CHAPTER 5: MISSION, START

“You said what?”

Eunwoo’s expression was beyond my expectations. I couldn’t really read if he was surprised, upset, angry or scared. His eyes were the size of a plate and I could see his pupils shaking as he tried to comprehend what he had just heard. His mouth opened and closed, he was clearly trying to say something but the words didn’t come out. He had to lean his hand against the wall, like he was so shocked he couldn’t even stand properly. Well, it must’ve been a shock for him too. I bet everybody was shocked about Yikyung’s decision.

“You can’t do that”, he finally got to say. “Seriously, I’ll go and beat some sense into that woman’s head.”

“Eunwoo”, I stepped in front of him to prevent the boy from running off to get himself in trouble. That kind of behaviour wasn’t typical of him and that was enough for me to judge that he wasn’t completely sane right now. “Calm down, it’s already decided. I can’t go back now.”

I could see the pain in my friend’s eyes. “You can’t leave us, Aeri.”

I shook my head. “I know”, I heard myself saying. “But I can’t help it. I owe it to Chanmi.”

“Does this even make sense?”, he sighed and looked down. “You can’t get married. I always thought we’d date and marry sometime later.”

I let out a sarcastic snort. “I know right… But I don’t really have a chance. Otherwise both me and Chanmi would suffer. Besides, you know dating inside a unit is forbidden.”

“You know I’d leave the unit for you”, Eunwoo said quietly.

“Quit joking, it isn’t typical of you”, I snorted.

“I wasn’t joking, Aeri”, he stated with a serious voice.

I stared into his eyes for a moment. It had been months since I started getting the vibes he didn’t think of me as just a friend anymore. But hearing it been said by himself, it sounded almost thrilling. I sighed and looked away.

It had only been about half an hour since me and Jinwoo’s talk with Yikyung. After I had been pretty much pressured to say yes to the marriage contract, I was told that someone would come and get me the very next day and I’d have to leave the tunnels behind right away. As we had rushed out of the chief’s office, I had given in to my feelings and burst into tears for the first time in such a long time. Jinwoo had stayed with me, patting my back and comforted me until I could finally calm down. As we had returned to our commune, Eunwoo had immediately noticed I had been crying and ran to me, demanding to know what had happened. And now the situation was this. Well, there was one and only good thing about this whole mess – I now knew it for sure I absolutely hated Hwang Yikyung. After somehow getting out of the mess I had been put into, I’d make the woman suffer.

“Did you tell Chanmi yet?” Eunwoo asked.

I shook my head. “Not yet. But I guess I need to do that soon. I should start packing…”

“You’re leaving tomorrow? Already?” his voice raised a pitch higher than usual.

I glanced at my friend with a sad look and nodded. Then I walked past him to me and Chanmi’s room. As I opened the door slowly, I could see Chanmi sitting on the floor, reading a newspaper she had probably gotten while going out. I sighed as I walked in and coughed a bit to make it sure she noticed me. She glanced at me and said a quick hello before continuing to read.

“Don’t sit on the floor”, I said. “It’s freezing cold. You’ll get sick.”

She looked up at me, getting up from the floor and sitting on her bed. I proceeded to move next to her, sitting down also. I thought hard in my mind, trying to come up with clear, rational sentences. I didn’t want to make this slow and painful. I wanted to just shout out the facts and then run away. I already knew Chanmi would get heartbroken as her only family would leave her. But at least she had the unit to back her up once she got her position – after I left. I sighed.

“Actually, Chanmi…”, I started.

“Just blurt it out, unnie”, she said and smiled at me. “You always say you hate people who stutter or hesitate.”

I chuckled a bit awkwardly. “It’s just that I don’t want to say the words I’m going to say.”

Chanmi’s eyes widened. “Am I prohibited from belonging into a unit?”

I couldn’t resist laughing a little bit, even though the situation was very ironic. “No. You got your place. My place actually. I’m leaving the tunnels tomorrow.”

“What?” Chanmi’s voice became high and her whole body turned to me.

“I’m being married off to another gang”, I blurted out, shrugging my shoulders, trying to act tough.

