ALWAYS You: Swan's Shadow [YOONGI] (Book 3)

Chapter 3

"Annyeonghaseyo! Choi Soo-ji noona!"

The mention of her name drained all the colour from Soo-ji's face. Her feet stopped in the middle of its tracks, rooted to the ground like dead weight as she could not bring herself to move a single muscle.

Was her cover blown? Who was it? Should she leg it?

The seconds dangerously ticked by and she knew her delayed response could cost her her life. 

In that exact moment, where everything became a blur and Soo-ji was forced to react by the approaching pair of feet behind her, her natural instincts instantly shot up. Her hand, clammy and stiff inside her jacket pocket, immediately clenched around the handle of the switch knife for dear life. She found herself acting on impulse, spinning on the heels of her feet and pushing a rather small chest against the brick wall of the building behind them. In a simple click of a finger, Soo-ji had the blade out - extended and threatening - against the person's throat.

"Whoa whoa whoa!" The person laughed nervously, holding his two hands up in defence.

Soo-ji, whose face was within an inch away from the person, squinted her eyes to take a closer look at the person. She definitely didn't know him, she gathered straight away, and he looked too young and harmless to be her match. His face donned a pure angelic glow, one that would be innocent enough to deceive you, but Soo-ji wasn't going to fall for that.

"Who are you?" Soo-ji snapped at him in a low threatening voice, "how do you know who I am?"

The young boy maintained an anxious crooked smile across his face, but the sweat forming on the top of his lip told Soo-ji that he was terror stricken by the shiny metal just under his chin.

He cleared his throat, "h-hi noona! My name is Choi Yeonjun-"

-Soo-ji gripped the blade tighter in her hand, pushing it further against his neck.

"- I MEAN NO HARM!" He panic cried, shutting his eyes tight as the sharp edge of the knife pricked the surface of his skin. He pushed himself back further against the wall, fingernails digging into the rough surface of the bricks behind him to keep his legs from collapsing as his whole body trembled.

"Talk." Soo-ji demanded, glaring at the petrified boy.

Yeonjun opened one eye, staring directly into Soo-ji's unblinking fearsome ones.

"M-my name is Choi Yeonjun," he started again through quivering lips, "I work in the underground cellar just behind us. I-I followed you to the store earlier."

"Why?" Soo-ji spat, feeling her guard shoot right up at the simple thought that she was followed.

"You need food, right?" Yeonjun blubbered immediately, knowing that Soo-ji didn't have all the time in the world for him, "I can help you."

A moment of hesitation flashed across Soo-ji's face. His words caught her immediate attention by the mere temptation of more food and supplies. In her mind, she could envision her starving gang members eating well for one night finally, how Hoseok finally had a clean change of nappies and how the morale of the gang would return to its once former glory.

"How can you help me?" Soo-ji gulped, drawing the knife back an inch from Yeonjun's neckline.

"Come with me," he pointed a shaky finger to the direction of the underground cellar just behind them. Soo-ji didn't trust him one bit though, making no move to follow him to the suspicious basement.

Seeing this, Yeonjun reached a shuddering hand inside his jean pocket, pulling out a newly wrapped lollipop - expensive and rare in these current times . "See? I can get food too. If you think I'm any funny business, I give you permission to kill me, arasseo?"