french girl • j.jk

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you were feeling empowered, as if nothing could stop you from scolding a killer that just happened to be your boyfriend as you walked back to your dorm.

jungkook would be there, but you didn't care. from now on, you didn't have the privilege to stay away from him - you needed evidence of what he'd done. like an eyewitness. like someone who'd seen what he did to you.

like mrs. jeon.

before you could reach out to her, maybe you could urge her to speak the truth after having proof of what jungkook had done. you needed to record him, since that worked out in a few cases. you could only hope luck was on your side.

what about mr. johnson though? it's not like you had a chance of seeing him now, but you were torn between confronting jungkook first or consulting your professor about the plan.

you decided it would make up for your past argument if you had some evidence to offer in favor of his case.

"hey kook," you greeted the man who was sketching like he often does. there was a cigarette sticking out of his mouth that wasn't lit. "don't have a lighter?"

his eyes lit up at the sight of you and your heart ached. "welcome back! and no, i don't. can i borrow yours?"

you complied with his request and lit it up for him before opening up a window. "what are you drawing?"

"you," he answered as if it was obvious. you peeked at it and it was you in lingerie, getting choked by a hand. the assailant wasn't in the picture. your posture was completely submissive.

slowly getting into the build-up, you asked, "have you ever drawn soojin?"

his hand stopped on the paper. "um, no."

"vanessa?"

he sniffed before shaking his head as he took a drag of his cigarette that he stole from your pack.

you climbed up the bed behind him since he was sitting with his legs crossed, resuming his sketch. you took out your phone sneakily and muted your phone so the ding of your recorder wouldn't go off.

you were impressed with yourself for remembering that detail.

as you started recording, you continued asking questions. "if you were dating soojin when you met me, would you still have taken a liking to me?"

he gulped nervously. he hated thinking about her. "n-no, i wouldn't. i look for loyalty in a relationship... that's why she's not here."

holy shit.

"wasn't vanessa loyal?"

"she-she was, but... she didn't love me like you do. why are you asking me this?"

as he turned to look at you, you swiftly put your phone in your back pocket. "i'm just..." you sighed, "kook, i feel so bad just thinking about what happened to them."

he quickly reassured, "it won't happen to you! is that why you've been distant lately?"

you exhaled shakily. this was more nerve-wracking than thriller shows made it out to be. "yes. it scares me, you know... what happened at the barn..."

he turned his body to face you completely. "i'm so sorry! but it had to be done, i- i couldn't risk another heartbreak. when vanessa betrayed me, i was shattered. i was depressed, i- i thought no one would love me if they wouldn't sacrifice themself for me. but you did..."

he pecked your lips lovingly. "you said you love me. she said i was fucking crazy! she attacked me, and- and she said she regretted ever meeting me."

this is so easy but so difficult. he was laying everything on the table, coming so clean to you, and here you were... planning to send him away.

you hugged him to hide your face of guilt, but he took it as you comforting him and he tightly wrapped his arms around you with his eyes shut.

his voice was muffled when he whispered, "i'll never hurt you..."

you nibbled on your lips because you felt the tears creeping. you were so emotional, so driven by adrenaline that you asked, "how did you kill her?"

his nails dug into your sweater. "i choked her."

this felt like a nightmare. maybe this was exactly what you needed to do from the start, ask him questions. you shouldn't have been forced into it because of a closed case, but because it was necessary for you to know.

you felt sick to your stomach, remembering all the times you had begged him to choke you. the tumor spread from the heart to the mind; now you needed professional help alongside jungkook because you were on the verge of breaking down.

"what?" you breathed. you dropped your arms from his shoulders so he pulled back to look at you. he didn't let go.

"it was in the heat of the moment, i swear! i was different then, i- i had no self control, i was developing anger issues because my dad left, and... i don't know, i couldn't differentiate the value of human life from an animal's - my dad taught me how to hunt at five years old, for fuck's sake!"

"oh god," you croaked. "what the fuck did you do to vanessa?!"

"i didn't do anything! i swear, i just gave her a knife and- and we fought for it, but before i could tell her it was a test, she attacked me! i barely dodged the knife... fuck," he exhaled from the memory. "i realized how impractical it was, so i tried to improve it for you... make it less awful. i love you so much."

he returned to hugging you and couldn't bear to close his eyes and relish in your touch, which led to him noticing the brightness radiating from your phone.

he tightened his hold on you as his hand crept downwards to your pocket while you were sobbing loudly. it hurt to hear that sound, but he couldn't help his curiosity to see why it was still open.

and then he understood why.