"This is too much."
Taehyung said, as he looked at the clothes Hyonhee bought him.
"You're not the only one that I've bought a lot clothes for Taehyung." she said. "I've bought for Minsoo and her family, for the orphans, and for charity"
"Yeah I forgot, I'm just one of your charity work." he whispered to himself.
"What did you say?"
"You're really good at charity work." he told her.
The cab parked in front of the hotel. Taehyung was amazed; it was the first time he was going inside a hotel like this.
"Uh, Is this the hotel you're staying in?" he looked at her to be sure, but she was already walking towards the entrance.
"Yeah, come on."
They went to her hotel room carrying their shopping bags. The room was big, beautiful, and somewhere he never thought he can ever stay in.
"My room is there" she pointed on the left side of the room, "And, that'll be yours" she pointed on the other side.
Taehyung entered his room, and put down his things.
"Do you live here?" he asked her as he stepped outside his lovely bedroom.
"No, I'll only stay here for a month or two." she paused for a moment. "I could ask Minsoo to take care of wherever you'll stay, after I leave."
"You don't have to, I think I could take care of myself by that time." He just didn't like to be treated like someone who's desperate for help.
"Oh okay." she said, then pursed her lips.
"Why don't you go home to your parents?" she asked him.
"I would, if they weren't dead"
"Oh, I'm sorry. I really shouldn't have asked"
He looked at her, "Don't be, It was a long time ago." He sat down on the sofa beside her. "So, where do you live? Where will you go home to?"
"In the USA, with my mom, and sister. I left Seoul when I was ten."
"So you went here for charity work? It's cool that they support you."
"No I did not go back to Seoul just for charity. No, they don't support me" she said in a pained tone.
Taehyung kept his mouth shut for a moment, "Uh, sorry". And she merely smile at him.
"You should take a rest." she told him as she stood up. "You didn't get to sleep properly last night right?"
'I didn't get to sleep at all' he wanted to say.
Hyonhee entered her bedroom, and so did he.
***
"You what?" Minsoo said loudly through the phone.
"Yeah, I let him stay in my hotel room."
"Hyonhee, are you even sure you could trust this guy? You even said he was a syndicate right? Well, you just don't go around sharing rooms with people who just got out of jail, especially when you don't even know that someone." she scold at her.
"Minsoo listen, yeah it was stupid of me, but I think I could trust this guy. I'm helping him looking for his special someone, and by that he's kind of doing me a favor as well."
There was a short pause from the other side of the line.
"He's handsome isn't he?"
"What the hell"
"Isn't he?" she insisted.
"No- yes, I mean no, I didn't bail him out because he's handsome Jung Minsoo."
She giggled, "Whatever you say Kang Hyonhee,"
"Minsoo, I swear-"
"Okay, okay. I know you're not that absurd."
"Of course I'm not" she said.
"But I'd like to meet him, invite him to come with us next week."
"I'll ask him first."
***
For the first time, Taehyung slept almost peacefully. The thought of Seoyun still bothers him. He desperately wanted to look for her.
He heard a knock on the door. He got up, then opened it, Hyonhee was standing in front of him.
"Let's go out and eat breakfast?"
They ate inside a restaurant.
"So, what's her name? Your friend's name?" she asked.
"Why are you saying 'friend' like that?"
"Like what?" she said trying to look innocent.
"Your saying it skeptically."
"Well, I just think she's not just your friend."
"Well she is just my friend, but that doesn't mean I wanted it to stay that way"
"Oh" she looked down at her food.
"Seoyun, her name is Lee Seoyun."
"Do you have any idea where she could've gone?" she looked up at him again.
"I've already looked for her at all the possible places, but she's not at anywhere I've looked for."
"Well, we will look for her." she told him. "How did you guys meet anyway?"
"We both did the same damn thing we didn't want to do" he answered her simply.
"Uh, could I ask how you ended up there?"she asked uncomfortably.
"When my parents died, I was left with my godparents. They sold me to the syndicates when I was fifteen. They fed me, provided me a place to sleep, and all that sort of stuff, but I have to steal for them in exchange." he said.
"Is that why you didn't want me to help you?"
Taehyung stayed quiet.
***
"Taehyung, do you mind coming with me to the orphanage next week ?" Hyonhee asked him
They were already walking back to the hotel.
Taehyung hesitated, "Sure."
She smiled widely, "Just be kind to the kids, and they'll love you"
'I really hope so'
"Wait, i'll just buy story books for them."
They went inside a bookstore, then Hyonhee made him wait while she go get some story books. Something caught Taehyung's eye. It was a book that was a compilation of Vincent Van Gogh's art works. He grabbed it from the shelf, and checked it out. Taehyung always had a thing for Van Gogh's art works, he was very young when his dad used to show him a few pictures of the paintings. He loved it all.
"What's that?" Hyonhee asked from behind him.
He quickly placed it back from where he got the book, "Nothing."
"Okay" she said as she eyed him suspiciously.
***
It was 3 am in the morning, Taehyung woke up to get a glass of water. He was making his way back to his room, but stopped walking because he heard sobs as he walked pass the bathroom.
He stopped and listened to Hyonhee crying. Taehyung wondered what was wrong with her, he noticed every morning that her eyes were bloodshot, and her eyelids were puffy. Taehyung decided not to intrude her privacy, and so he went back to his room to sleep.