Kicks

A/N: Aw shit, here I come again. Wtf. GO AWAY MUSE, I DON’T WANT YOU. D:(
Warnings: Crude humor. Like… satiric. And uh. Sex. All warnings apply for the span of this story JUST TO BE SAFE. And because IDK where I’m going to take this. Maaaybe. Kinda.
okIonlyhavethe1stchapterplannedout. e_e
Goal Word Count: At least 5.000
Actual: UHHH. Almost 5k? :D;;

Oh, read the A/N at the end of each chapter to get a few explanations of oddities in the story. And random fun facts about different characters! 8D

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On a pretty average day in a pretty average town, a pretty average kid found himself walking home from school. Sae Rang Joo(1) groaned in the sweltering summer heat. It was an oddly humid day, which was most not average for South Korea. Sae was about to end the first semester of his second year in high school, and was excited for the little break that he was going to have for the last half of the month. He and some of his friends were planning on heading to the ocean to get some R&R on their shoulders before having to go back and finish their last semester. One more test was left in each of his main classes, and that was to be the next day. He planned on cramming the entire evening with few bathroom breaks and fewer snack breaks (though on his way home he’d stopped by a convenience store to grab some munchies) and figured he’d at least get a B or so on the tests. It wasn’t like he was a genius; he was the resident entertainer, his passion bestowed on singing.

Trudging up the steps of his small home, he opened the door and kicked off his shoes. He left the door open a crack and turned on the air conditioner, and then proceeded to go through the rest of the one-level house and crack some windows (2). Making his way to his bedroom, he dropped his heavy bag onto the floor, then glanced at his reflection in the small mirror on the wall.

His dark brown hair wasn’t quite shaggy, yet, since the school would most likely demand him to chop it off anyway. His pale skin glistened with a light sheen of sweat, and he shook his head a bit. Ick; drops of sweat went flying around, splattering on the walls and nearby surfaces. Not like his room was big, anyway. He loosened his tie and undid the first few buttons of his white shirt, and then pulled his belt off and untucked his shirt. Ah, much better. Smiling to himself, he bent and opened up his bag, then spread out his text books on the bed. Math, English, and Korean. Those were the tests he was mainly worried about. His choir folder opened up to the latest song he was learning, and he smiled, humming it lightly to himself. He stared at the other books – aside from Math, English and Korean he had Literature, History, Psychology, Health, and Pottery. Out of his friends, he had the least classes, but he wasn’t planning on going to college. He was much more interested in getting into the entertainment industry; and though he didn’t have to go to high school, both of his parents were educated scholars and would whip him raw with a bamboo stick if he didn’t at least finish high school.

Sitting down at his desk, he booted up his laptop and then shoved it into the far right corner. That left him room to spread out his English book and his notes, but kept the laptop in reach if he needed to research something briefly. He set to work immediately, immersing himself in his studies. He could have gone with his friends to the self-study, but he worked better alone. Besides, most of the time they just ended up screwing around; playing paper football or Ro Sham Bo to see who had to do a stupid stunt.

A few hours passed, and as night time fell on Seoul, Sae heard his parents come home. They worked in a local research lab, testing different ways to make the economy more eco-friendly. Eco as in ecological. If you went into the heart of the city, it’s advised to wear one of those weird surgical masks. Sae never did. Maybe that’s why he had asthma…

“Hey mom, hey dad.” He called out from his room – he got some muffled responses, but they didn’t say anything more, so he guessed they didn’t need him. Milk, his kitten, stirred from her sleep on the bed, batting her big blue eyes up at Sae and mewling softly. Sae smiled, the light dimples in each of his cheeks depressing slightly.

“Need to go out, girlie?” He asked, standing up and stretching. Milk took that as her cue to leap off of the bed, stretching her elegant white body out before rubbing against Sae’s leg. “Yeah, yeah.” He said, bending slightly to pet her, his own blue eyes glittering with amusement. “Spoiled.” He moved out of his room and glanced around, figuring his parents had already retired since all of the lights were out. This wasn’t unusual; in fact, Sae could almost say his parents were more like roommates. There to pay the rent and not to socialize. They were busy people. But he didn’t have an issue with that; he was a busy kid.

