LOVER

Chapter 6

Jaekyung walked into the station after his off days acting like he had no idea what had just happened. The mood was sombre, you'd swear someone had died. He came in whistling, ready to start his day. He made his way to the conference room s***h task force office. He found Felix in there, staring at the sketch on the whiteboard. He said his greetings but got no reply. He made his way to him, standing behind him.

"Hey, everything okay?" He asked.

"We had him. He was right here. Right in this station and we let him go." Felix said.

"Who exactly are we talking about?" Jaekyung asked, feigning ignorance.

"Him." Felix hissed, hitting the sketch. "We had him in the palm of our hands and we just let him go." He started pacing the floor, frustration written all over his face.

"I don't understand, if he was here, how did you let him go?" Jaekyung questioned.

"His lawyer. She is some bull shark who took no nonsense. Everything Detective Booi said was countered with something else. It felt like we were playing tic tac toe and he was winning. In fact he won." He sighed and pulled up a chair to sit. Then a light bulb went off in his head. He looked at the sketch, looked at Jaekyung and back to the sketch. He stood up and got closer, standing between Jaekyung and the whiteboard.

"What?" Jaekyung asked.

"He looks like you." Felix said.

"Who?"

"Him." He hit the sketch again. "He really looks like you. Except for the beard and the bald head, he could be you." And then something else caught his attention. "He even has your dimple and your eyes. If I didn't know better I'd say he is you." He whispered the last part as the wheels in his head started moving. Jaekyung stood there with a smile on his face, for years he had wondered how long it would take someone to make the connection but no one ever did. Until now. But he was not about to make things easy.

"Okay, maybe you need sleep. Anyways show me a picture of this man. Maybe we are long lost relatives. Who knows." He said, chuckling. Felix picked up the iPad and found the mugshot they took of Xin Xi and showed the picture to Jaekyung. His smile quickly faded. "Why do you have a mugshot of my brother?" He asked.

"Your brother?" Felix questioned. "That man is your brother?"

"Yes. We are triplets actually. Why was he here?" Felix kept quiet, staring at the mugshot, then Jaekyung then the sketch, trying to make the connection. Many thoughts were going through his head. But one thought stayed prevalent.

"You were helping him. That's why he got away with this for so long. That's why there is no evidence or anything to tie him to the cases. You helped him." He said. Again Jaekyung was impressed. The boy was clearly smart.

"My brother is not a serial killer. If he was I would have known. Besides, I am the one who made the connection between all these cases. If it wasn't for me they would still have been classified as natural deaths. So why would I do that if I was helping my brother? Dont you think I would want nothing to point towards him?" Jaekyung asked. As much as he thought he could steer Felix in the right direction, it seemed like Felix was just as capable of doing this on his own. All Jaekyung had to do was paint arrows on the road and let him follow. "Look, I know how this may seem to you, and trust me I probably would have the same thoughts too, but I swear I had nothing to do with helping my brother. And I know he is not a killer."

"Why do you use different surnames? If you're triplets then you should have the same last name." Felix noted.

"I dont know. That's a question only our parents can answer."

"This still makes no sense." Felix admitted. Although his brain was pointing him in one direction, he couldn't jump to conclusions.

"Look, follow me, I'll show you something." Jaekyung told him. Felix followed him to an office that housed close case files. He opened a file cabinet and pulled out a huge folder and placed it on the table. "This is a file I've been compiling of the cases over the years. It has everything, motive, possible suspects, everything." He said. Felix pulled up a chair and sat down. "When these murders started I was fairly new in the force. All of them were classified as natural deaths. Until I realised the common denominator in all of them. The smoke inhalation even though not a single person was anywhere close to a fire. Once it became clear this was a serial killer, Booi was brought in to head up the investigation. Unfortunately he is not the type that listens to other people. He wanted to do things his way. I was pushed to the side and he became the face of this case."

"But this is........ it's impressive." Felix said. Jaekyung pulled up another chair and sat down as well.

"I know. If Booi had listened to me maybe this case would have been solved then. He wouldn't even listen when I told him about all these people having life insurance and each payout being made to a trust. All we had to do was find out who opened that trust and we would have found our killer." Jaekyung told him. He could see how Felix was consumed by all the 'evidence' in front of him and he mentally punched the air.

"If Booi won't listen then maybe the station commander will." Felix suggested. "We have to give this to him." Jaekyung shook his head.

"Do you know what Booi will do if we go over his head? The man is too much of an ego maniac. The fact that he brought in the person he suspected of being a serial killer, I'm sure his head is already twice it's normal size."

