She spoke. With an essence of life in her words that I didn't quite catch in the year I studied her. With a certain passion that was reserved for when Min Yoongi visited her at the Crawlers during her lunch breaks. Her demeanor would light up at the sight of him. Something akin to movie scenes when the main characters finally meet again after a long separation. He'd open his arms and she'd run straight into his embrace, like a happy child unwrapping a present he'd received from Santa. She talked about how Miss Rossi was pleased with her progress so far. It had been two weeks since she had started, and apparently, she had grasped the end of it quickly. Inaya spoke with pride and satisfaction, and a smile graced the contours of her plump lips, and all I wanted to do, despite the contradicting visual I was sporting, was shout my questions and rip the answers right from her throat. One simple, single question: what did they do to my child?

It wouldn't be right, for my plan or for her, to lose my shit right now. She was here at my request to do a quick assessment before I transferred the money to her account. She needed to convince me to give her the funds to free that bastard from the confines of a place that was more than fit for his kind. She was following her heart, keen to save a love that I failed to save when it was my turn. I couldn't blame her. She was carrying the duty of a genuine lover, but what about me? What about my love? What about the hearts they broke and the family they destroyed? It certainly wasn't her fault, but I was only human, and a man in my shoes would understand how painful it is to have a part of you wandering around unprotected and with God knows who, unable to do much about it.

"If Miss Rossi could let me have more training sessions, I think I can start by the end of the month. Mr. Park said there was a campaign for a new skincare collection they agreed to do with Hera, and apparently the model who was supposed to be the face of the campaign has backed out due to personal issues. I think I can take her place to save the company the trouble of a breach of contract."

The model she was talking about did indeed pull out of the campaign, and the reason was the generous sum I paid her, which was double the wage she would have received from the contract. So the personal issue was that she was now in Bali taking an extended vacation to recuperate and get rid of the stress of her busy schedule. Little joker card didn't need to know these kinds of intricate details. So I gave her a smile before leaning back against my chair and saying, "I'll think about it. Jimin will keep you in the loop."

That smile was so forced I could feel it choking me off. The need for air was so urgent that I finally took off my tie. Staying calm and tight-lipped was more important than maintaining the flawless image of professionalism the more Seokjin's words echoed in my head. After that call, I drove straight to his house, conjuring a drive that was supposed to take forty-five minutes into only twenty minutes before I rang his doorbell. He wasn't surprised to see me on his doorstep at past midnight, even though I hadn't informed him of my visit. As a matter of fact, he seemed like he was expecting me— knowing full well that the information he gave me was a catalyst.

I didn't make it past the threshold before I asked him the only question that had taken all the space in my cluttered brain. "Is my child alive, Seokjin?"

"He is." His answer came immediately as he looked into my face and read the urgency written all over it.

He. I had a boy. The fruit of our love me and Lana was a boy I didn't know what he looked like. I didn't know if he had Lana's beautiful smile or her hazel eyes. Maybe he took mine. I wished he hadn't. I wanted him to be her carbon copy. Call it selfish, but I wanted to see her through him. Fuck! I wanted to see him. I wanted to hug him and protect him and save him from a fate I'd already experienced and knew was unbearable and painful. I didn't want him to wonder if his parents thought he was a mistake and had given up on him. I didn't give up on him. I would never do that. I was ready to turn the world upside down for him. Ready to cause chaos and keep him in a bubble of peace. I was ready to smash everything and watch it crumble while I made sure that little speck of dust didn't fall over his shoulder. And now, more than ever, I was ready to inflict pain, to see crimson, to let it stain every alley and each boulevard because they took away not only my love but the chance to know my child. They took ten years from us, and I'd be damned if I let them take more.

"Where is he?" I asked. My voice was so coarse I didn't recognize it. A growl of a wounded animal.

Seokjin patted my shoulder with eyes filled with emotions that seemed to mirror what I was feeling. He sighed, palmed his face and simply uttered three words that destroyed any shred of hope that knowing my son was still alive had given me. "I don't know."

"You don't know," I repeated. My fingers ran through my hair as I paced around the living room like a madman.

"Listen, Taehyung. I know it's not easy. Fuck! I really do. But you need your calm now more than ever. You need a logical approach if you want to meet your child. If you alert them about your knowledge, your revenge, and the years you spent planning it will go down the drain. Not to mention that if they get a whiff about you they will likely send the child somewhere you'd never find him."

"How am I supposed to stay calm, huh? I have a child, Seokjin, and I don't know where he is. I don't even know if he's in safe hands. So you tell me, how am I supposed to keep it under control?" I snapped, my voice hoarse and pained as I screamed each word, letting the anger soak the place.

