A/N: Updated. Hope you like this chapter! :) (I'll update “Close to You” afterward).

c h a p t e r  o n e ::

            A man with eagle-like eyes was walking down a hallway, his feet never strutting away from the red carpet at the center of the floor. On the walls were sophisticated paintings by famous artists in the country. The chandelier lights glared at his face that was depicting trouble which he's trying to suppress inside him through a straight face. He was wearing an expensive black suit, his watch was made out of stainless steel, and he had a golden earring on his right ear. He was followed by two big men who were wearing black suits, but not as extravagant as his. In his right hand was a crumpled piece of paper that he continues to unknowingly crumple into a ball.

            He ceased his steps at a certain door and turned to its direction, holding the knob. He opened it and closed it behind his back without letting the two black men behind him follow.

            Upon his arrival, two men stood up from the red velvet couch they were sitting on with a hint of concern on their faces.

            “Is it true? She's gone?” one of them questioned the man who just entered. He his lips afterward as he inserted both of his hands inside the pockets of his pants.

            In reply, the man merely lowered his head and sighed.

            “We can't tell our grandfather. We can't stress him out since he just came home from the hospital after a heart attack.” the chocolate-haired man next to his relative stated. “We have to get Soori back.”

            “I already informed secret service to find Soori as discreetly as possible. The media shouldn't find out about this. I even sent some of them overseas and asked a few secret service agencies from different countries, in case she was abroad.” the man by the door raised his head to face one of his relatives, specifically the one who's been his lips non-stop with the nervous look in his eyes. “Have you tried calling Soori, Donghae?”

            The man shook his head in reply. “I did, but I can't contact her, Jungsoo-hyung.” he then faced the younger man beside him, “How about you, Minho?”

            The younger man with the big eyes arched his head forward, shaking it while his hands were gripped together. This made the man by the door upset as he leaned his head back onto the door and took a deep breath in.

            “She stated in the letter that she's rebelling against grandfather because of the marriage between her and Kyuhyun.” he whined, moving his hand near his forehead to rub his temples using his thumb and index finger.

            “Both of them are too arrogant for each other. I'm not surprised that Soori would use that as an excuse.” Donghae huffed. “Your sister's a brat... and so is Kyuhyun.”

            “Yah, Lee Donghae! Shut up!” Jungsoo exclaimed angrily at Donghae.

            Minho raised his head, shifting his gaze from Jungsoo to Donghae who were averting their stares from each other. “Jungsoo-hyung, Donghae-hyung, let's not fight on this. We have to think of a plan as soon as possible.” he then lays a hand on Donghae's shoulder, calming him somehow.

            Jungsoo's expression softened when he heard what their youngest had to say. A curve dawned on his lips. “Minho's right. We shouldn't be fighting about this. We have to think of a solution.”

            “But how are we going to deal with this? Sure, people around the palace would be suspicious with the letter Soori gave you.” Donghae told Jungsoo.

            Jungsoo glanced at the letter his sister gave him, crumpled and slightly ripped by the edge. “We're going to tell all of them that she's on a vacation.”

            “But her 21st birthday is in a few days. Grandfather called for a press conference since he'll be showing the crown princess to the public, and we have to be part of it.” Minho pointed out, which made Jungsoo lose his smile for a moment. “We can't tell grandfather to change the date either.”

            “Well, we just have to find her then. Let's not be pessimistic here, guys.” Donghae smiled, looking at Jungsoo and Minho.

            “We can't just find her. Even with secret service, it's going to take more than a week and a half to find Soori because we have no idea where she could be.” Jungsoo removed his hand from his forehead, sighing.

            “Yeah. Park Soori's a common name.” Donghae muttered, scratching the back of his head.

            “If we're lucky, then we can find Soori in no time. If not, we just have to buy some time, then.”

♥♪♥

            “Good afternoon madam! Welcome to Graze! I'm Sooyoung. May I take your order?”

