Arrange Devotion | SS

Chapter 16. Heart's Lament

"Hong Joshua, lives on Street 04. Seokmin's new love interest..."

The words were spoken with a hint of mockery as a photograph was laid carefully on the glass table. It was a candid shot of Joshua, captured from the shadows, likely as he strolled the streets unaware.

The picture was grainy, blurred at the edges, but clear enough to see his eyes, wide and bright under the dim streetlights.

Whoever took the photo had been cautious, knowing that the slightest slip-up would bring Seokmin's wrath upon them, dragging them through the gates of hell for daring to spy on Joshua.

"Watch him," the man commanded, his voice a low growl. "No one makes a move until I give the word." He reached out, plucking the photo from the table with a slow, deliberate motion, his fingers lingering on Joshua's image.

He studied it, eyes narrowing with a mix of intrigue and disgust, before sliding it into the desk drawer, letting it drop with a thud that echoed through the room.

"When are you going to learn, Seokmin?" he murmured to himself, a cruel smile curling on his lips.

"You don't deserve love. Not you, not that deranged brother of yours. All you deserve is eternal damnation for daring to believe that you could ever be loved."

The room fell silent, the air thick with unspoken threats and the sinister weight of his words, hanging like a curse that was yet to be cast.

-----

Seokmin sighed, tightening his grip around his phone as he stared at the digits glowing on the screen. Joshua's number.

The number Joshua had given him after their dinner, the night that still lingered in his mind like a ghost he couldn't shake.

“Sir,” John’s voice cut through his thoughts, his eyes flicking to Seokmin’s phone before looking back up at him.

“What?” Seokmin responded absently, his gaze still locked on the number. He knew it by heart now, could dial it without looking, the sequence of digits branded into his mind so deeply that even amnesia wouldn't erase it.

“Mingyu is in the dungeon. The boss has had him captured for the past two days,” John reported, his voice steady.

Seokmin’s eyes finally left the screen, his thumb pressing the button to turn the phone off with a soft click.

“Good,” he muttered, swiveling his chair around to face the empty space of his office, his eyes staring into nothingness. The silence stretched out, tense and expectant.

“John?”

“Yes, sir?”

“What do you think about this... thing called love?” Seokmin’s question was casual, almost light, but John could hear the weight beneath it.

It made him suppress a smile, keeping his face blank as any good bodyguard would.

“I think it’s a beautiful thing, sir,” John replied simply. Seokmin hummed, the sound low and thoughtful.

“Joshua is beautiful too,” Seokmin said softly, almost to himself. John remained silent, knowing better than to comment on such a personal remark.

“What else?” Seokmin asked, his voice drifting as if he were speaking more to the shadows in the room than to John.

John hesitated for a moment, the silence thickening between them. He watched Seokmin, who was still lost in the depths of his thoughts, eyes distant, fingers tracing absent patterns on the armrest of his chair.