[Warning: sensitive content]

As the day began to transition from light to dark, Seonghwa was becoming very impatient as he waited for Hongjoong to report back to him. He was beginning to believe that the faith he had in Hongjoong wasn't what he had anticipated.

The blonde-haired male sat at the large oak desk in the corner of his room, tapping on the wood softly as he stared blankly at his computer screen. Just as he grabbed ahold of the telephone beside his computer, someone came barging into his room. Seonghwa looked up, a pleased look flooding over his face when he saw Hongjoong coming towards his desk in a rush.

"I'm truly impressed with your work," Seonghwa said with a grin, resting his elbows upon his desk and interlocking his fingers together.

Hongjoong huffed out once he stopped in front of Seonghwa's desk, handing him a large yellow envelope. "Everything you need to know about Kendrick Downes is in that file. Everything from his birth records to what he had for breakfast this morning. Happy now?"

"Oh, I'm more than happy, I'm ecstatic. I knew you were the right person for this job, well done." Seonghwa praised as he opened the envelope to go over everything that it contained. "I suppose you've earned the bonus for your first job."

"Wait... Bonus?" Hongjoong raised a brow, tilting his head curiously.

Seonghwa looked at Hongjoong like he was stupid. "Yes, a bonus. Did you really think I wasn't going to pay you for your services?" He said with a slight scoff.

The blonde-haired male set down the envelope, reached down to open the top drawer of his desk, then pulled out a single check and held it out to Hongjoong.

Hongjoong hesitated for a moment, sighing out once he took the check from him. When he inspected the amount printed on the check, he almost passed out right then and there. His mouth dropped open with a frown, looking back at Seonghwa completely baffled.

"Is this fraudulent? This is some sort of test right?" Hongjoong questioned. letting out a breathless laugh. "You're fucking with me, you have to be."

"I promise you that check is entirely valid," Seonghwa said with a shrug. "Every cent of it is yours. I don't play around when it comes to money, you can trust me on that."

"Ten thousand dollars? Just for some information on one guy?" Hongjoong shook his head slightly, he couldn't believe this at all.

"If you would like me to void the check, I am more than happy to do so." Seonghwa titled his head slightly, holding out his hand as if to take back the check.

"N-No!" Hongjoong exclaimed, then quickly looked at the ground. "I mean, I'm extremely grateful for this. I didn't expect this high of an amount just for one job."

"Well hopefully this kind of compensation will keep you motivated to work for me faithfully," Seonghwa said with a subtle nod, taking his hand back. "You truly are a valuable asset for this kind of business."

Hongjoong held the check with both hands, just staring at the amount as he fell silent. He came from a decently wealthy family, but none of his family's money was inherited when they passed, all of his family's money had been left to a big charity for the homeless. Hongjoong had struggled financially for so long, this was a huge relief to him, he looked as if he were about to cry.

Seonghwa noticed tears beginning to well up in the eyes of the red-haired male, furrowing his brows in confusion. He stood up from his desk slowly as Hongjoong began to let out soft sniffles.

"What's your problem? Why are you crying?" Seonghwa never usually cared about things like this, but something inside him felt compelled to find out what was wrong with the smaller male standing before him.

"I-I... I-I'm sorry." Hongjoong said softly, wiping a couple of tears from his cheeks with the back of his hand. "This just helped me a lot in more ways than you could imagine."

Seonghwa rounded his desk to approach Hongjoong slowly. He sat on the edge of his desk, putting a hand on the smaller male's shoulder.

"You don't need to get all emotional on me. Please, I'm absolutely horrible with things like this." Seonghwa said with a slight chuckle. "The more work you do for me, the more I'll be willing to assist you with any financial problems you have, sincerely." This was the first time the blonde-haired male seemed to soften.

Hongjoong looked up at Seonghwa as he put on a smile, the tears in his eyes drying up. This was a side of this notorious man that probably no one had ever seen, it was almost eye-opening for Hongjoong. This man wasn't ALWAYS cutthroat and dangerous.

"I don't know how to thank you," Hongjoong said, shaking his head.

"Have a drink with me and I'll consider that good enough." Seonghwa pulled his hand away from Hongjoong's shoulder, folding his hands at his waist as he tilted his head.

