On the glossy Maserati heading toward the Yelsulin University alumni party, Duyen suddenly felt oddly restless. Actually, she always felt like this whenever Mina was nearby. Every few seconds Mina's gaze would flick toward her, as if making sure Duyen wouldn't unbuckle her seatbelt and jump out of the car.
Crazy, right?
Duyen wondered why she thought that. Was she losing her mind? Or was Mina behaving strangely?
Outside, Mina always wore a smile and carried herself with the seriousness of someone dedicated to life and work. But sometimes Mina acted so unpredictably—hot and distant, affectionate in one moment and icy the next—walking away whenever Duyen needed an answer. It was as if two different people lived inside Mina.
Except Shana and Nayeon kept warning her about Mina's odd signs, and there was a pile of suspicion about whether Mina was involved in Nayeon's disappearance. If it were her, why would she do it? Why did she look at me like that... Thinking that, Duyen felt Mina's eyes rest on her for a few seconds before Mina looked away. There was an indescribable, tender feeling in Mina's gaze, but Duyen misread Mina's silence as meaning something else.
Whatever the real reason, Duyen had cause to take one foot into that uncertain pool.
"Ah—Mina, your hand—" Duyen blushed, embarrassed.
"Hm?"
Mina smiled, either having heard or pretending not to. When Duyen shifted, Mina quickly pulled her hand back from Duyen's thigh and shyly apologized.
"Oh, sorry, Duyen. Sometimes I forget—I thought I was touching a lever."
A lever? Duyen's face burned. This car didn't even have a lever there, of course Mina knew that. Was she pretending she'd mistaken it, teasing Duyen? Mina's boldness only made Duyen more confused, and Mina kept that triumphant little smile.
Mina thought, she's in the car with me... She could lick her lips if she wanted, but she didn't. Seeing Duyen in that suit seemed to unsettle Mina in a way she couldn't control—a weird urge, like she wanted to rip the suit off and devour Duyen whole. The silver hairpin in Duyen's hair made the tomboy look unexpectedly pretty; the mix of masculine and feminine made her stand out—cute and oddly alluring. Mina gripped the steering wheel, trying to stop herself from dark thoughts. Her mind flashed with deep reds when Duyen finally spoke.
"Uh, I forgot to say earlier—your outfit... you look really pretty."
"Huh?"
Mina was surprised; she hadn't braced herself for that compliment. Her eyes unconsciously dropped—Mina wore a thin black camisole with no bra. Two pink, pointed peaks showed through in a way that was teasing and seductive. Mina usually didn't care much, but when Duyen said that, a rush of joy laced with pleasure and a little embarrassment swelled inside her.
She laughed. "You like it?"
Mina had watched Shana—how scandalously and garishly she dressed. Yet Shana kept clinging to Duyen. Mina had finally managed to keep Shana at bay. Mina had even chosen this outfit on purpose.
Duyen suddenly felt flustered—did she really want to say she liked it? Didn't that sound like something a pervert would say? She cleared her throat and chose the safest reply.
"I think that style suits you."
Duyen squeezed her eyes shut and mentally cursed herself. Oh my god, Duyen! Who talks like that? It made her want to unbuckle and leap out of the car.
Mina, however, only chuckled when she heard Duyen's awkwardness—she recognized the nervousness and shyness.
"If you want, I could wear it more often."
Wear it? More often? Duyen's mind painted images of Mina in that camisole walking past her every day. No—stop it, she waved the thought away. Not okay.
"I think you look good in anything, and it's your choice what you wear."
"Hmm?" Mina glanced at Duyen playfully as she drove, chill as ever.
"I want your honest opinion. Of course I'll wear whatever I want, but I want to know—would you like it if I wore this every day?"
Why did she keep digging into this topic? Duyen felt like her head would explode from embarrassment. Mina seemed to be pushing for a yes.
Duyen's mind smoked; she nodded, conceding.
Mina's smile widened. Something about it clearly pleased her. She didn't answer whether she actually wanted to wear it daily—she just nudged Duyen to imagine Mina that way, letting the image take root.
The air in the car grew thick with the unsaid.
Duyen's eyes drifted down to Mina's phone in the glove compartment. A strange message lit the screen. Duyen couldn't read the whole conversation, but one line caught her eye:
"[We've approached her.]"
A chill ran through her. She told herself not to overthink it and gripped the seatbelt tighter.
She needed to get closer, to discover the Mina she didn't know.
---
The car pulled up to Royal Garden, a forty-story luxury entertainment complex in the city of Starfall. Duyen stood below, craning her neck and wondering which floor the party would be on. Mina laughed softly at Duyen's naive, wide-eyed look and found her adorable. Mina clasped Duyen's hand.
"Let's go."
"Ah—okay, Mina."
Duyen smiled back. At least she could relax a little, despite her heart hammering. Mina looped Duyen's arm through hers and strode into the building confidently. Even the staff noticed Mina immediately; they formed two neat lines and bowed in unison, startling Duyen.
"Miss Kamakiri!"
"Hello, Miss Kamakiri!"
"Miss Kamakiri, please take care of yourself."
Duyen was startled by the reverence they showed Mina—as if she were a character in a Japanese gangster drama. But Mina replied only with a smile, clearly in a good mood. Even the staff seemed surprised by how friendly Mina was today, aside from her daring outfit that matched her companion's.
