Work Text:
10 Mistakes All Supervillains Tend to Make
- Monologuing
- Underestimating the hero
- Mistreating their henchman
- Overcomplicated the plan
- Meddling with things they don’t understand
- Giving their captive more than enough time to escape and stop them
- Never aware of their surroundings
- Forgetting to use their powers
- Threatening the hero’s loved ones
- Letting themselves have attachments
While there were many other mistakes supervillains make, these ten were the most common ones that Kim Seungmin encountered during his time working as a villain counsellor. His latest client, Vertigo, who he would later learn to be Seo Changbin, made 5/10 of these mistakes. Not the worst he has ever seen, but definitely not good.
It was difficult to get into contact with Seungmin, mainly because what he did fell under aiding and abetting and he wasn’t planning on going to prison anytime soon, but the desperate villains who go through the effort of finding him come out of their sessions successfully.
Vertigo was a new villain Seungmin did not know much about, mainly because he was a local villain, and being a local villain in such a big city oversaturated with much more famous heroes and villains was not a good thing. The only reason he was even known was because the hero who always goes after him was significantly more popular.
What Seungmin did know about him did not make things better for Vertigo’s reputation. He was an afterthought in Seungmin’s head, someone who you say, “Oh, also him, I guess,” after making a list of villains in the area.
To put it simply, Vertigo wasn’t a threat, so imagine Seungmin’s surprise when he gets a text from his glorified secretary informing him that Vertigo is scheduled to meet with him tomorrow.
Seungmin immediately called Minho.
“What do you mean I’m meeting with Vertigo? He’s smart enough to find me?”
“Well, I doubt any other villain you’ve worked with told him how to get to you, so yeah, I guess he is,” Minho replies.
“How did he even find out that people schedule appointments with me through you?” He hears a grunt on Minho’s end. “Are you in your workshop right now? I thought you went home early today.”
“Yup. Yves is picking up her repaired suit in an hour and, in all honesty, I’ve been procrastinating all day.” Seungmin hears a clang before Minho continues. “Vertigo was picking up the new gloves I made for him when he saw the appointment logbook on my desk and connected the dots. He saw you were free tomorrow and asked if he could come in.”
Seungmin lets out an exasperated sigh. “You left the book on your desk for anyone to see?”
Minho scoffs in response. “I only make gear for villains. You only work with villains. The only ‘anyone’ who is going to see is your targeted demographic. I should be charging you for this promotion.”
“Just keep the book in a drawer next time.”
“Yes, sir,” Minho says sarcastically. “Any more complaining, or can I get back to work?”
“Can you bring me breakfast tomorrow?” Seungmin asks.
“No.” Minho hangs up after that, and Seungmin counts to ten in his head before a ding notifies him of a text message.
Minho: muffin or scone?
Seungmin smiles before replying with a muffin. He and Minho were an unusual pair, but unusual didn’t always mean bad.
Of all the places to meet, a high school economics class they were forced to take when they were 15 was not the most ideal place, but nothing about the two being together was ideal.
They butted heads, both for the fun of pissing off the other person and because the two genuinely disagreed during a few class debates. It wasn’t until a class on the profit of the hero industry that the two came to a slow realization.
“While it is true that working with villains is more profitable due to their desperation and willingness to pay more for gear and help, the hero industry still provides easy money once you’ve gained access to it,” their teacher had said. “Creating suits and providing help to these heroes better our society and are part of the natural flow of the economy.”
The two eyed each other but said nothing.
“You know,” Minho muttered after class as they all began to pack up for lunch. He eyed Seungmin’s psychology textbook from the previous period. “For every job in the hero world, there’s a villain version, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard of counselling for villains.”
“What a shame,” Seungmin mutters back. “At least we know for sure that there’s a career, albeit a risky one, in making gear for villains. It’s already expensive for heroes, so I can’t imagine how much a desperate villain is willing to fork over for a single suit.”
Even though they wouldn’t admit it at the time, the two were a lot alike, which meant that they both had the same idea.
With a passion for science and design driving Minho, he graduated university with both a degree and certification in building hero gear that was immediately shoved into his desk drawer in favour of starting his own underground business.
As for Seungmin, all his study and work put into his behavioural psychotherapy degree was not something he ended up using often with his clients (but hey, that’s university for you). Villains typically visited his office inside Minho’s workshop for two types of counselling.
The most common was just job advice in order to become a better villain. This was done through either seemingly obvious advice given to them or Seungmin’s own research on their behavioural patterns. The other, which rarely came up, was to vent and talk through their own personal problems in relation to work. The second one fell under doctor-patient confidentiality, so when he would talk about work with Minho, he only talked about the job advice he’s given.
With the high demand for sessions with Seungmin, the only villains that knew that he worked with Minho were the ones who had visited him previously. It was an unspoken rule that the way to book appointments with him were to be kept a secret, which the two appreciated. The safer Seungmin was, the better.
Seungmin and Minho played a special role in the world of supervillains, and they wouldn’t have it any other way after all these years. Minho made sure they were safe, and Seungmin made sure they were smart enough not to get into danger in the first place.
Seungmin headed to bed early that night, thinking about what problems Vertigo would bring to him tomorrow.
“Is he nice?” Seungmin asked, taking a bite out of the muffin Minho brought him.
Minho looked up from his computer. “Very. I mean, everyone who meets with us is nice, but this guy has a smile that’s almost hero worthy.”
He then gets up from his seat and sits down next to Seungmin on one of the tables. He steals his tea and takes a sip before speaking.
“Why are you so interested in him anyway? Isn’t he considered a nobody?”
Seungmin grabs his drink back before responding. “That’s exactly why I’m so interested. I have no clue what he’s going to throw at me. What if he’s like that one guy who was so bad at being a villain that he kept accidentally doing good deeds?”
“I don’t think anyone can top that, but if you can share whatever Vertigo is here for, please tell me.”
A ding from Minho’s computer catches their attention.
“Speak of the devil…”
Minho walks over and turns on one of the many monitors on his desk, which showed security camera footage of their underground entrance. Standing at the door, dressed in his black and purple costume, awkwardly fiddling with the mask on his face, was Vertigo.
Minho presses a button that unlocks the door and lets Vertigo in. It takes the villain a moment to climb the stairs and enter the workshop. When he does, Minho waves at him and points at Seungmin.
“Hey, dude, this is the famous Themis.”
Seungmin stops himself from wincing at his pseudonym. He picked the name of the Greek goddess out when he and Minho were 15, but didn’t think it would stick. Apparently, Minho remembered it all these years later because when he first began to quietly advertise Seungmin’s business, he used that name.
Vertigo looks to Seungmin and his eyes widen for a moment, much to Seungmin’s confusion. The villain quickly recovers and smiles at him. “Hi! Fabricator said we’ll be having our session in here?”
“Sort of, just in a different room. Follow me.” Seungmin turns around and heads towards the back of Minho’s workshop.
Seungmin’s office wasn’t anything grand. He had his desk, computer, a recliner, a couch, a table with a few objects to keep someone occupied while they waited for him or to simply distract themselves, and a few fake plants. The only personal item he had with him was a framed photo of him and Minho at their university graduation hanging on the wall.
Seungmin waited for Vertigo to pick between the recliner and couch, and sat on the recliner once he saw Vertigo make his way over to the couch. Once seated, Vertigo picked up one of the bouncy balls on the table and began tossing it up and down.
“I should probably let you know that I’m not here for the therapy kind of counselling,” Vertigo explains. “I heard you offer some good job advice so that’s the reason why I’m here.”
“That’s perfectly fine,” Seungmin replies, pulling out his notebook. “Can you start by telling me a bit about your powers and career as a villain?”
“Well, there’s not much to the career. I’m mainly a jewel thief. As for powers,” Vertigo tosses the ball up in the air and points to it, and Seungmin watches the ball float all the way up to his ceiling. “Gravity manipulation. I won’t show you the opposite though. I’m not sure if your floor or the ball will break first.”
“And your limits?”
“I can use my powers on objects up to three times my weight. It makes carrying groceries very easy. I make everything but one item at the top weightless to hold it all down. Oh, and objects with no gravity still have the same… impact? Is that the right word? Like if I throw a boulder at someone it will hurt like a boulder with its proper weight.”
Seungmin nods and jots the note down in his book. He quickly glances up at Vertigo’s arms. Judging by how muscular he was, he could probably work with a lot of heavy objects.
“Okay, so is there anything in particular you need help with?”
Vertigo winces. “My main issue is, um, everything?”
Seungmin blinks.
“Everything?”
“Okay maybe not everything,” Vertigo clarifies. “It’s just that I keep almost getting away with the jewels, but that stupid hero is always on my ass and I almost always end up having to escape without the jewels. Radiator, or whatever his name is.”
“You mean Radiance?” Seungmin says with a laugh. “The guy with the light powers?”
Vertigo scowls and crosses his arms. “Yeah, him. Stupid, smiley asshole keeps intervening.”
Radiance, one of the few heroes whose civilian identity was known to the world, wasn’t a typical hero. Lee Felix made a name for himself not from fighting villains, but from his community outreach programs. He had the reputation of a hero that was your friend, which made him quite popular.
“I want to be a hero to everyone,” he had said in his first interview. “Of course I’ll still fight villains when the time comes, but the worst villain in people’s lives isn’t a person tearing up a street or robbing a bank, it’s the everyday struggles they face that no one seems to notice.”
He faced the camera and smiled, and something about him just seemed to glow.
“That’s why I’m okay with people knowing my name and face. I don’t want to be some anonymous, unapproachable figure. I don’t want you to reach towards me, I want to be someone that is already by your side.”
After that, he became the city’s golden boy. Ironic, given his powers. The name Radiance held two meanings. To Felix, he was called that because of his ability to shoot rays of light from his hands. To everyone else, he was called that thanks to his bright disposition.
With freckles glowing as brightly as his powers and a smile so genuine that it could make a villain stop in their tracks to blush, Radiance was the height of perfection.
“You have beef… with Radiance,” Seungmin says slowly. “I didn’t think that was humanly possible.”
Vertigo huffs. “Wouldn’t any villain have a problem with the hero trying to stop them?”
“Okay, so it’s not personal, it’s just work.”
“It feels personal. I try and talk and vaguely explain why I’m doing what I’m doing without giving too much away but—”
“And there we have it!” Seungmin interrupts.
In all his years of counselling, no matter what the problem would be, he and the villain would always end up at this point. He opened his desk drawer and pulled out a sheet of paper from a thick folder, handing it to Vertigo.
“‘10 Mistakes All Supervillains Tend to Make,’” Vertigo reads.
“It’s not in a specific order, but I put monologuing at the top because it always happens,” Seungmin says. “And now we know what one of your problems is.”
“But he talks to me first. Am I just supposed to stay silent?”
“Yes!” Seungmin replies. “Heroes, yes, even perfect little Radiance, don’t care about your motives. You are committing a crime and they are trying to stop you, and getting a villain to monologue is a surefire way to distract them so the hero can catch them. Even if Radiance does care, hearing you out is not his priority.”
“Okay, but like,” Vertigo’s voice gets a bit quieter. “What if I like bragging? I don’t actually reveal important information.”
Seungmin puts his head in his hands. Something tells him Vertigo will not be a one time client.
“Every villain has an ego, and no matter how small it is, it will end up being your downfall,” Seungmin explains. “You can not let that ego show itself in a fight, because then you’ll get too cocky, and when you get too cocky, your unchecked confidence will have you making dumb decisions. Heroes will take advantage of that.”
Vertigo slowly nods, taking everything Seungmin said in.
“So no talking?” Vertigo asks.
“Not a word,” Seungmin replies. “I would let you say ‘fuck off,’ but I don’t think you have the heart to say it to Radiance.”
“I’m a villain, not a monster,” Vertigo says with a laugh. “Is there anything else? Do you have to keep me here for an hour?”
“I don’t put a minimum time limit for job advice,” Seungmin clarifies. “If Fabricator already told you my flat fee yesterday, you can just pay that.”
Vertigo pulls out his wallet and opens it, carefully shielding his ID, before pulling out a wad of cash and handing it to Seungmin.
Seungmin takes the money. “Here’s some free advice. Don’t carry your ID around when you’re in costume.”
“Noted. If I ever want to come back, should I just come back and talk to Fabricator or you or…?” Vertigo trails off.
“Either one of us works. Just know that if a villain that doesn’t know about me working here is here, Fabricator will lock you out so you don’t accidentally blab.”
“Perfect! I’ll see you soon, Themis!”
Vertigo walks out of the room, leaving Seungmin alone to look over his notes on the villain.
“Incompetent” would be far too harsh of a word to describe the villain, but Seungmin knew Vertigo made the right choice in wanting to continue the sessions. He’s seen a lot of villains over the years who needed his help, and Vertigo was definitely one of them.
The next time Seungmin saw Vertigo was two weeks later, and Seungmin was already expecting this visit.
The news from the previous day reported on a large jewelry shop inside a mall being robbed and Radiance arriving on the scene, which could only mean that Vertigo was responsible. The fight ended with Vertigo fleeing with only a handful of gems.
“I didn’t monologue this time!” Vertigo says excitedly. “Radiance asked me what I was planning on doing with the gems and I just kept my mouth shut and continued fighting him.”
“I’m proud of you,” Seungmin says. “But, something tells me you wanted to escape with more than just a handful of jewels.”
Vertigo sighs at that. “I almost had him, you know. I hit him hard enough to get him dazed and had him tied up and tossed in a corner.”
“You didn’t talk to him then, right?” Seungmin cautiously asks.
“I didn’t say a word to him yesterday,” Vertigo reassures. “I went around both floors to grab as many jewels as I could, then went and double-checked to make sure I got everything, but then Radiance got out and we fought again and I had to run.”
“You stayed in the building after grabbing the jewels? Which gave Radiance plenty of time to escape and stop you?”
Vertigo was silent for a moment, looking very embarrassed, before whispering. “I don’t want to say yes even though that’s exactly what I did.”
“Do you still have the paper I gave you?” Seungmin asks. “Look at number six.”
Vertigo reaches into his pocket and pulls out a folded up piece of paper, carefully unfolding it and reading what it says.
“‘Giving their captive more than enough time to escape and stop them.’” Vertigo pauses. “Well, I see what the problem is.”
“You’re actually better than most villains who make this mistake,” Seungmin reassures. “They either mix that in with the monologuing problem, or leave some sort of trap that’s supposed to kill the hero that takes like ten minutes to actually kill the hero.”
“I feel like there’s a story behind that second one.”
