Archive of Our Own

It was only a few hours into her job and Mei-Cho was already exhausted. Having to input all the data of visitors into Excel was a tedious, mind-numbing task, but somebody had to do it. The interns were hunched over on their cellphones, showing some celebrity tweet or viral video involving taekwondo machine-gun kittens shooting lasers out of their eyes or some other nonsensical bullshit that ate up valuable time when they should have been working, so they were absolutely useless to her.

Periodically, she had Flixnet playing in the background through her headphones while she worked to help motivate herself and ease off the stress. Some of her favorite series, such as Criminal Masterminds, Hell Note, and Vampire Prosecutor, were always a warm comfort. The former two had been dubbed and subbed in Korean and never failed to coax a laugh out of her at their awkward lost-in-translation moments. The classic crime shows also provided a humbling experience that no matter how often life wanted to kick her in the balls, someone else could always have it worse.

Today though, she was a bit distracted. By not doing the smart thing and ignore the spam application, Mei-Cho had committed a B&E and inadvertently signed up for an unpaid job she had never asked for all in the span of twenty five minutes. From what she had gathered from her conversation with RFA members, giving her the nitty gritty details of her 'probation,' she would have to physically be in the apartment in order to work on the RFA party. Working from her phone was one thing, but regularly visiting that posh apartment that belonged to a dead woman for party information was an entirely different matter. Sitting at her desk, Mei-Cho contemplated how she was going to move forward. This whole situation could take a massive downward spiral, but if she played her cards right, maybe she could find a way to work around it so she would hardly have to go to the apartment at all.

After a couple hours wallowing in regret and self-deprecation for not observing good judgement and trusting her gut, she let out a resigned sigh. Oh well. Perhaps she could count this as an unpaid internship. Who knows? If it all turned out well, it might help give her job experience in fundraising campaigns and event design to help beef up her resume.

"Hey, Mei!" Mei-Cho snapped out of her headspace long enough to see her coworker Seona Lee rush through the door with a small pile of binders in her arms. The glazed donut and cup of espresso balanced precariously in her hands meant only one thing: the boss had given her more work and she was running behind. "Do you know anyone who can cover for me and do the survey interviews this afternoon? I really need to catch up on my design project for the new pamphlet."

"I can do it. I'm getting nowhere with my numbers right now," Mei-Cho offered as the girl slunk back to her desk. Having been one of the few people in the department that had stayed here longer than four years, Mei-Cho was sympathetic to those who had other people try and pile their work on them just because they were the new kid and only worked part-time. If it wasn't for the fact that her mother had worked in the parks department and she was getting paid more than minimum wage, Mei-Cho was no lower than an intern.

"Oh... That's okay. You don't have to do it. I can put someone else on it." Frown lines creased faintly over her face as she turned her head towards the twenty one year old intern.

"Why not? I thought you needed someone to do it. Besides I can use the time to stretch my legs," she spoke with a straight face, rolling out from under her desk.

"Seriously, it's okay. I... I might have just overreacted a bit. It's no big deal, really. I can handle it."

"You sure?"

"Yeah. It's fine."

So angry and frustrated she could hardly see straight, Mei-Cho chose to take a break from imputing numbers and started to shift gears by deciding to do a little research on the mysterious organization, wanting to be a step ahead. Typing up 'RFA Organization' into Noogle had given her a handful of information as articles going as far back as four years ago popped up on the screen. She began scrolling her mouse over some of the stories covered on Bahoo and opened up various tabs and picked one at random.

'New Organization Takes the World On by Storm, Raises ₩100,000 for Charity'
"RFA Donates 100,000 to Save the Children"
By: Heo Yong-Joon

The RFA, also known as the Rika Foundation Association, has been making great strides as the once private organization's latest fundraiser raised ₩100,000 to the Save the Children Fund at their latest party. Backers of the organization include Han Jumin, Director and son of the CEO of the export tycoon company C&R, along with the elusive photographer artist V, who provided some of his own rare artworks to be auctioned off for charity.

