The rain goes pitter patter against the muddy ground, a perfect camouflage for the approaching boy towards the unsuspecting black shiny car. The car itself is a beauty and what a shame to lose such expensive vehicle but these are one of the things you do for revenge.

Suhyun watches from a distance, her head poking out of a bare branchy tree that shields her from other people’s sight and at the same time lets her guard her brother, Chanhyuk. The siblings are famous thieves but are mostly known for their vengeance. They hated rich people and the government for taking everything they have and then throwing them into an ugly unhygienic dump. And being gifted with resourcefulness and creative minds, they learned how to make bombs out of electronic junk from dumps they sneak into.

Suhyun does not worry about her brother because they had planned everything out, from her point blank hideout to the distance and velocity of the car until it reaches the time of combustion. Chanhyuk is agile and his thin limbs are stronger than they look, he shivers against the cold dropping water from the clouds as he installs the bomb.

“Chanhyuk--” Suhyun covers her lips in surprise, watching as a much taller and stronger looking man grabbed her brother’s collar and lifted him up effortlessly.

She immediately grabs a sturdy looking wood and attacked without second thoughts. To hell with safety, she has to save her brother! She swung her trusted weapon against the man’s nape but she is not a fighter. Missing her target, it hit the man in the middle of the back instead.

The girl’s eyes widened when the wood broke, split in half and injured and the poor girl was seized by the arm.

“LET ME GO!” She screamed though she knows nothing would happen, but she kept struggling not wanting to give up.

“Two street rats, sir.” The man corrects himself, he handed the two teenagers to another two men which were the business man’s bodyguards. “They are trying to kill you.”

And that is when she notices another man, a much older one in cliché black suit that screams “rich and powerful” that has Suhyun gritting her teeth. These are the kinds of men that she and her brother detest the most, they all deserve to die! They do nothing but step on other people’s lives, using the poor as stepping stones leaving them crushed since they are already weak and crumbling.

“You made this?” The old man asks with much interest as he smiles with no teeth showing. His Breton cap is the only thing ruining his almost serious business man aura.

Chanhyuk nodded being the quiet one he was; always surprisingly calm even though his glasses are missing and he probably doesn’t see anything clearly. He was being held by at back of his collar of his worn-out polo shirt, all drenched in rain.

“Then quite an amazing talent you have, rat.” The old man acknowledges.

“We’re not rats!” Suhyun angrily spats out. “You’re scavengers, taking everything of what’s left from us who’s as good as dead!”

Eyes filled with rage, each word were poisonous and honest from such a young heart. The old man knew that life must have not been kind on both children, but life never was kind to anyone. Life is cruel in a way that it fills you with love and takes it all away until you’re left vulnerable with no one else but yourself to rely to.

“I want to keep you.” The old man informs the two teenagers.

“We’re not pets to be kept, I’d rather die.” Suhyun immediately refuse.

The old man sighs, closes his eyes and gives his assistant a burdened look. A sudden change of expression that sends shivers on Suhyun’s spine. She suddenly felt afraid.

“You heard the young lady, Teddy.” The old man walks towards the car’s door.

Suhyun’s eyes widen and immediately struggled, stepping on Teddy’s foot causing him to let go of Chanhyuk. The poor boy slumped down the sticky mud and coughed out the dirty water that entered his mouth.

Suhyun was ready to sacrifice herself, she knew that their work was dangerous and it was her decision that if something happens she would protect Chanhyuk.

“Chanhyuk! Run!” She screams as she’s still being held by Teddy.

Chanhyuk is trembling. It was cold and he felt like he would vomit out his own heart seeing the strong man taking out a gun with a silencer, ready to kill his sister. Why am I so useless?

“Run!” Suhyun repeated but Chanhyuk could not see Suhyun.

His eyes widened at the blurry sight of his mother, there was nothing but fear in her eyes. He could not move a muscle, his throat was dry and he could not scream for them to stop.

HE JUST WANTED THEM TO STOP.

“No. Please, kill me instead!” But his voice never came out.

“CHANHYUK! PLEASE! JUST RUN!” He knows that voice, was it Suhyun? Why is Suhyun here? Where is his mother?

His heart raced so fast, is it going up his throat? He could not see anything. He could not do anything.

“CHANHYUK!” Chanhyuk felt dizzy but he could feel it, the rain pouring on him, the dirty mud he sat upon and he felt his glasses from beside him. His mother was gone, everything is gone except for Suhyun.

