" You son of a *****!" L.Joe kicked the opposition gang member spat on his face.

The victim picked himself up and ran far away as he could. L.Joe smirked and wiped the blood from his fists. He swiftly turned to his two friends and gave a huge smirk.

" So much for entering our territory. Look at this, I found an envelope in his bag. Wonder what it is." he remarked and tore the envelope so that he could see the insides of it.

" Yah! You shouldn't be opening it up in public! What if it's really those..." Myungsoo stopped and stared.

" Drugs." Daehyun continued.

L.Joe picked the picture up in his hands, he casted aside the money in the envelope. Like two hungry dogs, Daehyun and Myungsoo ran for the scattering money. It wasn't always that they would find money. ' Dirty money' as the gang members would say.

" That guy probably got paid to do dirty deeds. Damn." Daehyun commented and stashed the money in his pocket without L.Joe noticing.

" Hyung! Why are you so intense? What's that?" Myungsoo commented and tried to peek.

Their eyes widened, L.Joe's face turned pale. Myungsoo snatched the picture away and traced the facial features of the girl in the picture. It was really her, but he wasn't exactly sure since it's been years since he last talked to her. Also, L.Joe wouldn't allow him to talk about her, since she was his first love and she was their neighbour. Daehyun got a better look at the picture and turned around to try to chase the opposition gang member who had the envelope with him, but was stopped by L.Joe.

" Hyung! We should chase him! This! Who would even do such a thing?!" he cried out and tried to free himself from the leader's grasps.

" Yes! Hyung! Daehyun is right! Who would do such a thing to our Ah-ra!" Myungsoo added in and also wanted to chase after the guy.

L.Joe smirked and turned to look at them.

" Your Ah-ra?" he wanted them to repeat themselves.

Daehyun hit Myungsoo on the shoulders and the both of them smiled sheepishly.

" We meant, your Ah-ra. Haha... Right? Right?" he nervously gulped and tried to make Myungsoo nod his head.

L.Joe flicked the picture in his hands and stared hard into those innocent eyes. 

" Get the other members here. Now." he raised his voice and turned to the two boys.

" Yes sir!" Daehyun and Myungsoo saluted their 'leader' and proceeded to get their job done.

L.Joe raised his eyebrows and shook his head. He knew exactly the mastermind behind the cruel plan.

* L.joe's flashback *

" Look. She's using a recycling bag to go to school...haha." a girl laughed and pointed to Ah-ra.

Ah-ra pouted and casted her eyes on the ground. She looked as if she was waiting for Dal-rae to say something. Finally, her sister opened . 

" Yah. Don't say that..." Dal-rae retaliated.

" I heard, between the two of you, one of you is adopted. Must be you!" a boy stuck his tongue out at Ah-ra and pushed her.

Dal-rae sided with her little sister and acted well.

" Why are you bullying my little sister? Although, she's adopted...you don't have to bully her." she tried to defend herself and lied to the group of students so that she wouldn't feel ashamed.

L.Joe eyed Dal-rae furiously and grabbed the little Ah-ra away from the group of students. The both of them sat at a nearby bench, they had to climb up the bench with their short legs since they weren't tall enough. With their legs dangling in the air, L.Joe took the opportunity to cheer his friend up.

" Shin Ah-ra. Why can't you just speak up? My dad told me Dal-rae is the adopted one, not you. Why are you so stupid... I should tell Shinwoo hyung." he complained and pouted.

She kept quiet the whole time and only burst out into soft, muffled cries. 

" Araso...don't cry. If only Jinyoung was here with us to cheer you up. Don't cry alright? From today onwards, I'm not going to play with that ugly Dal-rae anymore. So, if you want to come to my house to play some games, just come with Shinwoo hyung. Araso? My dad is here. Bye!" L.Joe cutely waved at her and left.

" Shin Dal-rae. I guess it's fate for me to foil your plans. Go on. I'll make you face the consequences of messing around with my beloved." he whispered to himself and curled his lips up.

