Chapter Text
A quiet in and out. That’s what the evening mission for White and Pink was supposed to be. They were supposed to get into the Begonia rapture house infringing on their territory, kill the high-ranking criminal, and then get out.
That’s all it was supposed to be.
Except, as they were exiting out of the window they had come through, a child’s whimper came from the doorway.
There stood a horrified young boy, who looked thoroughly disturbed by the sight before him. He gawked at the dead man who laid on the bed, then at Pink, who was crawling out of the window, and finally at White, who was standing by. The child saw the blood on White’s outfit, and he quickly made the connection that White was the one who had murdered the man on the bed.
Fear entered the young boy’s eyes, bright teal essence shining from them in the dark room, and he began to cower. He stumbled back, falling prone as his eyes grew misty. He desperately scrambled backward, terrified.
Pink was already out of the window, so it was up to White to immobilize the child. He took long strides and grabbed the child by the armpits, hoisting him up onto his shoulder. The child kicked and squirmed, making soft whimpers and grunts of clear struggle.
White brought him to the window, staring at Pink dully for directions.
“He’s an aberrant,” began White, “he saw the scene.” The child continued to fruitlessly wiggle and attempt to worm out of White’s iron grip.
Pink viewed the child, standing on the roof. She cocked her head and shrugged. “Let’s bring him to the boss, see what she wants to do with him.” Pink dropped down from the roof, then began to wander in the direction of their current hideout.
White glanced at the child, then maneuvered out of the window and began following Pink.
Red was welcoming to the child, but the boy didn’t settle in well. He was not receptive to any of the lessons they tried to give him, and panicked when given orders. He was quite the mousy child, and barely spoke except to request necessities.
Red knew it took children time to rehabilitate, but it wasn’t efficient. He cowered and avoided everyone in the society, favoring corners and rooms to hide in.
On one of such evenings, Red sought out White in his little apartment. It was the one that he had settled in with, with his fiancé. White was wiping things down when Red entered, who did not spare a single knock.
“White!” Red sang in a singsong tone. “Your fiancé, Iseul, was thinking about children, right?” Red asked, welcoming herself and settling down on a kitchen chair. White gave a silent nod after some thought, continuing to wipe the stove of any spilled grease (which was sparse to begin with.)
“Adoption isn’t an option,” White responded shortly, not bothering to elaborate any further. He folded the rag and hung it on the oven door.
Red slung one leg over the other. “Eunwoo – the child – doesn’t wanna be with the Crimson Society. Do you want to take ‘im in?” Her suggestion mildly roused White’s interest. He would have to talk about it to Iseul, of course, and he and Eunwoo would need to meet, but they could most definitely arrange that.
“Let me discuss it with Iseul. He’s visiting his mother,” White said, standing in front of the stove and staring at his boss. He waited for any words from Red but she only smiled and approached him, squeezing his cheeks. “You’re taking a load off of my back, White.”
With that, Red left the building.
Iseul came back in the evening, happy to see White and the simple dinner prepared for the two. He squeezed and hugged White, jabbering about how much he missed his beloved ghost.
Once they were seated, White began to speak about the topic that Red had requested he bring up to Iseul.
“There’s a child in need of a home in the Society.” White’s words were simple and vague, but after years of deciphering, Iseul was able to quickly understand his meaning. “You want us to take in a child?” Iseul’s words were curious, but there was a sweet undertone of excitement and anticipation, as if he had been waiting for this chance.
“Are you sure? You’re usually hesitant on this topic.” Iseul knew it was a redundant question; White didn’t offer unless he meant it – for one reason or another. White nodded and took a bite of the basic omelette on his plate. A smile filled with many emotions spread over Iseul’s face, and his hands fumbled for his lover's.
“Really? Will it be permanent?”
“Most likely.”
Iseul was beaming, quick to finish his dish and take care of it. He was practically glued to White’s side all evening, asking questions about the child and prying for details on meeting the little one. He was utterly thrilled at finally having a child to take care of.
The next day, Iseul woke to a missing White. He figured he was fetching the child, which he didn’t have an issue with. All he had to do was wait, which could take a while, considering the twists and turns required to get to the Crimson Society.
Speaking of the Crimson Society, Iseul wasn’t too fond of them. They weren’t rapture traffickers, which he was pleased with, but he accepted there was no splitting White from his criminal identity. White still worked with the Corps out of pre-documentation and affiliation with Iseul, so there weren’t many conflicts of interests of good and evil. They mainly avoided those types of conversations to prevent arguments anyways. Iseul didn’t report White, and White provided underbelly protection. It was beneficial in more than a romantic way, and both wished to keep it that way.
In the middle of Iseul’s ponderings, a small child, around 7, shuffled into the apartment with White at his heels. Iseul’s eyes absolutely lit up, enamored with the boy. He was careful, though, and approached him slowly.
