Chapter Text
Jungeun has always tried to be the best at what she does. Currently, she’s also trying her best to logically reason with herself. First, her friend, Kim Jiwoo, the princess of Seoul, the next heir to her mother’s throne, the kingdom’s sweetheart, labelled by her fans and her loyal subjects, as the most innocent person to ever be born.
Kim Jiwoo, her best friend since birth, that Jungeun for sure knows everything about. From her favourite colour to her allergies to different suiters. There was this one time where she even faked sickness to not attend a ball, now banned by her mother to fake any type of sickness. Her highness, the most kind-hearted person, the most positive, used to kick kids in the knee for Jungeun’s sake when they were bullying her in kindergarten.
This Jiwoo, sprawled on her bed, a stranger under her, both naked, not a single decency or any damns given to even try and cover themselves. When Jungeun recognizes the stranger’s face, her fumes are now volcanos, hoping to just pull the trigger of her already pointed gun at this horrible person.
“Get up,” she pushes the face of the barrel to Sooyoung’s cheek. She stirs, like the idiot she is. Jungeun pulls away her gun, regretting let it touch this pervert. “I said get up,” her voice higher this time.
“Five more minutes, Jungie,” Jiwoo grunts, and Jungeun wants to leave this horrible scene that she cannot ever un-see in her hopefully long life. Having the audacity to give her this half-assed answer, her finger twitching around the grip of her gun.
“Yeah, Jungie,” Sooyoung wraps her arms around Jiwoo -Still on top of Sooyoung- and turns them over, away from her, back facing her. She closes her eyes and points the gun again, sneaks a look to confirm that the bullet will never even harm Jiwoo. “Agh, shit!” Sooyoung jumps from her spot and Jungeun wished she had kept her eyes closed.
“Put some clothes on,” she throws something at her face, but the pervert is determined to ruin her morning, “And what the hell are you doing here?” gun still in hand, making a show of it too, warning any sudden movements.
“I’ll talk when you put that away,” she keeps her hands up, after sliding on the tank top.
Ha Sooyoung, one of the most dangerous villains and vile creatures the earth had the displeasure of having. A mafia leader, a proud Alpha that could seduce any creature, has some obsession with red apples that Jungeun didn’t bother focus on when she pulled her file previously. Jungeun only holsters her gun when Jiwoo glares at her, wordlessly ordering her to get it away.
“It’s so early in the morning.”
There are many things that Jungeun had never understood about her dear sweet best friend. One, the fact that she drools and flirt her way to any bad girl’s pants. Two, the fact that she’s the exact opposite to her demon of a mother, the queen, may her rein end soon. The third and the last for now, because those are the only things she can come up with right now, how on earth did she manage to talk to Ha Sooyoung, flirt with her all night, sneak her past an army of royal guards and proceeds to do the unspeakable?
“It’s nearing noon,” Jungeun turns around when Jiwoo discovers that Sooyoung is still next to her, dizzy and awe struck by whatever effect the pervert has on Jiwoo and kisses her shamelessly too. “Your mother is looking for you,” it falls on deaf ears, and hand still twitches at her side, slowly nearing her gun again, and if it’s not for Jiwoo’s sanity, Jungeun would’ve painted the walls with Sooyoung’s brains the moment her stupid head rose from the pillows. “And I cannot cover for you anymore-” she turns around, finds Jiwoo on top of Sooyoung, removing the tank top she’s just put on, kissing her back into the pillows, “KIM JIWOO!”
Sooyoung had left. That’s nicely put. Jungeun had snuck her out, almost threw up when Sooyoung attempted to converse with her, told her to keep her mouth shut if she wants to use it in the future. Cover up her scent that is now everywhere in Jiwoo’s courters, and even Jiwoo herself smells too much of her. She drove her out of the estate, dropped her ass near a public road and said something along the lines of, You’re nice, blondie. Tell Jiwoo I love her.
Love her? Didn’t they meet just last night? Wasn’t that their first encounter? God damn Kim Jiwoo and her endless secrets that she never shares with her. It’s why Jungeun is having her sitting on a chair, in a room that Jungeun had scanned and cleaned many times, made sure it’s not wired, no spies from the queen, somewhere distracted by a bait she threw at them, chasing some look alike of Jiwoo that’s having breakfast at a Micheline star restaurant.
