previously on hyperreal…jiyeon’s at an anniversary gala (attended out of obligation) when she gets a call from jinsook & yeonjung: “surprise! We’re going to pocheon (aka the location of that super suspicious secret facility, remember?) and you can’t stop us!”

“Eh?!”

A guest looks at her in surprise at her sudden outburst and Jiyeon quickly puts on a smile, bowing an apology before dismissing herself out of the banquet hall.

“You’re going to Pocheon?! Are you guys out of your mind!?” Jiyeon furiously whispers.

Jinsook’s voice returns from the other end. “We just want to see what security on the ground is like. Recon, you know.”

“Put Sojung on the phone,” Jiyeon says, “Now.”

In a second, she hears Sojung hum from the other end.

“Whose idea was this? Yours?”

“No…” a pause, “Jinsook’s? Probably.”

Jiyeon sighs. “Of course… And you agreed to this?”

“She needed a driver. And honestly, I’m curious too. I think this is worth our time.”

“This is dangerous, Sojung. You two can’t just show up at Pocheon spontaneously. No one is even supposed to know that facility exists!” Jiyeon whispers.

“Jiyeon, it will just be a very harmless drive-by,” Sojung reasons from the other end and Jiyeon admits that she can sound pretty damn reassuring sometimes.

But Jiyeon stands her ground. “There is one road leading in and out of that facility. One! There would be nothing harmless or unsuspicious about driving down that road at nearly ten at night.”

“So we’ll pretend to get lost or something–“

“Chu Sojung, I swear to god, if you two knuckleheads get in that car and put our entire project at risk…” Jiyeon presses her fingers to her temples, massaging exasperatingly only to turn around and freeze when she sees a familiar face looking at her peculiarly.

“You okay?” Cheng Xiao tentatively asks with narrowed eyes.

Jiyeon plasters on a smile and straightens her back. “I’m fine.”

“Jiyeon?” Sojung’s voice is muffled when Jiyeon presses the phone against her chest.

“You don’t look fine.”

Jiyeon chuckles. “Just taking an important call. Something came up in my dad’s office. The council’s been discussing sustainability initiatives. Different opinions, so you know how it is. Tensions are running a bit high in the meeting room.” 

Xiao nods her head slowly. “Alright,” she says, “uh, your dad is looking for you, by the way. Says he has an announcement to make. He wants you with him. For the press.”

Jiyeon nods hastily. “I’ll be there soon. Thank you for letting me know.”

Xiao bows a goodbye before retreating back into the banquet hall. Once she was out of sight, Jiyeon pressed her phone back to her ear.

“Hello?”

She hears Jinsook’s voice this time. “Jiyeon! Sojung told me you hung up on her, but the call is still going on. You know, for someone who works at Seong, she sure isn’t that great with technology.”

“I have to go,” Jiyeon says. “Do not leave the office. And I’m not just saying this, I’m demanding you to stay. If I find out that you and Sojung left, there will be repercussions. Do you understand? Jinsook, I’m serious.”

“…Okay! Okay,” Jinsook concedes, “gosh, you’re so scary sometimes.”

Jiyeon drops her shoulders, just realizing how tense they were the entire time. She takes in a deep breath before slipping her phone back into her clutch, re-entering the banquet in her usual composed manner.

Back to being dignified Kim Jiyeon.

01100101

Yeonjung blocks the door with her body, clutching the car keys tightly in a fist behind her back. She shakes her head adamantly towards the two girls currently clawing at her.

“Jiyeon said no!”

She pushes Sojung away when the older girl attempts to reach for her fist.

The older girl stumbles back. “Hey, did you just shove someone older than you?!” Sojung exclaims.

Yeonjung widens her eyes. “No, no, I’m sorry! But you know I can’t let you guys do this!”

“Yeonjung, come on,” Jinsook whines. “We have to, you know we do.”

“No, you don-!”

Suddenly, Yeonjung stumbles backwards when the door behind her promptly slides open with a whoosh. Soobin squeals in surprise at the fallen body at her feet.

