[Korea University]

“Three people found dead from an alleged suicide.

Citizens from different parts of Seoul were found dead this morning from an alleged suicide. All three suicides happened after six pm and police are speculating a serial killer.”

I flickered my eyes over the article on my phone under the table, shaking my head. How pathetic. People these days always liked the easy way out, didn’t they? I crossed my legs under the table and leaned back, my eyes still strained on the screen of my phone while the Professor yapped on about inflation.  

“YG Chemicals had arrested one of the main engineers of the plant. A week ago, a gas leak had put the company under hot water. Workers were found dead by the site and the families of the workers have called for support sparking protests all over Seoul.”

Boring. It seemed like every day that passed, the world became a little crazier. I jumped at the sudden bell and stood up, flinging my backpack over my shoulder to walk out the door. Classes had just ended and all I wanted to do was to go home.

University , big time. People talked too much, people cared too much about each other’s business.

I made my way to the lockers, yanking it open as my phone rang. Answering it, I heard the voice of the private investigator I had hired to find my brother. You got that right-- My brother is Oh Sehun and I’m Oh Dana, the youngest of the Oh family. We stand on pedestals above those below us and I have been raised by your typical absent parents, a caring butler, and a golden spoon in my mouth.

Sehun had been missing for a while and you’d think my rich, conglomerate parents would do something about it but all they told me was to “Calm down” and that he was probably having another one of his “phases”.

No. Sehun wasn’t the type to just disappear like that.

I answered the phone, hearing the nasally voice of the private investigator speak to me as if I was his friend.

“Dana?” he said and I fought the urge to roll my eyes. “I have found a small bit of information about your brother. You say he was studying in some University off the coast, wasn’t he? Well, when I called and asked the Director, he said that Sehun hasn’t been to school for the last two months.”

He couldn’t be serious? It had been a month since I hired him and all he could tell me was that Sehun had not been going to class?

“That is exactly why I asked for your services, Mr. Private Investigator. Do you honestly think I would ask for your help if I didn’t know that?” I snapped at him, letting out an irritated sigh. “I pay you for a reason.”

ing .

I was paying the man all my allowance to find out where my brother was. Sehun had stopped coming home from university two months ago. Him being the middle child and always somewhat the problematic one, my parents did not give a literal about where he was. I had begged and asked them to find him but all they did was reassure me that he has done this before and not to think too much.

I told the P.I to call me when he found something relevant and hung up, shoving my books into my locker and pushing it shut when I heard a voice beside me. Her voice was sweet and she was everything I wasn’t, Ong Harin a calm and polite woman.

“Temper, Oh Dana,” she mused, a small smile on her face that made me scoff.  Ong Harin, a year younger than I was. She was sugar and everything nice while I was spice. She was the closest person to a ‘girl friend’ I would consider, except that we were tied by business and not by friendship. I neither hated her, nor cared much about her. She stood a head below me, her small and petite frame a contrast to my body that towered over her.

I was taller than most women and I loved it. Intimidation came easy when people looked at me at first glance.

I was about to say something when her two twin brothers jumped from behind her, one of the quiet one and another making noises that a dolphin would make. Ong Seungwoo, the smart one. Ong Wooseung, the brawn, and no brains.

I ignored them and looked at Harin, hopefully. “Did you hear any news from Sehun?”

She turned bright red at the mention of my brother. Ong Harin was his fiancé, both our families tying them together because it was beneficial to the company. Marriage is a social commodity, they said. I noticed she wasn’t wearing her ring and her eyes shifted from side to side.

“Why would your brother ever tell my sister where he is? You know it’s an arranged marriage,” Ong Seungwoo said, the oldest of the twins. He had thick glasses perched on his nose and he exuded a quiet know-it-all.

“It’s not like we’re hiding your brother in our basement or something.” Wooseung told him, poking me as I yelped and raised a fist to punch him on the shoulder. “Ouch! Oh Dana, you can never stop yourself from being violent, can you?”

I glared at him and he quieted down. If Harin said she didn’t hear from Sehun then I guess it was true. She wasn’t a liar. Chewing on my lip, I told them that I would go home. It was still one pm in the afternoon and I had planned my day ahead. I would go home, change and maybe do some shopping.

When in doubt, shop it out.

I walked quietly to the parking lot, my eyes searching for the private limousine that would always wait for me. My parents gave me a driver because I couldn’t drive for and when I spotted it, I made my way towards the vehicle to open and fall into the back seat.

“Good afternoon, Miss. Dana,” the old man said and for the first time that day, I found myself smiling at him. He had been our driver for the longest time, the old man serving our family with a variety of things. From our butler, to our chef, to our driver. “Looking beautiful today, Miss.”

“Thank you, Ahjusshi,” I answered, my smile kept small when my phone vibrated. Looking down at it, I saw that it was Jaehyun; the closest person I had to a friend. His name came up and I answered it, his voice ringing out loudly. He sounded… panicked.

“Oh Dana, where are you?” he demanded and I blinked.

His voice was weird. Why did he sound like that?

“I’m on the way home,” I told him. “Where are you? Weren’t you supposed to come back to the mainland tomorrow?”

Jung Jaehyun, 23, studying in the same university as my brother.

