Hunted

It was all his fault. Nele knew full well that he had no one to blame but himself. The others knew it too. They knew Kiyoshi could have died and Rex was on Death's door all because of him. Even if they didn't say it, it was too apparent to deny. At least the jackass Takuya was man enough to say it, but being yelled at by that dick had been humiliating.

Before they went out the door, Nele had given Lea's number to Choi. Something about wanting to talk to Zach, but Nele hadn't really been paying attention. It was hard to listen to people talking when his guilt was screaming in his ears. Whatever had happened it was too late to matter. He was already in the driver's seat of Leandor's car, with Rex whimpering in Kyun's lap on the passenger side and Choi in the back seat. They had put off going to the vet long enough. Could only hope the dog would hold on a little longer.

They were almost there. Almost. Just a few more yards to cover and they'd be there. He had never been so glad to be with other people; to have that help, but his dignity had been crushed too much that morning to really accept it as reality. "You know, I could have done this by myself."

He saw Kyun quirk a faint smirk in the rearview mirror, and soon felt a hand rest gently on his shoulder. "Sure... but just in case..." The Korean shifted carefully, eyes glued on the dog, then turned towards Nele again. "Don't worry. Things will work out soon."

Why was that guy being nice to him? That was hardly the time for being polite. Nele sighed and glanced to both sides before switching lanes. The parking lot was coming up soon. For awhile after that he didn't say anything, just drove toward the animal clinic in silence. As he pulled up into a parking spot, he glanced at Kyun and scowled. "I don't know why you bother with Julian. You're too cool for him." He unbuckled his seatbelt and opened the door. "Give me Rex."

The Korean's eyes narrowed momentarily, but after a deep breath, he lifted the animal gently, leaving it in Nele's hands. Choi was already on his way out, but Kyun took his time leaving the car.

Nele gently carried the dog out, walking slowly and murmuring to it. They were already attracting attention from people on the street and a couple coming out the door of the vet clinic, but he couldn't afford to pay them any mind. He headed into the building and went straight to the front desk. The people there were quick to act, firing questions at him about what happened and who he was. They had the dog away from him in a minute and gave him a couple forms to fill out – including payment method. Once they left him alone and took Rex into the back, Nele went over to sit in the waiting room, staring at the papers. "This is too fucking much."

A few seconds later, Kyun sat down next to him, and Choi sat in the next chair. Soon, the two Koreans were discussing something in a hushed conversation - probably in Korean, since the redhead couldn't make anything out. Occasionally, Kyun cast a glance over at him and at the papers he was filling out.

"Stop looking at me, I'm not falling apart just yet." He sneered down at the sheet and scribbled in more information. Wasn't usually so much to fill out at the vet, but with a serious injury like that, they were always more thorough. When he came to the part about how it happened, he put down a lie about not knowing who did it. It wasn't a complete lie, but he wanted to take care of that bitch himself.

Kyun gave him a worried frown, then leant closer, rubbing his shoulder lightly. "You're a brave guy. Just relax." He sighed, glancing over the other people waiting. "Nobody's going to hurt you," he said in a low near-whisper, "we're here. Nothing bad will happen."

Nele stood up fast as if he had been slapped. It sure stung to hear those words. With an indignant, sarcastic laugh, he shook his head and threw the forms down on the seat. "I don't fucking need you to protect me! I could kick your ass into next week if I wanted, so don't fucking act like you're better than me and shit! Don't wanna hear your patronizing bullshit right now..."

Swallowing hard, Kyun slowly pushed to his feet. "I'm not saying I'm better than you," he said with an uneasy voice, obviously straining real hard to stay calm, "and I didn't mean to be patronizing." Blinking a few times, he took a step away, then let out an exaggerated sigh. "I need to use the bathroom." He mumbled on his way to a door across the room.

"Fuck..." He sat down again, sticking up the middle finger to a group of girls who were gawking at them. It was a bad day. A very bad day. "When will this goddamn day end, already?!"