"This way,"
Mina said excitedly, pulling Duyen toward the transparent VIP elevator exclusive to Royal Garden guests. They stepped into the sparkling lift like a diamond ascending to the top floors.
A tall, model-like figure stood beside a stunning beauty—the pair looked born for each other as Mina rested her head on Duyen's shoulder. Down in the lobby, the staff murmured and wondered who this handsome "boy" with Mina might be.
"Isn't that Valko?" one staffer asked, elbowing another.
"Are your eyes bad? You see Valko every day. Who is this? I've never seen him. What a beauty—what aristocratic family can produce someone like that?" a woman rolled her eyes at the others' lack of tact.
"I think you're the one with poor eyesight. That tomboy is clearly a girl. Miss Kamakiri Mina has many friends—maybe she's just one of them," a staffer said dryly.
"No way—Miss Kamakiri walks with someone like that so intimately. She even greeted us today. It's the end of the world."
"Strange. Last time Valko brought a different girl. Now Miss Mina brings someone."
"What? Valko brought someone else? How did that happen???"
The staff erupted in gossip.
"Listen, I'll whisper—she is…"
---
On the penthouse level, the space opened into pools, a massive DJ booth, a bar, and a dance floor. Famous models and entertainers walked around in revealing outfits—bikinis and bunny ears like a Playboy spread—carrying trays of cocktails. A famous singer performed on stage. Nearby, behind glass, a room displayed a collection of custom supercars and limited models from F1 races—lavish excess that felt normal to these guests: alumni of Yelsulin, many heirs of powerful Asian families. Laughter and conversation never stopped; expensive cocktails and sushi stations abounded.
At a circular bar, a group of rich boys clustered with drinks and a shisha pipe. Among them was Jinsung, his expensive outfit cut low to reveal a chest tattoo. He wasn't an alumnus, but somehow he'd ingratiated himself with the Valko circle.
Lately his reputation had slipped, and he'd been keeping a low profile. His face was sour, even as a woman in a black bikini swung on his lap.
One friend with dyed red hair, Kai—a scion of the waterworks empire turned famous game streamer—laughed at Jinsung.
"Dude, you look pathetic. Don't tell me you actually broke up with Dao. We set you up with the perfect opportunity—then you go and fling a chair at her? Are you out of your mind? Do you not know her family could turn you into minced meat for dinner?"
Jinsung, clearly irritated, grabbed a drink and downed a mouthful.
"I was just wasted then. Who told her to—to hook up with some other guy besides me?!"
"Hook up?"
Valko—handsome in a gray-white suit and red tie from Italy—arched an eyebrow. "Cheating? That doesn't sound like Dao's at all. She might be reckless, but she doesn't cheat. You'd better watch your mouth."
Under Valko's threatening look, Jinsung faltered—maybe he'd said too much. His gaze flicked toward another bar near the pool, where Dao, a platinum-haired beauty, laughed with her friends. Catching Jinsung's stare, Dao simply scoffed and ignored him.
Jinsung sighed.
"Well, she didn't cheat—I'm the one who cheated. But that woman is finished. I even texted Dao to apologize and she won't pick up. What should I do? Can you guys find me another ATM?"
Valko and Kai exchanged exasperated looks and shook their heads.
"You're done, Jinsung."
"Once you date Dao, you don't get any other chance with other girls. Those other chicks are beneath her—and if they know you were with Dao, do you think they'd touch you? Thank God she hasn't taken back the supercars and Rolexes she gave you. Sell them and have money to play with."
Jinsung took a bitter puff of shisha
"Guess I have to. Damn women."
"But—" Valko hesitated, something nagging at him. "Who was that guy in the commercial shoot she went with, anyway?"
"Huh?" Jinsung was fuzzy from shisha and drank more. "I have no idea who that guy was—if I knew, I'd smash his face in."
Kai laughed. "Want us to help track him down?"
Valko shook his head—he no longer had the taste for bullying like he did in his youth. Or perhaps his thoughts were elsewhere. Kai noticed and patted his shoulder.
"You okay, Valko? You haven't even taken a hit of shisha. You good, bro?"
Valko pushed Kai's hand away. "I'm trying to stay sharp."
After a silence he finally admitted, "Mina's been acting strange lately. She keeps leaving the company to meet partners—who they are, I don't know."
"Isn't Mina normally serious about work? I'm sure she has her reasons—don't worry too much," Kai soothed.
"Still, I—"
Valko trailed off as the transparent elevator doors opened. Everyone stopped dancing to look. Shock rippled through the crowd at Mina's grand entrance in that daring black outfit, accompanied by a strangely handsome "boy" in a black turtleneck suit no one recognized. Kai whistled while Valko glared at Mina and Duyen. He could not believe what he was seeing.
Mina walking arm-in-arm with that damn—?!
A jealous surge churned inside Valko. Jinsung was equally stunned, pointing with a trembling hand.
"Wait— that's—"
When Dao saw Mina and Duyen, she happily squealed and rushed over to them.
Among Dao's circle of friends was a petite, doll-like girl with short black hair and a charming beauty mark beneath her lip—Cai Ying nearly dropped her cocktail when she spotted Mina.
"You're kidding me...?"