renegades [teenage mercenary]

016

Rei sat awkwardly in her newly designated seat in the back of an SUV, clutching her book bag like a lifeline, knuckles ashing under her grip. Her eyes followed a blossoming tree, vibrant pink beneath the warmth of the sun. The a.c. blew through the vehicle, disrupting any effects of the heavy humidity or the heat, and Rei found herself clinging tighter to her jacket. She huffed. They really liked it cold in the SUV.

She hated being stuffed up in the vehicle. Driving wasn't fun when she couldn't feel the breeze or the sun hot on her skin. The least they could do was put down a window.

"I could have walked, Seokju."

"This is safer. And if you walked, no one would let you in."

Rei tilted her head. She eyed the window switch by her seat, contemplating whether she should push it. "I'd find a way."

"This is not a challenge," Seokju said with a sigh, although he sat pristine, unmoving in the seat to her left. She wished that it was Ijin sitting next to her, but since he was a part of the other team watching over Yeona's cousin, Jiye, Rei had to make do with Seokju. "This building has our top security and 360 cameras. You trying to find ways to sneak in without going through the front could easily become an instant man-hunt."

Rei barely knew half of those words, although she could sense the threat in his voice.

"Ah. High stakes. Sounds exciting." She tapped her fingers around the switch in a silent rhythm.

Seokju and the driver exchanged subtle eye contact through the rearview mirror, and she could tell that Seokju was trying to let the latter know she didn't mean harm. The security guard sitting in the front passenger seat shifted uncomfortably, although Rei figured it wasn't in an I'm-too-cold kind of way.

"Look, Rei," Seokju said, enunciating every word as clearly as possible, "Yeona hasn't had visitors in years. This is a huge deal, not just for her but for our guards. Don't make us find a reason not to trust you." He glared at her, although his stare was faulty at best compared to Ijin. Nevertheless, she took her finger off the button. She didn't need to find more reasons to annoy the bodyguard. "Don't screw this up."

Rei nodded, unwavering as she hid her discomfort but also the excitement she held for this new experience.

Five days ago, she and Yeona exchanged numbers. They talked for hours at a time, and Rei found herself becoming more intrigued by Yeona's friendliness.

Three days ago, Yeona asked if she'd like to hang out. A sleepover, Yeona suggested. Rei didn't respond at first; the fear of being around anyone at night like that—the chances of being more vulnerable to anything happening—had stopped her from saying yes. However, she also knew that this was a big step forward for Yeona as well, just as Seokju implied. Yeona was taking the chance that Rei was a good person who didn't have any ulterior motives. And now Rei had to take the chance that she'd also be safe and that she would still be able to protect herself if anything were to happen.

Two days ago, she accepted.

And now, she was driving up to the building. Not that 'building' was the right word to describe this mansion of a place. They had spent twenty minutes driving through the city, and eventually, the SUV arrived, pulling up to the tan walls that surrounded Yeona's home. The driver went to press some buttons to unlock the way into the mansion, although Rei had missed the second half of the numbers when the driver adjusted his position so that Rei could not see. He must have noticed her through his door mirror.

The gates clicked open, and the vehicle pushed forward through a short path that then led closer to the mansion. The building had a modern feel to it. Tall, with elongated, tinted windows that revealed slight movement on the second floor. They came up to a roundabout in front of the mansion, in the middle holding a fountain with gushing water. Flowers and trimmed foliage surrounded the roundabout, and Rei took in her surroundings, memorizing the layout, the exits, and the guards surrounding the building.