The kids from Gangnam started disappearing.  The first few were shady students, so we all thought they were hauled off to rehab or something. But then the star students from that group started disappearing. There was no sign why they left, no warning. It’s like they never existed. We tried calling them, texting, emailing, but there was never a response. When we called their parents, they were hysterical. Said we should stop calling them, to tell whoever that they weren’t going to pay the ransom. That’s when we learned they were kidnapped.

Yet the school said nothing about it. No announcements or warnings. We started getting suspicious. Some of us came up with a code so if one of us disappeared we might have a better chance of knowing who it was.

The one day, one of my roommates disappeared with a note that said “Letters”. That’s when we knew the school was behind it. Soon we couldn’t trust any adult, not even the most favorite teachers. All we could do was clutch each other at night and hopefully still wake up in our beds the next morning.

Kids from rich families started transferring out. I can’t blame them, they were the targets. Some of the scholarship kids also left. They said they would be next because the school would want the money they were giving them, if they already wanted money for the rich kids.

No one knows what’s happening to the kids that are gone, but I swear, every night after everyone figured out what’s happening I dream of those kids locked in a dark musty room, screaming, their bodies shriveling up as each day they lose hope of escaping. Everyone who still remains at school dreams the same dream. It can’t possibly be a coincidence.

You sent me here to be safe, didn’t you? Well the tables have turned, and you’re sending me into a lion’s den, ready to be imprisoned.

Please, don’t send me back. Please do something about it.

*

Director Park ran a hand through his salt and pepper hair and sighed. These rules that Yunho has put up is not going to make this mission easy. His jaw tightened. That little twerp…

“Director Park?” His secretary’s voice came through the scratchy intercom. “Your four o’clock appointment is here.”

“Send her in,” he replied, readjusting himself in his chair.

The door opened and suddenly he found himself facing an angled gun, pointing right between his eyes.

A soft voice spoke up. “You called for me, sir?” she said, the last word said with a dangerous tone.

To Action

Jihye sat on her bed, trembling. Tonight was the night she would disappear. She just knew it. Somewhere, deep inside, she knew that she was breathing in her last hours of freedom for a very long time.

“I’m sorry, Jihye. But I don’t live that life anymore. There’s no way I can help you besides the law.”

She mentally let out a string of expletives. Where was my brother who was sure of himself, ready to take on the world with either his mind or his fists? She clutched the blanket underneath her hand.

Her phone vibrated and she the screen.

“Unnie has sniffed out first snake. Will try to bring oppa with the other dogs. –K”

She quickly shut it off and put in her pocket as she heard noises outside her room and slid it into holster next to the sheath attached to her waistband. As she lay in the room with empty beds all around her, she shook her head. Lazy jerks. They know I’m the last one, so they don’t even try to be quiet.

Yet as she let fury reign her mind for the split moment, she was swiftly blindfolded, gagged. Immediately her body went rigid with fear.

Krystal, promise me, your unnie will save me…

*

Memo to Mission Secure the School Operatives:

Three weeks until execution. Ice Princess is in charge.

I expect the best from all of you.

PYH

*

Soo-yeon sat down on one of the chairs outside the dean’s office with a sigh. “Darn red tape,” she grumbled as she took out her phone. She had approached the student life offices for an excused absence to be told she needed permission from the dean.

She went onto the internet. “U-know,” she muttered under her breath as she typed the name in onto a search engine. “Who are you?”

She searched through all the entries until she found one that seemed relevant.

“U-Know is the leader of the gang DBSK. Although the gang is considered the most notorious, they only appear time to time. Currently, there seems to be no activity from them at the moment. From months of the gang’s creation, they defeated many major gangs, such as Brown Eyes and g.o.d, allowing them to appear in any part of Seoul without warning. They often seem to fight on the side of justice, although their methods tend to be unorthodox or illegal. There is no pattern to their activity.”

Her eyes widened as she read. So I’ve been playing with a loaded gun all along.

“Jung Soo-yeon?”

Her head shot up. “Yes?”

Ms. Choi, the secretary, gave her a kind smile. “The dean will see you now.”

“Ah yes thank you.” She stood up and let herself in.

The dean was reading several sheets of paper in front of him. He showed no sign of noticing Soo-yeon come in, even when the door clicked shut behind her. She stood in front of the door, resisting the urge to twitch nervously.

Finally he put down the sheets and stonily nodded at Soo-yeon. “Have a seat.”

She immediately walked over and sat down in the plush chair in front of him.

“I reviewed your withdrawal form for next year.” He interlaced his hands together. “Frankly, I’m disappointed. You are a great student and seemed to display values necessary in the business world. You said you knew the consequences of embarking on your project. Now, it looks like you’re running away from it. Frankly, I don’t know any industry that likes a coward, especially when you specifically stated that you knew what you were doing, and willing to take the risks.”

