The car ride back to Jupiter had been a blur to Yoojin. He couldn't remember if they walked in the back or front entrance. He hadn't paid attention to how everyone stared at him while the boss of Jupiter walked through the front lobby with his arm around him.
It wasn't until they were back in the penthouse and the portal shut behind him that Yoojin snapped back to reality.
The room was silent with just the two of them and seemed claustrophobic.
"You're the head of Jupiter? Why…" Yoojin pushed Sung Hyunjae back and stepped out of his arms. "Why didn't you tell me? W-were you just making fun of me this whole time because I trusted you?"
Sung Hyunjae smiled sweetly. "Yoojin-ssi trusted me? I'm so touched."
"D-don't fuck with me…" Yoojin tried to keep some distance between them. "Wh-what do you want with me?"
"I have always been honest with my intentions." Why was he getting so close? Yoojin stepped back, but Sung Hyunjae matched his steps. "I also found it fun to chase Yoojin-ssi."
Sung Hyunjae touched Yoojin's choker and hooked his finger inside the material. Yoojin gasped as the tall gangster dragged him forward so their faces almost touched.
"I had a lot of fun catching you."
Yoojin stared up at the golden eyes that seemed to darken the room in comparison and glanced at the door again. Sung Hyunjae followed his gaze and released his hold on the choker.
Sung Hyunjae turned Yoojin to face the door, his arm wrapping around his chest and the other gripping his jaw to force him to look at the door. Yoojin made a soft sound from the straining hold. Not in pain, but surprise.
"Are you thinking of running?"
"N-no…" Yoojin's heart sank. He could never outrun the S-Rank esper.
"You can be honest. I know you don't like mob bosses. And I would be lying if I said I didn't fantasies about chasing after you again. I'd bring you back, throw you on my bed, and punish you for disobeying me by—"
Yoojin elbow Sung Hyunjae as hard as he could, but it felt like hitting a wall. "Is your brain only filled with perverted fantasizes…!" Yoojin's voice drowned out as he realized he just hit the boss of Jupiter. Not some low tier-gangster, but the S-Rank boss of one of the top five syndicates in the country.
Yoojin shook as the hands snaked over his chest. Oh, fuck… exactly how many times had Yoojin insulted or been short with the boss of Jupiter?
Sung Hyunjae kissed Yoojin's temple. The small touch did something strange to Yoojin's racing heart. "Yoojin-ssi, I just wanted to tease a little. I didn't mean to scare you."
"My debt…"
"I told you. I'm no longer accepting money."
"D-did I do something wrong? Did I not pay you back fast enough? Is there something else you want instead?"
"No. I never cared if you paid the debt or not. It was simply a media to see you."
Yoojin's eyes widened. "You bastard! Do you know how worried I was because of that debt? And now you're telling me it didn't matter if I paid it off or not?"
"I offered to cancel it many times for you."
"What? When?"
"When I asked you on a date to the aquarium, but you said you would have to work late. I said if you went with me, I would clear your debt. The time when you said you liked my coat, and I said I would pay off your whole debt to see you wear my coat and nothing else. The time when you—"
Yoojin raised his hands to cover Sung Hyunjae's mouth and glared at him. "Hold on. Hold on. How did you become a mob boss when you handle your money so poorly?"
Sung Hyunjae laughed. Maybe Yoojin's debt really was nothing to him. It explained how he could buy the earrings.
"I don't consider paying your debt a waste." Sung Hyunjae lightly wrapped his fingers around Yoojin's injured hand and pressed it to his mouth. Yoojin flinched and pulled his hands back, but the fingers formed a cuff around his wrist. His grip was gentle. Sung Hyunjae kissed the cast, then Yoojin's wrist. "It brought you closer to me."
The soft lips brought a sigh from Yoojin. "I thought I told you to stop messing with me."
"Of course, but I'm being honest."
"Why would I trust a gangster to be honest?"
Sung Hyunjae turned his face to Yoojin with an amused look. "It seems like Yoojin-ssi has become used to speaking his mind."
"Umm, I…" Yoojin tried to step back, but Sung Hyunjae pulled him back and fell back on the couch, forcing Yoojin onto his lap. "Hey!"
Yoojin fell against his chest and scrambled to stand, but Sung Hyunjae placed a hand on his hip and thigh to keep him down. Yoojin's ears burned. He was sitting with his legs over the boss of Jupiter.
"I'm sorry about what I said. Now, please let me up, Mr. Sung."
Sung Hyunjae sighed, his hand on Yoojin's thighs drip down between his legs, forcing them to part. Yoojin gasped and sat straighter.
