⚠️T/W: MENTIONS OF HOMOPHOBIA AND SENSITIVE TOPICS!⚠️

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Mrs. Hyojoo nervously checked her watch, her heels clacking against the sidewalk as she hurried down the dimly lit street. She had received a cryptic text message from an unknown number, demanding that she visit June-Way, in secret in the middle of the day— What could this be about?

"Visit your bar. Sharp at 12 p.m."

As she approached the door to the closed bar, Hyojoo hesitated. The text message had been too ominous to ignore. 

"Visit the bar or else your son will be in trouble," it read. Hyojoo could not take any chances, not when it came to his beloved son.

The woman pushed through the door open and stepped inside, her heart pounding in her chest.

The familiar scent of alcohol and smoke filled her nostrils, but the bar was deserted, save for a shadowy figure who emerged from the back room.

"Hi, Hyojoo! How have you been?"

"I had a hunch that it would be ," Hyojoo said, trying to keep her tone confident. "No one else could have the guts to threaten me," Hyojoo's whispers were barely above muffled cries. 

"Did you miss June-Way, dear?"

"Are you crazy? You did not invite me over to my own bar to talk about my own feelings, did you?" The woman enshrouded with a black cloak over her grey blazer skirt with an exasperation sighed, "It is you…right?"

The figure stepped closer, shrouded in mystery, but the familiarity of their voice caught Hyojoo off guard. 

"You know me," the figure said in a low, husky voice. "You know why you're here."

"But why now, in the middle of the d-" the younger woman was cut off.

"Hyojoo, night attracts more curiosity. And I believe that is not what we are seeking right now."

Hyojoo's eyes widened in recognition as the figure emerged from the shadows, revealing herself,

"How have you been, my dear Hyojoo? I hope you did not forget this old friend of yours, this Mrs. Sejin Yang of yours. Have you?"

Hyojoo had known Sejin for years, but they had fallen out of touch. This was the last person she had expected to see here, but had probably waited for every hour and every minute to be reconciled. 

"Sejin…" Hyojoo asked, her overwhelm evident.

"It's complicated," Sejin replied cryptically. 

"I need your help. My son, Sehun, has gotten involved with some dangerous people, and I don't know what to do. I heard that you have connections, that you can help me."

Hyojoo sighed. It was always something with Sejin. But Hyojoo wasn't one to back down from a challenge, shredding her overripe emotions. 

"Fine, work talks only I guess," she said subtly disappointed, "What do you need?"

Sejin leaned in closer, her voice barely above a whisper. "I need you to find out who my son is involved with," she said. "I can't let him get hurt, but I can't risk being seen investigating this myself. I am not safe…

"Please, Hyojoo. I need you."

Hyojoo weighed her options. This was sketchy, even for Sejin, but at the same time, she knew that Sejin wouldn't come to her beseeching unless things were really desperate. "Okay," she said finally. "I'll help you, but you have to promise me one thing."

"What's that?" Sejin asked.

"That we keep this between us," Hyojoo said firmly. "No one else can know about this."

Sejin nodded, relief washing over her face. "Thank you," she said. "Believe me Hyojoo, it is all for Sehun."

Hyojoo gave her a small smile, "Don't worry," she said. "We'll get through this together. You know that I love Sehun as my own son."

Sejin's eyes suddenly flickered, a sly smirk curling up the corners of her lips. "Oh, Hyojoo," she said, chuckling softly. "This is why I really have been waiting for you."

Hyojoo felt a shiver run down her spine at Sejin's eerie tone.

The midddle of the day was just beginning, and they had a lot of work to do; Hyojoo picked up her mobile phone,  standing from her seat.

"Don't visit this bar often. Does not matter if you have the keys. If we really don't want to attract suspicion. So leave this place as soon as possible and refrain even coming in its vicinity."

"Hmm," Sejin puffed her lips and shrugged.

"Bye, Sejin," Hyojoo forced a smile before leaving the place, "I hope who you are hunting for...is not my son."

-

As soon as Daeseong took a seat, diving within the couch, he spilled the long awaited beans. 

"Last night at Juliah's marriage anniversary, her husband Seung hyung told me something about Minhyuk that I think you need to hear."

Wooshik's eyes widened with suspicion, and he leaned forward, "What is it?"

Daeseong took a deep breath before continuing. "Seung hyung revealed that Juli-Ah was tackled by Minnie's father, a few recent years ago, and they got into a massive and dangerous brawl where Juli-Ah was almost at the verge of getting strangled."

"What?" Wooshik scowled, raising an eyebrow, "Brawl?"

"Minnie's dad believes that any kind of queer does not deserve to co-exist with everyone else."

Wooshik nodded, hitting the wall of his cheek, "And why is that?"

"Apparently according to Mr. Bong-Hyuk Choi, or more precisely Minnie's father, queer individuals are against what is natural," Daeseong's throat turned hoarser, heavier with the weight of his own words, "The entire community is against what is natural. He believes the universe would never accept us for who we are…"

"Then?"

"Exactly for that reason, Juli-Ah being Minnie's friend and classmate was not approved by Mr. Choi."

"What?" Wooshik could not help but chuckle, and mumble under his breath, "Because she falls into the queer category? Ridiculous."

