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Yuri leaned back into the chair and let out a sigh. Her eyes wandered around in the unfamiliar room as she tried to tell herself to get used to it real soon. Double the size of her old office, yellow walls adorned with random pictures (except her complete right side was replaced by windows, giving her a clear sight of the city), an elegant couch set, another beige desk just a little smaller than hers on the left - this was her new office in the Kwon Enterprise.

Just yesterday, Yuri was introduced to the board as the other official holder of the "Kwon offspring" position beside Jiyong. Of course, only the Kwon Enterprise had this special position. To put it easy, a "Kwon offspring" had powers that were similar to a vice president's. This was why Old Kwon had had a huge office prepared for Yuri; her "welcoming present", he had said. Yuri had expressed her gratitude to her grandfather, but had had a hard time rejecting the secretary he wanted to hire for her. Yuri had always worked without assistance, and she didn't plan to change that anytime soon. Old Kwon wasn't very happy about this - he wanted anything but his grandchildren overworking themselves - but in the end, he didn't force Yuri to take the girl he picked anymore. Instead, he told her to find a secretary on her own, and gave her a week to do so.

"I want to give you time to make yourself comfortable and get used to the Kwon business anyway," Old Kwon had told Yuri. "Don't rush and just take it slowly. I don't want you to be too busy when you're just getting started."

Yuri had just silently nodded to her grandfather. She wasn't naive, she knew what was behind those concern-filled words. Even though she had defeated the Jung Enterprise for her grandfather, the old man was still cautious. Not overcautious and having cameras hidden in her office, but he didn't want her to join huge and important projects yet. Yuri understood, and she wasn't complaining. All she had to do was to be patient, because she knew one day, she would be having her grandfather's full trust. There was no reason for that not to happen. Because, after all, he had given her the "Kwon offspring" title already.

Loud knocks on the door snapped Yuri out of her chain of thoughts. She looked up straight to the other end of the room and saw Jiyong appearing behind the door, his typical smile on his face.

"Hello cousin," he approached her desk.

Yuri didn't say anything. She just looked at him and noticed he had a wrapped-up present in his hand. It had the size of a small book, and Yuri couldn't help but to wonder what's in there. However, she didn't want him to know she was curious.

"What do you want?" Yuri asked, sounding uninterested.

"Giving you my welcoming present," Jiyong answered and put the small present on her desk. He then sat down onto the chair across Yuri's, looking at her with expectant eyes. "Open it."

Yuri hesitated. She looked distrustfully at the object on the desk, her eyes then searched for some hints in Jiyong's eyes. But she didn't find anything but amusement in them.

"Just open it," Jiyong said with a chuckle. "It's not a bomb. It's a present for you to decorate your new office, to make it prettier, not to destroy it."

Giving Jiyong another suspicious look, Yuri grabbed the present. She then told herself there's nothing to worry about. She didn't want to give Jiyong the impression she was afraid or scared of him either. So, quick and careless, Yuri ripped the paper apart. Soon enough, she realized the present was no book, but a photo frame. And when she saw the picture in there, her eyes flared up with anger. She turned to Jiyong and glared daggers at him, while he was laughing out loud amusedly.

"Hey hey, take it easy!" He waved his hand at the furious girl. "The people who are in charge of moving stuff from your old office dropped the picture and the frame broke. They gave it to me, and I thought I could be so nice and buy you a new frame. I mean, you should keep some memories of your preys, right?" Jiyong chuckled. "Don't look at me like that, Yuri. You should thank me or something."

The reaction he received from Yuri was, however, just a huff. Jiyong shook his head side to side, a big grin visible on his face.

"You liked her, didn't you?" He leaned forward a little, examining Yuri's face. "I bet you do. Nothing else could explain your sudden rage. It's okay, though. I think I can understand. She's become a hot chick." He glanced at the picture in Yuri's hands and let out a dreamy chuckle. "If she had looked like that seven years ago... Cousin, cousin... you'd be surely not the only Kwon who had laid h--"

Jiyong shut up abruptly, frozen at his own carelessness. He had unintentionally spilled the beans, and Yuri was staring disbelievingly at him. Jiyong cursed mentally, for he knew it was too late to correct the mistake. He quickly stood up, preparing himself for the girl's wrath. Yuri's body shot up at the same moment, and within a second, she had leaned forward and grabbed Jiyong's collar.

