The drive to Divine's house ( mansion) would be marked down as the longest and most dramatic trip. Peter and I had a ten-minute-long argument about whose car we should use; Michael didn't want to get involved so he stood aside, allowing me and the overgrown child to fight over why we should use my car.

My winning argument was that my car didn't have a paternal tracker in it. If Peter wanted to enjoy his mental week off then he needed to get rid of the car that would lead his dangerous father to him, Divine, me, and Michael. I'm not prepared to fight off a bear of a man just because his son ran away.

We decided that it would be best, for literally everyone, if Peter dropped off his car at home and ran back to my house-- where I'd sneak back home and kidnap Michael's emotional attachments.

Now, as I try to slowly open my door without making noise, all I'm thinking is I regret what I did in the park. I acted thoughtlessly, sure I got the reaction I wanted from him but-

Wait. Did Peter just admit that he likes me? I've been so busy arguing with the fool that my mind didn't even--! I slam my hand against my mouth when I feel a screech rising to my throat; Peter Jung likes me.

Doggie and Kittie look up as I approach them slowly, I signal for them to be quiet and nod towards the door, forgetting that they are animals and probably don't understand. However, they both stand up but did not move towards the door or me.

I roll my eyes, at their careful dramatics.

"Okay, you runts, I will leave you here to suffer from the psycho lady if you don't move your asses outside right now." They tilt their heads and stuck out their noses, silently telling me to stuff it. I sigh and rub my temples. I need a way to get these two out of here before Peter arrives or mom.

I hear footsteps behind me and freeze from my kneeled position, "What are you doing?" The annoyed voice of Michael lets me release a breath I didn't know I was holding.

I turn my head to him, noticing a large amount of baggage he has, "Trying to summon a demon. What the hell does it look like I'm doing? Your damn pets refuse to follow me." I look at him from head to toe, "Why am I doing this again?"

He shrugs before readjusting the food bags on his shoulder, "Cause I'm getting their things." He points out the obvious,

"Yeah yeah, but they listen to you more. They like you more."

"Like every other sane creature out there. Just pick them up or something--"

"I need them to come willingly."

He gives me a dark glare and I smile sheepishly. "Funny how you threw me over your shoulder yet ask for permission from animals."

"First of all, animals deserve respect too. Second, I'm allowed to do anything to you, you're my brother. And lastly, kidnapping them will make them hate me more."

"Well, better come up with something unless you want your mother to find you here." With that he walks out the open door, leaving me with two assholes who find my struggle funny.

Still, in my kneeled position, I lower my voice into a less untrustworthy one, "Hey, pals. Let's go outside for a walk. Come on." I wiggle my fingers at them but they just stare, uninterested.

Finally, Doggie gets the hint and barks. Tail wiggling happily at the wide-open door, inviting him to explore; he runs out before I can react, oh well, one less problem to worry about. I'm sure Michael will get a hold of him before he can fully run out the street. Now, for the pussy cat.

She licks her paw, meowing softly as if challenging me. Placing my hands on my thighs, I sigh internally, clearly, she isn't going to be cooperative. I could pick her up but I don't want to get beaten by her devil claws. Kittie has never attacked someone without a good reason, it's never random.

"Okay, girl, I understand we've never seen eye to eye, but I can't leave you here. Michael will kill me faster than my mom will, so just-- come into my arms." I open my arms for her, she's been quietly watching me talk but she's still not moved. "Please. I promise if you do this for me, I'll replace your newspapers with a real litter." She glances at me, understanding my sincere intentions. Slowly she walks towards me-- this stupid cat, making me waste money just because Mickey is attached to her.

I walk out of the house with her occupying one of my arms, as I use the other to silently close the door. Michael has already made him and Doggie comfortable in the back seat,

"Did you put newspapers on the seat and floor?" I ask as I pass Kittie to him, he nods and I smile. I wouldn't want them to get car sick and mess my car, I will not be happy.

Kittie softly nudges Michael with her paw, making him grin and kiss her black coat. Cute. At least he'll be at ease now. Before I can get into my car, I feel a shiver up my spine,

Out of habit, I look around, my eyes land on the person behind a window, watching me with miserable eyes. I freeze as mom waves at me, smiling at me like she finally got her senses back. Like she's not trying to hide that I probably broke her further.

