Case: Ghost

Chanyeol

Chanyeol skedaddled over to Kyungsoo's desk so quickly, Kyungsoo accidentally spilled coffee all over his paperwork trying to hide the photo album Chanyeol had gifted him. “Hey ghostie buddy, how's it hanging?” Chanyeol sat on Kyungsoo's desk, nearly missing the splotch of coffee. Kyungsoo grumbled and started to clean up the mess, pulling out tissues to help. He scolded Chanyeol, going on about his wasted coffee and proper sitting etiquette.
"Good job, Detective Park. I've never seen such proper sitting etiquette," Captain Oh noted as he passed by. Kyungsoo fell into an incredulous silence, and he dropped the last bit of coffee-soaked tissue into his trash can.
Chanyeol smiled apologetically, "Sorry about that, let me get you a new cup of coffee!" Kyungsoo began to protest, but it was useless as Chanyeol's long legs quickly knocked everything off the desk. He ran off to bring Kyungsoo more coffee.
"The giant really knows how to ruin everything, huh?" Minseok commented from his seat, his eyes glued to his computer screen.
"It's Detective Park to you," Kyungsoo retorted as he picked up his paperwork from the floor.
Minseok's eyes flew up at the speed of light and stared widely at Kyungsoo. He paused his episode of The Bachelor and said, "Did I just hear Detective Do Kyungsoo defend someone? And of all people to defend, Detective Park Chanyeol?" He was clearly shocked, and his shrill realization caught the ears of every worker in the room. Detective Byun Baekhyun and rookie Detective Zhang Yixing, local policeman Kim Jongdae who had just come in from the elevator, Sergeant Kim Jongin, and even the janitor Kim Junmyeon, all whirled around to look at the scene of the crime. At least the captain isn't here to make fun of me, Kyungsoo thought.
"I'm here to make fun of you," Captain Oh Sehun announced as he came in from his office, "Detective Do, you are a soulless demon with no love for anyone but the criminals that allow you to even be a policeman in the first place. And yet here we are, after years of witnessing your toils with lifelessness and feelings of being dead inside, and now you're expressing feelings for Park Chanyeol by being defensive on his behalf?"
All eyes turned to focus on the captain and the lingering discomfort from his statement. "It ain't that serious, chief," Baekhyun muttered.
Captain Oh's gaze darted around and he cleared his throat, utterly awkward and confused. "I was making a joke. Too far?"
"Too far - You might as well have run Kyungsoo over with a machetes-for-wheels train," Minseok pointed out. He looked at Kyungsoo, "Anyway, you're not that dead inside, but surely you realize how loving you sound toward Chanyeol by defending him from me, right?"
Kyungsoo struggled for words, having forgotten all about the paperwork scattered on the floor. Was he really starting to care about someone - Not just anyone, but Park Chanyeol? Perhaps he had become too soft. Just as Kyungsoo was about to deny the allegations thrown at him, the subject of the conversation walked into the room with a cup of coffee.
"Oh man, you wouldn't believe how hot coffee is until it spills down your pan…," Chanyeol trailed off as he noticed the atmosphere of the room. His wet pants were dripping coffee, yet he still found no problem saying, "You guys look like idiots. Why do you all look like you've seen a ghost?"
"I should leave before I attempt another joke," Captain Oh said as he slipped back into his office. Jongin and Baekhyun went back to work, and Junmyeon quietly rolled his mop bucket over and started mopping around Chanyeol.
"I don't understand this place," Yixing murmured, his curious eyes wandering around the weird situation. Jongdae, who had been frozen by the elevator, found the strength to walk to Oh Sehun's office. Minseok took a judgemental sip from his coffee and pressed play on the episode of The Bachelor on his computer.
"Uh… okay," Chanyeol laughed it off as best he could, then came to Kyungsoo's desk, "What was that about?"
"How would I know?" Kyungsoo blurted out, "Besides, it's not like I care enough about you to explain every little thing that goes on around here - I need to pee," he ran off to hide and seethe in the bathroom.
"Totally uncalled for," Chanyeol poutily whined. He felt hurt, but still figured he should work the new ghost case with his ghostie buddy. As he left Kyungsoo's desk, he slipped on the paper on the floor. The coffee in his hand spilled and he fell in it, wetting himself all over again. "Hot, hot, hot, my crotch is on fire," he hissed. No one perked up at all.
The mop bucket's wheels rolled on the ground as Junmyeon came over and started mopping around Chanyeol's body.
~~~
Detective Zhang stood stiffly as Captain Oh addressed him, "You've been doing a spectacular job your first week here, Zhang. On top of that, you've somehow managed to convince the janitor to clean our windows, something I haven't even been able to threaten him into doing since he started working here six years ago. Junmyeon," he grumbled with detest, the only person he referred to by first name. Somehow Junmyeon's stubbornness had won over the captain's respect.
"Thank you, captain!" Yixing quipped dutifully.
"Therefore, I'd like to assign you to a more difficult case so that you may further prove your worth. You'll be working with Detectives Do and Park today. Officer Kim came by a while ago to hand over this particular case, as it has been too difficult for the local policemen to handle."
Yixing choked on his spit and looked at Captain Oh in shock. "Everyone says Detective Do is scary and Detective Park is stupi - clumsy, though."
Captain Oh hummed for a long minute as he thought of a rebuttal, which was kind of hard for him. "Well you see, Detective Zhang, those are just things people say about them," he said, "I trust you'll find the pair to be more than capable and rather skillful in this career."
