#feeling vaguely like i've betrayed gramblack by posting this but at least i also have a gb fic in the drafts😭

[surajmukhis]

yesterday's ep gave me brainworms so here have (3+1) 'i tried to kill you but i can't do it' trope with toddblack:

toddblack au where black is an assassin and todd's the rising star of thailand's political scene. there's a hit out on him bc he's young, popular and corrupt but he's walking the line just enough that his work is actually. creating positive changes in society? and nobody can tell if he's following a secret agenda under the pretence of being corrupt or if he actually is just bad at even being evil, but either way – there are people ruffled in high places and they want him out.

so black accepts the hit. he's a ghost in the business; clean, quiet, in and out, quick work. he doesn't make a fuss and he doesn't ever miss. he combs through all of the data and footage on todd and when he knows the guy's dimpled smile like the back of his hand, he goes in.

except. todd knows. he's waiting for black on his sofa, awake even though it's six am and all the intel said he should've been asleep. black's had a few run-ins like this, facing down a target when he hasn't planned for it but it's strange pulling his gun out in the cold morning light.

unfortunately, he doesn't get to shoot. todd smiles, the one with his dimple, and holds out a thin file. black doesn't like to indulge last-moment tricks but todd grins – 'scared i'll give you the slip?' – and the implication is insulting enough to have him yanking the file out of the other's hands.

tucked inside are transcripts and pictures. enough for black to understand what's happening. the man who ordered the hit is about to be arrested. 'all his contracts and dealings are being voided,' todd sighs, leaning back, head cradled on intertwined fingers. 'i don't suppose you'll be able to collect a check from a frozen account?'

black's jaw clenches. involuntary. 'i received a pretty heavy advance,' he says, lowly. 'could probably take out a limb or two, at least.' it'd be easy, at this hour, on this deserted floor. cock the gun. shoot. leave.

the politician's smile doesn't flicker. if black spared the time to think about it, he'd wonder at the complete cool this todd guy has, staring down a barrel. 'if memory serves, the authorities are probably combing through his payments as we speak.' todd's face twists into something sympathetic. 'you might want to make sure they don't find any links to your account. no?'

it's a stupid distraction. shouldn't work. the only reason it does is bc his account is managed by white. his brother doesn't know what he does, but he insists on cleaning the books and if anything gets traced back to him, black would have to fight tooth and nail to clear his twin.

he leaves todd's penthouse the same way he got in, and promises himself to get the fucker next time.

still, black has a code. all fucked up and morally grey (black?) though he may be, he doesn't kill unless there's a hit specifically ordered.

fortunately, more people want todd dead.

the next time a price is set for todd's head, black scraps his ongoing mission to take it. heads straight to the club he knows todd owns and finds himself ushered up to the vip section before he can even try sneaking in unnoticed.

this time, todd isn't alone. another man is seated by his side on the dark loveseat, but the politician lifts his gaze only to meet black's and doesn't look away.

'had a feeling we'd meet again,' he greets, the shadows of his face looking amused even under the dim neons. black doesn't say anything, but his fingers twitch. he doesn't like being predicted.

'get out,' he tells the guy cozied up against his target. 'unless you want a lot of blood on that shirt.'

todd, who he's rapidly realising might be more of a problem than previously expected, looks delighted at the threat. 'promise?'

god. black pulls out his gun. in response, todd's groupie scrambles upright, and his bodyguard, with the world's slowest reflexes, yells out a warning for him to stand down.

todd waves him off. 'better make it quick,' he grins, addressing black. 'word on the street is a police raid's coming pretty soon.'

he's bluffing. he has to be. there's no way a guy who sees his death warrant approaching, sabotages his own club and bleeds money when there's so many better ways to avoid ending up dead. if he always knows black's coming, he doesn't need to take the most inconvenient route possible to squirm out of this. and yet—

black glares as todd takes a long sip of his drink, staring. for once, he's the one being sized up by a target. it would be refreshing, if it wasn't for the way his knuckles are starting to itch for something.

'you're welcome to stay and watch the chaos,' todd says finally. like he's just a polite host. 'i'm sure the police would love to have a word.'

motherfucker.

when the thumping music stops only seconds later, loud official warnings fill the air, and black knows he wasn't lying. fighting down every instinct that screams at him to grab todd by the collar, he makes for the back exit, steps wide and pace quick, till he realises there are voices coming from there, too. he's blocked.

