Profit Margin (Criminal AU) (WayV x Reader)

Time Crunch

Chapter warnings: using firearms??

Word count: 1357

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"Let's see what you've got." Ten said, pointing to the target in front of her. It was made of a strange material, some sort of weird cross between vinyl and plywood. It was riddled with holes, but they weren't circular, suggesting that the target had some level of self-healing or memory capabilities. As big as the gun she shot at the earlier attacker was, Ten had given her a handgun to start out with. Breathing in deeply, she held it up with her dominant hand, shutting one of her eyes and squeezing the trigger.

It was nowhere near her mark. If she were lucky, it might have hit a target in a different lane altogether. She tensed up as she felt embarrassment wash over her. Even for her, this was pathetic. Sighing, Ten walked close to her, thankful that he was out of range for her shot.

"I'm not sure what movies you're watching, but that's not how you shoot a gun." He stated with a surprisingly patient tone. Reaching out to turn her hand, he stepped behind her to help her feel the position she was meant to be in. "Don't angle your wrist, hold it straight. There'll be some kickback, so be prepared. The more firepower, the harder it'll be to hold steady." His legs were nearly on either side of hers, and she could feel his controlled breathing against her back. Moving his other hand to the opposite side, he fixed her stance.

"The angles all matter, so pay attention. Don't shut your eye, all you're doing is limiting your visibility and messing up your depth perception." He picked up her other wrist, gently bringing it to the side of the firearm. "Hold it with both hands. You should never use one unless it's absolutely necessary." It was only when he stepped back again that she realized she was practically holding her breath. "Okay, now fire again." Staring down the lane to the target, her chest rose sharply before she shot directly towards it. She saw a few pieces splinter off the shoulder of the structure.

"Much better!" He said happily. "You need some practice, obviously, but what else do you have to do, huh?" He grabbed his water bottle off the wall, taking a huge sip, then turned to speak again as he wiped his upper lip. "Just fire straight shots for say... an hour? Then we can go get lunch and come back."

"An hour?" She asked incredulously.

"How else do you expect to improve?"

"It just seems excessive for one type of shot, I-" At this, Ten's gaze quickly shifted from amusement to dead seriousness.

"Y/N, we don't have much time. If you want to be allowed to stay, you have to prove yourself useful, and quickly. It's my job to get you there, no matter what. So no complaining." She sighed.

"Yeah, I get that, but why can't I just go home? I promise I won't tell, really, I just... I just want to go home." She made eye contact with him, hoping to see some semblance of empathy or even pity, but his mood was unchanging, on the surface at least. Whether that was his training, a personal skill, or his real emotions, she was unsure.

"It's talking like that that'll get you sold quicker. Now shoot. For an hour." He walked towards the other end of the shooting range, pulling a much larger gun off of a rack within a cabinet. She curiously watched as he fiddled with it, changing aspects and loading it up. Not hearing any shots, he glanced over, waving her stare away. Embarrassed, she turned to the target. Time to practice...

Surprisingly, the time flew by fairly quickly. Of course, by the end, her arms were fairly sore. She ended up jamming the gun twice during the whole process. Ten had expected this, and was prepared to assist. The first time, he had simply fixed it himself, but the second, he actually showed her the issue and how to deal with it. It was interesting, no matter her familiarity with guns. As she was about to fire another shot, she felt a hand lightly touch on her shoulder. She spun with the weapon, startled.

"Woah, easy there." He put his hands up. "Watch where you put that, I'm not sure I quite trust you with it." She looked to Ten, then back down at the weapon.

"Oh... sorry."

"I'm just messing with you. Your hour is up, you're due for a break. We can go to the kitchen- you understand why I can't exactly take you out." He said, setting his weapon down and motioning for her to do the same. "We'll be back in a minute, so don't worry about that for now." He led her to the elevator, bringing her to the kitchen.

It was huge, but that should have been expected by now. There were at least two of everything, including refrigerators, ovens, microwaves, freezers, even stoves and sinks. There was a massive island countertop in the center, surrounded by barstools and decorated fairly minimally. Actually, the whole place was pretty bland- apparently they didn't feel much need for interior decorating. Walking to the first fridge, Ten opened it up, looking inside.

"We've got all sorts of stuff, but uh, it's mostly leftovers..." He said apologetically. "There's half a burger, uhh, some steak we made the other night, Kun's stir-fry vegetables, uh- oh, score! Lucas left a whole thing of ramen in here!" He pulled it out, showcasing the black plastic bowl. "It's nothing fancy, just instant, but do you want some?" She shrugged.

"Sure, why not?" Fairly overexcited, Ten popped the lid slightly and put the big Tupperware in the microwave, pulling out two smaller bowls from an adjacent cabinet. Once the machine beeped, he pulled it back out, separating it evenly. They ate at the counter side by side, talking for a few minutes. As Y/N didn't really know what was appropriate to ask your idol who is also a criminal kidnapper that you are deathly afraid of, so she let him do most of the asking. It worked out better that way, as he wasn't much of a talker- at least, not with her.

When they had finished, Ten rinsed out the bowls and put them in the dishwasher, directing her to follow him back down to the shooting range. Once they arrived, he made her run a few more drills with the handgun, offering some final, pickier tips. As she felt her elbows grow weak, he finally called it for the day, explaining that they'd pick a different firearm the next day. Next, he showed her how to properly remove the bullets and store a weapon, quickly talking over how one would clean it if they wanted to.

"Good job, by the way." He said. It didn't really mean anything to him, but she felt something spark up in her chest as he said it. Knowing that it probably wasn't healthy, she reminded herself that her goal was to get out of here.

"I'm not exactly sure where they're planning on having you sleep." Ten admitted. "Or else I'd show you to your room. We can't exactly have you in the holding area if you're going to be part of the team. Especially not with the other girls down there." The blood drained from her face as he said this.

"O-other girls?"

"Well, I mean, yeah, we don't just mess around at those concerts- Oh, hold on, I'm getting a call." He pulled his cellphone out of his pockets as she tried to cope with the reality of what he'd just said. Other girls? Were they in danger too? Could she help them?

"Hey, Lucas, I was just gonna ask someone about Y/N's living si- what?" His brow furrowed. "Someone a- Oh, no, that wasn't me. I've been with her downstairs. I thought I saw WinWin eating something earlier, though." He quickly mentioned, hanging up. "Come on, we'd better find you a place to sleep before Lucas stabs me to death."