Fic: The Heist (Part VIII)
Nov. 7th, 2015 05:32 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
boxxsaltzTitle: The Heist
Author: Boxxsaltz
Pairing: Yoona/Yuri
Rating: R
Summary: There was no job and no money worth the kind of brokenness Yoona endured ever again…except maybe this once.
Part VIII
The breadth of a near death experience was that much more magnified while spending a week trapped in the halls of a hospital. The sight of ambulances and emergency personnel lent Yoona’s thoughts to one thing: That could’ve been her.
Her fingers fumbled with a makeup wedge, dabbing it into a palette of concealer. She’d bear a nice scar along her neck from now on. At least it would be easier to cover up once it was healed. Right now, Yoona suffered through irritated skin and crewnecks to keep Seohyun from worrying about how she managed to,
"Clotheslined yourself? How?"
"I'm accident prone, remember?"
The new habit of constantly checking her phone gravitated her hand to the device sitting on the back of the toilet in Seohyun’s tiny, hospital room washroom. She pressed on the screen. Nothing. Still silence from the others. Images of Sunny’s bloody body sprawled across Taeyeon’s lap plagued her. The breach in Tiffany’s walls and the helplessness of Taeyeon still rattled her. The dark eyes of her attacker and the ambiguity of if Sooyoung made it out or not still haunted her.
Yoona sat the phone down. She wasn’t supposed to get this invested. But she did and the pitiful feeling in her gut wouldn’t leave until she knew that everyone was okay.
“Yoong?”
“In here,” she called back.
Washing her hands, she flushed the toilet for extra measure and fixed her hair so it fell over her shoulders to help hide what the makeup couldn't quite cover completely. Seohyun slid the door closed. She’d just come back from a series of tests. Yoona didn’t believe the results were good. Seohyun looked worn out and worryingly thin.
“Do you want me to start the shower?”
Seohyun shook her head. Too tired. She climbed into bed instead.
She’d been happier since Yoona’s constant visits. She bounced between the hospital and hiding out in a cheap motel one of the girls from the club worked days at. Tiffany was right. Home wasn’t safe. Not yet. Seeing Seohyun like this wasn’t safe either, but there was no way she could neglect her. So she kept her father’s gun on her at all times.
Just in case.
“When did you get back?”
“An hour or two ago.”
Seohyun motioned for her to come. Yoona sat at the foot of the bed, legs crossed beneath her. Evening sunlight came through the windows, illuminating the bags beneath Seohyun’s eyes that mirrored her own.
“That looks bad, Yoong. If you won’t let me treat it, let the doctors.”
She waved it off. “You know I’ve had worse.”
Stitches in her side worse when she slipped off the Seo’s backyard deck and sliced herself open on a sharp piece of wood. Not to mention the myriad of bumps, scrapes, and bruises she accumulated as a kid. Yoona was always the roughhousing type and Seohyun was always the caretaker, kissing her booboos.
Yoona suddenly flushed.
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s cold in here.”
She got up to grab a spare blanket and wrapped it around her shoulders. Returning to the bed, she curled herself by Seohyun’s feet. A sock-clad toe poked at her chin.
“What aren’t you telling me?”
“I tell you everything.”
“I know you don’t.” If Seohyun meant to or not, she sounded accusatory. She was saying a lot of things off color lately. Yoona couldn’t take offense to it. She deserved it considering how she’d been acting.
“I try to.”
Seohyun shifted down the bed to mirror Yoona’s position. They were eye-to-eye. Something in her wanted to reach out and pull Seohyun into her.
“Let me in again?”
“I…I want this to be over.” The silence, the fear, the sickness, the friction she felt between them, the confusing mess of her emotions. She wanted to go back to routine, to simplicity, to safety, to their world behind the doors of their apartment.
“It will be.” The way she said it brought an ominous cloud of disquietude.
Her phone vibrated. Yoona was quick to grab for it.
It was Yuri.
She walked out of the room to answer it.
“Hey.”
“Hi.” Quiet ensued. Yuri went on. “Are you still coming?”
She couldn’t decline Yuri’s invitations any longer though now Yoona hated that she’d made the plans. Surely if she told Yuri she was spending time at the hospital she’d be understanding. But that excuse didn’t make it to her lips.
“I’ll always come for you.”
“I can’t wait to see you.”
The thickness in her voice made Yoona shiver. “I’ll be there soon.”
She came back to Seohyun leaning against the doorframe to the washroom. The water ran behind her. For once, Yoona couldn’t read her face.
“You’re leaving, aren’t you?”
She winced. “I don’t have to.”
“I was already expecting to wake up alone tonight anyway.”
Ouch. “Ju-”
And then Seohyun shut her out.
-/-/-/-
The estate smelt like butter and spices and Yuri tasted like lip balm and a hint of oregano. Yoona licked her lips after the small peck she received first coming through the door.
“Sorry, I’m late.”
“Don’t- What happened to you?”
Yoona leaned away from the fingers coming for her neck. “It’s nothing.”
“Yoona, that-”
“Please, don’t.” She wasn’t in the mood for repeating another lie. She just wanted a distraction and Yuri was the perfect one. "You cooked. I can smell it.”
Yuri’s grin wiped away her concern. Taking Yoona’s fingers, she led the way to the kitchen. A skillet of meats and a bowl of cooked veggies sat on the stove. Clear painted nails plucked up a savory piece. Yoona accepted it, mouth watering at the flavors that burst in her mouth.
"How is it?"
"Mmm, another." Yoona chewed a second chunk. Better than the first. “So good.”
“It’s for lettuce wraps. Do you want one?”
“Feed me." Yoona pushed up to sit on the countertop as Yuri went to fetch a bowl of freshly, cleaned lettuce leaves from the fridge. “Is this your hobby?”
Yuri bit her lip. “I’ve always wanted to open my own restaurant.”
“Really?”
“Not the five-star kind, but the type you’d wander into by chance while on a walk through the city.” Skilled fingers rolled the wrap and handed it to Yoona. She took a bite and chewed slowly to savor it. “Anyone could come. University students, singles, friends, families. It would be family owned.”
“Family owned?”
Yuri’s cheeks went rosy as she leaned back against the counter beside Yoona. “It’s cliché, but I’d eventually like to settle down. Start a family, partner, kids, maybe a dog.”
Yoona grinned at dog. Another puppy beneath the roof. "That's not what I was expecting."
"It's a turn-off, isn't it?"
Yoona shook her head. She didn’t know what it was. She never thought of family after her own was destroyed. To think of having to put the same burden on her own children frightened her. She didn't want that. She let the idea of family and settled down life fade when her life became wrapped up in crime and selling herself for cash. Someone like her, it didn't seem right to fit a family into it.
"You're not running out screaming, so I know I haven't completely freaked you out."
"I think what you want…it’s beautiful."
It's something Yoona didn't think she'd ever be able to give to Yuri, but it was a lovely dream. She tried to picture her and Seohyun in that light. It made her smile. They were a handful together as it was. But maybe...
“You really think so?”
“Yeah.”
Yuri looked down as she bit her lip. It reminded her of Seohyun. The way she'd blush and tuck hair behind her ear whenever Yoona said something uncharacteristically fluffy. Truth be told, Seohyun was the one that drew those things out of her.
“Here,” Yoona picked up a square of meat. “The chef deserves a taste, too.”
Smiling, Yuri took it into her mouth. She grabbed Yoona’s wrist before she could pull away and brought her fingertips to her mouth. Tongue flicking against the pads of her fingers, she licked up the oil and spices left there. Each finger, she took into her mouth, sucking along the digit with a swirling tongue. Yoona watched her all the while. Heat bubbled in her stomach when lidded eyes peered up at her.
“I would like a taste of you now.”
Yoona flooded. She led Yuri in front of her, legs spreading to allow her to lean in, grab the back of her neck, and lead her down into a kiss. She tasted of basil and pepper, body warm like an oven. But she was eager.
Nails scratched at the waist of her pants. Yoona lifted enough for Yuri to draw them down with everything underneath. She shivered when her skin touched the cold, quartz countertop. Heat rushed back in when hands smoothed up her thighs and spread them apart. The hungry glint in Yuri’s eye when she saw her open and ready for her jolted through Yoona.
