IRENE

It was that day that I made a life-changing and irreversible choice. A choice that brought me the toil, pain, and addiction that plagued my life.  

“You have been excelling in your duties this past year, Officer Choi.”

I bowed before the chief of the Seoul Police Department, “Yes sir, thank you, sir.”

“And since you are, in fact, the top policeman that we have in the department, I’d like to offer you a big case.” He his chin with great thought, “Unless you beg to differ.”

“What is it, Sir?”

“The biggest case yet… I need you to help catch Gunmetal for us, quite dangerous but I believe that you of all people would succeed.”

Gunmetal. A name that sends chills down the spines of every citizen of Korea. The name that causes everyone to rush into their houses before sundown, locking doors behind their backs. No one has ever seen him before completely, they say that if you get close enough to see the gunmetal frame of his pistol, you were already dead. The serial killer that has already taken the lives of 50 citizens in 5 years, more to come if he wasn’t stopped.

I swallowed as my mouth grew dry at that moment,

“Whatever that may please you, Chief. I had taken this job in order to protect the people of Seoul.”

With that, my Chief nod his head. He stood up from his chair, handed me the case papers, and exit the room.

Gunmetal. I could be killed.

However, I had really taken the job as a policewoman to bring security to my people. Over the past couple of years, I had arrested and caught 24 widely-known burglars, 2 convicted with murder, and a plethora of gangs. I put a spin on the usual stereotype of women, I bring dominance and strength into the name of women.

My first inspiration for becoming such a profession was from my father. He was a wonderful policeman before me, he was looked up to by those around him. He was a jolly man and a wonderful father. My memories of him are very vague though, I haven’t seen him since I was six years old in age. He had taken on a mission as a police, later coming out on the news as missing.

My mother heard the news and became absolutely devastated. She grew cold towards me, becoming harsh and stoic. I grew up fending for myself, my mother ignoring my presence as a child. I believe that it has created me to be stronger and more independent as an adult, so in the end, I guess I am thankful for my mother's absence in my childhood.

“Irene Choi!”

I heard a jumpy voice call me right then, snapping me out of my thoughts. I turned to see my co-policeman, Officer Lee Jinki.

“Irene! I heard you got offered a big mission today, what was it?”

Jinki flashed me a cheeky smile as he took the folder out of my hands. He promptly plopped down on a chair next to me, observing the contents of the folder. I rolled my eyes at him as I snatched the folder back,

“It’s confidential Officer Lee. Nothing of your concern.”

He turned towards me, his eyes twinkling with excitement.

“Oh come on Irene. Everyone in the department already knows you have been offered the case of Gunmetal! That’s absolutely amazing.” He thought to himself and shuddered, “Also mortifying, don’t die.”

I massaged the bridge of my nose in exasperation,

“Gee, good word spreads fast in our department, who cares about confidentiality,” I replied sarcastically.

Jinki nudged me,

“I know I’m never serious 99% of the time, I’m still a fellow police. If anything happens, call me and I’ll be right there.”

“Alright, Officer Lee.”

He gave me another stupidly dorky grin before heading off into his own office, and I brought my head down on the table.

I guess it’s time to read about the case.

Carefully, I brought out the files from the folder, laying them out neatly in front of me.

Profile: Gunmetal.

Real name: Unavailable

Height: 176 cm

Weight: Unavailable

……

……

I continued to read the profile and the list of the people he has victimized. There were many holes in the profile, and I groaned in frustration. It will be difficult to find a criminal that was so good at hiding himself. I observed the papers some more and noticed that he only has killed men. Not only just men, but men who were in their late 50’s, had a beard, and no hair.

Interesting.

I took a mental note of this, pondering the reason behind why he would only target a certain style of people.

This is going to be difficult.

++++++

TAEMIN

“I’m offering a large sum of money, Taemin-shi.”

I snarled at the man before me, restrained by men wearing black masks on both sides.

“I work alone.”

The man strode towards me, bringing his face a dangerous inch from my face.

“Oh, but the Boss has already informed me that he wants you to work for us. Besides, you need money to provide for your frail, deranged mother don’t you?”

He grinned, knowing that I wouldn’t be able to lay a finger on him. His words made my blood boil, they were all too true, which angered me even more. Fiery rage rushed through me, and I spat in his face.

The man chuckled maliciously to himself as he wiped the saliva that landed on his cheek away with the back of his had.

“Watch it, Taemin-shi. We have your weapon, we know your mother as well.”

I attempted to break away from the men holding me back, failing and falling back onto my knees. I blew my jet-black hair out of my eyes, glaring. The man was right, I had to pay my mother’s hospital fees, he knew my identity as well.

“How do I start.”

He threw me a half-smile, it took all of my will not to strangle him on the spot.

“I’ll let the Boss have an audio-call with you.” He brought a dialing phone to my ear, “You’re recorded, don’t try anything with the boss.”

Hello?

*Ah, Taemin. I see you have agreed to join the 2829 company. Are you aware of what business we do here?*

Malicious business.

*Not as sinful as your doings Mr. Taemin. We need an “Assassin” per say, our company likes to receive money from… the deceased. If you understand what I am implying.*

I only need this so your sorry asses get your hands off of my mother.

*Your first task will be told to you by my assistant*

*If for any reason you decide to tell others about what we do here, you’ll find yourself awake in hell Mr. Taemin*

The call was ended from the other line, and millions of thoughts began to flood my mind. The man in front of me, the manager, threw a paper down in front of my knees.

“First target Mr. Taemin. Glad to have you here.”

And with that, he exit the room.

++++++

AUTHORS NOTE:

Sorry y'all, I write all of my chapters in google drive first, then copy and paste it into asianfanfics. If anything may seem glitchy, AFF glitches a bit whenever I copy and paste large amounts of text. Aside from that though, I hope you guys enjoy chapter one!

Here's a bit of hot taemin.