Archive of Our Own

Seoul, Korea 11:54 p.m.

September 3, XX01 

Taehyun tipped the glass in his hand back, taking big gulps of the cocktail inside. His eyes flitted around the room, searching for his target only to stop on an all too familiar pair of cat-like eyes.

The two made eye contact and Taehyun cursed under his breath, crossing his arms in annoyance. Did he recognize him already?

He muttered underneath his breath, “Damn, this dress…”

Taehyun was dressed in a long, lavish red dress with a slit running down one side. He had on a long haired wig. Currently, he was leaning over the counter of the bar to hide his true height. It did nothing to stop him from getting all the attention in the room. 

Unfortunately for him, the owner of the pair of cat-like eyes had made his way over to Taehyun while he was cursing his current situation.

He sat down next to Taehyun, and Taehyun’s nose scrunched in distaste at the alcohol, setting the glass down on the counter. 

Yeonjun smirked and took the drink, bringing it to his lips and sipping from it, "What? Not sweet enough for you?"

Taehyun’s eye twitched, and he innocently batted his eyelashes, "Sorry mister, but have we met before?"

Yeonjun’s smirk fell and he frowned. Taehyun found his target and moved to get up but startled when a hand fell on his thigh. 

He turned to glare at Yeonjun who had a serious look on his face. The place where their bodies made contact burned and Taehyun cursed himself. He shouldn't be acting this way.

Yeonjun leaned in and Taehyun tensed up, trying to lean back but was stopped by another arm that had managed to sneak its way around his back. 

He closed his eyes and his breath hitched in waiting. Taehyun opened his eyes when he heard a low chuckle in his ear, "I'll get the car ready in case things go south."

Yeonjun retreated and Taehyun was finally able to breathe. He calmed himself down and turned to look for his target again, already finding the old man's eyes looking him up and down.

With a light sigh, Taehyun looked at the bartender who nodded back at him, handing him a glass of wine. 

Taehyun took it and walked over to the man, flawlessly walking in heels. He had been trained for every situation after all.

The man was sitting on a couch surrounded by scantily dressed women. Taehyun rolled his eyes, this man really was one of the lowest of the low. Taehyun sat on the man’s lap and wrapped his arms around his neck, loosely holding the wine glass in his hand. 

He eyed the man directly and asked, "Care for a drink?"

Taehyun held back his look of disgust as the man’s hands started running up his sides. Taehyun shoved them away and handed the man the glass, putting on a fake pouty look.

He spoke in a high pitched voice, "Come on, it's more fun for the both of us if you're wasted."

The man smirked before drinking the poisoned alcohol in the wine glass. Job finished.Taehyun’s facade immediately fell away, and he got off of the man as quickly as he could. 

He calmly walked through the crowds, walking faster when he heard screams coming from behind him. 

He turned around and saw one of the non drugged up ladies pointing at him. Men in suits made eye contact with Taehyun and that's when he knew he had to book it out of the club.

He threw off his heels and started running barefoot through the crowd, using his slim figure to his advantage to easily maneuver his way towards the entrance. 

Unfortunately for him, there were guards waiting for him right at the entrance. He didn't have to worry about them for long though, because he heard a series of loud bangs and then there were holes in their chests.

Yeonjun emerged from behind them, holding a gun with smoke coming out from the nozzle. Taehyun kept for the exit, ducking his head as bullets flew over his head, perfectly imbedding themselves into Taehyun’s pursuers.

Suddenly, an arm grabbed him and started pulling him in the direction of a black, sleek car. Taehyun was manhandled into the passenger seat as Yeonjun slid over the surface of his car, quickly getting into the driver's seat and starting the engine. 

The engine roared to life as they sped off. Yeonjun had the nerve to laugh, and Taehyun felt that weird feeling come back. He clasped a hand over his heart, ignoring the way Yeonjun always seemed to always have one eye on him. 

They were the same after all.

Choi Yeonjun and Kang Taehyun were cold hearted killers.

Taehyun forced himself to push away the weird feeling in his chest and go back to being an empty shell whose only sole purpose was to assassinate. However, the feeling quickly returned when he felt a hand rest on his thigh, rubbing it gently.

Yeonjun’s touch felt like fire, scalding hot, and Taehyun was afraid he was more than ready to be burned.

Seoul, Korea 5:53 p.m.

December 25, XX00  

Kang Taehyun and Choi Yeonjun’s meeting was anything but chance. In fact, they met under rather unfortunate circumstances. 

It all started with this.

Taehyun eyed the folder in front of him. He was sitting in the chair ramrod straight and had his arms crossed, face blank.

Taehyun picked up the folder and examined the contents, humming lowly. He looked up at his dealer's eyes and said, "I'll take the job."

The man in front of him grinned. The name he went by was Cheetah, and he was Taehyun's dealer. He was the one who managed the communication between him and his clients. The man got his name from the obnoxious cheetah print jacket he always wore. 

And Taehyun had many deals lined up for him. Why? Because Kang Taehyun was the best of the best at his job. He never failed to kill anyone. Taehyun was trained to be the perfect assassin. 

Taehyun stared at Cheetah, "But only if you tell me why the client's name isn't listed."

Cheetah's eye twitched and he seemed to be troubled with his thoughts. Taehyun observed quietly, coming to his own conclusion.

He leaned forward in his chair, elbows coming to rest on the surface of the desk. He crossed one leg over the other and stared deeply into Cheetah's eyes, staring at the other male.

"It's a mafia, isn't it? Seeing as how they requested me specifically to assassinate Minister Park. They must be a strong one too, considering they set their sights so high. And if my knowledge is correct, the only mafia who dares mess with the high ranking officials is Eternity."

Disbelief spread over Cheetah's face, but he quickly covered it up. Taehyun observed quietly before standing up and throwing the folder back at him.

"Rejected."

Cheetah hurriedly chased up after him and fell to his knees on the floor. He cried out desperately, "You have to! They'll kill me if you don't take this! Then they'll come for you too!"

Taehyun turned around and stared at the man kneeling on the floor. He pulled something out of his pocket and looked down at the man with no mercy, "Then let them come. I'll spare them the trouble of having to come find you."

Bang! 

A gunshot echoed throughout the room, but it didn't matter. This room was soundproof anyway.

A bullet lodged itself into the man’s head and some of his blood splattered onto Taehyun's clothes. He tucked the gun back in his back pocket and put on his padded jacket. 

Taehyun zipped it all the way up, partially to protect himself from the cold and to also hide his now bloodied clothes.

It was cold and because it was Christmas there were many families walking around. Taehyun lingered on the sidewalk, staring at the passing families before moving on. He didn’t want to think right now. 

Taehyun made his way home to his shoddy apartment. He really only needed a bed and a restroom, but it would have been nice to have air conditioning and heating for the hot and cold weather. Alas, Taehyun was left with a small apartment with the basic appliances for human survival, just without heating or air conditioning.

It’s not like he could buy a better apartment. Taehyun’s current apartment was on the lawless side of town, which meant no cop or officer would come in to specifically search his area. No, there were too many crimes and murders on this side of town that they stayed away from it completely unless absolutely necessary, which meant it was the perfect place to live and stay off the radar. 

Taehyun pulled the key out from his pocket and moved to touch his door knob, freezing when he saw something reflecting off the knob. He squinted to look closer and cursed as he saw it was a wire of some sort. 

Taehyun immediately backed away and ran out of the apartment. Eternity moves fast. They found him that quickly?

If Taehyun had to guess, they probably set a trap at the door of his apartment so that it would set something off to kill him. Probably a bomb of some sorts.

And now Taehyun was back on the streets again. He shivered, thankful for the fact he at least had a jacket to warm him up some.

Whatever, he was loaded anyway. Taehyun stopped by the convenience store and bought a bowl of noodles, bringing his tray to one of the outside tables. He sat down by himself at the table, eating silently while blankly staring at the families walking by. 