"Yuri, it's not what you t--"

"Do you have people stalking me?" She hissed, sounding as if she could throw him out through the window any moment. "Do you have people spying on me?!"

"I--" Jiyong struggled with the grip, but eventually gave in. "... Yes," he feebly said.

Yuri tightened the grip on her cousin's collar. She felt blood rushing through her body, literally, something inside her boiling. She clenched her teeth, preventing herself from screaming into Jiyong's face. Her body trembled from rage, and she wished she could just beat him up mercilessly. But then, Yuri took a deep breath and calmed herself down. She pushed her cousin away roughly, her eyes dismissing.

"Get out," she said coldly.

"Hey," Jiyong fixed his collar, panting a little. "Look, I'm sorry, okay? It was grandpa's order to watch over everything you do. But now, no one's following you anymore. And... I mean, it was just to make sure you didn't plan to trick us. I didn't get to know the details of what you do anyway. I wouldn't want to, Yuri. Really."

Jiyong paused, waiting for the girl to say something. Yuri looked at her cousin as her anger slowly cooled down.

"Go," she told him after a while, and she turned around, her back facing him.

Having no other choice, Jiyong just shrugged and left. It wasn't until the door was closed and she was alone in the room again that Yuri sank down into her chair, sighing. It would probably take her more time to get her grandfather's full trust, she had to tiredly realize.

----------

Jessica sat on the floor, newspapers spread everywhere. She was wearing her glasses, her crossed legs were already numb from staying in this position for too long. She had been highly focused on the newspaper in front of her, and kept being focused for the next fifteen minutes. But then, she couldn't take it anymore and had to stand up, stretching herself, giving a tired sigh at last. Jessica turned around looking at the small clock on the wall and read 9:25 am.

Hopefully mom and Krystal will be back from buying groceries soon, she thought.

Jessica always got sleepy when she's home alone. And, as much as she hated it, she always did something else when there's no one around to distract her. She always thought of Yuri.

Jessica sank into the couch as she stared at the small silver object on the coffee table. It was the heart-shaped necklace Yuri once gave her. She clearly remembered she had thrown it away after the encounter with Yuri in the washroom last time. Yuri had been a jerk and she had been hurt. She had run out of the building, removed the necklace and dropped it on the ground somewhere. She didn't even remember where she dropped it exactly. Yet, the next day, a postman delivered her a small packet, and in there was the necklace.

Jessica didn't think of throwing it away after the incident anymore. She decided to keep it, but was unsure of what to do with it. She was confused. She didn't know if it was a sign, or an omen, or a hint. She had no clue who could possibly send her the necklace, either. She had thought of Yuri, of course, but then, she felt like a fool again.

She does not love you, she had to remind herself over and over.

No matter how much she wanted to deny it, she couldn't. It was the same with her feelings. No matter how much she wanted to stop thinking of Yuri, she couldn't. She was mad at Yuri, and somewhere inside, the rage had turned into hatred. But she couldn't replace all the feelings she had for Yuri with hatred. Love was persistent and didn't want to go away. As stupid as it might be, she knew she still loved Yuri. A lot.

Jessica leaned forward and picked the necklace up. She held it in her hand, staring at it for a while.

"Sica, can you promise me something?"

"Promise what?"

"That no matter what happens, you will always believe that my heart is beating for you, belongs to you, and that my love for you is eternal and never changing."

"I-I promise."

She couldn't forget that day on the Chalk Peak. She wasn't keeping her promise, Jessica was aware of that. But how was she supposed to, when Yuri did everything to make her think it was not worth it?

"You didn't keep your promise either," Jessica whispered as she felt tears swelling up in her eyes again. "You said you would never make me cry again. You said if tears ever escaped my eyes, you would kiss them away... You don't keep your promises, you stupid, stupid jerk." She felt the frustration towards Yuri inside her swelling up as well. "Why, Yuri... why do you promise something when you know right from the start you will never keep your words?"

Jessica angrily wiped her eyes with her sleeve, preventing tears from really spilling. She closed her palm, pressing the necklace tightly into her hand. She breathed as she tried to settle herself down. It took her a while, but she succeeded.