She hooked her finger beneath Yuri’s chin, leading her in. Tongue swiped across her lips and Yoona readied herself to feel it between her thighs. It flicked at her stomach instead, followed by teeth that nipped around her bellybutton as she pushed up her shirt.
Yoona squirmed. “Who told you it was okay to tease?”
“I learned from someone better.” Yuri hummed as she pushed bra out of the way and nuzzled her cheek against supple skin. “I missed you.”
Nose and lips running the length between her breasts, Yuri breathed in Yoona like she was her most favorite scent and tasted stiff peaks like a savory delicacy. Yoona wasn’t used to this sort of flowery affection. Yuri was touching her, kissing her, working her like a could-be lover. This was out of Yoona’s comfort zone. She was versed in pulsing orgasms and shallow feels. The only one ever to reach her depths was-
“I want that tongue in me.” She needed something to keep her mind on Yuri and not the one she left. The one who made her heart ache and beat in ways only a true lover could do.
Yuri moved up to sink her tongue into Yoona’s mouth. How cheeky. She bit down on it earning a hiss.
“Not what I meant.”
“You didn’t clarify.”
“Fuck me.”
"Too soon."
Yoona caught on. "Memorize me."
Hands cupped her breasts. Thumbs rolled tips followed by a pinch aided by a forefinger. Her mouth returned with a trail of kisses. Her bottom lip, her chin, her neck, her collar, down her stomach, her hips, atop her thighs. The last pressed right at the top of her slit. Yoona knew her next command.
"Eat me."
Tongue sliced downward, sweeping through her folds to the pool of moisture waiting to be lapped. Yoona’s head tilted back. A moan lifted from her throat. The base of her stomach buzzed and her entrance hummed for desperate attention. She was just as eager as Yuri was, body craving what they'd been void of for too many days.
Legs stretching wider, she welcomed Yuri, allowing that nimble tongue to slither right in. It was easy to let anyone in this way. With faces buried in pulsing hollows, fingers curved in silky tresses, and unintelligible murmurings coating the air, there was no room for anything more to be explored. To be explained. To be said. This was a part of her that Yoona could easily let others sink their teeth into while only one could enter her in every other way.
And she had shut her out.
Now she was shut out.
Yoona whimpered. Yuri peered at her through thick lashes. To see her at work, tongue dipping in and out of her with skill would've turned her bones into fire, but Yoona was caught up on why the hell she was thinking of Seohyun while she had another woman between her legs.
"Where are you?" A juicy wet mouth came into view.
Yoona drank herself off that favorite bottom lip. "I’m close.”
Fingers replaced a mouth and a hand pulled her forward bettering the angle to get knuckles deep into her. Yoona curved a leg around Yuri's back, holding her tight. Tasting herself off Yuri's powerful, little tongue while she curved against rigid walls was an erratic intensifier.
Quickly, the snapshot of Seohyun's flushed face gave back into the object of her current pleasure. Yoona groaned. "Wreck me."
Yuri entered and reentered her with three, four, five strokes of those long fingers and she was done. Waves hit Yoona and she sang into the cavern of Yuri's mouth as they washed her into ecstasy leaving a small pool beneath her.
Yuri's eyes were glossy and glowing. Yoona didn't let her float in that prideful state very long. Yoona didn't let herself drift to soft, warm pools beneath morning glows accompanying crinkling pages and cups of black tea.
She pushed Yuri away by the shoulders and dropped off the counter onto wobbly legs. Yoona bulldozed them backward until Yuri was pinned against the far counter. Yoga pants couldn't come off fast enough. Half down, she went right for the well, fingertips moistening instantly at the honey that flowed there.
“I missed this.” She held her fingers with only the tips inside.
Yuri gripped the back of her neck. “Take me.”
Using the force of her hips, Yoona drove finger in leaving no gaps.
-/-/-/-
The call came when Yoona had her face buried in the finest sheets of Egyptian cotton sateen and smooth arms wrapped around her waist like silk. She almost of thought she was back at the hospital, comfortably cramped in that tiny bed. But Seohyun's hold on her was possessive and safe while the one draped on her was foreign and breakable.
Another series of vibrates drew her fully awake. Yoona slid out of the embrace to answer it in the bathroom.
“Speak to me.”
“Three o’clock,” said Tiffany followed by an address. The call ended with that and Yoona hurried to type in the location before it faded from memory and phone for a cab.
Yuri was still asleep after she washed her face and rinsed her mouth. She touched a kiss to her cheek and pulled on her clothes that Minho washed and neatly hung on a hanger. It felt wrong to leave without a word, but there was a hospital stop she needed to do to make amends and too much nervous anticipation running through her as to what state of disarray the team remained.
So she left and paid the fee for a trip out of the city.
The location was a freight yard. Crisscrossing tracks lined the ground like spines along the dirt. Trains creaked along, their engines loud and pumping. Carriers went on for as far as Yoona could see, their yellow, red, blue, orange colors dulled from sun exposure and dirtied from use.
Workers rushed from one place to another, some on foot, some in cars and trucks, while others took to golf carts. She stuck out sorely, but no one gave her more than a second's glance as she searched out a security checkpoint. The boys behind the glass perked to attention when they saw her come up to the gate on foot. The plexiglass window slid back.
“Can I help you?”
Tiffany told her to say one thing and one thing only. "Hwang Miyoung.”
"Wait here." The glass shut.
Yoona stepped aside to let a pickup go by. Minutes went on and a man appeared in a golf cart with an orange construction vest over his clothes and a cap shading his soot-smudged face. He bore an unmistakable resemblance to Taeyeon.
“You the one looking for Hwang?”
“Yeah.”
He motioned for her to get onto the cart. Yoona held onto the railing as he drove, taking them far away from the trains and deeper into the rows of carriers until their thundering sounds were distant rumbles.
The cart halted in front of three containers pushed tightly together. He banged on the side three short knocks followed by two spaced out once. Chains rattled from the other side until finally one of the doors opened. Sooyoung's head popped through the crack. Yoona mirrored the smile on her face. She was okay. A cast wrapped around her shooting arm and a few healing scrapes on her chin, but she was okay.
“Come in," Sooyoung beckoned. "Thanks, Jiwoong.”
Yoona ducked beneath Sooyoung’s arm holding the door open for her and into a large room the width and length and height of the three containers. Black painted walls reflected the yellowish glow of lights placed in each corner and a single lamp placed on a card table at the center where Tiffany sat.
Yoona pulled out one of the folding chairs and sat. Tiffany didn’t make any reaction to her arrival. She just sat there, eyes down on the corner-wrinkled documents in her hands. From what Yoona could see, they were hospital bills and paperwork. Sunny.
"What is this place?"
"Taeng's brother - the one who brought you over - he's in the trade business," said Sooyoung. "Makes for a good hideout.”
“Where is she?”
"Not here." Tiffany bit.
Stuffing half the papers into a folder, she finally looked up. There were cracks in her makeup. She was trying too hard to hold herself together. It wasn't working. Yoona saw through it completely. She knew what she was feeling underneath it all.
"We'll make this brief." Tiffany slid an image across the table to Yoona. "The ones who attacked us are called Neolist. They're an extremist group. They believe in many things. One being social cleansing. Eradicate the scum of the earth and leave the chosen people behind.”
“Whoever those chosen people are,” Sooyoung muttered.
Yoona examined the picture. In the center of a red circle was the black image of a Phoenix with wings spread upwards. Above it were the Roman numerals for the number three. It was the same symbol she saw on her attacker's face mask. The Neolist emblem.
"Why would they attack us?"
Sooyoung guffawed. “Are you kidding? Those bio-weapons are no joke. They could wipe out whoever they want easily. Attacking us is like getting rid of a pesky bug trying to nibble their bread prize.”
Yoona got that but, "How'd they find us?"
"I'm no Sunny, but I found this when I went to start the re-route and trigger the lockdown."
Yoona took the stapled stack of papers handed to her. "A code?"
"A hack code,” Tiffany clarified. “It entered our systems the day of the attack. Usually, our security can fight these but this was too advanced.”
Something clicked. "The power glitch."
Sooyoung nodded. "I think so, too.”
“All of our information.”
