My feet hurt so damn bad I wanted to cut them off and toss them into the dumpster. I trudged up the walk to my front door and let myself inside, the mail in my hands as I sorted through it and ultimately tossed the entire stack onto the kitchen counter. Fuck bills. I didn't want to think about how depressing it was that I made so damn little I was struggling in the city.
"Meow!"
Reaching down, I scooped Jazz up into my arms. He rubbed against my face, whiskers and fur going all over. I swiped the mess off of my skin, spitting it out of my mouth and groaning.
"Yes, thank you, Jazz. Thank you." I carried him into the living room, which was really just an extension of the kitchen, and froze. "What the fuck?"
When I left in the morning, my dirty apartment had been put on the list as something I needed to deal with when I returned. There were clothes strewn all over the floor, trash everywhere, and something that smelled suspicious somewhere in the kitchen, but I hadn't been able to find it in the three minutes I had before snagging my coffee tumbler and bolting from the door. Now? It was pristine, like the day I'd moved in. But better.
The smell of room freshener burned my nostrils as I walked through my apartment, and I crinkled my nose. Dropping Jazz off on the couch, I ducked my head into the bathroom and found the source of the offensive aroma. My bathroom was probably cleaner than it had ever been. I stormed into my bedroom next, anger and fear coursing down my spine in equal measure.
"What the fuck?"
There, on my pillow, laid neatly as if I was in a hotel room, was a note. I snatched it up and stared at the bold, straight lettering.
Maybe next time.
My stomach lurched. I reached out, my hand grabbing for something to stabilize myself with. Instead, it flew into the dresser, knocking off a plethora of old memories to the floor below. I sucked in a deep breath as the truth dawned on me.
Mingyu had been inside my home.
A crazy, murderous, blood-thirsty mobster had been in my goddamn home. The fear was quickly replaced as fire coursed through my veins. I snatched up my laptop and typed on it, logging into the program connected to the cameras I'd installed.
Clicking through a few times, I finally stopped when I saw him walking into my place. Jazz hopped up beside me, purring and brushing against me with his long, fluffy tail until I gathered him into my lap and glared at the screen. A familiar scent tugged at my brain, but I brushed it away as I watched him.
He'd been all through my apartment, cleaning, straightening, and moving stuff around like a damn psychopath! The camera feed cut in and out. It hadn't even alerted me that he'd been inside! My grip on Jazz tightened, as I watched him pick up my cat and disappear into the bathroom. Twenty minutes later, he came out with Jazz wrapped in a towel, drying him off. I stabbed my finger onto the space bar.
I was going to murder Kim Mingyu. The bastard had been invisible for almost a week. In all that time, I'd glanced over my shoulder and worried that I would run into him. Every tall, dark-haired man that eclipsed my vision made me think it was him back to fuck with me, but it was never him. So, why the hell did he suddenly pop up now?
I looked Jazz over, my stomach still twisted into knots. He could have hurt him. Okay, Mingyu hadn't done anything to my cat, but he could have. And even if he didn't, he had violated my space without a second thought. And for what? To clean?
Goddamn crazy person.
I kissed Jazz's head and shoved a hand into my pocket, searching for my phone. As soon as I had it, I stabbed the contact name of my old friend and waited for her to pick up.
