1601 words

Published 6/17/22

2098 words Updated 6/7/24

2179 words Updated 8/11/24

2181 words Updated 8/16/24

Until this morning I had each section listed under Mystery Perspective 1-4 and their "names" weren't in caps.

October 19th

The Twenty-Something Current sits in the backseat of the luxurious car, not even fazed by the softness of the plush exterior nor the crisp earthy scent of fine leather, due to the fact that she is accustomed to such frivolities; she is blind that others might view such things as decadent. She scrolls through the posts on Alluvion's fancafé. A sigh of despair leaves her lips, born from her intense longing. She can't help but be additionally bummed that she missed out on the chance to play Among Us with Juah and Jiseong. Truth be told she doesn't even actually care for the game herself. Heck she isn't even 100% sure she knows how to play the game. It would have at least been worth it to try. It would almost be the same thing as sitting with them in their living room. She fools herself into thinking such crazy ideas all the time.

If it weren't for my stupid job I would have been able to play. I wish appa would have agreed to my allowance. Eomma tried to talk him into it, but he wouldn't budge. Why, though? He had always given me whatever I wanted before I turned twenty. Why did my age have to change anything? Why can't I just do what I want?!?!?!

She has to take a few deep breaths to calm herself down after that mental tangent. Of course the last thing she should probably do is pick up her phone again, but it's second nature to reach for it as a source of entertainment. True she could have turned on the television that's situated on the back of the front seat, however like most people her age her phone is her go to.

She scrolls a bit further down through the posts and automatically is filled with rage. You mean I missed out on the opportunity to get selcas with them too?!?!?! I was legitimately at that supermarket two days ago! It isn't even all that often she makes such trips, but she wasn't about to tell her new driver that she needed feminine hygiene products. He was a fairly new hire, and she wasn't at that level of comfort with him yet.

She takes a deep breath before turning back to her phone screen once again and focuses more on what's written in the post rather than just the picture. Hmm. It's hidden from the members. That's...promising.

WeeStarSwings: OMG! I just caught the entire group at the Stubborn Goguma store on Heuleum-gil Road!! As they were leaving they mentioned they were off to get something to eat! Do you think that means they are somewhere in the area?

WeeStarSwings, sort of a cheesy screen name, but kudos to her for thinking to sort of include one of their song titles in her screen name. The twenty-something Current smirks down at the end of the post. Obviously WeeStarSwings hid this particular post from the artists in hopes that someone might be able to track them down and share their new location. I highly doubt that they would eat anywhere near the supermarket though. No, they would probably decide on somewhere that is at least a fifteen minute drive away, probably more even.

She mentally calculates how far distance wise that would probably be, luckily for her she has always excelled at math. Then afterward she searches for restaurants in the vicinity of the Stubborn Goguma. She keeps scrolling until the results show restaurants listed around the kilometer calculation she came up and grins widely.

One of the foods they all often enjoy together is jjigae. It's just chilly enough that the weather is perfect for the Korean stew, and there happens to be a restaurant in the area that specializes in many different varieties of it. One version being Kkotgetang, or flower crab stew, and she happens to know a specific member that is practically obsessed with seafood.

She double checks the time of WeeStarSwings' post just to make sure that she should have time to get there before they leave. Well, at least something is working out to my benefit today. Now, here's hoping that I guessed the correct location. She directs her driver to their new location. He looks at her stoically through the rearview mirror and gives her a nod. He's probably been stewing at the fact that we have been just sitting here outside of Appa's building for well over an hour now while I have been "deciding" on where to go.

It's pretty obvious that her restaurant guess was correct when, as she gets there, she happens to catch sight of Mengrai Lam and Oh Youngchul opening the door to the private room in the back of the restaurant and passing through to the public room she is currently seated in. Of course she doesn't know Youngchul by face, but Mengrai is probably the most recognizable of all of Alluvion's management due merely to his size alone. She is able to at least infer that the other must be Youngchul since he is one of the other managers, and the thread from the fansite mentioned him by name.

Youngchul heads to the door while Mengrai waits for them to pass. Jiseong is the first in line. It's obvious he is in a great mood because his eyes are almost two cute crescents due to the wide grin that is hidden behind the mask he is wearing. Juah comes out second, and he too seems to be in decent spirits. He isn't eye-smiling like Jiseong is, but there just seems to be a twinkle in his eye. His younger twin, Jaeyeon, is next in line and his shining eyes mirror his brother's. Minsook comes out next, and somehow he exudes confidence, but of course he often does without much thought or perceivable effort. Gamon, the group leader, comes out last and as he turns to his left her phone slips from her fingers. She barely registers the dull thud as it hits the floor. She's too busy internally screaming.

Noooooooooooooo!

