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her morning begins when her loud alarm clock rang loudly through out her whole damn bedroom. it was the third night that she couldn't get even a wink of sleep.

"oh for fuck's sake." she cursed, slamming the godforsaken clock with her palm. she groaned loudly, clearly not ecstatic for a new day to begin after the hell she's been through. the two days of the weekend was spent generously with her older brother. she'd learn the hard way to appreciate her only sibling to the fullest so she swore to herself to always be beside him when she can before it's too late. seokjin was confused since his younger sister wasn't the lovey-dovey type of sibling but he was more than glad to have spent some time with his only sister. they spent a great time together just doing some domestic stuff such as cooking and cleaning their huge mansion together. it might sound boring but it meant everything to the both of them.

with a heavy heart, she attempted to lift herself from her comfortable, luxurious bed she had spent her entire wealthy life in. the duvet covers was pushed off and she didn't even bother to make her bed. there was no point in doing so. she made her way to the bathroom and turned on the shower. normally, she wouldn't take morning showers especially scalding hot showers in the morning but after two days ago, she found out that bathing in the burning hot shower was the only way to make her feel alive and at least functioning for the day. it was hard to get her out of the emptiness that she felt. the thought of looking forward to anything without seeing violence was pretty much impossible for her.

she let the hot water dripped down her bare body. the love bite that was left by mark was barely there anymore, it turned into pinkish spots on her jaw and collarbones. she dressed herself in a robe and stepped out of the shower once she was done and walked to the sink. it has become a routine for her to stare at her reflection and reprimand herself over what the fuck have she done to herself and the people that she love. the bags under her eyes had drooped lower then she last seen it and it has darken in colour; even her skin had turned paler, signalling the lack of sleep and sunlight.

she left the bathroom and dressed herself in her school uniform. using a little bit of concealer, she covered the dark spots under her eyes and the pink spots on her neck. with a swipe of lip gloss on her lips, she's ready to get her day started. kind of. her book bag was slung on her shoulder before she exited her bedroom and walked down the staircase. haejin entered the kitchen and met her brother who was still dressed in his pyjamas and holding a spatula and cooking spray in his hands.

"good morning, oppa." she greeted her brother and bow. seokjin jumped and turned around to see her sister who was already shielding herself in case he sprayed the cooking spray into her face.

"holy shit you scared me." he exclaimed, the spatula was held high in the air and the cooking spray was ready to attack but didn't. haejin let out a wholesome laugh at his frightened expression. only her brother can make her laugh over something stupid like that.

"i'm sorry oppa." she said in between laughter which earned a playful glare from her brother. she giggled again before taking a seat at the breakfast bar. seokjin turned around and put the plate of american style breakfast consisted of a stack of pancakes and slices of bacon.

"the american air has changed you oppa." she joked, placing the slice of bacon into her mouth. seokjin rolled his eyes and placed the two coffee cups on the breakfast bar for the both of them.

"thought i would try something new." he replied before taking a seat beside the younger girl. she helped him place the pancakes on both of their plates before digging in.

"are you not going to the office today?" she asked, taking a sip of the bitter coffee. seokjin shook his head. "i'm not dealing with the client who i rejected their tender. i'll ask them to handle it for me."

she chuckled. "i wouldn't blame you. they were asking for 40 percent of your shares." her brother shoved the pancakes into his mouth. "i'll just deal with the paperworks here. i'll come in if needed."

she nodded and continue to shovel the pancakes dripping with maple syrup into her mouth. "do you need a ride to school?" her brother asked before wiping his mouth with the napkin. haejin choked on her pancakes before seokjin panicked and asked her to drink some water. there's no way in hell she's letting mark and the dreamies see her older brother especially with him being unprotected while in his own home. at this point, the dreamies know everything about her and she couldn't risk letting her older brother being targeted by these men.

"jesus are you okay?" he asked, patting her back before she calmed herself down.

