Saerom

There’s a bounce to Mingyu’s step and a smile on his face when he comes out of the interrogation. Strange.

“So, how did it go?” I ask him.

“I don’t kiss and tell,” he replied, raising a suggestive eyebrow.

“Kiss and tell? What is this, high school?”

“Scouting the competition, are you, Saerom? Well, my lips are sealed.”

He seems awfully relaxed for someone that just came out of a murder interrogation. And competition? Did he really just say competition? Is he really so dumb as to not realize the game was over? I’m tempted to tell him, but I didn’t want to burst his bubble.

I’m a little relieved, actually. Joshua probably realized that Mingyu is too stupid to plan a murder, so he’s probably off the list of suspects.

“What?” he asks, assessing my face. I must have looked a little amused. “You think you’re the only one who can seduce him? I’m in the game too, and I intend to win.”

“Okay. Go for it.”

“And now that I’m officially courting someone for marriage, I have to end things with you, Saerom. Officially.”

“End what? There’s nothing to end.”

“Nothing? All that kissing we do. You’re calling that nothing?”

Another voice startles both of us: “All that what?”

Nagyung is standing there in the corner of the room, listening in to our conversation.

I wonder how long she has been standing there listening. She sure is sneaky…

Fear tingles through me as I imagine that she was the one who killed Chaeyoung. I imagine her, light footed as she is, coming into the room where Chaeyoung was sleeping, ruthlessly unleashing ticks onto her, and swiftly walking away from the crime scene and back to her beauty sleep.

I’m not the only one who’s nervous. Mingyu looks nervous too, but for different reasons.

“You lied to me,” she said to Mingyu, crossing her arms over her chest.

“I… I…”

“I hate liars.” With that, she turns around and leaves. He looks like he wants to follow her, but doesn’t.

I narrow my eyes at him. “What was that about?”

“I kind of told her you were just a colleague.”

“Wow, not even a friend? Downgraded to a colleague now?”

“I just… I liked her and was thinking of asking her out if neither of us end up winning the game.”

Ouch. “Wait… what? You were going to ask her out?” I try to hide my hurt and disappointment, but it probably showed.

“Uhh…”

I have been kissing this guy for so long now. We get along well and I thought we were ready for something more serious. But here he was, talking about asking out a girl he barely knew after rejecting me when I asked him to take our relationship to the next level. I thought I was over it, but it has now come back to sting me again.

“Look, Saerom, you’re a great friend, and you’ve got a great body and all, but I need someone more… feminine for a girlfriend.”

“Feminine? Did you just say feminine?! While playing a game to get a man to marry you? You’re a ing hypocrite, Mingyu!”

“Calm down, Sae, it’s not that deep.”

this. It’s embarrassing, but his words have hurt my feelings and wounded my pride. I turn my back to him and march away before I can give him the satisfaction of seeing me cry.