Taehyun suddenly felt a chill, not from the cold surrounding him, and his head whipped around. There was a man standing behind him. 

Taehyun looked at him, immediately noticing the tattoos covering his arms. The man was wearing sunglasses and a loose black tank top and sweatpants. Quite an odd choice since it was night time and it was freezing outside. It didn't add up.

He had long pink hair tied up in a little ponytail at the top of his head.  Interesting choice. It makes him everything but inconspicuous. 

Taehyun narrowed his eyes, he couldn't really figure out the man's features.

But that wasn't the reason why Taehyun whipped around. No, it was because his internal danger alarm went off. The man wouldn't seem like anything else but an attractive man to normal people, but Taehyun knew better.

He could feel it.

He analyzed the man in front of him. Taehyun was a diligently trained assassin, so he could tell… when there was someone else like him. 

Taehyun knew he was no good. 

An aura of malice and bloodlust surrounded the male, and Taehyun’s hand clenched when he saw the man sit down in front of him with a smile.

The man chuckled lowly, “How interesting. You don’t often see someone alone during Christmas, especially someone as cute as you.”

Taehyun’s face remained passive, not reacting to the male’s flirting. Instead he asked the man in return, “Who are you?”

The man blinked before leaning back in the stool, laughing, and Taehyun watched as the man almost fell off the stool because there was no backing and he had leaned too far back. 

Taehyun stiffened, not letting his guard down. The man sat back down properly and looked Taehyun straight in the eyes. 

The man leaned forward with a smirk on his face, "Why didn't you accept the offer? The boss is curious."

Taehyun didn't allow himself to relax. Instead, he narrowed his eyes, "You're from Eternity? What's your ranking?"

The man shrugged and stole Taehyun’s noodles from him. Taehyun didn't really care anyways. He was rather full already. 

The man slurped down Taehyun's noodles and Taehyun patiently waited for him to finish. He was patient after all, comes with the job. Besides, he had no home to go home to right now so might as well allow himself to be carried away for just a little while. 

The man finally looked back up and pondered over his question for a while before he shrugged and said, "Uh, I'm a lackey?"

Taehyun looked at him emotionlessly before sighing, deciding to test something. 

He leaned forward slightly, resting his chin on his palm, "Okay, Choi Yeonjun."

Choi Yeonjun, leader of Eternity. Heartless, merciless, bloodthirsty killer. He had no mercy for his enemies and always had it out for officials with high political standing. And Taehyun believed the man in front of him had to be him. Everything just made sense.

The tattoos, the loose clothing in cold weather, dyed,  tied up hair, and his aura. It was too easy for Taehyun.

He narrowed his eyes at Yeonjun, not truly believing this was how the infamous man everyone was carefully treading around just saying his name, was like this.

Taehyun smirked triumphantly when he saw the man, or Choi Yeonjun, panic in front of him. Taehyun rolled his eyes when Yeonjun tried to cover himself up, "Aha… how could I be Choi Yeonjun? My name is… Daniel!"

Taehyun hummed and looked down at the table boredly, "Mhm, sure. Okay, Daniel. What did you come find me for?"

"Daniel" cleared his throat and crossed his arms. His voice was laced with annoyance as he nagged Taehyun, "I, I mean my boss was furious when he found out you rejected the offer and gave him a dead body to deal with!"

Taehyun’s eyes whipped around, seeing people looking at them with curious looks. He stood up in his seat and muttered, "Let's relocate."

Taehyun started walking, pausing when he heard no one walking behind him. He turned around and surprised himself when he almost bumped into Daniel's chest.

He narrowed his eyes at the man who had a shit eating grin on his face. Taehyun spat out, "You, stay five feet away from me."

Yeonjun pouted and Taehyun kept walking. On the outside he was calm, but in Taehyun's mind he had already died a quick and silent death.

This man was dangerous, and it made it even more clear to Taehyun that this man was lying about his identity. 

It also slightly pissed him off. There was no way he would make it so obvious for Taehyun. He was taunting him. Taehyun reminded himself not to be angry, not to show anything, not to feel anything. Be the emotionless vessel for killing you were trained to be.

Taehyun stopped them in an alley, and he leaned against the brick wall, crossing his arms and glaring at the pink haired male.

Daniel leaned against the other wall, hands in his pockets. He stared at Taehyun, no longer the fool he was portraying himself to be.

Daniel asked, "Why did you reject the mission? You're a world class assassin. The best at your trade."

Taehyun replied, "I'm not obligated to tell you that information."

Daniel shook his head and glared at Taehyun, "Accept the mission."

Taehyun glanced at Daniel and shook his head, "No. I won't do your dirty work for you, Choi Yeonjun. Let me ask you a question. You have so many resources in your arsenal. Why are you looking for me specifically?"

Daniel snapped at him, "I told you I'm not Choi Yeonjun."

Taehyun observed Daniel up and down before sighing and tucking a long piece of hair behind his hair, "I'll accept it under the condition that I do it my way."

Daniel smiled, but it wasn't a pleasant one. Tension filled the air and Daniel chuckled lowly, the sound sending shivers down Taehyun's spine.

"You have a deal, Mr. Kang."

A loud bang sounded in the distance and Taehyun stopped the man from leaving by grabbing his wrist, "And pay for the damages to my apartment."

Daniel stayed silent for a brief moment before answering, "I'll include that in your rewards after you finish your mission darling. And maybe consider moving into a better apartment. Somewhere nicer and less filled with crime."

Taehyun rolled his eyes and walked away, "How funny hearing that from you, Choi Yeonjun."

Daniel yelled at him, but Taehyun’s back was already turned, "I told you I am not Choi Yeonjun!"

Seoul, Korea 10:30 a.m.

January 1, XX01

Park Ilyoung and his wife were scheduled to attend a parade celebrating the new year. The news was everywhere, and Taehyun was preparing himself with every minute he had.

Security was tight. It always was when you had money and power. 

But to Taehyun, it was a piece of cake. It always was. 

Taehyun was taking his spot on the rooftop of a few buildings away. He had orders to shoot to kill. Park Ilyoung and his wife would be passing through this street, and all Taehyun had to do was wait for them. 

Taehyun had set up a sniper rifle on the roof of an old hospital. It was perfect and there was no way Park Ilyoung was going to live another day after Taehyun’s done with him. 

Taehyun looked down when he heard people cheering. He took a deep breath and leaned down to look into scope, freezing when he noticed something. 

A child. Park Ilyoung was carrying a child in his arms. Whether it was his child or not, Taehyun’s hands trembled with hesitation.

He knew he couldn't do it. He couldn't take away a child's innocence by murdering someone right in front of their eyes. 

Taehyun stood up and quickly packed his rifle. He couldn't do it, and he wasn't going to do it. 

He hoisted the bag up on his shoulder and made his way down the stairs leading to the street below. 

Taehyun froze when he saw someone leaning against the doorway. He scoffed when he saw who it was, shoving his way past him wordlessly.

Taehyun took one step out of the building, pausing when he heard the man ask, "Why?"

Taehyun turned around and glared at Yeonjun, "I have my own reasons. Tell your boss I'm dropping out of this mission."

Taehyun kept walking even as Daniel threatened him, "Eternity will be coming after you, you know?"

Taehyun stopped and turned around, giving Yeonjun a small smile. The taller was shocked out of his mind and looking at him with wide eyes.

Taehyun turned back around and headed to wherever his feet would take him, voice barely audible for both of them to hear, "...then let them come."

Seoul, Korea 4:59 p.m.

January 8, XX01

Taehyun had returned to his old apartment, boots crunching on the broken glass caused by the explosion. As expected, everything was burnt to ash.

Taehyun sighed and closed the door, heading back downstairs to talk to the landlord. The man was yawning and sitting half asleep at his desk. 

