Key walked towards the windowsill. Eyes instantly enlarged at the sight of Minho holding Karen in his arms. Gently, he pressed his forehead against the glass, breathing onto it as if he wanted to go through the glass itself. The gas condensed, blurring the horrific scene before him. His sore eyes were stinging again, transforming them into scarlet orbs. Once again, he could hear his heart shatter.

‘Did Minho like her?’ He thought to himself as he could feel his heart being ripped from his body and being trod all over.

‘Why Karen of all girls? Why Minho of all guys? Why?’ The questions roamed around his mind like wild horses, not giving time for it to rest. Both his fists clenched. His knuckles cracked sinisterly, revealing all the veins around it.

“Karen! KAREN! WAKE UP!” Minho screamed urgently with a helpless expression planted onto his charming face. His scream made Key’s heart wrench. He didn’t realise why he was screaming, but he knew that his intimateness with Karen was killing him, torturing him.

When he finally snapped out from his thoughts, acknowledging that Karen was unconscious, he immediately sprinted downstairs to open the door.

“W-what happened?” Key asked naïvely once he reached them. Once those words were spoken, he wanted to take them back after realising how stupid it was. He knew what happened and he was certain that he was the cause. The sickening feeling of guilt circulated around his body, sending another headache to his head.

He tried to move closer to check on her, but Minho simply pushed him away and carried her in a bridal style.

“Move!” Minho roared with his low, sharp, husky voice as he ran towards the house with Karen in his muscular arms. It was the first time Key had seen him so angry. Normally, he would just tell him off with his soothing calm voice. He would be like ‘Kibum, this isn’t right,’ or, ‘Kibum, you shouldn’t…’ etc.

Silently, he regretted. His foolish behaviour that caused Karen to suffer, the stupid question he asked and last but not least, the fact he left Karen with Minho. He regretted them all. He was afraid that because of his stupidity, he would lose Karen again.

Subtly, he managed to control his legs, dragging them back to the house. Once he entered, he witnessed the desperation on Minho’s face as he ran up and down the stairs with a bowl of water in his hands.

When Key finally climbed up the stairs, he watched how Minho was looking after her. He didn’t dare to enter the room; instead he was just looking from outside, leaning against the white door frame.

“Minho-ah,” he whispered wearily, “do you like her that much?” Blinking his tears away, he could only sigh quietly to relieve his distress.

“What was that?” Minho turned around with his innocent looking face. No traces of the ‘angry Minho’ were detected. It was like as if that side had never appeared in the first place.

“N-nothing,” he stuttered embarrassedly. He wasn’t prepared for his answer. If Minho did like Karen, Key wouldn’t know how to respond. He wouldn’t have the courage to wish them happiness, nor would he have the courage to fight him for her.

“Kibum, you know, you shouldn’t let a girl stand in the rain like that. You should treat her better; she got sick because of you. She stood outside all night just so she could tell you that it wasn’t her who posted those pictures. She really likes you,” Minho sighed as he washed the towel again and placed it neatly on her forehead.

“Why were you with her?” Key couldn’t hear anything other than his own questions. In all honesty, he was tired of hearing Minho’s voice as it irritated him dearly. The longer they were together, the more anxious he was to know whether he liked Karen or not.

“…because I was afraid that she would get herself sick if you didn’t let her in. I know how stubborn you can b-“

“Didn’t you hear what the managers said? We’re not allowed to see anyone from their dorm. Why don’t you just do what you’re meant to do?” Key’s voice was lower than his usual voice and it sounded somehow threatening to Minho’s ears. Chills ran down his spine as the tension between them increased.

“They would understand. If she stayed out there any longer, sh-” Once again, Key had cut him off.

“Why do you care? What is she? Your lover?” Once the questions slipped from his lips, he couldn’t take them back no matter how much he regretted it.

“Kim Kibum, can you hear yourself?! Stop being so absurd! I would n-”

“Do you like her, or do you not?” Secretly, Key clenched his fist behind his back, preparing himself for what he might hear. Surely if Minho wasn’t interested in her, then he would just give a straight forward answer that consist no more than one word: ‘no’.

“I should leave.” Minho tried to walk out, but Key stood in his way.

It was clear to Key. Minho was reluctant to answer simply because he didn’t want to lie or fracture their friendship. He was certain that he had not made a mistake with his judgement. Why else would he be so kind towards her? Why else would he hesitate to answer his question? Everything only leads to one thing – one emotion: love.

