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Jinyoung may not speak about his family very much, but he does have one outside of the Gapryeong Kim’s Fist Gang. It’s his heaven, the home he goes back to always. And he’s very protective of them, a lesson well learnt by some low thugs trying to harm his family. Well, it’s not like his nephew Daniel and his brother-in-law Sangcheol could not protect themselves anyway.
Jinyoung heads out of Big Deal Street, just as Jake Kim and Jerry Kwon walk out of the Fist Gang office, possibly meeting with Gapryeong about something. “Oh, heading back home to the family, Uncle Jinyoung?” Jake smiles knowingly seeing the bright look in Jinyoung’s eyes and the bag that’s possibly containing gifts for his family. Jerry smiles at Jinyoung, “Hello Uncle, safe journey. Send my regards to your family, especially Daniel. It’s been a while since he visited.”
Jinyoung chuckles, “Yes, heading back home for Chuseok, Jake. I will, Jerry. Daniel has been busy with his studies, he said he wants to be like his brilliant uncle.” He smirks proudly, remembering how enthusiastic Daniel was when he decided on what he wanted to pursue as soon as he entered high school early this year. Jerry and Jake can’t help but laugh imagining Daniel loudly announce to his uncle that he looks up to what he wants to do after graduating high school.
“I’m sure he’ll achieve what he set for himself. He’s almost if not more dedicated than you are, Uncle,” Jake grins. Jerry nods in agreement. Jinyoung smirks, “Heh, of course. He’s from the Park family, of course he should be dedicated and driven. Well, I should head out now, or I’m gonna miss the bus.” Jake shakes his head, “I don’t know why you never want to take a driving license Uncle or have one of our men to drive you.”
Jinyoung just looks over his shoulder as he walks away, “I much prefer to enjoy the bus ride to look out the bus window admiring the calm scenic view. Besides, I still have trauma over your dear father’s little driving stunt.” Jake sighs with a smile, “It’s more than a decade ago, Uncle…” to which Jinyoung shouts, “Still TRAUMATIZING!” Gapryeong is heard shouting from his office upstairs, “I SAID I’M SORRY!” Jinyoung simply gives a middle finger which he knows Gapryeong would see from his office window. Jake and Jerry share a fond look as they laugh with their uncle’s antics.
After a few hours of traveling including walking, he finally arrives at the average sized traditional house of his late parents. He can already hear Daniel’s voice inside, softly arguing with his mother that she should not do such heavy work. Jinyoung automatically smiles, picturing Daniel taking over the heavy-duty work with his father’s help, and that’s exactly what he walks into as he enters the gates. “Already arguing this early, you guys?” Jinyoung teases them as he makes his presence known.
Daniel whips his head around, hearing Jinyoung’s voice. He seems to be carrying a few firewood pieces in his arms, and Sangcheol pushing Seonhui to sit on the low platform underneath the cherry tree in the small yard in front of the house. “Uncle Jinyoung!” Daniel drops the firewood near the kitchen entrance and runs over quickly, before hugging him tightly. “Oof, heey you’ve gotten stronger it seems, and even taller than last time I see,” he ruffles Daniel’s hair affectionately, smiling at him.
Daniel chuckles as he lets Jinyoung go, “I told you I want to be strong and smart like you, didn’t I. I’ve been working hard to achieve my life goal!” Sangcheol coming over with a laugh, “I’m so jealous he made you his role model. Welcome home brother!” Jinyoung chuckles, “Awe don’t be jealous now, you’re still the one who gets to train him and be by his side all the time. I’m home” he clasps Sangcheol’s hand in their usual brother handshake greeting manner as Daniel moves to the side to let his father greet his uncle.
Seonhui shakes her head at their antics, “You should rest, Jinyoung. You must be tired from the bus ride to get here. Come sit, I have made tea and Daniel bought some snacks on our way here. He started working part time at a store near his school.” She pours him a cup of tea as she sits on the pyeongsang (평상 – traditional Korean low flat wooden platform table).
