Save Me

     "Your change today is 75 cents," Jungkook says in a monotone as he hands the man his money and turns to write his name on a cup. Ever since leaving home for Seoul, Jungkook was stuck working long hours in a small chain café. At 17 years old he had left his boring life on the beaches of Busan and decided it was time to make it big in the capital of South Korea.
    Unfortunately, it was harder to make money here than he imagined. His apartment is small and in a bad part of the city. His job sucks and didn't leave him with any time to socialize or make friends. He is more or less a stranger to the city he has now spent more than a year living in. The only thing that seemed to change recently was the petite man that started frequenting the café. He has a slight daegu accent that he tries to hide and orders an americano every evening at 5:00pm on the dot. Each day he sits at a small table by himself that allows him to watch out the window.
   Jungkook finds himself intrigued by the man. The man's bleach white hair is more often than not tucked under a black baseball cap, a matching black mask covers his mouth when he isn't drinking his coffee. He never gives a name when ordering, simply answering Jungkook's question with a "just call the drink and I'll come."
  The mystery man continued his habitual routine for a month or so before he comes in later than usual dressed in his typical all black, but this time a matching pair of leather gloves adorns his hands. It is 10:30 when Jungkook has to ask the man to leave so he can close the store. Startling from his reverie, the man looks up and blinks dazedly at Jungkook.
"Yeah...okay..." he moves slowly from his seat. Then, something outside the window seems to catch his attention, making him run out the back door. His chair, knocked over in his rush, and his mug, long emptied of its contents, sit on the table. Jungkook doesn't put too much thought into the man's strange actions and just begins cleaning the tables.
  After locking the café, he walks down an alley heading home, whistling a nameless tune to himself. He gets a few blocks before seeing the man from the café appear from another alleyway up ahead. That's when Jungkook hears groaning from where the mad has just fled. The painful sound echoes through from around the corner and his heart begins to pound. He ran over to where the sound was coming from, his heart pounding in tandem with the sound of his feet hitting the pavement. Rounding the corner he finds a man lying among a pile of trash bags outside a restaurant. He can't make sense of the situation, but as he attempts to help the man up he misses the sound of footsteps re-approaching the scene.
   "I suggest you step away and forget what you just saw," says a familiar, accented voice. When Jungkook turns around it's the same man from the café. Thoughts begin to rush through his head, fueled by adrenaline.
'I can probably outrun or overtake this guy. I've got at least a foot on him. I can call the police right now, what are the odds he'll try fighting me too?'  But as these thoughts go through his head he again misses an important sound, that of the soft click of a gun. The man behind him had gotten up and is now holding a small gun to the base of his spine. He can feel the cool metal press against him through the thin material of his shirt.
"You've already proved that I'm nothing to the Yangban. At least let me do one good deed before my departure. Let me rid you of the witness," the man taunts in an innocent voice, laced with rage, blood leaking from the mouth.
Jungkook realizes he is about to die. He begins to accept this. Whoever this Yangban is don't sound like the type of people to care about someone like him. He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath, awaiting the fatal shot directly to his spinal column.
   But it never comes. Instead, the blond man pulls out a Maxim 9, hidden previously inside his coat, and quickly shoots the man before he can react. Jungkook, who was already shaking like a leaf, flinches as the head of the man behind him bursts like a watermelon. Blood and brains spray his back and stick to his hair. The sticky warmth of it seeps through his thin button down uniform. The stream of another man's blood flows from behind his ear and pools at his clavicle. Jungkook's eyes slowly open to stare owlishly at the man in front of him with both gratitude and fear. The man regards him with a sort of weary acceptance as he hides the gun back inside his jacket.
"Come on kid, we have to get out of here quick," the man rumbles in his deep voice. Jungkook just blinks at him without understanding. The man sighs and shakes his head before reaching out and grabbing Jungkook lightly by the arm, pulling him along behind him. Jungkook, startled by the touch, begins to panic.
'This man just blew someone's brains out and now he is taking me somewhere to shut me up about it, most likely by killing me too,' Jungkook faintly registers his own stream of consciousness through the sound of blood rushing in his ears.