“You’ll be most effective if you just grab and go,” Seungmin continues. “The less time you’re in there, the less time the hero has to catch you.”
Vertigo nods. “Aright, okay. You really know your stuff, huh?”
Seungmin shrugs. “You spend a few years of your life looking at all the mistakes villains make and you start to notice a few things. Easy money to me.”
Vertigo smiles. “It really works out well for both parties. You make your money, and the lives of the villains you help improves greatly. I still always think about what you did for Chaeyeon.”
Seungmin feels his blood run cold once he hears that name. His breath hitches and he whispers. “You know Chaeyeon?”
Chaeyeon, although many people just called her Bird of Prey, was a client Seungmin had about a year ago. Blessed with the power of perfect instincts and reflexes, she became a giant headache for both heroes and law enforcement throughout her short career.
At first, she was like Vertigo, a new villain who needed help with the basics, but she quickly improved in a blink of an eye. Seungmin didn’t expect to see her anymore, so he was surprised to enter his office and see her unmasked and in tears on his couch, telling him how overwhelmed she felt.
She came back a few more times to let everything out without revealing why exactly she was feeling like this, and it was one of the few times Seungmin put his degree to good use. Then, one day, she just stopped coming, and all he had left of her was a thank you note, signed by “Your favourite bird, Lee Chaeyeon.”
It’s one of the few times his job kept him up at night. She stopped appearing on the news, and googling her full name gave him nothing. He didn’t want to believe she was dead, but her abrupt disappearance did not give him any confidence.
“She’s one of the two people who know my identity,” Vertigo explained. “She’s actually the one who told me about you a year ago when we used to be neighbours.”
“Is she…” Seungmin trails off.
“She’s alive with her wife and daughter far away from the city, and it’s all thanks to your help.”
Seungmin stares at him blankly. “What? She has a what? How did I help?”
“Her daughter Wonyoung got kidnapped and the police weren’t doing enough, so she decided to take matters into her own hands. She came to you for help with the basics before gathering her own information. The stress took a toll on her and her wife, which is why she came to you for help. Do you remember what you told her in your last session?”
Seungmin slowly nods, remembering it clearly.
“I know I probably shouldn’t be saying this to my source of income, but is there any way you can just quit all this once you’re done what you want to do?” Seungmin asked her.
“I think I’m in way too deep to stop,” Chaeyeon whispered. “There’s someone important in my life who knows what I’m doing, but I think she’s going to leave once I do what I need to do while I remain stuck in this city.”
“You don’t have to be stuck,” Seungmin said. “If you’re able to, what’s stopping you from starting fresh somewhere else?”
“What if I’m—” She takes a deep breath. “What if I get stuck like this? Like a villain forever.”
Seungmin moves to sit next to her on the couch, putting a hand on her shoulder.
“Villains run on one motivation, one goal. When they succeed, they’re back to who they were before choosing this life, changed, but happier. I think you can find that happiness and go back to normal.”
“I don’t think we can go back to normal.”
“But you’ll still have that happiness.”
That one conversation was what stopped Seungmin from fully believing that she was dead, and knowing that she was alive and with her family? The relief he felt was going to make him burst into tears.
“After she rescued her daughter, she and her wife moved away, but not after dropping that note off for you,” Vertigo continues. “You probably found nothing searching her up because she signed with her maiden name, but I’m sure if you find out how to contact Miyawaki Chaeyeon, she’d be happy to hear from you.”
Seungmin stared at Vertigo, speechless. He still had a thousand questions running through his head but right now, he could only ask one.
“Is she happy?”
Vertigo smiled, softly. “Very. You know, for someone who sides with the villains, you’re a really good person, even more so because it’s unintentional.”
Seungmin just chuckles, pushing down the warm feeling in his chest. He was a villain counsellor. The only thing worse than that was a villain itself. “I don’t think that’s how it works.”
Vertigo just shrugs in response. “Well, it makes sense to me.”
He gets up and heads towards Seungmin’s desk, pulling out a wallet that looked different from last time. He hands Seungmin his payment and smiles.
“See you soon?”
Seungmin takes the money. “See you soon, Vertigo.”
But before Vertigo could leave the room, Seungmin calls out to him.
“You said Chaeyeon knows who you are, but she left a year ago and you’re a recent villain. Did you tell her about your plans?”
“Yup,” Vertigo replies. “I’ve only been in the game for four months. When I told Chaeyeon, she told me that I should talk to you, but she didn’t tell me how to find you. I guess it was like she was challenging me.”
“And it worked,” Seungmin said. “She told you to come to me for job advice.”
Vertigo’s smile drops for a second before returning, almost as if nothing happened.
“Yeah,” he says, his voice wavering slightly. “Anyway, see ya.”
Vertigo waves and leaves before Seungmin could say another word.
“So, how’s Gravity Man?”
“Vertigo.”
“Same thing.”
Seungmin rolls his eyes at Minho, leaning back in his chair and looking around the café they were in before speaking.
“He’s fine. Just needs the basics.”
“If I’ve never seen him fight before on the news, I’d assume the guy is in wayyyy over his head,” Minho says. “Crazy good reflexes and can make a quick escape, but he does not have the best success rate.”
“He’s at least accepting of all my feedback,” Seungmin says. He takes a sip from his tea, lost in thought over the villain before looking up at Minho.
“Do you think you’re a good person?”
“What the fuck?” Minho blurts out. “Are we in a café or your office?”
“Okay, probably shouldn’t have sprung that on you,” Seungmin says. “I just can’t stop thinking about the thing with Chaeyeon.”
After Changbin had left, Seungmin ended up running to Minho to explain the truth. He remembered how Minho very subtly took care of him after her disappearance, and although he didn’t know any of the details of what went down during their sessions beyond a quick “I can’t talk about it,” seeing Seungmin’s tired face after every session was enough for him to realize that it was far more serious issue than he expected.
“Well, I don’t want to turn this into an annoying conversation about morality and ethics, but I’ve always viewed myself as neutral. At the end of the day, my job aligns with what the public views as the bad guys, but I like to think that the bad guys view me as a good person. It cancels out.”
“We only took these jobs for the money, though.”
“Yeah, at first.” Minho leans forward, raising an eyebrow at Seungmin. “I’m willing to bet that you didn’t take any payments from Chaeyeon during your last few sessions.”
Seungmin opened his mouth to answer him, but quickly shut it. He doesn’t remember when she last paid him, because he never asked her too once she started breaking down.
Minho took his silence as his response. “If we were still in it for the money, then you wouldn’t have told Chaeyeon to quit and I wouldn’t make free gear for high school and college aged villains. We both changed, the only difference is that I’m the only one who realized.”
Ignoring the growing morality crisis he was about to face, Seungmin tilts his head, confused. “You make free gear?”
“Well, I can’t stop them from making their bad decisions, so I might as well make sure they don’t get themselves killed.”
Minho takes another sip of his drink. “Seungmin, if we were bad people, we wouldn’t care about the villains who come to us. We wouldn’t take pride in our work knowing that because of us, the villain gets to live to see another day.”
Instead of responding, Seungmin just took a long sip of his tea, thinking over what Minho had said.
He never put much thought into what he was doing during his job. From his point of view, he just gave some advice and counselling and carried on. To him, he viewed himself as selfish, only enjoying his job for the money and being proven right every time his advice worked.
But a selfish person probably wouldn’t check the news every ten minutes to see if Chaeyeon had been spotted. A selfish person probably wouldn’t lose sleep over the thought of her being dead. A selfish person’s heart wouldn’t stop for a moment anytime he saw a villain he worked with doing something risky and almost die. Hell, a selfish person probably wouldn’t have had an interest in psychology and therapy dating all the way back to his childhood, long before the idea of working for villains was a thought in his head.
Minho laughs as he watches Seungmin slowly work it all out. “For a smart guy, you’re really not that self aware. Yeah, I mean, I could end up being a bad person, but I really doubt you would.”
“Why?” Seungmin asks.
“You have a job where having an almost exhausting amount of empathy is a requirement, and you do it flawlessly. You wanted a career in psychology even before we met. I don’t think you could be a bad person even if you tried.”
Seungmin lifts his cup to his face, praying it was large enough to cover the blush on his face. “Since when were you so nice to me?”
“I can’t have you walking around spouting stupid shit like, ‘I’m a bad person.’ I’m associated with you, I have a reputation to uphold.”
For the second time that day, Seungmin rolls his eyes at Minho.
“It wouldn’t kill you to—”
A large boom interrupts Seungmin as the café shakes, knocking drinks off of tables and pastries out of the display case.
Minho and Seungmin, who were completely unfazed, look out the giant glass window from their seat next to the door.
Minho rests his elbows on the table and rests his chin on his hands. “Ooh, I wonder who it is.”
A body is flung down the street and lands harshly onto the ground, rolling a few feet before stopping. Approaching it is a young woman dressed in white and purple, twirling a staff in one hand.
“Oh, I see someone pissed off Cherry,” Seungmin says. “Do you know that hero?”
“Clearly they must be a nobody if they think they stand a chance against her,” Minho replies.
“Did she always have a staff? I don’t remember her having one when she saw me. She totally stole that from Avatar, didn’t she?”
“I made it for her after you convinced me to watch it a few months ago. It’s just for precise and direct attacks.”
They watch as the hero attempts to stand up, only for Cherry to swing her staff downwards and a gust of wind to knock the hero back down. She then sets the staff down and stretches her hands out towards the hero, and everyone watches as the wind around them circles the hero and lifts him up and over her head.
Cherry looks for a place to throw the hero, and her eyes land on the café, but before she could throw them, she locks eyes with Seungmin through the window. Her eyes widen when she realizes Minho is there too and she turns around, throwing the hero in a different store.
Minho sighs. “This is such a nice, unexpected job benefit. I love not being killed.”
Strange phrasing aside, he wasn’t wrong.
He shrugs. “Do you think I’ve done something good for her?”
“I don’t think, I know,” Minho replies, looking at Seungmin. “Don’t you remember what she was like before going to visit you? She was so shy, she couldn’t look at either of us in the eyes.”
“Did she tell you that herself?”
“Not everything needs direct confirmation. Sometimes, you can just tell from watching.”
Their similarities branched off once again. They were both observers, but Minho was always the silent observer, drawing conclusions on his own, while Seungmin would seek out confirmation from others.
Minho looks back at Cherry one more time.
“I hope Vertigo keeps visiting. He already gave you one wake up call, so maybe he can convince you that you’re not some selfish asshole.”
“Dude, what did I see on the news?”
Vertigo looks at Seungmin sheepishly. “Um, that was Whiplash.”
Last night’s news report was a live broadcast of Vertigo’s second attempt at robbing the large jewelry shop. Things were going well for the villain once he made it outside when suddenly, what looked like an orange blur knocked out the half officers going after Vertigo, grabbed the bag of jewels, and disappeared, leaving Vertigo to flee amidst the confusion.
Seungmin stares at him blankly. “And who or what exactly is Whiplash?”
Vertigo takes a long pause before rushing through his answer. “My kid? But not actually my kid. I’m his caretaker, sort of. Not legally though, he’s just sort of chilling in my house. I took him in and now I make sure he doesn’t die. Is that what adoption is?”
“Woah, woah, woah.” Seungmin lifts his hands, expecting anything but that. “Wait a minute. Why was this kid—”
“Whiplash.”
“Why was Whiplash at the robbery? You told him he’s a villain?”
“Themis, if you lived with a guy with gravity powers who disappears at odd hours and comes home with a bunch of bruises, you’d start to connect a few dots.”
Seungmin nods. He’ll give him that.
“How old is he?”
“17.”
“You brought a teenager to help you!?”
“NO!” Vertigo shouts. “Okay, look, I don’t want him anywhere near my work. I’ve told him multiple times that I don’t want him near my work, but this isn’t the first time he’s ignored me, and now it’s worse because he was caught on camera.”
Vertigo stands and begins to pace back and forth, completely absorbed by his rant.
“He just doesn’t listen, and he barely pays attention to where he’s going. One time, he went for a run and knocked over a flower stand. Now, I’m in debt to Han’s Flower Shop.”
Seungmin just silently watched as Vertigo continued on, sounding more and more like an exasperated parent as he continued on.
He did not do much studying on families at all during his time in university, so he was not at all prepared for dealing with a rebellious teenager, but then again, he didn’t have to view this as a family problem, because this was, technically, a villain problem.
Minho’s words at the café suddenly came back to him.
“Well, I can’t stop them from making their bad decisions, so I might as well make sure they don’t get themselves killed.”
Seungmin interrupts him. “Number three on the list.”
Vertigo pulls out the list and reads number three. Once he finishes, he glares at Seungmin angrily.
“J—Whiplash is not my henchman.”
“Not yet.”
“You’re crazy,” Vertigo says in disbelief. “He’s a kid.”
“A kid who doesn’t listen and will continue not to listen,” Seungmin sternly says. “You can have him continue risking his life at random times, or you can at least control the situation and keep him under your watch. Not to mention that this would probably improve your relationship greatly and make him trust you more in the future.”
Vertigo opens his mouth to argue back but quickly closes it, sitting back down on the couch.
“I don’t like that you make sense.”
“I get that a lot.” Seungmin leans back in his seat. “I don’t like the idea either, but you don’t really have many options right now. If you take him under your wing, at least you can tell him what to do and keep him safe.”
Vertigo taps his foot, thinking it over, and Seungmin can see his eyebrows furrow in worry from where he sat.
Another moment passes before Vertigo looks back up at him. “Okay, I’ll allow it. If it keeps him safe, then I’ll do it.”
“You should probably talk to Fabricator about getting him a proper costume,” Seungmin says. “You can afford it with all those jewels he stole.”
“You’re right. He was only wearing a hoodie and some Halloween mask when he showed up yesterday.” Vertigo blinks, looking at Seungmin’s face carefully. “Wait, why don’t you or Fabricator wear a mask?”
Seungmin laughs. “Now you notice?”
“I mean, I noticed but I never really gave it any thought. Aren’t you guys afraid of the risks? Isn’t that why you have your own little villain names?”
“There are two reasons why we don’t need to worry,” Seungmin explains. “The first is, well, why would villains go after the only people who help them? I’m the only villain counsellor and Fabricator makes the most affordable gear. Seems weird to attack us or rat on us to any heroes.”
“What’s the second reason?”
Seungmin grins, and Vertigo feels a chill go down his spine. Right at that moment, he remembers that he may not be a villain, but with his knowledge, he is more than capable of becoming one.