“You’re kidding, right?” she asked, her voice shaking.

“The funny part is that I’m not”, I whispered. I felt my voice starting to shake too, but I tried my best to keep myself composed, I did not want to show my weakness to Chanmi. “You’ll have to continue annoying Yikyung by yourself. Make Jinwoo proud of the unit again.”

She shook her head and I could see the tears forming in her eyes. “You can’t leave me.”

I let out a deep sigh and pulled her into a tight hug. I patted her back gently as she started sniffing quietly. It was clear she tried to hold back too. I pulled back from the hug and wiped the tears off her face. “I don’t want to, but I have to. You have to stay strong. Promise me that, okay?”

While pouting as she tried to hold back her tears, she sniffed and nodded twice. I couldn’t hold back a smile. She had grown so much. Just recently she would have been sobbing and screaming, telling me to stay no matter what. Now she was acting strong and making sure I would see a tough image of her before leaving. I frowned a little bit and hugged her again.

“You have to contact me often”, she said.

I nodded against her shoulder. “Of course.”

“Good. Then”, she continued with a shaky voice, pulling back from the hug, wiping tears off her eyes. “Should I help you with packing?”

I couldn’t sleep that night. There were many things mixing in my head, storming like crazy. Hate, nervousness, stress, fear, suspense. I rolled around in my bed for hours before actually catching the sandman and getting to sleep for a short while. Waking up the next morning was the hardest thing I had to do in a while. My body felt heavy from the tiredness and my eyes didn’t want to stay open. As I got up from the bed, I glanced at Chanmi’s bed. She was still in deep sleep, murmuring something in her dreams, just like always. I sighed at the sight of her. When would I see her again? The thought was scary. I tried to pull myself together and left the room to eat some breakfast and shower in peace. The commune was dead silent. Everybody must’ve still been sleeping, or pretending to, feeling too uncomfortable to come out and see me. I ate breakfast alone, and to be honest, I didn’t really have an appetite. I ended up leaving most of the food behind, placing it back to the fridge – Jinwoo might want to eat it later. Even a hot shower couldn’t really calm me down or purify me from my dark thoughts.

As I was walking back to our room, I could hear someone’s door opening and closing right away. Judging from the action it was Sanha. He was probably flustered to see me only wrapped into a bath towel – the rest of the guys were used to it since we had grown up and went through puberty together. I peeked from behind the room’s door and looked as the boy came out of his and Eunwoo’s room again. As our eyes met, I could see the unsure look in his eyes.

“Morning, Sanha”, I greeted him.

“Good morning…”, he replied quietly. “Are you… really leaving?”

I sighed while nodding. “Yes. You have to listen to Eunwoo and Jinwoo, alright?”

The boy nodded, looking a bit under the weather. I flashed him a quick smile before closing the door behind me and quickly dressing up. As much as I really didn’t feel like putting any effort in my appearance, I did have enough brain to know that since I was probably meeting the other gang’s chief and my fiancé today, it would be just basic politeness to dress up properly. I didn’t really have any nice clothes, I didn’t need them living in the underground tunnel, but I managed to find something I was at least satisfied with. An A-line denim skirt with a yellow T-shirt, knee socks and sneakers that fit the outfit the best. I stood in front of the mirror we had in the room, pouting and sighing. I looked at my hair, messing it in frustration. It was dull and frizzy, there was absolutely no shine to it. It had been over a year I had last even cut it. After brushing down the mess I had made, I just tied it up into a ponytail – as usual.

I glanced at the clock. Yikyung had said that a driver would arrive at 10am. I still had a good 20 minutes left. I felt my heart bouncing with both nervousness and sadness – like the heart would bounce out and break any second. I patted my chest with my hand and turned to glance at Chanmi again. She was still sleeping. I was super envious of her ability to sleep whenever and wherever. She didn’t even wake up as I was drying my hair! I walked to her bed and put the blanket she had kicked off back over her tiny body. I gently brushed her hair off her face and smiled at her sleeping figure.

“We’ll meet soon”, I whispered. “I promise. I’ll come up with something.”

