CHAPTER ELEVEN: Divided

Jessica visited her at the restaurant during late lunch hours, when things were less hectic. "How's your sister? I'm sorry about what happened yesterday."

"Physically she's okay, but she's not fine. She has an appointment with one of the psychiatrists at the university hospital."

"Hope they help."

"Yeah."

"And how are you?"

"I don't think I've fully processed that my sister actually tried to kill herself. And this past year, it's just felt like we've been deceiving each other. It's like we suddenly have time for each other but it's always something terrible."

"I see what you mean."

"Yeah."

"Are you going to do daeri driving tonight?" Jessica asked.

"Yeah, why?"

"Don't. Come over tonight. Draw something or watch funny videos. I'll pick you up later. I'm not going to entertain you cos I have to sleep, but take a break."

She could use a break. Taeyeon felt old. When she was young she was hungry and never needed to pause. Now she needed 'breaks' to feel up to working again.

Later that night, Taeyeon sat at the dining table with Jessica's laptop. She opened her sketchbook to a fresh page. She had left the book in Jessica's house since the only time she could draw would be Mondays here.

She found some manga online and tried copying the panels in the sketchbook, but ended up scrawling all over the page until the pencil lead broke. Taeyeon chucked the pencil into its box and closed the tin lid. What was the point of thinking about something as frivolous as drawing? Art did not solve real world problems. 

Hayeon saw a psychologist once a week. At the psychologist's behest, Hayeon started texting Taeyeon lengthy daily updates, and Taeyeon would write back about her day. This was supposed to help reestablish their trust and make it real for Hayeon. They had tried this before, several times, but had never persisted past a few days of one-liners. Now that an outsider was checking in with Hayeon, they had to do it.

In their eighth month of operation, an idol group filming a variety show came to their restaurant, and Shikshin exploded. Their fans would come to try the food, and because it was actually good, people kept coming back and the word spread. 

One night, in Jessica's apartment, she found herself burning through page after page of manga online. Dawn was breaking, but she was still going strong. This was a masterpiece, how the mangaka crammed details into every panel but moving the story along. She even cried a bit.

Taeyeon started drawing again. When Hayeon got her C-level scholarship, Taeyeon was making enough for the both of them to reduce her working hours. Shikshin really picked up, and they had to hire more staff. She only needed to do substitute drivings on weekends now. In her free time, she met Hayeon for breakfast, or went to the cafe near Jessica's gym to draw.

Taeyeon had no intention of stepping into the Seorim gym after getting fired, so Jessica would pop into the cafe during her break times. They went for dates around Seoul, and Jessica had some fascination with watching her girlfriend draw Itaewon, Hongdae, Uijeongbu, Anyang, or wherever they went. Taeyeon actually wanted to draw anyway. It was her drug.

Jessica went to Colorado to challenge the number two Cat "Alpha" Zingano. When she came back, she switched out Cat Zingano's picture to #4 on her leaderboard in her room. Her coach gave her a week off, and Taeyeon took the weekend. With Krystal and Hayeon, they drove down to Mokpo port. They were going to ferry around the small islands off the coast.

Hayeon had not wanted to come because of the Jungs, but Taeyeon had insisted on it.

"So, Hayeon. I heard that you're pre-Law?" Jessica asked.

"No," Hayeon said. It was old information. For a few weeks now she told Taeyeon that she was switching majors. "Psychiatry."

"Wow, that's nice."

"Mhmm."

Jessica did not know what to say after that, and Taeyeon started giggling because she knew Jessica felt uncomfortable asking natural follow-up questions like 'So why did you want to study that'. Jessica caught on a few seconds later and coughed.

"Keep your eyes on the road, unnie," Krystal said.

"Yes, Baby Jung," Jessica said.

When they reached the port, they got on a small commercial ferry, and Jessica stayed with Krystal on the lower deck while Taeyeon and Hayeon went to the open-air deck upstairs. 

They stood shoulder to shoulder, leaning against the railing while they watched white foam trail in the boat's wake.

"Unnie, the sea smells so good."

"It does. I can't wait for all the seafood."

"So... I appealed to the university administration with the help of my counsellor, and they agreed due to extenuating circumstances to grant me the B-level scholarship."

"What are you serious!" Taeyeon half-shouted. Hayeon's smile was radiant. Taeyeon whooped and jumped onto her sister. "What's 'extenuating'?"

