Chapter Text
“Yeah, so don’t forget to eat your meals and take your medicine when the nurses tell you to,” Jungwon laughs, looking at a patient with a playfully stern expression, “especially if you want to get better sooner.”
The elderly patient laughs, leaning back on the hospital bed, “Yes, Doc, you got it. I promise to.”
“Good.” the male grins, nodding his head approvingly, “I believe Dr. Kang will be checking up on you in the next few hours. Rest well, Mr. Lim.”
The elder nods with an airy chuckle before turning his attention back to the drama currently playing on TV. The young doctor bows politely before grabbing his clipboard and quietly exiting the patient’s room. While walking down the hospital hallway of this particular wing, he hears a familiar voice call out to him.
“Hey, Jungwon!”
The young doctor turns around with an amused grin, shaking his head, “Dr. Kang, aren’t we prohibited from shouting in the hospital?”
The other doctor makes an “oops” face before chuckling softly, hands in his medical coat’s pockets, “Right, sorry about that, Dr. Yang.”
“So, how can I help you? I have another appointment in a bit.” Jungwon smiles.
Dr. Kang - or Hyunbin as Jungwon calls him - grins likewise, waving his hand in a carefree manner, “Nothing, just wanted to say hi. Go along now…wouldn’t want your patient getting angry over your late arrival.”
“You’re clingy.” Jungwon jokes before laughing, “I’ll get going then. See you around, Hyunbin.”
The other male playfully scoffs before waving his hand dismissively just as a nurse calls for his attention over some medical records. “See ya, Won.” he hums, turning on his heel to walk away.
Jungwon smiles before going about his way as well, just in time for the nurses to call him in for an emergency operation.
Hours pass by until he completes a very stressful yet successful operation. His crisp, white shirt was replaced by the hospital’s scrubs, stained with blood and bodily fluids, white clogs essentially red now. Jungwon’s neck feels like it’s about to break from leaning and craning so much to focus on the operation, eyes strained like they would seal shut any second now.
But he expected that.
He knew that it was part of the job. Was it bothersome? Maybe, but that was just one slight inconvenience in the process of saving lives. That was why he became a professional in the medical and scientific field in the first place - to save lives. No, he definitely could not save every single person he came across, but he would definitely do his utmost best.
Especially when there were certain blood stains he needed to wash off from his hands.
The more people Jungwon saved in Decelis Medical Hospital, the more the blood on his hands washed off, little by little. Hopefully. That’s what he wanted to believe.
Unconsciously, he stares down at his gloved hands, eyes taking in the way the blood either dries or swirls into a distorted pattern. He sees blood everyday - he is a doctor, after all, and it wasn’t anything new or something to be disgusted about.
But right now, Jungwon felt like throwing up, the metallic scent and gruesome color clinging to his own hands too much to bear. This has never happened before, so he isn’t sure why it was happening today. He feels like the empty operation room spins around, ready to make him collapse - that is, until a nurse’s voice catches his attention.
“Dr. Yang, the patient has been moved to a room and Dr. Choi is overseeing right now. We’ll have this room cleaned, so you may take it easy. Thank you for today’s operation.”
“I see, thank you too.” Jungwon nods, faking a calm smile despite the shaking of his hands, “I’ll get going then.”
And so he spends the next few hours rotating around consultation appointments and check-ups on patients. By the time it’s past 12 midnight, the young doctor prepares to head back to his house.
Jungwon drives in silence, eyes exhausted as they keep focused on the driveway that leads to a house that is not too large but not that small either. That’s one thing he was thankful for; his parents chose to live in a place surrounded by trees in a more private area of the city with only so much residents and houses. Some say it was for the rich - and maybe it was true - but it was definitely more peaceful and safe.
Peace and quiet was what Jungwon needed after tedious days.
And safe was what he needed when he felt like something or someone haunted him every single day.
