Chapter Nine:

Unfortunately Hyuk's part will probably be short again, I'm sorry!

--Minah--

(Before she disappeared)

As I stood outside Aunt no, my mother's house I placed my head in my hands. My whole life has been a lie. First my mother wasn't my mother and my aunt was, second the model Hyuk was my brother and then there's the fact that Hakyeon is more than likely the night courier, N.

 

The first time I felt something odd about him I pushed it aside. Then there was the trip to the hospital that set of red flags once again. He never talked about his personal life to me. Then there was that girl who came to pick him up. I couldn't place her voice at first but now it's clear that she was the one driving the car that night he kissed me. Still that didn't mean Hakyeon was N. But I still had more evidence against him.

 

When N appeared at my house last night to attack my parents it seemed personal. He even threw my mother or whatever she was to me, up against one of the kitchen cabinets. It had to be personal, I've never seen him man-handle a woman before. But that wasn't what gave away his identity to me. It was when he grabbed me, he had his right arm wrapped around my neck, not too tightly but it still caused his sleeve to ride up his arm a bit. I caught a glimpse of his skin, his tan skin. That color was way too familiar to me.

 

Then when I went to stop him from continuing to attack my mother he flinched. That was his right arm again, and it just so happens that Hakyeon had a knife wound on his right arm.

 

When I look back now it all made sense. His timing with his arrival at Nam Publishers was right around the time he first showed up at N around me. That also makes up for the reason he can't edit to save his life too. The signs had been there the whole time, I just was too dumb to figure it out.

 

I pull out my phone and pull up Hakyeon's number. I had sent him a message earlier to which I got no response. What did I do wrong? Why was he at my house last night?

 

I open up another message and sigh.

 

To: Hakyeon

From: Minah

Hakyeon is there something that you're hiding from me?

 

After typing out the message I hit send. I look out towards Daheun who was sitting in her car, she was busy on her phone. I pull up Taekwoon's number and hit send.

 

"Hello, Minah?" He answers the call shortly after.

 

"Can you give me Yumi's number?" I ask, I was going to help them ruin Ahn Incorporated. There was no point in running, my parents desevered this.

 

"Ah, yes." He answers. "Did you decide to edit for her? I'm sorry she came off very persistent the other night."

 

"Yes I did." I lie. "She wasn't very persistent it's alright."

 

I hang up after saying goodbye to him only to call Yumi.

 

"Hello, who is this?" She answers after a few rings.

 

"It's me Ahn Minah." I reply.

 

I heard her scoff. "What do you want?"

 

I bite my lip and my eyes dart back to Sunhi's house. My brother and mother were in there, this was for them.

 

"I would like to turn myself in to you." I say.

 

She snorts. "Why would you do that?"

 

"I found out the truth about my parents and I want to end Ahn Incorporated just as much as you do." I tell her.

 

A small pocket of silence follows my sentence.

 

"Can you meet us in front of Nam Publishers at seven tonight?" She says after a while.

 

"Yes." I reply.

 

"Okay, this had better not be a set up."

 

"I promise it's not." I reply. Then she hung up.

 

My eyes move to Daheun who was still cell phone absorbed sitting in her car. I didn't want her to get involved, if I remember correctly the three o'clock bus should be coming through soon. I can catch it if I'm fast enough to get away from Daheun.

 

I patiently wait for the bus to show up down the street, when it does I casually begin walking down the sidewalk towards Daheun's car. She looks up from her phone when she sees me approaching the car. She smiles but I turn to the right and walk past her car.

 

"Minah?" She calls out from behind me. I take of into a sprint as the bus came to a stop at the bus stop. I glance over my shoulder and see Daheun behind me on the sidewalk. I look forward and quickly get onto the bus. A few seconds later it takes off and I see Daheun stop herself from moving forward. She quickly looks down at her phone and then puts it to her ear.

 

I sit down in my seat and take a deep breath. My phone began buzzing in my lap and I hit ignore. I'm sorry, Daheun.

 

(Around Seven)

 

It was almost seven o'clock and I was waiting alone in front of Nam Publishers. I had been crying earlier but I finally got past the tears and stopped. I pull my phone out and dial Hakyeon's number. 

 

It went straight to voicemail. His phone must be dead or off. I let the voicemail recording play out, I should at least leave him a message right?

 

"Hakyeon." I say trying to keep my voice steady. "Please will you answer your phone. I need someone to talk to." I needed to tell him that I knew about his idenity as N. I also wanted him to know that I was about to do something stupid.

 

I pause, bringing my hand up under my nose in case I had any snot leaking out of my nose. "I'm sorry about everything."

 

"Aunt Sunhi, no I mean-." I pause again. "Whoever she is to me, I don't know anything anymore, told me some life-changing stuff earlier and I just wanted someone to talk to. And I find it comforting to talk to you." Was I really not going to confront him about being N?

 

"Ahn Minah?" I hear a voice coming from my left. I glance that way and see the gangster with Yumi by his side.

 

"I have to go, bye Hakyeon." I say into the phone hanging up.

 

"You ready?" The guy asks.

 

"Yeah, just please don't rough me up. I'm on your side." I sigh.

 

"Prove it." He crosses his arms across his chest. Yumi rolls her eyes beside him.

 

"My father Ahn Chunghee is really Han Chunghee. Lee Youngil isn't my real mother, my real mother is Lee Sunhi. They've been lying to me my whole life. That stupid woman Youngil even poisoned my real mother after Sunhi gave birth to my brother." I say. "I'm not messing around with them any longer. They've treated me like since I can remember and I put up with it because I thought they were my parents. But now that the truth's out I'm done with them."

 

He nods. "Do you know why I'm after them?"

 

I shake my head no. "Why?"

 

He shakes his head. "You see I already knew Ahn Chunghee was a Han. He owned Han Metro, in which I used to work for. On