"As in, because of my financial and family background, and because of my health issues, they reconsidered my case and decided that I didn't so bad. If Dr. Yoo hadn't told me about this, I wouldn't have known to appeal the decision."

"When did you find out?"

"Yesterday."

"We're going to celebrate," Taeyeon said.

"You don't have to be a daeri driver anymore, unnie," Hayeon said. "And I've been doing well in school again. Getting the full scholarship next term isn't far fetched."

Taeyeon could not help but laugh. They shouted at the seagulls and chucked peanuts at the birds. A middle-aged woman scolded them and they went back to Jessica and Krystal with stupid grins on their faces.

On the first island, Hayeon took over pushing Krystal's wheelchair, and the two circled the beach path while Jessica took Taeyeon to hike the hills.

"What's the good news?" Jessica asked.

"Well, first of all, Jessica Jung became World Number Two and took my sister and I on this awesome trip," Taeyeon said.

"And?"

"My little sister is doing well now. And she got that 50% scholarship I told you about, and she's probably going to get the full one next term."

"What? Hot damn... We've got to eat abalone now."

"Yep," she said, taking hold of Jessica's arm.

At the end of the day, they went to a guesthouse, each pair of sisters in one room. Hayeon laid out their suitcase and gave Taeyeon her pyjamas. Taeyeon showered and brushed her teeth first. She sat on her bed with her sketchbook and doodled a bit. After Hayeon had washed up, she snuggled up to Taeyeon and played music on her phone. She knew all the lyrics. 

On Monday morning, after they dropped Hayeon and Krystal off at SNU, Jessica received a phone call from the detective who handled Tiffany's homicide and Sunny's burglary. Apparently, while they were enjoying themselves at Mokpo, the two burglars had been killed in a prison fight. Jessica thanked the detective for informing her.

"I'm glad they are dead," Jessica said, eyes gleaming.

Taeyeon was not sorry for them either.

"Let's visit Tiff," Jessica said.

Taeyeon nodded, and she drove to the cemetary. 

"I'm back, Tiff," Jessica said. "So soon right? Especially when we just met last Tuesday. Yep things are moving fast here... I took Taeyeon and our sisters to Mokpo. And then we came back, and guess what? Those bastards got what they deserved. You probably didn't get the memo since you're in heaven, but I'm pretty sure they're suffering in hell right now. Getting by leprechauns. So... you can rest easy now."

The grayscale photo of Tiffany smiled back at them.

"Anyways, it's the end of rest week so I'm going to start training. I'm going to become number one for real, Tiff, so watch over me," Jessica said. She passed a hand over Tiffany's epitaph. Her older brothers had written it was in English.

Jessica had told Taeyeon what it meant, but she had forgotten. She bowed her head and followed Jessica back to the car. They sat in silence. Then Jessica started the engine and backed out onto the road and they went home.

Taeyeon felt good about dropping her daeri job, and started working at Shikshin from Wednesday to Sunday, meaning that she had two full days off. She spent some of Monday and most of Tuesday drawing for real. She outlined her illustrations and comics, and before going to Shikshin on Wednesday morning, scanned them at an Internet cafe before posting them online on Daum and Naver. 

The next week, she had five hundred views, two comments and three likes. Taeyeon felt an inexplicable high from these stats, but then she realized that there were seventy pages of more successful results on the webtoons index. She reread her two one-word comments and felt better. She posted her next batch of comics, and logged off.

She continued this routine for two more Wednesdays, and her last comic had made it to the thirtieth page of Daum's results. It was an incredible feeling. She put her folder of drawings into her bag and went to the bus stop.

Shikshin had a long line outside its doors at lunch and dinner time. During their afternoon lunch break, Taeyeon told Sooyoung about her results.

"That's great," Sooyoung said. She looked at Taeyeon's drawings. "This is so cute. You know what, if you frame this up, like in a simple black frame, you could put this up around the restaurant. It fits our concept."

"For real?"

"Yeah. These last few don't look too shabby," Sooyoung said. "You could sign off your drawings with your username and maybe you'll get more readers."

"Yeah?"

"Do it," Sooyoung said.

"Okay I will," Taeyeon said. "Thanks."

"Of course."

After work, Taeyeon went to Jessica's apartment because her girlfriend missed her and wanted them to have a sleepover. The next morning, Jessica went out at dawn for her run and then straight to the Seorim gym for training. Taeyeon came out of the apartment and went to the bus stop. She stood by the bus sign, alone.

