12:04 AM

 

She closed her old flip phone and slipped it deep into the pocket of her pajamas. She was sitting on a ragged sofa that was starting to make her feel numb. The lobby was eerily quiet that night; the occasional cricket chirp caused her to almost kick off her sandals. She wondered how long she was going to have to wait for this person.

 

It wasn’t easy sneaking out of her house; the squeaky floor boards and misplaced chairs were nearly impossible to avoid. Luckily she managed to slip quietly through the front door like a mouse and miraculously made it to the lobby before her mysterious guest arrived.

 

The sender of the text had explicitly told her to meet in the lobby at 11pm, yet it had been over an hour and not a single person walked through the main door. She was starting to think that maybe this was just some practical joke or a trap set up by a certain bully. It wasn’t too late to just get up and leave. But then again, she was curious as to who released her and Yuri from the prison. She slumped down further into the sofa and contemplated on what to do next.

 

Before she could decide on a course of action, she saw the front entrance's door being thrown open forcefully. Two men in black suits with ear pieces marched right into the center of the lobby and turned their heads toward the old couch.

 

“We have located the target ma’am. What are your orders?” one of the men said with two fingers on his ear piece.

 

He nodded his head after receiving his instructions and cast a look towards his partner.

 

“Understood ma’am.”

 

Both men made their way towards the confused girl who was wondering who on earth these suspicious people were. They looked like characters from Men In Black.

 

“Come with us miss,” was the last thing they uttered before they suddenly grabbed both of her arms and lifted her up; marching towards the entrance with the girl hovering in mid air. It took her mind a few seconds to register what was going on before it clicked in her head that she was getting kidnapped. Once the reality of the situation made itself clear, she started struggling for dear life in order to free herself.

 

“Who the hell are you?! Let me go! HELP! SOMEONE! ASSAULT!” she screamed at the top of her lungs. As she was carried outside, she felt the crisp air of the night sky pierce little ice needles all over her body. She continued to flail her limbs as strongly as she could in the hopes of escaping back to her home. It was then that she noticed a giant black limousine parked in front of the entrance and another man in a black suit pulling the vehicle’s door open.

 

“Get in,” one of the men growled before throwing the thrashing girl inside the warm and luxurious limo like a sack of potatoes. The door was slammed shut and the panicking girl was doing all she could to open the locked door: repeatedly pulling the handle, searching for the lock, and even banging on the tinted windows.

 

“It’s no use. The entire vehicle is made up of a triple layer of carbon fiber, a layer of Lexan composite, and state of the art security controls. Nobody gets in or out of this vehicle unless I say so.”

 

The small girl suddenly sensed a distinctly recognizable cold aura in the air that made a chill run down her spine. She had already felt this chill earlier today and she would never forget it. She turned her head to see a familiar blonde sipping from a fancy looking glass.

 

“It’s nice to finally meet you Kim Taeyeon.”

 

Taeyeon felt a giant boulder drop to the bottom of her stomach. She grabbed the door handle in order to hold up her body, for her shaking knees weren’t giving her any noticeable support. It wasn’t that the girl looked menacing like Tiffany, but the vibes she was giving Taeyeon made her want to escape from the limo as fast as she could. Her thumping heartbeat and her trembling legs were evident to the posh blonde.

 

Jessica lifted the lid of a small compartment next to her seat and tossed two ice cubes into her glass. “I suggest you take a seat before you hurt yourself.”

 

Before Taeyeon could ask her what she meant, she felt the limousine shoot out into the street and found herself face planted on the velvet red carpet below her. Jessica stared at her with disinterest while taking another sip of her drink. She reached for the telephone hanging on the wall next to her; it seemed like she was talking to the driver as she gave the other person clear instructions.

 

“Around the area a couple of times until I tell you otherwise, Woojin.” Jessica hung up the phone and saw her guest stand up while rubbing her numb nose.

 

“Have a seat,” she gestured to the seat in front of her. Taeyeon was a little wary, but she unsteadily approached the black leather chair and sat down. She tried her best to control her shaking legs.

 

Tiffany’s friend was sitting directly in front of her and she didn’t like it. She was expecting the brunette to pop into the car any minute and have her way with her like before; she clenched her fists on top of her knees at the thought and kept direct eye contact with the Jessica.

 

“Would you care for a drink?” Jessica asked, holding up her glass. Taeyeon barely shook her head. She didn’t want to accept anything until she knew why she was here.

Jessica placed her glass in the cup holder next to her and crossed her legs while eyeing Taeyeon from head to toe. Her unwavering stare made Taeyeon feel a little uncomfortable; it was as if she was undressing her with her eyes.