Taehyun woke the man up by slamming a briefcase onto the desk. He stared at the man and said, "I'm going to disappear. Take this for the repair costs."

Inside the briefcase were multiple stacks of cash and Taehyun stepped outside. He had looked around online for a new apartment. No, it was not because Daniel basically told him his apartment was shitty.

Taehyun had already paid his rent a month in advance and was clear to move in. Since all of Taehyun’s clothes were also burned when his apartment exploded, Taehyun finally had time to go shopping for himself. 

Then, he saw the news play while passing an electronics store and he met eyes with a picture of Park Ilyoung. His blood went cold when he read the headlines.

“Park Ilyoung found dead in his home yesterday night!” 

For once, his life was calm, and after this past week he really needed some peace and quiet in his life. So of course it had to get ruined when he got forcibly pulled into his apartment.

Taehyun had searched for the perfect apartment for a long time. One that was generally unknown and one that had no security cameras around. Those were his two requirements. He was very lucky to find one that wasn’t in a crime riddled area. 

Anyways, back to the present. Taehyun struggled against his assailant but knew it was useless when he felt another pair of hands on him. This man wasn’t alone and he certainly came prepared.

Taehyun struggled to breathe as something was pressed against his nose roughly. His eyes widened as he recognized the smell. He was very familiar with the chemical chloroform after all. Taehyun used it a lot in his more complicated missions.

He calmed down and stopped struggling. There was no way out of this situation, and Taehyun gave up on hope many years ago. He could only prepare himself for the worst outcome. 

?, ? [ ?]

[???]

Taehyun woke up with a headache and a pain in his jaw. He opened his eyes and tried to move his limbs but of course they were tied down. He gave his eyes some time to adjust to the darkness he was being held in.

Taehyun calmly observed his surroundings, opting to make no noise. When he finally was able to see the room better, he noticed many things at once.

One, he was tied to a chair in the middle of a pitch dark room. Two, he wasn’t alone. There was someone walking around the room and another one sitting on a chair in front of him, figure overly cocky and legs crossed, gaze burning into Taehyun's skin.

Taehyun blinked and a familiar voice spoke up, “Good morning, sleeping beauty.”

Taehyun smoothly said without a single crack in his voice, “Choi Yeonjun.”

There was silence for a few moments before the man sitting in front of him laughed loudly, hurting Taehyun’s sensitive eardrums a bit, but he showed no sign of weakness. The probability of him getting out of here alive was lower than zero.

Choi Yeonjun was known to be a dangerous man, and he lived up to his name. He was deadly, and Taehyun was sure he would never be able to beat him in a fight in terms of strength. The chances were less than unlikely even if the mafia boss had a handicap applied to him. 

The silence continued and Taehyun found himself questioning why he was even still alive right now. Luckily, the man that had originally introduced himself as Daniel spoke, “That’s right. I’m Choi Yeonjun. Surprised?”

Taehyun sighed, “Do I seem surprised? You were very obvious the whole time, Choi Yeonjun.”

Suddenly, the lights flicked on and although Taehyun’s eyes burned, he didn’t show a reaction to the sudden appearance of light in his vision.

He got a closer look at Yeonjun, realizing just how close they actually were in proximity. Yeonjun had a pout on his face, an expression that didn’t match the whole act he had going on right now, and the male spoke, “Come on, we’ve known each other for so long now! Just call me Yeonjun.”

Taehyun stared unfazed at the antics of the man in front of him, “...Yeonjun.”

Yeonjun grinned before leaning back in his chair. He called to the man standing behind him, “Leave us alone.”

Taehyun watched with lowered eyes as the man hesitated, “B-Boss-”

Yeonjun turned around in his chair and although Taehyun couldn’t see it, he knew it wasn’t a pleasant look. Sure enough, Yeonjun spoke coldly, “Get out of here before I have someone drag your corpse out of this goddamn room.”

The man took his advice and scrambled out of the room. Taehyun observed as Yeonjun turned back around, matching Taehyun’s emotionless one. It was at this moment, Taehyun decided that Yeonjun was really fucking weird. 

So he asked, “Why haven’t you killed me yet? What are you stalling for? Are you trying to torture me?”

Yeonjun blinked before snickering and placing his hand on Taehyun’s forehead, ruffling the hair there. Taehyun shook his hand off and said, “Stop that and start explaining you imbecile.”

Truth be told, Taehyun was trying to infuriate the older male so that he could get it over with and kill Taehyun already. However, the insult seemed to not register as an insult in Yeonjun’s brain.

Yeonjun hummed and removed his hand from his hair. Was Taehyun imagining things when he saw the male hesitate?

Yeonjun put his legs down and sat with his legs spread widely, elbows resting on his muscular thighs and hands clasped together. He was staring at Taehyun intently and asked, “Why didn’t you go through with the mission?”

Taehyun blinked and sighed, “Really? That’s what all of this is for? Please, kindly kill me now.”

Yeonjun pouted, “Please? Since I’m about to murder you anyway why don’t you just tell me?”

Taehyun hummed, “That is true. I’ll answer your question if you answer mine.”

Yeonjun frowned, “I don’t think you’re in the position to be asking-”

Taehyun interrupted him, “Did you only kill Park Ilyoung?”

Taehyun knew he was living life on the edge. He knew perfectly well what he was doing and he shouldn’t have been able to get away with it. Yet, here he was, acting rudely towards the boss of Eternity and getting away with it scot free. 

Yeonjun paused before speaking up, "Yes, it was only him. Your turn now."

Taehyun didn't want to look at Yeonjun anymore. He kept his eyes glued to his feet as he finally answered his question, "There was a child there."

Taehyun didn't see his reaction, because he wasn't looking directly at Yeonjun. Yeonjun grabbed his chin and forced him to look him in the eyes. His eyes were calm, cold, and calculating. 

Suddenly, Yeonjun laughed. His laughs gradually grew louder until he had doubled over in laughter. Yeonjun recovered and wiped his tears away.

Taehyun frowned, what was so funny?

Yeonjun sighed and Taehyun couldn't decipher the look in the man's eyes. Yeonjun chuckled lowly and stood up from his chair, walking behind Taehyun. 

Taehyun’s eyes widened when he felt the rope tying his arms together fall to the ground, freeing him of his restraints. 

"You're interesting."

Taehyun slowly brought his hands to his front and rubbed his wrists gently. The two didn't speak to each other for a good minute before Taehyun spoke up, "...You're letting me go?"

Taehyun turned around and looked at Yeonjun who had the same teasing smirk on his face that Taehyun was all too familiar with.

"Expect to be seeing me around beautiful."

Athens, Greece 1:27 p.m.

March 3, XX01

Taehyun narrowed his eyes, crossing his arms. He asked, “What are you doing here?”

He hadn't expected Yeonjun to be here at all. It was so completely out of the blue. The now black haired older male had been out of his hair for a few months, and he decided to suddenly come back into it?

Yeonjun smirked and stood up from the plastic lawn chair he was laying on. He wrapped an arm around Taehyun’s shoulder and chuckled, "What? Is it illegal to go on vacation? Come on,  darling, spend some time with me while we're here."

Taehyun shrugged his arm off his shoulder and said, "No thanks. I have a mission-"

Taehyun was suddenly yanked back into Yeonjun’s strong arms. He stared at Yeonjun who was looking at his lips with no shame.

Taehyun stared at him with an unfazed look and asked him in a monotone voice, "...what are you doing?"

Yeonjun's arm tried to sneak down to wrap around Taehyun’s waist but he calmly slapped it away. Yeonjun sighed dramatically, "Oh, come on. I've gotten rid of your target already. The least you could do is bless me with your presence for the rest of your stay here."

Taehyun narrowed his eyes and pushed Yeonjun away, "So you organized this whole thing just to get me to go on a date with you? How low. I'm catching the next plane back to Korea. Goodbye."

