,” Sunghoon told him.

Riki could feel tears of joy welling in his eyes at hearing Sunghoon’s words. This, this is what he wanted for so long even after trying to push his feelings away he always wanted it so badly and now it was in his hands.

“I like you Riki, we all like you and we all want you, if you want us that is,” Sunghoon said.

Riki felt a tear fall as he let out a laugh filled with so much joy.

“I want you too, Sunghoon. I want all of you, I like all of you so much even though I never thought I would have a chance after finding out that you were all dating,” Riki confessed.

“Really?” Sunghoon asked with a smile that shone brighter than the stars in the sky.

“Yes really!” Riki assured him as he squeezed the elder’s hands, “I like all of you so incredibly much.”

They both stared at each other for a few moments with the widest smiles plastered on their faces before Sunghoon started leaning in a little. Riki noticed and god he had dreamed of this and he leaned in as well, his heart thundering in his chest at how close they were.

“This is okay right?” the other boy asked him and Riki could feel his breath against his own lips.

“Yes it is.”

And just like that Sunghoon leaned his head up just a bit as he pressed his lips to Riki’s. The older male wrapped both his arms around Riki’s waist whilst his came up around Sunghoon’s neck.

Sunghoon’s lips felt so soft and warm against his and Riki could taste the sweetness of the cake he had earlier along with soda and the feeling was so addicting. The kiss was slow and sweet as they poured out the feelings they had harboured for each other into the action and savoured the feeling of each other.

All the longing, the uncertainty and the content, everything was there as Sunghoon pressed Riki impossibly closer to himself and Riki felt the older guy lick his bottom lip before slipping his tongue in and entwining it with his own which just made Riki’s knees weak.

It felt like coming home, Sunghoon felt so familiar and safe despite this being the first time Riki kissed him. He never knew kissing someone could feel so incredible and addicting and he couldn’t get enough, but alas they had to pull away for air after a few minutes.

The both of them were panting as they leaned their foreheads against each other’s, this moment paralleling when he came and spoke to the boy holding him on the roof.

“Wow,” Riki said breathlessly.

“Was that okay?” Sunghoon asked him bashfully.

“That was my first kiss,” he admitted, “and it was fucking perfect.”

The elder smiled as he gave the Japanese boy’s waist a gentle squeeze “I’m glad I could be your first.”

“Do the rest of us get kisses now because that was great to watch but I’d really like to try for myself,” Jay called to them from where the other five guys were making their way over to them.

Riki felt himself go bright red, “Oh my god! You all heard and saw everything didn’t you?”

Heeseung nodded with a bright smile on his face, “We certainly did and we are so glad that we know now. We like you so, so much Riki.”

“God, we wanted to tell you. We wanted to tell you so badly that morning when you saw Heeseung and I in the kitchen. But we were so scared that it was too early and that we would push you away. We didn’t want to do that,” Jake told Riki.

Jay hummed in agreement, “We really didn’t want to tell you until we confessed and asked you to join our relationship but that didn’t really go as planned,” he laughed sheepishly, “but I’m so glad that you feel the same way.”

“We all like you Riki-yah, a lot and we’re so glad that you like us too,” Sunoo smiled at him.

Riki blushed once again, despite hearing them say they more than once already, he was overjoyed and could certainly get used to hearing it again.

“I’m glad you and Eunchae knocked some sense into us because I would’ve kicked myself if we let someone like you go,” Jungwon added.

“Wait, Eunchae? What did she say?” Riki asked.

“She kind of gave us the push that we needed, to stop leading you on with all the flirting and touching and not actually doing anything. I’m glad that she kicked some sense into our asses, metaphorically, obviously,” Sunoo said.

At that moment, Riki was just a smidge more thankful for Hong Eunchae. He had an amazing best friend.

“So as the birthday boy I would be honored to be the one to ask you Riki : would you like to be our boyfriend?” Heeseung questioned.

“Yes, I would love to be your boyfriend,” Riki agreed.

The boys all beamed and cheered a little at that before Jay spoke up, “So about those kisses,” he addressed Riki with a smirk.

Riki chuckled, “Heeseung first because it’s his birthday… well second technically since I already kissed Sunghoon.”

The others all laughed before they moved aside a bit and Sunghoon let go of Riki and let the boy walk over to the eldest.

“Hi,” Heeseung said in a flirtatious tone.

“Hi,” Riki echoed.

The youngest boy cupped the eldest’s cheeks before he leaned in and pressed a sweet and gentle kiss to Heeseung’s lips which was quickly reciprocated as the elder wrapped his arms around Riki’s back, the both of them savouring the gentle feeling of sharing this moment with one another. The eldest was gentle and tender as he moved his fingers up and down over his spine. Kissing Heeseung just felt so incredibly comforting. Eventually, they pulled away with Heeseung grinning from ear to ear.

Jay was next and he put one hand around Riki’s neck and the other on the Japanese boy’s hip as he pulled him close and leaned up a bit to kiss the youngest boy. Riki knew he could get used to the feeling of all of them as kissing each one of them felt so different yet so similar in the sense that Riki felt warmth fill his body and his heart thunder in his chest. Jay was passionate, he was communicating with Riki through kissing him as he moved his soft lips against Riki’s and just expressing what he felt for him.

Jake was like an excited puppy as he licked his lips before tiptoeing a bit due to the height difference between him and Riki.

“I’ve wanted to do this for so long,” he said before he put both his hands on Riki’s cheeks and pulled him down so their lips met. Riki wrapped his long arms around Jake’s back and he could totally feel what Jake meant in the kiss. The elder kissed him like he had been holding back for so long and was finally able to let loose as his plump lips moved against Riki’s. With Jake he just felt an indescribable warmth. It felt so safe and like he was telling Riki he was protected and cared for as he massaged a thumb over Riki’s cheek bones.

Sunoo reminded him of Sunghoon in the way that he was gentle. It was slow and gentle as the elder entwined their hands and kissed Riki with those beautiful, pink lips of his, which were so, so soft against his own. It felt like he was giving Riki a reminder that he was right there for him and he would always be there. Riki felt taken care of and secure. Sunoo kissed him like he was telling him that he was someone that the younger could trust. It felt so incredibly comfortable.

“God you’re so pretty,” Jungwon said breathlessly as the taller boy stepped in front of him.

Riki let out a shy giggle as he felt himself blush, “Thank you Wonie-hyung. You’re very pretty too.”

“Yeah but I thought you were incredibly pretty from the moment I saw you. I’m so glad that we decided to tell you, because this is so worth everything,” Jungwon said.

The elder put one arm around Riki’s waist and one to the side of his neck as he tugged the boy into a kiss while Riki place his own arms around the older boy’s neck. It was incredibly passionate, kind of like Jay’s. It felt like Jungwon was putting all of the emotions he felt into it as he kissed Riki like he would never get enough, almost as if he couldn’t believe Riki was his, all of theirs in fact. The kiss was sweet and it was perfect just like the others and it felt like Jungwon was trying to say something else to him without any words. It felt like a promise.

Chapter Text

Riki rolled over in bed, or at least attempted to. There were several limbs wrapped over him and as he opened his eyes he realized that the night prior wasn’t just an amazing dream.

Heeseung’s sleeping face was right in front of him looking as angelic and handsome as ever despite his messy hair and half-opened mouth. He could feel someone behind him and he knew from the scent that it was Sunghoon.

Riki remembered the night before after the whole confession when they returned downstairs where Eunchae was seated eating a piece of cake and Riki saw her smile grow when she noticed him holding hands with Heeseung and Sunoo. His best friend had been overjoyed and patted the boys on the back for ‘finally growing a pair’ and confessing to one another.

Eunchae left not long after but Riki stayed with his boyfriends (he still couldn’t believe that he could call them that) and the boys all watched movies in the living room before the youngest had started dozing off. Sunghoon had noticed and decided to pick him up off the couch and carry him upstairs to Heeseung’s room at the request of the eldest who said he would be there later.

Sunghoon had given Riki some clothes consisting of one of the elder’s oversized t-shirts and a pair of black shorts before he had changed himself and the two crawled into Heeseung’s bed and cuddled up close to one another before falling asleep.

Riki wasn’t sure when his eldest boyfriend had joined them but he assumed it wasn’t long after he and Sunghoon had gone upstairs. Said boy was fast asleep on his left, somehow looking absolutely ethereal even as he slept while slivers of sunlight came through the window’s blinds and illuminated his face a bit.

The Japanese boy stayed laying down between them for a while before realizing that he was hungry and despite all the effort it took to get out of the prison of limbs he was trapped in while trying to not wake the older two he quietly crept out of the bedroom and headed down the hallway to the staircase.

Riki realized everyone else must’ve still been asleep judging by how quiet the house was as he made his way into the kitchen. He surprised himself a bit when he thought of cooking breakfast despite not enjoying doing so a lot. Then it hit him that he could make okonomiyaki. He hadn’t eaten it in quite a long time and it would be his go-to dish when he was feeling homesick and always tasted quite good.

So after deliberating for a moment, Riki went through the fridge and pantry to find the ingredients that he was looking for. The boys didn’t have any kewpie mayo which didn’t surprise him but Riki had his own recipe for making it and his boyfriends luckily had every ingredient for the dish in their house.

Riki set to work in making the dish as he hummed a SHINee song while he cooked. The first pancake came out a bit too thin because the heat was too high but afterwards Riki was able to get the thickness right.

While a pancake was finishing cooking, he was finishing up making the kewpie mayo when suddenly he felt two arms wrap around his waist and a kiss being placed on his shoulder which was exposed due the oversized shirt he was wearing falling off his frame.

“Hello love, what are you up to?” Jake’s smooth morning voice asked him as he put his head on Riki’s shoulder.

Riki felt warmth pass through for a second as butterflies floated in his stomach. Something about Jake’s actions felt so sweetly domestic and it made his heart swell.

“Hi Jake-hyung,” Riki greeted as he moved with the shorter boy attached to him to take the last pancake off the stove.

“I’m making okonomiyaki. I haven’t had it in a long time,” he replied.

Jake hummed against his neck which made chills travel down Riki’s spine.

“Well it smells really good. I can’t wait to try it,” the elder boy said before pecking behind Riki’s ear.

Riki finished up making the meal while Jake clung to his back before turning around in his boyfriend’s hold.

“Hi,” he greeted softly as he looked at Jake.

“Hey,” the elder boy said before leaning up and giving Riki a sweet kiss which the younger melted into.

The dancer still wasn’t used to this feeling at all from any of his boyfriends and his knees basically went weak as he slung his arms over Jake’s shoulders and reciprocated the kiss, ignoring the fact that they both certainly have morning breath as their lips moved slowly and gently against each other’s. The Aussie still kissed him as if it was the first time and like he had been waiting on it forever, just like he did before and it made Riki feel butterflies all over again.

After some time, they pulled away and sat at the table next to one another as they ate together.

“Mmm,” Jake hummed around a mouthful of food, “this is so damn good Riki-san.”

Riki smiled, “I’m glad that you like it Jake.”

After they finished eating, the Aussie turned to face him once again and stared at him briefly before speaking up.

“How are you feeling about everything? Like about being with us I mean,” the elder questioned him.

Riki thought about everything that happened in the last day and about how good he felt. Not just from the guys’ reciprocating his feelings and asking him to join their relationship to them being in his life and despite the dangerous life they lived and even the danger that Riki had been in due to coming across the wrong people.

However he didn’t blame them for any of that, he was happy that these guys had come into his life and despite the other things Riki was dealing with, for the first time in a long time, Riki felt content. Despite the things deep down he had that nagged at the back of his brain, right here in this moment with these people, for the first time in a long time, he was okay.

“I’m content.” He said honestly, “In a way that I haven’t been in so long I just feel good, I feel okay.”

Jake smiled at him as he took one of Riki’s hands and placed a gentle kiss to the back of it, “I’m glad that you feel okay, love.”

“What about you Jake-hyung?” Riki asked the elder, “How do you feel?”

Jake smiled a bit to himself before looking Riki straight in the eyes, “I feel lucky. I feel so incredibly lucky because I have six incredible and beautiful boyfriends and because you are finally ours in the way that we have wanted for so long.”

Riki felt absolutely touched by Jake’s words and at the fact that all six of these guys saw him in a way that made him feel so incredibly cared for and reminded him of how much he mattered. Truthfully, he was incredibly lucky for them.

Riki smiled as he gently squeezed Jake’s hand, “And I’m lucky to have all of you.”

“Okay, lighter on the gas Riki-yah,” Jay instructed, trying to hide how stressed out seeing his youngest boyfriend start speeding on his bike made him.

Later in the afternoon, Jay asked Riki if he wanted to try riding his motorcycle as the house was surrounded by quiet roads and mostly trees and there was a road that no one used right behind the house that the second eldest decided would be safe enough to let the Japanese boy try.

“Alright, like this?” Riki asked as he pressed lightly on the accelerator and drove a few metres away.

“Yeah that’s it!” the elder said encouragingly as Riki rode down the road a bit on his own.

Riki smiled a bit to himself as he went down the road. Driving motorcycles certainly wasn’t the easiest thing but Jay’s teaching along with some of the old basic things that his dad used to tell him that he still remembered were really helpful.

He was enjoying himself, they all just decided to take a day to relax after the excitement of Heeseung’s birthday the night before and Riki was happy to just relax and enjoy the company of his boyfriends. After his breakfast with Jake, his other boyfriends had entered the kitchen, all of them pressed soft kisses on his forehead or cheek and then proceeded to praise Riki’s cooking. Following that, Sunoo and Jungwon had dragged him into the living room to cuddle in between them whilst everyone watched TV.

It just felt domestic and intimate. They all conversed and bickered, flirted and made jokes with one another while enjoying each other’s company and forgetting about all the heavy shit that they had to deal with outside of this. Outside of this almost bubble that the guys’ house and and each other’s presence created.

Riki turned in the road and rode back over to Jay who was giving him a smile, the wide one that made his eyes turn into tiny crescents and was so, so pretty.

“You’re pretty good at this sweetheart, despite you giving me a heart attack a few times,” the elder said.

Riki playfully rolled as he put down the kickstand so the bike would stay standing.

“I think you just worry too much hyung,” he smiled as he slung his arms around Jay’s neck.

Jay hummed as he placed his hands on Riki’s hips and brought him a bit closer which made the younger blush a bit before he remembered that he could do that now. Jay was his, his boyfriend and Riki was his and now things like this would be common ; Riki was definitely still getting used to it.

“Well excuse me for being concerned about those I care about,” Jay smirked at him.

Riki smiled, “It’s cute Seongie-hyung, you’re passionate about those you care about and you just care a lot. I definitely enjoy it.”

That was the truth, Jay was extremely caring, especially for those he was close to. Riki could already tell the elder did not love easily but he loved hard and when he really cared for someone he went above and beyond to show it. Riki was touched that he had clearly made his way into Jay’s heart as it truly didn’t seem like an easy feat.

“Thank you sweetheart and you’re right I do care about you, a lot and I’m going to make sure you know it,” the elder said sincerely.

Riki was extremely touched by the statement and felt his heart swell from how gentle and sincere Jay’s words were. All of the guys kept talking to him and treating him like they wanted Riki in their lives for a very long time and Riki wanted that too, so much. He’s come to care for these guys in a way he never has before besides Eunchae but that was different, because Eunchae was his best friend and like a sister to him.

These six guys were different in the way that Riki had never felt how he did for anyone before and it was scary yet incredibly beautiful and the fact that all of them felt the same way made his entire being fill with joy and comfort by being so cared about by someone else.

“Thank you Jay. I like you a lot, you know?” Riki smiled at the elder.

Jay gave him a small smirk, “Yeah? I like you a lot too Riki,” he said before bringing the younger closer and leaning up to connect them both in a passionate kiss under the orange coloured sky.

“Hey you two! How did it go?” Heeseung asked as Jay and Riki came out to the backyard where everyone was seated around a fire pit talking and enjoying the nice weather of the evening.

“I mean I’m alive, that has to count for something right?” Riki said jokingly.

“He almost gave me a fucking heart attack when he pressed a little too hard on the gas a few times but Riki’s honestly a natural,” Jay answered as he took a seat next to Sunghoon.

“As expected of Mr. Good at Everything,” Sunoo smiled at Riki, which the younger returned as he went to grab his own seat, but before he could, Heeseung pulled him down onto his lap and made him release a yelp of surprise.

“Hyung!” he exclaimed, “A little warning next time?” Riki said mildly annoyed as he lightly hit the eldest’s shoulder.

“Where’s the fun in that though?” Heeseung said innocently as he batted his doe eyes at Riki and wrapped his arms around the younger boy’s torso.

Riki was usually weak for those bambi eyes but he was not going to be defeated so easily.

“Oh no you don’t. You don’t just get to bat your damn pretty little bambi eyes at me and you are magically forgiven,” Riki said in a faux serious tone.

“But that’s how it’s supposed to work,” the eldest said as he gave Riki his bambi eyes again and got closer.

The other boys all smiled fondly at the scene of the eldest and youngest bickering with each other which was far beyond endearing.

“Not this time babe, I refuse to fold!” Riki told him with a laugh.

Heeseung froze and pulled back from him a bit as he blushed. Riki’s face fell, did he say something wrong?

“What?” he questioned Heeseung who was still looking at him in surprise.

“You called me ‘babe’, ” the eldest smiled at him.

Riki felt himself blush, weren’t pet names like that common in relationships? How come Heeseung was acting like this?

“Yeah? Should I have not done that?” Riki asked shyly.

“No! No!” Heeseung responded quickly, “Please definitely keep doing it, it’s just the first time you called any of us a one of those terms of endearment,” he explained.

“Oh,” the youngest said simply, finally understanding his eldest boyfriend’s reaction.

“I didn’t mean to make you feel weird, it just surprised me, that’s all,” the elder explained.

Riki smiled, “Yeah I get that hyung, but you should definitely get used to it.

“Oh I definitely will,” Heeseung smirked before leaning up and pressing a kiss on Riki’s nose which made the boy flush a bright pink before he turned around and leaned his back against Heeseung’s chest and rested his head on the older boy’s shoulder.

“Well I kissed Riki first, it’s only fair that he calls you a term of endearment first I guess, totally not salty,” Sunghoon commented in a joking tone.

“Yah!” Jay exclaimed, “Stop bragging that you kissed Riki first.”

“I did though, didn't I?”

“Stop throwing it in our faces, Hoon, it’s only because you were first one up there after you practically sprinted out after Riki,” Sunoo rolled his eyes.

Riki looked around at all of them and chuckled lightly, “Really?”

Jungwon nodded, “Kind of at least. We told them about what Eunchae said during the party and Sunghoon was basically after you as soon as you left.”

“He was also the least nervous out of all of us. I was sweating way too much, I feel like I would’ve messed up telling you somehow,” Jake said as he rubbed the back of his neck.

“Hoon is also really good with words although he’s the most introverted out of all of us. He always knows the right thing to say. I think him telling you was the best choice,” Jay added sweetly as he turned to Sunghoon and gave the other boy a small smile as he held one of his hands which the slightly younger boy gave a squeeze.

Riki smiled hearing how they all went about figuring out how to confess to him and despite knowing that if any of them told him, he would’ve accepted it regardless because he just liked all of them so damn much, Riki was also glad it was Sunghoon.

The elder could be rather quiet but whenever he spoke it always made an impact. Whether it was a joke that made everyone laugh or an insightful comment during a conversation, his words always held something valuable.

In getting to know the guys, Riki always enjoyed listening to Sunghoon because the older guy just knew how to make you listen and every time they had a conversation. His words just stuck for Riki in a lot of ways and they would nestle their way into his head and create moments and memories, just like they did the night before and Riki kept replaying Sunghoon’s confession in his head because it was so beautiful and raw and so real.

It was real and these boys were his and he was theirs and Riki wouldn’t have it any other way.

He loved this, this moment, this time.

It was all so beautiful and precious as they all sat together out in the backyard under the veil of the dark sky littered with beautiful specks of white that shone brightly together as a light orange hue graced their skin.

At this moment there was nothing else : no murder conspiracy about his parents, no rival gangs causing them issues and putting all of them in danger, none of that.

They knew it was their reality and that they would have to return to it, but not now. For now they would cherish this time with each other and preserve this moment of being there with one another surrounded by the blanket of the care and feelings they held for each other.

They were here, in this moment with each other and it was beautiful.

They could stay here for a while.

Chapter Text

“Okay that’s great, everyone please gather around for a quick announcement!” Riki told the members after a long dance practice.

“So, as I said earlier we are going to be doing a competition this year and the date is December 16th which is a Saturday,” he explained.

“If any of you cannot make that date and you know you won’t be able to, please let me or Haruto know so we can adjust the numbers to suit how many we will actually be competing with,” Riki said as he gestured to himself and then the older boy.

“Thank you all for coming today, I’ll see you guys on Friday,” he finished.

Everyone bowed before bidding the captain and vice-captain farewell and leaving the room. Per his boyfriends’ advice and the fact that Riki just didn’t trust the guy, he hurried to leave the room and grab a mop to clean up before Haruto could say anything.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t get out of cleaning duty but he could get it done as quickly as possible to avoid interacting with the gang member.

Riki truly didn’t trust the older boy as far as he could throw him, especially not after recent revelations and his weird run in with the guy at the mall the week prior when he was shopping for Heeseung’s gift. What Haruto had told him and the weird ominous underlying in his tone still made his skin crawl.

Riki was well aware that he could be overthinking it, but he didn’t think so. Why would he mention the dance competition that Riki had already been more than aware of for one? And second of all, Haruto would’ve known that Riki was aware of it because neither of them were dumbasses and Haruto certainly wasn’t particularly forgetful. It almost seemed like a threat? Or a warning or something but Riki certainly didn’t take his words at face value.

He was so caught up in his thoughts as he rummaged through the janitor’s closet to get the cleaning supplies that he didn’t realize that someone had come up behind him until he felt two arms wrap around his waist and felt the sensation of someone’s lips on the nape of his neck which made him gasp in surprise but also shudder when he recognized the familiar scent.

“Jake, I’m sweaty as fuck,” Riki whined as he finally grabbed the mop and bucket he’d been searching for.

The Aussie chuckled, “You say that like I’m not aware,” he smiled as he pecked Riki’s neck and cheek several more times like an excited puppy.

Riki relaxed in his boyfriend’s hold and savored the sweet warm feeling that the older boy’s actions filled him with for a moment before he came to his senses.

“Hey I thought that we had a no PDA rule,” Riki scolded only half seriously as Jake continued to press kisses to his skin.

Jake laughed and huffed against his neck, the sensation of his warm breath sending a shiver down Riki’s spine, “Heeseung and Jay made that rule for safety reasons. The school is empty and also since when do I follow rules?”

Riki laughed lightly and glanced over his shoulder at the shorter guy, “I’ll tell Heeseung and Jay hyung.”

“Please don’t.” Jake said seriously as he gave the younger puppy-dog eyes.

Riki laughed, Heeseung and Jay were definitely the most intimidating ones in their relationship and the ones most likely to scold you for doing anything dumb. They were the two oldest and the most authoritative so everyone listened to them, when they weren’t terrorizing them of course.

“I won’t Jakey, now come on I have to get back to the dance studio,” Riki said as he pulled out of Jake’s arms and pulled the Aussie along with him, but was stopped after a few steps when Jake pulled him back by his hand.

“Baby, do you really have to?” he asked in concerned tone, his face looking far more serious.

Riki furrowed his brows and frowned understanding what Jake meant, “Jake, you know I do. First of all it’s my responsibility as dance captain and second of all if I avoid Haruto any more he is going to be suspicious because he isn’t a dumbass.”

Jake sighed, “I just don’t like you being in danger. I fucking hate you being around him at all yet you still have to.”

“Jakey-hyung you know I don’t trust him and I don’t like being around him either but I have to. Even if he is dangerous, it’s probably the safest thing for me rather than avoiding him and making it more obvious that I’m onto him,” Riki countered.

The older boy looked down, knowing that Riki was right even though it didn’t mean he liked that fucking snake named Watanabe Haruto being around his boyfriend because he knows that if that asshole touched a hair on Riki’s head, he wouldn’t hesitate to hurt him.

Jake quickly looked around them before leaning up and pressing a kiss to Riki’s lips.

“You’re right, love, I know you are. But I don’t want anything to happen to you,” he said.

Riki smiled as he gave his boyfriend’s hand a squeeze, “You can stay with us and help clean up the studio if it will make you feel any better.”

Jake immediately nodded like an excited puppy and followed his younger boyfriend back to the dance studio.

When Riki opened the door, to see Haruto sitting against the mirror with the broom right beside him, who looked up when the door opened. The senior’s brows furrowed and his eyes darkened for a second as he saw Jake come in with Riki and if the junior was any less observant he would’ve missed it, but he didn’t.

Riki drew in a quiet deep breath and tried to act natural.

“Haruto, you remember my friend, Jake right?” Riki asked as he patted his boyfriend’s shoulder in a silent apology as the both cringed internally at Riki calling the older boy a ‘friend’.

Haruto stood up, with that same look in his eye that Riki would probably miss if he was anyone else, yet he tried his hardest to not pay attention to it and give his internal feelings of uneasiness away.

“Yeah, I do,” he said in a casual tone although his eyes betrayed him, at least they did to Riki.

“Hello Haruto-ssi,” Jake greeted with a wave and a smile that anyone else would think was legit yet Riki could see right through it and had to stifle a laugh.

“Hello Jake-ssi,” the other senior responded.

“Great, he’s going to be helping us out today,” the youngest boy told the older Japanese male.

“Is that really necessary?” Haruto questioned him.

Riki felt himself tense a bit, this asshole really thought he was slick. He was glad that he was blessed with more than one skittle as a brain cell to deduce Haruto’s underlying reasons for asking that question.

“It’s just so we can get it done quicker Haruto. Let’s get to cleaning shall we?” Riki said as he placed down the bucket and began mopping the floor.

“Yeah, let’s get to cleaning,” Haruto mumbled under his breath.

Riki mopped the floors while Jake efficiently cleaned the fogged up mirrors with newspaper and windex all while the Japanese senior in the room had a stormy expression as he swept every corner of the room.

“I don’t fucking like this guy one bit,” Jake gritted out quietly to him when Riki came next to him to mop while Haruto was across the room.

Riki sighed sensing the tension radiating off of his boyfriend and discreetly rubbed his nape as he knew it relaxed the Australian ; he truly was like a human golden retriever.

“I know babe, relax. We’re almost done,” Riki whispered to him soothingly before finishing up mopping.

After a while, the three boys were finally done and the tension in the room was thick and stifling. Riki went to grab his bag but Haruto called out to him and stopped him.

“I just wanted to say good job in practice today Riki. I really think we have a shot at winning the competition this year,” the boy said as he squeezed Riki’s shoulder.

The youngest boy tried not to tense under the touch and Jake had never wanted to break someone’s hand more. Haruto had better take his fucking hands off of what’s his before Jake did something about it.

“Thanks Haruto, you did well too,” Riki said as he removed the older boy’s hand from his shoulder and he didn’t miss the way the guy’s face fell for a second before he schooled his expression.

“I’ll see you around,” he said before grabbing his bag and pulling Jake along with him to leave before the other Japanese boy could say anything.

Riki let out a sigh of relief only momentarily before Jake grabbed him by his wrist and tugged him along down the hallway until they reached an empty classroom with the blinds already drawn.

“Jake what are you doing?” he asked confusedly as the Aussie shut the door behind them before he pinned Riki against it before pulled him down into a bruising kiss.

Riki was shocked by the older boy’s actions but also wasn’t necessarily complaining as his kiss was rough yet extremely controlled and filled with passion and feeling. He gasped when Jake squeezed his hip hard and the older male took the opportunity to slip his tongue in Riki’s mouth.

The younger boy released a hum as Jake pressed closer to him and he carded his hands through his hair while the Aussie explored his mouth with his tongue before biting his bottom lip and pulling away only to drop kisses onto his jawline and down onto his neck.

“H-hyung,” Riki gasped.

“That. Fucking. Haruto. Kid,” Jake huffed as he dropped kisses on Riki’s neck between every word.

“I already fucking hate him and then he has the audacity to touch what’s mine…what’s ours,” he ranted as he pressed more kisses to Riki’s neck and bit down on an area of skin probably hard enough to leave a mark but certainly not for long before he went up to kiss Riki’s lips again.

Riki felt shivers roll down his spine at seeing Jake so possessive and pissed off. Truthfully it was pretty hot and Riki almost wanted him to get like this more often because it fried his young and queer brain and made him feel like mush in Jake’s hold. Yet he also didn’t because he hated how Haruto got under his boyfriend’s skin.

“Mine,” Jake muttered against his lips, “You’re mine and you’re ours Riki.”

Usually possessiveness was not something Riki was very attracted to, yet in this instance, with these boys and right now with Jake, he loved it because in some ways he also felt the same. He wanted all of them to be his as long as they wanted him and he wanted to be theirs as long as they wanted him and no one should come between that. A little bit of possessiveness wasn’t too unhealthy.

“I’m yours,” Riki said before kissing Jake, “I’m all of yours.”

The pair exchanged a few more long kisses before pulling away, chests heaving and their lips shiny and slightly bruised.

Jake ran his finger over Riki’s plump and now slightly swollen lips as he looked his boyfriend in the eye.

“I’m sorry about that Riki. I just got really possessive just now… I didn’t like that asshole touching you.”

Riki gave him a small smile, “It’s okay hyung, I get it and it was pretty hot so honestly a win for me.”

Jake just laughed before pulling him in for a hug and holding him close as they savored the warmth and safety of being in each other’s embrace.

Riki put the last dish away, finally finishing cleaning up around his apartment after abandoning the place for a few days. He decided to return to it after school that day as he had spent the entire long weekend and the night prior at his boyfriends’ place yet he couldn’t help but shake the thought that their house felt a bit more like home than his apartment.

It felt weirdly empty without anyone else around.

Jake did ask Riki if he wanted to go back to the house with him but he declined despite how persuasive the Australian boy was. He declined the offer because he didn’t really want to constantly invade their space although Jake insisted that Riki didn’t and also felt he had some kind of responsibility to this apartment as his parents had purchased it for him and it held the memories of the last dinner they had together before they flew back to Japan.

When Riki was about to settle down for the night, he heard his phone ring from where he left it in the kitchen.

The teen hurried out from his bedroom to go and answer it and saw Eunchae’s contact on the screen when he grabbed it.

“Hey Chae-yah. What’s up?” he greeted as he walked back to his bedroom and answered the phone.

“Hi oppa, nothing’s really up we just haven’t gotten to talk much over the past few days and I missed my best friend,” she replied sincerely.

Riki smiled a bit to himself at that as he sat on his bed. He had been pretty busy the past few days with exploring his new found relationship for one, school for two and prepping his team for the upcoming dance competition.

“I’ve missed you too Chae. Sorry we haven’t talked much, the past few days have just been hectic.”

Eunchae chuckled, “You’re not wrong there.”

“How are the boyfriends?” she asked in a slightly teasing tone.

The older boy flushed a bit and was so glad that the girl could not see him, “They’re good- they’re great honestly. Our relationship kinda just feels like before just a little bit more intimate. It’s nice,” he said fondly.

Eunchae smiled at hearing how genuinely happy and content Riki sounded when talking about those six guys. She did think they were raging dumbasses before for not being straight-up with Riki but was beyond glad that they worked up the guts to confess and that they seemed to give a new light to Riki that he wasn’t there before.

“That’s great Ki. I’m really happy for you,” Eunchae told him.

“Thank you Chae-yah, in a way I owe it to you for knocking some sense into them,” Riki laughed.

The girl chuckled, “Yeah well honestly they owe it to me. You don’t owe me anything oppa, I’ll always help you out.”

There was a beat of silence between them before his best friend spoke up again.

“How’s dance competition preparation going?”

Riki sighed heavily because he wasn’t only worrying about the competition but the weird ominous vibe that Haruto had been giving off since his interaction with the guy at the mall.

“Honestly Chae, shit is weird. In terms of actual practice and the choreography things are fine and the team is picking up decently. It’s just… Haruto.”

“What the fuck did that dickhead do?” she asked coldly.

“He’s just been weird since after I found out that he’s apart of Treasure even though he doesn’t know that I know…hopefully,” he added on at the end.

“I saw him at the mall when I went to get Heeseung’s gift and I avoided him when I ducked into a store yet when I was leaving, he was right outside almost like he had been waiting on me so maybe he saw me, but it’s just really fucking weird,” Riki recounted.

“Then he mentioned the competition and reminded me it was coming up as if I didn’t already know or I wasn’t informed about it and there was something about how he said it which was really ominous, like he knew something I didn’t,” he explained.

“Weird…” Eunchae commented.

“It is right?” Riki asked, glad that it didn’t seem like he was just being suspicious and overthinking for nothing.

“I thought that maybe I was overthinking but I don’t fucking think I am. What if he’s planning something?” he voiced his concerns.

Eunchae made a noise of agreement, “It could be a possibility but why would he be so obvious about it? You’re not an idiot and neither is he, so what if he’s just baiting you or something?”

Riki mused over Eunchae’s words, he didn’t consider it a possibility that Haruto could be baiting him.

“Wait, but if he’s baiting me then wouldn’t he know that I know that he’s a Treasure member? Why else would he say that?” Riki said feeling anxiety bubbling in his chest.

What if Haruto knew? Did he already know, it would make sense that he did. Goddamnit why didn’t Riki think about this earlier.

“Fuck.” He muttered, “He might know Chae. God fucking damnit.” Riki swore in frustration.

“Minjun knows that the guys are close with me, Haruto and Minjun work together. Even though Minjun does not know that I’m aware that my boyfriends are Enhypen, it doesn’t mean he’s dumb. They could still see me as someone close to them and be trying to bait me in for leverage or something,” he ranted.

“Okay Riki, please calm down. Try and relax,” Eunchae soothed him.

“It is a lot but Minjun really has no clue that you know who the guys are. Even if he has a guess, he has not found proof of that first of all. But second of all, he knows what that life is like and even to your close friends outside of that, you don’t spill who you are. That isn’t how these gangs work. So I don’t think he does know and I don’t think Haruto does either. But what you need to do is be cautious and keep your guard up because you can’t trust that asshole,” she told him.

Eunchae’s words offered Riki a bit of reassurance, however he couldn’t get over the anxious thoughts that were gnawing at the back of his mind at the possibility of putting himself and everyone around him in danger if Haruto and Minjun figured him out.

“Yeah, okay you’re right. Thanks for that,” he told her before hearing the beeping from his phone indicating that he had an incoming call. He glanced at the screen only to see none other than Nakamoto’s name staring back at him and he felt dread build up in his chest.

“Chae, sorry but Nakamoto is calling me, I have to go,” he said seriously.

He could almost feel the girl’s mood completely change with his through the phone, “Yeah, go ahead. Bye Riki oppa.”

“Bye Chae-yah,” Riki said as he ended the call with Eunchae and answered Nakamoto.

“Hello,” he answered.

“Hi Riki-ssi,” Nakamoto greeted sounding strangely somber.

“What is it this time Jihoon-ssi?” Riki questioned the older man, cutting straight to the point.

“It’s something, it’s a development,” the elder man replied.

Riki felt the dread in his gut grow.

“I sent you footage from the night two days before the accident, as you said your parents didn’t leave the house for a week prior to their deaths,” the man explained.

“Where did the footage come from?” Riki asked, “What did it show?”

“It’s from some of the neighbours’ security cameras yet they were never investigated or someone just brushed over them but they showed something and it was something someone tried to hide as it was almost completely wiped but I had a contact who was able to get it,” Nakamoto explained.

“However, what it showed, it is better that you see for yourself.”

“Okay, I’ll watch it. Goodnight Jihoon-ssi,” he said.

“Goodnight Riki-ssi, please take care,” the man said kindly.

“I will Jihoon-ssi,” Riki agreed before hanging up on the man.

Riki felt his breath hitch in his throat as he grabbed his laptop from the foot of the bed and opened it to his email where staring right back at him was the email from the investigator with a video attachment.

The teenager shakily clicked on the video noticing that it was encrypted, which of course it would be considering what Nakamoto did on a daily basis and the video opened.

Riki watched with bated breath as it sped through a few seconds. It felt so strange to him seeing his house like this on such a rainy night, deep in the dead on night in a place that was so, so quiet, yet there was the disturbance. A figure in a black hoodie creeping in the shadows towards his home’s garage.

The video went on as there was a brief cut to a closer angled camera for a clearer view of the person. The individual pried the garage door up and opened it before slipping in. There was then a period of sped up footage and Riki watched as the time spanned from 2:29 a.m to 2:39 a.m when the person finally left, closing the garage door and readjusting the lock like they had never been there. Their face was completely obscured by the hood over their head and the darkness of the night.

Riki felt his blood boil… ten minutes. Ten minutes is all it took for that person to seal his parents fate. It was all it took for them to kill the people most important to him and he felt his heart sink to his stomach.

However he caught a glimpse of the keys the figure slipped into their pocket and almost moved on auto pilot as he stopped the video and zoomed in on the keys hanging on keyring with a silver keychain attached that seemed to be in the shape of a… wrench?

Riki had no clue why he was so fixated on the object yet he couldn’t help but examine it closely even in the poor quality of the video and the tears he hadn’t realized had slipped down his cheeks. Watching how this person was able to harm his parents so easily and so quickly made his heart feel like it was crushed in his chest.

The video was from two days before the accident, the last day Riki had video called them, the last day he saw their faces even though it had been on a screen and the last time he heard their voices and heard them say that they loved him.

It felt like someone wrapped a cord around Riki’s throat and was pulling it impossibly tighter even though he already couldn’t breathe.

Riki slammed his laptop shut and put it on his desk before shutting his bedside lamp off and plunging his room into darkness. He felt sick to his stomach as he allowed himself to cry and mourn his parents once again as his pillow absorbed the tears that cascaded down his cheeks.

He wished they were still here, that they had more time and that their life wasn’t ripped away from them so unfairly. Riki wanted them to still be alive and safe and sound in Japan with Konon and Sola and calling him making him promise to visit for Christmas. He wanted all of it all over again and yet he couldn’t have it and he saw the very person who took all of that away from him.

Riki cried through the night reminiscing all the memories of his parents and mourning the life that they lost which they more than deserved. But he couldn’t ignore the one question nagging at the back of his mind.

Why did that keychain seem so familiar?

Chapter Text

Silver wrench keychain. It replayed in his head. Its fuzzy pixelated image was all too clear and just seemed to stick in his head and Riki had no idea why. Why did it look so familiar? He kept trying to think that it could’ve been similar to something he saw on the street in passing but why would it stick with him like that. It was like it had imprinted itself into the forefront of his mind and made his skin crawl and his hands shake with anxiety.

Logically, Riki knows. He knows that it’s significant and it means something. It’s something he’s seen enough for it to engrain in his mind and create that ever haunting feeling of familiarity. It’s all he saw, it clouded his mind and his skin crawled as he felt so unsettled and it stuck with him and he felt sick because he didn’t know why.

He hated how paranoid he felt, how this was haunting him since the previous night and he knows that what he feels so impulsed to do is wrong and probably far from the best idea but it’s already tearing out of his throat and he can’t stop himself.

