Run | HeeSunSun - Chapter 2: Chapter 2

Sunoo ran.
Ran and ran until his legs couldn't fucking move anymore.
His body ached, his chest heaved like it was about to burst, and his breath hitched painfully in his throat.
He stumbled over a crack in the pavement and went crashing down, scraping his knees and palms against the rough asphalt.
He groaned in pain but didn't stop.
Crawling now, his bleeding leg dragged uselessly behind him.
He glanced down at it... blood soaked through his jeans, pooling beneath him.
His stomach churned at the sight. "Fuck..." he whispered through gritted teeth, fighting the nausea rising in his throat.
Shaking, Sunoo yanked his socks off with trembling hands and tied them around his leg in a desperate attempt to stop the bleeding.
It wasn't great, but it was all he could do.
He whimpered as the pressure sent a wave of searing pain through his body.
He forced himself to his feet, limping toward a nearby house.
The lights were still on...
*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*
Sunoo pounded on the door with every ounce of strength left in him. "HELP ME! PLEASE!" He screamed so loud his throat burned, his voice raw and cracking.
He glanced over his shoulder, paranoia seeping into his bones.
The door creaked open, and a woman in a bathrobe appeared.
Her eyes widened in horror as she took in his bloodied, disheveled state.
"Oh my God..." she whispered, her hand flying to her mouth.
"Please..." Sunoo begged, tears streaming down his face. "Please help me, he's going to kill me!" His words came out in frantic gasps.
"Honey!" the woman called out, stepping back cautiously.
A tall, buff man emerged from inside, his brow furrowed. "What's going on?" he asked, his tone stern but hesitant.
Sunoo clutched the doorframe like it was the only thing keeping him upright. "I-I was with this man- h-he shot someone. Then h-he shot me-"
The man's face shifted from concerned to suspicious but scared.
He took a step back, his hand gripping the door tightly.
"N-No, no, no, please!" Sunoo cried. "I'm not involved! I just-"
"I'm sorry," the man interrupted, his voice cold and final. "We can't help you." He slammed the door shut.
"NO!" Sunoo screamed, banging his fists against the wood. "PLEASE! HELP ME! I DON'T WANT TO DIE!"
"GET OUT!" the man shouted back from behind the door.
"CALL THE POLICE AT LEAST!" Sunoo begged, his voice breaking.
"GET OFF MY PROPERTY OR I'LL GET MY GUN!" the man roared.
Sunoo staggered back, his body trembling with fear, pain, and exhaustion.
His vision blurred with tears as he limped to the next house.
He knocked, explained, begged, but the second he mentioned what had happened, the door slammed in his face.
And the next house.
And the next.
"FUCK YOU!" he screamed at the top of his lungs, his voice echoing into the empty night.
Sunoo couldn't believe how mean people were in this town.
He had just moved here in California to find a better job because life in his past city had been hard.
But he didn't expect people to be this fucking arrogant and ignorant.
His faith in humanity shattered, Sunoo forced himself to keep moving, fueled by a mix of fear and rage.
Then, he saw it-the headlights cutting through the darkness.
The limousine.
His stomach sank.
Sunoo dove into a bush behind a tree, his whole body shaking violently.
He covered his mouth with both hands, biting down on his fingers to keep from sobbing out loud.
The car rolled to a stop right in front of him.
The silence was deafening.
*SHUFFLE*
The bush rustled.
Sunoo's heart stopped.
And then Heeseung appeared, grinning like the devil himself.
"Found you."
Sunoo screamed as Heeseung yanked him up by his hair and dragged him into the road.
He kicked and clawed, but it was useless.
*CLICK*
The cold metal of a gun pressed against his temple.
"One more fucking scream," Heeseung said, his voice low and venomous, "and I'll blow your head to pieces."
Sunoo froze, tears streaking his face.
Heeseung crouched down, smirking as his guards surrounded them. "It's getting kind of... boring, right?" he muttered.
"What kind of fucking game are you playing?!" Sunoo spat, his voice shaking with fury.
