the naked face || bts

three

Kim Haeun was a doll of a woman; small, beautiful, exquisitely made. On the outside, she was soft, helpless-feminine, and on the inside, granite bitch. Yoongi had met her a week after beginning her husband's therapy. She had fought hysterically against it and Yoongi had asked her to have a talk with him.

'Why are you so opposed to your husband going through analysis?'

'I won't have my friends saying I married a crazy man,' she had told Yoongi.

'Tell him to give me a divorce; then he can do any damn thing he pleases.' Yoongi had explained that a divorce at that point could destroy Taehyung completely.

'There's nothing left to destroy,' Mary had screamed. 'If I'd known he was gay, do you think I would have married him? He's a woman.'

'There's some woman in every man,' Yoongi had said. 'Just as there's some man in every woman. And in your husband's case, there are some difficult psychological problems to overcome. But he's trying, Mrs. Haeun. I think you owe it to him and his children to help him.' He had reasoned with her for more than three hours, and in the end she had reluctantly agreed to hold off on the divorce.

In the months that followed, she had become interested and then involved in the battle that Taehyung was waging. Yoongi made it a rule never to treat married couples, but Haeun had asked him to let her become a patient, and he had found it helpful As she had begun to understand herself and where she had failed as a wife, Taehyung's progress had become dramatically rapid.

And now Yoongi was here to tell her that her husband had been senselessly murdered. She looked up at him, unable to believe what he had just said, sure that it was some kind of macabre joke. And then realization set in. 'He's never coming back to me!' she screamed. 'He's never coming back to me!' She started tearing at her clothes in anguish, like a wounded animal. The six-year-old twins walked in. And from that moment on, there was bedlam. Yoongi managed to calm the children down and take them to a neighbour's house. He gave Mrs. Haeun a sedative and called the family doctor. When he was sure there was nothing more he could do, he left. He got into his car and drove aimlessly, lost in thought. Taehyung had fought his way through a hell, and at the moment of his victory...

It was such a pointless death. Could it have been some other homosexual who had attacked him? Some former lover who was frustrated because Taehyung had left him? It was possible, of course, but Yoongi did not believe it Lieutenant Jungkook had said that Taehyung was killed a block away from the office. If the murderer had been a homosexual, full of hatred, he would have made a rendezvous with Taehyung at some private place, either to try to persuade Taehyung to come back to him or to pour out his recriminations before he killed him. He would not have stabbed a knife into him on a crowded street and then fled.

On the corner ahead he saw a phone booth and suddenly remembered that he had promised to have dinner with Dr. Namjoon. He was his closest friend, but he was in no mood to see anyone. He stopped the car at the curb, went into the phone booth and dialed his number.

'You're late! Where are you?'

'Namjoon,' Yoongi said, 'I'm afraid I'm going to have to beg off tonight.'

'You can't,' he complained. 'I have a sexy blonde sitting here dying to meet you.'

'We'll do it another night.' Yoongi said. 'I'm really not up to it. Please apologize for me.'

'Anything wrong, hyung?'

Yoongi hesitated. 'Just a hard day, Joon. I'll tell you about it tomorrow.'

He hung up and stepped out of the booth. An hour and a half later he found himself driving along the banks of the Han River, trying to enjoy the wintry wonderland that surrounded him and the ribbon of a road that stretched out under his wheels. Whenever his mind drifted to Taehyung, he made himself think of other things. He drove on through the darkness and solitude and hours later, emotionally worn out, finally turned the car around and headed for home.

Mike, the red-faced doorman who usually greeted him with a smile, was preoccupied and distant. Family difficulties, Yoongi supposed. Usually Yoongi would chat with him about Mike's teenage son and married daughters, but Yoongi did not feel like talking this evening. He asked Mike to have the car sent down to the garage.

'Right, Dr. Min.' Mike seemed about to add something, then thought better of it Yoongi walked into the building. Ben Katz, the manager, was crossing the lobby. He saw Yoongi, gave a nervous wave, and hurriedly disappeared into his apartment.

What's the matter with everyone tonight? thought Yoongi. Or is it just my nerves? He stepped into the elevator. Eddie, the elevator operator, nodded. 'Evening, Dr. Min.'

'Good evening, Eddie.' Eddie swallowed and looked away self-consciously.

'Is anything wrong?' Yoongi asked. Eddie quickly shook his head and kept his eyes averted. My God, thought Yoongi. Another candidate for my couch. The building was suddenly full of them.

Eddie opened the elevator door and Yoongi got out. He started towards his apartment. He didn't hear the elevator door close, so he turned around. Eddie was staring at him. As Yoongi started to speak, Eddie quickly closed the elevator door. Yoongi went to his apartment, unlocked the door, and entered. Every light in the apartment was on. Lieutenant Jungkook was opening a drawer in the living-room. Jimin was coming out of the bedroom. Yoongi felt anger flare in him.

'What are you doing in my apartment?'

'Waiting for you, Dr Min,' Jungkook said. Yoongi walked over and slammed the drawer shut, narrowly missing Jungkook's fingers.

'How did you get in here?'

'We have a search warrant,' said Jimin.

Yoongi stared at him incredulously. 'A search warrant? For my apartment?'

'Suppose we ask the questions, Doctor,' Jungkook said.

'You don't have to answer them,' interjected Jimin, 'without benefit of legal counsel. Also, you should know that anything you say can be used as evidence against you.'

'Do you want to call a lawyer?' Jungkook asked.

'I don't need a lawyer. I told you that I loaned the raincoat to Taehyung this morning and I didn't see it again until you brought it to my office this afternoon. I couldn't have killed him. I was with patients all day. Miss Ara can verify that.'

Jungkook and Jimin exchanged a silent signal. 'Where did you go after you left your office this afternoon?' Jimin asked.

'To see Mrs Haeun.'

'We know that,' Jungkook said. 'Afterwards.'