c u p p ii e ' s ❥ t e s t i n g

visitors.

+ one	100.0%	[ 53 ]
Total Votes:			[ 53 ]

[c u p p ii e]

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𝕓𝕪𝕦𝕟 𝕞𝕚𝕟 𝕛𝕒𝕖



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If his eyes were made up of fire right now, he was sure that he'd burn a hole right through Haemi with how hard he was starring. He couldn't believe that everything he has worked so, so, hard for had led him to this very moment. And now it was all going to vanish in an instant, because they were forced to work on a comeback together. One in which wasn't even his, he was simply background noise. Min Jae wasn't even going to get to debut and he could feel his heart beginning to deflate.

He jumped out of his stupor when he felt a hand on his shoulder to which he looked over and saw Kyung Sook. "It'll be over in less than a month. Take the scolding and it'll be fine." Min Jae barely nodded at him before Kyung Sook took off with all the other trainees ,because unlike Jae, Kyung Sook knew his place. Min Jae couldn't only hope that he would be able to the small bit of advice when the scolding actually started.

The young trainee held his position and once everyone cleared out, he expected it to be quiet between the three. All of them waiting to see who would speak first, but to his surprise Haemi rushed over and began to apologize. For a short moment, another firm crease formed in his brow, as she even appologized on his behalf and that's when Min Jae finally closed the distance between the three of them. "I don't need you saying sorry for me." He dead panned over at her, but when he looked at the instructor he could see an incredulous look on his face. This was the exact reason why he was in trouble in the first place. "Well someone's got too since it doesn't seem like you're going to do it!" On impact Min Jae's shoulder's nearly went up due to the out burst from their dance teacher to which he bowed his head in defeat to hide his face. "I apologize for my behavior today," he said through nearly gritted teeth. Min Jae knew he was being nothing short of nice but if only their teacher knew the history between the two, they would simply understand?

The whole thing was useless though, because he was told that it wasn't enough and how disposable he was being that he was only a trainee. All things that he knew already and all things he usually kept in mind in any other given circumstances. Min Jae could only nod at all of this and accept everything that was coming his way.

As soon as they were dismissed, Jae grabbed his bag off of the floor and took off, not even bothering too look back at Haemi or the dance instructor for that matter. The only thing he wanted was to be back at the dorm so he could get some rest and forget about the whole thing for a few hours. That was until he had to return the very next day for the very same routine, with the very same people.

A small sigh escaped his lips as the refreshing cold air brushed across his cheeks, allowing his mind to be cleared for a short second. He slowed his pace as soon as he opened the door, willing to enjoy the gentle summer evening that was gifted to them.

Min Jae was in the middle of taking a calming breathe when suddenly it got caught in his throat as he suddenly felt someone's hands on him. Immediately he thought the worst, it was some fan girl or boy, who was waiting outside for anyone and anybody to come out of the office building. No, Jae wasn't an idol yet, but he did at least have a small following on social media. Even then though, to some people it didn't matter as long as they had influence.

His body finally mildly relaxed when he looked up to see Haemi, but the fire settled backing almost immediately due to her words. Now that they were alone, Jae would have no need for a filter and would finally have the chance to give her a piece of his mind after all these years, but it was quickly snatched away. "Is this your boyfriend, Mimi?!" As the lights dance in his eyes, photograph after photograph being snapped away, Min Jae couldn't help but stupidly stand there with an owlish look on his face. They had been trained on this before, how they weren't supposed to talk to anyone they didn't know on company property, especially if it was paparazzi. They were supposed to go directly inside, to which was off limits to the public, and report it right away. If the young trainee would have been in the right headspace, he probably would have done so.

It wasn't until the paparazzi made a comment about how she was supposedly "holding his hand," did he try to rip it away from her, but for such a small girl, her grip was extremely tight. Min Jae wanted to mumble out a small demand to let him go, but once again the words were halted on his tongue. As he was whisked away, all he could do was pull the ball cap on his head further down to cover his face better, even though the paparazzi had already taken a handful with it fully exposed.

For what ever reason, maybe the fact that Min Jae had never had a run in like that in his life, and didn't expect to until he made it as an idol, did he allow Mimi to drag him off to where ever she pleased. When they finally stopped, he snatched his arm away from hers shoved them in the pockets of his hoodie, in case she had the wild idea of trying again.

"Everything that's happened to me so far has been your fault." admitting that what she had said back outside of the office was true, but how much more depth that was beneath it. "After your groups comeback, I don't want to have any other association." Min Jae knew that by saying that, depending on how horrible Haemi wanted to be, she could definitely make that happen, permanently. "Stay out of my way and out of my business." he adjusted his bag on his shoulder before sharply turning on his heel and dismissing himself.

Now he had to figure out how to even get back, he had never been on the wealthier side of Seoul. Honestly, Min Jae was just lucky to be in Seoul at all, and yet he was throwing his chances away like it all didn't matter. A small escape sound of frustration escaped his lips as he pulled his hood over the baseball cap, as if it would help him fully disappear.

With heavy eyes and slumped posture, Jae walked into the office the next morning feeling like an absolute train wreck. By the time he was done dealing with Haemi it was already really late, but that didn't stop the bombardment of questions that he was greeted with back at the dorm. Once he finally made his way to his room he was only left with a few hours to sleep and even then he couldn't help but toss and turn all evening over the predicament he was currently in.

It was literally on two steps, two, before he was put to a halt by one of the receptionists, "Min Jae, good morning." She nervously looked away and down at her fingers, and to that Jae knew that something was wrong. "Your manager is here waiting for you at the top floor." That made sense, where ever Min Jae and his team was, the manager that was assigned to them was always nearby or a phone call away, but the fact that the meeting was on the top floor, nearly had his heart leaping out of his chest. Everyone knew that the top floor was usually reserved for the higher ups, the one's that never dealt with people who had little worth, like himself.

Instead of saying anything at all, he just closed his tired eyes and nodded his head before he followed her to the elevator. Up they went, floor after floor, and as soon as the doors opened he couldn't help but let his eyes wander. "So this is what it looks like," he's always heard stories but this was his first time ever getting the chance to see it for himself; and probably the last quiet honestly.


:: have jae realize what haemi's dorms look like and get angry over what a lavished lifestyle she has and how that was also supposed to be him

[c u p p ii e]

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𝕓𝕪𝕦𝕟 𝕞𝕚𝕟 𝕛𝕒𝕖



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If his eyes could produce fire, he was sure that he'd be able to burn a hole right through Haemi with how hard he was starring. It was only when he felt a hand on his shoulder and looked over to see Kyung Sook, did he fall out of his stupor. "It'll be over in less than a month. Take the scolding and apologize, it'll be fine." Min Jae barely nodded at him before Kyung Sook took off with all the other trainees, because unlike Jae, Kyung Sook knew his place. Now, Min Jae could only hope that he'd be able to take the small bit of advice as the room continued to clear out, until it was just the three of them.

Patiently, he stood his ground, not bothering to speak or move unless spoken to, in hopes of not making things any worse than they already were. Although, it was really hard to control the irritation that warmed the entirety of his body as Haemi began to apologize on his behalf, causing another firm crease to form in his brow. "I don't need you saying sorry for me," Min Jae deadpanned as he finally decided to step forward and close the distance between the three of them, continuing to ignore the incredulous look on their instructors face. This was the exact reason why he was in trouble and yet he just couldn't manage to keep his mouth shut. "Well someone has too, since it doesn't seem like you're going to do it!" On impact, he could feel his shoulders gently raise up to his ears, not anticipating the sudden outburst, which was kind of stupid since their instructor had been yelling at them like that all day.

He could feel his cheeks begin warming, partly from being embarrassed, but mostly from being upset. If only their dance instructor could understand the situation, but Jae knew that could never and would never be the case. Instead, all he could do was face their dance instructor, refusing to lean towards Haemi, in a deep bow and do what was needed to keep his position. "I apologize for my behavior today," Min Jae managed through gritted teeth. Honestly, Min Jae was just lucky to be in this position at all, and yet he was throwing his chances away like it all didn't matter.

As soon as they were dismissed, Jae grabbed his bag off of the floor and took off, not even bothering too look back at Haemi or their dance instructor for that matter. The only thing he could think about was being in the comfort of his own dorm, so he could get some rest and forget about the whole thing for at least a few hours. Until he had to get up bright and early the next morning and return the very next day to the very same routine, with the very same people. A small escape sound of frustration escaped his lips as he pulled his hood over the baseball cap, as if it would help him fully disappear.

That tiny sliver of comfort felt like it was slipping away, as he felt someone tug on his wrist the moment he stepped out of the building. Min Jae could feel his body freeze all over as he came to a full stop, and hesitantly look down at the source. When he saw Haemi's tiny figure, he could feel himself noticeably relax, for the simple fact that it wasn't some crazed fan. Yes, Min Jae was simply a trainee, but to some that didn't matter. Due to his contract dignifying that the company basically owned him, he technically had influence and for some that was enough.

“I know you probably don’t want to hear it, but I really am sorry for today, especially for everything that specifically happened to you, because of it. My best is obviously not good enough and I’ll def-" Those words felt like a slap in the face, and he couldn't believe that this was her way of apologizing for his debut, or the lack there of. Min Jae felt like she was simply brushing it aside, to which he wanted to recoil and finally give her a piece of his mind after all these years, but the opportunity was quickly snatched away at the sudden bursts of of light.

"Is this your boyfriend, Mimi?!" As the lights danced in his eyes, photograph after photograph being snapped away, Min Jae couldn't help but stupidly stand there with an owlish look on his face. They had been trained on this before, how they weren't supposed to talk to anyone they didn't know on company property, especially if it was paparazzi. Instead, they were supposed to go directly inside which was off limits to the public, and report it right away; but this was all so new to him.

It felt like it was all white noise as Mimi tried to defend them from the public eye, causing him to hardly notice as she whisked them away. For what ever reason, maybe the fact that Min Jae had never had a run in like that in his life, and didn't expect to until he made it as an idol, did he allow Mimi to drag him off to where ever she pleased. All he could remember doing beforehand was pull the ball cap on his head, further down to cover his face better even though it was already far too late. By then, the paparazzi had already taken a handful with it fully exposed.

