002 ⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖ ࣪ જ⁀➴𖣠 HUNG YOU ON A HOOK.

"I'm home!" Suyeon yelled from the door, throwing her keys on the drawer. She was going to leave soon, but she didn't care enough to hold it the whole way to the kitchen. Sowon squealed, running toward Suyeon. "You're excited to see me, huh?"

Sowon embraced her older sister–before snatching the bag of dumplings out of her hand. Suyeon's lips pursed, watching Sowon sit at the dinner table. Her friend, Kim Nari emerged from the living room, looking at her. Suyeon stared back at her and the two collided, Suyeon leaning in. "Thanks for watching her while I'm gone. I'll make sure to pay you well."

"No need. I know you demanding your real job gets," Nari was the only one who knew the truth about Suyeon's lifestyle. The two watched Sowon choke down her dumplings, scrolling on her phone. "How long are you going to be gone again?"

"I don't know. Until the work is done," Nari hated hearing that. She'd always worry that Suyeon would never return home, and it scared her what the future would hold. Even if Suyeon proved herself over and over again that she'd never die, Nari wished she could stop her best friend. "I'll still be in Seoul, just won't return to the house as much. I'll stay at a hotel to keep her safe."

"So, sis, why's Nari taking care of me again? Big job coming?" Sowon asked, causing the two to separate. Suyeon nodded with a smile, got closer to her sister, and knelt. She pushed away the strands from her face and ate the dumpling that remained in her grasp. "Hey! That was mine!"

"Snooze, ya' lose," Suyeon muffled before swallowing, staring at Sowon lovingly. "I'll be gone for a while again, okay? No calling unless it's an absolute emergency or unless I call you first. Make sure to study hard, and Nari can contact me for anything else."

Sowon frowned. "You promised me that we were going to go to the movies one of these weekends."

"We will. Just let me get this project done, and we can go," Suyeon smiled. "I promise you. I'll be home soon."

Sowon nodded. "Okay. I'll see you, then. Work hard!"

Suyeon stood up and faced Nari. Her best friend wore an ill expression, suppressing what seemed to be tears. "Stay strong, work hard," Nari choked out, trying to keep her composure. Then, she mouthed, Stay safe.

Suyeon nodded, walking back to the door. She grabbed her keys from the drawer and opened the door, locking it behind her. Suyeon paused for a moment, her sixth sense opening fear, and quickly looked around.

Nobody was there.

"He'll usually be at the club on Sundays. It's his day off," Heeseung explained as Suyeon inspected his face. "Seize that chance to get close to him. I don't recommend killing him yet–because he might find out you're after him too soon."

The closest club in the area was only a few miles away. It was well known for being a center of drug dealing and money scams, so Suyeon presumed that a hitman of all people would fall into that bracket. She descended the stairwell and unlocked her Dodge, a pretty pearly gray somewhat hidden by the night. Getting into her car, she flew off within seconds.

Suyeon arrived half an hour later, parking her car. As she turned off the engine, she sat there for a moment–how should she go about killing this man? If he's at the same level of work as her, if she moves too quickly, he'll catch on. Maybe he already knows she's trying to kill him too. "Whatever," Suyeon dismissed, getting out of her car and locking it. She looked at her dagger, a pistol on the other side. "God, please make this easy. I want to go home."

Suyeon walked into the club, wincing at the scene. Men were gambling with women beside them, their hands roaming in places unimaginable. People were dancing, getting down to the loud beat, getting sensual with one another. This wasn't Suyeon's scene–if she wanted to drink, she went to a pub or bar. At least the sights there were better than these.

She got to the bar and hopped onto the seat, waiting for the bartender to come around her way. Once she did, he instantly recognized her, flashing a smile. "Jaesu," She bowed her head, smiling as well. "I haven't seen you around here in a while! Got busy with your accountant work?"

"Yeah. Big stuff coming, so I've been working overtime," She told him, sliding some cash onto the table. "A greyhound, please."

"Got it!" He went off to get her drink made and mixed, so finally, Suyeon had some time to look around. Her eyes scattered to find the familiar face on the file, but it was as if he went back on his word. If he comes every Sunday, he should be here, right?

Suyeon turned back to the counter, lips pursed. Perhaps her first try was already a failure. "Is this seat taken?" A man asked to her right, but she didn't have any aim in replying. So, she shook her head, and the man took the seat. The bartender came back with Suyeon's greyhound, raising his eyebrows. "The usual, please, a mimosa."

