"Nah, dickhead has some strong friends so it's not as easy as you'd think. I'll get my revenge, don't you worry." He smiled playfully and then sipped his very boring virgin drink. He didn't want to go home drunk, after all. He did last time and Tae looked scared so no more of that until he was not assisting Minjun with his tiny cousins.
"I've never had food in a bondage club." Ten laughed and then sipped his drink more, tilting his head back and hoping this dude didn't guess his age and kick him out. Or try to hit on him. Neither would be ideal. "So, uh, what are you? You into like topping, bottoming, do you like -- I dunno, what's your kink?" Well. They were in a bondage club. Why not ask?
"Great noodles." Well, he liked noodles. That was literally the biggest reasons they served them, as well as other food. He was here a lot, he got hungry. But hey, people liked it. Tilting his head to the side, Hobi smiled at Ten. No hitting on him, sure, but that didn't mean he couldn't just be generally a little bit of a tease.
"You have the eyes of a dom. You have that look and the tone, the way you switch it up. You're protective too. Dom. Definitely. At a push, maybe a switch." That was his working theory right now. He smiled playfully and then looked around the room. "You can probably guess mine but it's not impressive if it's obvious." Ten was obvious but he liked to be obvious. Besides, he held the power everywhere else but the bedroom.
"Oh, I'm very taken with a lot of people." Hobi kept it vague, although it was also - truly - the most honest assessment he could make. Maybe one day in the future he would settle down with just one. Maybe not. The world was his oyster. "Don't worry though, I respect boundaries. I won't even flirt with you, even if it's hard to resist. I hope your boyfriend treats you well."
"I have an amazing boyfriend. He's having a tough time though, that's why I'm alone. Trying to sort out family issues and all, you know." Poor Minjun. Then again, not right now. Right now, he was being a nerd and playing video games with Kangwoo and the boys. Ten got bored and left but hey, he liked that they were all getting on. It was so cute. "He has adorable tiny cousins."
He couldn't say much, he knew that but there was no harm in saying vague stuff. "His family is way nicer than mine."
"My family isn't... Well, I just don't have one. I'm sorry yours isn't so nice though!" Adorable tiny cousins, good. He could pass that on. "I guess I've taken to making my friends my family. And you can have your boyfriends's family, maybe, at least the adorable part."
Interesting. The whole thing was interesting, but he was getting a better picture of Ten. "Hey, as a heads up, don't go to the Dark Fyre club. They are not good about boundaries there. Workers aren't all there voluntarily either, so... Yikes."
"My family isn't bad, just old school. They don't approve of me at all. That's fine though, I don't need approval." He didn't really, he was very content. "I get what you mean though. Minjun is my family, totally. I spend so much time with his family now, they are very sweet. Especially the youngest. We cuddle a lot." Ten laughed, bright and amused, clearly he adored Tae. It was easy to see in his smile.
"That's, uh, that's the one across town?" Was that Cheon's place? Oh. Fuck. Ten pulled a face and looked down at his drink. "It's horrible, isn't it? Some people in this city, they just suck."
"Oh yeah. In here, anyone who doesn't keep to the rules is out. Over there, the rules are very determined by how much money you have. So if you have all the money you want, you get to do whatever you want to people." Hobi made a face, not too pleased by any of that. He frowned and looked around, pointing out a masked woman currently leading around another woman and a man on leashes. "Some of the people who work here, they used to be there. Some are even Thai, maybe you can make friends."
"Cause those kind of dicks seem to think Thai is property." Ten turned his head and raised his hand, offering a traditional greeting in Thai and getting one back. He grinned and flagged her down, just making some chat, ordering a drink and tipping her very generously. He bowed and then turned back to Hobi, smiling. "Sorry about that, I haven't spoken Thai in so long. I always get the itch."
He sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Wouldn't it be great to get rid of those kinds of people? The people who think they can sell other people?"
"It'd be great, but it's all in the hands of gangs, you know? There's very few gangs, these days, that don't dabble in it. This club is in Min Clan territory. Min Clan, they have their honour code." Other than that... Hobi shrugged, finishing his drink and shrugging his shoulders. "It'd be nice to think we could stop it, but I guess it's the kind of change that would have to come from within.
"Ah. Shit." Ten sighed and pulled out his phone, texting for a driver. Was there anything in this city that wasn't one gang or another. Yep. He said too much. He already felt uneasy. He eyed up Hobi and then got out of his seat swiftly. "Yeah, nice meeting you." Damn it. Damn it. He was talking to Min Clan people about his family, probably being worked for info. Of course he was. Man, that watch Hobi had ... he was probably making a mint in the gang. Why was everything here a gang situation?