“The second reason is that a client going after me would be the biggest mistake of their lives. I mean, I know every one of their weaknesses, both physical and psychological along with a handful of their real names. I’m not much of a fighter, but having this amount of knowledge on someone is kind of scary. Fabricator jokes that I’m one of the most powerful guys in the city, but he’s not entirely wrong.”
“That is…” Vertigo is at a loss for words. “Terrifying.”
“Yeah, that’s a good summary,” Seungmin replies. “We have the fake names because we don’t want everything about us to be known, but we don’t have to take too many precautions considering we basically have immunity.”
Surprisingly, Vertigo leans back on the couch, raising an eyebrow at Seungmin. “I know I just said you were terrifying, but you somehow manage to impress me every week.”
Seungmin rolls his eyes. “You’re giving me too much credit.”
“I’m serious! You’re one of the coolest guys I’ve ever met!”
“I tell people why they’re bad at their job.”
“And then you make us better! Remember what I said last week?” Vertigo stands and approaches Seungmin. “You’re a really great person.”
Seungmin feels his face heat up and stands, heading to his desk, keeping his back to Vertigo as he walks. He sits at his desk and crosses his arms.
“I can’t tell if you’re complimenting me just to get a discount.”
“If I was flirting with you, you would know.”
“When did I say anything about flirting?”
Vertigo freezes, and it takes everything in Seungmin not to burst out laughing at the villain’s expression. Instead of trying to redeem himself, Vertigo just pulls out his wallet and puts Seungmin’s payment on his desk.
“See you next week,” he mutters, speed walking towards the door.
“Bye bye, Vertigo,” Seungmin responds, holding back a laugh.
As it turned out, Seungmin ended up seeing Vertigo sooner than he thought, and he had a friend with him.
Two days later, Seungmin was leaving his office and heading out for the day when he turned the corner into Minho’s workshop and immediately ducked under one of his workbenches before anyone saw him.
“Asshole was supposed to warn me if someone was here,” Seungmin thinks to himself, peeking up to see who was here.
He was surprised to see Vertigo talking to Minho, but he was even more surprised to see a taller person next to him wearing an orange hoodie and mask, raising his arms to be measured by Minho.
“So that’s Whiplash,” Seungmin realizes.
“I have a backlog of repairs right now, so it’ll be about two weeks until I can get your suit finished,” Minho explains. “Do you have any specifics for your mask?”
“Can it just cover the bottom half of my face?” Whiplash asks. “I don’t want those corny ones surrounding my eyes like Ch—Vertigo.”
“Could’ve just stopped after the first half,” Vertigo mutters.
“No, he’s right,” Minho adds. “It’s a dorky look. I don’t know why Themis likes those kinds of masks the most.”
“Because the eyes are the most recognizable part, we’ve been over this,” Seungmin thinks to himself, glaring at Minho.
Vertigo picks up Minho’s sketchbook and looks at the design on it.
“Themis likes my mask?” he asks, trying to sound nonchalant.
“Is that the guy you think is cute?” Whiplash suddenly asks.
Minho bursts out laughing as Vertigo yelps and throws the sketchbook up in the air, accidentally activating his powers in the process and letting the notebook fly to the ceiling.
As for Seungmin, he just quietly laughed from behind the table. He wasn’t sure why Vertigo would keep joking about complimenting him, much less with Whiplash, but he didn’t mind it.
“So, anyway, about the costume,” Vertigo quickly says, catching the now falling notebook.
“You make weapons too, right? Can I get a sword?” Whiplash asks.
“Do not give him a sword,” Vertigo says sternly.
“I've never made a sword, but I will look into it,” Minho replies, taking his sketchbook back and writing down the measurements.
“Why would someone with super speed need a sword?” Vertigo asks. “It seems like a hassle when you can just run away.”
“Oooh, look at you. Three sessions with Themis and suddenly you can strategize,” Minho teases.
“Don’t you have a fight against a glowstick to lose to?” Whiplash adds, earning a laugh from Minho.
Vertigo scowls. “I don’t like the energy here. Besides, I don’t lose any fights against Radiance, I just run away. The guy looks like he wouldn’t even hurt a fly.”
Some part of Seungmin thinks that Vertigo will regret saying that.
Seungmin stares at the black eye barely hidden behind Vertigo’s mask.
“Do I even have to say it?”
“I know, I know!” Vertigo shouts, pulling the list out. “Stupid number two says not to underestimate the stupid hero, except I did underestimate the stupid hero, and now, I have a stupid black eye. Whiplash already gave me shit about it at home.”
“What the hell did you do to get Radiance to punch you?”
“I told you, everything with him just seems personal,” Vertigo explains. “I don’t know Felix though. I’ve never met him in or out of costume.”
“Okay, well you already know what you did wrong, so why did you come today?” Seungmin asks.
Vertigo shrugs. “I just wanted to. You’re nice to talk to.”
Seungmin wasn’t expecting such a direct response.
“You know you’re not getting that discount.”
“And I don’t want one. Now I just want to compliment you more so you get used to it.”
Seungmin laughs. “You’re really going to waste your money seeing me during work hours just so you can chat with me?”
Vertigo raises an eyebrow. “Are you saying I can see you outside of our sessions if I want to chat with you?”
“You know, if you weren’t a villain, you could probably be a very successful comedian.”
Vertigo dramatically gasps and places a hand on his heart. “Themis, are you saying what we have is a joke to you?”
“I’m saying,” Seungmin picks up one of the bouncy balls and tosses it at Vertigo, “that it’s not good to say things you don’t mean.”
Vertigo’s smile fades as he looks at Seungmin, confused. “You think I don’t mean anything I say?”
The mood of the room goes down as Seungmin stops laughing. “I mean, why would you?”
“Because I really do like talking to you, and I really do like hearing what you have to say, and even though it’s not possible, I like the idea of getting to know you outside of your office.”
“You’re interesting to talk to,” Vertigo continues, tossing the ball back to Seungmin. “I know we only just met, but you piqued my interest ever since Chaeyeon told me about you. You just seem like good company.”
“The only company I’ve had is Fabricator, and after over ten years, he’s quite sick of me for someone who takes care of me and vice versa.”
“Well, you’re just going to have to wear me down.”
Seungmin looks down at the ball in his hands, feeling his cheeks heat up. “I only ever take an interest in others, so it's weird having someone take an interest in me for once.”
“I find that very hard to believe, so I’m just going to assume that no one has been as blunt as me.”
Seungmin finally looks up at Vertigo again, and a sense of relief washes over him when he notices that the villain is blushing just as hard as him.
Vertigo smiles. “I’m a good listener too, so I’ll wait for the day that you get to be the one who talks about yourself.”
Before Seungmin could say another word, a beep from Vertigo’s phone breaks the tension between them.
“Sorry, that’s my alarm,” he says. “I have to pick Whiplash up from school then go somewhere with him.”
He reaches into his pocket and pulls out his wallet but before he can pull out any money, Seungmin gets up and puts a hand on his to stop him.
“Don’t bother. Today wasn’t even a session, and don’t try to argue with me. I’m very stubborn.”
Vertigo puts his wallet away. “So, if I come here and we talk and you don’t give me any advice, would you say I’m not wasting my money seeing you during work hours?”
“I am begging you not to book actual appointments just to talk to me. Just stay late once our regular ones are done.”
“Sounds like a plan.” Vertigo heads towards the door, waving goodbye. “See you soon, Themis!”
Seungmin waves back at him, quietly laughing.
Once Vertigo shuts the door, Seungmin makes his way over to his desk, sits down, puts his head in his hands, and silently screams.
Vertigo was too much for him. He thinks he’s cute and likes the things he says and thinks he’s interesting and cool and good and he was just so unabashedly kind that it was so overwhelming to even think about him now without his brain short circuiting.
This was good though. This was a good thing, because all he’s ever really had was Minho, who already knew him inside and out, and the thought of getting closer to someone new was so exciting he almost felt giddy. He felt calmer now.
Seungmin’s heart rate picks up when he realizes that at no point did either of them say anything about only being friends.
The universe was either against him or on his side, because in no way did Seungmin expect the rest of his day to turn out like this.
He left work shortly after Vertigo left since there were no more appointments that day and began heading home before remembering that he was out of eggs. Luckily, there was a grocery store near the bus stop that he could stop by quickly, so that’s what he did.
He began looking through the different aisles for anything else that catches his eye and ended up in the baking aisle. At the other end of the aisle were a teenage boy and an adult that Seungmin assumed was his older brother or cousin. The older man was carrying two very full baskets of ingredients with ease and, for some reason, was wearing sunglasses indoors.
Seungmin didn’t want eavesdropping to become a habit of his, but he couldn’t help himself from listening once he heard their oddly familiar voices.
“Jeongin, those are not interchangeable,” the older man said.
“Baking powder and baking soda are basically the same thing,” the teenager says back.
“If they were the same thing, why would it be two different things?” the man asks. “Besides, isn’t baking soda a cleaning thing? Why would we bake with it?”
“Changbin, we’re in the baking aisle. The name of it literally has the word baking in it.”
The man is silent for a moment before speaking again.
“Fuck it, just get both.”
The teenager playfully attempts to hit the man with the boxes, but the man quickly dodges out of the way with ease. Unfortunately, his sunglasses fell off with how fast he was moving, and that’s when Seungmin’s heart stopped.
The man was sporting a very bad and very fresh black eye over his left eye. He put the baskets down to pick up the sunglasses. When he stood back up, his eyes met Seungmin and he froze, and that was all the confirmation Seungmin needed.
“Shit,” Vertigo—no— Changbin whispers, quickly putting the sunglasses back on.
“Who is that?” Jeongin asks, standing in front of Changbin protectively.
Seungmin remains frozen as Changbin snaps out of his shock and puts a hand on Jeongin’s shoulder.
“It’s fine, he’s fine, don’t worry. That’s,” he lowers his voice, “that’s Themis.”
“Oh!” Jeongin approaches Seungmin and takes his hand, shaking it. “Thanks for telling him to take me to work!”
Seungmin finally snaps out of his daze and nods to Jeongin.
“Uh, you’re welcome.” He then looks back to Changbin. “Can we talk? I feel like we should talk.”
And that’s how the three of them ended up sitting at a picnic table in the park, groceries sitting at their feet, with Changbin and Seungmin looking at each other without saying a word.
“…So my name’s Jeongin,” Jeongin says slowly. “And I think it’s only fair that you tell us your name.”
Seungmin sighs and looks at Changbin.
“Hi, my name is Kim Seungmin.”
“And I’m Seo Changbin,” Changbin replies. He looks behind him and spots an ice cream truck further down the street. “Jeongin, how about you grab some ice cream while I talk to Seungmin? No running, though. The flower cart is nearby.”
Jeongin scowls. “You’re just going to talk about me, right? You don’t have to pretend like I don’t know what you’re going to say.”
Jeongin then turns to Seungmin. “He’s just going to tell you my little sob story about how my parents are never home and how he saw me staying out late one night four months ago and let me stay with him and now, since I basically live with him, he had to turn to villainy to pay for a second mouth to feed and for my university expenses next year.”
“Okay, you don’t need to dump all that on him at once—”
“That’s why Chaeyeon told you to find me,” Seungmin interrupts, looking at Changbin in shock. “She became a villain to help her kid, and now you’re doing it to help one.”
“I mean, yeah,” Changbin says shyly. “I wasn’t just going to leave him.”
“And you’re just committing crimes just for kicks?” Seungmin asks Jeongin.
“I’m doing it to repay Changbin back and to pull my own weight,” Jeongin explains, crossing his arms. “I refuse to have him one-up me like this.”
“Don’t be fooled, he actually loves me,” Changbin whispers, earning a punch from Jeongin.
“This is… a lot,” Seungmin says. “I’ve never accidentally found out someone’s identity, and you’re the first villain to know my actual name.”
“This is kind of a good thing, though,” Changbin says with a smile. “We can actually get to know each other properly now and even hang out. I know this really nice restaurant where the owner always gives me discounts.”
Seungmin grins back at him. “That sounds really nice.”
Jeongin looks between the two, a nauseated look on his face.
“Actually, I think I’m going to go get that ice cream.”
Jeongin grabs the wallet on the table in front of Changbin and walks away. Once he was out of earshot, Changbin’s smile fell.
“Now that you know who we are, I need to tell you something.” He lowers his voice. “I was sort of lying when I said I don’t know why Radiance’s attacks seem personal.”
“You actually know him?” Seungmin asks.
“I don’t, but Jeongin does.”
Seungmin looks up at the boy at the truck, bouncing in place as he waits in line.
“You know how one of Radiance’s programs over at the community centre is about helping kids with their newly developed powers so they don’t destroy shit and keep themselves safe?” Changbin continues. “Jeongin’s powers came in when he was 15 and he graduated from the program a few months before meeting me. More specifically, he graduated from the class Radiance taught, and he was his favourite student.”
Superpowers developed at random ages throughout a person’s childhood, and access to proper ways to deal with them was difficult to find, so Radiance’s program was a blessing for those who just wanted to live a normal life away from heroes and villains.
Radiance, because he is the nicest person on Earth, taught a class himself, which wasn’t a surprise to Seungmin. The surprise was what the implications of Jeongin being his favourite student meant.
“So you think Radiance knows it was Jeongin at the robbery and thinks you brought him there?” Seungmin asks.
“I think that explains the black eye,” Changbin replies. “I think before that day, he’s been keeping an eye on Jeongin because of his home situation, found out I’ve been with him a lot, kept an eye on me, and probably figured out that I’m Vertigo.”
Seungmin lets out a frustrated sigh. “Does Jeongin know?”
“No, and I’m not sure if I should tell him. I know I complain a lot about Radiance, but I have nothing against him and neither does Jeongin. He adores him, and I don’t blame him since he took such good care of him.”
“Okay, here’s what we’re going to do. You—”
“We?” Changbin interrupts, looking confused.
“What? You think I’m not going to help because you’re not paying? I don’t give a shit about that, I just want to help you.”
“How heroic.”
Seungmin kicks Changbin under the table.
“As I was saying, you need to tell Jeongin. Not only do I expect this secret to blow up in your face the longer you keep it, but also because he can help us. He can ‘coincidentally’ run into Radiance one day, talk and catch up with him, and talk about you in a non-evil sense.”
“And if Radiance starts probing and asking too many questions?”
“Just have Jeongin feed him lies. Radiance won’t suddenly start interrogating you. Imagine how bad his image would become if it gets out that everyone’s golden boy is accusing a guy who just wants to take care of a kid of being a villain.”
Changin nods along. “Okay, but wait. How would that even leak?”