Jungwon drags himself across the living room, dumping his bag on the couch before making his way to the kitchen. An eerie and somewhat unsettling aura mixes in the air, but he chooses to ignore it in favor of drinking a glass of cold water. He places the glass down on the counter, leaning on the table’s surface as his head cranes down to let his mind get lost in dark thoughts once again.
It was always lonely at home without his parents, and the young doctor wasn’t going to lie; admittedly, there were times he felt afraid to even step foot into any inch of this lonesome structure called home.
But again, a different air filled the place right now, and it somehow sent shivers down Jungwon’s spine. Maybe he needed a bath, so he slowly made his way to his bedroom. However, as he reached the second floor, he noticed that the door to his study room was left slightly open - Jungwon always made it a point to leave it shut.
Swallowing the lump in his throat, the doctor tiptoed and stopped in front of the door, grabbing the knob and slowly pulling it closed. However, just before it can click, a deep voice breaks the silence.
“Dr. Yang Jungwon.”
Said doctor freezes on the spot, blood running cold as a voice is heard in the dark study room. His heart beats rapidly as fear claws its way into his system.
“Dr. Yang, we aren’t here to harm you. Come inside.”
We?
Jungwon’s body moves on its own, pushing the door back to reveal his study, illuminated by nothing but the moonlight seeping in through the curtains. Once the door is fully opened, he vaguely registers two figures standing by his desk.
Most people would scream or scramble to call the cops. Jungwon? Nope. He didn’t know why either, but his fear was replaced by impatience. Irritation.
With crossed arms, Jungwon nods his head towards the strangers’ direction, “What is it? How do you know me? Who are you?”
One of the figures switches the lamp on, revealing his face - round, dark eyes and gorgeous features that were far too beautiful for a dangerous person. He then speaks up, “We need you to come with us.”
“Clearly, strangers telling me to go with them is the most normal thing to happen.” Jungwon says, eyebrows furrowed.
The other stranger notes the doctor’s displeasure as he tilts his head to the side, amusedly. Thick eyebrows, a perfectly sculpted nose dotted with a mole, and a cold gaze that matched his pale skin - a beautiful man who could be mistaken as a model.
“We know, but we’ve been ordered to come and talk to you about it.” he says calmly, his confident smile quite difficult to decipher.
Jungwon continues to stand defiant, face stern as the two figures observe him. The first one who spoke took a step forward - he’s very tall. “I’ll cut to the chase then, Dr. Yang.” he sounds friendly, “We’re agents from Vesselsoft, and I don’t think I need to explain what that is. Am I right?”
As soon as those words leave the taller male’s lips, Jungwon visibly tenses, jaw clenched and eyes sharpened. He glares daggers, gritting his teeth, “Tell Jung Hyunseo to leave me out of whatever affairs Vesselsoft has.”
The one with thick eyebrows shakes his head, “I’m afraid Jung Hyunseo himself wants you to come with us, Dr. Yang. He particularly said it was to be you no matter what.”
“What does Vesselsoft want now?” the doctor hisses, “I left for a reason, and I’m not going back. I think I made that quite clear to your authorities.”
The pretty-eyed agent sighs, “I don’t know what bad blood you have with Vesselsoft or Jung, and I can’t tell you exactly why we need you back right now, but everything will be explained if you just come with us.”
“Cut the crap.” Jungwon scoffs with a bitter smile, “I’m not going anywhere. Case closed.”
“It’s a matter of life and death, Dr. Yang.” the tallest agent says with authority but still manages to come off as gentle, “It’s for a cause that could save many.”
“Hmm.” Jungwon snarkily laughs, “Now, I’ve heard that one before. Sorry, I’m not going. Give Jung Hyunseo my regards.”
The paler-skinned agent tries to step forward, opening his mouth to speak, but the other agent holds him back. With one look, they come to an understanding, and the former steps back.
The pretty-eyed agent then walks towards Jungwon, leaning down to whisper in his ear, “Best you come with us now, Dr. Yang. Jung won’t take no for an answer on this matter, and I’m afraid he’ll send another agent for you.”
