Hanging by a Thread- Beomkai

Things Lost

Overwhelmed was exactly how Kai felt as he stared at the door to his condo complex. He sat upon a rooftop while mindlessly kicking his feet off of the edge. The elderly woman he lived above was cooking dinner in her kitchen. She once confessed that she was an heiress from Italy who traveled with a motorcycle gang in her rebellious phase. A story Kai didn't believe until he became a cop and could confirm it was true.

That sweet woman gave up her secure life by choice. Kai didn't have a choice.

His eyes traveled to the family that lived above him. A young couple who just got married and had a baby. He didn't know why they named their son after him but he was honored. Little did he know, he saved the husband's life once when he arrested his drug dealer. It was the wakeup call he needed to get his act together. Now, here he was tossing his child in the air to hear his baby's laughter while his wife cooked them dinner.

Kai always admired them. He sent them a giftbasket the day their baby was born. A small part of him envied them too. He always wanted a family. Someone to come home to and to greet him with a kiss. Someone to talk to about his day. Someone to spoil. He had so much love to give and no one to give it to. His home never felt like a home but at least he had one.

In his mind, everything would be so much easier if him Taehyun loved each other romantically instead of as best friends. There was no one on earth he felt more comfortable with. Their dreams and ambitions were the same. Their lifestyle mirrored one another. He could actually be himself, Kai Huening, instead of the feared Lieutenant around him. Everything was so easy with Taehyun. He just wasn't the one.

His career always came first. If a relationship distracted from his training, he broke it off. He told himself it would be worth it once he reached the peak. After that, he could finally settle down and have a family. What did that get him? An asshole who robbed him of life just before he was supposed to get his promotion.

Beomgyu took away his home, his job and his fucking soul. Kai hated him and he hated how right the Choi was. He couldn't live like this alone. His stomach sharply contracted again. His body collapsed backwards on the roof. His eyes squeezed shut until it was over.

When his eyes opened, they watched the clouds roll by. The sky was a gloomy gray. Kai asked himself where could he go now. He didn't know. With Taehyun chasing after him and Beomgyu stalking him, his options were limited. His parent's house was out of the question. His own, the one he lovingly started at, would undoubtedly have a watch detail placed on it. The Choi castle was safe but going there would compromise it. There was also the woods but if his squad searched the woods, they would eventually find the castle. Kai sighed as he came to one conclusion. Hiding in the streets.

He lept off of the roof and rolled once his feet touched the ground. In the corner of his eye, he spotted one of the squad's undercover cars at the end of the block. Two rookies were eating burritos in it. Knowing Taehyun, those two were assigned to watch detail.

Because of his job, he knew the police routes like the back of his hand. He went down an alley towards a section of the country they hardly visited. Salah City.

Mayor Klopp called it an "urban development" but those developments never came. It was a lower class area on the brink of poverty. Gentrification was their attempt at making the city more modern. Run down brick buildings were updated. The streets were swept and trees were planted on the edges of sidewalks. It worked for a short while until the middle class realized that nothing really changed. The schools were the same underfunded messes. Drug deals increased since more people meant more customers. It was like putting designer wrapping paper over a piece of trash. When the middle class moved out, the city went back to what it was before. The only difference was their aesthetics.

Kai ran like the wind. He felt like the wind as he blew past cars on the road. "Whoa!" A bird came out of nowhere into his path. He barely missed it as he dodged out of the way. The smell of a blood bank nearby caused him to stop in place. His eyes enlarged. He became a dog on the street, sniffing around to make sure he was sensing his desire correctly. His mouth salivated as his throat screamed for crimson liquid.

Robbing the bank wouldn't be hard. It would be satisfy his thirst and his morals. The only thing stopping him was his best friend. Taehyun Kang was the last person he wanted to investigate a blood bank robbing. Another text popped up on his phone from him. It read "CALL ME NOW! I KNOW MY TEXTS ARE GOING THROUGH HUENING! WHY IS YOUR NUMBER SPOOFED?!"

"Oh shit..." Kai was only called his last name when Taehyun was really mad. He ignored it then ran again. Once he reached Salah, he had no idea where to go within it. There had to be a place away from people. A place where he could sit down and wait to die.

A young woman stopped on the sidewalk and glanced at him. Her long red hair flowed behind her in the breeze. She grinned and asked "are you Kai Huening?"

Kai subtley dug his nails into his palm to direct his pain elsewhere. He offered a forced smile back then nodded. "I am."

"Can I get your autograph?! And a selfie?!"

"Um. I have somewhere important to be."

"It'll be quick! Please?!"

Kai's phone rang. He was saved by the bell. "I have to take this. Maybe next time. I'm sorry." He quickly walked away as he answered the phone. "Taehyun, this isn't a good time."

"MAKE IT A GOOD TIME!"

"Taehyun-"

"HE CAME TO MY HOUSE! HE TRIED TO KILL ME!"

"Well. Did you kill him?"

Taehyun balled his fist up to avoid tossing his phone across the room. "No. I didn't. The serum is in him though."

"Thank god." Kai breathed a sigh of relief knowing Beomgyu couldn't change anyone else now. After he died, the Choi would truly be alone until the end of his days.

"Kai. Talk to me. What's actually going on?"

Kai dropped down into an alley. His head rested against the red brick in exhaustion. He was tired of fighting his body. Telling Taehyun may not be the worst thing. His best friend would never kill him but maybe he could help him. It was all a good idea until he remember how irresistible he smelled. Why did the blonde have to smell so fucking good? "Are you okay?"

"Stop ignoring my questions!"

"I need to know that you're okay."

"And you?!"

"I'm fine." Kai was not fine. He rolled to his side and twitched on the cold dirt floor. "I have to go. Goodbye Taehyun." His phone shut off then was shoved into his pocket. His eyes closed as he gave up on trying to live. Death became welcome. This life wasn't worth living.

Beomgyu watched Kai grab his stomach from a distant roof. His arm still hadn't recovered from what Taehyun did to him. Truthfully, he wasn't even sure of what he was injected with but he knew it wasn't good. A liquid of sorts spread throughout his body. He could feel his heart pump for the first time in 27 years. Biologically, he was 23 years old. In reality, he was closer to 50.

27 years of being trapped. Something that was bearable when he had a family. Before he passed out, he had one thought. Living alone in this life was agony. Despite his feelings towards him, Kai had to be kept alive. When he woke up, he would ensure it.