            It was another afternoon at the cafe—around this time, the rest of the students would be dismissed and go straight to a nearby cafe where they could chill out with their friends or use the internet for their assignments and research. Just seeing them do their research and theses just adds up to the pressure that I'm already feeling inside me. Good thing that my job requires smiling, or else I would end up fretting like a nervous wreck all of the sudden.

            The combination of the boiling hot air coming from the steams of freshly brewed coffee and tea, and the wind coming out from the air conditioning vents at the ceiling was relaxing yet humid at the same time. One can't even hear the jazz music coming from the stereos that are installed at all four corners of the room due to the noise of the people inside the cafe, but no one can deny the sweet smell of freshly brewed coffee permeating throughout the room. Every five minutes, a person would push the door open and the bell would ring. Or after ten to fifteen minutes, a group of friends would hang out here and take their orders.

            “I'll have pearl milk tea, please.” the lady in front of me said in a gentle manner. Her looks speak otherwise—rather than being the silent, lady-like girl who barely shows some skin, she had wavy brown hair that flowed down her shoulders; Ray Ban shades with diamonds embedded on the side, wearing them inside the cafe despite the absence of sunlight; leopard printed bolero, sleeveless apparel and designer stilettos. She had those bold red lips that pout similar to Megan Fox, and her skin was truly fair.

            “One pearl milk tea here! Plain!” I cried out, a bit shrewd somehow as I slightly turned my head to the people behind me who were brewing coffee and making milk teas. Upon facing the woman, she handed me some money, enough to pay for her drink. After giving her the receipt, I told her, “Wait for your drink by the waiting area. Show your receipt afterward.”

            Without another word, she smirks at me before heading to the other side of the counter to get her drink.

            It's just puzzling. All I can ever come close to wearing designer clothes are with the replicas that are made from China. Although I don't intend to, my eyes just followed her. Somehow, I envy her for looking so perfect from head to toe, and she looked like she didn't have a care in the world and lead a carefree life.

            I then felt a hand on my shoulder. Looking at my right, I see a man with bleached hair and a cordial smile. “Kibum-i.” I curved my lip.

            Kim Kibum. Both of us are in our sophomore year, but he was majoring under theater arts. He was a diva in the making, trying eccentric looks such as shaving ¼ of his hair and flaunt it around the school campus. A fashion icon for men in school, but men wouldn't want to acquire his love for anything which is colored pink. He has small eyes and his face showed a lot of bones since he was big boned and skinny. His nose was straight and he wasn't that tall nor short.

            Kibum and I first met here after working at Graze for a month. He was from a rich family with refined taste, but Kibum wanted to live his life independently. Last Christmas, Kibum gave me a dress since he sees me wearing the same clothes all the time. Although I'm unfair with him when it comes to work, he'd always cover up for me whenever something bad happens.

            “How's your father now?” he asked me before facing the glass counter with individually prepared cakes inside. Kibum was getting one, specifically an individual serving of New York Cheesecake.

            “Dad?” I said, laying my arm on the counter, leaning towards its direction. “Never been better. I've already asked our manager for a raise just to speed things up for his operation. I'm not even going to the field trip that our class is required to go to because I have to save some money.”

            Kibum was the only guy friend whom I could confide to. He was rather feminine compared to the other guys, which may be the reason why I find it easy to talk to him.

            Though I could only see half of his face, Kibum was smiling, crouching down upon getting the cheesecake before sliding the refrigerator close. He faced me afterward, “You're a good kid. They should call you Super Sooyoung.” Kibum chuckled, passing by me in order to exit the counter and head off to the waiting shed to serve the Cheesecake on a tray.

            I turned in my position, watching him as he smilingly serves the customers. Super Sooyoung, huh?  What's so superb about a girl who has to work two part-time jobs just to support her family? To add to it, I'm not even smart and I don't know when I last cleaned the house. I don't even know when the loan sharks are coming back to terrorize us once again. To add to it, what's in the name? I'm not even a professional at swimming.

            My life is a failure, but I try to be content with my life as it is. What keeps me moving is that nothing can get better than what I'm going through right now—worse things can only happen to me so far.