The doctor gently pushes him back with his hand on the other’s chest, “He can try. Now, leave.”
The pretty agent sighs and gestures for the other male to follow him. As they walk past the doctor, the model-like agent whispers into Jungwon’s ear, “Try not to be too feisty when the next agent comes. He doesn’t play nicely.”
“Neither do I,” Jungwon starts, leveling the agent’s sharp gaze, “especially if he pushes it.”
The other male smirks in the most subtle way so it’s barely noticeable, “I see.”
With that, the agents leave. Jungwon doesn’t even know how they got in, so he doesn’t know how they’d leave. Either way, he couldn’t bring himself to care, not when the adrenaline fades away and his hands are now shaking.
Seconds later, he briskly walks to his bathroom, locking the door as he readies the bathtub in a frenzied hurry. He lowers himself into the water, allowing the warm liquid to envelope his body in an attempt to relax. Dead silence fills the room with the faint sloshing of water as a result of his minimal movements.
Vesselsoft.
The doctor squeezes his eyes shut as if doing so would forever erase the name of that organization from his mind. But it does the opposite, taking him back to a time he never wanted to remember.
The sounds of agonizing screams and groans filled Jungwon’s ears as if he were witnessing a horror movie come to life. A rotten smell and smoke filled his nose, clouding his senses like toxic dirtying the world. The doctor could only stare as a man slammed his hand onto the glass wall, desperately wailing and screaming for help.
The pure horror that filled Jungwon’s veins caused him to freeze in place, bile building up within. The person’s skin started to melt and rot away, revealing things he’d see in his medical classes back then - except this was in a much more gruesome and twisted context.
As the person let out one last cry, his mouth frothed with foam. Jungwon hated how he was only able to look away just as it finished; every inch of his skin was covered in goosebumps, hands shaking and heart pounding. The sounds of other scientists and doctors discussing things were mere whispers despite being next to him.
“That wasn’t supposed to happen.”
“Write that observation down so we can do something about it.”
“This effect is quite interesting and may prove to be useful.”
The young doctor cleared his throat and faced the group of older doctors and scientists with angry eyes. “You need to stop these experiments now!” Jungwon yelled, “You are taking too many lives!”
One scientist huffed, “Dr. Yang, have you forgotten your place? Why you’re here?”
Jungwon slammed his hand on the table, “I’m here because I’ve been forced to! I didn’t want this!”
With that, he turned on his heel, keen on talking to the authorities about what he has witnessed for the past week. However, as soon as his hand hovered above the lab’s door access, one scientist grabbed his wrist and twisted harshly, throwing him to the marbled floor. Jungwon grimaced at the pain, glaring at the scientist.
The scientist threatened to hit the young doctor before smirking and laughing, “If you so much as say a word about this to anyone outside this lab, you're joining the test subjects. Got it?”
“And don’t bother being sneaky.” another scientist laughed, “We’ll find out one way or another. Now get up and run some tests on the vials over there. No results within the day, we test on another subject. Quickly now.”
Jungwon swallowed the anger bubbling inside him, forcing himself to get up to grab the said vials.
As the group of doctors and scientists continued to murmur amongst themselves, Jungwon went to the other side of the lab to run whatever tests on the reddish liquid inside the vials. He realized that his hands were still a bit shaky, tears threatening to spill out of his eyes.
He became a doctor to save lives, not take them.
So when it all became too much - when all he could hear at night were the screams and cries of suffering, he knew he had to do something.
It was all still a bit of a blur - or perhaps Jungwon just did not want to recall the details - but he somehow remembered the day he decided to speak up.
The day gunshots were fired in the lab, explosions here and there. Fighting and more unnecessary death. Some doctors and scientists captured while some escaped. Jungwon sitting on the lab floor with an empty expression, blood dripping down his face and black smoky soot smudging his skin.
An agent Jungwon didn’t know or had never seen before holding the young doctor in his arms, whispering that it was going to be alright as Jung Hyunseo angrily ordered the others to search for the escaped “traitors”.
