~
Waking up with a jolt, Chun-hei’s eyes snapped open, the brown orbs looking around her room. It was dark, and Blu was still asleep next to her. Rain pounded harshly against the window on the far wall, thunder booming from above. Suddenly, sadness hit her. It felt as if she had just lost her breath. She was growing from within, and she couldn’t do anything about it. Tears spilled from her eyes, silently traveling down her cheeks and onto the comforter that her hands were gripping tightly. An instant beeping pulled her out of her self pity, her hand reaching over and shutting her alarm off. It as 4 a.m. and she slipped out of bed, her bare feet pattering across the floor and towards the bathroom that was connected to her room. When the light was turned on, she could see the tears falling from her brown eyes, the sadness that they held. But, today wasn’t the day for her to feel sad for herself. No, it was Sehun’s birthday and she had baking and cooking to get done. Quickly Chun-hei took a shower and got dressed, putting her blue eye contacts in before slipping her glasses on. The short navy blue pelted skirt she wore had her white sweater with one large navy blue stripe in the middle that had two small red stripes above and below it, tucked into it, a thin black belt wrapped around it to complete the outfit. Her mint hair was pulled into a messy bun and a pair of white slippers adorned her feet. When she left her bedroom, she left the door cracked open a bit so Blu could come out when he wanted too.
The house was dark and silent, everyone asleep. Silently, the small girl walked down the stairs, holding onto the railing so she didn’t fall. She noticed the kitchen light on, approaching the room slowly. Slowly, she peeked around the corner seeing that Xuimin was leaning against the counter, a cup in his hands. He looked up and over at her as she entered the kitchen, her feet shuffling against the floor.
“What are you doing here?” his question was innocent, but she felt like a kid caught taking a cookie out of the cookie jar without asking. He never really spoke to her since she started working, only giving her thanks after she cooked.
“Ah, it’s Sehu’s birthday today and I plan on making him a cake and a special breakfast.” Chun-hei managed to squeak out, her eyes watching as he lifted the cup up to his lips.
Silence fell between the two as he finished his drink and she moved around him to start breakfast. He stood where he was, watching her every move like a hawk, his gaze only ever pulling away to look out the window what a flash of lightning struck. “Why are you celebrating his birthday?” his voice startled her a bit, almost making her drop the container of strawberries she had in her arms.
“I may not know him very well, but everyone should be treated special on their birthday. It was the day they were brought into the world. I would do it for the rest of you as well.” her explanation seemed to confuse him, she hadn’t known any of them more than a week. First, she saved Chen and the others the night before, and now here she was celebrating the youngest’s birthday like she did it every year. Minseok watched silently as she washed the fruit off, already done with the cup of tea he had made. A comfortable silence fell over them as she worked, the older man watching her movements.
“Not even D.O. would get up this early to cook for someone’s birthday.” the eldest chuckled, earning a smile from the girl.
“I like to spoil people, maybe it was because I was spoiled by my brothers, but it always makes someone feel special,” she replied, chuckling at the memories that flowed through her mind.
“You like to talk about your brothers huh?”
Chun-hei fell silent, grabbing the blackberries off the counter and washing them. “They were great men,” she said, drying her hands off on the apron she had wrapped around her waist. Minseok nodded, setting his now empty cup in the sink.
He watched as she made cinnamon rolls, letter donuts and french toast with the fruit she pulled out earlier. By now almost everyone was awake and in the kitchen, all except the birthday boy. “It smells so good.” Kai complimented as he rested at the island counter.
“The french toast is for everyone else. Don’t you dare touch those donuts.” the short girl said as she pulled the baking sheet full of cinnamon rolls. She drizzled the cream cheese frosting and sprinkled sprinkles across them, pulling them off the pan and onto a plate.
Kai sighed and looked down at the donuts that spelled happy birthday, all iced with different pastel colors. “You are gonna make him act like a brat all day.” Chanyeol chuckled, plucking a strawberry from the french toast plate and popping it into his mouth.
“Everyone deserves to be spoiled on their birthday. Let him have the day to himself.” she shot back playfully, shaking her head at the redhead.
Soon, the sleepy birthday boy dragged himself into the kitchen, a yawn escaping his lips. He lazily wrapped his arms around the short girl who came over to give him a hug, well, before she lifted up his shirt to see the large bruise on his side. Her touch was gentle, but he still flinched slightly when her small fingers brushed over the black and blue spot. When she was done, Sehun watched as she walked over to the counter and grabbed a pan, turning and holding it out to him. A smile reaches his lips as he read happy birthday that the donuts spelled. “You made this?” his question sparked a smile of her own, immediately answering his question.
“She’s going to spoil the hell out of him,” Baekhyun whispered to Lay who simply nodded.
As everyone moved to the dining table to eat, Chun-hei moved everything, not letting anyone help. When everything was settled and everyone started to eat, Chun-hei excused herself and traveled back up to her room. As her footsteps faded, everyone seemed to relax a bit. "We have a meeting after breakfast,” Suho stated, taking a bite of his french toast.