“Oh my! Are you okay?”

Soobin’s question goes unanswered as Jinsook immediately acts, swiftly hopping over Yeonjung’s body and diving to snatch the keys that had slid across the floor.

“Jinsook!” Yeonjung hastily gets up on her feet and chases after the other girl, now dashing down the hallway as if she was being chased by police.

Sojung promptly follows suit and Soobin, still confused, finds her feet acting on their own as she runs after the trio. The hallway doesn’t go on forever and Soobin finds the three of them at the end of the corridor. Yeonjung had Jinsook cornered against the glass window and Sojung’s firm hold on Yeonjung’s arm is the only thing keeping her from pouncing on Jinsook.

“This is ridiculous,” Yeonjung pants as she catches her breath, “give me the car keys.”

Jinsook vigorously shakes her head, pressing her body right up against the glass window as she holds the keys high above her head. Past the window, a large screen on one of the high-rises shows a live feed of a grinning man behind a podium, speaking enthusiastically to an unseen swarm of media behind the camera. Beside him, a dignified young woman smiles widely: Jiyeon, in her pretty coral pink dress.

But the bickering girls pay the news coverage no attention. 

“You heard Jiyeon, it’s dangerous! What if you two get caught?”

“We won’t,” comes Sojung's always-reassuring voice behind her.

Yeonjung whips her head to face the older girl. “How can you be so sure?!”

“Well, I’m not, but we won’t know what will happen unless we try.”

A groan slips past Yeonjung’s lips. “Pardon my disrespect, but that is literally the dumbest logic to use in this situation right now.”

Sojung blinks at her, visibly taken aback. “Excuse me?”

“Sojung’s right!” Jinsook chirps. "Don't knock it 'til you've tried it."

Just as the three were about to start bickering again, Soobin steps in between them with a resolute sigh. “Can someone please tell me what on earth is going on?”

“We’re going to Pocheon,” Jinsook answers her.

“No, they’re not!” Yeonjung interjects.

Soobin narrows her eyes. She knew enough about Pocheon; Jiyeon just had a meeting with everyone about it the previous week. And she was very adamant about its sketchiness.

“Why?” Soobin asks tentatively.

“To see what security is like. It’s just some quick scouting, that’s all. We just want to see if there’s a way to get inside the facility.”

At this, Soobin lets out a scoff. “Wait, you want to get inside?” she laughs, “Are you guys crazy?”

But Jinsook’s not laughing. She looks at Soobin, eyes dead serious. “Their firewall is too hard to crack, unsurprisingly, even with our advanced technology in the office. We’ve been trying for weeks. If we want a chance at accessing even just one of their operating systems, we have no other choice but to try and hijack their mainframe directly from within. It’s not something we can do remotely.”

Soobin glares at her incredulously, spinning her head to look at Yeonjung. “And what do you think of this?”

Sojung chirps in with an amused snort, “It was her idea.”

“It was a suggestion!” Yeonjung hastily blurts out in defence.                               

“Well we have no other choice, so your ‘suggestion’ is our only solution right now, unless you can think of a better one?” Jinsook counters. “We’ve been thinking for too long. We can’t keep dragging this out. If Jiyeon’s- no, if everyone’s hunch is true, then you know what’s at stake here. Human lives, Yeonjung!”

Yeonjung sighs, running her fingers through her hair. She’s been facing way too many moral dilemmas lately that it’s keeping her up at night.

She bites her lip, eyes darting from Jinsook to Sojung, before finally giving in. “...Fine! God, fine!” she furrows her eyebrows at Jinsook letting out a victorious cheer. “But you two can’t hang around there too long.”

Sojung finally lets go of her arm. “In and out, we won’t step a foot into the facility. We’ll just survey the exterior and then take our leave. Act like a pair of lost girls or something. Broken GPS. Turned the wrong road. No big deal.” She shrugs.

"You make it sound like it'll be a breeze," Soobin says with a snort. 

"Because it will be." Jinsook hands the keys to the older girl with a bright grin. “In and out,” she echoes for extra reassurance.

