The Crux

[teamkame]

CHAPTER 10

“AH! Shhhi-”

Taeyeon's jaw clenched shut. The top of her gums throbbed just as her fangs pushed through the soft tissue. It was nowhere as painful as the burning ache in her nose. The sharp jab at the bridge of her increased just as she heard a pop and Taeyeon's jaw clenched shut to hold back another scream.

A fresh wall of tears, pooled around the edge of her eyelids. Peering through the tears, Taeyeon released her jaw as she watched the blurry lab coat figure walk away, inspecting the injury.

“I'm done.” Taeyeon released her death-grip from her chair and wiped away tears. “Can you breathe through your nose?”

Taeyeon let out a chuckle, before wiping away the last of her tears. “I stopped making breathing a habit centuries ago.”

“I need to see if I have to realign your nose again.” A Q-tip was removed from it's plastic package.

Taeyeon took a deep breath through her nose, cringing as it throbbed again. The copper taste of blood slid down her throat. Another breath was released through her nose as she exhaled. The split second of cool oxygen spreading through Taeyeon's chest left an odd icy tingle into her lungs. While she may have not made it a top priority anymore, the body she occupied never forgot it's once basic necessity to life.

“It's fine.” Taeyeon replied, flinching as the tip of the Q-tip went up her nose. The circular motion of the soft cotton in her nasal cavity made Taeyeon squirm. Instantly a tear from her left eye slid down her cheek. Just as Taeyeon was about to open her mouth and let out a sneeze, the Q-tip was removed.

“You're already healing.”

Taeyeon scoffed. “I knew that.”

The blood-splotched Q-tip was discard in the bin underneath the desk. Seohyun steadily removed her latex gloves, throwing them into the garbage and removed her white lab coat. She felt the eyes of her leader on her as she placed the coat onto a hanger next to the door.

“Your nose would heal faster if I pushed it back in place. It worked didn't it?” Seohyun explained.

Gingerly, Taeyeon poked a finger into her nose and pulled it back. The bleeding stopped completely. She looked back at Seohyun. She raised her brow and in the faintest twitch, Taeyeon watched the right side of her cheek lift. The half-baked smile would have been alluring if it didn't look like a smirk and if Seohyun's eyes didn't have that mysterious cat-like stare. Swiftly, Seohyun's thumb and forefinger pinched Taeyeon's nose and she yelped. On reflex, Taeyeon's hand took a hold of Seohyun's wrist and slowly lowered it to her side.

“I think that's enough with the touching.” Taeyeon stated. “You enjoy watching the pain of others, don't you?”

Seohyun's eyes twinkled, dampening to a darker shade and both corners of her mouth stretched into a smile. Taeyeon arched a brow in amusement. She was a lot more morbid than she expected, but she was a skilled medic. Taeyeon trusted that on her resume, out of the other skills it proclaimed she had. Seohyun walked over to the counter, flipping open a beige-colored folder.

“Your nose will swell for a few minutes.” Seohyun stated.

Taeyeon, watched Seohyun idly flip through the sheets of white paper inside the folder. Taeyeon felt herself grin. Seohyun was bored. Taeyeon couldn't blame her. The medic field wasn't exactly entertaining unless there were wounded soldiers or new experiment projects going on.

Field work kept the edge off of waiting. Seohyun was a much more tame doctor, not completely lost from her own insanity from countless experiments or isolation. Whack-job doctors weren't kept at the base. The government found it suitable to keep them into the lower decks of another base.

While they weren't stable, their intelligence was valued, until the doctors killed themselves or tried to quit. Taeyeon knew quitting wasn't an option and neither was getting fired. It was safer to put out a hit and set it up as an accident. That way information won't be leaked to the public. An act all done to hide their secret and maintain a clean image to the citizens.

“You haven't seen Sunny have you? I thought she was given medic duty.” Taeyeon questioned.

Her team didn't need another medic in the field, Sunny did a good job of taking care of everyone. Taeyeon only had an interest in her skills, her top-notched aim was worth noticing. Seohyun continued to turn the pages of her file, pretending to be more interested in its continents rather than Taeyeon herself. Another page was flipped to the side just as Seohyun shook her head.

“She took a break.” She answered.

Taeyeon sighed. There was no point in waiting, Sunny was still upset and Taeyeon still didn't know why. She wouldn't put it against Sunny if she blamed Taeyeon for her mood. She had been doing a lot of things lately that got Sunny angry. For the most part, Sunny had a decent amount of tolerance. But if she needed her space to cool down or clear her head, Sunny put her best efforts into not being found. Taeyeon didn't want to go on another wild goose chase.

