We arrived at a hotel that was obviously the most expensive on the strip. Exotic cars filled the parking spaces and limos came and went, dropping off people of all sorts. The woman spoke constantly through her earpiece in Korean, smiling and laughing as she guided us through a maze of hallways until we reached the main lobby. The lobby glistened and sparkled with golden pillars holding up the billion-dollar hotel. Associates ran back and forth carrying luggage as the 1% walked at their own pace. We approached a receptionist whose expression changed as soon as she laid eyes on our guide, one that went from a welcoming smile to fear. 

“Please check them in as Jin Moon’s guests. VIP status.” The woman said as she stared at the receptionist, not taking her eyes off her. 

“Yes, ma’am.” the receptionist replied, her face flushed of color as she avoided eye contact entirely. 

One by one we offered her our pass as she marked them off with a red check. The receptionist had grabbed mine and pulled hard as I felt the string pull on my neck and force me forward a little. She marked off my card and looked up finally. staring me in my eyes as she released the pass, making me recoil back a bit. Her eyes stared now at us as our guide instructed us to herd into the elevator with her hand gliding over the elevator buttons until she found the correct floor, 64. 

The moment we stepped out of the elevator it was as if we had stepped into a billionaire’s hideout. Floors that sparkled like diamonds complemented the silver and black trim that made up the room’s decoration. Paintings and books littered the walls and a beautiful grand piano sat in front of the towering windows, sitting as the focal point of the room where two large white couches complimented it for perfect viewing. The air smelled like expensive cologne and the room carried the sound of music coming from a room above. 

“Please make yourself at home. There is a mini-fridge and plenty of snacks for you to help yourselves to. Jin will be with you in just a few minutes. Until then, please relax. I’ll be in the other room if you have questions.” The woman said as she nodded with a smile and walked off into one of the many hallways this room connected to. 

Minutes passed as we ate and drank the snacks offered to us, laughing at jokes and memes on each other’s phones while admiring the beauty of the room. We ate grapes and mango that Joy had cut with a beautiful golden knife that sat beside the fruit on a counter. Blake had even poured himself wine as he relaxed and melted into the leather couch. Grace sat and looked at the piano for a long while, staring at the glistening keys that sparkled from the city lights. She stood and walked toward the piano, stealing our attention as we watched her sit and place her hands on the keys. 

“My parents had taught me since I was a kid. I ended up teaching myself some of his songs,” Grace said in a soft voice as she played the opening song at Jin’s concert. Her fingers glided over the keys as she pounded away flawlessly, using the pedals and swaying to the music. She hummed to the melody and lyrics of the song, feeling the rhythm as she swayed more and more in the seat. A voice emerged from the stairs above, humming the song with Grace and bringing a background harmony to the song. Jin made his way down the stairs slowly, following along with her rhythm. She stopped humming for a moment, noticing the idol making his way down the steps before he motioned her to continue as he started singing the words to the song. His voice just as good as it was during the concert, maybe even better as he took all the air in the room, all the sound, crafting it into a beautiful symphony that he molded. The idol approached Grace who continued to play with tears swelling in her eyes, not believing what was happening and feeling nothing but pure joy at that moment. The song crept to an end, and the two completed their singing; Jin smiled widely and opened his arms for Grace, who practically leaped into them, giving him a big hug. 

“That was fantastic Grace, I apologize for my voice. I am still winded after the performance.” He said, fully aware that his voice was nothing but perfect. 

“You know my name?” She asked.

“Yes, as well as the rest of you. Joy, Sera, and Blake. Correct?” He asked after pointing to each of us in the correct order. We nodded, completely star-struck and taken away by him saying our names. 

“It’s a pleasure to meet you all. How did you enjoy the show?” Jin asked.

We all overwhelmingly glorified his fantastic performance, bringing him to laughter as he smiled, thankful that his performance went well. He took a seat on the couch next to Joy and chatted with us for a while, answering our fan trivia and questions that we had always wished to ask him. Jin is nothing but calm, his breathing slow, and the way he talks, calculated. It was as if each word was placed carefully and thoughtfully. Jin motioned for Grace to continue to play as he walked to the counter, shuffling around some things, returning with a bottle of water. He stood watching her fingers strike the keys, finishing her song. 

“Now Grace, that was beautiful. Who taught you how to play the piano like that?” Jin asks as he sits beside Grace at the piano. 

“My parents taught me, they both played piano as a hobby, I could play before I could walk.” She said as her fingers danced along the keys. 

“Did they teach you any fucking manners while they were at it?” he asked as the room came crashing to silence. Nobody moved, nobody breathed. Not a sound was made other than Jin’s now heavy breathing. 

“Uh, I-”

“Oh, you what? You didn’t learn any manners as a child? Your parents didn’t teach you to not touch what isn’t yours? Is that it?” Jin asks, cutting Grace off.