Days later, Jungwon resigned. Jung Hyunseo felt sorry and allowed him to do so, helping him go back to a more “normal life” outside Vesselsoft. He spoke to Decelis Medical Hospital’s director, using his authority and status as a government agency’s head to give his recommendation for the young male to work there. Seoul’s top hospital instantly welcomed him as a doctor there, and he prayed it stayed that way.
No matter what, he was never going to so much as glance at Vesselsoft’s headquarters or even speak about the secret organization.
Jungwon’s phone, sitting on a small stool next to the bathtub, rang with a text notification, successfully snapping him out of his trip down memory lane. He glanced at it, vaguely reading the text from Hyunbin saying “I forgot to text you earlier but…Mr. Lim ate all his food for dinner. Did you scold him again? Hahaha”.
Jungwon ignores the text, hugging his legs to his chest as he rests his head on his knees. The water in the tub is no longer warm, and he isn’t sure if it’s water from his hair or tears that are trickling down, but the young doctor lets his sobs echo across the bathroom either way.
Maybe he’d forget everything if he cried his heart out.
Meanwhile, back in Vesselsoft’s headquarters, the two agents return and head to one of the lounge areas, plopping onto the couch with heavy sighs. A fox-eyed agent looks up from his book and smiles sympathetically, “How bad was it?”
“Oh, Sunoo,” the pretty agent starts, “it wasn’t bad…he’s just…difficult. I would have used force if it were up to me, but Jung didn’t want that.”
“What Heeseung said. And he’s a bit hostile, like Jay on his bad days?” the thick-eyebrowed agent jokes.
“Very funny, Park Sunghoon.” Jay glares, shaking his head before returning to cleaning his gun.
Sunghoon shrugs, “Either way, he was really adamant on not coming with us. It’s either he’s scared, suspicious or hates Vesselsoft that much…and I wouldn’t know why. Maybe it’s all of the above.”
A very tall but young agent - Riki - laughs and teases lightly, “Sunghoon, why didn’t you use your charms?”
“Charms? I’m not the seducer, Heeseung is.” Sunghoon states comically.
“I don’t think Dr. Yang is the type to get seduced…” Heeseung thinks to himself, trailing off.
Another agent with thick lips and perfectly-styled hair - Jake - hums as he leans back on the couch, “Does Jung know?”
“Yeah, we told him.” Heeseung explains, “He…he’s going to send Jay next.”
Jay grimaces, the irritation on his face evident, “Shouldn’t Riki go first or something? Maybe someone calmer would work.”
Riki slings an arm around the sharp-eyed male, laughing, “Or maybe some force needs to be used.”
Jay looks at him with an eyebrow raised, and Riki sighs with a smile, “Ok, not violent force but…someone strong and stubborn.”
“Kid, are you calling me stubborn?” Jay challenges.
“You kinda are.” Sunoo points out with a melodic laugh.
The agent with sharp eyes and strong brows groans and leans his head back on the couch, “I am not a babysitter, I’m a field agent. I don’t have the time to deal with a whiney doctor who doesn’t want to be here in the first place.”
Jake shrugs, “Jung seems to know Dr. Yang very well and has him in high regard. We must really need him here.”
Heeseung agrees, nodding his head, “Jake has a point. And we need him soon.”
“Maybe he’ll come when he sees Jay’s face. He is handsome and sexy. Who would say no to him?”
“Damn it, Jake - ”
“Anyway,” Sunghoon interrupts, “I warned Dr. Yang to just…comply; not to push Jay's buttons because we know what he’s capable of and all.”
“I’m not going to kill him.” Jay sighs, rubbing his temples.
Heeseung laughs, “No, no. I mean…your whole ‘cut the crap’ attitude. We know you’re most likely going to get irritated with him and might end up actually using your skills or something.”
Jay hums as if he was agreeing, jutting his bottom lip in thought. Sunoo chuckles, shaking his head, “Maybe you should try being a gentleman with him.”
