Target | Minsung

Chapter 9

Minho POV

I had stopped by the park, checking out a festival that was taking place. It seemed as if everyone in the area was attending. Maybe Jisung's friends were there too. I walked further into the park, observing a hot air balloon that was preparing to take off when my work phone vibrated.

I opened my phone to see a dim picture of Jisung tied to a chair. A black blindfold was covering his eyes and his head had slumped forward so it was resting on his chest. A few moments later, they sent a text to go with it.

Unknown: You have two options. Save Jisung and die yourself, or leave Jisung and live. For the second option, I'll even pay you the money that I initially owed.

I stared at the text in horror and disbelief. How could they do this to Jisung? He had witnessed the client murdering someone but he thought it had been a fight. He hadn't even been near the police station. The client should have known that. Why did they need to take it so far? The client sent their location along with another text.

Unknown: The choice is yours. You have an hour.

I quickly looked up the location on my phone and ran as fast as I could. A few weeks ago, I would have never cared about someone's life over mine, let alone a target's. I needed Jisung. I no longer cared if it took my life to make him live the rest of his in peace.

Building's and people passed by me in a blur. The time I had left to save Jisung was quickly ticking away. I rounded the corner of an intersection, heading for a hill directly down the road. I promised myself, by the end of this, the client would never be able to hurt Jisung, or anyone else, ever again.

I ran up the hill, my lungs feeling like they were burning. An abandoned hospital stood at the top of the hill. The exterior of the hospital was still in decent condition. The inside was a completely different story. Thick layers of dust covered every surface, cobwebs sticking to my face at every corner. Jisung couldn't be too hidden. It was clear that the client wanted me to find him. I walked down the deserted hallways, stepping over boxes and knocked over IV stands in the process.

A door across from the supply room stood slightly ajar. I peeked inside, spotting Jisung in the center of the room.

"Well look who showed up," A familiar female voice said. She walked up to Jisung and took off the blindfold. His eyes immediately darted to the doorway where I was standing. He was mouthing something to me but it was too dark for me to see it.

"Isn't this part of the deal? I show up and you let Jisung go," I said, stepping into the room.

"Yes. That was the original deal," She said cooly. "Though I changed my mind. I'll still let Jisung go since I'm no longer worried about him reporting me. However, I think it would be a bit more fun to make him watch you die."

At that, Jisung began struggling against the ropes and shouting incoherent words. The client looked over at him and he immediately fell silent. Without warning, the client lunged at me. I quickly moved to the side, falling to the floor. I turned around, lying on my back when a knife came dangerously close to my chest. I grabbed her arm, the knife hovering a few inches above where my heart is. She doubled back in pain as I delivered a kick to her stomach. Unfortunately, she kept a tight grip on the knife.

I stood up, grabbed the arm holding the knife, and twisted it behind her head. She cried out in pain but quickly recovered. Her arm came forward and the knife pierced into my left shoulder. I gasped, pain radiating throughout my entire arm. The chair that Jisung was in fell to the floor with a loud crash. Jisung grunted as his shoulder made contact with the tiled floor.

With my right hand, I grabbed the client by her hair and delivered a harder kick to her stomach than I had before. She fell backward, the knife falling just a few feet away from her hands. I rushed over to Jisung and began untying the ropes that kept him bound to the chair. The rope came untied and I tossed it across the room, helping Jisung stand up. He looked over my shoulder, his eyes widening.

"Minho, behind you!" He screamed, but I reacted a moment too late.

A sharp pain shot up my back as the knife pierced into the right side of my back. My legs buckled and Jisung held onto me to keep me upright.

"Bye Jisung. It was nice getting to meet you," The client said, sounding as if she was miles away.

Jisung gently lowered me to the ground, my whole body felt as if it was on fire. His mouth was moving but I couldn't hear what he was saying. I felt his hand gently running through my hair before everything went dark.

~~~~

Jisung POV

"Minho?" I cried, gently tapping Minho's uninjured shoulder. "Minho, can you hear me?"

He lay unconscious across my lap, his eyes were tightly closed. The only way that I could tell that he was alive was from his chest slowly rising and falling with each labored breath. I checked his pockets for a phone I could use and pulled out one with a small rabbit keychain attached to it. I pressed the emergency button, the call forwarding directly to a dispatcher.

I tried to stay calm as I talked with the dispatcher, telling them the situation Minho and I were in. The longer we talked the more frustrated I got. I didn't know how much longer Minho could hold on, and it felt like they were delaying his care. I held my jacket sleeve against the stab wounds trying to slow the bleeding as much as possible. Minho's blood was staining my sleeve and pants but I didn't care. After what felt like an hour, the dispatcher said that help was on its way. All we had to do was hold on.

Minho began to stir, his eyes opening slightly. He started to sit up but I gently pushed him back down. "You're hurt and sitting up is only going to make it worse," I said, trying to choke back fresh tears that threatened to fall down my face.

"Are you hurt?" Minho asked. Even though the lighting in the room was dark, Minho's face was as white as a sheet.

"I'm fine. Don't worry about me," I said softly, gently running my fingers through his hair. I didn't know if he would appreciate it but it helped me calm down a little. Maybe it would help him too. "Just hold on a little longer, okay?"

Minho nodded in reply. He opened his mouth like he was going to say something but closed it. I wished that the paramedics would hurry up. It didn't look like Minho could hold on much longer.