Roadkill - catnipz

Chapter 1 - Rodent

note: haerin doesn't show up straight away (i dont want u to think i converted it wrong 😭)

===

"Sakura looks over the top of her computer, eyebrows climbing in disbelief. 'No,' she searches Chaewon's eyes for any traces of dishonesty, and her heart sinks when she finds none. 'Oh my god, you're kidding me,' she groans, taking her hands away from the computer keyboard in favor of threading her fingers through her hair in agitation. 'That's what, the fourth time this year?'

Chaewon nods, letting out a sigh as she pulls back the chair in front of Sakura's desk, sitting herself down on it and crossing her arms. 'Sullyoon said she saw a rat in the canteen this morning. Nothing else has been seen, but you know how it is,' she rolls her eyes. 'Once there's one, there's a whole other family to go along with it.'

'It's the fucking Centre,' Sakura curses, dropping her hands from her scalp and stretching them out in front of her. She keeps reminding herself that she needs to buy a new chair, one that doesn't cause her muscles to ache so much, but it keeps getting pushed to the back of her list of priorities. 'Can't even spare us a bit of funding for pest control, never mind the prevention of crime,' she grunts out, before waving a hand in Chaewon's direction. 'I'm sorry, I shouldn't be ranting to you, it's not very professional, is it?'

Chaewon snorts. 'You know I don't give two fucks about things like that.'

Sakura gives her a wry smile. 'It's not you I'm worried about. Shit, I don't care what you think of me, but what if I slip up in front of someone else? I have to try and convince Eunchae that there's at least some sort of cohesion around here.'

Chaewon hums. 'I suppose so. She should figure out that this place is a shithole on her own rather than by your hands.'

Sakura gives her a warning look, pointing a finger at her. 'Watch it, you,' she leans back, grimacing when her back cracks out of its own accord. Yeah, definitely needs a new chair. 'She's so full of the joys, Eunchae,' she says wistfully. 'She's so eager to do everything, and she works hard too. I swear, if this detective unit were in any other fucking station, we'd be flying it,' she gives her head a gentle shake, positioning her fingers back on the computer keyboard. 'Anyways, I really should be working. What do you need?'

'No, you shouldn't,' Chaewon chides, and points to the clock on the back wall, Sakura turning in her chair to face it. 'We're on break. And if you think I'm going anywhere near that dingy fucking canteen, you've got another thing coming. Eunchae looked traumatized this morning.'

'God,' Sakura mutters, looking at the clock in disbelief. 'It's a good thing you came. I would've just kept on working.'

'I know you would've,' Chaewon stands up, tilting her head in the direction of the door. 'C'mon, we'll go to the café around the corner. My treat.'

Sakura quirks a brow at her. 'It really should be me telling you what to do, not the other way round,' she huffs out, as she follows suit by standing up. She takes her coat from where she'd slung it over the back of her chair and threads her arms through it.

Chaewon laughs. 'When it comes to investigations, perhaps so. But you know full well that when it's lunchtime, you're never really in charge.'

And because Sakura's never been one to argue with fact, she follows Chaewon out the door with a fond smile and a shaking head."

---

"Sakura's coffee, to be frank, tastes like shit. She usually trusts Chaewon's intuition, but she can only do her best with what she's given. The food scene surrounding the station isn't exactly what Sakura would call tasteful, but she's constantly reminded that beggars can't be choosers.

She sips on the coffee, which reminds her a bit of tar, both in taste and in color, and while her taste buds mightn't agree with it, it gets the job done in terms of getting her warm, and giving her energy levels that extra kick. The winter months are slowly but surely creeping upon them, and there's that extra bite to the air that definitely hasn't gone amiss. She cups the takeaway cup in both her palms, holding it close to her.

The coffee shop isn't anything elaborate, not that anything within a twenty-kilometer radius could be paired with such an adjective, but it's nice enough. Even though it's dark, the lights flickering hopefully, and the temperature is a little chilly, it's clear that someone cares for this place. There's small little plants placed on the center of each table, real ones, ones that someone has taken the time out to water. The tables, while not quite matching the color scheme of the rest of the place, gleam spotlessly, and by the counter, the display of coffee cups have been neatly laid out so that they display the café's logo as you walk by.

Sakura shakes her head. She's getting distracted.

Actually, no. She's procrastinating. She needs to just... bite the bullet and spit it out already. And, when Sakura sets her mind on something, she does it. So she decides, then and there, that now is the best opportunity she's gonna get to speak about what's on her mind.

"I've been meaning to talk to you about something," she delivers the sentence clearly, and with confidence, yet on the inside, she's been putting off this conversation for the majority of the week.

"Yeah?" Chaewon shows her that she's listening, but her attention is honed in on her phone, scrolling with her thumb while she chews on her food lethargically.

Sakura presses her lips together, running her thumb over the irregularities of the cardboard cup holder. "Something serious, Chaewon-ah,"

At that, Chaewon's gaze instantly darts up to meet hers, and she puts her phone down, switching it off. "Yeah?" she repeats as she places her own cup down on the table, leaning forward in her seat. "What is it?"

Sakura hesitates, wanting to choose her words carefully. "It's about... that operation we launched at the beginning of the year,"

Chaewon's face, just like Sakura had anticipated, goes a little slack. It remains like that for a few moments, before she's giving her head a little jolt, straightening out her shoulders. Sakura does admire that about Chaewon, immensely. She never allows her own views or experiences to affect whatever task is at hand, always able to push her own needs to the side whenever necessary. Sakura has always felt that she herself was a more personal worker than needed, but she digresses.

"What about it?" Chaewon asks, straight to the point.

Sakura takes in another controlled breath, reassuring herself that she can talk to Chaewon about this, that this is the right thing to do. "We launched that operation back in February. We haven't heard anything since June, and nothing that could be considered of use since May," she doesn't allow any of her own bias to stain what she's saying, just lays out the cold, hard facts for Chaewon to see. Even if they both know of them already.

Chaewon nods her head along to what Sakura says but doesn't say anything. Sakura takes it as a signal for her to keep going.

"The operation is... still in motion," she hesitates halfway through her sentence, which she curses herself for. "It's still in motion, but at this moment in time, it's like we never even launched it at all. We're no further than we were back in January. And for such a seemingly small task, I wonder why it's taking up so much of our time, and with such minimal outcome,"

She sees Chaewon's nails dig into her forearms from where her arms are crossed, crimson-coated fingernails causing her pale skin to dimple and whiten even further. But, aside from that, she still looks composed. "...okay,"

"I'm not calling it off," Sakura carries on, with a gentle shake of her head. "Even if I wanted to, it'd be impossible with the lack of contact. I just think... we need to take another shot. From a different angle,"

Chaewon narrows her eyes at her, like she's reading her carefully. "How do you mean, different angle?"

Sakura chews at her lower lip, then stops herself. She's got this. She knows what she's doing; she just has to get her delivery right. "Last time, we didn't go in full force. We didn't think we'd need to, yet it got us nowhere. We need to go for the jugular,"

"You want to send someone else in,"

Sakura nods.

Chaewon stares at her. "After what happened last time, you want to send someone else in,"

"We can be more prepared this time. We know what we're up against,"

Chaewon lets out a scoff, and she's only human. Sakura doesn't really blame her; she merely winces. "More prepared," she repeats, drawing the words out. "What, so last time was just a test run?"

Sakura's eyebrows downturn, looking at the girl across from her with sincerity. "Chaewonie-" the nickname slips past her lips without her even being conscious of it, but it seems to get the job done.

"No no, you're right," Chaewon waves a hand at her, instantly looking like she'd regretted her own actions, then using that same hand to rub at her own face. "You're looking at it statistically, that's what you're supposed to do, I'm sorry. Go on,"

Sakura doesn't say anything, for a moment, allowing Chaewon a few seconds to gather herself. She knows that anyone else would have the same reaction as her, probably worse, but Chaewon is good at putting her emotions at bay. But it's a tough conversation, for all of them.

Sakura takes a tentative sip of her coffee, grimacing at the taste, and then continuing on. "She's not going to come back, whether that be her decision or not. We have to intervene somehow, if we're to... I guess, if we're to see her again. And simultaneously, I'd like to kill two birds with the one stone by finishing what we started,"

Chaewon tilts her head to the side, pursing her lips. "Who are you going to send in, though? They know all of us,"

Sakura scoffs. "Fucking right they do,"

One corner of Chaewon's lips turns upwards, just slightly. "They know all of us, and it's not like any of the other units would ever co-operate with us,"

Sakura leans back in her seat and crosses one leg over the other. "They know all of us," she affirms, but then, holds up a pointer finger in front of her face.

"All of us, except one,"

---

Haerin bustles in through the door of the detectives' unit, folders practically spilling past her arms as she uses her foot to keep the door open while she passes through. She blows a stray strand of short, dark hair out of her eyes, only for it to fall right back into place again, giving nods of greeting to people sitting at their desks who had looked up to see who'd come in. Haerin weaves through the maze of towering bookshelves and teetering piles of paperwork, over in the direction of her own desk where she can finally dump this heavy load.

The detective unit of the station was always going to be a challenge, Haerin knows that, and while the workload is about ten times heavier than the files she's carrying right now, it does make contributing to the bills a little easier. Paying what's due is difficult for just about anyone really, ever since the sudden stagnation, and the economic reform that had come along with it. Living in The Outskirts of Seoul, in an area just like this one, you're not going to find a lot of people living all too comfortably. The setbacks had occurred what must have been decades ago, and even now, people still are nowhere near close to recovering, Haerin and just about everyone in this room included in the bracket.

The one common factor that they all possess is the fact that they live in The Outskirts. The Centre, however, is an entirely different story.

The Centre refers to just that - the centre of Seoul. Haerin hasn't personally been, but she knows the place is rampant with wealth, where all the major franchises, corporations, and industries of the country seek to locate and spread. The buildings tower high, and gleam like they're carved from diamonds, everything beautiful and opulent and lavish beyond description. The closer you get to The Centre from here, the wealthier the regions become.

So, located on the very edge of the city, where the streets are coated in thick layers of dust and the dilapidated infrastructure crumbles with the slightest gust of wind, getting by is no easy task. Haerin thanks her lucky stars each night that she was able to land a position in this unit when she had the opportunity.

Because their station is low down, and far from The Centre's list of priorities, the fundings for the building and their operations are slim to none. The rooms are cramped, in dire need of refurbishment, and extra chilly in the winter months, but again, out of all the jobs available to her in The Outskirts, Haerin's beyond grateful to have this one.

She's often shuddered at the thought. There are plenty of other kinds of jobs in The Outskirts, freelance jobs, if you will, ones that make her stomach churn at the mere thought of.

Shaking her head, she wills herself to focus as she sets her files down on her desk once she reaches it, carefully and quietly so as not to disturb the people around her. Not all the people around her are actually a part of the same squad, because again, spacing is an issue. They try to group together as best they can, into their separate departments, so the majority of the people surrounding Haerin are in criminal investigations, just as she is, even if there's only a handful of them. They're one of the luckier departments; the detective superintendent, Sakura, used to be a part of their unit, before she was given the head position, and way before Haerin joined. She lets them come into her office from time to time, should the cramped atmosphere ever get too much. Haerin thinks they must've outgrown this building years ago, but she does her best not to complain.

Sitting at the desk across from hers is Sullyoon, and Haerin flutters her fingers over the ridge of her computer to get her attention. Sullyoon startles, obviously very absorbed in her work, and looks up at Haerin with wide eyes. Once she registers that it's Haerin in front of her, however, her posture relaxes, and she smiles warmly. "Hey," she greets her, in a whisper so as to not tear anyone else around them from their work. She gestures to the bundles of files that Haerin had placed on her desk with an amused expression. "That looks like lots of fun,"

Haerin makes a face, smoothing out her skirt before sitting down. "Tell me about it," she rolls her eyes. "You doing okay?" Even though she had talked to Sullyoon just hours ago as they both left their flat for work this morning, she knows the girl's tendency to completely swamp herself in her work, pouring everything into the task at hand until it leaves her completely drained. The two of them have been roommates even before Haerin finally made it into the detective unit, and while Sullyoon had always offered to recommend her to Sakura, Haerin insisted on making it in by her means.