Hongjoong stared at the blonde-haired male for a moment, shoving the check into the back pocket of his jeans. After thinking about it for a while, he finally nodded his head.

"Alright... A single drink, though. I still need to drive home afterward." Hongjoong agreed, chewing on his bottom lip softly out of habit.

Seonghwa flashed a cocky smile, standing up from his desk. "Who said I was letting you go home? I haven't had my fun yet." He teased, walking past him as he began to exit his bedroom. "Follow me."

Hongjoong let out an annoyed exhale, shaking his head. "This damn guy... He goes from sentimental, right back to his intoxicatingly shameless attitude." He muttered under his breath before he followed behind Seonghwa.

Seonghwa led the smaller male to the other side of the house to the parlor. The parlor was bigger than two of Hongjoong's apartment put together, a whole wall lined with expensive designer liquor to the ceiling. The bar itself was somehow made entirely out of glass, you could see every fixture running through it, seated with modern style, black barstools. Hongjoong shook his head slightly as he looked around the room.

"I swear, you have way too much money," Hongjoong said with a laugh, walking over to the bar and sitting upon one of the stools. "How the hell did you get a whole bar made out of glass like this?" He questioned as he ran his fingers over the fine details of the bar.

Seonghwa grinned as he rounded the bar, grabbing two glasses from beneath the bar and filling them with ice. "When you know the right kind of people like I do, anything is possible." He said as he grabbed a whiskey decanter filled with the caramel-colored liquor, pouring an equal amount in both glasses.

The blonde-haired male slid one of the glasses in front of Hongjoong, then picked up his own glass as he took a sip. Hongjoong picked up the glass, raising it to his lips and took a drink from it. The liquor was so strong it caused Hongjoong to wince as he swallowed, coughing soon after.

"What the hell is this?" Hongjoong choked, putting a hand to his chest as he felt the burn travel down into his stomach.

Seonghwa laughed at the smaller male's reaction. "It's whiskey, imported from a private distillery overseas. It's good, right?" Seonghwa said as he tossed back the rest of his drink, completely unfazed.

Hongjoong furrowed his brows a bit as he shook his head. "The flavor is great, but this is too strong for me to be drinking right now."

Seonghwa rolled his eyes, grabbing the other male's drink in his hand, then rounded the bar to sit next to Hongjoong. "Come on. You already took a drink, might as well finish the glass." He said as he raised the glass to Hongjoong's lips, flashing a charismatic smile.

Hongjoong looked between Seonghwa and the glass before him. There was no use in refusing because the blonde-haired male would make him drink it one way or another. Hongjoong grabbed ahold of the glass, deciding to quickly toss the rest of the strong liquor down his throat. Once again, he winced and coughed from the intensity of the drink.

"There's no way that's safe to drink," Hongjoong said with a soft chuckle, shaking his head as he groaned from the lingering taste.

"Probably not, but you can't find a better whiskey anywhere else in the world," Seonghwa said as he proceeded to pour himself another glass. "You sure you can't just have one more? It's not that late, you can drink with me and we can discuss the future of your service with me. I'll have someone drive you home later."

Hongjoong thought about it for a moment. This would actually be a good time to get to know this man better. Maybe Seonghwa would let something slip about potentially being linked to the Nims family.

"Alright, I guess I could have another," Hongjoong said with a little nod, holding out his glass.

Seonghwa seemed pleased with this answer, pouring the red-haired male another glass with a smile.

For the next few hours, they continued to have drink after drink, nearly finishing the decanter that was originally filled to the brim when they started. Seonghwa seemed to only be buzzed, hardly affected by the strong liquor, but that wasn't the case for Hongjoong, he was clearly intoxicated at this point.

Seonghwa noticed that the smaller male was nearing black-out drunk, and he decided this was the time to put away the decanter. "I think we've both had enough to drink for tonight. I'll get one of my men to take you home." He began, grabbing the decanter as he stood up.

Before the blonde-haired male could even take a step, Hongjoong reached out and grabbed ahold of his wrist.

"Wait, wait... No, not yet, just one more." Hongjoong made a pouty face as he slurred his words.