"i'm sorry. the pancakes went down the wrong tube." she replied, recovering from her coughing fit. "no you don't need to drive me. i'll drive myself."

"are you sure?" her brother asked since she has never driven to school on her own before.

"my car's been sitting in the garage for too long. she's collecting dust so might as well take her out for a ride." she replied, calm. seokjin nodded. "alright then. just be safe."

she did a mock salute and stood up from the breakfast bar. "leave the dishes. i'll do it." seokjin said, already collecting the dirty dishes and utensils. she slung her bag across the shoulder and turned around to see her brother who was washing the dishes. she walked closer towards her brother and tapped him on his shoulders. seokjin turned around and scrunched his eyebrows.

"can we hug?" she asked timidly. seokjin confused expression morphed into joy as he broke out into a wide smile. "of course baby sister." he said before taking off the scrubbing glove and pulled her into a tight hug. he kissed the top of her head as she sunk into his chest, hugging him tight.

"please be safe." he said before they pulled away while her little hands is still in his. they both smiled at each other. "you too, oppa." she said before she exited the kitchen.

haejin walked to the entrance of their huge garage. she felt dejavu to went she entered another garage in the nct mansion with her mafia boss and saw a whole slew of expensive, shiny cars. she turned towards the key holder and picked out her car keys that she hadn't touched in months. she walked towards a car that was covered with the car exterior cover which has been collecting dust for months. her fingers gripped on the elastic cover before completely pulling it off the car. it revealed a red audi r8. adrenaline rushed in her at the thought of her speeding through the highways with this 500 horsepower sports car sent excitement down her body. it was a high that she enjoyed. she had stopped driving the car because of the backlash that she got claiming that she was 'spoiled' or 'didn't deserve such a nice car'. but right now, she doesn't give two shits. she will do anything to protect the people she loves. throwing the car cover aside, she climbed into the car for the first time in months. she had only driven this car a few times before it got locked in the garage and never seen the light of day. her hands gripped on the leather covered steering wheel as she sat nicely in the passenger seat. she turned the engine on and the exhaust roared to life which made her wince at the sound. she took a deep breath and turned the transmission to reverse before backing out from the garage. the mansion's gate opened and she left the compound en route to her high school where she pretend to live a normal high school senior life.

her loud exhaust roared through the streets of downtown seoul. she speed through the heavy morning traffic, swerving through lanes if she could; to not miss the bell signalling the first period of the school day. she finally find herself entering the school compound. she saw the confused and intrigued looks from the other students through the heavily tinted windows before she pulled into the parking spot beside mark's shiny black porsche. her bookbag was roughly slung over her shoulder, she was clearly not ecstatic for the school day. the drivers car door swung open before she stepped out of the car. everyone who was chilling on the compound turned their heads towards the all-too familiar rich girl. she merely rolled her eyes and closed the door before locking the car.

haejin entered the building with her eyes looking forward, not sparing a glance at anything beside or behind her. she walked towards her locker and put in her combination before retrieving her books for the first period.

"good morning bestie!" exclaimed a familiar voice. haejin's head shot up at the sound of her best friend's voice, soohyun.

"holy shit!" she yelled, immediately pulling her into a tight hug. soohyun gladly returned the hug of the distraught girl.

"yes i miss you too." soohyun laughed in her arms before she pulled away. "what happened after the party?" she said, raising her eyebrows. panic rushed through haejin's body but her expression remains calm.

"i think you know." haejin pretend to smirk, letting the best friend think what she wants to think.