“Ha Sooyoung?”
When Jiwoo fidgets, it should be a sign. Something that can predict the outcome of the next words she speaks with that distracting and innocent voice of hers. Is that how she tricks those fans of hers? A smile that makes the sun cry, a high-pitched voice that sequels into the hearts of the many, too many subjects of this annoying kingdom Jungeun is unfortunately one of its citizens?
“A week.” She answers, Jungeun starts tapping her foot and breathes in, “Okay, more than that,” the look in her eyes make Jungeun look guilty, make her question this interrogation, convincing her that she’s the one in the wrong. “At my birthday party,” her voice even lower now, fingers intertwining with each other. Jungeun recognises this look, this defeated demeanour. It’s the same when the queen scolds Jiwoo for something she did, that doesn’t fit the image of someone with her title.
Jungeun sighs, shakes her head, and kneels to be closer to her. “Why haven’t you told me about it?” she keeps her voice low and gentle, her hands on Jiwoo’s and thumbs running on her restless fingers.
“I was going to, this morning. I swear,” she laughs, and it makes Jiwoo’s eyes light up with hope. She remembers it when they were kids, when they grew up, after university when Jiwoo came to her, eyes wet and pleading. Help me. Help me dethrone my mother.
Her phone buzzes in her pants pocket, Jungeun stands up, plants a peck on her friend’s forehead. “Next time, you tell me, so I know how to protect you.” She picks up after receiving a smile and a nod.
“The queen requests audience, bring the princess with you,” it’s Haseul’s voice, the head of the queen’s royal court, her right hand is what others that know of her existence call her, but Jungeun knows better. She’s aware of all the dirty little things Haseul is capable of for her highness.
Haseul, the same person that Jungeun used to look up to when she had first joined the royal court. Now, she’s just someone that Jungeun likes to keep at an arm’s length. Not for her per se, but her recent actions have left everyone fearing for their lives. A traitor found, shamed, and executed. All at the hands of Cho Haseul.
“We’ll be ready in ten,” she hangs up right after. Turns to find Jiwoo swallowing pills. Jungeun gets to her, picks up the small containers. Pregnancy and scent blockers.
“Just in case,” she smiles, but it’s not the one that would reassure Jungeun. It’s something that makes her worry even more.
“Are you two mated?” because she cannot find a mark that could resemble a bond between them. Not on Sooyoung and neither on Jiwoo when she dressed her.
“We’re taking things slow,” if Jiwoo had something about a death wish, Jungeun would understand. If Jiwoo had said something in lines of, my mother wouldn’t approve of this relationship, Jungeun would perfectly understand. But Jiwoo is not even considering it, “I do like her,” she gets shy about it too, which Jungeun would never understand. This is Kim Jiwoo, her still dear friend, that forgets a bed mate in a heartbeat, now is attached to someone that makes her blush. Jiwoo…blushing…
“As in, you want to see her outside of your bedroom, that kind of like her?” she suggests, but only because they’re close. Jungeun doesn’t like to drop the formalities with anyone else in the castle. Not her superiors, not even with her juniors.
“We did go out on dates,” Jungeun stops, again. She inhales through both her nose and mouth, seals her lips to prevent herself from screaming her lungs out. “I was going to tell you, but you left for an entire month,” Jiwoo protests, and Jungeun doesn’t have it in her to argue when her own problems were in the way.
She had to leave, her heat blinding her, a beautiful stranger that sated her, and a goodbye she whispered in a kiss on a sleeping cheek. Jungeun wanted to get her number, at least a name, but it was Japan, and what happens in Japan, stays there.
“How many?”
“We met every day,” she confesses, and Jungeun laughs.
Having had enough of this, Jungeun points to the door, “Move it,” walks in front to open it, leaves after the princess had whined her way out of the room.
It could only mean that she must take extra percussions when it comes to Jiwoo’s future activities that involves her and Ha Sooyoung. She really wants to ask why? What Jiwoo sees in that pervert? Then again, it’s also not her place to do that. If Jungeun is concerned, Jiwoo is free to be with whomever she wants, but as long as her demon of a mother is concerned, Jiwoo is to be married to someone that suites the mother. What an evil woman.