Yawning and stretching his lithe arms above his head, he laced his fingers and rested them on his neck briefly. Ah, he could go for a massage. He decided he would take a bath before he went to bed. Milk meowed lightly and waited at the front door, and Sae chuckled.

“Okay, okay. Be patient. Not everyone can just get up and go like you.” He opened the wooden door and reached out to push open the screen, barely even opening it all before Milk stepped towards it, and then ran away.

“… Eh?” Sae frowned and stared as his cat ran back into his bedroom, her tail frizzed considerably. Maybe there was a dog out there… Sae figured he would shoo it away.

He opened the door a bit further, but the sound of it connecting with something blocking it from going any further made Sae roll his eyes.

“If the paper boy threw it too close again, I’m gonna kill him.” He reached out nimble fingers to turn on the porch light, and when he looked back, his stomach dropped to the floor.

“I’m not the paper boy, and I’m pretty sure it’s me that’ll be doing the killing.”

Sae didn’t even have time to scream before blackness consumed his entire conscience.

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When the teen awoke, he groaned and lulled his head to the side. It was achy, and he was very, very uncomfortable. He tried to move, but his hands were bound behind his back and his feet were bound together as well. Panic gripped him immediately, and he glanced around wildly. It was still night time – maybe early morning? – and he could tell he was in a vehicle. A small van, since he was sitting in a pretty open space. Not only that, but it was… cushy. Almost comfortable, if he weren’t tied up.

“Morning sunshine.”

Sae jerked his head to the side and stared at the back of his captor’s head, his heart hammering against his chest. He said nothing – not because he was afraid to speak – but because he wanted to know if the guy would say anything useful.

“Surprised you’re up already. I thought I’d used enough chloroform… ah well. Knocked you out long enough for me to haul you up here.”

Licking his chapped lips, Sae listened intently to the man, even though he wasn’t saying anything useful. He glanced around, using what little light from the dash curved over the seat, looking for anything useful. Nothing. There was a purple beanbag chair in the back corner, and a… was that a television? And a Playstation?

“Gah, you’d think that nobody would be around this time of night. Quit driving like a grandma and get out of the fuckin’ way! Probably drunk or stoned or something… crazies."

You’re out in the middle of the night. Are you drunk or stoned or something? Sae thought cynically.

“So kid, how old are you?”

Sae rolled his eyes. What kind of kidnapper was this? He wasn’t violent, he was hardly resourceful (he hadn’t even gagged Sae!), and though earlier he had claimed that he would be doing the killing, Sae was still alive and healthy as a horse. Just what was this guy getting at?

“Why should I tell you?” Sae asked, speaking for the first time.

“Oooh, you have a lovely voice. A nice tenor. You sing?”

Sae was a bit taken aback. This man was so… strange. His way of speaking was odd, too. He had a bit of an accent, almost like Korean wasn’t his native tongue.

“I do…” Sae answered cautiously. He could see the man’s head nod.

“Good. A voice like yours could go somewhere. You’re a pretty good looking kid, too.”

The teen bristled, as if offended to be hearing that compliment. Under any other circumstances he would have blushed and passed it off, but since things were as such, he merely turned his nose up snootily.

“So you never told me how old you were.”

“Why does it matter?”

He saw the man’s shoulders lift up and fall down in a shrugging motion. “I dunno. Just trying to get to know you.”

“Why?” Sae asked, his tone a bit disgusted. “You’re just going to kill me, anyway.”

The man was silent for a moment, then his head tilted as he asked, “… you think I’m going to kill you?”

Sae blinked. And stared at the back of the man’s head.

“… Aren’t you?”

The man laughed. Sae realized all of a sudden that the man’s voice was actually pretty pleasant. Like he was a singer, too. His laugh was almost contagious, but Sae was too busy asking what the Hell was so funny.

“I’m not going to kill you, kid.”

The teen fell silent. He stared at the floor and fidgeted for a few moments. “Then… what are you going to do with me?” The thought of not being killed wasn’t as scary as not being killed. What other plans did this man have for him?”

“Do with you?” The man was still chuckling a bit. “I’m gonna work with you, that’s what.”

