67
Defence
Taecyeon left a half hour later after he’d cleared the dishes. Victoria took a long hot shower feeling the water run over her body for the last time. With wet hair she lie in bed and stared into the dark wondering if she’d totally released herself from attachments to the world.
Donghae’s smiling face flashed in her eyes, Yoona’s forlorn look of despair, and Taecyeon’s peaceful expression appeared to her one by one. From the corner of her eyes Victoria felt tears form and in order to restrain them she closed her eyes and placed her arm over her face.
- - - - -
Donghae was ready to knock out in his white hotel room after the long hall lecture. He lie awake in his white fluffy bed leaning against two fat pillows propped against the headrest. A yellow silhouette cast itself across the wall from the lamp he’d .
Despite the comfy aura of it all, he couldn’t settle his mind down. Ever since the day Victoria had officially turned him down there had been something silently digging at the back of his mind. He just couldn’t pin out what it was.
“I’m sorry…that you had to meet me.”
“Thank you for teaching me how to skate, taking me out to eat, giving me the opportunity to feel like a person again, and thank you for taking me on my first date. I promise I won’t forget it.”
It took a long moment for Donghae to suddenly realize it. He sat up with surprise shaking his mind.
“That’s it…” he found himself muttering.
If he recalled Victoria had once told him that there were two phrases she never used, ever. Thank you and I’m sorry. But he was sure…she’d used those two phrases before crying to him.
He felt surprised again by that fact.
Victoria never showed him her tears…but yet at that moment she did.
The big word that only mattered at that minute was: WHY?
Donghae reached for his cellphone and quickly dialed Taecyeon’s phone number only to be met with his voice message. He called Yoona but she didn’t pick up either. Worried he couldn’t sleep but as soon as the sun rose up to the sky he gathered his luggage and woke his secretary up.
- - - - -
It was near afternoon and Taecyeon was anxious to get off work. He wanted to get Victoria and take her out for a meal. After yesterday, he was becoming to think that she wasn’t taking care of herself as she promised him she would. However, just before break he met Donghae by the doors. Taecyeon came to a small pause before continuing forward, yet, only to be stopped when Donghae gripped his arm.
Taecyeon glanced at his gesture then looked at him.
“Lets talk.” Donghae started.
“I don’t have time.” Taecyeon declined.
“We need to talk,” Donghae repeated. “It’s important.”
“My affair is important as well,” Taecyeon rebounded.
Donghae clearly gritted his teeth, “In my office, now.”
Taecyeon later found himself standing in front of Donghae’s large polished wooden desk irritated by the fact that he’d been dragged there against his will.
“You and Victoria still live together in your apartment, right?” Donghae asked.
Taecyeon felt his eyebrow go up feeling even more annoyed.
“What does it have to do with you?”
Donghae didn’t move his eyes off Taecyeon’s stubborn face. “Victoria looked for me the other day.”
“So?”
“I think she’s hiding something from us,” Donghae suggested.
Taecyeon frowned. “What nonsense are you spitting? Victoria? Of all people?”
“If you’ve been with her lately, shouldn’t you also realize that she’s been acting a little strange?” Donghae confronted. “She may still be acting like her usual self but hasn’t she acted a little strange beyond that?”
“What are you talking about?” Taecyeon felt his alarm go up at the same time as his desire to get out.
“She cried to me,” Donghae explained, “she apologized and she thanked me. They’re three things she would never do as the person I know her to be.”
Taecyeon still felt perpetuated but yet he also felt worried. The image of Victoria chasing after his car as if she were desperate about something…she’d asked for a date, something she would never have talked about. Strange? He supposed so. But he didn’t want to hear it from Donghae.
“Are you sure she just didn’t want to reject you indirectly?” Taecyeon spouted.
“Ok Taecyeon!” Donghae slammed his hand against the desk. “I’m serious here! For heck I don’t know if you’re worried about her but I am freaking concerned right now! Something may have happened to her that we don’t know about! And if there’s one thing you should know about her, it's that she hides a lot of things from everyone!”