He grinned at the fact that he was finally able to get his hands on something and at the same time bring the opposition gang down. Being the leader of his own gang, his rule was to protect the people in the neighbourhood and never accept dirty jobs that would stain their hands with blood. 

-----------------------------------

" Is it still painful?" Sandeul blew Ah-ra's knees and patted the bandage on her knee.

She shook her head and gazed into his perfect eyes. 

" Ha...since you're injured. I can't bring you anywhere. Let's just go to that cafe over there." he commented and reached out for her hands.

" Can we go elsewhere?" Ah-ra rubbed her eyes and stretched her hands out.

Sandeul widened his eyes and immediately brightened up.

" Anywhere you say!" he jumped up and dragged her to the park motorcycle, almost forgetting that she was injured.

One hour later...

" Lee Sandeul! Use your eyes! Your eyes!" Ah-ra screamed and hit the closed gate behind him.

Sandeul got into position and tightened the grip around the baseball bat. He inserted the tokens in the machine and waited for the perfect timing to strike the baseball balls. Ah-ra squealed in excitement at the sound of the machine moving. Sandeul fixed his cap and wiped the sweat around his hands on his pants.

" Here goes nothing." Sandeul tried to struck the incoming ball but missed.

Ah-ra screamed and grabbed her head. He embarrassingly tilted his head and prepared himself for the next hit.

" Shin Ah-ra! I love you!" he uttered those words and struck the next ball.

He got so hyper that he jumped around and yelled his heart out. Ah-ra widened her eyes and before she could even say it, the ball hit his head directly. He fell to the ground.

" Well, that was fun..." Ah-ra chuckled and sipped the can of soft drink.

" Seeing me get hit by the ball?" he joked and hit her with his shoulders.

She nodded her head and ruffled his smooth brown hair. Sandeul immediately leaned closer to her and placed his head comfortably on her shoulder. He sighed and pouted.

" Is there something troubling you?" she questioned him and clasped her hands.

" Not really..." he answered her and wrapped his arms around her shoulder.

" So there is something troubling you?" she turned to look at him.

He shrugged his shoulder and pathetically exhaled. 

" You love me right?" he said and reached out for her hands.

Ah-ra gazed into his soft eyes but didn't answer him. She was afraid to hurt him if she were to tell him the truth. She changed her attention to her knees and nodded her head silently.

" I like you." she answered him.

" Like? That's too vague..." Sandeul pouted and folded his arms.

" What do we know about love? We're still too young and-" Ah-ra tried to express her opinion but he stopped her again.

" Are you doubting our relationship?" he questioned her and widened his eyes.

" No. It's not that but-" again she hesitated.

" But?" 

" I-" 

" What is it? Do you have something to tell me?" Sandeul squeezed her hands and got a bit nervous. He was afraid to hear those words.

Ah-ra noticed the intense fear in his eyes. She shook her head and bit her lower lip. 

" I'm just saying, what if. What if one day, we have to split because of differences?" she asked curiously.

" Then, I'll lock you up in my paradise. I'll never let you leave." Sandeul simply answered but those words sent chills down her spine.

" Even if I don't love you? I emphasize 'if' okay. I'm not saying I'm leaving you. You won't let me leave?" she emphasized and blankly stared into his eyes to wait for his answer.

Sandeul tapped his fingers and thought hard. He breathed in and laughed.

" If there's no you in my life. Then it'll be hell. I'm speaking the truth here. If it wasn't for you, I would have done something crazy." Sandeul confessed and rubbed her soft hands.

" Something crazy?" she remarked and tried to make him speak.

" Let's not talk about it. That's the past. Oh ya, about yesterday. The CEO of WM Entertainment came over personally to my house to pass me a contract." Sandeul announced.

" That's great! So did you sign the contract?" her face brightened up at the mention of the good news.

Sandeul shook his head and gave her a hug.

" No dating policy. So I didn't sign it. I still have six days to think about it." he said and held her even closer to him.

Ah-ra sighed and pulled him away from her. She was a problem now, if it wasn't for her, he could have just signed up with the company and start preparing himself for his career ahead. After all, his dreams were to become a singer. With that angelic voice of his, all the girls would flock for him.