"No, you've had more than enough. I don't think you'll even have any recollection of what we've talked about in the morning." Seonghwa sighed out as he pulled his wrist away, rounding the counter to put the decanter back on the shelf.

Hongjoong got up and followed closely behind him, grabbing ahold of Seonghwa's arm this time. "You're no fun. Just put it down, one more, please."

Seonghwa shot a look at him as he yanked his arm away. "I suggest you stop before you overstep any boundaries." He snapped at the smaller male, then set the decanter back where he got it from on the shelf.

"Boundaries? You realize I make a living crossing boundaries I'm not supposed to." Hongjoong said with a stupid laugh, clearly unfazed by Seonghwa's sudden change of behavior. "Just like I'm gonna cross every possible boundary to expose the person you really are." He accidentally let those words slip, suddenly falling quiet when he realized what he had just said.

"You what?" Seonghwa said in a low tone, the look in his eyes becoming dangerous. "Repeat what you just said to me." He demanded, getting closer to Hongjoong.

Hongjoong backed away quickly, jumping slightly when his lower back touched the bar, Seonghwa had him backed against it. He swallowed hard, his heart in his chest was threatening to break through his ribcage and burst right through his chest.

"I-I..." Hongjoong couldn't even get the words out of his mouth, he knew he was screwed at this point.

Seonghwa licked his bottom lip, suddenly throwing a hand up and closing it around Hongjoong's throat. He didn't apply enough pressure to choke him, but just enough to hold him in place.

"Repeat. What. You. Just. Said." Seonghwa growled as his face was just centimeters from Hongjoong's face.

Hongjoong just shook his head, his eyes wide with fear as he stared back at the taller male. "I-I'm sorry... I didn't mean what I said."

"You're a fucking liar... And if there's one thing I hate most in the world, it's someone who lies directly to my face." Seonghwa shook his head, letting out a cynical laugh. "Now I get to have my fun." He threatened with a growl.

Before Hongjoong could even think, Seonghwa had let go of his neck and lifted him over his shoulder, beginning to walk out of the parlor. He resisted in the male's grip, but each time he did, Seonghwa dug his fingertips into his side roughly causing him to cry out in pain.

Seonghwa carried him to a room that was on the opposite side of the home. It seemed to be one of the many spare bedrooms, but it wasn't just any regular bedroom. Leather masks, whips, riding-crops, wooden paddles, and various forms of restraints were hung all over the walls on full display. There was a bed in the middle of the room that was lined with black satin sheets with decorative pillows to match.

Seonghwa threw the smaller male onto the bed roughly, clenching his jaw. Hongjoong tried to escape from his grasp, but Seonghwa was quick to catch him. The blonde-haired male pushed Hongjoong onto his back then quickly got on top of him, pinning him down with one of his knees digging into his chest. Hongjoong cried out in pain, then felt his wrists being grabbed roughly and forced above his head into metal handcuffs that were attached to the iron-barred headboard.

Seonghwa got off of Hongjoong, leaning his face close as he looked him dead in the eyes. "You'll stay here until I say you can leave." He growled in anger before getting off the bed.

"W-Wait! You can't just leave me here!" Hongjoong exclaimed as he watched Seonghwa storm out of the room. "Seonghwa! Seonghwa! Let me go! Please!" He cried out in a panicked voice.

Hongjoong struggled against the handcuffs for a long time, desperately trying to free himself. He continued to struggle until his wrists were completely raw. Hongjoong didn't stop resisting against the metal cuffs until he felt a warm liquid begin to run down his forearms, and that's when he realized his wrists began to bleed. Hongjoong could never stand the sight of blood, so when he saw this he just passed out cold. With the high amount of alcohol in his system, he didn't even wake back up.

_____________________

Next morning

_____________________

When morning broke the next morning, Seonghwa had changed out of his nightclothes, putting on a black, long-sleeved turtle neck and a pair of dark blue pants.

Once he was dressed, he decided he should probably check on Hongjoong, whom he'd restrained in the room down the hall from his own bedroom. He walked down the hall towards the room, stopping at the door as he knocked gently.

"Yah... Are you awake yet?" Seonghwa questioned, pausing for an answer.