Sullyoon nods at her, giving her thumbs-up in reassurance. "I'm good, don't worr-,"

"Oh? Is Haerin-unnie there?" A new voice intervenes, high and sweet, and Winter pops her head around the divider that splits hers and Sullyoon's desks, and into Haerin's line of sight. Haerin can't help but laugh at the comical image; only half of Winter's head visible, her large, brown eyes wide, and Sullyoon leaning away from her with mock disgust painted on her features as her personal space is invaded.

"Hi, Winter," Haerin greets her through a soft breath of laughter that she muffles with her palm.

Winter, very much ignoring Sullyoon's pointed judging, points at Haerin. "Sakura-unnie says she's looking for you,"

It's Haerin's turn now for her eyes to go wide, head poking forward as she leans across her desk. "What? Me?" she points to herself.

"Yeah," Winter bobs her head up and down in confirmation. "She wants you to go to her office during lunch,"

Sullyoon reaches out, giving Winter's shoulder a small shake. "How come I wasn't told this?"

Winter blinks at her, unimpressed. "Last I checked, your name was Sullyoon, not Haerin,"

Sullyoon makes a face at her, almost as if to say aren't you just hilarious. She turns back to face Haerin, facial expression shifting into something more concerned. "Did something happen?"

Haerin shakes her head, totally bewildered. She searches her mind for something that might've occurred that would warrant her going to Sakura's office, or something she'd sent in that might've been wrong, but she can't come up with anything. "No," she replies, a little dazed. "Do either of you know anything? Did she say anything else to you?" she directs the second question at Winter, who shakes her head.

"She said it was important that I let you know," she casts an uneasy glance at Sullyoon, which does't go amiss to Haerin. "She left after that, it was just when I was passing by her in the hallway,"

Haerin nods slowly and shifts her gaze to Sullyoon, who shakes her head before Haerin even gets to say anything.

"I know nothing. If I did, I'd let you know. You know that,"

Haerin heaves out a sigh, already accepting that there's nothing she can do about the butterflies that have begun to flit about inside her stomach, trying her best not to squirm.

Sakura is the detective superintendent, and while her position might sound intimidating, it didn't take Haerin long to learn that Sakura herself is kind. She doesn't doubt that she can be intimidating whenever necessary, but she has yet to see her in such a scenario.

And, she'd rather keep it that way, which is why Haerin finds herself having to wipe sweat off her forehead despite it being the end of Autumn.

---

"Come in,"

Taking in a deep breath, Haerin removes her knuckles from the door from where she'd knocked on it, and curls her grip around the door handle. It's slightly slippery to the touch, thanks to the cold sweat that's been gathering on her palms ever since Winter had told her Sakura wanted to see her. Giving her head a sharp jolt, she forces herself to push the door handle down, and steps inside.

Sakura is sitting behind her desk, the remains of a sandwich lying sadly on a crumpled piece of wax paper, hand to her mouth as she chews and swallows. "Haerin-ah," she greets her. "Come in, sit down," she gestures for Haerin to sit at the chair in front of her desk as she stands up. She crumples up the paper in her palm as Haerin tentatively makes her way across the small room, keeping her hands clasped in front of her to prevent them from shaking. Off to the side of Sakura's desk is the chief inspector, Chaewon, and Sakura's right-hand-man. She sat still, body closed off, with her arms folded and legs crossed, lips drawn into a straight line that makes it impossible for Haerin to gauge what she might be thinking.

She pulls back the chair and sits down on it, again with care, not wanting to appear too informal or like she's overly comfortable. Again, on a normal occasion, she would be normal around Sakura. She's known her for a short while at this stage, and while she may be a higher up, it doesn't stop her from getting to know those in the unit, especially those in her former department.

But, she's never had to meet Sakura on her own, nor for such a situation like this. All the worst possible outcomes are swimming around inside Haerin's head - a warning, a demotion, even being fired. She knows funds are tight, and realistically speaking, she's the least experienced on this team asides from Eunchae-

"You look like you're thinking so much you might implode,"

Haerin blinks rapidly to force herself out of her own head, and back to the present. Sakura is sitting across from her, expression controlled, but her eyes gleam with a bit of humour. Off to the side, Chaewon snorts.

Feeling her cheeks color, Haerin dips her head, embarrassed. "Sorry," she murmurs, then curses herself for coming across as too timid.

"Don't worry, you're not in trouble or anything like that, you've done nothing wrong," Sakura reassures her, and Haerin can't help but let out a sigh of relief. "I know it probably sounded a bit ominous, telling you to come here with no context, but I was in a rush when I saw Winter," she pauses, and even just with that, the mood of the room changes. "But I haven't called you in just for a chat either,"

Curious, and not as stressed out as she was before, Haerin nods along, intrigued.

Sakura clasps her hands together on the desk. "I'll have to provide you with a bit of background information first, if this is to make any sense to you," she takes in a breath, and then continues on. "Back at the beginning of the year, the criminal investigations unit launched an undercover operation," she raises a brow in Haerin's direction. "I take it that you're aware of the street racing that's been going on for the past year or so, in this section of the ring, yes?"

Haerin nods, still a little jittery knowing that she's not in trouble. "I am, yes," she responds. On the rare occasion, she's talking once in a blue moon, a thread of speeding, modded cars with gleaming hoods and tacky paint jobs will fly by her and Sullyoon on their way home should they ever be working extra late, engines roaring in excess and tires screaming against the tarmac. "I've never looked into them, though,"

Sakura hums. "Well, they've been an issue for a long while now, and back in January, we decided to put a stop to them," she draws her lips together, shaking her head. "The superintendent didn't approve the motion, naturally," she scoffs, the superintendent referring to the superintendent of the entire station. "But we as a department felt it a necessary issue to tackle. The disruption, for one. But the gambling surrounding it is totally unlicensed, and the profit that the group organizing it is something our paychecks would weep at,"

Chaewon lets out a soft snigger, the sound ceasing as soon as it's started.

"So we decided last January to send one of our inspectors into this group. It wasn't going to take us very long, and she wasn't supposed to be in there for more than a few months. We anticipated she'd be out by three; this group isn't very large, and it didn't seem like too complicated of a task," she turns her gaze to Chaewon, giving her a nod.

Chaewon doesn't react in any way but picks up from where Sakura left off seamlessly. "It's September now," her tone is monotonous. "And she still hasn't returned. We haven't heard anything from her since early June. She slowly started providing us with less and less information as time went by, until contact just ceased altogether. We're no further than we were back in January, and if anything, we're on the back foot. It was meant to be a short, simple operation, but it's been more than half a year, and we're left with nothing but a lost member,"

Sakura nods, grim, and turns back to Haerin. "And you understand that we can't go to the higher-ups or to any of the other units for assistance because, really, we never should've launched it in the first place,"

Haerin shifts in her seat, not really all too sure why Sakura is telling her all this. "Do the others... the ones in criminal investigations, know about this?"

Sakura nods. "They were the ones who helped me conduct it. Forgive them for not informing you about it; that was my call. They weren't to tell anyone who wasn't involved at the time, which includes you. And Eunchae, now that I think of it. But there's a reason I'm telling you before I'm telling her," Sakura leans forward, readjusting the grip her clasped fingers have on each other. "We want to try again, to pick apart this group. What we learned last time, we can improve on this time. I've discussed it with Chaewon, and we both think that it could be a good move to launch another operation,"

Haerin frowns, the pieces like a jigsaw in her mind slowly but surely forming a clearer and clearer image. And she isn't all too sure if she likes what she's seeing. "An... undercover operation?" she clarifies.

Sakura nods her head. "Yes, that's right. And we were wondering..." she glances over at Chaewon again, who nods at her. She looks Haerin in the eye when she speaks. "If you would be willing to carry it out,"

Haerin freezes in her seat.

She stares at her.

She must look a sight, eyes blown and jaw hanging open, but it's the last thing on her mind. She gestures to herself vaguely, too in shock to form a coherent sentence. "...me," she says, dumbfounded. "You want me to go undercover,"

"I know it's a difficult situation for me to put you in, but let me explain," Sakura holds up her palms. "Because of our looking into them before, the group know of us, particularly Chaewon and me," she gestures to herself and Chaewon with a lazy movement of her wrist. "We've encountered them the odd time, so obviously we wouldn't be suited. The operation is unknown to the entirety of the station, so that automatically outrules anyone from any of the other units. Although Eunchae joined us just a short while after you, she's still only fresh from her community position, and her experience and skill just don't match up to yours. All that, and we just think that you're well-suited for the job," she leans back in her chair. "And you know me well enough at this stage to know that I'm not saying that to flatter you,"

Haerin doesn't reply for a moment or two, giving herself time to digest Sakura's words. She isn't all too sure what her initial response is or what her first answer is, so she purses her lips. "I'll... need to know more than that, I think," she answers tentatively, not sure if she's pushing it, but Sakura seems to take it on board, rolling her wrist to signal Haerin to keep talking. "How long is it for? What would I have to do? Why..." she frowns to herself, tilting her head to the side. "Why hasn't the other girl contacted you?"

"You don't have to make a decision on the spot, so you don't need to worry about that," Sakura reassures her. "I know it's a lot to ask of you, so I'll give you plenty of time to mull it over. In regards to what you'll have to do, I'll be giving you a full briefing regarding everything that we know, but for now..." she trails off, turning her attention to her computer and clicking on a few things with the mouse. It takes her a moment or two, but soon enough she's swiveling the monitor around so that it's facing Haerin.

On the screen is a picture of a young woman, probably around the same age as Haerin herself. The picture is blurred just slightly, like it was taken in a rush, or in context, probably taken while trying not to get caught. The woman is turned to the side, face drawn into an austere expression, unsmiling, looking off at something over her shoulder. Her hair is black, straight and long, the wind pushing it back from her face and out behind her. She's dressed casually, simply, black sweats and a loose black t-shirt that hangs from her frame. The picture is dimly lit, and the girl's features are sharpened from what Haerin assumes to be a streetlamp over her head. Haerin supposes she's quite beautiful, the kind of face where it's hard to deny, soft yet sharp, and if the picture were presented to her in any other situation she'd assume she was a model of some sort.

"Have you ever seen her before?" Sakura asks her, not looking at the picture at all, but rather at Haerin.

Haerin looks at the picture a few beats more, trying to wrack her brains, but she's sure she would've remembered seeing someone who looks as good as, well, this before. She shakes her head. "No, I haven't,"

Sakura hums, not sounding surprised. "She's responsible for organizing and running all the drift racing that goes on in the entirety of the outer ring, not just in this sector," her eyes finally fall on the monitor, and it's almost like that action alone leaves a bad taste in her mouth. "I know you wouldn't expect it of her at first glance, but she's got a web of connections and influences in the underground and the hidden market in The Outskirts that we can't even begin to measure. Not without some sort of inside information,"

She turns the monitor back around, eyes lingering on the picture for a few seconds more, then focusing back on Haerin. "Should you agree, your main task would be to become acquainted with her,"

"Last time, we didn't go straight for her," Chaewon intervenes, and even though her voice isn't particularly loud, it still demands to be heard in a way that Haerin can never figure out. "Thought it'd be too risky, so we poked at her lower-downs instead. But now... we think that going right for her might give us a bit more to work with," she props her chin up on her fist, looking at the picture over Sakura's shoulder. "She'll be a tough one to crack, but I do believe it's possible,"

Sakura hums in agreement. "This operation would be launched with the aim of putting a stop to illegal activity, that's what it says on the tin. But..." she sighs. "The girl we sent in in February is a member of criminal investigations. She's a... colleague. We want to have her back in the station as soon as we can,"

Chaewon makes a noise of affirmation, low and barely audible.

Haerin points to the monitor. "Can I see it one more time?"

Sakura complies with what she says, turning it around again for Haerin to see. Haerin leans forward, folding her arms. She looks plainly regular, despite her additional attractiveness (that Haerin finds frustratingly difficult to ignore), but other than that, Haerin could pass her by in the street and she would hardly bat an eyelid. She doesn't look like someone who'd be capable of organizing such a large scheme of underground activities, but if working in this station for the past couple of years has taught Haerin anything, it's that your first impression of a person should never taint how you see them in the future.