   Too scared to attempt anything, and with another man's blood drying against his back, Jungkook follows the man through a series of alleys and into a waiting car. The car is black with heavily tinted windows and leather seats. The man pushes Jungkook into the car first and slides in after him, barely shutting the door before the car speeds off onto the busy streets of Seoul. Jungkook tries to steady his shaking hands while simultaneously trying to disappear into the car door. The man sitting next to him turns then, looking at Jungkook and releasing another heavy sigh.
"Ever heard of Cypher, kid" the man asks him. At first, Jungkook wonders why this man is asking him about computer coding, but then something at the back of mind dispels that train of thought. Cypher? Jungkook has heard rumors about a gang that supposedly ran Seoul under the name 'Cypher.' But those were just conspiracy theories, right? It was like the illuminati. There was no way one group of people could secretly run a whole city through organized crime. Yet, something in his eyes must tell the man all he needs to know because he begins to speak again. "Yes, Cypher is real and before you ask, yes I am a member of it, and no, I am not taking you somewhere to kill you."
The authority and boredom in the man's voice was contradictory, but strangely reassuring. Jungkook should be terrified, he knows that, but something about the man makes him feel like he is being honest with him and isn't an immediate threat to him(as if Jungkook can do anything about it if he were anyway).
"So your name tag says, Jungkook. Is that your real name," the man asks casually, but it was clearly not small-talk. 
"Jeon Jeongguk, but everyone calls me Jungkook," he manages to push the words out of his mouth as he takes turns looking at the man and the floor while speaking.
"Nice to officially meet you, Jungkook. You can call me Suga. Of course that is not my real name, so don't get any ideas about trying to call the police on me or something," the man finishes with a small chuckle, as if laughing at some inside joke with himself.
  The ride continues in silence, the chauffeur not even sparing a glance at the newcomer. Eventually the car makes its way to the richer part of the city. A mixture of curiosity and anxiety finally push Jungkook to ask Suga, "Where are you taking me?"
Suga's mouth slowly curls into a small smirk before responding. He gives Jungkook a small, assessing glance as he says, "To see the boss."
     Jungkook's eyes almost pop out of his skull. The words "I am not taking you somewhere to kill you" ring through his head, and he realizes the man must have meant that someone else was going to kill him instead. He doesn't know much about gangs or the mafia, but he knows that seeing the boss probably means his imminent death. The fear radiating from Jungkook is palpable in the luxurious car.
Suga lets out a yawn as he says, "Would you quit thinking so loud, kid. I'm trying to take a nap before we have to see the bossman."
"But I don't want to die," Jungkook squeaks out in response. At this, Suga glances at him. Seeing that he is, in fact, serious, Suga bursts out laughing. He smacks Jungkook on the back good naturedly, but it does little make Jungkook calm down. If anything the laughter causes Jungkook to be even more on edge.
"Don't flatter yourself, kid. You aren't important enough to be killed by the boss. You aren't worth his time."
The words meant to placate Jungkook do little to settle his shot nerves. The words even make him a little indignant. Who is Suga to tell him that he isn't important enough. Jungkook huffs like a toddler being scolded and turns to look out the window for the rest of the drive to their destination.
Some time later the car pulls up to a looming building, twinkling with the light emitted from the hundreds of windows. Jungkook's head bends entirely back as he gapes up at the building. His mouth hangs open in pure shock. Never before has he seen a building this tall. He has never had the time to properly explore all of Seoul, especially not this far from his apartment in the richest part of the city.
  "Follow me. Don't speak unless spoken too. Bow when I bow. And if you must speak to the boss, refer to him as Master, if you value breathing," Suga leads him into the building where security guards stand at the main desk. He follows Suga's example as he takes off his shoes and placed them alongside his phone into the bin waiting on the desk. He stands awkwardly as Suga takes out his gun and places that in the bin as well.
  "Who's the kid," asks the smaller of two guards. The stocky man has a nasty scar running below his ear into the neckline of his pristine uniform.
   "He's with me. We have important business with Master Kim," Suga barely glances at the men as he continues to lead Jungkook to the elevators. Once inside the elevators, a strange thought occurrs to Jungkook.
  "I think I left blood on the seat of the car," he speaks softly as if in a daze, a dumb look on his face. Suga just rolls his eyes and replies, "get used to it, kid."