Seungmin smirks. “I can make news travel fast.”
Changbin looks at him in awe. “Have I ever told you how amazing I find you?”
“Please tell me you’re not attracted to me being devious.”
“What the fuck did I return to?”
Jeongin stood by the table with his ice cream in one hand and a disgusted look on his face.
“Nothing!” Changbin says quickly. “I was going to get Seungmin’s number, and then we were going to leave.”
Changbin holds out his hand for Seungmin’s phone, and Seungmin quickly unlocks it and hands it to him. Changbin types his number in and texts himself before handing it back to Seungmin.
“I’ll see you soon, okay?” Changbin says as he stands and grabs his groceries.
“Bye Seungmin!” Jeongin cheerfully says.
Seungmin waves goodbye to the two, watching them walk off together.
There was a time where this would be a nightmare to Seungmin. His work and personal life were two things that should never intersect, and everyone who he has ever worked with never crossed that line, yet here he was happily letting Changbin into his personal life, and, unexpectedly, being let into his.
“Seo Changbin,” Seungmin whispered to himself, smiling softly.
The name rolled off the tongue much easier than Vertigo, and Seungmin was blessed that he was one of the lucky few who could say it.
Seungmin was starting to think that he would never see Changbin under any normal circumstances. Even if they met somewhere completely normal, the circumstances leading up to it, such as having your friend pick up a kid because his caretaker was too busy robbing a jewel inspector’s shop, were anything but ordinary.
Seungmin was sitting in his office waiting for his next appointment when he received a text message, and he was ashamed to admit that he nearly dropped his phone in excitement when he saw Changbin’s contact name.
He wasn’t clingy. He wasn’t desperate. He was simply… impatient the first two days waiting for Changbin to text him after getting his number, and he definitely wasn’t going to text him first. The villain said he was going to see him soon, so it was his responsibility to text him first, not Seungmin.
(To be honest, Seungmin was nervous and had no idea what to say to him, so he simply decided that that will not be his problem to deal with. Changbin could deal with it and Seungmin will say something about how taking initiative in your daily life will reflect on your fights or something to make himself feel better.)
So when Changbin finally texted him one night and asked him how his day went, a question so average and, depending on the person, boring, Seungmin was confused on why there was a smile plastered on his face.
It was disgusting and embarrassing, and he felt like a 15-year-old for feeling so giddy over a simple question, and yet, that didn’t stop him from smiling as he gave Changbin a play by play of his day.
It was tough to read emotions through texts, but there was something about Changbin that made Seungmin so sure of the fact that he cared about what he had to say. Maybe he was able to feel it because it was a hundred times more intense than anything he had ever felt with Minho, but then again, any positive emotion was already fifty times better than anything with Minho, and he sure as hell didn’t feel flustered whenever his friend spoke to him, so maybe Minho wasn’t a good measurement, even if he’s all he has. Whatever the case may be, the comfort and security Changbin made him feel led to them talking every day, usually until the middle of the night when they are both too exhausted to spell anything correctly.
A week had gone by since his first text, but Seungmin still felt a rush of excitement every time Changbin texted him, and it was a very visible excitement judging by the way Minho laughed at him every time Seungmin rushed to grab his phone.
After taking a deep breath, he opened his messages and read them over.
Changbin: do you have work right now?
Changbin: school ends soon and it’s raining so I don’t want Jeongin to walk home in the rain
Changbin: can you pick him up? I’m
Changbin: occupied
Seungmin: are you texting me in the middle of a fucking robbery right now
Changbin: IT’S TAKING LONGER THAN I THOUGHT NOW YES OR NO SEUNGMIN
Seungmin: YOU’RE SO
Seungmin: and no I can’t I have work plus I can’t drive but I can send Minho just tell me which high school it is
Changbin: thank youuuu <3 he goes to riverside private academy
Changbin: I swear I’ll pay you b
The messages stopped after that, either for a good or bad reason.
Seungmin stepped out of his office to find Minho, who was at one of his workbenches working on his own personal project.
“How mad would you be if I asked you to stop working on Dori?”
Minho looks up from the robot cat he is building.
“I complain about my workload, you get annoyed and tell me to get an assistant, I start building one, and now you tell me to stop?”
Seungmin winces. “I kind of, sort of, might have told Changbin that you would pick Jeongin up from school since I have an appointment with New in ten minutes?”
Minho stares at him. “So you decide to get me involved in your domestic life?”
“I wouldn’t say domestic—”
“He asked you to pick up his kid.”
“Can you just pick him up, please?” Seungmin asks, exasperated.
Minho tosses his screwdriver onto the table. “I don’t want to, but I was going to grab lunch right now, so I might as well grab the brat too.”
It would’ve been a much better lie if Seungmin couldn’t see the wrapper from his sandwich in the trash, but it was probably best not to point it out.
“Thank you so much. He’s at that private school near the park.”
Minho throws a hand up as he grabs his bag. “His parents can afford to have him go there but Changbin is saving money to pay for his tuition?”
“I think he’s planning on officially moving in with him and not talking to his parents once he graduates.”
“Good for him. You know what he wants to do in the future?”
Seungmin shrugs. “I think he likes computers?”
Minho shakes his head at Seungmin, disappointed. “Seungmin, if you want to be part of that family, you need to take an interest in the most important person in your lover’s life. How else would you win Changbin’s heart?”
“You are…” Seungmin sighs heavily. “You couldn’t have phrased it any other way?”
“Nope!” Minho swings his coat on and struts out of the room. “Have fun!”
Seungmin takes a deep breath and waits by the computer to let his client in, turning on his ringer just in case Changbin texts him about Jeongin and Minho.
Half an hour passes with his appointment already over, and there is still no word from either Changbin or Minho. While he understood that Changbin was very, very busy, he was concerned with whatever Minho was doing. He has never been left alone with a kid. Does he even know how to talk to one?
His phone finally rings, but it wasn’t Minho who was calling. Changbin’s face lights up his screen as he clicks accept.
“Let me in,” Changbin says.
“What?” Seungmin replies.
“I’m at the entrance and I’m assuming you’re still in your office or something. Wait, are you not there and I came all this way for nothing?”
“No, no, I am, I’m just— hold on.”
Seungmin leaves his office and heads to Minho’s computer, unlocking the door to the workshop. A moment later, Changbin, now dressed in a t-shirt and jeans, enters, smiling at Seungmin, and Seungmin couldn't help but smile back at him, realizing that he looked very handsome without the black eye.
The smile quickly fades once he sees his arm.
“What the hell happened to you?” Seungmin says, running towards him.
“What?” Changbin is confused until Seungmin finally reaches him and gently lifts his arm, looking closely at the cut bleeding through the poorly done bandages. “Oh, well you know what happened. I was doing villain things.”
Seungmin gives him a stern look before putting his hand on Changbin’s chest and pushing him towards a workbench.
“Sit.”
Changbin raises an eyebrow at him, smirking. “Really? In here? Do you have your tetanus shot?”
Choosing not to dig himself into a deeper hole, Seungmin, frustrated and blushing like crazy, turns away to find Minho’s first aid kit.
“Do I have to have a session with you about how dumb it is to walk around with a bleeding arm?”
“I swear, I didn’t know it was bleeding through,” Changbin explained, getting himself up onto the workbench with only one arm. “I’m also not this sloppy usually, I was just in a rush to see you.”
Seungmin comes back with the first aid kit, takes off the old bandages, and begins to treat Changbin’s wound properly.
“Jeongin isn’t even here so the rush was pointless.” Seungmin then freezes. “Did he not text you? Did Minho do something?”
“Did Minho not text you?” Changbin pulls out his phone and opens his texts, passing it to Seungmin.
His chat with Jeongin was open, and the most recent message was a selfie of Jeongin and Minho at a booth in a fast food restaurant, both with smug smiles on their faces.
Jeongin: he bought me two burgers, fries, and a sundae. I’m moving in with Minho now
“Reluctant my ass,” Seungmin mutters, handing the phone back to Changbin. “If you knew they were fine then why did you rush over here?”
“I told you about that restaurant, remember? I’m here to take you.”
Startled, Seungmin accidentally ties the end of the bandage a bit too tightly. Changbin winces but doesn’t complain, instead choosing to hop off the table and pack up the first aid kit.
“You need to start taking what I say seriously,” Changbin says. “Grab your things. My car is a two minute walk away, but luckily, it stopped raining. I’m paying, by the way. No arguing.”
In a daze, Seungmin speed walks to his office and shuts the door, pulling out his phone to text Minho.
Seungmin: if a guy takes you to a restaurant is that considered a date?
Minho: you’re so stupid you don’t deserve your degree imagine working four years learning how to read people only for you to ask me this question
Seungmin: is that a yes or no?
Minho: never contact me again
Seungmin: what if I’m reading things wrong???
Minho: Free Msg: Unable to send message - Message Blocking is active.
“Why did I think I’d find any help there,” Seungmin mutters to himself.
He grabs his bag and coat and heads back into the workshop where Changbin was now waiting by the door.
“He texted me again,” Changbin says as they head up above ground and towards where Changbin parked his car. Seungmin leans over to see Changbin’s phone, where there was another text from Jeongin.
Jeongin: Minho is so cool wtf why aren’t you this cool
Jeongin: btw he’s taking me back to his workshop so you and Seungmin better be OUT by now
A third text appears, but Changbin quickly turns his phone off before Seungmin could read the full message. He doesn’t know if it was a good or bad thing that he just barely saw the word “kiss” in Jeongin’s message.
Changbin runs ahead to his car and opens the passenger door for Seungmin, to the amusement of Seungmin.
“My hero,” Seungmin says jokingly as he gets in.
The car ride goes by in a comfortable silence, which Seungmin was pleased to discover. He wasn’t sure what he would’ve done if he found out that every moment not speaking to Changbin would be filled with awkward silence.
The two quickly find a table away from other people once they arrive, and while Seungmin goes through the menu, Changbin leans forward.
“You know, I realized that I don’t know much about your life besides your name.”
Seungmin raises an eyebrow at him. “Knowing my name is a pretty big deal.”
“The novelty has worn off.”
Seungmin sets his menu down. “Okay, ask me some questions then.”
“Okay, umm…” Changbin thinks for a moment. “How long have you known Minho?”
“Since we were 15.”
“Do you live together?”
“Not anymore. When we graduated high school we lived together in dorms, and once we graduated university, we still lived together until we made enough to live separately. Having our own space is nice, but we still crash at each other’s apartment from time to time.”
Before Changbin could reply, someone approached the table with a tablet under his arm, placing two cups of water on the table.
“Your usual?” he asks Changbin, already clicking on the screen.
“As always.” Changbin turns his head back to Seungmin. “Seungmin, this is Hyunjin, our key to a cheaper meal.”
Hyunjin glances at Seungmin and smiles before looking back at Changbin.
“Is that all I’m good for? Do you only take people you want to impress here? First Jeongin, now him?”
“Wh— no!? What? Why would you say that?” Changbin sputters. He tries to compose himself as Hyunjin quietly laughs. “Can I not support my friend’s business?”
“Whatever you say.” Hyunjin turns back to Seungmin. “What would you like to eat?”
Seungmin recites his order to Hyunjin.
“It’ll be here soon. Enjoy your day, you two.”
He winks at Changbin before heading off.
“Close friend?” Seungmin asks. He wasn’t sure what to think of Hyunjin saying Changbin wanted to impress him. Mentioning Jeongin only made him think that this wasn’t actually a date.
“Since university,” Changbin replies with a smile.
Seungmin thinks back to something Changbin had told him back when they were talking about Chaeyeon, and his smile quickly turns into a concerned look.
“You said Chaeyeon is one of the two people who know who you are. If Jeongin is the other one, then—”
“He doesn’t know,” Changbin interrupts. He shrugs his shoulders, not looking too upset. “He’s been a hero fanatic since he was a kid, so I’d rather not put him in an awkward position. Besides, he doesn’t think Vertigo is much of a threat or a problem, so I can happily live with that.”
“Wait,” Seungmin suddenly says. “You two went to university, and you only started being Vertigo recently. Did you have a job before?”
“I still work. My communications degree got me a job as an editor for an online magazine. I just told them I had to cut down on my hours due to ‘recent family complications.’ Technically, I’m not lying."
Changbin takes a sip of water. “Back to you, though. Am I right to assume you went to school for psychology?”
“Yup. Four years of being subjected to Freud’s awful opinions just to never use any of his studies in my very specific field of work.”
To Seungmin’s surprise, Changbin frowns. “Did you only study it just so you can have this job?”
Seungmin immediately backtracks.
“Oh, no, no, no! I was just making fun of one thing, I’ve always wanted to study it since I was young.”
Changbin’s frown disappears and Seungmin nearly sighed in relief.
“Really? What made you interested?”
Seungmin opened his mouth before immediately shutting it, looking down at the table. Changbin was surprised to see him look so embarrassed over a simple question.
“If I tell you, you have to promise not to laugh,” Seungmin whispers, his face heating up.
“I promise,” Changbin replies.
“I—” Seungmin sighs, preparing himself. “When I was a kid, I really wanted to have a superpower. Then, one day at school, one of my classmates told me about how he was seeing a psychologist to help him with his anxiety, and how he’s been feeling better because of the things he was learning there. I asked him if the psychologist had a superpower to make people calm, and he told me that she had no powers, which was earth shattering to me. Tiny little ten-year-old Seungmin thought that this person was way cooler than any hero because she was helping people with no superpowers and doing something that my friend originally thought was impossible. That’s why I started studying it.”
Changbin just stared at him, and Seungmin was worried he was going to call him lame and laugh before he saw him smile widely.
“That is so dorky and cute and amazing.”
“You said you wouldn’t laugh.”
“I’m smiling, not laughing. There’s absolutely nothing to be embarrassed about. In fact, ten-year-old Seungmin was right. You are way cooler than any hero ever.”
“I think you’re just playing favourites.”
“And would you tell me off for that or ask me to keep going?” Changin says gently.
There was a feeling in Seungmin’s chest that he couldn’t quite place until this exact moment.
He always assumed that when he realizes he likes someone, and not just in a fleeting crush kind of way, it would feel a bit bigger, yet here he was. No fanfare, no earth shattering moment, no big shift in his feelings. He wasn’t falling hard right now because he had already fallen, and the only thing scarier than this realization was the thought of Changbin not feeling the same way.
But he didn’t want to worry about that right now, because right now Changbin was right in front of him and he wasn’t going to let this moment go to waste.
“By the way,” Seungmin begins, stabbing his fork into the cake in front of him. “I didn’t check the news today. How did it go at one of the jewelry shops?”