Yeonjung glares at the both of them as she crosses her arms. “In and out,” she grumbles. “I’m letting you two do this…but on one condition. Delay the trip and go in the morning. You two won’t be able to see anything in the dark.”

Jinsook purses her lips. “…Fine.”

“Jiyeon is going to murder you two when she finds out…”

“She’ll be less mad if we find something. When we find something. Because we will. I’m sure of it.”

“Your positivity and confidence has been at an all-time high lately,” Soobin chirps, raising an eyebrow at the grinning Jinsook.

"Haven't you heard of the law of attraction? Positive thoughts bring position outcomes," Jinsook says with a wiggle of her eyebrows. Her smirk is replaced by a sure smile. “I really believe this is our big break."

Because after all, they’ve been working on this for so long, the hard work has to pay off somehow, right?

Jinsook gives everyone a glance. “Now that this has been settled…anyone hungry? Let’s order jajangmyeon.”

01100101

“Bouquet of hydrangeas. Prettiest ones, please. Make it look really nice.”

The florist smiles kindly at her with a nod before going over to pick the flowers. Juyeon leans on the counter, taking a quick glance at her watch. Thirty minutes.

She’s been having far too much fun in Hyperreal lately.

The florist returns with a handful of purple flowers in her gloved hands. “May I ask who this is for? Graduation present? Someone’s birthday?”

Juyeon watches as the florist prepares the bouquet with gentle hands, careful not to damage the flowers. Juyeon, typical Juyeon, can’t help but marvel at the power of Seong Industries’ GPUs. The flowers are so vibrantly purple, even if they’re virtual. Mei Qi would surely love them.

Juyeon smiles at the florist. “Someone special.”

01100101

Despite Cheng Xiao’s (increasingly voiced) suspicions, Juyeon would like to think that she hasn’t fallen into the Hyperreal pit. Yet.

No, no, she tells herself, she hasn’t fallen in. She’s not like those people; the ones who spend more time in the game than in the real world. The ones who have transitioned from living in reality to living in the virtual world.

She’s heard of clandestine places where enticed gamers are offered, with a price, continuous connection to the game. All right under Seong's nose because it's not allowed, of course. There are integrated restrictions to length of gameplay - the system would purposely boot anyone out if they were playing too long. The reasons for it are obvious, but this doesn’t fare well with marathon gamers.

It’s completely unsafe and certainly risky, but it’s a thriving business underground. Seong has been trying to shut down places like these for months.

Hyperreal can be a deep hole to fall into, even more difficult to climb out of. But Juyeon swears she is not one of those people.

She has a life. Friends, family, a job. But her friends are always busy, her family is far away, and her mundane job bores her to no end. Seoul isn't as exciting as she thought it'd be. Hyperreal is just a bit of fun, that’s all. And Mei Qi fills a gap in her humdrum existence.

Mei Qi, in front of her, hiding rosy cheeks behind the widest smile. She holds the bouquet of purple flowers in her hands, unable to say anything as she looks at the petals of the hydrangeas. Juyeon had diminished her to a heap of shyness. It’s quite cute, she thinks.

“I…like you too,” Mei Qi finally gets it out. A returned confession! Juyeon cheers before Mei Qi engulfs her in a tight hug.

For a second, Juyeon believes it’s all real.

But she reminds herself it’s just a game. No way has she fallen into the pit. She’s in it for the fun. And perhaps, Mei Qi is too. 

Juyeon has yet to find her in the real world, but she hasn’t really been making an effort to search either. Somehow, she feels it’s better if she keeps it in the game. What happens in Hyperreal stays in Hyperreal. Nothing is real here. After all, an escape from the real world can no longer be an escape if it’s integrated into said real world.

But then Mei Qi glances at her with a smile and a distinctive twinkle in her eye.

Juyeon tries to ignore her swelling heart.

01100101

The flashes of the cameras are blinding and the plethora of microphones in front of her is slightly daunting, as if they could pick up the noise of a pin drop. But Jiyeon is used to it.

