Kei’s note: Hello, guys! Please take note that this is an AU fanfic of Vincenzo and DOTS so there will be some slight changes on the roles of each character. Thank you for reading. I appreciate it. Here’s Chapter 3.
CHAPTER 3
“So you’re saying that you were attacked after meeting Jang Han Seok? Ah, no—you were attacked after having a personal guard? That’s suspicious, Cha-young.” Myung-ju rested her elbow on my table and put her chin on her palm. She was thinking intently, it looks like there are a lot of things in her mind right now.
“Indeed. It’s suspicious,” I shortly stated. I focused on my laptop and browsed the email that was sent to me by someone this morning. I downloaded the file that was attached and opened it.
“Do you want me to investigate Yoo Si Jin? You know what, when I first saw him, he seemed suspicious. There’s a mysterious air around him but at the same time—” she stopped, “Ugh! I can’t describe it.” I shook my head. It’s been five days since the attack. Yoo Si Jin reported to Jang Han Seok about what happened to us that night. Han Seok immediately informed my father and Yu Haehan and they were worried, and made an investigation but there was no lead or clue. Even though Jangs and Hongs are powerful families, they can’t do anything about the attackers if we don’t have any clues about them. In short, the case was not resolved.
Yoo Si Jin was scolded but I was quick to defend him. Because I spoke up, he was saved from his punishment. Ha, what a failure. It was his first day but we were attacked but then, I was not hurt so it’s okay. I throw a glance at the door. Behind that, was the man we’re currently talking about.
“Tsk. This whole setup is suspicious. Cha-young, just escape now. I’ll help you.” I chuckled when I heard what Myung-ju had said. I looked at her.
“Myung-ju ah, I can’t do that right now. See this?” I picked up the folder in my table and showed it to her, “my father told me to do something. I have to finish this first,” I said. Myung-ju glared at me.
“Yah. Why do you always follow the orders of Uncle?! I thought you wanted to be free from them.”
“It’s not that easy. You know my goal, right? That’s why I have to be on my father’s good side. There’s no room for failure. Besides,” I dropped the folder on the table, “I feel like I will become busy these coming days.” I stood up and picked up my black double-breasted coat on my swivel chair. I wore it and fixed myself. I comb my hair using my fingers. I looked at Myung-ju. “I’m leaving. Bye, dear.” I grab my Lady Dior bag that was placed on my table. I wave my hand at Myung-ju. She nodded her head while still looking at me intently.
“Addio,” I said playfully. I turned my back to her and walked towards the door. I opened it and the first person I saw was no other than Yoo Si Jin. He gently smiled and I couldn't help but raise my eyebrow. In the five days that we've been together, he was slowly getting comfortable around me. Well, it seems like the incident was not a big deal to him. I even heard him playfully talking to someone on his phone yesterday. Tsk. It’s really true that first impressions last. I can’t seem to forget his mysterious aura when I first saw him.
“Miss Cha-young.”
“Let’s go somewhere. I already forwarded to you the address,” I said. He nodded his head. I turned my back to him and made my way towards the staircase. I squinted my eyes when I spotted Shin Hye leaning on her piano while looking towards my direction. Her gaze feels like she wanted to tell me something. She shook her head.
Hm. Weird.
***
I looked outside of the car window. I hummed in approval when I saw the building in front of me. It was a three-storey building with a paint that was peeling, but it’d be more accurate to tell that it was shedding. There were a lot of colorful banners hanging outside of the building, as if it were trying to invite guests, but its current look might have failed to do so. The color of the banners are fading, some are shred. But then, at the entrance of the building, the paint “Geumga Plaza” stood out. It was the glory of the building. Geumga means gold. What an interesting name. I looked at Yoo Si Jin who was about to get out of the car.
“Si Jin.” He stopped and turned his head towards my direction. Well, he told me last time that I can call him Si Jin. First name basis. I believe it’s the start of our partnership or whatever.
“Yes, Miss Cha-young?”
“Wear these.” I handed him the black facemask, and Ray-Ban Wayfarer I brought. He looked at me, wondering. “What’s these?” he asked.
“Facemask and sunglasses,” I answered him boredly. He grimaced. He did not ask again. He took the things and wore them.
