#Guns and Graves

The tension radiating off the two adult males was high as they stepped out of the sleek black limousine with their wives and children.

"This is all your fault SeoJoon!"

"Don't blame this on me, you're her father and you couldn't say no to her"

"You spend too much time with her, and you never bother to keep your wild side at bay"

"That has nothing to do with this, you promised to take Aeri wherever she chose"

"I never expected her to choose a fucking shooting range" Aeri's father exclaimed, aggressively running his hand through his hair, with his wife leaning in between the two arguing males.

""Language Hyun" she whispered, walking ahead the men with her twin to catch up with the five children aimlessly navigating further into the indoor shooting range.

"Still not my fault" SeoJoon murmured

"It is! You went about flashing your gun to her and when she got curious, you told her you got it from a shooting range, and do I need to remind you that you told her to jump off a goddamn chandelier on her birthday, last week" Aeri's father accusingly pointed at the other.

"What's goddamn?" A meek voice separated the two arguing friends as a child gazed up at them with big curious eyes.

Confusion stood out on both male's faces, looking down to notice the child they had just seen walking into the shooting range alongside her mother.

"Wha... How are you here?" Her father stammered.

"I'm a spy!!!" Aeri cheered out, pumping her tiny fists in the air to prove her excitement.

"Sure thing kid" SeoJoon encouraged, matching the child's vibe as he ruffled her already disheveled raven hair.

"Don't encourage her!" Aeri's dad seethed "come on bun, let's go in" he crouched in an attempt to pick up the girl.

Shaking her head in refusal and wriggling off his grasp, Aeri reached for the other male squeaking out "uncle Joon!"

"You're choosing him over me Aeri? Daddy's hurt". He pouted.

"That's what you get for being so uptight" SeoJoon chided, taking the child in his arms and walking away from her complaining father who watched the two poke out their tongues at him and giggling their way into the building while whispering to each other.

"You're stealing my daughter!"

"What's fucking?" Aeri whispered into the older's ear as they reached the entry doors.

"It's a gun" SeoJoon lied back, letting his breath tickle the youngsters ear as she giggled.

"What's goddamn?" Aeri repeated her actions, getting a response of "same thing" from her uncle SeoJoon as he bounced in with the overexcited child whose dad trailed behind.

°°°°

"It's a fucking gun!" A child squeaked out in false identification to the Glock 17 held in front of her.

"No kid, it's not" SeoJoon corrected

"A goddamn gun?" Aeri tried again.

Sighing in defeat, Han SeoJoon found himself on the receiving end of Aeri's mother's glare for enlightening the youngster of such vulgar words.

"Don't look at me" he defended, pointing to the culprit "look at your husband".

"How about we all come to the conclusion that Aeri is too young for this, I know you've taught her with a paintball gun for sometime now and she's perfect at aiming and all, but this is a real gun" the supposed Mr. Kim interjected, letting his eyes scan through everyone, and finally landing on the girl close to tears with lips in an unintended pout.

"Dad " Jieun tugged at SeoJoon's trousers "why is Aeri crying?"

"Don't worry Ji" he consoled "her father's just being a meanie".

Picking Aeri up, SeoJoon reasoned "come on man, Aeri is a big girl, tell him kid" he nods his head in encouragement.

"I'm five!" Aeri croaked, spreading out the five fingers on her right hand.

"I'm seven!" Jieun shouted as a chorus of ages flew by.

"I'm eight!" Jun added, giddy beside his mother, Ming Yue .

"I'm eight too!" Aeri's sister shouted , nudging her brother to talk.

"I'm ten" he sighed out with his arms crossed, his face having a scornful look.

"Hyun...." Aeri's mother intervened "let her".

He sighed in frustration, the thought of his wife agreeing to let their five year old daughter hold a real gun not sitting well with him "Not you too Xia" He disagrees shaking his head in effect, not receiving a reply, he paused to take in her facial features, groaning in reply to the glare aimed at him from his wife and looks of expectations from the rest.

"Alright" he gave in, relenting to their request "you can teach her how to use a real gun SeoJoon"

The rest of the family sat back, watching the uncle and niece duo practice as the recoil from the first successful shot fired by Aeri had her butt first on the floor with everyone laughing at her expense and cheering her on, in no way looking surprised by the quick success of the girl, she had always been a tad bit faster to pick up things. It was a clean shot, a bullet embedding itself as a headshot in the bullet trap aimed at.

Minutes passed and Aeri's mother jolted up, sharing a look with her husband "did you hear that?"

"What?" Mingyue piqued

Taking a gun tucked at the back of his jeans, Aeri's father answered his sister in law " gunshots"

"So, we're in a shooting range, what do you expect?" his sister- in- law chuckled, staring at their alarmed faces in obvious confusion.

"You live a quiet life as a lawyer sis, not like us, we need to be vigilant and ready at all times, you never know when you get compromised" her sister explained huddling the children and taking a gun out from the thigh holster strapped underneath the vintage gown she had on.

