Welcome to the Underworld (A Welcome to the Underworld Novel, Book 1)

by Con Template

  “He's dangerous.” Jae Won's warning words replayed in her mind as she kept her gaze on Tae Hyun. Of course he was dangerous. She had always known that. She didn't need Jae Won or Tae Hyun, himself, to tell her that. She already knew it.

  "Why are you telling me all this?" she asked, growing curious of his motives.

  "To get you ready for what's ahead of you. I'm a tough person to work for. I'm trying to prepare you for it the best that I can."

  Silence surrounded Yoori. She found herself strangely disheartened by his answer. She didn't know what she was hoping to hear, but that wasn't the answer she wanted from him. She broke eye contact and stared absentmindedly at the tiles. When you put rationale in the equation, Tae Hyun, with how he treated her, was horrible beyond words. He not only fit the role of the overly possessive and inhumane gang leader well, but he did it with so much pride that you couldn’t help but feel justified calling him “evil.”

  Her focus on the outlining of the tiles became stronger as her contemplative mind sailed on. Regardless though, was he really evil? A big part of her refused to believe that he should be categorized as a monster. No, she reasoned. There was definitely more to Tae Hyun. Her instincts burned in certainty. She was sure of it. There was more to Tae Hyun – he wasn’t as he portrayed himself to be...

  Yoori's breathing grew a bit unsteady when she allowed the next few words to flow out of her apprehensive mouth. "What if…" she began, slowly returning her gaze to him, "I was to say that I think there's more to you than what meets the eye?"

  She watched Tae Hyun freeze, his gaze on her uncomfortable. Silence enveloped him. It was only a brief moment but she caught it – that flicker of light in his eyes. It was so minute but in that split second, vulnerability within his eyes shined through.

  "Then I would say that you're an optimistic one,” he noted emotionlessly, avoiding her gaze. "And that you're probably setting yourself up for disappointment...but that's just me."

  "You're a pessimistic one, aren't you?"

  "I guess we learned a little bit more about one another, right?" He lifted his chin off the edge of the bed and let out a somewhat forced yawn. She could tell he didn't like where the conversation headed and was ready to put an end to it.

  "Alright," he uttered, clapping his hands together in triumph. "That's my boss-and-assistant bonding moment for the night. I'm sleeping now." Avoiding any further eye contact with her, his head moved out of sight. She felt her cuffed wrist move when he repositioned himself on the bed. "Good night, assistant."

  "Night,” she replied, crestfallen that their conversation had to end so soon when it was actually making progress.

  As she repositioned her pillow, she found her eyes peering at the edge of the bed where Tae Hyun rested his chin moments before. A glimmer of hope appeared before her eyes. Was it possible that Kwon Tae Hyun, the glorified Underworld King, was not the monster he made himself out to be? It was a foolish thought that Yoori embraced. She liked to think the best of people. It gave her hope, gave her something to smile about.

  The same thought replayed in her mind as she drifted off to sleep, her mood elated.

  Perhaps Kwon Tae Hyun wasn’t as dark as the Underworld he ruled over.

  Perhaps he wasn’t a monster and perhaps somewhere deep down, he was truly human after all.

  “You have to be flexible with your morals.”

  09: Make Things Right

  "Why do you have to do this?" The tall shadow asked, his voice filled with grief and outrage. He grabbed the other shadow’s hand and pulled her closer to him.

  The woman pushed him away in exasperation. She didn’t understand why he made this so much harder than it had to be.

  "Can't you understand that I can't live like this anymore?" she shouted for the hundredth time, not understanding why he couldn't get the big picture.

  His voice was equally angry. "Can't you understand that I don't want you to live like this either?" He clapped his hands together and brought them to his lips, a gesture to appease his growing frustration. "But there has to be another way to go about this," he reasoned, taking another step closer to her.

  She shook her head. He didn’t get it. He didn’t understand that this was her only option. "There's no other way. I have to do this."

  "Do you realize how ridiculous you sound? Out of all people, you want your brother to do this?"