She peers up at Sakura, who hasn't taken her eyes off of her. Haerin knows she wants her to say yes to this entire thing, whether it be now or in a few weeks. Undercover missioning is technically a part of the job, although it's not something Haerin ever anticipated she'd come across, and if she were to, definitely not so early since her move to the detective unit. "Her," she says, pointing to the screen with her finger. "What's her name?"

Sakura smiles, although there's nothing joyous or happy about it whatsoever. "That," she says, and there's something about her voice that doesn't sit quite right with Haerin. "Would be Kim Minji."

---

Sullyoon stares at Haerin for what must be a full minute, eyes wide and lips parted in shock. She eventually blinks and gives her head a sharp shake, pressing her fingers to her temples and closing her eyes like she's trying to concentrate. "Hold on, no, run that by me again," she rubs at her face, clearly distressed. "Because for a second there, I thought you said that Sakura asked you if you'd be willing to go undercover and join that squad of drift racers we tried infiltrating more than half a year ago."

Haerin nods, slouched into the couch, her chin tucked into her chest, and Sullyoon sat next to her. "No, you heard right," she pops a piece of popcorn into her mouth from the bowl that's wedged between them, and she has to admit, it's the most depressing kernel of popcorn she thinks she's ever eaten.

"She- what?" Sullyoon exclaims, sitting up straight and shuffling so that she's facing Haerin head-on. "Why would she do something like that? Why would she bother telling the rest of us to keep the operation from you, only to-" she cuts herself off with a huff of utter frustration, squeezing the cushion that she's got hugged to her chest, and Haerin can't help but smile softly.

"You're so cute, Sullyoon," her words come out in a drawl, thick with the exhaustion that's slowly consuming her.

"How can you- at a time like this? Really? Do you understand what she's asking of you?" Sullyoon exasperates, unable to sit still.

"I'm very much aware of what she's asking me to do. That's why I'm trying not to think about it."

"Just because you're ignoring it doesn't mean it's going to go away."

"I can do a mean job of pretending, though."

"Haerin-"

"I mean technically, it's part of my job description."

"That's undercover, as in, dressing down for twenty minutes to buy cocaine from someone to catch them then and there," Sullyoon shakes her head, and Haerin does begin to feel guilty at the sight of the sheer concern and worry in her eyes. "Please be serious," Sullyoon implores her, and because it's Sullyoon, and Haerin's always had a soft spot for her, she can't really help but comply. "What Sakura's asking of you... could take months," she swallows, eyes darting around anxiously. "The other girl... she's not even back yet. She hasn't contacted us in I don't even know how long."

"Since June," Haerin supplies for her, rubbing at her eyes. "Who is the other girl, anyway? You guys have no idea why she's stopped contacting you?"

Sullyoon hesitates. "I don't- I don't think I'm supposed to say," when Haerin quirks a brow at her, she worries at her lower lip. "The girl... if you do agree to go along with what Sakura wants, knowing who she is could be a major distraction. Plus, we don't know what she's doing. She might have a plan after all, one that we're not aware of that involves her not telling us. We don't know, but we still have to trust her. And, you being actively aware of who's on your side and who isn't... it makes you more liable to slip up rather than putting up a front to everybody," she purses her lips in thought, nose twitching. "It's kind of like method acting. You know when the director places the actor into an environment without telling them what's going to happen, so that their emotions are genuine?"

Haerin nods her head, a little disappointed, but she can see where Sullyoon's coming from. "Yeah, okay. I get you."

Sullyoon still looks to be wrapped up in her own thoughts. "Except this isn't a movie, and there isn't going to be a point where someone says cut," she shakes her head again, clearly not fond of this idea at all. "Sakura will want you to go through with this, badly, but please think it over first. I don't know what I-" she cuts herself off, face becoming a little lost. Even in the dark of their cramped living room, with the only source of lighting being the paused television screen, Haerin can immediately sense that she's becoming choked up.

Her heart practically melts. "Sullyoon,"

Even though Sullyoon shakes her head insistently, her hand coming up to cover her mouth, Haerin hugs her regardless, wrapping her arms around her and drawing her in close. The girl instantly rests her forehead on Haerin's shoulder, sniffling, and Haerin strokes her hair soothingly.

"No, it's just because-" Sullyoon's voice wavers uneasily, a little thick with the sobs she's trying to contain. "Because I know, you," she says. "And I know that you'll want to do this to, I don't know, prove to yourself that you can do it? To Sakura-unnie? You won't back down because it's just not you."

Haerin bites at the inside of her cheek, staring at the wall in front of her, her hand stroking Sullyoon's lightly colored strands slowing down.

Sullyoon's right, after all. She's voicing aloud what Haerin has been too afraid to even admit to herself.

Even though she knows it's a risk, that she doesn't quite know yet what she could be involving herself in, or what she's getting herself into... there's no way she can turn something like this down. Not with that itch in the back of her mind, that craves recognition, that wants to make it higher, to prove herself, purring into her ear in a way that Haerin simply can't ignore.

---

"Kim Minji"Sakura slides a stapled booklet across the table, which Haerin picks up with tentative hands. 'This is just about everything we've got on her,' Haerin thumbs the booklet, thinner than she expected it to be. 'It's not much,'

'Which is what we've got you for,' Sakura nods. 'Should you agree, of course.'

Haerin hums, placing the document back on the table. 'What would I have to do, exactly?' she questions, tilting her head to the side. 'You said become acquainted,'

Sakura considers this for a moment before responding. 'Ideally? We want you as close to her as possible. She won't be easy to get to, and she'll be difficult to crack. Other than those she works with, we don't know of anyone she holds close. Family, friends, they're all out of the picture. She's completely off the record; it's actually quite impressive.'

Haerin nods, and Sakura continues. 'It means there's a high possibility that there's a space like that available. A gap in the market.'

Haerin narrows her eyes. 'Becoming close to a regular person takes time as it is,' she points out. 'Earning the respect of someone like her would surely take a lot more than just acting friendly.'

Sakura nods, grim. 'It won't be an easy task, I'm sure you don't need me to explain that much. Getting close to Minji would require you to gain her trust. That would mean doing whatever she asks of you. Unconditionally.'

At that final word, Haerin's eyebrows raise, but other than that, she just about manages to keep her exterior composed. 'Unconditionally,' she muses with an echo, thoughtful.

'That would mean anything. Racing, collecting debts, you name it. If she asks you to do it, no matter how immoral or illegal, you'd have to do it to prove to her that you can be trusted. That way, you can carve a path in,' Sakura looks Haerin in the eye. 'No matter how much your conscience would scream at you not to do something, you'd have to go through with it.'

And Haerin's not going to deny it, the thought is terrifying. A woman such as this most likely has a moral system quite different from Haerin's, and establishing a string of connections throughout a scene as vicious as the underground of The Outskirts... you certainly wouldn't be able to achieve something like that by playing nice.

'That being said, you can't be a kiss-ass either,' Sakura clarifies. 'Like look, let's just face up to the facts. She's attractive, yes? Beautiful, even.'

Haerin resists the strong urge to snort. At least Sakura is being realistic.

Sakura holds up an open palm, tapping each of her fingers as she lists things off. 'She's pretty. She's got money, and fucking tonnes of it at that. She's got connections, she's got power, she's got control. I don't doubt for a single second that there are people who worship the ground she walks on,' she points her finger at Haerin. 'One of your goals is to find the middle ground. And from there, you can slowly but surely lead us in. You don't want to be just another face.'

Haerin nods slowly, thinking that she's got the general gist of it at this stage.

'We'll prepare you for everything, of course, if you agree, and help you out as much as we can. Any skills that need developing, a backstory, we'll organize everything for you to give you the best chances of success as possible. Again, as I said, I'll give you time to mull it over.'

'I'll do it,'

Sakura blinks at her. 'You-' she blinks again, rapidly, giving her head a gentle shake. 'What? Just like that? You're agreeing?'

Haerin bobs her head. 'I know it's too early on for me to even consider my options,' she says. 'But I'm most likely never going to get an opportunity like this ever again. It's dangerous, and it's a huge risk, but,' she nods her head slowly, almost like she's agreeing with herself. 'But my mind has already been made up, and it's not going to change. I think it's been made up ever since you proposed the idea to me,'

Sakura gawks at her, but quickly manages to reign her composure back in. 'Well,' she lets out a soft breath of laughter. 'I wasn't expecting it to be that easy. I'll give you a couple more days to decide, just to make sure and to be on the safe side, but I mean...' she gives Haerin a confident quirk of her lips. 'If you pull this off, Haerin-ah, it'll be huge. Thank you, for your bravery,'

Haerin tilts her head, pursing her lips. 'Bravery,' she murmurs.

Bravery or Stupidity?"

---

It takes longer than Haerin ever could've anticipated, the preparations, but the further they delve, the more she realises how obvious it is just how much work needs to be done. "Your phone, to start off with," Sakura explains, holding up her own and giving it a little wave. "You'll have to go through everything on it. Delete all our numbers, social media, anything that can relate you back to who you actually are, and the station, has to go," she tilts her head. "But you can't have it too barren either. Too suspicious,"

Haerin nods, swiping through her phone idly, already taking note of what she'll have to get rid of. "And to contact you guys, a disposable phone, yeah?"

Sakura nods. "To air on the side of caution. Can't be tracked, so there's no harm in using them. Cyber cafés work just as good, if you're ever stuck,"

---

Haerin does have to admit, that deleting old pictures of Sullyoon does leave her with a bitter sting in her mouth, even though she knows she's got them all backed up, and Sullyoon reassures her with wistful eyes that "it's not that big a deal, honestly,"

---

"You can keep your name the same, it's not uncommon so no real connections can be made with it," Chaewon explains to her, running through the web of lies she's spun for Haerin to live as her reality. "You don't have a set place where you live, you hop around with whoever'll take you," she reads off her computer as she's speaking. "This is the one we're gonna use to our advantage. You're not great at racing-" she looks up from the computer. "-obviously, because you don't even do it," she highlights, and Haerin simply scoffs. "-but you can sell people shit. Haerin, I'm not kidding you, you could talk someone to death if you felt like it. You're smart, people smart, when you don't let worries get the best of you," she says, and Haerin can tell that it's sincere. "It's something that I think when you get your bearings, it'll be an upper hand you have over Kim Minji. But, to her, you've got to play it like it's an asset of yours that she can use to her advantage. In order to get in, before you even think about getting close to her, you have to make yourself seem as beneficial to her as possible. Otherwise, you won't even get a look in,"

---

One of the evenings, she finds Sullyoon staring at her despondently, ignoring the movie that they've only been half paying attention to. Haerin turns away from the screen to look at her, reaching out and giving her hand a squeeze. "Everything okay?"

Sullyoon just keeps looking at her, that sad, kicked-puppy expression written all over her face. "She'll make you move out, you know," she mutters, her gaze drifitng down to the blanket draped over their laps, picking at its threads. "Sakura. In case one of them ever follows you home,"

Haerin hadn't thought about it, but when she assesses it now, it makes sense. If anyone associated with Minji were to see her with Sullyoon, she'd be out within an instance. "Sull-"

"No, it's fine," Sullyoon cuts across her before she can even say anything, waving a hand at her. Her inhale is a little shaky. "S- the other girl had to do it too, I know it's coming. I know everything that's coming, I just-" she stops talking, looking like she's struggling to find the right words, and isn't all too bothered to go looking for them. "No, yeah, it's fine. I... think I'm gonna go to bed,"

Haerin can't stop her eyes from widening, eyebrows raising. "Already?" she doesn't put much effort into hiding her disappointment. "It's still early, are you feeling-"

"I'm good, really," Sullyoon takes her hand out of Haerin's grasp, standing up and dusting herself down, leaving Haerin sat there with an open, empty palm. "Night,"

Sullyoon never goes up early. Neither of them ever do, they always call it a night together.

Haerin sits, in the dark living room, the television casting dull hues of blue onto her skin, and her empty hand lain uselessly on the couch. 

