Chapitre Cinq

When Yuri woke up the house was already active with chattering and the smell of hot cocoa. Yoona had long been awake eating a last bite of pancake and Taeyeon had occupied the khaki desktop. Yuri pushed herself up by her elbows rubbing her eyes sleepily.

“Good morning.” She muttered in a groggy voice and regretted it immediately.

“Good morning.” came Yoona’s unexpected reply, and she was smiling. And then the smile faded out as quickly as it came across her face.

“Good morning! You should get up already, it’s almost 9 o’clock! I have made pancakes with honey and strawberry syrup and some really nice hot chocolate because what’s better than a hot chocolate on any day, right? Besides I have a late night date today so it’ll be appreciated if you both were done quickly with your work and took your asses away from here. Nobody’s supposed to know my address.” Taeyeon said in one go without taking her eyes off the computer’s screen.

“Shut up. Big Boss will buy you a new house.” Yoona said munching and her cheek puffy. Yuri wanted to poke them.

“Idea’s not bad…” Taeyeon scratched her head in thought, “bigger house. But…shifting all this will be chaotic and I’ve sort of grown attached to the grandmother next door.” She tapped her fingers on the desk in excitement and grinned. “I found it!”

Yuri got up and began folding the mattress back. Yoona coughed for her attention and pointed at a plate next to her own that was well prepared with pancake drizzled with honey. Did she…prepare it for Yuri? Yoona set the breakfast for her? Yuri smiled.

“Infact,” Taeyeon swirled her chair towards them, raising a brow, “I found the original.”

“The original?” Yoona’s eyes narrowed in confusion.

“Definitely. It’s with Sooyoung.”

“Sooyoung?” Yoona narrowed her eyebrows next. “The cousin?”

“Yup, her cousin. Rebecca visited her a week before…the whole incident.” Taeyeon puckered her lips into a thin line. “I’ve received this private encoded mail from Hyukjae’s side. Rebecca had left it with Sooyoung along with a message for you.”

Yoona grabbed the edges of the plate so tightly. They were cutting into her skin but that wasn’t the pain reflecting on her face. She was so disturbed, so…regretful.

“For me?” she asked and it sounded so breathless. Yuri stared at her biting her bottom lip to stop it from trembling.

“Yeah…” Taeyeon cleared . “Seems like she had planned it all long ago. She wanted you to be the one to keep the Evi-O safe.”

“No…no…” Yoona chuckled so emptily “you don’t tell me she plan to die.”

Taeyeon’s eyes glistened. “It seems so.” She nodded and looked back at the computer quickly. “Seems so. As if she knew she’s going to die.” Her voice cracked at the end.

Yuri kept staring at Yoona. Her face screamed with hurt. She was holding back dried tears and with each passing second something within her seemed to break apart again and again. She ran a hand through her hair, staring down at her empty plate. There was something Yoona wanted to say…something she should’ve done. Or done differently. Yuri could read it on her face every time she made that expression…that there was something Yoona had done that she wanted to repent so badly.

“I uh…I’ll text you Sooyoung’s hideout location. It’s far out in the countryside. Could take four days to reach at max.” Taeyeon typed frantically, feet tapping an irregular rhythm at the ground. Yoona tugged at the end of her hair and thought.

“You do that…I will be back.” Yoona got up and grabbed her jacket from the couch.

“Where are you going?” Yuri asked with a curiously scared voice. God, just don’t do something stupid like….like overdosing. I don’t know. Do you even do drugs? Yuri was thinking.

“I will be back. Eat a lot,” Yoona motioned at the breakfast as if a warning. A threat to eat a lot or she’ll do something.

Yuri nodded and waved as the tall gangster exited the house. It was her, Yoona’s decorated pancakes, the cocoa smelling living room and a hunched over Taeyeon wiping her face from tears. It was so very surprising to see her cry like that over nothing. Atleast nothing that Yuri knew.

“Are you okay?” Yuri asked, voice low and sincerely concerned.

Taeyeon nodded looking up. “Yeah…uh I’m just a crybaby.” She wiped her snotty nose with the sleeve of her sweatshirt. “You should really eat a lot…the road is long and barren. Tell me if you want anything else.” She tried to smile and returned to her computer.

Yuri looked at the plate. It was a clumsy effort yet she was happy about it. She grabbed a fork and ed it into the middle of the layers of pancakes, thinking she really should’ve just poked Yoona’s full cheeks that made her appear similar to a fat squirrel.

“It must be so difficult for Yoona to have you around.” Taeyeon said midway, now up and heading towards the kitchen.

“Wha...why?” Yuri asked, taking a large bite. Was she a burden? Because she could get them into trouble? Or because she couldn’t protect her own self?

“To be with you...she must look at you and be reminded of the person she loved only to realize you’re not her.” Taeyeon explained coming out with a plastic bag full of marshmallows.

The answer was unexpected. It was the first time Yuri thought of it in that way and the suffocating feeling loomed over her heart again. She looked around unable to swallow the bite.

“Yoona loved Rebecca?” Yuri asked, almost choking but Taeyeon poured her water. As friends…right?

“Still does. Always has.” Taeyeon smiled weakly. “Everyone knows that in the mafia world…Yoona who loved Rebecca like fire loves air.” She picked up a lump of marshmallow and stared at it. “Amoureuse. To be in love. My first French word Yoona taught me…said it was her favorite. Made a lot of sense why the way she would stare at Rebecca.”

Yuri felt uncomfortable.

Don’t even lie to yourself…you know Yoona had more than friendly feelings for Rebecca. She is the person Yoona wants to find. The person she wants to be in the embrace of. It’s so obvious…you’re so unwanted.

“Did you get close to Yoona by speaking French?” Yuri asked to change the topic. It was making her angry. But why?

“Me? I can’t speak a grain of French to save my life. I started talking to her with Japanese.” Taeyeon finally gulped it down, quick in taking out another.

Yuri liked this. This topic was interesting…it was about Yoona. Atleast what she preferred knowing about her. “She can speak Japanese too?”

“She is half Japanese, sure she does.” Taeyeon stared at her next then smiled. “All our gang speaks it. Infact our operations mainly take place in Tokyo. South Korea is just the Underground.”

Yes she was liking it. Nothing to do with Rebe