'The RFA is a fairly new organization. Though it is small and fragile like an infant newborn, it is my child and I will care for and nurture it like any good mother until it grows strong enough to help make the world a better place,' states the organization founder known as Rika.

Not much is known about the organization or its leaders, having been involved with small businesses as well as fairly powerful companies through exclusive, invitation-only private parties. Needless to say, they are extravagant and elegant affairs, a must go-invitational party of the year with its fine dining and celebrity guests.

Mei-Cho clicked on one of the other open tabs she had on her computer and began scrolling over other titles: 'RFA Holds First Annual Christmas Fundraiser,' 'RFA Receives 162 Donations to Child-headed Households,' 'Culture Minister Attends RFA Charity Fundraiser,' 'Co-Founders of RFA Announce Their Engagement,' -the list went on. Though the search results were few and not exactly front page news articles, the name RFA wasn't as obscure in the media as Mei-Cho had originally thought. Maybe the organization wasn't a complete hoax.

Other than taking a screenshot of a creepy text message Unknown had sent her and posting it into an empty chatroom with the text 'do you believe me now?', she hadn't participated much in the conversations that took place, preferring to sit on the sidelines unless she was spoken to directly. She was curious, but she still didn't want to reveal too much of herself to them. She was fine about being honest, but she had no idea who this group of strangers was. For all she knew, they could have staged the whole thing to lure her into some false sense of security and pounce the moment she let her guard down by impersonating the real RFA.

They didn't act like a bunch fake accounts though. For one thing, she had invaded their personal chatroom, not the other way around. Secondly, they didn't act like people who were fishing for information- well, aside from Zen, who seemed dead-set on scoring a selfie, which either made him a perv or really damn horny. Yeah right. Like she was going to send him a picture of herself when she could hardly give herself a good look in the mirror for more than five seconds.

Still, Zen certainly seemed to be one of the friendlier members, having immediately come to her defense about being a hacker or some sort of criminal. From what she could gather, Zen was a fairly handsome man who was sensitive, impulsive, and wore his heart on his sleeve. He also appeared to be fairly confident, not throwing caution to the wind when it came to loving himself.

It was a shame that he was such a narcissist. His over-flared dramatics timed with his own brand of peacock-ing seemed to be his natural way of communicating with everyone, throwing so much glitter and sparkle in the chatroom that Mei-Cho was surprised he wasn't a vampire in some preteen girl novel. At least it made him good for a laugh.

Jumin, however, was the exact opposite. Though his words were welcoming, he was fairly formal, logical, and a bit cold. His assistant Jaehee was about the same, only less cold and more suspicious, though under the circumstances, Mei-Cho could hardly blame her. Both kept her at arms length through the duration of the conversation unless it pertained towards the party or someone happened to mention something about Jumin's cat. Then a mixed bag of hatred and absolute adoration flooded the conversation.

Yoosung was a tad naive, so odds were he was youngest member. He was nice, albeit a bit excitable, gullible, and game obsessed. He was still in college, so he was still probably figuring things out. She figured that he would be the most emotional person in the chatroom, almost like what a little brother would be like if she had one.

And then there was 707. Luciel, or Lucy as she liked to call him, on the surface seemed to be just flat out insane, a chaotic good in Dungeons & Drakes terms. To get her attention, he hacked her phone so that it meowed constantly at her until she answered, something she didn't think her phone was capable of until now, and managed to call her first thing after her introduction into the RFA, despite never handing out her phone number or allowing the app access to her phone when it was first played. That kind of power over technology essentially made him to be a god in no uncertain terms, and he very much liked to say so. Since he was a hacker and developer of the RFA application, odds are he would mostly likely be the one heading up the investigation on Unknown and help prove her innocence. The scariest part was that unlike the others in the chatroom, he was the only one she couldn't get a proper read on, judging from how hard it was to tell whether he was joking or being serious and how he veiled his threats under easy-going jokes. Mei-Cho had a feeling he would be trouble in the near future.