Ding dong.

Just then, the bell to her apartment rang , causing Jessica to have to swallow that lump in her throat. She dried her eyes and quickly made her way to the hallway, not realizing that she was again putting the necklace around her neck - the place where it really belonged to.  

"Sunny," Jessica mumbled to herself.

It could only be Sunny. The girl had promised to drop by some newspapers this morning, as she was able to snatch a couple of freesheets from work. And Jessica needed any source of news she could get - anywhere, anyone, anything that offered jobs that were not baby sitting, catering or house cleaning. It wasn't that she was lazy and didn't want to do things that required physical exertion. In fact, even if she wanted to, she couldn't do it. Jessica made babies cry, burnt kitchens, and was clumsy enough to break a dozen of things while cleaning the house. Besides, she needed a fulltime job, not a part-time one like what she had seen so far in the newspapers.

The bell had rung for the second time when Jessica finally reached the door. She swung the door open, expecting to see Sunny's small figure. However, what she saw was a small figure that was not Sunny. The unfamiliar someone standing in front of her door was a little taller than Sunny, but skinner and probably younger. The person wore stylish jeans that hugged the legs - not too tight, not too loose, just perfect to emphasize the skinniness. And even though Jessica couldn't see the stranger's face, she could tell for sure the person was female. The leather jacket the stranger wore had a soft femininity to it, perfectly fitting petite girls. The only odd thing that puzzled the blonde was the ridiculous sunglasses and that funny hat on the stranger's head.

"Umm... can I help you?" Jessica asked, deciding to be polite.

"Ms Jung, I'm detective Goo Hara from the Economic Investigation Department--", the girl with the fairly high voice introduced and flipped, for a millisecond, something that Jessica supposed was the detective ID. "Would you mind if I asked you some questions? Right now?"

Jessica narrowed her eyes in suspicion. Something about this detective was fishy, she thought.

"Questions? About what?"

The look the girl threw Jessica was a surprised one, or so Jessica thought. She couldn't quite see anything behind the shades. Detective Goo leaned forward, one hand cupped next to her mouth as she lowered her voice.

"About your father, Mr Jung, of course."

Jessica was immediately alarmed. The stranger straightened up again and flashed her a goofy smile.

Now, how unprofessional is this? Jessica raised an eyebrow.

"I'm sorry, but can I see your badge again?"

The smile on the Goo girl's face disappeared in a matter of milliseconds. Jessica immediately sensed the nervousness.

"S-sure," the girl fumbled in the inner pocket of her leather jacket. "Detective Goo from the Economic Investigation Department." She flipped the ID for a really brief moment before stuffing it back into the jacket again.

But that was enough for Jessica. She was not stupid enough to believe this girl.

"What does a detective from the Economic Investigation Department want to know about my father's disappearance?" Jessica's hands were on her waist as she blocked the door, trying to look intimidating to the small figure. "Who are you? What do you want?"

"W-What? What do you mean?"

Jessica couldn't tell if the girl was intimidated or not, but she knew the fake detective was already sweating bullets.

"You are fake, aren't you?!" Jessica poked the girl's chest with her index finger. "Why else don't you want to let me take a closer look at your ID?"

"What?! I did!" The girl frustratedly protested. "For the third time--" she pulled the ID out, but it was with unintentionally excessive force, and so the badge flew out of her hand, hitting Jessica right in the middle of the face.

"Ah!"

"Oh God, sorry! I'm so sorry!"

The girl frantically apologized while Jessica was busy cupping her nose. The ID had fallen down and already lied on the floor. The small girl crouched down as fast as she could, trying to grab it. But Jessica was faster as she stomped onto the ground and successfully set a foot onto the badge, just a second before the girl could pick it up. Jessica's foot stuck to the floor, unwilling to move even just for an inch.

"Yah!" The other girl yelled as she attempted to shove Jessica's foot away. "What the hell are you doing?! My ID!"

"You pervert!" Jessica screamed as she kicked the girl's hand away. "Don't you dare to touch my leg ever again!!!"

"Then move! Ouch! Stop kicking me!!! OW! Are you crazy?!"

"Stop touching my foot!"

"Give me back my ID!"

