Taemin was used to spending days without getting sleep, what with his job and all. But ever since Jonghyun’s assignment, he hasn’t been doing a lot of work lately. And so he killed a person. Big deal. Jonghyun does it all the time. Key does it all the time. But they both had reasons, plus it’s part of their jobs. He also did have a reason. Sort of. 

That night when he followed Krystal through her alley, she was on the phone with someone. From what he gathered, she was flirting with someone on the phone. He caught something about her returning in a week or two; wearing the favorite lingerie; some handcuffs. What the actual ?

He remembers that the girl he was following was the exact same girl that D.O. and Kai brought back with them in their apartment; also the exact same girl whose nose was bleeding due to -sniffing. The girl is as gross as the first time I met her. He never liked her. She went out with Kai just because she saw that the guy was head over heels in love with her. She even brought him heroin once. Glad the other wasn’t dumb enough to take it. They fought over it. Kai wanted to help her to stop with the drugs but she didn’t budge. They had that fight on for weeks until Krystal broke up with him and Taemin was relieved. And then one night Taemin spotted Krystal coming out from the bar they used to go to and he followed her. That’s when he heard about the other gross bits. The girl kept on an innocent façade that anyone who meets her for the first time would think that she actually was. But of course, Taemin knows she’s not.

Light as a cat’s footsteps he entered her house through the window on the right side where the bushes were, just in case he needed cover. He saw Krystal enter a room that looked like hers. Funny, it doesn’t seem like she lives with her family. An aged woman came out of the door next to her bedroom. They talked for a bit and then the old woman went back inside. That can’t be her mother. If she were, she might have gotten a lot of scolding.

Taemin sneaked in Krystal’s room while she went inside the bathroom to brush her teeth. Well, she was carrying a towel and a toothbrush. Maybe she’ll take more time. He saw nothing out of the ordinary. The room looked like a normal girl’s room. Pink wallpaper, some posters of boy bands, make-up kits, perfumes, and hair brushes all neatly arranged on her dressing table. Even her closet’s well-kept. He couldn’t trace any smell of pot or other drugs in there. He opened the drawers hoping he’s find sachets of or heroin, or maybe bags of . Nothing. Strange. So this girl doesn’t do drugs in her own house? Doesn’t she crave for it?

He was out of the closet when he heard the bathroom door creak open. He hid inside one of the two tall cabinets not far from Krystal’s bed. She was humming. Some tune of a song he was personally fond of. Damn, this girl could really put on an act.  He thought.

He gave her some time to put on clothes before he decided to sneak up on her. She was drying her hair in front of the mirror when he appeared behind her.

“Hey.” He greeted.

“What are you doing in my room?” Krystal asked, shocked and trembling at the sight of a man in her room.

She couldn’t be this scared. She saw me more than twice before.

Taemin took a step forward. Krystal reached for the hair iron she had heated up on the side table.  

“I’m here to ask you some questions.”

“About what?”

“Who’s the guy you’re dating besides my friend Kai?”

“What are you talking about?” She’s obviously denying.

“The one you’re talking with on the phone, on your way home? You talked about some pretty nasty stuff back there.”

“It was… Kai.”

“Liar. You never gave Kai a call ever since you broke up. But he was always trying to reach you. Wasn’t he?”

“What do you care?” She was holding the hair iron in front of her, ready to hurt Taemin if he ever came forward.

“Why are you so scared of me? You can put that down and we can talk.”

“Why would I want to sit down and talk with someone who crept in my room?”

“Krystal, calm down. Just talk to me.” Taemin gestured for her to put down the iron. He went on and sat on the floor with his back on the wall beside her door. 

“I know you’ve been dating someone besides Kai. You’ve been with him even before you met Kai. Am I right?”

“Who are you to barge in my personal space?”

“His name was Choi Minho. Leader of a notorious gang called Crimson Rhomb.”

Krystal’s expression shifted when Taemin mentioned the Rhomb. “How did you know that?”