“Chanhyuk-

He grabbed his glasses at the call of his name, putting it on quickly.

“WAIT!” Chanhyuk found his voice, though he still feels like vomiting.

He was still trembling, he was still numb from the coldness but he tried his best to look sincere. His cheeks were feeling hot, there were tears falling from his eyes but the rain was the perfect camouflage.

“Please, keep us.” Chanhyuk never looked so brave as of now, with his muddy glasses and blurry vision he said it so clearly that everything seemed to have stopped. Suhyun neither moving nor screaming anymore, but she too was crying and her heart was breaking and she was scared. They were both scared and scarred.

“I will do everything you ask of us, just don’t kill my sister.” Chanhyuk pleads and he bows down, showing respect facing the car to where the old man is. “Please…  She’s all I have.”

The window of the car rolls down as the old man gives them a welcoming smile.

“Come inside, you might catch a cold.”

But everyone has already caught a cold.

The closed meeting room is silent, the sobbing weather coordinates with the gloomy atmosphere within and the air-conditioning produces tense air that leaves everyone unable to say anything. They are all flabbergasted at the sudden matter concerning of faulty mishaps.

Minzy sits stiffly; she could clearly see everyone by the end of the table. They avoid any sorts of disturbance against the silence though the walk clock seems to not understand anything. It is annoying. Minzy internally pulls her hairs off in annoyance of the monotone things that it makes her want to eradicate everything and be somewhere else.

“Hello.” Finally, the long awaited person comes in. Uncharacteristically wearing a pair of casual clothes, black shirt and jeans topped with an ordinary cap replacing his favorite Breton cap. He looks like he just have gotten out of the shower; slacking off maybe? “I’m sorry for being late.”

“It’s fine. You can do whatever you want, old man.” GD, who feigns that he is chilling, drinks his coffee which had probably gone cold.

“I was with a business acquaintance.” He further explains. “Why the sudden call for meeting Miss CL?”

CL exhales her nervousness taking a deep breath and letting it all out.

“Park Bom is gone.” The strength in her voice was the same, her expression unwearied but the emotions that lies within where a chaos of grief and anger. “The mission failed and she had to be left behind—

“It was her decision.” Minzy spoke up, her lips trembling in accordance with her feelings. “She saved us, if it weren’t for her choosing to stay back. YG would have been revealed.”

Her statement earned murmurs from her audience; everyone heard different versions of the story before going inside the meeting. But no one expected that the “Spring Lady” a name to mock her winter like personality would sacrifice herself for the greater good, truly unbelievable for almost everyone in the room.

“I’m glad.” A surprisingly statement from the old man.

“Y-You’re glad?!” Minzy asks in disbelief. Her anger starts to boil, here she is her hair falling off due to guilt then their supposedly compassionate, considerate and appreciative leader is relieved to hear such grave news upon his arrival. There was no secret that the leader of YG is a businessman, no different from those scumbags who greed’s money and lives a life full of lies and betrayals, but is foul for this person to mention such thing.

“My dear, there are foul things that are better left dead.” He spoke calmly that causes misunderstanding. It is almost as if he does not care that she had gone away and never coming back. But his words always held deeper meaning though not everyone knows of this.

Minzy, at her unstable emotional breakthroughs slams her hands on the desk that had everyone giving her either a surprised look or disappointed glance. But, she simply does not pay heed to their reactions anymore.

“ How could you?” With trembling angry words but she is far from crying. She has a huge bottle full of stinging poisonous words to state but the hand on her left, squeezing her is almost painful but CL’s knuckles had turned white from clenching so damn hard. Minzy understands that this is the way of CL to calm her down, but she is not going to sit down and hear more words from YG.

Minzy opted out for marching out the door, the audible wail of a vase falling being subjected to violence was the last they heard. But Minzy heard nothing, nothing but those last words “Bye.” She is frustrated with herself for not being strong enough to save her friend, it hurts her holistically that those training she had done resulted to nothing. Like having something for so long that she was so confident it would not be taken and she was wrong. So wrong.

Minzy is never athletic but her legs had dragged her away from her stress. They must have had brains of their own that her legs kept running and running and her heart was beating and thumping and her breathing was frantic and gasping. She did not stop; her legs would not let her. She kept her empty dark orbs of depression focused forward; she remains passive for a few minutes until she realizes she had stopped. She is hearing her heart beat, so so loud against her sternum.

It is her safe haven. Not really safe but the solitary feel of the place made her feel comfortable and she did not know what to do. She had not been here alone, just now that she wanted to scream at everything and claw at herself for being ridiculously guilty.

