In the Heat of the Night

Curiosity

The doorbell chimed as Ami-Chi pushed it open with both her hands and stepped inside. Her low heels made clicking noises as she stepped on the tiled floor. She wore black tights with a pencil skirt to her knees that showed off her hips and her plump thighs. Her top was a loose fitted white blouse that had a tie up in the front. It was more for fashion than actual function. Her hair was straight in a shoulder length bob which was dyed a pastel purple. It wasn't uncommon for women to have their hair dyed all sorts of colours. Jae-Hwa herself had her dyed in an Ombre red, where it was bright at her roots and as the colour went down the strands of her shoulder blade length hair, it got considerably darker. As the girls walked in their faces lit up as they spotted their one normal friend sweeping near the back.

"Jin-Ae!" Ami-Chi exclaimed as she walked towards the brown haired woman with her arms outstretched.

"Jin-Ae-ah!" Jae-Hwa followed suit as both girls hugged their friend.

"I didn't think you were coming!" she said as she felt Jae-Hwa kiss her temple.

"What ever gave you that idea?" Ami-Chi asked pulling back a bit to regard her friend. "We promised didn't we?" she continued as she pouted her bottom lip slightly.

"The fact that I just turned the sign to closed" she joked back. It was a strange friendship but it was a true one. Jin-Ae made a few cafe lattes and they settled in the back booth of the shop. With no customers and the dead bolt to the door locked they let themselves relax as they sipped their warm drinks. Really it was just cheap therapy. Jae-Hwa and Ami-Chi both had incredible amounts of money but they were still frugal.

The hours ticked by as they fought up about events in the past week. Both Jae-Hwa and Ami-Chi avoided talking about the clan. It was better for Jin-Ae, they didn't want this life for her. Jae-Hwa chose love over normal, the same with Ami-Chi. She could have gotten out when she moved for university but she seemed to be destined to be with Changkyun. She came back once she was finished and convinced her brother to let them date. She smiled at the memory.

"No Ami, he isn't good enough for you!" Shownu's voice boomed as he declined his sister's request. Shownu hardly needed to yell, all he really had to do was just project his voice a little harder and it seemed to always get his point across.

"But Shownu!" She protested. "I know the risks...I love him" she looked at him with tears forming in her eyes.

She looked at Changkyun who was sitting in the leather bound seat beside her as they tried to plead their case to their clan leader.

"He won't hurt me, he's not that type" Ami continued to drive her point home. She just had to keep going and sooner or later her brother would crack and give her what she wanted. This time was no different, she wanted Changkyun. He was the one thing that if she knew she had him, it didn't matter what they went through because she had her soulmate and things would work themselves out. They usually did.

"No Ami. This line of work is dangerous, what if something happens to him and they come for you?" Shownu was always a few steps ahead of everyone.

Furrowing her arched brows she narrowed her eyes at him. Trying to pull together her best business tone "we can do this the hard way. Either give us your blessing or we both walk away" Ami felt Changkyun grab her hand and give it a small squeeze. Signaling that he agreed with her.

Heaving a large sign Shownu sat back in his high winged back chair and placed his fingertips on the side of his head as he regarded the people before him. He couldn't loose a brilliant hacker like his Changkyun. He had this sixth sense when it came to tech, he was the best. On the other hand he couldn't bear it if anything happened to his sister. Closing his eyes he waved his hand haphazardly.

"Ok ok, you win Ami" leaning forward on his desk resting some of his weight on his elbows he pointed at Changkyun. "If anything happens to her, there would be no where you can hide"

The memory faded as she heard Jin-Ae mention that it was time she had to really leave the store. It was 10:30 at night and she was starting to yawn. Their cups empty and in the small single sink behind the counter, the managed to get themselves out of the fake leather booth with minimal grunting. After a tight hug goodbye Jin-Ae watched as her two best friends left the store. She didn't think to check the front door deadbolt, Jae-Hwa had unlocked it to leave the cafe. Signed as she tucked a strand of dark hair behind her ear, Jin-Ae placed the brook back in its home in the closet and tied the large black garbage bag setting it by the backdoor as her last chore for the night.

Blowing a piece of her hair out of her eyes Jin-Ae grabbed the garbage bag with both hands and hauled it through the back door. Grunting softly she hoisted it over the door frame and placed a block between the door so that it wouldn't lock behind her. That door always stayed locked.

Walking to the dumpster she hoisted the bag and pushed it over the edge. This was the worst part of her job. She hated the alley at night. Especially this late. It gave off a creepy feel, for some reason this night it seemed more tangible. As the bag hit the bottom of the dumpster she heard muffled noises coming from closer to the mouth of the alley, fear gripped her spine and her legs wouldn't obey her command to move. She was stuck, paralyzed with fear as she saw hulking figures drag something heavy to the middle of the alley.

"Who ordered the hit?" The voice was soft and mid tone but the feeling was just as deadly as getting bit by a snake.

"How did you know where to find us?" He was tall and lean, his light pink hair was a contrast to the dark suit he wore. He didn't look physically strong but Jin-Ae didn't think that really mattered. People always hid secrets.

"There are spies everywhere, even in your boss's employ" his tone was jovial as he spat the words and laughed.

Finally as her body responded to her silent pleas Jin-Ae crouched beside the dumpster and let an eye peak out. She knew she should but after all she was curious. One thing Jin-Ae failed to realize was that curiosity nearly always killed the cat.