Heart of Winter [Jikook]

Ch. 19

(4th day at Andong)

It was just before dawn when Jungkook woke to his phone ringing. It was the call he'd been waiting for.

Kim Heung-sik had been caught back at his Seoul apartment and brought in.

Jungkook listened attentively as the detective detailed the results of their initial interrogation: Kim had apparently sent numerous similar letters to at least three other idols. He had recently been left by his ex-girlfriend who subsequently requested a temporary restraining order. The idols in question were those he thought, in his complicated, paranoid mind, that his girlfriend may have been seeing behind his back. He fled Seoul for Pohang because he had broken the order. He only returned to the city when his mother convinced him to turn himself in and because he was afraid, he'd lose his job at a robotics firm.

He denied going any further than sending letters. He claimed to have alibis for the morning of the bomb attack as well as the nights of the break-in and nightclub incident but so far, they hadn't been able to corroborate them.

Hanging up, Jungkook spent those early hours trying to neatly fit Kim into the boxes of perpetrator, anti-fan, sasaeng, stalker, bomber, and aspiring killer.

Kim had the motive, albeit a vague one. Kim had the potential technical skills, and no verifiable alibi. The letters might result in a strong warning, hefty fine, or restraining order but the break-in should give him a few years behind bars. Any connection to the bomb would seal the deal. But it all felt both a little too perfect but entirely circumstantial.

. . . . .

(5th day at Andong)

"Jimin-hyung?" Jungkook called to him across ice. Jimin looked up from Yoon-ah trying her best to skate. Walking her carefully to the side of the ice, he sat beside Jungkook on the bench, looking out over the snowy landscape.

"Yes?" he answered. Jungkook handed over the small tablet, allowing Jimin a peek into his investigation.

Jimin examined the careful notes, lists, and diagrams Jungkook had fretted over for the past weeks.

"They caught Kim yesterday, back in Seoul. Right now, they're holding him on harassment and trespassing. We should have no issues returning the day after tomorrow."

"But?" Jimin retorted.

"I'm going to be honest with you, something feels wrong about this. Just a little off. You mind if I ask a few questions?" Jungkook asked. Nodding, Jimin turned to face him.

"I know idols are easy targets for stalkers, but do you know anyone that would want to hurt or scare you? Professionally? Personally?"

Jimin considered shortly. "Enough to do any of this? No. I've always tried to resolve any grudges or gripes right away. There's always jealousies and small rivalries, but that's not really my reputation."

"I know. I've never asked this, but what about Yoon-ah?" Jungkook looked down, avoiding his eyes.

"Ahhh, so you finally want to know about Yoon-ah," Jimin sighed. "Well, she's eight now. She's lived with me since she was three."

"And her parents?"

"Her father was never in the picture. But her mother, we were very close. She came from Busan too, went to the same dance academy. We both dreamed of becoming idols, though she had a head start on me since I had military service. She wrote me all two years. But when I got out, she was pregnant. She didn't know what to do. She had Yoon-ah, a healthy baby right from the start. But Hye-ja had complications which she never fully recovered from. She died when Yoon-ah was three. I loved her already, and no one seemed to want her, but I couldn't adopt her. Unmarried men aren't allowed to, and I wasn't exactly going to be settling down with a nice girl anytime soon. So, my parents adopted her, but she stays with me. She's my daughter."

Everything Jimin had said meshed with what Jungkook already knew of him. Caring and compassionate. He'd wanted to hold his hand, but Jimin returned to flipping through the tablet.

"Thanks, that's all I wanted to know," Jungkook finished, turning over Jimin's words in his mind with relation to Kim - jealousies, rivalries. Suddenly, Jimin started to giggle.

"And, is this part of your work?" Jimin asked, turning the tablet to reveal what had dominated the peripheries of Jungkook's mind in the week at Andong.

He'd begun drawing again, but with only one subject in mind. Sheets and sheets of Jimin. Standing. Walking. Sleeping. Laughing. Profiles. Blonde hair. Brunette. Blue. Orange. Pink. Eyes. Smile. Nose. Hands. Feet.

One half-colored sketch capturing him mid-jump during his nightclub performance made him pause. Everything from his hanbok to his feather fan were delicately rendered.

"Jungkook-ah," Jimin said breathlessly. He turned the full power of his gaze on Jungkook.

Standing up, Jungkook eluded his stare. "We're not out of the woods yet, Jimin-ah."