“Let me see your keys,” he told his boyfriends as they sat together in the library.

“What?” Heeseung asked perplexed.

“Just let me see them,” Riki said to the other six who were all giving him confused looks yet began reaching into their pockets before they placed their key rings on the table.

All of them looked confused and concerned as Riki just stared at their keys blankly, his face pale and eyes puffy and they all knew something was wrong since he arrived at school that morning and they had no idea why because he wouldn’t talk to them.

Riki stared at the six key rings in front of him on the table and analyzed them closely. All of them had their house keys and they differed in their individuality. Heeseung’s own consisting of the car keys and key chain in the shape of a fishing hook. Jay’s holding his bike keys and a keychain reading 'kiss the cook' which he knew was absolutely a gag gift from one of the other guys yet he couldn’t bring himself to laugh about it at the moment.

Jake’s held an Australian flag chain, Sunghoon’s an ice skate, Sunoo’s had a cute little sunshine charm and Jungwon’s a cat paw. But that was it. No silver wrench keychain, nothing even remotely similar. He shouldn’t have been surprised, he knew that deep down it wouldn’t be there but the anxiety and paranoia still gnawed at his stomach and he couldn’t help but feel the need to just know.

“Riki, what’s really going on here?” Jungwon questioned him, his tone gentle yet stern like he was demanding an actual answer.

Riki felt his skin crawl, his reasons were so selfish and so wrong. He felt almost ashamed to admit what it was but he couldn’t just keep it from them because they had an unspoken promise to be honest with each other in this relationship and he couldn’t hide it from them.

“Nakamoto called me last night,” the youngest boy began.

The boys’ faces all fell because they knew what Nakamoto brought, what he had brought into Riki’s life in the past few weeks and they knew it was never anything good and they all tensed in their seats.

“He told me that he found footage from two nights before my parents died and he sent it to me…” his breath hitched in his throat and he swallowed thickly to try and calm down.

The boys all looked on in concern and anticipation as they awaited what was going to come out of this conversation and they dreaded it because they needed to know what was affecting Riki so much.

“Someone broke into our garage that night. They were in there for ten minutes and then when they left I saw something in their hand.” he explained and he saw all of his boyfriends’ faces fall because they weren’t idiots and could tell where this was going and Jungwon’s jaw was tensed and his eyes were narrowed.

“It- it was a keychain with a silver wrench.”

Everyone is frozen in their seats and Riki feels so awful because he knows that they’re upset because he was so paranoid that he’s making his own boyfriends think that he doesn’t trust them.

“What the fuck?” Jungwon gritted out.

Riki looked up at him and he could see his eyes filled with absolute fury and he could see the hurt in them and he never felt more guilty about anything.

“Won-” Jay told him quietly.

“No Jongseong.” he snapped at the slightly older boy before turning back to face Riki.

“What the actual fuck Riki? What is wrong with you? You don’t trust us that much that you think that we had something to do with killing your parents?” he asked, voice laced with bitterness.

“What happened to trust?” Jungwon scoffed at him. Riki feels so ashamed and he can’t even bring himself to feel hurt that his boyfriend is so angry at him because it’s valid and he understands and hates how he let everything get to him and affect the people he cares about.

“We’ve talked about how we trust each other, Riki.” Jungwon continued, “We’ve talked about all of this and how we tell each other the truth and you think that we would hide something as big as this from you? How fucking dare you.” He spat as he got up from the table and stormed out of the library, Riki staring after him with his heart sunken into his stomach.

Riki looked down at the table feeling that telling sensation of tears wanting to fall from his eyes and he feels so horribly guilty and ashamed. He feared looking at his boyfriends because he thought that same hurt and furious gaze would meet him and he was so afraid to face it because he didn’t want them all to leave, not over something like this even if he might deserve it but it was the consequences of his own actions and he had to face it.

He looked up and he saw the hurt in their eyes but he also saw understanding and sympathy and his heart panged because he didn’t feel like he deserved it.

“I’m sorry,” he muttered, “I’m so so sorry, there’s no excuse for what I did.”

“I understand.” Heeseung told him after a beat of silence, “We all do.” Riki wanted to sob because his voice was so gentle and so sincere and he had no idea how they could still be so kind to him after what he accused them of.

Sunoo nodded and reached over to hold his hand and Riki desperately took it because he needed the reassurance that the touch brought, the reassurance that just told him that none of them hated him.

“You’re anxious Riki and you’re paranoid. We can see that and we get it. Sure we’re a little hurt but it’s okay. We understand.”

Riki swallows thickly because tears want to fall from his eyes again as his heart swells because he doesn’t know how he found people so understanding and forgiving who care about him so much.

“We’ve known something was up the entire morning.” Sunghoon told him gently, “We can see that you’re not okay and it’s alright Riki, we’re not angry or upset with you.”

Heeseung scoots his chair closer to Riki and wraps an arm around him and the Japanese boy can’t help but lean in and savor the touch as it filled him with a reminder that he was cared for and he had people who were there for him even if he fucked up sometimes and a tear slipped down his cheek because they understood so easily even when Riki didn’t know if he fully deserved it.

“We know that there’s a lot going on with you right now Ki and we know that you’re hurting. We understand that and we don’t blame you but please trust us. Like Sunghoon said that night, we would never hurt you and we don’t want to,” Jake reminded him sweetly.

“I hurt Jungwon-hyung though,” he said sadly as he bit down on his lip in shame.

“Yeah, you did.” Jay told him, “You hurt all of us undoubtedly but we know that it’s not because you wanted to and trust me when I say that Jungwon knows that too, he does. I think he’s just hurt because what you did makes us feel like you don’t trust us.”

“I do though,” Riki said quietly, like it’s the most honest thing he had ever said and they all know that he means it.

“I trust all of you… but I just let the paranoia and anxiety get the better of me and I’m sorry for that.”

“We know you’re sorry baby, we know and it’s okay. But you have to talk to Won as well, okay?” Heeseung told him as he pressed a sweet kiss to Riki’s hair.

“I know.”

After school, Riki found himself on a bus to the outskirts of the city. The guys had offered to wait for him after his photography club meeting but Riki insisted that they go home because he needed some time to clear his head and think about how he could properly apologize to Jungwon.

He had screwed up badly and he was well aware of that and really had to try his best to fix it. Riki regretted the whole thing from the moment those words impulsively left his mouth and almost wished he could take it back yet he also felt calmer because even though the keychain looked so horrifyingly familiar, it wasn’t with the people closest to him even if deep down he knew that before he even saw for himself.

The paranoia and anxiety had just been eating at him and Riki let it get in his way and he couldn’t regret it more because he trusted those boys in a way he had never trusted anyone and he cared for them so deeply. He knew that they wouldn’t hurt him and Riki was beyond remorseful that he forgot that.

He got to the last stop of the bus which was basically at the very end of the city only about a mile away on foot from the guy’s house and hopped out.

This path was well traveled to him by now, even if it wasn’t on foot. The orange and brown leaves crunched under his feet as the bare trees canopied over the road as the sun cast an orange glow all around. Walking like this was calming, it allowed him to think and it was good for him because he hadn’t really gotten to in a while.

Everything seemed to hit him like a truck ever since the Enhypen boys entered his life and he didn’t blame them, not in the slightest because he was grown and made his own decisions. His life had certainly become more exciting and far more dangerous but he had people. It’s like the universe decided to throw a whole lot of shit at him only after he gained a support system that could help him through.

Riki was grateful for all of it though because, truthfully, he didn't think he would’ve been able to handle it before even with Eunchae by his side.

When he lost his parents, the world just went mute. It became void and dark and far too hard to navigate living in a country so far away from home and the only family he had left. It was like he lost his light and the world became a grayscale that was too hard to differentiate.

But then he had Eunchae who stayed by his side through it all and kept him above the waves even when he felt like going under and never coming back up but even with her, he still fell under for several seconds too long at times.

Then the Enhypen boys came along. They protected him and showed him care and friendship and they joined with Eunchae to keep him afloat and now it didn’t feel like he was drowning as water pressed into his lungs and the waves beat him down. The waves were still there and they hit hard and disoriented him and made him feel sick and caused Riki’s head to spin.

But they were there.

Eunchae, Jungwon, Sunoo, Jay, Sunghoon, Jake and Heeseung.

All of them were there and they all kept him afloat and held him so tight and refused to let go and even went under the waves with him but they always brought him back up to the surface and allowed him too see the sun and relieved that pressure from everything else.

They colored in the blank canvas that was left and although they couldn’t completely light the path. They held Riki’s hands and came along on the journey with him so he could find the light on his own.

He arrived at the familiar gate and typed in the code 20201130. The guys told him that it was the day that the six of them got together with each other and Riki couldn’t help but find that really cute and touching. The gate swung open and he entered and it closed automatically behind him.

Riki didn’t feel as anxious as he walked towards the door. He just felt sorry, he was sorry that he hurt someone he cared about because he never had anyone like Jungwon in his life and Riki needed to remind him that he did trust him.

Riki rang the doorbell and patiently waited for one of his boyfriends. After a few moments, the door swung open to reveal Sunoo.

“Hey hyung,” he greeted.

“Hi Riki-yah,” Sunoo smiled at him kindly as he pulled the boy into a hug.

Riki melted into the contact, feeling so relaxed and like usual. He could tell the tension between them from earlier had actually bled away and the hug just felt so incredibly safe and sweet as he rested his head on top of Sunoo’s and the two just stood in the foyer, holding each other close. He breathed in deeply and all he could smell was Sunoo, his sweet scent reminiscent of a vanilla latte that always seemed to calm Riki whenever he smelt it.

Sunoo was cozy, like those little hole-in-wall cafes with a more homey feel and his smell was just an extension of that and it eased Riki to such an incredible extent.

After a few more moments, they pulled away and Sunoo reached up and brushed some stray hairs from Riki’s face.

“Jungwon’s in the gym. I’m sure you remember where it is,” Sunoo told him sweetly.

Riki really adores how Sunoo is able to read him so easily sometimes and he squeezes the shorter boy’s hand before he leans down and presses a peck to his lips.

“Thanks hyung,” Riki said quietly before slowly walking away and going past the stairs to where the gym was.

He knew it was right in the back of the house, the windows in there allowing you to see out into the quiet woods and giving the room a peaceful feel with the natural lighting. Riki opened the door to the large room and was greeted by the sight of Jungwon practicing taekwondo moves with a few punching bags on the main large mat in the room.

Jungwon was glistening a bit in the light of the room from sweat and Riki couldn’t help but ogle his boyfriend’s biceps a bit due to the sleeveless shirt he was wearing. Truthfully it should be unfair for someone to look that good while working out but he quickly regained focus as to why he was here and called out to the boy.

“Jungwon-hyung?”

The older boy stopped what he was doing and swiveled around to see Riki standing right at the edge of the mat and his eyes softened.

“Hey Riki,” he greeted.

Riki slipped his shoes off and walked onto the mat to get closer to the other male.

“Hi hyung.”

There were a few beats of silence as they both stood there and stared at each other. Admittedly it felt awkward and Riki never wanted that to be a feeling he had around his boyfriends but he knew that it was his fault and he was there for a reason.

“I’m sorry,” Riki apologized.

“I’m really sorry Jungwon. I’ve just been so anxious over the past few weeks and what Nakamoto sent me just stuck in my mind and it made me paranoid,” Riki said, his voice hardly above a whisper.

“It’s not an excuse, what I did in the library was just an impulsive decision because that keychain I saw was just eating away at me since last night because it was so familiar and that scared me.”

Riki drew in a shaky breath and stepped closer to Jungwon as he stared right into those cat like eyes that drew his interest to the boy weeks ago and the fact that they looked so calm and gentle even though he could still see the hurt behind them from his actions just touched Riki deeply because Jungwon was always someone who just cared for him so much.

“I trust you Jungwon,” he said honestly because it was the truth and it had been the truth ever since these guys proved that they cared about him and made themselves a special place in his heart.

“I trust all of you so much, way more than I’ve ever trusted a lot of people because you all care about me so much and made it easy for me to be honest with you and you gave me honesty in return.. even if it did take a while.” Riki added with a small laugh.

Jungwon cracked a smile at that and his adorable dimple showed as he breathed out a short laugh.

“But I do trust you, I trust all of you and I’m so sorry that I hurt you by making you think that I didn’t. I let my paranoia and anxiety get the better of me and I’m beyond sorry for that because I never want to hurt any of you. I care about you too much to do that.”

Jungwon stepped forward and took Riki’s hands in his and gave them a squeeze.

“I forgive you Riki-yah,” he said gently.

“I knew something was bothering you this morning. You just seemed so on edge and I was really worried but I thought you would talk to us.” Jungwon told him, “I really wish you talked to us Riki-yah and yes you did hurt me but I understand.”

Jungwon looked at Riki with the most gentle eyes full of forgiveness and care and Riki thought he melted inside a little bit.

“You’ve really had a rough time for a while so I understand you getting anxious, but please… always remember that I would never hurt you. We would never hurt you. You mean so much to all of us and relationships are built and run on trust. We have to have faith in each other to be honest.”

Riki always marveled at how Jungwon seemed to know exactly what to say when he needed to and how he carried a wisdom beyond his years. Jungwon was so deliberate and knowledgable in everything he said and did and the younger couldn’t help but admire it an extreme amount.

“You’re right hyung. I’m sorry that I made all of you think that I don’t have faith in you. I really do. You guys have been the best thing in my life in a while and you’ve been nothing short of amazing to me. I trust you and I’m so grateful to all of you for caring about me,” Riki said to him gently.

“We all trust you too Riki and we would be fools to not care about someone so incredible,” Jungwon told him before he wrapped his strong arms around Riki’s waist and leaned up to kiss the taller boy.

The two slotted together so perfectly as their lips moved together with ease. The sensation felt brand new yet so familiar as they press closer to one another and Riki is surprised when Jungwon pushed against him further and they stumbled backward and Riki’s back hit the mat.

Jungwon hovered over him and they both stared at each other and let out surprised and amused laughs before Jungwon leaned back down and pressed his lips against Riki’s, threading their fingers together with one hand as he dragged their hands up and pressed them down beside the younger boy’s head while the other rubbed circles on Riki’s waist.

Riki felt himself melt into the kiss as Jungwon took the lead and they kissed each other slowly and gently and poured all their feelings into their actions as he carded his free hand through the older boy’s hair.

All Riki thought about was how it felt so comfortable and so wonderful at the moment. Everything else seemed to melt away as all he could feel, hear and smell was Jungwon and how he wished he could freeze this moment and keep the feelings of safety and warmth and something else within him all the time. Riki could only think about how happy he was to have someone in his life like Jungwon, someone who understands so easily and will always remind him that he’s cared for.

As they share slow and gentle kisses, all Riki can think about is how lucky he was to have something so beautiful.

Chapter Text

The door to the gym swung open and Riki and Jungwon separated, the older boy pushed up on his forearms and turned to see who had entered and the guest was beyond unexpected.

“Oh, hello son,” the man greeted Riki’s boyfriend.

Riki felt his face go red, this was Jungwon’s dad and he just caught him making out with his son. What the fuck was his life?

Jungwon stood up and extended a hand to pull Riki up as the Japanese boy sheepishly bowed at the new guest.

“Hello sir,” he greeted.

The man gave him a friendly smile and waved, “Hi. Won-ah, who is this if you don’t mind me asking?”

Riki felt even more embarrassed now because Jungwon’s dad didn’t even know him as one of his son’s boyfriends and probably thought he was just some random guy that his son was screwing around with. This is not how he wanted his Wednesday to go.

“Appa, this is Riki. He’s our new boyfriend,” Jungwon smiled as he wrapped an arm around the boy.

“Nice to meet you sir,” Riki said with a shy smile.

Mr. Yang gave Jungwon a knowing look as a small smile tugged at his lips, “So five wasn’t enough Won?” he asked with a humorous tone which made Riki feel slightly more at ease as the man was quite calm and kind.

He laughed a bit before continuing, “I’m joking, obviously. I’m Junwoo. It’s nice to meet you Riki-ah, I hope you’re taking good care of my son and those other boys.”

“Well, they’ve really been the ones taking care of me,” Riki told the man as he gave Jungwon a soft smile.

There was a beat of silence before Mr. Yang spoke again.

“There’s something we need to discuss Jungwon,” he said in a serious tone as he discreetly side-eyed Riki.

“He knows, dad,” Jungwon spoke, noticing the man’s look.

Mr. Yang looked taken aback and his face fell a bit as he stepped forward and pulled Jungwon closer to him.

“Jungwon, you do not just go and expose your status like that,” he reprimanded in a hushed tone while Riki stood there awkwardly witnessing the interaction and feeling somewhat guilty as he didn’t want to get Jungwon in trouble.

“Dad, we can trust him. You’ve always had faith in my judgment so trust me on this. Riki’s a great guy and Minjun attacked him for God’s sake, he’s gotten wrapped up in all of this already and we’d rather he knows so we can protect him instead of leaving him in the dark,” the boy countered.

Jungwon’s father gave him a look as he pursed his lips before looking over at Riki and seeming to relent because he knew his son was right.

“Fine, well both of you come along then. There’s something we need to talk about.”

His tone was eerily serious and created a weird tension within the air as Jungwon took Riki’s hand and pulled him along as they followed the older man out of the gym and through the house to the meeting room where all of his other boyfriend’s and two other adults who were clearly parents were waiting.

The two other parents in the room immediately tensed and bore daggers into his soul upon seeing him but Riki kept his head held high and respectfully bowed and greeted them when he entered.

“Hello, I’m Nishimura Riki,” he introduced himself.

The adults in the room froze before a woman who looked a lot like Jay piped up.

“Nishimura Riki? As in the son of the Nishimura’s who died back in June?” she asked in surprise.

Riki nodded, “Yes, that’s me.”

“So you’re the one Nakamoto has been in contact with regarding the case,” a man who had Sunghoon’s same sharp nose spoke up.

“Yes, I am,” Riki answered.

“Huh.” Jungwon’s dad said simply before leaving the conversation at that.

Riki’s brow furrowed, their reactions to him were quite strange and he didn’t understand them entirely. Did they all know something about his parents and if they did, why weren’t they saying anything? But then all the adults looked perplexed still and as he glanced around at his boyfriends, their expressions weren’t any better. All Riki had now was more questions on top of the ones he already had regarding his parents.

“So, I’m assuming for you to let him in here he has to know what’s up Yang,” the woman said as she addressed Jungwon’s father.

“He does,” Mr. Yang nodded, “Riki’s also their new boyfriend that they never told us about,” he added as he smirked around at the boys who all blushed while the two other adults glanced at them in surprise.

Jay brought a hand up and rubbed at the back of his neck, “That’s my bad eomma. We did plan on telling you guys obviously, we just weren’t sure when since you’ve all been so busy.”

Ah, so the woman was Jay’s mother, Riki’s hunch was correct.

“It’s alright boys, we understand that we’ve been pretty off the grid lately but always let us know these things,” the other man winked at them before turning to address Riki solely.

“Nice to meet you son, I’m Sunghoon’s dad, Seojoon,” he finally introduced himself with a polite smile.

“Nice to meet you too Seojoon-ssi,” Riki returned the man’s smile.

“And I’m Jiyoon,” Jay’s mother informed him.

Riki gave a slight head bow in respect before Junwoo clapped his hands to get down to business.

“There’s been some developments and some things that we need you boys to handle,” Junwoo spoke in a no-nonsense tone.

“What is it uncle?” Heeseung asked, his jaw set with tension and his eyes narrowed.

He looked deadly serious, all of the guys did and Riki felt a shiver run down his spine because despite how loving and kind his boyfriends have always been and how carefree they seemed around him sometimes, this was their life. It was their reality and he had become a part of it too although he didn’t regret it, not when he was by these guys’ side.

Jiyoon continued, “Treasure has been causing you guys serious trouble. They’re encroaching on your territory and pushing drugs in the neighborhoods. So far there’s been ten deaths across the city in the past 2 weeks alone that I’ve found out about that have been covered up but we’re certain that there are more.”

“Samples can’t exactly say what these drugs are laced with but that’s what we need to find out as well as who is supplying them and whoever is in the departments covering up these ten related cases. We need to know their contacts and who they’re working with.”

Riki looked around at his boyfriends’ whose jaws were all set with tension while there was a fire in their eyes. They’d told him some things about their life before but of course he still doesn’t necessarily know how these things work.

“We have reason to suspect that Bo Han-Gyeong might be involved with them but we have no solid evidence.”

“Bo Han-Gyeong?” Riki piped up, “As in the mayor elect?”

Everyone in the room shot him surprised looks.

“What?” Riki asked, feeling weird from all the eyes on him, “Just because I’m a teenager doesn’t mean I’m completely oblivious to what’s going on in the world.”

Sunoo shot him a small, amused smile from across the table and everyone else refocused as Seojoon spoke.

“Well you’re correct Riki-yah, that’s exactly who we’re talking about.”

“Treasure keeps most of their files encrypted across laptops in privately owned buildings. We’ve tried to get Nakamoto in to try and find anything but it’s come up empty on his side but he did find something.”

“None other than Minjun. Nakamoto has reason to suspect that he has the files encrypted on his personal computer at the Lotus Hotel.”

“The Lotus Hotel?” Jake piped up, “You mean the one where he throws all of his 'exclusive' parties.”

From Jake’s tone and the way the guys looked mildly unsettled, Riki thought that he had a decent idea of what really went on at those parties and the thought made his blood crawl under his skin.

“That’s the one Jaeyun-ah,” Jiyoon affirmed.

“So you want us to get in there and grab that information somehow?” Jungwon asked, sounding beyond skeptical.

“They know our faces and the security at those things is extremely tight. We can’t just walk in the front door. Hell, we’d be lucky to even manage to break in,” he continued with a scoff.

“There is another option.” Seojoon spoke, “You know how he likes his 'special' guests.”

Riki felt a shiver run down his spine at the mention of the word 'guests'. He wasn’t an idiot and he also had a pretty good idea of what that meant and the thought disgusted him beyond words.

Sunoo huffed, “Even with a disguise like that. how the fuck are we going to get in there? They’re not dumb.”

There was silence in the room for several moments before Junwoo spoke again as he shared a glance with the other two adults.

“Well that’s it. You guys can’t go but… Minjun does like his guests on the younger side.”

Riki looked up, only to see Junwoo staring directly at him and his blood ran cold. He couldn’t be implying what he thought he was right? He was about to open his mouth to say something but-

“Absolutely the fuck not!” Sunoo barked at them.

“You have to have lost your goddamn minds.” Heeseung spat at the parents' completely foregoing respect because of the absolutely insane idea they were insinuating.

“Appa, aunty, uncle, with all due respect, if you really think we’re going to go through with this you must be either stupid or insane and I’m not sure which is worse,” Sunghoon told them.

“Boys, I know you don’t like the idea but it might be the only viable one we have. We have nobody young enough or someone Minjun does not know to go through with it,” Junwoo said.

Riki stood there quietly as the parents and his boyfriends argued back and forth. He hated the idea, he absolutely did. He didn’t want to admit it but he was afraid of Minjun ; the guy had already attacked him once just because he knew the Enhypen guys. Riki wasn’t sure whether or not Minjun was aware to what extent the knowledge of what he and the guys did that Riki had but he knew the guy was bad news and clearly wouldn’t hesitate to hurt him.

But he could tell this was also important. There was a lot at stake here and so many innocent people were dying because of greedy, corrupt assholes and that just didn’t sit right with him. Riki’s parents had always been charitable people and they always taught him to help those who needed it. They always guided him to help those who couldn’t help themselves and he knew that was the deeper mission here.

It was to help those people who needed it because people with a god complex thought they were so far above them and didn’t care about hurting them to get what they wanted.

Riki felt his skin crawl as his heart raced. He didn’t like the idea, he truly didn’t particularly want to but he couldn’t really help but want to do it, especially if it would help out those he cared about because he knew that all of this put the people who grew to care about so much in danger too and he couldn’t help but feel the need to protect them.

“I’ll do it,” he piped up.

Everyone went silent and all of his boyfriends turned to stare at him in disbelief.

“No, Ki,” Jake told him bluntly, “Absolutely not, it’s way too dangerous.”

“We’re not letting you do this, baby,” Jay said.

Riki sighed, he was more than aware that they were right about the dangers and he was probably not nearly as ready to face this as he just volunteered almost impulsively but he knew that he wanted to do that ; he’s always been a person who wanted to help and if he could do some good even if it put him in danger, maybe he wanted to take the risk.

“I know that this is dangerous but can all of you really risk not having this information?” Riki questioned the other boys who all sighed exasperatedly but that combined with their reluctant expressions let Riki know that he had hit the nail right on the head.

“We’ll let you guys talk about this because this is still your gang and your call but please keep everything in mind,” Jiyoon told them as everyone stepped back out into the foyer.

“We’ll think about it,” Heeseung said simply as the boys all bid the adults brief goodbyes and the front door slammed shut.

“I don’t fucking like it, I don’t like this at all,” Sunoo said as he paced back and forth through the living room.

“None of us do Sun,” Jay reminded him gently from where he was seated on the couch on the other side of Riki.

“Both options absolutely suck.” Jake huffed, “It’s either we put so many innocent people in danger by not going after that intel or we put Riki in danger by sending him into that party.”

“But not helping those people goes against everything you guys stand for,” Riki piped up.

“This is what you guys do, you help people who can’t help themselves and as much as I hate the idea myself, you can’t just throw that away.”

All of the Enhypen boys looked beyond conflicted at Riki’s words. They were in this business for a reason, for their morals and for reasons that dated back to when their parents first did this. They always did it to give back and didn’t allow themselves to be blinded by selfishness. But right now they couldn’t help but want to be selfish. Riki was theirs, their boyfriend, their youngest, their baby and he had already been through so much and putting him close to Minjun was something none of them wanted to do, especially after what happened last time.

Riki ran a hand through his hair as a tense silence hung in the room until Jungwon spoke up.

“None of us like the idea and none of us have to but going against everything that we stand for, that we built Enhypen on, it just seems like we’re turning out backs on all those innocent people who need us.”

Riki couldn’t agree more, that’s exactly the message he was trying to get across to his boyfriends even if he knew this mission they were debating sending him on was extremely risky. Riki wanted to do it, he wanted to help people and he didn’t want his boyfriends to turn away from them just for him as touching as it was.

“Jungwon’s right,” the eldest agreed after a minute.

“Jungwon and Riki are right.” he continued, “This is big and if we can find out how to stop Treasure from trying to burn this city down from the inside out, I want us to try.”

Jake bit down on his lip anxiously before he spoke, “Yeah, you guys are right.”

“I still hate this entire thing,” Sunoo said in a clipped tone, “but this is what we do.”

Everyone looked at Sunghoon and Jay who were sitting on either side of Riki and awaiting their responses as those two had truly been the most vocal about their disagreement from the beginning and were two of the most stubborn people in this relationship.

“Fine.” Sunghoon said reluctantly, “I’m with Sunoo-yah on hating this entire thing but I agree with everything you guys said.”

He gave Riki a hesitant smile as he scooted closer and wrapped an arm around the youngest boy and Riki quickly snuggled into his hyung’s side to provide a bit of comfort as he knew he hated the situation.

“Let’s do it,” Jay nodded.

“Okay.” Jungwon said, “Then we’re all in.”

Riki reached over and clasped Jay’s hand as he could still see the hesitance in his boyfriend’s eyes and wanted to try and ease his worries if only by a little bit.

“So, what do I need to know?” Riki asked.

Jake went over to one of the shelves in the living room and dug through it a bit before bringing out a long, folded up sheet of paper.

“Over the years, we’ve gotten blue prints and maps of certain places of interest where Treasure operates,” he explained as he laid out a blue print and a smaller map that took up the entire coffee table and he grabbed a pencil.

Riki leaned forward a bit with Jay and Sunghoon still very much attached to him to get a good look at the map and was able to recognize places like his neighborhood and a few familiar streets further into the central city.

Jake traced along the map to a neighborhood further to the outskirts of the city, looking to be South-East of the house.

“Here.” he said as he landed on a certain spot and circled it, “That’s where the Lotus Hotel is.”

He turned his attention back to the blue print of the building and everyone stared at it intently.

“It’s a sketchy place to say the least. It basically looks like a cheap run-down hotel with an exterior straight out of the fifty’s but the inside is different. We’ve gotten intel that Minjun throws parties in there for Treasure’s guys to sell their drugs and for his fun.”

Riki felt himself tense at the last word out of Jake’s mouth, as he understood the underlying meaning of that and it made his stomach turn uncomfortably.

“And he likes underage people… like me,” Riki added on as his jaw clenched.

Sunghoon squeezed his shoulder gently while Jay rubbed circles over his hand with his thumb. From the beginning, Riki always knew there was something predatory about the man, but he had prayed that he wasn’t necessarily right but now he knew that he was.

“Yeah,” Jungwon gritted out, “he does.”

“Fucking creep,” Heeseung muttered under his breath.

“Minjun basically lives in that hotel in the presidential suite on the top floor. Sometimes, he invites special guests up with him,” Sunghoon explained.

Riki tensed and his face paled in horror, “Please don’t fucking say-”

“No! No!” Sunoo quickly cut him off, “Absolutely not Ki, if you needed to do that we never would’ve even thought about doing this.”

“We would never put you in a situation like that baby, never. We promise,” Jay assured him as he pressed a kiss to his temple.

Riki felt himself relax a bit at his boyfriends’ reassurances and allowed them to continue.

“You will probably have to dress on the skimpier side though. Nothing crazy but that’s just how these parties are. They’re gross to say the least,” Sunoo explained.

Riki didn’t really like the idea of that either but he would have to be able to blend in for the sake of the mission. He knew they wouldn’t ever put him in something that he was horribly uncomfortable either so Riki decided to not dwell on that piece of information as much.

“He has an office on the floor below but it needs a keycard and Minjun is the only person with it,” Jake explained.

“Would he have it on himself during the party?” Riki questioned.

“Hard to say.” Sunghoon answered as he looked to be deep in thought.

“He’s arrogant and he’s rash but he’s not exactly a fool. But he doesn’t know we’re coming so we have the element of surprise and we have Riki. He’ll be hesitant around you, maybe even suspicious but he doesn’t know what you do and don’t know. Grossly enough, you’re his type.”

Sunghoon’s words took Riki back to his first interaction with the man all those weeks ago and how Minjun had been eyeing him up that night like he was some kind of prey. Unfortunately, he would have to agree with Sunghoon on that unsettling statement remembering how Minjun’s gaze seemed to burn under his skin.

Everyone else also seemed to grow impossibly more tense in anger as their stares grew colder before they reluctantly continued the discussion.

Jay sighed, “Hoon’s right, unfortunately. But Minjun is a guy who lets his guard down at these parties ; he drinks a lot and he smokes a lot and when a good-looking someone with a lot of charm is thrown into that he gets hazy and most importantly-”

“He’ll get sloppy.” Riki finished.

The other guys all shot him proud looks and small smiles.

“Our baby is quite the genius,” Sunoo said with a smirk on his face.

“What can I say? I’m not only my looks and talents after all,” Riki told him with a sly smile.

The slightly lighthearted comments eased the tension in the room for a moment and they all seemed a bit less tense as the conversation went on.

“I’ll have to be quick though.” Riki surmised, “I can’t just run my hands over all of his pockets to check for the card because he’ll surely notice.”

“Speaking, like a true expert, aren't you, little one?” Sunghoon smirked at him.

“I’ve watched a lot of heist movies,” the youngest shrugged, making everyone chuckle a bit.

“But yes.” Heeseung nodded, “Speed will be key in this whole thing. You get in, get the intel and you get the fuck out. We don’t want you there for any longer than you have to be.”

Riki nodded in understanding, “Okay. Now when is this party?”

“Friday, so we have basically tonight and tomorrow to plan this out properly,” Sunoo answered.

“Sunghoon is essentially our tech expert along with Jake. They’ll be in contact with you the entire time and anything on that computer they will be able to crack remotely,” Jungwon said.

“Jay and Heeseung, you guys are our muscle and getaway drivers in the off chance that anything goes wrong, you go in there, you get Riki and get the fuck out,” he continued authoritatively.

“Make sure the other car is up and running, we can’t have you guys going around there in our actual vehicle in case someone sees you.”

“Where should we post up?” Heeseung questioned.

Jungwon turned to Jake who understood immediately and looked through the map before circling a point that should be located some blocks away from the hotel where the car would be out of sight.

“Here, on the corner of Itaewon Lane and East Gangnam Boulevard.” he answered as he circled the point, “It should be right beside an old, shut-down pharmacy.”

Everyone mentioned so far in the plan nodded in understanding but Riki couldn’t help the sense of anxiety in his stomach. Obviously he had no clue what he was necessarily in for by doing this, but he’s never been anything if not selfless and he wanted to do this, both for the innocent people in Seoul who didn’t deserve to be targeted by corrupt assholes and for his boyfriends because intel could be an advantage for them and it could be one that kept them safe.

For them, Riki was willing to take the risk ; even if it terrified him.

Chapter Text

Riki drew in a shaky breath as he stared at himself in the mirror of Sunoo’s bedroom. He couldn’t believe that he was actually going to go through with this. The entire idea of having to face Minjun sent a sense of dread through his body and he couldn’t wait to get this whole mission over with.

Sunoo was certainly right about him having to dress on the skimpier side but his boyfriend still found something that wasn’t too outlandish. It in fact closely resembled his outfit from his dance club presentation a few weeks ago. However the shirt was in fact a white button up cropped shirt that exposed the skin of his torso and the top few buttons were undone so the black choker on his neck and a peek of his collarbones were on display.

Sunoo paired it with some black leather pants with a chain around the waist and a pair of combat boots. Riki couldn’t deny it, he liked the outfit and he had experimented with wearing crop tops before but he had never wore one in public. He would adore wearing this if it was just for a date with his boyfriends but not for a mission of espionage to try and steal data from an absolute creep’s computer.

A knock on the door drew him out of his thoughts and he called for whoever it was to come in.

“Hey Ki- oh… wow,” Sunoo gaped as soon as he laid his eyes on the taller boy.

Riki felt himself flush at Sunoo’s wide eyes and slightly agape mouth as his boyfriend looked him up and down seeming to shamelessly check him out.

“Hyung- stop staring will you?” Riki asked bashfully.

Sunoo shook his head slightly as he walked closer and turned Riki to face him.

“Sorry baby but just : wow. You look really good,” Sunoo complimented.

“Thank you hyung,” Riki smiled shyly.

Sunoo’s face darkened a bit as he took Riki’s hands in his own, “I hate the reason that you’re wearing this for but you do look really good. How do you feel?”

Riki gulped as he squeezed the older boy’s slightly more callused yet comfortingly warm hands.

“Nervous, like really fucking nervous,” the younger admitted.

Sunoo wrapped his arms around Riki’s neck and pulled him down for a hug while the taller boy slung his arms around Sunoo’s back and held him close as he basked in that scent that always seemed to bring him comfort nowadays.

“You’re gonna be okay Riki-yah,” he whispered against his neck.

“You’re smart and you’re quick, you’re gonna be alright and if anything goes wrong, Heeseung-hyung and Jay will come running to help you. They’ll always protect you… we’ll always protect you.”

He pulled back as he cupped Riki’s face in his hands and stared him straight in the eyes with his own eyes filled with nothing but warmth and honestly and Riki wished he could stay enraptured in them forever.

“You have my word.”

Riki and Sunoo headed down the stairs together to see all their other boyfriends gathered in the foyer. Everyone had looks on their faces similar to the one on Sunoo’s earlier and Riki couldn’t help but blush under their gazes.

“Looking good babe,” Heeseung complimented with a small smirk when the two finally reached the ground floor.

“You look really pretty Riki-yah,” Jungwon said.

“Thanks hyungs,” Riki told him shyly.

“You should wear this around us again on less, you know weird circumstances,” Jay smirked as he shamelessly checked Riki out.

Riki felt a little more at ease from the sincere compliments from his boyfriends and decided to store that at the back of his mind to remember to wear this outfit or something similar under more normal circumstances, like maybe a picnic at a park during spring on a quiet day or maybe even on the beach. It’s been a long time since Riki’s gone to the sea.

Jake and Sunghoon walked over to him and extended their hands. Jake was holding what looked like a thick conch earring and Sunghoon holding a flash drive.

“What are those for?” Riki asked curiously.

“The earring is in fact an earpiece, we needed something discreet so we managed to work all the hardware needed into this little piece of jewelry,” Jake said proudly as he hooked it onto Riki’s ear.

“We’ll be in touch with you the entire time so we’ll hear what you hear and you’ll hear us.”

Sunghoon held up the flash drive, “This is for you to download the intel you find on. It’s got plenty of storage so you can get as many files as you need.”

“You won’t have to be in there any longer than you have to be Ki,” Jungwon told him softly.

“We’ll be only a few blocks away if you need anything,” Jay added.

Riki nodded, “Okay, let’s do this.”

Sunghoon, Jake, Sunoo and Jungwon were staying behind at the house while the oldest two went along with Riki. The other four gave Heeseung and Jay kisses and hugs and told them to take care of Riki before the four of them engulfed the youngest in a hug.

“Don’t do anything dumb okay?” Sunoo said to him sweetly before giving him a quick peck.

“Be safe Riki-san,” Jake whispered to him before giving him a gentle kiss.

“Remember, just be safe and quick okay?” Jungwon reminded him before also giving him a kiss.

Sunghoon was last and engulfed Riki in a warm and tight embrace as he looked straight into the youngest boy’s eyes.

“Come back to us safe Riki,” he whispered, sounding almost desperate as he squeezed the youngest almost impossibly tighter.

“I will Hoon, I promise.”

The ride back into the city was tense and Riki’s anxiety grew even more with every meter they traveled and every building they passed. His stomach was in knots and his hands were obviously shaking even as Jay held one in his own while Heeseung drove.

Eventually they reached the part of the city home to the Lotus Hotel and it was sketchy to say the least. There were only a few scattered street lights that illuminated the area as they rolled up in front of the abandoned pharmacy that looked like it had in fact been burned. The sign was illegible as it hung off its hinges and the windows were covered in grime.

The streets were strangely empty as a faint yellow glow from the distant lights that actually worked illuminated them and the alleyways looked almost like stepping into a void. As they rolled to a stop he could distantly hear music from the hotel in the distance even if it was still out of sight.

Heeseung put the car in park and put in his own earpiece while Jay reluctantly released Riki’s hand to do the same before they both turned to face the boy in the backseat.

“We’ll be hearing you the whole time as well Riki-yah and we’re only a few blocks away if you need us,” Jay told him.

Riki nodded as he adjusted his earring in his ear and made sure that it was on. He hated this entire mission, but when he looked at Jay and Heeseung, he remembered why he was doing it in the first place. So he took in a few deep breaths and rolled his shoulders out in the way he did to release tension and anxiety in the way he did before a performance.

“You okay baby?” Heeseung questioned as he stared at him with those soft, Bambi eyes.

“I’m nervous and I don’t think I could ever necessarily be ready for this but I’m gonna do it,” Riki replied.

“You don’t have to sweetheart.” Jay reminded him in that particular honey-soft voice that never failed to make Riki feel safe and at home, “You absolutely do not have to do this.”