“If you see Sunny, tell her I was looking for her.” Taeyeon requested.

Seohyun glanced up, watching Taeyeon walk out the infirmary.

***

Yoona latched on to Yuri's hand and pulled her toward an empty table. Turning back into the crowd, Yoona had lost sight of Tiffany. A heavy exhale from the left drew her attention back to Yuri. Through the dim light, Yoona can see the faint shine of sweat build around Yuri's brow. She couldn't leave Yuri's side, but Yoona couldn't stay put watching after Yuri if she wanted to stay on track with their plan.

Should I take her home?

No, it will take too long. Yuri will have to stay.

Yoona nodded, nervously biting her bottom lip to calm herself and follow her leader's orders. Yuri could be sick. Yoona couldn't be sure, but she had to deal with seeing Yuri run down. She couldn't find herself to be at peace, seeing Yuri in this shape. To ease her worries, Yoona used her observation to find a quick release to Yuri's uneasiness. She was still mobile and breathing, so that meant she was alive with no wounds. Yoona leaned down within Yuri's earshot.

“I'll get you a drink.” Yoona announced, spotting a waitress walk her way passed their table.

She waved the worker over. “May I help you?” She smiled.

Yoona wasn't sure if she witnessed the waitress's pupils start to spiral and glow when they made eye-contact but she felt uncomfortable around this waitress. Pushing away the haze that clouded her mind, Yoona became aware of the situation and took an inch back. The curly smile on the waitress's face remained and it didn't make Yoona feel any better.

“One cola please.” Yoona requested, the raise of the waitress' brow didn't go unnoticed.

The waitress nodded and left. Yoona let out a sigh. She took a seat next to Yuri. She didn't know if the drink will do anything, but it had to do something to keep Yuri more focused. Shifting her gaze back to the crowd, Yoona wondered if she can find her way round the dancing party-goers just to keep Yuri at a more comfortable distance. She couldn't see any other way through the club without having to enter a wave of dancing bodies. Examining the club further, Yoona noticed the club had a second floor. It had tables along the railing. Scanning the row of tables, Yoona picked up the gleam of green eyes.

Tiffany sat back in her chair and waved. She looked at ease to be in a club again. Yoona let out a small breath of relief. The fear was over and that meant Tiffany had put a lot of demons to rest. That was something more comforting at the moment then Yuri's ill feelings.

How do you expect us to find this demon?

Yoona watched Tiffany shrug. She had never went into a mission without a plan and the only outline she had was to get inside and search. That left them with no idea where to start.

All I know is that this demon is female and owns this club. BoA couldn't tell me much about her appearance because she's always changing her identity.

Tiffany witnessed Yoona scratch the back of her head in frustration. A patch of ruffled hair stuck up, but was quickly smoothed down after. She could relate. As leader, Tiffany had a responsibility to keep a mission organized. A smooth plan meant less risk and deaths.

I'm no good stuck here watching Yuri, unnie.

It's alright. I don't mind investigating alone. I'm much better at undercover work anyway.

Tiffany stood from her chair. She disappeared from Yoona's view once she left the railing. Yoona noticed that her waitress returned with a cup of soda and thanked her as she placed it on the table. Yuri still looked the same, flushed and barely responsive. Yoona was somewhat at ease when Yuri took the cup into her hand.

A rush of clubers ran passed Yoona, screaming in excitement. She realized it was a group of five girls and watched them run toward the other end of the club. Squinting, Yoona stared harder into their direction.

Hey, unnie, there's a VIP section. You should start there.

That will make the search a lot easier. I'm on it. Don't move. We're in a house full of succubus anything can happen.

I know. Don't worry unnie. I'll take care of Yuri.

Tiffany went down the last three steps and squeezed her way through the dancing mob, being sure to pry away any hands that tried to grab her. It was uncomfortably hot every time she passed and the air was stale. She had never found heavy breathing this annoying before, especially this loud. There was no way of telling who did it, or if they were aware of their actions, all the more useless it would be to get angry about it. When Tiffany reached the end of the crowd she made her way to the left of the club.