“Stupid Felix got the bags and let me run away,” Changbin muttered. “I think he’s been training more. He’s been dodging and blocking my punches more.”
“Shame you can’t make him float,” Seungmin says casually, earning him a confused look from Changbin.
“What are you talking about?” he asks. “I can float things three times my weight, and I’m pretty sure with the lack of muscles, he is not as heavy as me.”
“The lack of muscles didn’t stop the black eye.”
Changbin pouts at him, and Seungmin would have normally been distracted by it, but he was too focused on what Changbin was implying.
“I’ve never seen you make him float, and you’ve never told me about any time you have either,” Seungmin says. “Have you done it?”
“…No.”
“But you can?”
“…Yes.”
Was his type idiots?
“Do I have to say it?”
“It’s on the list, isn’t it?” Changbin says wearily. “Something about not using your powers more?”
“‘Forgetting to use their powers,’ specifically,” Seungmin replies. “Take this as some advice free of charge since you’re paying for lunch.”
“That’s not how a date works.”
Seungmin freezes, letting his piece of cake fall off his fork. Changbin looks at him, panic all over his face.
“Did I read everything wrong? Are you just friendly and flustered by everyone? It’s okay, this doesn’t have to be a—”
“I want it to be,” Seungmin interrupts, surprising Changbin. “I was worried you didn’t think it was.”
Changbin blinks. “Seungmin, I have been non-stop flirting with you for weeks.”
“I thought you were just joking around.”
“Do you want me to be direct? I’ll be direct.” Changbin leans forward on the table. “I have a crush on you. I like you a lot. I would like to go on more dates with you and get to know you even more.”
For someone who’s field of work includes knowing the right words to say, Seungmin was at a loss for words.
“I—Okay.”
“Okay? That’s it?” Changbin asks, holding back a laugh.
“Can you just give me a second,” Seungmin whispers, covering his face with one hand. “I’m normally the blunt one on dates.”
“So this is a first for you? Cute.”
“You’re going to be a lot to deal with, aren’t you?”
“If I keep getting to see you like this, then yes.”
The rest of the date, and Seungmin was very pleased that he gets to call it that, went perfectly, and now the two were in Changbin’s car driving back to Seungmin and Minho’s office to drop off Seungmin and pick up Jeongin.
Seungmin finally checks his phone for the first time since arriving at the restaurant, and was surprised to see that Minho had messaged him.
Minho: you bitch
Seungmin: you unblocked me just to call me a bitch?
Minho: YOU TOLD ME JEONGIN LIKED COMPUTERS
Minho: NOT THAT HE WAS A CODING GENIUS
Minho: HE JUST FIXED ALL THE PROBLEMS WITH DORI’S AI
Seungmin: you should just hire him
Minho: maybe I will
Minho: I’ll steal Changbin’s kid since something tells me that he’ll be taking my precious little Seungmo away from me for his own personal pleasure ( ˘ ³˘)♥
Seungmin closed their texts after that.
“I talked to Jeongin about Felix, by the way,” Changbin suddenly says.
“Oh? How did he take it?” Seungmin asks.
“Pretty well, actually. The only thing he was upset about was Felix underestimating how crazy he was and assuming that I forced him to be a villain or something. He’ll know what to do if Felix ends up talking to him.”
“That’s a relief. I don’t want our next date to be with a glass pane in between us with a landline being the only way we can talk.”
Changbin scoffs. “Oh, so now you have jokes?”
“I’ve finally adjusted.”
Changbin stops the car where he parked previously, turning to Seungmin.
“I had a lovely time today.”
“Same here. Next time, I’m paying though,” Seungmin says.
“We’ll see about that.” Changbin unlocks the car. “I’ll talk to you later?”
“Of course.”
Seungmin opens the door, getting halfway out of the car before a thought occurs to him, and before he could overthink his decision, he moves.
Turning back around, he gives Changbin a quick kiss on the cheek and leaves, leaving the villain sitting still in his seat, completely stunned.
The news of Radiance’s hospitalization was not something Seungmin expected to see the following week.
From the perspective of the news standing outside the store, Vertigo, along with his new henchman who proudly declared himself as Whiplash, ran out of the store with their biggest score yet. Just before they fled the scene, Vertigo pointed at the store and a crash was heard.
The crash ended up being Radiance falling from the high ceiling to the ground after Vertigo disabled his powers. The hero ended up lucky with only a broken leg, sprained wrist, and some nasty bruises along the side of his body.
“After that, I still had some strength left, so I made all the tasers the cops had float too!” Changbin excitedly recounts the story as he laid in his bed with his head resting on Seungmin’s chest. “Then, Jeongin and I bolted. We escaped with everything we grabbed, and there wasn’t even a fight. I do feel bad for breaking his leg, though.”
“Was this your most successful job?” Seungmin asks, mindlessly running his fingers through Changbin’s hair.
Changbin tilts his head up to smile at Seungmin. “It was, and it was all thanks to you.”
“I just offered some advice. You’re the one who put it into practice.”
“Seriously though, thank you. You know I do all this for Jeongin, so it means a lot that there’s someone out there to help me out. I can’t exactly ask Hyunjin for help about things like this.”
“I just—” Seungmin stops himself before he could say something negative about himself, knowing Changbin wouldn’t like that. “I think you’re the first person to tell me all these things.”
“I’m telling you, there are others who think this too. You just got stuck with me.” Changbin then sits up, turning to look at Seungmin. “Did you contact Chaeyeon yet?”
Seungmin’s silence was deafening.
“Why?”
“I don’t know what to say to her,” Seungmin replies, sitting up.
“How about, ‘How are you?’”
Seungmin sighs. “But what about after that? I can barely handle anything nice from you before I started liking you, so I really don’t know if I can handle talking to her.”
Changbin tilts his head, confused.
“You don’t want to talk to Chaeyeon… because you don’t want to hear anything nice from her?” he says, slowly.
“Why should I?”
“Seungmin, why are you constantly avoiding hearing anything good about you? Why would you rob yourself of that happiness?”
“Because I don’t deserve it!” Seungmin snaps. “All I’m doing is my job which is giving you guys advice or talking you through a problem. I’m not the one rescuing my daughter or housing a kid and giving him the home he deserves. I’m not the good person you think I am.”
Seungmin goes quiet after his sudden burst, leaving Changbin speechless as he tries to process everything he just said.
Eventually, he reaches a hand out towards Seungmin, gently placing it on top of his leg.
“I think this line of work has warped your perception of what a good person is. You don’t need to be a hero or do some big, self sacrificial act. What you’re doing is more valuable than you could possibly understand, and it breaks my heart that you don’t see it.”
“I don’t go into work thinking that today is a day for good. Everything I’ve contributed to for you and Chaeyeon and others have all been accidental.”
“And where’s the harm in that?” Changbin whispers. “Do you regret helping us?”
“No,” Seungmin mutters.
“You said yourself that you got into psychology because it was greater than any power a hero has. Don’t turn it into a lie.”
If Seungmin knew nothing about him, he would assume that Changbin’s way with words was his superpower.
He had a point, and he was nice enough not to point out the hypocrisy in what he was saying. If he wasn’t a good person, then what does that make all the villains that he works with? What does that make Minho, who works overtime for free to make sure the teens that come to him for help are safe? What does that make Jeongin, who is only in it to help Changbin for all that he’s done for him?
Changbin moves to take Seungmin’s hand. “I don’t expect my words to change your mind instantly, but can you promise me that you’ll think about what I said?”
“I will,” Seungmin whispers, surprised at how he was able to say a single word.
With his other hand, Changbin cups Seungmin’s cheek and presses a kiss to his forehead before pulling back to look him in the eyes.
“Would it kill the mood if I call you a hero?”
“I think asking that question already did it.”
The heavy weight in the air disappeared in an instant as they both burst out laughing, falling back into the position they were in before with Changbin’s head resting on Seungmin’s chest.
“You know,” Changbin starts. “Being evil is kind of sexy too, so don’t feel too bad.”
“I know, why do you think I like you?”
The pillow to his face was worth it.
The rest of the evening was spent without the topic being brought up again, but Changbin’s words were still on his mind as he walked home from the bus stop.
“I deserve a bit of happiness,” Seungmin thought to himself. “I can’t be proud of my work yet think so little of all I’ve done, it just doesn’t make any sense.”
“I’m better than this,” Seungmin mutters. “I’ve built this business up with my best friend and it’s led me to Chaeyeon and Jeongin and Changbin and I’m really happy with him, and thinks are only going up from here—”
The breath gets knocked out of him as Seungmin is grabbed off the street and dragged down an alley, around a corner, and slammed against a wall.
A voice coming from someone inches away from his face hisses at him.
“Do you know how annoying you are to track down, Themis? You have a lot of loyal friends.”
He always worried about what might happen if his identity was ever discovered. He and Minho had gone over countless different solutions for countless different scenarios just in case it ever happened. Some involved threats, some involved fleeing the city, and some, such as this exact situation, involved using their quick wit and intelligence.
“What the fuck is a Themis?”
Sometimes, the smartest solution was to be stupid as fuck.
The person took a step back, still holding onto Seungmin’s shirt and pinning him against the wall, and Seungmin’s heart dropped as he realized he recognized his assailant.
9/10 villains who walk through his door normally had a complaint about Leviathan which ranged from physical and collateral damage done to complaining about how his name was way too cool for the powers he had.
As far as the Hero Commission is aware, he technically hasn’t broken any hero related laws and has only ever been given warnings by them, but Seungmin knew for a fact that there was a lot more they were unaware of, and that Leviathan was very good at covering his tracks.
Seungmin may be smart, but he was not the most strong mentally. If Leviathan wanted something from him, he was probably going to get it.
"You can play dumb all you want, I know it's you," the hero says.
"What the hell are you talking about?" Seungmin asks, trying to sound as desperate as possible. "Whatever is going on, you have the wrong guy, but maybe I can help?"
"Tidal Wave. Came to see you five months ago for help with planning a bank heist before he retired. For someone with water powers, you would think he would know how to breathe underwater. The seventh time I pulled him out, he finally spilled. Told me to look for a guy with purple hair near the alley by the hairdresser's, so I waited and saw you. So are you going to continue to play dumb, or are you going to answer my questions?"
Seungmin's face had already dropped by the time he heard Tidal Wave's name, so there was no way he could hide anything now. All he could do was stare helplessly at Leviathan, as he felt his heart beating out of his chest.
"It's no secret that you have information on almost every villain in the city, and I want it," Leviathan begins. "It's a very simple request that I'm sure you can fulfill."
"It's not can I do it but do I want to do it. Also, doctor-patient confidentiality is a thing so…"
Leviathan smirks at him. "I'm sure you don't want me to arrest you, so this should be a simple solution. I don't want their sob stories, just their weaknesses and your job advice which, last I checked, doesn't break any ethics code since you’re not the average counsellor."
Did Seungmin figure this was going to end like this? Yes, but he was still holding out hope that maybe he can somehow get out of it, so right now, he had to stall.
"I have a lot of information over the years, so it's going to take time for me to compile everything for you. I can't give it to you immediately."
Leviathan lets Seungmin go, pointing a finger at him.
"You have one week. After that, you are going to come to this exact spot at this exact time and give me everything. Do you understand me?"
Seungmin nods, and Leviathan turns around to leave. Just as the hero was about to round the corner, he looked back at Seungmin one last time.
"Thank you for your heroic deed, Themis. You're a very good person."
After dry heaving into his toilet from panic, he went to bed that night shaking.
"Why do you look like shit?"
"You always say I look like shit."
"But it's actually worse now."
Seungmin just stares at Minho.
He had gotten very little sleep last night, and now he had to spend the day thinking of a way out of the mess he got himself in.
"Leviathan knows I'm Themis and is blackmailing me for information on my clients."
Minho drops the screwdriver in his hand.
"You're joking."
"I wish I was."
"How are you still here? Why hasn't he—" Minho cuts himself off, coming to a realization. "You didn't agree, did you?"
"I lied and said I needed time to compile everything so he gave me a week, but I'm not doing shit. He's not getting anything from me."
"Okay, so what's the plan? I can call Changbin and—"
"NO!" Seungmin suddenly shouts, startling Minho. "Leviathan's been stalking me. You're already at risk since he’s probably seen you leaving, but we cannot risk getting Changbin involved. There's too much at stake for him and Jeongin. From now on, Changbin does not exist."
"So what if you see each other and he notices you acting off? What if he decides to drop by?"
"I'm just not going to see him."
Minho just stares.
"You're going to ghost your boyfriend."
"It's just—I don't—" Seungmin lets out an exasperated sigh, pulling at his hair. "It's mistake number ten!"
One of the thoughts that ended up keeping Seungmin awake for most of the night was what to do about Changbin.
Was Leviathan following him all day? Did he know he was in Vertigo's home, or did he think that was a random friend? Was he going to use Changbin against him?
Seungmin and Minho do not have friends, only acquaintances. If they see any old school friends out in public, they'll stick around and chat and catch up, but that’s how far they'll go. It's a fact that they will never say out loud, but they are each other's best friends.
With how high risk their jobs are, it was better just to play it safe and not get too close to anyone that was unaware of their secret lives. Besides, with the revolving door of clients and customers, they never felt lonely.
Seungmin thought things would work out differently with Changbin. He thought that with nothing to hide, there was no risk, but clearly, he was wrong, and the only thought left in his head was his stupid list and mistake number ten.
Letting themselves have attachments.
He put it there because of the countless villains that had their personal lives ruined because of their job. Sometimes it worked out okay, but most of the time, it didn't.
Seungmin was no supervillain, but he still grouped himself with them, and he made the mistake of going against his own list, and now he had to face the consequences.
Minho slowly stood up from his seat, shaking his head. "You're actually a bigger idiot than I thought if you think you can apply your list to this situation right now."
"With Radiance keeping an eye on those two, this is only getting worse."
"You told me Jeongin was going to deal with it."
"What if Leviathan keeps digging and discovers the truth about them and tells Radiance? I can't let him do that."
Minho raises his voice. "You also can't just make decisions for Changbin and keep him in the dark about something he could possibly be involved in!"
"He won't be involved if we don't tell him!" Seungmin says, matching his volume.
The two friends glared at each other from across the table, panting as they tried to reign in their anger before it got worse.
Minho was the first to calm down.
"You are tired and stressed out and I'm freaking out too," he says quietly. "Go to your office and just take a nap and we can talk again after. You still look like shit."
