[ 𝐗𝐕𝐈 . ] 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐓𝐎𝐖𝐄𝐑 .

An understatement. It scares him, how stupid Kangho is being. He’s always been a little dumb, but it’s never been this bad before. In the past, if he did something that concerned the people around him, he’d listen to them, learn from it. Not this time. This time, he’s hellbent on ruining his own life, fuck everyone else. It’s unlike him, and that worries Jae all the more.

“  hey!  ”        his  head  whips  back  up,  smoke  pouring  from  his  pouted  lips,        “  i’m  not  stupid,  you  know!  i  know  you’re  not  being  one-hundo  with  me  right  now!  ”

jongbae  might  be  out  of  the  loop  for  this,  and  most  other  things  too,  but  he  knows  the  difference  between  a  little  spat  between  the  two  of  them  and  whatever  the  hell  all  of  this  is.  there  is  way  more  tension  than  normal,  the  boys  haven’t  even  tried  to  make  up  yet!  it  doesn’t  usually  take  them  this  long!  and  honestly,  jae’s  reaction  has  jongbae  a  little  worried…

“  enabling  him,  how?  what  do  you  mean?  you  don’t  want  him  to  have  the  fun  he’s  having  or  something?  too  many,  uh,  fun  substances?  or?  ”        he’s  really  wracking  his  brain  trying  to  think  of  what  it  could  be. 

with  no  fancy  camera      (  yet  )      minsu  pulls  his  phone  from  his  pocket  to  show  her  the  images  he  took.  birds  in  flight,  large  trees  that  seem  to  touch  the  heavens,  buskers  and  street  musicians,  ocean  views.  but  the  subject  of  most  of  them  is  a  boy,  one  she  is  likely  to  have  run  across  online  —  twenty-four,  full  of  life,  with  a  smile  bright  as  the  sun.  minsu’s  camera  followed  him  around  the  city  just  like  its  lovestruck  wielder,  capturing  candid  smiles  and  staged  ones  equally.  the  only  images  that  minsu  himself  are  in  are  the  ones  where  his  phone  was  obviously  commandeered  by  this  boy,  and  despite  the  fact  minsu  always  did  his  best  to  hide  from  the  camera,  there  is  an  undeniable  light  in  his  eyes.

“  the  hotel  i  stayed  in  had  all  kinds  of  fun  colorful  windows;  when  the  sun  shone  through  everything  would  be  bathed  in  color.  i  wish  i  could  show  you  the  pictures,  but…  ”    —  but  they  are  all  things  to  be  kept  only  between  him  and  this  boy.  his  boy.  he  sighs  whistfully. 

The tour, exhausting as it was, kept him occupied. There simply wasn’t time to process every absurd and uncomfortable thing that happened in California. He’d have to accept it for what it was in the moment and move on. Magic is real, okay, holy shit, but I have a contract to fulfill, so I guess I’ll deal with it later. Demons exist. My new boyfriend’s brother is one of the fucking Saja Boys apparently. Cool. Fine. We’ll make it work. Speaking of my boyfriend, it’s on me to keep him from hurting himself, and after three weeks he whispered in my ear while he was on top of me that he’d marry me, possibly in a panic after I found out about The Incest Thing, so I don’t even know how sincere it was; meanwhile I can’t even let the public know he exists, and my best friend hates me now for this relationship, but I love him, and I’m scared, but I have a show tonight, so…

Each day was long and full, and at night the drugs lulled him into heavy, dreamless sleep. Now, at home, the idleness has settled in, and the dreams have started pouring into his head like it’s monsoon season. A lot of them take place at Zero’s house. A lot of them feel queasy and familiar. A bedroom door clicking closed behind him, lips on his neck, then teeth. Eyes like deep, contaminated wells, like slick dark oil. What happened and what didn’t? What’s a dream and what’s not? Minsu… d’you have anything to… to tell me? He never did.

Now, with California so far away, all of it might as well have been a dream. Even the good parts.