---

"You're going to lay low for a while," Sakura says, the pale moonlight filtering in through the blinds and into her office. They're both tired, but equally as determined. "We won't act immediately, because if things start going wrong the moment you arrive, it won't take them long to put two and two together,"

Haerin nods. It makes sense.

"So for the first while, we won't try anything. You'll just report back to us with what you're doing, how things are going, and giving us anything that you could be of use, no matter how insignificant it may seem. As time goes on, we'll be able to better judge when to make a move, and what that move may be," she pauses, tousling at the roots of her hair tiredly. Haerin herself has to stifle a yawn. "It'll most likely be a race, showing up in small numbers to start off, to show them that they're on our radar. The most imperative thing is that you find something that can give us leverage. Cold, hard proof. Dirt on them, I don't care. Just... something," she heaves a sigh. "And hopefully, in turn, the inspector we sent in before you,"

Haerin gives her shoulders a jolt, trying her best to stay awake. "You're sure you don't wanna tell me who she is?"

Sakura gives her a knowing look, and even though Haerin had known when she asked that she wasn't going to get anything out of her, it had been worth a shot. "You're better off, Haerin-ah," she chides her, and Haerin holds up her palms in defeat. "No matter how hard you try, the fact that she's a detective too will always be on your mind. Assuming that everyone's against you, it's your best hope at pulling this off. I can only hope that she's not contacting us for a reason that she can't tell us about. That it's just a plan that she's got, but..." she purses her lips, waving a hand. "I'm rambling," she gives her a cheek a gentle pat, again, looking like she's trying to keep herself awake. "Anyways, back to-"

"Sakura-unnie,"

Sakura's words die on her tongue as Haerin gently speaks over her. She looks at her expectantly.

"Could... is there the possibility that something could've happened to the other girl?" she hesitates, worrying at her lower lip. "Something... bad?"

Sakura clicks her tongue, and slouches in her seat, seeming to have lost the battle against her own exhaustion. "There's every possibility," her voice comes out a little quieter, not the same confident, clear tone that Haerin so often hears her use. "But I think for the sake of my own sanity... I can't afford to be pessimistic. I have to believe that she's out there, somewhere, trying her best to help us through her silence," she pauses, and the silence is suddenly all too deafening. "I think..." she shakes her head. "I think that if the others see me thinking that something's gone wrong, then they'll think what's the point? If Sakura doesn't think it's going anywhere, why are we bothering at all? If I give up, then so do they,"

"But what if she is?" Haerin asks, simply because she's genuinely curious. "What if she's not okay, or- or something has happened? What if it was all for nothing?"

Sakura smiles at her, a mixture of bitter and smug. "Well, that's what we've got you for now, isn't it?" she reminds her. "If something goes wrong, we go again. We get up, and we keep trying," she points at Haerin. "You're going to have to keep on trying,"

Haerin's always thought it. Sakura is an incredible leader.

---

Sakura's flat is eerily quiet.

Haerin supposes it's nothing out of the ordinary, an empty apartment, but just because it's ordinary doesn't mean she's used to it. She sets her bag down, the soft thud resonating around the practically barren hallway. Usually, when she enters her own hallway, Sullyoon is there, or they're entering together, or some other combination, but the common denominator is that they're both always there together. Now, she's going to be staying here in Sakura's flat for... God only knows how long, while Sakura stays with Chaewon instead.

She's struck with a sudden sense of loneliness, something she hasn't felt for a long, long time, stood in the middle of the hallway with the front door still half open behind her.

It hits her that she's in this on her own.

Sure, she'll have the support of the others, through a phone call, should she ever need it. But they'll all be at the station, safe, and out of harm's way. Haerin can't decide that she's done enough work for today, or that she'll take a five-minute break and then return to the task at hand. She's working on this alone. Real time,

Taking in a deep breath, she locks her fingers together, fidgeting with them mindlessly in a subconscious effort to prevent them from shaking.

Now, she can go back to the others and remove the thoughts from the inside of her head, just for a little while. But in a week or so now, she won't have such a luxury. In a week or so, there won't be any backing out.

And Haerin's not backing out. No matter how much her stomach churns at night thinking about what she might have to do, no matter how many times she finds herself doused in a cold sweat, she won't back out.

Because that's just not the way Haerin is.

---

That week or so slowly melts into less than a week, then it's a few days, and before Haerin can really comprehend what's happening, tomorrow's D-day.

Chaewon's invited the small group over, herself, Sakura obviously, Winter, Sullyoon, and Eunchae. Kind of like a send-off, Haerin supposes, but also as a little reward for all the hard work they've put in over the past couple months. It's nothing huge, they sit in Chaewon's front room and drink cheap alcohol (bar Eunchae, who can't stand the taste, and pouts with a request of "can I just have soda, unnie?") and try not to fall asleep too early out of sheer exhaustion. They're a little laughable, really, Haerin thinks, a group of healthy young women, barely able to stay up till midnight.

Sullyoon and her haven't spoken since Haerin moved out.

It's never been like this between them before, ever. Whenever they've clashed heads in the past, it's always been over something petty, something minor, like the groceries or something like that.

("I told you not to get this flavor of ramen! It's disgusting!"

"They didn't have the one you wanted, what did you want me to do?

"Buy another one, any other one, but this one!"

Haerin recalls the memory with a slight smile)

They've always made up within at least half an hour of whatever their stupid argument was about, because for Haerin, it's impossible to stay mad at someone like Sullyoon.

This time, however, it's different. This isn't some petty fight, a dispute that they'll have forgotten the cause of after a few hours. This one has been prolonging for nearly two weeks at this stage, and without them living in the same flat anymore, they're not forced to find a solution like they were once before.

It happens slowly. Everyone slowly but surely nods off, Sakura cradling Winter's chin despite the younger girl's protests, Eunchae with her ridiculously, unfairly long limbs hugging onto both of them (Haerin didn't think that it'd be possible for someone to get drunk off of Sprite, but Eunchae is nothing if not a prodigy). A sated, very pleased smile is on her face, while Winter's couldn't be any more opposite. Chaewon had nodded off on the other side of the couch, her hand stretched out in the direction of the bowl of chips, almost like she'd fallen asleep in the midst of reaching for one. Honestly, Haerin doesn't think she'd be all too surprised if that were actually the case.

That leaves only her and Sullyoon left, and when her sluggish brain finally seems to cop the fact that it's only the two of them that are awake now, it's like her senses are heightened. She's no longer sleepy, and she's very much aware of the girl sat on the armchair on the opposite side of the room.

Sullyoon is curled up into a ball, something she tends to do when she's feeling despondent or down, drawing her knees into her chest like a defense mechanism of some sort. She's gently rocking herself back and forth, soothingly, chin propped up on her knees. Haerin doesn't know if she's off in a world of her own, or if she's straight up ignoring her. It could be either or, but knowing someone like Sullyoon, Haerin really, really hopes that it's the first one.

So, she presses her lips together. This is her last night before the operation begins, and she'll be damned if she leaves this building without things being clear between them both.

"Sullyoon,"

Sullyoon doesn't react, for a moment or two, and then all at once, she's flinching, eyes snapping over in Haeir's direction. "Oh," she smiles a little sheepishly, cheeks flushed. "Hi,"

A smile, Haerin thinks to herself, a little more optimistic now than before. A smile, that's good.

Haeir finds herself not really knowing what to say, but she thinks that Sullyoon knows everything regardless. She speaks quietly.

"Can we-"

"Yeah," of course she knows. Sullyoon always seems to know what Haeirn's feeling before Haerin herself is even aware of it.

"C'mere,"

Sullyoon pads across the carpet, over to the other side of the room where Haerin is sat, and clambers so that she's sat next to her. It's a bit of a squeeze, both of them together on the armchair, but Haerin knows that neither of them mind. She hugs Sullyoon close to her, guiding the girl's head to rest on her shoulder as her fingers fall into the familiar motion of combing through her hair.

Sullyoon herself winds her arms around Haerin's torso, and Haerin hears her inhale shakily. "Those past few days were awful," she tries for a laugh, but it's unintentionally poignant. "Let's never do that ever again,"

Haerin inhales deeply, and there's a certain comfort that Sullyoon emits that she's been missing. "Tell me about it," she mutters. "We're both idiots,"

Sullyoon doesn't say anything for about ten, fifteen seconds. Then, "I shouldn't have overreacted," her words are muffled when she turns her head, speaking them into Haerin's shoulder. "You're just doing your job,"

"No, no," Haerin shakes her head. "You did it because you care about me, I shouldn't have been so inconsiderate,"

Again, Sullyoon waits a couple of seconds, and Haerin's able to hear her resounding heartbeat, gentle and soft in the quiet of the room. "I'm so sorry,"

"Me too, Sully. Me too, I'm so sorry,"

Sullyoon shifts again, so that she's looking up at her, wide eyes filled with sleep, and an additional glimmer of hope. Haeir can't resist, reaching out to pinch the flesh of her cheek. Sullyoon doesn't even react. "Can we just... just go back to how we always are? You- tomorrow, you're-"

Haerin hushes her gently, and holds her closer still. "Already forgotten about," she reassures her. "You're okay, I'm okay. We're okay,"

Sullyoon lets out a gentle sigh, a little shaky, but it sounds relieved. "Thank you," she whispers, so quiet that Haerin barely manages to pick it up despite their close proximity. "Thank you,"

Haerin tries not to think about tomorrow, and how much she'll miss her. Tries not to think about how she won't have Sullyoon climbing into her bed for hugs in the early hours of the morning, Haerin herself still half-asleep so she can't do anything but accept. How they won't eat breakfast together, Haerin smearing butter on her cheek while Sullyoon chases her around the kitchen, screaming bloody murder. How she won't be able to work with her anymore, because while they're best friends first, they're colleagues second, and they get along like a house on fire.

Because from tomorrow onwards, Haerin's on her own.

---

The air smells like exhaust fumes.

Thick, smoky plumes of grey that drift beneath the dull, flickering beams of street lamps, only to disappear from view where the light cuts off. The crowd is light, nothing too heavy, but with enough people for anyone with working eyes to be able to see that something is happening. The sound of engines purring and revving is accompanied by loud, drunken chatter, creating an atmosphere that should be somewhat blithe, but for obvious reasons, Haerin isn't really feeling it.

She threads her hands through one of the barriers that separate the road from the pathway, the cold of the metal seeping through her jacket. She watches, eyes narrowed as men and women alike do reruns of their vehicles, some laughing and talking with one another, others hung off to the side, refusing to engage in any sort of concentration. Haerin tries not to laugh too much at the sight of one man in particular, with spiked, fingerless gloves and an expression much too severe. Not even all the knuckles of the gloves have spikes on them, which is a bit sad to be honest.

Minji's group preys on people like these.

It's no secret that the people living in The Outskirts are dirt broke, it's a common fact that applies to pretty much everyone. These people are hungry, desperate for money, first and foremost, and winning a race such as one like this would easily snatch them a way out of one of those holes, with what, the combined entry fees, the bets, and the likes. They probably lose, out of the sheer number of people that participate, but it plants a small seed in their mind. Like a tick of some sort, that urges them to come back, that seduces them into clambering into their car, or onto their bike, and pay that fee, because who knows, you might get it this time.

It's the same story for the gamblers, except they're not the ones participating, they're not the ones who might get hurt, at least not in a physical sense. They keep coming back, because you have to gauge who's the best driver, who's the one to bet on, who's actually worth the money that you've managed to scrape together. Surely, the more times you come back, the better you'll be able to see such things, the better you'll be able to predict.

Haerin watches, something ugly curling in her stomach, as she watches the thick throngs of people swarm the betting stand, notes gripped tight in their clenched fists, screaming out numbers and figures, raising the stakes out of sheer desperation.

She might manage to figure out if someone here is directly affiliated with Minji's close associates, or even one of those associates themselves, she might not. Her first task is to piece together who here is behind the scheming of the event, and who's here to directly participate, and if the people here do their job. It shouldn't be too difficult of a task, but she'll have to use her own intuition to work from there.

