Running toward Byul’s office, Wheein ignored the strange look that people were giving her on the hallway. She burst into the office only to find it empty. No sign of the owner whatsoever. Wheein cursed and quickly dialed Byul’s cell-phone number and cursed again when the phone went straight to voice mail.

She debated whether she should call Yongsun but voted against it, she didn’t want to alarm the older woman. Wheein once again ignored the curious looks from the on-lookers as she walked back to Hyejin’s office only to find it empty as well, “Un-freakin-believable.”

Dialing Hyejin’s number as she grabbed her bag and headed out to the elevator, Wheein wished she could kick something or someone when Hyejin didn’t pick up the phone. Resisting the urge to just scream, she walked into the empty elevator and pushed the Ground button with more force than necessary.

Wheein tapped her shoes and looked at the number slowly dwindling down with each floor that it passed. She kept pressing the close button, hoping that it would make the elevator move faster without interruption. “Come on... Come on....”

Wheein tried to calm herself before calling Byul again for what seem like the hundredth time and groaned when she kept getting the same voice mail message, “Where are you....”

She almost broke into a run when the elevator door opened, her fingers kept pushing alternating-ly between Byul’s and Hyejin’s numbers and she cursed both women when she couldn’t reach either one of them.

“You have got to be kidding me....” she walked out of their office building, debating whether to go to Byul’s apartment or to Hyejin’s, not really sure that she would actually find them there, but it would be a start.

“Miss Jung?”

Wheein nearly jumped when she heard her name being called, she turned around to face the source of the voice and came face to face with their client? former client? She’s not sure anymore but she quickly gave him a small bow nonetheless.

“I’m sorry if I startled you....”

Wheein forced a smile and shook her head, “It’s okay, I was the one who are not paying attention.”

“If it wouldn’t be a problem for you, I just....” the man sighed and tucked both of his hand on his pants, “I know that Miss Moon said that there is a conflict of interest, and that your law firm can’t represent my case. It’s just that I really like the way you and Ms. Ahn handled my case and I was just wondering what exactly is the conflict of interest and how can I make them go away? Well... My dad will do that for me of course, but I’m sure that we could work something out?”

“I’m sorry Mr. Park, but I think Miss Moon would be more suited to answer your question. I’m just a junior associate, so I’m not really sure...”

“But you’re the managing partner’s daughter, surely you could ask around? I really want your law firm to represent me.” The man looked hopefully at Wheein bordering on desperate and Wheein shifted on her feet nervously. She honestly didn’t know what to do, at the moment all she wanted, no... she needed to find Byul and make sure that she was okay.

“I cannot promise you that our law firm will represent you, but I could ask around.” She smiled a little, and noticed how the man’s face seemed to brighten up at her answer, “I’m sorry, but I’m in a hurry, I will contact you if I have any news, will that be alright?”

“Ah, of course, I’m sorry for taking up so much of your time. If you don’t mind, can I have your number so I could follow up on the news?”

Wheein bit her lips and pretended to check on her phone and looked at the man apologetically, “I’m sorry, I really am late to my next meeting. But, I do have your contact number. I promise I will call you after I have the news.”

“Of course, do you want me to send you? I brought my car with me.”

Wheein quickly shook her head, “Thank you for your kind offer, but it will be easier for me to just take a taxi. If you’ll excuse me... ” Wheein gave him a quick bow and rushed over the side walk without looking back, oblivious to the lingering gaze that the man gave her until she turned the corner of the building and was out of his sight.

***

Wheein was nearly in a state of panic when she still couldn’t find both Byul and Hyejin on their home.

Desperate, she finally called Yongsun and told her a redacted version of the story. She simply said that Byul and Hyejin had a big blow out at the office and now both of them are unreachable.

The older woman promised the frantic younger woman that she would help searching for their friends and that she would send Wheein the addresses of hang out places that they frequented.

A message popped up from Yongsun soon after with a list of potential places and direction on how they would split up the search. Committing the list of places on her memory, she hailed down a taxi and gave out the address to one of the bar in Hongdae.

Wheein was keyed up by the time she came out from the third bar empty handed. She felt like she was already stretched past her limit and would snap at any given time. She looked at the list again and cross checked it with the list of places that Yongsun already checked out. They were down to five more potential places. Wheein rubbed her eyes tiredly, this is getting ridiculous.

She was so lost in her thought she accidentally bumped into a person while walking down the crowded street of Itaewon. Murmuring a quiet apology, she kept on walking until she heard her name being called.

Wheein felt a small pang of unease stab her on the stomach when she – for the third time that day – came face to face with the nervous face of the man that caused today’s problem.

“Mr. Park.”

“What a coincidence to meet with you again. I was just about to grab some dinner, would care to join me?” he asked with a genuine smile on his face.

