"Hey, Chunhei," I began.

"Yeah?" She turned to face me. It was art class, and she had blue paint smeared across her cheek. After she moved, I had a better view of whatever it was she was painting.

"I wanted to know what the... Wait, what is that?" I asked. I really could not tell what was on her canvas.

"Who do you think it is? It's the upperclassman I like. His name is Kangjun," Chunhei sighed.

If I had had a drink, I would have spit it out. Chunhei liked Kangjun? I sometimes wondered what went on in her head. If I really thought about it, she was a rather strange person. Not many people would risk getting a fake I.D. for their friend. I could have blamed my whole predicaament on her, honestly. Without her, I would never have gone to the club, and I would have been living in the blissful ignorance of not knowing Jiho's true identity. But I also would not have met T.K. or the other boys - and T.K. would have been dead. Although I was not completely sure how everything was going to work out, I had saved his life. So, following that line of logic, Chunhei was really the one responsible for saving his life. They should have been following her around instead. I snorted.

"Oh, really?" I looked at the ground.

"Was that all you were going to ask?" she questioned, lifting an eyebrow.

"No," I replied. I hesitated a moment before continuing, "What is it that the mafia usually does?"

"The mafia? Like in movies?" she laughed.

"Uh... I guess?" It somehow turned into a question.

"Well, don't the Japanese Yakuza cut off the tip of their pinky finger or something like that?" she started to list different things.

I was not planning on chopping off one of my own limbs.

"And some gangs get tattoos," she continued, "or they have a symbol, like when those scary boys in the eleventh grade were all wearing red bandanas - they were in a huge gang at the time."

Well, I certainly was not allowed to get a tattoo, but a symbol like that was a possibilty. I tried to think of something simple that wouldn't be too suspicious-looking, like maybe a bracelet or necklace. A lot of boys at our school wore chains, so it wouldn't be too noticeable. Since the name was C-Clown, maybe I could find matching bracelets for all seven of us with little clowns on them. It would be easy to find charms.

"Is there anything else?" I asked.

Chunhei hummed and tapped her chin, thinking.

"They get into a lot of fights, and they're all really good with weapons, like guns or swords. A lot are involved with drugs or other illegal things," she finished.

"But I don't want to go to jail!" I groaned. I suddenly realized that I had said that out loud. I peered over at my friend, who was looking at me with a weird expression.

"Ema," she began, "what did you do?"

"I did nothing!" I quickly replied and giggled nervously.

I turned back to my project. I had never been very good with a paintbrush... or a pencil... or oil pastels or cameras. Our teacher had instructed us to paint something from our hearts - no, from our souls. I hated to admit it, but my soul was not really into creating art. Lately, it had been more into screaming about how stupid I was and how I made bad decisions - or was that my conscience? Either way, it was extremely confused at that time, so I took that as an excuse to make "abstract art." Basically, I splattered paint in the general direction of the canvas and hoped my teacher would accept it. After I finished, I went to the sinks to clean my brushes and put up my smock. The bell rang then, signalling that it was time for my next class. I walked down the hallway without waiting for Chunhei.

I started thinking about her words earlier. She was right; I had never heard of a single mafia or gang that didn't use guns. If C-Clown didn't use them either, then the boys would eventually become suspicious. I wondered if the others even had guns. I did not think that Maru would because, legally, no one was allowed the possession of a gun until they were eighteen. Then again, the boys were somehow mixed up with the mafia, so at the same time, it would not have surprised me. I wasn't completely sure of where I would get a gun myself, however.

Then I remembered my grandfather.

My grandfather, Bang Yongguk, had been a man who was more than happy to trade a pocket watch from the nineteenth century that was decorated with rubies and diamonds for a rare gun when the opportunity had presented itself. He was a wealthy man when he died, leaving my Uncle most of his money, while my mother - his daughter - received his country home and his vast collection of approximately one hundred and fifty guns. All of them were in mint condition and worked as though they had been made yesterday. When I was younger, he had taught me to hold a gun properly and how to clean it. I knew quite a few of them inside and out. He would have taught me how to shoot as well, but my mom had never let him. Once he died, she never touched them again, and, although his house was just outside of the city, we never visited it. If I had Rome drive us, we could theoretically be there in only thirty or forty minutes - I could be back home before my parents could worry.