Jinyoung joins her, taking a seat comfortably after placing his bag down. “Thank you noona (big sister).” Daniel goes back to doing the chores to prepare the kitchen, carrying the firewood, setting the stove and cleaning the area with Sangcheol’s help. “I’m assuming you’re still traumatized with that car incident you got into with Gapryeong Kim? Because you rejected our offer of traveling with us in our car again this time.”
Jinyoung shudders at the mere memory of that day, “Don’t remind me of that day, please.” Seonhui shakes her head with a smile, “Sorry, I won’t. How’s life been for you?” Jinyoung spends the nice afternoon just chatting with Seonhui as they catch up with each other’s life. Daniel and Sangcheol join them once they’re done getting the kitchen ready.
“I mean look at him all grown up and handsome now, I can’t pinch his cheeks anymore. Look, no cute chubby cheeks, see” Jinyoung says while pinching Daniel’s cheek who laughs some, “Uncle Jinyoung!” Sangcheol lets out a bark of laughter, “I told you he’d hit his growth spurt sooner than expected. Well, he’s been so motivated to work harder to be like his uncle, so of course he’d be just as handsome as his uncle.”
Jinyoung pouts a little, “Where did the time go? It felt like yesterday I was holding your small body in my arms, and your little fingers holding onto mine.” Daniel chuckles as he rubs at his cheeks that Jinyoung had released from his playful grip. “I’m right here Uncle. I’m not going anywhere. I’m still your adorable nephew” Daniel teases with a smile. “I mean you can still spoil me with gifts and pocket money you know”
Seonhui gasps, “Daniel Park! I never taught you to be materialistic!” she scolds Daniel some to which Daniel laughs, “Mom, calm down. I’m just teasing Uncle.” Jinyoung smirks, “Definitely gonna spoil him more, sorry Seonhui. He’s my only nephew, of course he gets my full attention!” Seonhui sighs softly, “You spoil him rotten, Jinyoung…” Jinyoung simply grins without looking remorseful or even deny her accusations. Sangcheol laughs along with Daniel, before Seonhui and Jinyoung join them.
They hear a honk from just outside the gates, making them stop their laughter. “Did you order something dad?” Daniel asks to which Sangcheol shakes his head, “No, I think we have all we need already.” Jinyoung grins, “Then it must be for me. I ordered something from a friend.” He walks to the gate and open it, talking with someone outside before he opens the gate wider and two familiar faces walk in carrying some boxes. “Jihan! Jibeom!” Daniel gets up and helps show them where to put the boxes inside the kitchen.
Seonhui sighs, “Jinyoung, what did you buy this time?” Jinyoung grins, “Just some beef, fresh from the farm the Kwak brothers own.” Sangcheol almost salivates imagining the good quality meat from the Kwak brothers farm, which they are famous for. He puts an arm around Jinyoung’s shoulders, “You’re the best brother in the whole wide world, Jinyoung!” Jinyoung simply grins, “Say it loud enough so that your brothers in your hometown can hear you.” Sangcheol laughs, “I’m gonna repeat it in front of them next year during Chuseok celebration with them.”
Daniel is seen chatting some with Jihan and Jibeom as Seonhui pour tea for them, inviting them to sit down. Jinyoung watching it all with a warm feeling in his heart. His small family that he will protect as long as he lives, the family that loves him as much as he loves them. He will do everything to ensure they’re always happy.
Later that evening, he helps Sangcheol clean up the house area while Daniel helps his mom in the kitchen, preparing the dishes for charye ritual to be conducted the next morning. They also prepare for their family dinner that evening. Everything goes smoothly, and soon Daniel is setting up the dining table on the pyeongsang before they can begin serving the food. The four of them have dinner together that evening on that pyeongsang under the lovely tree in the front yard of the house, just enjoying time together. They tidy up together once they're done and begins getting ready for bed. They need to be up early in the morning to observe the charye ritual and also to visit the cemetery to clean their ancestral graves to complete the tradition.