Tiffany shook her head. "Luckily we have safeguards in place. The emergency re-routing system Sooyoung started transferred all our files to a secured database. We don't keep paper files at the cube - not delicate ones. Those are locked away in the Y&K corporate office."
“Doesn’t mean they hadn’t already swiped some stuff in the time they hacked us.” Sooyoung frowned. Her finger picked at a loose thread in her cast. “I've never seen a hack like this. Completely incognito and Sumerian to what we’re used to. There was no way we could've seen this coming. Sunny wasn’t ready."
"None of us were."
Eyes shifted to Tiffany's solemn face. Tension returned.
"How is she?"
"Alive." Tiffany wasn’t going to give her anything else. She understood, but they were a team. Weren’t they? "For now, we’ll continue to lay low. Neolist aren't your typical picketing weirdos. They're a trained faction of individuals with multiple divisions. Each is refined in a myriad of fields. Undercover, covert operations are at the top of the list. Don't let your guard down."
"And the assignment?"
"Hiatus for now."
Yoona saw it coming, but she didn't like it. Even if they weren’t in the proper form to do anything now, she couldn't break the feeling that this was the end. That they were giving up. And after all this. After getting so far.
Tiffany left no room for protest. "We're done here. Wait for my next call. Soo, get her home."
“I want to see Sunny.”
Tiffany shot her down. “Not yet.”
“That’s not fair.”
“You don’t have any right to talk to me about fair.” The same blaze that pinned Yoona to the wall of the escape corridor cut into her. Sooyoung placed a hand on Yoona’s shoulder, warning her not to push it. Yoona kept quiet until Tiffany was out of her face and out the door.
“This is bullshit.”
“Sunny has an infection.”
Yoona stilled.
Sooyoung took in a long breath and let it out. Her shoulders were heavy. “She’s fighting it. She gets some pretty high fevers so they’re worried, you know? Tiff’s been by her side 24/7. Taeng sent her here so she could get away for a while. Taeyeon’s with her now but even she...she’s not all here.”
Yoona saw the light in Taeyeon’s eye dim that night in the escape corridor. It was like she lost another piece of herself.
“Why do they keep me in the dark?”
“They pull a lot of strings and bend over backward trying to keep you out of trouble. The less you know, the safer.”
“But why?”
Sooyoung shrugged. Yoona was fed up.
“I can get myself home.” She went to leave.
“Hey.” A manilla folder stretched her way. Yoona grabbed it. “That’s from Sunny. It’s a name of a match for your friend. They don’t think this lady will hold on very much longer. Maybe a few days? A week? Seohyun’s at the top of the list. Sunny made sure of that.”
Yoona’s hands shook. She didn’t know what to feel. This was everything she wanted and been waiting for but to think of who they were taking this opportunity from, of how they were cheating the system, of how selfish it all was, created a lump in her throat.
“It’s not always satisfying playing God.”
Sooyoung frowned. “Be thankful for this.”
“I am. For everything.”
A heavy hand slapped her on the back, stopping any tears from falling. “Get out of here. Forget about this and spend some time with your girl. You’ve earned a mini-vacation.”
Sooyoung was right. She owed Seohyun that much.
-/-/-/-
"Welcome back."
A chill swam up Yoona’s back. She stood by the door, eyes on the figure hovering beside Seohyun’s sleeping form. Everything in Yoona tightened.
"What are you doing here?"
How did she know about the hospital, about Seohyun, about how to find her?
Jessica smiled. “I know your secrets.”
There was no kindness or forced pleasantries. Everything about Jessica spoke lethal. She felt like a threat. Yoona’s nerves coiled. Her muscles tightened. Something about this sudden appearance didn’t say professional business. It was a threat.
"She's so delicate."
"Get away from her."
A hand smoothed down the side of Seohyun’s face. Yoona acted on impulse, snatching for the gun in her bag as quickly as it was taken away.
She gasped, startled by the slender girl striding across the room with her piece in hand. She handed it to Jessica who ran a nail along the barrel with curious interest. The girl squared her shoulders to stand at attention in the shadows behind Jessica. There was light enough to show her face from beneath her jacket hood. Soojung.
“These aren’t made for children.” Jessica unloaded the cartridge and dropped the pieces onto the foot of the bed. Seohyun stirred. Yoona held her breath until she stilled.
“What do you want?”
"Simple. Leave Kwon Yuri alone.”
Yoona’s mind raced, rushing to try and pull pieces together. She always knew Jessica was connected to the plot, but how? Who was she really and what exactly did she want? Her interest in Yuri was too focused and her self-involvement with Senior Kwon and the scientists too deep
“And if I don’t?”
Jessica’s grin was sweet as candy, but her words were as dangerous as a devil. “Cho Yoorim formally known as Im Yoona, the only daughter of Im Eunseong. You’ve squandered the legacy of your father by staining your own reputation. Tell me, Yoona. How much self-loathing does it take to succumb oneself to being any paying bastard's slutty plaything?"
"Yuri's one of those paying bastards."
"Yuri is a fool. Like you and the others. Did you think you could get away with your plan? You've stepped into my territory. There's nothing that happens beneath my nose that I don’t see. I’ve let you play in my court for too long. I can't let you continue."
Yoona feigned annoyance though underneath it all she was shaking. "What? You gonna kill me?"
Jessica laughed, light and frilly. "I’m a negotiator, Yoona. I’m here to make a deal, to give you a choice. You either stop now and give up the operation or I exploit you, the others, and Yuri."
"Is there a choice C?"
“We can add Juhyun into the equation.” Jessica ran a nail beneath her chin. Soojung grinned in the shadows. “How about that?”
Yoona's jaw flexed. “Not even a question.”
“Then what’s it going to be?” She sighed, stepping around the bed in heels that insinuated her calves in a tight, pencil skirt. “You know you can’t win. You know how devastating it would be to see your cute, wittle, naive, puppy fall. You know how terrible it would be for the secrets of your teammate’s lives to be brought to the public. You know how heartbreaking it would be to lose Seohyun, too.” Jessica sat on the bed, hand reaching back to caress along Seohyun’s cheek with the back of her hand. “And after everything you’ve been through.”
“Stop it.” Yoona’s muscles coiled. She saw Soojung tense, ready to counter any move Yoona made toward her sister.
Jessica looked up at her in amusement. “What did they promise you? Money? I thought the daughter of Eunseong was smarter than to fall into the tricks and deceptions of liars and manipulators.”
“Those liars are my friends.”
“Very sweet, but I’m afraid you've trusted the wrong people."
“What do you know about my father?” The one thing Yoona couldn’t help to think was that maybe Jessica was it. That Jessica was one of the links to the main one behind her father’s death.
Jessica's eyebrow lifted. “More than you.”
“Tell me and I’ll consider ending it here.”
Soojung snorted and Jessica laughed. “What kind of gullible idiot do you take me for?”
“What kind of coward do you take me?”
“Oh, I don’t.” She stood, motioning for Soojung to follow. “But we know someone who is.”
Yoona’s chest flared. “Why is Yuri so important to you?”
“I may know your secrets, but that doesn’t mean you need to know mine.” Jessica trapped her against the wall, face close enough she could feel her breath on her lips. “I do hope you make the right choice. It would be such a pity to see such a pretty, talented girl like you come to such an end.”
She balled her fist to restrain herself when Jessica touched her face. It left a cold patch on her cheek and splinters in her chest where Soojung shoved the parts of her gun. All too familiar dark eyes, one gnarled with a nasty scar, glared up at her before they fluttered away.
Everything fell into place.
-/-/-/-
The first thing she had to do was get Seohyun to safety.
Yoona rushed to the apartment. She’d pack a bag, she’d check out of the hospital, she’d put her in another one across town that she’d have to take the subway for. She didn’t care. She just needed to get Seohyun as far away from the explosion as she could.
Keys already rattled in her hand when she climbed out the cab. Her focus was deadset on getting inside the apartment that she almost missed the person leaning against the hood of a car. Yoona stopped cold. Yuri tilted up her head. She wore a baseball cap that shielded her face but not her drawn expression.
“Get in.”
“I-”
“Get in the car, Yoona.”