“I’m sorry, I’m about to meet up with my friend.”

“Oh? Do you mind if I join you then? I don’t really like eating alone.”

Wheein almost stammered to find an excuse to get away and blurted out the first thing that came into her mind, “It was a date, sorry.”

“Ah... of course. Some other time then?”

“Uh, yes of course, I’ll just be going then.” She flashed him a little smile and hurriedly walked away from that place, her heart beating hard against her ribs. That encounter caught her completely off guard, it was odd to keep bumping into that man more than once in a day. Shoving the thought on the back of her head, she sighed and picked up her pace to the next place when her cell phone rang.

“Where are you!?” barked Wheein into the phone when Hyejin finally called her back after discovering 60 missed calls from both Wheein and Yongsun.

“Still in Seoul, call off the search party.” Hyejin’s voice was slightly slurred and Wheein had a feeling that the woman was half way drunk already.

“Why aren’t you answering my call? I’ve been worried sick! Where are you?”

“Down town.” Was her only reply, but Wheein heard the jazzy sound on the background, *There’s only one jazz bar that she frequented, that should narrow it down*

“I’m coming over, don’t even think of moving from your spot.”

She heard a slow chuckle from the other line, “Am not planning too.”

Hanging up, Wheein tried calling Byul again to no avail and quickly texted Yongsun, telling her that she was on her way to meet Hyejin and hope that Yongsun would have better luck on finding Byul.

***

Wheein let her eyes wandered around the mildly full jazz club, over the bar and the big plush sofas scattered around the room. She released a deep breath that she didn’t realize she’d been holding when her gaze fell on the lone figure sitting on the big plush sofa at the far corner of the room.

She noted the opened bottle of red wine chilling on a bucket of ice, but from the looks of it, it cannot be her first bottle of wine. “You’re drunk.”

Hyejin looked up and smiled lazily, swirling the wine glass on her hand slowly, “I’m not.”

Wheein sighed and sat down, pouring herself a big serving of red wine, she drained her glass in a minute. God, she needed the drink. She turned her head back toward Hyejin, ready to grill her with questions when she noticed the faraway look on the other woman’s face. Pouring herself another glass of wine, Wheein simply looked at her – opting to keep shut – at least for a while.

Her phone buzzed and a message from Yongsun popped up, informing her that Byul was home – drunk off her – but home. Wheein released a breath of relief but her relief was short lived when another message popped up. Byul just sent Yongsun away, asking to be left alone, but promised not to do anything stupid.

“Byul’s home.” She blurted out.

Hyejin sipped her wine slowly and didn’t say anything, but Wheein noticed that the distant look on her eyes lessened considerably.

Wheein reached out and laced her fingers together with Hyejin and watched as Hyejin blinked back her tears and the grip on her proffered hand tightened. A shaky breath left Hyejin’s lips and Wheein saw how Hyejin unfolded piece by piece, her usually stoic friend, looked incredibly fragile at that very moment.

“Do you know that I started off on the law firm as Byul’s assistant? She handled criminal litigation back then, all high ambition and cocky as hell.” Hyejin said out of the blue and shared a sad smile with Wheein, “She was amazing. She never lost a case. Not even one.” She whispered before finishing off her drink and simply stared at the empty wine glass for a minute.

“She and Yongsun... they were legendary in their rivalry. They went up against each other in so many cases and their entire court room match was an epic battle. You should see how they countered each other’s arguments, it was mind blowing to watch. They were my inspiration....” Hyejin chuckled sadly, lost in her memory, “I aspired to be just like them.”

She sighed and signaled to the waiter for another bottle of wine, “I think both of us need more drink for this.”

“What happened?”

Hyejin’s voice was bitter when she replied, “A client happened. A sick manipulative bastard and a sorry excuse of a human being happened.” She dropped her gaze down before continuing, “He stalked a 12 years old girl – a freaking child – the parent filed for complaint. There was an investigation and the prosecutor office along with the police linked him to several other victims, all teenagers. The trial was a mess, all of their evidences are shaky and all the victims are either too afraid to testify or couldn’t remember his face when he molested them.”

She muttered a thank you when the waiter came with her order and topped off their glasses. She waited until the waiter left them before finishing off her glass, “Like I said, that man was a sick manipulative bastard, he somehow managed to make Byul to believe in him. We all did, including your father. We fought tooth and nail for that case and Byul... our mighty Byul managed to get him acquitted out of technicality. Innocent until proven guilty and the prosecutor office had no solid proof.”

Lost in her own memory, Hyejin shivered. Goosebumps raised on both of her arms, fear shown from her eyes, “Yongsun was the prosecutor for that case, she appealed the decision, but the man was released nonetheless. He... “ Hyejin cleared – the words stuck on the roof top of – as if refusing to be told.

