In The Heart of Darkness

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"I'm not sure how this slipped by me before," muttered JK.  He watched Hoseok as he stood staring at the bank information in front of him.  His face was dark and angry, his lips twitching as the muscles in his jaw constricted and released.  JK had never seen Hoseok this way. 

"I can't believe this.  He has been taking advantage of our security for his sorry carcass, and then he steals from the boss?"  Hoseok laughed in disbelief.  "Of all the nerve." 

JK continued recalling the method that apparently Taehyung had used to bounce the money around a while till it ended up in his Swiss bank account.  "I'm sorry I missed it."  He hung his head a bit and laid his screen remote down.

Hoseok shook his head.  "No, don't apologize.  The important thing is you found it.  The boss will be grateful because we finally have a legitimate reason to kick that little leech to the curb."  Hoseok gripped JK's shoulder warmly before quickly heading back up to the main house.

JK sighed and turned to lean on the desk, staring up at the screens of manipulated documents.  His eyes roamed the monitors and he felt ashamed.  Pulling in his bottom lip, he tried to come up with a way he could just get out of this entire situation, but nothing came to him.  He was trapped.  Partially by his own greed but also because he literally feared for his life. 

Namjoon had come to him several weeks ago with a proposition.  Help create a war between the two major families in Seoul and JK's record would be wiped clean, sparkling and new.  As if he had never become a hacker, or spent time in juvenile detention for it.  He scoffed at the idea of becoming a kid with a past as pure as the wind driven snow, but Namjoon gave him great assurances that it would happen.  It all came complete with a name change, a new passport, and a one-way ticket out of Hell Joseon.  Along with a handsome amount of cash, he would then be free to go back above ground.  To enjoy walking city streets again without constantly looking over his shoulder seemed like a far distant dream.  He was the most coveted hacker in all of the underground.  He stayed on the Min Compound to merely keep from being kidnapped, or worse yet, killed. 

While his greed and will to survive were strong, the pangs of guilt were slowly overtaking him.  Yoongi had given him a home and promised his protection when other people just wanted to use and abuse him.  He was treated like he had value in this place.  Given special privileges.  The most up-to-date tech a geek like him could ever hope for.  All while letting him indulge in his love for dance.  When he had asked for full length mirrors to line the wall of his "lair," Yoongi merely signed the check and waved him away. 

JK felt the betrayal he was committing was one of the worst things a human could do to another.   If everything went according to Namjoon's plan, plenty of people could die.  There was no guarantee that JK would make it out of this unscathed.  While he appreciated Namjoon's promise for his safety, he knew once bullets began flying he was going to be a sitting target. 

And JK desperately did not want to be a target.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jieun slowly packed up the few things she had, setting her bag beside the door so she could make an early exit tomorrow. Laying back on her bed, exhaustion washing over her like a warm wave, she sighed and looked at the ceiling through tired eyes. Yoongi always looked like he was carrying around something painful. It was if the secrets he felt forced to keep were always bubbling right under the surface. It intrigued her.

She closed her eyes tightly and muttered an apology to her father for finding such a man intriguing.

"Jieunah, when you go to get married, find a good man. I've seen plenty of bad guys, Jieunah. The men I work with are scum. They're lower than the dirt on your shoes. They may talk smooth, but they're liars. Filthy, stinking liars. Some of them aren't even human, I think. So cold and calculating. They're ruthless killers without one ounce of regret. Miserable pieces of human waste that unfortunately, I have to deal with. Promise me. Promise me you'll find a good man. A respectable man. Someone who wants to do something great in this world. Someone I am be proud of."