She did. Yuri shut them inside. The car remained off. An envelope dropped into Yoona’s lap. She opened the tab and pulled out one of the sheets inside. It was a photo. It was many photos, each a snapshot of her and Yuri together from the most innocent of moments together at the Ion Building to the intimate ones on the balcony of the Kwon Estate.
This was the dirty work of Jessica Jung. This was her first dart. One shot right at the true cowardly fool. This was her way of letting Yoona know there was no bluff to call. There were no games to be played, only matters of life, death, and destruction.
“These came right after you left. I wanted to call you, but this isn’t something I want to discuss over the phone.”
Yoona didn’t know what to say.
“There’s something else.”
Yuri turned one of the pictures over. On the back were their names followed by the date each was taken. She was a second late realizing the problem with what was written there. Her full name.
“I looked you up. I had to in order to find where you lived. I didn’t think anything of it at first when I couldn’t find you. When obituaries kept coming up, that’s when I got confused.” Yuri turned to her. Those lovey-dovey, heat craving stares had been replaced with confused terror and heartbreak. “Who are you?”
A lie played on the tip of Yoona’s tongue. It would be easy to weave another set. It would be easy to keep Yuri in the dark. It would be so easy. But she was done with easy.
“My name is Im Yoona.”
“Im Yoona is dead.”
“No, I’m not.” She may as well be. That little girl who swung innocently across monkey bars was gone and buried years ago. Uttering that name now was foreign on her tongue used to a list of fake ones.
“Did you assume her identity?”
“No. It’s me. The person you found is me. Cho Yoorim, Bambi, Doe Eyes, Im Yoona, they’re all me. I- it’s complicated.”
Disgust and betrayal contorted Yuri’s face. It was the same look Yoona feared Seohyun would give her when she finally told the truth. It hurt enough coming from Yuri. She couldn’t image how painful it would be from the other.
“Explain.”
“I faked my death.”
“Why?”
“You wouldn’t understand.”
“Try me.”
“I can’t tell you.”
“Why?”
“Because I’m scared!”
“Of?”
“For!” she snapped. “For you, for this, for Seohyun. You don’t understand my world, Yuri. You don’t know what I’ve had to do in order to keep us protected. This was the only way I knew we could be safe.”
“From what?”
“My father, the things he used to do, he paid for it. These pictures, if they get out, if those people know I’m still out there, they’ll find me, too.”
Yuri stared at her. Each of her questions was like a sword. They stabbed and stabbed and stabbed until she reached the point of mercy and she broke. Under those confused, frightened eyes, she felt exposed.
No matter the falsity she began the mission, Yuri was no longer just a target. She hadn’t been for some time. She managed to grip a part of Yoona and cling on. She inched her way into one of the crannies of her heart. Jessica’s threat did not only shake her about the dangers of her and Seohyun’s lives. They brought the team and they brought Yuri as well. Her tiny sphere of two had expanded to comprise them all.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“It’s not exactly first date conversation material.” She sucked in a breath to steady herself before another seam could rip. “The less you knew, the better.”
Yuri pinched her eyes shut in frustration.
“I’m sorry for not telling you, but there’s more going on than-”
“I don’t care about what else is going on. I just want to get through what’s going on right now. How do I even know what you’re telling me is true?”
“You’ll have to trust me.”
“Lucky, that’s another rule I’ve already broken for you.”
Yoona turned on her. “You’re not the only one who took chances. This is my life on the line and you’re worried about your closeted reputation being ruined.”
“This could ruin everything!”
Yoona knew she meant the company, but there was more. Whatever Jessica’s plan, it could go further. The worst part about it was that Yoona didn’t know what that plan was and what other darts she had hidden away.
Yoona calmed. She turned away to look through the window. They could be being watched right now. The thought made her skin crawl. She and the team were good, but Jessica was better. Two steps ahead, tactics sharpened and refined. They were all the fools.
“We shouldn’t see each other. Not for a while.”
Yoona swallowed the lump in her throat. Her insides didn’t know what to feel. On one hand, Yuri was nothing but a few months fling all calculated, planned, and business. On the other, she was someone she’d grown to care about, to crave, to respect, to admire. She was someone Yoona knew that she probably could've love. Honestly love.
And maybe like Yuri was scared of the fabricated, businesswoman version of Jessica, Yoona was scared of Yuri just the same.
“I’m sorry this happened.”
“I might not understand your world, but mine isn’t perfect either.”
She didn’t know what else to say but, “I’m sorry.”
Yuri looked away. “You can go.”
Yoona got out.
Standing in the parking lot, she watched Yuri drive away.
Part IX
Author: Boxxsaltz
Pairing: Yoona/Yuri
Rating: R
Summary: There was no job and no money worth the kind of brokenness Yoona endured ever again…except maybe this once.
Part VIII
The breadth of a near death experience was that much more magnified while spending a week trapped in the halls of a hospital. The sight of ambulances and emergency personnel lent Yoona’s thoughts to one thing: That could’ve been her.
Her fingers fumbled with a makeup wedge, dabbing it into a palette of concealer. She’d bear a nice scar along her neck from now on. At least it would be easier to cover up once it was healed. Right now, Yoona suffered through irritated skin and crewnecks to keep Seohyun from worrying about how she managed to,
"Clotheslined yourself? How?"
"I'm accident prone, remember?"
The new habit of constantly checking her phone gravitated her hand to the device sitting on the back of the toilet in Seohyun’s tiny, hospital room washroom. She pressed on the screen. Nothing. Still silence from the others. Images of Sunny’s bloody body sprawled across Taeyeon’s lap plagued her. The breach in Tiffany’s walls and the helplessness of Taeyeon still rattled her. The dark eyes of her attacker and the ambiguity of if Sooyoung made it out or not still haunted her.
Yoona sat the phone down. She wasn’t supposed to get this invested. But she did and the pitiful feeling in her gut wouldn’t leave until she knew that everyone was okay.
“Yoong?”
“In here,” she called back.
Washing her hands, she flushed the toilet for extra measure and fixed her hair so it fell over her shoulders to help hide what the makeup couldn't quite cover completely. Seohyun slid the door closed. She’d just come back from a series of tests. Yoona didn’t believe the results were good. Seohyun looked worn out and worryingly thin.
“Do you want me to start the shower?”
Seohyun shook her head. Too tired. She climbed into bed instead.
She’d been happier since Yoona’s constant visits. She bounced between the hospital and hiding out in a cheap motel one of the girls from the club worked days at. Tiffany was right. Home wasn’t safe. Not yet. Seeing Seohyun like this wasn’t safe either, but there was no way she could neglect her. So she kept her father’s gun on her at all times.
Just in case.
“When did you get back?”
“An hour or two ago.”
Seohyun motioned for her to come. Yoona sat at the foot of the bed, legs crossed beneath her. Evening sunlight came through the windows, illuminating the bags beneath Seohyun’s eyes that mirrored her own.
“That looks bad, Yoong. If you won’t let me treat it, let the doctors.”
She waved it off. “You know I’ve had worse.”
Stitches in her side worse when she slipped off the Seo’s backyard deck and sliced herself open on a sharp piece of wood. Not to mention the myriad of bumps, scrapes, and bruises she accumulated as a kid. Yoona was always the roughhousing type and Seohyun was always the caretaker, kissing her booboos.
Yoona suddenly flushed.
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s cold in here.”
She got up to grab a spare blanket and wrapped it around her shoulders. Returning to the bed, she curled herself by Seohyun’s feet. A sock-clad toe poked at her chin.
“What aren’t you telling me?”
“I tell you everything.”
“I know you don’t.” If Seohyun meant to or not, she sounded accusatory. She was saying a lot of things off color lately. Yoona couldn’t take offense to it. She deserved it considering how she’d been acting.
“I try to.”
Seohyun shifted down the bed to mirror Yoona’s position. They were eye-to-eye. Something in her wanted to reach out and pull Seohyun into her.
“Let me in again?”
“I…I want this to be over.” The silence, the fear, the sickness, the friction she felt between them, the confusing mess of her emotions. She wanted to go back to routine, to simplicity, to safety, to their world behind the doors of their apartment.
“It will be.” The way she said it brought an ominous cloud of disquietude.
Her phone vibrated. Yoona was quick to grab for it.