"Jay," The bartender spoke, perking up Suyeon's ears. With her hand on the glass, she spared him a glance, checking out his features. Sharp jawline, check. Brown eyes, check. Dark brown hair, check. A masculine figure, check. All of it was turning out to be him and in correlation to the alias. "I haven't seen you in a while, either! What have you been up to?"

"Work," Jongseong nodded, hoping the conversation with the bartender could end so he could get closer to Suyeon. He slowly turned her way to see her already staring, knowing that he'd captured her attention–but Suyeon snapped her head away. He held back a snicker. She's too gullible. A-Grade? Jongseong thought, shaking his head. This is starting to look too easy.

The bartender went to go make Jongseong's drink, which allowed Jongseong to finally strike the first conversation. "Do you come here often?" Jongseong asked, making Suyeon lift her head. She shook her head, trying to get him out of his comfort zone before striking anything crazy. "Come on. I saw you looking, and you don't want to dance?"

"What gives you that assumption?" Jay inspected her from head to toe. He knew it was Suyeon from her hair and face. However, he thought she'd look a little more hitwoman-like–but she was wearing a simple puffer jacket and jeans. He almost did a double take when he walked toward her, wondering if it could truly be her. "My outfit?"

Suyeon stared. He, too, didn't look like a hitman. His attractiveness, of course, objectively, was too good. His outfit made him look like a model rather than a murderer. "You're right, I suppose," Suyeon turned in her chair, facing the dance floor. She inspected every person like a hitwoman would–red hair, around 5'4", skinny physique. The man next to her was around 5'7", black-haired, with a buff physique. "I don't like dancing. People look weird doing it."

Jongseong extended an arm her way, lifting a hand over her drink. "Do they?" Jongseong asked before his fingers rubbed against one another, sprinkling white powder into her greyhound. Suyeon kept her eyes on the dancefloor, smirking, slowly nodding her head. "Maybe you just haven't found the right person to dance with."

Jongseong finished his spiking, leaving his arm extended, yet, his hand gripping the bartender's side of the counter. "Here's your mimosa," The two turned back around, facing their drinks. Jongseong nodded and thanked the bartender, waiting for him to walk away. Suyeon watched him like a hawk, her fingers tapping the counter with impatience.

"My name's Jay," Jongseong extended the hand that sat on his side. "Your name?"

She took it and squeezed it slightly. His hands were sweating and his palms were rough. "Jaesu."

"Jaesu? As in... 'good luck?'" She flashed a smile. Not even her boss got her alias on the first try. She had to explain it to him numerous times. She found that slightly charming about her target though he was waltzing right into her trap. "That's cute."

"Thank you."

"Shall we drink?" Jongseong lifted his drink, toasting to them, and then took a sip. Suyeon turned back to her drink, pressing the glass up to her lips. Then, she noticed it–her ice sunk. She could see undissolved powder at the bottom of her drink, indicating the truth to come to light. Briefly, she took a smell–what should've been a strong smell of vodka was now gone.

Suyeon's intuition was right–this wasn't a normal job where her target was innocent. Jongseong was trying to kill her too. This was a hitman versus hitwoman fight, and now, Suyeon had the upper hand. She looked over at him, seeing Jongseong enjoying his mimosa, looking out at the dance floor. She swiftly turned back to her drink and tapped the glass, smirking.

It's too easy, Suyeon thought. He must not know.

And Jongseong truly didn't. He thought he'd be successful by acting swiftly. He believe Suyeon didn't know about him, and was just found captive by his face. Of course, his ego fogged the path, and now, he gave too much away. Suyeon cleared her throat, an idea coming to mind. "Say, Jay, do you want to–Oh my god!" Suyeon leaned in too close and spilled her spiked drink all over Jay, the coldness causing him to flinch. She grabbed a few napkins from the counter and began trying to help, stifling her laugh."Shit, I'm so- so sorry, Jay! It was an accident, and–"

"No, it's fine," Jongseong snatched the napkins from her hands, evidently pissed. It was a new turtleneck, and now, it was already ruined by a klutz. He sighed as he felt his chest get soaked, and realized that his plan was a bust. He hoped she took at least one sip–maybe the drug would've kicked in. "I'll be back. I'm going to try and wash it off."