“I understand. No, you don’t have to leave. I should.” The lost expression on his face worried Minho. It was as if Key was in a different world compared to him.

“Ya! Where are you going? This is your house! You have to stay.” Minho patted his shoulders. “Karen needs you right now,” he smiled before leaving the house in a hastily manner. Yet his words did not comfort Key at all.

‘But what you wanted to say was: ‘you’re the last thing she’ll need’. Am I right?’ Key thought to himself as he observed how Minho made his exit.

Step by step, Key made his way towards Karen. He sat down beside her and her tender cheeks. Slowly, he brushed away the delicate strands of hair which were covering her face.

Should he let go of her or not? If he chose to let her go, she’d be in good hands as he trusts Minho to treat her well. But if he does, what would happen to him? Would he be able to find someone else who he could love? Would he love that person as much as he loved Karen? Would that person be able to erase all his bitter emotions? His uncertain future provoked fear within him. Yet he had to make that decision sooner than he thought.

Suddenly, he felt a tight grip on his hand. Once he focused his attention on the owner of the hand, all confusion disappeared and his decision was clear.

She stared at him with her watery eyes, begging to be heard. Her eyes were so wide it seemed like she was awake for a long time.

“Oppa, it wasn’t me. I swear I didn’t do it,” she breathed in a panic manner. She tried to sit up, but Key simply pushed her back down.

“You should rest,” he exhaled heavily whilst he tucked her in.

“You’re not going to forgive me? You’re not going to believe me?” Her tears were threatening to fall as her lips trembled, causing Key to give in triumphantly.

“I forgive you. I believe you.” He embraced her into his arms. “I thought you would use this as an excuse so we can break up again. Are you still planning on breaking up with me at the end of our deal?”

-----

Back in the company, Sungmin still couldn’t let the scandal slide. He had to find the person responsible for it, but the first person that came to his mind who would do something like that, was none other than Sunny. It was an irrational presumption, but his instincts took over his sanity.

Fuming with anger, he charged into the canteen where Sunny was dining with the other SNSD members as well as a few trainees. Once Sunny noticed his unusual facial expression, she knew something was wrong. She eyed him awkwardly, not knowing to greet him or not. The other girls greeted him like usual, but Sungmin ignored them all. His eyes were fixed onto Sunny.

Sungmin pulled Sunny up and led her away from the canteen, walking hastily until they reached a quieter area.

“Was it you?” Sungmin asked sternly.

“What?” Sunny furrowed her eyebrows in disbelief. Her body automatically tensed when her ears heard his emotionless voice.

“Was it you who took those pictures? Was it you who posted them?” He questioned in a more demanding voice.

“What’s so great about that girl?” She sighed when she realised what he was talking about.

“It was you!” He spoke with certainty in a sinister manner which frightened her.

“So what if it was me? The paparazzi would’ve done the same! So what’s so great about her that you dare to talk to me in this tone?” She glared at him whilst she rolled her tongue inside.

“Why? Don’t you know those photos can destroy me?”

“Didn’t you say you could give up being a member of Super Junior to be with her? Do it then! I did it because you two were an eyesore! Everyone out there thought we were a couple; it was giving me a headache. Who would want to be a couple with you? I exposed those pictures to save myself,” she smirked disdainfully as she rolled her eyes.

“They were right. You really are a brat.” Suddenly, he felt his left cheek sting from the wrath of her hand. Slowly, his hand crawled towards the red mark, unable to accept what had just happened.

“Everyone else has the right to say that. You don’t!” She bellowed before running away crying.

The feeling of being framed by the person you like, have you tried it? Even if she told him it wasn’t her, he would still insist that it was and call her a liar. Humans are simply blind when they feel that they are the victim, and they’ll forget about other people’s feelings. She understood that, but it didn’t mean she could smile at that fact.

-

On the other hand, Steph who had overheard Sungmin and Sunny’s conversation simply sighed in misery. She remained hidden on the other side of the corridor, deep in thought. It was only a few pictures, yet it was able to create such damage.

FLASHBACK

Steph was just sitting on her bed, staring at her laptop. For the past week, she had spent her time setting up cameras within the SM building. It was an order from Mr Hiew himself – to see if any unknown relationships were going on inside the company, as it may relate to the murdering incidents.  

That night, coincidently she saw the intimacy between Anna and Sungmin, so she screen shot the scenes and sent it to the Headquarters.

