(⚠️ Trigger Warning Ahead)
Souta and Ryouma dragged their feet down the dimly lit hallway of their family's house, their bodies sore from the earlier street fight.
Ryouma: "Man, I swear, if one more dude tries to jump us, I'm charging 'em rent."
Souta let out a breath, rubbing her neck.
Souta: "Yeah, well, next time let's make sure we don't showboat before kicking their asses. I think we made it way too fun for them."
Ryouma: "Hey, you're the one who pulled out the damn recorder like we're running a sting operation."
Before Souta could clap back, the sound of footsteps echoed from the other room.
Mio and Ren stepped into view, their presence commanding yet effortlessly casual.
Ren, still holding his cigarette between his fingers, eyed the two with a knowing smirk.
Ren: "So. Had a good day at school?"
Souta and Ryouma exchanged a quick glance.
Souta: "…Uh. Yeah."
Ren raised an eyebrow, his smirk widening.
Ren: "That's crazy. 'Cause I just got a call from some officers about two kids kicking the hell out of some street thugs."
Souta and Ryouma froze.
Mio, arms crossed, sighed as she gave them a once-over.
Mio: "At least try to look innocent next time."
Ryouma: (shrugging) "Hey, they started it."
Souta: "Yeah, all we did was end it."
Ren shook his head, letting out a dry chuckle.
Ren: "You two are a menace."
Mio waved them off, already walking back to the kitchen.
Mio: "Go wash up. Dinner's almost ready. And if I hear a single complaint about my cooking, you're both fasting."
Ryouma leaned toward Souta, muttering.
Ryouma: "She says that like we'd dare talk shit."
Souta snorted, dragging herself toward their room.
Souta: "Come on, before she decides to 'accidentally' overcook our portions."
As they shuffled off, Ren flicked the ash off his cigarette, watching them disappear down the hallway.
His smirk faded slightly.
Ren: (low voice) "You noticed, right?"
Mio, still chopping vegetables, nodded.
Mio: "They were being followed."
Ren's eyes darkened.
Ren: "Yeah. And I doubt this was just some random mugging attempt."
Mio set her knife down, her expression unreadable.
Mio: "Whoever it was, they know who we are."
A heavy silence filled the kitchen.
Outside, the city of Seoul continued to buzz with life— completely unaware of the shadows closing in.
Ren leaned against the kitchen counter, flicking open his lighter absentmindedly as he reached for the phone. The glow of the flame flickered against his sharp eyes, the weight of the situation settling in.
Ren: (muttering to himself) "Damn city never lets us breathe."
Mio glanced over while stirring the stew, keeping her tone casual despite the tension.
Mio: "Calling Katarina?"
Ren gave a slow nod, already dialing.
Ren: "Yeah. If someone's tailing the kids, we're not just gonna wait around and hope they had good intentions."
The phone rang twice before a sharp, no-nonsense voice answered on the other end.
Katarina: "You never call unless something's burning. What is it?"
Ren smirked slightly.
Ren: "First of all, hey babe, miss you too. Second, we might have a problem."
There was a brief pause. Then a sigh.
Katarina: "What kind of problem?"
Ren exhaled smoke from his cigarette, glancing toward the hallway where Souta and Ryouma were.
Ren: "The kind where our niece and nephew got followed on their way home."
A tense silence followed before Katarina's voice dropped in tone, all business now.
Katarina: "Describe them."
Ren ran a hand through his hair.
Ren: "Didn't get a good look, but it wasn't just some punk. They were careful. Too careful. That's what bothers me."
Katarina cursed under her breath.
Katarina: "I'll get my people on it. Any other details?"
Ren rubbed his forehead, thinking.
Ren: "If they were professionals, they wouldn't have gotten spotted so easily. Either they wanted us to notice… or they weren't expecting the kids to be that sharp."
Mio, still stirring the pot, smirked slightly.
Mio: "Well, they are related to us."
Katarina chuckled dryly.