"In a couple of hours?" Choi's voice was an annoyed monotone, speaking out into the air in front of him. Then, the Korean turned, meeting his gaze. "Kyun is only putting up with you because he feels sorry for you. Stop pushing it."

Feels sorry? Pity? Nele stared at Choi as he thought about it. Yes, it made sense after how Kyun had been acting, and it only infuriated the redhead further. How dare they pity him and look down on him in that way? It was insulting to the greatest extent, and whatever dignity he had left was ripped away. How could he have sunk so low that someone as cool as Kyun would have so little respect for him... He knew the answer for that. What happened that morning could explain it. That was unforgivable. Blinking back tears of frustration, Nele lowered his head, and said nothing more as he resumed filling out the papers.

~~~~

Where was he?! Nobody had been at the location to meet him, but as soon as he came back to get Jyotis, his little brother was gone. This was the second time it happened, but this time he wasn't going to wander around. Someone had staged that potential job so they could snatch his brother, he was sure.

Ramesh growled and stood outside behind the bush. No sign of a struggle at least. Maybe he wasn't hurt. He reached through his truck window to grab the cell off the seat, and pressed the speed dial for his brother's phone.

It rang six times before there was an answer. "Good afternoon, Ramesh." He was right. That was the same voice that had called him about a job earlier. "Enjoyed your trip?"

"You little sneaky fuck," he spat. He could feel his heart rate going up to dangerous levels and he was only seconds away from murdering anyone he could get his hands on. "What did you do with my brother?!"

A chilly chuckle rang from the other end. "I haven't hurt him. Yet. But you're not calling me something like that again, are you, Ramesh?"

"... No, I guess not. Not unless you do hurt him. Okay, you've got me where you want me, so what the fuck are you after?" He looked around, his eyes ultimately landing on the building. "It's you guys, isn't it? Luo, Leandor, and friends? What do you want from me?"

"Well, since you're keeping us from doing certain things, it only makes sense that you do them for us, right?" The contemplative voice paused, then it turned considerably more firm for the finish. "For your information... We'll have people looking for you, Ramesh. If you're seen less than four blocks from this place without our permission, your brother isn't going to like it."

He cringed and studied the building, trying to find anyone watching through a window. No one as far as he could tell. "Okay, I get it. Four blocks. Just tell me who gave you my number. It was that racist little shit, Rick, wasn't it? You don't mind if I go murder that fuck, do you?"

"I might mind." A sigh was heard, and he could hear a door opened. "Now tell me, who is that girl?"

"She's a Mancini. Carlos' little sister. Your friend Leandor will know more about her than I do. As much as I'd love to set you and her up on a date, I can't. She always finds me and hasn't told me anything. Not even her first name. Now how long do you intend to hang on to Jyotis?" He climbed in his truck. If they wanted him far away, he'd go far away. Anything for his brother.

The man at the other end of the line made a sound to indicate he was considering that. "At least a week," he finally concluded, "maybe longer. You've got a fair bit of work to do for us first."

"Fine, fine. I'll do whatever you want. Just take care of him, and don't take away his lighter. He won't eat without it. I don't want him to starve." He put the truck into reverse and slowly backed into the street. "What do you want me to do first?"

"Swear you'll never touch any of us again. I'd think your credibility holds crucial value to you in this situation, so while you possibly might break that pledge, it's a good start..."

With a sigh and a glance in his rearview mirror, Ramesh started driving away. It felt so wrong abandoning his brother with those slimeballs. Who knew what kind of perverting things they'd do. "Fine, I swear I won't touch any of you guys again as long as my brother isn't harmed. Is that it for now, or are there other wedding vows for me to make?"

"No. We'll call you later tonight with further instructions. Goodbye." And the guy hung up.

~~~~~

This is a collab, written together with Chlover. You can find her author profile here: http://original.adult-fanfiction.org/authors.php?no=26260