*ring ring ring*

“What’s up?” The signal is crap adding static to Jongin’s voice.

What the heck am I doing now? A question intended to herself but she nonetheless answered.

“I messed up.” Her voice was strange, soft and unconfident and not very much like hers.

“Really?” Jongin is worried. He would clichély take a bullet or two or three or hundreds for her, and it may not be the situation but he cannot will himself to not care.

“Yeah.” Minzy sounded like crying but she is sure that there are no tears to be found in her eyes, at least for now.

“Where are you?” He knows where she is but he has to ask because who is he to think that he knows her all too well?

“No.” She refuses genuinely being half honest. “Don’t come here. I-I just need someone I could talk to, your voice is enough. I can’t bear you physically being here.”

Jongin continues on his way because damn all her ideas. It is clear she needs someone by her side. “You don’t want me there?”

“Yeah.” Is all she could say.

“Why?” Jongin lets out the hurt in his voice.

“I don’t want you here.” She decides which is harsh on Jongin’s heart.

“You don’t want me there.” He repeats, the pain on his chest also repeats.

“Yeah. O-or else I’ll cry.” She admits frowning as her grip on the swing grows tighter.

“I make you cry.” He says which almost came out like a question.

It took a pint of silence before Minzy answers a lame “Yes”.

“You’re ugly when you cry.”

And Kim Jongin slash best childhood friend slash sided with the enemy stands a few couple of feet away. Minzy sees him as he jogs over, sweating and breathing hard for air because she was so important that he had forgotten he could have borrowed Sehun’s electric bike. But the thing is, Jongin looked different right now in Minzy’s eyes. Her heart aches for something other than his voice and Minzy is certain that if Jongin ever advert more closely to her eyes he would see all those shameful desires that she needed right now.

“Do you want a hug?” Jongin asks because he knows that Minzy is uncomfortable with skinship.

“I hate hugs.” Minzy replies half of her energy goes to not letting her tears fall though she is very much teary-eyed that her eyes feels heavy with tears.

Jongin hums in understanding and walks away from her front view. Going beside her and he starts pushing the swing so that it would move, and that is when Minzy lost her battle with emotional tears. And she curses before letting out a broken sob, her voice hoarse and cracking as she cry like a child and they both remember the last time she cried. When their parents were taken away with the promise of curing them but ironically it seems that they had gotten worst.

“You are the most difficult person to comfort.” Says Jongin who lets out a sigh then he turns quiet just staying by her right side because he knew that she needed her like this and Minzy would never know how Jongin needed him too in this screwed up world.

Sandara is a whole new person as she wakes up from her very first lucid dream. The first thing she wanted was a glass of water but she finds the lab empty.

“Bom?” She calls but her voice only echoed and bounced through the walls.

She walks out of the lab after having no trouble removing everything that is attached to her head. And she wanders around the kitchen finally letting her body rehydrate. She wanted to dream more, find out more about herself. It was like opening present for Christmas, not knowing what is inside and whether you would like it or not.

She wants to talk to GD. On what topic, she is not certain and what she would say? So we were classmates before and I happen to hate you a lot? Maybe it is not a good idea to talk to him at all. And she still does not know if she continued to hate Jiyong. But did it matter? She could just be friends with him now that she had forgotten all the annoyance she had felt for him.

Moreover, Sandara Park has to figure out how to get out of 2ne1’s lab. She never would have thought that she would wake up alone because CL said they won’t go but Sandara is not a child to be taken care off anyway. But she is kind of hungry and her stomach is protesting badly.

“Patience.” She tells herself and crosses her arms over her stomach.

To her rescue, the door opens and she immediately stood up to greet whoever came in. She smiles and is about to say “Good morning” when she notices that CL is not smiling as usual and she has a look of defeat in her beautiful face.

“Did something bad happen?” She questions her friend.

“Sandara!” CL is startled and she has not noticed the girl by the couch. “No. Everything’s—

CL hesitates and Sandara patiently waits for her to make up her mind.

“B-Bom is— she’s n-not here.” CL struggles to tell the truth and she mentally slaps her brain for being nervous. She reminds herself that she is supposed to be strong and she should not show pessimism upon this matter. She holds her grief and ties it down to somewhere she could forget and gives the confused girl a smile.

“Things happen for a reason.” CL initiates a calm conversation, she does not want Sandara to worry and panic. It is her duty to inform the latter but even with her strong sense of responsibility, she just wanted to take a break from all of these. “Bom was the best programmer we had and losing her at this crucial moment, it means we have to work harder towards our goal.”