Everyone nodded before Chun-hei walked back in, a gift bag in her hands. Sehun watched as she walked around the table and towards him, setting it right next to his plate. “Happy birthday, Sehu,” she said, giving him a peck on the cheek before walking away and into the kitchen.
His cheeks started to turn red as he took the contents out, smiling at what she had gotten him. “Let’s all go out for dinner tonight.” the birthday boy suggested, setting his gifts off to the side and going back to his breakfast.
“After what happened last night? You still want to go out?” Chen questioned, clearly worried about what had happened the night before.
Sehun shrugged, “Why should we let insignificant people stop us from doing something?”
They knew he had a point, they couldn’t let the Falcon’s walk all over them. “No. It’s too dangerous right now and I will not take the risk of anyone else getting hurt. We’ll just have dinner here.” Suho interjected, everyone, turning to look at him.
“Suho, why-“
“I just said why Sehun. The decision is final. No one is going out tonight. It’s too dangerous right now.” the leader interrupted the youngest, sending him a stern look.
The dining room fell silent, the only sounds being the clinking of a fork on plates. When everyone was done, Suho and the rest left, Sehun and Minseok staying behind in the kitchen with Chun-hei. The youngest helped her wash dishes, even though she told him not too. After they were done, Minseok tossed the youngest a rag to dry his hands.
“I really wanted to go out tonight,” Sehun whined, turning to Chun-hei with a pout.
The short girl chuckled and took the rag from him. “Suho said you can’t so there is no point in whining out it.” Minseok piped up, rolling his eyes at the youngest childishness.
“Look, I’ll make dinner here and you can invite whoever you want. Friends, Family, whoever.” Chun-hei interrupted their conversation, already pulling ingredients to start on dinner.
Sehun looked over at her, quite surprised that she would suggest inviting people over. “We can decorate and have dinner with everyone you care about.”
A smile spread across his face before he strutted over to her and wrapped his arms around her small frame. She squealed and tried pushing him away, though it wasn’t working since she had stuff in her hands. “Go notify everyone, Sehu,” Minseok spoke up and separated the two, watching as the youngest happily walk out of the kitchen.
“You know, you don’t have to do this.” his voice was low, only she could hear him. Chun-hei’s smile dropped and she looked up at the light brown-haired male.
“Will you quit saying that? I understand I don’t have too. I want too.” she snapped, quickly moving away from him. She set the stuff she held on the counter, “Now if you excuse me, I need to start on dinner.”
Her tone of voice gave him the hint that he needed to leave, which is just what Minseok did, but not without turning back to look at her once more before he did so. He just couldn’t wrap his mind around why she was being so nice, she barely knew them. Quickly, the eldest found their resident hacker in his room, simply barging in without knocking.
“I want everything you can get on Chun-hei.”
~
“Welcome!” Kai’s voice rang out, covering up the fact that there was music on. He let a group of people in, slamming the door closed behind them. A string of ‘quit slamming the door’ could be heard, followed by some laughing. He leads the group into the living room, but they didn’t stop, quickly crossing the room and into the lounge that was on the other side. Everyone was already in there, Chanyeol and Chen playing a game of pool while everyone else stood around watching.
“JB! Glad you could make it!” Suho called, motioning for the other leader to come over to him. The brunette smiled and headed over, his second in command following. Chatter filled the room as Chanyeol and Chen took a break from playing, greeting their guests.
“Happy birthday Hyung! How about you lose that virginity of yours?” a Chinese man exclaimed, arms wrapping around Sehun’s shoulders.
“Jackson, don’t make the birthday boy uncomfortable,” JB called as he sent his assassin a glare.
The room erupted in laughter, even Sehun laughed, though his cheeks were red. After a while, Minseok noticed that Chun-hei was talking on the phone in the front foyer, her facial features seeming to be twisted into a scowl. He had never seen her face twist in such a way, she always wore a smile around them. The eldest excused himself before exiting the lounge and crossing the living room, stopping at the entrance when he heard her voice.
“I’m out of the business.” it was filled with venom, hateful and spiteful.
“No, I can’t anyway. I’m on a job. Do it on your own or find someone else.” After that last sentence came out of her mouth, the short girl froze, clearly shocked by something. Minseok watched closely, noticing her body language showed that she was nervous.
When their eyes met, the co-leader gathered the courage and stepped forward, Chun-hei quickly saying that she would do something and then hung up. “Who was that?” his voice sent a chill down her spine, his body almost pressed up against her.
“It was just an old friend.” her voice was small as he towered over her, effectively making her feel small.
“What did this friend want? What ‘business’ did they want you to do?” the questions made her avert her eyes. The motion was quick, and soon, Minseok had the small girl in his tight grip and pulled into the kitchen, away from everyone else. He slammed her against the wall next to the door that leads to the side area and gripped her throat tightly. “What business?” he growled, clearly not up for a game of charades. Her gaze was hard, no words coming from her mouth. When his grip tightened around her throat, her hands reached up and wrapped around his wrist, trying to pry him off of her. “Tell me, and I swear, if you lie to me or give me a bullshit story, I will break your neck.”