  She remained unfazed by the disbelief in his voice. "He's the only one who can make things right."

  "He's not going to help you kill yourself."

  "If he’s the person I know he is...he will."

  "Baby, don't do this," he pleaded, grabbing her arms to prevent her from retreating. "We'll figure out another way to make things right. You can't risk your life like this."

  Her impatience with him growing, she pushed him away with all her might. "You don't understand what I'm going through!" Pain, indignation, guilt, and shame were all present in her elevated voice. "I can barely breathe without getting sick to my stomach. I can't eat. I can't sleep...I can barely even look at my brother! All I can do is think about it...what happened...what should’ve happened and what I can do to make things right. I can't go on pretending that everything is fine. I can't. I can't live like this anymore."

  She began to retreat again, her pace quickening by the second. She knew he would have a hard time accepting what she had to do, but she didn't think he'd put up such a fight.

  Her pace was matched by her significant other's pace. He raced to her. "Do you realize how selfish you're being right now? Do I really have no say in this matter?"

  "If you're not going to support me, then that's fine," she uttered, stopping abruptly. She gazed at him unblinkingly, her determination never faltering on what she had to do. "But do not think for one second that you can change my mind!"

  She breathed heavily, gazing at his frozen countenance. "Tonight is the night where he helps me make things right," she continued, her voice breaking. She held back the tears ready to stream out of her eyes. "Tonight is the night where I make things right. If you love me, then you'll help me make things right as well."

  She watched in anticipation as he took a step closer. He pulled her into an embrace, breaking the silence they were getting ready to drown in. "I love you, more than you will ever know. Know that whatever happens, I'll be right here by your side. I love you. I always will."

  She smiled sadly, her embrace on him tightening. She believed him. Every word he said, she believed him. She knew that he really did love her that much. Tears brimming in her eyes, she buried her face into his chest. She loved him so much.

  "Don't forget…" she whispered before pulling out of the embrace and leaving his side. "Don't forget what you have to do..."

  Yoori’s eyes sprang open once she felt the golden rays of the morning sun flow over her face. With her bare arms lying above the comforter, it didn't take long for Yoori to feel the morning chills creep up her skin. Yoori instinctively tucked her arms underneath the haven of warmth from her blanket. Wanting to take the necessary precautions to further protect herself from the cold, Yoori pulled the comforter up to her exposed neck. Tickles of pleasurable warmth replaced the iciness that once pricked her body. Satisfied with her victory against the cold, Yoori's sleepy mind traveled back to her bittersweet dream.

  Ah, yes.

  A small, bemused smile waltzed across her lips at the recollection of her dream. This was a new dream for Yoori. Funny how the other one somehow stopped reoccurring and this one appeared in its place. Not that she was complaining. She much preferred this dream to the other one. Albeit it was another sad dream, she admitted that she loved it more. At least this one had some romance to it (as opposed to the depressing, assisted suicide content of the other one). And of course, the romantic guy in the dream was a big catalyst for her favoritism.

  Another drop of happiness poured into her as she mulled over this – the sweet boyfriend in the dream. Although he was a figment of her imagination, she
felt a small crush form for him. Even through the dream, she could feel his love for his girlfriend and it warmed her little heart. Her smile grew slightly wider at the thought of the embrace they shared.

  Ah yes, she was definitely living vicariously through the female protagonist in her dream.

  As she replayed the scenes of the bittersweet dream in her mind, Yoori found herself growing envious of the girl in her dreams.

  Strange how these two dreams, the one in the alley and the one she just had, completely interrelated with one another. It was the same girl. Yoori bit her lower lip, her curiosity for the mystery girl heightened with every breath. Why did she want to die? How could the girl choose to leave when she had such a great guy in her life? What did she want to make right? What did she do? What on earth happened?

  Oy, get a grip, Choi Yoori, her inner self scolded.

  She laughed at herself for bearing such stupidity. The only way to truly find out answers was to sleep and hope that another dream appeared with the answer to her questions.