As soon as they stopped, Min Jae was able to process her words, and it finally allowed him the room to recoil as he'd been so desperately trying. "Everything that's happened to me so far has been your fault!" admitting that what she had said back outside of the office was true, and how little it seemed to matter to her even though she had apologized twice now. But he could only question where those apologizes when for the last two years, when Jae had to dust himself off and start all over again. "After your groups comeback, I don't want to have any other association." Min Jae knew that by saying that, depending on how horrible Haemi wanted to be, she could definitely make that happen, permanently, and yet, Min Jae simply couldn't help himself. As he looked at their surroundings, noticing the beautiful buildings and everything that Haemi seemingly had, things that were supposed to be his too as a fellow idol, he let the words burst out of his mouth without thinking."Stay out of my way and out of my business." he said flatly as he sharply turned on his heel and dismissed himself.

With heavy eyes and slumped posture, Jae walked into the office the next morning feeling like an absolute train wreck. By the time he was done dealing with Haemi it was already really late, but that didn't stop the bombardment of questions that he was greeted with back at the dorm. When everyone was satisfied with the minimal information Min Jae gave them he went directly to his room to salvage a good nights rest, with the few hours he was left with. But, even with the with the pure exhaustion he couldn't help but toss and turn all evening over the predicament he was currently in.

It was literally only two steps, two, before he was put to a halt by one of the receptionists, "Min Jae, good morning." She nervously looked away and down at the phone, as if she had just gotten off a worrisome call. "Your manager is here waiting for you on the top floor," and suddenly Min Jae realized that might be the cause because something was definitely wrong. It made full sense, where ever Min Jae and his team was, the manager that was assigned to them was always nearby or a phone call away, but the fact that the meeting was on the top floor, nearly had his heart leaping out of his chest.

Instead of saying anything at all, he just closed his tired eyes momentarily and nodded his head before he followed her to the elevator. Floor after floor, in silence, until the doors slid open with a gentle ding. Jae couldn't help but let his eyes wander in bewilderment as soon as the room came into view. This was the first time ever seeing this area, and quite honestly, probably the last.

"Sir, I have Byun Min Jae here." Min Jae knew what was on the other side of that door, but actually seeing it caused his breathe to get caught in his throat. There in front of him sat: his manager, Haemi's manager, Haemi herself, a lady he's never been introduced to before, and none other than the owner of the company himself.

[c u p p ii e]

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𝕥𝕙𝕖𝕠𝕕𝕠𝕣𝕖 𝕘𝕣𝕖𝕪 𝕡𝕒𝕣𝕜




xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx grey park
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxmob boss




• WHAT EVER I TOUCH, I TAKE


MOVE HOWEVER I LEAD YOU
if you want me, have me, it's my choice.

ONLY FOLLOW ME come into my world


a little closer ⇝ closer ⇝ closer


COMMUNICATING WITH FINGERTIPS


“ THAT'S ALL FAKE. THROW IT ALL AWAY. ”

I BECAME THIS BOSS FOR YOU



I'M THE BOSS, take this as a direct sign.





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His body was in a complete state of bliss, causing him to not even realize that Noelle had made her way back into his room. It's not like he would care much now anyway, since he got what he needed, even without her help.

It wasn't until the ice cold water puddled around his, now freezing cold, body did his eyes flutter back open. To say the least, Grey was completely unprepared for the shock, causing a sharp gasp to burst through his already parted lips. On impact, the saliva that accumulated in his mouth over the span of time that Noelle was away, caught in the back of his throat, which has him coughing profusely. All he could do to stop it was hazily move his head to the side and let it it pass, but instead he began to drool like a newborn child. Grey looked disheveled and rough, and what Noelle was currently screaming at him was exactly what he needed to hear; it was just too bad that he couldn't process any of it.

When she grabbed his face and forced eye contact, he could see her, but it wasn't quite as clear as he would have liked in this situation. To have someone grab him like this was so far out of his comfort zone. He was a young heir to one of the largest mafia's in all of New York, nobody grabbed him like this. Not unless they were his mother, of course, but with his matured age, this hasn't happened in years.

Everything in his head was screaming danger, but all he could do was weakly grab at her arm and attempt to pull away, but it was a useless attempt nonetheless. So he went for the next best thing instead and used his words, "Let go've me, now," he tried to come off stern, cold stare and all, but his words began to slur as they tried to keep up with this clouded brain of his. "M'the boss. If I say I want m'morphine then you'll give it t'me." The whole thing only angered Grey further and with being handled so easily, he could only question, "Where's Kwon? If you won't d'your job, then I'll call s'meone that will." He took in a deep haggard breathe before shaking his head like a petulant child, allowing a pout to form on his lips as he did so.

Her response to the whole thing had him reeling and that fact that Kwon could only agree from outside of the door, had him gawking in disbelief. Either Kwon couldn't face him or Kwon thought he would run out the door as soon as it was open, but either way Grey couldn't believe the standards of the situation. The young heir felt truly betrayed by the person he trusted more than anyone in the world, "If only my father knew that he hired a traitor." If only Grey was in the right state of mind, he would know that both of them had his best interest in mind and maybe some where down the road from now he would more than likely appreciate it all.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ◢ day one

Hours had slipped by, a new morning, one dose short and closing in for a second; Grey was now a complete mess. He couldn't help it as he began to scratch at the skin in between his elbow, in attempt to at least feel something but it was of no use. All he was getting from the sensation was an ugly mess, the skin only growing more raw by the minute. He was now beginning to completely freak out over the loss, and as soon as his skin broke, and began to bleed, a frustrated groan bled past his lips as well.

The young heir looked up, about to scream at Noelle for the millionth time that early morning, but stopped short when he suddenly realized that Noelle had finally fallen asleep. He couldn't help it as his heart began to leap out of his chest, out of excitement, to which he began to plan his escape. His mind working a mile a minute, falling into a black hole of ideas that eerily landed him with the most terrible thoughts he had come across in a while; which was saying a lot since Grey had seen and done some stuff in his early rise to success. "If I just killed her, they would have no choice but to let me out," he thought as he starred at her, imagining what the whole thing would play out in his head.

For a moment he began to hesitate, as he watched Noelle gentle features rise and collapse in her deep state of sleep, but the need for morphine won. Cautiously he got out of bed sluggishly walked the few feet that separated him from his walk in closet. Grey quickly flipped the switch, once inside, before stopping in front of a row of expensive designer shirts. "One bullet in exchange for one syringe," he thought as he licked his lips, in anticipation, at the mere thought of getting his fix.

With trembling fingers he reached behind the shirts and pulled out a black box, similar to that of a brief case. Grey quickly punched in the code a the very top near the handle, and he couldn't help the sickly grin that grew across his face as he heard the freeing click noise as the case cracked open.

As if he was child on Christmas Day he flung the thing open, but the excitement died out and his heart sank to his stomach at the empty site. There were only three people who knew the code to this case: himself, his father, and Kwon. Grey should have known that Kwon would do this for his own safety, but he couldn't help the furthering impact of betrayal that his mind was completely set on over the whole ordeal.

He was just about so slam the case shut, and make his way out to put an end to all of this, when a wallet size photo slipped off the corner of the case. The photo was small but it filled the empty spaces of the case with sentiment, as it was one taken on his sixteenth birthday. It was the day that his father had given him this exact gun, "Theo, guns are very important for our line of work. They take lives, but they can also save your own. Remember the choices you make are permanent so be proud and stand by every single one that you make, whole heartedly." As the memory flashed through his mind, a shaky breathe escaped past his lips. Grey stared at the photo a moment longer before he snapped out of it and closed the case, "Look at me, dad would be so disappointed." Slowly he shuttle case before putting everything away and making his way back to his bed.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ◢ day two

"Please, Noelle, if you just keep feeding me the morphine my shoulder will recover faster." Grey was way past the anger after yesterday's events, and now he had sunk low enough to bargain. He was willing to give her absolutely anything in exchange for that sweet warmth that he was craving so badly. This whole thing said a lot about how he would act in a hostage situation, and from an outside prospective he could only be thankful that Noelle was the only one seeing him like this. "When I recover, you can go. You won't have to work for me or be my nurse, I'll send you home," he nodded his head excitedly at the words, as if it would help convince her easier. In days to come he would have to reflect on the whole thing and reconsider his training for this type of situation. Surely, Grey would never put his own men in danger, this wasn't about them; it was different when his own well being was on the line. "The quicker I recover the quicker you'll be able to go—," he couldn't help stop short as a sudden nauseating wave crashed over his body. Grey grabbed at his already aching stomach as his eyes began to water shortly after at the dry heaves that were erupting from his body.

As quick as was physically possible for him, he got to his feet and ran to his bathroom, only to drop to his knees immediately and relive himself much of nothing. Due to him only wanting one thing, and one thing only, he had been refusing most food. Everything that came up was mostly just water and bile which made the whole thing that much more painful. He could now feel his body trying to fight this foreign feeling, as everything felt far too warm; his cheeks grew pink at the discomfort. He had felt this in waves since he had first began to feel dry but now it was as if he was trapped in a sauna or a heater, or his own personal hell.

After a few hours, when his body decided to give him a break and stop the reaching, he slipped his shirt off over his head and sank down onto the cold tile floor in hopes of the tiniest bit of relief.

This was how Grey spent the following two days.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ◢ day four through seven

Once the worst part was over, he sat patiently in his bed, waiting for his house, or rather room arrest, was over. Grey was still extremely fussy over the entire thing, but at least he refused to ask for the drug any more. Instead he tried to find sleep because more than anything he felt more tired than had in his entire life. Every time he found sleep it was because the exhaustion had worn through too thick, but it was only so long before he would wake up in cold sweats. It felt like an endless cycle, even more so with the heavy circles that were beginning to form around his blood shot eyes.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ◢ day eight through ten

It had now been a week since the whole ordeal, his arm was actually feeling a whole lot less pain on its own, and he was finally starting to feel whole. After enough pouting and giving up on the whole sleep thing, he resorted to actually talking to Noelle since it was only thing left to do.

He found himself asking, "So what do you want out of everything?" When they first got around to talking Grey found himself asking her things as her boss, but they longer the spoke he couldn't help but ask her things out of personal interest. "What happens when I set you back into society? You've got to want more than just being your fathers care taker?" This was the first time the young heir spoke out about her freedom in a serious sense, the rehabilitation time period didn't count in the slightest. Maybe it was the fact that he had no outside contact with other people, but he could feel himself soften and feel lighter, much like how he felt before he had all these responsibilities thrown onto his shoulders at such a young age.