Sae’s eyes narrowed in confusion, and skepticism. “I’m not sure if you’re up to date on your News About Me column, but I don’t have a job.”

“You do now.~”

Grunting, Sae fumed. “Just tell me what the Hell is going on!”

“Okay, okay, okay.”

Sae felt the van slow down, and then halt completely. He glanced around fervently for a second, looking out every window (which was basically the windshield and the passenger side window), only to see that they were well out of the city and in complete darkness.

The man got out of the driver’s seat and shut the door, and Sae could hear the crunching of gravel as the man rounded the back of the van. Sae heard the handles of the doors protest, and then one of them opened. The man crawled in, and finally Sae got a good look at him.

His captor was actually a fairly attractive man. No, scratch that – as he got closer and started to undo the bindings on Sae’s feet, he was a really attractive man. Pretty, almost. Which wasn’t uncommon in any Asian ethnicity. His hair was feathered and covered his ears, long enough to brush his neck and barely his shoulders. Sae couldn’t see his eyes, but now that he could see the man’s features he knew that he wasn’t Korean. Japanese, maybe?

Once his feet were free, his captor looked him in the eyes. Sae’s breath caught in his throat, as eyes just as blue as his own stared at him. The man smiled, and all of a sudden he didn’t seem like a vicious kidnapper, or even a killer for that matter. He looked like a generally happy, carefree guy. Sae didn’t know if that worried him or not.

“I’m going to untie your hands. I will explain everything to you, if you promise not to escape.”

Sae licked his lips and weighed his options for a moment. He could either get out of this uncomfortable position and be up in the cockpit, or he could stay back here in this God-awful position. He nodded, and mumbled “I promise”. The man smiled and undid the rope, and for a split second Sae debated fleeing, but that thought was lost when he was brought into the man’s chest, in an embrace. He smelled lightly of aftershave, but mostly of dirt and some expensive cologne. An odd combination. He was warm, too. Sae pat the man’s upper arms awkwardly, and when the man pulled back, the teen estimated his age to be about twenty-five or so.

“It’s so good to finally meet you.”

The student rolled his eyes and pushed the other lightly. “Tell me what the Hell is going on.”

The man smiled and nodded, exiting the back of the truck and ushering Sae into the passenger seat. Once Sae was buckled, the man scurried to the other side and got in, starting up the van, and heading on the road again. The first sign that Sae saw said “Suwon - 256 km”, and another prickle of fear went down his spine.

“Where are we going?”

“South.”

“Why?”

“Work.”

Huffing, Sae turned in his seat, bringing one leg up to get comfortable. “You’ve already said that. What work do you need me for? I’ve never met you before, but apparently you’ve known me. Or at least of me.”

The man smiled, and Sae decided his profile was very nice. He nearly slapped himself but settled for a slight shake of the head, and scrunched up his features cutely, in a pout.

“I know you, Sae Rang Joo. I’ve known you your whole life.”

The teen tilted his head. “I’m sorry?”

“Well, at least, I was there when you were born. You know you’re adopted, right?” The man glanced over a bit hesitantly, as if wondering if Sae did in fact know he was adopted.

“Yes, I’ve known that since I was old enough to understand. That doesn’t—“ He paused. “… Are you like my brother or something?”

The man laughed. “I guess you could say that. We are brothers of a sort.”

Their matching blue eyes would make anyone link them to be related; despite the fact that the man was obviously Japanese and Sae was predominantly Korean.

Ah, that made a thought enter into Sae’s mind.

“What’s your name?” The teen asked, curiosity lacing his voice.

“Bam.” (3) The man replied. Obviously it wasn’t his real name, a nick name. “That’s what everyone calls me. My real name isn’t of importance; as yours is going to lose it’s significance as well.”

“Why do they call you ‘Bam’?” Sae asked, skipping over the fact that he also wanted to know why he’d have to drop his name.

“You’ll find out soon enough. Is there anything you’re good at aside from singing?”

Sae blinked at the question, and shrugged. “Uhm… I’m pretty good at soccer, I guess…?” That was an understatement. He was team captain of the team he’d been playing on for the past three years. He was amazingly good. But he was modest.