Riki leaned forward and kissed Jay lightly on the cheek, “I know, but I want to. It’s for a good reason after all.”

Jay stared at him briefly before he pulled Riki forward by the nape of his neck and kissed him deeply and passionately which Riki melted into as Jay massaged his thumb over his cheekbone.

“You come back to us okay?” Jay said when they pulled away, it almost sounded like a question but Riki knew that it was truly a demand as the older boy stared at him with eyes full of adoration and desperation.

Riki nodded, “I will.”

Heeseung then reached over and pulled Riki into a shorter and more gentle kiss as he held the youngest boy’s chin.

“We’ll see you soon,” he smiled.

Riki gave them both one last short peck before getting out of the car. The ground underneath his feet was almost vibrating from the loud music in the distance even though the sound wasn’t clear to him yet. He gave his boyfriends one last look before he continued down the street, finally turning a corner that left the car out of sight before walking a bit more and turning right which set him right in front of the Lotus Hotel.

The place was almost exactly like Jake described, an old run down exterior which looked to be in desperate need of a face lift. There was mold on some of the pipes visible on the side of the building and the fire escapes looked terribly rusted as the peachy-colored paint on the walls peeled off. There was a sign on the top which was switched off with the lotus flower above the hotel name and Riki could see many people outside hanging around by their cars, smoking, drinking and a couple that really needed to get a room.

He hid a grimace as he turned away from them. The music was a lot clearer now and he could faintly see a pink glow from the doors and windows on the ground floor more than likely from the lights inside.

Anxiety and dread filled his stomach but Riki had a job to do and he was going to pull it off. If there was one thing Riki was good at, it was performing. He’d grown used to it from a young age and dancing and performing in front of crowds for years built up his confidence.

Even though he didn’t necessarily feel all that confident at the moment, he remembered that when he was performing, no one noticed how anxious he was on the inside, they just saw the confidence he held on the outside and that’s what he needed to do now. Riki had to perform.

He held his head high and straightened up as he walked with a little sass in his step to add to the illusion of confidence. He noticed some of the looks he got as he went up to the front door from people who were standing around up front and walked straight up to the two bouncers up front who were shamelessly looking him up and down.

“Goodnight boys,” he told them simply.

“Goodnight to you too,” one told him in a slightly sultry tone as they held the door open for him.

Riki walked past the two men and into the hotel lobby where the party was taking place.

“Woah,” he muttered under his breath as he looked around.

The place was lit up with pink and purple disco lights. There were people jam packed in every corner and the smell of smoke, weed and alcohol hung in the air as sweaty bodies pressed up against each other. There were scantily dressed people who looked as young as him which made his stomach roll in disgust as he saw how grown men and women alike approached and flirted with them.

Riki couldn’t help the pang of sympathy for all of them in his chest.

He took a look around but saw no sign of Minjun so he decided there was no other way to find him than walking around the party. Riki decided to do his best to blend in and walked over to the bar but saw no sign of Minjun there either.

Just as he was about to move off to look around again, a hand was around his back and he turned around to see a Korean man. He was short, closer to about 5’6 with blue hair with some streaks of what seemed to be purple in it, staring at him with a look that Riki didn’t like one bit.

He could smell the alcohol from the guy and it burned the very hairs in his nostrils but Riki tried his best to keep composed.

“Hey there pretty baby.” the man greeted, slightly slurred, “What are you doing here all alone?”

Riki could’ve sworn he faintly heard one of his boyfriends audibly growling in his earpiece but quickly decided to turn on the charm to see if it could get him anywhere. The guy was drunk out of his mind that was for sure, but he had an air of importance to him, like he was in charge of something, maybe he could help him find Minjun.

“You know, I’m just trying to enjoy myself, possibly waiting for a sweet guy to hang around with,” he said in a slightly flirtatious tone as he batted his eyes at the other male.

“Well, I could certainly do that for you.” the guy winked, “I’m Hyunsuk, let me buy you a drink baby.”

Riki heard Sunghoon and Jake simultaneously swear in his ear piece and was beyond thankful that both the noise suppression and the loud music from the party covered his ass or else he would’ve been worried that Hyunsuk heard them.

He couldn’t help but feel anxious at the idea of this stranger buying him a drink as he didn’t trust the man as far as he could throw him and Sunghoon and Jake worriedly swearing in his ear set his suspicions off. But he needed to blend in enough and avoid arousing suspicion from Hyunsuk and he remembered some advice from his sister involving drinks at parties.

“I’ll take a vodka with ice,” he told the man.

Riki recalled his sister telling him that having drinks straight with ice was way better than having mixed drinks as those were the ones that got you drunk fast. Hyunsuk called over the bartender and Riki watched intently as the man made his drink to ensure nothing sketchy happened.

He grabbed the cup and took a sip, ignoring the mild burn he got even though he did note mentally that he would have to tell Konon that vodka truly wasn’t that bad. It was decent, but he had to remain focused and he decided to turn on the charm as he spoke to Hyunsuk.

“So, who’s hosting this party?” he asked the man as he leaned against the bar.

“You don’t know?” Hyunsuk asked him, though his voice wasn’t unkind, just curious.

Riki shook his head, “Nope, I heard about it from a friend and I like a good time so I decided to come check it out.”

Hyunsuk clearly bought it and moved a little closer to Riki.

“My friend Minjun hosts these things like once a month. He’s somewhere in the back, past the dance floor. He’s probably with some people like always,” the man told him.

Riki felt his skin crawl at Hyunsuk mentioning 'people' and he never wanted to beat someone ever the head with a metal pole more than he did Minjun.

“I can’t stick around much longer but I think he’ll like you. You should go say 'hi' ,” he suggested.

“I think I will.” Riki agreed, “Thanks for the drink Hyunsuk-ssi,” he told the man in a flirtatious tone with a wink to top it off before he walked away.

“Guys, I found out where Minjun is,” Riki told the guys discreetly as he placed the cup down as he truly was not a drinker. He would save that for a later time in life.

“We heard, good job Riki-yah,” Jay’s voice came through.

“Yeah, that’s great Riki. But you just spoke to Choi Hyunsuk, that’s the leader of Treasure,” Sunghoon told him in a clipped tone.

Riki felt his blood run cold, “What the fuck?”

“Yeah, 'what the fuck?'. The fucker’s like 23, is everyone in that goddamn gang a fucking creep?” Jake hissed.

“Jake-hyung, relax. I was only putting on the charm for the sake of the mission and it worked. He also didn’t try anything so let’s not dwell on it,” Riki muttered to them as he moved along the less congested areas to get to where Minjun would be.

“If I see him, I’m breaking his nose,” Heeseung hissed.

Riki felt his heart swell at how his boyfriends just seemed to be so naturally protective of him but of course had to be the voice of reason at the moment.

“Yeah, yeah hyung, of course you can do that but keep it together,” Riki said under his breath as he passed by some people and got closer to the area where Minjun is said to be.

He spotted the guy through the crowd in the distance on a couch, smoke billowing out from his mouth as he held a blunt in one hand and a drink in another as several buff guys sat around him on other chairs with people of varying ages hanging off their arms.

“Bingo,” he muttered to himself.

“I see Minjun. I’m going in,” Riki told them.

“Be careful, Riki-yah,” Sunghoon’s voice told him in a stern but caring tone.

“I will hyungs.”

Riki thought about how to approach this. He couldn’t just go up to the guy, it would be to obvious, too bold. Minjun was a guy who seemed to like a bit of a chase yet was entitled and felt he had to get whatever he wanted even if people stood in the way. Case in point was his altercation with the guy in the alleyway all those weeks ago. He didn’t like being told 'no' but also didn’t like easy catches.

'Ah, right he’s a predator. He’ll like the hunt.' Riki thought to himself.

He squared his shoulders a bit more and pulled his shirt a bit to the side so more of his collarbone was on display as he locked his eyes on Minjun from afar. Riki was a performer like he said, and now it was showtime.

Riki passed through the crowd, going at a slow enough pace that he would’ve caught heads but ensuring to walk closely by Minjun as he locked his eyes on the bar just past him. His plan was to get Minjun to make the first move and draw his attention to him and once the man thought he had Riki in his trap, Riki would get what he needed and go.

He strutted past Minjun and discreetly glanced and he knew he had the man’s eyes on him as he went straight to the bar, feigning to just be going for a drink. The bartender was dealing with the other patrons and Riki leaned against the counter, his body facing Minjun’s direction as he looked everywhere but at the man, completely feigning to have noticed him.

Clearly, Riki’s plan worked as in his peripheral vision, he could see a particular buff and tattooed moron with blond hair heading his way and he internally smirked to himself. The guy fell right in his trap. Now it was time for Riki to put on the acting chops and pretend he knew nothing about Enhypen or Treasure and pretend to be into Minjun although the guy had assaulted him. Definitely such an easy task.

“Well, hello there sweet thing,” the man slurred as he approached Riki.

“Hey,” Riki batted his eyelashes at the man, ignoring how he internally gagged.

“What are you doing here and not with those little boyfriends of yours?” he asked Riki in a sleazy tone.

Riki scoffed as he discreetly eyed Minjun’s pockets but saw no outline of any type of card, “Please, they’re definitely not my boyfriends. Sure, we’re friends but that’s really it.”

Minjun hummed, “How come you were with them those weeks ago huh?”

“They were trying to charm me I guess, even though I certainly wasn’t into it. They’re far from my type,” Riki blatantly lied as he batted his eyelashes a bit at Minjun and stared the man up and down.

“Oh, so I’m still your type even after our little, incident?” Minjun questioned him in a sultry tone as he leaned closer and pressed his body against Riki’s while wrapping an arm around the boy’s exposed waist and gave it a squeeze.

Riki wanted to gag from feeling this man touch him and be so close to him as his nose was overwhelmed from his stench of alcohol, drugs and a horribly cheap cologne and he couldn’t wait to shower after this to get rid of the feeling of this creep on his skin.

“Definitely still my type.” Riki told the guy as he bit his lip, “Sometimes anger gets the better of us. Don’t worry about it.”

Minjun smirked at him, “You’re quite the special one, aren’t you sweet thing?”

“Yeah, I am,” Riki agreed as he leaned a bit closer to the man and snaked his arms over his hips and lightly traced his back pockets but there was nothing.

“Let me get you a good drink to make up for it, why don’t I? The exclusive stuff is in the back, you can get comfy and I’ll go grab one for you,” Minjun said as he kissed right behind Riki’s ear.

Riki felt himself gag and had to fight every urge in his body to kick this man straight in the balls and push him away.

“I’d like that,” he smiled at the man.

“I’ll be right back,” Minjun winked before stumbling off.

Riki released a breath he hadn’t known he was holding and immediately pushed through the crowd to get away from there as his skin crawled.

“Riki, baby, you okay?” Heeseung’s voice asked him worriedly.

“I fucking will be after a nice, warm bath. God he’s so disgusting,” Riki panted as he stood against a wall away from people and tried to collect himself. The situation reminded him all too much of what happened with the man weeks ago and how he wanted to run, yet he couldn’t and his heart was racing and he couldn’t breathe-

“Riki, Riki!” Sunghoon’s voice called to him, “You’re okay. It’s okay, he’s not going to hurt you. Breathe slowly, in and out, baby.”

Riki hadn’t even realized that he was on the brink of a panic attack until Sunghoon’s voice got through to him and he focused on the sound as the elder guided him through his breathing until he returned to normal.

“Shit, sorry about that,” he apologized.

“Don’t apologize love.” Jake told him, “Are you okay?”

Riki hummed, “I’m better now, thanks to Hoon-hyung. Let’s get this done.”

Riki took a few more deep breaths to ground himself before he spoke again.

“Minjun doesn’t have the keycard on him. The only other place it would probably be is in his room. How do I get up there?” Riki questioned.

“There’s a private elevator that requires a code but it can only be accessed if you go up to the next floor,” Sunghoon said.

“Great, are the elevators available?” Riki asked.

Jake hummed and Riki could hear him typing away, “Nope, there are guards over there.”

“Shit,” Riki muttered as he glanced around and what do you know, he was right by a hallway with a sign reading stairs.

“What about the stairs?”

“The stairway doors are clear,” Jake replied after a moment, “And upstairs looks empty.”

“Great.”

Riki quickly pushed off the wall and headed down the dimly lit hallway to the stairs. He pushed the heavy door open and shut it quietly behind him.

“Okay, so where do I go once I reach the next floor?” he asked as he headed up the dimly lit stairway and his footfalls seemed to echo as they touched the concrete.

“You go through the door and you make a right before taking another left. It should be a single elevator right in front of you, you can’t miss it,” Jake instructed after a few seconds of typing.

Riki followed the instructions through the much brighter and well maintained looking hallways of the hotel, the paint on the walls a soft beige and a cleaned carpet. The inside truly didn’t match the outside one bit.

He headed to the elevator and pressed the button as he anxiously waited for it to arrive. The halls had been empty on his journey here but he still worried about if someone suddenly came around here and caught him. After almost an eternity, the elevator arrived and he stepped inside and shut the door only to see a digital keypad instead of regular buttons which made sense considering Jake told him that it only required a code.

“Hyungs, what’s the code?” he asked.

“09281,” Sunghoon replied and Riki quickly typed in the digits before he hit enter and the elevator began taking him up.

“You guys really know your tech stuff don’t you?” Riki addressed the question to Sunghoon and Jake due to how both of them were able to figure out exactly who was where without them being there and getting the code to the elevator.

“We are pretty well versed in this. Jake is more logistics stuff, while I’m more on the tech side.” Sunghoon replied, “But we work pretty well together.

“There’s old cameras and even phones in the building that I can hack into to hear and see anything but Jake’s the one who figures out the who, when and where in most cases. Once I hack a satellite he could look at a map and tell you exactly where to go. He’s an incredible map and blueprint reader so he’s easily able to direct you and tell you what’s where,” Sunghoon explained.

Riki whistled, “Impressive.”

Soon enough, the elevator reached the top floor and the doors slid open to reveal the presidential suite which was really just a penthouse.

The elevator opened straight out into a living room with semi circular shaped couches and a coffee table which Riki was pretty sure had a line of cocaine on it. There was a doorway leading into what had to be the bedroom off to the right and a wall with two openings in it to the left and behind the glass pane that truly took up about half of it, Riki could see a door which more than likely led to a bathroom.

He walked through the space and over to the bedroom as that was the most obvious place as to where he would find the keycard. Riki looked around at the paintings hung on the wall and a desk with various drawers and the nightstands and the closet.

There were several places Minjun could be keeping it, so he might as well check all but hopefully not keep it too obvious.

Riki rummaged through each drawer of the nightstand, trying to be careful to not disturb the contents too much but came up empty. When he checked the closet and even the pockets of some of the man’s clothes, it was the same result. He looked through the desk drawers next and even behind them but still found nothing and he ran his fingers through his hair in irritation.

There was a picture on the desk of Minjun along with Hyunsuk. Minjun and Hyunsuk had their shirts lifted as they showcased their tattoos on their torsos in the shape of the Treasure logo. The picture was clearly a few years old as both men looked younger but Riki quickly brushed it off again as he was still empty-handed.

“Fuck.” He muttered irritatedly.

“Riki? What’s up?” Jake asked him, sounding concerned.

“I can’t find that goddamn keycard anywhere,” Riki replied.

“It has to be there somewhere. I’m sure it will turn up. Have you checked everywhere?” Sunghoon queried.

“I’ve checked most places you would probably keep something like that,” the youngest boy huffed in response.

Riki took a deep breath and tried to collect himself as he looked around the room. The keycard wasn’t in any obvious place but it had to be somewhere in here right? It was something extremely important so Minjun would keep it in an important place such as his penthouse which only he has access to.

Riki observed the room and his eyes landed on a painting on the wall of a hawk, a bird of prey standing in front of its nest like it was… guarding something.

He hurried over to the painting and knocked on it a bit and as he thought, he heard a metallic sound as he got to the center.

“Guys, I think I got it,” he said as he removed the painting from the wall and he was right when a safe was revealed.

“Fuck yes! I found a safe. It’s extremely likely that the keycard’s inside right?” he asked his boyfriends.

”Yeah, yeah you’re right. Good job Ki,” Jake praised.

“Bad news though, we had no clue he had a safe and that’s one thing I can’t crack the code to, not from here at least,” Sunghoon informed him.

“Shit.” Riki muttered under his breath, he had no clue on how to crack safes and guessing the code was surely not an option but what could the code be? It was a typical four digit safe yet there were far too many options. The same code as the elevator was an obvious no because it had too many digits and Riki didn’t want to risk getting it wrong.

“Do you guys have any idea what the code could be? Any dates or anything like that?” he questioned the other boys.

“Not really, maybe only the day Treasure was formed? Minjun wouldn’t be dumb enough to make the code his birthday. He’s a dumbass but not that much of a dumbass,” Jake told him.

“Okay then give me the day Treasure was formed,” Riki said.

“August 1997,” Sunghoon told him.

Riki entered the digits 0897 but the safe immediately beeped three times and the numbers flashed red and let him know it was incorrect.

“No, it’s wrong,” Riki sighed exasperatedly as he looked around the room.

“Fuck.”Jake and Sunghoon swore.

He couldn’t stay here forever, not when Minjun or even someone else could come up here, he needed to think and think fast. Riki needed to think about what Minjun was like to even begin to try and figure out what the code would be.

Minjun was an arrogant guy. He was rash and violent and had some narcissistic tendencies. He was entitled and thought he could get anything he wanted and clearly had very little regard for other people. He thought highly of himself and clearly enjoyed being in a place of power which he would’ve gained from becoming part of Treasure.

That’s it, becoming part of Treasure.

Riki hurried back over to the desk and grabbed the picture he saw on it and turned it over and found what he was looking for. Scrawled on the back of the picture in black ink were the words :

Minjun and Hyunsuk at Minjun’s promotion, May 7th 2016.

That had to be it.

Riki went back over to the safe and typed in the code 0516 and the safe blinked green and he heard it unlock.

“Yes! I got it!” Riki cheered.

“Holy shit! Nice job Ki. How did you get it?” Sunghoon asked him.

“Well I just thought about what I know about Minjun and specifically the fact that he enjoys being in a place of power which he would’ve gained from Treasure. There was a picture on the desk of him and Hyunsuk and the date May 7th 2016 was scrawled on the back. The dude doesn’t give a shit about much but he clearly gives a shit about Treasure so it made sense for it to be the code,” Riki explained as he opened the safe door.

“Your brain is so fucking sexy Riki, how do you read people so well?” Jay piped up.

“Seriously, it’s insanely impressive that you figured that out,” Heeseung praised.

“That was hot honestly,” Jake added.

“I’m giving you the fattest, longest kiss when you get back here,” Sunghoon said.

“Thanks guys, sometimes it helps to kind of just think like the person you’re dealing with. It really worked this time,” Riki chuckled lightly as he looked through the safe and right at the back, past the gun and ammo and some jewelry inside the safe, was the keycard.

“Bingo. I’ve got the keycard,” Riki announced as he grabbed the item and pocketed it before shutting the safe.

“Shit, Riki. Minjun is on his way up, you have to hide,” Sunghoon told him firmly.

“Fuck,” Riki mumbled as he put the painting back in its place and raced across the penthouse. There were hardly any places to hide, the only one he could think of was the bathroom.

He dashed in there and quickly shut the door behind him as he distantly heard the elevator ding and the doors slid open. Riki held his breath as his heart pounded in his chest and he could hear what sounded like more than one pair of footsteps hit the carpeted floor of the room outside. There was really only one way out of the room which was the elevator and there was no way he could get out of there with more than one person in the penthouse. Although he was more focused on figuring out how to get the fuck out of there he couldn’t help but catch their conversation.

“Yeah, I saw him with the Enhypen boys. So what?” Minjun’s voice said.

“And you think you can trust him?” an angry voice which Riki realized was Hyunsuk replied.

“You don’t fucking know this kid and you have no clue what he knows. If he’s friends with them, they could easily be using him to get to us. Use your fucking head Jang Minjun!” he swore at the other man.

“C’mon boss,” Minjun’s voice slurred, “we both know that the Enhypen boys are as serious as us if not more when it comes to actually making friends and much less telling them about who they are.”

“The kid’s oblivious.” Minjun said airily, “Haruto told me that he’s friends with them but that’s all he got. He said the kid really doesn’t seem to know anything.”

“Well Haruto fucking blew it like a dumbass because he blew up at him all because the guy didn’t reciprocate his feelings. Any trust he had built with him is completely gone and the Nishimura kid doesn’t even feel comfortable around him anymore so if he does know anything, we wouldn’t fucking know now would we? All the more reason to find that kid, how the fuck could he disappear?” Hyunsuk argued.

“Shit.” he muttered under his breath.

Riki’s blood ran cold when he realized they were searching for him. He was right about them being unaware about his knowledge of Enhypen but they clearly still didn’t trust him and were suspicious. He really couldn’t stick around here any longer, especially not now when they were trying to find him.

“Ki? What’s up?” Jay’s voice asked.

“They know I know you guys and they clearly don’t trust me because I disappeared. They’re looking for me,” he whispered in response.

“Ah shit. Riki-san, you have to get out of there now.” Jake said.

“I’m working on it. Where’s his office from here?” Riki questioned softly.

“You can’t still be thinking about that?” Heeseung questioned incredulously, “Get the fuck out of that hotel now.”

“Listen, I am nothing if not stubborn. I’m getting the intel and then I’m getting out,” Riki whispered back stubbornly as he glanced around the bathroom and his eyes landed on a window above the toilet.

“Fine,” Sunghoon spat reluctantly clearly not too keen on the idea either.

Riki quietly climbed onto the toilet and slid the window open as quietly as he could and created a gap big enough for him to fit through. He looked out to fortunately see a fire escape only one meter below and carefully jumped down. The old metal creaked and rattled under his weight and Riki never hated being on something more.

He tiptoed to shut the bathroom window before readjusting his earring.

“Okay, I’m out of the bathroom and on a very old fire escape that I absolutely detest but it has some stairs down to the floor below.”

“Okay, that’s good. Take those stairs carefully Ki,” Jake instructed.

Riki carefully descended the rusty old staircase down to the sixteenth floor of the building. He briefly wondered if he would be able to go through the window to get into Minjun’s office instead but judging from the very crumbly window sills and fire escape falling apart along the rest of the side of the building, it was extremely unlikely.

Riki got to a window of a random room down on the sixteenth floor and slid it open and hopped inside. It was clearly void of any people so he hurried over to the door and checked through the peephole before unlocking the door from the inside. He looked out into the hall. The room was an end unit seemingly as it branched off with three other rooms from the main hallway.

He noted how these doors didn’t require keycards but in fact needed regular keys and decided that this would make a good room to escape to since he had already unlocked it. He grabbed a door jam from inside the closet and stuck it between the door and the frame. He mentally noted the room number which was 553. He quietly stepped out and looked down both directions but he didn’t see anyone and he didn’t hear anybody up there with him either.

“Where’s Minjun’s office?” Riki asked.

“Straight ahead and then turn left. It’s the last door on the left right before the laundry and maintenance room for this floor,” Jake answered.

Riki hummed in confirmation as he heeded Jake’s directions and arrived at the door which was the only one with a keycard scanner over the handle. Riki pulled the keycard out of his pocket and scanned in and the lights over the scanner flashed green and he pushed the door open.

Riki sighed in relief and locked the door behind himself.

“I’m in,” Riki announced triumphantly.

“That’s our boy!” Jake exclaimed proudly.

“Now plug that flash drive into that computer and get what you went there for,” Sunghoon instructed and Riki could hear the proud smile on his face.

Riki went over to the computer and powered it on. It obviously needed a passcode so he simply said : “Sunghoon?”

“Passcode is 970620,” the older boy answered.

The computer unlocked with that code and Riki took the cushioned, velvety pouch Sunghoon had put the flash-drive in to keep it safe from damage out of his pocket. He plugged it into the computer and opened the files library to begin searching for anything of use.

“Okay so what exactly am I looking for?” he questioned.

“Anything that can be tied back to the recent drug related deaths in the city as well as anything that we can use against Treasure. They’ve been a terror to this city for far too long and frankly, we want them gone,” Jake told him in a voice that sent a chill down Riki’s spine.

He could understand it, Treasure clearly were bad news and the things they did, even if they were only 'alleged' were still absolutely fucked up. Riki hated to think that people like that were hurting others in the country just because they were more vulnerable and people just like them were helping them do that for their own gain.

He scrolled through the library before he hit the jackpot. An encrypted folder entitled '5 years'. He couldn’t open any of the individual files but they dated back from January of 2017 up until as recently as August of that year. There were hundreds of items in the folder which comprised about 15 gigabytes overall and Riki quickly set to work in downloading it to the flash drive even though, thanks to the connection, the wait time was 5 minutes.

“I think I found something big guys. There’s an encrypted folder with 5 years worth of shit on this. It’s the biggest thing on his computer so I’m sure it’s got plenty on it,” Riki told the others.

“Goddamn,” Sunghoon muttered sounding somewhat in awe, “that’ll be something to go through.”

“That’s a great find though Ki.” Jay praised, “You would really think you’re a professional considering how you’ve handled all of this.”

Riki let out a snort at that, “Professional my ass, I’m shaking so much and I’m scared shitless.”

“You wouldn’t think that though,” Heeseung piped up, “You doing all of this just to help people when you don’t have to is extremely brave and extremely kind.”

“My parents always taught me to help people who needed it.” Riki said, his tone becoming a bit heavier with emotion as he remembered the people dearest to him. “I’d like to think that they would be proud of me… or think I’m a dumbass,” he laughed airily at the end.

“They would be proud of you Riki-san,” Jake told him gently, “I’m sure they are proud.”

Riki hummed in agreement as he noticed an email software unlike any common ones and decided he might as well have a look considering he’s already committed a few crimes tonight. What’s one more, especially against Minjun?

Riki fired up the application and noticed the flash-drive was still downloading the file and there was less than two minutes remaining. He clicked through the more recent ones and his jaw dropped at what he found.

“Holy shit.”

“What is it Riki?” Jake asked.

“Bo Han-Gyeong is working with Treasure like you suspected, but that’s not the only part.” Riki informed as he read through the emails exchanged back and forth involving Hyunsuk, Minjun, someone named Jihoon and the aforementioned mayor elect for Seoul.

“He’s in fact the chairman of a pharmaceutical company that was investigated back in 2009 on suspicion that they were actively selling drugs to criminals but no one was arrested and the case was dropped.”

“Okay, what more?” the eldest inquired.

“They’re still in operation and he’s the one selling the laced drugs to them to push into lower income neighborhoods. It’s a huge plot to basically drive people out of those areas so he can take over and upscale them for richer tenants and because he knows those lower income people won’t vote for him,” Riki explained, completely aghast at the lengths people would go to just for selfish gain.

As he read through, he noticed how the man had also been shipping drugs out to drug lords in Japan for profit and there are mentions of hiding them in shipments to warehouses where contacts would collect them from and take them to the buyers. He saw mention of both Haruto and an unknown man named Mashiho who he assumed was another one of the Treasure leaders. Riki felt his blood boil knowing that this was going on in his home too and more people were dying all for some greedy motherfuckers to get more money.

“He’s sending these fucking drugs to Japan too, all for some money,” Riki spoke as anger flared in his eyes.

“God, that sick motherfucker,” Sunghoon swore.

Riki saw that these emails went back months and noticed one which caught his eye because of the date. June 14th, only two days before his parents death and he couldn’t help but have his interest peaked; logically it wasn’t related right? But Riki knew that almost nothing seemed to really make sense since Nakamoto told him his parents were murdered and there was almost a tingling aura at the base of his neck telling him to open it. He clicked on the email which was essentially a panicked message from Han-Gyeong to Minjun and Hyunsuk.

You dumb motherfuckers! Two shipments went to the wrong addresses because of some foolish error. Some random people got them with information all over them and someone is going to call the cops! If they trace this back to me and I go down for this I’m bringing all of you down with me.

Then a reply from Hyunsuk followed :

We’re well aware of the situation Han-Gyeong~ssi. We will deal with the situation promptly. We’re sending two of our best to handle the damage control.

Riki snapped photos of the emails and decided he would just send them to Sunghoon so they could be converted into pdfs or something of the sort later. The last one stuck with him far too much though. Only two days before his parents died, there was an issue with drug shipments and they were sent to two wrong warehouses.

Riki’s parents owned a warehouse back in Japan where they would store products of wholesalers and retailers. Did it get shipped to them by accident and that’s why they were killed? To keep quiet about the whole thing? Riki felt his chest tighten at the thought but tried to regain focus. He could worry about that more later, he shouldn’t stick around this hotel any longer.

The flash drive read less than a minute to complete its download and Riki tapped his foot impatiently.

“Shit! Riki, Minjun is coming up there and he’s not alone,” Sunghoon told him suddenly.

“Fuck. How much time do I have?” he questioned as he anxiously glanced at the download which seemingly could not go any slower.

“They’re in the elevator,” Jake replied, “At their pace they’ll be up there in approximately 30 seconds. How much longer on the download?”

“28 seconds,” Riki replied anxiously.

“Fuck,” Heeseung muttered, “Jake, Sunghoon, do we go in?”

Riki tried to keep focused to think of a plan. He glanced at the window but there was a goddamn alarm on it and it was armed. It would go off as soon as he cracked it. He had seconds to figure something out before they reached the floor and his best bet was getting back to the room he came through.

The download counted down :

10

“Stay outside. You’ll just attract more attention,” Riki instructed.

9,8

“Riki if they catch you, we have no idea what they’ll do to you.” Jay told him worriedly.

7,6

“I know!” Riki told them exasperatedly, he needed some type of distraction.

5,4

It clicked. Riki ran out of the office jamming the door with a mug he grabbed from the table and into the maintenance room at the end of the hall. He spotted exactly what he was looking for which was an electricity panel and shut the whole thing off, encasing the entire floor in darkness and if he was correct stopping the elevator in its tracks.

“Fuck yes,” he muttered to himself before he ran back to the office.

The download was complete and ejected the flash drive, placing it back in its safe pouch and pocketing it before shutting down the computer and putting everything back in place to make sure it looked like he was never here.

Riki crept out into the hallway and could faintly hear metallic screeching which he realized was the elevator doors being pried open.

“Ki, what’s going on?” Jake asked him concernedly.

“I killed the power to the floor,” Riki whispered, “It stopped the elevator but they still made it up, I can hear them prying the doors open. Will I be able to make it to the stairs?”

“Not at all Kiki, they’ve got the hotel on a lockdown and they’re looking for you.” Sunghoon informed.

“Shit, so back through the window I go,” Riki whispered mostly to himself, as he crept back the way he came from sticking close to the wall to feel his way along.

He could hear voices and faint footfalls through the halls distantly and kept quiet as he made his way through the halls counting the doors as he passed them by. He saw a beam of light pass by from the end of the hall and swore under his breath as his eyes landed on a table and he dove underneath it and held his breath as he kept himself small as the man walked by his hiding place.

Once he was sure the dude was gone he hurried back down the hall counting the doors as he went. He heard a voice from behind him but the person clearly hadn’t spotted him and he couldn’t help but quicken his pace as he heard them say that they were going to check down his way.

Riki hurried and finally saw the blessed numbers '553' and practically dove through the still ajar door and shut and locked it behind him swiftly but still quiet enough to not alert whoever had been after him. Riki panted and tried to catch his breath for a moment but he knew staying there any longer wasn’t an option.

He climbed through the window and hurried out back onto the fire escape ignoring how he creaked loudly in protest under his weight. He descended the stairs of the old, rusty metal swiftly as he wanted nothing more than to get the fuck out of there. He noticed that on the last five stories it went from stairs into a ladder and internally swore as the thing looked one gust of wind from falling all to shit.

Unfortunately, it was still Riki’s only option so he grabbed onto the old metal and started climbing down, desperately trying to ignore the creaking and groaning under his limbs.

As he climbed pass the fourth floor a particularly loud creak sounded out and the bar under his hands broke causing Riki to fall but fortunately he was able to grab one a few feet down but only with one hand which made him swing to the side and slam his shoulder hard into the rusty metal on the side and he grimaced as pain exploded through his shoulder.

He brushed it off as best as he could and climbed down the remaining few feet in a hurry.

“Sweetheart, are you okay? What was that?” Jay asked him.

“I’m alright, I promise. I just hurt my shoulder a bit.” Riki brushed off as he jumped down onto the ground, “Jake-hyung, how the fuck do I get out of here?”

“Cut through an alleyway about 50 meters away from you it should make a U and pull out onto another street.”

“I got it,” Riki replied before following the directions through the dark alley which guided him back onto another street.

He headed back down the way he came from earlier and nearly fell to his knees when he spotted Heeseung and Jay’s car in the distance and he internally cried in relief when he saw their concerned faces through the windshield. Riki panted as he finally reached the car and pulled the door open before jumping in the backseat.

“Let’s get the fuck out of here,” he told them which was all it took for Heeseung to peel away.

Jay climbed over into the backseat and wrapped his arms around Riki and the boy sagged against the elder and cuddled into his side even though he winced a little when Jay squeezed his shoulder a bit too hard.

“God, I was so fucking worried about you,” he sighed in relief as he pressed kisses on Riki’s hair and all over his face before pressing his lips passionately to the younger boy’s own.

Riki melted into the kiss as Jay’s soft lips pressed to his own and it was filled with passion like always as Jay lovingly stroked his thumbs over Riki’s cheekbones.

“I’m okay hyung,” he whispered against Jay’s lips before giving him another short kiss and then glancing over at Heeseung who was looking at him worriedly in the rearview mirror. Riki nodded to him in reassurance.

“I’m okay.”

Jay supported Riki as they and Heeseung walked into the house and the youngest was clearly exhausted as everyone else was already gathered in the living room and Jungwon and Sunoo hurried to grab Riki from Jay and led him to sit down between them on the couch and held him in their arms.

“Ki, are you feeling okay?” Sunoo asked him.

Riki nodded slightly, “Yeah, I think so. I hurt my shoulder though.”

Sunoo swore under his breath and left to go grab a first aid kit and an ice pack and everyone else turned to look at him.

“How’d it go?” Jungwon asked gently.

“As well as it could go.” Riki shrugged although he winced quickly after moving his shoulder, “A bunch of creepy people flirted with me and I almost had a heart attack way too many times but I got the flash drive.” Riki said as he pulled the device out of his pocket and held it up to everyone.

Sunoo entered right at that moment with an ice pack in hand as Riki extended the flash drive to Sunghoon.

“You did a great job getting this baby, but I’m just really glad that you’re okay,” Sunghoon told him as he crouched in front of the youngest boy and made good on his promise to give him the longest kiss which basically took Riki’s breath away as he reciprocated it and savored the taste of coffee on his boyfriend’s tongue.

“You did really well Riki.” Heeseung praised, “We’re all so proud of you.”

Once Sunoo had treated Riki’s shoulder and his lovely boyfriends ran him a warm bath, they got him changed into some comfortable sweats as pajamas, everyone had gathered into the living room with blankets and pillows to create a cuddle pile. Riki was sandwiched between Sunoo and Jungwon who were basically clinging to Riki ever since he got back to the house.

Riki loved this. He felt safe cuddled between the warmth and comfort that his boyfriends brought to him and how at ease he finally felt after a horribly long night that involved far too much. He couldn’t get the thoughts about what he found out about Japan and thinking back to how there was a horrible itching inkling that Treasure were involved in their deaths because it didn’t seem all that coincidental.

But his mind and body were beyond exhausted and even though that was gnawing at him, Sunoo and Jungwon’s arms around him brought him an incomparable warmth and feeling of ease after a hellish night.

“You’re fucking unreal Nishimura Riki.” Jungwon whispered against his nape, “You didn’t have to do what you did but you still did it and we couldn’t be more thankful for you.”

Riki smiled a bit to himself as Jungwon’s nose nuzzled against his neck.

“You guys have always protected me and protected others, I just decided that I wanted to do that for you,” Riki replied.

“Still, thank you Riki. You’re the most selfless person that we’ve ever had the honor of knowing, you’re absolutely wonderful,” Sunoo told him softly as he kissed Riki’s forehead.

Riki just smiled as he felt his eyes growing heavier and cuddled impossibly closer to his two youngest boyfriends. Right now, as the night grew later and later, he would allow his worries to fall away as exhaustion clouded his very being and in the safe surrounding of all his boyfriends, Riki allowed himself to drift off to sleep.

Chapter Text

Riki woke up and turned on his side, immediately noticing that the arms that were around him the night before were completely missing. The boy’s shoulder felt horribly tense which instantly reminded him of the wild night he had prior. He glanced over to the clock on the wall which read that it was already after twelve and he pushed himself up into a sitting position with his uninjured hand and looked around at the scattered blankets and pillows around the room.

He slowly got up and stretched as he walked out of the living room and across the foyer to the kitchen. When he arrived he spotted Heeseung and Jay sitting at the table, the eldest only looking half awake as he sipped on his coffee with one hand while the other was wrapped around Jay who definitely looked more awake as he leaned into the oldest’s side.

“Hey hyungs,” Riki greeted them.

“Hi Ki, how’re you feeling?” Heeseung asked as he rested down his mug and reached out his hand to the youngest.

Riki walked closer and let the arm wrap around his waist and tug him down onto Heeseung’s lap.

“A little tired still, I’m definitely still thinking that last night was all some weird dream but this reminds me that it certainly wasn’t,” he replied as he gestured to his shoulder.

The eldest two both gave him a sympathetic and guilty-looking stare and Riki reached forward to take Jay’s hand while he leaned his head on top of Heeseung’s own gently.

“Don’t look so guilty. I decided to do that, none of you forced me to and definitely don’t blame yourselves because I got hurt.”

Jay squeezed his hand, “But you shouldn’t have had to do it. It was so fucking dangerous.”

“I still chose to.” Riki argued although he kept his tone soft, “It was my choice because I wanted to help people and I wanted to help you.”

“But we’re still supposed to protect you from this side of our lives,” Heeseung told him.

“But I signed up for this when I decided to date all of you. Hell, I signed up for it when I decided to stay your friend even after I knew the truth. That was my choice, no one else’s. I know the danger that comes with this but I don’t care, not when I have you guys.”

Heeseung stared up at him with those soft bambi eyes and gave him a gentle kiss on the cheek, “We don’t deserve you.”

“Yes you do.” Riki argued, “You’re all the best partners that I could ever have. I completely lucked out when I got you guys. Sometimes I wonder if I deserve you,” Riki chuckled lightly at the end.

“Shut the fuck up,” Jay told him affectionately as his eyes crinkled from the smile on his face.

“You deserve the world Riki,” he said as he pressed a kiss to the back of Riki’s hand and sent butterflies through the youngest even with such a simple action.

“You deserve the whole world.”

After breakfast ( read as Heeseung and Jay teasing and flirting with Riki all whilst feeding him his food) the youngest set off to go find the others. The eldest two told him that the rest of their boyfriends were definitely in Sunghoon’s room as he and Jake had been awake trying to decrypt the files that Riki retrieved the night prior since before seven that morning and Sunoo and Jungwon went to keep them company a couple hours later.