  She rolled her eyes.

  Good luck with that happening, she thought sarcastically.

  Yoori was prepared to get lost in another bout of introspection – that was until she felt something that froze every warm nerve in her body.

  She felt movement.

  A hail of dread ravaged her stomach. Her eyes widened slowly. She stared cautiously at the comforter covering her, alertness returning to her awakened mind. If memory served her correctly, she was sure Tae Hyun said that this comforter was not going to touch the floor.

  Awkwardness shafted through her.

  Timidly, Yoori carefully depressed her shaking fingers. She silently prayed that she was still sleeping on the floor. Like a tipsy drunk losing her fight with gravity, Yoori’s heart sank into the nearest abyss when she realized that the "floor" was soft enough to be pushed down.

  "Oh no," she thought, horrified.

  This was Kwon Tae Hyun's bed.

  Yoori painstakingly turned her gaze to the other side of the bed. She whispered words of prayer. “Please don't let Tae Hyun be on the other side of the bed. Please? Plea – oh crap.”

  And there the Devil himself lay.

  If she was falling into the abyss before, then the abyss somehow led into the depths of hell. This was exactly where Yoori felt she landed when she saw that the unthinkable happened.

  There was Tae Hyun, on the other side of the bed, merely inches away from her, sleeping like an angel. A Devil in the form of an angel anyway. Her heart hammered at the sight of him in such a state. A barrage of questions inundated her mind. Why was she on the bed? How long had she been sleeping next to him? And more importantly, what the hell happened last night?

  Her merciless glare rested on an unconscious Tae Hyun. She was determined to get her answers.

  "Wake up!" she screamed, shaking him with her hands. "What happened last night? What'd you do to me?"

  Though his eyes were still closed, she saw a smile creep onto Tae Hyun's face. He ignored her screams and covered himself with the comforter, murmuring as he did this. She watched him shift his body to the further end of the bed.

  "Go back to sleep," he responded lazily.

  She was livid. She could hear the smile on his face. How could he behave in such a lax manner? Her mind was a vortex of confusion. What happened?

  She irritably shook her cuffed hand, leaving Tae Hyun's cuffed hand to waver lifelessly. He continued to ignore her. His indifferent attitude taunted Yoori. Frustrated, she ripped the comforter off the bed, leaving him suddenly without a blanket.

  "Tae Hyun! If you don't tell me what happened, I am going to choke you with my bare hands. I don't care if you're the leader of a gang. I will kill you!"

  She was past the realm of fury. And to think that she actually thought there was more to him than being an evil gang leader.

  "You have got to be kidding," he whispered with exasperation. Finally sitting up in bed, he turned to her and leaned against the headboard. Tae Hyun's unbuttoned shirt flew apart, exposing the length of his bare chest and his rock hard abs. His amused eyes smiled at her as they acclimated with the morning sun.

  At the sight of him in such a seductive position, Yoori turned away in annoyance. She hated that her eyes immediately lowered to his naked abs as soon as they came into view. How perverted could she be?

  "You're really not a morning person," he observed tiredly.

  Yoori’s eyes went back to his tired face. Perversion aside, she had business to get down to. "Cut the crap. What happened last night? How'd I end up on your bed?"

  She was certain he would admit that he was a pervert and that he lifted her into bed himself. His unexpected answer horrified her.

  "You got on yourself." The indifference in his monotonous voice remained when he closed his eyes. He obviously wanted more sleep.

  She glared, bewildered. Her womanly pride made it hard for her to believe the verity of his words. "I did not!"

  His indifference and closed eyes remained. "Yeah, you did."

  "I did not!"

  He opened his eyes and looked at her with a bothered countenance. His patience with her was wearing thin. "Yeah, you did. You muttered something about being cold, got up from the floor, and basically pushed me to the other side of the bed as you got on." He scrutinized her. "You don't remember any of that?"