Yeonjun ran after him and grinned like the cheshire cat, "You're going to the airport? What a coincidence, all the planes are under investigation because they were tipped off that bombs being placed on all of them! They're undergoing careful inspection for a few days."

Taehyun hummed, 'So I never had a choice in the first place?'

His nose unconsciously scrunched and he sighed while closing his eyes and looking at the floor, "I suppose I have a few days…"

Athens, Greece 2:00 p.m.

March 3, XX00

Taehyun squinted at the sign, looking back at the other male who was messing with his sunglasses, "We're going hiking?"

Taehyun turned around to turn around and back out, but Yeonjun was quick to grab a hold of him and pull him towards the trail.

Taehyun wanted to just relax and maybe get something to eat, not walk up a whole mountainside. Unfortunately, looks like Yeonjun had a different idea.

Yeonjun picked up a map from the entrance and was carefully inspecting it. He said, "I heard this was a popular spot for dates!"

Taehyun thought, 'Seriously, who told him that?'

Alas, Taehyun and Yeonjun walked all the way up to the top of the mountain. They stopped halfway through and Taehyun sat down on one of the stone benches for tourists to rest on.

He sighed, "You know, it would have been more romantic if you aligned this…"

Taehyun hesitated to even say the word "date," so he changed it, "This outgoing with the time of the sunset or something."

Yeonjun froze, dropping his head into his hands and screaming, "Shit! You're right!"

Taehyun raised his hand to pat Yeonjun on the back, but he hesitated and retracted his hand back, opting to let it rest on his knee instead. 

Taehyun silently stood up and continued walking up the trail. When he heard no one following behind him, he turned around and looked at Yeonjun who had a curious expression. 

He let out a quiet giggle before nodding his head towards the trail, "You coming or not? We're already all the way up here, might as well finish what we started."

Yeonjun gasped and he quickly ran to take the spot besides Taehyun. He pointed at him accusingly, "You laughed!"

Taehyun rolled his eyes and ignored him. 

Apparently Taehyun’s little action inflated Yeonjun’s ego and he was immensely proud of himself. The whole way up Yeonjun was bragging, "And when people ask me what was my greatest conquest, I shall tell them it was making the infamous Kang Taehyun laugh!"

Taehyun chose to remain silent, figuring he would quiet down after getting his "precious achievement," and after maybe another hour he actually did.

Taehyun noticed they were at the top of the mountain and jogged his way to the outlook, leaning against the rail to look at the view.

Yeonjun was by his side not too long after. Taehyun hummed, closing his eyes and letting the salty sea air hit his face and brush over his hair. 

Taehyun opened his eyes and hummed, "I change my mind. At any time of day this sight is truly beautiful."

And Taehyun meant it. The sight of the beautiful blue waters clashing with the soft sands of the beach was a pleasing sight to the eyes.

He observed the sight with a small smile on his face, enjoying the sight to his fullest. Taehyun brought out his phone and snapped some pictures of the view.

He paused halfway through when he realized Yeonjun hadn't spoken at all since they reached the top of the mountain.

He turned to his side and his mouth suddenly felt dry seeing Yeonjun holding his chin in his hand and leaning over the rail to look at Taehyun.

thump

Taehyun felt his body warm and his heart doing weird things. He unconsciously gulped and clenched the fabric of his t-shirt over his heart. 

He looked away and stared at something else, heart beating faster than normal and cheeks flushing, "Shall we head back?"

Taehyun felt weird. He had felt nothing like this before. It was unnatural, and Taehyun was used to a set lifestyle that never changed. So what did he decide to do?

He crushed those feelings to dust.

Athens, Greece 2:57 a.m.

March 11, XX01

Taehyun holed himself up in his hotel room for the rest of the week until the day the airport reopened. 

For the past week, he has been repeating his same schedule, trying to get back to the repetitive lifestyle he was used to.

Taehyun hid himself under the covers and curled up everyday, tensing whenever he heard the doorbell ring. And whenever he got up to open the door, cracking the door just barely open to look outside, there would always be a plate of food waiting for him.

When it first happened, he questioned one of the staff outside and she answered him, "Oh, a man with pink hair told me to leave it outside your door for you."

His heart clenched painfully at her words, and he hesitated to take the food, but he ended up doing it anyway.

Yesterday he had finished packing his suitcase. He packed no souvenirs since he had no one to give them to anyway. Taehyun only had the pictures on his phone, but he deleted them out of there when he saw pink dyed hair on the edge of the picture. 

He didn't need any distractions in his life. Taehyun’s only purpose in being alive was to kill. That was what his master repeated to him everyday. To the point where it became engraved into his brain that it was true.

Taehyun was a machine whose only purpose was to kill.

He pulled his suitcase along with him to the elevator and took it to the lobby where he had a cab called. Taehyun put the suitcase in the trunk and took a nap in the car while it was driving to the airport, but he always was never truly able to sleep. It was just in his nature to be wary and untrusting.

Taehyun paid the driver the exact change before going through the security at the airport. The flight was scheduled for 3:45 a.m. that morning. The airport was quite packed today. Though it was to be expected since everyone was probably trying to catch a flight home.

He dragged his body to an empty seat in a corner and leaned his head uncomfortably to the right, dozing off quietly. 

“Flight 582 is now boarding passengers.”

Taehyun jolted awake and rubbed his eyes with sleepiness. He yawned and froze when he heard a chuckle beside him. He slowly turned to his side and his heart started beating faster at who it might be. 

Honestly, Taehyun shouldn’t have been surprised when he saw Yeonjun looking at him. It was the look in his eyes that shook Taehyun. What was it? What was Yeonjun thinking about when he was looking at him?

Taehyun asked quietly, "What are you doing here…?" His voice unconsciously drawled into a tired murmur near the end.

Yeonjun smiled at him and patted his head softly, hand lingering to card his fingers through his hair briefly, "I have to go back to Korea too, you know? And I couldn't help myself seeing you so vulnerable."

Taehyun tensed as he felt that feeling come back along with the strange warmth. His heart started acting weird and decided to be so loud he swore Yeonjun could hear the thumping in his chest. 

Taehyun shot up in his seat and grabbed his bag, quickly walking off. Of course, Yeonjun took after him and they patiently waited in line together, neither of them saying anything. 

‘Good, it’s best this way. No connections.’

When the time came, Taehyun boarded the airplane and found his seat. He froze when Yeonjun hummed and sat down next to him. Taehyun glared at him, “You’re doing this on purpose.”

Yeonjun kicked the chair back and shrugged, stretching his arms behind him and using them as a rest for his head. He had a coy smile on his face and snickered, “Is that so? Well I can assure you that this is really my seat, pretty boy.”

Taehyun gave him a blank stare and dug through his bag to find his earbuds. He swiftly put them in and pulled the barricade in between them. He ignored Yeonjun’s protests and shifted slightly in his seat to rest his head on the window uncomfortably. 

He sighed quietly, feeling at ease with calming music softly playing in his ears. This was going to be a long flight. 

Seoul, Korea 2:23 p.m.

July 28, XX01

Taehyun hissed at Yeonjun, “I’m supposed to be undercover. You and your loud ass are not helping me at all. Why the hell are you even following me?!”

Yeonjun smirked, “Don’t want you dying on me. Anyways shush, I think I hear someone coming.”

Taehyun cursed and rapidly looked around for somewhere to hide.

It would have been a whole lot easier if Taehyun was by himself, but no, Yeonjun just had to show up at his doorstep when he was about to leave for his mission. Taehyun tried to run away from him and lose his trail, but Yeonjun was always one step behind him, making Taehyun extremely frustrated.

Now they were in their current situation. Taehyun was sent to the base of a rival mafia of his client, and he was meant to sneak in, find an opportunity, and assassinate their boss. 