Sandara does not say a word. She feels like interrupting CL was not the appropriate thing to do, no matter how much she really wants to ask.

“She went on a mission and it ended pretty badly.” CL continues answering all the questions that were confusing Sandara. “But don’t worry. We can still work on retrieving your memories.”

“Are you ok?” Sandara worries and her heart saddens for Bom but isn’t she in a better place now? It is the living that suffers more than the dead.

CL turns around, not that she wanted to be rude but she needed to hide her expression of uncertainty. It is not something she should have, but she lets go for a while at the strings of grief she had been holding down.

“The least I could do is continue her work and shut that game.” Her tone was neither soft nor grieving. It was a mixture of pain and anger that has Sandara freezing in place, feeling a certain kind of fear from that strong emotion. She had never felt anger or pain that strong, not that she remembers anyway.

She watches CL continue on to lab, forgetting about her hunger in exchange of staying with her friend.

“She changed the passcode.” CL laughs and puts her head down as tears stream down her cheeks, her mascara surprisingly not smudging. “Again.”

“CL.” Sandara could only comfort her with her own presence and she is not sure if it is enough but she rubs circles on CL’s back.

“The hell with this girl! She always does that, you know?” CL cannot believe it, after making her want to sob and forget about everything the next thing Bom does is make her laugh because she is a fool to believe she can just continue on whatever Bom was doing before. It just proves a fact that she cannot be replaced; that her place was always in this very seat and doing whatever her smartass brain programs her to do.

CL is trained to be a soldier then she becomes a leader and right now she is clueless of what to do. All she wants is to have peace in the world and lives are the payment for it since nothing is ever free. She had felt it, the string she had tied her grief down being cut and snapped and it was all free. She was crying and she felt weak, her bone are jelly and her heart being squeezed out of its blood. It was painful and there is nothing she could do but move on.

 “I can’t do this anymore.”

CL looks up to Sandara. The latter could feel her pain; she realizes that CL is not really the sidekick. She plays hero and she does not know it, she carries her own pain just like everyone else and this is one of those times she shows it.

“I just can’t.”

And it was a first to see someone crying in front her. At least in this life that Sandara has awoken to.

Maybe this was a nightmare after all.

Bom dreams of something pleasant. She does not remember where she is but she is in an office of her own judging from the green colored walls and the bookshelf that contains her precious books. It is not a familiar place and yet she finds the workplace suitable for her needs.

You’ve got a message!

Bom hums in surprise as she spotted the source of that very cute voice. Her phone was speaking to her and she picks it up without hesitation and opens the new message it offers. It was a piece of a puzzle which came from someone anonymous.

"I know you love puzzles. But I would love you more"

Bom is confused but she catches her reflection smiling by the glass window. She closes the message before she could do any more weird things she does not normally do. She feels bored and does not even want to work because she has no clue on what is going on or maybe she is currently plugged in Virtual Paradise. So she might as well find her way out. Bom stood up, straightens her skirt and tucks her hair noticing that it has become short for her to brush down.

“Where am I?” She asks herself.

You’ve got a message!

Maybe her phone would answer her and she clicks on the new mail. This time, the puzzle becomes two and she is sure that the whole picture would be a huge red heart but she peculiarly wanted it be completed.

   I know you want to keep your skin white and fair but it would not hurt to go out for a bit. I’ll be waiting.

By this time, Bom is walking out the door and closing it to reveal an elevator in front of her.

You’ve got a message!

Another one? She is quite impressed at the person who is patiently sending her these messages and she wanted the puzzle complete so she looks at it.

  You never fail to amaze me, my love.

Love, something Bom has never thought of and had never felt before. And she contemplates on where to go. She did not have to think twice when the elevator opens with a ding relieving her dilemma. She does not trust anything in this place not even the phone she is holding on to as the elevator drags her down and below. But she does not have any other choice, rather than follow what is being given to her just like what she does to computers when programming. She just types and clicks and drags everything the machine does.

  You’ve got a message!

She almost thought the message would never arrive and that she will be stuck in the elevator forever.

  “Surprise!”

It was a full big red heart and her lips sneaks in a smile again. She raises her head to the elevator door which is slowly opening and the light was a little too bright for her eyes so she closes them until she gets used to the bright contrast.

“Bom.”