"Because you have a link, Taehyung," he said in a tone so quiet I would have considered it detached if I didn't know how he functioned. "You have a link that will lead you to your son one way or another. But if you want it to work, you have to keep your emotions in check."

"What do you mean?" I turned my head to look at him and halted my steps. His face was marked by a deep frown. Still, conviction shone in it.

"Inaya Chen. If you tame your anger, you'll see that you can use her in more ways than one. She is your link, so exploit it to maximum capacity."

Now I was afraid of the way I was looking at her. Because if she was a means of revenge before, now she seemed like a bridge I would cross without hesitation. A frightening sight. A frightening feeling. A lack of forbearance and consideration for a fellow human being who breathed air just as I did and who had hopes that I once had, too. Hopes and perhaps dreams that she wouldn't have the chance to see come to fruition. I looked at her as if she were a multi-purpose gadget, rapped my index finger on the desk, and smiled reassuringly when I sensed that my prolonged gaze unsettled her and perhaps was verging on creeping her out, given the silence that accompanied it.

I glanced down, arranging the documents on my desk with just enough care to hint that my time was running tight. Then I looked up, catching her gaze and letting a small, almost inviting smile slip through. "I've got a meeting in two hours and I really need to eat something before I get into all the numbers. We're not done with our discussion yet and there's still a lot to go over—" I paused watching her reaction before adding: "Would you be up for joining me for lunch?" I let the smile linger, hoping she'd take the hint. "I fully understand that you were scheduled for this appointment, and I want to make sure I honor that commitment. But I'd be very grateful if you'd be understanding of my busy schedule."

She wouldn't refuse. I knew it, even if the answer was still stored in her head. She needed me. Needed my money, to be precise. She was a woman so desperate that she was considering becoming a man's plaything; lunch with her boss wasn't so obscene when you compared the two situations. Her eyes wandered as she considered the offer, and her hesitation was clear from the way she swallowed with discomfort. I understood where that discomfort came from, though. After all, I had been injected back into her life as a customer she had to satisfy for money in a place where women like her had to go the extra mile to earn the cash I'd leave behind — only to lose much of it to the high commission the place took. She had the right to doubt because she didn't know that I was aware that she wasn't that kind of woman. If she knew this, she might feel fear instead of discomfort.

"I don't want to bother you with work during your lunch break." The hesitation was palpable in the way she fidgeted with her fingers. I had to hand it to her — this woman was genuinely considerate of the relationship she had with that semblance of a man. I could tell from her body language the respect she had for whatever it was they had going on. She didn't want to lead anyone on by pretending to be available, even if it meant unlocking doors she desperately needed full access to. "Maybe we could meet next week, if you're free, and pick up from where we left off?"

Not next week. Not the other one. I could no longer postpone my plan. I had to put it into action now more than ever. Now was my chance. Yoongi was still in prison, and she needed something I could offer. Aside from the contract clauses — which I wasn't sure she knew about —there was no guarantee that she would linger around once the money was in her account and Yoongi was a free man again. Now I had a chance to turn our work-related relationship into something deeper. I needed her to consider me close enough to call me a friend. I needed her trust because friends talk and share endlessly.

If friendship was not a sufficient basis of trust to divulge all hidden secrets, pillow talk usually did the trick. The intention was there all along and from the start — to have her in wrapped in my sheets. It was just that now another reason was added to make me work even harder for my goal.

I stood up, adjusted my vest while walking toward her, and wondered how Yoongi would feel when I took his woman, made her mine, and also made her take care of my child— the child he took away my chance to see grow up. I lost so many moments. I lost the moment he started walking and the moment he spoke for the first time. I wondered what was the first word he said. Was it mommy? Was it daddy? Shit! I didn't want to consider that it could have been uncle instead.

I held out my hand and signaled for her to take it and follow me. When she did, I figured it didn't matter what my son's first words were, because I would make sure he hated that family as much as I did.

"I insist. I don't want you to waste the time you could be using to practice, only to meet me again when we can work out the details today. I'd rather you be ready for Hera when the time comes." My voice was reassuring. The way I hid my intentions and feelings behind professionalism and care was a testament to my patience and willingness to take the long way. I tossed a smile there, too, 'cause why not make my acting Oscar-worthy while I'm at it? She returned my fake-ass smile with a genuine one and took my hand, getting up from the couch and following me to the office door.

