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10. Aftermath

The car pulled up next to him. The windows were tinted black and he couldn't see inside but he knew who it was immediately. He opened the door when it came to a stop and got inside.

"Hyung! I'm so glad you're ok!" Ten's eyes shined and his smile displayed excitement and relief. "Where have you been this whole time? Why are you dressed like that?" He scanned the clothes Taeyong had on. They weren't his usually trendy streetwear or dark, chic look but rather a neat and clean, vibrant look. "You look like a highschooler getting ready for their first date or something. It's cute."

Taeyong looked down, forgetting he was still wearing Da Reum's clothes. He shook his head, not bothering to answer any of his curious friend's questions.

"Take me home so I can change and then we'll go see hyungnim." He ordered as the car started to move and he stared out the window, watching the familiar neighborhood quickly fall out of view.

"He's not happy with you. Are you sure you want to go now? Didn't you say before that you were hurt? Maybe you should rest more?"

"I'd rather just get it over with." He said blankly, still staring out the window. Ten nodded in affirmation, knowing well not to question him and the two spent the rest of the ride in silence.

They pulled up to the plain looking building that was tucked away down a rarely frequented street with no other homes or businesses around. It was unmarked and there was nothing flashy about it. To Taeyong, it was where he lived, but not exactly home. It was merely a place to hide away from the endless hustle. No one was allowed there but him and his closest people and hardly anyone knew where it was.

Ten pulled into the garage and parked. He quickly got out of the car and raced to the other side to open the door for Taeyong, but wasn't quick enough. Taeyong smirked and closed the door behind him.

"I've already told you that you don't need to do that. I have hands, I can get out just fine on my own." He patted his shoulder as he walked by.

"Yes, hyung." He stood with his hands clasped together in front of him and nodded solemnly. After he passed, Ten followed behind him into the house.

He walked down the dark, empty corridor leading into the house and was greeted by three men at the end, standing side by side in a line. They bowed their heads as he entered and greeted him in unison.

"Guys, seriously. You know I hate this."

"I'm glad to see you're ok." Jaehyun smiled and shook his hand.

"We were worried." Doyoung's forehead creased with concern.

"We missed you, hyung." Winwin cooed like a child.

Taeyong threw his arm around the cute, innocent looking boy's shoulders and ruffled his hair. As calculating and dangerous as the boy actually was, he still looked like just an adorable little brother to Taeyong and he couldn't help treating him as such whenever he could.

"I'm fine." He smiled reassuringly. "Call a doctor for me though just to check on my wound. It's been taken care of so far, but it wouldn't hurt to have a doctor look at it."

"I'll do it." Ten volunteered. Before anyone could respond, he pulled his phone out and dialed as he left the room.

"I can't believe you got stabbed, hyung." Doyoung chided. "You should have been more careful and waited for us."

"We should have been more careful and not have left him there alone." Jaehyun said sternly. "But they should have never done that. I'll kill those bastards."

"Alright, alright, let's just take one thing at a time." Taeyong tried to deescalate the building aggression. "For now, I just want to shower and change. We will go see hyungnim later and figure out what to do after that."