Saved Me; Ryeji FF

thirty seven.

Weeks turned into a monotonous blur for Yeji as she observed the strange changes in the hitman's behaviour. It was as if she had become a phantom, drifting through the days like an exclusive dance. During the day, when the sun was high and the city was awake, Ryujin would return home with bumps and bruises forming along her porcelain skin. She would retreat into her room, the blinds perpetually shut to keep out the intrusive light when she fell into a deep slumber.

As the evening sun dipped below the horizon, signalling the end of the day for most, Ryujin's absence grew more pronounced. Yeji would roll over for her hand to find a warm spot that her girlfriend occupied. The hitman's footsteps did not echo in the hallways, the helmet and keys disappeared from the side table and her suit missing in the closet. Whenever the topic of Ryujin's nightlife activities arose, she would quickly brush it off with a smile, insisting that she couldn't sleep so she rode around the city to clear her mind.

Yeji knew better than to pry further into Ryujin's life, though, she thought that she would be more willing to open up about her whereabouts and her actions since they promised never to hide anything from each other. Her worries gnawed at her day by day, as she was left alone with her thoughts.

Usually, she would confide in Lia for support, to have another perspective on the whole ordeal. But since Lia had moved back into her family's home, contact with the doctor had been sparse. Yuna, on the other hand, had moved back to her dorm to easily commute to and from uni as the workload became heavier with the end of the year approaching.

So that left Yeji wondering where Ryujin, the woman who had been her rock through all her difficult moments, went during those nocturnal hours and what caused the profound change in her routine. Was it the result of the guilt and responsibility of Chaeryeong's passing that pushed her away? Or was it something darker, something that involved having her blade painted with crimson?

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The group of killers stood behind the leader in tense silence as they waited for Yongsun to form his thoughts. Karina kept her attention on the mahogany desk covered in scattered documents, all with minuses and zeros on his bank statements. Her sight drifted up to her boss, reclined in his high-backed leather chair, lighting a cigarette before laying eyes on her.

"Status report on Shin Ryujin." Yongsun placed his finger on his temple and his gravelly voice cut through the hushed atmosphere.

Karina looked over at her members who subtly shook their heads, too petrified of the retributions they would face if they spoke up. She sighed and took a deep breath, "We encountered some unexpected complications." She began, and pointed to Winter's missing hand, "So we took time to recollect ourselves before we went ahead with our plans."

Yonsun narrowed his glare on the leader, "And what exactly happened?"

"I sent Giselle to become acquaintances with Ryujin's friends; Lee Chaeryeong and Choi Jisu-"

"I saw on the news..." He interrupted, tapping the ashes into the tray on his desk. "Pretty fucking careless of you, Karina."

Her head slumped down, a mixture of fear and anger accumulating inside her as she took the scolding.

"Is it really that difficult for you all- highly trained killers to take out one person." Yongsun abruptly got up from his desk, causing them to flinch. "The empire I created is crumbling as we speak, I thought I could depend on all of you to eliminate that bitch. I guess I overestimated your capabilities."

"If you could give us more time-" Her words came to a halt as his fingers took a hold of her jaw.

"No. We don't have time." He spat out, his face dangerously close to hers. "We will deal with Ryujin later. Right now, I need to keep my empire afloat. We need to prepare to take over the Bank of Korea."