***

Did she not know him at all? Was everything she thought she knew about him a lie? While he spoke her mind went a thousand miles a minute as she nodded slowly. her nails digging in her hands, leaving angry red marks before just the indents remained. “we always have a choice,” she muttered but she wasn’t a 100 per cent there, not right now as she tried to weigh every syllable that came from Koichi’s mouth.

If it had all been just about money- would Koko not have been able to come to her? Her family wasn’t filthy rich but well off enough… “I’ve never seen you place a bet, not even buy a scratch ticket,” the woman argued- still unsure as she just knew something wasn’t right but could she say this? Could she just say I don’t believe this, do it better. Would Koichi ever be honest? or was this the truth after all and she was just too set on the reason for their big break to be massive. Some big mysterious secret so it was ‘worth’ losing your best friend over.

"We don't have to keep torturing ourselves with the past," he said then, jaw tight. "Maybe it's best to leave some things there." He wasn't going to let her mind wander further than it already had, catching on too many flaws in Koichi's flimsy story. Seeing her again in that grocery store after so many years had ignited some sort of a spark in him- like maybe, just maybe he had gotten a second chance to make things right. But now, it felt more like another way for life to torture him. He could never be truly honest with her. What was the point in trying to repair things?

“Why did you owe him money?” she asked and added “Was he a massive criminal? How did you meet him?” Something seemed off, this was weird- why would Koichi owe so much money to someone? He did not have vices bad enough to warrant such behaviour- right? A pinch of doubt was added to her soul.

He was young when he realised he had no way out of the situation he'd been brought in and throughout the years he'd been conditioned to be okay with everything he saw, everything he did, everything he heard. He'd stopped hoping for a way out, for help to arrive. Everyone was corrupt. Even the police. Especially the police. And now he'd finally gotten out, and he had to come up with a whole new string of lies.

"I used to bet on illegal street fights," he kept his expression empty, even when he felt like screaming on the inside. It wasn't too far from the truth; he'd spent some time among that scene, though he would never bet. He had been brought in every now and then to attend to the fighters when someone in the mafia wanted to make sure their side won no matter what. Was he a massive criminal? Yes. How did he meet him- hopefully that was explanatory enough. "It was.. stupid. I had no choice."

Fun. He grabbed the man and pulled him out of the bullet’s way. “Now, now” Hemlock answered as he was shoved backwards with surprising strength for a human twink out on the run. He knew the other was strong though (from their fuckin) so he shouldn’t be too surprised.

One eyebrow raised as the other snapped at them. That was interesting, Hemlock would’ve assumed that the other would be crying or in a panic. Instead pinkie pie was just mad. “Hell is right,” he answered as he looked at the people running away in an appropriate panicked way and then back to his ‘friend’. Of course he had to follow the man as he ran off and sighed. Refusing to run as well he walked faster- and realised that looked dumb so rolled his eyes and sprinted after Katashi- he knew the way here so as he caught up to the other he nudged him into a PC bang- quickly scanning his membership card and picking two computers for them to sit at- in one of the dating set-ups where it was one private desk for two people.

He should bring Amos here some day. Heh.

“So, you often get shot at?” they ask Katashi as they boot up some multiplayer game with bright colours where you have to suck up brightly coloured slimes and can shoot them around. Hemlock reached over to Katashi’s screen and booted up the same game for the other. “Act natural,” they instructed the other with a grin as he slid the headset over his ears and motioned the other to do the same.

“Does Belle know? you like to be a human target in your free time” Hemlock knew the answer of course- or well, he could guess. But it was just so much fun to rile the other up and upset him.

"Rarely," grumbled, sliding on the headset, hoping the sound of the game would drown out the demon beside him. He disliked feeling comforted by a familiar face in a situation as dire as this, especially when that familiar face belonged to a demon who had had their hands his Lilybell. He swallowed hard when he was told to act natural, only then realising just how stiff his body was from the adrenaline.

"She doesn't and she won't," he hissed lowly, eyes locked on the screen in front of him as the new game started and the joyful slimes jumped around. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up when he heard commotion on the street they'd come in from, just waiting to hear the sound of the door opening. Stiffly, he made his character move and tried to focus his attention on the screen while still staying alert.

When another gunshot went off and the bullet hit a little too close for comfort, now nested in the wall of the building he was passing by, he began to sprint down the street without a proper, rational thought in his brain. He'd been trained better than this but it had also been a while since he'd had to be so alert. He glanced back, saw the person aim at him and for a second he was certain this one would hit. Before that could happen though, he was pulled to a side street and in his shock of being grabbed, he shoved his capturer as hard as he could.

