Defence

35

- - - - -

Yoona had said before that she didn't want to think that Victoria had become a criminal. Taecyeon believed he wanted to refrain from that thought as well. When he left Yoona's office he found himself cruising along the road of Victoria's home. The home she used to live in with her parents. He could only imagine what a happy child she had been.

He went up the road and back down then up the road again. Memories seeped into every inch of him. From the moment he'd crashed into Victoria and the times when he took her around to find her gazing at certain things lost in thought. Had she been recalling memories too?

Taecyeon gulped.

"Do you believe me if I say I was escaping bad guys?"

"Did someone at the company betray you too?"

"Did someone at the company betray you too?"

"Did someone at the company betray you too?"

Taecyeon heard Victoria's voice go round and round in his head. What did she mean by 'too'?

"Did someone at the company betray you too?"

Taecyeon braked his car. Why was it always like that? Why was it that when something he should have paid attention to he never paid attention to?

He returned to the apartment to find Victoria up and about for the first time in two or three days. She looked up at him from the kitchen but didn't say anything. Taecyeon took off his jacket in the living room and glanced at the DVD Windstruck on the table. He didn't pay any attention to it and went to take a shower. When he stepped out Victoria had dinner prepared.

She glanced at him before picking up her chopsticks. In the end Taecyeon still found it difficult to speak to her so he went right to eating.

In the morning he went with the same routine but before he left Victoria had said, "Don't buy any chicken. Dinner's on me, ok?"

- - - - -

Donghae paced back and forth in his office, a bunch of unsigned papers on his desk. He couldn't concentrate. For the first time in his life he couldn't concentrate even on reading. He was worried about Victoria. She hadn't opened the door for him yesterday but he swore he could hear someone inside. Was she purposely avoiding him?

He felt like he needed to talk to someone but all the people he could think of were Yoona or Taecyeon. They didn't seem like good options right then. Every time he spoke with Taecyeon, they either got mad at each other or get on each other's nerves. And Yoona...if he talked to her about another girl, the girl who had been her childhood friend...it was just weird. It didn't seem right to be talking to Yoona about Victoria.

Donghae's phone rang and for a second he really hoped it was Victoria calling. In the end it was just his father.

- - - - -

Yoona's father had stayed home to make sure that she didn't leave for the station but when he was called back for an urgent matter Yoona took the car. She wasn't going to return to the station, she had something else to do. Something important.

Purchasing a cake from the store Yoona drove all the way toward the bricked wall. Mrs. Kim was waiting for her outside.

"You're here." the old woman smiled.

Yoona returned the smile. "I can't forget what this day is."

"Victoria's mom and dad are moving about the house," Mrs. Kim explained, "why don't you go join them?"