The only person that he seemed to follow and take orders from was V, who judging from the earlier chatroom logs, didn't appear to be online a lot, giving him an air of mystery. She doubted she would have many conversations with the man.

Given all these options, it only seemed natural that the only one she could have a serious conversation without feeling like crawling out of her own skin was with Yoosung. Unfortunately, being the youngest member, chances were that the blonde probably had the least amount to offer her in regards to party details, and wasn't the only one online currently. A green color highlighted around what were most likely chibi cartoonizations of ZEN and 707 as well, notifying that they were logged on.

Glancing over the previous chat-logs, the conversations varied from cat debates to video game obsessions. Curiosity, anxiety, and menial office work was what made her break her vow of silence. She entered the chatroom and tried to get to know some of the new people that had waltzed into her life.

*[MC]: Hey! Just checking in to see who's online.

*[707]: It is the elusive MC!
*[707]: Rumors claimed that she did not exist...
*[707]: That she can only be seen by children, the innocent, and those pure of heart.

*[ZEN]: Then how the hell can you see her, Luciel?

*[707]: I am innocent at heart. (✪㉨✪)

*[MC]: ...Is he high on something?

*[707]: Only the sweet goodness of Ph.D Pepper.

*[MC]: So either I'm a figment of your imaginations, or I guess that must mean you're all virgins then?

*[Yoosung*]: O0O...!

*[707]: o0o ..!

*[MC]: Omigod, guys, I was kidding.

*[ZEN]: OMFG lol

*[Yoosung*]: Forever alone... T^T

*[707]: No purehearted maiden should ever say the 'V' word.

*[MC]: I never claimed I was pure-hearted. Unicorn, yes. Pure-hearted, I am not~

*[ZEN]: Anyways, what brings you here MC?

*[MC]: Just doing some research into the RFA and their past parties.
*[MC]: If I'm really going to be doing this with you guys from now on, I'd rather not do it half-assed.

*[ZEN]: I like that you are a go-getter.

*[MC]: Just want to understand exactly what I'm getting into you.
*[MC]: INTO. GETTING INTO
*[MC]: NO 'YOU'
*[MC]: Damn auto-correct.

*[ZEN]: OMG so cute

*[707]: MC is already hacking her way into Zen.
*[707]: We must alert Jaehee, lest there be protests!

*[ZEN]: Stop saying weird crap, Seven -_-

*[MC]: Anyways, what kind of charities does this organization usually fund? It might give me a few ideas of who to reach out to for invites.
*[MC]: Some articles mentioned a few charities like Save the Children, but it didn't seem to have any distinct pattern.
*[MC]: Do you guys just draw names from a hat and choose that to be the organization you donate your funds to?

*[Yoosung*]: lol We don't really have a set list of organizations, but mostly we dealt with the arts and humanities.

*[ZEN]: Speaking of which, aren't you supposed to be in class, Yoosung?

*[Yoosung*]: I'm on lunch break right now.

*[MC]: What about you guys? You haven't left for work yet.

*[ZEN]: I don't have a set work time.
*[ZEN]: I'm an actor, so my work schedule's pretty flexible.
*[ZEN]: I'll go to rehearsal in the afternoon lol.

*[707]: I work mostly from home.
*[707]: Some days they chain me to the desk until I finish my work. T_T
*[707]: A hacker's work is never done!
*[707]: However, I managed to postpone my deadlines, so right now I'm researching.

*[ZEN]: What are you researching?

*[707]: About MC.

*[Yoosung*]: Are you doing a background chekck?!

*[707]: Not a background chekck

*[Yoosung*]: It was a typo;

*[ZEN]: Type slower -_-

*[Yoosung*]: My phone touch screen is crap. T_T

*[MC]: Did you find anything?

Her face paled. The '707 is typing...' icon wavered in the chatroom for what felt like an eternity as Mei-Cho found herself glued to the screen. Did he find her Fake Book page? Was he going to post a link of it for the whole world to see? This hacker acted easygoing, but honestly the amount of power that he had made her violated.

*[707]: Just the cup size and the number of pantyhose in the drawer?