Jiwoo’s love for her mother is not questioned, but she disagrees with her decision making surrounding the kingdom. Which makes it the perfect opportunity for someone like Ha Sooyoung to be wanting to be part of it. she just hopes Jiwoo is aware of whom she hooks up with, and this intimately as well. There shouldn’t be any problem with finding out her true intentions. Ha Sooyoung can wait, but the queen cannot.
When they enter, Jungeun holds her breath. Haseul is here, whom she recognizes first, then of course the queen herself. The third on the other hand, has Jungeun inspecting them. When she turns around to face her and Jiwoo, bows to the princess, Jungeun holds her breath again.
Her face is unforgettable, her smile even more alluring, an alpha that she has met at a club, distracting her from every potential partner she wanted for the night, just to sate her heat. The beautiful stranger that bumped into her, she spilled her drink on said stranger, ruined her top, got dragged to the bathroom, pushed against it and was served unlike ever.
The same stranger that got on her knees in a stall and made her scream, the same stranger that took her to a hotel, bit onto her neck, arched her back like a bow, and filled her how she wanted to be filled.
“This is Jinsoul,” Haseul introduces, but she doesn’t hear her voice, Jungeun recalls how she had heard it for the first time, how Jinsoul introduced herself against her ear, panting her way in and out of her, I’m Jinsoul, and you feel fucking good.
“Nice to meet you,” she extends a hand, the same hand that grabbed her, the same hand that explored her body, the same big hand that brushed her back when Jungeun was finally falling asleep. She was drunk, and her brain failed to remember all of that which had transpired that night. She can only remember some events.
“Likewise.” She remembers the part at the club, the way to the hotel, in the passenger seat of a car, Jinsoul driving with one hand and the other gripping her thigh, she remembers Jinsoul on her knees and she’s pushed against the door.
And that’s all, because the morning came fast, and she was sleeping next to her entertainer, tiptoeing her way out of there, struggling to collect all her clothes, scattered from the door to the bed.
“Jungeun?” this time she does hear Haseul, but her eyes were still locked on Jinsoul’s. “Are you alright?” she’s not. Her face might not show it, but she’s a disaster on the inside. Jinsoul is still looking at her, Jinsoul is still saying something that Jungeun has no idea what it should mean.
“Yes,” retracts her hand, way too fast, still warm, and cold at the same time. She also makes sure to back away a little, looking away too, forgetting that she’s still eyeing Jinsoul, with thousands of questions running in her head.
“Let’s get started,” and she must sit facing her, watching her crossing her legs, black attire that makes her look elegant, a suite that probably costs more that Jungeun’s petty salary. She felt something around her neck, her heavy breath that once dampened her thoughts, Jungeun remembers whispers around her lips, you feel so good.
“Jungeun?” she looks away, swallows down a lump, eyes frantic when they try to find Haseul in the room. “What do you think?” she was completely out of the loop, only for Jinsoul to uncross her legs and she’s distracted again, trying to search for the right words to use. Think about what?
“I don’t see any errors,” but her eyes were scanning Jinsoul from head to toe, a smile that appears and disappears immediately.
“Perfect, I’m leaving next Monday.” Jungeun is surprised, why? Why is Haseul leaving the queen’s side? She missed out on some of the explanation from a minute ago. “Can you show Jinsoul around her new office?” Haseul points out, busy with some papers in her hands, Jiwoo is talking to her mother to the side, and Jungeun’s ears are ringing.
When she stands up, Jinsoul follows, but Jungeun goes around the queen’s desk, where Haseul is standing. “Can I talk to you?” her voice is low, Haseul turns to nod to Jinsoul, the woman sits back down. “Where are you going?” she says, the moment they left the room, with her hands clutching at her arms, walking from one wall to the other, avoiding Haseul.
“It doesn’t seem to be what’s worrying you.”
It stops Jungeun from her steps and turns, doesn’t know what caused it, but she’s looking at Haseul, “You’re leaving next Monday, and you think I’m worried about something else?” For how long is she going?
“Three months,” the answer she didn’t want to hear, “It’s not like you haven’t done this before,” there is no smile, which Jungeun can easily find when they speak. “She’s not foreign to this work, and I trust her.” Something Jungeun cannot catch Haseul saying about anyone. “Just make sure she’s comfortable and well acquainted with our routine.”