[c u p p ii e]

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𝕥𝕙𝕖𝕠𝕕𝕠𝕣𝕖 𝕘𝕣𝕖𝕪 𝕡𝕒𝕣𝕜




xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx grey park
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxmob boss




• WHAT EVER I TOUCH, I TAKE


MOVE HOWEVER I LEAD YOU
if you want me, have me, it's my choice.

ONLY FOLLOW ME come into my world


a little closer ⇝ closer ⇝ closer


COMMUNICATING WITH FINGERTIPS


“ THAT'S ALL FAKE. THROW IT ALL AWAY. ”

I BECAME THIS BOSS FOR YOU



I'M THE BOSS, take this as a direct sign.





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The longer he listened to Noelle speak, the more he had felt like he had heard all of this before. Familiarity was clawing at his chest, allowing his heart to feel heavy, until he realized what the cause was. Noelle's story was very much the same as his mothers, not that Grey's father was a drug addict, but in the fact that they both had to put their dreams on hold because of the one's they deeply cared about. Grey's mother was smart, well on her way to becoming a physicist, but she threw it all away when she had met her husband. The moment Grey's father became the leader, of what was now the Park empire, he tucked her away in fear of her being used against him in warfare. Instead, she simply worked from home. First and foremost as a mother to Grey and second handedly on formulas for explosives that would be used for much more messier projects that belonged to her beloved husband.

If he was left to his father's devices then he was sure he would have ended up being a stone cold killer, much to his father's liking. The latter was another story to tell, but Grey's mother had taken care of him and loved him, which was probably the only reason why he had turned out to be the fair and kind hearted mobster that stood before Noelle today. Which was the reason why he had spoken before giving it much thought, "Well your father isn't your problem as of right now, he's mine," he said feigning annoyance as an unsettling feeling gathered it's way into his stomach. Grey was feeling slightly nauseous and honestly, he couldn't decide if it was from the lack of morphine or the sudden guilt.

He quickly continued as he felt the bile beginning to climb up his throat, "I'm going to need a proper nurse, and you said so yourself that you're not qualified." Honestly, he felt that she was doing well as his nurse as it was, but they both knew that if the bullet had been more fatal he would have been a dead man walking that night. If this was going to continue to work out between them, he needed her to be ready for anything and everything. Not that he wanted it to work out between them, she was only leverage in the big picture of things... right?

He saw her reservations and before she could voice them he lifted his hand to stop her. "Look Noelle, in my line of work, things like this are going to happen a lot more than I would like," he said as he moved his hand up to his wounded shoulder for emphasize. "Having a nurse that I can rely on at all hours of the day is crucial for my safety." With all this being said, it sounded as if Grey planned to keep her indefinitely, and honestly, he didn't have an answer to that if she questioned it. It had only been two months, and the one thing he did know was that her father was making little to no progress. The amount of times Kwon had been called to explain that Grey's men had almost beaten the junkie within and inch of his life, was far too many to count. It was taking deep rooted threats from Grey himself, "If that b*****d dies, you're the next one to go," to ensure his safety, but Noelle didn't need to know that. It was better if she was kept out of contact with her father for the time being, until Grey could decide what he wanted to do with the two of them.

This time he paused for a moment and let her speak, allowing her to voice her concerns even though it didn't really matter. Grey was a fair man, but that didn't change the fact that he always got what he wanted. So when she was done, he simply shook his head and calmly spoke, "I'll make some calls and let you know tomorrow, when you start," and that was the end of that conversation.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ◢ three weeks from then

As soon they were done, Grey pulled out his laptop and sent out a few emails, only to have her enrolled in the college nearest by, in the matter of a week. Their system was full proof to ensure things went as to plan, as Grey always did in every aspect of his life. Noelle was escorted to and from school by one of his men, and Noelle had a tracker on her phone to make sure she was exactly where she said she was at all times. And even if one day she decided to tempt fate, Grey wasn't too worried about it. Grey knew he would be able to find her... he always found them.

It had been a solid month now since the young heir had fully gotten back into the swings of things again, and only a week since Kwon had given him his gun back. "Kwon, I swear to god if you don't give me my gun back, I'll take one from someone else and make you." The both of them knew that the threat was narrow, even though there was enough force in Grey's voice to have any normal person quaking in fear. The whole thing was more so as if Kwon was an uncle reprimanding his nephew, and Grey was only being fussy because he wasn't getting his way.

He thought about the memory as he fired the gun across the way at one of the hanging targets. The bullet blasted through the shoulder of the caricature as his phone began loudly ringing in his pocket; filling up the empty silence of the shooting range. "Yeah?" Quickly he answered, pressing the phone in between his shoulder and ear as he unloaded the clip and replaced it with a fresh one. Grey pulled back on the sleek metal and heard the satisfying click of it setting in place as he spoke, "This better be important enough for you to be calling me and not Kwon," and it was. Slowly he raised the gun up to the target and fired it off, only to miss completely causing the sound of the bullet ricocheting off the cement walls. "She's what!?" Grey dropped the gun onto the accessible counter in front of him before grabbing back on to his phone, so hard that his knuckles were beginning to turn white from force. "Your team's job was to make sure something like this didn't happen. Find her, now, and get back to me as soon as you have a location." Immediately he ended the call, without another word, and grabbed his things before running out the room to prepare for what was to come.

[c u p p ii e]

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𝕓𝕪𝕦𝕟 𝕞𝕚𝕟 𝕛𝕒𝕖



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All eyes were on him as he assessed the room before him, only to be waved in and asked to sit front and center; just as Haemi was. He sucked in a deep breath as he tried to confidently walk to his seat, but suddenly the large room felt too claustrophobic. He couldn't help it as he began to fidget nervously with the hoop in his ear, the moment he had sat down. A huge part of him knew what this was about, and now faced with the actual danger of being fired, he could feel his heart sinking into the pit of his stomach. Min Jae never ever wanted to have it all end, not before he became and idol, and especially not like this.

When the photos and articles were laid about before them, he looked at each one carefully as they were placed down. This all had just happened only a few hours ago, and the fact that there were so many stories and pieces written about them so soon was baffling. Min Jae was a nobody, and yet here he was in the spotlight, for the very first time, and for all the wrong reasons. If he had been in the privacy of his own dorm, he would have groaned and rubbed at his tired eyes out of frustration, but he bit his tongue as the CEO spoke to the both of them.

He was thankful to have Haemi's manager speak on the behalf of them because he wanted to vigorously shake his head and deny the whole thing, but he was obviously in no position to do so. Instead he was very quiet the whole time, even though he was burning with irritation.

Even more so when this third party, who he had never even seen before, began to speak. "Wait, no. You want us to pretend to be a couple?" he blurted out when his brain finally caught up to what Ms. Song was asking of them. As soon as the words left his mouth, he immediately felt a heavy hand placed onto his shoulder. His head whipped over to the iron like grip, only to see his manager hovering over him, preparing to save him from his outburst. "I'll fit in extra time for him to study the information. He'll have it perfectly down by tomorrow," his manager said as he graced them with an assuring smile. But as soon as they all returned their attention to Ms. Song, he looked down at Jae with a disapproving look of, "know your place," before letting go and stepping back a few feet.

The whole ordeal was making his head spin, and the fact that he had to sacrifice something more for Haemi was the worse part of it all. His schedule was jam packed with lessons: dance, vocal, language. The list went on and on, and there weren't enough hours in the day as it was. This was just another and he already knew where that "extra time" was going to come from. It wasn't like Jae was sleeping well as it was, but he knew this wasn't the first or last time he'd be pressured into some sort of practice all night. His sleep would have to suffer, as always, it was just unfortunate that it had to be two nights in a row.

When the two were finally dismissed, he quietly gathered his bag and walked out of the room, only to follow the crowd to the elevators. The first lift had arrived with a gentle ding, but instead of briskly getting on with Haemi and her team, he firmly stayed planted where he stood. His manager momentarily watched him from inside, before leaving with a sigh and joining him back in the hall. The tension around them was thick, and even more pressing with the way Min Jae glared at Haemi as the elevator door closed, separating the two "love birds."

"Min Jae, if you want to be an idol, you're going to have to stop acting like you're invincible." his manager immediately broke the silence and Min Jae's neck almost snapped with how quickly he looked over at him. Never in his life had he acted "invincible" or had done anything out of the guidelines of how he was supposed to train; this was completely out of character. Which caused the frustration to bubble out before he could keep himself quiet, "You can't honestly expect me to be apart of this mess?" Min Jae honestly felt like he wasn't being unreasonable, but it seemed like to everyone else he was the bad guy. She was the one who ruined his career, not the way around. She was the reason why they were in this entire mess in the first place. If she had just left their work inside of the practice room instead of seeking out validation, they would be back to practice right this second instead.

During his time at this company, he always assumed that this would be his home. He started here, and never even thought of the possibility of going any where else. Min Jae had heard horror stories, and in all honesty, the idol's rebranding never felt the same. "I do. It's either that or you find another company," but now with his managers sudden on set threat, he couldn't hep but question if it would be the best choice for him. Instead, Min Jae stayed quiet at the statement and never felt more thankful when the next elevator arrived. Quietly he walked inside and tried to ignore him, hoping that the whole conversation was over with. He needed a single moment of silence before having to deal with the rest of the day, as he figured he wouldn't be getting many more chance of peace and quiet for the following weeks.

But Min Jae had never been that lucky, "Look, I understand that you're upset over what happened two years ago, but she's one of the biggest idols of your generation. Anyone in your position would be begging for the opportunity." The whole thing was mean't to soothe him as it was apparent that Min Jae was fed up, but it only had the opposite effect. That was the exact reason he had a problem with this entire thing. Min Jae was supposed to be right there with her, an equal, but he wasn't and now he had to decide which was better: being stuck in the elevator with him or being stuck in the practice room with her.

