Can't Rid This Taste Of Surgery

Bi-Han elected to ignore Kuai Liang’s protests, keeping a tight hold of his brother as he helped him walk across the apartment. He knew Kuai didn’t particularly like being fussed over, and Bi-Han swore he tried to keep that to a minimum, but Kuai also had to accept that he needed the extra help. Especially right now. Kuai should be grateful that Bi-Han had managed to convince their father to let Kuai recover in Bi-Han’s penthouse apartment, rather than in the family mansion.

He got Kuai to the sofa, helping to guide him to sit upon it. As soon as he was safely down, Bi-Han went to rearrange and fluff up the pillows, before grabbing a blanket and throwing it over him. Kuai looked extremely unamused by it all.

“I do appreciate the help, but you don’t have to do all this,” Kuai Liang assured him, giving a cheeky smile. “I’m not 5 anymore, big brother.”

“You do know I had to absolutely fight Father to let you stay here, right?” Bi-Han lightly chided, catching a glimpse of the bandaging and padding on Kuai’s chest. “I thought you’d get a little less stir crazy having access to a small penthouse, rather than being cooped up in a single room of a mansion.”

“I know,” Kuai sighed in defeat. “I’m sorry. Thank you.”

Kuai Liang had always been a sickly kid. The majority of his life had been spent in and out of hospital. This surgery was just the latest in a long line. Hopefully, it would be the one to vastly improve his life, but at this point, who knew? Bi-Han had learnt not to get his hopes up too much.

He just had to be there, look after Kuai in recovery, and maybe this time, things would work out.

“I’ll make you some hot chocolate,” Bi-Han softly offered, patting Kuai Liang’s shoulder. He knew Kuai’s sweet tooth was always the best way to win him over. “And then later tonight we can have take out. Your choice.”

Kuai Liang looked at him with a frown, as if to tell him off for fussing again. Eventually his face softened and he sighed, “that sounds good. Thank you.”

Bi-Han walked over to the kitchen area, looking around for the things he’d need. He put some water in the kettle, grabbed a cup and the powdered chocolate. Just as he began to scoop heaped spoonfuls of the powder into the cup, he felt his phone vibrate. As he took it out, he could see that it was his Father who had messaged him. He glanced up at Kuai Liang, who was distracted by trying to find something to watch on TV. Bi-Han opened the message and read it.

[Father said: How is he? Has he settled?]
[Bi-Han said: Yes, he’s on the couch, looking for something to watch while I make him some hot chocolate. I don’t think he’s happy about being treated like a kid, but I think he’s so far been less whiny than he’d be at the mansion.]
[Father said: Maybe so. I have men stationed around the apartment complex.]
[Bi-Han said: Are you certain that’s necessary?]
[Father said: It’s just to be safe. Our enemies would not hesitate to use Kuai Liang against us, especially when he’s in such a weakened state.]
[Bi-Han said: Our enemies shouldn’t even know he exists, and having people watching the apartment is just going to make it obvious somethings going on.]
[Father said: Bi-Han. I took into account your opinion on where he would be happiest. But the truth is your apartment doesn’t have the security the mansion does. If something happened to him, I know you would not forgive yourself. Let me do what I believe is best to protect my son.]

Bi-Han’s eyes landed on the back of Kuai’s head, who was oblivious to Bi-Han’s gaze being on him. It was far from the only thing Kuai Liang was oblivious to. Things like what the Song family business really entailed. And Bi-Han knew his brother. He was a wide-eyed idealist who saw the good in everyone.

The criminal world would take someone like him and swallow him whole.

[Bi-Han said: Right. Sorry.]
[Father said: Just focus on taking care of him. I will deal with any problems from the outside.]
[Bi-Han said: I will. I need to finish making his hot chocolate, and then figure out what delivery food he wants. I’ll call you later. Please let me know if anything is wrong.]
[Father said: I will do. Tell him I love him.]

