While I waited for my uncle’s return, I took one of the novels I had yet to finish and sat on the beige sofa in the living room. Although I was interested in the plot, my eyes glossed over the words printed on the pages, unable to focus. Shards of anxiety pierced my chest as my thoughts were drawn to the horrific incident earlier today—I couldn’t forget about it, and no matter what I did, I couldn’t distract myself either. Leaning back, I stared at the ceiling in deep thought. Who in the world wanted to kill me, and why? How was my uncle involved in all of this? What did he keep from me? I still lacked answers to my nagging questions and had no clue who was responsible for the murder attempt today. The windows of the van had been tinted, but even if this hadn’t been the case, I had been too panicked to pay attention to the driver.

When I finally heard the front door opening, I put my novel on the coffee table and left the room. Minho and his personal bodyguard, Li Chang, entered the house and took off their shoes before moving on to the living area. Li had grown up in China and used to work for a branch of the military before my uncle hired him. He was a stern man who rarely smiled, and every time he saw me, his gaze was filled with contempt. His behavior intimidated me, and therefore I preferred to avoid him. Since he was in his forties already and had been working as a bodyguard for a while, he was experienced in detecting threats and could easily kill someone if he deemed it necessary in order to protect Minho.

“Hyorin! Did you have a nice day?” Minho asked, his lips curving up when he spotted me, but the smile didn’t quite reach his eyes. He approached me, and Li followed him like a shadow, gracing me with nothing but a hostile glare.

“Well, there’s something you should know,” I began hesitantly, not sure how to tell him. When he gestured for me to go on, I lowered my head and gave a short explanation. “I was shopping today, and when I returned to the parking lot, a black van almost ran me over. It… it couldn’t have been a coincidence.”

Minho scowled. “What about Zero-Four? Didn’t he accompany you?”

“He did and he was the one who pulled me out of the way; I would be dead if it weren’t for him,” I added. My words seemed to please my uncle and his tight features relaxed.

“That’s good. I knew he would be the right choice for this job,” he muttered to himself while Li’s face darkened. He muttered something that sounded suspiciously like, “ing lab rat.” My uncle shot him a warning look that shut him up, gritting his teeth.

“We should report this incident to the police, too,” I suggested. “It might help solve the case and identify the one who’s threatening us. The parking lot probably has camera surveillance.”

Minho nodded slowly, his inky eyes narrowing a fraction. “Yes, I will call the officer in charge and let him know about it.”

“You don’t have to bother, I can do it myself. Just give me his number,” I insisted since it would be much more convenient. After all, I was a witness and could describe the situation in detail.

“No,” my uncle said sharply, and his gaze hardened. “I will continue handling correspondence with the police. You won’t get involved, Hyorin.”

Yet again, he treated me like a naïve child, making decisions on my behalf and patronizing me. It was humiliating and irked me. I crossed my arms, ready to stand my ground, but a noise behind me caught my attention. Looking over my shoulder, I discovered my bodyguard approaching us. Baekhyun’s frosty gaze was focused on Li Chang when he stopped next to me—he must have heard them arriving.

“Good work today, Zero-Four. I heard what you did; you proved your worth,” my uncle said. What should have been praise for his employee’s outstanding work sounded all too mocking to my ears. Minho’s smile lacked any warmth, and Baekhyun apparently couldn’t care less about his opinion.

The tension between the men was stifling and unbearable. Baekhyun glared at Li with so much unbridled revulsion that I was left speechless. His back was rigid as he struggled to retain control and avoid punching Li right where he stood. Li, on the other hand, smirked arrogantly, amused by his colleague’s fury. Minho had already moved on to the living room and didn’t notice the tension between the bodyguards.

I blinked in confusion when the crystal chandelier above us flickered, the light vanishing for a short moment. Li laughed darkly, scrutinizing Baekhyun as if he was a stain of dirt when he passed us. “Filthy dog. Your little tricks won’t scare me,” he spat and followed my uncle into the living room.

My anger flared when I heard the insult. I was about to reprimand him for his unacceptable behavior, but one glance at Baekhyun’s face shut me up. The fury in his eyes had faded, leaving an empty and dead look that shook me to the core. I didn’t know what made him react in such a way, and it physically hurt me to see him like this. It felt as if someone had wrapped a cord around my lungs, constricting them.

“Don’t listen to anything he says, Baekhyun,” I whispered, but he stayed silent and moved past me to the stairway.

Hours later, the house was veiled in silence. The others were probably sleeping; Baekhyun as well. I hadn’t seen him since he went back to his room since he hadn’t shown up for dinner, leaving me alone in the dining room with Li and my uncle. The older bodyguard had given me mocking glances the entire time until I had almost lost my temper. I didn’t know what his problem was, but his behavior was highly unprofessional. He had never liked me. From the day six years ago when I had moved into this mansion, he had always looked down on me. Li still saw me as a weak little girl who couldn’t take care of herself. Ever since Baekhyun had become my bodyguard, his attitude towards me had worsened. I wondered why Baekhyun and Li hated each other so much. Li kept insulting him, and it was odd that my uncle didn’t do anything about it. Then again, Minho didn’t seem to care much about Baekhyun in the first place…

Unsurprisingly, I didn’t sleep much tonight, my restless thoughts keeping me up. When dawn broke, I woke up feeling more dead than alive and trudged to the bathroom, facing my reflection in the mirror. My soft brown eyes stared back at me, drained and hopeless. I was pale and my black hair was all tangled. “Just great,” I groaned before getting into the shower. The warm water helped in waking me up and washed some of the exhaustion away. When I was done, I dried my body and put on black pants and a comfortable sweater adorned with the logo of my university.

I walked downstairs to the kitchen area, where I heard someone humming a cheerful song. Recognizing the voice, my lips formed a smile—Jennie was responsible for breakfast today. My uncle had employed two different cooks who took turns with their shifts. Whenever Jennie was in the house, I loved to visit and talk to her. She was a bit older than me and I considered her a good friend.

“Good morning, Jennie,” I said when I entered the kitchen. She was about to make coffee, but when she saw me, she put the cups on the counter.

“Hyorin! I haven’t seen you in a while,” she grinned and hugged me.

“How was your vacation?” I asked, leaning against the marble kitchen counter while she started the coffee machine.

“Amazing! I stayed with my boyfriend in Incheon all week and had a great time. Yesterday, we went to Wolmi Theme Park,” she beamed, twirling a lock of her blonde-dyed hair around her finger. “It was so funny! And the Ferris wheel was the best part.”

“I can imagine. It’s good to hear you had fun, but I’m glad you’re back. I missed you.”

Her pink lips formed a smile. “Aww, Hyorin. I missed you too!” She chuckled and handed me a cup of steaming coffee and a dash of milk. “Here, this is for you. Your uncle requested breakfast at 9 AM, so there’s some time left. How about we sit down and talk?”

I nodded and joined her at the table in the corner, holding on to the warm cup in my hands. “So, Hyorin,” she started. The friendliness vanished from her face and her voice turned serious. “Byungho told me what happened last week. You… you received death threats and need a bodyguard now?! Why didn’t you call me and tell me about it? I would have come over straight away.”

“That’s exactly why I didn’t call. I didn’t want to ruin your vacation. You deserved some time off with your boyfriend, and I didn’t want to worry you,” I said, smiling sheepishly as I looked at my reflection in the coffee cup.

“You should stop thinking about everyone else and start worrying about yourself more,” Jennie sighed, shaking her head. “Do you have any idea who could have sent the threats?”

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