“What, no I’m so sor-” 

Grace stops. Her voice replaced with the sound of air escaping from her lungs, a struggled breathing. Her strained voice gasps weakly as her hands reach for things to grasp, things to cling onto. Her hands pound the keys and she clamps to Jin as he watches her die, her voice gargled as she chokes on her blood. The three of us freeze, my legs feeling as if they didn’t belong to me tremble as my heart stabs my chest with every pump. My body wants to move but doesn’t, as my brain looks to process what just happened, trying to make sense of what I was seeing. The sight of Jin holding a knife that is stuck through Grace’s throat. That is reality, and yet, my brain struggles to believe what I’m seeing. Jin retracts his hand, caressing her pass around her throat, then pushing Grace’s lifeless body as it smacks onto the floor, creating a puddle of warm, thick blood around her corpse. Jin runs his hands through his hair, having the blood taint the color as he breathes in, his eyes closed and his smile wider than it had ever been. Blood splattered on his face is wiped with a cloth he takes from his shirt pocket as he then cleans the blade of the golden knife. 

“I don’t like it when people touch my things. Is that wrong?” Jin asks as he places the knife on top of the piano and plays, blood jumping and seeping down the instrument. 

“What the fuck…” Blake says in awe as he tries to make sense of the picture in front of him. 

“Wh-why?” Joy asks softly, not able to muster the power to say more. 

“What? Do you think it is so weird that I am capable of such things? That any of us are capable of murder? I am a god to you. Nothing can touch me. Why? Because I can, sweetheart.” he replies as he smiles to himself and continues to play, humming the song to himself. 

“What did she do wrong? What the fuck is wrong with you!?” I scream, unable to control myself. My body acts against my screaming will, standing up and gazing at the man who now laughs, bringing his song to an abrupt end. 

His hand reaches for the knife and with one swift movement, he throws it, then turns to me and smiles. I itch at my stomach, scratching as my body impulses. My eyes don’t fix on anything but his face as I notice his grin, his cheeks, the imperfections in his face that I see as quality perfection. His eyes glare at mine, then examine me as he tilts his head as if wondering something, his mouth moves yet he isn’t saying anything. My body forces me to stare at Joy as she screams. Yet nothing is coming out, no sound, nothing. The sensation of the itch in my stomach grows stronger as my hands take over, scratching and scratching. Blake’s eyes are wide and his face pale as he stares at my stomach, leaving me curious to see what he’s gazing at. 

I look down to notice the knife Jin had used to kill Grace sits in my stomach, my hands red with my blood from the scratching. Feeling comes back to me as I can feel the warmth of the blood covering my hands. I touch the warm steel, hearing the squelch of my insides as I can now hear the world around me, the slowness. 

Joy whimpers as I hear footsteps approach me, only to see Jin standing over me, retrieving the knife from me as I fall to the floor, my breath fleeing my body. 

“Nothing is wrong with me, love. Nothing at all.” Jin says as he wipes the bloody blade on my shirt and kisses my forehead. 

“Run,” he says to the other two as they move from their seats and dash into the hallways, going separate ways as my body feels weak. I tell my body to get up, but I remain lying down, staring at him as he smiles and hums his song. His voice serenades me, smothers me as I feel my eyes closing and my conscience singing along. 

 I say run; they run. I always get what I want, it’s always been this way. Still, I’m confused. Why did she say that? Nobody’s ever stood up to me, especially not like that. I don’t understand. What did she mean, what’s wrong with me? There’s nothing wrong with me, is there? No, that’s talk for the average. I am a god to them. How could they say something is wrong with me? I can’t stop breathing. I can’t stop this nervousness. Am I doing something wrong? I must ask someone, the female ran left; I think I’ll ask her first. So strange, to scream and yell when your friend has a blade in their belly. Is it so hard to see the action and react? Well, in that case, I guess all we ever do is react. I smell her, her god-awful perfume, stronger than the rest and that gaudy outfit of hers. I should burn it off her skin. No, I have questions first. Burn later. 

 To think she ran to a bathroom. I mean, please. This may have been a frightening experience but please, hold yourself together. No weapon, no reaction. Maybe I was wrong. I thought all people do is react, but it seems all they do is watch. It was no wonder she didn’t struggle. Not sure how one could struggle with a knife slashed across their spine, but there must be more will to survive, surely. I asked her my questions but she just yelled, screamed in fear to who? I’m sure my assistant explained to them that this floor belonged to me. Why would she scream? I guess fear pushed her to do something so foolish. I hope the male will be better; I doubt it considering he pissed himself on my FUCKING COUCH. I must relax. The doctor said I am too tight, I must relax. 

“You know, you were much easier to find than your friend, and I found her in a fucking bathroom.” He’s silent. Why is he silent? 

“Come on, I know you’re under the bed, Blake. I smell the piss on you.” Is he — is he crying?

“Blake please, I want to ask you some questions.” 

“You murdered them.” His voice is pathetic. Way to state the obvious. 

“Yes, but. If you come out, I won’t harm you.” Surely he’ll buy that. 

“The missing person, that was you too, wasn’t it?” I forgot I had done that. 

“No, I worked with the authorities to find the girl. She’s fine.”

“It was a boy.”

You fucking “little shit!”

The bed was surprisingly easy to toss and thankfully he had very little fight in him, though the blood will probably stain the carpet. 

I can hear my assistant coming. 

“Sir? Shall I call the clean-up crew or have you not finished yet?” Right on time, of course. 

“Abby,”

“Sir?”

“Is there something wrong with me?” 

“There’s nothing wrong with letting off some steam every once in a while, sir. I’ll make the call.” 

Of course. There’s nothing wrong with me. I am perfect.