Hong G was a ghost. That was the only conclusion the B.A.P members could reach about the journalist. He had no form of identification, no traceable phone number, no bank accounts, and no filed paperwork regarding him. The only evidence suggesting he existed was a crime column in the newspaper and an apartment address.

The apartment building, Bang Yongguk had learned, mainly housed the elderly and divorced middle aged men forced to pay alimony and child support. Looking at the building from across the street he could see why, it was an old brick building with not much room for luxury. Cheap rent and privacy were the main selling factors.

However Yongguk wasn’t looking for a new apartment. If anything he was waiting for a signal from Daehyun and Youngjae that everything was in order and the plan could commence. Without anything to keep him occupied he sighed and looked at his watch for the umpteenth time.

1:36 A.M.

All he and Himchan, the man who stood beside him dressed in equally dark clothing, needed, was the all clear. Once they got the go-ahead then the two of them would go up to the apartment, let themselves in, and do what they were told to.

They would get rid of the problem.

Then the group would get paid and be left to their own devices none the wiser.

From inside one of Himchan’s pockets his cell phone went off. Answering the call Yongguk silently waited as Himchan listened on the other end. Then Himchan closed his phone and turned to his partner.

“Green light.” He said.

Yongguk gave a nod of acknowledgement and began to set off into the apartment building with Himchan in tow.

Yet as they entered the building a simple black car pulled up outside and parked along the curb. Inside, the car driver gathered her messenger bag and stray files from the passenger seat before exiting the car and entering the building.

To say that Park Hyejin was tired would be an understatement. Running around all day chasing leads on her latest story left her tired as did staying up all night at the office drafting another article. There was only so much cheap coffee one person could drink in a day. However that was the price a dedicated investigative journalist had to pay and Hyejin was willing to accept that.

As she walked into the apartment building Hyejin looked over to the old elevator where she saw the steel doors just beginning to close. Not wanting to be separated from her bed any longer she rushed forward and quickly jabbed a file wielding hand between the elevator doors, which upon meeting the obstructing limb bounced back to let their newest patron in.

While entering Hyejin was able to take a good look at the two men with whom she was sharing the elevator.

The first man had a flawless face and an air about him that said he knew it. His hair was effortlessly styled and his outfit, although completely black, oozed with unofficial sophistication.

The second man however, had a much fiercer look to him. He sported a piercing gaze and a blank expression that was quite obviously assessing her. He too, was decked out in black but instead of portraying sophistication like the other, leadership was apparent.

Although Hyejin normally would have questioned the reason why they were in the elevator so late at night she had just done the same thing. Also she was frankly just to tired to do so.

Glancing at the first man she offered a small smile before inclining her head to the control box.

“Excuse me.” She said.

Himchan acknowledged her request and moved to the side granting her a position in the small space.

Muttering a quiet thanks Hyejin stepped in and turned towards the elevator controls raising her hand up automatically to push the button labeled 4. Yet when she looked up she had to stop her hand from moving any closer to the button, hanging it limply in the air. The button indicating Floor 4 was already lit.

Slowly she retracted her hand and turned her eyes back to the two men. However they had already seen what she had done. Hyejin, Yongguk, and Himchan all exchanged curious glances at one another, which were cut off at the long overdue closing of the elevator doors. As the elevator started moving slowly the three of them averted their eyes to other places. Hyejin’s landed on the files in her hand which she began to adjust and place in her bag.

Yet as she did she caught sight of an unexpected item almost completely concealed by Himchan’s jacket. Upon seeing it her eyes widened before she could stop. Lucky for her, hair had fallen out of place, thus masking her reaction. By now Hyejin’s heart was racing and her brain was reeling with questions.

Or her brain would have been if she wasn’t almost one hundred percent certain about who and what they were there for.

They were there for Hyejin, or at least her alter ego Hong G.

As the elevator stopped Hyejin was the first one to step out into the hallway, but not because she wanted to. What she wanted was to be left in the elevator as the other two got out, leaving her to take it back down to the first floor where she could scurry out of the building and to her office where she could spend the night in safety.

Unfortunately had she tried to have done that it would have painfully suspicious and she would have been caught.

As Hyejin exited, Yongguk and Himchan followed scanning the hallway for a specific apartment number.  Forty-four to be exact. This also happened to be the apartment of the woman that was walking in front of them, not that they knew this.

Hyejin could only walk past her apartment and travel further up the hallway to stand in front of apartment forty-nine.

Yongguk stopped in front of the apartment and let his eyes follow to the spot where Hyejin stood, rummaging through her bag looking for what he could only assume to be her keys. Had he looked closer and analyzed the scene further he would have noticed what she was actually doing, stalling. Yet he didn’t and simply dismissed Hyejin.

Turning the knob of the door he discovered it was locked just as he expected. Then gesturing to the door he quietly ordered Himchan to bust the lock.

“Open it.” He said, shifting himself to conceal Himchan’s breaking and entering efforts.

After a soft click the door unlocked and Himchan stepped inside with Yongguk closely following before shutting the door behind them

Hyejin who had been watching from the corner of her eye waited until her apartment door closed before abandoning her façade. Quickly she arranged her things and hurried back towards the other end of the hallway, repeatedly pushing the elevator call button.