“I am more than pleased to announce that Seong Industries has been granted additional government funding on their approaching year-end projects,” her father announces.

He stood behind the podium, looking out to the crowd, all honourable like the distinguished man that he is. Jiyeon admires him tremendously.

The banquet hall erupts into a round of applause as the clicks of the cameras grow increasingly louder with the murmurs of the audience.

Jiyeon retains her smile through it all.

“Meetings have been set up between executives of Seong Industries and officials from the Ministry. Discussions are to begin in the upcoming days. Researchers from the Seoul Institute will also be present at the meetings to see what is in store for Seoul and the further development of our city. All parties involved have my support. In their hands, Korea’s technological future is certainly bright!”

Another round of applause engulfs the hall as Jiyeon subconsciously finds herself clapping along. She grins at her father when he turns around to look at her.

The atmosphere is so joyous and hopeful, it almost conquers the uneasiness building at the pit of Jiyeon’s stomach.  Almost.

01100101

Jiyeon blinks at the wide eyes and cheeky smile before her. Xuan Yi had given her an unexpected kiss on the tip of her nose.

“What was that for?” she asks, unable to hold back the gummy smile that spreads across her face.

Xuan Yi shrugs as she scoots over and lies down, resting her head on Jiyeon’s lap. She looks up at the raven-haired girl with a worrying purse of her lips.

“You seem distracted lately,” Xuan Yi hums.

“I’m sorry. I’ve had a few things on my mind.”

That was an understatement; Jiyeon had a lot of things on her mind, but she never liked to worry Xuan Yi.

All night, she had tossed and her bed after she got home from the gala. So the first thing she did when she woke up was log in to Hyperreal to see Xuan Yi. She’s always been the only one who could ease her, even if she didn’t know the reason behind Jiyeon’s troubles.

Jiyeon knows it must bother Xuan Yi; she hates keeping it all to herself too. But there’s really no other way around it and all she can do is hang on to the hope that Xuan Yi trusts her. Which Xuan Yi, time and time again, tells Jiyeon she does.

“You can talk to me, you know?”

Jiyeon nods. “I know,” she says as she lazily traces a finger along Xuan Yi’s jaw, “but it’s hard to put into words… And I know you’ll think I sound crazy.”

The sigh that slips past Xuan Yi’s lips is soft; tired, but sweet and it makes Jiyeon smile in admiration.

“That’s not true. You’re not crazy,” Xuan Yi murmurs. “Well, maybe you are a little bit. Because you like me. And you showed up at my door at 7AM in the morning.”

At this, Jiyeon chuckles. Only Xuan Yi knew how to ease all her worries away so easily.

“Yes, crazy for you. Head over heels.” Jiyeon cups her face as Xuan Yi’s eyes flutter close. “I just wanted to see you.”

“Good,” Xuan Yi hums tiredly, “stay crazy then.”

As Xuan Yi drifts off to sleep on her lap, Jiyeon looks up and stares past the window. She watches in silence the virtual clouds move slowly across the virtual sky and the virtual birds flying over the virtual buildings. As she listens to Xuan Yi’s steady breathing, she glances over at the Hyperreal logo at the corner of her peripheral vision – it floats there, perpetually, reminding her that none of this is real.

Or at least, it’s supposed to.

01100101

“How was the gala?”

“Exhausting. Like every other public event.”

Jiyeon drapes her coat over a chair before practically melting into the seat. Soobin hands her a coffee. She needed that.

“I saw the news in the sky earlier. Seong’s got the government’s back, huh?” Soobin says, nodding her head at the large drone past the window. A news broadcast filled the floating screen. She slumps on the couch.

“This city practically runs on tech developed by Seong,” Jiyeon replies with a sigh.

“Hey, it’s you!” Soobin exclaims.

Jiyeon turns her head and sees her own smiling face on the big screen, the rolling words at the bottom letting everyone know about the success of the city’s latest anniversary gala.