“Hey little man. How are ya?” Iseul kneeled on one knee in front of the kid in the kitchen, a welcoming and cheery smile on his face.
Eunwoo fiddled with his hands, shyly avoiding eye contact with Iseul. “I’m good,” he murmured under his breath, “You’re Iseul, right? Red…? Red told me about you. She said…” Eunwoo swallowed thickly. “My parents were dead. She said she looked into them. She said I could get a home with you.” Eunwoo curled into himself, as if scared to be in anyone’s presence. Iseul wondered if that was a result of trauma or if he was just naturally shy.
“Yeah. What’s your name, little man?”
“Eunwoo Jeon…”
“Well, that’s a nice name, eh? I'm Iseul Kim.”
Iseul was trying his very best to not be overwhelming to the skittish boy, trying not to let his joy of the potential future consume him. He stood, holding a hand out to Eunwoo. “D’ya wanna sit on the couch? We can talk a bit.”
Eunwoo carefully debated his option before placing his small hand in Iseul’s calloused one. Iseul led him to the couch and smiled at White brightly. He was clearly thrilled with his lover at providing this opportunity for him.
“Is there anything you like, Eunwoo?” Iseul lounged back on the sofa, smiling down at Eunwoo. The boy warily eyed White – mainly out of habit – before answering Iseul’s question hesitantly. “I like… uhm… I like gonggi, and… legos.” Eunwoo often paused, further exemplifying his anxiousness.
“Really? I grew up playing gonggi with my dad, when he wasn’t busy. He always dropped his stones on purpose to let me win.” Iseul recounted the short story with slight nostalgia, then gave Eunwoo a soft smile. Eunwoo gave a slight smile back, but it was more just a quick quirk of the lips.
“Maybe… we can play?” Eunwoo was hesitant to suggest the game, still wary of his surroundings. Especially the pale man, who still scared him terribly. But maybe, he let his heart think, if this nice man trusts him, he wasn't horrible? Maybe he had to kill that mister for a reason? After all, with the man's death, he had gained back what his parents traded off: his freedom.
Or at least, it seemed that way. He wasn't being restricted like before, with the unfamiliar business man.
Iseul, noticing Eunwoo starting to drift into his thoughts, spoke up again with a sheepish smile.
“Well… I don't have any stones, so maybe I'll get some from a driveway or sumthin’. Or a river. All naturalé! ” Iseul’s grin grew brighter, practically illuminating the entire apartment. He seemed to smile over the littlest things, which warmed White’s (who was still in the corner) chest.
Eunwoo was mildly disappointed that they couldn't play now, but that was for the best. He was probably too uneasy to play properly.
“Okay,” Eunwoo mumbled in agreement, shrinking in on himself and eyes darting around the room once more. White caught his eyes again but his they flitted to his feet when they connected stares.
“...Why is the man in the corner just standing there? He looks so creepy.” Eunwoo shifted into Iseul slightly, feeling far too exposed to White. Iseul just gave a small huff of amusement in reaction.
“That's Min, my fiancé. He's kinda scary, but he won't hurt you, I promise. He only hurts…” Iseul had to think so he could phrase it without lying but still not scaring the child. “He only hurts people who need to be hurt.” He figured the vague statement was assuring but accurate.
Eunwoo looked at White, still cautious about his proximity. He nodded, fiddling with his fingers. He wasn’t quite sure what to do with himself. He looked at the easy-going Iseul, then at his lap.
Iseul quickly filled the silence with a suggestion of T.V. “Is there any specific show you’d like to watch?” He picked up the remote, turning the television on while he waited for Eunwoo to suggest a show.
Eunwoo glanced at White again, taking an unstable breath before refocusing on Iseul and thinking of T.V. His parents never let him watch much. They usually put him in his room and told him to be quiet.
“I dunno. I didn’t get to watch T.V.” Eunwoo’s voice was quiet and slightly unsure. He gave a soft shrug, keeking up at Iseul for a split second.
To Iseul, Eunwoo was so small, and the fact that he kept trying to seem smaller gave him a feeling of something akin to pity and heartbreak. Iseul gave a soft shrug to mimic the child’s tentative action.
“Let’s find something together to watch, yeah? Maybe Min can make some food before he goes to run errands.”
Eunwoo seemed to unease at the thought of Min, but he settled with it. Was Min really so bad? Iseul, who was so friendly, liked him. Additionally, Min wasn’t hurting Iseul, so was he that bad? Eunwoo debated this quietly before giving a serious nod with a furrowed brow.
“Okay. We can do that. But I still feel a little bit scared.”
“That’s okay,” Iseul gave a soft chuff of fondness, “He has a way of growing on your heart.”