  Yoori shook her head, doubt swarming her. She didn't want to believe him but the likelihood of something like this happening was too great. She had always been a heavy sleeper. She knew that. However, she didn't realize she was also a sleepwalker. Was it really possible that she had been freezing and got onto the bed because of pure survival instincts?

  Anything was possible.

  She eyed him cautiously, reluctantly believing him. "Did anything else happen?"

  "Yeah. You snored...very loudly."

  Blood rushed to her enflamed cheeks. That wasn't what she meant.

  Despite the reddening of her embarrassed face, he went on like the energizer bunny. "It was so loud, I thought my eardrums were going to burst. I couldn't sleep all throughout the night. I only managed to get some shut eye an hour ago."

  Yoori stayed quiet, her pride deflated and her face now crimson red. Why oh why did Tae Hyun always make it his personal mission to make her flush like a goddamn tomato?

  "Your snoring stopped when you started murmuring something. I assume you were having a dream?"

  Yoori nodded, feeling guilty about overreacting the way that she did. Granted, her guilt was minimized by the simple fact that Tae Hyun was a mean jerk. As she nodded, she began to recall the dream. Apparently it was the only pleasant thing that occurred to her this eventful morning.

  Sensing the beam exuding out of her, an entertained smirk edged Tae Hyun’s lips. "A dream about me I suppose..." he teased, inching closer to her.

  "That would be called a nightmare," she countered, pushing him to stop him from coming any closer.

  She was irritated that he was being so flirty. She couldn't tell if he was joking or if he was seriously flirting with her. Under typical circumstances, she could usually tell with other guys what their intentions with her were. Tae Hyun on the other hand was a big fat question mark. She swallowed hard, trying to assess him for some answers. Knowing Tae Hyun, Yoori would put money on the first option – which was the joking around option. He enjoyed toying with her. If she didn't know better, she would think her blushes were his fuel for a good and productive day.

  He chuckled warmly when she pushed him away. Once he settled back on his side of the bed, he rested his head on the headboard. His alluring chest and abs glowed as they basked under the golden rays of the sun.

  "What'd you dream about?" he asked. Though he feigned disinterest, Yoori could tell by the look in his eyes that he was curious.

  "A guy...that I like," she said without thinking. She contorted her face in embarrassment. Doh! He didn't have to know that!

  Her eyes sliced into him like dag
gers when she heard him laugh. Even though she expected him to do that, it wasn't a nice feeling to be made fun of.

  "Aw, my little assistant dreaming about her future husband when she's lying in bed with her boss," he cooed with hilarity. "Man, that's just classic."

  Yoori's twitching eye glowered at him intensely. She thought back to her deep contemplation the night before about him having a heart. At the moment, she was having second thoughts about that.

  His laughter subsiding, he eyed her idly. "Is he better looking than me?"

  "You're an idiot," she responded, smacking him across the shoulder.

  Though she didn't verbally answer him, Yoori pondered his question nonetheless. Was the dream guy better looking? She stole a glimpse at Tae Hyun. He was leaning over to get a better view of his alarm clock. Given the level of physical attractiveness that he so easily commanded, it was difficult to visualize any guy being better looking than Tae Hyun. However, she had the distinct feeling that this dream guy was probably just as good looking. Plus, from what she could remember, he was a really sweet and romantic guy. This already gave him extra points in her book.

  Yoori shook off the glee of her illogical reasoning. Why was she spending so much time thinking about this dream guy? He didn’t even exist!

  "It's too damn early," she heard Tae Hyun complain.

  Yoori glanced over at the alarm clock. It read 1:06 P.M.

  It’s not early at all, she thought incredulously, turning her attention to Tae Hyun. He looked like he could use a couple more hours of sleep. Guilt hounded her. Well...they did get back pretty late last night and if he only got the hour of sleep because of her snoring then...

  Well, it’s his fault! Yoori thought stubbornly, her guilt coming to a standstill. She may be the reason for his fatigue but she refused to feel guilty. If he allowed her to sleep outside on the couch then he wouldn't be this tired. He brought all of this on himself.