"you dirty bitch." soohyun smirked before shoving her. haejin laughed, regaining her posture after the hard shove. "as if you didn't spent the rest of the night sucking off your boyfriend."

soohyun's eyes and jaw widen. haejin guessed no one was supposed to know which made her laugh harder. "who told you that?" soohyun exclaimed. haejin recovered from her laughter before smirking again. "i know you too damn well."

soohyun attacked her shoulder before they went off to their first period.

second period pass by in a split second and she moved to her third period which she was dreading. she has third period with mark, the person who she didn't know how to feel about. they shared an intimate moment days prior but she still didn't know if she can trust him or not. she entered the class which was still empty beside a couple students. she sat in the seat she usually sat in and beside her was mark's designated seat. haejin and mark were seat mates for every subject they have together since they were in elementary school. ignoring how she felt about him, she sat down in her seat, waiting for her seat mate.

haejin spent the next minutes daydreaming and pondering like she always does. the sound of a chair pulling out of a desk snapped her out of her thoughts.

"hi." a soft manly voice spoke from beside her. she looked up to see the source. it was mark, wearing a soft smile and tired eyes.

"hi mark." she replied softly. she felt bad for him. bad that he had to work for the devil. if only she notices how beat mark usually looks before she figured it out. she was too much of a fool to believe mark when he said he was tired from playing sports or studying. she believed he's a normal teenager, not a member of seoul's notorious mafia group.

"how did interrogation goes?" she asked nonchalantly. mark's eyes widen before it softens again. "jinji, we can't talk about it here."

"i'm sorry." she apologised to him and kept her expression blank. mark's eyes bore into her calm
ones. he was amazed at her at how she was so calm at handling all this shit he had lead her into. but only she knows that it's slowly ripping her apart. she hasn't quite grasp it yet, but she was good at pretending that she did.

the teacher finally walked in and the lesson begins.

the bell signalling lunch time finally rang after third period ends. haejin quickly packed her books into her book bag and was ready to left the classroom before mark quickly gripped on her wrist, stopping her.

"walk with me." he said, staring deep into her with his tired, hazy eyes. her pupils dilated, catching him off guard as they stared into each other. haejin coughed, breaking him out of his trance.

"lets go then. the dreamies are probably waiting." she said softly before mark nodded. they walked together exiting the classroom and into the cafeteria with a comfortable silence surrounding them.

they walked towards their designated table where the kids were already waiting while soohyun was no where to be seen . they greeted her with an expressionless bow in contrast to their usual big smiles when seeing the two seniors.

"haejin-noona." haechan greeted, he was confused as to what he should say to her after what happened on friday. no one in the table did. haejin definitely felt the shift of mood in the table. she felt pity for them. they were just kids being roped into dirty business so the best she could do is guide them so they wouldn't lose the remaining light in them.

"hey boys." she greeted them with a comforting smile. "have you eaten?" she asked them. they were wearing sad smiles and tired eyes, similar to mark. she began wondering what taeyong had ask them to do. thinking logically, she has to take charge as the newly appointed queen of the mafia to take care of the king's employees.

"not yet. we were waiting for you." jeno replied solemnly, his eyes were glued on the table in front of them. haejin felt sorrow in her at how these boys were already not treating her the way she used to be treated. they used to be so playful with her but now that she held a high title in their ranks, they were obligated to treat her like a queen. like how they treat taeyong, with respect and poise.

"just go. i'll be fine here." she said softly. they all nodded and bow before they stood up from their seats to buy their lunch. her heart breaks at the sight of them being a slave to commands. a hand slipped into hers, gripping it tight.

"give them time. they'll warm up to you again." mark whisper softly into her ears as she closed her eyes. her head is spinning. her mind contains a whirlwind of emotions. she was sad, and angry at both taeyong and herself. mark guide her head to lean on his shoulders and she sat close to him while he rubs circles on her hand as a way to calm her down. they sat in silence in the loud cafeteria with thoughts running through their heads.

time by time, the end of school finally approached. she let out a sigh of relief. she couldn't wait to get the hell out of school because she could not focus on anything her teacher was saying since her thoughts were occupied with all the shit with nct and the boys. but she didn't worry too much about school since she is top of the class in every term. she could've easily study at home by herself if she has the time. the students said their thank you to the teacher before she rushed out of her classroom. shoving her books roughly in the locker, she exited the school building and entered the parking lot. she walked towards her red audi, not noticing mark who was leaning against the driver's door of his black porsche.