"Ahhh," Detective Zhang nodded thoughtfully and smiled, "Thank you for giving me a new perspective, captain!" As soon as he left, Oh Sehun sighed in relief.
"That kid's about to work in hell for the next few days," Captain Oh muttered under his breath.
~~~
"You're about to work in hell for the next few days," Chanyeol joked, lightly jabbing Yixing. Yixing laughed nervously, but abruptly stopped when Kyungsoo glared in their direction with the most murderous look he'd ever seen.
"Glasses," Chanyeol whispered to Kyungsoo, gesturing to his face. Kyungsoo whipped out his glasses and slipped them on, making him appear more like a cuddle-bear. Yixing slumped in his chair in solace.
"I need a word with you, Park," Kyungsoo yanked Chanyeol away from the files room they were all inside, and took him out to the hallway. "What the hell is he doing here?"
"The captain assigned him to our case," Chanyeol shrugged, "I don't see the problem."
"What if this turns into a ghost case?" Kyungsoo argued.
"Nahhh," Chanyeol waved his hand dismissively, "I looked into it. No signs of ghosties, as far as I can tell. And I can tell as far as ten miles," he joked.
"Isn't the location eleven miles away?" Kyungsoo deadpanned, having taken the joke literally. That stumped Chanyeol, and he just shrugged again. Kyungsoo grunted and dragged him back into the files room. "Okay Detective Zhang, if you're going to be working with us, you have to follow one simple rule: Don't exist in my presence."
A weird submissive squeak came out of Yixing's throat and he retreated into himself with a small nod of obedience. It seems the glasses weren't the problem, Yixing thought.
"And by the way, the glasses are the problem, okay," Kyungsoo stated, "I look angrier without them. I'm normal with them."
Yixing nearly shit himself when Kyungsoo basically argued with his thoughts. "I didn't say anything," Yixing mumbled.
Chanyeol energetically ushered them out to his car and they drove around to speak with some people involved. After a few days of gathering information and questioning people, the trio sat in Chanyeol's car one early morning. Yixing was in the backseat, and he could see Kyungsoo and Chanyeol furtively looking at him and at each other. "Is there a problem?" he finally asked innocently.
Kyungsoo turned around and looked him hard in the eye. "Yes, you just made your existence very apparent," he warned, effectively quieting down Yixing. Kyungsoo looked to Chanyeol, "Park, a word?" They leaned toward each other and started whispering intensely. "I don't think he should be here," Kyungsoo said.
"Cut him some slack, he's new," Chanyeol pointed out sympathetically, "And he's not that bad."
"He's not that bad, but he could do better. That's not what I mean though, this case just isn't suited for him," Kyungsoo replied.
"Aw come on, it's not that hard," Chanyeol tried, "Just some guy playing in the park, scaring people off. Probably some crackhead. That's an easy case."
"I can still hear you," Yixing muttered. Kyungsoo and Chanyeol both looked back at him, a little peeved. "I'll just… step outside for a second," Yixing slipped out the car, "Some… fresh air." He shut the door, and the two inside continued to argue over him.
"This is a ghost case!" Kyungsoo quietly yelled as soon as the backdoor closed.
Chanyeol paused and stared at him. "Oh."
Kyungsoo leaned back in his seat and held his head. "I have a headache," he groaned, "How the hell are we supposed to deal with a new kid and a ghost without either of the two meeting each other?"
Chanyeol bit his lip, feeling like they were kind of stuck in quicksand here. "I mean, you managed to do it with Baekhyun," he reminded Kyungsoo.
Kyungsoo waved a hand dismissively, "Detective Byun is gullible. Detective Zhang, on the other hand, actually notices things other than his own reflection in the mirror."
"Well, how do you know this is even a ghost anyway?" Chanyeol asked.
"All the signs point to it now; Certain people see him but others don't, all the written reports mention him seemingly phasing through objects, and he vanishes suddenly. Chanyeol, am I the only one between the two of us who actually pays attention anymore or are you just illiterate?"
Chanyeol sat up so quickly, he hit his head on the roof. His eyes were wide and looking at Kyungsoo, and he had his hands out as if to balance himself. "Did you just call me Chanyeol?" he asked, absolutely shell-shocked.
The realization slowly dawned on Kyungsoo, and his eyes gradually widened as he sat up. "W-what?" he asked, dumbfounded, "Did I?"
A smile crept onto Chanyeol's face, the kind where his teeth showed and his eyes sparkled. "Yes, yes you did," he nodded, relishing this moment.
Kyungsoo adamantly started shaking his head. "No, you must've heard wrong. I didn't. In fact, looking back, I'm almost positive I said Detective Park. You're just delusional."
"No no no," Chanyeol laughed, "Nuh-uh, you said Chanyeol!" He fist-pumped the air, "You said my name!" Kyungsoo protested, but Chanyeol was having none of it.
The backdoor opened then, and Yixing peeped his head in, "Um, are you guys done? I've been out here for a while now and -"
"Yes, come in Detective Zhang," Kyungsoo desperately pleaded, "NOW."
Yixing sat inside and shut the door, simultaneously making Chanyeol calm down. However, the smile remained a permanent stain on Detective Park's face. "Yixing, nice to meet you, my name is Chanyeol," Chanyeol babbled happily. Yixing eyed him worriedly, but kept his mouth shut. He hoped this would be the weirdest thing he encountered all day.