I ignored Seokjin's stares as I entered the elevator with my little joker card at my side, resting my palm on the small of her back. Her nervousness hadn't escaped me as we rode the elevator, nor had the way she stood in the far corner to put distance between us. This woman was so loyal to that bastard it was unnerving. Still, I respected her for it. Some other women would jump at the chance to get into the good graces of a wealthy man who showed signs of interest. I didn't push it further as we stepped out of the elevator and walked to the main gate. If I needed her trust, I had to take it slow. Park Jimin would do the rushed, irrational work for me. I would do what her kind appreciated — I would become what her kind liked. A rational, respectful man.

My car had already been brought by the valet, who left my door open and hurried to open hers. She was so busy adjusting her dress to cover her exposed thighs that she forgot to fasten her seatbelt. So I decided to remind her by reaching over and pulling on the belt to fasten it for her. I couldn't help the small grin that formed on my lips as she sucked in a breath and pressed herself back against the seat avoiding the forced proximity as much as possible. "We don't know what we might bump into on the road. Better safe than sorry," I adjusted my posture and started the engine.

"Force of habit. I'm more used to subway rides than cars," She chuckled.

The half-hour ride passed in silence until we reached the restaurant she certainly hadn't expected me to take her to. It was a small barbecue place owned by an elderly couple. Nothing luxurious, as she might have expected from a chairman to eat in. It was located in a modest alley where cab and truck drivers spent their lunch break. An alley packed with Chinese restaurants and street food. I took off my vest, threw it on the passenger seat along with my sunglasses, and rolled up the sleeves of my white shirt as she watched the location and my actions in disbelief. "Are you going to eat here?"

"It may not look like it, but this place has the best Seolleongtang in Seoul."

"I know they do. I eat here often, but I didn't think you'd know this place."

This time my smile was somehow genuine. My plan would go smoothly with this simple woman. She was the type to judge the book by its cover and regret it as soon as her assumptions turned out to be wrong. She'd guilt trip because she hated labeling people, even though she did it often, especially with me. I saw it in her face, the disgust at having put a person on the wrong shelf, and I'd be damned if I didn't keep pulling on that thread.

"Why? Don't I get to enjoy delicious food?" I asked as I led her to the restaurant, and her reply came in a hushed tone as Uncle Lee greeted me warmly. "I didn't mean it like that."

"Taehyung, my sweet boy. If you had told me you were coming today, I would have prepared your favorite egg rolls."

"I was feeling under the weather and figured a good bowl of Seolleongtang would do the trick. I see the place is full. Shall we come back later?"

"What are you talking about? Woman, set a table in the spare room. Taehyung is here."Uncle Lee hurried to ring a customer, and that's when joker card decided to break the silence. "You're a regular here."

"I am. And I think you will be too when you try the food. It's to die for."

I made my way to the back room and took off my shoes while Inaya did the same. I sat down cross-legged on the floor and immediately regretted leaving my vest in the car. She was struggling with her dress again, so I looked around and grabbed a blanket that was lying in the corner, and handed it to her to cover her legs. "Here."

There was one thing Inaya Chen and Min Yoongi had in common. They were both taciturn. She bowed her head in a grateful gesture, and I decided it was my job to draw out her words. "Tell me, Miss Chen. Your resume says you studied civil engineering. what made you decide to work in a coffee shop instead of pursuing your dream?"

She pursed her lips and I realized that I had hit a sensitive nerve. Too bad I didn't feel bad about it. This kind of pressure was crucial if I wanted to break down the barriers between us. She let out a sigh, and after being lost in her thoughts for a second, her reply came. "Companies require experience. I don't have any because no one would take an inexperienced person or someone with no connections."

"That's a vicious policy, indeed. Experience only materializes when a candidate is given their first chance. You'd think the rules would be more logical in this day and age." I shook my head in disbelief.

She laughed. Loud and free of discomfort, which caught me off guard. I looked at her until she recovered from her fit of laughter and asked, "What's so funny?"

"The fact that you're an entrepreneur who badmouths other entrepreneurs, I guess."

"I wasn't born an entrepreneur. I became one when I got so many rejections I lost count. Besides, I didn't require you to be experienced when I scouted you now, did I?"

"You didn't."

"I don't believe in experience. Anyone can be taught to become experienced; after all, everyone has to start somewhere. The only reason I would turn down a candidate would be if they had a criminal record or relatives who were in trouble with the law." I let the innuendo settle, watching as her face turned all shades of pale— a little test to see if she would speak up. And knowing the type of woman she was, she would. Then I'd make an exception that stems from empathy. Empathy builds trust. And trust was what I was after.

Her mouth opened as if to spill the pearls when her phone began to ring. "Please feel free to take it." I prompted, and at the same time, my phone buzzed with an incoming text.

Chul: Min Yoongi was taken to the hospital due to injuries resulting from a fight.

**Unedited**
Votes and comments are appreciated. 😘