For Your Protection- Sookai

The Interrogations

The couple walked through the C.P.I lobby to see Soobin's parents staring at them. Hyuka was thankful they weren't holding hands. An argument immediately ensued between them and his boyfriend. He stood off to the side, unsure whether he was allowed to get to work or not. Then, out of nowhere, Taehyun walked through with military gear on. Pretending he didn't know him was going to be weird.

Taehyun pretended his best friend didn't exist. Officers were walking behind him on his way towards the Chois. He looked towards the blonde family and introduced himself. "Hello. My name is Taehyun Kang. I am a former officer, and now contractor, for the United States government. I was brought here to assist with the case. Which one of you is Soobin Choi?"

Soobin awkwardly raised his hand. "I am."

"Excellent. And you are?"

Hyuka responded "Kai Jung. His assistant." The not-so-subtle jaw drop from Beomgyu was caught in his peripheral vision.

"Excellent. I'm sure we'll all be spending more time together but for now, I'd only like to speak to Soobin."

Soobin hated talking to cops. Their conversations were always long and went nowhere. "Sure. Shall we go to my office?"

"That sounds excellent. Lead the way."

Beomgyu split from his aunt and uncle to pull the intern to the side. His joy was contagious. He nearly wanted to jump up and down from how excited he was. "That didn't take long! This is going to be great!"

"What didn't take long?"

"You and Soobin!"

Hyuka genuinely thought the blonde's eyes were going to burst from their sockets from his enthusiasm. "Me and Soobin?"

"You don't need to do that. I love the idea of you two being together!"

"Fine. How'd you know?"

"You two came in together and he's wearing clothes I've never seen before. Is this serious or are you guys just fucking?"

"You're my boss!"

"You're dating yours!"

Hyuka failed to shove down a grin. "We haven't had sex."

"So this is serious!"

"I guess?"

"Why's he wearing your clothes?"

"He got a little drunk and puked on his last night." Beomgyu's persona was infectious. His energy had Hyuka in a good mood regardless of the tension in the lobby. "You're really okay with us?"

"God, yes. He's been so miserable lately. It's nice to see him happy for once. Can I just ask for a favor but really it's a demand?"

"Sure?"

Beomgyu's tone switched to serious as he put his hand on the taller's shoulder. "Don't hurt him. He's been through enough. If it doesn't work out between you two then so be it. Just let him go easy."

"I love your cousin. If I ever leave him, it won't be my choice."

Satisfied, Beomgyu patted his shoulder then lead him to the cafe. "So why'd you move to New York?"

"This opportunity. I also recently got out of a relationship so the location helped."

"How long were you two together?"

"Six months?"

"Any before that?"

The corner of Hyuka's lip upturned. "Had one for two years. I don't sleep around. I'm serious about my relationship with Soobin."

"That's all I wanted to hear. Order what you want. It's on me." Hyuka ordered a hot chocolate. Beomgyu did a double take and asked "I know the building is air conditioned but it's still almost 90 fucking degrees outside."

Hyuka held the cup in his hands with love. "I know."

Beomgyu knew it was about Soobin from the way Kai held the cup so protectively. The little blush on his face was cute. "You wanna do something together? See a movie or some shit?"

"Sure. You have my number. Just let me know when."

While the two discussed what to do, Taehyun came down with Soobin. He looked around. Richard was on the phone in one corner while Aria was on the phone in the other. Hyuka's unmistakable laugh let him know where he and Beomgyu were. He walked up to them with his hands firmly at his sides. "I'm assuming you're Kai and you're Beomgyu correct?"

The two nodded.

"I'd like to speak to you next Kai, if you don't mind."

"Will this take long? I have a lot of work to get to."

"It won't be long. Shall we?"

Hyuka waved to Beomgyu then followed his best friend up to a private office. When they were alone, he sat on his chair relieved. "Anything substantial?"

"Not from him. I'd love to talk about your date first though! How'd it go?"

Hyuka suddenly felt warmer than his drink. "Do we really have to do this?"

"You were going to tell me anyways! Might as well be now!"

"We're dating..."

Taehyun's enthusiasm dropped. "You're joking."

Hyuka slumped into his seat. "I'm not. It all happened so quickly."

"You fucked him already?!"

"No! I am not comfortable talking about this!"

"I really hope you know what you're doing. I toured the station today and the most they have on the guy was the substances used. Whoever did it has access to a lot of chemicals."

"You think it's only one person?"

"Someone would've been caught by now if it wasn't." Taehyun took a long sip of coffee. In the entire time he knew him, Hyuka had never been romantically involved on a case. His feelings had to be serious enough for him to pursue it. "I'm so worried about you. What happens when the case is over and you two are still together? Are you going to stay here? Are you going to move back? Did you think about any of this?"

Hyuka's head was starting to hurt. He rubbed his temples in slow circles. When that did nothing, he started to sip his hot chocolate.

"I just don't want you to get hurt again. You deserve so much better than something temporary."

"Thanks..." Hyuka sunk into a depression. "Was there anything else you wanted to ask me?"

"No. I do want to warn you and say that Richard and Aria are planning on moving him to D.C so they can keep a closer eye on him."

Hyuka's heart broke. "That's so far..."

"Soobin doesn't know it yet. I'm sure they're discussing it downstairs."

"I thought he was going to be in a hotel."

"In D.C apparently. I wouldn't get too upset. It's not official. Since he's with you, I'm sure he'll fight like hell to stay here."

Hyuka worried he wouldn't. It would be the first test in their brand new relationship. Depending on what Soobin said, he would know how serious an "I love you" really was.