Fashioned For Love | Minsung AU

Fifteen

~~~~~~~ 15 ~~~~~~~

Well they certainly made good on the need for that overnight bag. He wondered if he'd be walking with a limp the whole weekend after the way Minho had his way with him. Turns out, his boss was an insatiable fiend. It felt like a part of him that had been locked away was now unleashed and Jisung was caught in the crossfire of this released passion. Not that he minded one bit. Yes, he was sore, but it was the best kind and he'd have a full day at home to recover after Minho dropped him off later that evening. Neither of them wanted to part but realistically he wasn't sure he could handle any more rounds. But Minho was certainly dreamy. As demanding as he could be in bed (or everywhere in the house), he was adoring right afterwards. He insisted on having Han in his lap, feeding him and petting his hair. It was so sweet and unexpected and it made him feel special. Wanted. Valuable.

It was probably pathetic on his part, but the insecure side of him gloried in Minho's praise and attention. The fact that a man like him craved his body, his touch, his presence...it was....nice. And to top it off, he seemed to value Han genuinely too. Whenever they were both too tired for more vigorous activity they would just lay in his bed and talk. This time Minho let him in a little more, reminiscing on college days with Bang Chan and Changbin. Since his boss hardly shared anything personal, he clutched onto this snippet of information, his heart fluttering with the knowledge that Minho was trusting him with more of his life. God, he was dangerously close to falling in love with this man and they weren't even officially together. This definitely felt real though. It didn't seem like a fling. Surely Minho wouldn't be holding him like this, feeding him, talking for hours on end if it was just sex. Right? He didn't seem like the type.

So it was with those and other sweet and happy thoughts that Han found filling his heart.
The next week arrived and he was on cloud nine. But all of those warm fuzzy feelings ended around five minutes after he stepped foot into Minho's office Monday morning. "I—wait a minute, I don't understand," Jisung let out in a soft, bitter and breathy voice. "You want me to be your whore?"

"Han, don't be like that. That's not what this contract means," Minho insists, but really Han could hardly view it any other way. Lee Minho had already been seated at his desk, a fresh cup of coffee in hand when he came in. At first, Jisung's heart leapt for joy when his boss gave him that rare, warm smile of his but when he produced a contract for him to sign, it was like the wind had been knocked out of him. He couldn't even focus on Minho's words as he tried to outline the main points of the contract, his voice sounded so far away. He could feel his vision narrowing and then turning wobbly, before blurring with unshed tears as he stared at the offensive pieces of paper. "Han! Are you listening?"

Jisung blinked rapidly, refusing to cry in front of him, "Why?" he managed to croak out despite the tightness of his throat.

"This is to protect us both. It secures your job and my privacy."

"So you don't trust me?" He countered, anger and resentment now joining the pain that was flooding through his system.

Minho looked visibly annoyed, and he sighed, rubbing his face with one hand. "It's not like that. I just want things.... I don't like having things up in the air," he confessed. "Besides, you should be happy, you're getting more than your fair share."

Jisung's head jerked back, "What is that supposed to mean?"

Unphased, Minho pointed to the document, "For starters, until Nocturnal Allure is complete, not just the line but the actual debut, your salary will reflect that of the designers, not just my assistant." He dropped down to another bullet point, "Secondly, our arrangement," here he hesitated and Han's heart cracked further at the wording, "can't legally impact your status as both my assistant or your inclusion in the line. The regular stipulations per SKZ employment contract do still apply." Han nodded, only enough to prove he was following but he was starting to feel quite sick. "The rest of the contract mainly outlines the need for your silence, no discussing our business with others unless approved by me and no posting on social media. Undoubtedly we will be seen together but no official announcements can be made."

Jisung narrowed his eyes, "What, are you ashamed of me?"

"No. I'm private. Han-ah, I don't see why you insist on viewing this negatively," an exasperated Minho said.

He couldn't understand why he was upset?! Was he really that obtuse? Or did he just think that because he was the boss that he could simply demand whatever he wanted from him? He expected him to sign this, no questions asked? And what...continue their arrangement? A fucking arrangement. Not a relationship. He called it business. But this wasn't a merger or a new clothing line, this was supposed to be something more. Or had he been a fool this whole time? "And what about this part here? '...in return for Mr. Han Jisung's services...should these conditions not be met.... Definitely sounds like you want to pay me for sex."

Minho flushed guiltily, "It's not so black and white. I simply want to take care of you and yes...the conditions require that you are...available. But you can always say no. I'm not taking away your rights or anything. Just setting expectations. See there's a clause there that—"

"I'm an utter fool," Han says more to himself as he scoffs, tears rolling down his cheeks despite his best efforts. "I thought...." He paused, shaking his head, "it doesn't matter what I thought. I can't.... I can't accept this. I may be a poor kid from the countryside but I have more dignity than this. Fuck you Minho."

"Han—!"

And with that he stormed out of the office door with a slam. The other employees were in shock and curious eyes wandered his direction but he didn't care. He brushed away Yeji's attempts to get his attention and he was happy that Hyunjin and Felix were busy with their bosses. He didn't feel like talking right now. He just wanted to go home and cry his eyes out. He took the bus home, eyes widening when he saw the police cars and yellow tape around his building. "What?! What's going on? What happened?!" He asked one of his neighbors who were all standing around outside in tears.

"There was a series of robberies in our apartment. The police think it was someone in maintenance who had the keys. Everyone's place was ransacked."

No.

Han broke through the line of people, ignoring the tape as he raced up stairs to his apartment, a sob ripping through his chest as his worst fear was confirmed. The safe he tucked away in his closet was busted open and all of his money was gone. He'd been consistently setting aside money to send home for a while, and he couldn't trust his bank because they tended to use his savings to cover his overdraft fees and he couldn't have that happen again. But now what? "Fuck!" He hissed, falling to his knees. Five thousand dollars vanished. Gone, in an instant. And no one would believe he ever had that much stashed away. And worse, the police would suspect he was using it or obtained it from illegal means. No, he was simply out of luck. The timing of all this seemed particularly cruel and he couldn't decide if he wanted to laugh or cry.

But there was no way he'd sign that contract.

Ever.