Yeonjun let himself get dragged along by Taehyun who was frantically looking around for somewhere to hide. He had a lazy and sleezy smile on his face, “We wouldn’t be in this situation if you worked only for me, you know?”

Taehyun glared at him and shoved him into the wooden storage crate, jumping inside along with him and closing them in by pulling the cover back over the box, “Now is not the time Yeonjun.”

Maybe Taehyun should have continued looking for a bigger box, because this box was much too small for two grown men.

Taehyun’s breath hitched when he felt a hand snake towards his waist. It was dark inside, but he could still see the outline of Yeonjun’s figure.

Taehyun’s face turned red and he couldn't be more thankful for the sudden darkness now. There were now two hands on his waist and Taehyun was forced to lean on Yeonjun’s chest in between his legs due to the limited space they had. 

Taehyun whispered urgently, "...What are you doing?"

He could practically feel the older smirking up at him. Taehyun jumped at the light squeeze at his waist and he glared at the other male. 

Yeonjun chuckled lowly, "Easy there. You don't want anyone finding us now, do you?"

Taehyun grumbled under his breath, "When we get out of here you're so dead."

Yeonjun laughed and Taehyun elbowed his knee, "Shut up."

Taehyun stiffened when he heard footsteps outside, and his heart jumped out of his chest when Yeonjun suddenly grabbed the back of his head and forced his head into his chest. 

Taehyun hesitantly wrapped his arms around Yeonjun's back to ease his discomfort in the cramped space. Taehyun’s body didn't relax and only tensed up more when he felt Yeonjun move one of his hands on his waist up to rub small circles into Taehyun’s back.

Taehyun let out a sigh of relief when he finally heard the footsteps go away. Taehyun turned around and Yeonjun’s hands dropped back to his waist, making Taehyun’s heart flutter.

He looked back at Yeonjun and said, "You don't have to touch me 24/7 you know."

Yeonjun shrugged and kept his hands where they were. Taehyun rolled his eyes and cracked the box open, peering out.

The coast was clear. He very carefully made his way out of the box and motioned for Yeonjun to do the same. 

Only Yeonjun was much more careless and tripped when he tried to get out, resulting in a metal pan tipping over the edge of one of the neighboring crates and hit the floor from the shaking.

Taehyun winced at the loud bang that echoed throughout the whole building. Yeonjun and Taehyun looked at each other with wide eyes. 

He narrowed his eyes at Yeonjun and grabbed his gun from his boot. He snarled at Yeonjun, "I'm never taking you with me again."

"He's over there! Get em'!"

Taehyun cocked back his revolver and tossed Yeonjun the pistol on his belt. Yeonjun grinned and asked, "Ready?"

Taehyun let out a low hum and steady breath, "Ready."

The two didn't have to communicate as they wordlessly agreed on what they were going to do. At the same time, the two jumped out from their hiding spot and set the hallway afire with bullet spray. 

All of their shots were extremely accurate and they easily got rid of the first wave of mobs. Taehyun looked at Yeonjun, "Well, looks like we're going to have to go with Plan B."

Yeonjun grinned, already knowing what that was but asked anyway, "And that is?"

Taehyun smirked and reloaded his gun, "There is no Plan B. We're going headfirst into the battlefront. Knowing this, will you still come with me?"

Yeonjun huffed, offended, "Of course! You don't even have to ask!"

Seoul, Korea 10:58 p.m.

August 2, XX01

Taehyun jolted awake when he heard his front door open. He threw his covers off and reached towards his bedside table, immediately grabbing his gun. 

Taehyun silently cocked back his pistol and carefully made his way out of his room. However, the scene in his living room was anything but what he expected. 

He threw the pistol to the side and rushed over to Yeonjun's side. He glared at him and went to find a medkit, yelling angrily at him, "What's wrong with you?! Be more careful!"

Yeonjun was leaning back against his couch on the floor and his hand was pressing against his bloody abdomen. 

Yeonjun wheezed back, "I knew you cared for me."

Taehyun snapped his head towards him and hissed, "Please, this is not the time to be acting arrogant!"

Taehyun finally got his supplies together and quickly made his way back. It was a stab wound, but thankfully it wasn't too deep. Yeonjun wouldn't die.

Taehyun scolded Yeonjun as he began patching him up, "Why did you come here? I'm sure you have professional doctors that could help you in Eternity."

Yeonjun stayed silent and closed his eyes, slouching further against the couch. After Taehyun finished tying the bandage around his abdomen, Yeonjun finally spoke, "...I missed you."

Taehyun paused and sighed, "Get out of my apartment."

Yeonjun pouted, "You should increase your security! It was too easy to break in here!"

Taehyun rolled his eyes and flicked Yeonjun on the forehead, making him whine, "Well unlike you, the people who try to rob me would probably be normal robbers and would have never passed the traps I set up."

Yeonjun fell silent at that. Taehyun extended his hand out towards Yeonjun, and Yeonjun reached for his hand only for Taehyun to slap it away.

Taehyun blankly looked at Yeonjun, "Give me your phone. I'll call one of your men to come pick you up."

Yeonjun shook his head and crossed his arms, refusing to budge, "Nuh uh! I'm an injured man! You can't turn an injured man away! Especially if it's me!"

Taehyun blinked and sighed, grabbing a blanket at throwing it at me. He said, "Fine. Enjoy your night, I'm going back to bed."

He ignored Yeonjun’s protests as Taehyun walked back to his room, slamming the door shut and locking it. No funny business from Yeonjun today. Taehyun sighed loudly. He had a sneaky suspicion that Yeonjun would try to sneak into his bed if he left the door open. 

Seoul, Korea 7:00 a.m. 

August 3, XX01

Taehyun’s body systematically woke up at 7:00 a.m. sharp every morning. He slowly opened his eyes and threw off his covers. His bathroom was connected to his bedroom, so Taehyun stepped inside to ready himself for the day.

He opened the door and his nose smelled something coming from the kitchen. He sighed, remembering that Yeonjun was here last night. Taehyun poked his head into the kitchen where the sweet smell was coming from. 

Yeonjun was sitting at his dining table eating a donut. He looked up when Taehyun made his presence known and gestured towards the coffee sitting on the table for him. Taehyun hesitantly sat down and picked up a donut from the box, “When did you buy this?”

Yeonjun hummed and took a sip out of his coffee, “A few minutes ago, wanted you to make sure you ate something in the morning.”

Taehyun nodded, ignoring how his chest warmed at the older’s actions. It was a strange and foreign feeling to Taehyun, having someone in his house and taking care of him that is. Taehyun hasn’t felt that since… honestly never. 

Taehyun’s focus growing up was just surviving to see the next day and to avoid any punishments. 

So it was completely reasonable that Taehyun was feeling confused. Taehyun shook his head to get rid of the thoughts, but he knew they would come back one day.

Taehyun picked up the cup of coffee Yeonjun had bought for him and took a sip out of it, nose scrunching and frowning at the taste. He immediately put it away. 

Too bitter.

Taehyun picked up a donut and bit into it, finding the taste to be much more pleasant. Yeonjun had noticed every single expression Taehyun made and was quick to question him, “What’s wrong? Don’t like coffee?”

Taehyun stared at him, “Would I even pick up the cup if I didn’t like coffee? It just tastes bitter to me, and I don’t like it. This is why I prefer caramel macchiatos.” 

Yeonjun blinked before cackling, “You’re still a baby!”

Taehyun glared at him and shoved his cup of coffee towards him, “Shut up! Plenty of people around the world don’t have a liking towards bitter tastes!”

Yeonjun smirked and brought Taehyun’s cup of coffee to his lips, sipping it directly where Taehyun had. Taehyun’s cheeks heated up and he glared at Yeonjun, slamming his fist down on the table.

He gritted his teeth, “That’s it. Get out now.”

Yeonjun raised his arms in defense, pointing at his abdomen, “Injured man, remember?”

Taehyun’s fists clenched, “You’re insufferable.”