"I thought we passed that. We were so much closer. You were saying my name so sweetly all night."
Yoojin gripped Sung Hyunjae's arm to prevent him from drifting any further south. Sung Hyunjae changed his hold to clutch Yoojin's upper thigh, his thumb stroking Yoojin's leg.
Yoojin let out a shuddering breath.
Sung Hyunjae's voice lowered to a rasping whisper. "Is your skin tender here? I left a few love bites, your skin tasted sweet, and I couldn't get enough."
Yoojin's hands shook with strain, trying to push the S-Rank esper's arm away, but one little pinch from Sung Hyunjae's fingers and Yoojin lost his grip.
"Would you be doing this if I wasn't a guide?"
"They call it fate when an esper finds their perfect guide. Perhaps if you weren't a guide, I wouldn't be an esper."
"That?" Yoojin looked at Sung Hyunjae. A lot of espers had given him absurd reasons for why he should be their guide, but Sung Hyunjae was by far the most bizarre. "Kids don't even believe that."
Sung Hyunjae just smiled, and it reached his eyes. Yoojin must have had been staring too long because Sung Hyunjae said, "I know you like my face, but do you like the rest of me?"
"Huh? I don't like any of—" Yoojin once again reminded himself he was speaking to the boss of Jupiter. "Yes, I like how you look. If you wanted to quit being a mob boss and go into modeling, you would never go broke, even if you spent a billion won a day."
Sung Hyunjae's smile grew. "Does that mean you like me?"
Yoojin finally snapped. "What's with this nonsense? Why the fuck would I like you?"
"I like you."
Yoojin averted his eyes. "I said I would guide you already. So, you don't need to say weird things like that."
All espers were shameless. They would do a lot of things to get a guide. They would say or promise anything. Espers had confessed to Yoojin without knowing his surname. But that was before the incident with Yoohyun. It just hurt seeing Sung Hyunjae resort to these tricks.
Sung Hyunjae released Yoojin's thigh and brought his injured hand to his mouth. He kissed his way down his wrist to the inside of his elbow. Yoojin's breathing hitched.
Being in debt to the boss of Jupiter was only more dangerous now. Once Sung Hyunjae lost interest or found a better guide, what would that mean for Yoojin? Would he make Yoojin pay back his debt by guiding all the low rank espers like Choi Sukwon?
"I still want to pay it back."
"How noble of you. But won't that be difficult since I'm no longer taking cash?" He licked the soft flesh above Yoojin's forearm.
"I'll guide you."
He didn't even look at Yoojin. "I heard you're in a guiding deficit."
"… yes-ouch!"
Sung Hyunjae pulled his lips back and left a smear of saliva and a hickey on Yoojin's arm.
"I've promised your brother not to ask for guiding. But if you were willing to sign a dedicated guiding contract."
"No." Yoojin was firm. Especially now that Yerim had awakened.
"Then how do you plan on paying me back?"
"… I can cook." To which Sung Hyunjae said they already had chefs.
"Clean?" Yoojin had done countless part-time jobs after dropping out of high school. He wasn't above manual labor, but Sung Hyunjae said he wouldn't be able to work with a broken hand.
"Chauffeur?" Sung Hyunjae laughed and asked how Yoojin planned to do that without a license.
"I can scout potential awakeners."
"That would involve you actively guiding. I'm already sharing you with that little girl and the chef and that's the limit of my generosity."
Yoojin sighed in frustration. What the hell did Sung Hyunjae want? He obviously had something he wanted, so why couldn't he just tell him?
"Ah," Yoojin hissed. Sung Hyunjae left another kiss mark on Yoojin's inner arm, that caused his breathing to hitch. For a brief second, it stung. "Sex?"
Sung Hyunjae stopped. "Are you offering?"
"To… pay back my debt."
Sung Hyunjae's golden eyes bore into him.
"Yoojin."
Yoojin swallowed. "I'm already in debt to you. I-I refuse to have my debts continue to g-grow…" Sung Hyunjae's face inched closer and closer as Yoojin spoke. His heart rate shot up and he had trouble meeting those hostile eyes.
"No, don't stop." Sung Hyunjae said. "I want to hear clearly what you have to say. Tell me, in detail, every little thing you plan to do to relieve your debt."
Yoojin swallowed and kept his face turned away from the taller man. It was common, right? For guides to… to do that…
Sung Hyunjae turned Yoojin's face back, his fingers pressing into his cheeks.
