Chapter 3: Broken

As usual, Luhan's house was neat. His living room had no clothes strewn all around. His shelves were nicely organised. The books on his shelves were arranged alphabetically and as usual, Yoona wondered if this was a woman's or a man's house. The house was far too clean for her to believe that this was actually a guy's house. Even Sehun's and Jongin's house were not as clean.

Yoona sighed. Again, Jongin appeared on her mind. It had been more than forty-eight hours since the younger guy died and she still could not stop thinking about him. Jongin was a very good friend. He had always been there for her whenever she needed him. Now, when someone had murdered him, she was not there to save him. She was not there to protect him. Instead, she was busy dancing and drinking.

What kind of friend was she?

"We're here now," Sehun stated the obvious, snapping Yoona back to reality. "What did you want to discuss about Jongin's death?"

Yoona looked around the living room. Jinri was sitting on the sofa, Krystal was leaning against a wall, Sehun was looking out of the window and Luhan was sitting down on the floor while Yoona was sitting next to Jinri. All of them had casual clothes on as this was not a formal occasion. The atmosphere was far too awkward and tense.

"Krystal, tell me the truth, did you or did you not kill Jongin?" Yoona asked, practically ignoring Sehun's question. Sehun had always been quiet but not grumpy. She wondered what made the guy react this way. Why was he acting like he did not care about Jongin's death? Jongin was his best friend.

Krystal, Yoona noted, looked shocked as soon as she had asked the million dollar question. She looked as though she could not believe that Yoona had just asked the taboo question. "Unnie, don't you trust me?" she asked. Her eyes showed the hurt that she was feeling. She was obviously offended.

"I don't," Sehun interjected before Yoona could reply. He turned to scowl at Krystal before looking out the window again.

"Why not?" Krystal challenged, holding her head high. Her eyes seemed to sharpen as she narrowed them at Sehun but the guy just shrugged nonchalantly, refusing to answer her.

"What's going on here?" Luhan, as the leader of their little group, intervened before any arguments could happen. Even though he was quite nice, he did have the leadership qualities which caused everyone to respect him and appoint him as their leader. He always knew how to handle such situations.

Unfortunately, things changed.

Ever since Jongin died, something had changed. Jinri became quieter. Sehun became grumpier and definitely from polite to this guy who spoke what was on his mind. There were no signs of Krystal changing but she absolutely would as time passed. The burden on Luhan's shoulders increased while Yoona became vengeful.

Where were those adults who used to have fun and laugh together?

Where were those adults that were happy?

"I did not kill Jongin," Krystal announced after a moment of silence. She closed her eyes briefly before opening them once again. "I did not kill him," she repeated, enunciating each word carefully.

Silence enveloped them as they tried to process what Krystal had just said. "If you didn't, why were your fingerprints on the gun?" Jinri voiced out her thoughts quietly, looking directly into Krystal's eyes. Yoona was shocked as soon as she saw Jinri's eyes. They were vacant and lifeless. It was as if she had no more hope in life anymore.

"I admit, the murder weapon is actually my gun but it went missing," the accused young woman confessed. "That's why my fingerprints were on the damned thing."

"Why didn't you tell the police where you were then?" Sehun asked bitterly. He turned away from the window and faced the others. He crossed his arms over his chest and pursed his lips.

"I can't, okay?" Krystal snapped. "I promised. I can't tell anyone."

Yoona let out the breath that she did not realise she had been holding. She could feel nothing but annoyance. Why was this girl still refusing to let people know where she was when she was in the danger of getting accused with a murder that she did not commit?

Too annoyed to ask the young woman anymore questions, she turned her attention to Sehun and eyed the young man carefully. "What did you and Jongin fight about last week?" she asked, raising her eyebrows.

Everyone turned to look at Sehun who had just visibly paled. He shrugged. "It's nothing," he declared.

At that, unexpectedly, Luhan snapped. Yoona could see that he had had enough of secrets. She knew that he was frustrated at others for keeping things away from everyone else. Maybe that was why he did what he did next. "Why don't you tell everyone here why you fought with Jongin, Sehun-ah?" the oldest among them asked silkily. His voice was laced with venom and Yoona flinched. "Why don't you tell them how you tried to get him back to his senses by punching him?" Luhan continued to ask in that sickly sweet tone of his.

"Why don't you tell them how you found out about Jongin's cheating tendencies?" Luhan asked, dropping the ultimate bomb on top of them.

"What do you mean by that, Luhan oppa?" Jinri asked sharply.

Even Yoona was surprised at Luhan's statement. She looked back and forth between Sehun and Luhan. The two guys knew something that they did not and she wanted to find out what.

"Fine, then," Sehun snarled menacingly. His eyes were on fire as he said, "Jinri-ah, I'm sorry to say this but Jongin had been cheating on you with Krystal for the past few years."

Yoona gasped while Jinri was stunned into silence. Yoona noticed how the younger woman tried to hold back her tears. Jinri's clenched fist and the way she bit her lips told it all. Yoona then looked at Krystal almost accusingly but Krystal just looked resigned.

Jinri closed her eyes and took in a sharp intake of breath. She was trembling with fury, sadness and the sense of betrayal. Her lips quivered and it was obvious how she was trying her best to stay strong.

Her first tear spilled from her eyes.

"Making me look like a fool – are you guys satisfied?" Jinri's shaky voice broke the silence. She opened her eyes tiredly and stood up. "If there isn't anything else, I'd like to leave first." The young woman walked towards the living room but as she passed by Krystal, the other girl gripped her arm, stopping her in her tracks.

"I'm sorry," Krystal apologised softly.

"What are you sorry for, Krystal-ah?" Jinri asked, almost mockingly yet sadly. A bitter smile reached her lips. "Oh, right. You're sorry for screwing your best friend's boyfriend behind her back."

All eyes were on the two young women now. It was like watching a scene in a movie that you could barely take your eyes off it.

"Oops, I forgot," Jinri sneered even though the tears were evident in her eyes. "You're sorry for screwing your ex-best friend's dead boyfriend behind her back."

Broken – was the best way to describe Jinri now.

Broken – was the best way to describe the bond that Serenity Society had now.