He answers, groggily, still seeing blood behind his eyes. Minsu’s voice is immediately soothing, a balm for his nerves. He settles into the blankets and lets out a breath.

an  audible  sigh,  minsu  wilts  onto  his  bed,  flattening  out  the  messily  thrown  blankets  at  his  sides.  it’s  like  a  drink  of  cool  water  hearing  kangho’s  voice  —  but  the  half  textured  microphone  quality  and  the  tinny  phone  speaker  all  highlight  their  distance  from  each  other.  half  a  world  away,  two  completely  different  times  of  day.  it’s  fitting  that  the  sun  would  be  other  there  with  kangho  —  be  can  almost  feel  the  warmth  through  the  phone.

almost.

“  i  miss  you  too,  ”       he  admits,  holding  his  phone  to  his  ear  like  a  child  holds  a  seashell,  kangho’s  voice  like  the  ocean  waves,        “  i  had  a  dream  about  you  and  i  needed  to  hear  your  voice…  to  make  sure  you  were  okay.  i’m  sorry  to  have  woke  you  up.  i’m  sure  you  must  be  tired.  ”

maybe  he  should  drop  everything  and  take  a  little  trip  through  the  forest.  maybe  falling  into  kangho’s  arms  would  fix  everything.  maybe  being  so  far  from  california  would  give  him  the  courage  he  needs  to  tell  kangho  the  truth  about  everything  he  has  been  hiding.  minsu’s  stomach  twists  in  knots  at  the  thought.

“  are  you  doing  the  squint  thing?  you  know  the  one,  ”        the  sleepy  squint  that  minsu  lovingly  teased  him  about  when  they  stayed  together  in  san  francisco,        “  i  can  hear  it  in  your  voice.  i  wish  i  was  there  to  see  it…  are  you  settling  back  in  okay?  ”

please help me.

i never said i would help you.

you think i got a chance?

aim straight.

no point in discussing names. we'll all be dead soon anyway.

hold your fire.

oh, i'm sorry, did i hit a fucking nerve?

everything was fine until you showed up.

not exactly the subtle type, are you?

there is blood everywhere.

how long do you think it's been there?

i'd say we got a week tops.

it wasn't technically a lie.

i'll go help them. you stay put.

t'is just a scratch.

you're bleeding buckets.

when's the last time you slept?

when's the last time you ate?

i'm right behind you.

let me see it, no use in hiding it.

i can't see!

i can't see you, where are you?

you got eyes on the target?

i'm catching up to the target.

i'm a nobody.

thanks for saving me.

get up, you're still in one piece.

you're not fooling me.

hand it over.

i won't ask again.

don't look at me like that.

drop it.

i have to try.

move out of my way.

i can't let you.

make them bleed for me.

i'll kill them.

kill them all.

it is my medical opinion that that could have gone better.

does this mean we're friends now?

nice catch.

good eye.

i have my moments.

let go.

i can't give up. not yet, not ever.

you need to rest.

take a break.

don't leave.

come with me.

you're a handful.

don't do anything stupid.

don't do anything i wouldn't do.

do as i say, not as i do.

i'm fine, relax.

don't baby me.

if you think this is bad, you should see the other guy.

i've dealt with worse.

i know it hurts. you'll be okay.

did you see that?

you're not alone.

i like to keep people on their toes.

i won't leave you alone.

what happened to you?

what the fuck happened?

you look like shit.

you clean up nice.

you look ... alright.

you look ... beautiful/handsome.

i have no idea how uncomfortable i am right now.

what did you do?

looks like i can't leave you alone for one minute before you start doing stupid shit.

what can i say?

you owe me for this.

i owe you, big time.

so we're even?

it runs in the family, doesn't it?

they drive me nuts, but they're family.

you wouldn't get it.

don't pretend like you understand.

i think you're the only one who gets it.

take it easy.

breathe.

i may have fucked up.

did you hear that?

can we go now?

i don't like this.

run!

this is no joking matter.

do you ever take anything seriously?

i'm not leaving without you.

i'm going to get you out of here.

leave without me. i'll just slow you down.

