“Hey, boss. We found the Red Devil.”

A man was sitting in his car, observing at the red Lexus in front of him while driving on the main highway. The navigator screen was showing an ongoing call, leaving the driver remained competent with the steering wheel.

[ “Oh, good. Where is she?” ]

“On the way to Seoul. Should we follow her?”

[ “... Do follow her, but discreetly. We’ll catch her off guard when there’s a chance.” ]

“Understood.”

The call ended, leaving the man remained in his driving seat-- seething in vengeance.

“...Time for payback, .”

///

It was eight fifty-five in the evening at a small apartment in Seoul. Inside awaits a young lady, staring anxiously at the touchscreen for the past fifteen minutes; the display showed the contact information with the smartphone in her hands.

[ Ahn Yujin - xxx-xxxx ]

Kim Minjoo took a moment to breathe as she glanced over her calendar. It was marked on a Saturday in a large red circle with hand-drawn hearts all around it as she was going out on a late night date with her best friend-- now soon-to-be girlfriend. Her chest was fluttering nonstop throughout her whole day from the excitement she was feeling.

She recalled the last moments she had from the time they confessed to each other at the Han River.

…

“Hey, there's something I need to tell you.”

Minjoo turned her head around towards the young woman beside her, eyes filled with concern.

“What's wrong, Yujinnie?” She asked, looking up at the taller one.

Yujin reached out and grabbed both of Minjoo’s hands, eyes looking down on the pavement while taking a deep breath.

Before Minjoo could say anything, the younger suddenly raised her head in confidence and spoke up.

“...I really like you since we first became friends, Minjoo-unnie. I know I've been really busy lately at night with my buddies, you must've felt lonely. I didn’t want you to be treated poorly by those that took you for granted; I saw how hurt you were when you found out about them. You deserve the best, and I want to prove I’ll be the one for you.

“Will you give me a chance to be your girlfriend?”

A brief moment of silence washed over between them, only to end with a shy smile crept onto Minjoo’s face.

“...I’d like that, Yujin. I really like you, too. Please win me over... so I can give my whole heart to you.”

…

It was something new to her; never in a million years would she thought she’d get the opportunity to date the one she was dreaming of dating-- until now, that is.

As far as Minjoo remembered, Yujin was known in a street racing community as one of the top five racers in the underground leaderboards. The younger ended up with admirers surrounding her and the modded sports car she used to drive in during car meets.

Stories and rumors about Yujin being called out in challenges by rivals groups, often jumping into every opportunity they’d get with the full intention of wanting to take over the streets out of personal gain. She heard those that challenged Yujin ended up getting their own cars rekted in the middle of an empty highway, leaving the girl pulling away far enough to make a break off the streets for the night.

The older could only imagine how troublesome it must've been for Yujin to deal with them.

Minjoo herself hasn't been to any of the nightly events since she prioritized on her studying as an honors student in one of the most reputable universities in South Korea. She often saw Yujin swinging by at her place in an ungodly hour of the night, insisted to sleepover as the younger didn't want to encounter more people coming for her on the road.

The older recalled one of the many nightly conversations she had with Yujin.

…

“Yujinie, why can't I go to your events?” Minjoo asked one night, closing one of her textbooks while staring at Yujin laying down on her bed.

“Hmm?” Yujin turned her head on the side, raising an eyebrow at the older. “Aren't you busy studying, Minguri?”

“Yeah, but that's not the point. You're still in school with me, too. Why don’t you invite me to see you race?”

“Easy. I don't want anyone to see you.”

“Yah!” Minjoo whined with a pout. “Why not?”

The older saw Yujin burst out laughing, shaking her head in dismay.

“Because…”

The younger’s pair of eyes made contact with the older’s, only to softened and smiled.

“...I only want you for myself.”

...

Minjoo took a pause for a moment, pulling her act together before tapping the ‘Call’ button.

It only took a couple of moments before she heard the phone signal gone through, greeted by a husk soothing voice resonated into her ear.

[ “Hey there, babe.” ]

“Hey Yujinnie,” she smiled nervously as she felt her heart skipped a beat. “Can you hear me?”

A chuckle was heard from the other end of the call.

[ “Yes. How can I not hear the sweet wonderful voice of an angel such as yourself, Minjoo-ah?” ]

Who knew the younger would become a sweet talker, Minjoo thought.

“W-where are you right now?” the older asked, stuttering her voice as her cheeks gradually started to feel warm.

[ “I’m on my way to pick you up. Can’t wait to see me, huh?” ]

“Yeah, I honestly can’t,” she giggled while hearing a smug in Yujin’s voice. “I’m just about to head out.”

[ “Oh, is that so? Then, I’ll see you soon.” ]

“OK, see you soon.”

Minjoo ended the call and stared at the mirror to check herself out one last time.

She was dressed in an adorable white shirt and shorts-- showing off her shoulders and collarbone; lightly curled her long auburn red hair midway down, leaving with her bangs on her forehead. She finished off in an extra effort with a touch of make-up around her eyes and lips.

Eyeshadow, check. Lipstick, check.

The older gave herself a playful wink at the vanity mirror.

With a grin, she grabbed her keys and headed downstairs, not forgetting to put in her favorite pair of white heels and lock her apartment door.

As Minjoo was heading outside, she recalled her phone conversation with Yujin-- of how her heartbeat was racing every time she hears her voice and words she has said into her ear affected her mind greatly. She felt butterflies fluttering everywhere in her stomach, making its flips and turns upon knowing her weakness against someone who harbors self-confidence and charm to match her shy, reserved personality.

Exactly what Yujin made her feel whenever she's around.

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