She hangs around this one spot for a while, not rushing herself to try anything too quickly. Again, she doesn't want to raise suspicions, and getting right into things couldn't be more skeptical. She has to assume that there's always someone watching her, that there's always someone on her back, if she's to get used to how to behave in environments like this one. So, she people-watches for a while, and tries to settle the racing of her heart.

"Good evening,"

Upon hearing those words, Haerin curses herself for being too wrapped up in her own thoughts to pay attention to what was going on around her. She turns to her left, and sees a girl, peering at her unabashedly.

Again, mentally swearing at her heart to calm down, she puts up a casual front. "Hi,"

Through the darkness, it's difficult to make out the girl's features, but Haerin just about manages. Her hair is long, dark, the thick strands just about tickling the base of her neck. The majority of her face is covered up by a mask, but her eyes are youthful, wide, holding a certain brightness to them as she tilts her head in Haerin's direction. She's dressed appropriately for the cold, darkly, with a hat that covers her ears.

"I've never seen you here before," the girl starts off. Her voice is low, yet pleasant to listen to. It's not dull, or droning. It's got a warm timbre to it.

Despite everything, and the way her fingers quiver, Haerin can't help but snort. There's a high chance that this girl isn't even a part of any sort of crew, and is just here for a good time, the same way Haerin has to convince the girl that she herself is. "Was that a poor attempt at a pick-up line?"

The girl laughs at that, a comforting sound, loud and completely shameless. "You wish," she replies, mimicking Haerin's position and threading her arms through the barrier. "Maybe I would if I weren't occupied, you are quite pretty. But unfortunately for you, I'm just genuinely curious, I've never seen you here before. What's your name?"

At the start of conversation, Haerin relaxes a little. She's good with this, she's good with people when she wants to be. "Haerin," she responds, darting her eyes to the girl's arms, to show she's aware that she's mimicking her slightly, but choosing to ignore it. "You?"

"Kazuha," the girl - Kazuha - answers, pulling down her mask to her chin. "So. First time?"

Haerin folds her arms. Kazuha follows suit. Petty. "Does it matter?"

Kazuha lets out a low whistle, giving Haerin a knowing look. "Look at me, trying to start up a conversation, and getting completely shot down," she turns her attention back out to the road, eyes darting between the different racers. "I'll take that as a yes, then,"

"Well, what about you?"

Kazuha purses her lips together, and uncrosses her arms, leaning on the railing again. "Definitely not my first time, no," she shakes her head. "I'm a regular, that's why you stand out," she tilts her head in the direction of the racers. "I know someone who races," her eyes keep scanning them, and she lets out a sigh. "She's... somewhere. She keeps running off, the bitch. Too social for her own good," she quirks her brow in Haerin's direction. "So, that's why I'm bothering you,"

"I'm flattered," Haerin deadpans. "If she keeps running off, you must be great company,"

Kazuha laughs at that again, her breath coming out in small, white puffs of condensation. She doesn't say anything in response, but that same, amused smile plays on her lips.

There's a few beats of awkward silence between them, that Haerin assumes just comes with meeting someone new. She knows someone who races, she thinks to herself, a little dejected, but certainly nowhere near giving up. She must just be here as someone who watches.

When Kazuha speaks up, her voice is airy, laidback and easy-going.

"The moon looks like it's on the verge of death,"

Haerin stills.

Or maybe not.

As soon as Kazuha says the sentence, Sakura's words from earlier on in the month come flooding back to her.

"One thing that we were able to figure out is that to be able to watch these races, is that you need a code to get in. Luckily, it's one of the few things the previous infiltrator was able to tell us,"

Haerin nods. "Makes sense,"

"You can walk around the area just fine, because it's a public area after all, they can't just close it off, but they have people who go around asking people for this code. And if they don't have it, they very kindly escort them out," she says that last part while making inverted commas with her fingers, implying that that very much isn't the case,"

"So what is it?"

"They'll come up to you, and say that the moon is on the verge of death,"

"That's because it surrendered to the sun," Haerin rattles off the line on instinct, not even having to think about it. There had been so many a time where Sakura would just randomly drop it into conversation, they could be talking about anything, and Sakura would just bring it up without missing a beat. It had taken some time, but eventually, she started saying it in response without even thinking.

So, Kazuha asking her means that she isn't just here as a spectator after all. Meaning that she works under someone for her to be asking Haerin in the first place.

"Well, shoot," Kazuha sounds impressed. "And I was sure that you were only here because you were in the wrong place at the wrong time,"

"The only thing that was wrong was you,"

Kazuha grins. "You're witty. I like you," she states, just out of blue. Even though it takes Haerin by surprise, she takes it in her stride. "And now that we've had a little chat, I'm gonna ask you again," she leans in closer almost like she's looking down on her. "Why are you here?"

Haerin stares at her, for a moment, not backing down. "For the fun of it," she responds calmly. "I move around a lot, meet a lot of people. Word passes quickly, I'm surprised that the password is still the same after all this time,"

Kazuha hums. "I suppose we would, change it I mean, but it's not really worth our time. Half of these idiots aren't clever enough to cop that it's changed, and I'd bet anything we'd lose half of our beloved customers," the girl's lip curls as she speaks.

" Our. " Haerin repeats. "So you work here but also coincidentally know someone in the race,"

Kazuha tilts her head in consideration. "Well realistically, I know loads of people in this race. They don't know me, but I know them,"

Haerin decides she's not even going to ask.

"But I do know people racing, don't worry, I wouldn't lie about needing to be in your company,"

Haerin hums along. "Yeah, you had me distressed for a moment there. Do people who work here race too?" she decides that after this one, she'll lay off the questions for the night. While curiosity is natural for a first timer, she doesn't want to come across as too inquisitive.

"Well me personally, no," Kazuha shakes her head. "But the others do, keep the others in check. They're tricky to beat, but sometimes they lose on purpose, just to mess the bets over. Makes things more fun,"

Haerin raises a brow. "And you're telling me this because...?" when Kazuha only shrugs as a response, she continues on. "I could go bet right now, or let everyone know that the people they're gambling on actually work here,"

Kazuha lets out another laugh, bright and sweet, yet with that same, low timbre. "You're cute, you know that?" she croons, and if she hadn't stated otherwise earlier, Haerin really would've been convinced that she was being flirted with. "People might be stupid, but they're not that dense. They know they work here. It doesn't make anything any easier, because you might bet on them knowing they'll probably be the fastest, but you'll do that knowing that they could also mess you over,"

"Gloating about me again?"

A new voice joins the conversation, and Haerin leans back to look past Kazuha to see who it is. Another girl moves to stand next to her, and the wave of nerves Haerin had just gotten rid of washes all over her again. She'd just gotten used to how to communicate with Kazuha, and now someone else, someone else who probably works here, has come along. Haerin eyes the helmet that the girl has tucked underneath her elbow, and soon figures out that this must be the girl that Kazuha was referring to earlier. Like Kazuha, she's dressed darkly, but their styles are almost definitely different. While Kazuha's clothes are warm, cozy, this girl seems to have made some sacrifices for her fashion. Her jeans are black, ripped, and if they're causing her to be cold, she does a good job at hiding it. A leather jacket has been thrown over her hoodie, her hair mostly hidden by a cap bar for the dark brown tuft tied up messily at the base of her neck.

Kazuha tuts, crossing her arms defiantly and jutting out her chin. "I wasn't gloating," she huffs out. "I was just stating things as they are," she glares in the girl's direction, although it's easy for Haerin to see that it definitely isn't sincere. "Where were you?"

The girl gives her head a tilt, like the question is just as confusing for her as it is for Kazuha. "Couldn't find my bike, it was weird. I thought I parked it by the starting line, but no. Ran into people on the way too, stopped for a chat,"

Way too social for her own good, Haerin remembers.

The girl tilts her head in Haerin's direction. "Who's this?" she doesn't sound like she cares too much about who Haerin actually is, moreso focused on what Kazuha's doing with her.

"This," Kazuha starts off by throwing an arm over Haerin's shoulder. "Is Haerin. She's my new friend,"

Haerin blinks at her in surprise. It hadn't been discussed, but hey, if Kazuha works here, Haerin certainly isn't going to turn the offer of a friendship down. Kazuha turns to her, gesturing in the girl's direction. "This is Yunjin. She's the one that got in the way of my opportunity to flirt with you, sorry,"

Yunjin raises an eyebrow, standing up a little straighter. "Excuse me?"

Kazuha grins. "Nothing!" she sing-songs. "You don't need to worry, you know that,"

Yunjin scoffs. "Freaking right I shouldn't," she mutters, and next to her, Kazuha giggles. Yunjin gestures to Haerin again. "Is she new? I've never seen her before,"

In any other situation, Haerin would've said something along the lines of "I'm right here you know!" but she's trying to avoid conflict, so she keeps her mouth shut no matter how hard her brain pushes her to do otherwise.

"First time," Kazuha confirms. "She kept me company while you wandered off, you should be thankful,"

Yunjin looks Haerin in the eye, and something about it is a little chilling. She's not doing anything in particular, and Haerin can't quite put her finger on it. She's a little intimidating, she has to admit, but she's not letting it phase her. "Thanks for babysitting," She says, a smile finally breaking out on her face when Kazuha gasps in mock (?) offence, reaching out the arm that was wrapped around Haerin's shoulders to hit her lightly.

"Bitch," she utters under her breath. "You're just jealous,"

"You wish I was jealous," Yunjin corrects her, and Kazuha only grumbles under her breath, not denying it but not agreeing with her either. She shuffles a little closer to Yunjin, who threads an arm over her shoulders. Yunjin regards Haerin, again, pursing her lips in a similar fashion to how Kazuha did. Or rather, now that Haerin thinks about it, maybe it's Kazuha who does it in a similar fashion to Yunjin. "How come you're here?"

Haerin just relays to her what she said to Kazuha. "I was bored. I got the password from a friend, so I said I'd see what all the fuss was about,"

Yunjin arches a brow. "Not betting?"

Haerin shakes her head. "Not today, no,"

Kazuha crosses her arms, but further leans into Yunjin nonetheless. "You just want her to bet on you,"

Yunjin holds up a palm in defeat. "I've got an ego,"

They're not what Haerin had expected to meet here tonight, and they're not really the characters she'd anticipated would be working under Kim Minji. The more she thinks about it, the more she's doubting that they work directly with her, and are moreso in the lower rankings, pawns that she pushes out onto the board while she sits at the back, observing.

They mightn't be anything close, but they're something. Something better than Haerin ever could've expected for her first night. If she somehow manages to stick with these two, maybe with Kazuha moreso, since she seems to have taken a somewhat liking to her, she can work from there.

"Yunjin-unnie?"

Another voice cuts through Haerin's thoughts, and she's really starting to wonder just how many people they've got working here. She leans back again, having to see past both Kazuha and Yunjin, and sees a figure standing a distance away from them.

Like Kazuha, a mask is over her face, and like Yunjin, a cap sits atop her head, casting a shadow over her face that makes it difficult to make out her features. Long, dark hair spills over her shoulder, and she's quite tall, Haerin supposes, in comparison to herself. She's stood with a hand on her hip, impatient looking.

Yunjin looks at her, away from Haerin, and she instantly nods at the sight of her. "Yeah yeah, sorry, coming now,"

Kazuha looks surprised. "Is it starting already?" she pulls back her sleeve to reveal a watch, squinting her eyes to peer at it closely.

Haerin makes a note of it - the watch is thick, heavy looking, gleaming gold, studded with diamonds that sparkle even in the low light of the streetlamps.

She frowns.

That's not the watch of someone in the lower ranks.

"Shit, time flew by," Kazuha throws Haerin an impressed look. "You pass the time well,"

"You keep flattering me,"

Yunjin moves to take her arm off of Kazuha's shoulder, but the tall girl waves a hand at her, shaking her head. She approaches them instead, and Haerin watches her closely.

"What are you, some kind of celebrity?" Yunjin pokes fun at her, reaching up and giving the peak of the girl's cap a gentle tug. "Hiding your face like this. Surprised you're not wearing freaking sunglasses,"

The girl does absolutely nothing but ignore her, which Kazuha seems to find quite amusing. The girl looks past both her and Yunjin, and because of the shadow casted over her face, it takes Haerin a couple seconds to realise that the girl is looking right at her.