As soon as he walked in the room, Haemi had caught his attention, almost like a heat seeking missile. He took only one glance at her before walking to the opposite side of the studio and taking a seat. It wasn't physically possible to be any further from her than he was, unless he exited the room all together. "I can see that I have my work cut out for me," Ms. Song gently hummed before nodding her head and getting started on the lesson. It was all the basics that they needed to know how they were expected to act over the course of, only who knew, how many weeks. Min Jae could feel himself sinking in on himself as each and every expectation was mean't to be met. It got to the point that he stopped listening all together and began to zone out, mostly thinking about a choreography that he had been working on solo for the past couple of weeks. He figured, "What does it matter? I'm going to have to go over all of this stuff tonight anyway." So he sat there with a stoic look on his face, pretending that he was listening as Ms. Song spoke.

Honestly, Jae wasn't too sure how much time had passed at this point. He was hitting his point of exhaustion and was starting to get a little bit hazy. But all in all, things were going pretty well, or as well as it could go in this situation. Up until Ms. Song called for them to get to their feet, "Min Jae, over there." She pointed a perfectly polished nail over towards Haemi, to which he looked at her momentarily before hesitating and getting to his feet. "The press conference is tomorrow morning, and you two need to be ready. So, Min Jae, grab Haemi's hand." Immediately his eyes went from her face and down too her hand that sat loosely by her side. With even more hesitation than before he reached over and grabbed it, placing her small petite hands in his large ones. On impact, he couldn't help but bit down on his cheek, hard enough to feel a metallic taste seep into his mouth, in attempt at staying quiet. All he could do to keep himself sane, was focusing on the bigger picture of things. "Good, good." Ms. Song said soothingly, but it only caused the hairs on Min Jaes arms and neck to stand up. Nothing about this felt, good.

The conference was only to show that the tabloids weren't "lying" and how they were an actually couple. He knew the public would love to see more, but Min Jae knew that the press wouldn't possibly ask for more. It would be too invasive for both of the artists, so to say the least, Min Jae could feel his entire body freeze when Ms. Song told him to place his hand gently on Haemi's cheek. "What?" he looked over at Haemi as he asked. Not that he cared, but he was trying to find the discomfort hidden away in her facial expression, before he looked back over at their instructor. "No, I'm not doing that." Ms. Song shook her head and stepped a little bit closer to them. "You will. I have strict instructions, and you will perform like the idol you are training to be." There was a dead silence in the room, only the soft ticking of the clock could be heard, as the two starred each other down. Each second felt like an eternity, as the two held their ground, waiting to see who would cave first.

There was a hesitation, as if Min Jae was trying to pick out his response carefully, but that wasn't didn't seem to be the outcome, as he finally had snapped. Quickly he dropped Haemi's hand and put his own out in a shrug like motion. "Then maybe I wasn't cut out to be an idol," he said before dismissing himself to go grab his things. As calmly as he possibly could he walked across the studio room and threw his bag over his shoulder, on his way out. Just as he reached the door, he looked her dead in the eyes and called out, "Isn't that right Haemi?" and those were the last words he said before closing the door hard enough to be just shy of slam. Allowing a loud echo in the room to cause it to shake, hoping they could feel the anger placed behind it.

He was angry, and upset, and ultimately he knew that this would never work out, just because some paparazzi caught the two of them in a flattering light. If they ever managed to catch them alone, and hear the way they verbally treated each other, it would be over in an instant. This whole mess was just a constant reminded of how superficial and unfair things were in his line of work. You gave up everything for your passion and dreams, and suddenly Min Jae was questioning that as he left the building and headed back to his dorms.

[c u p p ii e]

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𝕥𝕙𝕖𝕠𝕕𝕠𝕣𝕖 𝕘𝕣𝕖𝕪 𝕡𝕒𝕣𝕜




xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx grey park
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxmob boss




• DEVIL IN A BLACK DRESS


i wish i knew you were an actress, i fell in love with your impression
now i'm staring down the barrel.

you got my life in your hands now. six seconds until it's man down. ↓


locked and ⇝ loaded ⇝ finding your target


YOU MARKED IT ✘


“ I'm the one you've chosen to HIT. I'M YOUR VICTIM. ”

FINGER ON THE TRIGGER



I KNOW ITS TOO LATE TO BE SAVED


i fell for a stranger. with one in the chamber.


❥ BULLET TO THE HEART

• ELEGANT ASSASSIN


you spin me around like a revolver

A DOZEN ROSES ON MY CASKET


❥ BULLET TO THE HEART

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When he left the shooting range down stairs so many thoughts crossed his mind all at once, and he couldn't make sense of any of them. Noelle was supposed to be watched at all times, and yet, some how, not only did she get captured, but his men couldn't get a complete location on her phone. None of this was adding up, and Grey felt like he didn't have the time to figure it out. Instead he jumped right into action, hastily walking to the weapons arsenal a few rooms down from the shooting range.

All he could think about was the fastest way he could get to Noelle, as his fingers danced across the key pad on the wall. It had only taken a few seconds for the lead door to slide open and let him inside, and yet a frustrated groan escaped his lips, because somehow it still felt like too long.

Immediately he walked over to the bullet proof vests and slid it on, clipping himself in safely over the clothes he was currently wearing. Luckily for Grey, he planned on doing some field work after being at the shooting range, so he was in the proper attire, aside from a few crucial components, such as the holster he was clipping on right after.

Once he was all strapped in his eyes danced over the guns and other assorted weapons across the wall, just as fast as his finger tips did over the key pad moments ago. As he looked, he slid his own personal gun into the first pocket before reaching for a second. He quickly pulled down on the clip to see if it was loaded, when suddenly he heard the door open up behind him once more. Maybe it was because he was on edge, or maybe it was because he wasn't in the right temperament, but he pushed the clip back into the gun immediately and aimed, with zero hesitation. "Grey, slow down." Kwon said as he put his hands up, showing that he was of no harm and Grey should have known that. Anyone who was coming in here should be authorized, but there was no telling at this point because with this new situation he couldn't help but feel like the mole was much closer than they previously assumed. "Do you have a location for me yet?" The young heir mindlessly said as he pointed the gun away and put the safety back on, before sliding it into the other empty slot of the holster. "Yes, she's fifty miles out. We have reason to believe she's being held captive by the Kims. We—," before Kwon could finish his statement, Grey nodded and began walking past him and towards the exit. "I want every man available strapped up and ready to go in the next fifteen minutes. Grab the car, I'll be waiting for you by the south east entrance then," he called out over his shoulder, adjusting the straps on the holster to fit comfortably as he went. Vaguely he could hear his most trusted confidant trying to reach out for him, but he was already on his phone, making further preparations.

When the young mob boss called for fifteen minutes, he mean't fifteen minutes, and sharp. That was very clear in the way that there were cars lined up ready to go across the large estate, full of men, ready to jump into action and risk their lives in the way the Grey asked for them. To say the least, he was pleased, as he pulled down on the black cap he had thrown on, as he did on most missions, and slid into the back of the large SUV. "Sir, there's something you need to know." Kwon tried to speak to him once more, but Grey's eyes met his with a piercing gaze. "What ever it is, it can wait, Kwon. Drive." He could feel his finger starting to twitch, feeling the sudden bloodlust; an ugly trait passed down to him by his father. Grey would have liked to believe that this feeling drew from the betrayal of someone he had picked out to be apart of his empire. Someone he had trained and welcomed in, to be one of them, only to put his entire empire in danger. But deep down, something was tugging on his chest, demanding him to get Noelle to safety, and Grey just couldn't understand why, so he ignored the feeling and got straight to work.

The young heir knew they had to go straight to source because anything of importance to a mob boss would be held safely within arms reach; watched over day and night. So as they drove, way past the speed limit, down the highway, one of his trusted men sat beside him, showing him the layout of the Kim's hideout. It was a quick run down of the house structure and what to expect when on the property. He was told where all the guards were stationed, as well as where most of the camera's sat, and even that the Kim's had a very special house pet; a tigress named Kawan. Lucky for Grey, he had never grown up to be scared of most things, and cat's definitely weren't one of them.

They pulled up a mile outside of the estate and Grey immediately hopped on the phone, barking out clear instructions on how they were supposed to raid the place. Briefing them all with the information he had just received, only for him to finish off with, "Kwon's team will be going in after Wangs. Shoot any b*****d working for Kim on sight. Tonight, we only bring back Noelle, but the next time the Kim's clan won't be so lucky." Without another word, he hung up his phone and began to do his final checks: ear piece, guns, extra clips. "Are you ready, Sir?" Grey gave him a small nod, before they both began to move out of the car and into the formation he had just ordered out moments ago.

The entire raid was a blur. Gun shots could be heard from every which direction, followed by blood curdling screams of victims to be shot shortly after. Grey followed closely behind Kwon, as the two fired back to back rounds, clearing out rooms with ease. It was simple, and Grey was beginning to over estimate the Kims power and security, up until they reached the third floor of the estate. As the moved through the property, the ear pierces grew more quiet, signifying that his team was beginning to drop in numbers. The young heir had no idea what he was getting into, and maybe that's what Kwon was trying to explain to him, but he couldn't think too much into it right now. Instead he skillfully fired, and reloaded, in succession, doing as he told the other members of his clan and shooting every unfamiliar face.

The house was getting quiet, almost too quiet, and Grey knew that everyone in the house had to be dead or had already fled the property. Grey could only hope that they hadn't taken too long to clear the estate out, as he walked in and out of cleared rooms. Everything on this floor seemed to be taken care of, and they were just about to move on, when he noticed a weird tilt to a book case in one of the offices. Immediately Grey silently grabbed Kwon's attention, before nodding his head over to the piece of furniture. The older male slid his gun around to his back, the strap clinging against his board shoulders, as he cautiously bulled it away from the wall. "It's an entrance." Before Kwon could inspect it further, Grey was already starting to move towards it, his heart beginning to hammer in chest; he knew that they were close.

The two of them, followed by about three other men who had made it through with them, walked through the pathway only to end up in some eerie roomed that looked very much like a torture chamber. The walls were decorated with chains, and the floor with steel chairs, and tables coated in an assortment of torture devices. Immediately Grey's veins filled with ice, over the fact that Noelle could have been exposed to any number of these things in the, nearly, twenty four hours now that she had been gone.

There was an eerie dripping sound, almost like a broken faucet was leaking water; the sound immediately caught Grey's attention. He stopped in his tracks and turned his ear towards the sound, trying to pin point its source. Mindlessly his feet began to drag himself in the direction, too distracted to know if Kwon and his men were right behind him.

