It was their first year of high school when Joohyun’s father committed suicide. Jieun still remembers the lifeless shell her friend’s mother became and how the daughter started to do whatever she wanted, no longer caring about putting on a good girl facade.

    “You know what’s really ed up?” Joohyun said as the two of them walked around town, having skipped school that day. Jieun remained silent, letting the other girl just vent her feelings.

    “But really. Do you know who found him? His wife,” Joohyun said, eyes boring into hers as they stood on the edge of a parking lot in front of an empty gas station. Jieun knew her friend’s parent’s weren’t married.

    “No,” Jieun said, awestruck.

    “He had another family!” Joohyun yelled, her voice quivering. She blinked back tears, wanting to throw herself on the floor like a child having a tantrum. “He didn’t care about us, we were just a mistake to him,” Joohyun let out, voice thick. “I was just a mistake,” she said. Jieun wanted to cry.

    “Shut up,” Jieun said as she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around the girl, pulling her into a hug. Joohyun let the waterworks pour as her arms went limp and she was crushed with support.

•            •            •

Jieun sat on the bed next to Yoongi, scrolling through the conversation for who knows how long. There were so many meaningless messages between the lovey dovey couple that she began to lose hope in finding something useful.

    “Hey you two, don’t make me eat alone,” Bora called out from the kitchen. Yoongi stood up and grabbed the girl by the elbow so she would follow suit.

    “Come on, take a break. Let’s eat something,” the boy said as he took the phone from her and locked it before sliding it in his pocket. Maybe a bit of mental rest would help them make a random connection in finding where his cousin may have gone. The boy led them down the hall to find two bowls of pasta sitting on the dining table. The woman herself was resting in the living room on the couch facing the television.

    “Let’s watch something,” the woman said. Yoongi knew his aunt well, and could tell she wasn’t really present. Her mind was wandering away causing her to be distant and if kind of scared him. He decided to go along with it and picked up a bowl of food then following Jieun into the other room. Bora seemed stone cold as she clicked through the channels before settling on the news. An irrational thought came to mind, but he couldn’t help from saying it aloud.

    “Did you kill Joohyun?” he asked, making both of them look at him. Jieun’s eyes went wide and she whipped her head to look at the lady, to which she gave a sad smile.

    “No I didn’t,” she said before taking a pause to sigh. “I’m just as worried as you are, believe that. But I know my daughter, and she’s too wise to get herself into much trouble,” Bora said, unable to make eye contact with either teen.

    “Do you know where she is?” Jieun asked. The woman just shook her head and took in a mouthful of noodles. She stared at the tv and pointed towards the display, wanting the kids to redirect their attention.

    “She’s full of it,” Yoongi whispered after scooting closer to Jieun. She looked at him and saw his blank face full of seriousness, giving him a simple nod.

    “Well if she’s not freaking out, then nothing too awful happened, right?” the girl whispered back, trying to calm her ever beating heart as the woman turned the volume up. Yoongi shrugged his shoulders and took in a mouthful of food, even more curious as to what the hell was going on.

    “Tonight, we will be giving the full details of an international bank heist,” the announcer said. Jieun leaned in and stole a glance at Joohyun’s mother. The woman