Katarina: "True. But that also means trouble follows them just like it follows you."
Ren flicked the ash off his cigarette, his voice lowering.
Ren: "That's what I'm worried about."
A knock came from the other end of the line— Katarina giving orders to her officers.
Katarina: "Alright. I'll call you when I know more. Keep an eye on the kids."
Ren smirked.
Ren: "I'd be doing that even if you didn't tell me."
Katarina: "Good. Try not to get yourself arrested this time."
Ren laughed, a deep, easy sound despite the weight of the conversation.
Ren: "No promises."
As he hung up, Mio shot him a side-eye.
Mio: "She tell you to behave?"
Ren shrugged, stubbing out his cigarette.
Ren: "When has that ever worked?"
Mio sighed, setting the dinner bowls on the table.
Mio: "I swear, one day, I'm gonna be identifying your body at the morgue."
Ren grinned, walking past her toward the hallway.
Ren: "You'd miss me too much."
Mio flicked a chili pepper at his head.
Mio: "Go get the kids, idiot."
As Ren headed toward Souta and Ryouma's room, his smirk faded slightly.
His gut told him something bigger was coming.
And if there was one thing he'd learned in all his years— his gut was never wrong.
Ren knocked twice on Souta and Ryouma's door before swinging it open without waiting for an answer.
Ren: "Alright, gremlins, dinner's ready."
Ryouma, who was lying on his bed staring at the ceiling, groaned.
Ryouma: "Did you just call us gremlins?"
Ren smirked.
Ren: "Yeah, because you're small, loud, and probably up to no good."
Souta, who was braiding her hair in front of the mirror, snorted.
Souta: "He's not wrong."
Ryouma threw a pillow at her.
Ryouma: "Traitor."
Ren crossed his arms, leaning against the doorframe.
Ren: "I don't care if you two wanna fight to the death later, but right now, Mio cooked, and if you make her wait, she'll personally force-feed you."
Souta and Ryouma glanced at each other.
They both had one rule— never mess with Mio when it came to her cooking.
The two immediately scrambled out of the room, nearly tripping over each other in their rush to the dining table.
As they slid into their seats, Mio set down the food in front of them— a beautifully prepared spread of bulgogi, kimchi, steamed rice, and miso soup.
Ryouma's mouth practically watered.
Ryouma: "Mio, I take back every bad thing I've ever said about you."
Mio raised an eyebrow.
Mio: "Every bad thing? That's a lot of backtracking."
Souta smirked.
Souta: "Give him an hour. He'll be talking trash again."
Ryouma shrugged, already shoveling rice into his mouth.
Ryouma: "Probably."
Ren sat down, taking a slow bite of his food, his usual smirk faltering for a split second.
Souta, always sharp, caught it immediately.
She set her chopsticks down and eyed him.
Souta: "You look tense. What's up?"
Ren glanced at Mio, who gave him a subtle nod, silently telling him to handle it however he wanted.
He exhaled, tapping his fingers against the table.
Ren: "I called Katarina. She's looking into what happened today."
Ryouma slowed his chewing.
Ryouma: "So, it was serious."
Ren nodded.
Ren: "Yeah. We don't know who was tailing you, but we're not taking chances."
Souta leaned back, arms crossed.
Souta: "If they try something again, they'll regret it."
Mio sighed.
Mio: "You two act like you're invincible."
Ryouma grinned.
Ryouma: "Not invincible. Just built different."
Mio threw a napkin at his face.
Mio: "Built different, my ass."
Despite the joking, the room held an undercurrent of tension. They all felt it— the uncertainty, the weight of something lurking just out of reach.
Ren finally set his chopsticks down and grinned.
Ren: "Alright, enough serious talk. Eat your damn food before Mio decides we don't deserve it."
Souta and Ryouma immediately dug in again, while Mio shook her head, muttering about "a house full of idiots."
But beneath the warmth of dinner, they all knew— this was just the beginning.