"Hey. Relax." Of course, that probably wouldn't do any good now. Still, Hobi had to try anyway. Maybe even try something just a little more daring. "Ten... With what you're plotting, maybe you'll want to come by again some time. You'll need allies." Simple statement. He hoped it didn't go too far.
"I'm plotting nothing, back off. I'm -- I'm a high schooler. What is wrong with you people?" Oh great, now they were all suspecting things cause he was bitching about Cheon and maybe they thought he was trying to betray Kangwoo or something. God. "I'm -- We are loyal to Kangwoo, knock this shit the fuck off." Ten sighed and pulled on his coat, very annoyed. "God, I can't even get horny in this city without politics."
"Cheon. It's Cheon I want to take down." Damn. He had to try and earn some trust back and he wasn't sure how. Not trust, but... End on a good note. "Sit back down, just for a bit. I want to give you a more honest answer to something you asked before. If I'm taken."
Hobi pulled out his phone, pulling up his gallery. "Cheon hates me almost as much as I hate him. I steal away his workers. You've met some of them."
Ten came over with get reluctance but he didn't sit down, he leaned on his seat. "Cheon is a pig, it's got nothing to do with me. He just -- he assumed shit about me and I'm pissed, I was just venting." If word got out that he hated Cheon like this then people would thing he was going against him and that'd cause more fuss.
He looked at Hobi, willing to just hear him out. "So you're like a whore hero? What a great job."
"Pig. Yeah. Let's call him that." Since he didn't want to risk anyone overhearing them and he doubted Ten would be willing to go to a private room with him right now. "I'm just me. I'm a street kid who made connection. I ended up in charge of a club. I get to run it the way I like and, yeah, I feel bad for anyone who works for the pig."
With a shrug, Hobi held his phone out to Ten. "That is Jimin. He's... When I met him, I thought he was just a boy. Beautiful boy. I realised later that he was sent to me by the Pig. Too late." Moving forward, he showed another picture. "The Pig did that to him. Message to me. He is still alive, last I heard. So feel free to vent about the Pig. I'm not a fan."
Ten looked and then he sighed, feeling his heart ache because no, he didn't know how to handle all of this stuff but he knew how it felt when Cheon pushed him against that wall and pressed his dick against his ass. He had been so freaked out. "You don't know where the boy is?" He bit his lower lip and looked at the picture before looking away. He didn't like to look at it.
"Does the pig still have him...?" Damn. "I know he has a lot of boys."
"I don't know where he is. Not in his home or any of the clubs I'm aware of, so maybe he's at least not doing anything to him right now." Hobi put his phone back into his pocket. "Do you want to talk? No more pretences, I swear. We can go to a backroom. I'll get us a sample platter, food is great."
"I-- It's really dangerous." Ten explained but he didn't feel good about anything right now and he didn't know what to do. What if he made a mistake and upset Minjun. He didn't want to do that but he also felt bad. This dude just wanted to help his bae. And Ten would do the same for Minjun. "Quick talk, I won't stay long. I can't make deals or promises. I don't have that power."
"I know. I don't have that power either. The only place I really have power in is here." Hobi sighed, but then flashed a smile, getting up and heading for the backroom. Well, really just for his office, but it was in the back, so he wasn't technically wrong. He exchanged a few words with a waitress, then held the door open for Ten.
"Come in. You like the decor? I think we might have similar tastes, gucci boy."
"I have a weapon so don't try anything." He didn't. He had a bottle opener and his keys. But hey, he could do damage if he wanted. He licked his lips and then came in a little more, looking around. "I do like your decor though. Way nicer than whatever minimalist bullshit Kangwoo-hyung likes." He went for hyung, not nim. He found the more he used it, the more Kangwoo eased up hearing it.
"Look, I hate Cheon. Minjun hates Cheon. He's a pig. He tried to do shit to me and he's controlling Kangwoo but -- I can't do shit about that." Yet.
"I can't do shit about him either. Cards in the open, I work for the Min Clan. Obviously. Min Yoongi wants to find out what Minjun and you are like, because he doesn't like Cheon any more than we do." Hobi sighed, leaning against his desk. "But I'll be honest. I don't know what Min Yoongi will do. No one can ever know that, apart from Min Yoongi himself. What I can tell you is that a lot of people are unhappy with how much power and influence Cheon seems to have these days. They don't want him running things."
"Kangwoo doesn't notice sometimes. He's so busy trying to assimilate, he doesn't realise what's happening around him. He's finer details focused, not the bigger picture." He wanted so badly to be what he had come to term as 'normal' that he was trying to basically not be himself at all. "Kangwoo isn't half bad when he's not with Cheon. Basically just a nerd."
