Chapter 23: New Target Acquired.
"Positive, Miss Kim," Leo said with an apologetic smile. "She left shortly after you did and hasn't returned. Would you like me to call her office for you?"
"No, no, it's fine," Marian sighed. "I'll just wait upstairs. Thank you." She hefted her bags, planning to binge-watch something and stress-eat her feelings about the upcoming college orientation.
As she turned towards the private elevators, her gaze swept absently across the lobby's grand entrance, only to see something she never expected to.
A silhouette, backlit by the afternoon sun streaming through the revolving doors. his appearance similar to a certain figure she'd come to know
"Oppa?" she mumbled under her breath, exhaling in surprise, eyes widening subtly.
Her heart jolted at the sight. She'd actually gone back to the same convenience store earlier, feeling hopeful and eager.
She'd wanted to see him again, But the bored-looking older woman at the counter had told her "Julian" was just a part-timer and wasn't on shift. The had disappointed her greatly.
' Oppa is a mafia so it stands to reason that he wouldn't be a full time employee.'
And now, here he was, in the lobby of her building? Of all places? Was he… looking for her? The thought was both thrilling and terrifying.
"Excuse me, could you watch these for me? I'll be right back!" she said in a rush, practically thrusting the heavy grocery bags at the surprised front desk staff. She didn't wait for an answer, hurrying across the polished marble floor toward the revolving doors, her sneakers squeaking.
She burst out onto the sun-drenched sidewalk, the city noise enveloping her. Her eyes scanned the street, left, right, across the road. Taxis, pedestrians, a cyclist weaving through traffic.
Eventually she found him, A cab was just pulling away from the curb a dozen yards down. Through the rear window, she caught a glimpse of a dark cap, a familiar profile looking out the other side.
"No..." The word was no different from a quiet groan of frustration. She'd missed him by seconds. The taxi merged into traffic and disappeared around a corner.
Marian stood on the sidewalk, the excitement draining away, replaced by a hollow sense of missed opportunity. She pursed her lips, kicking lightly at the sidewalk "I can't believe I missed him," she muttered to herself but she didn't sulk for long.
For a new thought surfaced in her mind, tinged with curiosity. "I wonder what he was doing here anyway."
' he couldn't have been a tenant here... Was he visiting someone perhaps? Or delivering something? The mystery of the unusual clerk deepened.
With a final, longing look down the now-empty street, she turned and trudged back into the cool, quiet lobby of the Pendleton, collecting her bags from a bemused front desk clerk with a muttered thanks. The figure of her unlikely savior was gone, leaving only questions in her head.
********
My cab ride could be summarized as a blur of unfamiliar, upscale streets. I'd given the driver vague instructions to just take me to a "busy shopping street,"
He'd dropped me off on a vibrant avenue lined with boutique shops, cafés with sidewalk seating, and well-dressed people moving with leisure.
I paid the man and got out, the door of the cab closing with a solid chunk behind me. I stood on the curb for a moment, taking in the scene. The air here smelled quite nice.
'Now, who should I begin with first?' I thought, the mission-focused part of my brain engaging.
This was the reconnaissance I'd planned for. I began walking down the bustling sidewalk, my eyes not resting on the shop windows or the people's faces, but scanning the space around them, waiting for the telltale flicker of a blue-and-white panel.
It felt strangely barren. For the first fifteen minutes of my slow, meandering walk, I saw nothing. No panels. Not a single one. It was unnerving. After the constant, low-level barrage of data yesterday and this morning, the silence in my vision felt deafening.
'If I didn't know any better, I'd think none of them came out today,' I mused, a thread of frustration beginning to wind through me.
Was the system random? Or is there some kind of cooldown period after completing a mission?
"No, looks like I was wrong."
The thought came as I spotted a young woman walking towards me from the other end of the block. She was petite, almost fragile-looking, with a sleek, chin-length bob of dark hair that swung as she walked. She had cute, round eyes, but they were fixed on the ground a few feet ahead of her, her brow slightly furrowed.
Even from a distance, I could read the anxiety in her posture. Her shoulders were hunched and her steps were unusually quick, bordering on skittish. She walked while holding onto the strap of a tote bag.
[Potential Target: Veronica Park]
Age: 20
Status: College student.
Psychology State: Hurt, worried.
Mission Difficulty: 1 star.
I calmly read the text m before me after shifting my gaze away from her.
To think I had finally found a target. But not the simple, zero-star diversion I'd been hoping to find as a warm-up.
'A one-star mission?' I pondered, my steps not faltering. A flicker of trepidation of the unknown coming over me.
'When I first came out, I was planning on going for something easier. A zero-star, like Marian. Something straightforward.' The memory of my theatrical gangster performance and the emotional minefield of Ophelia flashed in my mind. 'Straightforward' was a relative term.
'Well, beggars can't be choosers,' I cautioned myself, falling into step a good twenty feet behind her after she passed me.
'I'm lucky enough I found a target to begin with. Best not to tempt fate by waiting for the perfect, easy score. This is what I'm here for after all.'
I continue
d my gait, not speeding up or slowing down, trying to look like just another guy out for a walk.