Badman

Prologue

As soon as Yelin got the call from the landlord, she knew her dream of a normal life here is Korea would disappear. How could this happen?! Everything was going so well! Yelin shook her head at the thought of now living on the street. Somehow, someone had broken into their small apartment. She searched the place thoroughly, desperately digging under spilt garbage and overturned furniture. In the end all she managed to salvage were useless old trinkets and a handful of change. Anything of real monetary value was either taken or ruined beyond repair, and every penny they’ve saved up was gone.

Her mind went back to the worn out leather case, which was just an hour ago sitting neatly underneath the now toppled desk next to her. The case that had been nearly bursting with their combined savings of over 100,000,000 won (roughly 100,000 USD). They'd only delayed putting it in a bank because of legal complications. That money was going to be their start-up for careers, their ticket to a decent life. And now, they had nothing.

The first thing Yelin did was call Karen and Karyssa. Karen broke into a cursing fit, slamming the phone down and heading straight out the door. Karyssa simply sighed loudly on the other line and sank into her chair. They all agreed to go back and take what they could carry, but they had to be out of the apartment in three days. The landlord wasn't heartless but the robbery had cost her money as well, and she had new tenants to satisfy.  

Karen was the first to arrive at the apartment. She had taken a day off, and was the closest to the complex at the time. She looked at the wreckage that used to be their room, the reality of their situation fully sinking in. Groaning in frustration, she turned around and kicked the nearest piece of broken furniture as hard as she could. What now? She had no more options left. It took months - almost a year - to get her parents to allow her to move to Korea. She was terrified to imagine what they would think of her now. You messed up. They would say. What did we tell you. She couldn’t tell them. She wouldn’t.

Her bleak thoughts were interrupted by the creak of the floor behind her. In a flash, she whirled around. One hand grabbed a broken chair leg from the floor, the other was already blocking her abdomen. She’d trained herself to be ready for something like this through a combination of athletic classes and observation. You'd think a 20 year old wouldn't need combat skills, but you never knew. She was lucky this time though. It was only her roommate.

The first thing Karyssa noticed when she walked in was the muddy footprints staining the floor. There were many of them, and they were scattered. Some overlapping, and splitting in different directions. Strange… Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted as Karen whipped around with a wooden post in her hand. Karyssa put both hands behind her head as Karen pulled a combat pose. Karyssa couldn't help but smile, even in a time of such crisis.

Karen’s eyes follow Karyssa’s to the floor where the muddy tracks stand out. She also noticed their weird, and apparently random placement. She’s the first to speak up.

“What’s with these footprints?”

“More than one person was here,” someone said. Both their heads snapped up at the sound of Yelin’s voice. She was standing in the doorway, leaning against the frame. Karyssa and Karen nodded in unison. “The glass in the windows is gone too. And the mud is way too obvious, It’s like they wanted us to notice.” Yelin said.

“I want to look around. Maybe we’ll find something else.” Karyssa said.

“Ok.”

<Three Days Later>

All three of them take their final steps out of the apartment. They bring with them whatever they can manage to carry — food, water, and clothing. Now, for the first time, they are truly on their own.