"He didn't bring him in. I did?" Felix said.

"You?" Felix nodded his head. "Impressive. But I can bet my last buck Booi took the credit for it." Felix nodded his head again. "I thought as much. Look, if you want to take this higher, do it. But me, I am not getting involved anymore. I know how that man is."

"I hear you. But this is your work. I can't take it without you there to explain it."

"Then go over it with a fine tooth comb. If there is a mistake find it. And then if you're satisfied take it up to the commander. You have my blessing." He told him. Felix nodded his head, started going through every piece of the puzzle in front of him trying to piece them all together.

Jaekyung quietly left the office, a smile plastered on his face. He pulled out his phone and called his brothers.

"So he took the bait?" Zhou asked.

"Hook, line and sinker. By the end of the day that file will be on the commanders desk."

"Great. And then everything will unravel the way it should." Zhou said.

"I cannot wait." Jaekyung added.

TAE

My head was buzzing. It had been a few days since Felix's announcement about the serial killer being caught. As much as I wanted to I couldn't call Zhou to ask him about it. I'd made it clear to him that he should stay away from him and he had listened. Me going back on my word would just make me a hypocrite in this case. So I searched every hashtag I could think of on social media and nothing. No newspaper articles were written. No breaking news on tv or radio. It was like the whole thing had never happened.

I made Felix promise to keep me updated but he hadn't. I tried calling him and his phone would take me straight to voicemail. I was tempted to go to the station but I talked myself out of that idea.

I decided to bury myself in my work till news comes. I was working night shift and since it was not that busy I used that time to get caught up with the paperwork. It was close to midnight and I was already tired. I got up and made my way to the canteen for a cup of coffee before heading back to the office. As soon as I got in, his scent had filled the office. At first I thought maybe I was imagining things, until I felt his presence behind me. He gently closed the door shut. I heard the lock being turned. I didnt even need to turn my head to know it was him. My body was already reacting to his presence.

"You said you'd stay away." I said, not turning to look at him.

"I tried. I really tried." He replied, chuckling. I felt his breath on my neck. For some reason there was a whiff of alcohol too. His hand wrapped around my waist as his lips moved across my neck. My conscience quickly reminded me that whatever this is, it was a bad idea.

I freed myself from his hold and took a few steps forward. I placed the coffee on the desk before turning around to look at him. He was just as I remembered him. Except for his red eyes.

"Why do you smell like alcohol?" I asked, looking away from him. I needed something that would distract me from his presence before I did something I might regret. He smiled and came closer. I stepped back till my back hit the desk. Going sideways wasn't an option. His long strides would get him to me before I could escape so I just gave in, and stopped moving.

"You're beautiful." He said, placing his thumb under my chin and lifting my face to look in his eyes. The smell of alcohol was stronger when he was this close. Not that I minded it, but I know he said he didnt drink.

"Since when do you drink?" I asked. He smiled and stepped back.

"Since when?" He questioned. "I dont know. Probably since I realised I sleep better when I am drunk. It means you don't torture me in my dreams. It means I dont wake up happy in the morning because I dreamt of you only to realise you're gone and I can't have you. Yeah, probably since then."

I felt my heart racing and butterflies dancing in my stomach. He missed me just as much as I missed him. Knowing that sent a warm feeling all over me. He stepped closer again, this time wrapping his hands around my neck and touching his forehead on mine.

"I'm sorry but I tried staying away. I really did. But I don't know what kind of hold you have on me that drives me nuts when you're not near. I stayed away for so long from you because I wanted to protect you. But now that I've tasted your lips, your warmth, it feels like you've cast a spell on me that's so strong I cant function without your presence. I love you Tae. I really do. I've loved you from the moment you held a candle to my face but instead of running away you showed me kindness. I thought it was infatuation but I was wrong. It is love." He pulled up my hand and placed it on his chest. I could feel his heart racing. "That's how excited my heart gets being close to you." He lowered my hand all the way to his erection. "You feel how excited I am being close to you?" He let go of my hand and neck then stepped back. Right at that moment i felt a cold breeze take over the distance between us.

He stared at me, his eyes scanning the room as if he just got back to his senses. He took in deep breaths and fixed his pants.

"I should go." He announced. "I shouldn't be here. I'm sorry." He quickly made his way to the door and without looking back he disappeared the same way he had appeared.

I was in shock, numb and stuck in one place for a while. How could he profess his love and then leave just like that. Although I wanted him to stay, I was happy he was not the one in jail. Maybe he wasn't the serial killer. Xin Xi was. Maybe, just maybe there was hope for us yet.