*[Yoosung*]: OMG!
*[Yoosung*]: How could you look into something like that!?
*[Yoosung*]: How did yuo find out?

*[ZEN]: Seven, you perv :P
*[ZEN]: And shame on you, Yoosung.

*[MC]: ...Are you trying to get tips on how to find that or something?!

*[707]: JK.

*[Yoosung*]: ...

*[707]: I wasn't digging up MC's personal life. I'm looking for the person who sent MC to Rika's apartment.

*[Yoosung*]: Oh...!

*[ZEN]: Remember, MC, this is why all men are beasts.
*[ZEN]: Even Yoosung cannot deny his inner dog.

*[Yoosung*]: But I wasn't fishing for tips!
*[Yoosung*]: And like you're so innocent, Zen!
*[Yoosung*]: Girls practically fall all over you.
*[Yoosung*]: I bet they send you stuff like eyelashes in the mail.

*[ZEN]: I never try and encourage that kind of behavior.^^;;
*[ZEN]: It's awkward opening my mail when I get like a dozens letters filled with pictures of half-naked girls.
*[ZEN]: Or I open one envelope and a lock of hair falls out of it or a bunch of women's underwear.

*[MC]: OMG ratchet.

*[ZEN]: Now the postman won't personally bring me my mail anymore. T.T
*[ZEN]: I had to change mailmen earlier because my last one was a woman
*[ZEN]: And she kept preventing me from getting my mail by burning my letters.

*[Yoosung*]: A celebrity's life is scary...;;

*[ZEN]: I'm not a celebrity, but being an actor can be tough.
*[ZEN]: Is it my fault for being too beautiful for this world?~
*[ZEN]: T.T
*[ZEN]: I am an oasis in a desert.
*[ZEN]: A unicorn in a world of horses~

Somehow, after having read that, Mei-Cho envisioned the statement including a dramatic hair-flip with glitter, rainbows and magic anime roses.

*[MC]: Yes, you are truly a mythical marvel.

*[ZEN]: Then we'd perfect for each other ^^

*[MC]: I was being sarcastic.
*[MC]: There is only room for one unicorn inside this chatroom.

*[ZEN]: Then I would gladly break my horn off to you and offer it as a gift, milady~

Wow, this guy really wouldn't quit, would he?

*[707]: So romantic~
*[707]: Makes all this info I found on MC almost heartbreaking to prove the fact behind the myth.

*[Yoosung*]: Did you find something about MC? I want to know too.

*[707]: Ok. I will make an exception and let you in on some info.

*[Yoosung*]: +_+

707: She's a girl. Young. In my standard, she is cute.

*[Yoosung*]: ?
*[Yoosung*]: I don't know what your standard is like but go on.

*[ZEN]: Probably an alien.

*[707]: Two beautiful eyes and pink lips.
*[707] : That's enough, right?

*[Yoosung*]: Are you sure you can share that much information?
*[Yoosung*]: is what you thought I would say, right? -_-
*[Yoosung*]: Just admit that you don't know much about her.

*[707]: Ok, I don't.

Mei-Cho then let out a breathe she didn't know she had been holding and felt her shoulders sag back into their comfortable computer slouch. So aside from 707, who had been suspiciously quiet about her condition, no one knew what she looked like or who she really was. Of course, Lucy could have been lying and checked her out anyways, but despite everything, he still upheld his honor towards only following V. As weird as Lucy acted, Mei-Cho was a little relieved that the hacker still had some semblance of honor to not invade her privacy unnecessarily. Still... she was going to kill him for that comment earlier.

*[Yoosung*]: Well, but now it sounds like you're lying.
*[Yoosung*]: If you find out, will you tell everyone?

*[707]: That depends on V.
*[707]: As always~

*[Yoosung*]: But MC does have the right to know.
*[Yoosung*]: She was kidnapped!

*[707]: If I remember correctly, MC came to the apartment of her own free will.
*[707]: If u just deleted the app in the first place, we wouldn't be having this conversation.