Hemlock. That damned demon. "What the hell," he panted and looked back to the street where panicked people were running. It wasn't every day that something like this happen in bright sunlight. "Don't speak of this," instead of sounding terrified like one should, he sounded royally pissed. He was sure Hemlock knew what he meant with that; don't mention this to our mutual friend. "Time to go," he could hear more frantic running and he didn't feel adventurous enough to find out if it was the person chasing him or just the innocent bystanders. With one more glance towards the street, he bolted to the other direction.

"I promise it would only be for a week tops, my spare room also has a lock" Maybe Jinki was overselling it but he knew the man in front of him didn't have anywhere else to go and now being on the run, Jinki would feel awful and guilty of something happened to him. It's why he fell in love with the bar in the first place, when the twins ran the bar they would help all kinds of creatures that came through their doors. He started to really learn about the world through the stories of others, he learned how to stitch up wounds and just how dangerous fairies are. He loved to help people whenever he could, especially without it feeling like a charity case.

He took a sip of his coffee, holding the cup with both hands to warm his hands. He wondered if he felt slightly under the weather because of the travel. "Even without the lock I'd take it," he smiled at the other, offering a bit of his trust to the other. It felt odd to feel like he could trust a stranger so easily when all he'd ever been taught was to not do so.

“So you have new people you trust?” she asked in a smaller voice. But she had caught that look and she stomped again. She had been his best friend for ages- of course she would notice! “WHAT WAS THAT” she yelled at him and pointed. She KNEW she saw something and poked his chest. “I SAW that.” she  squeaked as she got all worked up again.

“I knew you didn’t just stop being a healer!  Well, I wanted to believe it but you made it really hard. What is it Koichi??” she insisted not listening to his warnings at all as she invaded his personal space and tiptoed to get closer to the other. “I will not stop! You need to tell me the truth and you need to tell me NOW. I will not leave- I will not rest until I know what is wrong with you. You might have found other people to trust but I still want to be your friend.” she insisted as she stomped on the ground again and balled her fists. “I can handle it, whatever it is, I am not a child anymore!”

Oh she was getting all ready now for whatever the other had done- or what he had gotten himself into. It had to be BIG for him to be so scared and have sacrificed their friendship and his oath like that!

He braced himself inwardly. "The man was someone I owed money to. A lot of it. If he had survived, I would've been in a lot of trouble," he lied a little too easily, painting himself as the one to blame just like he always did. Maybe this was something Belle couldn't forgive him for and even if it'd break him, it was for the best for the both of them. After all this time, he was still doing the exact thing he had been taught to do since he was a child; to cover for the mafia. Take the blame. Come up with something. Take the beating whether it was mental or physical.

He immideatly caught on to what the other was saying and he nodded. “Well as you know I was a boxer” in loose terms “that’s pretty much all I did, went to ‘work’ came home. A pretty boring guy” He laughed before downing the last of his beer. “Now it’s different I’m outside more, I’m meeting new people. I feel like I’m making a difference”

He waved over one of the servers and ordered another round of beer and two shots of whisky. “You don’t have to take it if you don’t want to but I feel like we should celebrate!” He smiled speaking once the server left.

"You are making a difference," he confirmed, "and a big one I'd say. Those kids will be forever grateful." It gave him hope that one day he'd also find his place and could help people. For now, he'd continue hiding and even more specifically, he'd continue drinking for the night. He caught up with the other by downing the rest of his beer while Yongguk ordered them some more, snorting at him. "I'd never turn down whiskey," he said, grabbing the glass when it arrived.

At the mention of coffee, Jiwoo nodded and followed the other's lead, expecting that both of them would be heading to Koichi's kitchen. "Noted," she said with a hum, eyes tracking Koichi's movements as they prepared coffee. Jiwoo wasn't much of a fan of the drink, nor was she knowledgeable in beans and such, but she could appreciate the art form itself. The blonde liked to think that any other hobby or craft had similar base principles as blacksmithing, which was why she respected each and every one as much as she did.

Leaning back against the wall right next to the kitchen's doorway, Jiwoo crosses her arms in front of her chest. "The clan is planning to simply accept an x deal of sorts with the mafia after adjusting a a few of the terms involved." She paused, tilting her head, "I'm going to suggest that we dig a bit more about the mafia's background. I'm fairly sure they have a hidden motive of sorts, so they won't be content with an equivalent exchange."