Riki was also carrying a few cups of coffee with him although he wasn’t sure if he would give Sunghoon and Jake any considering how early they woke up and that they would probably be running on a lot of the caffeinated beverage already.

He went down to the end of the hall upstairs and turned left past the balcony door instead of right where the staircase was to go to the roof. There was conveniently a small table right outside the room and he rested down the tray of coffees before knocking lightly and turning the door knob before grabbing the tray and pushing the door open with his foot.

“Coffee order for four,” Riki said with a joking tone as he gently nudged the door shut with his foot.

Sunghoon’s room was extremely clean which was rather expected from the figure skater. The bed was neatly made with a navy blue duvet and dark gray pillows and a shelf against the wall across the room was decorated with various trophies and medals from his former figure skating career.

Jungwon and Sunoo were seated on a small but very comfortable-looking gray leather couch as light poured into the room from the window a few feet away from them.

Jake and Sunghoon were seated at the desk which had a multiple monitor setup and surprisingly good wire organization visible under the desk which was pushed up against the wall.

“Hey Riki-yah,” Jungwon greeted.

“Hi Kiki,” Sunoo smiled at him.

“Oh, hi love,” Jake waved.

“Hey baby,” Sunghoon smiled at him over his shoulder before turning back to the screen.

Riki went over and handed Jungwon and Sunoo their drinks and Sunoo gently pulled him down by his hand to place a peck on his lips while Jungwon pressed a kiss on his cheek.

“How long have they been at it?” Riki asked his youngest two boyfriends.

“Nearly six hours, they’ve almost decrypted the entire file though.” Jungwon answered.

“How’s the shoulder?” Sunoo questioned him gently.

“Tense and it hurts honestly.”

The older two’s brows both furrowed at his response.

“I’ll massage it for you after we’re done here, I promise,” Sunoo offered kindly.

“Thanks hyung.”

It was only when Riki walked over to the desk he saw the collection of coffee mugs over to the side and he nearly laughed realizing his assumption from earlier was correct as he draped his arms around the Australian’s neck and leaned his head on top of the other boy’s.

Jake placed a gentle kiss to the back of his hand before he took a sip from the straw of the iced coffee Riki was holding before taking it in his own hand.

“Thank you, love.”

Riki smiled, “It’s no problem, even though I doubt that you need anymore.”

He handed Sunghoon his drink as well and the elder gave him a grateful smile as he turned to face Jake and Riki.

“We have about a minute before the entire folder finally decrypts,” Sunghoon announced as he leaned back in his chair.

“As expected from our genius,” Sunoo piped up from behind the ice prince, which earned him a smile before he turned back around.

“How’d you sleep?” Sunghoon asked.

“Like a baby. Apparently a literal spy mission takes a lot out of you. It's a great way to get a good night’s sleep, I might have to try it again,” Riki chuckled.

“Absolutely not!” Jungwon objected in a dead serious tone.

“Agreed, you’re never doing anything like that again,” Sunghoon told him.

“I’m not sure if I’ll want to hyung. I have no idea how you guys live this life everyday,” Riki said with hints of awe in his voice.

“We chose this life honestly, all of us did but it’s certainly not for everyone and we never intended for you to come so close to it even once you knew about us,” Jake said thoughtfully.

“Hey, it was still my choice to get this close,” Riki objected, “Like I told Heeseung-hyung and Jay-hyung earlier, don’t go blaming yourselves because it was still my choice. Everything I’ve said and done to and for you guys is because I have wanted to, even if it wasn’t the safest thing.”

“We know.” Jungwon nodded understandingly as he stared at Riki with gentle eyes, “We all just want to protect you. You’re our youngest, our baby. We don’t want anything to happen to you.”

“You guys do protect me.” Riki smiled at them, “And I can still protect myself when I need to, but I feel safer with all of you than I do anywhere else.”

They all stood there in silence for a few moments, giving their youngest sweet and kind smiles at how honest he was with thm before Sunghoon’s computer beeped and the program he was running flashed saying that the decryption was successful.

“We’re in,” he announced.

Riki glanced at the screen and couldn’t help but think back to the night before and everything he saw. The email, involving Japan and it being sent two days before his parents' deaths. Logically he knows it could just be a coincidence but that feeling that gnawed at the back of his head just kept insisting that it wasn’t and Riki was scared of what they would find, whether it be an actual answer to what happened or not.

Jake seemed to notice how he tensed and turned his head to look at the youngest and noticed how his eyes were glued to Sunghoon’s screen.

“Riki? What’s up baby?”

“T-that email that I saw last night,” Riki began, his voice coming out much quieter and more shaky than he intended as everyone turned to look at him, “the one about Japan, I- I’m scared that it’s not just a coincidence and I’m scared of what we’ll find. I want an answer hyung, I want the truth but I’m still so terrified of it.”

Jake squeezed his hand as he spun his chair around and pulled Riki down to sit on his lap.

“We understand Ki. It’s okay to be scared and you admitting that is already so incredibly brave,” Jake told him softly.

“But no matter what the truth is, you’re not alone. We’ll face it together, all of us.”

The other three all gave Riki reassuring nods and smiles when he looked up and Riki stared into Jake’s eyes and nodded. He wasn’t alone and he wasn’t going to face this alone, no matter what it was he wouldn’t have to face it by himself.

Sunghoon began clicking through the files opening different ones and skimming through them before closing them again, information on them seemingly not relevant until he stopped on one which Riki noticed was an invoice from none other than Bo Han-Gyeong.

“Jesus, this is so recent,” Sunghoon muttered.

Sunoo and Jungwon got up off the couch and moved to stand behind the elder’s chair as they stared at the screen.

“10,000 pills, all 30 milligrams but that’s still not enough to kill somebody,” Jungwon muttered as he read off the screen.

“This is from a week before all those deaths in the city started,” Sunoo commented.

“But everyone who died certainly didn’t overdose, they weren’t sold enough pills to. So how the hell did it kill them?”

“It depends on what it’s 30 milligrams of.” Riki brought up, “Remember how that one business guy from a while ago sold pills laced with fentanyl? It’s probably the same thing if not something stronger. Fentanyl is more than deadly enough and potent enough to kill someone, especially if they have too much and get no treatment for it.”

Jake hummed, “Riki’s right, but we need evidence that that’s what is in the pills and if we can find it, we can put Han-Gyeong behind bars and save a lot of lives, especially with irrefutable evidence.”

“Were the deaths of the people reported?” Riki asked.

Sunoo nodded, “They were, but the cause of deaths were always fake. Some were natural causes, heart disease, a whole bunch of bullshit that none of those people had but they were all put on the police reports and autopsies and therefore also the coroner reports.”

“Then they obviously have people on the inside,” Riki mused.

“They do. It’s a matter of figuring out who. They’re way too connected and are usually able to keep a clean record, but maybe we will find something,” Jungwon told him.

“Well, let’s keep looking then.”

Sunghoon clicked through several more files before he opened one with a bunch of dots and dashes on the page.

“Ah shit, this is in morse code.”

Riki had heard of morse code before and seen it used in several movies and shows that he watched but never got to learn it.

“What does it say?” Riki asked.

The others all shot him a questioning look before shaking their heads and chuckling a bit, “Right, sorry, we forgot that not everyone really knows morse code,” Jake apologized.

He reached forward and ruffled through some pages on the desk before grabbing one that essentially looked like a key to it, with all the letters of the alphabet as well as numbers with various sequences of dots and dashes next to them.

“Oh wow,” he muttered under his breath.

“I’ll teach you how to do it,” Jake offered, “You can use all kinds of things, including simply tapping.”

“Kind of like this,” he said as he tapped his fingers on the desk in a sequence.

“That was your name.” Riki commented in realization after a moment as he looked from the paper back to Jake.

The Aussie gave him a proud smile and a nod, “See? You’re a fast learner.”

“Of course Mr. Good-at-Everything would learn it in only a few seconds,” Jungwon smirked at the youngest, which Riki briefly returned.

“So what does this say?” Riki asked as he looked back at the screen.

“Pills laced, 20 milligrams of fentanyl, 10 of morphine,” Sunghoon read out slowly.

“That’s a transcript of a message then, more than likely from Han-Gyeong to Treasure telling them exactly what’s in those drugs,” Jungwon concluded.

“This is a less clear piece of evidence, but it’s still something, make sure you save it, Hoon,” Sunoo instructed.

Sunghoon nodded before he did as asked and saved the file of the message into a folder he had created.

They kept on going and unfortunately didn’t find much more clear evidence of Han-Gyeong working with Treasure, they clearly kept their interactions mostly off the books considering how sensitive the information was.

They did, however, stop when they found an invoice dated June 10th, 2022 of an exported order going out to Japan.

“Stop.” Riki said, “That’s it, that’s the shipment that I read about in that email. It has to be.”

“There’s nothing on this besides what they sent which was an assortment of heroin, cocaine and more of those goddamn pills, but no address,” Sunghoon commented.

Riki felt that sinking feeling in his stomach only grow because that was what his mind was gnawing at him and almost insisting was what got his parents killed and he just needed to know. He needed to know whether he was wrong or not.

Sunghoon kept looking before he opened another file, one which held two addresses that were written in Japanese dated with the same date that was on the invoice, but when Riki read them, his brow furrowed.

“That’s not it, neither of those were their warehouse address,” Riki sighed almost defeatedly as he slumped back against Jake, because he so desperately hoped to find something because he just wanted an answer, for them, for his sisters, for himself. He wanted an answer so all of his would no longer nag at him, at least not in the way that it has.

The other boys all shot him sympathetic looks as they could all tell that Riki desperately wanted some kind of answer but it seemed they weren’t getting any closer to finding it.

“Hold on,” Sunghoon paused as he opened another document.

Riki stared at it and realized it was an email, one that wasn’t on Minjun’s computer when he had went through it but had seemingly been screenshotted and saved in the encrypted folder instead but everything was in morse again and both the sender and receiver were completely blank with no address to tie them to.

Riki also noticed the way all of his boyfriend’s faces darkened and completely fell as they read the message.

“What is it?” Riki asked them hesitantly, even though his stomach seemed to twist itself into knots even more.

“The first part says : They’re not the contacts, it was the wrong address. Make it look like an accident,” Sunghoon relayed with a stony expression.

Riki’s blood ran cold in his veins at Sunghoon’s words and the cold look on his face yet the sadness and sympathy behind his eyes. Riki heard Jake audibly swallow heavily as he translated the next part for the youngest and his grip around Riki’s waist grew impossibly tighter and that made him dread what was to come even more.

“The next part says : Give us the names and we’ll deal with it.”

“What were the names?” Riki asked shakily even though the answer was screaming at him, it was right there and it was exposing itself to Riki yet it was still all so terrifying.

“Arisu and… the Nishimura’s.”

Riki went frigid. He wished he could’ve said some cliche like everything came crashing down all at once and everything just hit him like an overwhelming wave and although it was a lot, he didn’t feel any of that. Riki thinks that it was because, truthfully in a deep, dark part of his mind that he knew, not about Treasure murdering them, but he already got hit by that overpowering tsunami of learning that their deaths weren’t an accident weeks ago, but now it just solidified it and he knew why someone did it and he knew who and he knew that his sweet parents deserved none of it.

But he also felt like something in him finally calmed, that desperate knowledge that he had to find out who had done it had finally quieted down. Of course he didn’t know the person who actually carried it out but in this case the person who gave the gun and the person who actually pulled the trigger were the same. All of them were involved in some way or another and his parents were just more innocent people who deserved so much better that Treasure killed and Riki wanted them to burn for it because his parents deserved justice.

“Riki? Are you okay?” Sunoo asked him gently as he tentatively placed a hand on the boy’s shoulder.

Riki stared back at all his boyfriends as he finally realized that had fallen and looked across the room only to realize that Heeseung and Jay had come in and were standing over by Jungwon.

“Yes and no,” Riki sniffled with a dry laugh as he tried to wipe at his tears only for them to be replaced with more.

“I mean, I know. I finally know who did it after finding out they were murdered yet I feel sick to my stomach because everyone responsible is still out there and they’re still doing what they did to innocent people like my parents.”

Riki tried to understand the absolute storm of whirling emotions that were going through him as he tried to voice his thoughts.

“I’m angry, I’m definitely so angry,” Riki said as he clenched his fist, “Because they didn’t deserve that. Nobody deserves that.”

“But, I also feel weirdly relieved because I also know who was responsible.”

Riki sniffled as more tears fell, “I just wish they were still here, that someone wasn’t just so selfish and cruel and took them away for no reason.”

“We’re going to stop them, Riki, we promise. We’re going to burn Treasure down from the inside out until they can’t hurt anyone anymore. We’re going to find justice for them, for your parents and for everyone else. We know nothing will bring them back but we can at least not let things like this happen again,” Heeseung assured him gently.

The boys all surged forward and wrapped Riki in a tight and warm group hug as his tears finally fell in earnest. His sobs were slightly muffled into the fabric of Sunghoon’s shirt yet they still echoed through the room as Riki cried for them once again.

For the years he lost with them.

For Sola not being able to grow up with them.

For Konon having to grow up far too early and losing the guidance into adulthood that she needed.

For every meal he would never taste from his mom again.

For every game of soccer he would never play with his dad.

For every single birthday and holiday that they wouldn’t be here for.

And for the fact that they couldn’t be here to see Riki fall in love.

He cried for all of it, because he missed every single part of them and was finally letting himself properly grieve them once again. That day teaches Riki that grief isn’t linear, that all those nights he spent crying after their deaths don’t make it up and they don’t just end. It comes and goes in waves and sometimes it’ll come back even stronger and knock him down and make Riki feel like he’s back to the day he lost them all over again.

But as all his boyfriends wrapped around him and reminded him that they were there for him, all Riki remembered was that he wasn’t facing it alone. For absolutely none of it would he be alone. And thought of that, that they would be here with him through it all, made the entire journey through grief and the subsequent one to heal far less scary.

Chapter Text

“This was the last way I was hoping to spend my birthday,” Eunchae sighed as she typed out something on Riki’s laptop.

The boys all shot her a sympathetic glance and Riki reached his hand up to pat her head, “I know Chae-yah, but I did buy your favorite ice cream and once we’re done here, you can have as much as you want,” he smiled at her.

Yes, he spoiled Eunchae a bit, but she was like his little sister. Riki thinks he’s more than allowed to.

Sunoo had already finished putting his part on their final project and was currently behind Riki massaging his shoulder. It had been a little over two weeks since he injured it but he was still getting some soreness, especially after his dance practices which had only been growing more intense as Riki worked to prepare the team for their competition the next month.

Riki didn’t see dance as a competition, he was never someone who did since it had always really just been a passion for him, but he certainly still had a competitive spirit to him on top of being a bit of a perfectionist, so he was working the team pretty hard and as much as he disliked Haruto, the guy shared his spirit and motivated the team well.

“Thanks oppa,” Eunchae smiled gratefully at him as she fiddled with the necklace that Riki had bought her.

“Sunoo and Jay also baked you a cake.” Heeseung piped up from his space on the bed, “And it’s red velvet.”

Jungwon turned to glare at the oldest, “I thought, you four were on a talking ban until we were finished.”

His glare was stern, but anyone could hear the playfulness in his voice as he addressed the four eldest guys.

Jake whined childishly and gave the second youngest boy a pout which resembled a golden retriever far too closely, “But you guys are taking so long.”

“Well I’m sorry that we desire academic- ah… success,” Riki smirked playfully at them, getting cut off in the middle as Sunoo got out a particularly tough knot.

“Feel good?” Sunoo asked him gently.

Riki nodded as he leaned against the older boy a bit more, “Yeah, that place was bothering me the most for a while.”

Eunchae stopped what she was doing to look over at her best friend in concern before she glared around at all the older boys.

“I still can’t believe you let him do that shit,” she told them incredulously.

“Chae-yah, don’t be like that.” Riki told her sternly, “It was my choice.”

Eunchae had been pissed when Riki explained to her how he hurt his shoulder and had spent a solid hour chewing out all the boys when she went over to their house with him that day. The boys all felt terribly guilty but also knew that Eunchae had told them all of that out of stress because Riki was like her brother and despite him being older, she had a protective nature when it came to him which they all understood.

“I know oppa,” she softened, “I just worry about you a lot of the time.”

Riki reached his uninjured hand up and gave hers a squeeze, “I know Chae, I know. But you don’t have to worry too much because I’m never going to do it again.”

“You better not, or else I promise I’m gonna kick your ass,” she smiled at him despite the fact Riki knew her words were one hundred percent serious.

The group all sat in silence for a few more minutes before Eunchae shut the laptop and placed it to the side and threw her hands up in celebration.

“I’m done!” she announced.

Everyone cheered at the girl’s words before Riki turned to her with a dead serious expression.

“Did you proofread it?”

Eunchae stared at him blankly for a solid second, “Did I proofread? Nishimura Riki, I swear to god!” she yelled as she chucked a pillow at him.

All of his boyfriends just laughed as Eunchae continuously attacked Riki with a pillow as he feebly attempted to defend himself all while laughing and apologizing in between and Riki smiled as in this moment, nothing but joy filled his heart.

“Have you talked to Konon lately?” Eunchae questioned as the group sat around the living room eating cake and ice cream in celebration of Eunchae.

Everyone else perked up at the question and shot Riki questioning stares as they had clearly also been wondering about that.

Truthfully, Riki hadn’t gotten to it because it was just a lot. Telling Konon about what he found out would entail telling her everything from the very beginning and she already had so much to worry about. Riki didn’t really want to cause her more stress by telling her : he met members of a gang, started dating said members of a gang, literally did a mission of espionage and committed a crime to steal data from corrupt and murderous assholes, one of those said assholes is the vice captain of his dance team and those said assholes are also aware he knows Enhypen and very much distrust and would probably hurt him as soon as he came within a foot of them.

“I haven’t. It’s just so much to tell her and she already has so much to worry about with work and Sola and everything. The last thing I told her was that Nakamoto found out our parents had been murdered but I haven’t told her anything else.”

Sunghoon sighed, “Riki, of course it’s not any of our places to tell you what to do, but doesn’t she deserve to know? She’s your sister and they were her parents too.”

Riki sighed heavily as he slumped back against the couch and fiddled with his spoon, “I know Hoon, she does deserve to know. It’s just so much to talk about. I don’t want to burden her or worse : scare her.”

“She’s your sister Ki.” Jay told him, “She’s always going to worry about you and be scared for you considering you’re her little brother and you live on your own hundreds of miles away.”

Jake nodded sagely, “My brother knows about what I do and I can tell you, he’s always texting and calling me to check up on me but it’s because he cares a lot and he does get scared for me ; but I just stay honest with him even though he’s so far away from all of this because he’s my brother. Sometimes siblings are the people you can trust the most with the heaviest things but you’ll never be burdening them.”

“You probably will scare her but that’s kind of inevitable.” Sunoo smiled easily at him, “My sister is always getting scared about me and how I’m doing even though she’s at university thousands of miles away.”

“It’s a sibling thing.” Jungwon giggled, “But it happens regardless, but one thing that you can always be with them is honest.”

Riki internalized all their words and mulled them over in his head. Konon really was like that, always texting and calling him since he moved to Korea to check up on him and offering him advice and staying on the phone with him on the late nights when everything felt so lonely. She was truly his first best friend and his main confidant. They were right, Riki thinks he’s due for a chat with his sister.

“Are you sure you don’t wanna come with us?” Heeseung asked, giving Riki those bright, big bambi eyes which he was always so weak for.

Riki shook his head with a fond smile on his face, “No hyung, besides I’m literally at your house all the time and you’ll all see me tomorrow.”

“Doesn’t mean you can’t stay over tonight though,” Heeseung pouted at him.

“Aish, you’re so clingy. Are you sure you’re the oldest in this relationship?” Eunchae piped up sassily as she finished lacing up her shoes.

“Yah! I see no problem if I like spending time with my boyfriend,” Heeseung argued.

Jungwon rolled his eyes fondly, “Hyung, Riki’s always at our place. It’s completely fine if he wants to stay at his apartment for the night.”

“Yeah, leave him be, you big, whiny baby,” Sunghoon teased him which earned him a half-hearted glare from the eldest.

“I’ll be leaving now, I’ll see you guys tomorrow,” Eunchae said.

“Bye Chae,” Riki said after giving her a quick hug.

“Bye Eunchae!” the Enhypen boys chorused.

“Bye oppas!” she waved as she went out the door.

“You guys get home safe. I have an apartment to clean and I think I need to talk to somebody,” Riki smiled at them.

The boys all gave him understanding looks at that and nodded and all of them gave Riki quick kisses before waving goodbye to their youngest and stepping out of the apartment.

As soon as Riki shut and locked the door, he realized how quiet the place was all over again. It felt strangely empty without the people closest to them, without them, the apartment kind of just felt like a shell but when they were here, laughter and conversation and an overall feeling of home just took up every corner. He felt the same thing when he was at the Enhypen house, their place truly felt more like home than anywhere else had to Riki lately.

Brushing off that thought, Riki headed to his bedroom to take a quick shower before dawning a hoodie and sweatpants for the night. He washed all the dishes in the sink slowly and meticulously as he mulled over how he would talk to Konon; but his brain just kept landing on one conclusion over and over : just tell her everything. It would be long and probably painful and worrying to her, but Riki was never good at hiding things. He’d always been someone so intrinsically honest if nothing else.

After drying off the dishes and putting them away, he grabbed his phone from the counter top and unlocked it before scrolling through his contacts and finding the number he was looking for. Riki sucked in a deep breath and pressed the call icon on the screen.

He leaned against the counter as only the sound of the ringing phone seemed to fill the entire apartment. Riki had no idea why he felt nervous, it was Konon for Christ’s sake, he could tell her anything.

“Hey Riki,” her sweet voice greeted.

“Hi Konon.” he said simply.

“It’s been a while, hasn’t it?” she asked softly.

Riki hummed in agreement, “It has, the last time I called you, I just gave you god-awful news.”

Konon chuckled lightly, “Yeah you did. Is that why you’re calling again?” she asked hesitantly.

Riki sighed heavily, “There’s honestly so much I need to tell you and I’m almost not sure how to start.”

“Just, start from the beginning Riki. I’ll listen to it all,” Konon told him gently.

Riki smiled a bit to himself, Konon always seemed to know the exact way to guide him when he needed it. The other line was silent, the quietness between them thick but comforting as she just waited and was ready to listen.

Riki went to open his mouth to begin when a sound broke through the silence of the apartment. Almost like a shuffling noise before he heard something bang loudly against the door and he turned around to look at the front door and saw the door knob turn before it stuck.

“Riki? What was that?” Konon asked him in concern.

Riki froze, he knew his boyfriends or Eunchae would’ve just knocked or announced their presence or fucking called him if they were outside instead of just trying to open the door. His stomach sank out of his chest as he slowly and quietly moved away from the front door whose handle was beginning to jiggle more violently now.

“K-Konon, I’ll call you back, okay?” he told her quietly, trying to keep the shakiness out of his tone but failing.

“Riki-”

The boy ended the call and pocketed his phone as the door knob continued to turn. Riki had a sick feeling in his stomach and hurried to shut the lights in the kitchen and living room off before quickly dashing down the hall to his bedroom and shutting and locking the door. He was one hundred percent certain that someone was trying to break into his apartment and his heart was racing but he knew he had to stay calm and controlled.

Right as he shoved his desk up to the door to barricade it, he heard the familiar sound of the front door swinging open and more than one pair of footsteps hit the floor before the door swung shut behind whoever it was.

“Is this the right address?” he heard a voice ask faintly.

“It has to be, we’ve been staking it out since earlier and we saw those Enhypen boys leave. He’s here alright,” another voice replied.

Riki’s blood ran cold, it was Treasure. It had to be, those bastards were still looking for him and they found his apartment; he knew calling the police wouldn’t work as they had far too many connections and would probably easily get away and his boyfriends left more than 30 minutes ago and would almost be home by now. Riki had to get out of here.

He heard them moving around outside and pulled on a pair of sneakers faster than he ever had and grabbed his wallet before trying to slide his bedroom window open as quickly but quietly as possible as it was his only means of escape.

“Check down the hall. Find him,” he heard a voice say.

“Shit.” Riki muttered as he pushed the window open enough for him to finally squeeze through.

He heard the door knob to his room jiggle and the man yell something before he began banging on it. Riki quickly slid the window shut behind him as he climbed down onto the fire-escape. This was the second time he had to use one in only a matter of weeks and Riki was truly hoping that this wasn’t going to become a thing with him.

He hurried down the metal staircase before moving to grab the ladder and climbing down as quickly as possible as his heart thundered in his chest. Once he reached the ground he took of running down the street, praying that they had no one on the ground waiting for him.

He caught sight of a man who he had never seen walking around the parking lot but Riki quickly avoided eye contact and pulled his hood up as he moved along the side of the building and stayed in the shadows to avoid being spotted. Luckily, no one saw him and he walked down the nearly abandoned streets considering the late hour on a weekday and hurried to a cafe a few blocks away that was open 24 hours.

Riki slipped inside and took a seat at a table, the late night employee paying him absolutely no mind as he pulled off his hood and sat catching his breath.

Treasure fucking found out where he lived, was Riki really not safe from those assholes anymore?

He let out some shaky breaths as his hands trembled while he tried to pull his phone out of his pocket and placed it on the table so he wouldn’t drop it. There was no way he could go back to his apartment, at least not tonight so he knew exactly who he needed to call.

Riki brought the phone up to his ear with his still shaking limb as it rang softly only twice before his boyfriend picked up.

“Hey Ki. Do you miss us already?” Jay asked him with a joking tone.

“Hyung,” Riki whispered shakily.

“Riki? What happened?” he asked, tone becoming far more serious and concerned when he heard Riki’s voice.

“Someone broke into my apartment. I got out and I’m at a cafe not too far from my apartment. Can you come get me?” Riki asked the older male.

He could already hear a faint jingling sound on the other line which sounded like Jay grabbing his keys and he heard him yell something to their other boyfriends, “Of course sweetheart, you don’t even have to ask. Sit tight alright? I’ll be there soon.”

“Okay, thank you Jay.”

“You don’t have to thank me baby,” he said kindly before hanging up.

Jay was certainly a man of his word and a man who probably broke a few traffic laws as less than fifteen minutes later, Riki heard the familiar roar of his motorbike’s engine and saw him pull up outside. Riki pushed himself out of his seat and ran out of the cafe and all but threw himself at Jay, nearly knocking him on his ass.

“I’ve got you.” Jay whispered reassuringly as he wrapped his arms tightly around Riki as the boy clung to him as if he would disappear.

“I’ve got you Riki.”

“What the fuck happened?” Jake asked as soon as the pair entered the living room.

Everyone was staring at Riki with eyes full of concern as Jay had just dashed out of the house earlier like a bat out of hell the only thing he told all of them being, “It’s Riki.”

Jungwon basically yanked Riki down onto his lap and Riki relaxed against the second youngest and leaned his head on the shorter boy’s shoulder because just like all of his boyfriends, Jungwon had a particular comfort to him.

“What happened baby? Talk to us,” Jungwon said gently as he wrapped his arms around Riki’s waist.

“Treasure broke into my apartment,” Riki told all of them.

Everyone’s jaws clenched as their eyes held nothing but pure fury at their youngest boyfriend’s words.

“They did what?” Sunoo gritted out. And Riki doesn’t think he’s ever seen Sunoo look so furious, quite frankly he looked downright murderous and Riki would be lying if he said he didn’t find the look on his face intimidating.

“I’m not sure exactly who, their voices were too muffled to decipher but it was definitely them. I heard them mention seeing you guys leave and one of them said to 'find him'.” Riki recounted.

“Fuck… fuck!” Heeseung exclaimed exasperatedly as he stood up and ran a hand through his hair.

“God fucking damnit, we never should’ve sent you on that mission. These guys are after you and that’s on us,” Jake muttered guiltily.

“Stop it.” Riki told the elder two, “Why do you all keep fucking blaming yourselves for this?”

“It was my fucking choice. Mine!” he yelled at them, “After you all told me the truth I fucking knew what I was getting into. I’m not some damn damsel in distress who can’t take care of himself at all.”

“Treasure are fucking dangerous Riki! And every time something happens you just brush it off like this and it’s like you don’t fucking understand that!” Jake yelled at him.

“Like hell I don’t!” he snapped as he stood up off of Jungwon.

“How the fuck wouldn’t I understand Jake? You fucking tell me.” He snarled.

“I knew exactly what I was getting into. I was the one who dragged you and Sunghoon into a neighborhood I knew wasn’t the safest. I was fully aware of that and Minjun had been creeping on me since then. He knew who you guys were and he’s a sick and twisted fuck; he always probably would’ve tried to get to me because he knows that I know you and Haruto knows too.” Riki ranted.

“I would’ve been in danger no matter what, so quit fucking blaming yourselves because this was my choice and I need you guys to stop blaming yourselves. I understand the danger, I do, but I don’t care because I care about you because goddamnit you all made your place in my life and I wasn’t going to just let go of that because I am tired of losing people okay? I don’t want to lose any of you!”

The room went silent at Riki’s confession and he almost immediately felt ashamed for losing his cool like that and shrunk back in on himself.

Jake surged forward and wrapped his arms tightly around Riki and the taller boy couldn’t help but reciprocate the hug as he melted against the Aussie.

“I’m sorry, I’m really sorry Riki.” He apologized.

“We’re all sorry.” Heeseung piped up, “We’re sorry that we made you feel like we’re not listening to you or understanding your decision.”

“You’re right Riki, this was your choice and we have to respect that even if we hate seeing you in danger,” Jake told him softly.

“I just want you guys to stop blaming yourselves. I’m here because I want to be, because all of you matter so much to me and I want to be here for you and be a part of your life.”

Jake pulled back from the hug and stared Riki straight in the eyes as he cupped the younger boy’s cheeks in his hands, “We want you to be a part of our lives too.”

“Damn right we do,” Jungwon spoke up from behind him.

“I’m here for it, for all of it. The good, the bad and the ugly. Just don’t try and push me away,” Riki told them.

“Never Riki, never.”

Riki stood on the roof, looking up at the sky. The night was clear so the stars littered the sky and their little white glow was bright against their dark canvas. The view from up there always seemed to clear his head and relax him a bit which Riki really needed after the night he had.

His boyfriends obviously insisted that Riki live with them for at least a few weeks considering Treasure knew where Riki lived now and Riki had no protests to that arrangement, like he said, the Enhypen house felt more like home to him than anywhere else.

Riki went up to the roof after a cuddle session filled with apologies from his boyfriends about how they never wanted Riki to feel as if they didn’t listen to him. The Japanese boy didn’t mean to lose his cool like he did at them earlier but it seemed to get his point across and none of them were angry at him for it, of course they weren’t.

He held his phone in his hand staring at the frantic messages and missed calls he got from Konon due to how abruptly their phone call ended earlier. Riki thought that now more than ever, he owed her explanation.

He pressed her contact and brought the phone up to his ear, the phone only ringing once before the line picked up.

“Hey Konon.”

Those simple words, began a long conversation, filled with months of explanation on Riki’s part as he told her everything . Konon’s reactions went from shock, to worry, to disbelief, to stress, to sadness and anger. Riki was genuinely worried that she was going to get high blood pressure before she hit twenty at this rate. She was scared and worried for him because like everyone said, she was his older sister and it was her job, but she was also relieved that her little brother wasn’t dealing with all that shit alone.

“Those boys better be taking good care of you! As your big sister I owe them a shovel talk and of course I have to meet them.” she rambled, her tone a bit lighter than it had been earlier when Riki had been telling her about his life over the past few months.

“They take really good care of me Konon, I think you would like them,” Riki said with a fond smile on his face.

“I miss you Riki, I wish I could come visit.” she said wistfully.

“You’ll be able to soon. Well maybe in spring, when it’s warmer.” Riki told her, his tone becoming more sentimental, “You and Sola. You can meet my boyfriends and Eunchae and we can all go to the beach and have a nice picnic. I hear they have some really nice beaches in Busan.”

“We haven’t been to the beach in a long time.” Konon said thoughtfully, “That would be nice.”

“Yeah,” Riki smiled to himself, “Yeah it would.”

After he said goodbye to Konon he heard a knock at the roof door and turned around to see Sunghoon peeking his head through the door. Riki couldn’t help but laugh a bit to himself, the two of them really did seem to spend the most time up here.

“I’m starting to think that this is kind of our spot,” Riki told the older in a only slightly joking tone.

Sunghoon smiled as he came over to stand next to him, “I think it is. It’s a good spot though. The view is always the prettiest,” he smiled while looking directly at Riki and making the boy blush briefly.

“Yeah.” Riki nodded as he stared right back at Sunghoon, “The view really is pretty.”

Riki noticed his boyfriend’s ear tinge a bit pink at his words and internally smirked as he was a bit happy to get the older flustered since his boyfriends did it to him all the time.

“How are you doing Ki? With everything that’s going on I mean,” the elder asked gently.

Riki sighed as he looked out at the view, “It’s a lot to deal with,” he said honestly, “But I’m not alone.” He said with certainty as he stared up at Sunghoon.

“I’ve dealt with being and feeling so alone for years but through all of this, I just know that I have people who are there for me. It’s a lot to handle all at once and it’s definitely hard…”

“But we’ll get through it,” Sunghoon finished as he clasped Riki’s hand in his own.

“Yeah,” Riki nodded.

They were silent for a moment before Riki spoke again.

“The grieving… I think it’s the hardest part. I miss them so much yet I’m also healing and I think it’s getting better but it still feels hard because I feel happy and okay sometimes and then sometimes it all comes crashing down all over again,” he admitted as he looked out at the city in the distance.

“Does it ever get easier?” he asked as he turned to face the elder boy once again.

Sunghoon had a thoughtful expression on his face as he nodded, “It does, eventually. I lost my mom three years ago.” He confessed.

Riki was surprised to hear that, “I’m so sorry Hoon.” he said sympathetically.

“You don’t have to apologize Ki. But back to your question : it does get easier. She got stabbed on a job and she bled out. Dad blamed himself and for a while I was angry because she had promised me that she would be back,” Sunghoon explained.

“We found justice for her because the guy who did it is still rotting in jail but we both took some time to heal, me trying to let go of that anger and him trying to stop putting the blame on himself.”

Riki squeezed his boyfriend’s hand a bit tighter as Sunghoon seemed to grow a bit more emotional as he went on.

“We both got through it eventually and once we did, all we could feel was missing her. We still do but we’ve both realized that she would’ve wanted us to heal and find happiness,” the elder smiled a bit.

“When I found myself feeling happy, I thought that I was almost wrong for that because I thought that maybe I wasn’t grieving her enough, but that’s not true. You’re never wrong for finding happiness after losing a loved one and you moving on and finding happiness is what they would want for you. You’re allowed to be happy,” Sunghoon assured him.

“There are still days now after three years that I find myself missing her a bit more and spending hours just crying or sitting with one of the guys and talking about everything I can remember about them for hours. I miss her so much still but I think it gets easier with time and support.”

“My dad always liked the stars,” Riki said after a moment, he thinks that maybe the day caught up to him. His conversation with Konon and everything but he misses his parents a little extra and can’t help but think about them.

“He would’ve loved this view. Back in Japan he had a telescope that he would put on the roof and he would take me and my siblings up there to watch with him.” Riki smiled as he reminisced.

“That sounds like it was really nice,” Sunghoon smiled at him.

“It was,” Riki nodded.

“Do you want to talk about them more?” the elder gently prompted.

All the thoughts and memories and old stupid jokes his parents used to make to him came flooding back all at once as Riki turned to Sunghoon and nodded. The pair grabbed the blankets that Sunghoon had stowed away on the roof sometime ago and sat down as Riki went on to talk about it all as they laid down, holding each other close and looking up at the stars.

“Hoon?” Riki called the older.

“Yeah Riki?”

“They would’ve liked you, I think they would’ve loved all of you.” Riki smiled.

Chapter Text

“Okay! That’s it for today! Gather around.” Riki called to his exhausted looking dance club members as he clapped his hands together.

Everyone groaned and sighed in relief as they all but collapsed to the floor.

Riki knew he was a perfectionist and he had been pushing the team a lot but it was just how he was. Dance had always been a huge passion for him and he also saw the potential in the kids on the team and wanted to push them to be their best. He wanted this routine to be the best that it could be, he didn’t care too much about actually winning ; he just wanted them to give a performance that they could be proud of.

“You guys did a good job today. Since the competition is in a little over 2 weeks, Haruto and I are finally going to talk about arrangements,” Riki said before nodding at the older to continue.

“The competition starts at 11:00 so we want everyone to be here by 8:00. It’s a little more than an hour to drive there,” the vice captain explained.

Riki nodded, “And the school are assholes and gave us a smaller bus than I requested but fortunately Haruto has a car so he can take four people with him.”

The members of the team all nodded to their captains’ words in response.

“Okay, well that’s really all you needed to hear. We’ll see you guys next practice and good luck in finals everyone!”

Riki walked over to his bag whilst all the team members left. The semester was coming down to its last few weeks so final exams were starting for all the students. Riki had so much going on in his life that final exams felt almost insignificant at the moment, but he also did hope for academic success and fortunately for him, Jay and Heeseung were insanely smart and helped him study a lot.

He had been staying with them for the past three weeks since Treasure broke into his apartment. Sunghoon had gone back to it with him the day after and Riki noticed that nothing was missing from the place and it didn’t even look like it had been ransacked in any way. They both found it strange but quickly packed up Riki’s clothes and personal belongings including all of Riki’s photos from his memory board before heading back to the Enhypen house.

Sunoo and Jungwon had spent that entire afternoon setting up the guest room with him and adjusting it to Riki’s comfort. It felt so domestic and comforting as Riki essentially moved in with them and although he knew he would miss his old place a bit, the Enhypen house really felt like home. Riki remembered how the three of them had flopped onto the bed and ended up cuddling up together and taking a nap once the room was set up and when Jake came up to call them for lunch he saw them and ended up taking pictures of them which were immortalized in the group chat between the boyfriends’ much to the mild annoyance of the youngest three.

Riki smiled a bit to himself at the memory as he rummaged through his back to look for the studio key and to grab his phone. He checked the group chat to see that Heeseung texted to say he was waiting outside for him about 30 minutes ago but furrowed his brows when he spotted the message that stated the other guys had gone on a mission.

That had also changed in the past few weeks. Treasure had been far more active and causing a lot of trouble lately. They had been encroaching on Enhypen territory more and Riki could see the toll it was taking on his boyfriends. They were constantly tense and on high alert, as well as disappearing from school more often.

Riki sent a message for peace of mind even if he knew the others wouldn’t see it until later.

little michael jackson 🕺
come back safe or i’m beating all of your asses <3

hee-hyungie 🦌
what kiki said. you done with practice btw baby? i went to the bathroom for a minute.

little michael jackson 🕺
i am i’ll be out in a few!

Riki went back to looking for his studio key but couldn’t find it and his brow furrowed. He was never an irresponsible person and always left the key for the dance studio in his bag. Where the hell would it have gone?

Riki slung his bag over his shoulder and stood up and went over to Haruto who was grabbing his own things from his bag while keeping a decent distance as he didn’t trust the guy as far as he could throw him.