Yoojin closed his eyes and tried to pry Sung Hyunjae's hand off his back and face. "I don't—"
"Are there any rules I have to follow or can I do anything I want? Can I choke you when I'm near climax, so you squeeze down on my cock? It won't matter if you get hurt, right?"
"Stop it. I didn't mean—"
"Can I skip foreplay and go straight to penetration? What about sharing? It'll look good if I bring a guide like you to my business meeting for everyone to try."
"Cut it out!" Yoojin shoved him. "You're just trying to be unkind."
Sung Hyunjae rested his forehead on Yoojin's, forcing Yoojin to see only those furious, golden eyes.
"You offered first. If Yoojin-ssi isn't sore, we can start now."
"Sore? Why would I be sore?"
"Here." Sung Hyunjae's hand drifted lower and clenched Yoojin's ass. "After I fucked you, you seemed swollen and a little red. But that won't matter, right? You will let me do what I want because of the debt."
Yoojin stared at Sung Hyunjae and couldn't believe those words had come from his mouth. Truth was, he was sore all over, not just there. And his back and hips hurt, he still had bruises and other injuries from dealing with espers, and still sick from the guiding deficit.
Sung Hyunjae smiled, and it sent chills through Yoojin. "No one would offer to repay their debt with sex unless they were prepared to accept the consequences."
Yoojin stiffened against the kiss that followed. It was forceful and different. He didn't want to deplete his energy anymore, but even under the coarse kiss, his skin felt warm.
"No matter what I asked for or how often. You would have to say yes, right?" Sung Hyunjae spook curtly in between kisses.
"I said I didn't mean it—"
Yoojin struggled to focus, but his guiding power seemed to have a mind of its own. If he wasn't careful, he could end up draining the espers' powers. Sung Hyunjae picked Yoojin up in his arms.
"Where are we going?"
"The master suite. I told you. I'd prefer if you used it."
Yoojin gripped Sung Hyunjae's arms. He was nervous. Yoojin had trouble swallowing because of his dry throat. He told himself Sung Hyunjae wouldn't hurt him, but he hated this, and Sung Hyunjae's anger really frightened him.
Sung Hyunjae laid him on the bed, and Yoojin closed his eyes and braced himself for what would happen next. The kiss to his forehead was gentle and comforting, completely different from how he had just been treating him.
"Goodnight, Yoojin-ssi. Get plenty of rest."
Yoojin watched the gangster quietly take his leave and even closed the door behind him.
Yoojin stared at the door, but Sung Hyunjae didn't come back. Did Sung Hyunjae really leave so Yoojin could rest? This wasn't how normal espers acted.
"Meowr." Peace jumped on the bed. Oh, this is where they've been hiding you.
Yoojin took the little monster in his arms and then looked around the enormous suite that he had all to himself. The unfamiliar room actually felt a little lonely. The gangster continued to puzzle him. Well, he wasn't just a gangster. He was the boss of Jupiter.
He was still mad at Sung Hyunjae for lying to him, but he couldn't picture the laid-back gangster as the head of the Jupiter syndicate. He was still just Sung Hyunjae…
If Yoojin had known that before settling his debts with him, he would have packed up everything and ran. Yoojin didn't want to rely too much on Sung Hyunjae. Every esper he had ever met was dangerous and the mob bosses were the worst.
But Sung Hyunjae hadn't acted like other espers he had known. He continued to feel like he owned him.
"Meowr." Peace's large eyes shined as he looked up at Yoojin. He must have felt uncomfortable in a new place and wanted hugs.
Yoojin smiled and cuddled the little monster. They were both well fed and looked after, and he felt a weight lift from his chest, knowing Jupiter would take care of Yerim.
Peace rested its head on Yoojin's shoulder, and they quickly fell asleep.
Somewhere Between Heaven and Hell
The next day, Sung Hyunjae had to leave before Yoojin woke up. Yoojin slept soundly, after the long day he had. Sung Hyunjae watched him for a moment. His small guide was curled up with the ferocious monster. It was satisfying to see Yoojin asleep in his bed.
Sung Hyunjae's frustration eased while he looked at the peaceful expression on Yoojin's sleeping face. When Yoojin had offered to sell himself to him to relieve the debt, Sung Hyunjae had seen red for a moment.
If he hadn't had bought out Yoojin's debt, would he had made the offer to someone else?
His reckless guide continued to have no clue how much he meant to Sung Hyunjae. He wanted to scare the fearlessness out of Yoojin, so he thought twice about ever offering such a thoughtless deal again.
Peace hissed and pressed further into the safety of Yoojin's arms when faced against the S-Rank esper.
Sung Hyunjae regarded the monster with a stony expression.