'i could request them to leave you alone,' black hears todd say, standing behind him now. looking at his face reveals a sleek calm he's getting used to encountering. todd shrugs. 'the club's not technically under my name. they can't touch me. i'll let you walk free, if that's what you'd like.'

black snorts. 'if i cancel the hit, you mean.' todd's lips quirk up for a second before he returns to his collected composure.

'spare me,' he requests, purposely pleading with wide eyes. a pause and then—his usual smile breaks the facade of sincerity. 'what if i promise i'll behave this time?'

black rolls his eyes. he won't say it worked, but he's walking out of the club a while later, untouched, with a fresh deal fulfilled. can't say it didn't work, either.

the third time he sees a hit order with todd's name on it, he's almost tempted to pass it along to someone else. but gumpa doesn't really do hits anymore, more or less settled now as black's handler. better to go and see this out instead of fielding the interrogation he'll get if he tries to push this away.

black gets into the penthouse just like the first time. minimal effort, zero unplanned encounters. but then he walks into the massive living room and—everything's a mess.

todd is unwell, he realises, when the politician looks up from the mess of papers and files sprawled across the floor. 'oh,' todd says. like he's just realising how late the hour is, instead of panicking about seeing his designated assassin a third time. 'again?'

black nods, feeling a little strange in his chest at the absence of todd's usual twinkle. it returns a bit when he grins and says, 'i suppose this time i deserve it, huh?' but the words can't filter out the disquiet quality fluttering about him.

black knows what's happened. some of todd's decisions have been facing fire and he's finally started getting flak from others in the corrupt system. but he's not doing anything wrong, morally. or at least black doesn't think so, and black can just barely recognise morals anymore. 'get in bed,' he says, brain already spinning out excuses for what he'll have to tell gumpa when he goes back, gun still loaded. 'and eat some fucking medicine, you look like a ghost. can't solve shit when you're that sick.'

todd doesn't say anything. just looks at black for a long moment before nodding.

black doesn't stay. he's not fucking stupid, hanging around to befriend a target but ten minutes later finds him at the nearest chemist, buying some crap to have delivered to 'the obnoxious asshole in that penthouse'. he's not stupid but that doesn't mean he can't make stupid decisions. whatever.

it's only when gumpa mentions mildly, weeks later, how his target walking around hale and hearty isn't doing any favours for their brand that black forces his head back in the game. books it to find todd and do...smth (he's not sure what, yet) but todd is, apparently, an idiot bigger than the guy white's started dating. he doesn't spot black tailing him, doesn't notice the traffic light turning green, has hardly looked up to see the huge truck hurtling over. no, the fucker's focused on a phone call as he starts crossing the road.

black's fingers wrap around todd's arm and yank, pulling him back narrowly before the six-wheeler rattles past.

'you're a fucking child,' he seethes, letting go with a snarl. 'are all politicians this thick in the head? is it an entry level requirement?'

if he's surprised, todd's grin covers it instantly. black thinks he could shatter glass with the feeling rumbling through him at the sight of it. 'come on. there's a difference btw oblivious and stupid.'

black wishes it wasn't a crowded intersection they were standing at. his gun is trembling against his lower back. 'what idiot argues semantics after experiencing that?'

'i'm literally a politician, i argue all the t—'

'you almost just died, jackass.'

it's seven different types of ridiculous that he has to be the one to point this out. does the guy really have zero awareness? maybe black's been going about this the wrong way, should just sit back and wait for fate to do her magic without interrupting to—

his brain screeches to a halt. todd's already frowning, confused, like he can't quite be certain of what he just heard but then his eyebrows rise, pointed. and black? black has to leave. now.

he moves, feet instantly setting off, taking him rapidly away from the nuisance planting himself in his life, like it'll magically undo what just happened.

maybe gumpa has it right. retirement isn't a bad idea. at his current rate of stupidity, black's not far from scoring eligibility for politics.

and then obv eventually todd's rivals send other assassins after him and black goes mildly feral bc that's his target. he deals with them every time it happens and finally he has to admit to himself: maybe he's just a pathetic simp bodyguard for his bf now<3