*[MC]: Hard to argue with that -_-

*[Yoosung*]: But still, you're happy that you met us, right MC?

*[MC]: Ya. Sure.

*[Yoosung*]: Hehe, me too. ^0^ :D

Wow, there really wasn't a button for sarcasm on this thing, was there?

*[Yoosung*]: Still... I don't really like this.
*[Yoosung*]: Seven only does what V tells him to do.
*[Yoosung*]: That's how it's been until now.

*[707]: What can I do. I'm V's slave.

*[Yoosung*]: He makes it clear that he knows everything but never gives anything out.

*[ZEN]: He's just trying to protect everyone in the RFA. He's always been like that.

*[707]: Maybe.
*[707]: I can't help it tho T_T
*[707]: Why would the information be called 'classified'?

*[Yoosung*]: Still... Even when it came to her death
*[Yoosung*]: I wasn't happy with the information V gave me.
*[Yoosung*]: I have the right to know everything about Rika!

*[707]: Well... I didn't get a lot of information...
*[707]: about how Rika left the world...
*[707]: That's a shame for me too.
*[707]: But sometimes it's better not knowing.

*[MC]: Why is Rika so important to everyone?

*[Yoosung*]: She's the person who first thought of the parties and the organization.
*[Yoosung*]: If it weren't for her, there wouldn't have been any parties...
*[Yoosung*]: And we would never have helped those in need with the funds we raised from the party.
*[Yoosung*]: I was glad to be a part of it.

*[707]: It was fun for me too.
*[707]: More than anything else, I was glad to
*[707]: escape from my world and meet the RFA members.

*[Yoosung*]: I wish... she were still alive.
*[Yoosung*] : ...

*[707]: I have to leave now. Just got more work~

*[Yoosung*]: You have to take care of it right away, right?
*[Yoosung*]: I finished my lunch so I have to go too.

*[707]: Ok.

*[Yoosung*]: Okay~ Bye.

707 has left the chatroom.

Yoosung* has left the chatroom.

*[MC]: Wow, I just bummed the whole chatroom out with that question, didn't I?

*[ZEN]: It's not you, MC.
*[ZEN]: Rika was one of our closest friends and even though it's been almost two years since she died
*[ZEN]: some of us are still getting over it.
*[ZEN]: We don't really talk about her all that much in the chatroom.
*[ZEN]: Still that shouldn't discourage you from wanting to come in here and talk with us.
*[ZEN]: If you need any questions answered, this chatroom is great for talking.

*[MC]: Clearly.

*[ZEN]: lol
*[ZEN]: Well, I should probably get going. Got to get ready to go to work.

*[MC]: Bye.

ZEN has left the chatroom.

While she was fiddling with her new app, she noticed a message bar on the upper right-hand corner of the app with a little envelope icon called Texts and clicked on it. In it were a few cordial messages from the members sent earlier welcoming her to the RFA. One of which was the selfsame narcissist.

ZEN
[08:30:37 AM]: MC, it's me. I'm sure this text is surprising. We can send texts to each other on this app. If you need to talk or have any questions, feel free to text me. I'd like to get to know you on a more personal level.

MC
[12:53:34 PM]: Is this your way of trying to score my picture?

ZEN
[12:54:01 PM]: Ah ha... You caught me!
[12:54:17 PM]: Can you blame me though? It's not often that we have such a pretty girl to chat with.

MC
[12:55:10 PM]: I bet you say that to all the girls.

ZEN
[12 :55:54 PM]: Not really ^^;; If I did, I'm pretty sure I'd kill them with my stunning good looks. ;)

MC
[12 :56:08 PM]: Well your looks are pretty killer.
[12:56:28 PM]: BTW sorry if I was a bit harsh on the guys earlier. I tend to screw around with people and make inappropriate jokes when I'm stressed.

ZEN
[12:56:59 PM]: Oh, I'm sorry you don't feel too well. Stress isn't good for your health.
[12:57:06 PM]: You can get grey hairs or wrinkles early in life if you don't learn when to wind down.