“He might be acquitted from all of the charges, but his image was already in tatter. He was a chaebol – his family owned a couple of building complex – so when his family disowned him for bringing shame to the family, he was livid. He... uhm... kidnapped Yongsun out of revenge.”

Wheein – who had been listening to the story quietly – paled. She didn’t want to think the worst, but with the man history... she can’t finished her train of thought, she refused to make any kind of assumption.

“It was past midnight when one of our client got arrested for drug possession, Yongsun was the assigned prosecutor, so they agreed to meet up at the police station so Byul could arrange for a deal. She was on her way there when she saw the bastard grabbed Yongsun off the street, knocked her out and took her into his car.”

A pained expression crossed Hyejin’s face, the memory too painful to recall.

“I think that was the moment that Byul realized her mistake, she was the one that alerted the police and actually tailed them with her own car to one of the abandon building that his family owned. It was a living nightmare, the man had a gun and held Yongsun hostage, so the police can’t take him down easily.”

Hyejin raked her fingers through her hair, her eyes were bloodshot as the fatigue of the day settled in, worsened by the memory. “Your father received a call from the police because Byul insisted to negotiate with the man to release Yongsun. She offered up herself as bait.”

Wheein took a sip of her wine – lest she hurled the glass across the room – apparently Byul has a hero syndrome, or ... “She felt responsible.”

The short haired woman nodded sadly, “But it was not her fault, it was not anyone’s fault but that sick bastard.”

The two of them were lost in their own thought when a soulful voice permeated the room. The two of them looked up to the stage, finding that the empty stage already filled up with a live band. Wheein glanced at her wrist watch, 10.00 PM. It had been a long and tiring day. 

“When your father and I reached the place, it was already surrounded by the police. We begged and plead for Byul to change her mind, but she was persistent. That hard headed woman....” Hyejin finished off her drink and poured another glass.

“You probably should stop drinking, how many of that bottle that you already finished off?”

Hyejin looked at the worried line forming on Wheein’s eyes and chuckled, “Not enough. Fine, I’ll order some food and water. Do you want anything else?”

The younger woman shook her head, she was too wired to eat and the alcohol actually felt good, warming her aching body and her battered heart. She didn’t like the way the story progresses, but she needed to know how it ended.

Signaling for the waiter once again, Hyejin ordered some finger foods and bottled waters, before she leaned back on the couch.

She closed her eyes and felt the room melted away and transported her back to that dreaded day, “The man refused to negotiate with the police, but he agreed to talk to Byul. Only Byul. So she went. Byul went inside that building.”

Hyejin shifted on her seat and in a huge breath, “She was inside that ing building for 3 ing hours. You have no idea how scared I was for her.... your dad was out of his mind with worry. We have no visual, no sound, nothing. We just waited... and waited... until we all heard a gun shot fired and the police rushed into the building.”

She opened her eyes and turned her head to look at Wheein from her semi-reclining position, tears gathered in the corner of her eyes before it slipped out and rolled down her cheek.

“When the police escorted them out of the building, they had cut and bruises on their faces... Byul’s blouse was torn and she had blood on her lips and knuckles. They were rushed to the hospital for inspection but were released immediately. Just some superficial wound they said. It was five years ago and both of them still refused to tell me what exactly happened inside that building. It was 3 longest hours of my life. I can’t imagine how they must’ve felt.”

“I want to cut off his balls and put it in a blender.” Wheein blurted out without thinking and Hyejin genuinely laughed at her remark.

“Take a number.”

They stayed silent for a moment, watching the band played an up tempo jazzy tune and soon after the food came with the bottled waters. Hyejin reached across the table and took a bottled water, was parched from all the talking and the effect of the alcohol on her weary body began to show. She just wanted to curl up on her bed and restart the day all over again.

“Is that why Byul is so protective toward Yongsun unnie?” it was barely a whisper – but Hyejin heard it just fine – she nodded.

“They became inseparable ever since, they were each other support system. Your father gave Byul an extended leave of absence, however long she needed. You should’ve seen her back then, Byul can’t eat, she barely sleeps, she lost so much weight it was alarming and she refused to talk to anyone but Yongsun.” Hyejin heaved a pained breath at the memory and shook her head.

“And then, a month later, she came back to work, like nothing ever happened. She asked for a transfer to the corporate department, which your father gladly gave her and just get back to work, business as usual. You know what she told me? She said that human is a resilient being, they can be bent but no matter what, they won’t break. They just need some time to either be comfortable bending or to re-adjust themselves.”