"What's your name?"

Haerin blinks at her in surprise, pointing to herself. "Me? Haerin,"

The girl doesn't say anything in response, rather turning back to Kazuha and Yunjin. She doesn't say anything to either of them, but they seem to know regardless what she's asking. "First timer," Kazuha explains. "Got the password from a friend,"

The girl hums, and subconsciously, Haerin shudders.

Her gaze locks in on Haerin once more, unmoving and unblinking, and it takes every bit of Haerin's effort not to squirm. It's awkward, yet at the same time, Haerin takes it as something like a challenge. She doesn't back down, or break eye contact, despite being very aware of both Kazuha and Yunjin peering at them both.

Eventually, after what feels like hours, but was perhaps only a few seconds, Haerin catches the girl's mask shifting, indicating the movement of her lips underneath. Her gaze flicks down, down, and back up again, a prolonged movement that certainly doesn't go amiss to Haerin.

What the heck.

Their little staring contest is over as soon as it's started, and Haerin subtly lets out a breath she wasn't even aware she was holding as the girl derives her attention from her. The girl's hand moves up to her cap, slender fingers curling around its peak.

"The betting's done," she says. "People'll hang around, try some stuff, you know," she nods in Kazuha's direction. "Just keep an eye out and make note. We'll handle it after,"

Kazuha nods her head. "Got it,"

Yunjin takes her arm off Kazuha's shoulders, and Haerin sees Kazuha visibly slump, even if it's not much. "We should go, people are getting set up,"

The girl hums again, and it's then that she takes off her cap.

It's nothing particularly impressive, and Haerin is only paying such rapt attention because that's her job. The majority of her face is still hidden by her mask, but her eyes.

Haerin knows those eyes. She's been staring at, studying pictures of those eyes for the past three months. They're practically imprinted on her brain at his stage.

Kim Minji brushes her hair back from her face, tousling the roots with her fingertips, and Haerin is really only staring because it's what Sakura sent her out here to do.

The pictures the unit had taken of Minji before, Haerin suddenly becomes hyper-aware, really don't do her any justice. Her eyes are dark, glinting in the amber light, but they're wide in a sense that could convince someone of innocence. They're outlined by a thick spray of lashes that Haerin's sure anyone would envy, and her hair frames her face in a way so perfect it's almost cartoonish.

Minji dusts down her cap casually, and then, those eyes are snapping back up to regard Haerin again. Even though Haerin can't see her lips, her gaze tells that she's finding slight bemusement in her, the way one of her eyebrows quirks just slightly.

Haerin can't stop the way her fingertips quiver at her sides, so she clasps them together in front of her, digging her nails into her palms. She hadn't really known what to expect tonight. She'd imagined a limitless array of scenes and scenarios inside her head, of who she might meet, what she might see, what she might have to do. But never, in a million years, had she imagined she'd see Minji, so plainly and so openly, so early into the night. Little did she think she'd have spoken to her, that Minji would know her name.

"You," Minji says, and Haerin swears if she were any closer, she'd be able to hear the way her heart is thundering in her chest. Because she's intimidating, Haerin isn't going to deny it, and she's admittedly more than panicked. Her palms have gone clammy, cold with sweat.

"Hold onto this for me?"

Haerin stares at her.

Minji has her hand outstretched, cap held between those lithe, delicate-looking fingers by its peak, in Haerin's direction.

She phrases it like it's a question. Yet somehow, Haerin doesn't know why, it sounds like it's an order. A demand that Haerin can't say no to.

"Uh, yeah. Sure," Haerin responds rather eloquently, and definitely with confidence. She tries to keep a steady hand as she takes the cap off her, and once she does so, Minji looks away, and back to Yunjin.

"Ready?" she takes a step, backward, in the direction of the entrance to the track, tilting her head in its direction.

"Sure, yeah," Yunjin nods, and then quickly turns to Kazuha, pressing a short kiss to her cheek. "See you,"

Haerin takes a mental note of it, storing the information in the back of her mind. They're definitely together.

Kazuha hums in reply, sounding a bit out of it. "See you,"

The two exchange a look, a mixture of confusion and surprise that they communicate with a brief meeting of eyes, before Yunjin is turning on her heel and following Minji into the crowd.

Both Haerin and Kazuha stand in silence for a moment, Kazuha stood there with something akin to bewilderment painted on her features. She blinks rapidly, looking like she's trying to gather her thoughts together but they're moving too fast for her to see. Eventually, she rubs at the back of her neck, letting out a short, singular breath of laughter. "What the fuck?"

Haerin gives herself a mental kick, jerking her head to the side to bring herself back to reality. The target was right there. She's spoken to the target, hell, she's holding onto the target's cap.

Haerin agrees with Kazuha wholeheartedly. What the fuck?

"She just-" Kazuha cuts herself off, looking at Haerin, then Minji, and back to Haerin again. Looks at the cap in Haerin's hand, and back to Haerin's face. "She will never cease to surprise me," she shakes her head, muttering more to herself than to Haerin, but Haerin picks up the words regardless.

Haerin looks down at the cap in her hands, and realizes that she's perhaps gripping onto it maybe that bit too tight. Minji could've given the cap to Kazuha, or Yunjin, hell, she could've kept it on her for the duration of the race. Giving the cap to Haerin... that means Haerin has to stick around to give it back to her. It means she can't leave. It means that Minji has every intention of talking with her afterwards.

Haerin lets out a slow, controlled breath. It's overwhelming, but it's... it's so much further than she expected to be by the end of night one. She thought she'd have to find someone who worked here, somehow force the information about Minji's associates out of them, and stick around with them for a while before making herself known to Minji herself. Now, she's only a couple of hours in, and she's already got a promise of Minji coming back for a second conversation.

Taking in another breath, Haerin tells herself that she's not going to let this opportunity pass by.

---

After the race ends, chaos ensues.

People are drunk, tired, and most likely angered if they didn't win, and multiple fights break out that Minji sees Yunjin watch with mild enjoyment. They'd both moved to the other side of the road and towards the back end where most of the vehicles are, sheltered from the crowd by a canopy of a broken, stone bridge that dangles precariously above them.

Haerin had offered the cap to Kazuha after the race was over, but she'd only laughed at her. "You'll want to hold onto that, trust me. She didn't just give it to you for the fun of it."

Kazuha ducks beneath a barrier, and Haerin follows suit, weaving through the cars and bikes that have decided to linger around after the race, some only dismounting their vehicles as they pass them by.

It doesn't take long for Kazuha to spot Yunjin, and Haerin doesn't need to be a detective to guess that those two have a connection that runs much deeper than what she's seeing on the surface, even from what little she's witnessed.

With the ambiatic background noise of slurred curses and enraged threats and shattering glass, Haerin watches as Yunjin takes off her helmet when her and Kazuha approach her. Haerin isn't all too sure what to do, but she soon settles with slipping off to the side as the two get closer, more focused on finding Minji than she is on how capable they are of testing one another's lung capacity.

She wanders around for a bit, Haerin, making sure that she knows of Kazuha and Yunjin's general area, just in case she ends up not being able to find Minji. She takes note of the people who had partaken in the race and physical features that stand out, mainly out of habit at this stage. She does her best to avoid eye contact, not wanting to get swirled up in another conversation and become distracted.

She eventually does find Minji, towards the edge of the main body of the small crowd, hunched down and examining the wheel of her car with her back to Haerin. She traces those delicate-looking fingers over the hubcap, seeming to be lost in thought. It's a strange sight, Haerin thinks. Such pretty, lithe things against the roughness of the stained hubcap. The car is nothing fancy, Haerin also acknowledges. It's not the car of someone you'd think would possess a lot of money; it's scratched, with its fair share of dents, and the exterior doesn't look like it's gotten a good clean in over a year.

Wanting to speak up before she gets caught staring, Haerin speaks up. "Hey, excuse me?

Minji turns around to look at her, her hand dropping from the grime of the hubcap and joining her other in resting on her knees.

She's not wearing a mask this time around, Haerin immediately notices, because really, it's something that's hard to ignore. With the entirety of her face on display,

Haerin subconsciously takes her time to give credit where credit is due. The curve of Minji's lips are a soft pink, matching the light hue on her cheeks. In contrast, her jawline is sharp, as with her cheekbones, the light from the streetlamp casting down on her heightening them in an almost severe manner. Her dark hair frames her face elegantly, so dark it almost appears blue, matching the black of her irises that blends with her pupils.

Her face is completely unreadable, for a fraction of a second, and then a look of understanding passes over her visage.

"It's you," she tilts her head, hair falling over her shoulder, swinging like a pendulum in a mesmerizing manner. "Haerin, wasn't it?"

Haerin nods her head, perhaps a bit too quickly. "Yeah, that's me," she confirms, and her voice is a little thick. She clears it. "I, uh, have your hat," she holds up the item in question for Minji to see.

"Ah, yes," Minji stands up at that, and she definitely has a couple of inches on Haerin. Haerin finds herself looking up at her. "I'd almost forgotten about that," her tone suggests that no, actually, she most certainly hadn't forgotten.

She takes the hat off of Haerin, brushing her hair back from her forehead again before placing it snug atop her head. "Thank you for bringing it to me; I was going to find you."

Her tone. Haerin's not a fool; she'd be pretty terrible at her job if she were.

It's flirtatious. Blatantly, flagrantly, flirtatious.

"Don't be modest about this, yeah?" Haerin recalls Sakura telling her, late one night in her office. "You're pretty, Haerin. Don't be modest about it and use it to your advantage."

Yeah, Haerin could almost laugh, if her heart weren't beating so fast it's threatening to fall past her lips. Easy in theory when Minji isn't stood right in front of you.

Haerin presses her lips together and takes in a breath that she thinks is slightly less shaky than before. "It's fine, don't worry about it," she insists. "And besides..."

Minji quirks a brow at her as she continues her sentence.

"I never asked you your name."

Minji regards her with that same expression for a few moments before she's laughing lightly. "This really is your first time here, isn't it?"

Haerin nods, slowly. "That is what I said."

If only you knew.

Kim Minji holds out a hand for her to shake. "I'm Minji,"

Haerin obliges and grips that delicate hand of hers, not too hard, yet not too limp. Her palm is cold to the touch, almost icy, though Haerin supposes it's reasonable, given the current climate.

"Oh? There they are!"

Haerin looks up to see Kazuha and Yunjin approaching them, Kazuha dragging Yunjin along by the hand whilst Yunjin watches, a mixture of amusement and fondness smeared on her otherwise snarky-looking features.

Minji lets Haerin's hand go, and Haerin's falls limp by her side. She tries not to think about the exchange too much, forcing it to the back of her mind. Out of everything, it's really the least of her worries.

"We were looking for you guys," Kazuha says with a huff, in that slightly petulant, fractious way she has of speaking. "Thought you left without us."

"Don't tempt me," Minji utters under her breath, and if either Kazuha or Yunjin hear it, they don't respond.

"I see you got your hat back," Yunjin gestures to the black cap on Minji's head, and now that Haerin looks at it, it matches Yunjin's own one.

"Clever of you to notice," Minji replies, lips quirking just slightly, a finger tracing its peak.

"I also see that Haerin's still here," Yunjin pushes further, then shoots Haerin a quick look, almost as if to say no offense.

Haerin wonders how she's supposed to not take offense, really.

Minji turns her head to look at Haerin again, her eyes repeating that same movement from earlier, dragging down, and back up again.

Haerin swallows thickly.

"How right you are,"

Yunjin grits her teeth, and she hears Kazuha spluttering off to the side. "Aren't we meant to be..." she trails off, gesturing to Minji's car with her free hand. It takes Haerin a moment to piece it together, but she eventually sees that it's the hubcap that Yunjin's referring to, the same one that Minji had been crouched in front of when Haerin had first approached her.

"That can wait," Minji brushes her off. "Didn't I promise you guys drinks earlier?"

Kazuha points a finger at her. "You most certainly did, yes."