The droplets began to echo, the closer he got, as they bounced off the walls of this inner space tucked into the corner of the chamber. Grey cautiously turned the corner, and he had his gun pointed and fired in milliseconds over the scene he had come across. The man standing over Noelle, immediately sank to the floor due to the head shot, but unfortunately left the cloth behind allowing her to continue to drown. "Who the—, the man said as he whipped around, allowing the bullet to cut right below his adams apple rather then the back of his head. The man was squealing for help, but all he could hear was the gurgling of Noelle trying to catch her breathe. Grey immediately ran over to and pulled the rag off of her face and flipped the chair back over, "Noelle, hey, can you hear me." He placed his gun on the ground, leaving himself momentarily vulnerable so he could push her soaking wet hair away from her face. "It's okay. it's me, Grey, " the young heir said softly as he kept his hand on her cheek reassuringly. His eyes immediately began to wander across her battered and bruised frame, assessing her to make sure nothing was badly damaged. There were cuts every where and Grey's heart couldn't help but sink over the mudded mess off blood and water at their feet. "We're going to get you out of here. Come—," a gun shot interrupted his words. He anticipated the seething pain of another gun wound, until he turned his head and saw a man drop to the floor behind him. "Grey, grab her, we've got to go." Without the need of any further instruction, he gazed into her hazy eyes for a short moment before grabbing her bridal style. The group of them ran out, the gang members up front, Noelle and Grey in the middle, and Kwon covering their back.

[c u p p ii e]

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𝕓𝕪𝕦𝕟 𝕞𝕚𝕟 𝕛𝕒𝕖



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As he was being dragged by his manager through the back area of the conference hall, with a stylist close behind, he couldn't help but think about the words Haemi so graciously left him with the previous night. Honestly, he hadn't stopped thinking about them since then, which left him tossing and turning the entire evening until sleep finally eased his exhaustion. At first he couldn't help but feel angry over the entire thing, upset that she was even bothering, but the longer the evening went, the longer he was forced to be alone in the dorms to simmer in his own misfortunes, did the words begin to sink past the surface. Deep down in his heart, he knew that everything Haemi had said was true. Min Jae's entire heart was in his career and he had only ever dreamed of fitting into this industry in some way, some how, and so here he was. The young trainee decided that he'd give it one more chance, reluctancy in showing his face, with only twenty minutes before the conference was set to begin.

Now that he was fully stopped, set to go on stage in just a few moments, his stylist took the opportunity to finish what she had started on the way. Gently, she moved the jewelry that was carefully laid across the designer clothes given to him by his manager upon arrival. If it was up to Min Jae, he'd be wearing the simple button down and slacks he showed up in. The one's he wore on most important occasions, as being a trainee, he couldn't afford much else as of right now. Hastily she tried to finish up as she brushed light makeup over his eyes and then gently grabbed at his face before asking him, "Soften, please." Immediately his face softened upon request, dropping his eyes away from Haemi and Ms. Song, in hopes that it would help him keep a neutral facial expression. It was the first time being face to face with the pair since the incident the previous night, and he hadn't realized how tightly his jaw was clenched over the entire thing. At this point he decided there was no reason to get worked up before walking across that stage, or at all for that matter, if Min Jae was really going to try with this. After today there was no going back, and it was only thing he could remind himself of as he reached over and grabbed Haemi's extended hand.

As he walked towards the curtain, Min Jae felt fine, he was a performer, he danced in front of large groups all the time, but nothing prepared him for what was on the other side. As everyone scrambled to their feet and camera's began to flash, he could feel his body freeze all over; this was different. He was suddenly immobile, much like he was two evenings ago when this had all started, and he couldn't help but grab on to Haemi's hand even tighter for guidance.

She was practically dragging him across the stage, as his legs felt like lead and his heart was pounding a mile a minute in chest. Her introduction was all white noise, and it wasn't until everything got much too quiet did he realized that it was his turn to say something, anything. "Hello, I am Byun Min Jae," he said nervously into the mic hoping that would suffice, but the silence that followed said that they wanted more. He could feel his ears begin to heat up, a soft shade as he spoke, "I'm sorry you all had to find out this way, rather than from us, but I hope you accept our feelings for one another." Min Jae bowed, gently dragging Haemi forward with him, hoping it would hide some of his embarrassment and allow them to move forward with the conference.

When they were finally seated, Min Jae couldn't help but let out a soft sigh of relief, as he didn't feel so exposed now that he was hidden behind a table. His eyes were glued firmly on a spot, just at the edge of the table, to give the illusion that the reporters had his full undivided attention. They did, mostly, but he felt more comfortable with out the actual use of eye contact. As he sat there, nervously shaking his leg beneath the table, he could only hope that this whole process would get much easier with time.

With the way things were going currently, it felt as if the reporters could see right through him, exposing him for the train wreck that he actually was right now. So when Haemi leaned over to reassure him, the slight crease in his forehead softened before his eyes followed in a doe like expression. Min Jae looked soft with the way he gazed at her, allowing it to seem like the two were sharing a special private moment. In a way, they were, because this was the first time since meeting Haemi did he not feel a complete enmity towards her; he was actually kind of appreciative of her presence at the moment.

He was nearly caught up in it all, forgetting everything around them, the situation, their status, when suddenly the next question was fired. Like a bullet out a gun, fully loaded and ready to kill. "How long have you two known each other?" It ripped through him and the stupor he was trapped in, his blunt nature taking over as it did in most situations. Min Jae suddenly had the courage to talk as he spoke quickly, to keep anyone else from answering. "We've known each other for three years." Slowly he adjusted himself, and as he did, he could feel his manager begin to tense up beside him. "I was, am, a trainee and Haemi's career was just taking off." His eyes wandered back over to Haemi, searching to see if any of what he had just said would affect her. Waiting a moment, he continued. "We were supposed to work on a project together that year, but something came up." At the end of his sentence he body language strayed, hardly noticeable, but he knew and he knew that his manager knew as well. His grip on Haemi's hand at the table loosened, almost to no grip at all. "I knew who she was, but she didn't really know me and it seemed like she didn't really care to until this year." Min Jae softly laughed, as if it was some inside joke between the two of them, but really it had to do with the truth trapped up in the statement itself. It was at that moment, he decided to stop there, quit while he was ahead, as Haemi had already explained how the two of them had met. Only to have the conversation die out a little bit, waiting to see if Jae would reveal more details, but when none came, a new wave of questions erupted from the crowd.

For the duration of the conference he stayed quiet unless directly spoken too, which was rare since the reporters were interested in Haemi; not him. She was idol, and she was the one with the "scandal" here, Min Jae was just the "trainee caught up in it all". So when it all finally ended, and they said their goodbyes, Jae couldn't get off that stage fast enough. He was cautiously pulling the mic they had put on him, off, from the moment they were tucked away in the back. Jae slid his hand down his shirt, stripping himself of the wire, as one of the staffs came up to him to retrieve it. "Thank you." He politely smiled at her before giving her a small bow, only to be met with his manager when he had come back up. The staffs quickly walked away, wanting to leave the two allow, as she sensed the tension thick in the air. As soon as Min Jae straightened his shoulders, his manager erupted, "Min Jae! What was that out there?" Instinctively he bit on to his cheek, feeling partly ashamed now that he was actually being scolded. He really could have ruined everything, but really, "I wasn't far off from the truth." Slowly he brought his hand up to scratch as his ear, feeling an array of emotions as he was now beginning to walk on thin ice. "Are you really going to let her take this from you, again?" the words were like a slap in the face. His jaw immediately beginning to clench once more, fearful that his words would get him into more trouble.

[c u p p ii e]

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𝕓𝕪𝕦𝕟 𝕞𝕚𝕟 𝕛𝕒𝕖



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Haemi's timing couldn't have been any more unfortunate, because Min Jae was now at his breaking point. He could feel his demeanor begin to falter and the words starting to slip off his tongue, as she came at him with such force. It was light, hardly there, but he could still hear the underlying tone of annoyance, because Min Jae had been feeling that way for the past two weeks. "Haemi, I have nothing to lose at this point," he barked at her with an incredulous look painted on his face. It was so easy for her to say these things, so willing to throw everything away, but she had no idea what the bottom felt like any more. No matter what Jae did, wether it was with his group, or on his own, it was never enough; he never shined bright enough. He felt like he was stuck in a loop with his chances of becoming anything more than a back up dancer dwindling. And at this point, would that really be so bad? He didn't know and he couldn't help rack his brain over it, continually, night after night. "Maybe if you lost everything like I did, you'd finally understand how I feel." The words flew out of his mouth with such vigor and yet much like Haemi's underlying tone, Min Jae's held a thin layer of exhaustion.

When this whole argument started he half expected his manager to come interrupt them, keeping Min Jae from throwing absolutely everything away in one go, but he noticed how he stepped back a few feet and let them have at it. A small part of him wasn't sure why, but a bigger part of him knew that his manager was starting to give up on him. They both knew that nothing could bring Min Jae away form these feelings, he was too far gone. If he wanted to go out like this, then who was he to stop him, he was tired of trying to keep him in line. Someone had to though, and unfortunately Haemi's manager began to try. Min Jae was about to stop him, tell him to go ahead and do it, but Haemi had beat him to it. He watched as she barked at him and the two of them walked away, His blood was boiling, but instead of dwelling on it, he turned on his heel and headed straight towards the exit so he could go home.

"How did it go?" Kyung Sook happily chirped from the couch as soon as he walked in. Min Jae simply shook his head and threw his bag on the floor, next to the entry way, before heading towards his room. "I pretty sure that they're about to terminate my contract," he huffed over his shoulder before shutting his door and locking it to be left alone.

It didn't take much time for his prediction to come to fruition, as his phone pinged in his pocket the moment his body hit the mattress. He slowly pulled it out to see a message from his manager to which he shoved his face into his pillow and let out a soft groan in frustration. In no way did he regret anything that had happened over the last two days, but he just couldn't understand why it had to be like this. How his career some how so heavily relied on Haemi's judgement or being.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Today, 1:12PM
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Come to the practice room. I want you to
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx blow off some steam by working on
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx that solo routine you mentioned.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Delivered

To say that he was skeptical over the whole thing was an understatement, so much that he had to read over the message a few times to process it. He was relieved to know that he wasn't being asked to show his face back at the office again, presumably on the top floor like last time. Instead he was being asked to practice, which he would have already been doing on a normal bases if his schedule hadn't changed so drastically. Normalcy, his chest bubbled at the thought. Min Jae was excited to work on something for himself. Something that had absolutely nothing to do with Haemi, but instead for his own career as an individual.

