PITYING THE PRISONER | p.jm

t h r e e - c o r a

"Do you know why we chose to take him?"

"Has he wronged The Company, sir?" I ask.

"No, he doesn't even know we exist. He didn't, at least. I'm sure he knows now. Guess again."

"I don't know, sir."

"What is something an idol has?"

"Fans?"

"No, something else. Something useful."

"Money?"

"Yes."

"So we're ransoming him, sir?"

"Yes, in a way. We're going to offer up ransom for this kid, and once we get the money, they get his dead body."

"Why not just give him back alive? I don't understand our motive, sir."

"This idol is going to help us make a statement. His death says that we mean business, that we aren't afraid to go after the big fish, you know? It's telling the public not to mess with us, telling them that not even idols are off-limits. That no one is safe. Does that make sense?"

"Yes, sir. Thank you for explaining it to me."

"Of course. Cora, I want you to take your time with this one. We may not need to kill him physically if you can kill him mentally. I believe that may be an even harder blow to the public, seeing him living but not really alive. I want you to do your best work with this man, alright? Can you do that for me?"

"Yes, sir."

"Great. Go to the cafeteria, get some food in you. I'll have someone else bring him breakfast this morning. I want him to be more alert when he sees you for the first time. Be back at noon, okay?"

"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir."

"Dismissed." Taewoo salutes to me and I return it before walking towards the cafeteria. I go to get in line and encounter Subin entering shortly after me.

"Hey!" She calls. "Aren't you supposed to be working?"

"Yeah," I reply. "Well, sort of. When I showed up, Taewoo— er, Rike was there, and he told me he didn't want me to show up until noon today."

"Cool," she says. "So, what's for breakfast?"

"Don't know."

We advance in line and I'm handed a tray with a bowl of rice and a bowl of soup, which is normal here. As I reach the end of the line, I'm handed a cup of coffee and what appears to be a croissant. Taking them both and thanking the woman behind the counter, I wait for Subin to get her food. She puts milk in her coffee, something I don't do, and then sits down across from me at the first available table.

"So," I ask between sips of coffee. "What's new with you?"

"I got an iPod," she says.

"Really?" I exclaim. "When? Can I borrow it sometime?"

"Three days ago, and sure. Just don't buy anything, okay?"

"Of course. Thank you so much!"

"No problem."

"Anything else?"

"What?"

"Is anything else going on with you? How's guarding?"

"How's guarding? Lee Cora, I'll have you know that guarding is honestly the worst thing in the whole world. I am bored out of my mind every single day. You are so lucky you get to be a Breaker, because every time I start my shift I want to cry. You have no idea how awful it is."