“What do you say you put that hair iron down and sit down on your bed?”

Krystal’s knees were shaking and she felt like Taemin wasn’t planning on hurting her anyway so she dropped the iron and slumped on her bed. “Talk.”

“Krystal, you’re a smart girl. And I know you won’t fall for a thug in the person of Choi Minho. So… tell me, what are you up to?”

It took some time for Krystal’s reluctance to wear off until she told him all about her relationship with Choi Minho. It turns out that Krystal’s mom died when she was in her pre-teens and her dad got involved into all sorts of drugs that he even had millions of dollars’ worth of debt because of it. Now back then, Minho’s dad was the leader of the gang. He only took over some years ago. She learned about the gang when she went through her dad’s things when he went missing, some transactions with a shady company. It was also that time when a friend of hers, Amber, also went missing. Rumors had it that their property got snatched up by a loan shark. Her family’s whereabouts are unknown. Yeah, I already know that bit.

“I was coming home from work one night when I thought I saw Amber going in the bar… I went inside to look for her but I couldn’t find her. I thought, maybe I was just imagining things. And then some guy bumped into me. The next thing I know I was being pushed out by one of his bodyguards. He looked like someone who has power in that club and then I saw a mark on his wrist and also the other guy’s wrist. Some shape, with the color of blood on it. And then images of my dad’s transactions with that shady company came to me. I figured, that’s it! The Crimson Rhomb. My dad, was having some business with Crimson Rhomb. This guy must be someone important. And so I went back in there the next night. I dressed up in a… ty way. Because I saw that he was flirting with one of the girls in there who looked like they’re… I don’t know, ? I’m sorry. And then I flirted with him. I was surprised it actually worked. I even think he fell in love with me.”

“And so from there you worked your way into looking more into their gang. How far have you got?”

“I’ve been in their hideout. If that’s what you mean?”

“And? What did you see?”

“I saw Amber there. But no Dad.”

“Is Amber safe?”

“Yes. She was shocked when she saw me. But I told her everything when I was left alone by Minho’s bodyguards. She works for Minho now. She’s like some sort of secretary.”

“And do you know where her family is?”

“She told me they moved away. Didn’t really tell me where.”

“But they’re safe?”

“Yeah, why do you ask? Do you know Amber too?”

“No. But my colleague does.”

“Listen, I don’t wanna go back there anymore. Do you know where I came from today? Hell. I watched Minho’s men shoot a bunch of kids in the head. I saw Minho molest a girl right in front of me. He even asked me to join him. I don’t wanna go back. I regret getting involved with him.”

“You should have thought about that before you flirted with him.”

“Do you know why I broke up with Kai?”

“No.”

“There was one night when Choi Minho forced me to sleep over at his place. You see, to him I’m just a girl, a weak one. Well, I am a girl and I don’t have any special physical attributes so when I got dragged to his place I couldn’t fight back. And you know what happened next. I felt so ashamed. I don’t really do drugs but then I got so riled up so I grabbed a pack of heroin lying around in Minho’s apartment and some other paraphernalia right before I left. Kai called me that day. Worried sick. He said he wanted to see me. I didn’t know what else to do, what lie to tell so I went to their apartment looking like . I was left alone in his room and when he came back he saw heroin bubbling on a spoon. He took them away from me and I remember screaming and crying and him trying so hard to calm me down. And then he got fed up with that routine and I saw that. So I let him go.”

Taemin could see pain in her eyes as she was telling the story. She must be telling the truth. She's been talking a lot and her voice even got strained at some point.

“I read in the internet once that one does not destroy the one he/she loves.” I saw that what I was doing to Kai was destroying him. I didn’t intend to.”

“So what do you propose? You said you don’t want to go back. But of course, you said so yourself that Choi Minho might have fallen in love with you. He’d miss you. And of course you also have Kai worrying about you.”

“I don’t know. At this point I’ve given up looking for my dad and I ing want to die.”

“So… should I kill you?”