Taehyun got up and picked up his coat from the coat hanger. He grabbed his keys and left his apartment, looking back at Yeonjun with a blank stare, “Then you can guard my apartment, watchdog.”

After making sure his door was locked, Taehyun left for his mission, muttering under his breath about how he needed to stop accepting missions that made him wake up anytime before 9:00 a.m. 

Seoul, Korea 11:02 p.m. 

July 16, XX05

Taehyun sighed, sinking even deeper into the water. His ears perked up when he heard the door to the bathroom open, and his body automatically shifted to the edge to make room for another occupant. 

The corners of Taehyun’s lips upturned and as he felt the water ripple and cold hands grab his. Taehyun hissed at the cold feeling and opened his eyes to glare at the man in front of him. 

Yeonjun chuckled and opened his arms, “Come here.”

He didn’t have to be told twice. 

Taehyun shuffled over to Yeonjun to relax in his arms, back to his chest. Taehyun sighed and sank deeper into the water. His nose scrunched at the strong, familiar smell coming from Yeonjun. 

Taehyun turned around and looked at him sternly in the eyes, and he could see the nervousness in Yeonjun’s eyes.

Taehyun narrowed his eyes, “Choi Yeonjun. If there is blood on my carpet again I will personally wreak havoc in Eternity’s main base.”

Yeonjun chuckled nervously, “Relax, babe. I already sent it to the dry cleaner.”

Taehyun’s heart skipped at the name and he puffed his cheeks out in annoyance, “Oh yeah, that’s totally a good idea.”

Yeonjun shrugged and quickly pecked Taehyun on the lips, hands rubbing his sides gently, “Don’t worry, Hyun. I got this.”

Taehyun rolled his eyes and yawned, eyes fluttering and struggling to stay open. Yeonjun’s hands stopped and Taehyun hissed. The hands continued moving a few seconds later and Taehyun hummed happily into Yeonjun’s chest.

Yeonjun whispered with a small smile on his face, “Tired?”

Taehyun nodded, yawning once more. Yeonjun chuckled, “Wait just a moment more, Hyun. Let me wash off real quick and then we can get you to bed, okay?”

Taehyun nodded and Yeonjun took the fastest shower in his whole lifetime. Even then, Taehyun had already started dozing off, head bobbing up and down and eyes struggling to stay open. 

Taehyun’s eyes finally gave in and he closed them, head leaning against the edge of the bathtub, lightly snoring. He was barely conscious, regaining consciousness and recognition when he felt a strong pair of arms pick him up and wrap him in a towel. 

Taehyun hummed and snuggled into Yeonjun’s neck, liking the smell of his shampoo and the soap and warmth his body gave.

Next thing he knew the two of them were both fully clothed in matching pajama sets that Taehyun had bought for them for Yeonjun’s birthday when he was doing a last minute gift shopping spree throughout all the stores in the city. Yeonjun still loved it and even cried at the sight.

In the safety of their room, Taehyun finally let himself fall asleep quickly, snuggling into Yeonjun’s arms. Nothing had to be said between the two for them to understand each other. Years of trust built slowly but surely over time. 

Venice, Italy 

December 25, XX01

Taehyun finished his ice cream as Yeonjun stepped outside the shop. He had already completed his mission, but he decided to stick around to see the tourist spots. Venice was a really beautiful city and Taehyun needed a nice vacation. 

And he also made sure to keep his mission a secret from Yeonjun, but like all his other missions, the older had always managed to find out. And that’s the story of how Taehyun spent a long, excruciating flight with Yeonjun to Venice. The plane he took didn’t have a partition like the plane at the airport in Athens. 

Taehyun didn’t want to spend Christmas in Korea anyway. It was too cold. It was nice to experience to a warm winter every once in a while. 

Yeonjun grabbed his waffle cone and started eating it, causing Taehyun to glare at him. He grumbled, “I was eating that…”

Yeonjun grinned, “I know but your mad expression is cute.”

Taehyun glared at him but his eyes focused on the small, pretty paper bag in his hand. He tilted his head in wonder. Yeonjun noticed and the corner of his lips lifted into a big grin, “It’s for you.”

Taehyun’s curiosity peaked and he grabbed the bag from Yeonjun, making sure to treat it gently. He opened the bag and stared at the object inside for a long time. Taehyun blinked and looked up at Yeonjun.

Yeonjun stared at him back, lips twitching and he frowned, “...Do you not like it?”

Taehyun silently took the item out of the bag, looking at it in the palms of his hands. He hummed and unlatched the clasp of the necklace, clasping it back together when it was secured around his neck.

Taehyun rubbed the small red gem with a very tiny smile on his face. You would miss it if you weren’t paying close attention to him, and Yeonjun was observing every single feature of Taehyun’s face so he didn’t miss it at all.

Taehyun hummed and quietly said, “No, I like it. It’s very convenient how it doesn’t stand out.”

Yeonjun froze before letting out a dramatic sigh and excitedly spoke, “Right?! I had it specially designed just for you!”

Taehyun looked at Yeonjun, “Well, I guess it paid off in the end.”

Taehyun rolled his eyes but continued on his peaceful stroll throughout the streets of Venice, secretly happy he got a gift. It was simple, Taehyun liked to think Yeonjun specifically chose it because it wouldn’t stand out on his missions. 

Seoul, Korea

January 1, XX04

Taehyun shifted in Yeonjun’s arms, humming in content as the older wrapped the blanket around the two of them. It was a cold night, but Yeonjun had insisted they sat on the balcony to watch the fireworks.

Taehyun rubbed his red nose and pouted, leaning back further against Yeonjun’s chest, "Screw you and your romantic ass."

Yeonjun kissed the top of Taehyun’s hair sending shivers down his spine that weren't from the cold air, "Oh, come on. We both know you could walk back inside any minute now."

Taehyun huffed, pouting because he knew Yeonjun was right. Yeonjun wrapped his arms tighter around Taehyun’s waist and he leaned further into the contact, "Shut up."

Yeonjun cooed at him silently. Their moment was put to a halt when the fireworks lit up the sky. Yeonjun smiled and moved one of his hands from Taehyun's waist to hold his hand, "Happy new year, Taehyun."

Taehyun hummed, fiddling with Yeonjun’s fingers in his own, "Happy new year."

Seoul, Korea 4:22 a.m.

February 5, XX02

"Surprise!"

Taehyun blinked at the banner, cake, and confetti decorating his apartment as he stepped inside. He had a really late mission and had just returned late into the night. 

He closed the door and brought out his phone to book a nearby hotel or motel room. He didn't get that far before the door slammed open and he was forcibly yanked inside. 

Taehyun came face to face with a pouty Yeonjun. Taehyun huffed and shoved him aside, taking off his shoes and walking into his apartment. It was warm compared to the outside. 

Taehyun looked around and saw how Yeonjun must have been planning this for a while. Taehyun felt maybe just a tiny bit of guilt for making the older stay up waiting for him, “...Sorry I made you stay up so late just to wait for me.”

Yeonjun gasped, “Taehyun’s finally showing emotion?!”

Taehyun glared at him and Yeonjun raised his hand in defense, running over to the table and picking up the cake and running back to Taehyun. He placed it in Taehyun’s hands and started singing happy birthday to him.

Taehyun felt awkward. How was he going to tell him that he never celebrated his birthday before? 

Yeonjun looked at him and an awkward silence fell. He motioned towards the cake and said, “You’re supposed to blow out the candle.”

Taehyun snapped back to reality, “O-Oh, sure.”

He quickly blew out the candle and Yeonjun placed the cake back on the table, quickly grabbing a neatly wrapped up present from the table.

While he was grabbing his present Taehyun asked, “How did you even figure out today was my birthday?”

Yeonjun hummed, “I have my ways.”

Taehyun rolled his eyes, “It was probably through an illegal method knowing you.”

