The Devil's Pact | BBANGSAZ

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Hanni Pham stared at her own reflection in the mirror. She knew what she was about to offer was a long shot, but she had to try. This current situation was killing her parents and making their lives miserable. She remembered the day Kim Minji came into her father's failing soul food restaurant. She knew from the cold look in her brown eyes that she was a devil. Hanni loathed Minji with every fiber of her being. Minji had ruined her family—her parents' lives and hers. She despised Minji and hated all the money she possessed. Money really was the root of all evil. It was the reason Hanni was in this predicament. She never saw much use for money. Sure, she may have never sported the newest, trendiest clothing, but she didn't feel the need to. She was never the girl in high school with the latest anything, and she was just fine with that.

But now here she was, putting on the only decent dress she owned (besides a black funeral dress), which had grown a little short from being washed a million times. It was a black dress with thin straps. The color had started to fade, and under bright light, it appeared as an ashy black shade. She wore an old pair of black heels that belonged to her mother, and she quickly pulled her wild blonde hair up into a ponytail. She wanted to look somewhat presentable since she was heading into the lion's den—or snake pit. Either was appropriate when talking about Kim Minji.

She sighed as she turned off the light and walked out of the tiny bathroom she shared with her mom and dad in their one-bedroom apartment. Her dad was in the bedroom, finally asleep. His back pains kept him up and moaning most nights. Her mother, Roseanne Pham, was in the kitchen scraping the leftovers from dinner into containers.

Roseanne turned to look at Hanni and then back at the dishes. Her mother was a beautiful woman, but the years had not been kind to her. Her smooth, pale-white skin that used to glow and sparkle was now a dull brown. Her makeup and hair, which she had once taken so much pride in, were no longer part of her daily routine. Roseanne never wore makeup anymore, and she kept her hair in a tight bun at the base of her neck. She had prematurely grayed, which Hanni figured was due to her father's bad business investments. The smile Hanni remembered from her childhood seemed like it had been permanently erased from her mother's face. Now, a hard line and tight lips had replaced the bright grin she had grown to love. Hanni continued to stare at her mother's back.

"I don't know what you think you're trying to accomplish by going over to that dangerous woman's place, Hanni. Just plain stupid, in my opinion," Roseanne said, not bothering to turn around.

"I know, Mama, but I've got to try something. We can't live like this. I didn't want it to come to this, but this is a last resort," Hanni said, pleading with her mother to understand.

"You think you're just gonna walk in there and have Kim Minji erase the debt?" Roseanne asked, turning around and throwing the dishrag over her shoulder. Then she smacked her lips and ran her eyes over her daughter's tiny dress, adding with disdain, "Unless you plan on offering her something to make her forget the debt."

Hanni sucked in a breath. "Mama! I would never. I just want her to try and see it from our point of view, that's all. It couldn't hurt to try."

"Hanni, Kim Minji doesn't care about our point of view. Rich, bad women like her couldn't give a damn about poor people like us. The sooner you get that through your head, the better," her mom said, turning back around. Hanni figured that was the end of the conversation.

Hanni sighed as she grabbed her purse and an old black jacket of her father's. It was chilly outside, and she wasn't used to wearing something so revealing. As she slid the oversized jacket on, she looked down at her dress. She really hoped Kim Minji didn't get the wrong idea. The business world knew about Minji's 'playboy' nature and the endless women she had screwed, but frankly, Hanni couldn't care less. She just wanted to look presentable, not easy. She chanced another look at her mother, who pretended like Hanni wasn't even in the room anymore. Hanni blew out another sigh and opened the door. The windy night air hit her bare legs, causing her to hesitate for a moment. No, I can do this, she thought as she zipped up her coat and headed down the street to the nearest bus stop.