Jung Min lunged at her without a second’s hesitation. Victoria threw her arm up to block his attack but instead found blood seeping from the knife wound she’d received. Moving back Jung Min smiled, the blade sparkling clearly in the dark.

“That’s dirty.” Victoria mumbled.

“Just my style, don’t you agree?” Jung Min cocked his head.

“This’ll take just five minutes.” Victoria inched her right foot back and held her fists out.

“Getting your gears on at last?” he teased and ran at her again.

Victoria stepped back with her tennis shoes screeching against the gym floor and bent her body back. As Jung Min ran pass her, Victoria threw her leg up and kicked his shoulder with all the might she could summon. He gave a shout dropping to the ground. Spinning around Victoria slammed her feet onto the wrist of the hand that gripped the knife steadily. Jung Min let out a wailing scream similar to a dying dog.

“Yah! Stop!” a voice interrupted her.

Victoria turned around with eyes wide as the gym lights came on one by one. Taecyeon stood by the door with a clear shocked expression. The bag of chicken in his grasp.

Jung Min used this moment of interruption to push Victoria down and rushed out of the gym bringing the knife with him. Turning her head to watch him flee Victoria’s body jumped up on impulse to run after him. Before she could make it out of the door Taecyeon grabbed her arm stopping her.

“Yah!” Victoria shouted, her voice at the top of her lungs before she noticed Taecyeon’s hard stare turn down to look at the blood running over his hand.

Taecyeon paced back and forth in the living room putting his hand up to his forehead every now and then before he would let it drop to his side. He’d then turn to watch Victoria patch up her wound professionally.

“Are you sure you’re doing it right?” he’d ask. “Shouldn’t we go to the hospital?”

“Do you want me to break your arm?” Victoria threatened.

Taecyeon became quiet then would start pacing again. Victoria shot a few glances at him wondering how much of the fight had he seen. After she wrapped the bandage around her arm she tossed the bag of first aid aside and leaned back into the couch.

“When did you come by?”

“You’re asking how much I saw?” he rephrased the question.

Victoria didn’t reply.

“All of it. When he started jumping at you and when you attacked him mercilessly.” Taecyeon told. “Who are you?”

“Do you still think you have the right to ask me that?” she questioned threateningly.

Taecyeon didn’t turn. “Are you going to twist my arm behind my back?”

“I could. In a split second I could knock you out.” Victoria smirked.

“I asked you a question.” Taecyeon repeated. “I let you stay here for two weeks now. You owe me an explanation about what that was all about.”

“I’m being hunted,” Victoria replied quickly.

“What?”

“Didn’t I say it?”

Taecyeon gulped. “You…”

“I told you, so why are you acting dumb in front of me?” Victoria asked turning on her serious mode.

“Yah…” Taecyeon stuttered, “it…it…it do…doesn’t make sense.”  

“Oh really?” Victoria nodded. “In the base I’m usually like this. I must have been really stupid when I arrived here, right?”

Taecyeon stared at her at a loss. She could tell he was speechless and almost felt sorry for having scared him.

Victoria turned away, “You said you’d report me to the police. If you did that, you’d probably get a large sum.”

“What?”

“You heard.” Victoria said. “You said I owe you an explanation, I’m giving it to you right here, right now. Don’t be stupid with me!”

Taecyeon gulped at her loud voice.

“October 18.”

“October 18?” he repeated recalling Yoona had asked him something about it. “The assassination?”

Victoria stared at him and watched him take a step back.

“Are you afraid of me now?” she tried. “Go ahead. Report me.”

She took out her phone and tossed it on the coffee table. Taecyeon glanced down at it nervously but made no move. Victoria held herself back from showing any sign of emotion. The moment of silence held between them turned immensely tense. If Taecyeon reported her then she’d have to cut the line. There was no other way around it. He was lost in thought for such a long time Victoria began to doubt if he’d been listening to her at all. After the longest minute of her life Taecyeon turned and walked out. When the door gently closed Victoria closed her eyes feeling her hands shake and covered her face.

- - - - -

Running down the stairs Taecyeon didn’t stop till the front door slammed shut behind him. Taking a deep breath he gazed at the gym door behind him. Hadn’t Victoria been attacked just a moment ago? Taecyeon turned around just in case that man came back. No one was behind him or down the road.

Pushing the door open, he turned the lights on to see the silver key laying on the ground along with drips of blood here and there on the ground. He’d pulled Victoria into the apartment so hastily that he’d never bothered to think about cleaning up. Running back to his car he searched for some clean towels and hurried back to the gym. While cleaning the floor of the blood he recalled finding Victoria at the haunted playground with two strangers. Had they been attacking her too? If Victoria really were the one who’d killed the president’s son why were there so many people after her? It didn’t make sense.

In the morning it was even more difficult to talk or even look at her. Victoria only came out for breakfast when he was washing his dishes. For some reason he felt as if she were trying to avoid running into him, as if she were trying to make him more comfortable by showing up less. Was that really the case?

- - - - -

Yoona opened the door to the Chief’s office. He was looking rounder than usual.

“Yes, Chief?” Yoona asked standing in front of the desk.

“The articles you took, return them.” the Chief said.

Yoona raised an eyebrow.

“It looks like you’ve been having a lot of trouble lately,” the Chief told. “Why don’t you take a break for a few weeks?”

“What?”

“You haven’t been going on your patrol routes. Officer Jung reported a few accidents there and handed out tickets for you.” the Chief explained. “Take a break Deputy.”

“Sir.” Yoona began.

“Sir?” the Chief repeated.

“Sorry, Chief.” Yoona apologized. “Some personal issues came up. I can work around it, really.”

“Take a break, Deputy. I’ll inform your father to make sure you don’t leave the house in the morning and come to the station. You’re prohibited from doing that.” the Chief ordered. “Just a momentary break. You’ve been working too hard for someone so young.”

Yoona stared at him and left reluctantly.

She turned to her office and sat down falling into thought. A knock on her door interrupted her.

“Deputy, someone’s asking for you.”

“Who?”

“Ok Taecyeon.”

Yoona felt her ears perk up, “Send him in.”

Taecyeon walked into her office and she invited him to sit down. An officer walked in with two cups of tea and sat it on the square table in the room.

“This is quite an office you have,” Taecyeon commented.

“I just moved in the table yesterday. My dad provided the furniture,” Yoona explained. “Sorry, I didn’t come by the past few days.”

Taecyeon smiled then spaced off.

“Taecyeon?” Yoona called.

Taecyeon stared at the ground, “Are you sure she’s your friend that went missing 14 years ago?”

Yoona stared at him the smile on her face disappearing little by little.

“Why…would you say that?”

Taecyeon stared hard at the ground and gulped. He wanted to tell her about yesterday’s incident, about what Victoria had confessed, but nothing came out. She had only said it because he’d told her she owed him an explanation…she was only being morale.

“Taecyeon?”

Taecyeon didn’t look up. His mind was in a bind. His heart pained for both girls.

“You need to find those men.” Taecyeon told. “They did something awful to her.”

Yoona stared at him confused. “What are you talking about?”

“It’s nothing.” Taecyeon got up. “Did you eat? Do you want something?”

Yoona stared at him then laughed, “We’re at my office. Why would you ask that?”

- - - - -

Instead of going out Victoria searched the cabinet under the TV and found the movie. Just to finish it she placed the Windstruck DVD into the DVD player just as she’d been taught. This time she watched the whole movie without interruption. An hour later Victoria found herself crying on the couch.