 

“I know I didn’t specify a dress code, but you could have at least made an effort to look decent.”

 

Taeyeon looked down at her informal attire. “I assumed we were going to talk in the lobby, so I dressed casual. I didn’t expect to be thrown into your limo against my will,”

Taeyeon said, choosing her words carefully.

 

“I merely requested you inside my vehicle. You see, I’m the heiress of the Jungmin group and chain. I can’t have myself caught dead in a drab living quarter. No offense to you, of course,” Jessica responded in a condescending tone, which irked Taeyeon quite a bit. Whoever this girl was - regardless of whether or not she was an heiress - she clearly didn’t know how to keep things to herself.

 

“It still doesn’t give you the right to order some thugs to throw me into your car against my will,” Taeyeon replied with a little anger in her voice.

 

“There’s no need to get dramatic Kim Taeyeon. My guards simply overreacted and took it upon themselves to you to me. There’s no need to be so uptight.”

 

Dramatic? Uptight?! Why this stupid little…

 

“You know, I almost forgot-” Jessica raised a finger “-you don’t even know my name yet, do you? How rude of me,” Jessica said as she uncaringly tossed her hair behind her shoulders.

 

Rude doesn’t even begin to describe my impression of you.

 

“Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Jessica Jung, daughter of Jung Seung Hun.”

 

“Jung Seun Hun? Isn’t he-”

 

“That’s right, Jung Seun Hun. You probably don’t know who he is, given your status, but my father is the CEO of Jungmin. He owns over 3,000 shopping malls and department stores all across Korea, Japan, and the United States.”

 

Taeyeon already knew who her father was. His name was constantly mentioned on the news concerning many business mergers and scandals. Knowing this, Taeyeon had a look of disinterest for she couldn’t care less about Jessica’s rich family.

 

“That’s nice, I guess,” she replied flatly.

 

“It is nice,” Jessica smirked.

 

Taeyeon didn’t really know what else to say. She was already tired of talking to this girl. She pretended to observe the fine interior of the limousine before asking, “So I’m curious. How did you get my number? I’ve never told anyone except my mom and my friend.”

 

“I could tell you how, but I feel the details are trivial,” Jessica replied in a now monotonous voice. It seemed that she had also started to lose interest since the conversation was steering away from her. “Also just to let you know, I texted you by my own free will and Tiff doesn’t know anything about this.”

 

“Tiff?”

 

“Yes. It’s short for Tiffany. I’m not sure if your little ten year old head can comprehend this, but in America we call that a nickname.” Taeyeon slowly took a deep breath and saw that Jessica was aware of her actions. She was starting to think that Jessica’s ‘jokes’ were really getting old, but she refused to let it get to her.

 

“I knew who you were talking about. I just thought it was a weird nickname, that’s all,”

Taeyeon deadpanned. “So why wait until the dead of night to talk to me, and in private no less? It would’ve been easier to meet you during the day.”

 

Jessica shook her head while smirking. “I believe that’s none of your business Kim Taeyeon. The fact of the matter is that I summoned you at this hour and you’re here now. Just accept it at that.”

 

Taeyeon sighed internally as her frustration level steadily grew.

 

This girl is seriously too much. I’m really starting to regret sneaking out now.

 

“Besides that’s not what I wanted to talk about. I wanted to mention how you were caught red handed shoplifting in one of my father’s malls.” Jessica picked up her drink and continued to take small sips of the bright red liquid.

 

Taeyeon unclenched her fists and gripped her slender thighs. “Weren’t you the one who sent me the text? You said you knew I didn’t steal anything.”

 

“Then I guess you should feel grateful that I freed you and your friend. If I wasn’t so nice, I could have just kept you there until your mother paid for all the stolen items. And that would have been funny since you would probably have to live off bread crusts for a month,” Jessica chuckled to herself, though Taeyeon was not amused.

 

She fought to restrain herself from firing a comeback and instead nodded her head, tight lipped. She was planning to keep shut until she knew something about Tiffany.

 

“Since you’re here I’ll tell you this much. You are a very interesting character Kim Taeyeon. You’re so interesting, you’ve peaked my best friend’s interest.”

 

Taeyeon lifted an eyebrow. “Well I don’t know why your friend is so interested in me, but I would prefer it if she just left me alone.” Taeyeon was being really honest. She was hoping that Jessica would call the bully so that she could end her friend’s short tempered rage.

 

“I believe you don’t understand your situation Kim Taeyeon. You see, my friend doesn’t care about anyone but herself and her friends. At school she’s known as a delinquent or another cliché name, ‘bully’, just because she’s trying to defend herself.”