I suddenly had a place to get weapons and headquarters for C-Clown. I just needed to get the boys together.

After school had ended for the day, I sought out Rome, with Maru following close behind.

"I need you to call the others," I told him.

"Yes, of course. Can I ask why?" Rome replied. I grinned. I had hoped that he would ask.

"It's a surprise!" I winked, "But... I actually can't drive yet, so will you take us?"

Rome looked at me for a few seconds, then burst out laughing. I frowned.

"Stop laughing at me!" I huffed. He instantly became quiet. Both boys bowed and apologized, which in turn made me sigh. I still had yet to get used to their immediate obediance to my orders. I needed to work on my skills as a mafia boss. 

"Let's go," I said.

One hour later, all seven of us were standing at the front gate of Grandfather's home. I had retrieved the key from my house, and I let us in through the front door. The house was in the middle of a forest, and the closest neighbor was a twenty-minute's drive away. It was a spacious, two-story structure that was painted a bright red; it somewhat resembled a barn or farmhouse. All of the furniture was how I had last seen it - covered in white sheets to protect it from dust. Our last family portrait before Grandfather died was hanging in a wooden frame over the fireplace in the living room. I watched as the boys made their way through the room. Rome stopped in front of the portrait.

"Is this you?" he asked, running his fingers over the picture and letting them rest on a little girl with her short black hair in two pigtails. Her eyes were almost invisible because of her huge grin, which showed off her missing front teeth. She was sitting on Grandfather's lap. He appeared to be struggling to hold onto her.

I laughed and shook my head.

"No, that's my cousin Eunjae. I think she was about five years old when this was taken," I explained.

"Then which one is you?" Ray inquired. I pointed to a younger version of myself. I was eleven years old at the time, but I already had my long, midnight black hair almost down to my waist. Unlike Eunjae, I only had a small smile gracing my features. I had known that Grandfather was sick since I had overheard him writing his will. I had been right - he died a few months later. Even though it had not been unexpected, I had still been sad without my grandfather there. I looked at my eleven-year-old self again. I was thin and tall for my age. That height had not lasted long, and it might have actually been the last time I grew.

"Aw, you were cute!" Kangjun pinched my cheek playfully. I pulled away from him and rubbed my sore cheek.

"I still am," I countered.

"That's true too," he agreed. I sighed and chose to ignore the flirtatious smile that he gave me.

"So, how exactly is this a surprise? I'm kind of confused," Maru chuckled nervously.

"This is only half of it, and you haven't guessed yet?" I looked around at them, "This is C-Clown's new base!"

"Really? It's so big!" Maru responded with an expression of excitement. I nodded.

"Follow me, and I'll show you the other part," I said. I walked over to a door at the other end of the room and opened it, revealing a staircase that led to the basement. The boys trailed behind me. Once we reached the basement, I felt the walls for the light switch. I finally found it. The room flooded with light.

"E-Ema..." Rome stared at the walls lined with weapons with his mouth hanging open.

"This is the other half! Choose any two that you want for now. We can always come back later for more," I instructed. 

"Where did you get these?" Ray asked, also in awe of the room.

"My family inherited them from my grandfather," I explained.

"Who was your grandfather?" T.K. glanced up from a black pistol.

"Bang Yongguk," I answered.

The room was silent for a few moments before Rome exploded.

"You're related to Bang Yongguk?" he cried out. I nodded.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Siwoo questioned.

"Does it matter?" I looked between all six of them.

"Does it matter?" Kangjun repeated, "Oh wow, he was just one of the top weapons dealer in Korea! All of the gangs went to him, and even some of the shadier businessmen. I heard that he headed an international trade as well."

I blinked. Somehow, I was only a little surprised. I had always wondered where Grandfather had gotten his money from. All my mom had ever told me was that he had owned a very popular business and not to ask about it again. I guessed that I then knew why. My stomach started turning on itself. My idyllic time with my grandfather had been fuelled by an illegal trade - that I was now mimicking. If I were a study of nature versus nuture, nature would have one.

"Ha, I never thought that it was a big deal," I lied. I seemed to be doing a lot of that recently.

"Of course not," Ray mumbled.