"And we made sure to book out the whole range for today" her husband added "no one's supposed to be in the building today except us and the body guards outside, we made sure of that".

"We all know what to do" SeoJoon joined them, pushing Aeri into the huddle of children as the two women guided them.

"Take the emergency exit, we'll buy you guys some time and catch up"

Pushing through the back doors that lead to the emergency exit, Aeri's mother had her gun ready as she lead the group. Stopping at the closed exit, uncertainty flashed through her eyes.

"What's wrong?" Ming yue whispered

"I'm not sure if this exit is clear, the chances of them waiting at the other end of this door to kill us are high, and I'm not sure I'm willing to take it with the kids around"

"Hand me a gun" Mingyue demanded, palm outstretched, wriggling impatiently when it was left empty.

"No offense sis,but you can't handle a gun. I'd rather give one to Aeri than you".

Scoffing, Mingyue looked down to the children "Aeri, your mother's teasing me at the wrong time....." She paused finally noticing the absence of the five year old.

"Where's Aeri?"

"She was just here"

"No, Li An, get back here!" Aeri's mother, Ming Xia shouts after the ten year old running back in the direction they came from. "I have to find my sister " and that was all the incentive needed for the children to run after their lost sister.

The group came to a halt behind Aeri who held a gun, pointed at a man who looked to be the leader of the people attacking them as he shared a look of amusement with his company at the armed five year old.

"A nice family you have here Soohyun" the leader laughed.

"This is between you and I Chunhao, leave my family out of it"

"No Kim, this is between, me , you and your pretty chinese wife over there" Chunhao smirked, nodding towards Aeri's mother "and it seems like your daughter is already getting herself involved, you hid her pretty well, she's a cute one"

"Put the gun down Aeri" her mother shouted, no family member able to make her a move towards her due to the obvious fact of being held at gun point by Chunhao's men.

"Ahh, so her name's Aeri, perfect fit, fiery just as her mother" Chunhao cracked a creepy smile.

"What are you all so scared of. This kid can't possibly pull the trigger...

A bang. The recoil of the shot sending Aeri to the floor, Chunhao's hand slowly clutching his neck, now adorning a bullet hole as he choked through gurgled words on his blood, dropping to he floor.

A few seconds passed with everyone crippled with shock before springing into action the moment the family's back up security arrived.

Ming Xia and her sister pulled the children closest to them to hide from the ongoing confrontation.

"Where's Aeri!" Mr. Kim shouted beside SeoJoon from their crouched position behind the short walls of the firing lanes in the shooting range.

"There!" SeoJoon pointed to the child on the floor, desperately trying to crawl behind one of the bullet traps.

Jolting from his hiding spot in a desperate effort to reach his estranged daughter, he was sent back by a bullet the moment he stepped out .

"Aeri is not safe" he groaned out to his best friend pulling him in.

"Your arm doesn't look good Soohyun" SeoJoon revealed putting pressure on the bleeding spot.

"It's just a graze, I have to get my daughter!" He fought back.

"You have a bullet lodged in your arm Soohyun, stay here and cover me, I'll get Aeri, she'll be safe,  I promise!" SeoJoon shouted over the noise before dashing out to grab the child and taking cover behind the bullet traps with the five year old in his arms.

Minutes later and the gunshots slowly died down, with the attackers taken down by the family's back up security.

"Mr. Kim!" A body guard approached the family "I'm sorry we got here late, are you all okay ?"

"We're fine" he replied reaching for Aeri whose eyes were fixed at the lifeless ones of Chun Hao, dead on the bloody tiles of the building along with majority of his companions. The scene was a bloody, scarring, mess.

Feeling a patch of blood on her clothes, her father panicked, frantically inspecting her body. Finding no injuries, he made eye contact with his best friend.

"I promised you she'll be safe" he smiled painfully, his eyes involuntarily blinking shut.

SeoJoon collapsed , red spreading through his once brown shirt, he had been shot in the chest trying to protect Aeri.

"SeoJoon!". A heart breaking scream emanated from his wife accompanying his collapse as she scrambled to her now limp husband.

Soohyun crouched beside her, placing a finger by his friend's neck  to feel for a pulse, reeling back when he felt nothing.

"I'm sorry" he choked out to Mingyue, his eyes watering. "He's.."

"Don't say it" Mingyue croaked

"I'm sorry" he whispered,pulling her away and consoling her in a hug as the tears that threatened to fall finally rained down his face.

"Uncle Joon?" Aeri called, walking towards his body but was pulled back by her father.

"Dad, what's wrong with uncle joon?"she asked trying to get out of his hold.

"Aeri, stop!"

"But he's not getting up" she cried, desperately trying to reach her uncle's body.

"Mom! Uncle SeoJoon is not waking up" she cried to her mother who had the four children in a hug as she pulled Aeri into the group, her heart breaking for her sister.

"Mommy!" Aeri wailed "do something!"

"Shhhhh, it's okay honey, don't look" her mother whispered.

Violently pulling herself from the group. Aeri scrambled for her unmoving uncle once again.

"Aeri! Aeri! Calm down sweetie"

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