MC
[12:57:11 PM]: Are you calling me old rn?

ZEN
[12:58:21 PM]: Of course not! I'm sure you're beautiful.
[12:58:35 PM]: Though if you want, you could always post a pic and prove me wrong.
[12:58:42 PM]: Just saying~

MC
[12:59:08 PM]: ...you're nothing if not persistent, aren't you?
[12:59:52 PM]: Fine. Here's a selfie.

And then after doing a quick Noogle search for images, she posted picture of a humanized fan art of an unicorn that resembled her default icon, some character called Fairy Floss or something from a popular children's show called My Little Horsey: Magic is Friendship.

[13:00:13 PM]: I'm afraid my hair color is not natural. I get it done by leprechauns. (:

Suddenly, her phone began to ring and vibrate in her hand. Seeing the user ID as 'Jaehee,' she figured it was wise to answer it and lifted her phone to her ear, "Hello?"

"Hello. This is Jaehee Kang," spoke a female voice in a formal tone that made Mei-Cho automatically straighten her spine to sit straight. "I'm calling because I wished to properly talk to you instead of chatting online. This is MC, I am speaking to, correct?"

"Uhh... yeah. This is she," Mei-Cho nodded even though the assistant couldn't see her, suddenly feeling like she was sitting in a staff meeting or having a phone interview than an informal discussion. Then again, since this was her new job now, it was plausible to call it a phone interview.

"It'd be wonderful if we could talk in person, but since we can't, I thought this would be the next best option."

"Uh sure, that makes sense. Umm, not to sound too nosy or anything, but how did you get this number?"

"Seven told us your number. Hence why I called."

So Lucy did have access to her personal cell number. Mei-Cho let out an inaudible groan, already starting to anticipate all the spam unknown phone numbers she was going to receive now. She was probably going to have to send them to voicemail or reestablish herself on a No-Call list for a couple of weeks. Changing her number would have no effect to her current situation and would only cost more money and increase suspicion of being in kahoots with the hacker.

"-I'm sorry, am I calling at a bad time?" Apparently, her suffering wasn't so silent.

"No, no. I'm just... trying to mentally prepare for having an active phone life." Her face slid comfortably in her hand into a full-on face-palm before running through it her hair, only for her to remember she had put on her wig before work, causing her hand to snag on the hairline of her curly auburn wig and nearly peel it off the front of her head like a stocking half tugged off of a foot. Old habits died hard.

"Oh, alright then. As long as I'm not interrupting anything. I hoped to catch you at a moment where I could to properly speak to you."

Mei-Cho fought off a few of the sniggering interns that had paused long enough to look up from their phones with a sharp glare across the break room, cursing at her cheap swim cap for not keeping her scalp dry and make the adhesive less effective while she unplugged her headphones from the computer in order to multitask. She wedged the earbuds into her ears as far as they could go and started blindly fixing her wig. "I'm a bit tangled up in something right now, but I'm not too busy at the moment. What exactly did you want to discuss?"

"Oh, well, I'll keep it brief then. I just wanted to let you know that if there's anything you feel uncomfortable to talk about to the rest of the RFA, please let me know. Oh, but there is one area with which I cannot help you: Concerning pets, I'm afraid you are on your own. That includes dogs, and I have absolutely nothing I can offer you regarding cats. If you don't mind, I'd like you to please refrain from mentioning animals. I have nothing against people who like animals, but..."

While Jaehee went on to discuss her dislike of four-legged companions with fur, Mei-Cho had already fished her travel sized wig spray inside her messenger bag and was started to reapplying the spray-on adhesive to her wig cap, trying not to take personal offense to her dislike of dogs and silently praying that the assistant would continue carrying on the conversation for the two of them long enough for her to get situated. She was just starting to deal with re-adjusting the clips to her wig again when she tuned in, "...ou have any questions?"

Oh. That one was geared towards her. Shit! She hoped she didn't miss anything important.

"Uhh... how long have you worked with the RFA?" Mei-Cho asked, hoping Jaehee hadn't covered that subject while she was tuning her out.