Jinyoung lays in bed that night with a much lighter and warmer heart, a bit eager to spend at least another day or two with his family for this holiday. Just as he was about to close his eyes, he feels something not quite right in the air. Jinyoung sneaks out of his room, being careful not to wake or alert anyone else in the house.
Outside, he sees a lone figure standing in the middle of the front yard of the house. Dark shadows make it hard for him to see who it is at first, until he steps out of the house further. “Elite…. What are you doing here?” Jinyoung’s voice turns cautious, as he addresses the man he now recognizes as Charles Choi, part of the Gapryeong Kim Fist Gang.
“You’re wasting time and energy here, Jinyoung. You’re weak like this…” Charles simply says, not moving from his spot. His eyes merely watching Jinyoung with no emotions in them as always, cold and sharp as ever. Jinyoung simply stares at him, “You should go back to the city, it’s not your place to determine whether I’m weak or not. You have a family of your own, go and be with them.”
Charles sneers as he takes a few steps towards Jinyoung, “Until when are you going to play pretend with these illusions of yours? It’s not real, they’re all dead Jinyoung. Well one of them is, the others you’ve abandoned them long ago.” Charles words somehow cuts sharp despite it being such a confusing statement.
Jinyoung frowns deeply, “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Elite. Leave now.”
Charles lets out a mocking laugh, “Quite sad that the Copy King, the Medical Genius is now reduced to a mentally unstable weak person like this. Pity…”
Jinyoung feels a sudden rage that he can’t control, “Shut your fucking mouth!”
Charles simply smirks at him, “It’s the truth, isn’t it? You’re just drowning in your delusions of what could have been. It’s so sad, really. You had a great potential to be bigger than you are.”
Jinyoung’s hand grasp at his chest, as he feels his head throbs wildly and the rage inside him pouring out further, “SHUT UP! You don’t know what you’re talking about!”
Charles simply takes a step closer with a cruel grin on his face, “Wake up, silly. Stop being delusional.”
That same moment, the scene changes around him. The house is gone, the entire scene changes into empty black space with just him and Charles standing in.
Jinyoung panics as he looks around, “No, no, eonni, Sangcheol my brother, Daniel!!!” he tries to find them in the vast dark space, but nothing. Just echoes of his own voice now full of sadness, rage and fear. “What did you do!??”
Charles simply stands there with that same mocking cruel grin, saying nothing else. Jinyoung feels his rage boiling over and something snap inside him and he roars as he leaps onto Charles, intent on attacking him.
The attack never lands as he finds himself suddenly awake inside a very familiar laboratory that has an attached office to it with a couch and coffee table in the corner of the office. “……..”
“You’re finally awake, Mr. Jinyoung Park,” a familiar voice is heard from nearby making him slowly sit up from the couch he was most like sleeping on. “Eugene. How long was I out?” Jinyoung drawls as he stares at the bottle of drugs on the coffee table, most likely the very thing that helped him get a very deep sleep which he has never gotten for a very long while now.
“Not that long, a few hours.” Eugene simply says, before holding out a file, “These are the list of suppliers and their proposed price package for the items you’re looking for. Go through them and inform me which ones are the best one that you need. I’ll handle the rest.” Jinyoung takes the file from him, grunting his acknowledgement of what he needs to do.
Eugene nods before leaving, if his eyes catch a couple of old wrinkled photos that’s been folded many times, he never mentions it. Jinyoung simply gathers the photos and keeps them into his coat pocket for now, muttering his hate for Elite and a Patricidal Bastard. His need to kill both of them is even greater than ever, as the memories of the past he wanted to block came surging back making his headache worsen. He just swallows a few pills to ease the symptoms before getting back to work.
“They’ll get theirs one day. One day soon. One day…” Jinyoung murmurs into the empty laboratory as he continues with his work there, deep within the Workers 1st Affiliate Hidden Base.