Warnings: foul language
When Daechul reached the stepsiblings, quite a few of his men were openly watching the show, clearly interested in how it would end.
Minsoo was shouting curses at his brother. His face was red from the anger, whole body shaking. His tiny hands were clenched into tight fists, that hovered dangerously close to Kimoon's face.
Kimoon, on the other hand, was so pale it looked like he would faint any minute. His posture was stiff, hands held out with open palms to show surrender.
"Minnie, please just listen to me, stop screaming."
"What the hell, Kimoon?! How the fuck should I do that, after I found out my brother is involved with some kind of shady mafia business? Are you out of your mind? What would our parents think?"
Kimoon sighed, and it seemed as if all the hope left his body as he decided to utter his next words.
"Both of them know, Minsoo. Dad is actually as involved as I am. Or rather, he was."
Minsoo looked as if someone punched him in the gut. His face twisted into a kind of combination between shock and betrayal.
"What?.."
Kimoon stepped closer.
"Let's just go home, okay? I will tell you everything, and if you decide to hate me, you will be able to do that in the safety of your room. Please, Minnie."
"Don't fucking call me that, Kimoon."
Kimoon lowered his head.
"Where the hell is your boss, huh?"
"Minsoo-"
At that moment, Daechul decided that he and his men had seen enough.
He made himself visible by going closer to the pair.
"I'm here."
Minsoo snapped his head so fast, that Daechul was concerned for his neck.
"Daechul? What are you doing here?"
"I told you, Minsoo. I'm the boss here. Hyun mafia is mine."
For the countless times that day, Minsoo's face screwed into a grimace.
"You're joking, right? Tell me you are, Daechul."
"I'm not. Look, it's really not safe to be out here in the open. Let Kimoon drive you home, okay?"
Minsoo furiously shook his head.
"No. I will get back myself. Thanks for nothing, I guess," the boy turned around and ran away.
Daechul turned to Kimoon.
He still looked sick.
"You okay?"
The man nodded.
At that moment, Ilsung Kangmin and Jinwoo drove through the trees and parked the car in the parking lot. All three of them stepped out of the car and stroded towards the commotion.
"We just saw some pink haired boy. He looked way out of place to be one of your men, Daechul," said Kangmin.
Daechul nodded.
"That's Minsoo. Kimoon's brother. "
At that moment, Kimoon turned his head to look at Daechul.
"Can you drive him home? I won't be able to persuade him to go with me, but maybe he will listen to you?"
Daechul patted his friend on the back.
"Of course. It will be okay, Kimoon. Minsoo will forgive you."
Kimoon nodded and turned his body to head inside. Daechul told everyone to go back to their jobs, and asked all three of his friends to go find Kimoon and don't let him drink too much, because Daechul knew that that's what he was going to do.
Ilsung nodded and they disappeared.
Daechul headed towards his car, sighing once again.
/\/\/\
Black range rover slowly drove through the forest, looking for a particular pinkette. Daechul was surprised how far he managed to run, before the man saw his pink head of hair from afar.
Daechul stepped on the gas and caught up to the man in no time. He rolled down his window and called out, "Minsoo."
Minsoo was stubborn. He did not even acknowledge the man, continuing on his trek to home.
"C'mon, Minsoo. Let me drive you home, and then you can ignore me all that you want".
The man squinted his eyes, but sighed, stopping in his tracks.
Daechul put pressure on the brakes, and the car stopped.
Minsoo wordlessly opened the passenger door, sat down and turned his head away.
The car zoomed past the trees and grass.
Both men were quiet for a while, when Daechul decided to break the silence.
"Kimoon loves you, you know that. He didn't tell you anything because he felt as if that knowledge could be dangerous to you. Your parents, too. They just want you to be safe."
Minsoo scoffed.
"Is this supposed to make me feel better? My whole family are completely different people, now that I know the truth. It feels as if I'm a stranger, living in some kind of web of lies."
