Answer ||| Ateez

6

He was a coward.

There he was, looking at the love of his life, and he had choked.

He couldn't even bring himself to stay for more than five minutes.

What the hell was wrong with him?

Mingi marched down the street, hands shoved in his pockets and head bowed as he mentally scolded himself.

How was he supposed to make everything right if he couldn't even talk to the man he loves?

"Because he's not the man you knew." Mingi sighed heavily and leaned against a wall.

It looked like Hongjoong, but it wasn't the Hongjoong he had come to remember.

This Hongjoong was cold and calculating.

This was going to be so much harder than he ever imagined.

"I should have never pressed that damn button!" Mingi tilted his head back and yelled into the night sky. It was a thought that crossed his mind on an almost daily basis now, but he knew he never truly meant it...

If he hadn't pushed the button, there was no saying what kind of fresh hell he would be in right now.

At least now he had the chance to try and make everything right.

Mingi pulled out his phone and pulled up the information he had managed to gather thus far.

If he couldn't start with Hongjoong, then maybe he could recruit someone else. Or at least try to.

Although he wasn't sure how easy it was going to be. But he knew he had to try. He would never forgive himself if he didn't.

So the next day, Mingi walked casually into a large parking garage and when he noticed no one was around, he pulled out a folding lock pick and jammed it into the keyhole of a black suv. Jiggling it back and forth, Mingi glanced over his shoulder one more time and pulled the door open.

After slipping into the front seat, he pulled out a thin block of silver and a special lighter. He used it to heat up the silver so it was soft enough to mold, then slowly fed it into the keyhole of the car so it took on the shape of the key.

It hardened in a matter of seconds, so he needed to act fast, but he was able to turn it and start the car.

With his new ride, Mingi made his way to the east side of town.

The houses became more and more run down the further he got. It was easy to see that there wasn't a lot of money here.

Several people glanced at him as he drove by, but Mingi kept his eyes focused on the road.

When he found the house he was looking for, his heart ached at the sight of it. Someone who cared about their home would never let it turn into this.

The yard was full of weeds and the paint on the house was peeling and chipping.

"What happened to you?" Mingi whispered. He pulled to a stop and slowly exited the car.

The curious eyes of neighbors followed his every move, making his nerves skyrocket, but there was no way he could back out now.

Taking a deep breath, Mingi knocked on the front door several times. His other hand stayed in his trench coat packet, wrapped around a knife and ready to defend himself if the situation called for it.

There was no answer, so he tried again.

And a third time.

Just as he was about to leave, the door opened wide. "What the fuck do you what? Does it look like I want fucking visitors?!" The man on the other side yelled at him. His brown hair was disheveled and sticking up in all directions, his eyes had dark rings under them, and he looked thin. Too thin.