"Be good and keep Yoojin safe."
Sung Hyunjae walked into a rundown mob organization headquarters. The building was massive and rich, even compared to Jupiter. But the last time anyone had remodeled anything, including the furniture, had been a century ago. The older families had a hard time changing.
Sung Hyunjae was an hour late to the meeting, but greeted Diarma with a bow of his head. Lauchtas was a small branch of the Transcendent syndicate. The whole Transcendent family was reckless but powerful, even though they didn't have any useful skills themselves. They were all high ranking and come from a much larger family that spread its reach from outside Korea.
It wasn't difficult for Sung Hyunjae to deal with them, just annoying. And Diarma, the boss of Lauchtas, was a short-sighted fool.
Diarma stood from his desk and opened a briefcase that was three feet thick and filled with cash.
Sung Hyunjae raised his brow. "While I'm grateful that you are finally paying me back. I suggest you keep the money and try investing. Otherwise, you may need to come back to me for more."
Diarma's scarred fingers gripped the briefcase. "I want to buy the debt back."
Sung Hyunjae looked unaffected, but on the inside he thought, 'should I just kill him?'
He glanced behind him at the two S-Rank bodyguards and back at Diarma. The scarred covered gangster had no attack skills and Sung Hyunjae could out class his mental skills.
He could kill everyone and bring in the Dio Twins to destroy the building and evidence and say it was a 'monster' attack. The only problem was the other members of the Transcendent family.
Sung Hyunjae walked up to Diarma's fifteen-year-old desk and sat down in an old chair.
"What do you want with Han Yoojin suddenly?"
Diarma closed the case and sat down as well. He flicked his hand and the two S-Rank guards left. "Yoojin owns a restaurant in a bad part of the city. He'll never be able to pay you back before he dies. Give him back and take the money."
Sung Hyunjae's lips twisted.
"Like you said, he will never pay me back in his lifetime. What is so valuable about an unawakened to make you take such a loss?"
"You're the one who showed an interest in him first. You bought out his debt, paid over the current value, and ten years' worth of interest. Why would you do that?"
"I like the cakes he makes."
Diarma blinked at him, unsure what he meant. Unsure how he could use that against him or what real values Sung Hyunjae saw in Han Yoojin.
"Not even his restaurant is worth that amount."
"Then I will ask you again." Sung Hyunjae leaned forward. "Why do you want him? If your answer is good, I may have to double the amount of his debt and the interest I paid."
Diarma ground his teeth and looked at the large briefcase on his desk. "That… that's outrageous. It's rude for you not to accept my offer, considering my family."
Sung Hyunjae leaned his head in his hand on the armrest. "I've heard they refused to give you any more loans. What will become of your organization when you can't afford the S-Rank guards?"
Diarma's balled up fist shook on top of the desk. "Yoojin is different… I shouldn't have sold off his debt. It was a short-time fix to my finance problems."
"Different?"
He was sure Diarma didn't know Yoojin was a guide. Diarma wouldn't have let him go if he knew. That only made the circumstances of his request even stranger. Diarma was higher than S-Rank, so Yoojin's ability should've gone unnoticed. That was, unless Yoojin was a stronger guide than Sung Hyunjae estimated. Diarma may have been drawn to Yoojin even without realizing.
… that would be a problem.
Diarma suddenly met Sung Hyunjae's eyes. "I like him."
Sung Hyunjae's eyes widened in surprise. Of all the words, reasons, or even lies Diarma could have said… this was not one Sung Hyunjae prepared to hear. Sung Hyunjae burst out laughing.
"I have never seen a mob boss wear his heart on his sleeve. It's rather endearing."
"So, you'll trade me back?" Diarma asked, fighting off the mortification.
"No."
Diarma asked in disbelief, "Why?"
"It's insulting to trick me like this."
"What trickery?" His eyes darted away.
"You traded Yoojin's debt to me, hoping to keep the money and Yoojin. Didn't you? But once Yoojin was free from you, he never came back. Your love was unrequited and now you have nothing to hold over him."
Diarma sighed and looked… hurt. "I thought he felt the same way… he was always kind…"
"He was sarcastic. He's referred to you as handsy multiple times."
Diarma looked outraged. "I-I've never… I've… always been respectful."
Sung Hyunjae stood. "Now that I know Yoojin's value, I don't think I can set a price on him."
"You'll give him back?"
Sung Hyunjae tilted his head. "Is that what you think I meant? No, it means he's priceless to me."
"You can't be that intentionally heartless. Give me a price and I will find the money."