They continue the rest of the ride up in silence. They are heading to the top floor. Jungkook wonders briefly whether this is an office building of some sort or an apartment building, but his question is quickly answered when the doors slide open to reveal a hallway leading to an apartment door. They face a dark, wooden door and Suga steps out to knock heavily on it. Jungkook follows him out of the elevator, wiping sweaty palms on the front of his pants.
   They stand for a moment before hearing light footsteps quickly approach the door. At this point Jungkook's heart is hammering in his chest. The door is pulled open swiftly by a man in a gray suit. He's tall and thin, with gray wisps of hair and a blank face. Jungkook decides this is not Master Kim. The man steps aside to allow the two to enter.
     Upon stepping foot into the apartment Jungkook can tell it is the most lavish penthouse in all of Seoul. There is no other place that could possibly be more extravagant than where he stands right now. His eyes take in the sight in awe. He has to catch himself before his jaw drops like a kid in a candy store.
     Suga walks to a point near the living room area and stops in the middle of the space. Jungkook follows after and stands idly beside him. They seem to be waiting for Master Kim. While they stand, Jungkook takes the opportunity to look around himself again. The rug he stands on-no doubt imported from a foreign country- looks more expensive than all of the furniture in his apartment. It looks softer than the bed he sleeps on. The windows making up the entire wall give a perfect view of the city in all of its twinkling, nighttime glory.
   From deeper in the penthouse, a door opens and a set of uneven footsteps seem to dance closer to the two men standing in the living room. As the sound gets closer it evens out to a steady gait. The source of the footsteps emerges from a hallway behind them and Suga lazily turns. Jungkook, whose nerves are way past frayed and at the point of complete internal combustion, caus him to awkwardly whip around and slightly lose balance. As he steadies himself he throws himself into a deep bow to match that of what Suga is displaying.
   When Jungkook is no longer bent at the waist, he averts his gaze from the man standing several feet in front of him. Instead, he looks at the man's shoes. They shine under apartment lighting, no doubt as expensive as Jungkook's entire wardrobe.
   Suga is the first to talk when the man gives him an expectant look, "This is Jeon Jungguk, and he witnessed the death of Jong-Hyun when he threatened to kill Jungkook and I shot him in the head." He says all of this with a detached monotone, as if reciting a script he has no interest in. Jungkook winces at the memory of the man falling headless behind him, the blood now crusty on his clothing and skin.
     Suga continues, "I thought you might want to see Jungkook for yourself and decide what is best from there." This part confuses Jungkook. If he is apparently not worth the boss's time, then why would he want to see him? Is he sizing him up to see what size box to stuff him in and send to his family? Jungkook rolls his eyes at his own ridiculous thoughts, but part of him knows that if this really is the rumored Cypher, then maybe it isn't so ridiculous after all.
    Finally, the man they came to see speaks up. When he speaks, Jungkook's head shoots up. His eyes bulge out their sockets in surprise. The man in front of him is young, maybe only a year or so older than himself. The deep timbre of his voice tells of authority, but it is smooth like velvet and silk gliding over marble. Not to mention, he is incredibly handsome. His light brown hair looks as soft as the rug Jungkook stands on. His one double eyelid seems almost charming to Jungkook, the asymmetry adding character. The softness of the man's face is a complete contradiction to what this man is supposed to represent, who he is supposed to be.
   "Well, I am definitely glad you brought him for me to see," the man says, eyeing Jungkook like he was about to open his mouth to reveal rows of fangs and devour him whole. "I think I might keep him," he continues, giving a big boxy smile that reminds Jungkook of a little kid being praised. The innocence of the smile has Jungkook so thrown off that the weight of his words take a moment too long to register in his brain, and when they do he finds that he can't even bring himself to care anymore. The adrenaline of the day has taken a toll on his body and his brain is filled with static.
   Jungkook bends into a deep bow once again and says, "Yes, Master." The boxy smile still on the man's face deepens into something resembling the Cheshire Cat. Jungkook is starting to get a bad feeling, a very bad feeling, but his exhaustion pushes it to the back of his mind. He is running on autopilot right now and only a bomb strapped to his chest could get a reaction from him at this point.