He opened the door to the studio, thoughts clouded with new pieces to add the choreography he had been working so hard on for the best half of three months, but everything came to an immediate stop when saw what was on the other side. A sinking feeling bloomed in chest when he began to put to and two together, "What are you? There's no way—" Min Jae's words got caught in his throat from the sudden scare his manager gave him, as he placed his hand on his shoulder. "You knew I would come if it mean't I was able to practice" he said evenly even though the heat was rising through him quickly. The young trainee shrugged as his hold as he turned around to face him, betrayal written all over his face. "Was this your plan?" If he wasn't at home sleeping or doing lessons, he was here and his manager knew that he would jump at any opportunity to get back into routine. "I'm not doing this any more. I don't care if it means my contract gets terminated. I can't do this with, not with her. It's impossible!" his words came out in a flurry as his voice grew with each sentence, not allowing his manager to speak in between any of them.

it only caused the room to erupt into absolute chaos. "I didn't do this to myself! You did when you chose her—," the words got caught in his throat when he noticed Haemi stagger. Something about the situation caused him to stop completely,

and it was good thing, because suddenly her eyes rolled into the back of her head and she was dropping to the floor. Before he could think much about it, he ran up to her and barely caught onto her shoulder before her head collided with the floor. Min Jae sat there with her gently in his arms, looking up at both of their managers for some sort of guidance.

Haemi's manager spoke first, expecting him to ask for a doctor or for Min Jae to do something that would be able to help her, but he could not believe what came out instead. "What?" His eyes snapped down to Haemi, her small thin figure on display, and he was now realizing how tiny she actually was. "Are you insane?" he barked back at the male due to his harsh words before he shook his head. Instead of letting him continue or usher out one more thing, Min Jae looked at his manager, "When need to get her to the hospital." As carefully as possible, he scooped her up until his arms, bridal style, and followed his manager out of the room.





"i have nothing to lose at this point. maybe if you lose the same, you'll finally understand how i feel."

is convinced to go work on a dance practice by his manager, saying it's something for his group since he usually comes up with the choreo anyway. is happy to focus on something for himself rather than something that has to do with haemi so he's more than willing.

gets to the studio and immediately starts to argue with his manager when he realizes it's a set up.

haemi tries to stop it and faints because of her fatigue.

min jae goes to check on her, because he's has a heart even though he has a strong dislike towards her.

gets up set at haemi's manager when he makes a comment about haemi's weight. need to think of why it effects him so badly. last resort would just be that he feels like it's wrong to have these idols starve themselves. maybe kyung sook was forced to diet and he saw what it did to him. or even introduce a new friend at this point since kyung sook maybe doesn't seem like the type to agree to something like that?

"why do you let him talk to you like that?" surely she has enough fame and fortune or whatever to fire him and get a better manager, right?

[c u p p ii e]

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𝕥𝕙𝕖𝕠𝕕𝕠𝕣𝕖 𝕘𝕣𝕖𝕪 𝕡𝕒𝕣𝕜




xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx grey park
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxmob boss




• DEVIL IN A BLACK DRESS


i wish i knew you were an actress, i fell in love with your impression
now i'm staring down the barrel.

you got my life in your hands now. six seconds until it's man down. ↓


locked and ⇝ loaded ⇝ finding your target


YOU MARKED IT ✘


“ I'm the one you've chosen to HIT. I'M YOUR VICTIM. ”

FINGER ON THE TRIGGER



I KNOW ITS TOO LATE TO BE SAVED


i fell for a stranger. with one in the chamber.


❥ BULLET TO THE HEART

• ELEGANT ASSASSIN


you spin me around like a revolver

A DOZEN ROSES ON MY CASKET


❥ BULLET TO THE HEART

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They moved through the halls quietly but with a sense of urgency, guns at the ready for anyone who dared to cross their path. Grey kept tightly in the middle, with a deep trust that his men would cover him because with Noelle in his arms, he was allowing himself to be extremely vulnerable. He could only hope that there wasn't an ambush from the side as they moved into the wider parts of the estate. It didn't seem likely though as the house was littered with bodies, blood streaking the pure white theme that the house previously had; before their attack.

Needless to say, Grey was still on edge, even more so when he felt Noelle gently grip at his shirt. Before that, he was sure that she had been unconscious from the torture she was forced to endure. If they weren't still in a high stakes situation, he probably would have let out sigh of relief. Instead he looked down at her, giving her a faint smile as his heart clenched over her small confession. "Because you're so strong, Noelle," he murmured into her ear as he held her body tighter, pushing her closer into his chest.

When they were finally safe outside of the estate, and back at the SUV, Kwon opened up his arms expectantly. He silently asked for Noelle, so Grey could easily get into the car, but instead of resigning the body over to him right away, he hesitated. For a short moment he studied her features, watched as her chest rose and fell, before looking back at Kwon. With great reluctance, as if he gave her away now he would never get her back, he gently placed her dead weight into Kwon's arms before sliding into the car. He quickly made himself comfortable, spreading his legs apart so Noelle could slot between them, back in bridal like fashion. As soon as Kwon placed her there, he closed the door and left the two alone in the back area, of the car, as Grey requested it to be that way.

When they finally took off, leaving that mess behind them until a much later time when Grey felt it would be best to take care of the Kims permanently, he couldn't help but keep his focus down on Noelle. It was as if the cuts and bruises on her body were suddenly so loud now that it was quiet, and he suddenly wished he had something to cover her small frame with. Slowly he lifted his hand up to the blues and purples blossoming over her check, grazing them so, so, gently as if he hadn't touched her at all. Everything about this was his fault, and the guilt was beginning to crash over him in heavy waves. "If I hadn't sent her out. If I just would have kept her at the estate," he thought hopelessly. "I should have never let her out of my sight. I should have known she would have been a target," his mind clouded with doubt as he brushed the hair from her face and soothingly smoothed out her hair.

Through out the drive he could feel Kwon continuously checking on him through the rear view mirror, but decided not to comment on it as he was too distracted. Instead it was dead silent, until Kwon was finally ready to speak up. "Sir, there's information that's been brought to my attention and I think it's best that you know." Grey listened half heartedly and failed to make eye contact as he shook his head, he didn't want to ear any of that right now. Noelle was safe and so he was putting work on hold for the rest of the evening. "It'll have to wait until tomorrow," he said softly, as he was exhausted at this point

"Grey, listen to me," there was merely a moment of hesitation before Kwon's stern voice erupted throughout the car even though it was nothing more than a whisper. Grey's eyes snapped up to meet Kwon's, irked over his bold nature, until their eyes had locked on one another. Immediately Grey's gaze turned sharp, he was on high alert, because with the way that Kwon looked back at him, pulled something deep in his chest. He could tell something was seriously wrong, a million different things moving through his head, but nothing could prepare him for what was about to come next. "Noelle might not be who she says she is." The words left a prickling sensation down his spine and threaded ice into his veins, as he very well knew what Kwon was implying. Slowly he looked down at Noelle, as if the answers would be written across her forehead, but there was nothing but her soft blank expression as she carelessly slept in his arms. "We'll discuss them when we get back to estate," and for the rest of the ride he stared at the fleeting trees they passed by on the highway.

After a long while, the tree's faded into city life and they pulled up to their hideout. Grey watched familiar faces beginning to crowd around his car, as he waited to be let out. They gathered as soon as his feet his the ground, preparing to escort him inside even though Grey was sure that it was unnecessary. His team would have known by now if they were in immediate danger, as the house was protected while they were away, but he simply let it go. The young heir was too emotionally and physically tired after today, and he just didn't have the energy to argue even though he wanted nothing but to be left alone to his own devices.

There was no hesitation as he headed up the stairs and straight to his room, leaving everyone else behind. They knew that no one was welcomed unless invited or summoned, which was hardly ever since most meetings happened in his study. Instead they were left amongst one another, starring blankly at each other, unsure of what to do now that they were back. Faintly he could hear Kwon instruct them on tying up all the loose ends he left behind tonight, which was exactly what Grey would have told them to do, before it all became white noise.

Gently he kicked the door closed behind him, cutting them off from the outside world, before he placed Noelle down on the bed. As he stared down at her, he couldn't help but think about all of their interactions together over the past few months. All the times she feigned innocence, claiming that she was a nobody and how quickly and easily Grey believed her. It was eating him alive as usually he was such an incredible judge of character, and the way he felt towards her now was something unforgivable in his line of work. The thoughts were getting all knotted together in his mind, too much for his own sanity, and he needed the truth before he drove himself crazy.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Today, 2:12AM
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Call in a doctor for Noelle and then
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx meet me in my study.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Delivered

[c u p p ii e]

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𝕓𝕪𝕦𝕟 𝕞𝕚𝕟 𝕛𝕒𝕖



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Haemi's timing couldn't have been any more unfortunate, because Min Jae was now at his breaking point. He could feel his demeanor begin to falter and the words starting to slip off his tongue, as she came at him with such force. It was light, hardly there, but he could still hear the underlying tone of annoyance, because Min Jae had been feeling that way for the past two weeks. "Haemi, I have nothing to lose at this point," he barked at her with an incredulous look painted on his face. It was so easy for her to say these things, so willing to throw everything away, but she had no idea what the bottom felt like any more. He felt like he was stuck in a loop with his chances of becoming anything more than a back up dancer dwindling. No matter what Jae did, wether it was with his group, or on his own, it was never enough; he never shined bright enough. "Maybe if you lost everything like I did, you'd finally understand how I feel." The words flew out of his mouth with such vigor and yet much like Haemi's underlying tone, Min Jae's held a thin layer of exhaustion.

The whole thing ended terribly, to the point where he felt like it couldn't have gone any worse unless they fired him on the spot. He left fuming after Haemi's manager showed up and turned on his heel briskly to keep that from happening, maybe, just maybe saving himself for one more day. So when he got home and Kyung Sook happily chirped from the couch, "How did it go?" Min Jae could feel his shoulders sinking in on themselves. He didn't even want to talk about it any more, he had done enough talking for the day, maybe even the whole week if this pace had continued. "I pretty sure that they're about to terminate my contract," he huffed over his shoulder as he walked through the living area and straight to his room, before shutting his door and locking it to be left alone.