"Around two and a half years. I've been a member of the RFA for a little less than that," Jaehee answered promptly. Mei-Cho expelled a soft sigh. "I know how strange it can be, suddenly brought into a strange organization you know nothing about. I, too, joined the RFA a little while after it was founded. It felt strange, and even a bit scary. But everyone is nice, so please don't worry. I can guarantee that."

"Good to know," she said noncommittally before decided to ask change tactics and ask the one question that had been bothering her. The one question that no one really gave her a clear picture of. " ...Jaehee, please tell me about Rika."

"Rika? Oh... Your question surprised me, b ut I guess your curiosity is only natural. This all happened so suddenly. Rika managed a charity business, and b efore she passed away, she and V planned a life together. Rika's charity involved many things but... the most central project was hosting parties in her and V's name."

"Yeah, but who was she? You know, as a person? It seems like just mentioning her name causes me to step on some serious emotional landmines."

"I'm probably not the best person to ask, since I knew her the least out of all the RFA members, but Rika... was a very special person. She was a warm and caring person, one we never thought was going to leave us anytime soon. She was one of those kind of people that made you feel good while talking to her. Even a complete stranger could get swept up in her personality from just from a few of her kind words..."

A couple notification noises rung quietly in her ear, but Mei-Cho tried to tune them out while she listened to the assistant talk about the late RFA founder. Prior to how she first came off as in the chatroom, Jaehee appeared to be a lot more reasonable and understanding than she had initially given the woman credit for. She could tell, not just judging her from how fondly she spoke of her. Her voice always dropped to a softer tone when she spoke about memories involving Rika.

"Sounds like you kind of had a bit of womance going on with her," Mei-Cho smiled, unable to keep the smirk from coloring her voice.

"Oh... no, nothing like that. We were just good friends and I greatly admired her devotion to her work," Jaehee corrected her, taking a moment to pause before recollecting herself in a more solemn tone. "She was such a beacon of hope, a spark to inspire great change. It was a shame that she died so young. She probably could have made a real difference, had things not gone down the way they did."

Mei-Cho noted that Jaehee had used the term 'died' rather than 'commit suicide,' like it was almost an accident that Rika had passed away rather than a purposeful act, ending her own life. Mei-Cho thought to ask how it happened, but thought better of it. Some things are better left unsaid.

"No one's ever ready for tragedy," Mei-Cho finally admitted, chewing slightly on her bottom lip. "It just hits you from out of nowhere, and you can't prepare yourself for something you didn't see coming." And now you and the rest of the RFA are stuck with me instead of someone you'd rather be hanging out with, Mei-Cho couldn't help but think. She had seen her photo. Rika was gorgeous, and if Yoosung was her cousin, she was probably blonde as well. The deeper she dove into the organization, the more it appeared like she was going to have some big shoes to fill.

"Oh, I'm sorry, but there is a duty that calls for my attention," Jaehee chimed in, her voice anxious and surprised like she hadn't expected to be swept away so easily in the conversation. Then again, she could just be trying to escape the painful memories. That's what I would do, Mei-Cho thought.

"Right. Sorry for keeping you so long."

"Not at all. It was a pleasure to talk to you."

"Yeah. It was good talking with you too. You're a lot nicer than I thought you were." And Mei-Cho was almost shocked that it was true.

"Likewise. Please call me when you need something or have a question, and I will take care of it as fast as I can. I look forward to working with you."

After her phone call with Jaehee ended, Mei-Cho leaned back in her wheelchair and mulled over the information. Her eyes drifted towards the computer screen onto one of the tabs she had left open on the RFA before being sucked into her phone for the past half hour due to the self-same organization. One word from the title leapt out to her, the news articles dating back from almost a year and a half ago: suicide. As soon as she read the rest of the title, she gave it her full attention:

'Tragedy Strikes, RFA Founder Rika's Apparent Suicide'
"RFA Host Presumed Dead After Three Week Long Investigation"
By: Heo Yong-Joon