“You look so pretty! I saw the press photos too. You’re a real pro, Kim Jiyeon,” Soobin teases. “Raving comments once again for Seoul’s ‘most beautiful daughter’.”

Jiyeon cringes at her remark. The public attention is nice, of course, but it’s embarrassing and downright diminishing at times. It’s cliché, but Jiyeon wishes people would know she’s more than just a pretty face.

“Gross. Don’t say that,” she says, to which Soobin gives her an amused smirk.

“So…where have you been all morning?”

“I was with Xuan Yi. Where are the others?”

Soobin twiddles her thumbs. “Um, Yeonjung’s probably at the computers. Sojung is maybe…working. Jinsook’s got a thing...? Yeah. A thing. Um. Luda’s been playing video games. Probably. It’s not like she does anything else anyways.” Soobin laughs and then coughs.

Jiyeon glances over at her from her seat. Needless to say, lying has never been Soobin’s strong suit. Perhaps Soobin should’ve said something about it before Sojung and Jinsook put her on distraction duty…

Suddenly, Jiyeon remembers the Pocheon trip. She shoots up from her seat, suddenly energized as if all her exhaustion and morning laziness just evaporated. “Soobin. Where are the others?” she repeats.

“Um…nowhere…somewhere…at home…probably,” Soobin stammers through the lies.

Jiyeon glares at her. “Did they…or did they not go to Pocheon?”

Soobin can only blink at her in response, but before Jiyeon could go on a furious tirade about her friends going against what she had said and doing exactly what she told them not to do, the door to the lounge slides open with a whoosh.

In steps Sojung in a pair of dark sunglasses and Jinsook in a black cap covering her eyes, looking like a pair of bare-faced celebrities at the airport. Back from their little scouting mission in Pocheon.

They freeze when they find Jiyeon glaring at them from the centre of the room. 

Sojung, much to Jinsook’s relief, is the first to break the threateningly daunting atmosphere. “Good afternoon, captain.”

From behind her tinted sunglasses, she can see Jiyeon’s jaw tense up.

“So…how was Pocheon?” Jiyeon asks casually, but the passive-aggressiveness is palpable. She crosses her arms and Jinsook takes a step back because Jiyeon can really be scary sometimes.

Sojung claps her hands and smiles because while Jiyeon can be daunting sometimes, her status and authority doesn’t change the fact that she and Sojung have known each other for years. They’ve built a relationship comfortable enough that Sojung remains unfazed by the other. She’s not scared one bit.

“Good news! Uh, I guess. Well, we’re not in trouble, so it is good news,” she says, taking off her sunglasses. “Strangely enough, security at the facility is scant. There were no guards when we pulled up, so we drove back into town. When we returned, there was only one guy. He asked us what we wanted, told him we were lost, so he kindly gave us directions and let us go." She practically dives onto the couch. "Also, I should note that there were signs along the road telling us where it was leading us to, so…”

“It didn’t seem very secretive,” Jinsook adds, sounding almost disappointed at the lack of heavy security. “Which made me wonder if there really was something significant there…or maybe it’s just another research station…”

She slumps down on the couch defeatedly with a sigh.

Jiyeon drops her arms. “So what? Did you two figure out if you could get in or not?”

Sojung blinks at her, wondering if she just missed their entire explanation. “Jiyeon, I don’t think there’s anything relevant to us in there. It’s a two-storey facility with weak access control.”

“No,” Jiyeon says before switching her attention to Jinsook, “you saw how impenetrable their security system is. Don’t tell me you actually think there’s nothing in there.”

“I don’t think that!” Jinsook replies, “but the lack of physical security…can you blame us for feeling doubtful?"

Jiyeon sighs. “You two go behind my back and drive all the way to Pocheon, then you come in here telling me your whole excursion was fruitless and this random facility in the middle of nowhere doesn’t have anything important?”

When the other girls don’t reply, Jiyeon continues. “Well. Looks like our next step is getting into that facility no matter what.”

“What if there’s really nothing in there? I don’t want to risk getting caught breaking in if we find nothing,” Sojung reasons.