“Haruto, do you have your studio key? I can’t find mine for some reason,” Riki told the older.

Haruto hummed and avoided eye contact with Riki as he rummaged through his bag and the younger Japanese boy heard the tell-tale sound of jangling keys but when Haruto pulled the keyring out of his bag, Riki froze.

There it was.

The one thing that had been haunting Riki’s mind for weeks ever since he saw that fucking video.

The silver keychain in the shape of a wrench.

Riki’s blood ran cold in his veins as he kept his eyes trained on the keychain and couldn’t bring himself to snap out of his shock at the moment as he desperately tried to get his brain to focus. He knew he couldn’t trust Haruto for weeks now, but it was him.

He was the one who killed Riki’s parents and he had been right in front of Riki for months.

“Oh you mean this key?” Haruto asked as his eyes darkened while he stared at the younger.

Riki finally tore his eyes away from the keychain as Haruto held up the single key for the studio that Riki usually kept in his bag and the boy felt his stomach turn. When the fuck did he take that from Riki’s bag?

He took a hesitant step back from Haruto.

“What the fuck are you doing with that?” Riki asked him, his voice more steely and confident than he actually felt.

“I’m pretty good with my hands,” Haruto sneered at him.

Riki stepped further back from him and foolishly tried to open the door, which just as he thought, was locked.

“What the fuck do you want?” Riki asked him.

“Just the truth Riki-yah. I’m sure you can give me that.” Haruto told him with a knowing look.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Riki said, feigning ignorance.

Riki felt his phone buzz in his pocket and realized it must be Heeseung and he silently prayed that he was outside the door because this situation wasn't good, it wasn’t good at all.

Haruto sighed in annoyance as he grabbed Riki and pinned him against the wall.

“Get the fuck off of me!” Riki yelled as he shoved at him but the older boy was unfortunately decently stronger than him and it did not help that Riki’s muscles were exhausted from the hours of dancing.

“I don’t want to hurt you Riki, but I will.” Haruto threatened, “I just want to hear what you know.”

“Know about what?” Riki asked indignantly as he tried to shove at the older again.

Haruto dug his nails into Riki’s shoulder and the boy had to hide a wince from the pressure.

“Don’t play dumb with me Riki. What you know about your little Enhypen boyfriends, we know you were at that party and we all have a hard time believing that you just disappeared. Tell me what the fuck you know,” Haruto said lowly as he tightened his grip.

“I don’t know anything.” Riki gritted out.

Haruto huffed as he wrapped his hand around Riki’s throat and pushed down a bit. Riki’s eyes widened as his air was slowly getting cut off, not enough for him to not breathe completely but definitely far too tight for comfort.

“What if I go ask your lovely sisters? Will they say the same thing?” Haruto questioned as he narrowed his eyes at Riki.

Riki’s stomach sank, they knew about his sisters, of course they did and they clearly weren’t above going after them to get something out of him and they already knew where they lived. Riki internally cursed, he couldn’t put them in danger but he couldn’t just give up everything he knew about his boyfriends either. He would lose either way and Treasure couldn’t be trusted. What was stopping them from going after his sisters even if Riki gave them what they wanted?

He wasn’t going to give either of the most important people in his life up, that was decided. No matter how much Haruto and Treasure tried to threaten him.

Riki’s fist clenched and his resolve strengthened.

“You don’t fucking threaten my family,” he growled at Haruto before kicking the guy straight in the dick and knocking him to the ground.

Haruto groaned and Riki rushed to grab his key that had fallen to the ground before going for the door.

Riki shoved the key in the lock but before he could turn it he was grabbed from behind and put in a chokehold.

Riki coughed and sputtered as Haruto tightened his arm around his throat as he desperately tried to get out of the guy’s grip and looked up to see the door knob jiggling from the outside before it started being banged on.

“You’ll fucking regret that Nishimura,” Haruto told him not paying any mind to the door.

Before he could lose air Riki had an idea come to the forefront of his mind, despite the sound proofing around the room, if there was a noise loud enough, someone would hear it.

“Heeseung!” Riki yelled at the top of his lungs.

The banging on the door only grew stronger and louder at that before it finally gave way to six feet of pure fury directed straight at Haruto before it swung shut again. The other Japanese boy finally looked up and released his hold on Riki as the younger boy collapsed to his hands and knees as he tried to catch his breath.

Heeseung went straight up to Haruto and grabbed him by the throat before punching him straight across the face, causing the guy’s head to snap to the side.

Heeseung’s eyes were narrowed and filled with nothing but pure rage as he punched the guy in the stomach once again before slamming him against the mirror and miraculously not breaking it as his grip around Haruto’s throat was so tight that Riki could see his boyfriend’s knuckles were completely white while Haruto’s eyes were blown wide and he punched and grabbed at Heeseung, his blows still decently hard but the older boy didn’t falter.

“You messed with someone I care about you asshole. That was a big fucking mistake,” Heeseung growled as his grip went impossibly tighter and Riki saw Haruto’s eyes roll back in his head before he went limp.

After a few more seconds, he finally released his grip on the other boy and Haruto collapsed to the floor, red marks around his neck and on his cheek already forming.

Heeseung’s gaze immediately softened after as he turned to Riki who was sitting on the floor panting with his eyes wide as he watched the scene. That was the most brutal and intimidating that Riki had seen Heeseung, ever and he would be lying if he said it didn’t send a chill down his spine.

But he wasn’t afraid of him, never of Heeseung. Riki was more than aware that his boyfriend would never hurt him, they’ve promised that and they’ve more than shown that.

“Baby are you okay?” Heeseung asked gently as he kneeled in front of Riki and cupped his cheek tenderly and checked him over for injuries ; his bambi eyes wide and full of worry.

Riki relaxed and leaned his head into Heeseung’s hold more as his boyfriend never failed to make him feel safe and protected.

“I’m okay hyung,” Riki nodded even though he knew there were probably some forming bruises around his neck and likely on his shoulder too.

Heeseung’s brow furrowed as his eyes went to Riki’s neck.

“He hurt you. That fucking bastard,” Heeseung gritted out.

Riki nodded, “But you got here and you protected me. I’m okay, I promise.”

The older boy sighed before he leaned forward and captured Riki’s lips in a gentle but passionate kiss as he rubbed his thumb over Riki’s cheekbone and brought the other around the younger boy’s waist and gave it a squeeze, like he was ensuring himself that Riki was safe.

Riki’s lips moved against Heeseung’s, savoring the sweet taste of the older and the gentle sensations as warmth filled him before he pulled back and leaned his forehead against Heeseung’s.

The past few minutes all came flooding back to Riki all at once and he stiffened in Heeseung’s hold as he stared into his boyfriend’s eyes.

“We need to talk, all of us.”

Heeseung didn’t pry as they drove back to the house and through the gate. Riki saw several cars in the driveway but didn’t really think much of it as one thing was really set on his mind and he was essentially on the warpath.

Heeseung watched as Riki hurried into the house and shoved the door open. The youngest heard voices distantly in the house and realized they were coming from the meeting room and sped over to the room as Heeseung followed hot on his tail.

Riki shoved the slightly ajar door open, not even acknowledging or really processing who else was in the room as his eyes landed on his boyfriends.

“Haruto killed my parents.” He said.

The entire room went so silent that one could hear a pin drop. His boyfriends faces shifted from shock, to disbelief to fury as every single one of them tensed.

It was only after dropping that bombshell that Riki really took in everyone’s appearance.

Jake’s lip was split and there was a cut over his eyebrow.

Jay was tenderly holding his side and there was a cut across his nose.

Sunoo had bruises on his cheek and in his arm.

Jungwon was gripping his shoulder and there was a cut across his neck.

And Sunghoon was holding a towel which already had splotches of red on his thigh while a bruise spanned from his temple over to his eyebrow.

“What the fuck happened?” Riki asked in concern as he finally took in their states.

“We’ll talk about that later.” Jungwon brushed off, “Haruto killed your parents?”

Riki reluctantly nodded as his stomach twisted in knots all over again as he thought about it. He had been close with the guy for months, he had even thought about him as a friend at points and actually trusted him, but he killed the people most important to Riki and still stared at him with a smile even though he knew exactly what he did.

“Yeah. He had the keychain and he locked me in the studio and attacked me and threatened my sisters. It was him,” Riki said dryly.

“This is the Nishimura kid?” a new voice spoke up, but was clearly speaking to the other parents that Riki hadn’t even acknowledged nor really register were standing there.

The man was clearly Sunoo’s father from how he shared the same face and he stood there with Jiyoon, Junwoo and Seojoon and another woman who clearly had to be none other than Jake’s mother. The adults all shared a look, one that looked far too much like they knew something and they froze. It was all too similar to the look on their faces like when the parents met him the first time and Riki couldn’t help but think they knew something more than they were letting on.

“What?” Riki directed the question towards them.

“There’s nothing Riki-ah,” Junwoo brushed him off.

“Stop fucking lying to me.” Riki growled out, “I know when someone looks like they’re hiding something and for literal gang members you all have terrible poker faces. What is it?”

The parents all shared a look before turning back to Riki with hesitant eyes.

“We know about the Nishimuras,” Junwoo finally said.

All the boys stared at him in confusion, wondering what the hell that meant since there was clearly more to it.

“Well more like we knew them. They… they used to work with us, a long time ago.” Jiyoon told him.

Riki felt his blood run cold and his stomach turn once again, his parents were a part of this? Of Enhypen? How the fuck was that possible? They were always such normal people with normal lives and they completely hid that from their children. Riki was in complete disbelief.

“There’s no way.” Riki shook his head as his stomach rolled and his mouth felt far too dry.

“Back in the 90’s, they were huge informants and spies for us. They extended our work into Japan and gave us information we requested to know about gangs that also operated there out of Korea. They were a big help and very good at what they did. They were great people and our good friends,” Jiyoon smiled hesitantly at him.

Junwoo nodded, “They opted out of this life when your mother got pregnant with your sister, they decided they wanted a normal life and to start a family.”

“We all accepted that and respected their decision to go but we kept in touch and checked in on them for years but they were happy outside of this life and we were happy for them,” Sunoo’s father explained.

“Why are you telling me all of this?” Riki asked them, knowing that there was more to it.

“The drug issue…” Jay spoke up suddenly, his face pale and voice hesitant, “from a few months ago with Treasure and Han-Gyeong and how he was shipping out to Japan. You guys refused to let us handle it. We couldn’t figure out what was in the drugs and couldn’t get any of the samples…” Jay said like he realized something.

Realization slowly dawned on all the boys’ faces as they really mulled over Jay’s words and Riki felt like he was going to be sick if he heard anymore but Seojoon continued.

“We were desperate.” he spoke guiltily, “We had to know so we asked them to pose as contacts and get a shipment sent to them. They refused at first but only a day later they agreed because they were our friends but they said it was the last time and refused to do anything like it again. They got the shipment but-”

“Treasure found out,” Riki finished, his mouth dry and his stomach in knots as everything finally hit him.

“They fucking found out.” Riki whispered to himself as all of it finally came crashing down and his stomach flipped and he ran to the trash can in the corner of the room before vomiting into it.

He retched as his stomach jumped into his theoat and everything came out all at once. Heeseung’s hands were gently rubbing his back and brushing his longer hair out of his face and so many emotions rushed through Riki all at once.

His parents had left and let go of that life but they roped them back in and made them do it all over again for what was really the last time. There was no after for them and Riki couldn’t help the feelings of anger that welled up in him towards his boyfriends’ parents.

“Riki, we’re so sorry,” Jiyoon apologized.

Riki finally finished retching and had moved into dry heaving as he stared at the woman with nothing but venom in his gaze.

“Don’t fucking apologize! They left and you just pulled them back like it was nothing and now they’re gone. They didn’t want this anymore and you all just dragged them back!” Riki snapped as he slumped against Heeseung.

“I think you guys should go.” Jungwon said, his voice emotionless but his face stony and eyes full of varying emotions.

“Won-” his father began.

“Appa, I mean it.” Jungwon said, his voice hard and cold, “Go.”

The parents all shot their children sad and remorseful looks before reluctantly nodding and giving Riki sorry gazes before walking out.

Riki distantly heard the front door shut as the atmosphere in the room felt so heavy as the boyfriends all looked at one another with varying emotions running through their faces and Riki couldn’t stop the sob that ripped out of him.

Riki sat on the couch just staring off into nothing, thinking about everything that hit him in one day.

Haruto killed his parents.

His parents were members of Enhypen before they left and got roped back in for what was only supposed to be one thing and were killed because of it.

The anger left and Riki was just left with sadness. The waves had come again and were holding him under and Riki couldn’t help but feel like he couldn’t breathe.

He listened to his boyfriends whispering to each other and tending to each other’s wounds while Heeseung lightly scolded them but it all sounded far away, like Riki was far under the water and they were above the surface.

He was angry, yes, angry that once again he was lied to and didn’t know and his boyfriends’ parents hid the truth from him, such a huge one even after meeting him. But he was angry about the lie now, not about what they did even though Riki wanted to be furious with them.

Riki wanted to be angry and scream at them and blame them for getting his parents killed, but he couldn’t because they didn’t mean to do it. Riki saw the genuine emotion on their faces, they cared about his parents, he could see it they never wanted to put them in harm’s way. But Riki also remembered how selfless his parents were, he remembered it because he took that from both of them.

They would’ve known the danger it would’ve entailed to go back into that even if it was for one mission because they wanted to help ; because they were that good of people and they cared for others so much that they risked themselves to help those he cared about and Riki understood it because he would do the same ; he has done the same.

So he’s not angry, not at his parents or the Enhypen parents, not anymore. Just at Treasure, he was angry at how cruel and selfish people could be.

“I’m sorry for yelling at them,” Riki said, his voice soft and guilty.

Sunoo was on his left and turned to him with the most gentle eyes.

“It’s okay Riki. No one’s mad at you and none of us blame you for reacting how you did,” the older assured as he scooted closer to the boy and wrapped an arm around his shoulders.

Riki leaned into the contact and rested his head on top of Sunoo’s.

Jake hummed in agreement, “It was a shock to all of us, but especially you. You had a right to be mad that they hid that from you.”

“I’m angry because they lied.” Riki admitted slowly, “Not because of what they did.”

“Riki, it’s okay if you’re upset with them no one would blame you,” Sunghoon told him.

“I know,” Riki nodded, “But I’m not. I just wished they did tell me but it’s not their faults.”

Riki smiled a bit to himself as he thought about his parents, “I know them, they would’ve done what they did because they cared and they wanted to, no other reason. It’s no one’s fault, no one besides Treasure.”

All of his boyfriends’ eyes narrowed a bit at the mention of the other gang but they understood Riki’s perspective and didn’t push him anymore.

“Those fucking bastards,” Jungwon swore.

“What happened to you guys?” Riki asked as he took in his boyfriends’ injured states properly since he had gone off earlier.

“Problems in Mandu’s neighborhood.” Jay huffed, “They started a fire at one of the old houses there as a distraction but they broke into one of our storage houses and tried to steal some money from there.”

“There were a lot of guys there so we got a little banged up but we did get rid of them, they were some stupid but dispensable lackeys and one of our friends in the police force picked them up for us,” Sunghoon explained.

Riki’s brow furrowed and his eyes narrowed as he listened to his boyfriends’ story. Treasure had really been causing them far too much trouble lately and Riki couldn’t help but grow more worried for them.

“I guess they thought all of us were there or something because I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Haruto went after you on the day that five of us are on a mission and only one of us is there after your dance practice,” Jungwon surmised logically.

Riki stiffened, he hadn’t even thought about that.

“That fucking asshole.” Heeseung muttered under his breath before he turned to Riki and his gaze softened a bit, “You never told us exactly what was up with him.”

Riki sighed as he ran a hand through his hair, “First of all he stole my studio key and that’s when I saw that he had the keychain from that video. He locked me inside with him and then started telling me to tell him what I knew about you guys. Obviously I said no and he didn’t like that so he attacked me but I held my ground and pretended I didn’t know anything… then he threatened my sisters.”

“Those dickheads.” Jake swore quietly.

The boys all tensed at that as their eyes narrowed and they continued listening to their youngest.

“I still didn’t tell him anything and I pushed him off and grabbed the key and I was able to get it in the lock but before I could open the door he grabbed me again and tried to choke me out but I was able to yell loud enough and Heeseung heard me and broke the door down.” Riki gave the eldest a small smile at the end and he returned it.

“God, I was so fucking worried when I heard you scream and then I saw him and I just snapped.”

“You didn’t kill him, did you?” Sunoo asked.

Heeseung and Riki both shook their heads, “Fucked him up a bit and choked him unconscious? Yeah, but I didn’t kill him.”

“I would’ve killed him,” Jake muttered under his breath.

“Jake!” Jay scolded, “That would’ve caused way more problems for us and you know that’s not what we do, even if the bastard might deserve it a bit.”

“Enough talk about killing him okay?” Sunghoon acted as the voice of reason before turning to Riki.

“We’ll protect your sisters Riki, we promise. We have some people in Japan who can take care of them until we can handle this.”

Riki felt a little less worry on his shoulders at those words and the fierce determination and honesty in all the boys’ eyes as they agreed.

“We won’t let anything happen to them Ki, we can assure you that,” Sunoo told him.

Heeseung nodded before looking back at the boys, “Now on the topic of Treasure. How do we deal with them? They’re a big fucking problem now more than ever and we can’t keep letting them get away with everything they’re doing or else they’re going to burn Seoul to the ground.”

“We need more information on them. I’m already building a huge file of irrefutable evidence but if we’re going to take them down we need way more.” Sunghoon told the group.

“Then we get it.” Jungwon said authoritatively, “We let Nakamoto do more digging, we get our allies to find out what they can and we find more solid evidence with their names all over it until we tear down everything they built.”

Jungwon looked around at the group with a fierce and dead-set determination in his eyes before he spoke.

“We’re going to burn Treasure to the fucking ground.”

Chapter Text

Riki tapped his pen lightly against the table as he checked over his exam. Finals week had come and gone incredibly fast but all too slow at the same time and he was beyond relieved that this was his last test.

He’d had a lot on his mind over the past week and change and coupling in everything he’s been studying over the past few weeks made his mind feel like it was going to explode. Riki’s final paper was history whereas Eunchae, Sunoo and Jungwon were in a different classroom doing Chemistry which Riki never could’ve fathomed. He truly had no idea how those guys selected science subjects.

Things had been stressful and hectic lately, especially for his boyfriends. The six of them were extremely tense and on edge about Treasure and were on the warpath in trying to take them down lately. Riki thought back to his call with Konon when she said she was standing upstairs and two girls she had never seen before were at the front door.

He had been worried initially until his boyfriends told him that they were some friends of theirs and were going to take his sisters to a safe and discreet location in Japan and that they would be tailing them for a few weeks on their daily activities until everything blew over.

Konon was hesitant of course and Riki understood her worries because even he was worried about them having to put so much faith into people they didn’t know, but he was able to talk to the two women : Nakamura Kazuha and Miyawaki Sakura and they genuinely seemed nice and trustworthy enough and Riki spent an hour interrogating them to ensure his sisters safety but the women were patient and answered every question he had.

It relieved him a bit to know that at least his sisters were protected through this hellish nightmare that was going on, but like everything it would have its end, even if it didn’t necessarily feel like it. Riki had to have patience and he had to have faith, which he did, he had so much faith in his boyfriends that they would be able to handle this because they’ve proven that they can. Even if everything may seem hardly surmountable ; they all had each other, they would be alright.

Riki smiled a bit to himself as he put away his pen and picked up his exam paper before walking over to the teacher’s desk. He gave a forced smile to his annoying history teacher, who didn’t even bother to return it (the absolute bitch) and picked up his bag from the front of the room before heading out the door.

He released a breath he hadn’t known he’d been holding as he stepped out into the hallway which was only littered with a handful of other students. Even with everything going on in his life, finishing his first exams of his junior year still felt like a huge weight off of his shoulders. Riki headed down the hallway to the bathroom since he’d felt the need to pee for the past hour and decided to go before going to look for his friends.

Riki pushed open the bathroom door and walked straight into a stall and locked it shut behind him before doing his business. He heard the bathroom door open and faintly noted that in the back of his mind although he didn’t think much of it as he finished up and flushed the toilet. He walked over to the sink to wash his hands and he heard the stall door behind him open and his brow immediately furrowed.

None other than Watanabe Haruto stepped out and he only glared at Riki in the reflection of the mirror before going to the other sink to wash his hands. Riki noticed the bruises from the beating Heeseung gave him were fainter now but still present and he couldn’t help but smirk a little to himself because the asshole fully deserved it.

“Captain,” Haruto spoke up suddenly as his eyes looked over to Riki’s reflection in the mirror, “Are we doing any practices in the next week off before the competition next Saturday?” he asked his tone casual but his eyes held something Riki couldn’t quite place behind them.

Riki scoffed under his breath at the fucking audacity of this man to act so casual and innocent even after everything he’s done.

“The team deserves a break before the competition.” Riki told him harshly.

“And don’t you fucking talk to me. After next week, you’re off my fucking team,” Riki snapped at the senior before pushing past him and out of the bathroom.

Riki felt his blood boil as his jaw clenched, Haruto seriously had the nerve to speak to him like he had done absolutely nothing wrong after killing his parents, attacking Riki and proceeding to threaten his sisters. The dude was fucking unhinged. Riki leaned against the lockers and clenched his fists as he took in some deep breaths to calm himself down because Haruto was the one asshole who never failed to get to him.

“Riki?” a voice that he would recognize anywhere called. Riki looked up to see Sunghoon staring at him with eyes full of concern.

“You okay?” he asked.

Riki felt himself relax a little more, as he always did in the presence of his boyfriends. They were like his own personal drug that always managed to make him feel calm and mellow even if he felt like currently breaking someone’s (Haruto’s) jaw.

“Yeah Hoon, I’m fine it’s just-” Riki began before he heard the tell-tale sound of the bathroom door opening and saw Haruto walk out and stare right at him and Sunghoon before turning and walking in the opposite direction.

“Oh. Fucking asshole,” Sunghoon muttered under his breath before his gaze softened a bit and he turned back to Riki, “He didn’t do anything right?”

Riki shrugged slightly, “He came in the bathroom when I went in there and asked me about the dance competition so grossly casually like he didn’t fucking attack me a week ago and threaten my family. I told him not to fucking speak to me and that after next week he’s off the team.”

Sunghoon smirked proudly at him as he wrapped an arm around his waist and started walking with Riki down the hall, “That’s my baby boy. Are you really kicking him off the team?”

“Yeah, Mr. Hwang is basically the supervising teacher for the dance team and he adores me. If I tell him I want Haruto gone for some bullshit reason, he’s more than likely going to believe me,” Riki smiled to himself proudly.

“I’m sure he will and of course if you need us to, we can file some 'anonymous complaints' about his 'inappropriate behavior' on the team,” Sunghoon smirked deviously at him.

Riki couldn’t help but laugh at that as he wrapped his arm around Sunghoon’s shoulders and they turned down the hall, “I think that would be very helpful.”

The pair smiled at one another before Riki decided to forget about talking about Haruto and moving onto another topic.

“How was Physics?” he asked the older.

Sunghoon chuckled, “A pain quite frankly but I think I passed. Jake finished in like twenty minutes and disappeared and I saw Jay and Heeseung message in the group chat that they finished their Music exams like half an hour ago.”

Riki chuckled lightly, “Of course they did, my boyfriends are a bunch of geniuses. I expect nothing less.”

“I don’t know about geniuses,” Sunghoon laughed, “Jungwon once asked if the US was a part of Europe when he has a boyfriend from the US.”

Riki laughed loudly at that, the sound filling up the entire hallway as his boxy smile went on full display and Sunghoon’s heart swelled at the beautiful sound and his eyes filled with adoration.

“Hyung,” Riki said between laughs, “Haha- please tell me you’re bullshitting me right now…” he said before breaking off into laughter again.

“Baby, I’m deadass. In fact you can ask Wonie,” the older boy giggled.

Riki felt his phone buzz in his pocket and pulled it out to see a message from Eunchae in their group chat.

dumbasses ft. eunchae and riki

potato-chae
sunoo, jungwon oppa and i finished our chem exams and we already left we’re in the cafe just off campus

Riki showed Sunghoon the message and the older nodded before pulling Riki along outside to the parking lot. They both noticed the car and Jay’s bike missing and shot each other questioning looks.

“Did they all go already?” Riki questioned as he got on the back of Sunghoon’s bike.

Sunghoon shrugged, “I guess they did, but Eunchae didn’t send that message that long ago.”

Riki hummed, “Yeah, I guess they finished a bit before and only now sent a text?”

Sunghoon seemed to agree and adjusted his helmet before turning around and ensuring Riki’s was secure even though the younger definitely knew how to fix his helmet on his own by now. The pair pulled out of the parking lot and down the street to the cafe which was only a couple minutes away and pulled up in front, noticing the other vehicles already there.

The two hopped off and walked over to the door of the very quiet looking cafe. Sunghoon pushed the door open and the bell rang and right at that moment the lights flicked on and all their friends jumped out.

“Surprise! Happy Birthday!” They yelled.

Riki and Sunghoon gaped at all their friends as they stood there stunned. They both actually completely forgot about their birthdays with everything that had been going on in their lives ; but the people closest to them not only remembered but set something up to surprise and celebrate them and Riki felt really touched and he felt loved.

“Holy shit, we both completely forgot,” Riki laughed breathlessly as he looked at Sunghoon when he remembered what the date was today and how it was written on the white board through his entire exam yet it didn’t click in Riki’s brain that today was a special day.

He tugged Sunghoon into a tight hug as he wrapped his arms around his boyfriend’s shoulders and Sunghoon held him impossibly tighter around the waist.

“Happy birthday Hoon.” Riki told him softly.

Riki felt Sunghoon smile against his neck before he spoke, “Thank you baby. Happy early birthday.”

After a few more moments, the two pulled away from each other and beamed at the people closest to them as Riki was yanked into a tight hug by Eunchae.

“I couldn’t possibly forget my best friend’s birthday,” she told him simply with a wide smile.

Riki smiled at her and gently patted her head gratefully, “Thank you Chae-yah, I love you.”

Eunchae pouted cutely at him and blushed a bit, “I love you too Riki oppa.”

After that, Sunoo and Jungwon pulled him into the tightest hugs and littered kisses all over his face and pecked his lips several times as they wished Riki a happy birthday.

“Happy birthday Ki, we’re so happy to be here with you,” Sunoo smiled at him.

Jungwon nodded in agreement as his dimples were on full display, “We’re really happy to celebrate two of the most important people in our lives. Happy birthday Riki.”

After that, the oldest three exchanged with Sunoo and Jungwon who immediately attacked Sunghoon with affection and clung to him while telling him all types of sweet things and teasing him quite a bit on top of that.

Jake, Jay and Heeseung basically crushed Riki in between themselves as they told him all type of praise and sweet birthday wishes while poking at his dumpling cheeks and ruffling his hair.

“Aish, I get it you guys love me,” Riki laughed, “Can you let me breathe?”

The six older boys in the room all stilled after that as they looked at him with serious expressions with something else behind them. Riki was confused, did he say something wrong?

“Did I say something wrong?” he asked hesitantly.

Sunghoon shook his head as he smiled widely at Riki before coming over to him and squeezing him in a tight hug.

“You said that we loved you and yeah you’re right Riki. We love you a lot,” Sunghoon confessed.

It was Riki’s turn to freeze now as he gaped at the shorter boy and blushed furiously. He was well aware of his feelings and how everything between them probably brought them closer even faster but what he felt, what he had felt for quite a while was true. He cared about these boys so much and what started off as strong romantic feelings for them which all of them ended up acting on, had blossomed into something beautiful and sincere. Riki loved these boys, he loved them so much.

“I love you guys too.” Riki smiled at them, feeling really emotional all of a sudden.

Jungwon smiled as he jumped back into the hug and everyone else quickly followed suit. All he could hear were choruses and different variations but they all said the same thing and filled him with the same warm and wonderful feelings as they said the words that at times had just been sitting on the tip of his tongue but at times Riki feared would come out too soon, but what they all felt was true and honest.

They loved each other, all seven of them, each other’s missing puzzle pieces that came together and created a beautiful picture that Riki wanted to immortalize forever and keep in the most indestructible box that could never be broken so he could keep that love forever.

The eight of them filled up the entire cafe with their laughter and conversation and enjoyed each others company while celebrating two of the special people in this little group that they’ve created.

“How the hell did you guys hide planning all of this from us?” Sunghoon asked around a mouthful of cake which was expertly baked by Eunchae.

Heeseung laughed, “Babe, it really wasn’t that hard. You and Riki are the most observant but with how much has been going on lately we knew you forgot your own birthdays so it was pretty easy.”

Jay nodded in agreement, “You two truly didn’t know a thing and it’s surprisingly easy to rent out an entire cafe once you give them the right price,” he winked.

Riki and Sunghoon both looked at each other before turning back to the others with grateful smiles on their faces.

“Well thank you guys, with everything that’s been going on lately ; this is really nice,” Riki told them sincerely.

“Of course.” Jake smiled easily, “We love you both, we couldn’t just let these next two days go by without celebrating anything.”

Riki felt his heart flutter again from hearing those words, he wasn’t sure if he would ever get used to it but he knew that it was true and they meant it. He could feel the love they had for him as it surrounded him in this blanket of warmth and security and created a place full of trust and vulnerability for him and he was glad to think that he did the same for these guys with him. Then he remembered something.

“So guys, I know things have been absolute hell lately,” Riki began hesitantly, “But my dance competition is next week and it would really mean a lot to me if you guys came.”

Sunoo reached over and squeezed Riki’s hand gently as he smiled at the boy, “We wouldn’t miss it for the world baby.”

Jungwon nodded in agreement, “If something comes up we’ll let some of our friends handle it, they’re more than capable.”

“You’ve always supported us Riki-yah, we would be honored to come and support you in your passion,” Jay said sincerely.

“I was already going to be there. I’ll make sure I save a seat for you guys,” Eunchae told the other boys.

Riki gave them all a soft smile at that, “You guys are the best.”

And he meant it, Riki had great people in his life after so long of not truly having a support system in Korea. He had it now and it was sturdy and full of love and they were staying. Riki could tell, they were sincere and here to stay because they cared about him and loved him. Riki really couldn’t ask for anything more than this.

And in the words of Beethoven himself.

Isn’t it beautiful?

Riki made sure everything was packed in his back as he multitasked between getting his shit together and texting his nervous team members to ensure the poor kids were ready for the day. The week from his and Sunghoon’s birthdays flew by and now it was competition day. But Riki had a nervous feeling in his stomach as various thoughts flew through his head.

Treasure had been strangely quiet over the past week and hadn’t caused his boyfriends much trouble. There were a few things which his partners did have to deal with but it wasn’t to the extent that it had been over the past several weeks. Heeseung had two hypotheses : that they were either planning something big or they were toning down a bit before starting up again since there had been a few reports of suspicious activity in the public which were quickly brushed away by whoever the gang had allied with them in the police force.

Today was also six months since his parents’ deaths and Riki couldn’t help but miss them a bit extra as well ; he hoped that they were proud of him and that they would be with him today as he danced, but he knew they would be, they always were.

He sent a text to Konon nonetheless, the two women who had been assigned to take care of her and their little sister had been great from her updates that she sent nearly everyday at this point. They were friendly but very serious whenever the girls went out in public but knew how to keep discreet but on high alert as they looked out for the girls. Judging from Konon’s messages, Kazuha also seemed to be giving her a bit of gay panic from how pretty she was which Riki couldn’t help but laugh at a bit, but he was happy for her nonetheless.

little michael jackson 🕺

make sure you get their favorites
today. gardenias for mom
and white roses for dad.
give them my love too
of course.

i love you and sola lots <3

He knew Konon wouldn’t reply as it was only a bit after 7:00 a.m on a Saturday and she had just closed off the studio for the holidays so she would enjoy the rest that she could get. Riki smiled a bit to himself as he put his phone away and made sure he had everything before leaving his room and heading downstairs.

Riki walked into the kitchen to see all of his boyfriends awake and Jay instantly put a bowl of porridge along with an apple down on the table for the youngest.

“Eat up baby, it’s a big day, today,” he smiled at Riki.

Riki just smiled gratefully at him before pulling the chair between Sunoo and Heeseung and sitting down as he began eating his breakfast. It was delicious just like everything Jay ever made and Riki thought he could literally taste the love and support in the dish. He ate slowly so as to not aggravate his stomach where the knots inside of it seemed to just not go away.

Riki loved performing and he always felt confident when he danced but it didn’t mean he didn’t get nervous. It was probably because it was his first competition in a while that he felt a bit anxious.

“You nervous baby?” Heeseung asked him, seeming to notice the slightly anxious aura around him.

Riki nodded minutely, “I can’t lie hyung, I am a bit.”

The boys all gave him reassuring smiles.

“Everyone gets nervous Riki-san, you’re human so it’s only natural,” Jake smiled as he came around the table to wrap his arms around the youngest’s neck.

“What matters is that you’re going to be amazing like always and we’re going to be in the stands along with Eunchae and cheering you on like our lives depend on it.” Jake said as he tilted Riki’s chin up so the boy was looking at him.

Riki smiled as the Aussie leaned down and placed a sweet upside down kiss on his lips, as gentle and loving as ever as he moved his lips against Riki’s before pulling away. Riki felt a little more at ease from the support and reassurances of his boyfriends’, with them on his side, they always knew how to make Riki feel empowered and more confident whenever he needed it. He was going to be more than alright.

Everyone gave him quick kisses and tight hugs and told him that they would seem him later as Heeseung decided to drive Riki to the school so he could head to the competition with his team. Riki bounced his leg nervously a bit in the car but Heeseung reached over and placed his hand on the younger boy’s thigh and gave it a tight but reassuring squeeze which made Riki look up to him only to see Heeseung giving him a sweet smile.

They rode in a comfortable silence as some older K-Pop songs played on the radio until they finally pulled up to the school where the gate was open and Riki could see his team members and Mr. Hwang anxiously waiting by the bus, all of them seeming to be present and accounted for already.

“You got this Riki-yah. You’re an incredible dancer and you’re going to kill it,” Heeseung smiled before gently holding Riki’s chin and pulling him into a gentle kiss.

“I love you,” Heeseung muttered against his lips before giving him another kiss and teasingly pulling Riki’s bottom lip between his own as he pulled back.

Riki blushed at the action and squeezed Heeseung’s hand briefly, “I love you too.”

He hopped out of the car and grabbed his bag and waved Heeseung off until he was out of sight before walking through the gate and over to his team and art teacher.

“Good morning everyone,” Riki greeted enthusiastically. While his team members greeted him a bit nervously but still politely, Haruto couldn’t refrain from making a snarky comment.

“Look who finally decided to show up,” he scoffed.

“What was that Haruto-ssi?” Mr. Hwang asked as he narrowed his eyes at the senior.

Haruto scoffed as he went over to lean against his car, “Nothing Mr. Hwang.”

Riki saw him turning his keychain in his hand and fiddling back and forth with it, almost like it was taunting him and had to bite back the awfully strong urge he had to hit the guy.

Mr. Hwang however turned to Riki and gave him a look as he lowered his voice.

“Has Haruto been troubling you lately? I’ve gotten a few complaints,” he asked Riki softly.

Riki looked back at the older boy before turning back to his teacher and giving him a nod, “He has Mr. Hwang but with the competition I couldn’t do anything about it but I’ve already told him that this is his last event with the team.”

Mr. Hwang patted his back gently, “Good, the complaints I’ve gotten about his behaviour were concerning to say the least. I think you’ve made a good choice Riki-ah.”

Riki internally smirked to himself a bit, he possibly did take Sunghoon up on that offer to make anonymous and not entirely fabricated complaints about Haruto to officially get him off the team, which would at least be some relief on Riki’s part of not having to see him every day and having to look over his shoulder at the guy constantly because he couldn’t be trusted.

The team didn’t know yet, but Riki didn’t necessarily think they would miss him too much; Riki knew that he was truly the favorite among them.

He clapped his hands together to get everyone’s attention and all his dance team members stared at him expectantly.

“Alright everyone, this is our first competition for the year but also the last for one of us,” he said, feigning a slightly melancholy tone as he looked over at Haruto.

“What does that mean captain?” one of the other juniors on the team, Shota questioned. He was a great dancer and a good kid from what Riki knew about him.

“It means, he’ll be leaving us unfortunately.” Riki said, thankful for his acting skills that made his 'sadness' over the announcement seem believable.

A girl on the team, a really nice one who was always friendly and generally uplifting for the group, Haerin spoke up, “Well thanks for sticking with us this year Haruto-sunbae. We’ll miss you,” she smiled at the guy.

Haruto gave a smile that Riki could see straight through and bowed to the team, “Let’s just give a great performance today everyone. Thank you all for being a great team.”

Riki had to refrain from rolling his eyes as he told everyone to get on the bus while four members got into Haruto’s car. Quite frankly Riki was glad he didn’t have to go with him and even though Haruto was a shit guy, he had no reason to hurt the members of the team and he would be an idiot to try anything on a day like today.

The team arrived at the venue after a little more than an hour and after a quick speech from Mr. Hwang for everyone to be on their best behaviour, they got off the bus and headed to the entrance. Riki noticed how the parking lot was already extremely packed full of cars and was a bit surprised by the turn out but it was a national competition after all so naturally there were a lot of teams and supporters. Riki stayed at the back of the group along with Mr Hwang to keep an eye on his team to make sure all of them were accounted for.

Just as he was about to call Haruto to find out where he was because he and four of Riki’s members were missing, the five of them came around the side of the building and walked over to the group.

“Where did you park?” Mr. Hwang asked the senior.

“In the back, the place is completely crowded. I couldn’t find a spot anywhere else,” the older boy answered.

With that, the team headed inside and bowed respectfully to the other teams there as Riki went to get them signed in and give the organizing staff their music as well as get their waiting room number. Once that was done, he escorted his team members over to their dressing room which was split into an area for the girls and for the boys respectively.

They all put down their things and Riki called the team over to run their numbers full-out one last time before they got changed. They shifted back the benches in the room and got into position as Mr. Hwang pulled out a small speaker and played the tracks for them.

Their first number was to Mamamoo’s Piano Man and it was a more technical and upbeat contemporary jazz number with a sexy edge to it to show the groups’ more technical skills as Riki was all too familiar with what judges wanted at these competitions. They judged hard on the technicality of a number as well as the performance so Riki knew it was best to do a more technical number before doing a more hip-hop inspired one which was really the team’s biggest strength all around.

They were still technically decent dancers however, don’t get Riki wrong. They had good dynamics and decent flexibility and coordination to excel at a non hip-hop based number. He corrected the team on any small mistakes they made on their first song before the second one which was none other than The Real by Ateez filtered through the speaker.

Riki had been a bit on the fence about choosing this song but after listening to it a few times he really got a feel for it and had started choreographing moves for it. The entire team were happy with the choice and also glad there was a dance break section that would enable them to go full out energy-wise and when Riki saw their reactions he knew he had made a good choice.