It didn't take much time for his prediction to come to fruition, as his phone pinged in his pocket the moment his body hit the mattress. Min Jae could feel his body freeze all over, because he knew who it had to be, and yet his heart still sank when he pulled it out and saw that it was his manager. A small groan of frustration escaped his lips as he pushed his face into his pillow to smoother it, hoping no one outside could hear his cries. He didn't need any of the other members doting on him, especially not Kyung Sook. In no way did Jae want to be bothered right now, but he also knew that he had to face facts, and that's when he finally caught his breathe and braved what ever his manager had to tell him.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Today, 1:12PM
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Come to the practice room. I know you're
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx upset, which is why i want you to blow off
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx some steam by working on your solo
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx routine.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Delivered


To say that he was skeptical over the whole thing was an understatement, and very evident in the way that he owlishly stared at his phone in confusion. Min Jae was so sure of what this message would entail and yet, it seemed to be the exact opposite. Was his manger actually suggesting that he work on something of his own, rather than something that revolved around Haemi? He shook his head and got to his feet, changing out of the stuffy expensive clothes he had failed to change out of in his haste to of leaving the conference. Min Jae wasn't going to dwell on the small things, he was just excited to be able to clear his mind in his happiest way possible, dance practice. Normalcy, his chest bubbled at the thought.

It hardly took him any time to get down to the studio, probably less if it hadn't been for the slew of questions thrown at him on his way out, but still hardly any time at all. Min Jae's mind was buzzing with new choreography that he had been sitting on since he got pulled into Haemi's project. It had been a solid two months since he had been able to actually work on it, when he had been working so hard on it already for the better half a month, making this a three months process as it was. Ultimately he was ready to get down too it, song at the ready, but he came to an extreme halt as soon as he saw what was on the other side of the studio door. A sinking feeling began blooming in his chest as his eyes went wild, starring in between Haemi and his manager. "What are you—" the question got caught in throat from the sudden scare his manager gave him as he placed his hand gently on his shoulder. Min Jae was now starting to put two and two together, "You knew I would come if it mean't I was able to practice" he said evenly even though the heat was rising through him quickly. He shrugged at his managers hold as he turned around to face him, betrayal written so clearly across his face. "Was this your plan?" His manager knew him better than anyone, almost better than some of his family, as that was his job. He knew that Min Jae would never refuse the opportunity to work in the studio like this, but his manager also knew that he would never agree under these new circumstances. "I'm not doing this any more. I don't care if it means my contract gets terminated. I can't do this with, not with her. It's impossible!" his words came out a lot more messy and frantic than he would have likes, but he couldn't help it as his voice grew with each and every sentence; not allowing his manager to speak in between any of them.

It caused the room to erupt in absolute chaos, "I didn't do this to myself! You did when you chose her—," Of course he had so much to say, so much pent up aggression he needed to release after the last couple of months, but Haemi snatched his attention in the way she staggered over to them. It allowed his manager to finally speak, thinking Min Jae was done, but it was all white noise to him. Instead, he watched intently as Haemi's eyes suddenly rolled into the back of her head and her body began giving in on her. Before he could eve think much about it, he ran up to her with just barely enough time to catch her shoulders, preventing her head from colliding with the floor. Slowly he slid to the floor, not from her being to heavy because she weighed nearly nothing, which Min Jae was just now really noticing. Instead he sat there on the floor with her tightly tucked into his chest, out of pure shock.

If Haemi was conscious he was sure that she could hear how his heart beat frantically raised in chest as he looked up at his manager for some sort of guidance. A spike of irritation bloomed in his chest at how his manager looked down at him with one eye brow arched, dumbfounded, as if Min Jae's worry was the most incredulous thing that had happened all day. It was a starring match, the only sound that could be heard was Jae's breathing and the soft ticking of the clock behind him, until Haemi's manager finally cut through it like a knife. "What?" When he first started to speak, he automatically assumed that her manager would request for a doctor or ask Min Jae to do something that would be able to help her, but he couldn't believe what had come out instead. "Are you insane?" His eyes snapped down to Haemi, and down to her small figure once more, thinking back too moments ago when he had her full weight in his arms. "When need to get her to a hospital!" he said as he began to scoop her up into his arms, bridal style, and looked over at his manager before Haemi's could usher out one more unsettling thing. "Min Jae, wait. You can't take her out of this building. You thought the press was bad before, think about what this will leave them with." Softly he looked at him with imploring eyes, wondering what this had mean't for them, before he shook his head; making his decision final. "I don't care. I'll deal with it, when it happens." He could only question at this point if he was the only sane person in the room as he walked around his manager and towards the door. "We'll call in medical here to the office. She'll get the same care, and the situation will stay private. Trust me." There was a slight hesitation before Min Jae nodded his head, finally agreeing.

It hadn't been too long since the four of them walked out of the practice room and too some office not too far off. He distanced himself, leaning against a desk playing with his earring, as Haemi was examined and treated. When the nurse was through she had given Haemi's manager basic instructions on how to care for her, and when she had finally left, Min Jae was finally able to breathe a little bit easier. "Min Jae, go ahead and go back to the dorms." His manager spoke to him privately as Haemi's was seemingly speaking to her, but their conversations were wholly different. Min Jae's manager spoke in a soothing tone, actually trying to level with him as Haemi's manager was nothing short of threatening. He was now realizing how often he spoken to her that way, recounting the amount of times he had seen them like this over the last couple of weeks they had worked together.

He couldn't help but let his eye brows furrow over the entire thing as he half heartedly listened, trance breaking only when her manager pulled out his phone and exited the room. His own manager smiled at him before gently grabbing his shoulder, an action that used to be calming but only now sent chills up his spine after the last couple of weeks. "We'll discuss everything tomorrow." Jae simply nodded and watched him walk out of the room as well, leaving Haemi and Min Jae alone. Instead of leaving immediately he looked at her momentarily before blurting out, "Why do you let him treat you like that?" Honestly, he didn't know why he cared, brushing it away more as curiosity than anything. Haemi was powerful in this industry, surely she could hire someone knew, someone that treated her with more respect.

[c u p p ii e]

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𝕓𝕪𝕦𝕟 𝕞𝕚𝕟 𝕛𝕒𝕖



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The moment Haemi called her own self an idiot, he instinctively almost winced as she further put herself down. He didn't know why he cared, he just knew how unfair she had been treated as of late. Since the moment the two of them had been reconnected through this project, he was now noticing how often she had been run through, over and over, with negative energy and feedback. Much like Min Jae's progress as a trainee, it seemed like Haemi's was never "good enough" as an idol either. The major difference was that Min Jae just simply wasn't ready, as where Haemi just had terrible people surrounding her. He did have to agree and admit to what she had said about his manager. Soo Jin was a lot better than most, and the longer Min Jae was apart of this industry the more he was starting to realize it. A lot of other idols couldn't say that their manager protected them and always had their best interests in mind. So much that Soo Jin was always transparent and honest, even letting Min Jae have his own opinions on a lot of matters. Seeing Haemi so blatantly bullied like this, had him finally asking himself, "Maybe I have been a little difficult the last couple of weeks," but it was a thought that he couldn't dwell on for too long.

As Haemi reached for her phone, he could have sworn she almost looked scared as she answered who ever was on the other line, but he decided to look away to give her some privacy. Although he was finding it extremely difficult with the way that the woman on the other side of the line began to scream profusely at her. He could pick up bits and pieces of the conversation, of course, just enough to know that he was being bad mouthed by this person. Min Jae could feel his patience wearing thin over the entire thing, and yet all he could do was patiently and quickly take in a deep breathe. There was a small pounding at his temples that were now suddenly apparent, revealing a head ache that he was sure would come on much stronger if he didn't remove himself from this situation very soon. Min Jae proceeded to close his eyes, acknowledging how tired he actually was and the fact that he had been upset for a better portion of the day. It had to be the source of the faint pounding that was now seeping through the cracks. The only thing he could do to temporarily soothe himself was release one of the arms, that were tightly tucked into his chest, and rub softly over the sore spot.
He hardly noticed that Haemi was done with the conversation. It was only when she began to apologize did he drop his hand from his face and look back at her. Truthfully, he didn't want to hear it, but there wasn't much else he was able to do in this situation. Instead he stood their passively, just waiting for the chance to go home. In which he did the moment she scurried out of the room. Min Jae went straight back to the dorms, ignoring the fact that he had piled up English lessons and several unread messages from his trainer. He fell asleep the moment his body hit the mattress and didn't wake up until the next morning.

Very early, earlier than usual, Min Jae was called in by Soo Jin to discuss his future options. "I know it's been rough. Honestly, I understand, Min Jae. But just think about your future and what this could do for you!" he could remember his manger saying, as he sat on the floor of the practice room stretching, hours later. It was a whole lot of back and fourth, a whole lot of push and pull between the two of them to get Min Jae here. He had to sacrifice some of his beliefs and fall into some romantic stigma he wanted nothing to be apart of, and yet here he was. All because Soo Jin decided to meet him halfway and compromise, allowing Min Jae a little bit more freedom so he could breathe. From this point on, Min Jae was allotted a voice as long as he remained calm and level headed.

His arms pawed forward to stretch out his back just, as he heard the door click open. Momentarily he watched Haemi walk in, mumbling out a soft, "Good morning," passively in her direction. As he looked back down at the floor, he was sure he noticed Soo Jin smile at the gesture but he didn't care enough to check. "Good morning, Haemi! Please, get comfortable." his manger chirped cheerfully towards her as Min Jae finished his stretches and got to his feet. Immediately he pulled out his phone and began to scroll through the long playlist he had created for himself. Even in these circumstances he was desperate to feel the music and be able to dance again, especially since the last two hadn't gone so well. "As you can see, there's no instructor today. Min Jae will be filling in that position." Out the corner of his eye, he looked past his phone and over at Haemi to gauge her reaction to all of this new information. He trusted in himself that he could do it, he had lead his group in practices all the time, he just didn't trust the fact that they would get along. This was a closed practice and they had no one else to get angry at, but each other now. "I'll be overseeing the entire thing, alright?" At least they had a buffer, and once Soo Jin received confirmation from both of them Min Jae pressed play on his phone and let the hip hop music softly fill the room.