" Go for it Sandeul. Don't worry about me. If I was in your shoes, I would do just the same. Don't miss such a good opportunity like this." she grabbed his shoulders and tried to make reality sink into him.

Sandeul lowered his head and slowly raised it to show her that he fully understood what she had said. He sulked and cupped his chin, the thought of it made his head dizzy. He detested the idea of making decisions, because either ways he had to make sacrifices. In this way, he's either going to lose somebody that he loved or he's going to lose the great opportunity of becoming a singer.

" Let's go. I miss my brother suddenly." Ah-ra voiced out and stood up.

" Miss your brother?" Sandeul chuckled and held her warm hands.

She pursed her lips and nodded. 

" I get jittery if I don't hear his voice for even one day! If we weren't related by blood, I would have wanted to marry him and live happily ever after with him because I feel happy to just have my brother around. You know, he has this attractive thing with his face and his personality..." she grinned at the thought of Shinwoo.

Sandeul laughed and hit her lightly on her back. She was finally opening up about her family. He felt pleased to hear such warm stories coming out from her. 

" When will you introduce me to him?" he questioned her and blinked his eyes to act cute.

Ah-ra tilted her head to the side and pondered upon those words. She brought a hand to her head and without Sandeul noticing it, she flicked his forehead. 

" Never!" she joked and ran to the bike.

" Yah! Your knee!" he chided her and chased after her.

-------------------------------

" Thank you for the ride home. I didn't know you were such a cool person." Ah-ra complimented him and passed the helmet over to him.

Sandeul charmingly swayed his head to the side after removing his helmet. He placed both the helmets on the seat and took two steps closer to her.

" I hope you will like those chocolates. I made it with my heart." he spoke in a lower tone and that made him laugh.

" Haha... that's cheesy." Ah-ra cringed at the thought of those words. It was the same exact feeling when Jinyoung placed her hands on his chest to feel his heartbeat.

She waved a goodbye to him and strolled back to her house. She had requested Sandeul to drop her somewhere farther away from her house lest her family members caught her getting on a bike. They would never allow her to step out of the house ever again. Her family had always been against the ideas of motorcycles since they were dangerous and were much more prone to accidents. Hence, when Shinwoo turned 18, he signed up for a car license instead of the motorcycle license.

" I'll walk you home." Sandeul suggested.

She shook her head violently to show that she was totally against that idea.

" Aww...why? Please..." he pleaded and pouted.

" No...what if they see you?" she uttered those words and gave him a pat on the shoulder.

" So what if they see me... anyway I met your father this morning." he broke the news to her.

She was so astonished that she choked on her own saliva. She coughed so badly that she could feel some blood in . 

" Wai-wait. What?! My dad?! What did he say?" she panicked and kept on asking questions.

" Don't worry. I kept my mouth shut." he explained to her so that she would calm down.

Ah-ra shut her eyes and sighed. 

" What a relief..." she thought to herself.

As the two couple walked together, a group of boys appeared. Sandeul kept Ah-ra close to him the whole time, they appeared to be thugs. A whole lot of them were chewing gums and spat on the ground. The others kept their hands in their pockets as if they would whip out their weapons any time soon. Surprisingly, Ah-ra was still calm. She wasn't even bothered by the sight.

" Your neighbourhood...has always been like this?" Sandeul whispered those words to her.

" Prepare yourself for what's going to happen next and don't panic. I swear, they won't hurt me" Ah-ra braced herself for what would happen to her next.

L.Joe smirked and like the bad boy that he was, he gave her a cool wave. He ran his hand through his hair and strutted himself towards her. The boys followed him but with sheepish smiles on their faces. They knew why L.Joe was acting all cool, he wasn't always like that. 

" What's up, loser. Remember me?" he smirked at her and ruffled her hair.

Sandeul bit his lips when L.Joe called his girlfriend a loser, he tried not to break out in anger. He didn't like other guys to be touching his girl.

" I missed you!" she squealed and gave him a huge hug.

" Daebak. She's hugging him." Sandeul thought to himself.