The television is on in the background as The Shadowed Man picks up his phone determined to get ahold of him on the other line. He did say that he was always wanting a juicy story that The Shadowed Man can deliver; well he was about to give him one. I don't know why I told him no so many times before now. Sure it could have been risky, but it would have just been extra money in my pocket in the long run. Well that is unless... The shadowed man shakes his head. That hardly matters now. That was the past, this is now.

The Shadowed Man groans as he gets his contact's voicemail. He glares annoyingly at the display on his phone as he listens to the automated message tell him that the person he is trying to reach isn't available. He considers leaving a voicemail, but just before he can make a decision his eyes catch something happening on the television out of the corner of his eye. He turns his attention fully to the news report. A candid shot of Gamon Benzasnee Zang as he leaves a restaurant pops up on screen. The text of the subtitles telecasted on the screen reading, "Are we seeing the first Soulmate Mark of the Idol group Alluvion? I guess we will have to wait and see what Essentials Entertainment's media liaison reports.

The Shadowed Man throws his phone against the wall due to his immediate anger. I could have – I would have – They are going to pay for taking everything away from me! Even the chance at the scoop of a lifetime.

The Femme Fatale stares at the ceiling as one of her Toys attempts to pleasure her; his head between her thighs. However, if he wants to ever be raised to a Novice in her eyes he is going to have to get better. She roughly grips her hands in the back of his hair and pulls him to look her in the eyes. "Are you sure you studied before your appointment?"

The eighteen year old Toy pulls his face away to look up at the femme fatale, but he still shyly evades her intent stare. She roughly pulls her hand away from his hair to instead take his chin in her hand. "Don't look away from me, Toy." He frowns at the derogatory term. She softens her voice. "We talked about this. You signed the agreement. If you are uncomfortable this all can stop right now."

"But, I want to learn. I want to make sure I know how to please my future Soulmate someday."

Ah, the most common reason they come to me. At this point I am more or less contracted to help these Idol boys become men via their agencies, or at least their personal managers. It's too bad they all can't be as skilled as one of my first clients. His natural talent had me practically orgasming when he plucked my nipples between his fingers, and he was able to make me orgasm from the lavish attention he gave to the pebbled peaks with his mouth alone.

She pushes the Toy away from her body so she can get out of bed. From her peripheral vision she sees his mouth droop in a more pronounced frown. She focuses on keeping herself from grinning. She's a bit evil in her enjoyment of their disappointment in moments like this. She pulls on a silky robe to cover her naked body before going to her computer. "I promise that I am not giving up on you. Not yet at least. However, you need to do the homework I assign. This session was inked in as practicum, but if you need a place to study away from the dorms or even to be closer tutored in that regard then we can set up an appointment for that too. Should you choose to study on your own, and still come back unprepared I will have to drop you as a client."

He docilely looks up at her. "Can we make an appointment for a tutoring session? The dorms are pretty crowded, and I would rather guarantee I had privacy to at least study the images closer."

She nods and turns toward her computer screen. Her schedule looks pretty tight for the next week. "Are you okay if it's just my assistant on the premises, or I am otherwise occupied and she's the one to let you in?"

He shrugs.

"If you are worried about your privacy, then I can assure you that she too has signed an NDA."

"Okay."

"Okay. Then how's next week at noon?"

October 18th

The Strange Man in a Strange Land sighs as he sits down after being led over to his table. First night in Los Angeles, and I decided to sample the ethnic cuisine of home. Perhaps I should have tried one of the other numerous restaurants I saw recommended. The Italian place definitely sounded interesting.

A member of the staff comes over to fill his water glass as he glances down at his smart watch. He's already aware of the time of course, but he is hoping that a message will come in from his employer. He's hoping to hear word about where the first location he should check out is. His eyebrows furrowed together in confusion as his watch makes a noise indicating he just received a new email. The subject title was definitely not the one he was expecting. What on earth is this? He asks himself before pulling his phone from his pocket to get a better and bigger view of the email he received.

He's interrupted by his waiter coming over. "Sir, have you made a decision on what you would like to order?" He glances up at his waiter. Hmm. He's obviously half Caucasian. The other half is definitely Eastern Asian, but his Caucasian genetics shine through.

The Strange Man's face is completely blank as he finally replies to the waiter he had mentally dismissed since his heritage is muddled. The Strange Man mentally sneers at his presence, however on the outside he appears stoic and unaffected. "Can you please give me a few minutes? I actually haven't had a chance to look at the menu yet." His words are crisp and precise even though he doesn't get the opportunity to practice his English very often.

The waiter smiles kindly at him. "Of course. Would you like to place a drink order first?"

Actually, I'd like you to please leave me the hell alone. Instead he offers the bare minimum of a tight smile and responds, "I'll stick with water for now. Thank you."

The waiter nods at him with a smile. "Okay, I'll be back in a few minutes to check on you again."

Finally he has a chance to look at the email. He exhales out his nose as he grows ever more angry with each word he reads. Seems I should have stayed in Korea after all.

Links to the resources used for this chapter can be found linked in the comments on this passage.