"I love you. Please come back safely."

I don't know how I was able to read her lips but I assume that's what she mouthed. Or at least that was what I'd love to hear.

"I'm sorry." I mouth back, before entering the car and driving off.

"Do you think she'll be okay by herself?" Michael mutters, I look at him from the rearview mirror. He probably saw her watching us.

I shrug, "Maybe she'll realise what she's been doing. She'll be okay, she's strong." He nods, then continues to pay attention to his pets. I didn't even drive a block before I see Peter running towards my car, I stop and he jumps into the front seat.

"Go! Go!" Sweating and panting heavily, he looks in front of him in panic. Suddenly I see a man running towards my car with urgency and a terrifying face, "Mason, drive!" He doesn't have to tell me twice, I slammed my foot against the paddle.

I make eye contact with Mr Jung and he sneers at me as I drive past him."PETER! PETER GET OUT OF THAT CAR! DAE-HYUN!" He manages to bang on the side of Peter's window, unable to keep up with us he stops.

"What the actual fuck, Pete?!" I exclaim when we are speeding towards Divine's house. I've been there so many times, thanks to Mr Fernandez, so the route is imprinted in my mind.

He rubs his face in frustration, "I didn't think he'd be home, waiting for me. Running after me." He sounds petrified, which is understandable I've never seen a fifty-something-year-old man run that fast in all my life. "At first he tried to sound reasonable but... he didn't care about my opinion, he just wanted to talk so mummy would get off his back!"

At a red light, I turn to look at Michael, and just like I suspected he's not paying attention to us. I smile at him before looking at Peter, he is pouting while staring out the window. I lean over, buckling his seat belt for him.

From what I remember about Peter's dad, the man was strict, yes, but he was also very caring... in certain situations. By what Pete used to tell me, his dad became unbearably rigorous when Peter's older brother died-- Mr Jung believed that if he hadn't let his eldest son go to numerous parties then he wouldn't have gotten into a car accident-- so now to make up for it he chains his remaining kids.

But I didn't think Mr Jung would go as far as to chase down a car. Okay, let's say that Peter and he had an explosive argument and Mr Jung had every right to be pissed at Peter, then does that mean I'm on the bad side of this whole thing? It's not like Peter has told me anything about why he ran from home, and for the life of me, I can't seem to figure out what would make obedient Jung fight his dad.

Maybe Peter finally had enough of being controlled or being shoved into a shell of his late brother. I know I am.

"How did your mother take this whole "mental week" off?" He's not looking at me as he taps the window absent-minded

I shrug dismissively, "It's not like she had a say, after all, she's the reason I'm taking this drive. I ran out the house before she could convince me otherwise."

Peter looks at me for a long time before I get uncomfortable, I glare at him briefly just to see what kind of emotion he had. He is curious.

"What?" I spit out,

He shakes his head, brown curls breezing the air, "Nothing." Then he shakes his head again, deciding against not saying anything. "I don't get it. What exactly do you have to run away from-- other than the police of course." When he mentions the cops I harshly whip my head behind me, waiting for Michael's question but I sigh in relief, he has his headphones on.

I point Peter with a scowl, he shrugs. Confusion is swimming in his beautiful eyes before realization strikes like lightning. "Oh." He nods at me then looks forward. The silence doesn't last long because he whips his head at me, eyebrows furrowed.

"How does he not know? He lives in this town, and everyone knows. Surely someone would have mentioned it," he leans closer to me to whisper, "you know, that you are in a mafia."

His scent cloud my thoughts for a second, "I am aware of my occupation, Jung."

He ignores me, "Yeah, but how does Mike not know?" Before I can answer, he leans back and I miss the slight warmth he provided, "Maybe he just brushed it off as fake rumours. I mean, when I first heard I thought it was just one of those gossips someone spread, but then you shot--"

" I don't have an actual gun." I glance at him to see his reaction. His mouth is agape in skepticism. "I mean it's real but not loaded, it's a toy at most. I use it to scare people."