i'll catch up. go!

i thought you were dead.

peekaboo.

i know you're there, [name].

it takes a lot more than that to kill me.

we both know we can't do this without each other's help. so grow up and help me.

i hate you.

i love you.

i know you love me.

you love me, don't lie.

care to join me?

we are never speaking of this.

don't tell anyone about this.

why did you leave me?

the enemy of my enemy is my friend.

shut the fuck up.

i'm fucking livid.

your wish is my ... strong recommendation.

i'm calling it right here. this world can officially bite my ass.

take a picture, it'll last longer.

it's nothing.

leave me alone.

you're like family.

don't talk to me.

i know you missed me. i missed you too, you know.

i'm tired of pretending.

stop pretending you care.

we're safe, i think.

i only wanted to help.

you don't scare me.

try me.

what are they here for?

why are they after you?

whose blood is that?

do you love me?

you're not a bad person.

what are you hiding?

you're safe with me.

did you have fun?

feels weird seeing you again.

just like old times.

someone was here before us.

you're not as bad as everyone says you are.

are you always so serious?

you look like you've see a ghost.

i don't think i want to find out.

don't fucking touch me.

do you mind if i smoke?

over my dead body.

got a light?

forget you saw anything.

i'm too old for this shit.

i'll see myself out.

don't call me that.

i won't say anything.

did you come alone?

i want you to run, okay? run and don't look back.

you're all right. you're safe. it's over.

you're not acting like yourself, are you okay?

what's in it for me?

ladies/guys/people love me.

get behind me.

follow me if you want to live.

oh, fuck you.

i'll take care of you.

maybe you should stick around for a while.

i don't believe you don't care.

let me carry you.

look at me.

i'm this close to losing my shit.

i can tell when you're lying to me.

you're staring.

this is for your own good.

i don't need your pity.

can you walk?

i can explain.

they deserved it.

am i dead?

takes one to know one.

i don't owe you shit.

kill me if you're not a coward.

this better not be in vain.

are we getting paid for this?

you are one lucky son of a bitch.

please go. i can't look at you right now.

it takes two to tango.

do it, pussy. you won't.

let them go.

let me go.

let it go.

where are you taking them?

there you are.

it's me, you're okay, i'm here.

don't look.

do you care about anyone but yourself?

you got a weapon?

allow me to show you how it's done.

i can't believe i actually killed them.

i can't believe you actually killed them.

i don't like this anymore than you do.

you can trust me.

i know you're just dying to say something to me.

i can protect you.

you've been awfully quiet.

don't.

don't say another word, you hear me?

ha! i knew i could make you smile.

ha! i knew i could make you laugh.

you're going to hell, you know that, right?

we're going to hell, aren't we?

i got you.

you mumble in your sleep.

don't miss.

get a fucking grip.

pretty sure that's illegal.

i didn't ask for this.

no one's coming to help us.

we're fucked.

i think god hates me.

i think god hates us.

it's never been easy.

i was worried about you.

i'll drink to that.

you're joking, right?

i'll do the talking.

lady luck smiles on me today.

didn't take you as a softie.

don't go soft on me, now.

the quiet type, eh?

don't remind me.

i'm just messing with you.

that's an order.

come on, don't be shy.

i know someone that could help us out.

don't go too far.

don't lie to me.

i'd prefer to get out of this in one piece.

well, that was a waste.

let me do it.

they've got us surrounded.

stop lying to me.

time changes you.

come on, lie down.

i wish i was like you.

look at you.

are you proud of yourself?

we're almost there.

you should look away now.

i'm glad i checked up on you.

don't get mad.

watch your language.

because i love you.

keep that shit to yourself.

keep it up.

where do you think you're going?

it's ok to cry.

that's my boy/girl.

stay safe.

i need to tell you something.

can't sleep?

you can take the bed. or the couch, if you want.

listen to me.

i dare you.

snap out of it.

promise me.

i'm not scared of death.

you know i'd do anything for you, right?

SKEET ULRICH as BILLY LOOMIS