 

Taeyeon scoffed at the elegant girl. “Defend herself? Against what? I heard she was the one that started to ruin people’s lives. Plus I saw her beat up that poor guy in the cafeteria today and I doubt he was plotting anything evil.”

 

“If you saw Tiffany beat that guy up, I’m assuming you know why she beat him up?”

Taeyeon shook her head. “No, but I guess it was something that made her mad.”

 

An amused look appeared on Jessica’s face. “He spilled ketchup on my skirt and Tiffany assumed he did it on purpose. So she did what any sensible person would do and demanded for an apology. Problem was she didn’t give him any time to respond before connecting her fist to his jaw.”

 

Crossing her arms, Taeyeon’s mouth was slightly agape as she shook her head. “Are you kidding me? He spilled ketchup and she took that as an invitation for a kicking? That’s just plain stupid!”

 

A sigh left Jessica. “I never said it was common sense, but it’s her way of dealing with people. She chooses people who she feels have done wrong and takes it upon herself to punish them. Kind of like those American superheroes in the movies.”  

 

“No, it’s nothing like the superheroes!” Taeyeon’s said in an unintentionally loud voice. “If anything, she’s like a manipulative villain tormenting the innocent, like me!” Taeyeon looked towards the ground before resuming eye contact with Jessica. “As her friend, do you think you could tell her to leave me alone?”

 

“Leave you alone?” Jessica asked in an amused tone. “I have no intent in stopping my friend’s actions. As far as I can see, Tiff has found a new toy and she’s really enjoying it,” Jessica said before placing her glass in a cup holder and stretching her arms on the seats beside her, enjoying the shocked look on Taeyeon’s face, struggling as she spluttered to find the right words. Both of them felt the limo drive over a few bumps before Taeyeon finally blurted out a few words

 

“A… a toy?!” Taeyeon responded; taken aback for a second before she exploded, “I am nobody’s toy!” The thought of being Tiffany’s play thing really got her blood boiling. She didn’t notice, but she found herself standing in the middle of the limo from the abrupt anger she felt.

 

Jessica just stared rather lazily at Taeyeon. “Would you kindly sit down and shut up? I know you look like a child, but that doesn’t mean you have to act like one,” Jessica said mildly.

 

The shorter girl was still ticked off, but knew that Jessica was right. Before she lost her balance from the moving vehicle, she sat back down and stared at yawning rich girl in front of her. “What that mushroom is doing to me is ridiculous. Do you have any idea on what I’ve been through since I’ve met her?” Taeyeon asked with a stiff tone.

 

The rich girl merely nodded. “She slammed you into a locker, stuffed you into a locker, made you kick your own , and got you arrested for a crime you didn’t commit,” Jessica counted idly as she picked up her glass and swished around her drink. She stared at it as though it was more interesting than Taeyeon.

 

Taeyeon was a little taken aback. “So you do know what she’s done to me! You see her ruining my life, yet you do nothing to stop her?”

 

“Why should I? It’s not like she’s killing anyone.”

 

Taeyeon let out a long sigh. “Why should you?” Taeyeon asked sternly. Her tone sounded very agitated. “Why should you?! It’s because of your stupid friend I’m in a living hell! It’s because of her the entire school is on their toes around her. I don’t know exactly what her problem is, but she needs to grow the hell up! As her friend you should be the one to tell her!” Taeyeon growled before slumping down on her chair.

 

After all the stress she acquired since she was thrown unceremoniously into the vehicle, she felt herself smirking for no reason. “God… do her parents even care about her or her well being? Do they just let her get away with all of this? I swear if I was her mom…” Taeyeon couldn’t finish her sentence because the interior of the limo suddenly felt like a freezer. It felt so cold that Taeyeon thought she could see her breath. Jessica’s eyes were reduced to furious slits and they were fixed on Taeyeon. The small girl felt the paralyzing gaze and couldn’t find it in her to utter another word.

 

Jessica slowly put her glass in the glass holder while her hands shook out of anger. “Mind repeating that, little girl?” Jessica asked quietly. Her voice was lower than normal and Taeyeon knew that she was beyond pissed.

 

Jessica uncrossed her legs and leaned forward towards Taeyeon. The now nervous girl’s mouth was dry and her heart was thumping erratically.

 

“What’s this? Nothing left to say? If that’s so, then shut your mouth because I will not repeat myself. Do you understand?” Jessica said in that same cold tone. Her posture was very stiff and indicated that she was in no mood for games. Taeyeon just nodded automatically out of fright.