"Oh... I was just about to tell you," Heeseung said, tone disappointed. "So impatient." He leaned in closer, his grin widening. "That little run from the house to here? That's your trial one. There are three trials, meaning you've got two left. Ten minutes headstart for the next one, then twenty for the last. If you make it to 6 AM, I'll let you go."
He glanced at his watch. "Sucks we fucked so late, it's already 2:57 AM."
He then took the watch off and wrapped it around Sunoo's wrist. "This is so you can keep track."
Heeseung tilted Sunoo's chin up, forcing their eyes to meet. "Oh, and a few rules. Rule one: no asking for help. You've seen how that goes, haven't you? Rule two: no weapons. Rule three: no leaving the area of Santa Monica. Step outside the border, and I'll rip your head clean off. Rule four..." Heeseung's voice dropped to a dangerous whisper. "Lose, and you're mine. Forever."
*SLAP*
Sunoo's palm connected with Heeseung's face hard.
"You're fucking psychotic!" Sunoo yelled.
Heeseung's head barely flinched from the force of the slap.
He chuckled, licking the corner of his mouth where blood began to pool. "You leave a mark on my chest, now my face? You're bold. I like that."
He stood, brushing dirt off his pants. "No one's ever made it this far, you know. But they always broke the rules. This is your warning, sweetheart." He leaned in close, his finger trailing across Sunoo's neck in a slicing motion. "Don't fuck it up."
"Ten minutes." He stood back and smiled. "Run."
Sunoo scrambled to his feet, bolting into the darkness, his injured leg barely holding him up.
Behind him, Heeseung lit a cigarette, his eyes gleaming.
Sunoo was running.
Again.
Like, really running.
His legs felt like they were about to fall off, his chest was heaving like he'd just run a marathon in hell.
Every muscle in his body screamed at him to stop, but he couldn't.
Not now, not when his life was hanging by a thread.
He stumbled into some alleyway and leaned against the cold stone wall, gasping for air like he'd never breathed before in his life.
He looked at the stupid watch Heeseung had given him, the little ticking reminder of this sick game.
Two minutes had passed since his so-called "head start."
Great.
He needed to stop running and find a place to hide, but here's the problem: Sunoo didn't know anyone in this damn city.
No friends, no allies, just him and his rapidly fading stamina.
His brain was doing its best to come up with a plan, but honestly? Nothing good was coming to mind.
He thought of something absolutely insane-like, insane even for him-but decided to save it as a "backup plan".
Then he started running again, a little faster this time because adrenaline was a hell of a drug.
But as he ran, the words Heeseung had said earlier started playing on repeat in his head.
"...If you make it to 6 AM, I'll let you go."
"...Lose, and you're mine. Forever."
Sunoo slowed down, his legs barely cooperating at this point.
The idea of being trapped with Heeseung forever? Yeah, that was just as bad as dying.
Maybe worse.
He stopped dead in his tracks, right there in the middle of the road, and started second-guessing everything.
Should he just give up? No, absolutely not.
He wasn't about to let that smug bastard win.
With a deep breath, he started running again.
Nine minutes now since the headstart.
He glanced at the watch, his heartbeat pounding in his ears.
And then, like a lightbulb going off in his frazzled brain, he had an idea.
A stupid, reckless, borderline suicidal idea.
Running away wasn't going to work-Heeseung had planned for that,
For sure Heeseung knew he'll get him eventually, that's why he let him run in the first place.
Sunoo turned around, running toward the danger instead of away from it.
After what felt like an eternity, he spotted the blindingly obnoxious headlights of Heeseung's limousine.
Sunoo waved his arms like some desperate idiot, and the car screeched to a stop.
The door opened, and out stepped Heeseung, looking like he was amused and confused.
Sunoo staggered toward him, his legs barely functioning. "I... I don't wanna play anymore," he gasped, his voice cracking. "I won't run... Take me..."
For a moment, Heeseung just stood there, staring at him like he couldn't believe what he was hearing.
Then, slowly, a smirk spread across his face. "Well..." he said, voice dripping with smug satisfaction, "good choice."