The second number had less mistakes but Riki still gave a few small corrections and a bit of constructive criticism before Mr. Hwang clapped his hands and told his students to start getting ready as they had to be out on the floor for the opening of the competition in only 30 minutes.

They all got dressed and once everyone was ready to go, they headed out the door and back down the hall to the main floor of the convention center. The bleachers were absolutely packed with people as they spanned across the whole long wall of the room staring straight at the stage. Riki also took note of where the judge’s table was and made sure that his team bowed respectfully to the other competitors.

The woman who was in charge of establishing the entire competition called for silence among the crowd as she started to give a long winded speech about the importance of dance and thanking everyone who made the day possible. Riki truthfully tuned her out, but not entirely intentionally, he was just a bit nervous. Not as nervous as he had felt that morning but he still had a weird feeling in his stomach that he couldn’t entirely shake but he was almost certain that it would go away once he performed.

He looked over at the bleachers and smiled to himself when he spotted Eunchae and his boyfriends on some seats near the top almost directly in the middle where they would have a great view of the stage. They all waved enthusiastically when they spotted him and Riki waved back before turning his attention away when the MC announced the first team.

Their team had quite a wait since there were about 110 teams in the competition which were very meticulously selected from hundreds of teams around the country. Riki recalled correctly from the list that they were number 106 so it was going to be quite the long wait for them.

They watched all the teams before them and Riki was quite impressed by the dances, they had strong choreography and a lot of them were great performers. A few had some mistakes which would certainly cost them points but overall, he could see the passion and the love that these people put into dance and could see that they enjoyed it.

Hours went by and he made sure his team ate something, nothing too big but something to give them energy a little more than an hour before they were scheduled to go on and the last hour flew by because eventually they were about to be up as the team before them were moving into their final seconds of the routine.

Riki gave his teammates an encouraging smile because he could sense all of their nerves, “Hey, don’t think or worry about anything or anyone else. When we get out on the stage, we just go and do our best and most of all we enjoy it. I know you’re all great and you all better know how great you are too. You’re all talented dancers and we’re going to kill it. Fighting!”

“Fighting!” The team echoed as they raised their fists and looked a little more at ease after his speech.

“Please welcome the Begonia High Dance Team to the stage,” the MC announced.

The crowd applauded and Riki could hear the distinct cheers of his friends from the crowd as they made sure their voices were louder than everyone else’s.

The group got into their starting positions and Riki watched as Haerin nailed the intro for Piano Man and saw how she pulled a smile from one of the judge’s even with her facial expressions and alluring gesture to start off the number. The music kicked up and Riki just let his body move, losing himself in dance like he always did as he moved with the beat and ensured he was expressing and performing as he always did and he could feel them just like he hoped he would. It felt like his parents were right there with him, cheering him on and watching him proudly because they knew how much love Riki had for dance.

Haerin took the ending center for the first number and Riki could hear how loud the crowd cheered at the end. They clearly enjoyed it at least.

After that their second song kicked in and their auras and energy completely changed from the sassy and alluring ones from the first number into a more energetic and upbeat attitude.

Riki could feel and see the passion and energy as well as the precision and fluidity the team put into every move and was glad to see them actually just look like they were enjoying themselves. This is what dance was about to Riki, just expressing and enjoying yourself. He was beyond proud of his teammates for how hard they worked and he was glad to have this feeling and this love for performing reawakened in him after it being dormant for a little while.

Riki was the ending center for the last song and he could clearly hear the voices of his friends amongst the loud cheers of the crowd and saw them standing in their spots as they cheered for him and he shot them a little wink as his team took their exit before going back to their spots for the next four teams to perform.

“Great job guys!” He smiled at the team, “I’m really proud of you all.”

The actual competition part of the day finally came to and end after the final four teams performed so now they just had to wait for the results and award announcements which usually took a while but more often than not the judges already knew who they wanted to win, it was just a matter of placing in the top ten teams.

Eventually the time came and the teams all stood around as they quietly awaited the results. Ten, to seven passed, six to four passed and their team’s name hadn’t been called. Riki certainly had a competitive spirit to him even if it didn’t apply as much to dance because he didn’t really see it as a competition, but he was hoping for the team to place in the top ten, as a sort of reward for the success and hard work. However, Riki couldn’t discount the other teams either because they were also fantastic.

“In second place…” the MC announced, “Gyeongsang High School.”

The team respectfully clapped for the other team even though Riki could notice they were a bit downtrodden at not having placed, but nonetheless he and Mr. Hwang gave them encouraging and polite smiles.

“In first place…” the MC said again, pausing for dramatic effect, “Begonia High Dance Team.”

Riki’s eyes widened at that as the entire team seemed to go into shock when they heard their names called. They had won, they had actually won. He had to school himself a bit to be able to usher his team members over to the stage to accept their award as everyone smiled widely but also seemed to be in shock.

“Congratulations,” the MC told them with a wide smile as they were handed their trophy and the microphone to say a few words.

Riki allowed Haerin to speak first and smiled a bit when he saw the girl get a bit emotional and was touched when she turned to him.

“And of course we sincerely thank our amazing captain Nishimura Riki. He’s been a great driving force for our team since day one and always pushes us to be our best. We couldn’t have done this without him.”

Riki smiled and gave the girl a thumbs up as she passed him the trophy for him to hold and the microphone.

“Uh- hi.” Riki began awkwardly, feeling a bit shy under all the eyes on him, “I just want to start off and say that I’m incredibly proud of this team, they’re all so amazing and talented and we wouldn’t have gotten to this point without all of them just being so wonderful and easy to work with.”

“Also thank you Mr. Hwang for being the one teacher at our school who cares about the dance club,” Riki laughed a bit as he looked over at the man before his eyes landed on the people most special to him who were staring at him with proud eyes in the bleachers.

“And thank you to my loved ones who are here today. Thank you for being in my life and for supporting me through everything. I love you guys,” Riki said sincerely as he sent them a flying kiss before handing the microphone back to the MC.

The crowd all cheered and applauded and he could hear the distinct voice of Jake with his Australian accent at full strength yell :

“That’s our boy!”

The adrenaline and excitement died down a bit after the team were all given their medals and got a few pictures and many congratulations from the staff and other teams before they headed back to their dressing room. They were still all overjoyed but they were all a little calmer now and so was Riki. It was really a good day for all of them, that’s something he needed for a while.

Everyone was really planning on leaving on their own with family or friends so that was Riki’s plan too, after he went and got changed and used the bathroom at least. Quite a few of the team members were already leaving as they had rides home and Mr. Hwang was ensuring everyone was gone before he left.

Riki let the man know he was going to go and grabbed his things before heading to the bathroom and waving the team goodbye.

He entered the bathroom at the end of the hall which was adjacent to a fire escape door and entered a stall to get changed as quickly as possible so he could go find his best friend and boyfriends and go celebrate with them.

As he slung his bag over his shoulder and went to wash his hands, a very out of place smell hit his nose. It started off very faint before growing stronger and then it hit Riki… smoke.

Right as he realized that, the fire alarm blared loudly through the building and Riki looked up and saw smoke coming through the bathroom vents. He hurried over to the door which all of a sudden was jammed and pulled at it as hard as possible before it finally gave way.

Riki had no idea when the fire started but however it did, it started fast. He could already see smoke filling up the hallway and the tell-tale flickering of orange moving down the hall which people seemed to have already evacuated but he could still hear faint screams and the panicked clamoring of people and internally prayed that everyone was going to make it out.

The fire door he saw earlier had already been thrown open and he could see throngs of people hurrying by and screaming for their friends or loved ones in the huge crowd that were trying to move away from the building. As he got into the crowd it was chaotic to say the least as people moved all over just trying to get away and find people they knew as they headed to the front of the building.

Riki realized that this was the area behind the building which was much smaller and more congested as people pushed out of the back doors and into the area, coughing wildly and clinging onto others. It was chaotic to say the least and Riki hoped that Eunchae and the guys were already out front.

He moved through the crowded area as best as he could before he was knocked into and fell between some of the cars that were parked in what was clearly the spillover area due to the sheer volume of people at the event. No one tried to help him up nor paid him any mind and right as he was about to push onto his two feet he was dragged behind the car and out of sight from the crowd.

Right as Riki was going to scream a hand went over his mouth and he unfortunately recognized the grip of the person he was in. It was Haruto. Riki pushed at the guy as he brought Riki into a headlock and locked Riki’s legs underneath his own to render them useless. Riki struggled and clawed at any skin he could reach and could feel blood under his nails after he heard Haruto let out a noise of pain.

“Sorry Riki,” he apologized with not a hint of remorse in his voice before something was injected into Riki’s neck.

Riki struggled as he felt his body going weaker
and he was filled with panic because he could tell what happened. Haruto fucking drugged him and he couldn’t do anything as he fought to stay awake but his limbs only became more and more useless and no matter how hard Riki fought ; it didn’t work and the whole world faded into a mute darkness.

Jungwon was always proud of his boyfriends, always. They were the most important people in his life and he adored celebrating and supporting them and their achievements. So as he and his partners along with Eunchae watched Riki’s team win their dance competition and their youngest gave them a sweet shout out in his speech, they couldn’t feel prouder and couldn’t wait to sweep him up and hold him in their arms and celebrate him.

That’s what all seven of them were waiting for, it was a peaceful day for them where they didn’t have to worry about anything else, about what their life truly was even if it was only for a few hours and actually just felt like normal teenagers although all six of them were glaring daggers into Haruto because he had the audacity to breathe so close to their baby.

“Yeah Riki!” He cheered as he sent his boyfriend a flying kiss as he and his team left the stage and got pictures taken with their awards.

“That’s our baby,” Heeseung smiled proudly as he watched the scene and pulled Jungwon against himself.

The boy savored the comforting feeling of Heeseung even though he wasn’t one for much skin-ship but the six wonderful boys in his life were always an exception.

“Riki was great as always,” Sunoo nodded in agreement.

They saw Riki and his team head into the back area towards their dressing rooms and Jungwon turned to his other partners.

“Should we go wait for him outside?” Eunchae asked the guys.

Jungwon thought about it for a second and saw that a lot of people were already moving to leave.

“We can’t go in the back and get him?” Sunghoon asked the girl who shook her head in response.

“They’re hella strict at these things and always only allow performers in the back even after the actual competition. But I’m sure Riki will come find us, we could just wait here for him if you prefer,” she suggested.

The guys all agreed to that and Eunchae sent Riki a text just so he would know they were waiting on him while a few people were already going to leave but many were seemingly waiting on others like they were. Jungwon suddenly smelt something off, like it was coming through the air vents to the building and he immediately placed what it was… smoke.

Then the alarm started blaring and what looked to be an electrical fire broke out on the floor near the stage as the air had already started to fill with smoke from before. What ever had started the fire had started it fast and it was spreading even faster

“Shit. We gotta go,” Jay said as he pulled them all up as everyone clamored over each other down the bleachers.

“What about Riki?” Sunoo asked worriedly.

But right at that time a loud bang echoed through the building and the fire started spreading. It definitely had to be an electrical fire.

“Fuck. The fire’s blocking the way into the back,” Heeseung muttered as they moved down the bleachers.

“They are supposed to have fire exits all throughout the building. Riki’s smart and I’m sure he’ll get out,” Jake assured them even though Jungwon could hear the clear worry in his voice.

The overhead lights sparked before completely blowing out as the fire continued to spread rapidly and the group grabbed hold of each other as they tried to get through the panicking crowd and out of the building.

Heeseung and Jay, as protective as ever, stayed to the back of the group and ensured they were all herded out as they finally got to the front door and headed out as they heard the blaring of sirens from ambulances and fire trucks arriving at the scene.

The parking lot was filled with hundreds of people from inside the venue but none of them had any eyes on Riki and they couldn’t spot him. They could barely even yell for him as the noise from everything else drowned them all out.

The more minutes that went by with no sign of him the more Jungwon panicked. The fire brigade arrived and forced everyone who wasn’t injured and were looking around for people back and created a barricade.

They all called and texted Riki but his phone went straight to voicemail. The firemen and paramedics went in and began getting control of the blaze and bringing people out on stretchers and holding them up but none of them were Riki.

“Jay, where is he?” Jungwon asked as he gripped his boyfriend’s arm tightly, the pit of anxiety in his stomach growing stronger by the minute.

“I don’t know Won-ah, I don’t know,” he replied with uncertainty.

They all desperately hoped nothing had happened to Riki but the hope that he was alright was dwindling further and further by the minute. More people were rescued and more people came out from around the back of the building and the crowd grew smaller and smaller but they couldn’t find him anywhere, no matter how much they moved around or called for him.

“Isn’t that Riki’s teacher?” Jake brought up suddenly as he gestured to a tall blonde haired man standing some ways away from them and anxiously looking around the crowd.

Sunghoon nodded, “Yeah it is.”

That was all he said before they began pushing through the crowd and towards the man, hoping that he might have seen Riki somewhere and know if he’s okay.

“Mr. Hwang!” Eunchae called, getting the man’s attention.

“Have you seen Riki?” she asked worriedly.

The teacher shook his head as he stared at the students despondently, “No, I haven’t. He went to the bathroom to get changed after we got back to the dressing room. I know there was a fire door nearby but I haven’t seen him. He’s the only one of the dance members I haven’t seen, along with Haruto.”

At the mention of Haruto’s name, the group all tensed.

“Shit.” Jay muttered under his breath, “Thank you.”

The group didn’t say anything as they moved towards the back of the building where there were several doors around and a few people moving away from the area and a few cars parked there even though the area was mostly empty. But there was no Riki and definitely no Haruto either.

“Fuck.” Sunoo muttered aggravatedly, “Where the fuck did he go?”

They all felt sick to their stomachs because there was no way Riki had disappeared into thin air. The fire department hadn’t announced any fatalities either so they refused to believe that Riki was still in there and that he was just gone. If he was so close to the door he would’ve gotten out.

Jungwon looked around at the group before his eyes landed on Eunchae who seemed to be staring at something a little ways away from them.

“Eunchae?” he asked, turning everyone’s attention towards the girl.

“Come here,” she said thickly as she moved over through one of the vacant parking spots and crouched to the ground as a shaky hand picked up what she saw and Jungwon’s blood ran cold.

“It’s Riki’s phone…” she muttered quietly but they all heard it.

Jungwon’s eyes traveled a few feet away before it landed on something else… blood.

Riki’s phone was just discarded on the ground and there was blood only a few feet away. Now they weren’t geniuses and they weren’t presumptions assholes, but that was not a good sign.

“Shit…” Heeseung swore as he grabbed something that seemed to have fallen under one of the cars and pulled it out for all of them to see and it was none other than Riki’s dance bag.

“His stuff is here.” Jungwon began, “So he made it out, but where the fuck is he?”

Sunghoon’s eyes landed back on the small patch of blood, “I don’t fucking think that’s his blood.”

The group all turned to Sunghoon, understanding what he was insinuating but not liking it at all.

“He’s not here, his shit is here and there’s blood here which I’m almost sure isn’t his own and he and Haruto are the only ones who none of us have seen.” Sunghoon said, his voice hard as his eyes narrowed.

The group all tensed at that because even though other people would take that as a simple coincidence, they didn’t. They couldn’t. Not with everything that had happened over the past week and not with how Haruto just attacked Riki only a few weeks ago and was threatening him for information about them. Now the Treasure member was missing along with Riki and their guts were saying that it wasn’t just sheer fucking coincidence.

“Hoon don’t fucking say what I think you’re saying,” Jake said unsteadily.

Sunghoon didn’t say it, but Jungwon did.

“Haruto took Riki.”

Chapter Text

“Goddamnit! God fucking damn it!” Eunchae screamed as she kicked the bumper of the car nearby.

Sunoo reached for her, “Eunchae, calm down-”

“Calm down? Calm down?! My best friend, my older brother is gone, kidnapped by some insane gang who literally have shown that they will hurt him and you want me to fucking calm down?” She snapped at the older boy as tears welled up in her eyes.

“Chae-yah-”

“No because I told you, I told all of you that I didn’t like him getting so involved in this shit and now this and I- we don’t-” Eunchae cut herself off as she broke into sobs and crouched down to the ground, burying her face in her knees as her frame shook with her cries which seemed to echo in all of their ears and broke their hearts even further.

Jake cautiously moved forward, unshed tears brimming his eyes as he moved over to the girl and crouched beside her as he put a hand on her back.

“I know Chae. I know, we’re so sorry that we got him so involved,” Jake told her guiltily.

All the boys felt that guilt, no matter how many times Riki told them that him choosing to get involved in their lives and what they do was his choice; they couldn’t help but feel this lingering guilt from getting him involved because now their youngest boyfriend, their baby, the one person they all allowed themselves to get so close to was kidnapped by some sick and twisted assholes.

Eunchae collapsed into Jake’s arms and the Aussie quickly wrapped his arms around the girl and just allowed her to cry as a few tears also fell from his eyes.

The group all stayed there in silence wallowing in worry and guilt and sadness for a few more moments before Jungwon strengthened his resolve. He was the leader of Enhypen and he was going to step up, not just as a leader but also as Riki’s boyfriend. As worried and devastated as they were, the last thing that they could do is stand around, not when they all know what Treasure is capable of. Riki needs them and they’re going to be there.

“Alright, listen up guys,” Jungwon said as he wiped a few stray tears that had fallen from his own eyes.

The guys all turned to look at him and Eunchae even turned her head up a bit although she continued to cry into Jake’s shoulder.

“We’re worried as fuck and that’s a given. Riki is one of our partners and a part of our lives and that’s our baby. But that’s exactly why we can’t just stand here and wallow and stress out either. We need to get our asses in gear and find out where they might have him,” he told the group.

Jay nodded and patted his shoulder lightly as he shot the second youngest a small smile, “You’re right Wonie.”

“Yeah, Jungwon is right. We have to find Riki and save him from those sick assholes,” Heeseung agreed.

Jungwon nodded, “Sunghoon, get a sample of that blood so we can test it and confirm that it’s Haruto’s.”

“Got it,” Sunghoon nodded as he carefully crouched to collect some of the blood on a handkerchief.

“Heeseung-hyung, bring the car around so we can get back to the house,” Jungwon instructed.

The eldest nodded in compliance before running off to get the car.

“Aren’t we going to talk to the police?” Eunchae questioned the guys as she sniffled.

Jungwon gave her a gentle smile, “Not for this Eunchae-yah. Treasure has too many people on the force but we have some friends who can help us out. We’re going to find him, we promise.”

Eunchae nodded slightly. She had snapped at the boys but it was truly out of worry and sadness because her best friend had been kidnapped by people she knew were dangerous ; she wasn’t truly mad at them. They were her friends and she knew how much they cared for Riki and that they didn’t want him to get involved in their gang life for fear of something like this happening.

“Jay, call Nakamoto, we’re going to need him for this one,” Jungwon told the other boy.

Jay nodded as he pulled out his phone and began scrolling through it before clicking on a number and walking a few feet away.

“Sunoo-yah,” Jungwon’s voice and face softened as he turned to the other boy, both looking and sounding reluctant in whatever he was going to say.

“Do you want me to call his sisters?” he asked, seeming to read the leader all too well.

Jungwon reached forward and squeezed Sunoo’s hand in his.

“Yeah,” Jungwon said shakily, “I think they deserve to know.”

“I’ll call them when we get back to the house.”

Heeseung came nearby with the car and honked for the rest of them to get in. Jake held Eunchae up and Jay came back over after finishing up his phone call.

Jungwon looked at all of them as they headed over to the car, “Let’s find our boy.”

Riki groaned at the pounding in his head as he woke up, which was strange because he didn’t remember falling asleep. He slowly opened his eyes but his vision was blurry and unfocused and the room in front of him was dark. He tried to rub his eyes with his right hand but something stopped it.

Riki blinked a few times so his eyes would finally adjust and he realized that he certainly wasn’t anywhere he knew and everything suddenly came flashing back to him as he looked at the silver glint around his wrist which was attached to a pipe.

“Oh fuck.” Riki muttered to himself as he tried to tug the handcuff, but unfortunately it was adjusted tight and the pipe he was handcuffed to wasn’t budging one bit.

He looked around the room but the place was mostly empty. He saw a window with a grate over it several feet up from him with no light besides the artificial illumination from street lights faintly coming through and the sky above it dark. Even if Riki was standing at his full height he would need a bit of a boost to get up there and he also has no idea how sturdy that grate was, despite wherever he was looked somewhat old and run down but still maintained in some way.

Riki’s heart raced as he truly had absolutely no idea what he was in for. Treasure had been looking for him since that night of the party and they think he knows about Enhypen and would absolutely try and get something out of him and Riki was certain that they wouldn’t be polite in their methods.

Riki tried to control his breathing and relax in some way so he could think clearly despite how horrifying this situation was. He had no clue where he was even though it seemed like a basement of some kind. The room was grimy but of a decent size. There was nothing inside of it besides pipes so it seemed to be a maintenance room of some kind, more than likely something to do with plumbing?

Riki looked around the room to see if he could spot a water valve or lever of some kind which would support his theory and on the wall adjacent to him he spotted something that looked like it. Right in front of him, there was a heavy metal door which would certainly need a key to open. His bag and his phone were gone and he checked his nails, but unfortunately they were not long enough to even attempt to pick the small lock on his handcuffs. The teenager groaned internally as the room was virtually empty so he had nothing he could use to free him from his cuffs and he still had no clue where he was so escaping at the moment would be foolish.

He heard faint shuffling noises outside and heard the sound of keys jingling. Riki took in a deep breath and tried to calm down although he felt awfully panicked because he had no idea what they had in store for him. However, Riki was nothing if he wasn’t stubborn so he was going to put on a brave face.

The door to the room creaked loudly before it swung open and three silhouettes were illuminated by the light of the hallway before the tallest out of them flicked on a switch which turned on the singular, dim light bulb in the room.

“Oh. Of course you’re here,” Riki scoffed as he looked at Haruto.

“Good to see you too Riki,” the older boy smirked at him.

Riki recognized the other guy with him as Hyunsuk from the party at the hotel a few weeks prior but he didn’t know who the third guy was, although he clearly had to be one of the people in charge along with the other two.

“Nice to see you again Riki-ssi,” Hyunsuk sneered at him as he walked over and crouched in front of the boy, “Still as pretty as last time.”

He grabbed Riki’s chin roughly and turned his head back and forth as if he were an object before Riki smacked the man’s hand away with his free hand, “Don’t fucking touch me.”

Hyunsuk smirked and looked over his shoulder at Haruto, “You were right Haruto, he does have a mouth on him.”

“That’s not a problem, all bark and no bite I’m sure,” the third man scoffed.

Riki rolled his eyes at the guy, “Who the fuck even are you?”

“Park Jihoon at your service,” the man smirked as he bowed half-assedly.

“I would like your service much better if it was letting me the fuck out of here,” Riki said in a faux sweet tone.

Hyunsuk scoffed, “That’s not how this works sweetheart. We’ve got some business to handle with you.”

“Well that’s a shame because I’m not a businessman so I think you’ll need someone else to fill in for me,” Riki snarked.

His head suddenly snapped to the side as pain blossomed through his cheek. He turned his head back to Hyunsuk and scoffed.

“Well… ouch.”

“You’re going to be saying a lot more 'ouch' if you don’t give us what we want cupcake,” Haruto threatened.

Riki swallowed a bit nervously as it may have just been a simple punch but still clearly these guys were not above hurting him.

“What do you want?” he questioned the trio.

“I think you know,” Jihoon narrowed his eyes at the boy.

“I don’t,” Riki shook his head, keeping his voice level and genuine-sounding, “I really don’t know what the fuck you guys want, so please just let me go.”

“No can do Riki. You have to know something about Enhypen,” Jihoon told him in a knowing tone.

“Yeah they’re an infamous gang in Korea, you would be living under a rock if you don’t know about them,” Riki replied, feigning obliviousness but feeling a pit of anxiety brewing in his stomach.

“Don’t act so oblivious, Riki. You act like you’re not the person closest to them. Enhypen don’t just open up to anyone and you’ve clearly wormed your way into those six guys’ hearts somehow. So tell. Us. What. You. Know,” Hyunsuk growled out as he grabbed Riki’s hair and tugged it hard as he pulled the boy forward, causing the boy to bite back a wince.

“I don’t know anything,” Riki gritted in response, his voice becoming more defensive.

“Fine.” Hyunsuk huffed as he shoved Riki’s head back hard, making it slam against the brick wall hard.

“You get off lucky today, but tomorrow we’re getting the truth out of you,” Hyunsuk threatened as he stormed out of the room, Jihoon and Haruto following after and shutting and locking the door behind them and leaving Riki with a horrible feeling of ominousness and dread.

“Fuck.” Riki muttered shakily to himself. He knew that whatever that meant wasn’t good and he dreaded whatever they had in for him. All he could do is silently pray that his boyfriends find him or that he would get out of there first.

“Hey,” Sunoo said gently as he opened the door to the roof and walked over to Eunchae.

The girl had been up there the entire afternoon just looking out at the view. Despite Sunoo’s and Jungwon’s attempts to get her to come eat, the girl was insistent in staying up there. Sunoo felt awful, the usual bright aura of Eunchae was so somber and downtrodden.

It was so unlike the naturally cheery yet sarcastic and witty nature of the girl he had come to see as a great friend over the months he had known her. Sunoo couldn’t help but feel guilty for the girl being in this state.

“Hi Sunoo oppa,” she greeted softly.

“I brought you hot chocolate.” Sunoo said as he handed the girl the mug, “It’s really cold out here.”

“Thanks,” she said simply as she took the mug and allowed herself to bask in the warmth against her fingers, hoping in some way that it would help combat the cold feeling in her heart from not knowing where Riki was. He truly was such a light in her life and now he was missing and she had no idea what was happening to him or if he was okay or anything like that.

“I’m sorry for yelling at you guys earlier.” she apologized, “I’m just scared. I’m scared for him and scared about what will happen to him. I’m scared, Sunoo and I miss him,” she admitted as she turned to the older with unshed tears in her eyes.

Sunoo stared back at her with glistening eyes of his own and gently patted her shoulder.

“I’m scared too and I miss him so much,” he admitted.

He couldn’t help but think back to earlier that day when he called Riki’s sister and was met with such a heartbroken response. The girl was devastated and angry although her anger wasn’t directed to the boys. It was built into her already incredibly great anger towards Treasure for everything that they had already done and all he could think about was what Konon said to him before hanging up.

“Sunoo-ssi, get my brother back. I’m not losing anyone else.”

Sunoo felt even more obligated to save Riki from his sister’s words. They had already lost so much and she did not deserve to lose her little brother too and Sunoo wasn’t going to lose one of the greatest people in his life.

“Did you find anything?” Eunchae asked, breaking him out of his thoughts.

Sunoo hummed, “Sunghoon confirmed that the blood is Haruto’s. He’s trying to hack the footage from the convention center but because of the fire it’s corrupted but he’s trying to get whatever he can out of it. Jake is going through the blue prints and every single building Treasure owns to narrow down the ones that they’re most likely to keep Riki and Jay and Jungwon are sending Nakamoto out to do everything he can. Heeseung is also calling in some of our allies. We’re doing everything we can but it almost doesn’t feel like enough.”

Sunoo sighed heavily as he wiped a tear from his cheek before he suddenly felt a hand over his own and looked over at Eunchae who was giving him a sad smile.

“You guys are doing everything you can. I can tell. We’ll find him,” she said determinedly.

“Besides,” she continued, “Riki’s a fighter. He says that he’s not but he is ; he’s strong.”

“Damn right he is,” Sunoo agreed as he thought about the wonderful stubbornness and courage that Riki had.

“We’ll find him,” he agreed hopefully as he squeezed Eunchae’s hand.

The pair stood there in silence as they savored the new feeling of warmth that filled them both as they looked out to the dark and cold night.

Hope was the feeling. They had hope.

Chapter Text

The metal door swung open and banged loudly against the wall, waking Riki from what was an already uncomfortable and fitful sleep. He had a dull ache in his head and his cheek certainly had a slight bruise from the punch Hyunsuk had given him the night prior.

He slipped his eyes open to see Jihoon and Hyunsuk entering the room and he groaned.

“Rise and shine princess, you’ve got a big day today,” Hyunsuk smirked sinisterly at him.

“You are the worst fucking alarm clock, if I punch you in the jaw, will you turn off?” Riki groaned.

Riki felt dread and anxiety swim through his stomach but just as he did almost every time he dealt with Dohyun, he couldn’t help but snark even if it might not be the best thing to do in this situation because he wasn’t facing some insecure asshole of a high school bully. These were literal criminals and murderers who had very little morals and probably even less remorse. Despite snark and sarcasm comprising a lot of his personality, he deemed that it may be smarter to try and keep his mouth shut.

“Oh so you still have the fucking attitude?” Jihoon scoffed as he came over and uncuffed one side of Riki’s handcuffs from the pole and put it on his other wrist as he held Riki’s arms behind his back.

You see if you have an attitude if some murderous psychos kidnap you. Riki wanted to scoff, but he bit his lip to try and keep quiet. He wasn’t going to antagonize them any further, especially if he wanted to try and find a way out of here.

“We’ve got some friends we want you to meet,” Hyunsuk smirked as he tied a blindfold over Riki’s eyes.

Riki internally swore, clearly they didn’t want him seeing the way they were going because knowing the path would make it easier for him to find a way out, but nonetheless when Riki finds a problem, there’s always a way to adapt and overcome, just like his parents taught him.

They shoved him outside of the room and Riki noted that they went right. He counted in his head how many seconds they spent walking straight and came up to 16 before they took a left. Then about 9 seconds going straight before another left, 14 seconds going straight then a right. Then they stopped.

Riki surmised that unfortunately this more than likely wouldn’t be a way out judging from the sound of knocking on a door directly in front of them. He could tell that he was certainly in some kind of lower level are which he concluded to be a basement and judging from how much they walked as well as the pipes in the room he was held in, it was probably a maintenance basement of some kind ; meaning he was in either some kind of industrial or maybe even large residential building.

“Move it,” Jihoon ordered as he shoved Riki into a room.

His blindfold was removed and Riki glanced around the room to see nine other guys, two of whom were Minjun and Haruto but the others were clearly the other leaders of Treasure that his boyfriends warned him about and Riki wanted to throw up. Nothing about this situation seemed good, but running certainly wasn’t an option as he heard Hyunsuk lock the door behind them an the sheer number of people was far too much for him to face on his own.

Riki quickly took an observation of the room, it was much brighter than the room he was in before. The lights in here seemed to be newer which indicated that it was actually used in some way. There was a long wooden table off to the side near the wall and two guys were seated on chairs made of the same wood on opposite ends. There was a bigger window but it looked far too high to reach unless he had some kind of ladder, however he could spot a few buildings around that looked a bit older and more run down, indicating that they were probably in a more rural residential area. Somewhere that was more discreet and low-key.

“Well, have a seat why don’t you?” a guy with dark hair and highlights who looked to be Japanese shoved him down on a hard metal chair before uncuffing and then cuffing both of Riki’s arms to the side of the chair so they laid there uselessly.

“I see why you like him Haruto, he’s pretty cute,” some guy with hair that was so platinum blonde that it almost looked white, spoke up.

“I liked him, Yoshi, emphasis on the past tense,” Haruto told the other guy.

Riki scoffed at that as he rolled his eyes at the other Japanese boy's comment because he had the audacity to speak like that as if he hadn’t thrown a temper tantrum when Riki rejected him.

“Get the fuck over yourself, you didn’t have a snowflake’s chance in hell with me you dickwad,” Riki snapped at the guy.

“Ooo he has an attitude on him, major red flag,” a dude with blueish hair spoke up.

“That mouth of yours is really going to get you in trouble Riki-yah, unless of course you start saying the right things,” Jihoon smirked sinisterly as he lowered himself so he was staring Riki right in the eye.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Riki replied simply even though his heart was beating so fast and so loud in his chest that he was afraid someone would hear it.

“Pretty but he plays dumb, what a shame,” the other blonde in the room piped up.

“Boys, before we start asking questions, why don’t you introduce yourselves to our guest? It’s only the polite thing to do,” Hyunsuk said in a tone of faux innocence as if what he was doing wasn’t completely fucked.

“I’m Doyoung,” the blue haired dude waved.

“Yoshi,” the white haired guy winked at Riki.

“I’m Jaehyuk, princess,” the other blonde introduced himself.

“Asahi, at your service,” the guy with highlights smirked.

“I’m Jeongwoo,” the guy sitting on the left of the table introduced.

“And I’m Junkyu,” the other one waved.

“I’m Junghwan,” the last one smiled at him. Riki would almost say it was friendly if he didn’t see the almost soullessness behind his eyes.

“Great I know your names now and congratulations I don’t give a fuck. Let me out of here,” Riki said indignantly as he pulled on the handcuffs.

“I’m getting real fucking tired of you playing dumb Nishimura,” Haruto growled as he marched over and gripped Riki’s chin, forcing the younger boy to look at him.

Riki bit his tongue to keep quiet as Haruto squeezed his face harshly between his fingers and kept his gaze stony as he stared right back at the older guy.

“You know Enhypen and you don’t only know them but you’re close with them. You know who they are and what they do so tell us what you know or we will make this a lot more miserable for you,” he threatened.

Riki scoffed, “What the fuck do you even want to know? If I knew anything, what do I gain from telling you? I tell you and what, you guys fucking kill me? I’m not a dumbass and I don’t trust any of you. I’m not saying anything.”

“Would your response change if we went after your sisters?” Hyunsuk questioned as he narrowed his eyes at the youngest boy.

Riki pretended to falter a bit at that statement. He knew his sisters weren’t the safest at the moment but they were much safer than they were before. Treasure was bluffing because there was almost no way that they knew where they actually were. But they didn’t need to know that Riki knew they were bullshitting so he would try and play along.

“I’m not telling you anything.”

“The fuck do you gain from protecting them?” Yoshi snapped at him.

“I’m not helping people like you. You’re all a bunch of criminals and murderers. All you do is put money in the pockets of greedy and corrupt assholes and there’s no way in hell that I’m going to tell you anything,” Riki told them stubbornly.

“Those corrupt assholes also keep our gangs going after we help them. We run this city but your little boyfriends are in our way and we want them out of it.”

Yoshi stormed over and punched Riki straight across the face, causing the younger boy’s head to snap to the side as he felt a bit of blood on his tongue which he just spit out defiantly as he stared straight at the older man who stormed over to Hyunsuk and Jihoon.

“We’re not getting anywhere with him. He’s not just going to talk,” he huffed to the other two men.

“Relax Yoshi-ah, we’ve barely even started,” Hyunsuk told him in a tone that was eerily calm.

“Minjun-ssi!” he called to the man that Riki almost forgot was in the room.

“Yes Hyunsuk-ah?” Minjun replied.

“You and Riki go back a little, don’t you, why don’t you two have a little chat?” he smirked at the other man.

Riki certainly didn’t like the sound of that, if there was anyone in the room who he sincerely feared to an extent that a chill ran down his spine ; it was Minjun. It might stem from knowing the man longer and his extremely off-putting behaviour the very first time Riki met him and then the guy choking him in an alleyway only a few days later but Minjun had this unpredictable yet bash personality and it made him intimidating.

Riki discreetly swallowed as Minjun dragged a chair over with a crooked smile on his face before he sat down in front of him. The boy prayed that he wasn’t shaking too much but all he could think about was wishing that his boyfriends were here. All the shit Riki spewed about not being a damsel in distress had been thrown out of his mind. He wanted them here and he wanted them to save him because nothing about this situation was good and the awful feeling in his gut was telling him that it would only get worse.

“Hi there Riki-yah.” Minjun greeted as he leaned forward on his chair, “Like Hyunsuk said, we go back a bit don’t we? So if you don’t want to tell them much since you only met a little while ago, I’m sure you’d like to share a bit with me huh?”

Riki decided to keep quiet as he glared daggers into the man.

“Would all of you like me to start from the beginning?” Minjun smirked as he glanced over his shoulder at the leaders who had devious expressions on their faces.

It’s like they all knew how much Minjun actually got to Riki and now they were fucking toying with him ; as if they were trying to get him scared enough to actually say something. But no matter what, Riki wasn’t going to fold, he wouldn’t.

“Well our first meeting was quite interesting wasn’t it, one of Enhypen’s territories and you were hanging out with two of their bosses Jake and Sunghoon. It was surprising really, they aren’t ones to have friends and I could so easily tell that you weren’t one of their friends from a gang, just a normal little high school student from the looks of it. I was intrigued to say the least.”

“Then our little meeting in the alleyway a while after, your little boyfriends were missing but you know I thought they would’ve told you to not go into an area like that on your own, all kinds of people could’ve been lurking. I mean after all I was,” Minjun smirked at him and Riki faintly heard one of the Treasure members chuckle.

He clenched his palms into fists, these motherfuckers found this amusing when Minjun was tormenting him about the day he had assaulted him and Riki felt sick. He wanted to punch the bastard so badly but they clearly wanted a reaction out of him, so he wasn’t going to give it. They were like sharks, one smell of blood and they’d go in for a bite, Riki couldn’t let them.

“I was being oh-so polite but you just tried to run away from me,” the man pouted.

Riki felt his blood boiling, “You fucking assaulted me you bastard. You choked me unconscious, polite my ass!”

Riki heard the Treasure members audibly laugh and couldn’t help but feel even angrier, but he bit down on his lip to try and contain himself.

“Jeez Minjun and you wonder why you don’t pull anyone,” Asahi chuckled.

“Well, I would actually beg to differ in a way Asahi-ah,” Minjun glanced cockily at the other man.

“Riki showed up at my party at the Lotus Hotel and would you believe that he was flirting with me?” Minjun asked arrogantly.

“Oh well that’s funny because I remember him flirting with me too and asking about you.” Hyunsuk piped up, “I wonder why?” he remarked sarcastically.

Riki felt his skin crawl, they obviously knew that he was far more involved with Enhypen than he was letting him know and they fucking figured him out. He knew that they had truthfully sort of figured him out since the party but he would never admit that.

“He also mentioned hearing about the party from a friend. Who was that friend Riki?”

“Just someone at school,” Riki lied.

“Bullshit!” Hyunsuk yelled at him, “No normal fucking high schooler knows about those parties. You’re a horrible liar Riki.”

“He really is, isn't he?” Minjun laughed tauntingly before turning back to Riki, “Then he tries to feed me some shit about how he wasn’t actually friends with the Enhypen boys and that they were trying to charm him. I was drunk out of my mind that night but I left to get him a drink and he disappeared.”

“Then that same night, some very important files went missing from your computer, didn’t they Minjun?” Hyunsuk asked rhetorically to which the other man hummed in response.

Riki just stayed quiet and kept his face neutral and unreadable although his heart was racing and he could hear his own blood thundering in his ears and he wanted to throw up from all the knots of pure anxiety and dread in his stomach.

“We found it pretty hard to believe that we see you with Enhypen and I see you every fucking day Riki. Of course I see how close you are with those guys, far more than anyone else they’ve ever met. You show up to one of Minjun’s parties and disappear and important data goes missing. We’re supposed to believe that’s sheer coincidence?” Haruto scoffed at him.

“I wasn’t that into the party and even less into Minjun so I left,” Riki lied, keeping his voice even.