            “Sooyoung. Sooyoung!”

            Hearing the undeniably geeky voice of my manager, I turned my head at the back to check if he was really calling for me, and he was already gesturing his hand to come to him. With nothing else to do, I walked towards him, “Yes, boss?”

            My manager was geeky in a way. He was chubby, wearing striped shirts of light colors and oddly pattered neckties and black specks. His hair was black and curly, and he was really lacking in height. Using his plump fingers and huge hand as he held a brown envelope, sealed with an elastic band. He then handed it over to me.

            “Give this to the other manager working at the other Graze Cafe downtown after closing time by tonight.” he said as I received it with two hands, eying the envelope as I try to guess what's inside it at the back of my head.

            “But sir,” I called him as his eyes widened, looking like he's wondering why I'm even questioning him. “By the time I arrive there sir, the train stations will be closed and I won't be able to go back home.”

            He raised his eyebrow at me. “You have a bike, right?”

            “Yes?” I answered, quite unsure that my answer would lead me to something better. “Why?”

            “Then take it with you downtown.” he told me like it's the most obvious thing in the world. He huffed afterward, turning his back at me before walking away, leaving me with my eyebrows crinkled in puzzlement. How the hell will I go downtown by using a bike? Is he trying to kill me!?

            I suddenly felt the urge to just grab any sharp object that's near me—even the cash register itself—and throw it at his fat head to satisfy my anger. But instead, I imagine myself holding a shotgun and firing it at his head a few times, and then gesturing my hands like I was holding a grenade and throwing it at him. When he was completely out of sight, I glanced at the envelope before carelessly laying it on the counter, annoyed.

            I groaned. “That pig. He can't even run a hundred meters and he's expecting me to ride a bike going downtown! Aish!”

            “That's alright,” I heard Kibum getting closer by the tapping his footsteps made. At the same time, I hear him lay the tray on a counter. “Have the heart to do it, Super Sooyoung. There's nothing you can't do, right?”

            Hearing him chuckle at my assigned task, I whined upon facing him. “Kim Kibum, are you mocking me? You know I'm just human. That whale isn't.”

            He shook his head, still bearing that smile of his before speaking to me once more. “You'll be fine. Just remember that tomorrow's pay day.” he said, quite confident with his words based from the tone of his voice. There was definitely something about it that made me feel certain that everything will be alright anyway—the hope that I'd be able to forget my leg cramps when I receive my month's worth of salary. Although it wasn't apparent on my face, I've always been optimistic.

            I was wrong. Completely wrong. Call me a , in fact.

            Biking downtown was the worst decision I've ever made. To add to it, it was rush hour, and everyone's always eager to go home. I had to avoid vehicles that were heading towards me. Take note—vehicles.

            The worse part was when all the cars stopped because the red light was on. Unfortunately, no matter how hard I tried pulling the breaks, my bike never stopped. I almost hit a car due to this, but good thing that I was able to pass through a narrow way wherein at the other side was a road going opposite the direction of where I'm heading to. I was about to put my feet on the ground in order to completely stop the bike, but while I was doing so, a car was heading towards my direction. Perhaps, upon seeing me, he pulled the breaks. With the fear that my foot would get crushed by the wheel, I didn't bother stopping the bike as I closed my eyes, thinking that I'd get hit over by the BMW in front of me. Plus, my bike was becoming more and more unbalanced, so while I was trying to balance it with the handle, I ended up scratching the expensive vehicle before falling on the ground, and the bike falling over me.

            Stupid.

            I then heard the car door open and close by slamming. By the sound of his footsteps, he was moving closer to my direction. I felt like I'm paralyzed or something, and I could just spend the whole night watching the stars glitter up in the sky.

            The footsteps ceased afterward.

            “Yah! Can't you be more careful? I bet a dog can ride a bike more skillfully than you can.” a man in a suit exclaimed. I was unable to see his face back there.