"Anyway, go ahead and look around," I ordered.

They wasted no time in examining the shelves upon shelves of Grandfather's apparently illegal collection. I followed their example and searched for one to call my own. If I remembered correctly, then there was a certain gun towards the back that Grandfather had always said would become mine once he thought that I was ready. I was right. It was still in the silver box. I carefully lifted the lid and peered inside.

Grandfather had made me take this certain gun apart and put it back together countless times. I cleaned it and held it, but I had never shot it before. He did, however, teach me how to properly hold it and press down on the trigger without injuring myself. The weapon was a deep blue and had my name carved into the side. It was the only one of its kind, made only for me to wield. Without me knowing it, Ray had appeared beside me.

"What is-" he began.

"Grandfather's last gift. It's mine," I cut him off.

"I figured as much," he said. I glanced at him. He was busy looking at a long shotgun. My older, boy cousins had always been jealous that Grandfather had had a gun made just for me. They were only given generic ones. He was the only person that had not questioned it.

"Hey, Ray," I whispered.

"Yes?"

"I was wondering... Have you felt like someone's been following us lately?"

He stiffened, then nodded.

"Rome, Siwoo, and I were talking about it the other day. We thought that no one else noticed. Don't worry; it's most likely our imagination," he assured me. I didn't believe him at all. I had seen the figure from that day several times after. I had only seen his once, and I realized why he was smiling. The figure was wearing a mask over the lower half of his face, with a cheshire grin printed on it. I had a feeling that I would see him again.

"Ah, is that so?" I murmured. He seemed satisfied by my response, and walked in another direction. Despite whatever it was that he believed, I was not about to give up that easily.

Almost an hour later, everyone had chosen. They followed me to another door on the left side of the room. It was a soundproof shooting range. It still had the stack of human-shaped targets and cases upon cases upon even more cases of amunition. The boys were going to catch flies if they kept on staring at everything with their mouths gaping open.

"So, should we get started then?" I suggested, "Who's going first?"

"I will," Siwoo volunteered. I almost laughed. Siwoo was extremely calm and nice; I could not picture him holding - much less shooting - a gun.

I plugged my ears right before he squeezed the trigger. My eyes widened as I watched him go. There were two bullet holes in the brain, one in the heart, one in the throat, and the last in the groin. With that last one, I couldn't help but wonder if he was secretly a sadist.

"W-Wow," I mumbled. Siwoo looked over to me with a huge grin.

"See? No one will ever get close enough to hurt you now!" he told me brightly.

"That's good... S-So, who's next?" I stuttered, "Rome?"

Rome stood up and walked over with his choice. One by one, each of the boys went up to take their turn. I was amazed over and over again at their skills. Each of them was really good at using the guns, even Maru. I knew I would disappoint them when they asked me to go up.

"Are you sure? I mean, today might not be the best," I tried to convince them.

"Please?" Maru used his puppy-dog-eyes attack on me. It was very effective.

"Fine," I sighed. I took my place in front of the target. I tried to remember how to aim, then pressed down on the trigger. The force of the bullet bursting from the barrel of the gun threw me back on my . I was trembling from the loud noise when I looked up. Like I had expected, the bullet had not even hit the outline of the person. Instead, there was a hole right next to the head. I had missed by only an inch.

"You didn't shoot right," Siwoo spoke up after a second. I turned to face him.

"Then how should I do it?" I questioned.

"Like this," he said. He was standing behind me, and wrapped his arms around me to place his hands over mine. My face flushed.

"You have to aim even as you shoot. You can't fall over right after either. That's a second that your enemy could use," he instructed, "And don't be afraid of the trigger."

"I'm not afraid of the trigger!" I argued.

"Now, are you aiming it correctly?" he asked.

"Yeah," I answered.

"What are you aiming for?"

"The head."

"Now!"

I squeezed the trigger when he said to. After I opened my eyes, I was shocked to see the hole in the center of the target's face.

"Continue practicing just like that." Siwoo let go of me and went to sit with the others who were busy playing Angry Birds. I stared after him.

"Siwoo..." I murmured. I found out that tere was more to him than his smile.

=======================================================

I.

Am

Sick

=_=

Not fun.......

from your evil author,

Juliette / Eunjae