Wheein looked down at her own white knuckles – she subconsciously been gripping her own hands as she listened to the story – and forced herself to relax. She desperately wanted to call Byul again, even just to listen to the sound of her voice through her voice mail message. After listening to Hyejin’s story, it was all make sense now.

“The new case hit too close to home. Stalking and ual harassment by a chaebol. No wonder she reacted so strongly.”

Hyejin growled in frustration, “But this case is different!”

“Why? What makes you think that this case is different? You said it yourself, Byul believed the client was innocent until she found out in the worse way possible that he was not. What if the same thing happened to you? What if that man was smart enough to hide the truth and .....”

Hyejin sat up straight and looked Wheein right in the eyes, “Because I hired a private investigator to check his story.”

She sighed and rubbed her eyes tiredly, “Believe me. I almost decline the case when I saw what the case was about. But I tried to give him a benefit of a doubt. Everyone around him seemed to think that he’s just a spoiled chaebol that will run to daddy every time there was trouble and daddy will make it all go away.”

Wheein snorted and took a french fry from the plate and munched, “Well... I’m not surprised, I think I heard the word ‘daddy this.... daddy that....’ enough time in the short time I interviewed him today.”

Rolling her eyes at Wheein’s answer, Hyejin sighed and picked up a chicken leg and started munching as well, “Yeah well... I got the sense that he IS a daddy’s boy. But it doesn’t make him a criminal.”

“So, what did the private investigator have on the case?”

Hyejin knitted her eyebrows in concentration, trying to remember the details of the report through her alcohol addled brain.

“All of the previous complaints were made by women that want easy money. The first woman used his crush on her for her own gain and when the family refused to let him marry her, she schemed to get money out of him. The other two women worked in his father company and heard the rumor, so they tried to capitalize on the rumor to get settlement money. His supposed latest victim? She was a marketing agent for his company as well, and guess what? She was deep up to her neck with debt.”

“So that’s why you believe that he’s innocent?”

Hyejin nodded tiredly, “I just wished that I handled it better when Byul reacted to the case badly. I was out of line back then, but I was so frustrated with Byul and her refusal to hear me out. I....” she sighed again and raked her fingers through her hair harshly, “Is it possible to re-do today?”

Wheein gave her a small smile, not unkindly, “Well, I think we all want a reset button for these kinds of day, but we can’t all have what we want right? Your heart is in the right place, Hyejinnie... but yes, you could’ve handled it better.”

Wheein contemplated on what to say to the woman in front of her. Guilt, remorse, sadness clearly written all over her face. She reached out and gave Hyejin’s thigh a gentle squeeze, “Go home, take a long hot bubble bath and sleep. I’m going over to Byul’s place after this to check on her and I’ll try to explain your side of the story to her. It will be fine, she loves you like her own sister.”

Hyejin cocked her head slightly and just looked at Wheein until the younger woman looked anxiously at her as time passed by, “What? Do I have something on my face? Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Wheeinie...”

“Yes?”

“Walk away... Byul might be my best friend....” she started to explained herself but then stopped and heaved a deep sigh, “Me and Yongsun, we always say that whenever Byul entered a room, a woman always ended up crying. Byul.... she doesn’t do relationship and I don’t want to see you get hurt because of her, so this is my advice to you, as a friend. Walk away.”

Wheein felt her heart break a little as she listened to Hyejin’s heartfelt words. She patted Hyejin’s thigh softly and nodded, “Thank you.... but don’t worry about me... I’ll be fine. Now, listen to my advice. Go home. Get some sleep.” She leaned in and kissed Hyejin’s softly on her cheek and stood up, gathering her bag with her.

“I’ll see you tomorrow.” She gave Hyejin another small smile and walked out of the bar with a heavy heart.

Wheein drew in a deep breath when she stepped out from the bar, her thoughts running a mile a minute – almost working on overload – cataloguing the events of the day. She navigated through the street slowly, it was almost midnight, but throngs of people still wandered the street of this gritty expat-friendly neighborhood.

She replayed Hyejin’s words over and over again, *walk away....* Wheein smiled ruefully and shook her head, sending a silent apology to Hyejin inside her mind. She hailed a taxi and gave the driver the address to Byul’s apartment.

She knew that she won’t be able to walk away even if she tried.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Author's Note:

As promised the secret finally revealed!!! Who exactly Yongsun is to Byul. Waow, it took me 10 chapters to reveal that. Heads up, the next chapter would be even darker than this one and if I could finished editing it today, I'll post it up tomorrow. Comments and Critics are as always welcome <3 <3 <3

Side Note: Is it possible to put up some kind of petition to RBW, because I seriously need Wheebyul doing Moderato together in my life. Imagine it, Moderato - Wheebyul *Dies* I mean, just give us a V-App performance of it and I probably already die due to happiness.

Talk to you lovelies soon!!