“Come on. Come on, come on, come on!” Hyejin repeated as if it would urge the elevator to move faster.

Once the door closed behind them Yongguk and Himchan pulled out their weapons and made a silent sweep of the apartment. Yet both men were only met with an unmade bed, coffee long gone cold, and an empty living room with endless boxes of files lining the walls. No Hong G.

“.” Himchan cursed, eyes flickering between his friend and the room. “We missed him.”

“We’ll just have to wait him out then, for now just start looking around. Keep an eye out for anything useful.”

Locking his sight on an old photo his eyebrows rose. “You mean like this?” Himchan said, holding up a photograph.

The photo was nothing special, just a man and a woman smiling in front of a camera. The woman, however, was of their main focus. Looking at her face realization dawned on Yongguk.

“The woman in the hallway,” he said, “find her. Now.”

Not wasting any time the two of them rushed out of the apartment.

Behind her Hyejin heard the commotion caused by the two men exiting the doorway to her abode in a wild frenzy. Sparing a glance she locked eyes with Yongguk. The elevator, proving to be a lost cause, left Hyejin searching for another way out. The emergency stairwell which was almost directly to her left was the best bet.  Not offering another glimpse she rushed into the stairwell and ran.

Yongguk wasn’t far behind her, stretching his legs further to close the distance. Before entering the stairs himself he managed to yell one last command back at Himchan.

“Call up Daehyun, tell him what’s going on, I need him to bring the van around!”

Left with no other choice Hyejin was forced to exit the stairs into the alley behind her apartment building. She hoped she would be able to put enough distance between Yongguk and herself. However the crash of the exit door being roughly pushed into the side of the building signified otherwise. He was close enough to catch up.

The alleyway, sketchy at best, was no help to her situation. It was narrow and provided only one true way out, sending Hyejin through a sinuous route between surrounding structures. She willed herself to reach the saftey a busy street would provide before the man chasing her would catch up.

Hyejin could feel the burn in her legs and prayed they wouldn't fail her.

Nearing the last stretch of the alley, Yongguk pushed himself into a full on sprint, managing to catch Hyejin before she could get away.

With a violent yank she was pulled into his arms which instantly became vice-like around her, allowing for minimal resistance. Hyejin struggled against him, kicking, twisting, and turning in every possible direction to break his grip as he pulled her against his chest.

At the end of the alley there was a screeching of tires as an elongated black van dramatically pulled to a stop. Inside the van Daehyun pulled open the door as Yongguk started to drag Hyejin into it. Her struggling increased. She managed to jab her elbow into his ribs a few times successfully earning a grunt of pain from him, as he pulled her in with one last heave.

Sliding the door back closed Daehyun let out a snigger.

”Having trouble with the lady, Bang?”

“Shut up.” Yongguk growled, pushing Hyejin into a seat beside Youngjae. He gave her a look not to do anything stupid.

Daehyun moved back into the driver’s seat and pulled back onto the street. Dislodging Hyejin’s satchel from her person, Yongguk passed it to Jongup beside him.

“Go through it.” He stated briefly before turning back to Hyejin.

Her face was set in a stony, defiant expression which rivaled Yongguk’s similar one.  Her head was elevated in the air, demanding respect, and she was panting slightly, nostrils flaring, from the previous struggle. In all she resembled a pissed off fire-breathing dragon, Yongguk concluded.

Despite her outside appearance internally, she was a wreck, her mind playing on the images of the aftermath of previous gang killings she had seen and investigated over the past few years.

“Where is Hong G.?” Yongguk questioned her, but he was only met with bitter silence.

Yongguk sighed. He didn’t know who this woman was but he already knew she would be a significant pain in the .

“Don’t make this anymore difficult,” he said. “Where is Hong G.?”

Once again he was met with silence. It stayed that way for a few moments, tensions high as Hyejin and Yongguk exchanged venomous glares. At least until Jongup spoke.

“Hyung.”

Jongup held up a laminated ID card to Yongguk who took it from the younger. Looking at it the card gave an unspoken explanation

Press

Park Hyejin

Investigative Journalist

Seoul Inquirer

Yongguk turned back to Hyejin who was blankly gazing ahead, lost in self-destructive thoughts.

“So you’re Hong G.?”

Upon hearing those words Hyejin’s head snapped up to look at him with wide eyes, and it was all the confirmation Yongguk needed.

Chapter 1 is officially up! I've been brooding over this chapter for a while and it has taken me soooo long to finally post this story, I hope it will live up to any expectations you have. These first few chapters might be a little rough because these are the preliminary events that will set the backstory and relationship between Yongguk and Hyejin but once we get past that it should be smooth sailing. 

Comments, questions, concerns, criticism?

Don't be shy I value anything you have to say and will take everything into consideration. Grammar mistakes, confusion with plot, you want more of this, you don't like that, etc. All forms of criticism are welcome, I don't care how harsh it might sound because as a new writer what I need is someone to tell what I am doing wrong and how to improve my writing. If I don't know I'll never grow!

Have a lovely day.