A Bittersweet Farewell

Hidden In Plane Sight
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The whole plane was wrapped in silence with occasional sounds of people panting heavily in fear; the horrifying scene replaying in their mind. Everyone was seated in their own seat, but their thoughts were still on the tragic incident. When Kyung Soo suggested they disposed the body, Yoon Gi started to make an entire scene and had to be calmed down by the other guys around him. As much as they wanted to have a proper burial for Tae Hyung, it wasn’t wise to keep his body in the midst of the other passengers. The same went for Sang Hee whose body was carefully taken downstairs to be stored properly in one of the empty storage rooms. To preserve the body as long as they could for the duration of 14 hours or less, the temperature of the room was set to be below zero degrees so it would freeze the entire place up.   The tension above was just as frozen in silence, but heated with anger.   “Why didn’t you save him?” Yoon Gi’s voice cracked as he broke the silence. He caught everyone’s attention, wondering whom he was directing the question to. His eyes darted sideways towards Sung Yeol who was seated two seats from him with the mysterious girl, Seong Yeon, next to him.   “I’m a surgeon, you know that too. Dealing with this kind of sickness or whatever it might’ve been, isn’t what I specialize in,” Sung Yeol spoke in his own defense.   “You bastard,” Yoon Gi’s voice began to tremble. His fist was clenched tightly; the green thick veins outlined visibly through his skin. His feet kept tapping impatiently against the red colored carpet floor of the plane; the movement gradually becoming less and less rhythmical. At one point, he snapped, got up from his seat and jumped towards the other to attack him.   “Ya!” Seong Yeon yelled in surprise as the male tried to barge through her seat to reach out to Sung Yeol who was hiding behind her. She placed her hands against Yoon Gi’s chest, using her entire might to push the guy from invading her private space. From the back, she could feel Sung Yeol giving her a push either to back her up, or to use her as a human shield.   “Move aside so I can kill him with my own hands! He let Tae Hyung die!” Yoon Gi shouted on the top of his lungs. His movements became less civilized as he seemed willing to knock Seong Yeon aside just to get to his target. And when he crossed the line by roughly pushing her aside, he managed to throw a punch right into Sung Yeol’s face. Seeing the guy cry out in pain as his lips started to bleed was not enough to satisfy his mourning.   “Calm down!” Hoya spoke as he and Sung Gyu quickly came to hold Yoon Gi back. They had to restrain him as a mentally ill patient by locking his arms behind his body with their own grip.   Suho kept occupying his seat, watching everything unfold with a fearful look whereas Ho Seok seemed to be trembling to himself, trying to look away from the scene.   “Yoon Gi oppa,” Seollin whispered lowly under her breath, in disbelief as she watched his violent side appear. She wanted to try and help him; to tell him that violence wasn’t going to bring Tae Hyung back. At the same time, she was scared what he was capable of since he seemed mentally unstable at the moment.   “Stay here.” Jimin gently placed his hand against her wrist, trying to keep her in her seat before she would go do anything stupid.   Seollin’s eyes widened in surprise as she turned to him. Somehow, seeing the calm expression on his face managed to reassure her. She felt slightly more at peace even though Yoon Gi’s voice was still shouting in the background.   “After everything we have done for you and your hospital, this is how you repay us?!” Yoon Gi continued to yell as he was forcefully dragged back into his seat by the other guys.   “Please keep an eye on him,” Hoya told Ji Yeon, the math genius who was seated next to Yoon Gi.   The girl seemed at a loss of what to do since the guy was basically a stranger to her, but she nodded nonetheless. She timidly turned to Yoon Gi who folded his arms in front of him, slouching back in his seat as he stared at the turned off monitor screen of his seat.   “What are you staring at?” came his sneer remark, knowing she was watching him.   “N-Nothing.” Ji Yeon quickly cleared , trying to think of a way for him to stay seated. “Uuhm.. Life is like math; if it goes too easy, something is wrong.”   Yoon Gi stared at her weirdly, wondering what nonsense she was speaking.   “I-It’s what I always tell my students whenever they say the problem is too difficult to solve,” Ji Yeon stuttered, getting more frightened the longer he stared so intimidatingly. “The harder problems are what makes you into a smarter and better person.”   “So you’re saying my life is right on track because I am facing a difficulty?” Yoon Gi scrunched his eyebrows in skepticism.   “I’m not sure,” Ji Yeon said unsurely and let out a nervous chuckle. “S-sorry, I was just trying to help. Consider it as me not having said anything.”   Yoon Gi became even more confused as the girl quickly looked away to face the scenery outside of the window. Though he may not seem like it, he did sort of appreciate the attempt she made to help him.   “Sorry, but are you okay?” Suho suddenly turned to Seong Yeon. He gave her an approving nod of relief after examining her well-being, though she never responded.   “How about him? He’s bleeding, you should probably get it checked,” Suho spoke with a slight stammer as he pointed to Sung Yeol’s lips. But seeing the dumbfounded look as the tall guy scoffed at him mockingly, Suho regretted his actions. He turned away from them and dusted his slick and expensive suit - perhaps one of the few people on the plane who wore an all out suit.   Sung Yeol did think Su Ho was a little queer for even asking the question. They were on a plane and he himself was the only person who had the skills to tend a person’s wound, or so he thought.   “Look to the other side,” Seong Yeon said coldly; the tone in her voice sounded as if she couldn’t care less about him, and he almost believed it.   “Sorry?”   “Look there so I can see your wound.” She gritted her teeth as she repeated her sentence. When he obeyed, she moved closer to study the blood that was dripping off from the corner of his lips. The punch wasn’t even that strong, and yet his lips were bleeding, his gum was wounded, and she thought she even saw a cut that could become a blister. “I need some sort of pain killers, but I didn’t bring it with me.”   “I might have it.”   The two looked up at the foreign voice they did not recognize and saw the girl who was sitting exactly two seats in front of them. The girl was beautiful with her dark brown hair that embodied a rich earthly tone emitting warmth and friendliness, hanging over her shoulders. The way she smiled awkwardly at them made her seem suspicious, but there was something in her that seemed trustworthy enough.   “Sorry, I just thought he might have hurt the inside of his mouth. I am Ha Mira, a dentist, so I carry anesthetics with me all the time. It… It might help,” she said a little unsurely as her hands carefully lifted up a small bottle filled with the medical liquid, along with an empty syringe, the needle covered with a cap. These were probably part of the dentistry equipment she was allowed to carry inside the plane after the baggage scan.   Seong Yeon watched the way Sung Yeol’s eyes dilated in size, watching the syringe with horror written all over his face. It was not the reaction she expected from a surgeon, and she did her best to suppress a laughter at how adorable it actually was. “Thank you Mira, but I don’t think we’ll have to go to that extent.”   “We don’t, but he does,” Mira chuckled as she pointed at Sung Yeol. She comfortably reached her hand out to his chin as if it was the most common thing in the world and gently rubbed the blood off from the corner of his lips, being extra careful when the guy looked lost at her sudden skinship.   “W-what are you doing?” Sung Yeol stuttered, his face slightly red from the beautiful girl’s touch. He slightly brushed her hand away without putting any real resistance.   “Oh, sorry!” Mira raised her hand in realization at her actions and flashed him a sheepish smile. She never had any intentions other than to help him; she already had a boyfriend anyway. “It’s just a habit of mine since I do it all the time to my patients. I… I’m sorry.”   “I guess it couldn’t be helped,” he said a little hesitantly, earning a judgemental glare from Seong Yeon at his sudden submission. “But this isn’t that bad. I’m fine.”   “Right… Just tell me if you guys need help,” Mira told them once again before she excused herself.   Seong Yeon kept a poker-face, a little annoyed at what happened eventhough she appreciated the stranger’s help. It was then when she rummaged through her bag and realized she had brought some good remedy for his wound. She took the antiseptic lotion and carefully angled Sung Yeol’s face in a way so it would be easy to apply the cream on him.   “How do you know how to do this?” Sung Yeol asked her in bewilderment. He hissed a little as she lightly tapped the lotion against his lips with her long fingers.   “I’m actually a plastic surgeon,” she answered quietly, but loud enough for him to catch it. Before he could show his utter excitement, she immediately tapped the cream somewhat harder so it would sting him and made him shut up. “Don’t make a big deal out of it.”   “Okay,” he obeyed and smiled as he kept staring at her. “Thanks, Seong Yeon.”     The crew members were once again gathered in the kitchen as they looked worriedly around them. Everything was a complete mess and it was their duty to try and keep things in order.   “I think we should keep quiet about Sang Hee’s death so we won’t raise any panic about another death,” Kyung Soo directed them as the head of the crew.   “I still can’t believe she is gone. What happened?” Hee-Jin asked, biting her lips as she mourned for her friend.   “She said she had a headache, isn’t that it?” Hyerim shrugged.   Hee-Jin gave her a weird look. She had always known Hyerim was more of the cool type of person, but her response to the entire thing could make her really seem suspicious. “A headache wouldn’t kill, would it?” she asked carefully.   “I don’t know,” Hyerim answered, only because she did not have a single clue.   “Girls, stop fighting! We need to make sure we will be able to cover for Sang Hee’s shift,” Mimi spoke as she took out the time table schedule that was originally prepared for them. She crossed out Sang Hee’s name with a heavy heart, sniffing a little as she did so, and began writing a few things next to it. “So we can take a shift altogether now. Who wants to take the night shift?”   Hee-Jin turned to the others, seeing how none of them responded. “I’ll do it,” she volunteered.   “Me too,” Hyerim soon added afterwards.   “Okay, then Hyesun and Kyungsoo can take the next shift, and I will take it over afterwards?” Mimi suggested, her voice more hopeful that things were going to work out now.   “Sounds good,” Hyesun nodded approvingly.     Chi Yeon exhaled deeply as she exited the lavatory, hearing the sound of the loud air flushing down the drain fading as she closed the door. Everything about a plane ride haunted her, honestly, because it only reminded her of all the news articles she had read about crashing airplanes and the deaths that came with it. The decision to board this plane was the worst thing she could’ve done.   Except for the fact the decision had led her to a guy she was sort of interested in. Her eyes kept looking at Ho Seok who was crouched up into a ball in his seat, slightly rocking himself back and forth as he faced the empty space besides him. Hoya, his seatmate, was busy trying to brainstorm the cause of Tae Hyung’s death together in the kitchen as they checked the food.   “Uuhm… Excuse me?” Chi Yeon called out to him hesitantly, realizing she did not even know his name. He immediately responded with a frantic turn, and upon seeing her face, displayed a sheepish smile. It worried her even more. “Are you okay?”   “Ah, yes, I guess,” Ho Seok replied with an awkward shrug.   Chi Yeon scrunched her eyebrows; this was not the cheerful guy who danced to ‘Touch My Body’ or inquired about the fart out loud. She guessed the death must’ve scarred him more than others since he was a witness so close to the crime scene. There was a great desire to comfort him, but she wasn’t sure what to say. So she just kept standing there, fiddling her fingers together as her face began to blush at her nervousness.   “You’re friends with Sohee, right?” Ho Seok suddenly asked.   “Sohee?” Chi Yeon had to try and recall whether she knew anyone by that name. She eventually deducted it must’ve been that girl sitting next to Jong In. “We talked, but that’s it.”   “Any friend of Sohee is my friend too. I’m Jung Ho Seok,” the guy extended his hands out to her, his smile appearing somewhat brighter already.   The girl couldn’t help let a smile escape her lips since she finally inquired his name. “Yoo Chi Yeon,” she replied and grabbed his hand for a formal handshake, enjoying every single bit of it.   “Thank you for cheering me up,” Ho Seok continued with a smile like his usual self, based on her knowing him for several hours.   “But… I… I didn’t-”   “Sometimes, a person’s presence is enough as comfort,” Ho Seok answered her with a smile; a smile that hid the true pain lying beneath it. But she did not know him well enough to catch the difference.   Chi Yeon slightly blushed at his words, patting herself for her decision to stay longer with him. “If you want, you can come to the front. It’s better than being here all alone,” she offered the invitation quietly, which he did not miss.   “Great!” Ho Seok returned to his cheerful self as he jumped up from his seat and led the way to the front of the cabin where the others were in a secretive looking discussion. Chi Yeon simply followed him from behind, wondering how he so quickly recovered from his frightened state.   “Don’t you think it’s all a little suspicious?” Sohee began humming as she placed her hand against her chin. She looked up at her friend Ho Seok who appeared by her side and gave him an apologetic look for bringing up the topic. But he motioned her to carry on.   “What is?” Jong In questioned curiously, shifting his position so he would sit closer to the girl.   “The sudden death,” Sohee answered, hearing a chorus of gasps coming from the others. “Do you think it’s just food poisoning?”   “Do you suppose there is a killer?” Chi Yeon quickly joined in as she returned to her own seat. Once again, there was a synchronized gasp. “Or maybe not?”   “You could be right! That is actually a genius possibility!” Ho Seok spoke loudly as he gave his thumbs up up to the girl. He did not realize his subtle action made the girl blush a little at his approval.   “Also, isn’t it fishy how that guy knows the surgeon?” Sohee asked, referring to the CEO of SWEG Corporation. “He said something about the surgeon not repaying him after everything he has done for the hospital. What exactly have they done?”   The discussion seemed to have attracted more people as nearly the entire front section of the plane focused their attention to them.   “They aren’t an ordinary export and import business, that I am sure of,” Yerin suddenly spoke.   Hearing the confidence in her sweet voice made Chan Yeol turn with interest instantly; his gaze fixed on the way she stared at them so nonchalantly and teasingly for giving out an important information without any elaborate details.   “How do you know?” Chi Yeon asked, trying to find her credibility.   “Because I’m a journalist and I have access to some information you guys don’t,” Yerin answered calmly, making it clear she wasn’t going to openly share the top secret data she had stored in her head.   The smile on Chan Yeol’s face faded and turned stiff all of the sudden. Realizing she was a journalist meant she could potentially be aware of certain information regarding his company too; information which she was not supposed to know of. His eyes quickly darted to the baggage compartment above him.   The action did not go unnoticed by Yerin who continued to watch him with eagle eyes. But as soon as his gaze met hers, she flashed him a sweet smile - the kind that seemed sweet but hid a darker meaning beneath it. Chan Yeol was attractive, but she could not let her affection for the sweet guy who bought her coffee cloud her judgements.   “So are you saying they’re the killers?” Seul Yi asked, a little too loud as she gasped at her own volume. She exhaled deeply and squeezed her eyes shut. “Shouldn’t we stop them from killing us first?”   “We don’t have proof they are the killers or that there are even killers,” Aemi reminded her with a small eye roll. The SWEG Corporation employee’s death could’ve been an accident for all she cared about - it was quite common during flights.   “But, we don’t have prove they aren’t killers either,” Sohee spoke wisely.   “Again, a genius possibility!” Ho Seok noted as he gave Sohee a high five, unknowing to the way Chi Yeon closely monitored them and immediately frowned at their intimate sight. She wished she could push Sohee off the plane so she’d be the one high-fiving Ho Seok.   “Hm, I wonder what else you are made of. Smart, pretty…” Jong In suddenly said as he placed his arm so casually around Sohee. The deep tone in his voice did not cover up the way he looked so playfully at her, almost seductively even.   “And a dose of awkwardness,” Sohee finished the sentence for him with a slight chuckle. But as soon as she felt him playing with her fingers, her laughter came to a complete halt.   “Just my type.”     The talk did nothing but scare off some of the other passengers as negative thoughts filled their heads. For a person like Hyun Mi, whose main job was to feed positive thoughts to people, this was practically unbearable. She shifted uncomfortably in her position, examining her surroundings carefully before shifting and squirming once again.   “Are you okay?” Woo Hyun asked after watching her actions for the last few minutes.   “No, I need to go to the restroom,” she spoke, pursing her lips together at her dilemma. “But I’m scared something will happen.”   Though they were in a tense situation, the words managed to make Woo Hyun smile as he pinched her cheek, making her squeal in pain since she barely had any fat in them. “Should I accompany you then?” He smiled as if he was talking to a child. After she gave him a shy nod, he gently took her hand in his, intertwining their fingers together as he led the way to the lavatory.   “Oh, it’s occupied,” Hyun Mi stared blankly at the restroom door, indicated by the red sign which was glowing currently. She turned to her fiancée with a frown. “You don’t think something is going on inside, right? No one is being killed, right?”   Woo Hyun knew listening to the others talk had polluted his once positive fiancée. He could only smile at her paranoia, finding this side quite lovable. In fact, he was too drowned in love to see any of her wrong-doings, if she even had one. “If something happens, I’d be the one to protect you.”   “As you should.” Hyun Mi chuckled a little at his attempt to cheer her up. But she knew as well as he did, once he set his mind on cheering her up, he would go all out and succeed. As usual, he would start talking about something else to distract her mind from the scary thoughts.   “Once we’re in Barcelona, can we go visit Camp Nou, the soccer stadium for Barca?” he asked, showing his fanboy side to his favorite soccer team.   “Wait, you cannot ruin our plan,” Hyun Mi told him sternly, successfully distracted by her great desire to have everything under control and the need to stick to their schedule. “We use the first five days for the photoshoots, and if we finish early, we can go to Camp Nou. I mean, I do wanna see Barca too actually~”   “Can’t we switch out one day? Or take a picture at the stadium instead?” he asked her, pretending to not know how these suggestions would meddle with the plan. Sometimes, he liked to for fun just because her reactions were entertaining to watch.   “Nooooo! That isn’t the concept we’re going for! We have to stick to the place we already decided on, Woo Hyun aahh!”   Woo Hyun only chuckled, already used to her overly controlling behavior at times. He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer against him, making the girl quiet down at once. “I’m just kidding. Anywhere is fine as long as you’re there,” he said, giving her a small peck against her forehead.   The words immediately made her grin bashfully from ear to ear as she lightly gave him a slight push out of embarrassment. She had to quickly try to change the topic before he would kill her with his excessive love.   “Whoever is inside is sure taking his or her time.” She faced the door, the occupied sign still intact.   “I heard the lavatories in this plane are sound proof. Maybe that’s why it’s taking so long,” Woo Hyun spoke bluntly, referring to the way it would be able to contain any kind of weird noises not deemed appropriate for the minors or just any other passenger to hear.   Hyun Mi gasped as she turned to him with big innocent eyes. “Y-you mean… They’re…?” She could not even manage to finish her sentence as she pointed at the door.   Woo Hyun nodded with a teasing grin and leaned in closer to her. “If you’re still so scared, I can just accompany you inside, you know~”   The offer made her jaw drop in disbelief as she covered her cheeks from blushing at the thought of it. “J-Just so you know… My entire family is very conservative. We- We believe that one’s purity should be preserved until after marriage… So… I… As tempting as it sounds… Have to say no.” She stuttered even more in that one reply than she ever did in her entire life when giving out public speeches.   “Ah, worth a try~” Woo Hyun shrugged casually.   “It won’t work. Not just me, but my entire family wouldn’t do it-”   And at that very moment, the door of the bathroom clicked open. Out came Dong Woo and Mimi together, hands intertwined in each other as they chuckled before they noticed the couple’s presence in front of the door. There was no way to hide the messy hair looking as if they had stood in different positions rolling against different corners of the wall, probably pulling each other with too much passion. Even their clothes weren’t worn properly; Dong Woo’s shirt was worn inside out and he missed a button on his green cardigan. Mimi’s uniform wasn’t as proper as it seemed with her kerchief still untied and her skirt pulled higher on one side.   “Oh, hey sister~” Dong Woo greeted Hyun Mi leisurely before he continued to happily stroll down his path.   “Your brother is amazing. Best time of my life,” Mimi added on to make things worse before she followed after Dong Woo.   Woo Hyun no longer knew what to think at the surprising twist of events. He turned to Hyun Mi who looked pale, almost as if her soul was off from reality. “As you were saying, sweetheart?” he still asked her teasingly.   “O… Our family… Purity….. Menboong…”     Baek Hyun was leisurely playing a game called Professor Layton on his Nintendo 3DS he had brought with him when his focus was distracted by Dong Woo who returned to his seat next to him. The guy was gone for such a long time and Baek Hyun wondered whether he was feeling fine.   “Were you taking care of a big business? Do you have diarrhea or something?” he asked in the most polite way possible.   Dong Woo stared at him weirdly and began to laugh loudly. “Why would you think so?”   “You were gone for like 15 to 20 minutes or so. Why else would you stay in the restroom for so long?”   “You don’t seem to know the lavatories are soundproof,” Dong Woo said as he placed a hand on Baek Hyun’s shoulder and began wiggling his eyebrows. “I had a different kind of business, if
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The prequel to HIPS is completed! Check out the latest chapter to see it~

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Purple-Peng
1301 streak #1
Chapter 14: I finally finished this today! This might be my top favorite mystery story here.
