Chapter 44
Haru let out a slow, controlled breath, his fingers curling into tight fists. The instinct to retreat into the safety of the studio screamed in the back of his mind. He turned on his heel, ready to bolt back toward the soundstage, when a voice cracked through the humid evening air.
"Haru-ssi!"
He let out a low, visceral curse. The sound of his own name felt like a tether snapping tight. He stood frozen for a heartbeat before slowly turning back to face the threat.
The three men approached him with heavy, rhythmic footsteps. In their black suits and polished shoes, they looked like a funeral procession for his peace of mind. Haru centered himself, sliding into a subtle defensive stance. Unlike the previous time, when he had been caught off guard by a cheap chemical trick, he wouldn't go down without a fight. He was Sunghoon; he had survived the cutthroat industry of the 90s, and he wasn't about to be dragged into a van, once bitten twice shy, was the saying.
The men stopped abruptly five feet away. Haru tensed, his arms ready to strike, his mind calculating the distance to the nearest security guard.
Then, the unexpected happened.
As if synchronized by a silent metronome, all three men snapped forward into a deep, ninety-degree bow.
Haru stared blankly at the tops of their heads. The aggressive energy he had built up suddenly had nowhere to go, leaving him feeling off-balance and bewildered.
"We sincerely apologize for drugging you!" they shouted in unison, their voices muffled by the pavement.
Haru let out a sharp, dry scoff. The sheer absurdity of the statement ,the casual admission of a felony delivered with the politeness of a waiter ,made his head spin.
"What are you... is this a joke?"
"We are deeply, sorry," the one in the middle repeated, his forehead practically touching his knees.
"Is this a new tactic?" Haru asked, straightening up, though he didn't drop his guard. "A psychological play before you knovk me unconscious again?"
The men reacted as if he'd threatened them with a live grenade. They scrambled backward, and to Haru's absolute horror, they dropped to their knees on the asphalt of the parking lot.
"No! Please! We wouldn't dream of it!"
Haru looked around frantically. Anyone walking by at this moment would immediately assume he was power-tripping and bullying three middle-aged men into submission. The irony was so thick he could almost taste it.
"Get up," he ordered, his voice a sharp hiss. "Get up right now before someone sees you."
They scrambled to their feet instantly, though they kept their heads bowed at a respectful, submissive angle.
"Why are you here?" Haru asked, his tone dropping into a chilly, professional coldness.
"To apo—"
"The real reason," Haru snapped, cutting the lead henchman off. "The truth, or I call security and the police right now."
The man on the right looked up meekly, shifting his weight. "Our boss... he wants to see you."
And there it was. The invitation to the lion's den. Haru felt a flicker of phantom pain in his wrists where the zip-ties had been. If they thought that Sunghoon would walk back into that warehouse , or any room, with Kang Min-hyuk, they were living in a fantasy.
He scoffed, shoving past them with a shoulder check that sent the nearest man stumbling. He marched toward Alice's car, his pace brisk.
"What, you aren't going to kidnap me this time?" he seethed over his shoulder. The henchmen scurried behind him like ducklings, making sure to maintain a five-foot "safety zone" as if they were afraid he might explode.
"Boss said... he specifically said you had to come willingly this time," one of them offered, sounding genuinely stressed.
Haru stopped so suddenly that the men nearly collided with his back. The men squeaked out an apology and jumped backward, nearly tripping over their own feet. The scene was becoming a dark comedy, a far cry from the terror of a month ago.
"What? Did you run out of chloroform?" Haru snarked, his lip curling in contempt.
"No!" They shook their heads in frantic unison.
Haru's eyebrows furrowed. "Then why the sudden change in etiquette?"
One of the younger henchmen stepped forward, looking down at his shoes. "We were the ones at fault last time, Haru-ssi. The... he didn't actually tell us to drug you. We just thought it would be easier. He was furious when he found out."
"And what is that supposed to do? Soothe my heart?" Haru retorted mockingly.
The men grimaced. They had worked for Min-hyuk for years, and they were used to the "old" Haru. That boy had been quiet, compliant, following them into the car with the resigned slump of a condemned prisoner. But this man? This man was a hothead. He had a fire in his eyes that made their skin crawl.
Everytime Haru met up with the boss they weren't naive they knew they were sleeping together the boss would be in a better mood even buying them goodies but since haru ended up in the hospital Min-hyuk became a storm of silent, terrifying rage, snapping at every shadow. the situation worsened after Raiven came to the warehouse.
"No, of course not," the lead man said. "But please. If you don't come, he'll have our heads."
"Then I suggest you start looking for new heads," Haru said, his voice cold and precise. "I am not going. I don't want anything to do with him. Tell him to find a new hobby."
"But... Haru-ssi..."
"But nothing," Haru cut him off.
The three men shrunk back. They were in an impossible position.
"Leave," Haru glared at them.
They hesitated, their mouths opening to begin a fresh round of pleading, when a sharp voice cut through the tension.
"Haru? Is everything okay?"
Alice appeared from around the corner of the equipment trailer, her brow furrowed as she took in the three suited men hovering around her client. Sensing the hostility, she rushed to Haru's side, placing herself partially in front of him.
"Who are you people?" she demanded, her tone defensive and sharp.
"They were just leaving," Haru interjected, his voice softening only slightly as he turned toward her.
The three henchmen didn't argue. They gave Haru one last, synchronized bow - a bizarre farewell that looked like a scene from a Yakuza parody - before retreating toward their van.
Alice watched them go, her eyes narrowed in deep suspicion. "Haru... who are they?"
"They had me confused with someone else," Haru lied, the words tasting like ash. He headed for the passenger side of the car, his movements stiff.
Alice wanted to press him. But she saw the way Haru's hands were tense as he reached for the seatbelt, and she decided to hold her tongue. For now.
But as she pulled the car out of the lot, her mind was already working. She had a responsibility to the company, and more importantly, to Mae-rin. If Haru was being targeted by people she had to inform her.
Haru leaned his head against the headrest, closing his eyes.
He didn't know what Min-hyuk thought he would achieve doing what he did but he was not one to succumb to intimidation