Black Diamond

1. Chapter 1

The neon lights flashing in tandem to the beat of the popular K-Pop song playing over the speakers did nothing to hide the understated luxury and elegance of the norebang. Sparkling black tile led the way to pristine karaoke rooms, some small enough for two people and others large enough for a party of twenty.

From the outside, the karaoke bar, called the House of Cards, was just an upscale norebang that had a high entrance fee and an even higher priced menu. But, those who carried the Red Ace card, knew better.

With a special, personalized Red Ace, high paying customers were given special perks at the House of Cards. First, all Red Ace holders gained access to the super exclusive, private rooms on the second floor of the club. These rooms were even more luxurious than the ones on the first floor, and they had a price tag to match. Each room came with a fully equipped bar and a staff of “helpers” to ensure that each guest had a good time.

Of course, the staff at the House of Cards were helpful with many other things besides pouring drinks. For the right price, just about any employee of the norebang could offer assistance with whatever a card holder required. From pouring drinks and entertaining foreign clients to more “hands-on” assistance, each request given to an employee at the House of Cards was accepted at the discretion of the requester and the requestee.

It was another busy Friday night at the House of Cards. Hidden in the inner depths of Gangnam, underneath a convenience store and two cafes, a line had already gathered to gain access to the upscale karaoke bar.

The staff was busy flitting from room to room with food, drinks, and anything else patrons required. Everyone that worked on the first floor were normal employees, either new to the staff or old enough to avoid being bothered with the complicated demands of Red Ace holders, but even they contributed to the club’s infamous reputation.

The key to the House of Cards was simple: every single employee was at least a 7 out of 10 in visuals, down to the cooks and the cleaning crew. It was a major selling point for the karaoke bar, even though they didn’t bother to advertise for the norebang anywhere. They didn’t have to -- news traveled fast by word of mouth alone.

Two women leaned over the loft railing from the second floor, watching as one of the newer girls escorted a group of college-aged guys to a 10-person karaoke room. One was a petite, slim blonde in an emerald green off-the-shoulder dress that stopped just above her knees. She had medium length hair that was tousled in beachy waves, the ends just resting on her collarbone. Diamond earrings hung from her ears and a diamond bracelet glittered on her wrists.

“You think they see us up here, Diamond?” She asked the woman beside her, in English. They were the only two native English speakers in the building so naturally, they stuck together.

Her partner, Diamond, smirked slightly, just as one of the guys from the group downstairs looked up and caught her gaze. “Oh, they definitely see us.” Diamond replied, flashing a smile in the young man’s direction.

A woman like Diamond was a rare sight in Seoul; possibly even rarer than the blonde haired, blue eyed beauty beside her. Diamond was a sepia toned goddess, clad in black and gold. Her midi length black dress was molded to her body like a glove, the choker neckline showcasing her ample cleavage and smooth, even skin. Her shapely hips and voluptuous frame earned her a lot of attention from the clients, even more-so than her ethnicity. Diamond wasn’t exactly short or tall, standing at about 5’4” though she wore heels more than anything else during her work at the House of Cards. Her hair was styled in a chic braided bob, complete with jewelry and golden threads carefully added throughout. A single golden stud glittered from her nose and highlighted the other gold jewelry she wore: golden earrings, two bracelets on each wrist, and three golden rings on her left hand.

“Diamond-unnie, Susie-unnie, the clients are ready for you,” a voice said from behind the two women. Both women turned around at hearing their names called.

“Any ideas who it is this time?” Diamond questioned the first floor waitress in Korean, who looked so nervous she wouldn’t even look up from the floor to face them properly.

“S-Some big bosses from the entertainment industry,” The younger woman answered.

Susie tapped her cheek thoughtfully for a moment, “Hmmm, I wonder which company it is?”

“Who cares? They’ll just try to micromanage us like they always do,” Diamond retorted, speaking in English again, with a frown on her beautiful face.

“Oh!” Susie brightened considerably, placing her closed fist on top of her hand as she suddenly had an epiphany, “I remember that group coming in earlier! They had some hot guys in that room with those old farts. This should be fun.”

“Well, we know our unnies will probably push us off to the old men, like usual,” Diamond muttered, just as three other House of Card helpers crossed the open sitting room to head towards the hallway of karaoke rooms. One of the women with jet black hair gave Diamond and Susie a look of disdain as she walked by them.

