Connected 2 You

Reminisce

They say that as a story ends, you always think back to the beginning. For me, that meant that I should have been reminiscing on my time spent with my brothers before I even activated the bug. Or, the time I spent with Felix and Hyunjin as we ate brownies and watched tv. Or even on that first night that I spent in the Seoul City Police Station, sleeping in the interrogation room and playing Uno with Changbin.

Instead, here I was thinking back to my trial. The literal end of the story. It wasn't anything super formal either, as I was pleading guilty. There wouldn't be a trial of my peers or anything like that. The only thing to do was receive sentencing and find out what would happen to me from there.

I knew going into the job that something like this would have a wide reach and a worldwide impact. That was the overall goal, after all. However, it wasn't until we were pulling up to the courthouse that I realized just how big of an impact my bug had had.

People had lined the streets around the building carrying signs that either sided with me, thanked me, or condemned my meddling. Shouting rang out as the car passed by and people rushed the car, waiting for me to get out. Media outlets clogged the stairs leading from the front of the building into it, so much so that I actually had to be driven around to the back just to get inside the building.

The inside was just as busy as the outside had been and I was led past members of the press that were lucky enough to gain entrance to the building. Many of them yelled questions my way and held out small mics or even their phones trying to get a quote. The guards on either side of me kept me walking, never letting me stop.

The doors opened into the room where I would receive my sentencing and thankfully it was mostly empty. They must not have been allowing anyone else besides those involved any further, seeing as how I was to be receiving a reduced sentence for what I had done. They still had to set an example for the rest of the world.

I smiled shyly at Seungmin and Jeongin who were sitting in the front row, right behind where I would be. Then I saw the two other people standing next to them. I immediately started tearing up and had to pinch my arm just to get myself to stop. Felix, with his hand firmly in Hyunjin's, smiled wide at me as soon as he saw me.

On the other side of the room sat Changbin and Jisung. Since they were the main officers now on the case, they would be telling the story, giving any requested evidence, and providing the sentence recommendation. They were sitting behind a woman who would be representing the Nation.

"Please rise, Judge Joha Yoon, residing." Everyone stood up as an older woman entered the room from behind the center. Her dark hair was pulled back into a sleek bun and streaks of white could be seen poking through.

She took her seat then nodded to the rest of us. "You all may be seated."

As we all sat down she proceeded to flip through several papers in front of herself. Once settled she looked towards me.

"Ms. Y/L/N, you have entered a plea of guilty, is that correct?"

I nodded and stood up. "Yes, Ma'am."

She flipped a paper over. "In doing so you have waived the right to a trial by your peers and will instead be handed down sentencing by me." She looked down at me, "Do you still wish to plead guilty?"

I nodded again. "Yes, Ma'am."

"Very well. Now, I have read through the file as well as the sentence recommendation put forth by the Seoul City Cyber Division." She glanced over to where Changbin and Jisung sat, and I glanced over as well.

"Before I get to sentencing, I would like to ask a few more questions and read a few statements for the record. That will ensure that my colleagues and I are better able to understand the low sentence recommendation."