Above and Below // SeongJoong

20. Getting Through Together

DISCLAIMER: I have limited knowledge of the law, so please excuse any mistakes or inaccurate representations of reality. This is fiction, and everything that happens does not reflect any real events.

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By the time the police had arrived, searched the basement and vicinity of Pets Park, asked questions, made sense of the situation, sent Ms. Jo's daughter to a real hospital, and handcuffed the four accomplices of the Salgeum gang, it was already well past midnight.

Amidst all the chaos, Hongjoong had only barely managed to declare himself – and Jongho – as the representative lawyers of Seonghwa and the rest. Still, the detective in charge was adamant about not letting him get in the same car with the "criminals," so he had no choice but to follow behind the police procession in his own car, constantly worrying about how his boyfriend was faring in the other vehicle.

He wanted so badly to be at Seonghwa's side again, to tell him that he'd been lying all along, that the girl in the heart transplant surgery was not his niece, and that the pet stylist needed not to blame himself at all. So desperate, in fact, that he would probably be fined for how close he was driving to the car in front of him.

So when they all arrived at the police station, he was the fastest to jump out and head toward the hall with the interrogation rooms, where he expected Seonghwa would be brought first.

He was right, and before the uniformed police standing guard could stop him, he slipped in through the door, hot on the detective's heels. With him present, the stout, unkempt man could only grunt and lead the black market surgeon to a chair at the long desk in the center – in a gentle manner, an evident contrast to the way he'd manhandled him just twenty minutes ago during the arrest. "Stay here, I'll be back soon," he grumbled, and slammed the door behind him, leaving the two of them alone.

Finally, they were alone. He could talk now, without the fear of intrusion, and sort things out with Seonghwa's predicament, and let him know that––

"Let's break up."

Hongjoong whirled around. Seonghwa was not looking at him, but down at his own handcuffed wrists instead.

"Let's break up," he said again, this time lifting his gaze up to the partner attorney, who was practically lunging forward to take a seat next to him. Quicker than a heartbeat, his already-red eyes welled up once more. "What I did is unforgivable. I know that, you know that, so there's no way––"

"Hey, hey," Hongjoong tried, leaning forward to hold his boyfriend's hands. "Listen to me––"

But Seonghwa recoiled as if hurt and raised his voice instead, his every breath shakier than the last. "It was your niece, Hongjoong, your family! I knew that, but I went along with it anyway––"

"Listen to me!"

The room plunged into silence, the only sound the two men's heavy breathing. Hongjoong slowly released his grip on Seonghwa's forearm, which he had not noticed he'd been holding before, leaving behind white marks on the skin that soon faded into a soft red, almost pink patch. "Listen to me first," he repeated in a softer voice. "That girl you operated on... she's just the daughter of my client. I don't have a niece, nor any family member with a heart problem, for that matter." He sucked in a deep breath and held the surgeon's gaze firmly. "And please don't blame yourself. I've seen your office with my own eyes, all those donation certificates... Of course, what you did below your pet salon was still illegal, but I know you help each of your patients who end up on your operating table with all your heart, and that's all I need to help your case if we ever go to court." Despite everything, he let a grin play on his lips. "Because this is just the kind of lawyer I am."