He was pretty sure the exhaustion was making him go crazy because instead of being mean back, he nearly doubled over laughing at the insult.
Minho pushes Seungmin all the way to his office, giving him one last shove towards the couch where he landed with a very loud "OOF."
"I'm going to stop inviting Jeongin over," Minho suddenly says. "I could probably finish Dori alone anyway. Plus, it's embarrassing to have a kid one-up me."
Seungmin smiled at Minho.
"Thank you," he says softly.
Thanking Minho? Yup, he's delirious.
Minho rolls his eyes. "I just said I can't let Jeongin one-up me. How many times do I have to tell you that I have a reputation to uphold."
He leaves the room, gently closing the door behind him, leaving Seungmin alone on the couch.
He kicks off his shoes and grabs one of the pillows, laying down and putting it under his head.
Minho was right. He needed to rest, get a clear head, and then figure out how to deal with this terrible situation before it could get worse.
It got worse.
He opened his eyes and sat up, feeling much better than before. His eyes scanned his office, taking in his surroundings. The recliner, the plants, the small table by the couch, Minho gagged and tied to a chair by his desk, Radiance sitting at his desk, the bouncy ball in the small basket—
There were two glaring issues present.
“How was the nap?” Felix asks, playing with one of the bouncy balls.
Seungmin stayed silent, glancing over at Minho, who just shrugged at him.
“Good…” Seungmin says hesitantly, slowly standing up.
“I’m sorry about your friend being tied up by the way,” Felix says, and it shocked Seungmin to hear how earnest he was. “It’s just a precaution since I’m injured and he was holding something sharp and has some shockingly broad shoulders.”
Seungmin looked back at Minho.
“How did he get in, and how did you lose a fight to a guy with a broken leg and sprained wrist?”
Minho, who is still gagged, glares at him, and Felix takes the silence as an opportunity to answer.
“I made it to the door and told him over the security speaker thing that if he didn’t let me in, I’d call for backup, which was a total bluff, by the way. I had no clue what this place was until I went inside. Once I saw all the illegal gear, I realized he was Fabricator. I guess he didn’t think I was much of a threat on my crutch because I just blasted him with my uninjured hand when he let his guard down. He went unconscious and I tied him to the little wheely chair next to him with the rope on one of the workbenches.”
“Okay, I’m sure that was a lot of effort given the state that you’re in, but how did you manage to bring him into my office?”
“Oh, I didn’t do that,” Felix clarified. “I heard some quiet banging from outside your door and when I went to check it, I realized that he managed to wheel himself towards the door. He then wheeled himself into the room so I let him stay because I respected the effort that went into it.”
Seungmin just stood there, completely speechless.
What was the plan now? His two options are play dumb or run, and he can’t do either. Felix was literally in his office, and he can’t abandon Minho. All he could do was sit back on the couch in defeat and watch everything fall apart.
“So, Seungmin, can you take a guess on how I managed to find you?”
A part of him was screaming that this was a trap, that Felix was baiting him into confirming his suspicions, but the other part of him, the one that was so emotionally drained that it didn’t want to put up a fight, knew that Felix wouldn’t have done something this risky without having the confirmation for himself.
“Jeongin.”
“Technically it was because I followed Vertigo around, saw you two together a lot, got suspicious of you, began following you, and found you always walking into this alley that villains are always spotted in, but I got to Vertigo because of Jeongin, so yeah, I guess it’s thanks to him.”
Seungmin straightened up in his seat.
“I’m confused. If you’re still here, I’m assuming it’s to arrest Fabricator and I, so why are you still alone?”
Surprisingly, Felix smiled at him.
“Because I don’t want to arrest you, I want to make a deal with you two.” He quickly turns to Minho. “Once again, super sorry it has to be under these conditions. You are very scary looking.”
Minho casually shrugs as Felix continues.
“All I know is that Jeongin is Whiplash and that he lives with Vertigo. I’ve followed them around on my own time, which isn’t a lot, while I was keeping an eye on Jeongin and eavesdropped a bit, so I know they’re staying together, I just don’t know where since I can't stick around for long. I also don’t know Vertigo’s name. This is where you come in. If you help me bring in Vertigo and every other villain you know the identity of—”
“No,” Seungmin interrupts, surprising Felix.
“Look, I know you’re upset, but this is for the greater good. After I saw your office and figured out who you were, I called my boss and he agreed to leave you and Fabricator alone. You guys will just have to relocate since I know where your base is, which is a small inconvenience in the grand scheme of things. Who knows, maybe this will redeem you and you’ll stop your work.”
“I said, no,” Seungmin sternly repeats. “Just leave them all, especially Vertigo, out of this.”
“Vertigo is a threat—”
“You and I both know that you’re only fixated on him because you think he forced Jeongin to become a villain. All he wants to do is take care of him.”
“Someone else can take care of Jeongin. I’ll even do it.”
“Yeah, because Jeongin definitely won’t resent you for ruining his life.”
That seemed to have struck a nerve with Felix, because he proceeded to clench his one functional hand on top of the desk and shift in his seat, which Seungmin was quick to notice.
“You got the jump on Fabricator, but we both know that you’re in no position to have an actual fight, especially not with me. I’m more of a talker.”
Felix takes a deep breath.
“Then let's talk, because I’m not leaving here without something.”
Seungmin didn’t actually think this far ahead, but right now, the situation has escalated so far that he was willing to do anything to protect Minho, Changbin, and every other villain who had put their trust in him. If Felix wanted to leave with something, he was going to get the best of the best.
“Radiance, what do you know about me?”
Felix raises an eyebrow. “I know you give job advice to villains under the name Themis, and because of that, you are the cause of a lot of headaches for heroes, including myself. I also think you’re smart for this, all things considered. It’s a job no one has considered yet everyone is taking advantage of it.”
That last part surprised Seungmin, but now wasn’t the time to linger on any praise.
“Would you like to get rid of those headaches?”
Felix looks at him, confused. “I thought you didn’t have any powers.”
“I don’t, but I am the reason so many villains have improved at their jobs. Haven’t you noticed that they succeed more after seeing me? Pretty annoying, right?”
By then, Minho seemed to have figured out what Seungmin’s plan was. He began pulling at his restraints, attempting to yell at his friend, and while Felix looked at him, concerned, Seungmin just ignored him.
“I know you said your boss won’t arrest me and you’ll even give us time to flee, but I think it would be better in the long run if you take in the guy who is single handedly responsible for the rise of success amongst villains.”
Minho’s shouts grew louder, but Seungmin blocked it out.
“I am a much bigger threat than Vertigo, and Fabricator has just been doing me a favour to get more customers—”
“LIAR!” a muffled voice screams.
“Ignore him. All you have to do is leave everyone else alone, and I’ll willingly come.”
Minho falls silent as Felix stared at Seungmin, speechless.
“You’re willing to give yourself up to make sure everyone else stays untouched?” Felix asks, looking concerned. “I know I shouldn’t be saying this, but this is a bad idea. Even if you don’t get a life sentence, once you’re out, they’ll be keeping an eye on you forever.”
Something about Felix’s genuine worry for him only made confirming the decision harder, but it had to be done, and a small part of Seungmin was relieved to know that at least the person who would be bringing him in would not find any joy in it.
“I’m serious,” Seungmin confirms. “Do we have a deal?”
“I told my boss I had a lead on Vertigo, not Themis.”
“Then tell him that the plan has changed. You either get me, or you get nothing.”
Felix stays silent for a moment, thinking it through. Seungmin holds his breath in anticipation before Felix finally speaks again.
“Give me a day. I’ll come back tomorrow with our answer. If it’s a yes, I’ll give you another day to get your affairs in order and say your goodbyes before I have a hero sent over to collect you.”
Minho lets out a confused squeak.
“Are you serious?” Seungmin asks in disbelief.
“What?” Felix asks. “You’re basically sacrificing yourself for a bunch of people, so I might as well let you say goodbye to them.”
“Has anyone ever told you that you live up to your reputation?”
“It’s not a tough task if I’m just being myself.”
Felix gets up from his seat and hobbles over towards the door.
“I’ll see myself out and let you deal with your friend. See you tomorrow?”
Seungmin waves Felix goodbye before turning to Minho, who was once again tugging at his restraints.
“If I untie you, will you hit me?”
Minho nods a bit too enthusiastically for Seungmin’s liking, so he settles for untying the cloth around his mouth.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” Minho nearly shouts. “I thought the plan was to make sure Leviathan doesn’t arrest you, and now you’ll willingly give yourself up to Radiance? Can we even trust his word?”
“When has he ever lied during a negotiation?” Seungmin says. “Besides, if Radiance is the one to arrest me, we don’t have to worry about Leviathan looking for those files.”
“This is the best case scenario you can come up with?” Minho asks bluntly. “Also, fuck you for implying to Radiance that I was forced into doing this. I’m your fucking partner in this.”
“And as my partner, I need you to trust me on this.”
“I’ll trust you more if you’d untie me from this fucking chair already. Radiance has a sprained wrist, so how the fuck did he do this so tightly?”
The increase in swearing makes Seungmin hesitant to untie Minho, mainly because he hasn’t said he wasn’t going to hit him, but he does it anyway. The moment Minho is free, he storms out of the office and into his workshop.
Quickly, Seungmin goes to his desk and carefully looks it over to see if anything is stolen, but it looked like Radiance was smart enough not to take anything, especially since he wouldn’t be able to carry it. While none of his files were stolen, he did see that his personal journal, which includes his name on the first page, was on his desk and opened to the first page.
“So that’s how he knew my name,” Seungmin muttered. “And he must have dug around my office after seeing Minho’s workshop and all of the illegal gear there. He probably figured out that I was Themis after seeing all the files.”
After putting everything back, Seungmin went back to Minho’s workshop, where his friend was sitting and waiting by the computer.
“I just called Changbin and told him everything. He’s on his way.”
Seungmin wished he kept him tied up.
“Why would you do that? I told you—”
“And that was before we got another hero on our ass,” Minho interrupts. “It’s either Changbin finds out now or in two days when you have to dump him right before getting prosecuted.”
“I—” A ding from Minho’s computer stops Seungmin, and through the security camera, the two of them spot Changbin and Jeongin standing by the door.
“How are they here already?” Minho mutters as he unlocks the door.
The moment the door unlocks, the two villains rush through and make their way into the workshop.
Changbin zeroes in on Seungmin and runs over to hug him.
“Are you okay? Did Felix hurt you?” Changbin lets go of Seungmin’s waist and cups his face. “Did Leviathan touch you? I’ll kill him. I’ll put him in space.”
“I’m fine, I’m fine,” Seungmin whispers. He runs his hands over Changbin’s arms to calm him down. “How did you get here so fast?”
“I gave him a piggyback and ran over here,” Jeongin answers. He then turns to Minho. “So, you got your ass beat by a guy with a broken leg and sprained wrist?”
Minho rolls his eyes. “Yeah, I did. Do you want your ass beat by the guy who lost that fight, because that’s pretty embarrassing too.”
“Can we do this after we figure out how to help Seungmin?” Changbin asks, clearly distressed.
“The only way he gets out of this is if he hands over the files, doesn’t matter to who,” Minho says.
“Can you change the deal to only tell Felix who I am?” Changbin asks. “I’m the original target.”
“Even if that works, which I’m not going to do,” Seungmin adds harshly, “there’s still Leviathan to worry about.”
“You’re really going to let some Walmart Katara push you around? Can’t you just call in some favours and have a bunch of villains jump him?” Jeongin asks.
“He’s a lot more dangerous than you think,” Minho explains. “You just don’t know about it because he’s never been caught. No villain would want to go against him unless they want to get seriously hurt.”
“He’s really that bad? I mean, I know he’s not the poster child for a perfect hero since he’s kind of abrasive, but people at school like him, so I thought he wasn’t all bad.”
“I once had a client who was genuinely afraid of him,” Seungmin responds. “Trust me when I say that I wish Radiance was the only one who caught me.”
“What if I talked to Felix?” Jeongin suggests. “That was the original plan before everything blew up in our faces. I can get him to lay off Seungmin while we figure out what to do with Leviathan. At least with him, we have a week.”
“Maybe that would work if Seungmin didn’t hype himself up in front of Radiance and make himself seem super important,” Minho says bitterly.
“I mean, he is kind of important,” Changbin mutters.
“Point is, Seungmin let Radiance know exactly how valuable he is. Radiance should have other things to worry about, but Seungmin made himself the priority.”
“Then let’s give him something else to worry about.”
Everyone looks to Jeongin, who now had his arms crossed.
“If we can tell him we have information on something bigger, then we can exchange it for everyone’s freedom, right? Felix is way too morally upstanding to turn down something bigger than Seungmin.”
“The problem is finding something that’s a bigger deal than me,” Seungmin says. “We only have a day.”
They all fell silent as they racked their brains trying to think of something that could grab Felix’s attention, but anything Seungmin knew came at the price of sacrificing one of his clients to take the fall, and the whole point of their plan was to make sure that no one got caught.
It all seemed hopeless until Changbin spoke up.
“What if we get rid of both of our problems?”
“What do you mean?” Minho asks.
“What if we get Felix to go after Leviathan? That way, we save everyone’s asses and we don’t have to worry about Levithan since he’ll be arrested.”
“Okay, but what exactly is Leviathan’s crime?”
“Don’t you gossip with the villains when you’re measuring them?” Seungmin asks Minho. “Surely someone must have said something about him that we can look into.”
Minho shrugs. “They complain about fights with him, how annoying he is whenever he complains about work or his job or—”
Minho freezes and his eyes go wide as he remembers something.
“One of them mentioned something about how he hates his boss and how he would do anything to replace him himself. I thought he was just being dramatic, but what if he was telling the truth?”
“He seriously said all that to a villain he was fighting?” Jeongin turns to Seungmin. “Are you sure your list is just about villains, because this guy seems to have a monologuing problem.”
“Wait, wait, we can work with this.” Changbin begins to pace back and forth in front of everyone. “We have Seungmin meet up with Leviathan and get him talking about work. Don’t ask me what the meetup excuse is, I haven’t thought of that yet. Since Seungmin isn’t the most outstanding citizen, it’s more likely that Leviathan will admit to what he’s doing. He records the conversation, we show it to Felix tomorrow, we all go free, and I dump Jeongin on Minho while Seungmin and I take a stress free, weekend—no—week long vacation.”
“Okay, hold on—”
“That’s a good plan, but this all depends on if Leviathan is actually planning something,” Seungmin says. “This is a crazy big risk.”
“What other choice do we have?” Changbin says, a hint of desperation in his voice. “We have to at least try something.”