“Ah, a kicker.” Bam nodded and snapped his fingers, as if realizing something. “Ah, that’s it!”

“What?” Sae was confused. Not only at the man’s erratic behavior, but just with the situation in general. He had no idea why they were heading South, he had no idea what sort of ‘business’ he’d be doing with this man, and – oh, his family. Shit. “My parents, they’ll-“

“They know where you are.”

Sae blinked. “… what?”

“Ever since the day they took you in, they’ve known what’s up. They knew that in July of your eighteenth year, you’d be hauled away on ‘family business’. Well, that’s what they were told.” Bam explained easily, picking up a soda can and taking a drink from it.

Sae blinked. “Uh… okay…? How do I know you’re not lying?” And the teen thought it odd that the man had asked his age, even though he already apparently knew it. Conversation, maybe? Ehhh. What a weirdo.

Bam shrugged and took another drink. “Not sure. Just gotta trust me I guess.” He glanced over to Sae. “I haven’t hurt you, have I?”

“No…”

“I haven’t been mean, have I?”

“No… but-“

“I know a lot about you, right?”

Sae fumed. “You could be some crazy stalker that’s carting me away to a remote part of the country so you can rape me then feed me to the birds!”

Bam feigned a hurt expression. “I wouldn’t feed you to the birds, I’d rape you and keep you around for a bit… then use you as a fertilizer for my gramma’s crops~”

The teen deadpanned. “Wow, that makes me feels a whole lot better.”

Bam shrugged. “Better than being bird food…”

“Okay.” Sae sat himself straight and gave Bam the most serious look he could muster. “You’re expecting me to just follow you to Hell and back, be your ‘partner’ or whatever, and just go with it?”

The older man nodded slowly, then turned to Sae with a grin. “You know, you could go back to that boring hum-drum life you were living. Having dreams and not being able to accomplish them, living in a house with strangers, blowing off school.” He shrugged. “I could turn this van around right now and take you back to it.” He started to turn the wheel of the van, but a protest from Sae made the man smirk and chuckle. “Right. See? Curiosity is what brought me in, too. I was like you once. Only my life goal was to be a doctor or some shit like that.”

Man, this guy had a potty-mouth. The worst Sae ever said was ‘Hell’ and even that wasn’t too bad. The teen licked his lips and thought about it for a few moments, then looked at Bam out of the corner of his eye.

“You promise you won’t rape me and use my decaying body to fertilize the soil for your grandmother’s crops?”

Bam nodded and put a hand over his heart. “I promise. Only if you promise that you’re gonna dedicate yourself to me.”

Jeez, sounded like they were getting into a relationship or something. Blushing, Sae huffed. “Of course!” He turned his head to look out of the window to the horizon, where the faint glimmering of the sunrise could be seen. “Weirdo…”

“The fun is just beginning, Kicks.”

Sae turned. “… Is that the nickname you chose for me?”

“Yeah.” Bam practically glittered. “Cute, right?~”

Sae rolled his eyes. “Shut up and drive. And pull over at the nearest rest stop, I gotta take a leak.”

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A few hours later and the sun was up, and the humidity was almost unbearable. They didn’t have air conditioning in the van, and Sae had already stripped himself of his shirt. Ah, he was still in his school uniform. Great. His tie had been a struggle to get off; the heat made his hands slippery and he ended up just pulling it over his head and tossing it into the back, his shirt soon following. Without his belt (which was on the floor of his bedroom) his pants were a little loose on his slim frame, his sharp hip bones sticking out from the top of the material. He was glistening with sweat, his head dropped back on the seat as he sprawled as best as he could, trying to let the air from the open window move over him.

He couldn’t help but steal a few looks at Bam while he drove. He was wearing an army green tank top that was a bit dirty, like he’d been working outside. His pants were khaki cargos with a million and a half pockets, a few of which looked like they had something in them. He wanted to ask, but knew he didn’t want to know the answer. He’d probably be weirded out. In the sunlight where Sae could see Bam properly, he noted a bit of stubble on the man’s face. He had strong features and was definitely masculine, but he was still beautiful. It was an odd combination.

Sae bit his lip and looked out of the window again. They both had stopped countless times to refill their water bottles, but it seemed like they were hours and hours (possibly days) away from their destination.