A white van rolled up, and Taeyeon stepped aside to let the passengers inside alight. Before she could react, the men pulled her into the van. She tried to scream, but a rough hand that stank of raw fish covered .

"Finally got you," the man said. He had a black eye. "It was so hard to get you alone. The boss has been giving us so much ."

Somebody behind her grabbed her hands and cinched them behind her back with a zip-tie. was duct taped and a bag put over her head. Taeyeon struggled. She drove her shoulder into the man in front of her.

Two hands grabbed her and threw her to the floor of the van. A kick whipped into her stomach. And Taeyeon screamed into her gag. made coughing noises against her sealed lips. Then someone sat on top of her. "Stay put or I'll kick the out of you."

Taeyeon stopped wriggling and tried to slow her breathing. Doing it through a bag while being sat on was not helping things.

The van stopped, started and turned many times. She felt sick. Then the engine got turned off at another stop. The man sitting on top of her stood up and dragged her out. She blindly stumbled alongside him, pins and needles shooting through her arms. She could hear the faint sound of construction and smell the ocean. She knew they had walked into an enclosed area, because the wind stopped blowing. Then they stopped.

"Ah, finally."

"Yes, boss."

The bag was pulled off her head, and Taeyeon was stared. There was a man in a white suit and gold-rimmed sunglasses. Behind him, another man sitting on a chair. He was whining. His knees and face were bloody. There was a group of gangsters surrounding them. Taeyeon shook when the white-suited man lifted her chin by the hammer in his hand.

"Hello, Miss Kim. I've been wanting to meet you for two weeks now."

He let go of her and passed the hammer to one of the gangsters standing off to the side. She did not dare to break eye contact.

"I'm second-in-command at Goldmoon," the white-suited gangster said. He peeled the duct tape off , and she could smell the cigarettes he smoked.

"What do you want with me, sir?"

Second-in-command smirked. He struck her across the face, and Taeyeon tasted blood.

"I didn't ungag you to speak to you. Where's her phone?"

Somebody rummaged through her pockets and pulled out her mobile. Second-in-command sneered at the old Samsung and navigated to her call history. He dialed a number and the speakerphone.

The phone rang.

"Taengoo?" Taeyeon recognized Jessica's voice. Her stomach started churning. This must be the gang that Jessica, Sunny, Hyoyeon and Seohyun offended. The last time, the gangsters had demanded money since two of their own were jailed. Now that those two were dead, they would want more.

"What an affectionate nickname, Miss Jung."

A pause. "Who is this?"

"Because of you, someone close to me is dead. The idiots who killed him will pay. But you put him there, so I'm including you and your faggy in my revenge party."

"What. Who are you?"

Second-in-command nodded at Taeyeon. Somebody grabbed her left hand and started tugging at one of her fingers. She struggled, but her finger continued bending at the joint. It cracked with a snap. She screamed.

"Taeyeon!"

Taeyeon bit into her lower lip as she fought back a whimper. The man twisted her broken finger and she screamed again.

"Now you listen to me..." Second-in-command said. Taeyeon felt like her head was underwater. She could hear heavy breathing and the edges of her vision were blackening. The only thing keeping her awake was the pain in her hand. The man broke another finger.

She vaguely heard Jessica shouting into the phone. Second-in-command was speaking calmly.

"All three of you are going to experience the loss that I have suffered, and I will only be satisfied until this is over. Don't bother going to the police."

"Hey! Wait!"

Taeyeon watched as her phone was shattered on the ground. She whimpered when her hand was let go with a final twist.

"Put her with the others."

She was walked past racks stacked with crates and wooden boxes, to a corner of the warehouse. There were two other people there- a fat man in a faded wifebeater and a blond teenager in a high school uniform. They were beaten up and seated apart from each other. She was shoved to the floor and handcuffed one of the vertical beams of the storage racks.

Behind her, she could hear the man who had been tied to the chair being tortured with the hammer again. Her fingers had been broken as an appetizer. At that moment, Taeyeon hoped that the man would survive. She heard him scream in an agony worst than death, and he pleaded for them to just kill him already. She wanted him to hold out longer so that they would forget to come for her.

A/N: I really appreciate the comments and subscriptions from last time:) Let me know what you thought of this chapter!