Hajin took the dropped spoon and sighed at the reddish stain on the white sheet. He put the spoon away and took a new one, placing it on Seul-ah's stiffened hand. "Ah, you shouldn't dirty the sheet, Princess."
"Don't call me that!" Seul-ah snapped, grabbing the spoon tightly as she contemplated using it to smack the fighter's head instead.
"What should I call you, then? Miss 808?" Hajin tilted his head.
Seul-ah frowned, suddenly feeling childish. She had no idea why, but that 'princess' tickled something inside her brain that was filled with regrets she couldn't remember or identify. That being said, how could she think so shallowly to hit the man with a spoon--he was a fighter, for fuck's sake. She should look for a cleverer way than hitting his head with a measly spoon.
Like throwing a bowl full of hot, spicy soup.
But her head was throbbing too much for that, so she exhaled heavily and used her spoon to continue eating the hangover soup instead, letting the warmth fill her upset stomach. At any rate, she needed to feel better if she wanted to do anything more, and Hajin seemed to leave her alone when she was eating. It gave her time to gather her thoughts about her biggest blunder yet.
She was acting completely, completely careless.
Getting drunk was something she did not have a leeway to do. Too much was at stake, too much should be hidden. Was her resolve so weak just because she managed to accumulate a little bit of unexpected capital and gained a strong backer?
Stupid, stupid girl! Seul-ah berated herself while stuffing her mouth and stomach with the hangover soup, scooping the broth angrily. She even took the rice that Hajin gave her unconsciously to be eaten with the soup, and only after she almost finished did she realize how foolish it was to just drink and eat something given by a man she had just met.
Even if she knew Yonghwa wouldn't let his investment go down to waste, she should have been more vigilant. Another thing she should be mindful of going forward.
She put her spoon down and scowled at Hajin. "What do you want from me?"
"You still haven't answered my question, Miss," Hajin smiled and, as if nothing much happened, took out the bowl and replaced it with a glass of water and a plate of fruit. "Do you want to take revenge?"
Seul-ah narrowed her eyes--he was going to just gloss over the regressing stuff?
"So what if I do?" she glared at the man who had never averted his eyes from her. Was it because he had been acting so normal despite Seul-ah feeling all chaotic? She just felt so annoyed in front of those calm gazes. She knew it was unreasonable, but Seul-ah felt like she would lose it if Hajin looked at her with pity again. "Are you going to tell my family about it? Sell this information for money?"
"Ouch? That's hurtful--what kind of person do you think I am?" Hajin clutched his chest playfully. "Ah, but then again, you did say I was--or would be?--working for...uhh...one of your sisters--or was it the wife?--so I understand the concern."
Shit. She even blabbered about that? Seul-ah wanted to beat her drunken self so, so much.
"Still, I can assure you that I heard enough to know that working for them is too much of a hassle," the man winked.
Not that it gave Seul-ah any ease.
"Then...you want it from me, instead?" she narrowed her eyes. "Money to shut your mouth?"
Hajin laughed. "No, but..."
"But, what?"
Hajin leaned forward, staring at Seul-ah flinching eyes closely. "Even if you give me money, can you really be sure I won't blabber it somewhere else?"
Seul-ah pinched her thigh beneath the tray, forcing herself to not falter as she replied. "I don't care if you do."
Not like anyone will believe the regression part, and the family part will be dismissed as hearsay, like always. Even if rumors came out, nothing would really harm her--although it would force her to alter some of her plans.
"What about your revenge, then?"
Damn it! Seul-ah bit her cheek. Yeah--if he told the family about her revenge, then it would be hard for her to do anything. Hell--they would do anything to isolate her, or even get rid of her. After all, she also died because of them.
Probably her mother also...
"You know...Miss," Hajin propped against the tray while picking up a blueberry from the fruit plate. "If you want to make sure I don't blabber somewhere, you should keep me closer to you."
"What?"
Hajin stared at the wary black eyes and smiled deeply. "Keep me by your side so you can watch me."
"Or I can just ask the owner to get rid of you," Seul-ah held back enough not to hiss.
"Just over this?" Hajin popped the blueberry into his mouth and smirked. "No matter how much the big boss supports you, they are also fair."
Seul-ah bit her lower lips. It was frustrating that he wasn't wrong about that, especially since Ryu Hajin was a talent worthy of nurturing. Song Yonghwa would rather keep this man in his security company, Aegis, rather than get rid of him.
Wait--then why did he end up working for her family? Even without Seul-ah bidding, Lee Sol would have seen his talent after several fights and recommended Hajin to Yonghwa. How weird...
Ugh--but this wasn't the time to think about that.
