RESTART

A New Temporary Duty

Moonbyul's eyes widened at the GIF that was sent to her. She tightened the grip on her phone as if she was going to crush it. In it, Kang-Dae stood behind Solar, his hand gripping her throat. He smirked as he made a cut on her shoulder. Solar closed her eyes and gritted her teeth. As Solar's lab coat turned crimson, the GIF would restart. The message attached read, 'Come. I'm waiting.'

"How dare you!?" Moonbyul slammed her fist on the table.

Seung-Ho was taken aback by Moonbyul's sudden burst of anger. I didn't do anything to offend her. Did I? He followed her gaze and was shocked by what was displayed on her phone. "That's–" before he could finish, she had already taken off running. "Wait!" He called but she continued without glancing back.

She pressed the elevator button but didn't have the patience to wait for it and ended up taking the stairs instead. Seung-Ho wasn't able to keep up with her. By the time he managed to limp over, she was already gone. He reached in his back pocket to grab his phone so he could call for help but it wasn't there. He searched but it was nowhere on him. He turned around and saw it was on the table.

He was about to head back to grab it but the elevator arrival halted his step. If I go back it'll take me longer to get up there. What if they need my help? Moonbyul has her phone, she is also an officer. She probably already called it in. After hesitating for a moment, he got in the elevator and rode it to the top floor. When he arrived, he saw Moonbyul trying to negotiate with Solar's captor. The roof was half a floor higher so they didn't notice him. He went around the other way, hoping to surprise Kang-Dae and free Solar.

Moonbyul ran up almost eight floors but the adrenaline kept her from feeling tired. After pushing the door open, she scanned Solar to make sure she was okay before meeting Kang-Dae's glare. Even if it was against her better judgment and character, seeing Solar's teary eyes and the wound on her body; Moonbyul couldn't deny she wanted to kill Kang-Dae then and there.

"Don't come here! He's..." before Solar could finish, Kang-Dae tightened his grip around her neck.

"You're hurting her! Stop!" Moonbyul was ignored.

"Now, now. It's not your turn to talk," he whispered to Solar, before loosening his grip so she could breathe.

"I'm here. Let her go," Moonbyul said in an authoritative manner.

He snickered, "You're ordering me?" he said maliciously, digging the tip of the knife into Solar's opened wound. With her arms bound behind her, she couldn't fight back.

"STOP! DON'T HURT HER!" Moonbyul took a step forward, but knew she couldn't just charge in so she backed down. Her clenched fists were shaking ever so slightly.

Watching Moonbyul's expressions, he felt proud of himself. "It seems you finally grasp the situation. That's good." He smirked. "Better be careful. The next one might be deeper," he threatened as he ran the knife past Solar's neck.

Moonbyul closed her eyes and took a deep breath. It was all she could do to keep her anger and frustration under control. "What do you want?"

"That's a little better. Now, what do I want? How about an apology for the shit you put me through?"

She didn't hesitate and bowed her head. "I'm sorry."

"Where's your sincerity? Is that how you asked for forgiveness?"

He raised the knife and Moonbyul dropped to her knees. "Please, don't hurt her! It was all my fault!" She bowed until her forehead hit the floor and Solar tears fell at the sight.

"What a loving couple you are?" he sneered. "Then die together!"

"DON'T!"

Kang-Dae lifted his knife, but this time Seung-Ho was close enough to stop him. Seung-Ho grabbed his wrist and tried to pry the knife away. Kang-Dae fought back without letting go of Solar and she bit his arm. He screamed, wanting to stab her, but Seung-Ho was in the way. Moonbyul took the opportunity and charged him. He yanked his arm from Solar's mouth and threw her at Moonbyul. At the same time, Seung-Ho managed to knock the knife away.

Seung-Ho and Kang-Dae watched as the knife fell to the ground. Seung-Ho kicked it away before Kang-Dae could reach for it. However, that gave Kang-Dae the opportunity to knee him in the stomach and slam him against the railing. When Kang-Dae elbowed him in the head, he felt like he was hit by a bat. He fell to the ground holding his head. Kang-Dae was reaching for Seung-Ho's hair to smash his head on the floor, but Moonbyul managed to interrupt him before he could continue.

Moonbyul kicked Kang-Dae, if he didn't raise his arm to block, it would have broken his nose. It knocked him back a few steps and she continued her relentless assault. She kicked his stomach, legs, arms and when his face was no longer protected, she got a few punches in. The blood ran from his nose and mouth. He spat out a tooth before giving her a murderous glare.

Kang-Dae, in his rage, forgot about his training and swung his fists wildly, making it easy for Moonbyul to dodge. However, when she kicked him this time, he endured it and grabbed her leg; using the momentum to throw her against the wall. He tried to stomp her head but she rolled out of the way and swept his legs. Once he was down, she kicked his head; sending it hitting the nearby wall. As he held his head in pain, Solar entered his field of vision.

Changing his tactics, Kang-Dae went for Solar. As expected, Moonbyul jumped in and he was able to tackle her. Despite her continuous assault on his back, he held onto her and charged her into the nearby wall before throwing her to the ground. He got on top of her and continued his attacks. She held up her arms to protect herself from his punches. It didn't take long before she heard him screeching in pain.

Seung-Ho managed to get himself back on his feet. He knew he wasn't strong enough to get Kang-Dae off of Moonbyul so he looked around for something that could help. The only weapon he found was the knife Kang-Dae had used earlier. He scrambled to get it and charged in without a second thought. Before he knew it, he had plunged the knife into Kang-Dae's back. He only realized what he had done when Kang-Dae's scream pierced his ears.

Kang-Dae turned around and grabbed Seung-Ho's neck, strangling him where he stood. Moonbyul got up and plunged the knife in deeper. Kang-Dae let out another scream and took a swing in her direction. She jumped out of the way, taking the knife along with her. With the knife removed, he was bleeding faster. He threw Seung-Ho at Moonbyul before making his escape.

"You okay?" she asked after breaking his fall.

"Thanks," he replied. "You should hurry after him."

"But..." she looked at Solar.

"Go. We'll be fine," Solar assured.

She nodded, "I'll be right back."

Moonbyul followed the trail of blood a few floors down before it disappeared. She searched but couldn't find any traces of Kang-Dae. The people she asked also didn't see anything suspicious. Once she realized he must have had an accomplice, she ran to check on Solar and Seung-Ho. She let out a sigh of relief when she saw that they were safe.

After the police arrived, Moonbyul went to review the security footage with them. They didn't find anything at first, until they watched the lobby footage. In it, she saw Kang-Dae and another man shoddily leaving a wheelchair by the elevator. The man Kang-Dae was with had a mask on so his face could not be seen. He also avoided looking directly at the camera. As for Kang-Dae, he had put on a different jacket so the wound was not apparent. He, however, smiled at the camera and flipped it off before walking out the front door.

As they reviewed the footage of the elevator the two exited from, Moonbyul wanted to kick herself. She recognized the hat Kang-Dae was wearing, they were the doctor and patient she had run past when she was chasing after him. Once the elevator was near the ground floor, Kang-Dae took off his patient gown, mask, and hat, while the man got rid of his lab coat. The items left behind on the wheelchair were the only clues she had.

Moonbyul had a long chat with her boss, and after a lot of persuasion, he finally agreed to assign her to protect Solar. It was her new temporary full-time duty.