"Yeah, go ahead. Sorry again!" Jongseong walked away, practically fuming. He shoved a drunkard in the shoulder as he entered the bathroom, and although the drunk man cursed him out, all Jongseong could think about was how stupid Suyeon was.

"A-Grade hitwoman, my ass. She's spilling drinks like it's nothing!" Jongseong sighed with frustration, shaking his head. He ran his turtleneck under hot water, sopping it up with the paper towels left on the sink. "I can't believe I'm doing this. This is so fucking degrading."

It was the most Jongseong's ever talked to a target, and now, he was mentally groaning at how much his plan was going south. He finally got most of the drink out of his turtleneck, sighing. "Alright, hold it together, Jay. Soon, it'll all be over," His pep talk didn't last long. He walked out of the bathroom and quickly stepped back to the bar.

However, when he returned, Suyeon was gone–like she never existed. There was no trace of her empty glass, no trace of the spill. It was like he was talking to air. Had Jongseong gone crazy? He swiftly ran up to the counter, looking for anything that might indicate she was coming back, but there was nothing–just money, and...

"What the fuck?" Jongseong cursed, lifting the napkin that was hidden under a few coins. He read it, over and over again, like it had his brain in a chokehold. His fingers trembled as he realized he'd been fooled, that this whole clumsy ruse–was Suyeon keeping her distance. He slammed the napkin back down, cursing again. "Fuck."

The napkin, crumpled by his tightening fists, read:

Good luck, Jay.
- Jaesu

Suyeon jumped in her Dodge, turned on the engine, and reversed out of the parking lot. She pressed her phone to her ear after dialing Heeseung, waiting for him to pick up. "Hey, Suyeon. What's up? Did you meet him?"

"Yeah–tell me, I'm also his target, Boss?"

Heeseung didn't reply for a moment. "What?"

"He's trying to kill me too. I don't think he knows I'm trying to kill him, but I know I'm his target," She replied, turning the wheel to the left with one hand. "Have you been bullshitting me? I thought he wouldn't have anything to do with me."

"I didn't know, Suyeon, trust me," Heeseung laughed. "Isn't it just more fun for you? Don't you like toying around with your targets?"

"I take risks, but not this many. This makes things harder. If he finds out that I've got a desire to end his life, he'll hide or we'll have a showdown. This wasn't on my list of things to do," Heeseung sighed. "I mean it, Boss, is it even worth it? I'm just acting as your distraction."

"If he's got you as his target and you give in, then you'll just be on the chase. Your ordinary job's going to get harder. You might as well end him while you have the chance," Suyeon understood that. She just had too much on the line. "Listen, Suyeon. You've been working for me since you were fifteen. It's been seven years. You can handle anything–more than I can."

"You're flattering me," Suyeon replied. "And, it's kind of working."

"Glad to hear that," Heeseung suddenly paused. "I'm getting another call. Return home for now and remember not to get caught. If something happens, let me know."

"Okay. See you," Suyeon ended the call, throwing her phone into the passenger seat, and speeding over the bridge and toward her hotel. Now, she had to reevaluate her path–she was someone's target.

"Hello?"

"Boss, she's gone."

"Did you act too hastily?" Jongseong couldn't respond. "I told you to be careful. She's their ace."

"I was careful!" Jongseong groaned, facepalming. He leaned against the brick wall, rubbing his temples and pissing himself off for letting Suyeon slip away. "She just slipped away. I don't think she found out I'm targeting her, but she's smarter than I thought."

"That's your mistake, Jay," Jongseong raised an eyebrow. "You underestimated her."

"She acted like I should. She was clumsy, and–" Jongseong paused, realizing his mistake. "She was putting on an act."

"Exactly, Jay, and you fell right into it," His boss groaned. "She may not know that you're targeting her, but she knows how to cover her footsteps better than you could. Return home–and try again another day. I believe in you."

But as his boss ended the call, Jongseong gripped the device tight, gritting his teeth. Now, he was getting underestimated by his superior. If he couldn't kill Suyeon, he would surely be cut from the A-Rank. All those years would go to waste.

Jongseong harshly shoved his phone into his pocket and inhaled the cold air through his nose. His eyes searched around one last time, looking to see if she lingered among the midnight skies, but she truly ceased to exist.

So, Jongseong jumped into his black Porsche and hit the engine button hard, abusing it for the sake of not hurting an innocent person on the streets.

He was caught on getting caught–and, caught on Suyeon.

But, he shoved it at the back of his brain,

And saved it for another day.