It was weird. Father was a pretty stern man, rarely did he ever speak of his feelings. Bi-Han could remember the 5 times he’d actually managed to vocalise that he was proud of Bi-Han’s achievements. Yet that affection seemed to come so easily for Kuai Liang. He shouldn’t feel jealous, and he knew it would be unfair to blame Kuai. Given there were multiple times that they were so close to losing Kuai Liang, his brother deserved that affection.

Still Bi-Han couldn’t help but wish his Father could even so much as mutter those 3 words towards him sometime.

“Father just texted,” he called out, pouring the now boiling water into the cup. “He says he loves you.”

“Aw. Tell Bába I love him too.”

Bi-Han tried not to smirk too much. Regardless of his own mixed feelings towards their father, it was kind of cute that Kuai Liang still called him Bába after all this time.

“You’ll be happy to know he seems content that you are settled here,” Bi-Han told him, reaching into the fridge to add a splash of milk to the hot chocolate. “So, you probably only have to put up with me looking after you.”

There was no point telling Kuai Liang about the supposed guards around the building. That would just upset him. He didn’t know just how much danger he was in. Father had pulled an alarming amount of strings to keep Kuai out of the public eye, to the point most outside of The Lin Kuei’s highest circle were surprised to learn of the existence of Song Jian’s youngest son. Bi-Han could only hope it stayed that way. Netherrealm had been giving them trouble lately, and its current leader, Quan Chi, was the sort of man who would see nothing wrong with harming loved ones to get what he wanted.

Especially someone as vulnerable as Kuai Liang.

Bi-Han walked over to the sofa, passing Kuai the hot chocolate as he took a seat next to him. A quick glance at the TV revealed it was on some silly overdramatised reality show. Not Bi-Han’s cup of tea, but Kuai seemed to enjoy the mindless entertainment for some reason. Weird, given Kuai Liang was extremely intelligent. Far more so than Bi-Han or his father, to be honest.

It was sad. In a different life, Kuai Liang could have been an absolute asset to The Lin Kuei.

“So. Have you had any thoughts about what you want to order?” He asked, sitting back in the chair and pulling up a delivery app on his phone. “Anything you want.”

“Isn’t it a bit early?” Kuai asked with a laugh, taking a sip of his drink. He made a little satisfied humming sound, before taking another bigger mouthful.

“Well, if I get the order in now, we won’t have to do it later,” Bi-Han said with a shrug.

“Fair enough.” Kuai pursed his lips, looking like he was thinking. “I wouldn’t mind getting some ramen or something. I think there’s that place that started doing delivery right?”

“Found it,” Bi-Han confirmed but before he could start to look at the menu, a message from an unknown number came up. He clicked it, stomach doing flips as he read it.

[Unknown said: Oh, he is precious, isn’t he? :) I can see why you’ve hidden him for so long.]

That was all it said. No name. The phone number itself wasn’t displaying. No indication of who ‘he’ was. The thought it could have been a wrong number did briefly cross his mind, but that last part was tripping him up. About keeping ‘him’ hidden.

Like they’d hidden Kuai Liang from the world.

“Bi-Han?” Kuai Liang softly asked, and Bi-Han’s head snapped over to him. His brows were drawn together in concern. “Is everything okay?”

“Yes. Yes, everything is fine,” he lied, hitting a few buttons on his phone. He forwarded the message to his father, just in case. “Just a weird text message that’s all. Probably just a prank or wrong number.”

“If you’re certain, brother,” Kuai mumbled, not sounding convinced by Bi-Han’s story. Still, it wasn’t worth worrying Kuai over just yet. There was still a chance it was just a really creepy misunderstanding. Hell, he wouldn’t put it past Sektor to get a burner phone just to fuck with him.

Yeah, that has to be the answer, right? When he saw Sektor again, he’d kick that fuckers ass.

“Anyway, I believe you had decided on ramen,” Bi-Han continued, pulling the delivery app back up. “The next question is, what kind?”

Kuai Liang seemed to drop his concern about the message, leaning it to look over the menu as Bi-Han continued to scroll down. He tried to stay present, at least until Kuai had decided what he wanted.

He could begin to worry about that message later, whenever his father got back to him with his thoughts on it.

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