Taecyeon stared at him exasperated by his loud voice. He turned his face away from his boss.
“Then why are you telling me this?” Taecyeon asked. “Shouldn’t you be running over there yourself? Aren’t you the one opposing me? Aren’t I the one opposing you? I don’t get you.”
“Because there’s no place for me in her heart,” Donghae told. “Because she was sorry I had to meet her. When someone tells you that they don’t want you to see them any more. How would you feel if she told you that? I can’t face her with these clouded feelings.”
Taecyeon was silent.
“I’m worried, but if you’re more concerned go see what’s wrong.”
- - - - -
Victoria awoke late, ate a short breakfast for some energy, and went back to the bedroom. Searching for the ammo Yoona had given her she carefully tucked some into the belly of her gun and set the safety lock before hiding the rest of the ammo in the pocket of her jacket.
It was a strange feeling…almost an alienated feeling. Probably because it had been about a month since she’d prepared herself for a fight…but it wasn’t the same this time. This time staking her life on the line wasn’t a selfish act for herself nor was it to kill Jung Min. It was an act to protect her loved ones from being wounded by her and her enemies in the future. She wouldn’t be able to withstand it if they were to get hurt in front of her eyes. Or if she were forced to hurt them one way or another.
Victoria gulped before walking out of the room and found herself staring into the kitchen lost. How many moments had she spent with Taecyeon arguing and talking in this apartment? How many memories would she leave behind for him to clean up for her? In the end, she wasn’t able to tell him anything. Not the words ‘I like you’ nor the words ‘Goodbye’.
She glanced down at the gun in her hand and tucked it half into her pants covering it up with her light jacket. With no more thoughts she walked out of the house.
It would be another hour or two before the sun would set marking the evening of the day. As the door shut behind her she glanced into the open gym she’d been using that early afternoon to pump herself up. With a yearning to come up with an excuse not to leave early she decided to roll up the mat and clean up a bit before heading outback toward the factory where she’d promised to meet Jung Min.
Just when she began rolling up the mat a stretching shadow grew beside her and she froze. Alarmed that it was Jung Min she quickly spun her head around only to discover Taecyeon standing by the doorway with a frown.
“What are you doing?” he questioned.
“I…” she began but he quickly walked toward her and pulled her up by the arm.
“Yah…is there something wrong with you?”
Victoria felt her mind blur. What was he talking about?
“Why did you go look for that guy the other day? I asked you but you never answered,” Taecyeon continued.
“Oh…” Victoria went. “You’re just curious about that?”
She wriggled her arm free and glanced at the ground trying to look as if she were thinking hard. However, without warning she kneed him in the belly, grabbed his arm, and flipped him onto the ground. A grunt came from him as his chin hit the ground. Victoria felt apologetic but she couldn’t let him go. She anchored him down with her knee and twisted his arm behind his back to make him yelp.
“What are you doing? Are you crazy? Get off me right now! Victoria!” he tried squirming but couldn’t even budge.
Fear flushed through him.
“Where are you going dressed like that? You’re going somewhere, aren’t you? Don’t go. Victoria, don’t go!” Taecyeon shouted.
Victoria bit her lip, “I’m sorry.”
Reaching for her gun at her back and with it in her grasp she slammed it across his head knocking him out. She felt his body go limp underneath her and she closed her eyes with regret. She clutched onto his shirt silently begging him to wake up and stop her but before she could yearn anymore she got up to walk away.
The air was cold and damp. It was definitely a fall transitioning into a freezing winter. It hadn’t snowed the past few days but she hoped it might snow soon. The threes stood out thickly before her that she imagined walking through a maze without an exit. Just two weeks ago, was it, that she’d been running through this area in search of Taecyeon. How different it felt now knowing that she was going as a lone soldier.