“Why are you leaving?”
She wants to scream, she wants to protest, but she can do nothing to stop it. Her heart is pounding, the last of the bruises Jinsoul had left on her body disappeared only two days ago, her mind still remembers little, after Jinsoul had drove them to the hotel. She remembers whispers, kisses along her neck, but everything was black after that.
“You’re not even listening to me,” it snaps her out, “Do you know her?”
“No,” her answer comes too fast, too defensive, and it alerts Haseul. Jungeun knows this, because Haseul knows her. “I just mistook her for someone else,” she remembers fingertips sneaking under her skirt, a body pushing her against the dirty walls of the bathroom in the club.
“Well… I’m leaving for Hong Kong,” she’s looking down, “Celebrating our anniversary,” Haseul doesn’t speak about her private life. The first she spoke about it, was when she had left for the first time. I’m getting married. And then talked about it again. We’re having a baby. She never mentioned neither her child nor her mate’s names. whether the child an Alpha or an Omega, or even a Beta.
“Have fun, unnie,” Jungeun understands it, and even if she likes to keep Haseul at arm’s length, Haseul trusts her enough to keep her ‘in charge’ even when this Jeong Jinsoul is actually her boss for the upcoming three months. It’s a first, for Haseul to announce an official replacement. The seat is vacant whenever she’s out, had never allowed anyone to supervise the staff.
“But you’ve never left anyone in your place before,” she ought to at least bring it up, maybe Haseul is in the mood to open up about it. And by it, Jungeun hopes it’s nothing major that’s masked by the celebration of an anniversary.
“Just in case,” she does smile, the happy type, the type Jungeun sees when Haseul -directly or indirectly- mentions her family. And now she has to entertain someone that she was sure she didn’t have to see ever again.
Jinsoul follows behind her, she’s not sure it’s a good idea to let Jinsoul walk behind her. her eyes never leave her person for a second, not when Jungeun points out an area that should be important to Jinsoul, like the queen’s office for instance, not minding it a single glance. She knows Jinsoul hasn’t looked away from her, because she’s not looking away either. She’s on scent blockers, took her heat suppressants and is still on them. Nothing to worry about, there should be nothing that can trigger the Alpha towards her. Which makes her wonder, if Jinsoul remembers her as vaguely as Jungeun does? Or can recall more of what had happened?
It explains why she cannot hold her gaze for more than two seconds. “I thought we were going to get some breakfast,” it’s noon, what breakfast? Jungeun looks at her, finding her leaning on a wall, arms crossed, eyes pretty much still on her. “But I woke up, and you were gone,” Jungeun tries to avoid it. Jinsoul makes it hard to be avoided, even if she had just officially spoke to her for the first time, a conversation that has normal words in them. She coils and uncoils, that time, where she had hurried out. She had heard a movement from the bedroom, no time to look at her bruised-up body, marked everywhere and others probably saw her do her little walk of shame out of the hotel room.
“I had to catch my flight,” Jinsoul hums, and for some reason, Jungeun can tell it’s the type that means she believes zero of what she hears.
“So, you’d stay if it wasn’t for your flight?”
Two seconds, she really cannot look Jinsoul straight in the face for more than two seconds. She finds herself distracted with everything about Jinsoul and with nothing around her. Not even pulled off her thoughts when one of the guards or her co-workers greets her.
“Let’s just stay professional,” she clears her throat, heading for Haseul’s office that will soon be occupied by Jeong Jinsoul. Jungeun makes a mental note to herself, to do her research about this stranger, that Haseul had introduced as her best friend, to be trusted more than anyone that works here.
“Does that mean I can ask you out after work hours?” she stops herself from going Jinsoul’s body one more time, she has to end the thoughts that keep on flooding in regarding that night.
“I have my rules, no dating co-workers,” she enters the office, Jinsoul behind her, she hears the lock and turns to face her.
“I’m not your co-worker,” leaning on the door as if blocking it. Jungeun was just doing her job, she was just showing around the new and temporary head of staff to her new place.