“She has one more damn time to look at me crazy...” Diamond muttered, and Susie laughed nervously as the waitress that had come to fetch them looked even more panicked than before.

“She’s fine, newbie, don’t worry.” Susie assured the girl, switching back to Korean easily. She wrapped an arm around Diamond’s shoulder, whispering to her in a rushed breath, “Mel, chill!”

“You’re using the wrong name, Susie,” Diamond bit out, sarcasm dripping from her tone.

“We’re off to entertain the guests!” Susie announced loudly with a disarming smile, and a wave towards the waitress. Diamond let Susie drag her along, keeping shut.

Those stuck-up es would get paid back soon enough.

Diamond and Susie knocked twice on the sparkling black door for Room #12, opening it after a pause. A hush fell over the room as the two of them filed in one at a time, facing the clients in the 20-person VIP room. There were several older gentlemen, dressed in business formal attire, and five guys that definitely looked like they were members of a boy group. None of them looked like they could be over 25.

The five younger guys were drop-dead gorgeous. Their visuals were on point as a group, but even individually, their looks were killer. Diamond scanned each of their faces one at a time, though one of the guys, the one with bright red hair, had his head down, doing something on his cell phone. She smiled ruefully to herself, guessing at how old they probably were.

The three women who had entered the room before them were already spread amongst the men, and just as Diamond had predicted, only one of the other girls were sitting with two of the older men on either side.

“Thank you for visiting our House of Cards,” Diamond and Susie said in unison, bowing their heads respectfully. “I’m Susie, and this is Diamond. Welcome to our club!”

The older men began to clap, thanking the two of them eagerly. The younger guys followed suit, though their applause was much more polite.

“I had heard rumors that there were two foreign beauties hiding here, but this is my first time actually seeing you,” one of the older business men stated, not hiding his lecherous glances towards either woman.

“Unfortunately, we both have regular customers, and get booked quite often. Tonight’s your lucky night, oppa~!” Susie spoke in her most exaggerated, cutest voice, heading over to the sectional where the rest of the party sat. Diamond moved to follow her, heading towards the couch with a polite smile.

“You,” A bald-headed, stern man in a gray suit spoke up, pointing in Diamond’s direction, “Come sit over here by me. You can move further down,” he told the girl who had been sitting beside him, who scoffed, and moved a bit down the row.

Diamond resisted the urge to frown at the way the man was addressing her and her coworkers, but changed course.

Beside Gray Suit was one of the younger guys -- the one with obviously dyed red hair. He hadn’t been paying attention until Diamond started walking towards their section of the couch, but she certainly had his full attention now. As she got closer, his eyes wouldn’t move away from her.

He had a surprisingly angelic face with downturned eyes and sharp eyebrows accenting his beautiful face. Truly, he was absolutely gorgeous. Diamond had seen lots of handsome guys before, but this one really beat them all. Their eyes met, and since Diamond was never one to back down from a challenge, she didn’t look away.

Diamond was intrigued the longer he stared at her, putting a bit of extra sway in her hips as she walked directly towards him.

Since she already had his attention. Diamond made sure to brush her legs against his as she shimmied by to fit between the table and the couch.

“Excuse me,” Diamond murmured, watching as his gaze flitted to her bare legs before immediately swinging away from her entirely. She giggled behind her hand as she sat down, turning towards the older man who had called her over. “Shall I pour you a drink?”

Gray Suit nodded, and it seemed he was the most important person in the room, because once he took a shot from the cup she poured, the others around them started having their drinks too.

“So, who’s going to sing first? Can you sing, oppa?” Susie questioned in a saccharine sweet voice, looping arms with the man next to her. Diamond rolled her eyes, turning away to take her own shot. She’d need to get alcohol to get through this party.

Diamond accidently bumped her arm against the redhead next to her, who bowed his head a little and mumbled an apology, an unreadable expression on his gorgeous face. His voice was surprisingly wonderful to the ear. Diamond was further intrigued.

Before anyone else could speak up, Gray Suit turned and looked at Diamond again, “Do you want to sing our first song, Diamond-ssi?”

Diamond had been too busy trying to get the redhead to look up at her again to realize the old man was talking to her. For some reason, she really wanted to hear his voice again.

Susie decided to help her out, “DiDi, are you gonna dance for us?”

Diamond looked up, finally focusing on the rest of the party. This guy was throwing her off her game, and it hadn’t even been five minutes. She was way more professional than that. Still, she couldn’t resist leaning across the young man to pick up the remote control for the karaoke machine, “I’ll go first then.”