Chun-hei snickered a bit, “Don’t play games with me. You don’t know me and you never will. I’m more deadly than you ever could be.” her statement caught the light brown-haired male off guard, allowing her to push him away from her and step away. One of her hands gently wrapped around her own throat, covering most of the mark that was left by his hand.
Minseok narrowed his eyes, “Who are you?”
“Chun-hei Li. Just like I said in the beginning. My life is my business, I have no obligation to tell you anything about it.” This time, her voice sent a chill down his spine, the older male taking a step back. The look in her eyes was like a storm, anger, hate, and a hint of crazy swirled around. It honestly scared him, to no end, the look in the shorter girl's eyes scared him. When the two heard footsteps heading their way, Chun-hei quickly walked over to the sink and faced it, letting her hair down out of the bun that held it, the action effectively covering up her neck. “Hey, what are you two doing in here?” Kai questioned as he walked in followed by everyone else. He must’ve been gone too long, the look Suho gave his second-in-command the look that told him he was right.
“We were just talking about dinner. Weren’t we.” Minseok lied, his gaze traveling back over to Chun-hei who had started to clean dishes.
“Well, Chun-hei, we would like you to meet some of our friends,” Suho spoke up, waiting for the girl to turn around. When she didn’t he looked around before stepping up to her and turning her around. His eyes widened at the sight of the red hand mark on her neck, the edges turning blue. Minseok stepped back, though it didn’t go unnoticed by his leader. Quickly, Suho turned around, now enraged and stalking towards him. “My office, now!” his voice boomed throughout the kitchen, causing Chun-hei to flinch and look over, only catching a glimpse as the two left the crowded room.
It was silent, everyone listening to the stomping of Suho’s feet and the slamming of a door. Lay was the first one to move, opening the freezer and grabbing a bag of frozen corn. He stepped over and rested it against the girl’s throat, “What happened?”
It was not Lay that had asked the question. Instead, it was JB who stepped up, worry written all over his face. “Noona, why did he do that?” Jackson questioned after the girl didn’t answer.
“Noona? You two know each other?” Kai questioned, looking between the two.
JB nodded, “She was employed with us for a while.” his answer was simple and sparked recognition on Kai’s face. He turned to look at the light-haired girl and smirked, “You sly sexy fox.” he chuckled, moving closer to sling his arm around her shoulder.
Chun-hei shook her head, “It was just a misunderstanding between us.”
“A misunderstanding, his handprint is around your throat and it’s getting darker by the second,” Lay exclaimed, taking a closer look.
“Noona, tell us what happened,” Jackson spoke up, a pleading look in his eyes.
With a nod, the small girl shrugged Kai off and smiled. “He overheard a phone call and overreacted. Jisoo wanted to hang out to go over how things are going. He must have thought that I was talking about something else, whatever it could have been.” she explained, shaking her head a bit.
Jackson pulled her into his arms and sighed, “Always getting in trouble where ever you go.” he chuckled, pushing her hair back and looking at the bruise himself. His touch was gentle and so were his eyes. “Jackson, stop. It’s ok-“ before she could finish her sentence, a loud bang rang throughout the house. Quickly, everyone filed out of the kitchen and ran upstairs. Kai and D.O. slammed open Suho’s office door and ran in. The room was a disaster area. Multiple vases were broken, one of the couches was turned over, along with a chair. Minseok leaned against a wall, a bullet hole close to his head. Suho had the gun in his hand, the barrel still pointed at his Hyung. Kai and D.O. were quick to disarm the mad man and hold him back. “She’s hiding something. Get rid of her.” Minseok said, his brown eyes immediately finding the girl when she walked in.
“Minseok! Enough! Leave!” Sehun yelled as he pointed to the door, the older male not arguing. He stopped in front of Chun-hei, leaning a little closer. “You aren’t off the hook.”
“Hyung Leave!” Sehun yelled again, his voice rising. With that, the eldest left the room, slamming the door behind him. Suho shook off his comrades and picked the gun back up, placing it in the holster that rested on his hip.
The room fell silent as Suho walked over to his desk and sat down, immediately putting his head in his hands. “Tell me, Chun-hei, what did you do before you worked for your friend's company.” his question was sudden, and the young girl snapped her head towards him.
“I worked at a cafe,” she replied, slowly walking towards him, stepping over some broken glass.
“There’s a gap between the time you left the Cafe job to when you started working with your friend. What were you doing then?” his question seemed to hit a nerve, the young girl slamming her hands on the desk.
“Private business. I even continued doing it while the business was starting up. Only stopped doing it about a year ago.” she replied, leaning forward across the desk.
The two stared at each other for a few minutes before JB stepped forward, clearing his throat. “I don’t think it’s safe for her to be staying here. Your underboss just assaulted her.”
Suho nodded, leaning back in his chair. “Do you have somewhere else to stay?”
With a nod of her head, Chun-hei stood up straight and turned around. “I’ll just go back to my old place. I’ll be back tomorrow,” she said before quickly leaving the room, JB and his men following after her.