𝚏𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚘𝚛 𝚏𝚕𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 ; 𝚑𝚊𝚎𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚗

43

Hyewon's sleeping figure jolted up as a stack of files fell off the bed when she accidentally kicked them.

Her head hurt for a while from getting up too quickly, laying back down until the throbbing went away.

She remembered it being night time when she was looking through the case files, but now the morning light brightly lit up the room as she compiled the scattered papers on her bed before picking up the ones on the floor.

She placed them neatly on her desk, dragging her feet towards her bathroom after that. Dark eye bags could clearly be seen as she looked at her reflection in the mirror, the aftermath of all those late nights trying to catch their killer.

She should be relieved but she still had many questions in her head that left her feeling very bothered.

What do the numbers 537 even mean?
Han Soo could've gone anywhere after escaping but why did he end up in Donghyuck's house?

"You can't possibly not know why you did what you did."

"I don't know...I really don't know."

Hyewon wasn't going to deny that Han Soo seemed sincere when he said he didn't know, but then again, not everyone needs to have a motive to kill.

Her phone rang as she stepped out of the bathroom, hair still wet from the shower she just took.
It took a few seconds to rummage through her bag for her phone, picking it up once she found it.

"Yes Jisung?"

"You need to come to the hospital right now."

_

It hasn't been too long since Donghyuck started making daily visits to the hospital but he's already sick of it.

Walking in, you would notice a different smell profile instantly.
It's sterile, a little bitter, with traces of the artificial fragrance in bleach.

However the smell wasn't the only reason he didn't like coming to the hospital.

Every time he passed the emergency room, it brought back memories of the time his mother had to be rushed to the ER.

He waited outside with hopes and expectations that the doctor would come out to tell him that his mother was alright but the opposite had happened that day.

As usual, he shook his head and tore his eyes away from those translucent automatic doors, continuing his way to the lift.

The squeaky footsteps of patients and the whispering of the nurses and doctors faded away as he got onto the elevator, a ping sound coming from the speakers as the door closed.

Jaemin's room was on the third floor, the walk down the corridor was always a drag as his room was the one at the end.

The boy froze once he slid open the doors to his friend's room.
His hand slowly made its way to cover his mouth out of shock and confusion, not believing what he was seeing.

There was an unfinished food tray on the table over the bed, and the bed - it was empty, the covers messy and pushed to the foot of the bed.

He's awake.

He hurriedly fumbled for his phone, rushing out of the room as his eyes darted from one place to another, looking for the boy.

A missed call from Jisung was the last notification he received, quickly pressing onto it to call him back.
He picked it up within two beeps.

"Hyung I was just about to call you again."

"Where's Jaemin?"

"He's at the roof patio. By the way do you want any-"

"Okay thanks."

Jisung looked at his phone, chuckling at the call abruptly ending before slipping it back into his pocket. "Look at him always cutting me off." 

"Was that Donghyuck?" Hyewon asked as she took the change from the cashier, handing the snacks to him.

"Yea he was looking for Jaemin."
"Mhm I figured."

Once the doors opened to reveal the roof, Donghyuck immediately stepped out.
He lifted an arm to block out the sun from his eyes, squinting as he scanned the patio.

"I can only assume you're looking for me."

Upon hearing Jaemin's voice, he spun around, seeing the boy seated at one of the benches, waving at him as they made eye contact.

"Who said I was looking for you," he clicked his tongue, ambling over to the bench to give him a hug.
"How are you feeling?"

"My head still hurts but I'm fine."

Donghyuck nodded, sighing before continuing what he was going to say.
"Han Soo's dead."

"Yea I heard from Hyewon."

"She's here?"

Right on cue, there was a faint ding from the elevator and two voices came their way.
Jisung waved once he saw Donghyuck, jogging up to them with the snacks in his hands, setting them down on the small table.

Jaemin picked up one of the sandwiches by the corner of its plastic wrapping with his two fingers, a look of disgust on his face. "Why is there strawberry in this thing?"

"Why not? It looks nice," Jisung snickered.

"Is this a joke? They're revolting."

The other two shook their heads at the squabble in front of them, it was only 11 in the morning.

"Here have some."
Hyewon placed a bread in Donghyuck's hands, munching down onto hers.

"Ew this looks soggy."

"Well I paid 6 bucks for that soggy bread. Eat up."

"Yes ma'am."

The group stayed at the patio for a while to catch up on things, laughing as they exchanged jokes and made fun of the bandage wrapped around Jaemin's head.

It was almost as if they had nothing to worry about.