Jay shakes his head. “That isn’t going to work with him, if Heeseung and Sunghoon’s encounter is anything to go by.” the agent states, “Might just irritate him more. Look at you. You're cranky a lot. Maybe doctors and scientists are like that.”
“Excuse me?” Sunoo feigns offense with a dramatic gasp but laughs it off when Jay ruffles his hair.
“Well, Jay doesn’t take mission failures too well, so I’m sure Dr. Yang will be here in no time.” Heeseung pipes in, earning a chorus of agreements from the other agents.
Jay makes a small nod before sighing. He prays the doctor actually listens and comes with him without much trouble.
The next day, Jungwon drives himself to the hospital for another day of work. Things go on normally, and he puts on a smile when meeting with patients. He even laughs and cracks jokes while visiting them in their rooms. He gives the little children hugs whenever their parents ask them to thank Jungwon for his time; it’s a nice contrast to what happened last night.
But once it’s his lunch break, Jungwom sits at one of the hospital’s cafeteria tables, blankly staring into space as he eats his lunch. He doesn't even notice the person sitting in front of him until he laughs and says, “You don’t look so good, Won.”
Jungwon snaps his eyes up and nearly chokes on his food. Swallowing and clearing his throat, the young doctor softly chuckled and says, “What makes you say that?”
Hyunbin smiles, leaning forward with a playful expression, “Your face just looks way more exhausted today. And I don’t know…didn’t sleep well last night?”
“As expected from one of Decelis’s best doctors.” Jungwon teases, looking at his food with a melancholic expression, “But we’re always going to be exhausted. Part of being a doctor, right?”
The other doctor nods, “I know, but…you are ok, aren’t you?”
Jungwon nods, offering a slightly wider smile, “Perfectly.”
The other male grins in satisfaction with his answer, leaning back on his chair to talk about his “cute little patients” running around and laughing when they get lollipops after their check-ups. Jungwon listens to him share stories, but somewhere along the line, his mind drifts off.
To where, he isn't sure, but it’s definitely not as cute and happy as Hyunbin’s stories.
When the day ends, Jungwon is more than relieved to come home without mysterious agents appearing anywhere in his house. Maybe they’d leave him alone now.
And the next day also goes by smoothly as he works in the hospital. Sure, he had two operations to handle - and one of them nearly went south, but thankfully it didn’t. Nonetheless, it was an average day for Jungwon, and it was as if he forgot all about what happened with the agents the other night.
He waves to Hyunbin before leaving the hospital, laughing as he jokes with a “don’t fall asleep while driving!”. And thankfully, Jungwon doesn’t do that, making it back home quickly and safely.
The stillness that welcomes him once he enters the house is a bit eerie, but it doesn’t seem to bother him that much; after all, it was a bit chilly-weathered recently. He takes a nice, quick warm bath before deciding he wanted a midnight snack. After slipping into his fluffy pajamas he goes down to the kitchen.
While preparing a cup of coffee and a simple sandwich, the doctor hears faint rustling somewhere in the house. He doesn't own any pets, and his neighbors hardly visited, so the first thought that enters his mind is that the agents are back. It isn’t dread or fear that fills Jungwon’s veins - it’s anger and frustration.
He scoffs angrily, glancing at the coffee maker and sandwich on the plate before making quick steps towards his study room. Harshly pushing the door open and switching on the lights, he scans the room.
But no one is there.
Jungwon looks behind the desk and shelves, but still no sign of people. Maybe Hyunbin was right and he was just more tired than usual; maybe his mind was playing tricks. Sighing, he shuts the door and resumes his business in the kitchen, needing that cup of coffee much more now.
Once the coffee is done brewing, Jungwon takes the mug and plate, making his way to his bedroom. Coming home at midnight or past midnight was always accompanied by a cold silence that resulted from all other neighbors being asleep, but that was probably better than a bustling city filled with car horns and drunk people shouting.