Soo-yeon opened to object when the dean raised his hand. “I’m not finished.”

“I understand the whole situation with your sister and becoming her guardian, however, was unexpected, and is the main reason why you’re withdrawing. Your sacrifice can be viewed as admirable. Yet I still feel it will be hard for people to understand. I also, and I’m not assuming I know you very well as a person, but I also think that you would be terribly bored and dissatisfied with your condition if you completely give up your schooling. Therefore, I have a proposition.”

He took the papers on his desk and handed them to Soo-yeon.

She took the sheaves and examined them. Her eyes widened. “Sir, this is a transfer to Stanford University?”

“I know the dean over there very well. He has also heard your story and my opinions about you. He also had the admissions people process your transcript and resume like any other transfer request, and they have deemed you acceptable. You are currently enrolled as a part-time student, but you may switch to being a full-time at any time.”

Soo-yeon felt tears come to her eyes. “Sir, I-I cannot thank you enough-“

He held up a hand. “I know about this world, Soo-yeon, much more than I let on, and I know how screwed up it can be. You’re a strong person to have made it this far. I would hate to see you give up and not be able to reach your highest potential just because your luck isn’t that great. I also expect you to keep in touch, and let me know if I can be of any assistance.”

“Why are you doing this with me?” Soo-yeon still had a look of disbelief. “I’m sure I’m not the best student you ever had. I’m just another girl in the business department.”

The dean smiled, the first time Soo-yeon saw genuine amity on his face. “Because a girl like you has listened and done other favors for me. No one wants to be in debt.”

“And yet, I now feel indebted to you.”

He sighed. “You are young, and you have opportunities waiting. When you get my age, just remember and do the same for someone else.”

She nodded. “I promise I will make you proud. And I will not forget.”

“Good. You are dismissed.” As she stood up, he added, “Make sure you’re prepared for your presentation next week.”

“Yes, sir.” She walked out of the office, clutching the papers in her hands. From her desk, Ms. Choi watched her go. The secretary’s eyes twinkled as the door closed.

“Ms. Choi?”

“Yes?” The secretary kept typing.

“Were you eavesdropping?”

“You instructed me to, sir.”

About a half an hour later, Soo-yeon walked up to a cemetery with two bouquets of flowers in her hands. She approached two graves and laid a bouquet on one.

“Hello, Dad,” she said softly. She hesitated for a second. “I’m doing my part. I promise I won’t let you down. Our family will no longer carry our burden with no hope.” She smiled softly. “Remember when you said, ‘Life isn’t kind, so why should you be?’ It used to be so hard for me to understand. Then, when that day came, that saying became my world. Thank you for telling me that, Dad. It has gotten me this far. I have no regrets since that day. I think you would be proud.”

She went to the second grave and placed the second bouquet down. “Hi Mom. I’m sorry Krystal didn’t come with me, but I promise before we leave, we’ll come back. I’m going to make sure she gets the life she deserves.” Soo-yeon sniffed. “Thank you for sacrificing so much for us. I know I can’t be your replacement, but I’m going to try to be selfless as you were. I…I miss you Mom. I miss both of you. We miss both of you.”

Tears rolled down her cheeks as Soo-yeon bowed her head. She stepped back until she was standing before the center of the two graves. In the distance, thunder rumbled. Rain started pouring down, but Soo-yeon didn’t move.

Suddenly, someone yanked her arm. She followed blindly, as she tried to blink her tears and the rain out of her eyes. Who? What’s going on?

When they finally stopped, she rubbed her eyes with a sleeve and looked up. “Yunho?” She stepped back. The wooden floor of the shelter they were standing in creaked.

“What did you think you were doing?!” He practically yelled. “You could have almost been hit by lightning! And you’re soaked!”

“You’re soaked too,” she murmured, avoiding his gaze. How did I notice it was raining?

He shook his head, throwing water droplets from his hair. “That’s different.” Before she could argue, he turned and ran out into the rain again.

“HEY! What the heck are you doing?!” She yelled after him. As he kept running, she leaned against the wall. “Pabo,” she muttered. What is he doing here?

She shivered as she thought about how deep she let herself go into her grief. I promised myself, never again I would be weak…Why? Why did I break my promise?

A minute later, she heard footsteps and the door burst open. Yunho panted as he walked towards her with a plastic bag. “Here,” he said as he handed it to her.

She took the bag and opened it to find a towel. “Thanks,” she replied softly, wrapping herself with the towel and handed the bag back.

“Lean forward,” he commanded.

Soo-yeon made a puzzled face but obeyed. She then felt another towel drying her hair. “What about you?” she couldn’t help ask.