Victoria finally walked out of the trees and came face to face with the ugly factory surrounded with lines of thin trees on each side. She pressed her lips together mentally prepared for what was to come.
When she pushed the two large dome doors open an air of dust flew at her before she Jung Min turned around to smirk at her.
“As promised, we meet again.” Jung Min greeted.
The dying light from outside gave Victoria a failing view of the scenery inside the factory. Same old large pipes wounding around the room in line with the small pipes. Same old, same old.
“I hope you’re prepared,” Jung Min started, “I am prepared myself.”
In point seconds’ time he dragged out an electric gun and fired it at her. By just a centimeter Victoria jumped to the side avoiding it.
“Do you know where So Young is?”
Victoria didn’t reply.
“I buried her under a bridge where she’ll rest for eternity, but for your body, I’ll drop it into the river where you’ll never find peace because you’ll never receive a burial. And burn in hell? You’ll never reach hell nor will you reach heaven.”
He let out a loud maniac laugh.
Victoria saw a dark corner behind the pipes from the corner of her eye and made for it. Out of sight and out of danger she crept against the wall as Jung Min crazily screamed. His voice echoed off the walls and nearly burned her ears.
“Come out here! You’re a coward! Killing your own kind! It’s an act of betrayal!”
Victoria gnashed her jaw against each other. An act of betrayal? Her team betrayed her in the first place by killing without her knowing then framed her in the middle of it all.
Stopping by a short pipe, Victoria glanced up to see another fat pipe above it. In her mind an image of a tall tree shot up into the air with branches sticking out one after another. Had she climbed a tree before?
Glancing out from beyond the pipe she managed to see Jung Min searching for her. Silently she hoisted herself onto the pipe and onto the next until she was on the third one. Shooting her eye toward the ground she realized she was well over 20 feet off the ground. If she fell she could break an arm. Gulping Victoria lie against the pipe and reached for her gun. If she aimed well she could get rid of him in one shot and wouldn’t have to waste another bullet. If she missed, she’d give her position away.
Why was sweat transpiring off her forehead at this moment?
Closing one eye for a better aim she searched for Jung Min’s head. Suddenly he stopped pacing back and forth.
“Victoria!” he cooed. “My sweet lady Victoria!”
Had he really gone mentally insane? Victoria set herself ready for the aim but before she pressed the trigger a loud shot rang in the air and she went tumbling off the pipe and toward the ground.
- - - - -
Yoona had a packed lunch ready for Victoria. It was Mrs. Kim’s specialty. However, she came to a slow park when she saw Taecyeon’s car outside. Debating whether to go in or not she finally decided that she didn’t want to interrupt their moment together. Ready to drive back she set her car in reverse but stepped on the brakes immediately when she realized the gym door hadn’t been shut properly. Since when had Taecyeon ever left a door open?
Taking her keys out of the ignition she stepped out of the car and walked toward the gym door. It was dark inside but when she turned the lights on she saw a body lying on the ground by the half rolled up mat. Technically, Taecyeon’s body.
Running over she knelt down beside him and checked his breath. He was breathing normally…but why was he sleeping there?
“Taecyeon. Taecyeon,” Yoona called.
She shook him a little but he didn’t wake. What happened?
Victoria.
Turning around Yoona dashed toward the apartment, raced up the stairs to find the door locked. She pounded on it and called her friend’s name but she didn’t reply. Something was wrong. Yoona could sense it. Maybe that terrible feeling she was feeling yesterday had been a warning.
Running back outside Yoona frantically looked around for any sign of her missing friend.
“Victoria!” Yoona shouted at the top of her lungs before she suddenly slowly turned her head toward the back of the apartment where the thick trees ran across the empty field.
“I know, you’ve had a hard time and you didn’t deserve to go through all that. I’m sorry, Yoona.” Victoria said reaching her arm out and placing it on Yoona’s arm to comfort her, an act she would never have committed. “I’ll make it up to you, one way or another.”
***Almost there. The ending.
Comments