Sung Hyunjae thought about the ridiculous demand. "Transcendent."
"T-the whole family's syndicate? My parent's organization? Even my brothers' businesses? Tha-that's outrageous you would suggest that!"
"Then our business is done."
Sung Hyunjae turned and walked away. The whole meeting had put him on edge and left him in a foul mood. But a thought passed through his head that lifted the corners of his lips. Yoojin should be awake by now.
"I've heard you took in a guide." Diarma shouted. Sung Hyunjae stopped. "It's strange for someone with no interest in guides to suddenly take one after almost a year."
Sung Hyunjae didn't turn around. Instead, he reached into his pocket and touched the gold chain. His powers were fully stabilized and he would have this building in rubble before Diarma could blink.
"But you must be too much for them," Diarma continued. "I heard they were taken to the hospital with several injuries within the first hour of joining your syndicate. Even for a mob boss, that's careless treatment of a guide."
Sung Hyunjae looked over his shoulder at him. He released the chain.
Diarma spread his arms wide. "My family has cut me off financially, but they will never abandon me. Every month they send me guides. Strong guides and unique powered guides from all over the world. I will always have high-rank espers because I have the second highest amount of guides employed and there is a guide shortage in almost every country."
Sung Hyunjae frowned. "Jupiter doesn't need more guides."
"Consider trading me Yoojin for two of my strongest guides. They will keep you fully stabilized, no matter how rough you treat them."
When Sung Hyunjae didn't answer, Diarma held his hands up. "Okay, okay, just take them with you now. As a show of good faith. See what my influence can get you. Then, if you trade me, Yoojin, I will give you another two. Think of the powers you can reach, the effect it will have on Jupiter, and the effect on monster hunting."
Sung Hyunjae sighed. "You do strange things for love. Don't you?" He opened the door and walked out, ignoring Diarma.
A Case of Mystery and an Obsession with Missing Guides
The news was still covering the collapse of the main MLK headquarters. The Association Director had three missed calls from the MLK organization and ignored the fourth. He rubbed his temples. He already had a headache. There had been five monsters surges and two gang attack in a single day.
The news covered everything just fine. Why was MLK calling him, anyway? Part of his headache was because of Choi Sukwon!
The Association had been in crisis mode because of the absence of MLK, the monster attacks in their territory was impossible to cover on their own. If it wasn't for Evelyn Miller coming in at the breaking moment and offering an additional contract to cover the MLK territory for some measly benefits, they would be up to their asses in monsters and civilian complaints.
The Association gets to take credit for handling the MLK area while and Jupiter got to destroy a few buildings with Association turning the police away. They called it "monster demolition."
They really didn't know how good this deal was for the Association. Public opinion would go up and trust in the Association would increase again.
The public's concern for the missing guides and the national guide shortage was a constant nuisance for him. He didn't understand the whole esper and guide relationship. He was unawakened.
There was a knock on the door and Song Taewon stepped in. "Oh, Mr. Song, have a seat." The Director sat straighter. He envied espers and had a small fear of them. If anything, he resented Song Taewon.
Several espers had attacked the association building last year and if it wasn't for Song Taewon and some of the other espers, they would all have been dead.
Song Taewon didn't sit. Instead, he dropped a pile of papers on the Director's desk. "The current number of reported missing guides."
The director stared at the hefty stack and sighed.
"We've been over this."
Song Taewon talked over him. "There are no Association teams investigating this. The civilian police can only investigate case by case as guides fall under our jurisdiction. We need to make a dedicated team to look into these names."
The director sighed again.
"There's no proof these people were guides. Without properly registering with the Association, we will never know if they were guides or if their families are just trying to use our resources to find a missing relative."
The look Song Taewon gave him was cold, and the director felt sweat break out over his forehead. "Th-that doesn't mean my condolences don't go out to the families. But we simply don't have the resources to involve ourself with the unawakened crimes."
"There has been a raising number of registered guides going missing as well. It's in my report."
"Yes, yes, we are running the new guide abuse laws on television, so those should go down soon."
When Song Taewon didn't respond positively, the director added, "You know what? That's a great idea! Let's add a public announcement for all suspected guides to register with the Association. We can leave out the… this…" the director said, tapping the large stack of papers. "Otherwise, the public might go into a bigger panic. You understand, right?"
The director quickly pulled out another form of papers to look busy. He couldn't handle the icy gaze anymore. "Thank you, you're dismissed."
The director sweated for a moment until Song Taewon left and leaned back in his chair, releasing a breath. He looked at the papers Song Taewon had left on his desk and promptly pushed them into the trash.