She murmured in her sleep and turned over to lay on her other side, facing the concrete wall. I pat her side gently and got up, slapping my cheeks slightly. I had almost given into the tears again. I blew out a deep breath of air and then grabbed my suitcase and walked out of the room. As I entered the kitchen-living room, I saw that both Sanha and Eunwoo had woken up. They were sitting around the table and eating breakfast. Both stopped, anyhow, as they saw me.

“Good morning”, I said to Eunwoo.

“Hey”, he said quietly and got up from the table. “Are you leaving already?”

I looked down at the tips of my shoes before nodding. “Yes. Someone is getting me at 10.”

He walked up to me and wrapped his arms around my body, pulling me into a tight hug. I was a bit surprised from the sudden intimacy but smiled against his chest. I let my arms wrap around his waist and patted his back gently. He sighed into the hug and squeezed my body tightly once before backing away, still holding his hands on my shoulders.

“I wish I could prevent this somehow”, he said quietly. “I don’t want you to leave.”

“It’s not my wish either”, I replied and shrugged my shoulders. “I’ll contact you often.”

“You have to. If someone hurts you… call me immediately. I’ll beat them lifeless”, he stated, nodding seriously.

I chuckled. “Hey, those words don’t suit a nerd like you. But I promise to tell you everything.”

He flashed me a quick, wistful smile that withered quickly. His eyes wandered away from me, ending up staring behind me. I turned around just to see Jinwoo and Yikyung coming into the commune. Apparently my drive had arrived. I took a deep breath and turned back to Eunwoo.

“I guess I’ll really say the farewell now…” I said quietly and then looked at Sanha who was still sitting at the table, staring at us. “Goodbye Sanha! Listen to your hyungs!”

Then I patted Eunwoo on the shoulder one last time before turning around and grabbing my suitcase again. I walked down the tunnel, accompanied with my leader and my chief. They were both dead silent, but there was a clear difference in their auras. Yikyung seemed proud as ever, she probably thought she had achieved a great goal by marrying me off. Then again, Jinwoo seemed very sad and kept on glancing at me with both apologetic and pitying looks. As we walked up the abandoned subway station’s stairs and the sunlight started to shine on us, I thought this was the official end of one part in my life. I didn’t want it to end. But knowing that I had no choice, I walked up the stairs and sniffed the freezing cold, fresh morning air. I was glad I had decided to wear my warmest coat today. On the side of the street a few feet away from us, there was a white Mercedes-Benz parked, apparently waiting for me. I had never in my life rode a fancy car like that. Only some old, trashy cars or buses. Nothing more.

“I guess this is where our shared road ends”, Yikyung said. “After you ride that car, you’re not an official part of this gang anymore.”

I glared at her. “You seem happy.”

“Why wouldn’t I be?” she asked, laughing. “I’ve made the greatest deal in my life for the gang’s benefit.”

“Sure you have”, I sighed. I turned to look at Jinwoo, who frowned a bit before showing me a sad smile. I stepped closer to him and patted his shoulder. I approached him enough to talk without Yikyung hearing us. “Thank you for everything. And please give a hard time to the witch.”

Jinwoo snorted quietly as he backed away from me. “Bye, Aeri. Take care of yourself.”

I nodded at him and glared at Yikyung one last time before turning around and staring at the white Mercedes for a minute before taking the first step towards it. I saw a man dressed in a suit stepping out of it, bowing at our direction and walking to the other door, opening it for me.

“Off you go”, Yikyung hurried me. “Your driver is waiting.”

I sighed and after closing my eyes tightly for a short moment, pulling myself together, before heading towards the car with long, quick steps. The driver bowed at me again and greeted me with a formal hello as he helped me inside the car and put the suitcase into the trunk. Then he sat behind the wheel and started the car. I stared at Jinwoo from the side view mirror as the car drove further away. Yikyung was long gone but my leader stood there, staring at the car with a longing expression. His figure became smaller and smaller as we got further away, and eventually the car turned to an another road and I lost sight of him completely.