“Since you two have already decided amongst yourselves to go forward with this plan, we might as well go through with it. You drove all the way over there already, haven’t you? Might as well finish the job,” Jiyeon replies and Sojung could sense the passive-aggressiveness from all the way on the other side of the room. “We don’t have time to sit around and consider alternatives; Seong’s already been approved to receive further government backing.”

“I’m still up for it,” Jinsook says with pursed lips. She’s always had more determination than the others.

“Then let’s infiltrate. Can you get inside or not?” Jiyeon asks.

Sojung bites her lip. “Probably.”

“What will help get you inside?”

Sojung thinks for a moment before glancing over at Soobin. With a mere exchange of brief eye contact, Soobin understands what she’s thinking.

Simultaneously, they both give Jiyeon an answer with conviction. “Hyunjung.”

01100101

Hyunjung knew something was up the moment she got the invitation, but she went through with it anyway. Mostly because Soobin dragged her. And Soobin could drag her anywhere and everywhere.

But Hyunjung knows Sojung only invites the both of them for dinner at her place if she’s got a favour to ask.

“Okay, spit it out, why are we really here?” Hyunjung says, putting her chopsticks down. They had been eating in silence for several minutes already and quite honestly, it was starting to feel suffocating.

Soobin and Sojung had planned on easing her into it. But Soobin had forgotten the soft ball and went straight to it.

“Uh, do you happen to have a spare executive-level keycard?”

With no context whatsoever. Well, a fast ball is supposed to be unexpected anyway. Sojung winces from her seat. Shifting her eyes to Hyunjung, she sees the older girl narrow her eyes at Soobin.

“What?”

Sojung coughs. “Did you know Seong has a facility in Pocheon?”

“No,” Hyunjung answers before letting out a scoff. “Why would they have one in Pocheon?”

“Exactly.”

Hyunjung’s amusement is replaced by furrowed eyebrows. Sojung exchanges a brief glance with Soobin before launching into her explanation. She tells Hyunjung about Pocheon, what Yeonjung and Jinsook found in the mountains, and the high-level security of the facility’s security system.

Hyunjung just blinks at her once she's through with her explanation.

“So...you and your friends are into hacking security systems now?” she scoffs, “geez, what a hobby.”

Sojung huffs because that wasn’t the point. “It's not a hobby. Aren’t you suspicious that Seong has a facility in the middle of nowhere that no one knows about?!”

Hyunjung rolls her eyes and turns to glare at Soobin, but finds the girl looking at her the same way Sojung is: crazy, but resolute.

“What makes you guys think a keycard would be enough to grant you access if it’s such a high level of security?”

“I drove over there. They don’t even man the gate, Hyunjung. And when they do, it’s some security guard who looks bored out of his mind.”

Hyunjung narrows her eyes. “What are you gonna do, charm your way in? If there’s such lacking physical security, what makes you think you’ll find some big company secret in there?”

“Maybe that’s what they want us to think, that there’s nothing there! Divert the attention, you know!”

The older girl frowns at Soobin. “Soobin, do you hear yourself? Come on.” Hyunjung gets up, ready to leave, but she’s caught by surprise at the hand grabbing her wrist.

She looks down at Sojung’s pleading eyes and sighs.

“…Why are you even doing this, Sojung?”

“Because I genuinely believe Jiyeon.”

“…Kim Jiyeon is just so lovestruck, it’s turned her bat crazy. She’s gotten way too preoccupied with this insane conspiracy of hers. I don’t understand why she’s putting her entire reputation on the line like this,” Hyunjung grumbles. “She’s got everything in the world handed to her on a silver platter and she decides to toy with it? And all this for someone who’s not even real!” She expresses her disbelief with a condescending scoff.

“Stop it,” Soobin interrupts with a sigh and it has Hyunjung immediately wanting to retract her words. “She’s just trying to do the right thing.”

“Yeah, because she always has to be the hero. But it’s only driven her mad…” Hyunjung mutters.

