vớ vẩn

chap 14

Namjoon sits back down and readjusts his glasses on his nose. There's a heavy, taut pull on the corners of his lips and his jaw is set, almost strained, his eyebrows drawn.

The judge clears his throat and Seokjin realises just how much pressure is pushing down on him. The entire gallery is full, and all eyes are trained on him. He feels every single pair of those eyes, weighing down on him like bricks.

His feet are no longer anchored to the sand. The water has now just risen above his head and he's struggling to keep his nose above the surface. To keep pulling in air.

But every pair of eyes that are trained on him feels like a brick tied to his ankle, pulling him down.

There's an immense pressure in the courtroom, filling up every space, and Seokjin tries to pretend like he isn't being crushed under it.

"Jung-ssi, your opening statement, please," the judge requests. Hoseok clears his throat into his fist and rises to his feet with a piece of paper in his hand. His lids are low over his pupils as he looks down at the information printed out.

"Yes, your Honour," he begins, his voice the slightest fraction strained. He coughs and clears his throat again. "On February the sixteenth, the defendant, Kim Seokjin, was caught on camera entering the locker room at the police station after the victim, Myung Minwoo, and was caught rushing out. It was then that suspicions arose and the victim's body was discovered."

"Very well," the judge accepts solemnly. "Please call in your first witness."

"I'd like to call in Detective Min Yoongi to the stand, please," Hoseok requests, and Yoongi rises from his seat and wordlessly takes the witness stand. His eyes are stern and his lips are set in a straight line. "Please state your full name and occupation to the court."

"Min Yoongi, chief investigator."

"Thank you. Please tell the court about the events of February the sixteenth."

Yoongi coughs into his fist to clear his throat. "I had a patrol up and around the apartment of one of my officers, Officer Jeon Jeongguk. At eleven PM, the officers on patrol retired for the night at the end of their shift. Defence Attorney Kim Seokjin was, at his request, also on patrol. At eleven, Officer Myung Minwoo returned to the police station and headed into the locker rooms to change. He was caught on CCTV just outside the locker room at ten past eleven. Defence Attorney Kim Seokjin walked in after, recorded at eighteen minutes past eleven. And at twenty-six past eleven, he was caught on CCTV fleeing the locker room. This was confirmed by the officers who saw him in the station."

Seokjin furrows his brows. Something doesn't seem right. He was caught on camera walking into the locker room at eleven eighteen, but was caught leaving at eleven twenty-six? Did he really spend eight minutes inside that locker room? No. He couldn't have done. He'd walked in, flipped the light switch on, saw the body and ran out. He couldn't have spent more than a minute, at the most.

But when the judge asks if either Hoseok or Namjoon wishes to question Yoongi, neither of them do. Apparently, what Yoongi had testified was correct. Apparently, Seokjin did spend eight minutes inside that room.

He looks down at his hands. For a moment, the lines on his palms disappear.

"Thank you, Detective Min Yoongi. I'd like to call the defendant up to the stand, now," Hoseok requests, flicking his eyes down at where Seokjin is sitting.

"Go ahead," the judge allows.

Seokjin silently rises from where he'd been sitting and takes up the witness stand. He clasps his hands together and swallows, hard, and tries to keep himself from shivering in anticipation and dread.