Angel With a Shotgun- Pentagon Yang Hongseok

25

Hongseok
"Maya, look at me," I call her attention away from looking at the baby girl clothes on a rack. I rock back and forth a little on a rocking horse.
"Hongseok..."
"Yeehaw?"
"What am I going to do with you?"
"Love me unconditionally?" I smile under my mask, as she laughs a little.
"Whatever," she shakes her head smiling. "Aww, look at this one!"
She holds up a small red dress.
"Does she really need that? How much are you planning to have her at the mafia dinners?"
"Not much," she sighs.
"Then, let's put it back."
"Fine." I chuckle at her shaky attempt to get the dress, getting off the rocking horse. I secretly grab the little dress, hiding it in my jacket.
"I think, maybe today, we should grab a crib. She needs one," Maya rubs her bump, gazing over to the other side of the store.
"Let's go choose one," I guide her to the cribs, my hand cradling her bump.

"What about white?"
"White is too bright," I exasperate. "How about... Gray?"
"Ooh, this in gray," she points to a crib. The wooden rails brought great detail toward the sides.
"I think we have our crib. We do need a car seat," I glance over at her taking a picture of the tag on the crib.
"Okay," she beamed at me. We stroll over towards the area with the car seats. I glanced at a few, but none caught my eye.
"You're going by look?" Maya raises an eyebrow. "Do it by comfort. You'd want to be comfy too, if it were for you." She places her hand into the seat, pushing down a bit, determining the comfort our daughter would need. She shakes her head.
"Let's see what else they have."
"How about... this one?" I place my hand into the seat, seeing the comfort level. "Oh, that's comfy."
"Can I see?" Maya walks up to the car seat, hand ready to get the comfort level. I step out of the way, letting her feel.
"I think this is the one."

The car ride home was filled with singing along to songs on the radio, me driving with a smile, until Maya asked a question.
"Have we discussed a name for her yet?"
"I don't think we have. What's on your mind?"
"Well, I want her to have names that symbolize all her heritages, so Thai, Korean, and English," she says aloud. "Oh shit, we have to come up with three names. And her last name- Is she taking yours or-"
"Maya, calm down, you're overthinking a lot for someone in a mafia group with gun training," I chuckle, placing my hand on her thigh.
"We are in charge of picking a name for a little person who will have to live with it their whole life, how aren't you overthinking?" She looks at me, an eyebrow raised.
"Well, I actually was called Jared in the U.S, so I think anything is better than that."
"Jared? You look like an Ethan to me," Maya chuckles at me.
"You're just lucky Maya suits you," I squeeze her thigh gently, smiling towards the road. "But, in all seriousness, I did find a name I keep thinking about. It's an English name, but it's very pretty: Esmé. It means beloved, which our daughter already is."
"Esmé," she repeats it. "I like it. I'm not 100% on it, but in time, I'll know for sure."
"What about Yeona for her Korean name? It means one who has a heart of gold. Or, what about Eun-ji?"
"Aw, Eun-ji, that's pretty," Maya sounds like she is smiling. "Where did you find that name?"

"Seokkie! Wait for me," a girl of about 8 ran up behind me. She stood tall, making me feel inferior. Her confidence was beyond that or whatever I could summon.
"Oh, hey Eun-ji, I didn't realize that you would be coming too," I beamed towards her, taking her hand in mine. "I'm glad you could walk with me to the comic shop."
"Of course, what would I have done: left you alone?" She ruffles my hair, linking arms a bit before a corner.
"Hold on, I have to tie my shoe," I kneel down, unlinking our arms. She didn't hear me, as she continued to walk across the street, only turning when it was too late. She was hit head on by a car. The driver of the car jumped out of the vehicle, while I remained numb, not wanting to acknowledge what I had seen. That day marked a sight that never once left my mind.

"Hongseok?" Maya's voice brings me back to reality.
"My former best friend as a kid... She was the most confident and smart person I've met. It didn't matter if you were mean to her, she was always kind to others," I describe her a bit. "She would've loved you."
"Why can't I meet her?"
"She's dead, Maya," I sigh, pulling into the driveway of the base. "She died when she was 8."
"Oh, I'm sorry," she looks down, thinking of what to say. At that second, rain drops started falling, causing, making her look out the window.
"It's been a long time, so I've learned to move on from that time," I sigh, unbuckling my seatbelt and climbing out of the car.

Maya
"It's been a long time, so I've learned to move on from that time," he climbs out of the car, slamming the door behind him. He storms into the base, soaked with rain.
I unbuckle my seatbelt, opening the door, calling, "I'm sorry!"
"Quit saying you're sorry, Maya," Changgu calls from the balcony across the front of the house. "What happened in that car?"
"Well, we were talking about baby names. He brought up the name Eun-ji. I asked him where he get that name and the way he talked about her... You can't tell me that there isn't passion when he talks about her," I explain, looking in the direction he walked.
"Well, can you come inside? Hui wants to gather us for a meeting," Changgu motions for me to come inside.

"To start off the meeting: Maya, starting next month, you will not be participating in these mission meetings because you'll be too close to your due date," Hui smiles in my direction, before looking towards the other members seriously. "We have an issue in that. Our rivals, Neo Group, have started to come out of hiding, since the bakery shooting search has died down to almost nothing. Be careful wherever you go."
"So, what does that have to do with me?"
"I have to up security on the base, so that when you take the break off the team for your baby; otherwise, you could end up being kidnapped or worse," Hui explains, a sound of glass breaking coming from the kitchen.
"What the hell was that?" Yuto pipes up, grabbing his gun from the waistband of his pants, and aiming it in front of himself. Hongseok followed, making sure Yuto didn't end up dead. They both make their way up the stairs.
"Hui, you have a visitor," Hongseok's voice booms through the house. Hyunggu and I look at each other, before following Hui and the other members to the kitchen. On the ground lay a man I didn't recognize, his chest under Hongseok's foot, and a gun to his face.
"Hello, Jaemin of Neo Group. Welcome to PTG Group's base."