He liked Star Wars, he was a fitness geek and he talked pretty casually with Minjun sometimes. As long as Cheon didn't stir issues. "Every time he makes a move of his own that Cheon doesn't like, Cheon tells him he's the Min Clan bitch and provokes him until he goes back on it."
"Yeah. I guess that sounds... more or less as expected." Apart from the 'just a nerd' thing. "Cheon isn't the smartest, but he is just smart enough to be as cruel as he possibly can be." And that was the man who had Jimin. Hobi had to push the thought aside, because breaking down wouldn't help him get Jimin back.
"If it was up to me, I'd take Cheon out. You've seen what he's done to the man I love. I never even told him that I love him. He doesn't even know how much I want to save him." He couldn't even be sure he was alive. "But Cheon... Before your cousin was here, he was the second in command, right under Kangwoo. And often the one actually running things. Going against him, it would mean war. Min Clan would probably win, but... It's the same as your boyfriend wanting to take control. The children would be in danger."
"Minjun knows, that's why we don't want to take control. We want Kangwoo-hyung to stay who he should be and not be who Cheon wants him to be. And it's working." Lately, ever since he lost it at Tae, he was easing up some and Minjun was talking to him like, well, like a therapist. They would google therapy for autism and then sort of casually use it on Kangwoo. And it worked. Slowly, they were changing his mind but it was slow. Maybe too slow.
"I can't do anything about your boyfriend but I can ... I can find out if he's alive?" Maybe. If he was careful. He just couldn't use a name. "I'm going to tell Minjun this and we can discuss it. I-- I tell him everything, we have no secrets. We're equals."
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"I've never had food in a bondage club." Ten laughed and then sipped his drink more, tilting his head back and hoping this dude didn't guess his age and kick him out. Or try to hit on him. Neither would be ideal. "So, uh, what are you? You into like topping, bottoming, do you like -- I dunno, what's your kink?" Well. They were in a bondage club. Why not ask?
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"I want you to guess. What do you think?"
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"You taken, cute boy?"
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He couldn't say much, he knew that but there was no harm in saying vague stuff. "His family is way nicer than mine."
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Interesting. The whole thing was interesting, but he was getting a better picture of Ten. "Hey, as a heads up, don't go to the Dark Fyre club. They are not good about boundaries there. Workers aren't all there voluntarily either, so... Yikes."
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"That's, uh, that's the one across town?" Was that Cheon's place? Oh. Fuck. Ten pulled a face and looked down at his drink. "It's horrible, isn't it? Some people in this city, they just suck."
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He sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Wouldn't it be great to get rid of those kinds of people? The people who think they can sell other people?"
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Hobi pulled out his phone, pulling up his gallery. "Cheon hates me almost as much as I hate him. I steal away his workers. You've met some of them."
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He looked at Hobi, willing to just hear him out. "So you're like a whore hero? What a great job."
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With a shrug, Hobi held his phone out to Ten. "That is Jimin. He's... When I met him, I thought he was just a boy. Beautiful boy. I realised later that he was sent to me by the Pig. Too late." Moving forward, he showed another picture. "The Pig did that to him. Message to me. He is still alive, last I heard. So feel free to vent about the Pig. I'm not a fan."
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"Does the pig still have him...?" Damn. "I know he has a lot of boys."
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"Come in. You like the decor? I think we might have similar tastes, gucci boy."
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"Look, I hate Cheon. Minjun hates Cheon. He's a pig. He tried to do shit to me and he's controlling Kangwoo but -- I can't do shit about that." Yet.
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He liked Star Wars, he was a fitness geek and he talked pretty casually with Minjun sometimes. As long as Cheon didn't stir issues. "Every time he makes a move of his own that Cheon doesn't like, Cheon tells him he's the Min Clan bitch and provokes him until he goes back on it."
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"If it was up to me, I'd take Cheon out. You've seen what he's done to the man I love. I never even told him that I love him. He doesn't even know how much I want to save him." He couldn't even be sure he was alive. "But Cheon... Before your cousin was here, he was the second in command, right under Kangwoo. And often the one actually running things. Going against him, it would mean war. Min Clan would probably win, but... It's the same as your boyfriend wanting to take control. The children would be in danger."
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"I can't do anything about your boyfriend but I can ... I can find out if he's alive?" Maybe. If he was careful. He just couldn't use a name. "I'm going to tell Minjun this and we can discuss it. I-- I tell him everything, we have no secrets. We're equals."
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