He gestured toward the limo, and Sunoo climbed in without another word.
Inside, Sunoo sat there, bruised, bloody, and exhausted, while Heeseung lounged across from him, looking like he'd just won the lottery.
They drove back to Heeseung's ridiculously oversized mansion, where the guards were casually cleaning up the blood of the guy Heeseung had shot earlier.
Because apparently, that was just a normal Tuesday for them.
Heeseung led Sunoo to a bathroom that looked more expensive than Sunoo's entire existence.
"Strip. Leave your underwear." Heeseung said, rummaging through a cabinet like this was the most normal thing in the world.
"I can clean myself." Sunoo muttered, his voice barely above a whisper.
Heeseung turned to him with a smile so fake it was practically plastic. "I'm treating your wound, silly." He pulled out a first aid kit, not giving Sunoo a chance to argue.
Sunoo froze, his face heating up in embarrassment.
After an awkward silence that felt like it lasted forever, Heeseung sighed and turned his back.
Sunoo reluctantly peeled off his clothes, feeling like he was on the verge of a mental breakdown. "I'm... done." he mumbled, his voice still shaking.
Heeseung crouched down, keeping his eyes firmly on the wound and nowhere else.
He worked quickly, cleaning and bandaging Sunoo's leg with surprising care.
Sunoo gripped the edge of the sink, every muscle in his body tense.
He could kick Heeseung in the face right now, but he didn't.
Too risky...
When he was done, Heeseung stood up and turned away again. "You can shower," he said casually. "The bandage is waterproof. I'll be in the kitchen."
Sunoo stood there for a moment, dazed, before stepping into the shower.
The warm water hit his skin, and for the first time in what felt like forever, he felt... okay.
Not great, but okay. When he was done, a guard was waiting with a set of clothes: shorts and an oversized t-shirt that were obviously Heeseung's.
The guard led him to a walk-in closet that looked like a luxury department store.
Clothes, shoes, accessories-everything screamed "rich dad-" "rich asshole".
Sunoo put on the clothes and headed downstairs to the kitchen, where Heeseung was sitting at the table, scrolling through his phone like he didn't have a care in the world.
But when he sensed Sunoo arrived, he looked up from his phone.
"Hey there," Heeseung said, flashing a charming smile. "Eat."
Sunoo sat down, eyeing the steak and mashed potatoes in front of him.
He also noticed the knife sitting next to the plate.
Interesting.
"So," Heeseung said, breaking the silence. "What made you change your mind?" He leaned forward, resting his chin on his hands like he was genuinely curious.
Sunoo gulped, focusing on his food. "I figured I wasn't gonna win anyway, so why waste my time?"
Heeseung smirked. "I thought you changed your mind because you liked how I fucked you."
Sunoo choked on his food, coughing violently while Heeseung laughed. "Apologies for the bad manners." Heeseung said, not sounding sorry at all.
Sunoo took a long sip of wine, trying to calm down. "Well, you're... mine... now..." Heeseung said, his tone light but his words heavy.
"I know." Sunoo muttered, finally looking up at him.
"And you wanna know the benefits of that?" Heeseung asked, his grin widening.
"I wanna know the restrictions." Sunoo replied, his voice steady despite the panic bubbling under the surface.
Heeseung chuckled, standing up and leaning on the table. "No. Other. Men." he said, his smile turning sharp. "You can go out without me, but there will be guards. From a distance, of course, so you can still have your privacy."
Sunoo's stomach churned, privacy, his ass.
"And lastly." Heeseung said, his smile disappearing. "Love me."
Sunoo froze, the words hanging in the air like a threat.
"Now for the benefits," Heeseung continued, his tone switching to something almost playful. "You can buy anything you want. Land? Done. A jet? Yours. A hundred cars? Sure. Vacations, clothes, accessories, sex-you name it."
Sunoo stared at his plate, he realized he hasn't taken another bite again, so he took one, trying to act calm, but he's silently screaming on the inside.
But his plan is working, slowly, but surely...