"Haa...so what? Do you want to be my kept man or something?" Seul-ah snatched the fruit plate away from the man's reach. How shameless of him, kept picking on her fruit!
Although it wasn't really her fruit. Who ordered all of this, anyway? Ugh--there were so many confusing things that Seul-ah started to feel unnecessarily petty and irritated.
On top of that, the man in front of her had the audacity to laugh. "Oh, how boring!"
Seul-ah bit her lips. Why was this man acting so different from the cold, efficient agent in her memory? Not to mention several times louder and chattier.
"If you want to have your revenge, won't you need someone to be your limbs?" the laughter dimmed into a cold smile that jolted Seul-ah's memory of the Ryu Hajin she knew. "To do what you can't do in public, to finish the dirty deed."
The lighthearted voice dropped lower, matching the deep lake that seemed to pull her in and eager to drown her being.
"Or to pull the trigger."
Seul-ah gripped her sheet as the man smiled calmly, dryly, with a face that did not allow her to peek into anything more, and made her realize the depth of the abyss she wanted to jump in. The extent of stuff she might have to do to achieve her desired revenge.
"I'm telling you to use me as your tool, Princess," the deep eyes bore their presence into Seul-ah's mind. "I'm telling you to own me so I can't say anything."
Seul-ah clenched her jaw. What the hell? If he told her he demanded to be her lover so he could enjoy her money and everything, she wouldn't be as surprised as this. But as tools?
Tools...
Something inside Seul-ah hardened and broke at the same time. That was what she used to be for her siblings, for her so-called family: a tool. Nothing more, perhaps even less. Being reminded of such a function made her realize that she was still far too fragile, much too hurting.
But it also helped her cool down.
"...no."
Hajin arched his brow slightly at the sudden shift in her tone. "What?"
"No."
Seul-ah repeated, firmer this time. Colder; as cold as the dull gaze she gave the stunned man.
"Why?" Hajin frowned in confusion and changed his angle. "Aren't you worried I'm going to work for your sister again?"
"You said you didn't want to," Seul-ah replied dryly.
"I might do it out of rejection."
"Then you'll be even more unqualified to be my tool."
Hajin paused, raising his brow higher. He watched dumbfoundedly as Seul-ah shifted out of bed. "And if you do end up working for my siblings, you'll be my enemy. I'll have enough reason to request your extermination from him."
The grey eyes blinked slowly, twice, before a harsh exclaim came out. "Hah!"
Ignoring the man, Seul-ah grabbed her coat, which was draped over an armchair along with her handbag. She fished out her phone and texted Lee Sol to pay Hajin for his 'service' and made sure the man kept his mouth shut, before walking out of the bedroom. Before she stepped through the door, however, she turned her head to look at Hajin one last time.
"A tool should be plain," she said dryly. "They should be inconspicuous enough for people to forget about their existence right away."
Still sitting at the edge of the bed, Hajin watched his little jade butterfly fly out of the door, drifting away in rejection. Another part of his brain, however, computes something completely out of Seul-ah's intention.
"Did she...just tell me that I'm too handsome?"
* * *
"Why did you let that man enter her room last night, Sir?" the secretary asked Yonghwa curiously. "Wasn't that dangerous?"
"Exactly," the pale eyes narrowed as they stared into the bright sky. "She needs to know she can't afford to act recklessly from now on."
"Ah..."
After all, Yonghwa had agreed to invest in her. She should fulfill his expectations, if not more. Being reckless and snuffed out before the investment bore fruit should be avoided at all costs.
Song Yonghwa watched a plane fly across the sky while fiddling with a pack of cards, shuffling it every now and then. Only after the plane carrying his newest investment disappeared did he fish out a card; a queen of diamonds.
"Hmm...I guess this will be appropriate," he swayed the card, which his secretary swiftly took.
The card was placed inside a clear box and proceeded to be attached in front of a secured drawer containing all information regarding Lee Seul-ah, which would continue to be filled until his 'investment' period ended. Meanwhile, Yonghwa used the rest of the pack to build a structure on his table.
"Conglomerate families are like a house of cards," Yonghwa placed the last card to complete the structure that looked more like a tower than a house. "Impressive to look at," fishing a jack of diamond, he smiled deeply and threw the card toward the structure, prompting it to crumble down into a pile. "But very fragile."
He was tapping the jack of diamonds on top of the pile in contemplation when his lead guard came inside. "A meeting request from Helios."
"Another one?" Yonghwa arched his brow.
"A triple crown privilege user."
The white brow arched even higher, and the pale lips stretched as Yonghwa, once again, glanced at the top card on the pile.