“How far South are we going?” Sae finally asked, his mouth a bit gummy from not speaking so long.

“Cheju-do.”

The teen balked. “The island?!”

Bam blinked and looked over at Sae, sapphire eyes a bit shocked at the outburst. “Yes… it’s lovely this time of year~”

Sae slumped even further down in his seat. “I don’t have any money, do you? How can we afford a ferry?”

“It’s all been taken care of.” Bam said confidently, and Sae lifted a suspicious brow.

“… are you part of the mafia?”

Bam laughed out loud, and shook his head a bit. His hair blew brilliantly behind him in the wind, looking undisturbed by the heat. Which was stupid because Sae’s hair was soaked. Like he had just stepped out of the shower. In fact, he’d be naked right now if he wasn’t so shy. It was hard enough to take off his shirt.

“I’m not part of the mafia, Kicks.” Bam said.

The teen relaxed a bit, sighing relief.

“But close.”

He stiffened again, glancing over at Bam. “’Close’? Like… you go around shooting rival families ‘close’? Or you’re just a group of belligerent thugs ‘close’?”

“Neither.” The older man turned and flashed a smile at Sae, who felt his cheeks pinkening. At least he was already flushed from the heat. He huffed and looked out of the window again.

A few moments of relative silence passed, and for a moment Sae took in the scenery. He’d never been outside of Seoul before, and traveling into the rural country was a bit exciting. He’d seen it on the news and stuff, about agriculture and the farmers and stuff, but actually being in it was much cooler. Thick greens were spread out on either side of the two-lane highway, trees and all sorts of wildlife visible just from the street. A small smile spread on Sae’s face – and then Bam spoke again, which immediately incited a scowl.

“Do you know anything about your blood family, Kicks?”

“Nope. I know that my father was Korean, and my mother was Korean-Japanese. That’s about it.”

“Ah, so basically heritage.” He couldn’t see, but Sae knew that Bam was nodding and thinking. “Do you know their names?”

“Nah.”

“Not even their last name?”

Sae glanced over at Bam, who had his brow raised.

“No…?”

Bam looked at Sae hard for a second, and then made a ‘hmmm’ noise before returning his eyes to the road. Sae sat up as best as he could – with the vegetation around them it was getting less hot (but more humid) – and leaned towards Bam.

“Why?”

The older man licked his lips and tilted his head a bit as he drove, as if recalling memories.

“You see, Kicks, a long time ago your family was of royal lineage. Their power and influence was lost over the centuries as the country began to modernize itself. Now Joo is rarely even used as a surname anymore, usually a first name. It’s not special enough, anymore.” He took a breath and smiled at Sae. “But see, there was another royal bloodline behind the fall of the Joo. They made the people revolt against the Joo family – they were exiled to Japan and forced to live there under military control. The Joo family was furious about that, of course, though they haven’t had a chance to reclaim their honor. Not until now, anyway.”

Sae squinted. “So what, I’m like… part of a royal bloodline that wants revenge? And you are too?”

“Mmm… kinda. There’s a bit more to it than just that. Anyway, both your father and mother were descendants of the Joo clan; the very last of them. Distant cousins, of course, because when the Joo family was exiled to Japan they wanted to keep their blood as pure as possible – so they inbred. Your mother, Bo, was the result of a high priest and a Japanese prostitute. She was considered an abomination, but your father loved her. And soon enough, everyone died. Your mother and father knew that they needed to keep the blood alive, because the time for revolt was coming. So they made you, and then went and joined their deceased relatives in the ocean.”

“They killed themselves?” Sae asked, his voice small as he listened to the story. It was so tragic… almost like in a movie. He glanced around briefly, half-expecting cameras and crewmen to be driving alongside them, but they hadn’t seen a car for the past few hours.

“Yeah. The elders said to leave it to the new generation. All children that were born in the eighties are the revolutionists of the family.”

“So I’m a revolutionist now?” Sae frowned slightly, trying to wrap his mind around everything.

“More or less. Right now we’re in the midsts of planning our upheaval of the rival family.”

“Who is…?”

Bam smiled. “The Kim regime.”

