The Rap Godfather

-7-

Sugar found Hwasa when she was 17, homeless, defenseless, with the last remaining member of her family dead. She was no different from hundreds of other girls "recruited" by the mafia clans in Seoul.

Hwasa quickly learned that the girls who could act as if their lives were still in their hands worked at more expensive clubs, had more bearable schedules and clientele. Gradually, she mastered the art of concealing how broken she was. In a year, Hwasa worked at one of the top-tier Sugar night clubs and was one of its most popular girls.

Most of Hwasa's clients were involved in the mafia. Over time, she learned to spot interesting information in conversations happening in the building. The club was clearly an important establishment for the Sugar clan. It has become even more obvious when, one day, they were notified that Min Yoongi himself would visit.

...Power was the first word on Hwasa's mind when she saw the dark-haired man with a grim expression on his face. The man wouldn't be a don of a mafia clan if he wasn't able to leave a strong first impression. Although six well-dressed men entered the club at once, Hwasa knew exactly who among them was the notorious Min Yoongi. His effortless movements, steady walk, the way everyone around him treated him reeked of power.

Nothing out of the ordinary happened for the next half an hour: the men sat at a remote table, smoked some cigars, and talked. Hwasa was just passing by, when she noticed a previous client of hers at the table next to them. She tensed up at a sudden realization.

"Can I help you, gentlemen?" Hwasa approached the table occupied by the mafia bosses, even though all the girls were ordered not to do that until asked.

The men exchanged uncertain looks. This wasn't the usual reaction she'd get. A couple of them were obviously annoyed by her appearance.

Hwasa didn't care about their reaction, though. The one whose reaction mattered now sat in the center, behind the table. He was curious.

In an instant, she stepped on the table, making her way to the clan leader. The other men jumped at their feet, some were about to get their guns out, but Min Yoongi only laughed and waited for Hwasa to slowly get on him.

He gestured the men at the table to calm down.

"Hold on to that thought, Kai," he said, his attention fixed on the woman sitting on his lap. "I have a weakness for brave-"

"The man at the table next to you is a Hope rat," Hwasa whispered into his ear playfully, to make it seem like dirty nothings to the others watching them. "He also mentioned a man named Kai over a phone call. This is a trap."

She looked him in the eye for a moment to see if he realized what she just said. The man did, so she proceeded to kiss him passionately. Yoongi quickly guessed what she was doing. He was a good kisser, and he knew how to make the other men at the table feel uncomfortable.

"Excuse us," he breathed in a moment, when it looked like they were about to go at it right at the table. "Let's take a break, gentlemen."

As soon as they got into one of the private rooms, Yoongi got his phone out.

"I need fifty men at the club door in five minutes," he dictated into the phone. "Fully armed, of course, you moron."

He hung up.

"I knew something was off about all this," he said, half to himself, then looked back at Hwasa. "How did you know?"

"The rat's been my client several times this month," she answered simply. "He is a talkative type."

"You did a great job," Yoongi's face softened for a moment. "What's your name?"

"Hwasa."

"Stay in here, Hwasa," he said, recollecting his composure, before leaving the room.

In about 10 minutes, she started hearing gunshots. Then the girls screaming, men shouting, glass breaking. The noises didn't last for too long. After the building got quiet, Hwasa waited for another couple of minutes, when the door opened again.

She allowed herself to take a good look at Min Yoongi. The man got rid of his jacket, now wearing his white shirt with the sleeves rolled up. Her eyes lingered on the wrinkled line where the shirt met his well-fitted black slacks; only then she noticed the scarlet droplets scattered here and there.

"They almost got me, Hwasa," Min Yoongi smirked, wiping the blood off the face of his Rolex. "I should reward you for your loyalty."

"I didn't do that because of loyalty."

"Oh?" with his mouth slightly agape in surprise with Hwasa's straightforwardness, the grim man suddenly looked like a kitten. "Why did you do that, then?"

"I didn't want to be shot there," Hwasa answered, half-true.

Of course, she knew she would be in danger if a rival clan took over Sugar, but when she risked everything and stepped on that table to get to Min Yoongi, she had a stronger motivation in mind.

"You are a sharp woman," he said, eyeing her up inquisitively. "Is there anything specific you want as your reward?"

"Yes," Hwasa responded right away. "A promotion."

"You do deserve a promotion," Yoongi smiled. "From now on, you'll have special clients occasionally. You'll then tell me if you find something interesting, just like you did today."

"You'll sometimes tell me who to sleep with to get you the information you need? That's the promotion?"

"Do I hear disappointment in your voice?" Yoongi asked with a pout, in sweet mockery, while slowly getting closer to her.

The air in the room tensed up. Hwasa didn't know what to expect of him now.

"No," she answered.

"Good girl," Yoongi stroked her hair, looking at her closely for a few seconds. Then, without saying another word, he turned around and walked out of the room.

...Hwasa's plan was to get as close to Min Yoongi as possible, and then see her opportunities from there. In the next few months, she did exactly what was expected of her and even more. She communicated with Min Yoongi through phone calls, until he started inviting her to his place.

At some point, they began meeting almost every other day. Yoongi started giving Hwasa the most boring men, all to have her come to him afterwards, seemingly to discuss what she'd found out. Over time, they've built a strange companionship.

Yoongi never truly bothered trying to hide the fact that he liked Hwasa. It was also obviously clear to him that she wanted to use that to her advantage, but it didn't stop him from letting her into his inner circle. The careless confidence with which Yoongi treated Hwasa amazed her.

Their meetings were always very sexual, but they never had sex. Hwasa suspected he waited for her to ask for it herself. Not because of decency, but because he saw how she looked at him. Hwasa couldn't deny she unwillingly tingled with excitement when she saw Yoongi, and he seized every opportunity to catch her in the act, trembling like a teenage girl under the indifferent facade.

Hwasa was too proud, however, to admit that her ambitious and very promising plan to sell out the leader of the Sugar clan was falling apart because of her childish admiration for the man.