It was Yuri.
She walked out of the room to answer it.
“Hey.”
“Hi.” Quiet ensued. Yuri went on. “Are you still coming?”
She couldn’t decline Yuri’s invitations any longer though now Yoona hated that she’d made the plans. Surely if she told Yuri she was spending time at the hospital she’d be understanding. But that excuse didn’t make it to her lips.
“I’ll always come for you.”
“I can’t wait to see you.”
The thickness in her voice made Yoona shiver. “I’ll be there soon.”
She came back to Seohyun leaning against the doorframe to the washroom. The water ran behind her. For once, Yoona couldn’t read her face.
“You’re leaving, aren’t you?”
She winced. “I don’t have to.”
“I was already expecting to wake up alone tonight anyway.”
Ouch. “Ju-”
And then Seohyun shut her out.
-/-/-/-
The estate smelt like butter and spices and Yuri tasted like lip balm and a hint of oregano. Yoona licked her lips after the small peck she received first coming through the door.
“Sorry, I’m late.”
“Don’t- What happened to you?”
Yoona leaned away from the fingers coming for her neck. “It’s nothing.”
“Yoona, that-”
“Please, don’t.” She wasn’t in the mood for repeating another lie. She just wanted a distraction and Yuri was the perfect one. "You cooked. I can smell it.”
Yuri’s grin wiped away her concern. Taking Yoona’s fingers, she led the way to the kitchen. A skillet of meats and a bowl of cooked veggies sat on the stove. Clear painted nails plucked up a savory piece. Yoona accepted it, mouth watering at the flavors that burst in her mouth.
"How is it?"
"Mmm, another." Yoona chewed a second chunk. Better than the first. “So good.”
“It’s for lettuce wraps. Do you want one?”
“Feed me." Yoona pushed up to sit on the countertop as Yuri went to fetch a bowl of freshly, cleaned lettuce leaves from the fridge. “Is this your hobby?”
Yuri bit her lip. “I’ve always wanted to open my own restaurant.”
“Really?”
“Not the five-star kind, but the type you’d wander into by chance while on a walk through the city.” Skilled fingers rolled the wrap and handed it to Yoona. She took a bite and chewed slowly to savor it. “Anyone could come. University students, singles, friends, families. It would be family owned.”
“Family owned?”
Yuri’s cheeks went rosy as she leaned back against the counter beside Yoona. “It’s cliché, but I’d eventually like to settle down. Start a family, partner, kids, maybe a dog.”
Yoona grinned at dog. Another puppy beneath the roof. "That's not what I was expecting."
"It's a turn-off, isn't it?"
Yoona shook her head. She didn’t know what it was. She never thought of family after her own was destroyed. To think of having to put the same burden on her own children frightened her. She didn't want that. She let the idea of family and settled down life fade when her life became wrapped up in crime and selling herself for cash. Someone like her, it didn't seem right to fit a family into it.
"You're not running out screaming, so I know I haven't completely freaked you out."
"I think what you want…it’s beautiful."
It's something Yoona didn't think she'd ever be able to give to Yuri, but it was a lovely dream. She tried to picture her and Seohyun in that light. It made her smile. They were a handful together as it was. But maybe...
“You really think so?”
“Yeah.”
Yuri looked down as she bit her lip. It reminded her of Seohyun. The way she'd blush and tuck hair behind her ear whenever Yoona said something uncharacteristically fluffy. Truth be told, Seohyun was the one that drew those things out of her.
“Here,” Yoona picked up a square of meat. “The chef deserves a taste, too.”
Smiling, Yuri took it into her mouth. She grabbed Yoona’s wrist before she could pull away and brought her fingertips to her mouth. Tongue flicking against the pads of her fingers, she licked up the oil and spices left there. Each finger, she took into her mouth, sucking along the digit with a swirling tongue. Yoona watched her all the while. Heat bubbled in her stomach when lidded eyes peered up at her.
“I would like a taste of you now.”
Yoona flooded. She led Yuri in front of her, legs spreading to allow her to lean in, grab the back of her neck, and lead her down into a kiss. She tasted of basil and pepper, body warm like an oven. But she was eager.
Nails scratched at the waist of her pants. Yoona lifted enough for Yuri to draw them down with everything underneath. She shivered when her skin touched the cold, quartz countertop. Heat rushed back in when hands smoothed up her thighs and spread them apart. The hungry glint in Yuri’s eye when she saw her open and ready for her jolted through Yoona.
She hooked her finger beneath Yuri’s chin, leading her in. Tongue swiped across her lips and Yoona readied herself to feel it between her thighs. It flicked at her stomach instead, followed by teeth that nipped around her bellybutton as she pushed up her shirt.
Yoona squirmed. “Who told you it was okay to tease?”
“I learned from someone better.” Yuri hummed as she pushed bra out of the way and nuzzled her cheek against supple skin. “I missed you.”
Nose and lips running the length between her breasts, Yuri breathed in Yoona like she was her most favorite scent and tasted stiff peaks like a savory delicacy. Yoona wasn’t used to this sort of flowery affection. Yuri was touching her, kissing her, working her like a could-be lover. This was out of Yoona’s comfort zone. She was versed in pulsing orgasms and shallow feels. The only one ever to reach her depths was-
“I want that tongue in me.” She needed something to keep her mind on Yuri and not the one she left. The one who made her heart ache and beat in ways only a true lover could do.
Yuri moved up to sink her tongue into Yoona’s mouth. How cheeky. She bit down on it earning a hiss.
“Not what I meant.”
“You didn’t clarify.”
“Fuck me.”
"Too soon."
Yoona caught on. "Memorize me."
Hands cupped her breasts. Thumbs rolled tips followed by a pinch aided by a forefinger. Her mouth returned with a trail of kisses. Her bottom lip, her chin, her neck, her collar, down her stomach, her hips, atop her thighs. The last pressed right at the top of her slit. Yoona knew her next command.
"Eat me."
Tongue sliced downward, sweeping through her folds to the pool of moisture waiting to be lapped. Yoona’s head tilted back. A moan lifted from her throat. The base of her stomach buzzed and her entrance hummed for desperate attention. She was just as eager as Yuri was, body craving what they'd been void of for too many days.
Legs stretching wider, she welcomed Yuri, allowing that nimble tongue to slither right in. It was easy to let anyone in this way. With faces buried in pulsing hollows, fingers curved in silky tresses, and unintelligible murmurings coating the air, there was no room for anything more to be explored. To be explained. To be said. This was a part of her that Yoona could easily let others sink their teeth into while only one could enter her in every other way.
And she had shut her out.
Now she was shut out.
Yoona whimpered. Yuri peered at her through thick lashes. To see her at work, tongue dipping in and out of her with skill would've turned her bones into fire, but Yoona was caught up on why the hell she was thinking of Seohyun while she had another woman between her legs.
"Where are you?" A juicy wet mouth came into view.
Yoona drank herself off that favorite bottom lip. "I’m close.”
Fingers replaced a mouth and a hand pulled her forward bettering the angle to get knuckles deep into her. Yoona curved a leg around Yuri's back, holding her tight. Tasting herself off Yuri's powerful, little tongue while she curved against rigid walls was an erratic intensifier.
Quickly, the snapshot of Seohyun's flushed face gave back into the object of her current pleasure. Yoona groaned. "Wreck me."
Yuri entered and reentered her with three, four, five strokes of those long fingers and she was done. Waves hit Yoona and she sang into the cavern of Yuri's mouth as they washed her into ecstasy leaving a small pool beneath her.
Yuri's eyes were glossy and glowing. Yoona didn't let her float in that prideful state very long. Yoona didn't let herself drift to soft, warm pools beneath morning glows accompanying crinkling pages and cups of black tea.
She pushed Yuri away by the shoulders and dropped off the counter onto wobbly legs. Yoona bulldozed them backward until Yuri was pinned against the far counter. Yoga pants couldn't come off fast enough. Half down, she went right for the well, fingertips moistening instantly at the honey that flowed there.
“I missed this.” She held her fingers with only the tips inside.
Yuri gripped the back of her neck. “Take me.”
Using the force of her hips, Yoona drove finger in leaving no gaps.