"NO! You're a spy! Yuri sent you, didn't she?!"

"Who the hell is Yuri? I don't even know who Yuri is!"

They continued yelling at each other as the smaller girl kept shaking Jessica's leg, despite being kicked mercilessly.

"Gosh, give me back my ID! You have no idea how long it took me to make this badge--"

"HA!" Jessica yelled. "So you admit you're fake!"

Jessica retreated her foot and the girl immediately snatched the badge away. The stranger straightened up and was about to run away when Jessica grabbed the end of her hair and pulled her back.

"OWWW!"

"Oh no, you're not going anywhere!"

The girl turned around and struggled with Jessica's grip. But the blonde didn't want to let her go. Not before she told Jessica the truth. Was Yuri really behind all this? Did she still care? Or was it just plain curiosity? She knew it was foolish to think of Yuri so much, but... she couldn't help it.

"What the hell is going on?"

Jessica and the girl stopped struggling for a moment and turned to the source of the voice.

"Sunny!" Both exclaimed.

"Eh?" Both Sunny and Jessica turned to the girl who had clasped her hands over her mouth.

"Hara, is that you?" Sunny stepped nearer, her eyes narrowed in suspicion. She then reached out for the small girl's shades and pulled it away, revealing the big, innocent eyes. Now Jessica understood why the girl had to wear these odd sunglasses. If she had seen those eyes from the start, the possibility of her buying Hara's story was a big, fat zero. Those eyes were too young, too soft for a detective.

"Geez, don't tell me you're playing detective again," Sunny shook her head and Hara could only look down in embarrassment. "You little rascal!"

Jessica let go of Hara's hair since Sunny was already there, scolding the girl. She felt relieved yet a little disappointed at the same time, knowing this girl had nothing to do with the person she thought of. But the girl looking so ashamed while being scolded by the shorter Sunny was so cute, Jessica couldn't help but to smile.

"Sica, this is my cousin, Goo Hara."

Jessica nodded. "Hi, Sunny's cousin," she said as she crossed her arms and leaned against the doorway with a small smile.

"I hope she wasn't bothering you," Sunny shook her head. "If she told you she's a detective, don't believe her. This kid is 18, she's gonna graduate from high school this year, aiming for a police academy, of course. It's her silly dream. But as long as she doesn't have an official certification, she's still a wannabe. Watched too many criminal series on TV, you know." Sunny sighed. "I'm really sorry for whatever she's done just now."

"Well, she's pretty daring to pretend to be the law-enforcement," Jessica said. "But yeah, I didn't really believe her anyway."

"You!" Sunny smacked Hara's head. "Apologize to Sica, now!"

The small girl was totally intimidated by Sunny. She looked at Jessica with a flushed face, nervously fumbling with her fingers, trying to find the right words. The blonde just chuckled. She was not mad. Even though Hara tried to trick her, now that she knew the truth, Jessica even felt fond of the girl for some reason.

"Look, it's alright." Jessica waved her hand. "I--"

But the loud ringing of her phone cut her off. Sunny gave her a nod as she excused herself and dashed into her apartment. The cell phone was ringing and vibrating on the coffee table in the living room, urging her to pick up the call. Jessica grabbed the phone and looked at the caller ID. It was Krystal.

"Krys?"

"U-unnie!" Krystal's voice was frantic. Jessica felt her heart almost stop beating as she heard ambulance sirens in the background.

"Mom just collapsed and fell down the escalator. Get to the hospital unnie, NOW!"

----------

Yuri entered the huge hotel, assured that no one was following her. She had driven to the spicy noodle restaurant in front of Iustit earlier, parking her car there. After ordering herself an extra spicy bowl of noodles and having enough of burning her tongue, Yuri had paid properly. Then, she had gone into the restroom and escaped through the window. She was being careful and on guard during the entire bus ride to this hotel then. The whole act might have been redundant, for Jiyong had sworn he had stopped spying on her, but Yuri couldn't be careless. Who could trust Kwon Jiyong, anyway?

"May I help you?" The receptionist of the four-star hotel greeted Yuri with a smile.

"Yes, please," she smiled back as she took her shades off. "I'm Kwon Yuri. I'd like to meet the lady in room 922. She knows I'm coming."