“You have a baseball cap, right? Wear it. I just want my guard to be mysterious. I like mysterious men,” I stated. He did not utter a single word, but he loudly sigh in defeat. I crossed my arms over my chest and waited for him to finished in covering his face. Well, the people inside the building should not see his face so that I can give him missions that involve Geumga Plaza. I turned my gaze at Yoo Si Jin. I don’t know if he’s looking at me in the rear-view mirror but I just nodded my head towards him and then I put my Ray-Ban Wayfarer on.
Well, I guess he was looking at me because he immediately got out of the car and ran towards the back seat. He opened the car door for me. I grabbed my Lady Dior bag and got out of the car. Yoo Si Jin closed the car door and I started walking towards the entrance of the building. Yoo Si Jin was also walking behind me. As soon as we entered the building, my forehead creased when I heard a commotion in the hallway.
Aish. So this is how they welcome their lovely guests? I halted when the owner of the Geumga Plaza walked towards me. Behind him were the tenants of this building who are currently glaring at me.
“Miss Hong Cha-young.”
“Mr. Cho Young-woon. Long time no see,” I greeted him. He stopped in front of me. Mr. Cho is the current owner of the Geumga Plaza and soon, I will replace him because I am the future owner of this building. I stopped myself from flipping my hair.
“Ms. Hong. I guess you still have the same agenda for visiting here, right?” he asked. I dramatically place my right hand on my chest.
“Oh—You just hurt my feelings, Mr. Cho. I’m just here because I want to visit this lovely—” I looked at the flickering light in the hallway and returned my gaze to Mr. Cho, “very lovely place. I am just a wonderful guest for today.”
“We do not need guests.” I raised my eyebrow when I heard what one of the tenants had said. I looked for the culprit and I can’t help but smirk when I saw the person who just decided not to welcome me. He was an old man holding a pair of scissors and he had a tape measure on his shoulder. I took off my sunglasses.
“My presence just illuminated the whole building so you should be thankful.” I smiled at them when I saw how their jaws dropped because of what I said. My smile was immediately gone when a man who was wearing a beanie and track suit performed a cartwheel in front of us.
“Wooh—” I was taken aback when Yoo Si Jin held my arm and place me behind him. His right arm was protecting me from a possible attack—but that man will not attack me. I looked at the man in the tracksuit. I stopped myself from laughing when his wife stepped out and pulled his ear.
“Ah—ah—” He has a painful expression. The couple disappeared behind the crowd. Mr. Cho cleared his throat. I tapped the arm of Yoo Si Jin.
“It’s okay. They will not harm me,” I whispered to him.
“I apologized for that Miss Hong. He—he was just doing some exercise routine,” Mr. Cho said with an awkward smile on his face. I hummed when I noticed that all of their eyes were on Yoo Si Jin. It seems like he had picked their interest. Well, if I am one of the tenants I will also be curious about this mysterious man who had his face covered.
“They look like they will harm you if they will get a chance,” Yoo Si Jin whispered to me. Is he throwing a joke right now?
“Nah. They can’t do that. I will just scream my lungs out if they will attack me but that will never happen,” I said and stepped forward. I was now in front of Yoo Si Jin.
“Mrs. Kwak Hee-soo?” I called out while looking at the tenants.
“Y—Yes?” A woman from the crowd answered. I put my Ray-Ban Wayfarer on and wore the bag at the crook of my elbow. “Can I order a spicy tteokbokki?” The crowd parted and a middle aged woman, dressed in a casual attire was left in the middle. She was looking at me hesitantly.
“Uh—”
“I’ll pay double the price.”
“Hu? Okay.”
I threw a side-glance to Yoo Si Jin while smiling smugly.
***
I shivered when the cold breeze touched my skin and kissed my neck. I smiled slightly while looking at the city lights and enjoying the coldness. This current situation brought comfort in my mind. I looked at the man who was sitting on the bench in front of me while drinking a can of beer. Beside him was a plate with sauce stains, two cans of beer, and the mask and sunglasses he was wearing earlier. I did not allow him to remove the cover on his face earlier because the tenants can still see us. Even though he was starving and wanted to eat spicy tteokbokki with me, I did not let him remove it. I was a bit cruel but I am just being careful. I even glared at the tenants who were trying to get close to him and converse with him.