Sitting on the car’s creamy white leather seat didn’t feel right or fitting for me. I was used to public transportation or the old, not so fancy cars the gang members sometimes got to drive. It was a fact our gang was powerful and feared but we didn’t really have money. Well, until my wedding, that was. I sighed. Just as I was about to look around and then maybe try to chat with the chauffeur, I felt my phone vibrating in my pocket. I quickly grabbed it, awaiting a message from Chanmi or Eunwoo, and almost dropped the phone as the name appeared on the screen; it was no other but Hwang Yikyung. She had never contacted me personally before. She usually only contacted the unit leaders. After hesitating for a bit, I opened the text message. How bad could it be?

Now that it has begun, how do you feel? You didn’t possibly think your road with the gang was really over?

I felt a wrinkle form between my brows as I frowned at my phone’s cracked screen. What did this mean? She had made it clear for me and Jinwoo the day before that once I stepped out of the tunnels, I would officially become a member of my new gang and I’d have to leave everything old behind. I was about to write a questioning message back to her as a second text appeared on the screen.

I had to lie so that the others wouldn’t mind you anymore. Think of this as your new solo mission. The new chance you wanted. Just act your role as the gang chief’s daughter-in-law. Once you succeed, I’ll bring you back to the tunnels.

My eyes enlarged. At the same time, I understood everything I read yet I didn’t understand anything of what was going on. So I wasn’t actually forced to leave forever? I had to act as the fiancée of the gang chief’s son and once Yikyung had gotten whatever she was aiming for, I’d be free again? I tilted my head and scratched my neck in confusion. As much as I hated the witch, she sure had some brains to use. I shook my head and put the phone back into my pocket. I really didn’t know what to reply.

The car drive lasted for a good 45 minutes. The landscape changed from slightly rugged to skyscrapers and fancy buildings. We were in the heart of Gangnam, an area that was completely foreign for me. I might have been the chief’s daughter but in our gang it didn’t mean money or fame. It just meant more training. I was basically a poor person. Even the thought of living in Gangnam seemed unreal for me.

“We’ve arrived, miss”, the chauffeur stated as he parked the car in a big parking lot inside a skyscraper. I nodded at him, feeling awkward as he used such formal language with me. I got out of the car and the chauffeur grabbed my suitcase from the trunk, not even considering about handing it to me. Instead he carried it himself and led me into the building itself.

I walked in from giant doors that were made of glass and golden ornaments, and the big hall that opened in front of me reminded me of a hotel’s lobby more than the entrance of a gang’s headquarters. I could just admire the work of art. The difference between this gang and my own was clearly horribly big. I walked behind the chauffeur as he walked to the counter where a neatly dressed woman welcomed us and asked where we were heading to. As the man mentioned my name and said he wanted to lead me to the chief, the woman’s expression changed and she bowed at me.

“Good morning, miss”, she greeted me. “Nice to meet you. Your father-in-law awaits you.”

I just stared at the woman with large eyes, barely managing to nod as an answer. Wow. This was really different from the treatment I got back home. This time I parted ways with the chauffeur, who went to a different direction with my suitcase. The woman, instead, motioned me to follow her, and lead me to an elevator and then through the main hallway. Soon we arrived at the doors of a relatively large meeting hall, and even though the doors were pushed open, the woman knocked before stepping in.

“Has the lady arrived?” I heard a male voice ask.

“Yes, sir”, the woman said, nodding deeply. She motioned me to enter the room and I did as I was told. I saw a man sitting at the head of the large table, on a big and comfy looking chair. He was dressed in an expensive looking suit with a matching necktie and handkerchief. A wide, warm smile spread on his face as he saw me stepping into the room. Was this the chief of the gang? He looked a lot younger than I had believed he’d be. To be in charge of all this grandness when he wasn’t probably even 40 yet. Well, to think again, my father had become a father at the age of 18. If he was alive, he would probably be the age of this man too.

“You must be Lim Aeri”, the man said, getting up and greeting me with a handshake. I felt my hand shaking a little bit as I bowed and took the hand.

“Yes. Nice to meet you”, I replied quickly.

“I’m Kim Hyunmin, the founder and CEO of this little… business, as I like to call it”, he said. “I feel extremely honoured to have the chance to call you my daughter-in-law. I respected your father greatly.”