A few feet from where she stood, Tiffany spotted a bodyguard beside red rope guarding a booth. She couldn't tell who was inside, but Tiffany was more focused on trying to figure out how she got inside rather than who was in it. Smoothing down the creases in her dress, Tiffany took a deep breath and strutted her way over to the guard. It was time to put her game face on.

***

“We have to talk.”

Taeyeon watched Sunny jump nearly drop the towel around her body. She couldn't stop herself from smiling at the thought of getting a chance to see what was underneath. Sunny glared at her once her shock settled down and folded her arms in front of her chest.

“How long have you been in here?” Sunny asked.

Taeyeon grinned, tilting her head to the side. “Since when are you so shy?” She chuckled. “I've seen all of you already.”

Sunny scoffed and brushed passed Taeyeon. Realizing her mistake, Taeyeon quickly grabbed on to Sunny's wrist and pulled her back. Her smile long gone and replaced with a more solemn expression.

“I didn't mean that.” Taeyeon started. “I just wanted to talk.” Sunny frowned, shaking her head and Taeyeon felt a rush of anger for a second settle into her hands.

Sunny flinched as the grip on her wrist tightened. Taeyeon realized her actions and loosened her grip, but refused to let go. Sunny would rush out given the chance and Taeyeon wanted to settle their differences, like planned.

“Right now isn't the time to talk, Taeyeon.” Sunny brushed off.

“Then when is?” Taeyeon rebutted. “Look, I know something is bothering you and it's no good to leave whatever tension we have if we're going to work together as a team. I really need to speak with you.”

The glare on Sunny's face stayed. Taeyeon was teetering on a line between anger and desperation. She had never felt her legs shake and wobble. A human aspect Sunny had been able to keep alive. Taeyeon never did understand how she did that. The uneasiness around them affected Taeyeon.

Sunny normally didn't have any issues with her or her choices, but the way she was handling it left Taeyeon frustrated. The only person she trusted on the team was Sunny. If the person that was keeping her solid was turning against her, Taeyeon wasn't sure how she will be able to run the rest of the team.

“So that's what you care about? Just having your team work together because it's our job?” Sunny responded.

Taeyeon sighed, ruffling the back of her head. Sunny broke free of Taeyeon's grip and put her hand onto her arm. Taeyeon allowed herself to be led out of the bathroom and down the hall. Sunny slid her card through the scanner and swiftly went inside.

Taeyeon leaned against the wall as Sunny got dressed, not bothered that she was being watched. The tension between the two teammates was thick enough to put a stun on Taeyeon's perverted remarks. The intensity rose. When Sunny was finished, Taeyeon's confidence shrunk to the size of a dime. But she had insisted they talk and Sunny was willing to try, Taeyeon pushed her doubts aside.

“I'm sorry.” She stated.

A disapproved shaking of Sunny's head made Taeyeon's confidence decrease. She had involuntary went back to square one.

“Do you know why I'm mad?” Sunny questioned. After much thought, Taeyeon shook her head, not trusting herself to say the right thing to defuse the situation. “It's because you've changed.”

“Do you want me to turn back to the person I was when I first met you?” Taeyeon frowned. “I wasn't any good, always sad and miserable. I lived in a sewer!”

“That isn't the aspect I was talking about.” Sunny sighed. “You're too focused on work, trying to put on this hardass image for the people who treat us like we're disposable cups.” Sunny began to pace, finding the anger in her starting to rise. “You act like our relationship is a joke! Is it easier for you to work if we keep this whole friends-with-benefits thing?”

“And if I do nothing we're as good as dead.” Taeyeon reminded. “I signed up for this and I knew the risk. We can't quit now.” Taeyeon sighed.

Agreeing to work with the government looked like a promising job at the time. Taeyeon had nothing. Just a beat down apartment in the bad side of town and that wasn't going to last. She was two months behind rent. All she had was Sunny, who worked so hard to bring in more money and make their life easier. Taeyeon was grateful for Sunny. She wanted to stay around when their life got difficult. Joining the military offered a stable job, pay, and home. Sunny followed because she had always went where Taeyeon did with no questions asked.

“Why did you join me?” Taeyeon asked.

“I'll let you figure that out.”

Taeyeon found herself pushed out into the hall and the door closed the second she passed through. Taeyeon stared at the door for a few minutes. It wasn't the type of talk she had in mind, but it was a start. Frustration tingled at the back of her head and Taeyeon sighed, rubbing the back of her neck to calm herself down. Another round at the training facility looked appealing.