When the night time came, I invited him to go to the rooftop of the plaza. I frequently go here whenever I visit this place. Well, even though they do not welcome me nicely, I can still enter this building because they know me and they can’t do anything about me. They are just being hostile to me because Hong Corporation wants to buy Geumga Plaza and turn it into a condominium. But the tenants don't want to leave the plaza, they keep on resisting and doing their best to fight our attempt to own this building. Mr. Cho also doesn't want to give up the ownership no matter how big our offer is to him.
I loudly sigh. Really, they are one of the causes of my headache. I looked at Yoo Si Jin. Before we came here, I bought three cans of beer and spicy tteokbokki for him to drink and eat. He accepted it gladly. Maybe he was really hungry.
“It’s nice here, right?” I said.
“The view is ordinary. Nothing special.” I raised my eyebrow.
“Yah. Are you getting comfortable now?”
“I’m just being honest, Miss Cha-young.” Tsk. What an honest man. And don’t forget, he’s also loyal to the Jangs. There was a moment of silence between us. I made my way towards him. There was no space for me to sit on the bench so I decided to stand one meter behind him. He was about to remove the mask and sunglasses on the bench but I stopped him.
“No need. I want to stand here because I want to enjoy the ordinary view,” I stated. He looked at me as if I were a weird alien. What? Is it weird to stand behind him? Besides, I maintained my distance from him. He just shook his head and turned his back on me.
“Why did you choose me as your guard?” he asked out of the blue. Woah. Is he already drunk? I didn't know that he has a low alcohol tolerance. “I’m not drunk. I just wanted to ask that,” he said. Is he some kind of telepathist?
“I like mysterious men,” I said. I opened my Lady Dior bag, “but I’m disappointed. It seems like you’re not that mysterious at all,” I added. I heard him chuckle.
“What did you expect from me, Miss Cha-young? Did you think that I’m a cold and mysterious man? Did you think that I am like those men in the movies—uh, like a member of the mafia perhaps?” He shortly laughed. As a member of special forces it seems like he’s not taking the mafia seriously.
“Maybe yes,” I walked closer to him, “even though I am disappointed because you are not some kind of cold mysterious man or mafia man, I am still thrilled. There’s a lot of things that make me excited right now. Do you want to know about it, Yoo Si Jin, an elite special forces soldier and the captain of the Alpha Team?” I dropped my bag.
He was about to drink his beer when he heard what I said. His hand stopped in mid-air and froze when I pointed the gun that I held on the back of his head.
“Hm. I clearly remember that your profile says that you're a FORMER soldier of the special forces and was forced to resign because of an unfortunate event,” I hummed, “The Captain of a peacekeeping squadron in Uruk. Ah, you have a lot of achievements, don’t you? I will not recite it one by one, I’m sure that you’re aware of your own achievements, Captain Yoo Si Jin.”
He slowly put the beer down. “Miss Cha-young.” The playfulness of his voice was gone.
“It’s a Ruger Redhawk. A double-action revolver. My father gave it to me as a birthday present. This gun looks good being pointed at the back of your head.”
There was tension in the air. He was still not moving from his seat. I held the gun with my two hands tightly.
“You’re still a member of the special forces. Why did you lie, Captain Yoo Si Jin? What’s your intention?” Unlike him, my voice was void of emotion. The last thing I want is being betrayed. So I won't let anyone stay by my side if they are just going to stab me in the back for their own benefits.
“I am not in the position to—”
“You’re making me laugh, Captain Yoo Si Jin.”
“Guns are dangerous, Miss Cha-young.”
“If you’ll answer my questions, I will put this gun down.” He did not respond.
“Miss Cha-young, I don't want to harm you.”
The cold wind brush on my skin. My hair fluttered and my heartbeat quickened. I realized how dark the rooftop was. The single light that illuminated the whole place started flickering.
“Are you going to answer my question?” I asked one more time.
“Please put that gun down.”
I smiled slightly.
“Addio, Captain Yoo Si Jin,” I whispered to him. I did not wait for him to utter a single word.
I pulled the trigger.