You're a homewrecker

The Seung-Bi shippers were devastated and heartbroken. Their dream idol couple had never been real. All the fans who made videos of Seung-ho and Dan-bi, and defended their firm belief that the two were a secret couple, were slapped hard in the face. The hardest slap though was felt by Dan-bi who had encouraged and fanned the flames of wild rumours between her and Seung-ho.

The netizens were roasting her in the comments section of all the videos of her talking about Seung-ho as if a secret relationship existed between them.

The actress was embarrassed and filled with anger mainly focused on Sun Young-mi. It was already bad enough that she hadn't received any news from the thugs who she'd paid to ruin her love rival, but now Sun Young-mi had shown up safe and sound and was engaged to the man that Dan-bi had been in love with for six years. It was a cruel twist of circumstances that she couldn't accept. So when she received a text from Seung-ho, asking her to meet him, she didn't hesitate to agree or even question why.

______

Ji-ho was seated opposite a fuming Dan-bi who had been expecting Seung-ho to show up.

"Why are you here?" The latter snapped at the beautiful girl showing off her expensive engagement ring. Ji-ho held a glass of water and took small sips from it so that Dan-bi would have to keep seeing the ring that glittered on her finger. It was having its intended effect because the actress was already losing her temper.

"Dan-bi, did you really think you could get away with sending me to a rapist?"

Ji-ho observed the woman's interesting reaction. The actress turned a shade of paleness that a ghost would have been proud of.

"What rapist? I don't know what you're talking about, Sun Young-mi. Stop wasting my time."

She was smarter than Iris and Blue. Ji-ho was okay with her not admitting to the crime because this time, she wasn't recording their conversation.

"He's dead," Ji-ho informed the actress whose eyes widened with shock. "And I have his phone with me."

Dan-bi couldn't have heard a worse piece of news from Ji-ho. This was just as bad as finding out that Seung-ho was engaged. Her hand trembled in fear as she clutched her purse under the table.

"So silent," Ji-ho remarked as she stared into Dan-bi's frightened eyes. In the modern world, a smartphone was a criminal's biggest weakness. It had call logs, messages, pictures, emails, and a trail of electronic evidence that could put them in jail.

The man that Dan-bi had solicited for the job was a well-known mafia leader who was almost untouchable by law and enforcement. So wealthy, powerful, and connected was he that even the top brass of the police was in his pockets. Thus the actress had been fearless in using his services.

"He can't be dead," she murmured. "He can't!"

Ji-ho held up her phone and showed the picture of his dead body to the horrified actress.

"Looks dead to me. It's a shame he had to bleed out on that nice Persian carpet."

By now Dan-bi was shaking from fear. Who was Sun Young-mi? How did a nobody like her manage to not only escape the clutches of that man but also have him killed? For the first time since knowing her, Dan-bi was starting to understand that she wasn't dealing with the idiot idol that the media had portrayed Sun Young-mi as.

"My fiance knows all about what you did, by the way. He hates you, Dan-bi." Ji-ho's words struck the actress like a knife in her heart. "But you love him, don't you?"

Ji-ho smiled a tad bit maliciously when she saw the fear and pain in Dan-bi's eyes.

"While you settle for someone who isn't Seung-ho, I'll be sleeping in his arms every single night."

And to drive the nail in even further, Ji-ho added in a whisper. "That is... If you don't end up in prison. I know you can buy your freedom, but can you buy back the respect of your fans? Your friends? Colleagues? Who will want to associate with you after finding out what a vicious and heartless woman you are. Us girls have to stick together and uplift each other in such a cut-throat industry but here you are, mastermind of the plot for my ruin at the hands of a rapist."

"Enough!" Dan-bi hissed when she finally found her voice. "What do you want in exchange for the phone?!"

Ji-ho leaned back and smiled with satisfaction. "Nothing."

Dan-bi was panicking now. "Sun Young-mi, everyone has a price," she said through clenched teeth. "I know you have one as well."

"You're right," Ji-ho responded, giving hope to the actress. "Here's my price. Allow me to hire a thug to kidnap you so you can experience what I did. How about that?"

The actress was silent. She would never agree to such a ridiculous demand.

"No? Then I'll see you at court, Dan-bi."

________________

The heat generated in the media by Seung-ho's engagement hadn't reached the pinnacle of its fervour yet when the police announced that an investigation had started against a group of people responsible for the attacks against Sun Young-mi.

Backed up Seung-ho's reputation and the pressure he exerted by being the public's darling, Ji-ho was able to convince the police that it was in their best interest to treat her case with unbiased fairness.

Dan-bi watched the news with trepidation. Blue and Iris were already named persons of interest by the police. They were keeping a tight lid on everything so the actress had no way of knowing just what kind of evidence they had on everyone. Every hour that passed by ratcheted up her anxiety till she was taking pills to control her symptoms. Unable to rest or even fall asleep, she was tortured by the thoughts of everyone finding out and hating her for the things she had done not just to Sun Young-mi but to other smaller actors and actresses who had disrespected her.

She picked up her phone and dialled Seung-ho's number. Maybe if she pleaded with him, he could convince Sun Young-mi to back off. He was her friend, a colleague who had acted with her in several dramas. Surely he had some shred of goodwill left for her. After all, Young-mi hadn't been harmed by Dan-bi's plot. He had to help her.

"Ya! Dan-bi," Ji-ho answered the call. "Why are you calling my husband? Do you want to die?"

"You aren't even married to him!"

"I'm blocking your number, homewrecker!"

"Go to hell, Sun Young-mi!"

"If the devil is as hot as Seung-ho then maybe I will-"

The phone call was abruptly cut off. Dan-bi stared at her phone and then threw it against the wall in her rage.