The Devil's Pact | BBANGSAZ

N I N E T E E N

After Kazuha dropped her off, Hanni's day went by pretty quickly. Jaemin was insistent that Hanni get the staff, suppliers, and chefs aligned before they settled on location. Thankfully, this was something Hanni was confident about. She had been in the business since her teenage years. She knew firsthand where to look for the best waiting staff, kitchen workers, and how to hire the meanest chefs and managing staff. Years of experience hauling seafood directly from suppliers to save money for her father's restaurant came in handy when finalizing the suppliers who could provide the freshest catch daily. After multiple run-ins in and out of the estate to various locations and a bucketload of paperwork, she was still deep in finalizing everything when Jaemin forcefully put an end to her day and sent her home.

On the bus ride, Hanni couldn't help but think of Minji. She wondered what she was doing at that moment. Was she hanging out with that girl Isa? Was there any part of Minji that missed her? Did she care?

Hanni reached the house before Kazuha, so she grabbed the key from underneath the mat and let herself inside. She quickly changed out of her work clothes and into a large gray hoodie and jeans. When she came back downstairs, she realized how messy the living room was. She started picking up different plates and bottles in the living room, quickly washing dishes and straightening the kitchen. She went back into the living room, picked up magazines and sports equipment, and put it all in its place. She emptied out the ashtrays and organized the DVDs that were piled on the floor. One in particular caught her eye. When she was done cleaning, she placed the disc in the DVD player and sat down.

She was halfway through the movie when Kazuha entered.

"Honey, I'm home," Kazuha laughed as she entered the house. Shaking off her hair, she pulled off her raincoat and hung it near the door.

"Damn, it's raining hard out there. Oh, hey, you cleaned up. Nah. Hanni, you didn't have to..." Kazuha chastised.

"Hey. You alright?"

"Yeah, just wet, cold, and a little drunk it seems. How was your day?" Kazuha asked, fumbling her way inside.

Hanni smiled up at her. "Yeah. It was great. Thank you for everything."

Kazuha snorted. "Nah. Don't thank me. You are wonderful."

Hanni laughed. "Why, thank you, Kazuha. Hey, I won't be getting any paycheck soon, but once I do, I'll pay you back for the food."

"Hanni, stop trying so hard. Jesus, babe, you've only been here for a day. Chill out. I'm not totally broke, you know. It's fine," Kazuha said, setting the bag of food on the coffee table.

"I know, I'm sorry. I just...I don't know, thank you though."

"You're welcome. What are you watching? Is that Dracula? Damn, that movie sucks," Kazuha said, sitting down.

"No, it doesn't. I love this movie. I had never seen it before. I didn't realize so many stars were in it. And Gary Oldman is so amazing as the count," Hanni said, barely able to take her eyes off the film.

"He acted like a wuss over a girl. I mean, he's supposed to be the fucking badass of them all. Dracula! He should have been killing people left and right, owning it all. Not harping over some girl," Kazuha said, stuffing a bunch of noodles in her mouth. "That DVD is Ningning's, by the way. I would have never bought that. In fact, all the mess you see here is her doing. The girl is a hurricane. Give me Blade or something."

For some reason, Kazuha's assessment of the movie unnerved Hanni. She looked back at the screen and got chills at the way Dracula would stare at Mina. How she tried to struggle away from him in the theater, but he held her tight and she caved to his whim. This invisible power he held over her. Hanni gave a slight, uncomfortable laugh.