Pursuit Of Fate

Chapter 1

She did a final check on the amount of cash in the cash register and took out the profits earned for the day, and placed it under the coin compartment.

She switched off all the lights and the air-conditioner before pulling down the shutters of the coffee house. Keeping the keys in her black, tattered handbag, she did some light stretches and exhale a deep breath.

Her back and legs were aching badly from standing the whole day. Being a cafe waitress wasn't the ideal job that she wanted, it was the pay that she was attracted to.

She took a quick rest at the bench outside her workplace and walked back to her house which was just a ten minutes walk away.

With the keys in her hand, she reached out to the padlock on the metal gate and noticed that it wasn't locked. She pushed the metal gate opened and was shocked at what she saw.

Flower pots were smashed on the ground and herbs that were left to dry out on the huge bamboo woven circular tray were strewn all over the yard.

More noises could be hear coming from inside the house. She hurried her footsteps and swing the door open. Pieces of glass from the broken photo frames were scattered on the floor. The plastic chairs were flipped over on the living floor.

Following the direction of the sounds, she entered the kitchen. Pots and pans were strewn all over the floor. There were two guys standing near the window with their back facing her.

"Who are you?" she mustered the courage and asked.

The two men turned around and scanned her from head to toes. One of them slowly walked towards her and slide his fingers down her hair. "Cheon Seong Im?" He looked at the badge that was pinned on her cafe uniform.

"Who are the both of you? Why are you destroying my house?" she whacked his hand away from her and shouted.

"Destroying?" the guy at the back scoffed. He was much bigger and muscular. With his hands tucked into his side pockets, he stride towards Seong Im, easily towering over her.

"You must be his daughter. Your dad, Cheon Mun Jeom, owed us money and we're here to collect it."

"Then Mr shorty and Mr muscular, go and collect it from him! Why are you here at my house?!" she felt that it was ridiculous.

"Did you just called me Mr Shorty?!" he rolled up his sleeves and wanted to slap her across the face when the other guy stopped him.

"Dong Hoon, our job is to collect debts. Don't create problems."

"Yah! Hyung! She called me a shorty!" he was seething with anger.

The muscular guy told his friend to leave the kitchen and took out a piece of paper from his pocket. "This was the address that he gave us. I don't know what happened between you and your dad but since he is not here, you have to pay for him. And just in case you start giving us random nicknames, I'm Kim Jong Kook and that guy over there is Ha Dong Hoon."

She snatched the paper from him and crushed it after taking a look at it. "How much does he owe you?"

"Hmm. With the interests, it's about 30 million won (= $30000)."

"30 million won?! I don't have the money. You might as well just rob the bank." Seong Im's eye widen upon hearing the large sum of money that her dad owed.

"We would have done that if it's not illegal." Jong Kook smirked and said before walking out of the kitchen to join Dong Hoon.

"Yah! Ahjumma, we will give you a week to come up with the money. If by then we still don't receive it, we can't guarantee what will happen to you." Dong Hoon warned her.

Before they leave her house, Jong Kook stopped at the entrance and turned to look at Seong Im. "By the way, this is not considered as 'destroying.' " he said while looking at the surrounding. "It can be even worse than this if you don't pay up." He give her a final piece of advice before leaving her place.

Seong Im thought that she will be able to have a good rest after a day at work but judging by the current mess in her house, she would have to use the entire night to clean up the place. Due to her dad gambling habits, it wasn't the first time Seong Im had to pay for the debts that he racked up, and normally it would be just a few thousand dollars. But this time, she didn't expect her dad to owe such a large amount of money.

Calls to him were directed to the voicemail. "Abeoji! Where are you?! My house is in a mess because of you! Where am I going to find the money to pay the debts that you owed? Stop gambling and come back!" she shouted through the phone and tossed it on the sofa.

"Aish! This is crazy!" she scratched her head in frustration.

Jong Kook and Dong Hoon reported back to their boss at a secluded place near Hongdae street. They greeted and bowed at him. "Hyung-nim, we have messed up the house and given his daughter a warning." Jong Kook informed.

"Well done." He turned around and looked at them with a cigarette in his hand. He move his index finger back and forth, signaling one of his other man over. "Hee Gun, I want you to find out where she is working at."

"Algesumnida, hyung-nim." Hee Gun replied with straight face.

"Is she pretty?" the boss turned to Jong Kook and Dong Hoon, and asked.

"That ahjumma-"

"Yes, she is quite pretty for her age." Jong Kook interrupted Dong Hoon and continued.

The boss let out a sly smile and took a puff. "All three of you should know what to do if she doesn't pay up in a week."

"Ne, algesumnida." the three of them replied in unison.