"But what about the kid you shot?"

I groan in frustration, "I get that I'm a bad guy and shit, but I wouldn't shoot a kid; remember Michael's best friend?"

"Brian? Rose's brother?"

I nod, "Well I found out his parents forbid him from being friends with Mickey, they went as far as calling him names so their kid wouldn't be friends with Michael. At some point, all the kids in his school started calling him disgusting names so I confronted his parents. They blow up on me," I watch Michael pat Doggie's fur happily, his earphones still in.

"They said that they didn't want my brother's 'sickness' to rub off on their kid. I got pissed, I mean you're a grown adult, if this was about me and Madison then I would get it but their degrading was directed to an innocent kid who's getting bullied for it. So I took out the fake gun, broke Brian's dad's nose and his mother fainted from shock," I roll my eyes. "Just then Brian walked through the front door, slips on the carpet while he tried to back away, and bam! The kid gets away with a concussion. I didn't shoot no one!"

I end with a huff.

"Wow," Peter mutters, and I nod. "Your reputation is built on lies." I push his shoulder and he laughs. "Okay, but how about the fact you killed a man with your bare fists."

I snicker and roll my eyes, "I didn't kill him, he fainted."

Peter whistles, he briefly looks at Michael before smiling at me, "Fine. But you cut that woman who stole from Divine's dad? You cut off her arm, right?"

I gaze at him in horror. Where were all these lies coming from? "No! I help pin her down as they cut off her middle finger because she waved it at Divine's dad."

"How's that any better?"

I laugh, "she still has her arm, plus they were able to reattach it in the hospital." He hums and turns his face away from me,

"It's weird, I'm actually happy that none of those stories are true. Every time a story was bought up about you, I'd think that the Mason I knew would never be able to sleep at night after doing such; the Mason I knew wouldn't be that heartless. Then I'd make up excuses for you, that you were doing it because there was no other choice... you did it to survive; to protect. Because the Mason I know would give an arm and leg to protect his family."

I don't know what to say, I paid very close attention to his words. My heart flutters when I see that his head was against the window while a small, carefree smile plays at his lips. He doesn't know what he has said is doing to me.

Suddenly he turns to me with a playful grin, "You're like a modern-day Itachi Uchiha." He giggles like a little girl, "my crush is Itachi."

I abruptly hit the brakes, causing Peter to nearly fell out of the windshield-- I'm grateful that I buckled his seat belt. Did he just call me his crush so casually?

"What the actual fuck, Mason?!" Michael throws his earphones at me. I look at him, even Doggie and Kittie are glaring darkly at me.

"I'm so sorry. Are you okay?" I reach over to check for any injuries but he swats my hand away,

"I'm fine, no thanks to you." He grits out, He takes his headphones back with a grumble. "Next time keep your eyes on the road instead of on Peter."

I open my mouth to talk but he's not listening. I sigh sadly before looking at Jung and my cheeks heat up. He's rubbing his forehead that he probably hit on the dashboard,

"I'm sorry. Are you okay?" Unlike Michael, Peter lets me touch him. I gently rub on the red bruise forming on his beautiful forehead, I bite my lip in guilt. "I'm really sorry. It'll form a bump but other than that you'll live." I lean closer to inspect the bruise, I can't believe I caused an injury to his flawless skin.

He watches me intensely, his eyes cloud as his bangs swap slightly against his eyelids. "I'm good. My bangs will cover it so don't worry." He whispers with his eyes still holding mine. I feel a chill down my spine and I curl my toes, he's looking at me like he wants to swallow me.

"O-okay." I pull my hand away from his forehead but he grabs my hand and holds it,

"Right now, you look like the Mason I know." I let his words sink in, and suddenly my mind clears.

I tear my hand away from him, I glare at him as I start driving again. "That Mason is dead. You killed him, remember?"

"Wow. Are we back to that again?" The anger and sadness in his voice make me feel regretful.

"You think you having a crush on me will make me feel merciful?"