L.Joe patted her head and gave her a kiss on the forehead. That made Sandeul's blood boil. Anything but kissing. That forehead belonged to him.

" Aigoo...what happened to that leg of yours?" L.Joe inquired and bend down to inspect the wound.

" I should be asking you about what happened to you! Ever since you left, I felt so lonely! I don't see Myungsoo and Daehyun. Where are they? I heard the three of you are quite successful with the club business. Congrats!" she raised her voice and lend out her hand to him to shake.

" Daehyun and Myungsoo are settling some business for me. Let me just..." before he even finished off his sentence, he carried her in his arms.

Sandeul folded his arms and followed the duo from the back. Ah-ra wrapped her arms on her best friend's neck. She felt so sorry for L.Joe after hearing the news of about his family getting assassinated. He was the only survivor left, since then he's been tracking down for the people that killed family. She knew him too well, although he looked tough and seemingly evil, he was a good person at heart.

" Byunghun... I have so many things to tell you. Sometimes, I secretly wished you were born as a girl so that I could plan sleepovers and invite you over to my house." Ah-ra confessed and pouted her lips.

" Yah, don't call me Byunghun. Haha... Yah. Ever since I moved away from this neighbourhood, you didn't even come to look for me. You still call yourself a friend? So, are you still acting?" he questioned her and supported her in his arms.

" Don't worry, you're still my special friend. Umm...Jinyoung oppa found out about it. My dad and brother are still clueless but I have this feeling that my dad knows about it. I don't have to act anymore...I guess?" she said and updated him the news.

" Jinyoungie is back?" he responded with a surprised face.

Ah-ra nodded her head and sighed.

" So...he didn't come to find you?" he chuckled and knew exactly the reason why she was sulking.

" Exactly! I mean! Let's not talk about it. I get angry whenever I think about it." she confessed and placed her head on his shoulders.

Sandeul clenched his fists and convinced himself to not get angry. If only he was strong enough to even swiftly pick her up in his arms. 

" So you still love him?" L.Joe remarked and raised his eyebrows.

" Mayb- I mean no... Why would I even like that...that Jung Jinyoung. I like you better. At least you don't lie to me. Such a betrayer." she denied but L.Joe knew exactly what she meant. She was just playing hard to get with Jinyoung.

He turned around to see Sandeul still following them. He suspected that Sandeul was Ah-ra's boyfriend since they were sporting couple rings. He wasn't the nosy type so he didn't question her about it. If it was something that Ah-ra wanted to let him know, she will tell him.

" Ah... I wanted to ask you something." he said.

" What is it?" she replied him with a worried face.

" Usually, which path do you take to walk home. Plus, do you use the back gate or main gate to get out from your house?" he asked her nonchalantly. He tried his best to not sound like there was something bothering him.

Since Ah-ra was a naive girl, she innocently answered him.

" That path over there. It's the short cut. To walk to the main road, I would usually turn left and go right. Umm...usually I would go out by the main gate." she answered him.

" Bingo." he thought to himself. He knew exactly where to place his men now.

A good ten minutes passed, and they were finally at the main gate of her house. L.Joe gently placed her down and flashed a smile. He tried his best not to blush. 

" You've grown prettier. By the way, your birthday is coming up right?" he pinched her cheeks and questioned her.

" You look handsome too! Yup! Do come! Bring Daehyun and Myungsoo along! I miss them! I miss all of you! If everybody attends, then it'll be a 'childhood friends' reunion! I'm sure Dal-rae onni is going to be excited to see all of you." Ah-ra squealed in excitement again.

L.Joe sighed at the sight of seeing Ah-ra so happy. That made him even determined to make sure her 21st birthday was going to be a smooth one. He couldn't help but call her 'stupid.' He wasn't going to gamble with her life, he treated it as fate to be able to try and stop the plan that was set up by Dal-rae.

" You're still calling that b**** by her name? Tsk. Fish that." he cursed and rolled his eyes.

" Yah! How can you curse so easily. After all, she's still my sister." Ah-ra sulked and prepared herself to say goodbye.