Yeonjun shrugged and threw a box at Taehyun who caught it, “Hey, when you got the resources it would be a waste to not use them.” 

Taehyun ignored him and ripped the wrapping paper apart, freezing at the item inside. He pulled the wooden frame out of the box with shaky hands. Nothing could have prepared him for this.

It was the scene at the top of the mountain in Athens. The ones he deleted off his phone, although it was taken from Yeonjun’s perspective.

Taehyun walked over to the random tacky standing table against the walls of his living room, placing it there. It looked really out of place but it would be fine. Taehyun would rearrange his apartment one day or another. 

Taehyun fished something out of his pocket and walked over to Yeonjun, hand reaching out to give something to Yeonjun but hesitating. He was planning on giving it to him the next time he saw him but had been backing out at every chance he had.

But seeing Yeonjun’s gift reminded him that he had nothing to be afraid of. Yeonjun wouldn’t judge him or hate him just because of one little gift. He wasn’t like that. 

He took a deep breath and forced the item in his hand into Yeonjun’s, immediately kicking him out with a red face after. He honestly did not want to see his reaction when he saw it.

Taehyun slammed the door shut and yelled at him, “Don’t come back today!”

Taehyun’s face turned even redder when he heard Yeonjun’s cheering from outside the door. He groaned, thinking, ‘Why did I even give him that? Now I’m going to be seeing him even more often now.’

But then again, that was the whole purpose of his gift. Unknowingly, Taehyun scratched his neck with blushing cheeks and a shy smile. That feeling had returned, but… it wasn’t a bad one was it?

Seoul, Korea 3:34 a.m. 

February 14, XX02

Taehyun hadn’t seen Yeonjun in a while, so he blinked upon opening his bedroom door and seeing a shirtless male sleeping on the right side of the bed. He pulled out the bloody knife from his pocket and walked over to the right side of the bed. 

Yeonjun appeared to be sleeping, but Taehyun had a sneaky suspicion he wasn’t really. In the span of just a few seconds, Taehyun leaped on the bed and straddled Yeonjun’s lap, thrusting the knife towards the center of Yeonjun’s chest.

As expected, strong hands grabbed at his wrists preventing him from making even a cut. The two struggled with each other, and Taehyun eventually gave up, throwing the knife somewhere on the floor and rolling over on the unoccupied side of the bed. 

Taehyun sighed, face planted into the mattress, “Was not expecting you to use my gift so soon. Where have you been?”

Yeonjun shrugged, “Mafia things and what do you expect me to do when you give me a spare key to your apartment, not use it? Besides, your bed is so much warmer and better than the one at the mansion.”

Taehyun rolled his eyes and threw the covers over him, turning on his side that wasn’t facing towards Yeonjun. Things stayed quiet and Taehyun was really tired. Just as his eyes were about to close and he was about to fall asleep, Yeonjun spoke up.

His voice was serious and Taehyun tensed at the sound, “Taehyun, be careful. There’s someone I hurt a long time ago and he wants revenge. I… I don’t want him to hurt you.”

Taehyun’s heart started beating rapidly and he whispered, “...why do you care so much?”

Yeonjun’s voice was soft, “Taehyun, look at me.”

Taehyun reluctantly turned towards him, regretting his decision when he saw the eyes that were looking at him. Again, the same question repeated in his mind? What did Yeonjun feel when he was looking at him? 

Yeonjun grabbed his hand and held it in between them, like a bridge between the two souls. Yeonjun sighed and smiled at him, carding his hands through Taehyun’s hair, “I care so much, because I’m in love with you Kang Taehyun.”

Taehyun’s breath hitched and a swarm of negative feelings flooded through him. He shot up and backed away from Yeonjun, wincing as he fell off the bed and his head hit the edge of the table.

Taehyun’s voice was shaky as he said, “N-No, you can’t be in love with me. I can’t be loved. You can’t love me.”

Yeonjun quickly made his way to Taehyun’s side and he held Taehyun’s shaking body by shaking him gently by his shoulders, “Taehyun-”

Taehyun was crying at this point and his body was trembling furiously, “No, you don’t understand. You can’t love me. I’m not capable of feeling or being loved. I… I can only kill. That’s my whole purpose. They raised me that way. I lived every day betraying the other subjects just to survive another day without punishment in that facility.”

Yeonjun frowned, “What are you talking about? Talk to me, Tyun.”

Taehyun’s vision was getting blurry now and he shook his head. Suddenly, warm arms surrounded him and soft lips pressed against his own. He struggled against Yeonjun’s grip on him, but the older male was much stronger than him.

Yeonjun softly patted Taehyun’s hair and it felt oddly comforting, “Taehyun, I know what you’re afraid of, and you don’t have to be scared. I’m never going to leave you alone.”

Taehyun froze and stopped crying for a moment because hold on, was that what Taehyun was scared of? Did he really fear Yeonjun leaving him?

And as he thought about it he remembered that feeling he felt and he came to a sudden realization that made his face turn bright red. 

‘Holy crap I think I’m in love with Yeonjun.’

Taehyun didn’t dwell on the matter too long, just burrowing himself deeper into Yeonjun’s embrace. It was okay. He didn’t have to say anything today. The only thing that mattered right now was that Yeonjun was still here and… they had a mutual love for each other.

...Not that Yeonjun would figure that out anytime soon as long as Taehyun didn’t tell him anything. 

Seoul, Korea 5:15 p.m.

February 26, XX02

It was scary how quickly Yeonjun became a part of Taehyun’s life. Without Taehyun knowing, Yeonjun had thrown himself into his life and had permanently implanted himself there.

Taehyun didn't like it. He didn't like change. And Yeonjun was the embodiment of change. He struck hard and fast and refused to leave, to leave him alone, like Taehyun was used to, being alone.

And… he also brought along many unwanted problems with him.

Taehyun ducked down and dodged a bullet that went over his head. Taehyun hissed and glared at Yeonjun, “Who the fuck did you anger?!”

Yeonjun yelled back, “Now is not the time but long story short he did something then I chopped off four of his fingers and now he wants revenge!”

They were running along a pier, trying to escape the men that were chasing after him. Taehyun winced as Yeonjun yanked him towards him, dodging another bullet. 

They ran and ran, trying to find a way out. Taehyun panicked as they reached a dead end. At that moment, Taehyun’s mind registered two options. They were standing at the edge of the pier, the river flowing next to them. 

They could both get captured or one of them could make it out alive, and Taehyun quickly made his decision. Taehyun held Yeonjun tightly by his hand, “Can you swim?”

Yeonjun looked at him with a bewildered look, “Uh, yeah?”

Taehyun smiled and pulled Yeonjun down by the collar and kissed him. He whispered into his ear, “...I like you too.” 

With that, Taehyun pushed Yeonjun into the water. Just on time, he turned around and saw the armed men run towards him. He cupped his hands around his mouth, “Over here!” He ran off and tried to lose them, but he didn’t know this area very well and he was already bad with directions in the first place. 

Taehyun grunted in pain as he was shoved to the ground and hands tied down, rendering him immobilized.

He registered the men speaking to each othet, “Boss said to keep him alive. Knock him out and bring him back to the base.”

That was the last thing Taehyun heard before blacking out. 

?, ? [ ?]

[???]

Taehyun’s head was pounding and he opened his eyes to be met with more darkness. His hands were tied down. He rolled his eyes and scoffed. 

Unfortunately for him, there seemed to be someone else in the room because in the next moment the blindfold was torn off of his eyes. Taehyun winced at the bright light in his eyes. He gulped at the man in front of him.

The man had crooked, yellow teeth with many of them missing. Taehyun’s eyes trailed to his arms and he gulped seeing a bandage wrapping around four of his missing fingers. Yup, this was definitely the guy Yeonjun was talking about. 

