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Pete is surprised to see Kim at his front door. "Kim?" he queries as he opens the door wider for Kim to enter. Kim furrows his brows and says, "We need to talk," as he pushes past Pete into the house. Feeling confused, Pete closes the door and follows the other man into his living room. "Kim? Is there something wrong?" Pete asks him. Kim glares at Pete and simply says, "It's Kenta." Kim could see the concern settle across Pete's normally stony face as he asks, "Is he hurt?" Kim rolls his eyes thinking, 'Not like you would care,' but bites his tongue and instead says, "He's fine." Pete is even more confused, "So...what is the problem Kim?"
Kim folds his arms and cryptically replies with, "You tell me." Pete's face twists up more in confusion but thankfully Kim continues, "Why is Kenta like that?" Pete raises his brows, "Like what?" he asks as he sits down in the plush chair he was previously occupying. "You know what I'm talking about," Kim says, "Do you know how Kenta got that hard drive he gave you?" Pete picks up the glass of whisky he had poured right before Kim popped up and takes a sip. "I'm assuming he stole it," Pete remarks.
Pete's nonchalance only annoys Kim more. "That's right Khun Pete, he stole it. He broke into one of Tony's buildings and stole it. He went all alone and Tony's men chased him. They surrounded him with guns and all he had was his stupid blade. If I hadn't gotten to him in time then he would've been captured or killed," Kim finally explains. Pete seems surprised by the information, because of course he was. He never asks Kenta how he comes by things, he only takes from Kenta. "So why is Kenta like that? Why would he risk his life like that for a stupid hard drive for you?" Kim questions, frown firmly set in place on his handsome face.
Pete finally understands why Kim is at his home and why he's mad. "Kenta has always felt like he's not worth anything unless he is useful to someone," Pete begins to explain, "He tends to not care about his own life when it comes to being of use. When we were kids Tony would call him useless and worthless because he had no special ability and he would tell Kenta that the only reason he was keeping him alive was because he needed a dog to carry out his tasks. So even though he's free from Tony now, that's just his mentality."
Kim walks closer to Pete, "If you knew he was self sacrificing why didn't you tell me?" he demands. Pete shakes his head, confusion back in place. "I'm sorry," he says, "I didn't think I needed to." Kim scoffs and glowers at Pete, "You didn't think you needed to," he chuckles in disbelief. "Don't you care about how Kenta comes by all of his intel and evidence he hands over to you?" Kim asks him, "Don't you care about his safety?"
Pete feels offended, "Of course I care about his safety," Pete snaps back, "That's why I left him with you." Kim nods as he shoots back, "Right, you asked me to babysit him in case Tony comes looking for him...but what about when Kenta goes looking for Tony? What about when he risks his life to go back to where Tony and his people are to secure evidence for you? Do you care about his safety then? Do you care about him risking his life if he's doing something to help you out? Do you care about him risking his life when he's so useful to you?"
"Are you comparing me to Tony? I care about Kenta okay?" Pete shoots back.
Kim is so pissed off that he can't stop himself from nastily replying, "Do you? Or do you care about what he can do for you?" Pete is taken aback but Kim continues, "Do you think Kenta thinks you care about him if he's not useful to you? You just abandoned him in that place all those years ago because he wouldn't do what you said. You know how Kenta feels about you and to keep you in his life you know that he would do anything to help you. You know that he would risk his own life to help you and you just fucking let him."
Pete is speechless and Kim is not done. "You say you care about Kenta but it only seems you care when it's convenient. You don't ask how he's doing or what he's feeling. You don't ask if he's okay or if he's struggling. You don't ask him anything. Ask long as he comes back alive and with whatever you need then it's good enough for you right?"
"Kenta is a grown man. He can make his own decisions and he can protect himself," Pete defends. "That is such a bullshit answer, Khun Pete," Kim snaps with a shake of his head, "I'm not talking about what Kenta is capable of and you know it. I'm talking about you allowing someone you say you care about to risk his life to help you out. And then you just say 'that's how he is' as an excuse for not caring enough about him."
Kim's words sting and Pete feels like such a bad person but Kim is still not letting up. He darkly stares at Pete and says, "I think you should think more about Kenta and his feelings and his value. You've known him the longest and yet you treat him like an acquaintance. You say you feel bad for how you left him and yet you ignore him. You neglect him. You two only talk when he has information for you or when you need him to do something for you."
"I try to talk to Kenta but he shuts me out, Kim," Pete counters feeling attacked. "Yea I wonder why," Kim sarcastically replies, "Like I said, you know how he feels about you. It's fine if you don't love him back but have the decency to treat him like the brother you claim he is to you. Show him that you care about him. You think he thinks you care about him? You dropped him off at my doorstep to keep him safe when he could be staying here in this big ass house with you where you can keep him safe. But then how would you carry on your little relationship with Chris?"
Pete has nothing to say to Kim. He doesn't even know how to feel. He needs time to process everything Kim just said to him. He just sits there like a big rock.
Kim finally unfolds his arms. "It's a shame that I know more about Kenta in the short time he's been living with me than you know in the years you've known him, " he tells Pete with another shake of his head. The disappointment is heavy in his voice as he adds, "I don't even expect for your behavior towards Kenta to improve. You don't need to. I've decided that I'm going to take care of Kenta."
"Decided?" Pete echoed, he's never been more confused by a conversation in all his days. Kim nods and heads toward the door, "You may treat Kenta like crap but I'm not. I'm going to be the one there for Kenta. I'm going to be the one he can trust and depend on. I'm going to be the one who shows him that his life is valuable, whether he's useful or not. I'm going to protect him and I'm going to be the one in his corner from now on. He's going to heal from all this. He's going to heal from Tony and he's going to heal from you. You asked me to look out for Kenta and that's exactly what I'm going to do," he tells Pete and then he leaves, slamming the door behind him.
Pete sighs and refreshes his drink.
Kenta perks up from his spot at the table when hears the front door unlock. He sees Kim walk in, frown on his face and carrying a bag filled with food containers. Kim's face brightens when he notices Kenta staring at him. "Hey," he breathes out as he sets the bag on the table, "I brought dinner." Kim takes a moment to rip open the bag and place the three food containers on the table in front of Kenta.
Kenta doesn't respond because he doesn't quite know what to say. "I bought sushi and some miso soup," Kim tells Kenta as he points to two of the containers respectively. "Oh and I bought a slice of crepe cake for us to share," he said pointing to the third food container. Kenta is puzzled, "Why are we sharing it?" he asked, "Why didn't you just buy two slices?"
Kim sheds his denim jacket and drapes it across the back of the chair he was standing behind. "Because I don't really like sweets but I know you do. I figured I'd just take a bite or two and you can have the rest," Kim explains. Kenta is surprised that Kim knows this detail about him since he didn't tell it to him, "How did you know that?" he asks. Kim shrugs and easily explains, "The amount of sugar you put in your coffee. It's a lot." Kenta doesn't know if he should feel flattered or offended. He was just surprised by how much Kim was learning about him just by observing. He was also touched and surprised by the other man's continued kindness.
"Did I say something wrong?" Kim asks. Kenta blushes, quickly shakes his head, and stands up. "I'll get some plates and bowls," he volunteers. "No, no, it's ok," Kim stops him, "I'll get them." Kenta drops back down in his chair and dog-ears the page of the book he was reading before Kim returned. He didn't want to get too excited, but he was glad he was there with Kim and he would enjoy it as long as he could.