 

“I could take the first couple of snarky comments coming out of your mouth and I could even tolerate your attitude, but I will not have you talk about my friend and her family as if she was trash like you,” Jessica growled. Taeyeon felt so cold at that moment that she was forced to clench her teeth in order for them to not chatter.

 

“I’ll remind you that you should feel privileged to be in my limousine and in my presence. I will not tolerate any more venomous words about Tiffany, her family, or anything related to Tiffany. Don’t think I wouldn’t tell my driver to drop you off in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night. Is that understood?” Jessica quietly said. Her last words were strongly emphasized.

 

Taeyeon repeatedly nodded her head again; afraid of what would happen if she didn’t respond. She thought it would be safe now to only talk if she wanted to ask a question.

Jessica resumed her fake smile.

 

“Now before we continue, I suggest you have a drink. That is unless you disagree?” Taeyeon saw the scary blonde place her fingers on the limo’s phone and immediately shook her head.  “Good.” She opened the compartment next to her and proceeded to pour a dark red liquid into a fancy crystal glass. She handed it to Taeyeon and before she took her hands away from it, she said “enjoy”.

 

Taeyeon nodded while forcing a nervous smile. She was thinking that the beverage might be drugged or poison, but Taeyeon was willing to take her chances given Jessica’s serious glare. The fancy drink was very sweet, yet tart on her tongue. It was a flavor she had never tasted before. She preferred more common drinks like orange juice or apple juice.

 

“It’s pomegranate juice imported from the finest juice makers in India,” Jessica commented with her nose in the air. “I suggest you enjoy every single drop.” Taeyeon forced a smile. She looked at her fruity drink and decided to do a one shot to her drink in order for the scary girl to be satisfied. She placed her glass into a holder and saw that Jessica looked a lot calmer than before.

 

“Moving on.” Jessica crossed her legs once again and placed her hands in her lap. “I am going to ask you a question and I need you to respond as honestly as possible.” Jessica said as she kept her fake smile.

 

“O-okay.”

 

After clearing Jessica asked, “What makes you so special?”

 

Taeyeon gave her a confused look. “I’m sorry?”

 

“You. What makes you so special Kim?”

 

“I’m… I really don’t know what you’re trying to…”

 

“You, Kim,” Jessica repeated a little exasperatedly. “You remember how I told you Tiffany doesn’t care about anyone?”

 

“Well, yeah.” Taeyeon remembered clearly.

 

“Normally after she’s roughed up her new acquaintances, she normally leaves them alone unless they’re stupid enough to approach her.”

 

Taeyeon was starting to understand. “So that means…”

 

Jessica nodded her head. “That she finds you extremely interesting. You’ve probably angered her so much that instead of beating you up and walking away, she’s constantly on you like the plague.”

 

Taeyeon nodded her head in agreement. “So you want to know why she’s not leaving me alone like how she usually does others. Is that right?”

 

Out of a sarcastic awe, Jessica clapped her hands. “Finally, the last horse has crossed the finish line. Yes Kim that is what I’m asking. Now if you don’t mind, would you please tell the class the correct answer?”

 

“I don’t know what to tell you. I was hoping you would tell me.” Taeyeon looked at Jessica apologetically.

 

Jessica had a blank look on her face. “Oh my god. You don’t know either?”
 

Taeyeon nodded her head nervously. Jessica sighed again as if she was exhausted.

 

“Seriously? You didn’t do anything at all?”

 

“No I didn’t. Okay maybe I accidentally knocked her down, but it wasn’t on purpose!”

 

Jessica looked surprised. “So you pushed her?”

 

“By accident! I said sorry and everything, but she seemed really mad about it…”

 

Moments of silence passed. Taeyeon was staring at Jessica who was tapping her chin constantly. Jessica looked like she was thinking really hard about something; it was as if she was trying to remember her entire past.  The only sounds that could be heard were the limousine’s engine and the cars that they drove past. The lack of other noise was making Taeyeon feel uncomfortable.

 

Jessica’s eyes suddenly turned wide and she placed her forehead into her palm.

“You’ve got to be kidding me…”

 

“Did you figure it out?”

 

Jessica almost forgot that there was another person in the limo and quickly straightened her back and smoothed out her hair. “Huh?”

 

“Did you figure out why Tiffany has a grudge against me?” Taeyeon repeated herself.

 

The girl in front of her shook her head. “No. I just remembered something irrelevant right now.”

 

“Oh,” Taeyeon replied with a slight look of disappointment. The rich blonde noticed the sad look on Taeyeon’s face as she bit her lip.

 

“Look, for all we know maybe my friend is just bored. Who knows? Am I going to stop her? No, because I’m not responsible for her actions.”

