Paint It Black - Jeongcheol

Chapter 3

KNOCK. KNOCK. KNOCK.

Jeonghan opened the door in his cherry pajamas, his hair loose, not styled like it usually is, he's holding a spatula. He wasn't fully awake. "Did you come here early in the morning to break my door?"

Joshua, looking pale and sweaty, barged in. "I'm gonna throw up. God, I'm gonna throw up."

"You came to my house to throw up?" Jeonghan asked, bewildered.

"Shit, what do I do?" Joshua panicked.

"You know where the restroom is," Jeonghan said, walking back to the kitchen with Joshua trailing behind him. "Don't you dare throw up in my kitchen!"

"Shit, shit, shit," Joshua muttered, feeling on the verge of a breakdown. He was freaking out for two reasons: first, because he'd slept with a cop; and second, which was even scarier, he now had to tell Jeonghan, his boss.

"Are you going to tell me what's going on, or just chant 'shit' in my kitchen?" Jeonghan asked, flipping a pancake.

He didn't look intimidating in his cute pajamas, making breakfast. It was almost domestic—not what you'd expect from the leader of the Black Lotus Mafia.

"Who am I talking to?" Joshua asked, sitting on a stool far away from Jeonghan.

"Jesus, did someone drug you?" Jeonghan asked half-heartedly, more focused on the pancakes. "Pass me the eggs."

"Yoon Jeonghan, my boss or Hannie, my friend?"

Jeonghan scoffed. "It's my day off, Shua."

Joshua rolled his eyes. What kind of mafia boss has a day off? "I still think it's ridiculous."

"It's called work-life balance. Do you know how many meetings I had to attend, how many guys I had to torture, and the mountain of paperwork I had to deal with?" Jeonghan replied, pouring batter onto the pan.

Joshua groaned. "Fine. I'll talk to you as a friend. Off the record."

Jeonghan nodded, flipping another pancake. "Go on."

"I slept with a guy last night," Joshua began, bracing himself.

Jeonghan barely reacted. "I know you like men."

"That's not the point. He—"

"Spit it out."

"He's a cop," Joshua blurted out.

Jeonghan froze, turning to face Joshua. Joshua braced himself for a scolding, maybe even a punch.

"Ew," Jeonghan said simply, then went back to making scrambled eggs.

"Ew? That's it?" Joshua asked, baffled.

"Yeah, ew. A cop, seriously? Out of all the guys, you picked a cop? I'm questioning your taste, man," Jeonghan teased.

"I didn't know! I saw his ID after I woke up and bolted," Joshua defended himself.

"Did he use handcuffs?" Jeonghan asked with a wink.

"Jeonghan!" Joshua Yelled.

"Shh," Jeonghan shushed him. "Shut up, my brothers are sleeping. Don't wake them up before I finish breakfast."

"Wait, brothers? Plural? Is Hansol back from America?" Joshua asked, momentarily forgetting his panic.

"Yeah, last night. I'm making American-style breakfast. Grab some plates; you look like you could use some food. You look like shit," Jeonghan laughed, his eyes crinkling. Then he got serious. "Now," he continued, and Joshua straightened his back, recognizing the change in tone, "have you considered killing him?"