"Go for Yeonjun."
Kai bites the dead skin off his lip, kicking a few peddles on the yellow garden. He has the phone pressed to his ear, relieved that the older is available.
As soon as the sun was up, he sneaked out of Kang Taehyun's house and dialed Yeonjun. He had a lot to think about while he stared at nothing from the window. He felt immense resentment towards his client. It made him sick to think that he was wasting his time protecting someone who looks at him like he's the dirt stuck on his shoe.
At first, he thought he could do it. But the more time he spends with Kang Taehyun the more he feels like he has made a mistake.
Would it have been so hard for Taehyun to thank him for last night? Scratch that, would it be too much to ask to be treated like an equal? Like a human being?
Kang Taehyun was despicable. And Kai doesn't do despicable.
He decides to cut to the chase. "I want a-"
"Oh! Kai-Ah... " Yeonjun sounds like he had just woken up. "Good morning."
Kai huffs impatiently. "Hmm, Good morning. Yeonjun, I-"
"Hey-" Yeonjun cuts him off. "Remember you asked me about that Rio person?" he asks, excited. "Well, I did some digging."
Kai's urgency sense simmers down. He snaps his head, waiting.
"Okay, so get this. Rio has been Kang Taehyun's bodyguard since he started working at the lab in Seoul, which is nearly 4 years."
4 years. That's... long.
Kai hums suddenly invested. A looks over at the house, Kang Taehyun must have not woken up yet.
"I don't know if it's entirely confirmed yet, but from what I heard asking around, Rio was sent by a rival company to steal data and stuff, bang!" Yeonjun makes an explosion sound. "Crazy right?"
Kai had heard crazier. But it's definitely not an ideal situation. Dynamic wise, your bodyguard should be the closest person to you, not just in proximity. The way Kai sees it, the reason why he began working as one, is because he wanted to be someone's ride or die.
Someone's confidant.
The person you trust the most.
That is why he had such a hard time being by Taehyun's side, not only does he not trust him, but he actually feels less safe having him around. The whiplash Kai received when Kang Taehyun said those words.
Kai wonders whether he felt safer with Rio. Did he know Rio was stealing materials? And information? Did he know Rio was taking advantage of him?
Did he let him?
For 4 years... did he really not know which side Rio was on?
"The research was scheduled to end a year ago." Yeonjun adds to Kai's already busy mind. "Wanna know why it got delayed?"
Kai clears his throat. "Yeah, I guess." He very much wants to know.
"It was the night before the day they were supposed to end the research. They had everything already good to go." Yeonjun pauses for dramatic effect and Kai wants to kick his shin through the phone. "Rio stole everything Kang Taehyun did for the research in the middle of the night and fled."
Kai's lips part in shock. His brain short circuits for a good minute.
"Gone, poof." Yeonjun emphasizes "With 4 years' worth of work."
He finds it a bit hard to take that in.
Again, bodyguards are supposed to be someone's right hand. Their shadow. And yeah, kai doesn't want to admit that but sometimes they need to act like dogs, human's best friends. The fact that someone used that honorary power and status into betraying the one person he is meant to keep happy and well at all times.