 

Taeyeon swallowed hard. “So that’s it? You just called me to tell me that the mushroom likes to bully me and there’s nothing you can do? Is that it?” Taeyeon asked, making sure she sounded as calm and polite as possible.

 

“Not entirely. While I commend you for meeting me at such short notice, your behavior this evening is least to be desired,” Jessica said in a serious tone. “And yet, I’m not a bad girl and I do care for my friend. You, not so much. If you want to deal with Tiffany, you’re going to have put on your big girl pants and confront her head on.”

 

The short girl’s eyebrow went up. “Confront her as in…”

 

“Being an adult and talk to her one on one. Instead of waiting for her to come to you, go to her and try to reason with her. Not sure if it would be helpful, but it’s better than being scared and waiting for a beating,” Jessica advised. She wasn’t even looking at

Taeyeon, but instead was gazing past the tinted windows.

 

Taeyeon was a little confused. “Why are you telling me this?”

 

“Do you not want my help?” Jessica started to get annoyed again.

 

“No no, it’s not that,” Taeyeon tried to reassure her. “It’s just that… throughout this whole conversation you made it clear that you didn’t like me. Now all of a sudden you’re giving me advice on how to deal with Tiffany. Why?”

 

Jessica nudged her shoulder. “I guess I’m just bored.”

 

Taeyeon internally shook her head.

 

I guess I’m not getting a straight answer out of her.

 

Jessica had taken a hold of the telephone and was talking to her driver again.

 

“You can go back now, Woojin.”

 

The limousine came to a complete stop and Taeyeon saw that they were back at her apartment.

 

“Before you leave Kim, I want to make a few things clear.”

 

She pointed a finger in the air. “One, everything that transpired inside this limousine never happened.” Taeyeon was confused for a bit, but nodded her head in agreement.

 

Another finger was raised. “Two, you will never speak of this to Tiffany or Miss Kwon Yuri.”

 

“Miss?”

 

“Is that understood?” Jessica asked sternly.

 

Taeyeon didn’t know why she referred to Yuri as ‘Miss’, but nodded anyway. “Yes, I understand.”

 

“And three,” Jessica took a slight pause. “If we ever meet again, be sure to wear proper attire. You’re a girl Kim, you should dress like one. Not like a twelve year old boy going to a pajama party.”

 

Taeyeon was taken aback again. “Wait what does-”

 

Before she could finish her sentence, the limousine door swung open and two familiar men in black grabbed Taeyeon’s arms and started dragging her out.

 

“What the hell?! Jessica! Tell them to let me go!”
 

Jessica smirked at the struggling girl. “Whatever you say Kim.” Jessica pointed two fingers outside the door and the two men pulled Taeyeon out of the limo and threw her body onto the cold sidewalk. Her cheek and right arm connected to the concrete, but it was only a slight pain. By the time Taeyeon got up to her feet and confront Jessica, the door was already closed and her limousine disappeared into the night.

 

Taeyeon wished she had a rock to throw or something the expensive limo. She saw that her cell phone read 1:37AM. She quickly escaped the cold when she entered the apartment and eventually snuck back into her house. Thankfully her mother was still sleeping like a rock. She didn’t bother switching on her lamp on her nightstand; the light from the moon coming shining through the window was enough for her. Taeyeon collapsed on her small twin sized bed while cradling her smiling pea pod. She stared straight up to the ceiling while her mind was clouded with thoughts.

 

Taeyeon was no closer to getting rid of Tiffany and Jessica wasn’t much help. Everything that transpired since she arrived in Seoul passed through her mind. The only things that kept coming back to her was Tiffany’s blackmail threat, her well being at Soshi High, and if Jessica knew more than she came off as. One thing was for sure, if she was going to confront the mushroom, she needed a plan and a little help from a friend.

 

A lot of anxiety and what if’s were swarming around in Taeyeon’s head. The only comfort she found was holding on to her green plushie. Taeyeon’s mind couldn’t relax and was constantly just staring at the ceiling. After some time, she turned her head towards her digital clock and saw that it read 5:43AM. Taeyeon’s eyes felt dry when she was aware that she was blinking. After releasing a big yawn, the small girl decided to finally shut her eyes and let deep slumber take her away from her problems.

---

안녕! (annyeong)! It's been a while hasn't it? Lol! I'm currently in Korea right now and I've been very busy doing misc things. Even though I'm in Korea and done with school for now, I plan to start writing again. Chp. 14 took a long time to edit and re-edit, so I'm sorry if it was a long wait. Really wanted it to be perfect >.< As always, comments and constructive criticisms are always welcomed. If you really enjoy the story so far, an up-vote would be most appreciated. Take care everyone!