Seonghwa waited for a while, frowning when he didn't hear a single sound coming from inside the room. He then turned the knob and barged into the room.

"Yah! What are you-" Seonghwa quickly fell silent when he saw the sight in front of him.

Seonghwa saw the blood-stained handcuffs and dried streams of blood going down Hongjoong's wrists. The smaller male wasn't moving, he couldn't really tell if he was breathing or not.

"Oh god... Please, no." Seonghwa darted over to the bed, crawling onto the bed next to Hongjoong, quickly putting his fingers to his neck to check for a pulse.

Seonghwa sighed out in relief as he felt a strong pulse still coming from the smaller male, Hongjoong didn't lose a lot of blood. He then grabbed the keys to the handcuffs, undoing the cuffs to free Hongjoong's wrists. He swallowed dryly at the sight of how bad the wounds were on Hongjoong's wrists.

"This was not my intention..." Seonghwa sighed out, gently picking up the red-haired male in his arms, and carrying him out of the room.

Seonghwa carried him into the large bathroom that was inside his bedroom. There was a large, clawfoot tub in the middle of the bathroom, in which Seonghwa set the smaller male down gently against the side of it.

He turned the knob of the faucet, running a bath of warm water. Seonghwa proceeded to undress Hongjoong down to nothing, then picked him up and lowered him softly into the water. The blonde-haired male grabbed a large white sponge from the side of the tub, getting it wet in the water as he grabbed one of Hongjoong's wrists, starting to gently clean the blood off of his wrists. Seonghwa was riddled with guilt, and he hardly ever felt bad about the things he did. He hated this feeling.

Soon enough, Hongjoong began to wake up, his head pounding intensely to the pace of his heartbeat. He groaned softly while opening his eyes, his vision struggling to make out where he was at first. He soon noticed he was naked in a bathtub, and his wrists stung immensely as he felt someone scrubbing his wrists.

"What the-?" Hongjoong looked over, his eyes widening as he saw Seonghwa cleaning dried blood from wounds upon his own wrists. "What the fuck?!"

Seonghwa immediately backed off a bit, looking at the ground with shame. "I-I... I'm sorry. I got out of hand, this wasn't my intention."

"What the fuck are you talking about? What happened last night? Why am I naked in the bath? Why are you cleaning WOUNDS on my wrists?" Hongjoong demanded frantically as he sat up straight to look at Seonghwa.

"You got extremely drunk last night and confessed to me that you were planning to exploit me for who I really was," Seonghwa said as he gritted his teeth slightly, looking back at Hongjoong. "I lost my temper and handcuffed you to a bed so you couldn't leave. I left you there, and when I checked on you this morning, you must've struggled so much that you sliced your wrists open. I was cleaning you off."

"You HANDCUFFED me to a BED?!" Hongjoong exclaimed, shaking his head. "What the hell?"

Seonghwa frowned at Hongjoong deeply. "If you hadn't threatened me with exploitation, I wouldn't have lost my temper."

"I was drunk! I had no idea what I was saying or doing! Don't blame me for this!" Hongjoong raised his voice, attempting to get out of the tub.

Seonghwa reached out a hand and forced Hongjoong to sit back in the tub. "You're not going anywhere. I'm in the middle of cleaning your wrists, now shut the FUCK UP and sit there. I don't wanna hear you bark anymore." Seonghwa snapped, grabbing Hongjoong's other wrist to clean the blood off of it.

"Don't touch me! You've done enough! I'm leaving!" Hongjoong tried once again to get out, but this time he was pushed back pretty hard. "Ow! What the fuck?!"

Seonghwa shot him a look and got close in his face. "I said... Shut the fuck up and sit right fucking there. I'm trying to make up for the mistake I made. Now please, stop resisting." His tone was surprisingly soft and calm despite the words he was saying.

Hongjoong froze when the blonde-haired male got close to his face. As he was told, he finally quit resisting, allowing Seonghwa to gently clean the blood from his wrists.

(Sorry I'm cutting this chapter off here since it's REALLY long.)

****THE STORY WILL CONTINUE IN THE NEXT CHAPTER. THANK YOU FOR READING****