"Well, that's settled then," Minji straightens her shoulders, pushing her hair back behind her shoulder from where it had been obstructing her view. She looks at Haerin again. "Would you like to join us?"

Again, it's like last time. She phrases it like a question, however it comes out like a demand.

Yunjin clicks her tongue off to the side, throwing a hand up in frustration. "Minji-"

"Yunjin," Minji cuts her off, tone firm and unargumentative. The two of them look at each other, stares hard and unblinking, and Haerin swears she hears the tension crackling in the air between them.

But, it doesn't take long for Yunjin to give in, looking away and heaving another sigh. "Fine, whatever, I don't care," she turns around and begins walking, Kazuha having no choice but to follow suit. "I'm ordering the most expensive shit on that menu, and there's absolutely nothing you can do about it!" she calls out over her shoulder, and through the night, Haerin hears Kazuha's laughter flutter melodically.

Minji shakes her head. "Pardon her. She's just... too good at what she does."

Haerin folds her arms, mostly because it's getting colder as the night continues on. "Is being a first-timer really that big of a deal?"

Minji's lips curl into something complacent. "Something like that," she answers vaguely, beginning to follow the same path that Kazuha and Yunjin are taking. "You're not busy or anything, are you?" she asks, stuffing her hands into the pockets of her jacket. "You're okay to join us?"

Once more, the answer is already implied, regardless of whether Haerin's actually available or not.

She shrugs, following behind her. "I came out here because I was bored," she reminds her, but also as a way of emphasizing it and ingraining it into Minji's head. "Free drinks? Boredom cured."

---

Haerin follows behind Minji as they make their way further and further into the winding streets, barren and colorless bar for the amber tint provided by the fading, flickering streetlamps. Emerald green shards of broken glass crunch beneath her heel when she isn't watching her step, that all-too-familiar stench of drink that seems to permeate every street corner, that hangs thick and hefty in the air, seeping into her nostrils. She probably should've brought a mask with her, envious of Yunjin and Minji who have theirs hiked up on their noses.

They don't walk for too long, but at some point along the way Haerin begins to grow suspicious. Of course, they have no idea who she is, but taking someone out for a drink whomst you've just met, at the place you run no less, does strike Haerin as a little odd. Even though Yunjin had seemed very much against the idea, (Haerin doesn't blame her in the slightest), Minji's beguiling act could very much have been a front to convince her to come along with them.

She doesn't know what they might want with her, or what they might do to her, should that be the case, but she reminds herself that no matter how they appear on the surface, she knows what kinds of people these girls are.

Kazuha, if Haerin were to meet her on the street, or fall into natural conversation with her in a shop or something, wouldn't think anything of her. At first, during their first few strung sentences, Haerin had assumed she was simply a spectator, who thought that Haerin was too. It was only when she'd asked her for the code that her aura had changed, suggesting to Haerin that it was simply a facade put on to see if she could try and catch Haerin out.

Haerin doesn't think she knows what to make of Yunjin yet. She's quite the contrasting personality, coming across as quite tender towards Kazuha, yet strong-headed otherwise. At this stage, Haerin's really only got a surface view of each of them, and if she succeeds in making an impression on Minji tonight, and these two work closely under her, then she'll be able to draw more accurate conclusions later on.

Minji herself... up until now, she's been nothing but numbers to Haerin. Facts and figures with a hauntingly beautiful face to go alongside them. Those figures still very much remain, and will continue to do so no matter how well Haerin gets to know her, but she supposes knowing someone personally, and seeing their side of the story... Haerin knows it can't be helped should she ever feel any sort of empathy.

She'd expected Minji to be... well, she doesn't know quite what, exactly. She hadn't expected to catch sight of her until, like, a month into the operation, and that would be if she were lucky. Perhaps she'd painted a picture of a stereotypical, petty crime gang, someone stoic and straight-faced and uncaring. And while yes, she does come across as the quietest of the three girls (not in a shy sense, though. Haerin had never thought of the quiet as unnerving, but she does now), she's not completely detached. They seem to have an almost - a friendship, if Haerin could call it that? - between them, bouncing off one another in an effortless manner.

One thing she does note is that Yunjin seems to be more challenging of Minji than Kazuha is. While Kazuha seems to take whatever it is into her stride, Yunjin will poke fun at her, or mock her, which Minji will either ignore or respond to with a disinterested hum.

Minji might be the leader of this group, but Yunjin doesn't seem to find any harm in riling her up.

Kazuha turns a corner all of a sudden, seeming to know the area well, cutting into a dark alleyway with Yunjin close behind her.

Haerin hesitates, on the brink between dimness and blackout. This screams danger to her, and in literally any other situation, Haerin would turn on her heel and walk in the opposite direction.

But, Sakura had made herself clear. Numerous times.

No matter how much your conscious would scream at you to not do something, you'd have to go through with it.

Minji turns around, her hair practically invisible in the darkness, and with her hat atop her head and mask over her nose, only her eyes are apparent. "You okay?"

She says it like a challenge.

Haerin shakes out her shoulders. "Yeah," she replies, not wanting to say too much, out of fear that Minji will be able to figure out that she's very much the opposite.

They don't delve that deep into the alleyway, thankfully, Kazuha and Yunjin waiting for them by a rusted, colorless door, with a light that had just about flickered to life once they moved beneath it.

Yunjin pushes open the door, the hinges wailing in a manner that makes Haerin's teeth water. They step inside, Haerin insisting that Minji goes ahead of her, not wanting anyone to be behind her. She feels a little bit more comfortable being able to see them all in front of her, as they step into a narrow, dark corridor. The door shutting behind her, Haerin can just about hear the faint sounds of light conversation, low and not particularly loud. Their footsteps echo through the quiet, floorboards creaking beneath their feet, and Haerin swears that if it weren't for that extra layer of talk that's seeping through the cracks in the walls, Minji in front of her would be able to hear the way her heart is hammering inside her ribcage.

They pass by a right-hand turn, Haerin having no clue where it goes, looking down it for a moment as the walls fade into black, before moving quickly to catch up with the others. It doesn't take long for them to come to a door, heavy-looking, which Yunjin manages to wrench open with a bit of effort. Instead of a room, or another length of a corridor like Haerin had expected, there's a small, square space, gleaming with two walls made of metal, and two whose surface area is mostly taken up by mirrors. Buttons dot the wall on the left, rimmed with red and green.

It's a lift.

Haerin stares at it, a little dumfounded. Compared to the exterior of the building, and the corridor she's stood in right now, the lift seems like it was just installed yesterday with how clean it seems. The mirrors don't seem to have a spec of dust on them, gleaming spotlessly, the metallic interior so polished Haerin can see her reflection in it from here.

The others step into the lift, so Haerin quickly follows suit. It's a quick affair, the ride up, but one that Haerin feels drags on for way too long before they finally come to a smooth stop.

The doors part seamlessly, the other three wasting no time in walking out, whereas Haerin takes her time, peering beyond their shoulders to catch a glimpse of what's in front of her.

She breathes out a quiet sigh of relief.

It's a small room, like a bar designed for no more than twenty people. There's a few tables, sparsely occupied, and a minibar lined with six stools. The lighting in the room is low, the majority of the illumination coming from a rather expensive-looking display of brightly colored bottles on the back wall behind the bar itself. The carpet is a plush red, matching the shade of the padding on the seats, the walls trimmed with gold linings, and soft, quiet music coming from... somewhere. Haerin's too overwhelmed to really take notice.

This place is... expensive. Luxurious. She wasn't even aware places like this existed in The Outskirts, has never seen anything like it.

What seems otherworldly to her doesn't seem to faze the others in the slightest. Yunjin instantly sheds herself of her jacket, letting out a loud sigh, taking off her cap and pushing at the roots of her hair. "Hey!"

She calls out in the direction of the singular barman, stood in front of the display of bottles, cleaning a thinly-stemmed glass with a cloth. He's dressed smartly, like something out of a movie Haerin would watch with Sullyoon on a Saturday night, and he looks up the moment Yunjin speaks.

He smiles, as warm and as welcoming as he can be while trying to hide the forceness of it. "Ah, Ms. Kim. Welcome,"

Yunjin quirks an eyebrow, sitting herself down on one of the stools, not looking too impressed. "Ms. Huh is here too," she gestures to herself, and Haerin files more of that information away.

Huh Yunjin.

The bartender gives her a tight-lipped smile, looking like he'd just bitten into a lemon and is trying his best to hide it. "Of course she is," he sets down the glass and the cloth, taking a step back. "I'll be with you-" he cuts himself off, looking at Haerin and clearly not recognizing her. "With you four in a moment,"

---

Haerin keeps Minji drinking.

It's not that difficult a task. The bartender continuously offers, and Haerin responds on both of their behalf, ignoring the side-eyes she shoots her. Whenever they're served, she'll take a sip of hers, or two, before pushing it over to Minji and insisting that she has it. Minji doesn't put up a fight, accepting easily, downing one just in time for Haerin to call in another round.

Minji is... she doesn't really know how to describe it. She doesn't speak in excess, and everything that comes out of her mouth is one hundred percent intended. Their conversation is nothing heavy, Haerin subtly ensuring they stay on the topic of the races, and not to anything much about she herself. She does her best to occasionally slip in a phrase, or a word, with just the slightest of coquettish undertones... but again... Minji doesn't make that difficult either.

Haerin doesn't dwell on it too much, because it could just be a natural air about her, and a way in which she treats everyone, but that doesn't mean she doesn't use it to her advantage. It's a nice surface area to brush, for now. It won't last if she keeps things up the way she is now, but that's for further down the road. For now, she just needs to make sure Minji remembers her after tonight.

"You said you move around a lot," Minji traces the rim of her glass with a singular finger. "What's that like?"

Haerin purses her lips, pretending to think. Anything she says here, she can't forget. This lie has to be flawless, inpermeable. She's run through every little detail with Sakura numerous times, but she can't afford to slip up.

She shrugs nonchalantly, scrunching up her nose in distaste. "Jobs are fucking hard to seal. We're not all..." she gestures in Minji's direction. "Whatever the hell you wanna call yourself,"

Minji hums, lips quirking. Haerin could almost describe the sound as soothing.

"What is this place anyway?" she asks. "I've never been. Or seen it, it's not like... other places here,"

Minji looks around the room like it couldn't be anymore ordinary. "Hmm. I suppose it's not, is it?" she gestures to her glass. "I suppose I like the drinks,"

Haerin blinks. "The drinks? That's all?"

Minji tilts her head. "They're a contributing factor, yeah," she pauses, and then "You should be able to tell by now, you've had me on them all night,"

Haerin freezes. Minji isn't looking at her, rather finding amusement in the liquid in the bottom of her glass. Shit shit shit shit. "I don't-"

"I'm not that easy," Minji cuts across her. "You've kept the drinks coming for me all night," she holds up the one in her hand and takes a pointed sip, before continuing on. "So tell me. Why?"

Haerin takes in a breath. Okay, so she'd been caught out, but she can work with that. She decides that if she's going to get anywhere, she can't be afraid of taking a risk.

"Alright. I'll be honest with you, then,"

Minji raises a brow, peering at her over the rim of her glass as she takes another sip of her drink. She hums in question, before swallowing and placing the drink down on the bar again.

Haerin doesn't answer right away, pressing her lips together. She leans forward, crossing her arms on the bar and leaning on them. "I know exactly who you are,"

She keeps her eyes trained on the array of brightly coloured and labelled bottles in front of her, not wanting to see what Minji's reaction is right away. There's a beat of silence, and for a brief second, Haerin thinks that she's made the wrong decision. That Minji's going to scoff, and kick her out without another word. That she's going to have to go back to Sakura after only one day, and say that she's failed.

But, to her surprise, she hears Minji laughing. Although it's not the kind of laughter you emit when you find something funny, and something more along the lines of laughing at her, Haerin will take it.

"Do you?" Minji asks her, even though she knows the answer, that same bemusement laced into her words.

Haerin hums, bobbing her head as best she can against the cushion of her forearms in reply. "I said it before, I've moved around a lot, met a lot of people. I know a few things,"

"So then," Minji counters, and out of the corner of her eye, Haerin sees Minji mimicking her position, leaning forward and resting her chin on her crossed arms. "Enlighten me. Who am I?"