"Juli-Ah being a transgender woman became her biggest crime. Juli-Ah just being herself became her biggest crime. For that reason Mr. Choi withdrew Minnie from his erstwhile school. Besides, during the 20th birthday of Juli-Ah noona, he threatened her to stay away from his son…" Daeseong eyes pricked, as he gathered the breath to advent, "Or else she might have turned out to be a bad influence on Minnie…" at that moment the black barnet head was barely audible, with only his frequent dejected sighs comprehensible.

"Poor Mr. Choi. Turns out the black magic of that "criminal" worked too well on Minnie. Since he really did get influenced, if that is how hormones work," Wooshik remarked, quoting with both his fingers. 

"Later Mrs. Choi spotted his son with Juli-Ah noona again, before midterms, in a group study. And Minnie's mother became untamable. She absolutely abhorred Juli-Ah noona upon sight, thus going as far as trying to strangle her," Daeseong dug the claws into his own skin, trying to make it  through the end— last night had been a nightmare, when Seung had been narrating the incidents. 

"Minhyuk rescued Juli-Ah noona from his parents' beastly attacks. And Juli-Ah had been indebted since forever, trying to be the best bodyguard for Minnie," Daeseong sniffled a little, 

"Basically paying with life for life."

Wooshik's jaw dropped in a satirical disbelief. "I had no idea..." he trailed off, chuckling, looking down at his hands.

"I'm sorry, Captain. I know this is a lot to take in," Daeseong said, placing a comforting hand on Wooshik's shoulder.

"But what does this mean for Sehun? Is he in danger?"

-

Minhyuk escorted Sehun into the grand lobby of his father's marble-lined mansion. Sehun looked around, dazzled by the sheer opulence of the house. The lobby was adorned with gold trimmings and glittering chandeliers that illuminated the entire space. They climbed a winding staircase that led to the living room and Minhyuk's private quarters. 

Once they had settled in Minhyuk's living room, he poured Sehun a glass of champagne. "Welcome to my humble abode," he said, smiling in a chivalrous manner, handing Sehun the flute of bubbly.

"This is incredible," Sehun said, impressed. "Your family must be loaded," it would not be right to say that Sehun was over his dilemma, but eventually he was learning to come to term with the reality— after all, life goes on.

Minhyuk scoffed, disinterested. "Yeah, my dad is a retired businessman. He made a fortune in the steel industry."

"So what do you do?" Sehun asked, taking a sip of the champagne. "Besides assisting Captain?"

"I still assist your Captain. He is an engineer, a civil engineer. You must already know that?" Minhyuk said. 

"I know but what does that have anything to do with you?"

"I am an architect by profession. Your Captain and I have worked on a number of projects together, before turning to the world of evils."

Sehun lifted an eyebrow. "Really? I didn't peg you for an artist. Or architect for that matter."

Minhyuk laughed. "Yeah, I don't fit the stereotype. But it's an unconventional career that I love. Which is why my dad hates it."

Right on cue, Minhyuk's father, Mr. Choi appeared in the room, unannounced,

"Minhyuk, I've been trying to reach you. You haven't answered any of my calls."

Minhyuk asked, looking visibly annoyed— he had hoped his father to be residing with his business partner for the month, since that was how it was supposed to be when he left the villa while Minhyuk would aid to Sehun's needs; but indeed, fate all the time has a different plan.

"I came to speak with you. You've been neglecting your duties at the company," his father said curtly, casting a piercing gaze on Sehun.

"To hell with your bloody company!" Minhyuk spat.

But Mr. Choi did not appear to budge, "Your mother has been taking good care of everything. She is still at the headquarters, rearranging things. You should pay her a visit before the inauguration."

"No friggin way in-"

"And who is this?" Mr. Choi's gaze fell on Sehun.

Minhyuk composed himself before speaking, to let the spark of rage be extinguished, "This is Sehun, a friend of mine. He's staying over for a few days," Minhyuk introduced.

Sehun bowed respectfully, but he was also at the edge. "It's a pleasure to meet you, sir."

"I don't recall inviting any guests to the house," Mr. Choi said, looking at Sehun with suspicion.

"I asked him to stay over. What's the big deal?" Minhyuk retorted, his voice rising in anger.

"I have a surprise for you, my dear son," his father replied, "I found a used condom outside the house."

"And? What does that prove?" Minhyuk exclaimed, his face flushed with anger and embarrassment.

"It's the height of recklessness and irresponsibility. This reflects poorly on the entire family," his father admonished.

"I swear it's not mine. Sehun just got here," Minhyuk said, rapidly losing his cool.

Sehun interjected, trying to defuse the situation. "Sir, I just arrived. I have no idea what you're talking about."

"How do I know that you're telling the truth? You're a complete stranger," his father said, his eyes narrowing at Sehun.

"Dad, you can't blame me for everything that happens. You can choose not to believe me, but I have nothing to hide," Minhyuk said, exasperated.

"I'm disappointed," his father said finally, disappointment writ large on his face. "I thought you were better than this."

As quickly as he appeared, Minhyuk's father left the room, leaving behind a fraught and tense silence. Sehun looked at Minhyuk, who was seething with rage. "Are you okay?"

"Why is he always suspicious of everything I do? He won't even let me have a say in my life," Minhyuk said, bitterly.

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