Soda Pop: Bulletproof Kisses

She tried to pull away, but his arms locked tighter around her waist. He pressed his forehead to hers, eyes fluttering closed as he inhaled her cherry-vanilla scent. His heart pounded like thunder against her chest.

She tilted her head up, staring at him through her long black lashes, cheeks damp with tears. His hand slid up to cradle her jaw, thumb stroking the soft skin under her trembling lips. Her eyes traced his face too, memorizing every hardened line, every shadow cast from years of absence and silent screams.

"I missed you," he whispered, voice hoarse. His grip tightened as he pulled her flush against his chest. "God, Neve… I've been dreading this day for years. Seeing you again…after everything."

She swallowed the lump in her throat, eyes blazing with pain. "You had every opportunity to come back. But you never took it. What were you so afraid of?" She scoffed bitterly. "That I'd hate you?"

"No." His voice was quiet, almost breaking. "Worse. That you'd be… disappointed in me. In what I've become. And… I couldn't stand the thought of putting you in danger."

She laughed hollowly, pushing his chest just enough to look him dead in the eyes. Her lips twisted with a broken smile. "I already am in danger, Malik. Didn't you come here to kill me tonight?"

Reality snapped back into his brain like a slap. His body stiffened. Fuck. His heart sank. That's right. The fantasy shattered as cold truth sank in like icy rain.

"Shit," he whispered under his breath, stepping away from her and running a hand over his face. "Fuck. I can't believe this is happening. You're Soda Pop… you're the hacker I was sent to kill."

He lowered his hand, eyes blazing with frustration and fear. "Nini, you're dealing with dangerous shit here. If I was anyone else, you'd be dead by now. What are you doing, taking dirty work from these people? Do you have any idea how easy it is to track you down?"

"Don't you dare tell me how to live my life after missing six fucking years of it!" she snapped back, anger slicing through her words. She looked around her room with an exasperated groan. "Fuck. I need to clean this place up before Hana gets back."

"Hana?" he asked cautiously.

"My girlfriend," she replied simply, beginning to pick up spilled ramen cups and soda bottles.

His heart froze. Blood rushed to his head. Girlfriend....in 2027 there were different meanings for that word. "Your…girlfriend?"

"Yes! Malik…..what about it!"

"Do you…do you love her? This your girlfriend" he said cautiously, his blood boiling hot with something he'd hardly ever felt. He dreaded the day he'd experience this….he just hoped it wouldn't actually come true.

She stopped, staring at him like he'd lost his mind. "Of course I love her. She's everything to me right now. She helped me when I was at my lowest… when I was mourning you."

He felt his chest cave in, disappointment slicing through him like a poisoned blade. But he didn't let it show. Was she? She couldn't possibly be…..after all it's been years so it wouldn't be a surprise. He swallowed and asked quietly, "When did you…realize you were…gay?"

Her eyes widened. She let out a scream of exasperation. "I'M NOT GAY, YOU MORON!" she yelled. "Hana is my girlfriend. As in a friend who is a girl. She's my bestie, idiot."

His shoulders sagged with relief, and he quickly looked away to hide the blush creeping up his neck. "Oh," he muttered.

She rolled her eyes dramatically, tossing an empty soda can into the bin. "Anyway, what are you going to do now? Kill me, Malik?"

He exhaled, staring at her with a heavy heart. "I can choose not to." He walked up to her, gripping her chin gently to force her eyes to his. "But they will send someone else. Someone who won't hesitate. You need to leave. Now."

Her chest tightened. Panic prickled down her spine. "Seriously? What about Hana?"

Before he could answer, a sharp voice cut through the room like a blade. "No fucking way am I leaving her."

They both turned to the door in shock. Hana stood there, arms crossed, eyes narrowed with fiery resolve. Her mint-blue hair was braided down her back, and her brown eyes glowed with deadly calm.

"Hana…" Zina gasped. "How did you…?"

"I've been here for a while," she said flatly. "I saw everything."

He frowned. " You're...Hana?"

She shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm an anonymous information broker. No one knows my face. But I know everything about everyone." She glared at Zina. "And yes, I have security cameras everywhere. I saw you flick your bean last week, too, by the way."

"HANA!" Zina screamed, face flaming red. "Don't just say that out loud!"

Hana smirked darkly. "Focus. They're coming, two armed SUVs down the first street. Five minutes tops. We have to go."

Malik cursed under his breath. "Fuck. Okay. Grab your most valuable stuff. We need to leave now."

They rushed around the room, stuffing bags with laptops, USBs, cash, and whatever else mattered. Malik handed each girl a sleek black metal card. "Hold on to these. Memorize the code on the back. It's my private base. No one knows about it. Go there and lay low while I clean this shit up."