-/-/-/-
The call came when Yoona had her face buried in the finest sheets of Egyptian cotton sateen and smooth arms wrapped around her waist like silk. She almost of thought she was back at the hospital, comfortably cramped in that tiny bed. But Seohyun's hold on her was possessive and safe while the one draped on her was foreign and breakable.
Another series of vibrates drew her fully awake. Yoona slid out of the embrace to answer it in the bathroom.
“Speak to me.”
“Three o’clock,” said Tiffany followed by an address. The call ended with that and Yoona hurried to type in the location before it faded from memory and phone for a cab.
Yuri was still asleep after she washed her face and rinsed her mouth. She touched a kiss to her cheek and pulled on her clothes that Minho washed and neatly hung on a hanger. It felt wrong to leave without a word, but there was a hospital stop she needed to do to make amends and too much nervous anticipation running through her as to what state of disarray the team remained.
So she left and paid the fee for a trip out of the city.
The location was a freight yard. Crisscrossing tracks lined the ground like spines along the dirt. Trains creaked along, their engines loud and pumping. Carriers went on for as far as Yoona could see, their yellow, red, blue, orange colors dulled from sun exposure and dirtied from use.
Workers rushed from one place to another, some on foot, some in cars and trucks, while others took to golf carts. She stuck out sorely, but no one gave her more than a second's glance as she searched out a security checkpoint. The boys behind the glass perked to attention when they saw her come up to the gate on foot. The plexiglass window slid back.
“Can I help you?”
Tiffany told her to say one thing and one thing only. "Hwang Miyoung.”
"Wait here." The glass shut.
Yoona stepped aside to let a pickup go by. Minutes went on and a man appeared in a golf cart with an orange construction vest over his clothes and a cap shading his soot-smudged face. He bore an unmistakable resemblance to Taeyeon.
“You the one looking for Hwang?”
“Yeah.”
He motioned for her to get onto the cart. Yoona held onto the railing as he drove, taking them far away from the trains and deeper into the rows of carriers until their thundering sounds were distant rumbles.
The cart halted in front of three containers pushed tightly together. He banged on the side three short knocks followed by two spaced out once. Chains rattled from the other side until finally one of the doors opened. Sooyoung's head popped through the crack. Yoona mirrored the smile on her face. She was okay. A cast wrapped around her shooting arm and a few healing scrapes on her chin, but she was okay.
“Come in," Sooyoung beckoned. "Thanks, Jiwoong.”
Yoona ducked beneath Sooyoung’s arm holding the door open for her and into a large room the width and length and height of the three containers. Black painted walls reflected the yellowish glow of lights placed in each corner and a single lamp placed on a card table at the center where Tiffany sat.
Yoona pulled out one of the folding chairs and sat. Tiffany didn’t make any reaction to her arrival. She just sat there, eyes down on the corner-wrinkled documents in her hands. From what Yoona could see, they were hospital bills and paperwork. Sunny.
"What is this place?"
"Taeng's brother - the one who brought you over - he's in the trade business," said Sooyoung. "Makes for a good hideout.”
“Where is she?”
"Not here." Tiffany bit.
Stuffing half the papers into a folder, she finally looked up. There were cracks in her makeup. She was trying too hard to hold herself together. It wasn't working. Yoona saw through it completely. She knew what she was feeling underneath it all.
"We'll make this brief." Tiffany slid an image across the table to Yoona. "The ones who attacked us are called Neolist. They're an extremist group. They believe in many things. One being social cleansing. Eradicate the scum of the earth and leave the chosen people behind.”
“Whoever those chosen people are,” Sooyoung muttered.
Yoona examined the picture. In the center of a red circle was the black image of a Phoenix with wings spread upwards. Above it were the Roman numerals for the number three. It was the same symbol she saw on her attacker's face mask. The Neolist emblem.
"Why would they attack us?"
Sooyoung guffawed. “Are you kidding? Those bio-weapons are no joke. They could wipe out whoever they want easily. Attacking us is like getting rid of a pesky bug trying to nibble their bread prize.”
Yoona got that but, "How'd they find us?"
"I'm no Sunny, but I found this when I went to start the re-route and trigger the lockdown."
Yoona took the stapled stack of papers handed to her. "A code?"
"A hack code,” Tiffany clarified. “It entered our systems the day of the attack. Usually, our security can fight these but this was too advanced.”
Something clicked. "The power glitch."
Sooyoung nodded. "I think so, too.”
“All of our information.”
Tiffany shook her head. "Luckily we have safeguards in place. The emergency re-routing system Sooyoung started transferred all our files to a secured database. We don't keep paper files at the cube - not delicate ones. Those are locked away in the Y&K corporate office."
“Doesn’t mean they hadn’t already swiped some stuff in the time they hacked us.” Sooyoung frowned. Her finger picked at a loose thread in her cast. “I've never seen a hack like this. Completely incognito and Sumerian to what we’re used to. There was no way we could've seen this coming. Sunny wasn’t ready."
"None of us were."
Eyes shifted to Tiffany's solemn face. Tension returned.
"How is she?"
"Alive." Tiffany wasn’t going to give her anything else. She understood, but they were a team. Weren’t they? "For now, we’ll continue to lay low. Neolist aren't your typical picketing weirdos. They're a trained faction of individuals with multiple divisions. Each is refined in a myriad of fields. Undercover, covert operations are at the top of the list. Don't let your guard down."
"And the assignment?"
"Hiatus for now."
Yoona saw it coming, but she didn't like it. Even if they weren’t in the proper form to do anything now, she couldn't break the feeling that this was the end. That they were giving up. And after all this. After getting so far.
Tiffany left no room for protest. "We're done here. Wait for my next call. Soo, get her home."
“I want to see Sunny.”
Tiffany shot her down. “Not yet.”
“That’s not fair.”
“You don’t have any right to talk to me about fair.” The same blaze that pinned Yoona to the wall of the escape corridor cut into her. Sooyoung placed a hand on Yoona’s shoulder, warning her not to push it. Yoona kept quiet until Tiffany was out of her face and out the door.
“This is bullshit.”
“Sunny has an infection.”
Yoona stilled.
Sooyoung took in a long breath and let it out. Her shoulders were heavy. “She’s fighting it. She gets some pretty high fevers so they’re worried, you know? Tiff’s been by her side 24/7. Taeng sent her here so she could get away for a while. Taeyeon’s with her now but even she...she’s not all here.”
Yoona saw the light in Taeyeon’s eye dim that night in the escape corridor. It was like she lost another piece of herself.
“Why do they keep me in the dark?”
“They pull a lot of strings and bend over backward trying to keep you out of trouble. The less you know, the safer.”
“But why?”
Sooyoung shrugged. Yoona was fed up.
“I can get myself home.” She went to leave.
“Hey.” A manilla folder stretched her way. Yoona grabbed it. “That’s from Sunny. It’s a name of a match for your friend. They don’t think this lady will hold on very much longer. Maybe a few days? A week? Seohyun’s at the top of the list. Sunny made sure of that.”
Yoona’s hands shook. She didn’t know what to feel. This was everything she wanted and been waiting for but to think of who they were taking this opportunity from, of how they were cheating the system, of how selfish it all was, created a lump in her throat.
“It’s not always satisfying playing God.”
Sooyoung frowned. “Be thankful for this.”
“I am. For everything.”
A heavy hand slapped her on the back, stopping any tears from falling. “Get out of here. Forget about this and spend some time with your girl. You’ve earned a mini-vacation.”
Sooyoung was right. She owed Seohyun that much.
-/-/-/-
"Welcome back."
A chill swam up Yoona’s back. She stood by the door, eyes on the figure hovering beside Seohyun’s sleeping form. Everything in Yoona tightened.
"What are you doing here?"
How did she know about the hospital, about Seohyun, about how to find her?
Jessica smiled. “I know your secrets.”
There was no kindness or forced pleasantries. Everything about Jessica spoke lethal. She felt like a threat. Yoona’s nerves coiled. Her muscles tightened. Something about this sudden appearance didn’t say professional business. It was a threat.
"She's so delicate."
"Get away from her."
A hand smoothed down the side of Seohyun’s face. Yoona acted on impulse, snatching for the gun in her bag as quickly as it was taken away.