“We have a really hard time believing that Riki, so we’re going to ask you a question and we expect an honest answer,” Yoshi smirked at him.

“Did you steal the data from us and give it to Enhypen?”

Riki subtly swallowed and kept his voice firm as he answered.

“No.”

He felt a stinging sensation on his face as his head snapped to the side, courtesy of Minjun.

“Let’s try this again Riki,” Jihoon spoke slowly as he bent down a bit to look the boy straight in the eye

“Did you steal it and give it to Enhypen?”

“I left the party, I didn’t steal anything.”

He felt a blow to his stomach that knocked the wind out of him and was certainly going to bruise as Jihoon backed away from him a bit. Riki couldn’t suppress a cough from the hard punch as he tried to regain his breath.

Jihoon asked the same question again and Riki gave the same response. In return, he got a kick to the torso with a hard boot that may have bruised his ribs.

He didn’t know how long it went on, but he heard the same question, gave the same response and he took another hit. They were to his face, his chest and his stomach.

Every hit hurt but Riki bit down on his lip every time to hold back from making any noise indicating pain. He wasn’t going to fold from a few punches, not for the people he loved. He’d taken years of bullying and getting beat up through high school, this bullshit wasn’t going to break him down.

He didn’t know how long it went on for but after a few blows to the head everything felt far too blurry. Riki felt himself getting uncuffed from the chair and dragged back the way they came before he was tossed onto the cold hard floor of what was basically his prison cell and handcuffed to the pipe again.

Riki could taste the metallic blood on his tongue and feel the warmth of a little bit on his face and he couldn’t bite back the groan as he sat up against the wall after whatever the fuck that just was.

“I think we’ll need to try some other methods,” he heard what sounded like Jaehyuk’s voice addressing someone else as the metal door was slammed shut and locked all over again.

These guys were fucking psychopaths and sure today Riki could 'handle' because it wasn’t necessarily something he hadn’t faced before. However it did not mean he wanted to be subject to abuse and harm at the hands of these assholes and the thought of them hurting him more made him sick ; but Riki knew that no matter what they tried, he was far too stubborn and far too protective of those he loved.

Riki wanted so desperately to get out, but all he could do was wait. His boyfriends were absolutely trying to find him, Riki had no doubt about that. But Treasure weren’t dumb, they would have him somewhere hard to find. He also didn’t have a way out of here yet and had nothing that would even remotely help him escape. He also had no clue where he was and no means of contacting anyone.

He was playing the waiting game, but he thought that this was the most dangerous one.

Chapter Text

Eunchae and Sunoo were in the kitchen 'stress cooking' as they aptly named it. None of them had really eaten much over the past two days, the two excruciatingly long days since Riki had been kidnapped and so far they had no leads. Everyone was stressed, tired and angry but also far too stubborn to rest and stop looking for him.

It was only when Jungwon, rational as ever despite how stressed and worried he was about Riki, had told everyone to at least get a few hours of sleep at about 3:00 a.m that morning and had yelled at all of them, they actually listened. Eunchae’s parents had been busy at the hospital so they weren’t at home and thus she spent a lot more time at Enhypen’s house, hoping for something about Riki and helping out the boys where she could.

“Guys, get your asses up here!” Sunghoon’s voice echoed through the house from upstairs.

Sunoo and Eunchae shot each other a questioning look as they shut the stove off and hurried through the hallways and over to the stairs as a still half-asleep looking Jake, Jay and Heeseung were also hurrying over and Jungwon was already halfway up the staircase.

The group all sped up the stairs and down the hall to Sunghoon’s room where said guy was already sitting back down at his computer.

“Hoon? What is it?” Heeseung asked.

“Please tell us you have something,” Eunchae essentially pleaded, the desperation audible in her voice as Sunoo gently patted her back to offer some comfort.

“I definitely do,” Sunghoon replied as he pulled up what seemed to be a video on his computer.

“So the footage from the convention center was almost entirely corrupted due to fire and I couldn’t salvage anything, but I was able to hack some security cameras from stores in the area as well as traffic cameras and I got this…”

He clicked on the video and the quality wasn’t that great because security cameras, of course it wasn’t but clear as day they could see the red mustang belonging to none other than Watanabe Haruto peeling away from the convention center and they realized that Sunghoon had compiled the different angles of footage and they could see the familiar shape of Riki in the back seat of the car simply looking as though he were asleep but clearly in fact unconscious.

They all felt their stomachs turn uneasily but also a weird sense of relief from seeing him even if it was in the shitty quality of some security cameras. They all saw Haruto’s car peel off onto a street and slow down a bit before the video cut off.

“Is that it?” Jay asked, the disappointment evident in his voice as they still had no clue of Riki’s whereabouts.

“Yeah, I was disappointed too Jay-ah but that street in fact leads into a residential area which has a few houses but there is a very well gated and upscale apartment complex,” Sunghoon said with a sly smirk on his face.

“You think that’s where Riki is?” Jungwon asked hopefully.

“Treasure certainly have a lot of money and they definitely would not just let it go to waste. If Haruto were to live anywhere, yeah the upscale apartment complex does sound like the type of place the asshole would be,” Heeseung commented.

“One thing though : obviously Treasure is paying the owners of the complex big, I was able to hack into the security system and cameras around the property for a bit without alerting them. I got into the system but the place is crawling with security. Just walking in there is not an option for us.” Sunghoon informed the group.

“Goddamnit.” Jake huffed, “But that’s our best and only lead so far, if the place is crawling with security it means they don’t want people in-”

“But then they might not want much out either.” Jungwon finished, “Riki might be in there.”

“What if they moved him?” Sunoo asked.

“Then it’s likely Haruto may be there and we can ask him some questions,” Heeseung responded.

“And if he doesn’t talk? I really doubt he’ll spill information so easily,” Eunchae sighed.

“We’ll make him talk.” Jungwon said with an almost sinister look behind his eye.

An hour later, they found themselves a little ways away from Haruto’s apartment complex. Yes, Eunchae also came along because the girl is goddamn stubborn and looked about two seconds away from strangling Jungwon if he tried to refuse her again.

“Hoon? How’s it going on the hack?” Jake asked.

“The security system is good but I’m certainly better.” he smirked, “However they have an alert on I can keep them out for a few minutes before they figure out something’s wrong and try and get the system back up,” Sunghoon explained.

“How long can you keep them out?” Jay asked.

“15 minutes, maybe 20 at a push,” he replied.

“It’ll have to do,” Jungwon nodded.

“Haruto’s car is there,” Sunghoon said as he pulled up footage that looked to be the apartment’s parking lot.

“Then he’s in there too,” Jay said as he stared intently at the building.

“Floor 19, room 654,” Sunghoon informed before he turned to look at the others.

“I’ll be here with Hoon. You guys don’t draw attention to yourselves. Get in and get out,” Sunoo instructed sternly as he moved to take the driver’s seat.

“We got it Sun,” Heeseung nodded before leaning over and giving the younger a sweet but short kiss.

“Punch Haruto extra hard for me okay guys?” Eunchae told them.

Jungwon patted her arm with a small smirk, “You don’t even have to ask.”

The guys all slipped in their ear pieces as Sunghoon set a timer for them and they got out of the car and Heeseung, Jay, Jake and Jungwon waltzed over to one of the side gates with a bit less security.

“You guys have fifteen minutes, don’t do anything dumb,” Sunoo said through their earpieces.

“No promises babe,” Jay replied to him.

The electric gate slid open courtesy of Sunghoon and the four quickly slipped in side and two armed guards quickly came over to them.

“Hey hey! Stop right there this is a private premises. What are you guys doing here?” One asked as he raised his gun.

“We’re just visiting a friend,” Jake replied easily as the group closed the distance to the guards slowly.

“There are no visitors today, turn around and walk out,” the other guard demanded as he raised his gun.

“Well, we’re just kind of uninvited guests,” Jake smirked before grabbing the front of the guy’s gun and elbowing him straight in the face.

Jungwon grabbed the other guard’s gun and kicked him in the stomach before he used his years of taekwondo training to flip the guy onto his back and pistol whip him, effectively knocking him out.

Jake got the guy in a chokehold despite the guard having a decent amount of height on him and lowered him to ground as he finally went unconscious and Heeseung and Jay smirked proudly at the other two as Jungwon plucked a key card from one of the guys pockets and they dragged the two guards out of sight.

“Not bad you two,” Heeseung praised as they ducked out of sight and moved along the building to one of the side doors and Jungwon swiped the card which got them inside no problem.

The lobby of the complex was certainly empty and they saw a sign directing to where the elevators were and quickly moved along and pressed the button to head up.

The elevator however was taking a while and they could hear the sound of footsteps coming over to the lobby and all internally swore but also prepared themselves for a fight in case it was another guard, but instead a woman who looked to be the front desk worker entered the large space and shot them a questioning look.

“Gentlemen? What are you doing here, as far as I know we have no guests today,” she said politely.

Jake, ever the charming one out of them, sauntered over to her casually and put on his acting skills.

“Well that’s strange but grandma has been forgetting sometimes. She must’ve forgotten to tell you that we were visiting today dear. We’re sorry to inconvenience you,” he said as he shot her a charming smile.

The woman folded like a piece of paper from the action and the boys could visibly see her ears go red, “Well don’t worry about it, it happens when we age. I hope your grandma is doing alright, sorry for bothering you boys.” She apologized, clearly flustered as she went behind the desk.

“You weren’t a bother at all darling,” Jake winked at her before turning back to his boyfriends as the elevator finally arrived and they all piled in.

Once the door closed, Jake breathed a sigh of relief and the other three chuckled.

“Charming as ever baby,” Heeseung smiled at him as he pressed a kiss to the younger’s cheek.

“That was peak male performance right there, I’m sure her panties are soaked right now,” Sunghoon’s voice came through their ear piece sounding rather sarcastic.

“Hoon, that’s so inappropriate,” Jay scolded with a laugh.

“She turned red though, she was certainly flustered,” Jungwon commented.

“I think it’s the accent and the handsome face,” Heeseung added.

“I mean that is what attracted us to Jake after all.” Sunoo giggled.

“Am I just a pretty face to all of you?” Jake asked incredulously.

“A pretty face and a hot accent. Get it right babe,” Jay winked at the other boy.

They all laughed a bit at that and could even hear Sunghoon, Sunoo and Eunchae laugh. It almost felt normal for a second ; they really haven’t laughed like that in a while, not since Riki was kidnapped, it almost felt nice. But remembering why they were actually here soured their moods all over again because their baby was still missing but they felt a bit closer to finding him. It’s like Sunoo and Eunchae had been reminding them over the past two days ; they had to have hope.

The elevator finally came to a stop on the nineteenth floor and the four boys filed out.

“Go right and then keep going straight before you make a left. It’s the room at the end of the hall,” Sunghoon instructed, “You guys have about ten minutes before they realize that something’s up. Make it count.”

With that, the quartet followed Sunghoon’s instructions and headed towards the apartment. Jake crouched down and efficiently picked the lock as he quietly slid the door open and they entered the large space. The apartment was pretty big and was in fact a loft. Jungwon brought a finger to his lips to signal them to keep quiet and directed them to different rooms while he stayed in the main area so Haruto would have no way out.

The eldest three combed through the different rooms but found no sign of the elder.

Jay entered the large master bedroom and looked under the bed but there was nothing. The window’s were also locked from the inside and there was no fire escape on this building so he was more than convinced that Haruto was in here. He heard what sounded like a slight shuffle from behind him.

If he was less observant and making more noise he certainly would’ve missed it, but he didn’t. He moved over to the bedroom door and spotted Jungwon right down the hall and signaled him to come. Jungwon whistled for Jake and Heeseung who quietly came down the hall behind him as Jay moved over to the walk-in closet where he heard the sound.

He pulled the door open and flicked on the light but there was nothing. He froze, completely confused as he moved the clothes aside to see if Haruto was hiding between them but he wasn’t. Then he looked up to the space between the ceiling and the top of the shelves and right as he did, someone jumped down on top of him and wrapped their legs around his head as he felt a cold metal slash across his face.

Jay let out a quiet groan as he stumbled out of the closet with Haruto slashing at him with a knife before he grabbed a hold of the guy and threw him off of him and across the room.

“Goddamn bastard,” Jay huffed as he wiped the blood from his cheek with the back of his hand.

“What the fuck are you guys doing here?” Haruto yelled as he pointed a knife at the four.

“We’re the ones who are going to ask the fucking questions here Watanabe,” Heeseung said as he slammed the bedroom door shut and took up a post in front of it along with Jake.

“I won’t hesitate to kill you,” Haruto snarled at them.

“Kill us? You against the four of us?” Jungwon asked incredulously, “Let’s see how well that goes, fucking try it.”

Haruto made no moves as he continued pointing the knife at the group but they were all unfazed. He was glued to the spot and although he had killed people, they knew he wasn’t going to now, if he tried it certainly would not work at least.

“Get the fuck away from me,” he snapped as Jungwon moved closer to him.

The shorter boy just shot him a saccharine smile before he delivered a kick straight to Haruto’s balls and snatched the knife out of his hand before tossing it across the room. With that, Jungwon stormed over to the guy and made an attempt to grab him but Haruto punched him in the stomach and swept his leg out from under him, sending Jungwon to the floor as he got up and tried to run past him.

Jake and Heeseung put a stop to that very quickly as Jake punched the Japanese boy right in the nose, causing a sickening crack to echo through the room as Haruto yelled and Jay grabbed both his arms and held them in a tight grip behind his back as he took the guy to the floor.

Heeseung pulled Jungwon up and checked him over but the younger boy quickly brushed him off.

“Enough of your fucking games Haruto. Where the fuck is Riki?” Heeseung asked.

“Like hell I’m going to tell you,” Haruto spat as blood ran down from his nose.

Jungwon crouched in front of the other boy and glared at him as he pulled a handful of his hair harshly.

“You’re going to fucking tell us or we’re going to make this a hell of a lot worse for you,” he threatened.

“What the fuck are you gonna do huh? You won’t kill me, that’s not how you guys work,” Haruto spat even though the fear in his eyes was beyond evident.

“We have our rules and morals Watanabe, but you’re a fucking killer an worst of all you fucked with someone we love. So truthfully, I don’t think I would regret putting you six feet under. So if you want we can do this the easy way or the hard way : where the fuck is Riki?” Jay asked as he tightened his grip on Haruto’s arms.

“I’m not telling you shit,” Haruto barked.

Heeseung shot Jay a look at that and the younger guy nodded as he took one of Haruto’s fingers and snapped it, the cracking of bone audible through the room.

“Fuck!” he yelled out.

“You brought this on yourself Haruto, so we can go through every finger until we get our answer. Where is Riki?” Heeseung gritted at him.

“Basement,” Haruto whimpered out.

“The basement here?” Jake asked him.

“Fuck off,” Haruto spat.

He bit his lip and avoided the gaze of the other guy and Jake’s eyes narrowed as he grabbed another one of Haruto’s fingers and another crack echoed through the room as another one of his appendages became discolored and disfigured.

“I asked you a fucking question Watanabe. Is he in the basement here? Is he in this goddamn building?” Jake snarled.

“No,” Haruto cried pathetically as he writhed around in Jay’s hold.

“Then where the fuck is he?” Jay yelled at the other guy.

Haruto went silent after that as Heeseung, Jake and Jay relentlessly questioned him and a few more cracks of bone sounded through the room.

Jungwon’s eyes had narrowed on Haruto’s phone sitting on the table behind Jay and he grabbed the device to see if there might be anything he could use to find Riki on it. He saw that it needed facial recognition of course and held the device in front of Haruto’s face to unlock it.

“What the fuck are you doing?” he barked at Jungwon as he thrashed around in Jay’s grip.

Ah, he got a bit more defensive, there’s clearly something he doesn’t want us to find. Jungwon thought to himself with a smirk.

The names of everything on the phone were all in Japanese but the icons were telling enough and Jungwon opened the messaging app and although the names were in Japanese he quickly flashed the screen to Jay who directed him to the most recent chat who was none other than Hyunsuk.

Hyunsuk

That Nishimura kid knows too much.
He comes to the Lotus party and
then he disappears just as fast.
That same night files are stolen
from Minjun’s computer and I’m
supposed to see that as a coincidence?

Haruto

Definitely not a coincidence.

Hyunsuk

Damn fucking right it isn’t. Now you
blew your chance with the kid but
I’m giving you a chance to fix it. We
need to know what he knows because
if we find out, we can take down Enhypen.

Haruto

He’s close with them, very close.
He definitely knows something, Riki’s
too smart not to.

Hyunsuk

That dance competition of yours next
weekend, cause a little commotion
and get the kid.

Haruto

Cause a commotion how? He avoids
me like the plague, no way can I just
get him, not with his little boy-toys
around.

Hyunsuk

You have your ways of figuring
shit out Haruto. You’ll get him,
don’t disappoint me. You know
where to bring him.

Jungwon finished reading out all of the texts and his head snapped to Haruto.

“So where the fuck is he?” Jungwon yelled.

“I’m not telling you,” Haruto refused.

Jungwon huffed angrily as he chucked the phone down on the carpet and grabbed the last two fingers on Haruto’s other hand and snapped them both, causing the guy to let out a scream.

“Fucking tell us Watanabe, or I swear to you, you’re spending the rest of your pathetic life rotting away in jail,” Jungwon threatened.

“You’re bluffing, you guys don’t have nearly enough shit on us to put any of us away,” Haruto snarled.

“You have absolutely no idea what we’re capable of,” Jay seethed at him.

Haruto stayed quiet for a moment and gnawed at his lip, “If I tell you, what the fuck do I get?”

“What do you get?” Jake asked incredulously, “You get to live, I think that’s more than enough considering what you’ve done. You’re a fucking monster, so many people are dead because of you and your gang including Riki’s parents. We know it was you who killed them.”

“You’ve killed so many whether it was directly or indirectly and you hurt so many more and we have more than you think to burn you and your pathetic little friends to the ground. You and Treasure fucked with us Haruto, we’re just returning the goddamn favor.” Jake seethed.

Haruto glared at the four of them although it truly didn’t have much venom behind it. They all saw the true look in his eyes ; fear.

“L-lotus. Riki’s in Lotus,” Haruto confessed.

They escaped the apartment with about three minutes to spare and tossed Haruto’s unconscious body into the back before Sunoo drove them out of the neighborhood and on the road back to their own home.

“So, the Lotus Hotel?” Sunoo asked, “Weirdly poetic in a way, right back to where Riki really got involved in all of this bullshit in the first place.”

“Yeah,” Sunghoon agreed drily, “It is.”

“We can’t just go straight there can we?” Eunchae huffed.

Heeseung shook his head reluctantly, “We need more supplies for this one. From what we got out of Haruto, they’ve locked the place down. They don’t want Riki getting out so we’re going to need a little more power to get through those guys.”

“You’re also not coming along for this one Eunchae,” Jungwon said in a tone that left no room for argument.

“This is way more dangerous and we don’t want you getting hurt, Riki would certainly kill us if something happened to you.”

“You stay at the house Chae,” Jay told her, “We’ll bring him back.”

“And what are you doing with Haruto?” Eunchae asked.

“Putting him somewhere that no one will find him for now.” Jake replied easily, “Nakamoto will pick him up.”

“We also have his laptop and phone,” Jungwon smiled as he held up the devices, “There’s definitely some incriminating shit on both.”

Sunghoon smiled and made grabby hands for the devices because by god, the man loved to hack something and his boyfriends couldn’t stop the endeared smiles on their faces.

“I still can’t believe he cracked so easily,” Sunoo said.

“Well Treasure is like a skyscraper built on wooden stilts. If the foundation is shit, the whole thing crumbles.

“Those guys don’t care about each other,” Eunchae commented, making everyone turn to her, “Not like you guys do at least. Even beyond you guys dating there’s a certain trust there in your gang among you guys and the people you work with.”

“I don’t think they have that.” She finished.

The boys all smiled at her thoughtfully, they had never really thought of it that way but it was true. Enhypen had always been built on trust, its very foundation was their parents who all were close and trusted each other. Treasure may or may not have started out the same way but just became something of greed and hunger for power.

Unlike Enhypen, they weren’t respected but they were feared and they thought it would work in their favor. But as history has taught time and time again, you can’t build an empire off of fear.

“Ah, fuck!” Riki yelled as he spat out some blood.

“Had enough yet princess? You want to talk?” Junkyu sneered at him.

Riki raised his head and glared at the guy through his half opened eye which he was certain a few blood vessels had been popped inside of and his other eye which miraculously only had a bruise underneath and a cut above his eyebrow.

Treasure’s 'interrogation' had truly been about as pleasant as he expected. The 'other methods' he heard Jaehyuk speak about the day prior after they spent an hour punching and bruising him were what resulted in a trolley consisting of a few knives and scalpels as well as a small ice pick and a few screwdrivers. The guys truly had some variety.

Riki had a gash across his thigh which although it fortunately wasn’t too deep still hurt like a bitch. There were a few cuts on his torso courtesy of the knives and scalpels and they truly spiced up the decoration of the yellow, purple and red shades of bruises that littered his back and abdomen. There was a particularly painful wound on his side near his hip where Junghwan had 'accidentally' cut too deep that day. He was certain that one of his ribs was fractured from all the punches he took over the last few days and he was truthfully having a hard time staying conscious.

Riki did, however, have an idea. The many small tools on the table definitely looked a good size to pick the lock on his handcuffs as well as the door to the room that he was kept in. Riki thought that if he somehow caused a commotion and knocked the trolley over he could at least grab two tools without any of the guys noticing and use them in his escape.

The only issue was that he still didn’t know the exact door out of the basement but he was certain that it would be locked hence why he also needed the tools. Riki did have an idea on figuring out where the door was though and he was more than certain that he could pull it off.

Haruto was also missing today for whatever reason but Riki would take his victories however small, him being absent meant one less person to deal with in trying to escape although he still had the other nine Treasure heads as well as Minjun there but Riki really would take what he could get.

“Alright enough,” Hyunsuk called before moving over to crouch in front of Riki.

“You really are a fucking stubborn one aren’t you? You’re lucky that we don’t actually want to kill you… yet at least,” he sneered.

“Yoshi, Jihoon get him back to his room,” he instructed the other two.

Riki saw the other two come over and watched as they uncuffed the other side of both his handcuffs from he bars of the chair and all Riki could think was that it was time to put his plan in action.

He shot up out of the chair and tugged the chain on the handcuffs around Jihoon’s neck. The guy yelled as his air began to cut off and Yoshi instantly made a grab to get Riki off of the other man. They were both strong and Riki’s intention wasn’t truly to fight them but he dragged them across the room enough that they tackled him down onto the trolley with their various tools which clattered to the floor.

The sharp weapons miraculously missed hurting any of them and Riki acted like he was making a grab for a big knife and just as he suspected everyone dashed to grab and stop him whilst he in fact shoved the small ice pick and a screwdriver as well as a scalpel into the pockets of his sweatpants and no one noticed. Riki had never been more thankful for deep pockets.

Jihoon got out of his grip and got to his feet as he kicked Riki straight in his ribs and Riki groaned loudly as Yoshi held him down and handcuffed his arms behind his back.

“Nice try Riki, but you’ll have to do way better than that,” Jihoon scoffed at him.

“Fuck you,” Riki spat indignantly.

“Alright you two, enough!” Hyunsuk yelled, “Get him back to his room.”

The two hoisted Riki up and now was step two of his plan as he pretended to fall limp in their holds as his head lolled on his shoulder.

“Goddamnit is he dead?” he heard Doyoung ask.

“He’s not dead asshat,” Jeongwoo snapped at him, “He passed out.”

Riki heard Hyunsuk sigh, “Just get him back to the room you two.”

Yoshi and Jihoon dragged Riki along and he felt them stop after they got back into the main hall.

“I told you that you stabbed too deep Junghwan,” Hyunsuk scolded the youngest.

“Well hyung am I a fucking doctor? How the fuck was I supposed to know?” the younger huffed.

“Where the fuck is Haruto? Usually he knows where the bandages are in this place,” Jaehyuk commented.

Hyunsuk snorted, “Don’t waste our resources on the kid. But we should find out where Haruto is, I haven’t heard from him today and that’s not like him.”

“I’ve called him a few times, but no answer. He isn’t responding to texts either,” Asahi said.

“Well the signal down here is shit anyway. Let’s go upstairs and see if we could get on to him. Jihoon, Yoshi, take Riki back to his room,” Hyunsuk ordered again.

Riki listened carefully as they walked past them and went straight down the hall before they turned a corner, sounding like they went left and the footsteps faded and he couldn’t exactly place them but it sounded like they went straight for a while before a loud metallic sound of a door slamming shut echoed through the basement.

Riki smirked victoriously, only on the inside though but he couldn’t help but feel a little proud of himself that his plan seemed to be working for now as Yoshi and Jihoon took him back to the room they kept him in and handcuffed him back to the pipe.

Once Riki heard the door shut and lock and their footsteps walking away he pulled the small tools he had gotten out of his pocket, their shiny silver glittering in the darkness that was falling over the room as the sun slowly set.

Riki couldn’t help but feel pretty proud of himself that he completely bamboozled members of an organized crime group at least for now ; it was certainly not the time to get cocky, but Riki had one thought in mind.

He was getting the fuck out of there.

Chapter Text

Riki drew in a shaky deep breath as he mulled over his plan in his head. It was a simple plan in theory but in reality that was an entire other discussion. He had no clue what would be awaiting him outside of the basement and he wasn’t even entirely sure of where he was. But he knew that he was getting out of there because truthfully he didn’t trust Treasure not to kill him and Riki just to get out of there.

He wanted to go back to his boyfriends and let Jay teach him how to ride his bike again and cuddle with Jungwon and Sunoo and enjoy their cozy embraces during their movie nights. He wanted to sit on Heeseung’s lap while he and Jay fed him breakfast in the morning, he wanted to see Jake’s puppy-like eyes and hear his cute accent whenever the Aussie flirted with him and feel his soft kisses that gave him butterflies on his neck. He wanted to sit on the roof and watch the stars with Sunghoon again until they fell asleep on their blankets after hours of just talking and enjoying each other’s company.

Riki just wanted to go home.

He looked down at his blood stained hoodie which still had a decent amount of fresh blood on it thanks to the stab wound Junghwan had given him ; Riki quite frankly wanted to punch the bastard whenever he saw him. That was the first thing he had to deal with after getting himself out of the handcuff.

Riki picked up the small screwdriver from its place right next to him on the floor and carefully pushed the head of it into the little pinhole on the handcuff. Riki thanked every God for the fact that it fit properly and tried to turn it ; that however was the hard part as the lock in the handcuffs was horribly stiff. He turned his body to the side so his leg was against the wall and propped his chained arm on his knee as he brought his left hand over to attempt to open the lock again.

The angle was much better this time and after a few turns Riki was able to get it and the handcuffs clicked and the teen pulled them off of his wrist.

'Now for the less fun part.' He thought to himself as he glanced down at the stab wound in his side.

It wasn’t extremely deep but he’d definitely lost a bit of blood considering how much was staining the front of his shirt and if he didn’t do anything about it, it could get way worse. The asshole certainly didn’t 'cut' him too deep as Treasure said earlier that day, it was a proper stand wound, not the deepest it could’ve been or Riki would’ve been bleeding out way faster ; but it was still fairly deep and would require stitches and if Riki did nothing about it, bleeding out would still be an option.

Riki pulled his hoodie off and then lifted his t-shirt and grimaced at the sight of the wound. He was normally good with gore and blood but that was only when he saw it in movies ; this was so brutally real and it was on his own body no less and it made the sight all the worse.

Riki tugged his oversized white t-shirt with a big red stain on it over his head and tore the fabric to create a make-shift tourniquet. He tried to keep the cotton material as thick as possible. He put a thicker part on the wound and tore the other bits of his shirt into strips to tie it around his waist to keep it in place and hopefully stop the blood flow.

Riki grimaced and let out a curse as he tied the fabric tightly around himself. He grimaced once again at the sight of his own blood on his hands and wiped them against the floor to get the warm red liquid coating his hands off. He took one of the extra strips of his shirt and wrapped it around the gash on his thigh even though that injury wasn’t life-threatening but it would slow him down due to it hurting to put pressure on his limb. He knew he wouldn’t necessarily be able to run if he needed to, but he would certainly try even if it hurt like a bitch.

Riki pulled his gray hoodie back over his head and put the tools back into his pocket. Now it was time for the really hard part of his plan : getting the hell out of here.

He limped over to the door and inserted the ice pick into the lock. The lock on the door was bigger than the one on the handcuffs and would certainly require more pressure against the locking mechanism to try and get it open. It certainly didn’t help that it was basically pitch black in the room as night had fallen and the only real light in the room was from a street light coming through the window.

After several minutes the door still wouldn’t budge and Riki groaned in frustration.

“Shit.” He muttered under his breath.

Riki was getting impatient, he knew that and he knew that worst of all when he got impatient he got clumsy. Despite the situation he had to try and stay calm and focus to get the door unlocked. So he closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath as he kneeled in front of the door , before opening his eyes again and focusing them on the lock.

This time he inserted the ice pick into the smaller part of the lock before putting the scalpel into the longer section of it. After some fiddling around and a few attempts at turning, a soft yet victorious click greeted Riki’s ears and the metal door eased open a slight bit, causing the yellow light in the hallway to poor into the room.

Riki let out a quiet breath in relief and stayed crouched down as he slowly opened the door and peeked out into the hallway, glancing in both directions and saw nothing. It was his first time seeing the hallway since every other time he had been blindfolded and the area looked pretty old. The floors were untiled and unpaved concrete slabs and the walls were a dark color that made the halls look darker than they actually were as yellow light bulbs hung from the ceiling, illuminating the hallway.

He carefully listened for any signs of life down there but when Riki heard none he crept out into the hall and soundlessly shut the metal door of his cell behind him, leaving it behind. He moved down the hallway quietly but efficiently, remembering his directions from the first day Treasure took him out of the room they kept him in.

Sixteen seconds straight before taking a left. There was a left turn right before the last one in the hallway and Riki crept up to the last turn and confirmed that the hallway was a dead-end so the one right before it was the one.

Nine seconds straight before another left.

It was the first left in the hall.

14 seconds straight before a right- but no

Riki remembered earlier that day; usually they would go straight and then there was a right that led them to a door at the end of the hall ; but to get to the exit door he heard some of the Treasure members leave through earlier, so he had to go straight down the hall and pass that godforsaken room before taking a left.

He kept moving and went down to the end of the hall and turned left but froze when he faintly heard faint voices in one of the rooms a little ways down the hall in the opposite direction. He couldn’t make out who it was or if they were going to leave the room but Riki couldn’t take the chance. He had no clue what those guys would do if they caught him.

Riki hurried down the way he heard Hyunsuk go with Junghwan and Asahi earlier that day. This hallway was much longer than the rest and the turn offs were actually just dead end rooms. Riki knew he had heard them walking for a while earlier so his guess was that the door out was at the very end of this hall. He ignored the burning in his leg and the ache in his side as he picked up the pace and finally made it to a door that was definitely different from the other ones down here, since it was larger and looked like a thicker metal.

Riki reached for the door handle and of course the thing was locked from the other side. Treasure certainly had to have keys to get out from down there then. He crouched down again and ignored the flaring pain in his leg as he took out his tools to pick the lock again. This one unfortunately wasn’t even harder than the rest and Riki felt so sickeningly anxious because he was already so close yet so far.

Then he heard the distant sound of footsteps and his blood ran cold as they were coming this way.

“Fuck.” He swore under his breath as he continued picking at the lock, Riki refused to go back into that goddamn room, he was getting the hell out of this basement and he was doing it now.

He desperately picked at the lock as the steps only grew louder and the lock finally clicked and the door swung open ; but right at that moment a voice sounded behind him.

“Hey!” Jaehyuk barked at him.

Riki didn’t even bother to turn around as he bolted up the staircase beyond the door as the footsteps of the other man echoed so closely behind him and he heard Jaehyuk say 'He’s escaping.' But Riki kept running until he reached the top and flung the door at the top open which led him into another room filled with various crates and old metal pipes. He slammed the door but right as he did Jaehyuk’s hand came through and desperately tried to grab at him while he pushed against the door, trying to get to Riki.

“Riki, you’re just making this harder for yourself. Get the fuck back down here!”

Riki spotted a pipe only a foot away from him which looked like it would be more than sufficient to jam the door once he could get it shut. He reached for it as he kept the rest of his body pressed to the door and right as he got a grip of cool metal under his fingers, the door swung open and he crashed to the floor holding the pipe.

“Come on Riki, don’t make this difficult,” Jaehyuk threatened as he stalked closer to the boy.

Riki scrambled backwards a bit and to get to his feet as he swung the pipe and smacked it straight into Jaehyuk’s knee and made the guy cry out as he crashed onto his knee. He tried to push himself onto his feet and swung the pipe again aiming for Jaehyuk’s head ; right as he tried though, Jaehyuk grabbed something from his pocket and pain exploded through the same stab wound on Riki’s side and the teenager glanced down to see more blood pouring from the stab wound before he tried to collect himself and slammed the pipe into the side Jaehyuk’s head sending the guy sprawling on the floor.

Jaehyuk was out-cold but unfortunately still in a better shape than Riki who looked down to see blood painting the side of his gray hoodie and dripping down onto the floor. Riki saw the switchblade the Treasure member used to stab him on the floor and he grimaced and panted hard as pain exploded in his side and the sound of his blood gently patted the floor.

Riki stumbled back into the wall and cursed as he looked at the damage. He was bleeding a lot heavier now and the knife went straight through his makeshift bandages and fear went through his entire being ; but he had to make it out. He couldn’t just stay there even if it hurt so sickeningly much to even try to move.

Riki glanced at Jaehyuk and after a moment decided to kick the guy in the head to ensure he would stay down for at least the moments he needed but judging by the blossoming reddish purple bruise on his forehead and the little line of blood, the guy wasn’t going to get up for a little while.

Riki stole Jaehyuk’s flannel jacket off the guy and pressed the thick fabric onto his wound and bit down on his lip to prevent the cry of pain he wanted to let out from the pressure. He tied the sleeves of the jacket around his waist to keep it in place and Riki allowed himself to shed a few tears from the sheer pain he was in before grabbing Jaehyuk’s blade and finally properly looking around the room he was in.

He didn’t want to stick around long as his fight with Jaehyuk certainly caused some commotion but Riki held the wall as he tried to get the room to spin a bit less. The space was still dimly lit but filled with random pieces of wood and pipes and several large crates and Riki had a pretty good idea what they were filled with judging from a bit of a powdery white substance that he spotted on the floor and certainly was not going to put his nose near.

A piece of paper on top of one of them near the door caught his eye and Riki limped over it and took a look at what it read.

Send these over to Minjun, he has the storage space.

There was nothing else on it but that simple message let Riki know one thing. Minjun lived in the Lotus Hotel and if that’s where these crates had been sent, that’s where he was. Riki scoffed, it was so weirdly ironic that the place that he first interacted with Treasure so closely was the exact place he was held after his abduction.

So judging from the fact that he was in that dusty old hotel they put him in the basement area, which meant that hopefully through that door near him, would be the way upstairs and subsequently the way out. Riki felt his blood run cold when he heard the large metal door across the room at the top of the basement stairs rattle and voices become clearer. At that moment decided that he had to go even if he didn’t know what awaited him upstairs.

Riki went over to the door which was thankfully unlocked and threw it open but unfortunately he attracted some attention as right behind him he heard the familiar voice of Jihoon yell.

“He’s over there!”

Riki went through the door and slammed it shut behind himself before taking the metal pipe he bashed Jaehyuk over the head with and sticking it between the handle and frame, effectively jamming it, at least for now as Jihoon and most Yoshi slammed on it from the other side.

He heard the beep of a walkie talkie before he heard Jihoon’ voice, “He’s heading upstairs! Get him.”

Riki hurried up the stairs, ignoring how his side and leg protested from every movement he made even though with all the adrenaline running through him, the pain felt only like a dull ache. Riki ran as fast as he could, hoping that he would be able to get out of there even though everything was working against him ; he didn’t care. He was going to fight and he was going to get out of there.

Riki basically slammed the door at the top of the stairs open and nearly breathed a sigh of relief as he realized that it led him up to the lobby of the hotel. However, before he could feel any sort of relief, a foot connected with his side and he went sprawling onto the ground and landed on his back hard.

Riki went to scramble to his feet before the door slammed shut and he looked up to see Minjun and Hyunsuk standing over him with guns pointed directly at his head.

“That’s far enough Riki. I’m impressed that you almost made it out, but you weren’t close enough,” Hyunsuk sneered.

Riki pushed onto his elbows as he defiantly stared the older two men down even as they kept their guns pointed straight at his head.

“Fuck you,” Riki spat.

“Defiant as ever Riki, but that’s not going to get you anywhere with us. So why don’t you go back downstairs?” Minjun said.

“And what if I don’t? You gonna shoot me? What the fuck is that going to get you? After everything you guys did to me you still have nothing and killing me won’t get you anywhere,” Riki gritted out at them.

“I’m sure we can find other ways to get information out of you and if you won’t go yourself we can just drag you. We are giving you a choice, Riki,” Hyunsuk said with a crooked smirk.

Riki was still terrified as they steadily trained their guns on him, but he wasn’t backing down. Treasure took him for a reason, they needed him, they never intended to kill him, especially not so early at least and certainly not with what he knows about Enhypen. Riki’s an asset to them but if he goes back down there and tells them anything, he knows that he certainly dies because they won’t need him any more.

“Fuck your choice. You know that you can’t kill me because if you do, you lose and if you take me back down there I still won’t tell you anything and you still lose. You kidnapped me because you need me and letting me go would be so much easier for you, so why don’t you?” Riki spat.

Hyunsuk’s face darkened, “Fine, we can do this the hard way then.”

He moved to grab Riki but the sound of a gun cocking stopped him in his tracks. Riki turned to the left and nearly sobbed in relief when he saw Jake pointing a gun right at Minjun and Hyunsuk with Jay and Sunoo on either side of him.

“Get the fuck away from him,” Jake growled at the other two men.

Riki had never seen his boyfriends look so intimidating and so furious in the time that he knew them, as he, Jay and Sunoo moved closer and kept their weapons trained on the other two men.

“How the fuck did you find us?” Hyunsuk asked them as he trained his gun on them and Riki could hear the shakiness in his tone and had to hold back a smirk.

“Your little friend Haruto tattled pretty quickly,” Jay told them with a faux sweet smile.

“Now, let Riki go and we don’t shoot both of you assholes,” Sunoo threatened, his voice much lower than usual as his eyes were narrowed on the two men in front of them.

“Where the fuck is Haruto?” Hyunsuk barked at them.

“We’re not answering that. Let Riki walk over to us and we’ll let you walk away with your lives… maybe,” Jay threatened.

“That’s not how you guys work.” Hyunsuk scoffed, “You’re not killers.”

“You fucked with someone we love Hyunsuk. Sure we don’t choose to kill all the time but none of us will regret spilling your blood right here and now. Let. Riki. Go.” Jake growled at him.

“No.” Hyunsuk said before walking over to Riki and bringing the gun even closer to his head but keeping his eyes on the three members of Enhypen.

