Chapter 216 - Trap

He took three steps at once, reaching her in a flash, and making Ye Rim's heart ache painfully.

"We can name it depending on the case. It can be a flashback... Or a narrative climax! You should be getting more out of your acting classes, Ye Rim!" Dae Won gripped her left wrist tightly and pulled up another flight of stairs. Alarmed and wide-eyed, she could do nothing but follow him up to the top floor.

He was actually taking her out onto the rooftop. But for what?

Without elaborating further, she decided to act and raised the iron rod behind his back.

Dae Won turned around suddenly, still holding Ye Rim's wrist. The sudden movement twisted her body, but Ye Rim saw no other way out.

THUD!

The unpleasant sound of metal hitting flesh and bone made the singer cringe as if she had been hit herself.

The first blow did not land on the head as planned, but on Dae Won's shoulder. 

Dae Won released her immediately, caught off guard by the blow and the pain.

She then hit him in the knee, which the singer knew it was still recovering from the car accident. It was a coward move, but in her defense, that was what self-defense classes taught.

Dae Won leaned forward, grabbing his knee to endure the pain, and Ye Rim took the time to go through him and through the door behind him, arriving at a large empty room just below the terrace. 

Darting her eyes this way and that, beyond, besides cans of paint and abandoned material, she saw no one. Ji Hyeon was not there. To her left, she saw the door leading to the terrace, with a large, roughly painted X and the words: DO NOT TRESSPASS - DANGER. If she remembered it well, that door also gave access to an old emergency staircase, which should have been removed by its precarious condition.

Her small hesitation about what to do next was enough for Dae Won to grab the singer by the hair violently and throw her on the floor.

At that moment, the iron tube escaped from Ye Rim's hand and rolled across the floor with a metallic clang.

More out of instinct than anything OPPA Ji had taught her, Ye Rim grabbed Dae Won's foot with both hands, who stood up to kick her. 

With a shake, she tried to unbalance him, but he was stronger and forced his foot with all his strength against Ye Rim's chest.

The air escaped from her lungs and she felt horrible pain, but managed to roll over before taking another kick. Rotating her body on the floor, she kicked him in the leg with her high heels, as hard as she could.

Dae Won fell to the floor with a low m.o.a.n.

Ye Rim crawled towards the iron rod, but Dae Won grabbed her by the calf.

Reaching the tube, she turned awkwardly and hit him in the head's side, feeling his fingers loosen immediately on her heel.

Gasping and coughing from the blow to her chest, she sat up to recover, watching him roll on the floor while holding one side of his head.

Dae Won looked at her with hatred, and she saw his hand go towards a wooden stick that was there for some reason.

'OMG, he's going to kill me!' She tried to get up as fast as she could, and get past him. Again she was grabbed from behind, this time by her blouse, turned, and pushed against the wall. The moment this happened, Ye Rim felt her head hit the wall, and the hollow THUD inside her skull. She felt the blood coming down her nose, and the vision darkened. 

Her legs went limp, and although Ye Rim tried to hold on to Dae Won, she felt herself collapsing on her body like a sack of potatoes.

She fell with her eyes open, breathing hard.

She felt it when he poked her belly with his foot, to see if she had any force left. He swung the piece of wood in his hand.

She prayed for a miracle, because she didn't feel like avoiding another blow.

"Uhn, you look so much better that way ..." he mumbled, walking away, after a few seconds making up his mind about beating her or not.

'This girl ... is not yet dead!' although her vision was blurred, she saw him hobble to a corner, where some burlap sacks and other materials were piled up. The realization of what he was going to do created a wave of despair that made her body react. 

"No…!" She screamed. In fact, Ye Rim realized that her voice did not sound as imperative or as strong as she imagined. And she saw the little flame he set ablaze start to grow rapidly.

"You are crazy?! Do you want to kill us?! How do you think about leaving here now?!" she asked, resting her hands on her knees to gain strength. Her head still reverberated, but she wasn't going to give up on living that easily.

Dae Won gave him a smile.

"You really want to live, don't you...?!"

"And you don't want to?!"

"Do you think I'm killing myself, here? You're really stupid, Ye Rim," he raised his stick menacingly, and she flinched instinctively.

"Exactly. You don't have to make me beat you to death. That would be unpleasant ... Don't act like a c.o.c.kroach."

"Aigoo ... That was offensive," she complained, annoyed.

"Besides, there's a chance to escape ... Jun Hyeon will just have to choose between going to the bas.e.m.e.nt or going up the stairs… He always wanted to know what it felt like to face the fire to get Ji Hyeon out. He always wanted to feel heroic..." Dae Won was mocking.

"Shut up," the singer had enough of it. "Don't be a cheap psychopath anymore. We will erase you from our memories, Dae Won. You pathetic human failure ..." she spat out the words and saw him curl his lips in hate.

The singer tried to run and pass him towards the terrace door, but he interposed to it and her, swinging the stick menacingly. 

Ye Rim stepped back, feeling the heat of the fire behind her. In addition, smoke was oozing rapidly through the door that gave access to the internal stairs, and filling the upper floors.

Taking cautious steps backward, while maintaining a frighteningly beautiful smile on his face, Dae Won said,

"Goodbye, sweet Ye Rim. It wasn't a pleasure to meet you, after all. But I won't be able to stay to see the outcome of your first drama… Who will he choose?"

With his free hand, the musician reached for the door handle and turned it, ready for his strategic exit. Ye Rim was sure he would lock her there to die.

But the door was locked.

The winning smile on his face faded before Ye Rim's incredulous eyes.