She will have to deal with this for the next three months. It wouldn’t be the first, but she had never slept with anyone from this place. she had never referred to anyone when it came to sating her cycles. She makes sure to stay out, away from their eyes.
“You’re my boss,” Jungeun proceeds with her tour, she explains everything there is in this office that Jinsoul needs to know. The type of files she receives to review, the right numbers to dial if she wants to reach out a specific department.
“How do I reach you?”
“2486, that’s my office,” Jinsoul hums.
“What if I wanted to reach you outside of work hours?” she’s on Haseul’s chair, legs crossed, leaning back, and swaying the chair slowly from side to side.
“Why would you?”
“In case of an emergency,” her smile makes Jungeun tremble, her demeanour has Jungeun alerted, the way she tilts her head to the side and speaks, has Jungeun back to that hotel room, right at the door, I’m going to fuck you so good. “Can I have your number?” says it the exact same way, hoarse, lazy, and Jungeun couldn’t see her face back then, but her eyes are dark brown and calling for her. For someone to sate her in one night, and she had to forget about it, her brain cannot recall whatever it was that had happened after she had pounced up Jinsoul’s body and was carried inside of the bedroom.
“Only for emergencies,” she cannot remember if she had submitted fully to Jinsoul, made everything so easy for her, if Jinsoul took her and found her too cooperative to resist anything. She cannot remember if she was following any command, had there been any. And she for sure had no memories of how she came undone, because alcohol and her body don’t mix that well together. She hates it and refers to it when desperate.
And she was too desperate that night.
To be perfectly clear and truthful with whatever it is that she feels, Jungeun doesn’t dislike Jeong Jinsoul. She has her profile delivered the moment she had returned to her office, read through it, took it home and read it again. She woke up in the morning, prepared coffee -in her newly purchased coffee maker, because she was just too lazy to make the detour to where the bakery is, and sat down through three videos, each thirty minutes, that had taught her how to prepare the perfect brew- added two shots of caramel and read the file one more time. She had brought it back to the department and looked at it, she wants to believe what’s written in the file, but she just calls Haseul to confirm it, just in case some things were fabricated.
“Unnie, did she really serve in the military?” Jungeun was not overwhelmed by the amount of information someone like Jeong Jinsoul could have on themselves, she was impressed.
“It was just a phase,” Haseul answers with a small chuckle, she can hear the whining of a baby in the background, which makes her smile too, knowing that Haseul is really spending time with her family. “If you think this is the weirdest thing, wait until you hear about the courses, she had followed that were not mentioned in her bio.”
“She has blackbelt in taekwondo.”
“You have a blackbelt in taekwondo.”
“It’s in my job description,” she was required to follow up on classes, even when she had never needed any type of direct confrontation. Nevertheless, Jiwoo is hard to say no to.
“Jinsoul is not the type that gets her hands dirty,” Jungeun can only think of the teeth marks on her body, discovered when she eyed herself in her own mirror when she got home. “She only did it, because Sooyoung was into that,” which brings her to ask the most important question, the biggest reason why she even had called Haseul.
“How do you know Ha Sooyoung?” she drinks her tea, bites on her cookie, and tries to keep the crunching sounds to minimum.
“I know them both since high school, separated after university, and reunited couple of months ago.” She really wants to ask how they reunited. Why now so suddenly? How come Haseul had never said anything about her friendship with the two that seem to be the cause of her recent headaches. One of them is in love with her best friend and the other she had slept with.
God! If only she knew whom she was getting railed by had to be this Jeong Jinsoul, she would’ve stayed away from her. She cannot even say if it was good or not, she remembers nothing about it, but for the fact that Jinsoul was successful is sating her heat in one night.
“What happened?”
“They both had this project they wanted to work on, involved going to Tokyo, abuse Sooyoung’s father’s connections with multiple high-class individuals, combined with Jinsoul’s brain, and there you have it, the third richest investors in whole Asia.”
Ridicules, and they can probably write a book about it. would Jungeun read it? No, but if she had never met or slept with Jinsoul, then she definitely would.
“Should I be worried?” she twirls in her chair, “At least keep an eye on her?”