“Cut it out already. We’re not in high school anymore,” says Sojung, because now was not the time to pettily dig up a buried hatchet. “We’re grown adults. And Jiyeon is not crazy.”

“Yes, we are adults. And I’ve spent years working my off to get to where I am now. So I am not about to throw it all away just because Jiyeon has a hunch and has successfully brainwashed all of you.”

Soobin snaps. “We’re not brainwashed!”

Now, Soobin is not usually one to get upset. Typically, she’s the voice of reason. The listening ear. So it’s no surprise that hearing her raise her voice startles both Hyunjung and Sojung.

They look at her with wide eyes.

“I believe her too. I’ve seen glitches with my own eyes. And just…the entire name of the game! It’s called Hyperreal, for god’s sake! You know what that means, right? Unable to distinguish reality from a simulation?” Soobin says exasperatingly. “It’s like they’re laughing at us right in front of our faces and we’re completely oblivious. How long will this go on for? The one who is doing the brainwashing is not Jiyeon…”

Soobin sits back down, not realizing that at some point, she had stood up from her seat. She looks down at her stew. They were only halfway through the dinner, but the food has probably grown cold now. Soobin doesn’t have an appetite anymore.

“Why can’t you at least try to be more understanding?”

The disappointment in Soobin’s voice makes Hyunjung’s heart ache. She is the last person in the world that Hyunjung would want to disappoint. 

“I told you two,” Hyunjung says, her voice suddenly small, “this isn’t easy for me. You’re putting me in a tricky position. Even if I wanted to help…”

Sojung takes a seat too because while she had an inkling of hope that Hyunjung would pull through for them at the start, she’ll admit that she isn’t too surprised.

“Okay,” she says, “we’re sorry. I know we’re already putting you in a tough position by letting you in on this whole operation…”

Hyunjung would be lying to herself if the sight of her two best friends looking so depressingly dejected at the dinner table didn’t make her feel a pang in her heart. She prided in being tough, but sympathy has a force of its own.

She sighs.

“Alright, listen…if they take in visitors, you’ll probably need some government-issued identification. I can get you an access badge that could grant you entry. Maybe. It’s not certain so…double-check. Physical security may be weak, but security within could be heavier.” Hyunjung shifts on her feet. “They’ve got a fixed staff of guards at Seong facilities, so they can be quite familiar with personnel. I suggest you brush up on your social engineering if you want to convince them that you’re not suspicious people.”

Hyunjung wasn’t going to completely involve herself– that would be too risky– but she figures offering some pointers is the least she could do.

And judging from Soobin and Sojung’s appreciative smiles, Hyunjung thinks she can finally rest easy for a while without them badgering her. Though ideally, she’d prefer if her friends weren’t trying to take down the very corporation that allows Hyunjung to pay her bills and feed herself.

But well, who is she to control what her friends do.

Perhaps they’re really onto something. They wouldn’t chase something so mindlessly. Hyunjung knew they acted with purpose. She may call Jiyeon crazy, but she knows Sojung and Soobin aren’t. And if Hyunjung wasn’t so afraid of the risks, maybe she’d dive in with them. It’s not like she 100% trusts the company she works for anyways.

Soobin gets up to give her a hug. “Thank you,” she says, grabbing her friend’s hand and giving it a squeeze.

“Please be careful,” Hyunjung sighs as she reaches up to tuck loose strands of hair behind Soobin’s hair. “You guys drive me crazy…Jiyeon does too. By proxy.”

“Something good is going to come out of this. I’m sure of it,” Sojung hums. “I’m positive…”

“…I believe you,” Hyunjung admits. She heaves a sigh. “That Kim Jiyeon…you really can’t underestimate the persistence of the mayor’s daughter, huh?”

Hyunjung feels the skittering breath of Soobin’s chuckle against her shoulder. “She uses her influence for good. Please, try trusting her like we do for once and you’ll understand.”

a/n: this surprise update is thanks to ami and her passionate ted talk on the law of attraction.
also, i miss meiseo. and ot13 :(