Humans were inherently greedy, and even if the mafia agreed to a trade-off, she was pretty sure that it wouldn't be long for them to want more. After all, the clan would only be lending them a team of their fighters, and even then, their people would only defer to the head that would eventually be assigned for the task. And if they didn't, well, humans were always easy to tempt and provoke.

Any regular person wouldn't probably notice the little details that gave away that he wasn't truly one of them. He knew Jiwoo would. But even then, it was an automatic response from him to try and be as indifferent as possible. While he listened to her plan, he measured scoops of coffee grounds onto the metal filter and filled an electric kettle for his pour over. In his opinion, coffee always tasted better with that if he had to make it in his own kitchen. It was thicker and had a round flavour instead of the tinge of bitterness a regular coffee maker gave.

Once the kettle had been turned on, he turned towards the other, leaning against the counter, his eyebrows slightly pinched together. "I have no doubts your clan couldn't hold your own if things go awry- but I would still be careful when you dig around. They have unexpected allies. I can't help with all of them since I haven't been with them for a while. I also imagine they must have changed some things after someone who lived with them ran away with all the information I have," it was partially why they were after him; he knew far too much. But he was also too valuable to simply kill off. Sometimes he wished he was more insignificant.

The water boiled and he got back to preparing their cups. He began to pour the water over the coffee grounds in slow circles, the sound of the pour over filling like music to his ears. "I may know you but I don't know your clan. You're asking me to not only give my name to them but also the names of the only people I care for. Excuse my lack of trust," he placed the kettle down and pulled out two cups from a cupboard; he was sure Jiwoo would understand where he came from. Both of them were smart to not trust just anyone. "I'm unsure if deception is only a human trait. There might always be someone in a group who uses information the wrong way."

Her cheeks red now and her eyes glassy from tears welling up in frustration and anger as he said he couldn’t do this. Do WHAT exactly!?! “What the fuck do you mean you’re in trouble? That much is clear but what is going on? You can’t tell ME?” she yelled the last part “Why not ME?” she should have been the person who knew everything about him as he once had known everything about her.

Maybe not? “You can’t just pull away every time, you can’t keep avoiding this- me.” a pause as she took a step backwards and eyed him up and down. “Or do you have different people you trust now?” her old fear re-emerging that he had gotten together with someone back then and that she had been dumped. Not that they had been romantic back then but there had always been something between the two- and then there was their friendship. Something that she had thought was stronger than Koichi finding someone to love like that.

No- her brows furrowed. This sounded more severe. “Do you have a stalker?” she asked then as her eyes widened “Is someone looking for you? Is that why you’re hiding?” Koichi’s illegitimate child? No, or— maybe? She did not know. Something else? It had all started after that man… “Does it have to do with that man?” she then asked as she tried to search on Koichi’s face for an answer.

It was a lonely way to live when you had to be that careful. "I haven't seen you in, what, it feels like forever. Why do you care if there's other people I trust now?" it would be logical if he had at this point. He'd assumed she moved on from their friendship and found other people to surround herself with too. She had, hadn't she? He'd seen it. It was easier to deflect her questions than to answer them.

Scrunching his nose at how Katashi directed their topic of conversation to a place that he clearly didn't quite like, Yeosang opted to take an even bigger bite out of his sandwich, using food to avoid answering the question immediately. It wasn't that he was scared that they would do something to him (though he was pretty sure that was exactly what was going to happen if he didn't give them money), but the cloudling just didn't like thinking about complicated things too much. It gave him a headache and made his eyes water most of the time, so why even give it the time of day?

Plus, it wasn't like the cash he offered the guys affected how he budgeted his weekly allowance too much, so was it really an issue? They got a free meal out of things, and he avoided any sort of confrontation— it sounded like a win-win to him. Swallowing the food in his mouth after much chewing, Yeosang squeezed Katashi's hand, more for comfort for the other than it was for him.

His thumb idly brushed over the other's hand while he observed him, trying to read the cloudling's mood as he talked about the guys who had clearly bothered him. He seemed unwilling to speak further on it though and Koichi wasn't usually one to pry so- "Ah, yeah, that'll be difficult. If they ever do bother you though, you could tell a teacher. Or you can tell me," he flashed the other a smile even if no gaze was on him at that moment. He'd let the topic slide for now.