In front of her were a dozen of people she has never met and the man that called her name which made her lips moves up to a smile because he was holding a bouquet of red and white roses. Bom could not clearly see his face but his mere voice had given birth to the beating of her heart, she felt nervous and excited something she is not used to.

“Yes?” She could only reply and her fingers are trembling a bit because somehow she knows what he will confess.

“Will you be mine?”

I want to see you. Bom thoughts as something wet drops down to her cheeks, she wipes it off wishing that whatever this feeling was it would never stop. It makes her all mushy and weak and blushing so madly but it feels wonderful. Her heart beating fast without the nervousness she initially had.

“I’ll be yours.”

She steps closer to him and she realizes that she really wanted this. And she had never wanted anything that was given to her; she had been born with all the riches in the world. But it is the first time she had felt the possessive urge to own something.

She spreads her arms to embrace him but all she had was thin air.

Pain spread out through her body, starting from her left shoulder. Her voice was hoarse as she winces in pain and she has to breathe deeply taking huge amounts of air and exhaling to calm herself. She tries to compose herself as she hears the door opening, biting her lip before finally sitting down and opening her eyes properly looking at the hospital room.

“You’re awake.” Bom had always been relieved to see Suzy but this time, she does not feel the similar calmness her psychiatrist provides her.

And to see a person in black suit entering the room did not surprise her. It took her no time to remember what had happened, and she clenches her fist realizing that she had been deceived by someone she trusts.

“Park Bom, you are under arrest for treason.” A petite man comes in, his eyes boring holes into her as she could feel the anger in his tone. Bom wonders if he is just doing his profession or if there is something else that makes him spat out his tone of hate. “You’ll be executed tomorrow.”

“What?” It was Suzy who was wide eyed and shocked at what she heard. “You cannot say that to my client, not when she is recovering from injury!”

“Dr. Bae. Let us be clear that I have allowed you to let her live for a while but the charges against her are final.” The man firmly says while smirking.

“Mr. Baek, with all due respect. All you have is a warrant of arrest but not a death sentence from the court.” Suzy defends her.

“It will happen trust me.” He steps closer and walks towards Bom giving her a good look and she struggled to look expressionless. “Is it painful?”

Bom does not want to communicate with someone like him. She knows who he is and she would rather die than tell him she is in pain. She snorts and gives him a questioning look determined not to talk.

“Not gonna talk? That’s alright.” He says taking interest at the dandelions on the vase. He took one and tucks in on Bom’s ear, and then Mr. Byun gives her a wide fraud smile. “You look like a doll. What is it that made you do what you do?”

Bom keeps her silence just watching the man before him grew impatient.

“No.” Baekhyun shakes his head as if talking to himself. “You should beg for your life, doll.”

Bom does not like being called doll. She is not some lifeless things that could be broken anytime.

“You’re no fun.” Baekhyun rolls his eyes and snatches back the yellow flower. He rips of its petals in one swift move and scatters them around Bom’s bed which made the girl want to strangle the smug grin on the annoying man’s face.

“Baekhyun!” Another man comes in wearing the same black suit but as Bom laid eyes on him, she knew he is somewhat different.

“What are you doing?” His droopy eyes are focused on Mr. Byun.

“Oh Lay, I would have never thought you’ll be here.” Baekhyun feigns surprise. “I was telling her how damned she is.”

“Stop it. You must not treat a lady that way.” Lay tells him looking over to Suzy. “I apologize Dr. Bae for my friend’s actions.”

“Not your friend.” Baekhyun hisses and he took another dandelion. “I’m outta here.”

“And to you, Miss Park. I deeply apologize for whatever harsh things he had told you.” Lay had a kind tone and nice words that is never fitted in this kind of world. Bom immediately knew she could use him.

She lets out a wince of pain which she has been holding in for a while and it startled her when Lay whom she had met for the very first time rushes to her side.

“Dr. Bae, get some pain killers please.” He is one of them Bom reminds herself. He could just be sympathetic knowing her situation and the charges against her.

“You’ll be alright. I’ll make sure there is no death sentence for you.” He whisper against her ears which made her feel dumbfounded and it took time before she understood that Lay was being sincere.

And Bom had never been so confused about a person.

Author's Note:

Sorry for the long wait /bows deeply/

Somehow, I have included a piece of my heart in the drama. I really really miss Park Bom *cries*

This chapter is only the beginning of pain for the lovely ladies and Dara’s has started long ago so this events will have huge effect on her ways of thinking in the future!

We apologize for the long wait but this is also a long chapter.

We always wait for your comments.