"you drove." mark spoke from the driver's door as he saw haejin walking towards the car. haejin's head snapped towards the source of the voice and see mark leaning handsomely against his door.

she smiled. "she's collecting dust in the garage. i thought it's time to let her out again." she replied to him before unlocking her car. mark stood from his leaning position and walked towards her car.

"i'll send you the address. taeyong request your presence at the mansion." mark said in a low tone before as soon as she's about to close the car door. she halted her action before her blood runs cold. hearing his name was a trigger for her but she always tried her best to keep calm.

"see you in the evening." haejin said her last words to him before she entered the driver's seat and shuts the door. mark was shocked at the shift of tone in her voice. it was almost too calm for someone who accidentally joined a mafia.

haejin start the car and tried to shake off the anxiety rising in her from mark's words. she backed out from the parking spot and speed out from the school compound as fast as she can due to the adrenaline rising in her. she started panicking, her hands gripping the steering wheel were clammy and shaking and her breath grew rapid and shaky. her heart was pounding in her chest and she can hear her blood rushing through her body. haejin has never had a panic attack before. she was fairly a confident person with constantly being under the spotlight and living under the prestigious kim family name. this was a first for her and she didn't know what the fuck to do.

"calm the fuck down. get yourself together." she whispers to herself. her eyes focused on the road while her mind kept spinning in million emotions. she was speeding down the highway going way past the speed limit.  she muttered the words countlessly until she found herself breathing normally again. her breathing soothes down for a quick moment as she went past the security gate of her home but her mind act as if it has sirens going in it. she parked her car in the garage and immediately stepped out of the car with her palm resting on her heart, trying to calm it's rapid pace down.

haejin knocked on the door before pushing it open. she yelled 'i'm home' weakly before she leaned against the wall as her breathing rises up again. she started panting as beads of sweat began trickling down her forehead. her heartbeats quickening it's pace as seconds went by.

seokjin who was finishing up the ramyun noodles that the siblings would be having for lunch smiled widely as he heard the front door shutting, signalling his younger sister who was just came back from school. he took the apron off and walked out from the kitchen to see haejin leaning against the wall, panting and gripping her blazer tightly. his eyes widen before he took off towards her pulling her closer towards him.

haejin saw her brother from the corner of her eyes. he ran towards her and pulled her into a hug. his strong arms wrapped around her as he rubbed circles on her back, attempting to calm his wreck of a sister down. haejin's breathing softens and she began to cry on his shoulders, engulfing him as tight as she can, not ever wanting to let go.

"there, there little sis, you're fine." he said softly into her eyes, using his thumbs to trace circles on her back. haejin lets her tears pour down her brother's broad shoulders.

as soon as her heartbeats calmed down and her breathing were normal again, he pulled her away from him. gazing into his little sister's tearful eyes, he smiled. "everything is going to be okay. you'll get through it."

haejin let one last tear fell down her cheeks and she pulled the weakest smile she got. "thank you."

"i'm always here for you. i'm never going to leave you." he replied softly, pulling her into his arms again. the two stayed in that position for a solid minute before seokjin held her hand and lead her to the kitchen where food was ready for the two. at least food can cheer her up right?

after lunch, she excused herself from the dining table while seokjin is heading to kim corporation to handle some paperworks that he forgot to bring home and was too lazy to interact with his assistant to fax him the paperworks. seokjin made sure to hug his little sister and assure her that he will never leave her before he left the house in his grey bentley.

haejin went up to her bedroom and lay on her bed. she still got time before she had to leave for the nct mansion since mark hasn't texted her the address yet. her mind whirred with thoughts again. thoughts that she could not even comprehend. she confuses herself at how composed she is in front of them and how much of a wreck she