"I am familiar with this sensation. I was there too, when my mother found another man. I distanced myself, left Busan and cut almost all contact with my family. I regret that decision every day. Because of my irrational rage I lost five precious years I could have earnestly spent with my brother, my twin sisters, and my mother. You can be angry or sad, or whatever you choose to feel, but don't let those emotions make decisions for you. Because if you do, the remorse will surely come to haunt you. And that feeling is way more intense than what you feel right now, I can promise you that."
The pinkette sighed.
"It's defeat."
"Hm?"
"What I'm feeling right now. It's defeat. I know that I get over emotional at times, it's a trait of mine that I hate. But that anger that you saw, is just a mirage. Deep inside, I feel as if all the fight left my body. It's dramatic, but right now it feels like I don't know how to behave anymore. I want to confront my parents, but there's no fuel left. I don't know how to cope. And even if I rationally know that Kimoon loves me, it's hard to comprehend that right now".
From the corner of his eye, Daechul caught a glimpse of Minsoo's tears.
He hummed thoughtfully.
"I know a place. It's an abandoned bridge on the other side of the city. When my father died, I used to come there all the time. It's peaceful there."
Minsoo turned to look at him.
"Take me there."
The man shook his head.
"First of all, get some rest. Sleep for a few hours. If you still want to go when you wake up, I will drive us to that bridge."
Minsoo sighed, but nodded.
"Okay. How do I get your number, then? To let you know?"
Daechul took out his phone from the leather pocket of his jacket, and handed it to Minsoo.
"The code is 1975. Look for your number in the contact book, and call yourself."
Pinkette nodded, and did as told.
"Thanks", he said, handing Daechul his phone.
Daechul just smiled.
/\/\/\
When the pair got home, all three of Daechul's siblings were playing outside.
The man killed the engine, and it was silent for a while.
"Thank you, Daechul."
"No problem."
Minsoo grinned.
"You know, even if you want everyone to see you as this emotionless, tough man, I know that inside you are just a big softie".
Daechul chuckled, shaking his head.
"Get out of my car, you brat."
Minsoo quietly laughed, and then both men stepped out and towards the front door.
"I will get some sleep, and then text you."
Daechul nodded, and then the boy was gone, not even stopping by to talk with Go's.
"What happened to Minsoo?", asked Jungyun when Daechul greeted his siblings.
"Family drama. Somehow he found out about the Hyun mafia."
Jungyun widened his eyes.
"Oh sh-"
Daechul's sharp eyes made his younger brother quickly stop the sentence, mindful of the twins on the swings just a few feet away.
"-shoot. That must've been harsh."
"Indeed. Is everyone home?"
Jungyun shook his head.
"No, our parents and Won's went to get some lunch. The twins really wanted to stay though, so I did too, to look after them."
Daechul nodded.
"Well, I still have some errands to run, so I'll be going. Bye bye girls!", Daechul waved to the twins. The girls laughed, waving too. Jun was enthusiastically shouting 'bye bye', which made Daechul grin.
"Bye, Chulie."
The man smiled, and then he was on his way to the gang building, intended to check on Kimoon, hoping that he wasn't completely wasted.
/\/\/\
Surprisingly, all four of his friends were sober, when Daechul stepped into his office.
Kimoon no longer looked paler than the whites of his eyes.
When they saw him, Kimoon searched his face.
"Is he home?"
"Yes, don't worry. I sent him to sleep it off. Minsoo will forgive you, just give it time, Moon. Now he's more sad than angry. "
The boy nodded, thankful.
"Thanks, Daechul. God, it's such a mess right now. When can we catch a break?"
Daechul chuckled.
"Knowing us, never."
"So, what now?", asked Jinwoo.
"Now, we rest a little. I'm exhausted", offered Ilsung.
Everyone laughed.
"Right, how was your trip, boys?", asked Daechul, after he sat down in his plush chair.
"A bit boring. It's a smaller city, so less to feel excited about," said Kangmin.
"That's Busan for you. On the outside it could be seen as an ordinary city, but between closed doors, it's home for the most powerful gang in Korea," spoke Kimoon.
And indeed it was.