Seungmin lets out a heavy sigh. “Okay, we can give it a shot. Worst case scenario, he says nothing useful.”
“Alright!” Changbin claps his hands. “Step one is to figure out where he is.”
“I can do that,” Jeongin says. “Minho, can you leave the door unlocked?”
“Uh, yeah, but why—”
Minho gets cut off as Jeongin sprints out of the room, leaving behind a strong gust of wind and a flurry of papers falling off of Minho’s desk.
“Okay, that’s why.”
Surprisingly, Jeongin returns in an instant, but instead of stopping, he runs past Changbin and back out the door again.
“Why did he…” Changbin pats his pockets, letting out a frustrated sigh. “He took my damn wallet.”
Minho bursts out laughing as Changbin pulls out his phone and begins to angrily text Jeongin.
Another five minutes pass before Jeongin returns. He tosses Changbin his wallet, unaware of the villain glaring at him.
“Okay, two things. First,” he turns to Changbin, “I accidentally knocked over Han’s Flower Shop stand again, so I had to pay for the damaged flowers. The owner asked how you were and I said you were fine.”
“We should really learn his name,” Changbin says.
“Yeah, it feels kind of rude at this point.”
“It’s Jisung,” Minho interjects. “He opened the shop a few years ago. Nice conversationalist.”
“And what is the second, far more important thing?” Seungmin loudly interrupts. He has decided to unpack the fact that Minho has another friend besides him at a later date.
“I saw Leviathan talking to some fans at the park,” Jeongin responds. “I texted a few people from school about it, so hopefully more people show up and keep him busy which will give us time to finish our plan and send Seungmin out.”
“You did such a good job that I’ll get mad at you about my wallet later,” Changbin says. “Now for step two. We need something to record on. I’m worried that he would ask Seungmin to shut his phone down or something before talking.”
“I can help with that too.”
Jeongin walks over to one of Minho’s workbenches, where a half-finished Dori was sitting.
“Minho said the point of Dori was to have her fetch things for him and keep voice memos for him. We’re still working on the first part, but—”
Jeongin flips Dori over and rips out a piece of machinery from inside, causing Minho to let out a tiny squeak.
“My baby…”
“I’ll make a new one,” Jeongin says. He walks up to Seungmin and points to the side of the recording device, where a small button was. “Just click that before walking up to him. Now, all we need is a reason to talk to him.”
“Can you tell Leviathan that something big came up and that the files will be delayed?” Changbin suggests.
“What’s something big enough that even Leviathan can’t say no to?” Seungmin mutters.
“Who’s the biggest villain you have on file?”
“It used to be Chae, but I burned it a while ago after finding out how she’s doing. Once a villain retires, I burn it.”
“Okay, so what if we tell him that you’re currently talking with someone who’s a bigger threat than Chaeyeon,” Minho suggests. “Someone like, I don’t know, Chronostasis?”
That… was perfect. Chronostasis was a villain that every hero watched to catch, to the point where there were monetary rewards for any information on her. She had the ability to slow down time of anything, from a cup of water falling to a hero attempting to catch her. If Chaeyeon was a headache, Chronostasis was a migraine that would knock anyone out. Leviathan would definitely give Seungmin an extension if it meant that he got the glory of capturing her.
“So this is it? We’re ready?” Minho asks.
“We need to do this as fast as possible,” Jeongin says, looking at his phone. “Beomgyu just met him and he said that he might be leaving soon, so Seungmin has to go now.”
Seungmin looks down at the recording device in his hands. “Uh, okay, well in that case, see you soon?”
He turns and heads towards the door, but just as he was about to leave, a hand lands on his shoulder. He turns around to see Changbin staring up at him.
“Please, be careful,” Changbin whispers.
“I will, don’t worry.”
“If you told me this before I found out about all the shit you pulled earlier, then I’d believe you. It’s just…” Changbin takes a deep breath. “A part of me wishes you were selfish. If you were, then at least I know that I can leave Jeongin in safe hands.”
“He’s already in safe hands and it’s going to stay that way,” Seungmin says. “No matter how things end, Jeongin is going to be okay.”
“I know that, but what about you?”
“It’s weird to say, but I’m kind of comforted knowing that if I go down, at least it’s Radiance taking me down.”
Changbin frowned. “I can’t believe Felix is literally going to steal my man.”
The tension between the two dies down as they burst out laughing. As their laughter dies down and they return to silence, Seungmin leans forward and kisses Changbin’s cheek.
“I’ll be back soon. Make sure Minho and Jeongin don’t break anything.”
“I can’t control them, but okay.”
Seungmin heads out the door with the recording device in his pocket and a heavy heart in his chest.
It was easy to spot Leviathan in the park, and that was thanks to the crowd surrounding him and taking pictures.
Seungmin stood by one of the trees and watched Leviathan put on a fake smile and laugh as he shook hands with some adults and high fived some kids.
It was strange to see that the man who was probably two seconds away from physically harming him was now posing with a baby, but he knew that things like this were the reason why he was never caught.
Eventually, once nearly everyone has left, Leviathan looks over and notices Seungmin. The two stare at each other for a bit before Leviathan gestures over to one of the alleyways nearby, and Seungmin makes his way over.
Right then was when the nerves finally caught up to him. If Seungmin didn’t get anything good out of Leviathan, he was screwed. He takes a deep breath and rounds the corner, pushing the record button in his pocket. He had one chance, or it was over.
A moment later, Leviathan appears.
“Are you done already?” he asks.
“Not yet, but something happened that I think you would want to hear,” Seungmin starts. “I got a visit from Chronostasis earlier today.”
Leviathan’s eyes go wide as Seungmin continues. “I know she’s the villain everyone wants to catch, and since you’re already getting the files, I want to ask for a favour.”
“Do you really think you’re in the position to negotiate?” Leviathan asks.
“Give me another week to hand over everyone’s files. Long enough for me to add Chronostasis to the list. I can get her weaknesses and her real identity, and you will get the glory of catching her.”
Leviathan raises an eyebrow at Seungmin. “Trying to get into my good books?” Shit, shit, shit, shit. “You’re lucky it’s working. Yeah, sure, you’ve got an extension. I could use something good right now.”
Here was his chance.
“Everything okay?”
“Don’t try to play therapist—” Leviathan cuts himself off, looking at Seungmin curiously. “Actually, you’re all anti-hero, right?”
“Would I have this job if I wasn’t?”
“Fair point. So if I ask you for some job advice against a hero, you’d be able to help and not give a shit, right?”
“This can’t be happening,” Seungmin thinks to himself. “He cannot be making this so easy for me.”
Maybe Jeongin was onto something. If villains monologue too much, then maybe heroes could too.
“I could, you just can’t be vague or else I could accidentally give you the wrong advice,” Seungmin replies.
Leviathan hesitates, wondering just how much information to spill.
“I want someone removed from his job, and he needs to be removed forcibly. I was thinking of grabbing him on his way home—”
“Like you did with me.”
“Why change what I’m good at?” Leviathan continues on. “If I take him and hold him for a bit with some threats, then I’m sure he’d skip town. I did that with a villain and got rid of him that way.”
He did not expect to get a confession to an actual crime so early into the conversation, but he wasn’t going to stop there.
“This all depends on the position of your job in relation to this person. Is he above or below you, because that would work perfectly with someone below you.”
“Uhh…” Leviathan hesitates, and for a moment, Seungmin thinks that everything has backfired, but Leviathan just waves a hand. “Fuck it, you don’t care. It’s my division’s boss at the Commission. I want to replace him.”
Seungmin fakes a sympathetic frown. “I’ve heard people speak highly of him, so there must be something really wrong with him that we don’t know about if it warrants you needing to take over.”
And just like that, Leviathan explodes.
“Exactly! Chan has been way too tight on power regulations lately. He’s trying to pass a bill that will punish heroes for overexerting their powers and causing collateral damage, but that’s how I get my job done quickly. It’s like we suddenly forget that we are dealing with literal supervillains and sometimes, we need to do whatever we can to catch them.” Leviathan lets out a frustrated sigh. “If I was in charge, This wouldn’t be an option. Once I show them all the information I get from you and get in the higher ups’ good books, I’ll be able to take over once he disappears.”
“Okay, crazier than I thought, but I can work with this,” Seungmin thinks.
“Just so I have a clear picture, your plan is to hand over the information I give you, including the things about Chronostasis, kidnap your boss Bang Chan, threaten him into leave, and then use the information I give you as a reason to replace him?”
“Exactly that, so what’s your advice?”
Clearly Leviathan was out of his depth. He was feared for being smart and manipulative, yet this was one of the dumbest plans Seungmin has ever heard. He should honestly stay out of the business world and stick to threatening people, at least he was good at that.
“I think you should get some people at work on your side. That way, when it’s time to decide on a replacement, instead of it being whoever is directly below him, people can vouch for you to replace him instead.”
Leviathan gives Seungmin a big grin. “That’s perfect, and it’ll make me look better too. You’re actually pretty okay, Themis.”
Seungmin laughs. “You are too when you’re not threatening me.”
“I’ve got you on my side, so why should I?”
“Never said anything about that, but whatever,” Seungmin thinks to himself.
Seungmin begins to slowly walk out of the alley, wanting to get out of there as fast as possible.
“I should head back and plan my next meeting with Chronostasis. I came to see you in a rush, so I haven’t planned anything yet.”
“Remember your deadline, and bring me something good about Chronostasis.”
“Of course!”
The moment Seungmin rounds the corner and disappears from Leviathan’s line of sight, he sprints back to the park and stops the recording.
“Holy shit,” Seungmin whispers, the realization finally hitting him. “I got it. I got the confession.”
Conspiracy to kidnap was something he could be arrested for with this, and he got the added bonus of a confession to an actual kidnapping and threatening. Leviathan and his power trips were done for.
He pulled out his phone and texted Minho one quick message as he began to walk back.
Seungmin: I’m on my way back. I did it.
The zero response from Minho was worrying enough for Seungmin’s brisk pace to speed up all the way back to their base.
The door was, for some reason, still unlocked, and the moment Seungmin stepped through, a laser shot out of nowhere and hit the ground in front of him, nearly burning his foot off.
“What the hell!?” Seungmin shouts.
“Sorry! We didn’t think you’d be back so soon.”
Seungmin looks up to see Jeongin, who was looking at him sheepishly, standing by a ladder. At the top of the ladder was Minho, who was mounting said laser to the wall by the door.
“Why is there a laser? Why is the door unlocked? What is wrong with you?”
“New security measures, testing the sensor, isn’t that your job to find out?” Minho responds.
"Babe, I'm so happy your foot didn't fry off, but can you tell us how it went?"
Changbin was sitting in Minho's chair by the computer, looking at him worriedly.
Seungmin smiles and lifts up the recording device.
"I've got it all. Not only is he planning to kidnap his boss and take his job, but he also admitted to kidnapping a previous villain."
"How did you manage to get all that out of him?"
"He just kept talking and talking. I think Jeongin was onto something about the excessive monologuing."
"So what now?" Jeongin asks.
"Now, we wait until Radiance shows up tomorrow and show him everything," Seungmin answers. "And then, we hope he shifts his priorities."
"So that's it for today? We just wait?"
"Those two are waiting," Minho says, pointing to Seungmin and Changbin. "You and I still have a second laser to make."
As Minho climbs down the ladder, Seungmin looks to Changbin and gestures to his office. The two silently make their way inside.
Seungmin puts the recording device on his desk and takes a seat on the couch. The moment he sits down, he practically melts into the seat. All the stress of the last few hours that had kept him high strung and constantly moving has now burned out, leaving him exhausted.
He puts his head in his hands.
"I'm sorry."
"For what?" Changbin asks, sitting down next to him.
"I don't know, everything? Getting Jeongin involved, putting you at risk, meeting you and dragging you into this? I just feel like I need to say it."
Changbin leans back against the couch, looking up at the ceiling.
"You know, Minho told me what you said about mistake number ten."
Seungmin lifts his head. "Of course he did."
"I would be mad if I were you too, but I'm glad he told me. He and Jeongin left me alone while you were gone, so it gave me some time to think."
His eyes drift over to Seungmin as he softly smiles at him, and for some reason, Seungmin just wanted to burst into tears right then and there, whether from guilt or overwhelming love, he wasn't sure.
"When Jeongin made that joke about your list, it made me realize that it doesn't just apply to villains. If any mistake was made, it was number nine."
"'Threatening the hero's loved ones,'" Seungmin mutters.
"I don't think the four of us could be called heroes, but a hero did make that mistake. Felix made the mistake of jeopardizing our happiness, and I don't know about you, but I am way too stubborn to let that slide. Fuck sacrifices, we're all getting our happy ending. And as for you—"
"Oh no."
"Attachments are not a mistake. It can't be, because if it is, that means getting close to you was a mistake, and I know for a fact that it's not because meeting you was one of the best things that has ever happened to me."
“I…” Seungmin trails off, not knowing how to respond.
“You don’t have to say anything back, it’s okay.”
“No, no, I want to. You’ve always done all the talking, I want to too.” Seungmin takes a deep breath. “I just want to do something good for you for once outside of this office. Giving you up to Radiance was just not an option in my mind. If I can’t verbally tell you how much you mean to me, then I can show it.”
Changbin reaches over and gently holds Seungmin’s face in his hands, turning his head to face him with such care, like Seungmin was a fragile marble statue that would break at the slightest touch. It was only then that Seungmin finally notices the tears in Changbin’s eyes and realizes that nice words cannot hide just how much this has been weighing on Changbin too.
“You don’t have to go out of your way to prove anything to me, especially to this extent, but if you want to make me happy, then do this one thing and please, I’m begging you, don’t leave me.”
That was the breaking point for Seungmin as he collapsed into Changbin, burying his head into his neck and bursting into tears, Changbin shortly following.
“I don’t want to leave,” Seungmin chokes out. “I want to stay with everyone.”
“You’re not going anywhere,” Changbin sobs. “I’m not letting that happen.”
Seungmin wasn’t sure how long the two stayed like that. From his point of view, it felt like a few minutes. From Minho’s point of view, calming Jeongin down after they had accidentally overheard the end of their conversation felt like an hour, but maybe it was because his brain was too scattered to keep track of the time. However long it took, it didn’t change the fact that everyone felt the same way. The anxiety taking over the workshop was enough to overpower the hard evidence they had. Everything rested on Felix, and no one wanted to think about what would follow if he said no.
“Did he say when he was coming?”
“He didn’t give a specific time.”
“You didn’t ask?”
