Jun Ono

A/N:

I would be using YUI (FL's Japanese and real name) whenever it's her POV, instead of JACE (FL's English name). They're the SAME PERSON, so please don't get confused. ^^,

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Yui woke up with the sun irritatingly hot on her face.

She slept late since her cousins and Tolkien wouldn't leave her alone until they made sure that everything was in order, and that no one could break in while she was sleeping.

As if she would let some strangers break in that easily.

But she was grateful to them. She never felt this safe ever since with her own father. Whenever they go out to eat, she was always on the look out; constantly looking around and behind her even with the presence of her father's bodyguards.

Her father pissed off a lot of people. Rich and powerful people, and yet no one managed to exterminate him. Yui thought her father made Hitler looked like a saint. He was that dangerous.

Yui's father was a hitman before he met her mother. He never stopped accepting jobs from his clients despite her mother's pleads. He only stopped when she was born, but he started his own "agency", hiring dangerous men to do the job for him.

Her father was invincible, in spite of daily death threats he received from his enemies. A lot of people from the higher ups wanted him dead, but there are also a lot who would protect him.

Yui's mother had enough and decided to leave him and take her. But her father locked her mother up. And when she tried to escape, he killed her. Making it looked like an accident.

A loud knock woke Yui up from her reverie. She cursed under her breath and the person knocking downstairs this early in the morning. She shrugged off a gray sweatshirt and went downstairs.

She didn't bother checking who's outside since only the twins and Tolkien knew where she lived. She opened the door and glared at whoever had the guts to wake her this early.

"Ohayou Yui."

Yui blinked at the person in her front door. Although she knew he was coming, it still surprised her seeing him in the flesh.

"Jun," she whispered in disbelief.

He grinned at her. "The one and only."

Yui only stared at him. She couldn't believe he was really in front of her.

"Aren't you going to let your best friend in?" Jun asked expectantly.

That snapped her from her stupor. Her arm automatically swung and hit Jun square in the face.

He staggered back from surprise and the impact of her punch.

Jun sighed and held up his hands in surrender. "Okay, I deserve that. But f*ck, Yui, that hurts!"

"You deserved it," Yui coldly said.

Jun puts his arms down and looked her straight in the eyes. "Gomen nasai."

Yui glared at him. "You're saying that now?"

"Can we talk about it inside? It's a bit awkward just standing here."

She looked around subtly and opened the door wider. She watched as Jun walked past her and she slammed the door shut.

"Why are you here?" Jace asked the moment he faced her.

"I'm here to help. Your father called my father, after he found out you ran away," Jun replied, looking at her intently.

"Do you want tea?" she offered as she walked towards the kitchen.

Jun chuckled behind her. "You didn't change a bit. I'm glad."

"And you're still an asshole," she deadpanned, putting water on a tea pot.

"Your father put a tail on me that's why I got here longer than I intended to," he said as he took a seat from a stool by the island. "Good thing Otouchan decided to expand his business in the United States. I had a reason to fly out."

Yui faced him, folding her arms across her chest. "Where were you?"

Jun sighed again. "I tried to talk to you, to at least say goodbye. I went to your father's building but your father won't let me see you. Otouchan thought it would be better if I moved to the countryside."

"You could have just called," Yui said.

"I did. But my call won't went through."

She raised a brow at him. He changed a lot. She was taller than him by a few inches the last time she saw him. But now he's a head taller than her. It would be hard for her to smack him on the head without jumping.

"I even wrote you letters but you didn't answer any of it," Jun continued.

"I didn't receive any."

That was true. And she knew why.

"My father was intercepting them," she said, shaking hr head for not realizing until now.

"How did you get out?" Jun asked curiously. "Your father got killer security."

"I had some help."

Yui remembered Tolkien and her cousins' warning. They were right. Jun might be her best friend but two years had passed and she had no idea if he was still the boy she knew since they were kids.

"I know you're doubting me," Jun said quietly that made her look sharply at him. "I don't actually blame you for feeling that. But I assure you that I mean no harm, Yui. I'm here to help however I can."

Yui watched him for a minute. He looked sincere enough. And the Jun she knew didn't know how to lie.

"Does your father know you're here?" she asked instead. His father was a friend of her father.

Jun shrugged. "Otouchan's in Switzerland. I left a note though, that I'm leaving but I didn't say where. Besides, I made sure to make it look like I'm going for business trip."

Jace finally smirked at her best friend. "Now we're a pair of runaways."

Jun smirked back. "What can I say? I learned from the best."

~~•~~•

(Elli's POV)

I watched my brother as he paced in front of me.

Something happened last night after we got home from Jace's apartment. Mom didn't ask where we were and whom we were with. She looked worried when we entered the house though.

Aeron felt it too. Something was up. Mom left early this morning and dad went to play golf with his friends telling us Mom needed to do something at the office.

"Will you stop pacing?" I snapped at my brother. "You're making me dizzy."

"Something's going on," he said facing me. "Mom doesn't leave without telling us where she's going and how long will it take."

"I don't want to think too much about it," I said. "She was probably in a hurry this morning."

"Something's not right," he insisted.

I sighed. "Just calm down Ae. I'll call Mom."

Aeron sighed and dropped down beside me as I call Mom. I tapped my right foot on the floor as I wait for her to pick up. But it went through her voice mail.

Sh*t. Mom always picked up her phone whenever we call her, however busy she was. I swallowed my trepidation and tried again.

It went through voice mail again.

I looked at Aeron with wide eyes. "Mom's not answering."

My twin stared at me a little bit longer before what I said finally sunk in.

"Shit."

"Do you think we should tell Jace?" I asked him with uncertainty.

Aeron shook his head. "We don't know what's happening yet—"

My phone suddenly blared its loud ringing tone and we both looked at it.

"Mom?" I answered immediately, feeling relieved.

"Hey, honey," Mom greeted back. "I'm so sorry I couldn't answer your call earlier. I'm a bit occupied."

"It's okay," I said, putting the phone in loudspeaker. "We just didn't expect you'll be out early."

"Is your brother with you?"

"I'm here," Aeron answered.

"I left money for food. I'll be home late but dad will be there after his work. Don't leave the house without telling me or your dad, got it?"

Aeron and I exchanged glances before responding to her. Something was definitely up.

Mom got off from a black car with dark windows later that night. She watched it disappear before going inside our house. And then I realized something.

Mom was not wearing her usual clothes whenever she came home from the office, even if it was the weekend.