“What…?” whispered Siwon, absolutely bewildered.

He couldn’t comprehend what Kyuhyun had just said. Their beloved maknae was a… murderer?

“Yes. I killed many people; however, let’s start from the beginning,” Kyuhyun said and his gaze moved towards the windows.

His eyes became distant. The hum of the rain filled the room before Kyu’s barely audible voice broke the silence.

“It all started in 1998…”

1998

“Darling?” Kyuhyun’s mother said in a weak voice.

She looked up at her husband with half opened eyes. Then she raised her hand, which was immediately cupped by her love’s hands.

“Yes?” the man replied.

She fidgeted uncomfortably.

“What is it?” he nervously asked coming closer.

“Dr. Pahk said I have three months.”

He swallowed holding back his tears and taking her into his arms. “And there’s nothing…?”

“The medicine is much too expensive.”

Kyuhyun was ten when he overheard the conversation that changed his life. In a nearby village there was a man who said that he could make everything right again - under one condition, of course. The boy was to never see his mother again.

The same day he packed his most important belongings and left a goodbye letter for his parents. With tears in his eyes he escaped their modest home in which he was brought up. Nostalgia filled his soul as he stood in front of his little house. He could see all the happy memories as his eyes swept from their hand-made tree house, across the small garden and up to the living room, whose interior was visible behind the windows.

‘I must not be distracted! They need the money and I can get it! I’d anything to let her live’ he thought and shook his head.

“I am sorry, daddy. I am sorry, mommy. But it’s all for you,” little Kyuhyun whispered before turning around and running away as fast as he could under night’s cover.

He never looked back, for he knew that if he did, he would break down and come back to what was his happy and careless past.

“I accept the deal.” Kyuhyun said as soon as he arrived at the coffee restaurant. It took him over an hour to come here, because his house was located on the outskirts of Seoul.

“Mister…?”

“Just call me Master,” the man in a suit replied and extended his hand, “Welcome to the Rose Project, Cho Kyuhyun, the payment will be done within an hour. Now, follow me.”

“Yes… Master.”

“Here are the rules, which every intern has to obey. Otherwise, they are going to be immediately sent back home. This project requires strong hearts, because the cause we are fighting for is extremely hard to accomplish. Thanks to Master’s great heart, we will be able to achieve balance between the rich and the poor,” a man said in a deep voice. He was standing in front of forty girls and boys, who were all less than twenty years old, “Now, read the rules once again.”

“You are to never share y