He shakes his head and folds his arms, "No, but you telling me about the misunderstandings everyone had--"

"Was small talk." From the corner of my eye, I see him unfold his arms in defeat,

"Sometimes I just want to hurt you as much as you hurt me, so you'll know why I can't easily forgive you. But then I remember, I want to protect you too like I protect Michael-- even if it's from myself." I stop the car and look at him, he says nothing but hangs his head shamefully clearly not understanding what I meant.

I sigh and open the door. I'm supposed to keep my distance, at first I was going to make him suffer for everything I went through because of my love for him but then I realized that even if I wanted to, even if it made logical sense-- which it didn't-- I couldn't. It's not his fault I fell for him, I couldn't bring myself to try and make him feel the agony I felt. I wouldn't wish this kind of distress on my worst enemy.

Especially when I am overjoyed and dazed. Peter likes me. Normally, now that he's revealed his feeling for me, I'd tell him how I've always felt and we'd go from there. However, our situation ain't exactly normal.

Now I just want to scream out that I love him. I can't though. Life isn't that simple; my life will never be that simple. Or maybe I'm just afraid that he's joking.

Good things never happen to me, anyway.

"Is this the place? Damn, how rich is this girl?" Michael stands beside me with his mouth slightly agape, and it's understandable. Divine's house was a massive mansion, the ones normally shown on tv, that belonged to a mafia boss.

Peter ruffles Michael's hair and swings an arm around his shoulder-- pulling him closer. Michael didn't even fight it, but if I did that to him to he would have thrown a chair at me. It wasn't a shock to anyone that Michael liked Peter when he was a kid- he still is a kid- he clung to Peter more than I did. They both genuinely seemed to enjoy each other's company, and bullying me was second nature to them.

When Peter and I stopped being friends, we took Michael down with us, even if he didn't say anything I could tell he was torn between staying with me (his brother who had been looking after him since he was one year old) or Peter( who he is extremely close to, and made him feel understood.) I'm grateful he chose me.

Regardless, now that Pete is suddenly back into our lives, they can start where they left-- bully me until their hearts explode with joy. Assholes.

I don't wait for Michael to get over his shock, I knock on Divine's door. Immediately after my knuckles leave the wooden surface of the door, it opens up. I thought it was one of the butlers or maids, but nope.

Warm brown eyes stare confusedly at me. My smile drops when I notice her black painted fingers clenching the handle of a dull pink luggage bag.

"Masey! Hey." She looks behind me, bemused, "What are you doing here?" She steps out of her house, slamming the door behind her.

I look at Peter, who shrugs. "We came to seek refuge in your house...but seems like you have other plans?"

She hands me her luggage and I hold onto it, as she pulls her hair into a bun. "I'm also looking for a place to hide. My dad is pissing me off with the whole 'marriage' thing, while he is away in Hawaii, I have to think about my attitude. So I'm running away. I swear if I actually have to get married to that guy, I'll kill him, have no remorse, and gladly rot in jail. Fuck!"

She runs her hand through her hair; throughout her rambling, she's been trying to tie it into an acceptable fashion but her frustrated-- shaking-- hands were useless. I drop my things and walk to her,

"I'll help." Combing her hair with my fingers, I gawk expectedly at Peter. He knows how to handle her like this, this is my first time seeing her so frustrated. He understands my look as he steps over the bags on the floor.

"I'm sorry I didn't talk to you for two days," he plays with fingers, "It's just I feel guilty that you still find it necessary to worry about me after everything I did. You have so much on your plate, so it makes no sense why you would have to deal with me too." He looks at her through his eyelashes, and I feel Dee relax; Peter doesn't know the effect he still had on her.

I pat her shoulder and she smiles at me, before wrapping Peter in a hug. "I'm happy you are safe. I'll always worry about you, Pete, that won't change." He nods and hugs her back.

I think back to when Peter stated that I didn't have problems to run from, he spoke as if he wasn't there when I broke down in the rain. I know I've never spoken about things that trouble me but when he bluntly ignored any chance of me having my personal problems, it hurt; I wasn't that well put together. Therefore, I'm not sure if running away from my problems will solve them but I'm not about to lose possible unforgettable memories over issues that shouldn't even exist.