The doctor sits on his bed, letting himself release a deep breath as soon as his butt settles on the soft sheets. He munches into the sandwich, absentmindedly letting his gaze drift to the window.
The sky is a beautiful shade of blue-violet mixed with inky black, silvery-white stars twinkling here and there. Jungwon finds himself smiling at the view; when was the last time he actually stopped to admire something? To actually feel safe and calm? To feel like he was finally free?
He takes a sip of coffee and muses on about everything that has happened since he left Vesselsoft; it’s been two years, and he was more than satisfied with working in Decelis Medical Hospital. Sure, the things that happened in Vesselsoft made him less trusting, but he had one or two friends - including Hyunbin - that he deeply trusted.
But despite that, the trauma still lingered, and he knew more than anyone that he would never be truly free. Trauma clings like stubborn ink, that he knew.
Jungwon puts his coffee cup down on the bedside table, getting up to bring the sandwich plate to the kitchen. However, as soon as his eyes are set on the door, he sees a figure leaning against it, arms crossed as he stares - or glares.
Jungwon sighs, “Did Jung Hyunseo send you?”
The figure doesn’t make any expression unlike the previous agents; instead, he remains stone-faced as he pushes himself off the door.
“They said you’d be difficult. Can we not do that tonight? Things like these aren’t exactly in my job description.” he sighs.
“Then maybe they made it clear that I don’t want to comply.” the doctor says sharply.
The male’s eyes narrow in the slightest, and Jungwon doesn’t miss the cold darkness in them; he has a different aura compared to the other two. With the dim light of his lamp, he can see that he had sharp features - handsome, if you would, but definitely had a sharper and more commanding presence. Cold and steely.
“Yes, they did.” the agent starts, putting on a bored act as he rolls the sleeves of his white dress shirt, “But I’m here to make sure you don’t say ‘no’ again.”
“Vesselsoft can’t force me against my will, even if they are some organization or agency.” Jungwon points out, irritation rising once more, “I have my rights.”
The agent huffs, crossing his arms, “Listen, Dr. Yang. I don’t want to be here, yet here I am. Jung personally requested your presence. You seem like a smart person, judging by how he holds you with such high regard, so can we not play this game?”
Jungwon rolls his eyes, picking the plate from his bedside table. He ignores the agent, opting to head for the door. The doctor reaches past him to hold onto the door knob, twisting it and pulling the door open as best as he can.
Unlike Heeseung and Sunghoon, this agent refused to budge or leave. In fact, he grabs Jungwon’s wrist quite strongly and slams the door shut with his foot; the loud bang slightly startles the doctor, causing his eyes to widen.
The agent grabs the plate from him while still holding onto his wrist tightly. “Please do not test me, Dr. Yang. My colleagues wanted to make sure I don’t hurt you, and I personally don’t do such things, so please, don’t push it.”
“Would you hurt me?” Jungwon challenges, leveling the male’s glare with sharp eyes, “Because I’m not as weak as you think.”
A lie. A complete and utter lie. He was smart, but he was anything but strong. As much as Jungwon wants to be strong, his unresolved wounds cause him to live with constant guilt, fear, and anxiety; that is what makes him weak - at least, that’s what he thinks.
The agent smirks, “Dr. Yang, I don’t want to hurt you if I don’t need to. You aren’t a target; you’re the mission.”
With the last three words, he grips Jungwon’s wrist just a bit tighter. Infuriated, the doctor grits his teeth and harshly yanks his arm away from the agent, quickly turning on his heel to run and grab his phone from the bed.
Who was he going to call? Hyunbin? The hospital director? The police? He didn’t know, but he surely wanted this agent out of his sight.
Jungwon was poised to dial whoever’s number, but just as his finger is about to press the dial, the agent is in front of him, taking the phone in his hand and tossing it to the carpeted floor with a dull thud. The doctor stares at him in mixed anger and disbelief, opening his mouth to fire an insult.