"Just a second, please." The young woman on the other side of the counter reached for the phone on the table. She dialed what Yuri supposed was the phone number for room 922. After a few seconds, the other end picked up. The receptionist talked a few seconds and nodded along. Then, she put the phone down and smiled at Yuri again.

"Please use the elevator over there," she indicated the hallway on the left. "She is waiting for you. Room 922 is on the ninth floor."

"Got it. Thanks."

Yuri nodded to the receptionist and made her way to the said place. The elevator took her to the ninth floor within a minute, and Yuri didn't have any problem finding room 922 at all. She took a deep breath before pressing the bell. She was happy excited.

The door swung open. Yuri didn't see anyone in the doorway, but she entered nonetheless. It wasn't until the door was shut again that a figure jumped out from behind it, falling around her neck.

"Yuri... I missed you."

Yuri turned around hugging the girl back, tapping her back.

"I missed you, too."

"How are you?" The girl released the hug as she examined Yuri's face with a worried expression. "You look kinda worn out."

"Nah, I'm fine," Yuri said as she gave the girl an assuring smile. "The plan was working brilliantly, grandfather is glad. I'm actually really relieved. I want to tell you everything. What do you know about it already?"

"Everything, actually" the girl said with a chuckle as she led Yuri further into the room. She indicated the tanned girl to sit down onto the couch as she poured two cups of hot tea. She then sat down next to Yuri, giving the girl a cup. "I got to know about the court decision just earlier. So, what do you want to do next?"

"Honestly?" Yuri took a sip of the hot tea and leaned back, looking up at the ceiling. "I don't really have a concrete plan yet."

"We only have three months, Yuri," the other girl reminded her. "If the final verdict is announced, we will be in trouble."

"I know," Yuri said. "Don't worry about that. Actually, I already have a vague idea, just need some more time to figure out each step of the plan."

"You know you can always ask for help, right?" The girl placed her hand on Yuri's hand, tapping it shortly. "That's why I am here. Just tell me what you want me to do."

Yuri looked at the girl, quiet for a moment before answering. "Jessica," she said, and looked at her tea cup again. "I want you to follow Jessica."

"Huh?" The girl seemed confused. "Like, stalking her?"

"Not exactly like that," Yuri shook her head. "Jessica will have to find a job and try to settle her life for the next three months. I want you to always be around and update me with what she does. The best way is that you somehow help her to get a job, or work at the same place with her, so you being around wouldn't seem suspicious."

"You don't mind me meeting Jessica?"

"No."

"But... why do you want me to be around her? How would that help?"

"Because I think..." Yuri said and took a huge sip of the tea. "I will need her later."

"Really?" The girl paused, thinking. "But are you sure? I mean, after everything that's happened... She won't be willing to help you with anything."

"Then I'll have to make her to," Yuri said, indifferent.

The girl narrowed her eyes as she scrutinized Yuri's face. Something was telling her there was more behind that indifference. She tilted her head lightly, a thought crossing her mind.

"Why... does it have to be her, and no one else?"

Yuri didn't answer. As she remained silent, the other girl shifted on the couch, clearing her throat. The girl hesitated for a second, before leaning towards Yuri, trying to make Yuri look into her eyes.

"Yul... answer me honestly. Did you fall for her?"

"No." Yuri furrowed her eyebrows. "What makes you think so?"

"Well, you couldn't look into my eyes when you speak about her," the girl calmly answered as she leaned back. Yuri was still staring at the wall. "Tell me, Yuri. Did she grow on you during the process of the plan?"

Yuri sighed. If she was really completely indifferent towards Jessica, she couldn't have put up with three months acting as if she was deeply in love. But... that didn't belong to the plan. She just couldn't. She would rather just go on with the lies when it comes to her feelings towards Jessica.

"I don't know..." she said at last, sounding defeated.

"Alright," the other girl smiled and took her hand. "Whatever your feelings are, Yuri, you must remember one thing. Do not let it affect our--"

"I know," Yuri cut the girl off as she squeezed her hand. "I promise I won't. Don't worry."

The girl with the shoulder-length brown hair nodded at her.

"I trust you. So, about Jessica, when do you want me to start?"

Yuri smiled at her friend before standing up.

"Right now, if possible."