***

A handful of smiling, winking, arm-clinging, and giggling later, Tiffany was inside the VIP section. The smell of cigarettes hit her nose the first step through the boot. She can worry about it sticking to her dress later. Pushing aside her attention to her possibility of having a cigarette fuming dress she surveyed her surroundings.

The private room didn't look out of the ordinary. A group of females with very few males, everyone with a drink in their hand, and several with a cigarette in the other hand. There were a few people making out and others that were enjoying their conversations. Tiffany couldn't find anything odd as she made her way through.

Closer to the back of the room, her eye were drawn to a larger cluster of females, some were leaning over a chair or sitting on the floor, leaning forward in awe. The females that stood in front made it difficult for Tiffany to get a clear view at what was worth seeing. She steadily came closer to not startle the girls. The laughing became clearer followed by excited yelping until Tiffany was close enough to hear talking.

“Jiwon-oppa~”

The annoying pitch of that voice made Tiffany's toes curl. She settled herself behind a crowd of girls. In the center of the crowd, sitting on a decorative gem-encrusted throne, a young man rested on his seat. His hair was short and neatly brushed down, framing his fair skin. A slightly narrow face around the chin, but kept it's angular shape. Tiffany could see why females were flocking to him. He was handsome.

“Oppa, pay attention to me!” A woman from his left whined.

He looked up, placing a hand under her chin and smiled. The woman giggled as his hand went back to his side. Tiffany scoffed. A man this handsome was bound to take too much pride in the amount of women he attracted.

She pushed away her disgust for his sly behavior and examined him. Jiwon's clothes were neat and clean. It was an expensive suit that was certain, possibility Prada. Tiffany stopped looking into fashion years ago. Her job at the bar would never be able to sustain her expensive taste. Jiwon had an air of confidence around him. From Tiffany's perspective, he could either be an extremely rich and well-known clubber, or he was the club owner.

Tiffany was leaning more toward the first option. What owner would be so laid back and this permiscuious to their own customers? Tiffany watched Jiwon smile and stroked the leg of one girl that made her way on to his lap. The women around him came closer, giggling louder, touching Jiwon's leg or anything that could come into contact. Tiffany noticed a security guard making his way through the crowd and tapped Jiwon on the shoulder. The conversation between the two was difficult to hear from the wailing girls. Jiwon pushed the girl on his lap aside and stood up from his throne.

“I'm sorry girls. I have some important matters to attend to.” Jiwon announced. “Excuse me.”

Tiffany made her way toward the exit a few paces later. She couldn't assume anything about him. He could be wealthy, or he could have a more important status. The last thing Tiffany needed was to take out a gang member. It would be another problem she didn't want to deal with. Tiffany left the VIP room.

“You,”

Tiffany turned around. She stared back at an all too familiar expensive suit wearing male. While a part of her was ready to go into investigation mode what stood out to her the most was how handsome he was in person. Tiffany couldn't look away from his charming face and charismatic eyes.

“You were just in my VIP booth, right?” Jiwon questioned. “I don't think I've seen you in my club before.”

Logic slapped Tiffany right on the back of her head. A male ran this club? Tiffany looked Jiwon over. BoA couldn't be wrong. The owner she was looking for was a female. No matter how pretty or dolled up he looked, Tiffany could tell he was a male.

“I'm Jiwon.” He greeted.

Tiffany held out her hand. She decided to play along. Maybe with a enough good hand, Tiffany would be led right to a second owner, whom Tiffany expected to be female this time. Jiwom smiled and Tiffany's head was clouded with trivial pointless observations again. Jiwon had a smile just as charming as his face.

“Tiffany.”

Jiwon took a hold of her hand and kissed it. Tiffany hoped neither of her roommates were looking. She's had enough of flirting for one night. She didn't need to have them see that side of her again.

“Such an interesting name. You could pass as a native if it weren't for your eyes.” Jiwon pointed out.

Tiffany glanced down to her feet. She wasn't easily embarrassed, but the topic of her green emerald eyes was always a touchy subject since she came to Korea. Back in the United States it wasn't so much of an issue, people commented on them. They never dared to question her race, but Korea was too proud of their nation. The pair of green orbs became an annoyance a few weeks into her stay.

“I was raised in the states.” Tiffany explained.

Jiwon raised a brow in curiosity. Tiffany looked back up to see a sweet smile to Jiwon's face. Tiffany gulped. His had an alluring smile it made his eyes even more attractive.