However, a yelp is what comes out of his mouth instead, because the agent tangles one of his legs with Jungwon’s, tugging at his ankle to trip him. With the momentum, Jungwon falls to his bed, back landing on the mattress with the agent above him, one hand still gripping your wrist. The doctor has no fighting experience, and clearly engaging in a fight with someone who was trained seemed like the worst possible choice of action. Yet he chose said path.
Without hesitation, Jungwon swings his free arm in a sorry attempt to slap the agent, but he easily catches the doctor’s wrist with his other hand, now pinning both hands above his head. Jungwon looks up at the agent with a gaze burning with anger.
“What fucked-up crap has Vesselsoft gotten themselves into this time?” Jungwon hisses, on the verge of raising his voice, “Why do they need me?”
Despite his outburst, the agent remains calm and emotionless, disposition composed much to Jungwon’s dismay. “You’ll find out if you come with me, Dr. Yang.” he responds calmly, raising an eyebrow, “I don’t want to knock you out to do that.”
Jungwon tries to wriggle his hands out of the agent’s grip and kicks with his legs, but the agent holds his wrists tighter and pins his hips down with his own. His facial expression is still quite devoid of emotion, but the furrow in his eyebrows tells Jungwon he is mildly - or maybe very - exasperated already.
“Knock me out? Enlighten me how.” Jungwon spits out.
The agent remains expressionless, but there’s a cocky hint in his eyes as he brings a hand to Jungwon’s cheek, gently caressing the skin with his knuckles, “I could hit you, but as I’ve said, I personally don’t want to do that.”
Jungwon can only stare at the agent, eyebrows knit together in an upset manner as all the fight and anger in his body dissolves, tensed muscles weakening as the unfavorable position he’s in finally registers in his mind. When the agent blinks, Jungwon vaguely takes note of his long eyelashes, a delicate contrast to his sharp and strong features.
“What will it be, Dr. Yang?” he whispers, breath mingling with the doctor’s.
Jungwon shuts his eyes, deflating as he sighs, “Fine. But if I hear what Jung Hyunseo has to say and I don’t like it, I have the right to leave everything again.”
“Hmm, I’m afraid not.” the agent finally lets go of Jungwon’s wrists and clambers off of him, fixing and tucking in his dress shirt into his slacks, “If you refuse or run away, Jung will persistently send agent after agent for you.”
“And once I help? Once I’m finished? Will Vesselsoft finally and genuinely let me go and live?”
“Yes, Dr. Yang.”
“Shit, fine. This is the last, I swear.”
Jungwon could have kept saying “no” in all honesty, but the prospect of an agent coming into his house - or worse, directly kidnapping or abducting him by force - was not something he wanted to stress about; that would just make his life more miserable.
The agent lets the doctor get dressed in the bathroom for privacy. Afterwards, he tells Jungwon to quickly follow him, which he does because he doesn't really have a choice. Once in the black car with tinted windows, Jungwon sinks into the passenger’s seat, a very big frown on his face as he looks outside at the city lights. The agent himself is quiet as well.
The buzzing silence in the car is then interrupted when his phone rings; he accepts the call with the speakers on as he was busy driving. Jungwon could technically hear the voice of the person speaking: Jung Hyunseo, no doubt.
“Jay, what’s the update?”
The male agent doesn’t take his eyes off the road as he answers, “He’s with me, sir.”
“I knew I could count on you.” Hyunseo chuckles lightly, “Thank you, Jay. See you back in HQ.”
When the call ends, and Jay stops the car as the traffic light turns red, he cranes his neck to face Jungwon, expression still annoyingly vague and mysterious. “Please do behave once we’re in HQ.” he says, “You may hate Vesselsoft, but we all expect you to adhere to the rules. Alright, doctor?”
Jungwon doesn't even have the desire to respond, rolling his eyes as Jay breaks eye contact to focus on the road when the traffic light turns green.
Two years away from Vesselsoft, and here he was, being dragged back into the place he desperately wanted to get away from.