" Sister? Yah, Shin Ah-ra. I'm not trying to say bad things about her but I just can't help it. I've never liked her from the first day I met her. She's a psychopath!" he tried to not yell.

Ah-ra nodded her head and agreed with what he said. She shared the same sentiments as him.

" Just be careful. Here's my number. Make sure you set it as a speed dial." he reminded her.

She laughed and stuck her tongue out.

" Buy me a phone then. Mine got spoiled after the rain yesterday. For your information, I have a bodyguard by my side. His name is Cha Baro. So don't worry about me." Ah-ra uttered those words.

" Well, he's going to be outnumbered. Alright, I'll better get lost now before you get sick and tired of my face. Goodnight, you idiot." he pushed her head and walked off.

Sandeul ran to her side and rubbed her red forehead.

" Who is he? How dare he touch you like that." he mumbled and turned to look at her.

" He's my secret girlfriend." Ah-ra joked and laughed to herself.

" Girlfriend?"

She nodded her head and again giggled to herself. She remembered those times where they would paint their nails together and dress up and also played cooking games together. L.Joe was also the only person to know about her big secret. That was the reason why she lasted very long hiding the fact that she had lost her memories, if it wasn't for his support, she would have gone crazy a long time ago.

" Yes, my girlfriend. He's not a lover and neither is he a friend. So the best term is a 'girlfriend'. Sandeul-ah, don't get too jealous. I still have a lot of guy friends. I don't mix with girls because they all hate me." she said.

" Why?" he questioned her.

" Well, it's because of Dal-rae. I'm always the outcasted one. I tend to get too comfortable with him sometimes, but I just can't help it. I'll tell you the story some other than time. It's too sensitive to tell you, since it's supposed to be a secret." she uttered those words so that Sandeul wouldn't feel jealous.

Sandeul gave her a hug and gave her a kiss on the forehead.

" I understand. Go in now. I don't want you to be standing." he her hair and pushed her towards the gate.

Ah-ra jumped up and down at the gate to wave at him. She wasn't even bothered by the wound. 

" Yah! Get in!" Sandeul pointed at her and showed his gums while scolding her.

" Araso... bye!" she mouthed those words at him and waved the last goodbye.

Sandeul lowered his hands after her back disappeared from his sight. He couldn't help but feel jealous at all the 'boys' that were in her life. However, his main rival was Jinyoung. He placed his hands around his waist and talked to himself the whole way to the motorcycle.

" I mean, why would he even carry her into his arms. Was I that invisible that he couldn't see me? And what was his name. What- what Joe? Tsk." he complained and shook his head.

Sandeul wore the helmet swiftly and rode against the wind. He was glad that the date today was a successful one. The only thing that was left on his mind now was what to get Ah-ra for her birthday. 

An hour later...

" Ahjumma! Please come again!" he politely bowed and tucked his hands behind his back.

" Aigoo...such a polite and handsome boy! Continue to work hard! You have a great voice!" the woman praised him and left.

With the microphone in his hands, he prepared himself for the next song. Although, it wasn't a professional job, at least the pay was going to be enough to for him to save up and buy the perfect present for her. With only two weeks left, he had no choice but to work till late night. He didn't feel tired because singing had always been something that he was passionate about.

" I love my part-time job." Sandeul thought to himself and continued to entertain the crowd with a huge smile on his face.

---------------------------------------

(A/N: Haha... I actually wanted to come up with random people for the gangster part. But thinking of a name was too much of a hassle so I decided to pick L.Joe of Teen Top, Daehyun of B.A.P and Myungsoo (L) of Infinite. They will only appear for a short part in the story. ^^ I'm not sure whether all of you will like it but haha, I like it. Keukeu. There might be some violence- but not that extreme in the next next chapter, I'm not sure which chapter, but it's the one for Ah-ra's 21st birthday. I'm just going to say that 'someone' is going to get injured (critically), Just a warning, I don't want you guys to hate me...haha. ^^ Next chapter will be up on Wednesday. :D)

Thank you for subscribing and commenting! ^^ Have a nice day!