V

What am I doing.

The first drops of the rain are cold as it lands on my skin. Soon the thin drops turn heavy, and I'm  soaked within minutes as I stare blankly down the empty streets.

I'd come down here, with no plan at all. I didn't have a way to find her— or what I would even say if I did find her.

I had just wanted to see her so badly.

The rain drips off the pale skin of my face, in rivulets.

I wonder where she is. What she might be doing. If she was somewhere dry and safe— did she have a warm place to sleep? I had no way of knowing.

My eyes squeeze together. The pain is even worse now, in my chest. It has claws.

I'd rather have her here, holding a knife to my throat and cursing at me. I'd rather have that than not knowing where she is.

After that day, the thought of her with other men had haunted me for all my days and nights.

I take a deep breath.

There was no way I was going to find her like this.

And I'm about to turn when I realize the relentless pouring of the rain has stopped. I can't feel it— but how? The rain was pouring harder than it had ever been.

"Are you out of your mind?"

I whip around at the quiet voice.

For a second I can't believe it all.

"Aeri."

"Hold it." She hisses, and I stupidly take the metal handle of the umbrella she shoves into my chest. My eyes are fixed on her— I can't take my eyes off of her.

Was I dreaming?

She throws a sharp glance back at me.

"Follow me. Or are you planning to just stand there until the rain stops?"

I slowly shake my head.

"Then come."

Her voice is full of scorn and distaste. But I've never felt as happy as I do now as she leads me down the street, her fingers clasped tight around my wrist.

I can only see the back of her. She doesn't turn around, and her grip is rough.

But I don't mind in the slightest.

I shift the umbrella over her head, not even minding the cold rain that has started back up against my own skin.

________________________________

AERI

I wonder what he might be thinking right now.

The one-room apartment isn't clean. It probably smells, of the burning coal from the next building. An abandoned factory, with the constant stench of smoke and thick gas.

There's a pile of messy blankets on the floor. A few pairs of clothes.

That's really it.

I can feel his gaze on me as I push open the door. My voice is icy as I silently point towards the cramped bathroom, starting to pull out a towel and the largest clothes I owned.

"Thank you." He whispers, in a soft voice that makes me turn to stare at him as he closes the door behind himself.

My jaw flexes.

Shut up.

I'm only doing this for your money.

My fingers tighten around the rough cotton material of the shirt I'm holding.

He's so naive. Six years had passed, and he had just become even more naive than before. Didn't he realize I wouldn't be doing this to him without a reason? Why was he—

A rough breath escapes my lips as I run my hand down my face.

Stop.

It's better this way. Why was I complaining?

The door opens a few minutes later. V slightly ducks under the low frame of the bathroom door, dressed in my clothes. When we meet eyes, he gives me a faint smile.

And for a second I nearly forget why I'd taken him here for. I forget all the dark thoughts in my mind, just at the glimmer of his smile.

But it's only a second. And the thoughts fill my head again.

He killed Aemin.

He killed Aemin. Get that into your fucking head.

My lips curve back in a pale smile. It's one of those practiced smiles, the ones I use for my clients. Then I loosely tuck my hair over the curve of my ear, approaching him.

He's a client.

"V." I murmur, and his eyes go a little wide when I touch my fingertips to his cheek. "You're all cold from the rain. Why were you out here?"

His mouth is a pressed line. And this time, I'm the one who's a little taken aback as he gently wraps his fingers around my wrist and eases my hand away from my cheek. His voice is soft.

"Because I wanted to see you."

...what?

"But you don't even know where I live."

"I know," He murmurs. "But I did still end up seeing you, didn't I?"

And I barely hide the burst of anger showing on my face when he says that. Did he think I was up to playing around with him? Did he not understand who he was to me?

Calm down. Take the first step.

I fix a stiff smile.

"Why?"

V hesitates. Suddenly his eyes are full of worry, like he'd been holding all of it back until now. His long, slender fingers are clasped together.

"Aeri, I want to help you."

Huh.

He was really handing this to me on a silver platter, wasn't he?

But I couldn't go all out. Not yet, at least.

"I told you I wasn't going to accept anything from you," I say, but my tone is intentionally suggestive. His eyes flicker, and I wonder if he recognized.

His hands clasp tighter.

"Please," He says. "I'm sorry. I know what this sounds like, but I can't— I can't watch you live this way. It's too dangerous here, Aeri. It's..."

His voice fades. He must've realized that my expression was hardening without even myself realizing it.

I breathe, barely stopping my lip from curling.

Who was he to say that? Dangerous? I'd been here since thirteen. I knew this place like the back of my damn hand.

It was him who was more in danger, by being down here.

"So what are you saying? Get to the point."

"I'm saying I want to pay your debt for you." He says, without hesitating now. "I want to get you out of here. I can give you a place to stay, in the Skygrounds."

He's pleading. I can hear it in his voice.

But the words tumble out of my lips before I can even stop them.

"So you could keep me on a leash?"

His eyes meet mine. But I don't break the stare, and just hold his gaze for the next seconds that pass by.

His eyes. All that gray and storm blue. Cloudy, but the way he feels for me is so clear to see. He doesn't even bother to hide it in the slightest.

All that warmth. The love.

It hadn't changed from six years ago.

But six years ago, he had also killed Aemin.

His voice is quiet.

"I would never."

"This is all your choice, Aeri. If you want something to be done, I will get it done for you. I can get you a separate place in the Skygrounds— that's what I meant. Or if you really prefer to stay down here, at least your debt..."

"My choice?"

He pauses. Then he nods.

"Yours. Completely."

So I make a show of thinking this through, even when I already know what I was going to say. I skim over the words in my mind.

My tone is demanding. I know he would give it to me, anyways. Even if I spit in his face he would still do anything I asked for.

He was an asset. And I would take as much advantage of him as I possibly could.

The ending wouldn't change.

Break him, and leave him in pieces.

"Okay." I say, smiling sweetly. "If you really insist. I'll come to the Skygrounds with you, V."

"But on one condition."

"Name it."

"I need you to help a friend." I say, tilting my head to the side. "She's also in a lot of debt. She's the only one who helped me when I was lost, at first. It's because of her I'm alive."

"I want you to secure a pass for her too."

He's nodding. This was going to go easily. Just as I thought it would.

Playful curiosity suddenly edges into my mind. How far would he take my antics until he'd finally say no, shake his head?

"I want a separate place. Somewhere I can stay with her. Far away from you."

"And it has to be by the Crystal Beach."

Even with my scum status in the Underground, I knew just how expensive houses by the Crystal Beach were. I'd heard that the monthly rent for just a small apartment could feed a thousand Underground families for a full year.

I'd expected his eyes to shadow.

But instead, he smiles. A deep laugh resonates from his throat, as his eyes curve into warm crescents.

He looks too happy for a man who'd just lost millions of dollars. Maybe even more.

Was he even richer than I'd thought he was?

He just looks pleased. The pleasure is all over him— his gaze, his posture. Like he'd just achieved one of his biggest dreams by making me say yes.

My lips press.

It's infuriating.

"Consider it done."