“Tiffany, do you mind coming with me, so we can sit and talk more privately?” Jiwon proposed, holding out his hand.

Tiffany smiled.

“Not at all.”

***

“What?”

Jessica glanced up from her text book to see two pairs of curious eyes on the bed across from her. Hyoyeon tapped Sooyoung on the arm. Jessica watched them mumble amongst each other and Hyoyeon tapped Sooyoung's arm more forcefully. Amused, Jessica watched Sooyoung cringe and hold on to her arm. She held up a hand to stop Hyoyeon from laying another hit and nodded. Taking a deep breath, Sooyoung calmed herself to control the pain that shot through her arm.

“Are you okay?” Sooyoung asked.

Jessica placed her highlighter between her textbook. “Why wouldn't I be?”

“You've been acting strange since we picked you up.” Sooyoung explained. “You didn't even allows us to come inside. We had to wait in the car. Who's apartment was it anyway?”

Sooyoung and Hyoyeon were her friends, they deserved to know the truth, but Jessica wasn't sure where to begin without telling a lie. Jessica sighed. How can she say anything if she didn't remember everything last night?

“Did you and Donghae-oppa have sex?” Hyoyeon asked.

Jessica flinched. The rim of her ears felt fifty degrees hotter. Sooyoung snorted then punched Hyoyeon in the shoulder.

“How can you ask that so bluntly?!” Sooyoung shouted.

“What? Jessica is a girl and he's a boy. All I'm saying is things happen!” Hyoyeon defended.

Sooyoung glanced over at Jessica who buried her face into her pillow. Through the cushion her ear peeked out. It was entirely red.

“I don't think Jessica is concerned about getting laid or male junks unlike someone.” Sooyoung clarified.

Hyoyeon glared and held up her fist. “Yah! What are you trying to say?!” She screamed.

Sooyoung cringed and scooted a few inches back in defense. “Don't hit me! I didn't mean you're a easy girl. You're just, desperate for a boyfriend.” Sooyoung yelled and jumped back just as Hyoyeon reached out to punch her arm. “You agreed to not hit me!” Hyoyeon scoffed.

“I didn't agree to anything.” She mumbled.

Sooyoung relaxed as she watched Hyoyeon put down her clenched hand. “I'm just saying, that Jessica isn't exactly interested in the opposite gender.”

Hyoyeon raised a brow and looked over to Jessica, who chose the wrong time to surface her head from the comfort of her pillow.

“Are you a lesbian?” Hyoyeon questioned. Sooyoung placed a hand to her forehead and Jessica went back to hiding.

Jessica let out a scream into her pillow. Sooyoung was grateful they only heard half of its real power. She glared back at Hyoyeon who shrugged and tried to stop herself from laughing.

“The two of you, get out of my dorm!” Jessica demanded.

“You're kicking me out?” Sooyoung yelped. “In my own dorm?! I'm your roommate!”

Jessica pushed her pillow aside and reached into her nightstand. She placed a wad of bills underneath the lamp. She was not going to have this conversation, not right now and when she had better things to do.

“Go get something to eat with Hyoyeon.” Jessica persuaded.

Sooyoung leaped off the bed, taking a hold of Hyoyeon's arm. “Come on, let's go!”

“I'm not hungry!” Hyoyeon protested.

Sooyoung glared down at her and pulled Hyoyeon off the bed. The wad of bills was quickly swiped from the nightstand.

“Who cares. You can watch me eat. I'm not passing up food that I don't have to pay for.” Sooyoung explained.

“Watch you eat? That's weird!” Hyoyeon groaned.

The dorm door was pulled open and Hyoyeon unwillingly went through the entrance with Sooyoung's death grip still on her forearm. When the door closed Jessica let out a loud sigh. She rubbed the back of her neck, feeling the heat the spread from her blush. Her entire face was burning.

Feeling more at ease, Jessica looked back to her text book and closed it. She stared at the decorative cover, filled with interesting and mystical images and symbols. It wasn't her usual choice of book, considering what was inside was information that fitted under research and far from light daily reading.

It was no use reading this at her dorm without Sooyoung and Hyoyeon questioning her. Jessica took her book and stored it into the bottom draw of her nightstand. She picked up her phone to see a text from Krystal. Jessica had a few minutes to spare before studying for her next class. She tapped in the pass-code to her phone and scrolled through her list of contacts. Jessica laid back into bed with her phone pressed against her ear.

“Hello, Krystal?”