“I’m not worried about her,” Jungeun hears a sigh, “I only asked her, because she might be the only person in Seoul that can keep the queen in line,” which was one of Haseul’s most tiring responsibilities. “I could’ve asked Sooyoung, but they just hate each other, and I don’t want to risk a losing war,” they cannot win against them and even if they did, that would just mean wasted and exhausting resources and going bankrupt.
Jungeun had made her own calculations, based on the influence that both sides have on the people, the regions, the other countries, and kingdoms. And the queen will lose, by a big margin. A gap that they don’t have the money to fill. She doesn’t involve herself with it, at least not yet. She has plans for whenever Jiwoo is ready to take over, but Jungeun will be damned if she repairs any weakness they have while the hag is ruling.
She says her goodbyes to Haseul and end the call after saying, “I promise to not bother you again. Have a great time, unnie.”
The first three days, Jeong Jinsoul hadn’t bothered her with a single thing. It was later at noon, where she was summoned by the queen, is where she found Jinsoul having tea with the tyrant.
“Your grace,” she bows. A klick of a tongue and Jungeun knows the queen is not in her best of moods.
“Why is my daughter refusing to attend the gathering?” oh, right.
Jiwoo was in a mood herself. Jungeun only understood that they had a fight. Something about Jiwoo telling her mother about Sooyoung and the queen was filled with rage, endless and merciless. Everyone avoided her yesterday. She was hard to deal with, and was all so perfect, because Jungeun is always free on Fridays, so she doesn’t have to deal with her highness’s nasty temper.
“There must be a misunderstanding,” she starts, making sure to keep her eyes off of Jinsoul, shamelessly undressing each other whenever -and she still cannot look for more than two seconds- they would lock gazes.
She saw her at a meeting once too, they sat opposite to each other, which was a mistake Jungeun will never, ever repeat. It’s a thing that had only occurred to Jungeun at that meeting. The way Jinsoul licked her lips, chewed at her pen, drummed her fingers, restless, devouring her with every look she made her way.
“What misunderstanding?” this on the other hand, despite everyone around her trying to halt her train of thoughts that Jinsoul likes to drive, the queen does stop her from going anywhere wild. Anywhere that had her taking off her jacket at that meeting, just to elect a reaction out of Jinsoul, just to see how she’ll move about in her seat that time. “She’s in a relationship with the daughter of our enemy. And you call it a misunderstanding?”
Not a great thing to say with one of their leaders is sitting at her table. A leader that has the signature power to bring them down. it’s when Jungeun for the first time had started to understand why Haseul had chosen Jinsoul of all other candidates.
“Nothing has been confirmed yet,” except for the fact that she saw them both naked in Jiwoo’s bed, whom she shamelessly snuck inside without anyone noticing. The fact that Jungeun -in the morning after- had snuck Ha Sooyoung out of the castle without anyone noticing. “I’ll look into it,” she did more than looking, she investigated and interrogated a very so in love Kim Jiwoo for it that entire morning. That was, after she had the displeasure of driving Ha Sooyoung and ditching her on somewhere on the road. Jungeun regrets nothing.
“You’ll convince her to attend the party, and you’ll be there too.” Jungeun stiffens, she recognizes the order, there is something behind it, something that had Haseul save her out of a tight situation. One where she was almost fired, but Jiwoo stood up for her, where she as almost gifted to someone at a party and Haseul stepped in to prevent anyone from touching her.
“The gathering is purely for upper floors, and are not meant for staff,” she reasons.
“I want you there to keep Jiwoo in control, she’s not allowed to make contact with that spoiled brat,” again, bad mouthing Jinsoul’s partner, which seems to Jungeun that she doesn’t really care about, or perhaps even agrees to it.
She bows, “Anything else, your grace?” only to be dismissed with a wave, may Jiwoo cut that hand very soon too.
On her way out, Jungeun hears the hurried steps behind her, “Jungeun,” she keeps walking, trying to her to her office as soon as possible, making it her mission to take much larger and faster steps. Why the hell did she go for high heels today?
She’s prevented from doing anything further than grabbed by the arm and pushed in her own office. The doors lock after they were inside. Jungeun loses her mind, to be forced this much into her own office, by her own boss. “Stop ignoring me.” Cornered between Jinsoul arms, she brings her own to defend herself, but she doesn’t have to use force, Jinsoul back away when Jungeun pushes her back. “Can you at least tell me why?”