Sergio Act two, Chapter one
Han Seok had been living with his brother for two weeks now. And he could honestly say that he wished for Italy. He wished to go back to the pain of home. The pain of living with his Master. The passive aggressive abuse of Han Seo was far worse than the outright abuse of his Master. Han Seo could change at the drop of a hat. One moment smiling, the next beating him. It scared Han Seok how much Han Seo emulated a younger him.
He'd tried leaving, several times. But every time he left Han Seo’s property he was swiftly returned and then beaten. He was physically stronger and larger than Han Seo. He could fight if he wanted to. He knew this deep down. But ten years of slavery had gotten rid of his fighting instincts. Plus with the added incentive of Han Seo controlling whether his Master's mother lived or died, Han Seok didn't dare fight the younger man.
"Han Seo, what would you like for dinner?" Han Seok’s voice shook as he stood in front of his younger brother.
"Hmm. Just get us some ramen tonight. I have work to do. I like buldak." Han Seok bowed, internally groaning. His brother loved asking for spicy food for dinner. It seemed like one of the small ways he tortured him.
Han Seok was quick about making the ramen for the two of them before heading back to his brother’s office and sitting the two bowls on the desk. He sat in front of his brother's desk and began picking at his food. "Han Seo, I'm not really hungry tonight…"
"Eat. Or I'll shove it down your throat, hyung."
"Yes, Han Seo…" Han Seok muttered. He picked up his chopsticks and began scarfing down his food, hoping that eating it quicker would make the pain easier to deal with.
Spicy food was much more painful coming up then down and Han Seok’s body was even less able to handle the spices than it had been ten years ago. One of the only upsides of living with his brother was that he could use the bathroom when he needed to whenever.
Han Seo was a bitter man. Han Seok understood that fully. But he also knew that he had paid his penance to his brother for lifetimes to come. Han Seok was a sinner in his youth and would pay for his mistakes for the rest of his life.
“Brother. I'm in the mood for a game.” Han Seok’s heart dropped to his stomach and he let his head fall.
“What type of game, dongsaeng?” He replied cheerfully, tears welling in his eyes.
“Hmm, let's play hide and seek? I'll give you an hour to hide. If I don't find you within the hour, you're safe!”
“I'll beat you black and blue.” Han Seo smiled at him charmingly. “Sound fun? Should we play?”
Han Seok fell to his knees, knowing that nothing would come from this, but needing to try. “Please! Please Sir! I-”
“It'll be fun, Han Seok. You used to love this game after my mother died. Remember?” The sins of an unpunished child, an arrogant young man, coming back to haunt him. “Now. Stand. Let's play! I'll go to the kitchen. I'll count to 100. You may leave the house. Good luck.”
Han Seok is shooting to his feet and running for the door before the end of his brother's sentence. He knows it's for naught. His brother is one of the most influential men In Korea. While many in his company think him incompetent, he has connections working for him everywhere. Han Seok will be found.
Anyone could be working for his brother. The cabbie he begs to take him to Geumga Plaza might even be working for him. The cabbie takes pity on him, from his disheveled appearance and bruises, speeding there in record time. Han Seok apologies that he cannot pay but the woman waves him off.
He runs into the building, heading for Jirupagi. He's so, so close. So close… when he runs into a wall of men by Park Seokdo. He falls to his knees for the second time that day. “Please…! Please just!”
Seokdo looks at him regretfully before shaking his head. Han Seok briefly considers running through the group of men, but he's had all craziness beaten out of him years ago by Vincenzo Cassano. His shoulders slump and he sinks into the ground, head hung.
He's still kneeling, ten minutes later, when his brother turned Master approaches. He flinches when he feels his ring clad hand land on his shoulder. His brother leans down to whisper gleefully into his ear. “I found you.”