Diamond chose one of her favorite songs from the States to start everyone off, “Kissing Strangers” by DNCE. The upbeat song had everyone in the room clapping along to the beat, and because the song was flirty and seductive, it was perfect for setting the mood. She made sure to send extra kisses and winks in the redhead's direction, earning her a smile that made his gorgeous face that much more beautiful. Mostly, the fan service was part of her job, but Diamond would be lying if she didn't actually enjoy being a little more flirtatious than usual.

“Diamond-ssi, that was wonderful!” One of the other suited men called, and Gray Suit finally smiled, a creepy thing, with only one side of his mouth. Diamond fought the urge to throw up; if the man looked scary before, he looked downright creepy while he was smiling. It was a total contrast to the redheaded younger guy beside him.

Diamond moved to reclaim her seat beside the man in Gray Suit, while the rest of the group started up with more drinks. The guys on left end of the couch were chatting with each other about something as another House of Cards girl went up on the stage to sing. Diamond made sure to pour the older man a lot of soju; the faster she got him wasted, the faster this would end.

By the fourth song, Diamond could tell she was reaching her goal quickly. The man was a light-weight.

“Noona,” A smooth voice called from beside her, and Diamond turned to find the redhead holding up a shot of soju towards her. His eyes were on her again, watching her expression carefully.

“Let’s do it together,” Diamond murmured lowly, her voice taking on a seductive pitch automatically. She realize just how husky her voice sounded when the black haired young man sitting next to the bold redhead blushed, and look away from the two of them. She grinned, covering her blunder, pouring a shot for the redhead. Instead of handing the glass to him though, she wrapped her arm around his, leaning forward to press her cup against his lips, “Try not to spill any, okay?”

She expected him to blush furiously, but instead, the iest smirk Diamond had ever seen in her life quirked the corner of his lips up. He wasted no time in brushing his own cup against her lips, tipping the shot back with three fingers. His eyes never left her as she parted her lips for him and swallowed the alcohol in one go. When Diamond did the same for him, she found herself entranced by the way his damp mouth glistened from the alcohol.

A loud knock sounded at the door, causing the two of them to wake up from their haze. Diamond unwrapped her arm and turned towards the door, exchanging glances with Susie, who was looking at her best friend curiously.

A waitress arrived with some finger foods, and the bald man pulled out a Red Ace card. Diamond cursed her luck. Of all the people to be a card holder, it was the creep that seemed to have an interest in her.

“Shall we have some special service?” He questioned the group drunkenly, placing the card on the table. The older men cheered while the younger guys began to look especially nervous. Everyone, except the redhead.

Diamond faked a laugh and poured the man a little more to drink. She picked up the card, waving it around, “You shouldn’t just leave this sitting around, you know, oppa? Someone else might take your wish.”

“A Red Ace only grants one wish?” The redhead asked from behind her, and Diamond nodded, turning to face him, still holding the card up between two delicate fingers.

“Only one card holder per room. Only one visit per card holder. Only one wish per visit. And then, it begins again the next day.” She stated evenly, as she always did when people questioned the rules of the House of Cards.

The redhead studied her for a moment before surprising everyone as he reached over and plucked the card from Diamond’s unsuspecting fingers. He examined the card, and then held it up beside his beautiful face.

“Noona, grant my wish,” he commanded, his face completely serious. Ultimately, Diamond reserved the right to refuse his request, but she didn’t tell him that. Instead, she smirked, amused by his attitude. No one had ever stolen someone else's wish right in front of her.

It seemed the bald man was too drunk to understand what was happening. He shrugged, taking another shot to the head, though everyone else was staring in shock.

“Before I do that, I’ll need to know your name.” Diamond spoke, breaking the silence around them, “We can’t enter a contract without it.”

The redhead nodded, “My name is Lee Taeyong.”

His name suited him, surprisingly, “Taeyong-ah,” she made sure to say his name in the iest way possible, reaching for his wrist, as he continued to hold on to the card. The way his eyes practically glowed when she called him in such a familar manner, Diamond felt bold, “Tell me your wish.”

There it was again, that y, devilish smirk that kept catching her by surprise. It immediately made her wonder what he was going to ask her to do, and part of her hoped it had something to do with that beautiful mouth of his. Diamond her lips in anticipation as Taeyong ordered, “I wish for... my own Red Ace card.”

End Chapter 1