𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟 002, 𝙨𝙦𝙪𝙞𝙙 𝙜𝙖𝙢𝙚

𝔖𝔦𝔵

"Hey, ma. I'm heading over to his appartment now." The officer spoke as he drove towards his brother's appartment that he'd never been to. It was more of a hold up thing for whenever he went on business trips or to visit family. The man had gone blank around a year and a half ago, leaving his wife behind. He did have a family to the officer's knowledge but they were distant and didn't talk much. The man had missed their calls for a while, the officer, Jun-ho, concerned for his older brother. "He dodges our calls all the time. You know what he's like." Jun-ho spoke into the earphones that were connected to his phone, his mother ranting. "I can call everyone who might know places he's hold up in before." Jun-ho offered to make his mother feel better, her agreeing. "If I don't get anything, I'll report him missing tomorrow." Jun-ho shrugged, not wanting to believe his brother has gone missing or been kidnapped.

Who would want to believe that?

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"How long has it been since he came by?" Jun-ho asked the woman who led him through the building, her shrugging. "Well, I don't bother tenants every day. Still, I mean, his rent was due a week ago." The woman unlocked the door to his appartment, slight annoyance in her tone. "I've stopped by every day since then, he was never here, though, and never picked up his phone." The woman spoke, looking to a sign on the door for rent. "Think you could pay his rent?" She asked, Jun-ho sighing. "Otherwise, you'll have to come move all of his things out." The woman informed, Jun-ho nodding. "I'll take a look now and pay his rent later." He informed, the woman smiling excitedly at the thought of finally getting money. "I'll be down the hall." She spoke, opening the door and turning the light on for Jun-ho as he bowed in thanks, walking into his brother's appartment.

Everything seemed untouched, his pen still without a lid from a sketch he may have created whilst on the phone. The room was tiny, a large bookcase and a dead fish lay next to a photo. Jun-ho smiled, picking up the photo that included his brother and his wife on their wedding day. A little boy stood in between the couple, a bright smile on his face. Jun-ho's head tilted, turning the photo over as his brother always labelled his photos.

Me, Sato-Lee's and Lee Dae-Hyung's special day!

Jun-ho's face dropped lightly. "Lee Dae-Hyung?" He asked himself, looking back at the small boy on the photo and remembering what happened at the police station. Behind the photo, there was a black gift box wrapped in a pink ribbon, Jun-ho pocketing the picture and opening the gift box. Inside lay a card similar to the one Gi-hun had offered the police station, Jun-ho remembering it all.

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"Do you know where Lee Dae-Hyung is?" Jun-ho asked the police station, the officer confused. "Why?" He asked, Jun-ho shrugging. He couldn't tell them that the boy was a part of his family, they would wonder why he didn't know himself. "That Gi-hun dude probably made him up. He is crazy after all." The officer shrugged, Jun-ho looking to him. "I think Gi-hun might be like a family friend or something, you know?" He spoke, pretending to reminisce. "Really?" The officer asked, Jun-ho nodding. "Oh yeah, he lives in Ssangmun-dong. You know him?" He asked, Jun-ho lying as he spoke. "I think he might have been friends with my dad or something." Jun-ho spoke, the officer chuckling.

"Small world, huh?"

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