Haerin turns her head to look at her, analysing her carefully. Minji doesn't seem all too bothered by Haerin's sudden declaration, in fact she seems to find it quite enjoyable. Haerin doesn't know why that irks her, but it does.

She takes in a breath. "That race. All of them, all the races. You run all of them. You're in charge,"

Minji nods her head along as Haerin speaks. "That'd be correct yes. I suppose word does get around faster than I'd anticipated,"

"I wasn't telling you the full truth earlier on. When I said why I'd come here," Haerin isn't fully lying, but what follows could be taken as the truth too, depending on how you look at it.

"Oh?" Minji asks, seeming more interested this time, taking her drink back into her grasp and sitting back up straight.

Haerin takes in a slow breath, and says it before she can stop herself. "I want in,"

---

Minji holds up the spike in front of the man's face after she crouches down so that she's just above eye level with him. It's so close to his face that he almost grows cross-eyed, and in the dimness, Minji can just about see the way his thick neck contracts in a revolting manner as he swallows thickly.

The autoshop is plunged in darkness, perhaps an hour or two after midnight, the only source of light coming from an oil lamp in the corner that had been lit so that they could see what they were doing.

Minji peers down at the man in disgust but keeps her facial expression as controlled as possible. He's bound to a chair in the middle of the barren shop, arms and legs restrained earlier on whilst he was passed out cold.

Yunjin had taken his gloves off of him, placed them onto the counter top. The gloves with spikes identical to the one Minji's got in between her fingertips, some of them missing.

"Bet you thought you were real hot shit huh," she doesn't phrase it like a question, and she can't help the sneer that filters into her words when she speaks.

The man looks at her with wide eyes, fearful. He's got a petulant face, puffed and pinched like pastry, a sweat having broken out on his forehead and making it slick with a thin sheen. He doesn't say anything in response.

"Yah," Yunjin drawls from where she's positioned behind him. The gun held between her fingers loosely is pushed against the man's temple, and she gives the nozzle an undefined shove into the side of his head to punctuate her words. "Answer when she speaks to you," a small smirk decorates her lips, a little drunken, whether it be from the actual drink, or adrenaline, Minji can never guess. Yunjin always takes a bit of delight in situations like these. Minji just views it as another task to be dealt with.

The man splutters, a spray of spittle coming from past his lips. "N-no..." he trails off, not sounding too sure whether or not he'd answered the question correctly.

Minji hums, looking away from him, and back towards the spike in between her thumb and forefinger. It's nothing too sharp, in fact, it's rather blunt.

It's a shame, but it'll have to do.

She looks back at him, then, and holds up the spike, making sure it's in his line of sight. "You lodged these into my wheel before the race started,"

The man looks away from her, down at his lap. He's begun to shake rather violently, but Minji keeps a cool, level head.

"Do you know what would've happened had I not noticed them?"

The man answers all too quickly, and it occurs to Minji that she doesn't even know his name. Decides she doesn't really care.

"Yuh-yeah,"

Minji hums again. "Could've spun out. They could've stopped working, I could've been hit. I could've died," she tilts her head to the side, brings her gaze into the man's, even if he's refusing to return at it. It's fucking pathetic. "Look at me, you fucking bitch,"

The man's neck snaps up, Yunjin's gun following the movement almost precisely.

"You tried to kill me,"

The man splutters again, shaking his head insistently. "N-no!" He exclaims, words slurred and loud. "No, I swear, I puh-promise I-"

Yunjin cuts him off with another reminding nudge of the nozzle into his temple, promptly causing him to shut up.

Minji scoffs. She's so fucking done with this already.

"Do you know who I am?" She asks.

The man is shuddering so violently now the sound of the chair against the ground is echoing throughout the shop.

"You're- you're Kim Minji," He stumbles over his words in an attempt to get them out of his mouth. "You run the... the races. You're in charge,"

Minji lets out a short breath of laughter. It's humourless. "That's the second time I've gotten that today, you know. I suppose it's a half truth," she looks down at the spike again. "You tried to kill me with this," she laughs again, sounding flat. Something so negligible, and so trivial, he thought would do the job in taking her down. It's an insult, really. "It'd be rude of me not to return the favour, wouldn't it?"

The man shakes again, saliva gathering in her mouth that he seems incapable of swallowing beginning to appear in the corner of his thin lips. "N-no, please-"

"Oh, shut the fuck up," Yunjin spits. She's never had much patience, never been one for the build-up, and in her view, this is probably dragging on way too long. She presses the gun so hard into his temple that his ear meets his shoulder, something sadistic blazing in her eyes. "You're gonna do what she fucking tells you, yeah?"

Minji's often thought numerous times about how lucky she is that Yunjin's on her side. To be quite frank, she can be fucking terrifying when she wants to be.

Minji holds the spike back up in front of his face, close enough that she can feel the irregular breath being dispelled from his nostrils on the tips of her fingers. "Open up,"

It must take him a second or two, because of how slow the cogs inside his brain are churning, but eventually, he seems to understand that Minji wants him to open his mouth. That, or he's just fucking stupid. Minji thinks a mixture of the two.

He stares at her, eyes peeling back in disbelief. They search her own with desperation, at the strange request. There's not much he can do, bound to a chair and a gun pressed against his temple, so tentatively, the man opens his mouth. Surely, Minji thinks, he must have a gist of what's coming.

Leaning forward, she drops the spike into the man's mouth, not desiring any sort of contact with him whatsoever. She hears the metal clanging dully against his teeth, a strange sound that reminds her a bit of the few times she went to the dentist as a child. The man doesn't move, keeps his mouth open, the metal resting on his tongue.

It's dead quiet.

And maybe Minji builds up the anticipation a small bit, just because she can. The man's gaze is brimming with so many emotions she can hardly pick them all out; terror mixed with exhaustion mixed with despair mixed with the ultimatum of giving up.

She locks eyes with Yunjin, for a brief moment, and the older gives her a subtle nod.

Minji returns her eyes to the man, making sure to get the message across nice and clear.

"Swallow,"

The man's neck snaps up again, so violently it must've been painful. He opens his mouth, looking like he's on the verge of protesting, when a resounding click echoes throughout the shop.

Yunjin had turned the safety off.

She doesn't say anything. She doesn't need to. The man looks as though he's on the brink of unconsciousness.

Minji repeats herself, more forcefully than last time. She's fucking tired, and really, fed up. She's got better fucking things to be doing than dealing with lowlifes like this one. But, this man had crossed a line, a line that no one crosses, and she needs to get the message out to others that your actions will have consequences - severe consequences. "Swallow it,"

It's too big, the spike, to swallow, at least successfully. There's no way someone would be able to swallow something so bizarre, and the man knows it. But, it's either that or take a bullet or two to the brain, and while it's by no means a pleasant decision to make, it's certainly an easy one.

He's gone pale, all of a sudden. A sickly green colour, eyes a little dazed. He looks like he's going to be sick, so Minji stands up and takes a few steps back, just in case.

Yunjin keeps stroking the gun's nozzle against his temple, in a careless manner, just a gentle, yet insistent manner as a reminder that all it would take is one slip of her finger. Minji doesn't miss the way that finger drifts from where it was resting on the guard, to the trigger itself. That usual hunger has settled on her features, one that Minji has always been used to, for as long as she can remember.

The man's mouth closes, and he really has gone sheet-white.

He might choke. It might cut his oeosophagus, or the inside of his stomach if his peristalsis is strong enough. It might lodge itself inside, or he could cough it back up. Minji doesn't really know. She's sure Yunjin's keen to know. She herself, she isn't quite sure. It's not something particularly interesting.

He doesn't take as long as Minji had anticipated, but perhaps she's just too used to Yunjin's presence.

He swallows. And again, and again, until-

Fuck, Minji can fucking see it.

It's certainly not the most vulgar thing she's ever witnessed, fuck, it's tame in comparison, but that doesn't automatically make it unsettling. She can see the vague outline of the spike, protruding through his skin, as it becomes caught, too big to fit like Minji had anticipated. The man's eyes widen once it hits him. His throat convulses, Minji watching with mild intrigue as it ripples unnaturally, the skin becoming taught, and then relaxing, only to contract again just as fast.

He begins to cough, coming out as this animalistic, almost gurgling noise, his hands protesting against the restraints uselessly. His entire body moves in response, lurching and wretching, producing sounds that Minji probably shouldn't be familiar with, but it takes a lot to surprise her at this stage.

Sprays of saliva land by her feet, and she takes another step back.

Face turning from a shade of white to something like a deep beetroot, the man continues coughing up a fit, the sound raw and gravelly, ripping from somewhere in the base of his throat. The noise is straight up gutteral, like scratching nails down a chalkboard, and while it doesn't last very long, it seems to stretch on and on forever. Along with almost violent inhales through his nose, so as to not swallow it further, and the way his entire body heaves-

Minji's eyes widen a fraction.

He succeeds.

The spike is projected onto the floor, reaching quite the distance, skittering on the floor before coming to a halt. The man gasps for air, loudly, head hung and hair plastered to his forehead. His shoulders rise and fall heavily, his inhales and exhales echoing loudly through the quiet.

"Well shit," Yunjin sounds almost impressed, standing up and brushing her hair away from her face. "I didn't think he was gonna make it there for a second," she claps him on the back, causing him to wince and let out a groan. "Good going, man," her words are practically dripping with sarcasm.

Minji walks over to the spike, where it sits dejectedly on the floor in a spreading puddle of mucus and saliva. Maybe a bit of blood too, it's too dark for her to see. She looks up at Yunjin, motioning her head in the direction of the gloves she'd placed on the counter top. "Pass one over?" Not a fucking chance in hell she's touching that with her bare hands.

Yunjin tosses it over to her, and Minji uses it like she would a tissue, crouching down and holding it at arm's length before standing back up again.

The man raises his head, looking at it fearfully.

Minji supposes she'd tried to kill him; there'd been an attempt, just like he'd done to her. But something about now only being equal doesn't sit right with her. Never has, never will.

She revels in the expression on the man's face when she speaks up.

"Again,"

---

"It was sort of unintentionally phallic, you know," Yunjin remarks offhandishly, brow furrowed as she rubs at a spot of blood on the nozzle of her gun, rubbing at it until it's practically sparkling. "That whole thing,"

Minji scoffs. "Of course you'd fucking think that," she places her cap atop her head before closing the door behind her, following Yunjin outside. "Took you about ten hours to get here from wherever the fuck you were with Kazuha. You're insatiable,"

"Mmh, thanks," Yunjin blows a short puff of air over the steel surface, looking as though she'd deemed her work satisfactory.

"You got someone to take him?"

"Yep. The Cookie," Yunjin drops the gun into the inside pocket of her jacket, switching it out for a cigarette, which she bites between her teeth whilst she fishes around for a lighter. "He'll be gone before morning, probably. It's a weekday, so they're not as busy,"

"Good,"

"You know, now that I think about it..." Yunjin trails off, letting out a small hum of victory when she finds her lighter, setting the cigarette between her lips alight.. "That girl. Haerin,"

"Yeah?"

Yunjin inhales and exhales a small puff of smoke, an incredulous expression on her face. "What the fuck was that all about?"

Minji smiles dryly. She shrugs. "She's pretty,"

It's Yunjin's turn to scoff now. "Pretty," she echoes. "You're letting someone in because they're fucking pretty,"

"I'll do my research, stop whining," Minji sighs, screwing her eyes shut and pressing a hand to her forehead. She doesn't know when exactly she got a headache, but now it's very much demanding to be paid attention to. "I'm so bored at the moment, why wouldn't I do something when a chance is stood right in front of me? She wants in, why fucking not,"

Yunjin shakes her head. "You'll ruin her. She's not like the rest of us; she wasn't raised by..." she sweeps her hand around, in the direction of the auto shop. "This,"

Minji contemplates it for a second or two, tilting her head to the side.

"Good,"

===

notes:

bye that took me forever and i overestimated how long one chapter would be so i probably wont post multiple chapters in one sitting  (Ｔ^Ｔ), the start is a little slow but trust the process pls