What kind of university? I have no idea. All I know is that they are located on some island off the coast of Korea. Apparently, it’s for really smart kids and the only way to get into it is to be recruited by the school board. It wasn’t a shock when Sehun told me about it. My brother’s IQ was unbelievably high, but it came with a price.

He was haunted by his OCD and for Sehun, with that IQ and his condition—it was hard to live a normal life.

“I’m on the way now. Meet me at the café we used to go to,” Jaehyun instructed and I frowned. Now, who does he think he is? I didn’t like how he was ordering me around.

“I mean, sure. But I really have to go home and change out of my clothes first. I’m still in my uniform,” I told him and he protested. “Jung Jaehyun, what is wrong with you?”

“N-Nothing. Just… Don’t go home yet okay? Wait for me. Oh Dana, promise me that you’ll wait for me,” he urged me and I opened my mouth to ask him what was wrong when I heard a “Jeffrey!” from the background.

“Who is Jeffrey?” I asked Jaehyun who was stuttering more than a fugitive being caught by the police. “Jaehyun—”

“Wait for me in the café,” he told me and suddenly the phone was cut off and I stared at my screen.

Well, that was weird.

“Where to, Miss? Any plans for the day I have to bring you to?” Ahjusshi asked me and I raised a hand to tell him no.

“Home, please,” I answered, crossing my legs and going on a phone application.

I would change out of my uniform and head over to that god awful café Jaehyun always liked to go to. The only reason why he liked the place so much was because there was a girl there that was heads over heels for him. Living up to his birthday being February the 14th, Jaehyun had a knack of collecting girls who crushed over him like candy on Halloween.

Even I couldn’t deny that Jaehyun was a little bit too good-looking.

The car slowly stopped in front of our house and I stepped down, walking to the front door. My parents weren’t supposed to be home today and I remembered my father saying something about a business meeting a few days back. I wouldn’t know, I wasn’t close to them. It was usually a “hi-bye” situation when it came to my parents.

No wonder my brother decided to disappear. Didn’t blame him. When it was time for me to get my inheritance, I’d leave home too. My oldest brother, Oh Seojun, had enough involvement when it came to the business and I didn’t grow up with him.

I stepped into the house, my hand going to open the door just to push it open when I sniffed the air. It smelled sour, like rotten fruit and I reached up to cover my nose. Stepping into the living room, I made my way towards the stairs just to stop when I saw a figure on the floor.

Was my mother sleeping on the floor?

I stepped closer, leaning forward to see who it was when I found myself staggering backwards at the image. I gasped, my heart beating in my ears when I saw the lifeless bodies of my parents on the ground. Blood was pouring out of their mouths and my father’s eyes were still wide open.

There were three teacups on the table. I tried to scream, but couldn’t. I fumbled for my phone, calling the police before running towards them to shake them. My mother’s head lolling to the side.

“Mother!” I gasped, my hands slapping her face over and over again as if it would wake her up. “Mother, wake up!”

But she was limp and dead.

Both my parents were.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

It was a blur.

I was brought straight to the police station and they were treating me more like a criminal than a victim who lost her parents. I sniffled as they pushed me out of the van, the loud screams of protests from people ringing in my ears. My appearance was in shambles and I was in an oversized T-shirt, rubbing the sides of my arms as I shivered.

I was still shocked and was having trouble wrapping my head around it.

“SHUT DOWN YG CHEMICALS! Shut down, YG Chemicals!” they yelled over and over again and I could see a bunch of people marching down the road making the traffic worse. I gritted my teeth, not knowing what to feel. I had cried it out a moment ago and I felt lifeless. I just sat there, my mind lost and filled with everything I have been through.

“Sit down here until you are called.” A police officer said and I gave a weak nod, taking a seat. I had no idea where my phone was and I didn’t remember where I put it after I found my parents. I stared mindlessly at the same spot, policemen running back and forth as they tried to figure out a plan to control the on going protest when I tried to keep myself distracted.

In front of me, there was a bright pink-haired man who was talking to a policeman. I closed my eyes and tried to focus, knowing I had to keep calm. The images of my parent's lifeless bodies flashed past my eyes. I just lost my parents; I had no idea where my brother was—My eldest brother was overseas and I knew they would call him but it would take time until he reached Korea.

“I’m telling you, my wallet’s gone!” the man said and I noticed how abnormally high his voice was. “I’ve been Nana-ed!”

I opened my eyes to see him bicker with the policeman in front of him and before I knew it, he had given out a huff and slammed into the person beside him. He gave out a high-pitched “Sorry!” and when the man beside him gave him a weird look and left, the pink-haired man looked at me with a smirk on his lips.

My eyes traveled down to his hand to see that there was a brown leather wallet and he saw me looking at him. His eyes twinkled and he smiled at me, winking before bringing a finger up to his lips.

“Shhh…” he sang before twirling away. What the did I just see?

“Miss Oh,” the police called me and I found myself being led into an interrogation room. my dry chapped lips, I was seated and the police began to ask me questions that I couldn’t comprehend.

“Miss Oh, when was the last time you have seen your brother?” he asked and I told him that I wouldn’t speak without a lawyer. The death of my parents had left me numb but I knew enough about the corporate world to know that I shouldn’t speak without a lawyer present.

“Miss Oh. We aren’t after you, we’re after your brother,” the policem