I also read the blog posts about the random facts of the story and I love how much research is put into the story. I like the foreshadowing used in scenes that I never paid close attention to like how the killers did their thing without no one suspecting them.
Of course, I will be reading the prequel, "The Target".
Purple-Peng
1301 streak #2
Chapter 12: I guess I was right about who Sheep is but I didn't expect who Wolfie is. Remember how in one of my earlier comments I mentioned how I suspected one person of being a killer.
Mira and Sohee are like the examples of friends for life but when it comes to death, one wants to survive and won't hesitate to get rid of the other to make sure they live longer.
Purple-Peng
1301 streak #3
Chapter 11: I started this story with Hee-Jin being a character whose storyline I'm interested in but now it's Hyun Mi who caught my interest. I nearly thought she did die in this chapter but luckily she's still alive. I like how Hee-Jin is taking her relationship with Minseok slow, it might also be because she doesn't want to get together with him after Eun Kyung died.
Mira and Hyerim found one killer, which means one of the other survivors is the 2nd one.
Purple-Peng
1301 streak #4
Chapter 10: Is it bad that I hate Hyerim because of how she manipulates Seong Yeon? Also, poor Hyun Mi, she lost the love of her life.
Reading about Seong Yeon's death scene made me think of that one scene in "Halloween 2" where Michael Myers uses boiling water to kill a nurse at the hospital. I turn away from the screen when that scene pops up. I can handle reading gore but seeing it in movies. dramas or video games just disgust me.
Purple-Peng
1301 streak #5
Chapter 9: Not going to lie but I like how everyone is suspecting one another to be the killer. They don't realize that they're slowly making it easier for the killer to get rid of them.
I think I, maybe, kind of got an idea who one of the killers might be. Something that happens in this chapter made me realize that the person is doing it as revenge for what the others did to them.
Purple-Peng
1301 streak #6
Chapter 8: No offense to Sung Yeol, Seong Yeon, and Mira but that is no way to prove someone is a killer, it's more of falsely accusing an innocent. I like how Hyun Mi points out how she trust Woo Hyun and knows he isn't the killer.
I still wonder how can Sung Yeol tell that it's Suho based on the killer's height, some of the other guys might be a similar height. Then I suddenly have a thought that maybe the killer could be one of the girls.
Purple-Peng
1301 streak #7
Chapter 7: I'm getting the idea that everyone on the plane must have or may have once committed a crime and the killer is delivering their form of justice against them. Also, something tells me that plan to fake a death might backfire and the person who pretends might die from it.
Since I watch a lot of horror/thriller films, I feel like there might be more than one killer. Like one does the killing and the other one kind of tells the killer where the victims are.
Purple-Peng
1301 streak #8
Chapter 6: I feel like elevators are the most dangerous unexpected weapon to kill a person because you never know when something bad will happen when you're in one.
I also began noticing that all the characters say something that makes me suspicious of them. It's like very common of each of them to begin accusing one another because the person they suspect does something suspicious, that might end up backfiring on them especially if they're wrong about the culprit.
Purple-Peng
1301 streak #9
Chapter 5: I still find it weird for people to be doing "things" in an airplane bathroom.
The part where Eun Kyung hit Hee-Jin made me nearly think Hee-Jin might be the next to die. I like how she talked back to Eun Kyung who cheated on Min Seok first but have the nerve to get angry at Hee-Jin when it's her actions that lead to Min Seok getting to know Hee-Jin.
Purple-Peng
1301 streak #10
Chapter 4: I feel like the body count is increasing since it looks like 3 people died in this chapter.
No offense to Eun Kyung but if you're trying to rekindle the love you and Min Seok had then you shouldn't be thinking of starting something with another guy.