She gasped, startled by the slender girl striding across the room with her piece in hand. She handed it to Jessica who ran a nail along the barrel with curious interest. The girl squared her shoulders to stand at attention in the shadows behind Jessica. There was light enough to show her face from beneath her jacket hood. Soojung.
“These aren’t made for children.” Jessica unloaded the cartridge and dropped the pieces onto the foot of the bed. Seohyun stirred. Yoona held her breath until she stilled.
“What do you want?”
"Simple. Leave Kwon Yuri alone.”
Yoona’s mind raced, rushing to try and pull pieces together. She always knew Jessica was connected to the plot, but how? Who was she really and what exactly did she want? Her interest in Yuri was too focused and her self-involvement with Senior Kwon and the scientists too deep
“And if I don’t?”
Jessica’s grin was sweet as candy, but her words were as dangerous as a devil. “Cho Yoorim formally known as Im Yoona, the only daughter of Im Eunseong. You’ve squandered the legacy of your father by staining your own reputation. Tell me, Yoona. How much self-loathing does it take to succumb oneself to being any paying bastard's slutty plaything?"
"Yuri's one of those paying bastards."
"Yuri is a fool. Like you and the others. Did you think you could get away with your plan? You've stepped into my territory. There's nothing that happens beneath my nose that I don’t see. I’ve let you play in my court for too long. I can't let you continue."
Yoona feigned annoyance though underneath it all she was shaking. "What? You gonna kill me?"
Jessica laughed, light and frilly. "I’m a negotiator, Yoona. I’m here to make a deal, to give you a choice. You either stop now and give up the operation or I exploit you, the others, and Yuri."
"Is there a choice C?"
“We can add Juhyun into the equation.” Jessica ran a nail beneath her chin. Soojung grinned in the shadows. “How about that?”
Yoona's jaw flexed. “Not even a question.”
“Then what’s it going to be?” She sighed, stepping around the bed in heels that insinuated her calves in a tight, pencil skirt. “You know you can’t win. You know how devastating it would be to see your cute, wittle, naive, puppy fall. You know how terrible it would be for the secrets of your teammate’s lives to be brought to the public. You know how heartbreaking it would be to lose Seohyun, too.” Jessica sat on the bed, hand reaching back to caress along Seohyun’s cheek with the back of her hand. “And after everything you’ve been through.”
“Stop it.” Yoona’s muscles coiled. She saw Soojung tense, ready to counter any move Yoona made toward her sister.
Jessica looked up at her in amusement. “What did they promise you? Money? I thought the daughter of Eunseong was smarter than to fall into the tricks and deceptions of liars and manipulators.”
“Those liars are my friends.”
“Very sweet, but I’m afraid you've trusted the wrong people."
“What do you know about my father?” The one thing Yoona couldn’t help to think was that maybe Jessica was it. That Jessica was one of the links to the main one behind her father’s death.
Jessica's eyebrow lifted. “More than you.”
“Tell me and I’ll consider ending it here.”
Soojung snorted and Jessica laughed. “What kind of gullible idiot do you take me for?”
“What kind of coward do you take me?”
“Oh, I don’t.” She stood, motioning for Soojung to follow. “But we know someone who is.”
Yoona’s chest flared. “Why is Yuri so important to you?”
“I may know your secrets, but that doesn’t mean you need to know mine.” Jessica trapped her against the wall, face close enough she could feel her breath on her lips. “I do hope you make the right choice. It would be such a pity to see such a pretty, talented girl like you come to such an end.”
She balled her fist to restrain herself when Jessica touched her face. It left a cold patch on her cheek and splinters in her chest where Soojung shoved the parts of her gun. All too familiar dark eyes, one gnarled with a nasty scar, glared up at her before they fluttered away.
Everything fell into place.
-/-/-/-
The first thing she had to do was get Seohyun to safety.
Yoona rushed to the apartment. She’d pack a bag, she’d check out of the hospital, she’d put her in another one across town that she’d have to take the subway for. She didn’t care. She just needed to get Seohyun as far away from the explosion as she could.
Keys already rattled in her hand when she climbed out the cab. Her focus was deadset on getting inside the apartment that she almost missed the person leaning against the hood of a car. Yoona stopped cold. Yuri tilted up her head. She wore a baseball cap that shielded her face but not her drawn expression.
“Get in.”
“I-”
“Get in the car, Yoona.”
She did. Yuri shut them inside. The car remained off. An envelope dropped into Yoona’s lap. She opened the tab and pulled out one of the sheets inside. It was a photo. It was many photos, each a snapshot of her and Yuri together from the most innocent of moments together at the Ion Building to the intimate ones on the balcony of the Kwon Estate.
This was the dirty work of Jessica Jung. This was her first dart. One shot right at the true cowardly fool. This was her way of letting Yoona know there was no bluff to call. There were no games to be played, only matters of life, death, and destruction.
“These came right after you left. I wanted to call you, but this isn’t something I want to discuss over the phone.”
Yoona didn’t know what to say.
“There’s something else.”
Yuri turned one of the pictures over. On the back were their names followed by the date each was taken. She was a second late realizing the problem with what was written there. Her full name.
“I looked you up. I had to in order to find where you lived. I didn’t think anything of it at first when I couldn’t find you. When obituaries kept coming up, that’s when I got confused.” Yuri turned to her. Those lovey-dovey, heat craving stares had been replaced with confused terror and heartbreak. “Who are you?”
A lie played on the tip of Yoona’s tongue. It would be easy to weave another set. It would be easy to keep Yuri in the dark. It would be so easy. But she was done with easy.
“My name is Im Yoona.”
“Im Yoona is dead.”
“No, I’m not.” She may as well be. That little girl who swung innocently across monkey bars was gone and buried years ago. Uttering that name now was foreign on her tongue used to a list of fake ones.
“Did you assume her identity?”
“No. It’s me. The person you found is me. Cho Yoorim, Bambi, Doe Eyes, Im Yoona, they’re all me. I- it’s complicated.”
Disgust and betrayal contorted Yuri’s face. It was the same look Yoona feared Seohyun would give her when she finally told the truth. It hurt enough coming from Yuri. She couldn’t image how painful it would be from the other.
“Explain.”
“I faked my death.”
“Why?”
“You wouldn’t understand.”
“Try me.”
“I can’t tell you.”
“Why?”
“Because I’m scared!”
“Of?”
“For!” she snapped. “For you, for this, for Seohyun. You don’t understand my world, Yuri. You don’t know what I’ve had to do in order to keep us protected. This was the only way I knew we could be safe.”
“From what?”
“My father, the things he used to do, he paid for it. These pictures, if they get out, if those people know I’m still out there, they’ll find me, too.”
Yuri stared at her. Each of her questions was like a sword. They stabbed and stabbed and stabbed until she reached the point of mercy and she broke. Under those confused, frightened eyes, she felt exposed.
No matter the falsity she began the mission, Yuri was no longer just a target. She hadn’t been for some time. She managed to grip a part of Yoona and cling on. She inched her way into one of the crannies of her heart. Jessica’s threat did not only shake her about the dangers of her and Seohyun’s lives. They brought the team and they brought Yuri as well. Her tiny sphere of two had expanded to comprise them all.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“It’s not exactly first date conversation material.” She sucked in a breath to steady herself before another seam could rip. “The less you knew, the better.”
Yuri pinched her eyes shut in frustration.
“I’m sorry for not telling you, but there’s more going on than-”
“I don’t care about what else is going on. I just want to get through what’s going on right now. How do I even know what you’re telling me is true?”
“You’ll have to trust me.”
“Lucky, that’s another rule I’ve already broken for you.”
Yoona turned on her. “You’re not the only one who took chances. This is my life on the line and you’re worried about your closeted reputation being ruined.”
“This could ruin everything!”
Yoona knew she meant the company, but there was more. Whatever Jessica’s plan, it could go further. The worst part about it was that Yoona didn’t know what that plan was and what other darts she had hidden away.
Yoona calmed. She turned away to look through the window. They could be being watched right now. The thought made her skin crawl. She and the team were good, but Jessica was better. Two steps ahead, tactics sharpened and refined. They were all the fools.
“We shouldn’t see each other. Not for a while.”