Again, Sae squinted. “Aren’t they those snobby people that live near the border that are like, extremely rich and boss everybody around?”

“Yup.”

“Okay. I have no problem taking them out.” They were jerks. They were on the news all the time; they were famous because they were rich and of royal lineage. That’s pretty much it. None of them were pleasant to look at (or listen to), and Sae had always had a general dislike for them.

Bam chuckled. “Good. If you didn’t want to topple them, I’d have to kill you.”

Sae blinked and stared at Bam.

Bam turned and gave Sae a serious look, then broke out into a smile. “I kid. I couldn’t kill a family member.”

“So… how are we related? Brothers? Cousins? And why do we have blue eyes?”

“We have blue eyes,” Bam said, lifting a finger off of the wheel as if to make a point while speaking, “because our family contains a mismatched gene that off-sets the generic Asian features. It hasn’t been fully explained, but it has something to do with all of us having special ‘powers’, I guess you could say. We all have something we’re extremely good at – better than anyone, at. For you, it’s soccer, and most likely singing. For me? Well. I like to blow shit up.” He grinned.

“A mismatched gene, eh?” Sae nodded his head idly. He didn’t know much about science, much less the genes that made up a person’s outer appearance, just he just took it for face value.

“It’s also what makes us who we are, these blue eyes.” Bam glanced over to Sae. “Mine are dark, like sapphire. Yours, however, are pretty vibrant. Like cerulean, almost.”

Sae flipped down the visor to peer into the mirror – oh God he looked like crap – and nodded. “Yeah, mine are lighter than yours. Why is that?”

“Well, that leads me to answer the question about how we’re related. I’m your… sixth cousin, I think.”

“Yeah?” Sae smiled lightly. It was nice to know that he was in the presence of someone that shared his own blood.

“We are also related in one special way, too.”

Sae flipped the visor back up and turned to Bam. “Yeah? What’s that?”

“Well, my darker eyes indicate that I’m lesser in the royal blood. Your brighter eyes symbolize your importance.”

“So…”

“So basically bright eyes mean direct descendants, and dark eyes mean their servants or relatives.”

The teen blinked. “So… you’re a servant, and I’m a…?”

“Prince. You are Prince of the Joo clan, Sae, and I am your humble servant.”

“… Shit.”

--
A/N: 8D Lemme know what you guys think. X_x;

(1) Sae Rang Joo is my scrambling of Joo Rang Sae, one of the characters in the Korean drama ‘Coffee Prince’. Also, ‘Sae Rang’ when pronounced in a certain accent (like Japanese, for instance) sounds like ‘sa rang’ which is equivalent to ‘love’ in Korean. I’m CRAFTY.
(2) About the air conditioner: In Korea and other parts of Asia, we all know they’re totally superstitious. When I was there last, I was at a friend’s house and while we were sleeping, I got up and turned on the AC cuz I was roasting. Well my friend woke up, heard the air conditioner, and like screeched and shut it off. I asked wth was up, and she says “never turn on air conditioner with all of the doors and windows shut, or while sleeping! You’ll die!”. I had to lol hardcore at that. But it’s their belief, so I had to suffer. :l Annnyway. It’s like our myth of ‘wait 30 mins before you swim cuz you’ll sink) or whatever. Everyone has their superstitions. I just find this one hilarious. XD THEY EVEN HAVE REPORTS LIKE, ONCE A WEEK. “So-and-so died of fan the other day…” Death by fan. Talk about LAME.
(3) Okay. There’s a Korean dish called Bi-Bam-Bap. It’s DELICIOUS. Has egg, beef, etc etc in it (I can’t remember all the ingredients, it’s just good). It’s pretty spicy and it’s like… kind of the quirky item on the menu. That’s half of the symbolism for Bam’s name. The other half is the fact that he likes to blow shit up. 8D

So yeah. That’s pretty much it. There’ll be little footers like this probably at the end of the chapter; most people know shit about Japan but poor S. Korea is like “D: GIVE US ATTENTION” and no one does. I DO. I LOVE YOU SOUTH KOREA. MOAR THAN JAPAN.

Annnnnnd review now.
(lol, when I count up all the A/N’s, the word count is totally over 5k. xD)