“Tell me where Haruto is first and then I’ll let him go. If you do, he gets to live, if you don’t, he dies,” Hyunsuk said with a sinister grin on his face.

“We’re not fucking bargaining with you! You’re at a loss here Hyunsuk, let Riki go and we leave you alone. That’s all you get,” Sunoo said.

“That’s not a good fucking deal,” Hyunsuk spat as he flicked the safety on his gun off yet still kept his eyes on Riki’s three boyfriends.

Riki could see the worry and fear flicker through their eyes behind the venom in them as they glanced at him and his blood ran cold because Hyunsuk was far from someone rational and this situation was not good, especially not for him.

Riki discreetly reached his hand down and felt for the knife that he had put in his pocket earlier. He was going to do something that may be very stupid but hopefully could get him and his boyfriends out of this situation. He felt the cool metal on his fingers and ensured the blade was flicked up as he gripped the handle.

“Hyunsuk, let him go.” Jake spat and it sounded far too much like a warning.

Riki saw how Hyunsuk’s hand shook and he began pushing down on the trigger and just then, he sprung into action. Riki shot up and knocked the gun from Hyunsuk’s hand as he stabbed the knife into the man’s thigh and sent him to the ground, causing the man to let out a scream.

Everything happened so fast as Minjun spun around and turned his gun on Riki and all the boy heard was four shots ring out in the room as he felt himself hit the floor and a new pain blossomed in his shoulder as he felt the warm and familiar sensation of blood. His ears were ringing and he faintly heard the sounds of frantic speaking as his vision was blurry and suddenly he felt all the pain in his body all over again. Everything finally refocused and he saw the worried faces of his boyfriends over him.

“Riki, baby! Oh my god,” Sunoo breathed out.

“Hyung… it hurts.”

“We know baby, we know. Just hang on, okay?” - that sounded like Jungwon. When did he get here?

Riki opened his eyes that he didn’t even realize he closed to see all his boyfriends’ faces above him as Jay desperately put pressure on Riki’s stab wound and Sunghoon was behind his head pressing something onto his shoulder and it finally registered in Riki’s brain.

He got shot.

Riki felt his eyes slipping shut once again. But when he opened them his surroundings were different and all of his boyfriends were around. When did they move? They seemed to be in a van now and it was going very fast from what Riki could tell.

“Hyungs, you’re all here,” Riki said as he felt a smile pull at his face while looking around at his lovers, “I missed you guys so much. I want to go home.”

Everything felt so strangely far away from Riki and for some reason although moments ago he felt pain through every inch of his body, now he almost felt nothing and it was… nice. But it was also scary because it felt like he was dying. Was this what dying felt like?

He noticed Sunghoon's smile even though there were tears in his eyes, “We missed you so much too baby, we’re going to go home soon. I promise.”

“Hey, hey! Riki stay with us baby boy, stay awake for us okay? Stay awake for hyungs,” Heeseung told him shakily.

“Is Eunchae okay, are my sisters okay?” Riki asked them. He couldn’t help but think about them at the moment.

Riki heard what sounded like Jungwon sob before he answered, “They’re okay Riki. They are okay, we promise. You’ll get to see them soon.”

Riki just nodded slightly, “I missed them a lot too… I’m really tired, hyungs.”

“I know you’re tired baby,” Sunghoon told him gently, “But you have to stay awake for now okay? You’ve been so strong already, just a little while longer and you can rest okay?”

“Just a little longer?” Riki asked weakly.

“Yeah,” Jungwon nodded and Riki could hear the shakiness in his voice, “Just a little bit Riki.”

“Why don’t you tell us how you got out Riki? That was very badass of you.” Sunoo said with a hint of pride in his tone.

“They had some tools during their 'interrogation' today,” Riki said weakly, taking in a shaky breath and his eyes slipping shut for a few seconds before he felt Sunghoon gently shake his shoulder.

“I caused a ruckus and knocked down Yoshi and Jihoon- made ‘em think I was gonna grab a knife… then shoved some small tools in my pockets. I think I still have them,” Riki chuckled as he weakly moved his arm and smacked his right pocket and he faintly heard the metal clink.

“Picked a few locks and ran upstairs, Jaehyuk had chased me but I whacked him in the head with a pipe… he’s alive though,” Riki explained as he felt his eyes flutter close before he opened them again when he heard Sunoo calling to him.

“You guys found me though,” Riki said as he felt a smile pull at his face again.

“We’re sorry we didn’t get here sooner,” Jake apologized and Riki could feel his hand on his cheek which felt even warmer than usual on his skin.

“Don’t apologize, hyung. You guys found me and you got me out,” Riki protested, “Thank you guys.”

“No need to thank us baby, we would’ve torn the world apart to find you,” Sunghoon told him.

“Ki, we’re almost home okay. Stay awake just a bit longer, alright?” Sunoo said, “Heeseung, how close are we?”

Riki didn’t hear Heeseung’s response as he felt his eyes slipping shut again but when he did, he could see the stars above him blurry in his vision and he was being moved and could hear voices he didn’t recognize.

But he recognized one.

“Riki!” Eunchae yelled, “Oh my god, holy shit.”

“Chae-yah,” Riki blindly reached for her.

“I’m right here Riki, I’m right here,” she told him sweetly.

“You’re going to be okay Riki, some people are going to take care of you,” Riki heard Heeseung tell him.

“I love you guys.” Riki said to his loved-ones as his eyes slipped shut and everything around him just seemed to be falling away. Riki heard several distant sobs and a few faint sniffles and he so badly wanted to reach out and provide comfort, but he couldn’t even move his body.

“We love you too Riki, we love you so much.”

And Riki let himself fall away.

Chapter Text

The first thing Riki heard was an incessant but steady beeping. Then he felt his body, well sort of, he could tell he was not exactly laying down completely but also not sitting up, it felt like he was in a reclined position somewhere. He could also feel the sensation of plastic on his face and Riki’s eyes felt like lead and his torso ached but that was the extent of the pain.

What had happened?

Riki desperately wracked his brain in an attempt to remember what had happened or where he was because he couldn’t discern anything since he couldn’t even open his eyes. Then it hit him, Haruto jabbing that needle into his neck, waking up in a dark room somewhere he didn’t know ; all the torture Treasure had put him through and the escape he made that wasn’t all that clear to him any more. How he was bleeding out from a stab wound and got shot in the shoulder and his boyfriends desperately trying to keep him awake.

The beeping grew faster but Riki finally understood what it was ; he was alive.

Riki made it out and he was alive.

“Riki, Riki? Guys, I think he’s waking up!” he heard Sunghoon’s voice.

Riki could’ve preened at the sound of one of his partner’s voices and wanted to open his eyes that felt all too heavy in his head to see his boyfriends. He was fighting to get his eyes open but he was able to move his hand and he blindly moved in an attempt to grab for Sunghoon.

“His hand is moving,” Jungwon’s voice cried out in relief.

Riki felt the familiar warm sensation of Sunghoon’s and Jungwon’s hands on his and they felt so nice ; they felt grounding and real. They were here and Riki was with them, he made it out.

“Riki, hey baby I think you can hear us so come back to us when you’re ready okay? You can open your eyes whenever you’re ready,” Sunoo’s gentle voice told him.

Riki weakly squeezed Sunghoon and Jungwon’s hands and squeezed his eyes before finally managing to get them open. The light in the room was actually fairly dim and didn’t hurt his eyes. The room he was in was certainly a hospital room but not a typical one. He moved his head slightly to see Jungwon, Sunoo and Sunghoon on his left while Heeseung, Jay and Jake were on his right along with Eunchae.

Riki weakly smiled at them even though he knew the oxygen mask over his face probably obscured it a bit.

“Hi guys,” he said weakly.

“Oh Riki!” Eunchae exclaimed as he hugged his right side tightly.

Riki chuckled a bit as he moved his hand up to rest on her back.

“I’ve missed you Chae.”

Eunchae had tears in her eyes and she sniffled into his shoulder.

“I missed you more dumbass. I’m never letting you leave me again. You get kidnapped for three days and then you’re unconscious for the next four. You were bleeding so much when they brought you back and I thought I lost you! I thought I lost my big brother,” she said as she finally cried in earnest.

Riki couldn’t help the hot tears welling up in his eyes as he held Eunchae and looked around at his boyfriends who also had red and puffy eyes and looked like they had tears brimming in their eyes again. He allowed himself to cry as he gently rubbed a hand over Eunchae’s back and squeezed Jungwon and Sunghoon’s hands.

Everything just came crashing down on him, from his abduction, to the torture Treasure subjected him to and how he fought his way out and nearly died ; how he thought that he was dying that night and wouldn’t get to see the people he loved again.

“I thought I was going to die.” Riki sobbed, “I thought I wasn’t going to see you guys again.”

Jake pulled down the handle of the bed and placed his head on Riki’s leg like a sweet and loyal puppy trying to comfort their owner as Jay and Heeseung leaned over and placed a hand over his leg and Sunoo, Sunghoon and Jungwon all leaned closer to him, but were careful to avoid his injuries.

“We’re right here Riki, all of us are here and so are you. We’re all right here,” Sunoo cried as he squeezed Riki’s knee gently and kept his hand rubbing soothing circles there over the blanket.

“We thought we lost you,” Heeseung sniffled.

Jake hummed in agreement as he nuzzled against Riki’s leg.

“You scared us so badly, Riki-san.”

“God, I’m never letting you out of our sight again, you precious angel. We’re not going through this again, we thought we lost you,” Jay said as he tried to wipe at his tears and carded a hand through Riki’s hair.

“We love you so much Riki, we’re so glad that you’re okay,” Jungwon smiled sweetly at him even though his face was glistening from tears.

“Well I don’t know if I’m okay,” Riki joked lightly as he gestured to the bandages on his shoulder and stomach and the bruises over his bare torso.

“But I will be.”

The doctor who was actually a family friend of his boyfriends came in about half an hour after Riki’s tear-filled reunion with his loved ones. He explained that Riki was in fact at the Enhypen boy’s house in the medical room they established for situations like this when they did need a doctor but going to a hospital would’ve been too difficult and they would have to answer far too many questions which would arouse suspicion in hospital staff and the public ; so this was much safer and still just as effective.

The man explained that the gash in his thigh had only needed a few stitches but Riki had to have surgery to repair the damage to his arteries in his shoulder from the gunshot wound and in his stomach from the stab wound. He had lost a lot of blood and they nearly lost him on the operating table a few times and that piece of information sent a shiver down his spine as he thought about what would’ve happened if they did lose him? Jay didn’t allow him to dwell on that thought though as he squeezed Riki’s hand tightly in his own when he noticed how the youngest’s mood changed when he heard that piece of information.

Riki was actually right about his ribs, he had fractured one thanks to Treasure and then all the moving around during his escape caused the rib to in fact break. Fortunately it was only one, even though he bruised a few others so in total it would take about six weeks to heal.

Riki had never been more glad about the long winter break Korean schools provided which would give him more than enough time to heal.

“Any questions for me Riki-ssi? the doctor had asked.

“Yeah, when can I go back to my own room?” Riki had responded.

The doctor had chuckled at that and told him that his vitals were stable and he was breathing on his own now. Other than his gunshot wound and stab wound which had been treated and stitched, he was mostly okay besides the cuts and bruises that littered his torso; so he could go back to his own room that night, which Riki was more than happy to hear. He had never been a big fan of hospitals after all.

That’s how he found himself in his room later that night with Sunoo and Jay laying down on either side of him while Jungwon was behind Jay and his other boyfriends were on the floor on blankets and blow-up mattresses. Eunchae unfortunately had to leave as her parents had called her but she promised to return over the next few days. None of them really wanted to leave Riki alone that night and Riki didn’t want to be alone.

One question was nagging at him though as he recalled the night of his escape and four gunshots ringing out in the lobby. He knew one hit him but he couldn’t help but wonder about the other three and the fate of Minjun and Hyunsuk.

“Guys, what happened to Minjun and Hyunsuk?” Riki asked.

He could feel Jay tense behind him and the atmosphere in the room change.

“They’re dead, both of them.” Jay answered.

“I shot Minjun after he shot you.” Jake confessed as he looked down at the floor and Riki couldn’t miss the conflict behind his eyes, “It was straight in the head and then he went down.”

“Hyunsuk tried to go for his gun but I shot him once and then Sunoo shot him again. He died right there,” Jay admitted and Riki could hear the tension in his voice.

Minjun and Hyunsuk, two of his biggest tormentors and one who was the ringleader of Treasure were dead. Riki felt conflicted, he knew it was wrong to wish death on people and that his boyfriends weren’t people who just killed whenever they could because they had the power to. He really hoped this wouldn’t take a huge mental toll on them and he couldn’t help but worry about the consequences ; that the remaining Treasure members might become more violent.

He couldn’t deny the truth that he felt inside of him, he was glad that they were gone. Yes he was upset that they wouldn’t face consequences for their actions but in a way it was a positive ; two less horrible assholes who hurt people in the world.

“Are you guys okay?” Riki asked, “I mean after… doing that.”

Sunoo, Jake and Jay tensed and looked conflicted and Riki didn’t miss the way Sunghoon and Heeseung held Jake a little bit tighter in between themselves at Riki’s question and Jungwon carded a hand through Jay’s hair.

“Riki, as horrible as it sounds, and I know it may go against what we told you initially ; we’re glad they’re gone.” Jake admitted.

“Killing someone is never fun or easy or something that we ever take pride in or ever will. Of course it shouldn’t necessarily be our place to judge but they hurt you. They hurt you and so many others and they were willing to kill you… when Minjun shot you- we thought… we thought the worst.” Sunoo explained, “We thought that we lost you and that we were all still in danger when they turned their guns on us and we killed them.”

“We’re not necessarily proud of it but we’re glad that they can’t hurt anyone anymore and they can’t hurt you anymore,” Jay confessed.

Riki placed his hand on Sunoo’s which was wrapped around his torso and cupped Jay’s cheek with his other hand, “You protected me and you protected each other. They were more than willing to kill all of us and they were going to try ; I think we defended ourselves.”

“I can tell you guys are conflicted over it and I understand why but at least those two can’t hurt anyone anymore.”

The atmosphere seemed to lighten a bit at Riki’s words and Jay leaned forward slightly and pecked Riki’s lips gently.

“You’re a gem Nishimura Riki. Thank you for being here,” he said sincerely.

Riki gave him a gentle smile in return and nuzzled his face into Jay’s neck, “Thank you guys for being here.”

And soon enough, everyone drifted off to sleep.

It was dark, dark and cold and Riki feel a warm and wet sensation running down his side.

He looked up and saw all the Treasure members standing in front of him as he bled out, his blood staining his pants in his horrible crimson color as it felt down and droplets hit the floor like rain.

“You should’ve just answered our questions Riki,” Hyunsuk told him.

It was only then that Riki noticed he looked pale and his eyes were completely white and he saw the blood staining the front of his shirt while Minjun stood right next to him. His eyes the same as Hyunsuk’s as blood poured down from the hole in his forehead and hit the floor and created a puddle on the floor.

There was so much blood. Riki’s mixed in with Minjun’s and Hyunsuk’s and his wound just wouldn’t stop bleeding. It just kept coming and he realized he was going to die. Riki didn’t want to die.

He wanted to go home and see Eunchae and his boyfriends. He wanted his sisters to visit Korea and for them to meet the wonderful people he found a home with as they had a picnic on the beach like he promised.

Riki didn’t want to die. He didn’t, but he couldn’t keep his eyes open and all he saw was red.

Riki shot straight up as he heavily panted and he panicked. It was still so dark and he couldn’t see, he thought he made it out. Was he still in that basement?

“Riki, hey, hey! It’s okay, you’re okay. Focus on me baby,” Jungwon said as he appeared in Riki’s vision.

“Jungwon?” Riki asked breathlessly.

“Yeah, yeah it’s me. You’re okay, you’re home. I’m right here, we’re all here,” Jungwon said slowly as he tentatively took Riki’s hand and placed it against his chest to ground his youngest boyfriend.

Riki felt that soft fabric of Jungwon’s sweatshirt under his fingers and the steady beating of Jungwon’s heart as his breathing finally slowed and he looked around to see the concerned faces of all his boyfriends in the dim yellow light of the room’s lamp.

Riki launched himself forward and straddled Jungwon’s lap as he held the older boy tightly, just needing the reassurance at the moment. No matter how defiant and strong he acted in the face of Treasure, he had been terrified. The entire situation was a horrible nightmare and Riki had been so scared. He just needed to remember that he was safe.

“I’ve got you darling, I’ve got you,” Jungwon soothed him.

Riki felt the bed dip a little more and noticed Heeseung, Jake and Sunghoon joining them and he had truthfully never been more grateful that the guys had decided to get him a king sized bed.

Jungwon shifted but never let go of him as he moved to lay down and kept Riki on top of him as the youngest nuzzled into the older’s broad chest.

“Was it a nightmare?” Sunghoon asked gently from Jay’s side where he had Jake laying on him and the second oldest while Heeseung was tightly hugging Sunoo from behind and probably almost hanging off the bed.

Riki swallowed heavily as he nodded, “I was back there and Treasure were there and it was- it was horrible.” Riki admitted shakily not wanting to retell his awful nightmare.

The boys all understood and gave him sympathetic glances and Riki felt Heeseung’s hand card through his hair.

“They all just hurt me for hours. They kept trying to get me to give up information on you guys but I wouldn’t, I wasn’t going to let them hurt you but they would always just hit me. Then the second day they had this table filled with tools and knives and one of them stabbed me and-”

“It’s okay Riki.” Heeseung soothed him, stopping the boy from his rambling as his breathing had began to pick up again, “It’s okay.”

“Thank you for protecting us Riki-yah, you are so incredibly brave, baby,” Sunghoon smiled at him as he reached over and caressed Riki’s cheek lightly.

“I wasn’t going to let them hurt you guys, you all mean so much to me and… I don’t wanna lose any of you,” Riki admitted quietly.

“You won’t lose us Riki, we promise,” Jay assured him, “And none of us want to lose you either.”

“I’m glad you guys found me,” Riki said honestly.

“We would’ve burned down Seoul trying to find you until you were safe and sound in our arms again Riki. We would’ve never stopped looking until we found you,” Jungwon whispered before placing a soft kiss on Riki’s temple.

Sunoo wrapped his arm around Riki’s back and gently rubbed circles on it.

“You’re safe now baby. No one is going to hurt you ever again. We promise.”

Riki awoke later that morning to a warm body underneath him and smiled when he saw the culprit was Jungwon who was already staring at him and lightly carding a hand through his hair.

“Morning Riki-yah.”

“Morning Wonie.” Riki replied as he nuzzled his face back in Jungwon’s chest.

“How’d you sleep… after the nightmare?” the older boy asked.

Riki sighed, “Much better with all of you around. Where is everyone anyway?”

“Jay and Sunoo are making breakfast and Jake, Sunghoon and Heeseung are out. They’re looking for Treasure,” Jungwon replied slowly.

“Wait… looking for Treasure?” Riki asked confusedly.

“Yeah,” Jungwon nodded slowly, “After Lotus, they disappeared and there’s been no activity. Their shit was left behind though : the drugs, some files and invoices that they kept there and Sunghoon got Minjun’s entire laptop and everything he kept there. There was a lot of shit and a lot of incriminating shit on them and some of the corrupt big-shots that are working with them. It could put them all away.”

“They ran…” Riki concluded.

“Yeah, from what we could tell, they did. We got some of our good friends on the police force in on the information so they’re tracking them down too but Treasure still has contacts but they’re definitely a mess. Treasure’s falling apart Riki,” Jungwon said and Riki could hear the sound of contentment in his voice.

“That’s actually… some good news,” Riki smiled slightly.

“Yeah, yeah it is.”

Jungwon helped Riki up and out of his bedroom as the youngest said that he could really use a bath considering he hasn’t really had one in more than a week. Riki was still limping and moving quite gingerly due to his injuries but he was glad he had Jungwon to help.

The pair entered the bathroom and Jungwon sat him down on the edge of the bathtub as he went to grab a towel for Riki.

“Can you stay?” Riki asked when the older boy returned, “I just don’t wanna be alone.”

Jungwon gave him a soft smile and lightly kissed Riki’s cheek, “Of course I’ll stay.”

Jungwon helped Riki get his shirt off and it was only then that Riki really got a good look at his injuries. Patches of purple and red and yellow although fading littered all around his torso and he was sure there was more on his back as he looked down at the scabs of the smaller cuts on his body.

“May I?” Jungwon asked as he reached for the bandage over Riki’s shoulder.

Riki just nodded minutely even though he was afraid of what he would see underneath but he took a deep breath and clenched Jungwon’s other hand tight.

When the bandage came off, he saw the stitching of the bullet wound, it wasn’t big but it was very obviously there and would certainly scar even when the stitches dissolved. Jungwon gently took the bandage off his stab wound and that one was significantly worse. The wound was much bigger, spanning almost three inches from under his belly button to a little ways over his hip bone.

“Damn those bastards,” Jungwon muttered gruffly as he looked at the stitches.

Riki just gave Jungwon’s hand a reassuring squeeze as he tried to calm him.

After a few more moments, Jungwon moved to fill up the bathtub with warm water and he added bubbles of course which Riki blushed at a bit because it all felt sweet and domestic.

Riki glanced at the bathtub before glancing over to Jungwon.

“You want to get in with me?” Riki asked.

Jungwon went a bright red at Riki’s question and his blush even spanned to his ears and Riki blushed too after thinking about what he said.

“I mean you don’t have to if you don’t want to, I was just thinking if we had swim trunks then we can just get in together,” Riki suggested shyly.

Jungwon blushed and smiled a bit again, “Yeah, we can do that. I’ll be right back.”

Jungwon returned a few moments later with two swim trunks in hand and handed Riki one before he put his own on and took off his shirt. Riki couldn’t help but blush and ogle his boyfriend’s abs a bit as he looked at the older boy shirtless and Jungwon caught him and gave him a smirk.

“Take a picture Riki, it’ll last longer,” he teased as he climbed into the tub.

Riki flushed red again and playfully rolled his eyes, “Shut up.”

Jungwon reached an arm out and gently pulled Riki down into the tub so as to not aggravate the boy’s injuries. Riki smiled to himself and relaxed when the older boy pulled him to sit between his legs and wrapped one arm around Riki’s waist and gently wet his hair.

“This is nice,” Riki hummed contentedly as he leaned against Jungwon’s chest.

“Yeah,” Jungwon agreed sweetly before kissing the back of Riki’s neck, “It is.”

The two of them sat there enjoying each other’s presence and just being comfortable as they blew bubbles at one another and Jungwon carefully washed Riki’s hair.

After a while, the two sat with Riki sideways on Jungwon’s lap while the older boy leaned back against the tub.

“I missed you Won,” Riki said sincerely as he looked up at his boyfriend.

Jungwon smiled down at him as he held Riki impossibly closer, “I missed you so much too. I love you.”

“I love you too,” Riki said before leaning up and pressing a kiss onto Jungwon’s cheek.

“Hey! I want a proper one, I haven’t gotten a proper one in a week,” Jungwon whined.

Riki playfully huffed and poked his nose, “You big baby.”

“Whatever,” Jungwon huffed before pulling Riki by the neck and pressing a passionate kiss to his lips.

Riki melted into it as he brought his hand up to rest on one of Jungwon’s broad shoulders. He missed this, he really just missed being with his boyfriends and their comforting presence and warm touches and kisses.

Jungwon’s thumb rubbed back and forth on his cheek soothingly and his lips were just as warm and soft as ever against Riki’s. It was slow and gentle and everything that Riki needed after the absolute nightmare he had been through.

He was here with one of the boys he loved and he was safe and sound. Riki would be okay.

Chapter Text

After a few more minutes in the bath, Jungwon and Riki finally decided to head downstairs for breakfast. Jungwon had noticed how Riki looked like he lost at least a few pounds and remembered their doctor saying he was malnourished and dehydrated from not being fed or given water for three days.

Riki also noticed the change to his body and quickly agreed when Jungwon said they should go and get some food. Jungwon helped him get out of the bath carefully and told Riki to dry off while he went to get the younger some fresh clothes. Riki truthfully appreciated the babying and the way Jungwon was taking such good care of him ; well honestly all of his boyfriends did.

Riki had become so independent and self-sufficient due to living on his own in a foreign country and never having friends or people to really rely on besides Eunchae. He had forgotten how nice it was to just be taken care of sometimes and with his boyfriends he was allowed to be more vulnerable and act like an actual teenager instead of a teenager in the life of an adult.

“Ki? What are you thinking about?”

Riki had been so lost in thought that he hadn’t even noticed Jungwon return to the bathroom and he looked up and gave his boyfriend a gentle smile.

“You guys honestly,” Riki replied.

Jungwon blushed lightly at that and gave him a curious look, “What exactly about us?”

“How safe I feel with you guys. You all just take care of me so well and I had forgotten what it was like to be taken care of for a while. Thank you guys,” Riki said sincerely.

Jungwon came closer and leaned down to press a prolonged kiss to Riki’s lips.

“Of course baby, we all love taking care of you. You deserve it, just so you know that you’re never alone, not with us,” Jungwon whispered against his lips.

Riki smiled slightly before bringing his hand to the back of Jungwon’s neck and pressing their lips together in another long kiss. Their lips moved against each other’s with the perfect familiarity and gentle passion that had been established between them over the past few months, yet the simple action never failed to send butterflies through Riki’s entire being.

Jungwon finally pulled away after a few minutes, “Let’s get dressed and go eat baby.”

Riki nodded in agreement, “Alright.”

Once they were both dressed, they headed over to the staircase and Riki looked down the flight of stairs hesitantly as the ache in his side from his broken rib and the wound on his thigh already had him limping around the house very carefully ; but he hadn’t actually climbed the stairs by himself since he was injured.

Jungwon seemed to notice his hesitance and turned to face the younger.

“I could carry you if you want Riki,” he offered.

Riki looked at him then back to the staircase and since he was not one to look a gift-horse in the mouth, Riki nodded in agreement and allowed Jungwon to gently swing him up into a bridal carry.

Jungwon’s strength truthfully never failed to amaze Riki. He was one of his shortest boyfriends yet he had a very physically strong stature and carried Riki like he was a feather. Jungwon also didn’t put him down when they reached down to the foyer and headed through the house and to the kitchen where Jay was back-hugging Sunoo as the younger made pancakes.

“Morning guys,” Riki greeted them.

The pair turned around and smiled brightly at the two youngest.

“Look who has finally gotten up,” Sunoo teased before taking the last pancake off the stove and adding it to the already big stack before turning off the stove.

“Morning you two,” Jay greeted.

The four of them moved over to the kitchen table and just as Riki was about to sit, Jay and Sunoo pulled him to sit on their laps instead and Jungwon moved his chair over to Sunoo’s side and leaned his head on the other boy’s shoulder while Sunoo placed a hand over his thigh.

“Well aren’t you guys clingy,” Riki teased, even though he absolutely loved it. Being surrounded by the warmth and comfort of three of his boyfriends just made him feel safe and sound. Everything felt perfect ; it would only be more perfect if the other three were here but Riki was sure they would return soon enough.

“You don’t get to go MIA on us for a week and expect us to not be clingy sweetheart,” Jay playfully scoffed but Riki could still hear the sincerity in his tone.

“Jay’s right, now open,” Sunoo instructed as he held up a piece of pancake to Riki’s mouth.

Riki gave him a playful glare before gratefully accepting the food and it may just be because he hadn’t eaten in a week and the fact that Jay’s cooking was always exceptionally good that it tasted even better than usual.

“Is it good?” Sunoo asked gently.

Riki nodded and smiled as he looked around at the three of them, “It’s perfect.”

The familiar sound of the front door shutting echoed through the house and reached the four boys cuddled up in the kitchen. They heard footsteps approaching and Riki was more than ready to greet his other three boyfriends and already unknowingly had a wide smile on his face as he looked over to the doorway but when the owners of the footsteps entered, Riki’s face fell a bit.

Heeseung, Jake and Sunghoon were right there but so were the guys’ parents including Heeseung’s father who Riki had never seen up until now. Riki yelled at them weeks ago and hadn’t spoken to them since he found out about Haruto and how they knew his parents.

“Hi boys,” Jiyoon greeted, “Hello Riki-ssi.”

“Hello Riki-ah, I’m Heeseung’s father Minseung.” The man greeted.

“I’m Sunoo’s father Sunyoung,” he introduced himself.

“I’m Jaeyun’s mother, Jihye. I know you saw me before but we weren’t able to be introduced,” she smiled politely.

“Nice to meet you three… properly,” Riki said simply.

The atmosphere felt horribly awkward. Riki wasn’t as angry at them anymore ; sure he had some lingering anger about the situation but he didn’t really blame them anymore. He just wished that had been honest with him. The whole situation just felt awkward.

“U-um hello everyone,” Riki said politely as he bowed his head a bit.

The parents all came to sit down while Heeseung, Jay and Sunghoon joined their partners on the other side of the table.

“How are you doing Riki? The boys told us about what happened,” Jihye said.

“I’m doing okay, not moving around the best yet but the guys are really helpful. They’re taking good care of me,” Riki answered honestly , hating how awkward the conversation felt.

“If they weren’t taking good care of you, you would just have to tell us ; we would set them straight,” Junwoo joked, although his chuckle sounded somewhat forced.

Riki did manage a small smile at the joke though and the man visibly relaxed a bit.

There were a few beats of silence before Sunyoung spoke up.

“Riki, we are sorry about lying to you.” he apologized sincerely.

“We should’ve told you.” Jiyoon said remorsefully, “As soon as our boys told us about you, we should’ve been honest and we had the opportunity to but we didn’t and that was wrong of us.”

Riki nodded slightly, “I do wish that you guys told me but I’m not angry anymore and I’m sorry about yelling at all of you those weeks ago.”

“Your anger at us was justified Riki. We shouldn’t have hid the truth from you,” Jihye said apologetically.

“No you shouldn’t have.” Riki agreed as he drew in a deep breath before continuing, “But I can tell that you all regret it and that you also feel guilty for my parents' deaths.” He said as he looked around at the remorseful faces of the adults.

“You guys remind me a lot of your sons,” Riki said with a slightly fond smile on his face.

Everyone stared at him curiously as they awaited him to continue.

“These boys like to blame themselves for things that aren’t their fault. Like when I got hurt or when I decided to go to that party at Minjun’s hotel and Treasure came after me although it wasn’t their faults. I knew what I was getting into and I understood the risk,” Riki explained as he gave his boyfriends a knowing look as he gently squeezed Jay’s hand.

“I see that it’s a family thing,” Riki joked as he looked back at the adults who actually had small smiles pulling at their faces.

“It’s not my parents fault at all but I think when they agreed, they also knew what they were getting into and they did it because they wanted to. They did it because they wanted to help you because they cared about you guys ; if they didn’t, they never would’ve gone through it,” Riki said thoughtfully as he thought about his parents and the wonderful selflessness they always carried with themselves.

The parents almost looked like they were going to tear up as they stared at Riki, feeling touched by the young boy’s words.

“They loved you guys, I can tell and they wouldn’t want you to blame yourselves, the same way that I don’t let these boys think what happened to me is their fault. My parents wouldn’t want you guys to blame yourselves for their deaths and I don’t want you to blame yourselves either because I would definitely like to have a good relationship with my boyfriends’ parents,” Riki told them sincerely.

The adults all gave him grateful smiles and Riki certainly couldn’t miss the shininess of their eyes but he chose not to comment on it.

“Thank you Riki-ah, that means a lot to us,” Seojoon told him gratefully.

“Your parents raised a wonderful kid.” Junwoo said sincerely, “Welcome to the family Riki-yah.”

“Thank you Junwoo-ssi,” Riki smiled sweetly at the man.

“Aish please, call us aunty and uncle. I think we’re going to be seeing a lot more of you now,” Sunyoung winked at him.

“Yeah, you guys definitely will be,” Heeseung smirked as he gently patted Riki’s uninjured shoulder.

“So the news on Treasure?” Minseung asked.

“They’re on the run, to put it simply, all of them besides Haruto and Jaehyuk who was abandoned at the hotel,” Heeseung answered.

“So they’re in hiding?” Seojoon asked.

Sunghoon nodded, “They’re in hiding because there’s nothing left for them. The hotel alone was full of evidence and Han-Gyeong abandoned them. He was their biggest investor and he completely pulled out to try and save his own skin.”

“Is it working for him?” Jihye questioned.

“There was a lot of evidence and a lot of things that trace back to him. The bastard’s probably going to try and pay his way out of trouble but he’s stepping down as mayor elect and from what we know the board of his pharmaceutical company and some of his own investors have resigned.” Jake explained.

“The guy’s going to burn, he has nothing,” Heeseung said simply.

“Haruto and Jaehyuk are in custody, we don’t know how long it will take before they’re tried and what exactly they’ll be convicted on, but they’re looking at some long jail sentences,” Sunghoon explained.

“Treasure is no more,” Jay sighed in disbelief.

“Basically, yeah,” Sunoo said, also sounding stunned.

“Won was right, we burned Treasure to the ground,” Heeseung smiled proudly at the leader.

Riki himself had several feelings of both disbelief and sheer relief flowing through him. After all these months, they did it and he found closure in a way that he needed for such a long time. He knew the truth and although some parts of it hurt ; he knew and that felt reassuring.

“You guys did it,” Riki smiled at his partners proudly.

“No,” Jungwon shook his head as he smiled at Riki and grabbed his hand tightly in his own.

“We did it Riki, all of us.”

“We wouldn’t have been able to do it without you baby,” Sunghoon told him as he pressed a kiss to Riki’s forehead before wrapping his arms around the boy.

His other boyfriends soon joined in on the embrace and the seven of them all held each other impossibly tight and all that could be felt between them was love.

And who was Riki to argue with them? They all did it. The seven of them…

Together.

Chapter Text

April 2023

“Jake! Jake don’t!” Riki yelled as he held up his hands in defense but he was swiftly ignored and subsequently splashed with the salty water of the sea.

“I’m sorry Riki-san, I couldn’t resist,” Jake smiled before leaning up and giving Riki a kiss.

The two were in the water still close to the shore with their pants rolled up to their knees so that they wouldn’t get too wet.

“You two don’t get soaked or you’re getting no food!” Konon yelled at them from her spot next to Eunchae on their picnic blanket.

“You don’t get to threaten us that way Konon-chan, only Jay-hyung does!” Riki teased.

“And I’m with Konon-ah Riki. If you two get soaked now, you’re not getting my amazing ramyeon,” Jay threatened playfully.

“Ooh yay, more for us then,” Heeseung smiled.

“Heeseung, if you eat all that ramyeon I will kick your ass!” Jake threatened.

“I’m sure your tiny self will be very successful, babe,” Heeseung smirked.

Jake’s face fell and he began storming out of the water towards the eldest.

“Uh oh,” Sunoo chuckled.

“Heeseung-hyung, I think it’s time for you to run,” Sunghoon said.

“I should, shouldn't I?” Heeseung asked as he glanced at Jake briefly.

“That would be advised,” Jungwon agreed with a laugh.

“You’re in trouble now Hee-hyung!” Riki laughed as he walked away from the shore and back over to the group.

Heeseung’s eyes darted from Jake to everyone else before he got off the blanket and started running down the quiet shoreline with Jake hot on his tail laughing and playfully threatening him.

“Are we sure those two are older than me?” Riki laughed as he plopped down by Sunghoon.

“We question it everyday, Riki-yah,” Sunghoon laughed as he pulled Riki closer to himself.

Not long after, Riki got an armful of his youngest sister Sola and he patted her head gently as he cuddled his little sister to his side.

“How are you liking the beach Sol?” he asked softly.

She smiled up at him and Riki thinks his heart melted a bit from how cute his baby sister is although she’s already a teenager. Sola will always just be a cute little dumpling to him.

“It’s really pretty oniisan, I’m glad that you brought us. Plus I get to skip school on Monday so that’s a big bonus,” she winked at him.

Konon came over to her siblings and grabbed Sola in a headlock, “You little menace, I’m paying so much for your education and you’re happy to skip school. So ungrateful.”

Sola turned to their oldest sister and gave her puppy eyes, “You know I appreciate everything you do for me Konon.”

Riki could tell that his baby sister was sincere and didn’t miss the way Konon softened significantly as she pulled her into a tight hug which Riki couldn’t help but smile at. He was a big softie for his sisters and he wouldn’t have it any other way.

Speaking of his sisters-

“You look happy,” Eunchae whispered to him as she came over and placed her chin on his shoulder.

Riki smiled even wider at that and nodded a bit, “I am. For the first time in a really long time, I am.”

Eunchae smiled and leaned her head on his shoulder and gave Riki’s free hand a squeeze.

“I’m glad Riki oppa, I’m really happy that you’re happy.”

“I don’t think I would’ve gotten here without you, so thank you Chae… for everything,” Riki told her sincerely.

“You’re welcome, for everything,” she smiled at him as he gave his hand one last squeeze.

Riki was happy, for the first time in a long time, he sincerely was. He loved this feeling and he didn’t want to let it go.

“Yah! Are you two done?” Sunghoon yelled over to Jake and Heeseung who were laying in the sand panting while laughing with each other, Jake seeming to have tackled Heeseung down.

“Just a moment, Hoon!” Heeseung called breathlessly.

“Dumbasses, the both of them,” Jay scoffed, but Riki didn’t miss the fond look behind his eyes.

Once Jake and Heeseung returned, food was shared around and Riki was stuck in the middle of the cuddle pile between his boyfriends while Eunchae, Konon and Sola watched with amused smirks on their faces from their spots adjacent to all the boyfriends.

Riki didn’t miss the way Konon mouthed, “You have them so whipped for you.”

And he certainly didn’t disagree, she was right. But Riki was equally as whipped for the six boys who he called his and he absolutely wouldn’t have it any other way.

Sunghoon’s hand took up its favorite spot around Riki’s waist and Riki was more than aware of how the elder intermittently traced his finger over the scar on his side due to the crop top Riki was wearing.

He did say that he would like to wear the cropped shirt Sunoo got him again on a less dangerous occasion which wasn’t Riki breaking into a gang member’s hotel and the beach picnic with his loved ones on a quiet weekend in Busan, was certainly the right occasion.

Now nothing was perfect, but this day certainly was. For Riki, it truly was. There was no danger, nothing for them to worry about, it was just them. Him and the most important people in his life all gathered in one place.

And as he looked around at all of them and saw Sunoo’s bright smile, Jungwon’s entire body looking relaxed and content without a burden on him, Jay’s fond eyes as he looked around at all of them, Sunghoon’s sweet and comforting touches, and Heeseung’s focused and endeared face as Jake talked to him animatedly about whatever it was and looked so impassioned and happy ; he knew it was all perfect.

After every turmoil, after all the storms, the waves were finally calm and the sun shone down and bathed him in light as he enjoyed the peace of the ocean with those he loved by his side. As the gentlest waters brushed the shore, all the pressure that he had felt for months was gone and Riki released a breath.

He was surrounded by the people most important in his life and he could feel nothing but love and that’s when he realized Riki found something that he had spent so long feeling so far from and had felt so out of reach ; something that he had been searching for since his parents died.

He was home.