Chapter 1

Guys and Groceries

Chaeyeon flopped on her bed and tucked herself under her blanket while she opened her internet and browsed her way to her favorite fanfic that had just updated. She had been itching for the past month for her favorite fanfic to update, and now behold, it has come. Just as she was about to click on the link to the most recent chapter, she heard someone call her name.

“Chae! Can you go out and buy me some produce from the grocery store?” a voice echoed throughout the house. The source of the voice was downstairs in the kitchen, preparing the materials needed for dinner. Everything was prepared, except for the main item: vegetables.

“Agh, umma! Do I really have to? You know how lazy I am,” Chaeyeon whined to her mom, not wanting to go through the trouble of going out during that time of the day, or any time at all. In all honesty, she just wanted to sit back, relax, and find out what happens next in the story she is reading.

“That’s exactly why I want you to go fetch these things for me,” Chaeyeon’s mom replied, not showing any sympathy for the daughter’s opposition to go out. “Your lazy behind has to go out once in a while. You tend to stay cooped up the house and that’s not good for you. I’m not going back on my word.” she said as she smirked and gestured her hand as if she was shooing her daughter away.

Chaeyeon made a pouty face. She knew she couldn’t go against her mother. Going against her meant that she would never see the end of her, and she didn’t want end up on her bad side.

As Chaeyeon got dressed, she was moping about how her plans to relax in bed and read the new update of her favorite fanfic were cancelled. She pulled over an oversized hoodie and threw on a pair of ripped jeans and grabbed her phone and house keys.

“Be careful,” Chaeyeon’s mom quietly said to her daughter as she opened the front door, her voice laced with somber. Chaeyeon knew exactly what her mother was talking about, and she replied with a simple “yes, umma” before heading out.

“,” Chaeyeon muttered to herself. She had forgotten that she wasn’t familiar with the streets of Seoul yet, reason being that she had just moved there a little over two weeks ago from America after having lived there for half of her life. Chaeyeon was trying to find the nearest grocery store from her house, but had failed to do so, and now she was sort of panicking because it was nearing sundown and the moon could be seen in the sky. It wasn’t that she was afraid of going out at night, but she sort of had that paranoia of getting kidnapped by someone and being tortured at their secret base.

Chaeyeon read way too many gang fanfics.

As Chaeyeon helplessly began to wander again, she caught sight of an alleyway. At the end of the alleyway, she saw a light, and despite how sketchy it looked, she thought it was an oh so good idea to walk through it in hopes that the grocery store would be on the other side of the pathway. What are the chances of something bad happening, anyway?

Never had she been so wrong.

The moment Chaeyeon made her way in the daunting alleyway, she felt a weird and uninviting vibe surrounding the area. I hope it's just my imagination. She felt a slight chill run down her back, but she ignored it and continued walking.

The deeper in she went, the more wary she became. Halfway through her walk in the alleyway, she heard suspicious footsteps getting louder and louder, but that wasn't what caught her attention. Her keen ears didn't fail to miss the faint click-click sound of a gun's safety trigger goin echoing throughout the alley way. From the sounds of it, it seemed like they were trying to run away, but were also prepared to fight back if necessary. Finally coming to her senses, Chaeyeon tried to dash her way out of there, not wanting to get entangled in between the sketchy business that was about to happen, but she was just a second late. Before she could make a run for it, she felt someone’s hand wrap around her petite wrist and pull her to the side of the alley, in between the dumpsters, and out of sight. The person was now behind her, covering Chaeyeon’s mouth. The proximity was close and she could feel the person’s body heat against her skin.

Chaeyeon attempted to turn her head so she could get a look at his face, but the building that was ajdacent shadowed it, hindering her from taking a look at it. Although she couldn't catch sight of the person's face, she didn't fail to see the reflection of a gun resting in the holster that was hanging beside his waist.

"Don't look and just stay quiet," the person whispered.

Chaeyeon braced herself to elbow him out of his grip of her and roundhouse kick his out of the alley way when suddenly, more footsteps were heard…and a bang.

The bang caused an intense vibration throughout her body. A screeching reverberation thundered in her ears. Chaeyeon yelped but it wasn’t as loud as she expected it to be, thanks to the mysterious person covering . For a split second, she was glad that he has covered it.

“Don’t say anything,” the voice repeated a little harsher, no longer whispering. His voice was deep and husky and it sounded a little…familiar? She didn’t think too much about it, though. Her mind was on different t