            I can just lie down on the ground the whole night, but I thought it was rude for me not to bow my head in apology to the man. I even had to lift the bike off my body on my own. Groaning in pain, I stood up and dusted my pants before facing the man. I bowed my head afterward, “I'm sorry for the trouble I've caused. I promise to pay!”

            When I lifted my head to face him once again, I was able to recognize who the man was. I furrowed my eyebrows in disbelief; he looked exactly like that celebrity that I see on TV who sings and dance on live music shows, also acting in a few dramas and guesting in a few shows. The man had wavy black hair that reached his shoulders. He was really handsome even though he looked a bit haggard, straight-faced. I might as well regret telling him that I'd pay the damages since the black suit and the leather shoes don't lie. But still, I have to keep my word.

            “How much do you think I'm going to pay you for the damages?” I smiled in a sheepish manner, hoping that I won't have to pay for something expensive.

            I think he was able to see me twitch for a moment back there, while he was looking up in the sky, as if a Math equation was floating up above his head. After mumbling for a few seconds, he finally revealed the amount. “Ten.”

            “Ten thousand Wons?” I grinned, reaching in for my wallet inside my body bag. “I think I have that amount of money.” Confident, I was about to pull out ten thousand Wons from my wallet when he told me the real price.

            “Ten million.”

            I faced him at once, blinking my eyes in utter disbelief. “Ten million Won!? Are you serious!?”

            “It was supposed to be 20 million Won, but I thought it's too much for a scratch. Ten million's enough, I guess.” he shrugged his shoulders afterward like it wasn't a huge amount of money that we're dealing.

            Instead of reaching out for the ten thousand Won, which is actually the amount inside my wallet, I swallowed the spit inside my mouth, staring at him for a few seconds with eyes that felt like they're about to pop out from my sockets. Abruptly, I pulled my bike and rode on it, stepping on the pedals as fast as I can to get away from him as much as possible.

            “Yah! Where are you going!?” I heard him yell at me. Glancing back at him, I saw him running towards me, but I was fast enough to get away from him. I started laughing inwardly, thinking that my escape attempt was successful until I heard a car honk louder than the usual. Looking back, I saw the man inside his “damaged” black BMW car, his eyebrows furrowed at me. Panicking, I pedaled faster and faster even though it feels like my muscles are tearing. I scrunched my eyes out of pain for a second and took a deep breath afterward.

            The next thing I know, the same black BMW blocks my way by stopping right in front of me. Surprised, I took a left in order to avoid the car, forgetting that the breaks on my bike were broken. I ended up colliding with the car and scratching it again—this time, it's the side without the scratch. Stopping for a moment, I bowed at him through his car window as he had his eyebrow raised at me, bearing a hint of shock on his face.

            “I'm sorry!” I exclaimed, tugging my hair behind my ears before biking my way to my destination.

            Ever since then, he stopped following me. But when I arrived at the Graze branch downtown, I realized that the envelope—being the only reason to why I had to bike my way downtown and back again—was laying on the ground when my bike fell on the concrete floor.

            Just... hit me.

♪♥♪

Ending A/N: So that's it for now, guys. :) Btw, thanks for subscribing, you wonderful people! :DD I appreciate that you're really interested in reading this story. Because of the number of subscribers, I thought that I should put a teaser here:

            “You're fired!”

            “It's you!”

            “Get away from me! I don't have your ten million Won!!”

            “I have a friend who works as a maid, and the salary is quite high because it's at the royal palace.”

            “I'll take it! I don't care anymore. It's the only job where I can be useful and keep my dignity with a high salary.”

            “She really looks like Soori.”

So that's it for now. Thank you so much and comments are loved~♥ :) I hope you liked this chapter. To God be the glory! :D –Sab

Btw, replies!! :))
@kulit18: lol kulit. Yup, updated. Thanks for subscribing and commenting! :D
@SONE_PYROS: Really? I'm glad you think so. :D Updated it, and thank you for commenting. :))

PS: I'd appreciate it if you guys bother to check if I have any grammatical errors? I haven't beta-edited this yet. :/ (and I don't usually do. lol but yeah, I'd appreciate it. :)) )