Rika, leader of the once prominent charity organization RFA, disappearance has been investigated thoroughly by the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency. Three weeks after filing a missing person's report, the RFA Host was suspected to be dead after officials found jewelry belonging to the missing woman washed up onshore of the Han River, and has been presumed dead on XXX-XX-20XX. According to the investigation team's reports, Rika's fiance, V, co-founder of the RFA, spoke to the police claiming that he had gotten into a heated argument with Rika during the latest RFA fundraiser they hosted at his summer home along the coast and the victim was so distraught that she threw herself off of the seaside cliff rocks weeks later. S o far, V remains as the only eyewitness account of the victim's alleged suicide and sole suspect to the incident. A lthough no body was ever found, n o evidence of foul play has yet been discovered, and based on circumstantial evidence and the subject having no criminal record, the head of the investigation team wrote off the woman's disappearance as suicide.

'Having been close friends with Rika, I would like to state that we were all devastated when we first heard the news,' commented Han Jumin, who appeared to be visibly shaken by the host's demise to this reporter, 'Rika was the heart and soul of the RFA, and though we will try to continue on her legacy, it will never be the same without her.'

'Rika was a special person to all of us,' Kang Jaehee replied, another RFA member. 'Without her to guide us, the RFA has a definite hole in the organization.'

One of Rika's closest relatives as well as member of the RFA, Kim Yoosung, had this to say: 'I can't believe she's just gone... It makes no sense. She was always so cheerful.'

No previous medical records have been uncovered for the RFA host's mental history, though it is speculated that depression could have been one of the instigators as V had stipulated that Rika had been seeing a therapist for a prolonged period of time before stopping treatment three months prior to the incident, though it is possible she used an alias, as she liked to keep her work and private life separate.

The co-founder of the RFA organization and fiance of the deceased, V, refused to further comment at this time.

Well damn. No wonder everyone appeared to be so sensitive about Rika. Still, the fact that they never found a body and had only to trust V's word did seem a bit suspect. Most TV shows she watched would assume this to be an act of foul play, but not everything on TV happened in real life. Most missing person cases handed to private detectives could be solved with tracing a person's internet history.

Was V a murderer?

Her brain had just jumped to that conclusion without any real provocation. Though she didn't know the RFA leader well, he didn't actually strike her as as a murderer, coming off as maybe a bit secretive or a martyr, though his intense regard towards Rika's apartment did raise a few red flags. Unless you have solid evidence, everything can regarded as speculation and circumstantial, her father always told her. Never make accusations unless you can back them up with concrete facts.

Given that she had only met these people hours ago, she should at least give V the benefit of the doubt. Clearly her love of crime shows was starting to warp her mind. Her whole morning had been the start of a cliche episode opening of Criminal Masterminds.

Mei-Cho had moved to lock her phone, trying to change gears and focus back on the task at hand, until she spotted a red number six located on the upper left corner of the Message icon in the RFA messenger app. Apparently while she had been talking to Jaehee, Zen had gone offline, but not before leaving her a couple more texts before he logged off.

ZEN
[13:00:35 PM]: lol Wow, you've got a cute horn.
[13:01:56 PM]: Does that make you 'horny'?~
[13:05:20 PM]: ...Oh god, please forget that I wrote that..!
[13:05:38 PM]: That joke was terrible.
[13:07:23 PM]: I'm sorry if I offended you in any way.
[13:10:07 PM]: Remember, all men are beasts. ^^;;

And just like that, he had fled the chatroom app before she could respond. She let out a snort, doing a complete 180 from her mood only a few moments ago. She decided to type a response anyways just to mess with him.

MC
[13:22:15 PM]: No offense taken. Just appreciate that you like my 'horny-ness.'
[13:22:26 PM]: And for the record, men aren't the only beasts~ ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Fairly energized from interacting with the RFA members, Mei-Cho decided that she had enough of a break and went to check her work email, plugging in her headphone jack back into the desktop. While she restarted her Flixnet, she was suddenly overcome with the overwhelming urge to watch Korean sub of "The Last Kirin."