I nodded deeply, not sure how to respond. “I feel grateful”, I ended up saying awkwardly.

The man smiled again. He didn’t seem as evil or scary as I had expected. He actually seemed genuinely happy to meet me and there was this certain warmth that radiated from him. That made me feel a little bit more relaxed. I looked as the man returned to his chair and motioned me to have a seat as well. I sat down and looked as he pulled two pieces of paper from the case he had with him. I already knew what those were. The marriage contracts. I took a deep breath. I hadn’t even met the other party yet. Would I have to sign the contract without even knowing my fiancé?

“Shall we wait for my son to arrive?” the man asked, like he was reading my mind. “I’m sure you don’t want to sign the paper without meeting him. I shall say that you don’t have to worry. My son is a decent human being, if that’s the right way to put it.”

I blinked my eyes. That was a special way to compliment one’s son. I was about to show some sort of reaction to his words as I heard footsteps and someone entered the room. I got a bad feeling the moment I heard a slightly high, soft voice greet the chief. I recognized the voice immediately since I had learned to hate it and its owner. I didn’t want to accept the fact and so, didn’t turn to look at the boy who had entered the room. Instead I kept on staring at shiny surface of the table.

“Apologies, dad”, the soft voiced boy said. “There was some traffic.”

“It’s alright”, the chief said and I felt him turning to look at me. “Your fiancée arrived early.”

I heard a sigh. At least he felt bad about the marriage contract too. I felt the chief’s burning glance hoovering over me and pulled myself together, reminding myself that according to Yikyung, this was just a new mission. I took a deep breath and turned around to look at the boy I had met two unlucky times in the last two unlucky days. He was dressed more neatly than the last times I had seen him. Jeans had been changed to straight trousers and instead of a leather jacket, he was wearing a black dress shirt. Even his wavy, chestnut hair was styled more sophisticated than earlier. As I looked at the boy blankly, his eyes enlarged and a gasp escaped his mouth. The moment it looked like he was about to open his mouth and burst out something out of this world, I felt my eyes gleaming and the blank look was replaced by a poisonous glare. The boy stared at me, then at his father and then turned back at me. He seemed even more confused than I did.

“Myungjun, that’s not very polite”, the chief stated. “Could you at least greet her?”

Finally, the boy seemed to get a grip of himself and a confused smile spread onto his face. “I’m Kim Myungjun. Delighted to meet you.”

I kept on glaring at the boy, but reminded myself about the fact that his father was watching us, and forced a smile on my lips. “I’m Lim Aeri. Nice to meet you.” Forcing the latter words out of my mouth was so hard I thought I’d end up spitting or something.

The chief tilted his head. “You seem somewhat familiar with each other. Have you met before?”

“Just briefly”, Myungjun replied to his father and kept on staring at me.

The chief looked surprised for a short moment, but then he nodded and crossed his arms. “Well, then. Why don’t you both sit down and sign the contracts.”

I changed my position on the seat, trying to make myself more comfortable. Myungjun sat down opposite to me and I could feel him staring me even when his father put the papers down in front of us. All I really wanted to do in this situation was to get up, run away and hide forever. I did not want to get married, especially with this guy. He was basically responsible of this situation. If he hadn’t come to disturb my mission, I would have succeeded and Chanmi would have been made a part of our unit in the first place. Even if Yikyung would have received the proposal afterwards, she couldn’t have been able to threaten or blackmail me anymore, and I would have been happy with my sister and stayed home.

I stared at Myungjun as he wrote the signature in one , without seeming to hesitate at all. I frowned a little bit. He must’ve been against the marriage just as much as I was. How could he sign it so easily? I sighed.

“Miss Lim?” the chief called me. “Are you going to sign?”

I glanced at the man who looked a bit concerned. Then I looked at the piece of paper again. I sighed and got the pen in my hand. It’s just a mission. It’ll be over in time. I wrote the signature and as I put the pen down, glancing at Myungjun whose confused smile hadn’t withered at all. I felt like my glare was screaming “mission begins” but for my luck, neither of the males seemed to notice.

I stared at my hands. Had I really just signed the contract?