Yoona swallowed the lump in her throat. Her insides didn’t know what to feel. On one hand, Yuri was nothing but a few months fling all calculated, planned, and business. On the other, she was someone she’d grown to care about, to crave, to respect, to admire. She was someone Yoona knew that she probably could've love. Honestly love.
And maybe like Yuri was scared of the fabricated, businesswoman version of Jessica, Yoona was scared of Yuri just the same.
“I’m sorry this happened.”
“I might not understand your world, but mine isn’t perfect either.”
She didn’t know what else to say but, “I’m sorry.”
Yuri looked away. “You can go.”
Yoona got out.
Standing in the parking lot, she watched Yuri drive away.
Part IX
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2015-11-08 01:05 am (UTC)words that were here beforeHoly!!! Here i thought the last chapter was intense. Ugggghhhhh!
I cant decide what hurts my heart more. The Yoonhyun or the Yoonyul. Seo is getting tired of Yoona's shizz. THATS RIGHT SEO, LET HER FEEL THE PAIN.
Bless you and your smuts. Such wow. OTL i love love love the Seo bits in between. ;____;
JESSICA JUNG STEP ON ME! UGGGGHH SAME FOR YOU KUNG SOOJUNG. THEY COULD STEP ON ME AND I'D DIE HAPPY. I knew Jess was gonna be a badass. Vote no on the Yulsic.
YOONA PLS GET YO LIFE TOGETHER GIRL!
Im literally so tired. OTL so this isn't my best. Sorry.
Much sarangs.
no subject
Date: 2015-11-13 07:54 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-11-08 02:16 am (UTC)Jessica was one scary lady.
This definitely wrecked the team for now.
More over that Sunny's condition was still critical.
This is so devastating...
But exhialarating too to anticipate what they would do.
And the dreadful part is Jessica has reached Seohyun :(
Were they even capable of being safe...
Yoona's past was busted. She gotta has to try how to fight by herself.
Yuri T_T
She had such innocent and beautiful mind and dream. It's a pity she lived in such harsh world :c I'm still hoping she's strong on her own. This lovely lady <3
The way Yoona thought of Seohyun during her session with Yuri conflicted me lol
no subject
Date: 2015-11-13 08:27 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-11-08 02:45 am (UTC)Poor Yoona being caught in the middle of Seohyun and Yuri. She just can't please everyone. That whole bit where Yoona asked Yuri to trust her crushed my heart because it just adds to the betrayal Yuri's gonna feel when the ticking time bomb of truth goes off. :(
AND JESSICA. My God, what a freaky woman. I think the air around me dropped 10 degrees when I was reading that part in the hospital. She's too good of an antagonist. D:<
Thanks for the update. Looking forward to the next one, as always.
no subject
Date: 2015-11-13 08:30 pm (UTC)YAAAS (08)!
Date: 2015-11-08 09:45 pm (UTC)When they showed up in Seo's room with pics and threats I was like "OMGOMGOMGOMGOGMGG! People are going to start dying and/or being injured!"
Don't mess with the Jungs -- Dude, disarming and taking about Papa Im's gun like a boss. Whoa.
Also, that detail about the cut on Krystal's cheek -- she was the one who almost killed Yoong with the "clothesline" during the Cube infiltration, right?? Crazy!!
And all the feels this chapter. Yoong is losing everything: Seo, the YK gang, and now PresKwon. Dang. All the lies finally caught up and are just going to make things more complicated now. Is Yoong going to use that donor list to help SeoBaby or will Sicaboo pull more strings and make good on her threat?
Is SunBun going to die of infection?? Noooooooos My heart :'(.
Also, will Yoong ever hear the truth about "the incident" and why TaeNySun are so bonded with each other and guarded against outsiders? Did the Jungs kill the deceased YK member (and almost Tae)? How are the Jungs connected to the YK crew? Boxxxxxxxxxxxxx, when will Yoong find out?? When will we knowwwwwwww? ;P I'm excited to keep reading and finding out more.
Thank you for the update! Counting down to the next!
Re: YAAAS (08)!
Date: 2015-11-13 08:34 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-11-09 02:25 pm (UTC)WHAT COULD I POSSIBLY BE TALKING ABOUT????? YOONHYUN. Just as I nodded my head like, “Yes, I ship YoonYul”, you dropped this on my lap. And it’s sitting there like, “whatcha gonna do?” IDK WHAT TO DO WITH YOU. DDD: All my YoonHyun feels rushed back and I double check the pairing on this fic like ??????? I’m conflicted.
I loooooooooveddddd, Yuri’s spiel about her ideal life. ;____; Soooo sweet. Then, THIS MESS HAPPENED:
She tried to picture her and Seohyun in that light. It made her smile.—WHY DO YOU HATE ME?????? D:
While Seohyun and Yoona were talking in the hospital room, tiny feelings emerged. Then, when Seohyun shut her out, I hurt for Yoona. Could Yoona be having these romantic-ish second thoughts because the stakes to keep Seohyun innocent/safe were rising at that point? I wonder…
That lettuce wrap sounds delicious. >_> As does Yuri.
Great line: She tasted of basil and pepper, body warm like an oven.
YOONA’S MIND WANDERING TO SEOHYUN WHILE YURI’S HAVING HER FOR DESSERT. WELP.
Quickly, the snapshot of Seohyun's flushed face gave back into the object of her current pleasure.—EXPLAIN THIS.
I missed Fany. ;___; But…..the fun times seem to be over for now. Their team’s in shambles. Ughhhhh
LOL ‘Sup Jiwoong bb. :***
NEOLIST EXTREMISTS???? I enjoy how already formidable opposition is replaced by another all, “WE’RE WORSE.” AND A HIATUS?? NO I LOVED THE GOOF SQUAD. SUNNYYYYYYYY!!! TAEYEONIE. DDDDD: Nooooo everything happened so sudden last time, too. I’m as blind-sighted as Yoona, tbh. Now, she has a new sense of loss and a need for redemption. Even the donor for Seohyun makes me nervous. UGHHHH TENSION.
MY WIFE SHOWS UP. BEING EVIL. How she caressed Seohyun while she slept. Dayummmmmm pure deviousness.
Jessica trapped her against the wall, face close enough she could feel her breath on her lips.—ODG KISS. KIIIISSSS!!!! I m-mean…wut?
LAWD SICA AND SOOJUNG AND NEOLISTS AND YUL AND SOON EVERYONE’S MAMAS KNOW EVERYTHING ABOUT YOONA. I’d tell her to cart Seohyun off and RUNNNN, but to where!?!?!1!!?!?11!??? How Yuri is plainly terrified of Yoona breaks my heart.
MESS EVERYWHERE. I LOVE IT.
Thank youuuuuuu, boxxythighs. Ready for moar.
no subject
Date: 2015-11-13 08:41 pm (UTC)You really think I’d make it that easy and predictable for you? I gotta play with your hear a bit. Make you wonder. Make you conflicted. You love me for it I know you’re welcome. Stakes have nothing to do with it, dear.
tbh I wanted some lettuce wraps when I wrote it. Still haven’t gotten them >_> I’ll explain nothing! Figure it out yourself. Was Fany not in here? I guess…not? Oh, wait, yes she was! wtf. I just love tearing everything apart :333333
Yul’s a Neolist? YUL?! THey’re going to call up nasa and book the next flight to Mars. Then you have Jessica showing up in a Martian suit like, “Surprise, bitch. I bet you thought you’d seen the last of me.”
You're welcome for the tiny bit of yoonsic =*
Ready to give you more, checksiecakes
no subject
Date: 2015-11-13 09:04 pm (UTC)I await the violent YoonSic >_>
no subject
Date: 2015-11-09 06:01 pm (UTC)Is.Minho.working.for.Jessica??????
Quoting LA, "Quickly, the snapshot of Seohyun's flushed face gave back into the object of her current pleasure.—EXPLAIN THIS." YES, PLEASE DO EXPLAIN!!
Ok scratch that, third question: Tiffany and Sunny have something going on, isn't it?
I'm sitting here, side eyeing my monitor, thinking what other shady things you would come up with in this story >_>
till next chapter, Salty Box
Rex
no subject
Date: 2015-11-13 08:31 pm (UTC)