his true self

21- broken rules

As your hand reached for the doorknob, poised to step out into the unknown, a sudden realization halted your movements.

After that, she went to an old wood door with... 2 locks?... and opened it, again pulling you inside really fast.

But something didn't add up. Two locks, yet when she left, she neglected to secure the door. It was a glaring oversight, one that seemed out of character for someone as meticulous as Mikyeong. No, this wasn't a mistake; it had to be deliberate.

The question lingered in your mind like a persistent echo: why?

Was it a test? A subtle probe to gauge your trustworthiness? You couldn't shake the feeling that Mikyeong was still lurking outside, watching, waiting for your next move.

With a resigned sigh, you surveyed the room. The air hung heavy with the scent of neglect, the furniture worn and weathered, bearing the scars of years gone by. In the dim light, shadows danced across the peeling wallpaper, lending the room an air of desolation.

Your gaze alighted upon a small window, its frame obscured by grime and neglect. Could it offer an escape route? You approached cautiously, fingers brushing against the cold glass, only to find it securely locked.

The door remained your only means of egress, and with a steeling breath, you gripped the handle, ready to face whatever awaited you on the other side.

But as the door swung open, you were met with silence. No piercing gaze, no watchful eyes. Mikyeong was nowhere to be seen.

Relief washed over you, mingled with a tinge of apprehension. You had emerged unscathed, but now you found yourself adrift in unfamiliar territory, with no clear purpose or destination in mind.

Looking down the hallway, you noticed many doors, some closed, some party open- muffled noises coming out of the rooms. You remembered rule number one.

Don't ever get in other peoples business. This indeed is a crime area so ignore everyone and talk to nobody

So like Mikyeong did, you literally ran to the staircase and got downstairs, exiting through the same door Mikyeong and you went in.

Good. No complications.

At least so far. Because right the moment you looked up, you realized what you just had done.

You were in the middle of a crime area, somewhere in Japan. Besides, you didn't even know what your main goal was by exiting the room. What where you going to do now?

Great, just great, Y/n. Get out of the safe place without even knowing or having a plan of what to do next.

Groaning silently, you looked down the street- which was basically in the same condition as your room. Old traditional buildings or shops, with dimmed and broken lights as signs. The people running around here looking exactly as you would imagine people living in villages like this. Black hoodies or jackets, with their hoods over their heads.

And although you just got so scared that you didn't even want to move, you knew that walking around would probably be much more safe than standing here, outside of the weird building.

So, you just prayed for your luck and started walking the streets down, passing the old, rundown houses. And besides that- you didn't know what you expected, but no one ever tried to talk, or even look at you. Like Mikyeong said, they were all minding their own business. Probably a vital rule for living here.

Slowly getting lost in the dangerous, but still somewhat mystery atmosphere, something -or better said, some building- caught your eye. It kind of looked like a bar or a lounge. Was Mikyeong in there? Or well, better said- should you go in there?

Going inside a weird lounge in a crime area was -again- not smart at all, but at some point it seemed to give you more safety and the street you were on. Plus, you wouldn't get too far away from where you stayed.

With your hand on your gun, you slowly approached the entrance and took a quick look inside.

Crowded place, many women, no Mikyeong. Perfect.

You shrugged your shoulders and walked inside, seeing an empty seat at the bar. Your chance. Basically running to the barstool and then jumping on it, it gained you some weird looks but at least that action prevented you from getting flirted with.

Taking a look around again, you noticed that not even a single soul was looking at you. Mikyeong was right again- but what was up with the people all just minding their own business?!

When the bartender came up for orders, you declined. Not the best idea to get drunk here. Besides, you'd still need to come up with a plan, cause... after all, you broke Mikyeongs rules and got out- but what now?

Should you just go back pretending that nothing happened? Probably. Although the idea of spying a bit around here was too seducing. But even with the gun it wasn't save for you- you didn't know who was running around in town and couldn't really defend yourself.

So the new question was when you should go back, well, better said, when you thought Mikyeong would be back. You didn't want to arrive after her- or even worse, together with her. But you also didn't want to go yet.

Causing you to just sit there at the bar, zoned out. What were you even doing here? What was going to happen next? If you weren't able to run away from the gang, then what should you do otherwise? Even Mikyeong seemed to be not that sure herself- although she tried to hide it.

The barstool next to you suddenly moved and someone sat on it, pulling you out of your thoughts. You glanced at the person a single second.

Whoever sat there was also not looking at you. Good. At least no weird man who'd try to flirt with you. Plus, you were able to glance at him a bit more clear.

And then you got such a shock that you were able to hear your own heartbeat and swore you saw stars for a second.

The hair was different, but you had no doubt.

"Hyunjin", you whispered.

He turned his head to you.

It was him.