The man was holding a revolver in his hand and swinging it around his finger. He hoped it would accidentally fire off and kill the man and not Taehyun, so he could get out of here alive. 

The man looked insane and his thoughts were proven true when the man stood up and showed Taehyun the chamber of the revolver. It was empty. 

Taehyun wanted to let out a breath of relief, but he couldn’t let his guard down in front of this man. Sure enough, the man pulled out one bullet shell from his pocket and put it into the chamber, cocking it back into the gun and spinning the chamber barrel.

He looked at Taehyun with a sick smile on his face, “Have you heard of russian roulette?”

Taehyun gulped, “Yes, I have.”

The man smiled and brought the gun to his head, pressing down on the trigger with no hesitation. Taehyun waited for anything to happen, placing his bets on the bullet burying itself into the man’s skull. Unfortunately, nothing happened and the man clicked his tongue, spinning the chamber once again. 

The man pointed his gun at Taehyun and said, “Your boyfriend really screwed me over. He tore everything I built from the ground up down and took four of my fingers with him.”

Taehyun’s hands started sweating and he coughed lightly, correcting him, “We’re uh, actually not boyfriends as of now.”

The man raised an eyebrow before glaring at him, “It doesn’t matter. I’m sure he’ll feel the pain and anguish I felt when he finds your corpse.”

Taehyun flinched as the man pulled the trigger, relaxing just a little bit as the gun didn’t go off. The man frowned before laughing giddily, bending over in laughter. Taehyun watched him as he laughed for a few minutes, fear returning and sending shivers down his spine. 

The man recovered, wheezing for breath. He spun the chamber again and pointed the gun towards his head, “If I were to die here, my men would come and finish you off.” The man pulled the trigger and once again nothing happened. 

The man frowned, “This is no fun. Nothing’s happening.” Taehyun’s eyes widened in horror as the man opened the chamber and put the bullet in the chamber, but he didn’t spin the barrel. Taehyun’s breath hitched as he closed his eyes shut. 

This was it. He was going to die here. 

The man sneered at him, “Any last words?”

A single tear fell down Taehyun’s cheek and his body surged with confidence. If he was going to die here, he was going to die without any regrets.

He closed his eyes and shouted at the top of voice, “Choi Yeonjun! Before I met you I was never afraid to die, but ever since you came into my life you’ve completely changed my way of life! I’m scared! I’m scared to die! I want to see your smile again, I want to listen to your laugh again, I want to smell your lemon zest shampoo, and I want to feel the warmth of your arms and your soft lips on mine!” 

Taehyun’s braced himself when he heard a gun go off… but he was still alive? Taehyun opened his eyes and they widened upon seeing the man drop to the floor. The door was now open and a pissed off, and very wet, Yeonjun was standing there. 

He stomped over to Taehyun and cut the binds apart with a knife. He yanked Taehyun to his feet and exclaimed, “That was the worst fucking confession ever!” 

Taehyun’s eyes were wide and he stuttered out, “H-How did you even find me?”

Yeonjun rolled his eyes and pulled the collar of Taehyun’s shirt down a little bit, pointing at the necklace, “There’s a tracking device in that.”

Taehyun blinked and glared at Yeonjun, “You put a fucking tracker on me?!” No wonder he always knew where Taehyun was. 

Yeonjun hissed, “Are you seriously mad at me right now? We still have to escape, you know? My men are causing a distraction outside, but they’re still looking for the two of us.”

Taehyun nodded and rolled his eyes as the two escaped the room and started running towards the exit, “Geez, my prim and proper knight in shining armor.”

Yeonjun groaned, “You got a whole lot more untolerable after confessing your ever undying love towards me.”

Taehyun blushed and Yeonjun smirked at him. Yeonjun’s smirk quickly dropped off his face when they were met face to face with armed men.

Yeonjun’s eyes rapidly looked around and yelled at Taehyun, “Head to the roof! That’s the extraction point!” 

Taehyun nodded and both of them ducked their heads as the men fired at them. The pair burst through the door of the stairs and ran up the stairs. They didn’t let up until they were all the way up the stairs and on the roof.

Yeonjun pulled Taehyun to the edge of the roof and grabbed him by his shoulders, looking at him with seriousness, “Do you trust me?”

Taehyun rolled his eyes but had a smile on his face, “Isn’t that obvious?”

Yeonjun grinned and leaned down to kiss Taehyun, taking him by surprise. He didn’t have much time to linger on the feeling of Yeonjun’s lips on his when Yeonjun grabbed his waist with one of his hands tightly.

Taehyun gave him a questioning look while tilting his head. Yeonjun put on a thick glove on his left hand quickly. The door slammed open and Taehyun screamed as Yeonjun jumped off the roof, grip on his waist increasing in strength as he held Taehyun tightly. He wrapped his arms around Yeonjun’s neck, not wanting to fall off and to his death. 

With his other hand, the one with the glove on it, Yeonjun gripped a rope that was hanging off the side of the building and grabbed onto it, stopping their fall. He slid down the rope with the glove on his hand to prevent rope burn. 

The two made it to the floor and the both of them started laughing as Yeonjun dragged him to one of the cars parked outside waiting for him. 

Yeonjun’s hand was still holding onto Taehyun’s waist as they reached the safety of his car. Yeonjun gasped and he shoved Taehyun off of him, taking the younger by surprise. 

Yeonjun glared at Taehyun and glared at him, “Hey! I’m still mad at you! What you did back there was incredibly stupid! If I hadn’t come you would have died.”

Taehyun rolled his eyes and smiled. He leaned over the car seat and gave Yeonjun a quick kiss on the cheek, “There, happy now?”

Yeonjun pouted, “I can’t stay mad at you. Start the car, Matthew. Take us back to the mansion.”

Yeonjun turned back to Taehyun who was slowly creeping his way towards Yeonjun. He narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms, “What are you doing?”

Taehyun shuffled over to Yeonjun’s seat and wrapped his arms around Yeonjun’s, cuddling into his side. Yeonjun stiffened but a few seconds later he sighed and gave in, rubbing his fingers through Taehyun’s hair.

Taehyun preened, knowing how whipped Yeonjun was for him and began plotting how he was going to exploit that for personal benefits in the future. 

Seoul, Korea 8:02 a.m. 

June 5, XX03

Yeonjun cooed at his sleeping lover in his arms. Taehyun was sleeping peacefully and he looked adorable when he wasn’t denying him affection or roasting the shit out of him.

One of Yeonjun’s favorite things to do in the world was rub his hands through Taehyun’s hair, and he knew Taehyun loved it when he did so. 

Today was one of the rare days Taehyun spent the night in Yeonjun’s mansion. The two of them both preferred Taehyun’s apartment because it felt more homey and gave them a lot more privacy that they needed. 

In that moment, it was just the two of them in their own little world.

...But of course it had to be ruined when someone burst through the door, shouting frantically, “Boss!”

The sleeping male in his arms jumped, and Yeonjun’s sensitive anger was provoked as he glared at his lackey who had just woken up Taehyun. The boy needed his sleep after all. He barely slept, and if he did he would only be able to get a few hours in. 

He glared, annoyed at his lackey, “What the fuck do you want? Can’t you see I’m busy here?”

The lackey quickly bowed and left the room, squeaking out, “S-Sorry, boss!”

Taehyun shuffled in Yeonjun’s embrace and Yeonjun tightened his grip around Taehyun’s waist. Taehyun mumbled into his chest, “What’s with the commotion?”

Yeonjun pressed a kiss to the sleeping male’s forehead, “It’s nothing. Go back to sleep, baby.”

Taehyun smacked his chest lightly, “Mn, not a baby.”

Yeonjun shut up after that but silently cooed at the younger male in his arms. 

Sure, they never made it official. However, they understood that the love they shared was a mutual affair, not a give and take relationship. Their relationship didn’t need any labels, and Yeonjun and Taehyun were both perfectly happy with that.