END FLASHBACK

Steph glanced at her mobile with a worried expression. ‘Just what are you planning, old man?’ – She thought. She was obviously oblivious to his intentions, yet the being unaware of his plans was somehow terrifying for her. One day, she would have the face the consequences for her doings.

In order to clear her mind out, she decided to go out for awhile, until somehow tapped her shoulder.  Could it be a friend or foe? Could it be that someone had already realised that it was her? Robotically, she rotated her body to see the owner of the hand.

“I’ve finally found you!” A hand waved in front of her face. She could feel her head spinning a little as her eyes followed the rapid hand movement. “Seriously, if it wasn’t for the scandal photos, I would never find you.” The hand finally backed away, showing a tall silhouette who was wearing a cap.

“Im Seulong?”

“Yeah! The guy you bumped into the other day. I remember leaving you my number, but you never called,” he sulked with a small pout on his lips.

“I was…busy.” Her eyes were rolling everywhere since she didn’t know how to react to his sudden appearance. She weren’t the type of person who enjoyed making new friends. When she meets new people, the first thing she’ll do is try to keep them away, the only reason being: because she was a member of the Headquarters. “As an artist yourself, you should know that scandals aren’t necessarily real.”

Then, she saw Ryeowook from the corner of her eye. Automatically, she clung onto Seulong’s arm and turned around, praying that Ryeowook wouldn’t notice her.

Seulong glanced at her, and then scanned the area to realise the cause for her actions.

“Come on, let’s go. I came here to treat you to a meal. Where would you like to eat?” He played along with his sweet, charming smile.

“I-I-I don’t mind.” Her words stumbled into each other as her heart was racing once it acknowledged Ryeowook’s presence.

-------------------

A WEEK LATER

-------------------

Renee stumbled onto the sofa and lied there lifelessly.

“Aish,” she groaned. “I just got fired!”

“It’s no time to rest,” Steph yawned as she stretched her arms out.

“Yeah, we have another job to do,” Kira added as she read the e-mail on her laptop. “Our assignment has been promoted with a name now. It’s called ‘Assonance’.”

Karen’s heart skipped a beat once she heard that word again.

“W-why ‘Assonance’ of all words?” Her eyes lowered to the side, as she felt like fate was playing with her.

“The scramble word machine chose it? Don’t know. But I guess it’s better than saying ‘mission’ or ‘assignment’. After the scandal thing, a lot of people are already getting suspicious of us. We have to be extra careful from now on,” Kira advised with her arms crossed.

“That’s right. Of course, being careful doesn’t mean we stop doing the things we do. We’re going to hack into the back office tonight.” Steph clasped her hands together. “I’ve checked all the past videos, and realised a section of it was missing. I think they might have a copy of the CCTV on the night of the murder. If they do, it’s going to be in the back office,” she proclaimed as she walked over to get her laptop. “If no one has any objections, let’s go.” 

------

Two guards went over to replace the other two who were guarding the back office. They were working on 3 hour shifts, so it meant the girls had to hack into the system, retrieve the video within that time frame.

“It’s sure going to be a boring day. No one ever comes round here you see. And by the way, are you new by any chance?” The taller guard enquired.

The ‘new’ guard was about to reply, until Anna ran around the corner.

“Can one of you please help me? A cat chased away two of our kitties. They’re now loose in the building! Please help me before they disrupt anyone or cause trouble,” she pleaded sincerely with her gorgeous puppy eyes. “Quick! They might hurt themselves!” She began to yank the taller guard’s sleeve.

“Okay, okay. I guess I’m going to have to leave things to you then. Don’t let anyone in. I’ll be back,” he spoke promptly before leaving with Anna in a hectic manner.

Steph stepped forward with a grin on her face once their footsteps faded.

“Yes, my friend, guard carefully. I’ll have to go down from the ceiling in case there’s a CCTV behind that door. By the way, where’s Karen and Kira unnie?” She looked around curiously.

The guard adjusted their brown cap to show a segment of their face – it was Renee.

“Karen wasn’t feeling very well and Kira insisted to look after her,” Renee replied. Steph’s right eyebrow rose after hearing that Kira ‘insisted’ to look after Karen as it contrasted her personality. “Hurry up, I’m sleepy. We don’t have a lot of time you know,” Renee nagged, since Steph hadn’t moved an inch in the past five minutes.

Steph gave her a reassuring smile before running away to proceed to her mission.