“I was tied up and gagged, there wasn’t a lot I could work with.”
As Minho and Changbin go back and forth arguing, Seungmin looks down at Jeongin, who was spinning around in Minho’s chair.
“Is this weird for you?”
“You dating Changbin? No, but don’t ask me to call you dad. That’s weird.”
“I was talking about opposing Radiance, but glad to know we’re on the same page about the dad thing.”
Jeongin shrugs. “I mean, I won’t lie and say that I’m fully okay with it. I’ve never had anything against him, and I know he’s doing his job, but,” he lets out a sigh, “I just wish he left us alone once he found out that I was involved.”
Seungmin leans against Minho’s desk and crosses his arms.
“He said he would take you in himself."
“That’s nice of him, but I think I’d rather stay in my empty house than live with a constant reminder of what was taken from me.”
“Don’t worry, you and Changbin won’t be separated.”
Jeongin looks up at Seungmin and frowns.
“You better not go anywhere either. Changbin would be miserable and Minho would have to leave the city. Nothing good would come from you leaving.”
Seungmin reaches over and ruffles Jeongin’s hair, much to the teen’s displeasure.
“You’re a lot nicer than you appear.”
“I have a reputation to upho—can you get off me already!?”
“You’ve been spending too much time with Minho. He’s a bad influence, you know.” Seungmin crouches down and whispers to Jeongin. “I heard he works with villains.”
“Oh no!” Jeongin whispers back, barely holding back his laughter. “I can’t associate with evil people.”
As much as Seungmin would’ve liked to spend the rest of the day laughing with Jeongin, the familiar sound of the door’s ding immediately brings the mood down and brings them back to reality.
Felix was on the monitor, alone and still injured, so if all else failed, they could just push him and run. Before anyone could say anything, Seungmin unlocks the door and watches Felix hobble in.
Felix enters the workshop and, upon seeing Changbin and Jeongin, looks at Seungmin in shock.
“You changed your mind? I didn’t think you’d do it.”
Changbin takes a step forward.
“He didn’t change anything. We want to make a deal.”
“Seungmin and I already made a deal, and my boss accepted, so I’m willing to pretend like I didn’t see you here and give Seungmin a day to get his affairs in order.”
Jeongin stands up from his seat and takes a step forward. “Felix, please, hear us out. This is important.”
Felix’s face softens once he sees Jeongin. “Jeongin, I’m sorry you got caught in the middle of this, but please don’t get involved. I’m already risking a lot by not telling anyone about you.”
"That's not what I mean—"
"Chan's in danger," Minho interrupts, cutting straight to the chase.
Felix's face falls the moment he hears those words. He looks over at Minho, and for the first time ever, Seungmin feels unnerved by the hero.
"What are you talking about?"
"Chan is in danger," Changbin repeats. "A hero that you work with is going to hurt him."
Silence follows Changbin's explanation, which causes Felix to gesture for him to continue, but Changbin shakes his head.
"We can tell you who it is, but for that information, you have to agree to leave us alone. All of us."
Felix frowns. "You know I can't let that happen. I just told Chan that my lead on Vertigo led me to something about Themis. I can't just let the most powerful guy in the city walk free. He's done so much harm."
"I'm just helping people who need help," Seungmin snaps. "Do you think the people who resort to asking me for advice want to be labelled as evil? They come to me because they are desperate and out of options. You don't know why everyone decides to go on this path. Not everyone has the option to be the city's golden boy like you."
Seungmin was panting by the end of his rant. "I've met far too many people who are just as good as you to let you jeopardize this. To me, the good I've done for these individuals far outweighs the negative I've done for helping people who just want to cause chaos."
"Not every villain is evil, just like how every hero isn't good," Changbin says. "Despite our problems, I know you're one of the good ones, and you've proven over and over again that you have a good heart. Where are your priorities? A random jewel thief, a counsellor, or a hero who has confessed to different crimes and is planning on manipulating the hero world and hurting someone who, judging by your reaction, is close to you?"
Felix looks around, conflicted.
"How do I even know that what you're saying is true? For all I know, this could be a lie."
"We have the confessions on tape," Minho says. "All you have to do is agree, and we'll hand it over."
"I—"
"He has confessed to kidnapping and threatening someone and is planning on doing it again to Chan," Jeongin interrupts. "He wants to take Chan's jobs and change some regulations in order to not punish heroes for going too far."
Felix gives Jeongin a sad smile. "You're smart, so you should know not to reveal so much information all at once during a negotiation like this."
Surprisingly, Jeongin smiles deviously, confusing everyone in the room.
"But now, if you say no, the knowledge will eat you alive. You'll look at every hero you work with with suspicion, and not know who you can trust until it's too late and Chan is gone. Seungmin, what was mistake number five on your list?"
"The—" Seungmin trips over his own words. The last thing he expected from this confrontation was for Jeongin to start playing mind games, but this is what it has come to.
"'Meddling with things they don't understand,'" he finally answers.
"Felix, I love you, and I will always treasure how much you've taken care of me, but you thinking that Vertigo forced me to be a villain was your very first mistake. You got involved not understanding just how much I value him, Seungmin, and Fabricator. If it means having to go against you and mess with your mind to protect them, then I’ll do it."
"And how do you know you can trust me?" Felix says, sounding more and more defeated. "How do you know that I won't betray you after taking this deal."
"Because at the end of the day, you are the righteous hero Radiance, known for your strong values, pure heart, and not going back on any promises you make," Changbin says. "You are a good person that none of us hate, and we relied on that when thinking of this plan, so what's it going to be? The bad hero, or the good villain?"
The glowing freckles on Felix's face dimmed and he tightened his grip on his crutch. Seungmin held his breath as they waited for his answer. They played every single card, pulled every trick they could, and now, their fate rested in Felix's heart.
"I'll do it," Felix finally says. "Tell me who it is and give me the proof, and I'll let you all go free. I won't chase you down."
Seungmin felt his knees shake and he fell into the chair, sighing in relief. Changbin grabs the closest thing to him, which was Minho's arm, and holds on tight. Minho doesn't even bother trying to shake him off but instead grabs his arm back.
As for Jeongin, he walks up to Felix and hands him the recording device.
"It's Leviathan. His confession is on here."
"Thank you," Felix whispers.
The hero looks up to see Jeongin's head hanging low, avoiding his gaze.
"Hey." Felix tilts Jeongin's head up. "Don't feel bad for pulling that stunt. It was smart.”
“You’re going to stop going after us? Forever?” Jeongin whispers.
“I can’t promise that any other hero won’t go after you guys, but I can promise that I won’t.”
Jeongin rushes forward and gives Felix a tight hug. Felix hugs him back, hiding the immeasurable pain he’s in thanks to his injuries.
Felix speaks to the others once Jeongin lets go.
“I’ll be heading out now. Um…” Felix hesitates. “Normally I would say see you soon, but I promised that I wouldn’t, so… bye!”
It’s silent in the workshop, even after Felix leaves. The four of them were left speechless over what had happened, and to be honest, Seungmin was half expecting the door to be kicked down and heroes to start swarming the workshop, but nothing happened. Eventually, Changbin finally speaks.
“Did we win?”
“I think we won,” Minho answers, not fully believing his own words.
“I think…” Seungmin begins. “I think I am going to go take a nap.”
“Let me drive you home,” Changbin says, taking a step forward.
“No, no, it’s okay.” Seungmin waves a hand at Changbin and, without another word, walks into his office, kicks off his shoes, and collapses onto the couch, staring up at the ceiling.
He hears the door open and feels a body crawl on top of him that he embraces without a second thought. He looks to his side and sees Changbin smiling at him.
“I told you you weren’t going anywhere,” he whispers.
Maybe it was the fatigue messing with his impulse control, or maybe it was the fact that Changbin was inches from his face and Seungmin had decided that he had never looked more beautiful than right now. Whatever the reason was, it led to Seungmin closing the distance between them and pressing a kiss to his lips.
When he pulls back, Changbin is staring at him with wide eyes, his mouth forming an O.
“Oh…”
Seungmin quietly laughs.
“You’ll get more if you let me sleep.”
Changbin’s eyes shut immediately as he buries himself in Seungmin’s chest, not saying another word.
Seungmin pulls him in close, holding onto Changbin tightly.
He wasn’t going anywhere, and neither was Changbin, and neither was Minho, and neither was Jeongin.
No one was leaving. They were going to live their happy ending.
Apparently, Felix works fast, because three days after their confrontation with him, Seungmin woke up, turned on the news, and saw Leviathan in handcuffs being taken away.
No news station bothered to dig into who Felix got his information from, as they had placed their full trust into the hero’s word that it was from a “reliable source.” Seungmin decided that with the amount of trust everyone has in Felix, he would fear the day the hero snaps and goes rogue.
Seungmin checks his phone as he boards the bus and smiles at the message he received.
Chaeyeon: look at the drawing Wonyoung made ;-;
Chaeyeon: [image sent]
He finally bit the bullet and contacted her, which was another weight off his chest. It felt good to hear the full story from her, and it felt even better to know that everything was fine with her family. So fine, in fact, that her wife wanted to meet him herself.
“She wants to personally thank the person who talked some sense into me,” Chaeyeon had said. “Plus, it would be good to see your face again. Changbin mentioned that you are very handsome, and I have to know the story there.”
He eventually arrives at his stop and heads towards Minho’s workshop. Right as he arrives at the door, his phone rings. He checks to see who’s calling, only to be greeted with an unknown number across his screen.
“Hello?” he says.
“Seungmin?” A familiar voice asks.
Seungmin freezes. “Radiance?”
“You know, I feel like at this point, we’re close enough where you can call me Felix.”
“How did you get my number?”
“I bought Jeongin lunch yesterday and asked him for it. You don’t mind, right? I just wanted to thank you.”
“For what?”
“It was your voice on the recording with Leviathan, so I wanted to thank you for taking such a huge risk.”
“Oh,” Seungmin says, not expecting that. “Um, you’re welcome, I guess.”
“I also want to say sorry,” Felix continues, surprising Seungmin. “You guys gave me a lot to think about, and it made me reconsider a lot of things. I know our views of what is good don’t always align, but I can at least say with certainty that you’re a good person, Seungmin. I say I’m a hero who is always by your side, but now I know that I’m lacking in a lot of places. What reassures me is that they have you looking out for them. By the way, if you ever run into a similar problem like this where you need to have something dealt with in a legal manner and can’t do it yourself, just give me a call.”
Seungmin scrambles to find the right words to say back.
“Thank you, Felix,” Seungmin says. “It, uh, it means a lot coming from the poster boy of virtue. Don’t focus too much on what you’re lacking, though. Put that energy towards developing what you want to improve. If anyone can do it, it’s you.”
“You’re too nice.”
“And you’re hard to hate.”
Felix laughs. “I know I said I wouldn’t see you soon, but can you promise me that if we ever spot each other in public, you won’t run?”
“I can, but I can’t say the same about Vertigo.”
“Oh well, one win is still a win. Goodbye, Seungmin.”
“Goodbye, Felix.”
He smiles at his phone before pocketing it and stepping inside.
A loud whirring sound greets him as he enters the workshop. He looks over at Minho’s main workbench, where Jeongin was sitting and typing away on his laptop. Next to him was Minho, who was sketching in his notebook.
“Why aren’t you at school?” Seungmin asks Jeongin.
“I skipped today so I could work on Dori,” Jeongin responds, not taking his eyes off the screen.
Seungmin then looks to Minho. “And what are you doing?”
Minho lifts up his notebook to Seungmin.
“I promised Jeongin I’d make him a sword if he works on Dori.”
“And Changbin let both of these things happen?”
“He’s been in a very good mood lately,” Jeongin says. “He’ll say yes to anything.”
“Speaking of Changbin, he’s in your office with breakfast,” Minho adds.
“Did anyone come in and book an appointment today?” Seungmin asks.
“No.”
“What are you talking about?” Jeongin says. “I heard you talking to someone at the door and telling them he wasn’t taking anyone this week.”
“And Seungmin wasn’t supposed to know that,” Minho hisses.
He gets up and grabs Seungmin’s arm, dragging him away from Jeongin.
“No one has booked any appointments for the past three days. Have you been turning people away?” Seungmin asks.
Minho crosses his arms. “Yes, I have. Everything’s okay now, but you still aren’t mentally ready to handle any work, even if it’s just simple advice.”
Seungmin ignores the warm feeling in his chest. He hates it when Minho is nice to him. “So what do I do in the meantime?”
Minho shrugs. “I don’t know. Go make friends, kiss your boyfriend, adopt a dog, buy some flowers. It’s just for a week or two.”
He turns around and heads back to his workbench, leaving Seungmin to head towards his office.
He pokes his head in and sees Changbin sitting on the couch with breakfast laid out on the table. He took a sip of his coffee, waving Seungmin inside.
“Took you long enough. I was worried it was going to get cold.”
“I’m actually glad you’re here,” Seungmin says, taking a seat right next to him. “I need your help with something.”
“Is Felix bothering you? I really don’t want to break his other leg, I still feel bad about the first time.”
“No, no, it’s not that. I need to revise my list of mistakes,” Seungmin explains, reaching for his food. “You were right about number ten not being a mistake. Attachments aren’t a problem.”
“So you need a new rule? How about, ‘not being more direct when you like someone because he could actually be super dense and not realize that the villain is 100% serious about every flirtatious remark?’”
“I feel like that’s a bit too specific.”
Changbin shrugs. “Okay, how about, ‘don’t kill the hero.’ I’ve never done it, but sometimes it’s better to just wrap it up and, you know.” Changbin does a quick slicing gesture at his neck, leaving Seungmin staring.
“I know you’re joking, but that has made me realize that if I tell someone to kill a hero, they might actually do it.”
“You’re like Felix. Everyone just listens to you, no further questions.”
Seungmin laughs. “I have one idea, but I want your thoughts on it.”
He pulls a notebook out from his bag and flips to the page where he wrote down his idea, handing it to Changbin.
Changbin raises an eyebrow once he reads it. “And you say mine is too specific.”
Seungmin takes his notebook back. “I just think that by making this mistake, the villain won’t be able to get the full picture of their job and the impact of their action on others. If they do this, they may not be able to work to the best of their abilities.”
Before Seungmin could continue his rant, Changbin pulls him forward and shuts him up with a kiss.
“I think it’s perfect,” he whispers, smiling up at him.
Seungmin smiles back at him and leans forward, kissing Changbin back. As the two fall back onto the couch, Seungmin tosses his notebook onto the table, the page with his newest addition to the list facing up.
- Underestimating their value as a person