𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐋𝐄𝐍 𝐑𝐎𝐒𝐄 🌹(18+)

𝟓𝟕:- 𝐖𝐡𝐢𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐬

Min-ah couldn't shake the gnawing feeling in her chest. The air in Yoona's house felt heavier than it should, almost as if the walls themselves held secrets too big to contain. She had been sitting in Yoona's room for nearly an hour, her eyes scanning every corner of the space that somehow no longer felt like her friend's.

The bed was made too neatly, the usual mess of books and hair ties missing from the desk. Yoona's scent lingered faintly, but the life that had filled this room was gone.

Mrs. Kim's hesitant smile earlier was the final straw. Min-ah knew something was wrong. Really wrong.

She stood abruptly and left the room, her mind racing as she walked down the long corridor to the living room, where Mrs. Kim sat sipping tea. Min-ah crossed her arms, determined.

"Mrs. Kim, where is Yoona?" she demanded.

The woman flinched at the question, her hands trembling slightly as she placed the teacup down. "She's... out, dear. Probably with some friends. You know how teenagers are."

Min-ah's brow furrowed. "No, I don't know, because Yoona always tells me where she's going. And she wouldn't just leave without saying something."

Mrs. Kim's smile faltered, her mask of politeness slipping for just a moment before she quickly recovered. "Min-ah, darling, you're worrying over nothing. Yoona's fine. She'll be back soon."

But Min-ah wasn't buying it. "Come on, don't fool me. I'm thirteen now, not a kid anymore."

The sharpness in her tone startled Mrs. Kim. The woman shifted uncomfortably in her seat, her eyes darting to the front door as though she wished Min-ah would leave.

Frustrated, Min-ah decided to take matters into her own hands. She marched back to Yoona's room, shutting the door firmly behind her. If Mrs. Kim wasn't going to tell her the truth, she'd find it herself.

The room was eerily clean, but Min-ah's eyes scanned every detail with the precision of someone determined to uncover a secret. Her fingers ran along the edges of Yoona's desk, her instincts kicking in. There was something off about the drawer-it didn't sit flush with the frame.

With a slight tug, the drawer came loose, revealing a small, folded piece of paper tucked into the corner...the second paper she got till date. Min-ah unfolded it carefully, her breath catching as she read the scribbled words:

"If anything happens to me, it's because of him."

Her heart pounded in her chest as she read the note over and over. The handwriting was unmistakably Yoona's. The "him" was vague, but Min-ah didn't need much imagination to know who Yoona meant.

She clenched the note tightly in her hand and whispered to herself, "What did he do, Yoona?"

That evening, Min-ah cornered Namjoon outside his family's house. She had barely made it through the front gate before launching into a frantic explanation of everything she'd found.

Namjoon, ever the calm and collected one, listened intently, his arms crossed as he leaned against the railing of the porch.

When she finished, he let out a slow sigh. "Okay, let's think this through. If Yoona left a note like that, it means she was scared. But scared of what? Or who?"

"Her father, obviously!" Min-ah snapped, waving the note in his face. "He's always been... weird. Controlling. And Yoona's been acting so off lately."

Namjoon frowned, his sharp mind already analyzing the situation. "Maybe. But if something did happen, why would her mom cover for him? And why now?"

Min-ah hesitated. "I don't know. Maybe she's scared too."

"Or maybe it's something else entirely," Namjoon countered. "We need more information before jumping to conclusions."