"Wait, what about you?" Zina asked, breathless as she zipped her bag.

He gave her a crooked smile, brushing a stray pink curl from her face. "Don't worry about me, Soda Pop. I've got this."

Hana grabbed Zina's hand. "Let's go."

They slipped out the back door, Malik following behind them like a silent shadow. Outside, the girls jumped onto their neon-accented power bikes. Engines roared like savage animals in the dark alleyway.

"Go!" he ordered.

They sped off into the rain-streaked streets, tires skidding through puddles of neon reflections.

Malik turned back to the apartment. He walked back inside, scanning the room. He pulled a small metal sphere from his pocket, pressed a button, and dropped it to the floor. It beeped softly before igniting into a bright blue flame.

He stepped out into the alleyway, rain drenching his cornrows, flames dancing behind him as the building exploded into a roaring inferno. Burning embers floated around him like falling stars.

He didn't look back.

He never looked back.

††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††

Malik sat cross-legged on the cold marble floor, long cornrows tied back as he scribbled equations on a tablet. Four small heads leaned over his shoulders, their violet eyes squinting with intense concentration.

"Unnie Malik," one of the quadruplets whined, tapping her pencil against her teeth, "why is it x squared plus five x minus six? Why is maths so mean?"

He chuckled softly, tapping her nose with the stylus. "Because math is like life, Hyejin. Unpredictable. Painful. But satisfying when you solve it."

"Gross," another mumbled, earning a flick on her forehead.

"Focus, Nari," he warned lightly.

"Sir," a cold voice echoed from the doorway. One of the guards in black tactical wear bowed slightly. "The boss is calling for you."

Malik exhaled, handing the tablet back to the eldest. "Practice the next two drills. If you get them all right before I return, I'll get you ice cream."

Their eyes brightened. "Yes, unnie Malik!"

He ruffled their hair before standing, rolling his shoulders back as he walked down the dim corridor. Fluorescent lights buzzed overhead, illuminating the steel-reinforced walls and glass windows showcasing rows of high-tech weapons. His boots thudded softly against the polished floor as he stopped before a massive black door carved with silver serpents.

It slid open with a hiss.

The office was vast, cold, and silent. Neon blue lights lined obsidian walls. A glass koi pond glowed beneath the floor, holographic orange fish flickering in endless loops. At the end of the room sat Hwang Jisoo, his white hair slicked back, his suit blacker than midnight sin. Those obsidian eyes pinned Malik with chilling calm as he stood behind his desk.

"Sir," Malik said, bowing low.

"Malik…" Hwang's voice was silk wrapped around blades. "Where is her head?"

Malik swallowed once. Kept his eyes respectfully low. "She burned down with the building, sir. Her system was rigged with failsafes. The equipment exploded. There was nothing left to retrieve."

Silence.

The koi pond hummed beneath. Hwang turned, placing both bejewelled hands flat on the table, nails painted matte black. "You disappoint me. Do you know how much her bounty was worth?"

"Yes, sir."

"And do you know what I do to assassins who fail me?"

Malik remained silent.

Without warning, Hwang flicked his wrist. A silenced gunshot cracked through the room. Malik hissed as the bullet pierced his shoulder. Pain flared white-hot, blood quickly soaking into his tactical shirt, but he didn't fall. He grunted, holding his ground, chest heaving once.

Hwang stepped around the desk, his polished shoes clicking against the glass floor. He grasped Malik by the throat, slamming him into the cold wall, pressing his thumb into the bleeding wound.

Malik bit down a groan, eyes squeezing shut at the searing pain.

"Next time I give an order," Hwang whispered coldly, his breath icy against Malik's ear, "you execute it without flaw. I needed her head for proof. I needed the bounty to recover what she cost me."

He released Malik with a shove, letting him stagger forward. "Get out of my sight. Lay low. Because the longer I see you, the more I want to kill you myself."

Malik bowed stiffly, ignoring the blood dripping down his arm as he turned and walked out.

The quadruplets ran to him immediately in the hall, violet eyes wide with worry. "Unnie Malik, what happened?!"

He forced a smile, ruffling their hair with his uninjured hand. "Math is easier than life, girls. Remember that."

From down the hall, the boss's eldest son appeared, dark eyes narrowed in concern. He said nothing, just gripped Malik's good shoulder and nodded towards the exit.

"Go. Disappear for a week. Come back alive."

Malik exhaled shakily. He thought of Zina. Of Hana. Of that hidden safe house he sent them to.

"I know exactly where to go," he said quietly, and turned to vanish into the shadowed halls.