Things had been going well, well enough in any case, but harder during the parts that had gotten a lot more intimate. This dance was mean't to be for himself, but when he was told that his solo was turning into a duet, he had spent the entire night fixing it. In a sense, it was his own fault, but when he had thought of those things he was seeing it from a choreographers perspective. Everything fit together so beautifully and Min Jae could only see it that way; just maybe not with Haemi. Now that he was actually here with her, he could feel the negativity rolling off of him every time they had to get close. In the way he spoke to her, he could hear his voice getting tighter and tighter with each mess up, until he had finally burst. "No, you're supposed to hit the count on three as soon as I let go of you," he shouted as soon as he released her and moved away, watching the whole "disaster" take place. Really, if this would have been any one else, he would have simply showed them again and made them take it from the top. The problem was this was Haemi and, when it came to dancing, Min Jae was a perfectionist. "Min Jae, enough," Soo Jin stood up and shot him a warning look, ready to stop him if he decided to go any further. All Min Jae could do was let out an exasperated breathe as he walked over to grab a water bottle, allowing himself to separate from her. "I think it's time to take a break anyway," he said as he decided that there still wasn't enough distance, calmly walking out of the room with a soft click of the door.

Min Jae hadn't gotten very far, only walking a few feet from the practice room and sliding down the wall to take a seat. Quickly he chugged the water bottle in his hand, and tried to wipe away the onset exhaustion he could feel settling in his bones. This solo routine was supposed to be his and yet all of a sudden is was theirs. The whole thing didn't seem fair, and he expressed that too Soo Jin, but he was only left to feel guilty."But that's my solo! he remembered feeling a panic bubble in his chest at the thought of losing that too. "Oh please, Min Jae. What are we five?" He was sure he was acting like it, but this dance was his safe space. It's not like he had the distraction of is own group, as everything else got put on hold until this project was over with. Min Jae and Kyung Sook were the only lucky two still working, as the other six boys were tucked away mindless working on their own things. "Are you going to continue that way of thinking when it comes to group as well? What's yours is there's and so on and so fourth. Now that you're with Haemi, the same thing applies." He weighed over the truth of the statement but he couldn't help but stop himself and shoot back, But I'm not with her." Soo Jin gave him a warning look, one that screamed "don't talk back," just like the one he had received a few moments prior back inside, before he ultimately agreed to give that up to Haemi as well.

[c u p p ii e]

Min Jae really thought being the teacher for this would have helped ease him, allowing himself the slightest bit of control this mess, but it only landed him outside by himself on his own, self called, lunch break. At this point he could only simmer, hands clasped together, holding the bottle tightly in between them as he closed his eyes and tried to clear his mind. It was sort of working, but it all came to a stop when he heard the door beginning to open up next to him. He couldn't help but jump from the sudden disturbance, having his eyes shoot up to meet who ever decided to disturb him.

[c u p p ii e]

It was one beer, after another, after another, and before Alex knew it, his world was spinning, but of course that didn't stop him as he lit the small firework. He placed the flame to the wick, and the spark danced in his eyes, but it was short lived as it fizzled out after a few short seconds. "That sucked!" Jackson said as he laughed and brought the amber bottle back up to his lips for a few more sips. It seemed that he was drunk as well, as they drank one bottle after another, but at least he was coherent, as Alex barely was. "You broke it, you idiot!" Alex could feel his cheeks begin to warm a little bit, exposing a soft dusty rose color to them, and this point he couldn't tell if it was because he was embarrassed or if it was because of the alcohol. At this point, he could only assume the latter, due to the fact that he was surrounded by the one's he trusted the most. "No, wait, I can fix it." The words slurred passed his lips as he leaned forward and picked up the firework and brought it too his face.

He was just about to bring it closer to his eye, as if that would make the problem make sense, but just as he quickly as he did, it was being pulled away. "Wait, but the firework!" Alex said as if he was a petulant child being dragged away from his favorite toy. He only managed to, some how, steadily tossing it over to Jackson before he was being pulled away. "I'll eat later," he mumbled over his shoulder as the two shakily walked up the stairs and towards the house. As he passed by Sebastian and Courtney, he could have sworn that he saw Seb laughing at him, but he was too drunk to really know. He only knew that Bonnie was set on him going inside, so he had no choice but do as she asked if he wanted to have a good rest of his night. What was few moments on "time out" when they had until midnight and on to play?

After a long, very long, walk up the staircase to the second floor Alex was finally parked as Bonnie left him to get him food. A soft sigh escaped his lips as he threw himself back on the bed and closed his eyes, as the annoyance of the situation was finally setting in. "Why is she acting like this? I can take care of myself." he whispered to no one in particular, now that he was all alone. He was tired of the suffocating feeling of everyone doting on him, day and night, ever since the overdose had happened. Alex fully understood that it was his fault, it was an apparent poor choice in judgement, but everyone made mistakes, right? He wanted to go back to when things were normal and he nothing worry about except who slept with who the night prior. Everything had just gotten so tough as soon as high school ended, and something in his stomach told him it was only going to get worse after this vacation, when he was forced back into the reality of it all.

At some point, in his tumble of thoughts, he began to quietly cry, which he hadn't even noticed until Bonnie walked back into the room. "No, not at all," a choked out sob escaped his lips as he pushed himself back up and the tears began to escape. The room was beginning to spin due to the alcohol, making him slightly nauseous, but his need to cling on to his girlfriend was much stronger. "You know how much you mean to me right?" He shook his head wildly, making the sickening feeling in his stomach worse, and he leaned in and wrapped his arms around her waist. "You're the best thing that has ever happened to me." Even though they words were coming out sloppily, he mean't them whole heartedly as it was honest truth; he just hoped that B, knew that. "I don't do well when you're not around," he said quietly, evident that he was referring to the many mess ups in between their on and off status. Alex sucked in a deep breathe, trying to calm himself before he spoke again. I've loved you since I first met you and I don't think I'll ever stop. Even, even if we end up breaking up because of some other stupid thing I've done." For some reason he could feel his heartbeat racing in his chest, exasperated over his own out burst, as if she would turn away from him now. Slowly he untucked his head form her chest, afraid to make eye contact, as he timidly looked up at her through his wet lashes. "But until then, please, be patient with me. Please?" Alex's cheeks were stained with tears at this point, cheeks inflamed, and eyes spoiled red. There had never been a time he had been more vulnerable than he was being now. Even when had confessed his feelings for her it had felt a lot easier, even though the words flowed better now because of his drunken state. It was one thing to explain what it felt like being with her, but to explain what it would be like without her was a whole separate feeling.

[c u p p ii e]

A small hiccup escaped past his lips as Bonnie began to wipe away the tears from his cheeks and eyes. Alex couldn't help but lean into her soothing touch and simply nod at her words. He felt so vulnerable, and small, but he just couldn't help himself. Come tomorrow morning, if remembered anything, he knew he would be embarrassed over the whole thing even though he had mean't ever last word. He simply shut out the lingering thought the moment she kissed his forehead and felt the sudden weighing exhaustion from all of the alcohol. Now that his heartbeat was evening out, his eyes were growing to be heavy. His head lulled to side ever so slightly as he pulled away from her grip, mumbling out a soft, "Sleep with me?" as he went. Gently and slowly, he leaned back, forcing the two of them to fall against the cushions and sheets behind them. The last thing Alex could remember was wrapping his arms around her waist and whispering a soft, "Love you, B." as he nuzzled into the crook of her neck and right off to sleep.

A loud explosive noise, coming from down stairs, caused his body to jolt awake in fear. Alex gripped onto Bonnie sides a little tighter, before releasing and pushing himself up to his elbows. There was still sleep dusted in his eyes as he tried to make sense of the situation, where he was at and how he got here, when suddenly he remembered with a soft gasp. With a sense of urgency he grabbed at his phone and checked the time, only to be relieved that he hadn't missed all the festivities for tonight. It was roughly a half hour until they were walking into the new year, which mean't he hadn't missed his kiss either. A soft smile formed on his lips at the thought, before he leaned over and saw that B stuck with him in those few short hours he had taken upon himself to rest. "I know it's early, but there will be more where this comes from when midnight hits." Alex leaned in and kissed her with a smile before pulling back and placing another soft one on her cheek. "Come on," and just like that he was on his feet, dragging Bonnie out of the room; self proclaiming that his time out was over.

If he was being a hundred percent honest, Alex knew that he was still very much drunk, but at least everything stayed in place on the way down the stair case. He noticed that the living room was no longer spinning either, as they came off the last step, which mean't that he'd be good for the rest of the evening as long as he didn't drink too much more. Of course, that didn't stop him when he saw Jackson just a few feet away pouring a line of shots for everyone; most likely for when midnight actually struck. A wicked smile crawled across Alex's face due to the sight, "I'm going to help Jackson out. We'll meet you and everyone outside in—," he paused momentarily and pulled out his phone from his pocket with his free hand. "Eight minutes." Before she could protest or say anything further he pressed a soft kiss to the crown of her head before waltzing off.

The alcohol in the bottle was disappearing quickly as Jackson poured very generous shots for all of them. "Trying to forget something, Jackson?" Alex teased as he walked up to his very closest friend. He was greeted with a short laugh and a shake of the head, already knowing what Alex was referencing. "Alex, man, she was the best ******** of my life. Not something I'll be forgetting any time soon," he said passively before finishing off the last glass and pointless screwing the cap back on the nearly empty bottle. "What about you, you've been upstairs for a—," the words were left dangling on his lips as Jackson looked at him for the first time since Alex had walked over. Alex could feel himself being judged when Jackson was simply analyzing his features trying to figure something out, "You—good Alex?" he was asked hesitantly, unsure if he was being asked because of his current drunk state or because of the emotional exhaustion. For a short moment he paused, stunned by the sudden question before he brushed it off and shook his head. "Best ********? Never thought I'd see it happen. Jackson's in love. Guess the whole bet worked out then?" Immediately Jacksons demeanor fell from being concerned, to flustered and then from confused to suddenly horrified. "We were drunk last night, but not that drunk. I know you didn't forget. Penalty is going to be ten times worse if you don't come through" Alex lightly teased him, before grabbing half of the shots and making his way outside to be the rest; just a two minutes before the clock would strike midnight.

[c u p p ii e]

xoxokai find me at midnight. 💋


♡ xxxx ↪ xxxx ✉ xxxx ⟳ xxxxxxxx ☖

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