s e v e n .

Kai blinks, befuddled. “What?” he asks, lips trembling ever-so-slightly with a mix of anticipation and anxiety. Close proximity noted, Krystal nearly grins when the door is pulled open, and eleven curious heads come into view. Stepping away, Krystal pushes a loose strand of hair behind her ear before exiting the closet, causing the boys to part like the Red Sea. “What?” Kai mutters again, rubbing the nape of his neck as he paces out, suddenly concerned over this matter.

The boys sole female guest has long since disappeared by the time they regroup in the living room, the only trace of her presence is the faint scent of detergent that wafted from her clothing. “What happened in there?” Tao presses curiously, peering at Kai from behind a pillow. The temperamental boy growls a meek ‘nothing’ before folding his hands together and gazing out the window ponderously. Sehun watches, intrigued by his friends awkward behavior. Kai just isn’t like this.

What had Krystal said or done?

Nothing, perhaps. Maybe Kai was just aggravated by the idea of having to stick up for Minseok, who is older. Even so, that simply is not how Kai rolls. Never before has Kai ever offered to take someone’s place, do something for anyone, or stick up for anyone. The behavior he put forward today was particularly out-of-character. Noticing Sehun’s intense gaze on him, Kai glances up to give the boy a scowl before standing and stalking out of the room. Sehun, of course, follows.

“Hyung!”

Kai glances back, but still proceeds to exit through the french doors that lead to the backyard. Then, after slumping into a cushioned chair on the patio, he speaks, “I don’t know why, but when I’m around her, I feel like I’m the one who’s being hunted.” Kai confesses, his hand rubbing his temples in a slow, circular manner. Sehun lowers himself into the chair opposite of Kai, crossing his legs as he grins.

“Maybe you’re not trying hard enough, then.” the younger boy suggests. There’s a certain amount of loathing that comes to mind whenever Sehun sits across from Kai. It’s the way the older boy holds himself —  all high and mighty — and the way he orders others around as if they’re all his slaves. Then again, that’s just it — to Kai, everyone else is his slave. Everyone else is below him. That point was proven last year, when Kai’s childish temper lead to the downfall of Sehun’s father’s company.

Despite this, however, the younger boy continues to give his service willingly to Kai. What Kai doesn’t know, is that Sehun’s long since been plotting to overthrow Kai’s whole family for the past year. His plans have been kept a secret, from both friends and family, and he has been able to work diligently and quietly to gain the trust of Kai and the rest of the Kim family. Despite this, he can never gain the edge he so desperately needs to overthrow them completely.

That’s when Krystal came in to the picture. Of course, no one else has seen the reclusive younger sister of Jung Soo Yeon aka Jessica. Sehun, however, saw her on an odd occasion years ago while driving home from school. She had been standing by the window, silhouetted in light, gaze casted far into the distance. It was almost picturesque, yes, but haunting nonetheless. Thankfully, he recognized the girl at first sight.

In all honesty, it was quite surprising to see Krystal, whom he had thought to be out of the country. His parents had spoken to him earlier about the second daughter of the Jung’s, who ran away from home on a whim, not even bothering to leave a note. Unlike his peers, he couldn’t help but wonder why she would do such a thing. After all, she’s Jung Soo Jung, daughter of what was formerly the most powerful family in Korea. Then, of course, he realized the distinct connection between Krystal becoming a maid for Kai.

Sehun, who has always liked to know everything, was well aware of the happenings between a certain Jung Soo Yeon and Kim Jongin. They dated, naturally, and their break up was nothing to brag about — it was ugly, from what he heard. The break up was so heated, that Jung Soo Yeon was forced to move out of the country, and switch to her alias — Jessica Jung.

Then comes Jung Soo Jung, Krystal, who cared deeply for her sister, evidently. Why would such a powerful, yet reclusive heiress suddenly leave the comfort of her home and run away to become a maid for the Kim’s? Simple: revenge. One of the few things the two have in common — they’re both seeking revenge on the Kim’s. That said, it only seemed necessary for the two to work together. Of course, if Krystal knew that her identity had been found out, she surely would not be so willing. However, as of right now, she definitely seems to be doing her job well. Now, it seems to just be a matter of discovering if they’re on the same page or not.

“Sehun,” Kai calls, waving his hand in front of the younger boy’s face. “Hey!”

Awakened from his trance by the sharp voice of Kai, Sehun blinks before smiling. “Sorry, I was day-dreaming.” he laughs, ruffling his hair absently before clasping his hands together. “I think, if you want to get her on your side, you need to analyze her behavior and figure out what she likes — girls like that.” Sehun offers, secretly hoping that Krystal will be able to control herself. Any professional would be able to.

“Do you think that’s it? I should try the desperate approach, then? I was going for the split-personality approach, but—” Kai sighs. “I guess it wasn’t working.” His companion nods enthusiastically. Kai looks down to his non-existent watch and frowns. “I’m getting hungry, you all should leave so I can make her get me dinner.”

Sehun sighs. “Ask her what she likes—!”

Kai points a single finger at Sehun and nods. “Good idea,” he praises while pulling Sehun up from his chair and pushing back into the house. Kai quickly dismisses his friends, who scatter in a matter of minutes. Seconds later, Krystal emerges from her room, relieved to be out of the sight of people, and yet nervous to be alone with Kai. Said male is lounging, eyes shut, on a nearby sofa.

“Well, aren’t you just prince charming?” she drones as he reaches down to scratch his s. He grins at this and opens his eyes to look at her. The act would be endearing if not adorable, but, the fact that Kim Jongin is doing it makes it revolting. “What do you want to eat?” Krystal adds, thoroughly displeased with his barbaric actions. Boys are gross.

At this, he sits up, swinging his legs off of the ottoman. “I don’t know,” he sighs. “What do you want to eat?” Danger, Krystal thinks. Why is he doing this? What does he expect me to say? ‘You’? Ew. No thanks. Maybe I should say the soul of his first born child…

“Ch-Chicken?” she suggests carefully. His eyes widen slightly and he nods eagerly, childishly. Rolling her eyes, Krystal takes her phone out of her pocket. Much to her surprise, the screen displays the one missed call notification — a missed call from Jessica. . “I’ll be back.” Krystal hisses towards Jongin as she disappears into her bedroom. Finger’s shaking, Krystal presses the call button after several seconds, and then waits, phone pressed to her ear eagerly.

“Hello?”

a u t h o r ' s n o t e ;

• yes, finally, an update. this is totally overdue, but I've been really busy. I actually already have another chapter written, so depending on the response I get I might do a double update! yay. um, nothing else to say, really. I hope you'll enjoy~

- PerfectlyExotic, Peyton