“I’ll be fine.” He deftly wrapped the towel around her hair and then stepped back.

She bit her lip in anxiety. No one has touched me that way since…“Why were you here?” she blurted out, not liking the way her thoughts were going. “I mean, at the cemetery.”

“I was visiting my mother.”

“But I thought…one day you were at the subway, and you called the other person on the phone Mother.”

Yunho gave a small smile as he leaned against the wall. “That’s my stepmother. I call her Mother because she’s tried her hardest to be a good mother to me. But I never call her mother informally.”

“What happened to your mother?”

“Drunk driver.” His eyes gained a forlorn look on them. “I was seven.”

“I’m sorry.” The moment the words came out of , Soo-yeon wished she could take them back. He probably has heard a million people say that already.

“It’s fine.” He looked at her with a slight surprise. “Did you lose your mother?”

Crap, truth or fib? Forget it, I’m not in the right position to lie. “Both of my parents actually. How did you guess?”

“The way you apologized…they had a different kind of hollowness into them. Like you know how it means to feel lost and misguided.”

“Yeah,” she replied.

“When did you become an orphan?” Yunho pressed on.

“I…” Suddenly a memory flashed before her eyes.

No! You can’t take us! I can take care of Krystal! I’m already thirteen!

“I was thirteen.”

“Oh. I’m sorry. That must have been a really hard time, since you just became a teenager.”

“It was pretty trying, I suppose. But I got through.” She suddenly laughed. “Look at us, two people who lost leading figures in our lives, somehow ending up in the same place at the same time many times…”

“Would you call it fate?” Yunho asked.

 Soo-yeon shrugged, then shivered.

“I think you went through a harder time though.” Yunho moved closer. “When I found you, you didn’t seem to take in anything around you. A typhoon could have you hit and you wouldn’t have noticed.”

“I…You caught me when I was vulnerable.” The normal harsh tone in her voice was back as Soo-yeon retreated into a defensive position.

“Soo-yeon. For this moment, can’t you trust me?” Yunho almost pleaded.

She looked at him, and the emotions that flashed through her eyes nearly struck him down. Pride, confidence, determination….yet a touch of fear. She shivered again.

“You’re shivering.” Yunho took that moment to embrace her.

Soo-yeon felt his muscular arms come around her and hug her to his chest. “You’re warm,” she said with amazement.

He chuckled, and the laugh vibrated through Soo-yeon. “My family always called me a radiator.”

As she warmed up, Soo-yeon felt her eyes droop and fought to keep them open.

“You’re tired,” Yunho stated matter of factly. He sank to the floor without letting go of her, so they were both sitting down. “You should sleep. The storm doesn’t seem to be ending any time soon.”

She tried to resist, but the comforting darkness came too fast and she surrendered to her slumber.

For once, I feel that humanity is within an arm’s reach. One day, I can let myself weaken completely…

[A/N] Hey guys! Sorry for the long delay, I got my internship and BAM every day is spent by me trying to learn computer languages (Almost as hard as Chinese haha –slapped-), coming home with only enough time to eat dinner, do some homework, and practice flute. –sigh- I don’t know how I found the time to finish this chapter…it’s also freaking long as well…

Also my netbook got the blue screen of death (AGAIN ARGH) and my warranty just expired, so I’m trying to not use it a lot so it keeps having some juice until I get a replacement. Hopefully. I don’t know if my cousin will let me have his old one. –crosses fingers- But yeah my netbook is the only device besides my tablet that is mine that I can access the internet with at all times, and I can’t find my USB drive, so I had to wait until my desktop got internet access. Long story short, my parents used to regulate my internet and they forgot the password but they can’t switch internet ports so that I can get internet at all times because then they can’t access the printer. (Sorry if that sounded technical, but honestly the story is probably a lot more complicated than that. My parents only gave me the watered down version.)

You would think computer/network engineers could find a way around this problem. OTL

So in other words if you don’t see me for a long time, I’m probably fine. Just busy. I don’t intend to give up on this story because man we’ve gotten so far and the hidden picture that this story is trying to conceal is actually getting clearer as I keep writing instead of seeming out of reach. But these days I’m usually stuck with a notebook and stuff I usually write in that becomes dry as the paper I’m writing on, so if you don’t see me for another month or so, just realize how difficult it is. (It does get frustrating when you cross out A LOT of written text and you feel really unproductive. Ah, the writing process.)

Also if at the end of the story you’re still confused by some parts, I will be posting a list of explanations that I think is kind of necessary. Hopefully it helps the continuity of this story as well as I keep writing…

I’ll see you guys next chapter! Stay healthy and safe while I'm gone, okay? :3