5
The Chicken Case
5.
The kitchen in the school was simple, and that also meant that the food was simple. But those people who worked there weren’t simple at all.
Because frustrated house-wifes had to cook at home and also at work, they were little bad on students in high school. And it was one of the biggest punishment for students to go and help them. Cooks used to settle their problems with giving unreasonable tasks to the student.
That day fifteen people were enlisted to the detention.
Minsuk and Ran came to the kitchen as well and immediately got gloves and one of the fatter workers told them “The two and you, and you” she pointed on some junior standing next to them “ are going to garden. There are three rows of carrots. You have to pick them up and then peel it for tomorrow, go,” she said firmly and turned to others.
Minsuk grabbed Ran’s hand and smiled at the boy. “ Hi, what’s your name?”
“ I am Choi Jong-Hyun, but you can call me Changjo,” boy said and Ran smiled. He was really cute maybe 15 years old and had nice lips and cute hair.
“ I am Ranni,” she said and Minsuk frowned. Although there wasn’t any normal reason to be jealous he couldn’t help it and bitterly pronounced his own name “ Han Minsuk,”
“I know you, Changjo said. You are the guy that is the running king right?”
Older boy smiled for himself and said “ You can say I am,” Ran chuckled “ You are trying to be modest right?”
“No,” he frowned and bended to pick the first carrot.
“Do you know about something interesting Changjo? What do you do?” Ran asked and Minsuk was very interested too. With fifteen old boys he hadn’t talked a lot. So he was curious about the life he had.
“I am going to be in a kpop group one day, “ he said and Minsuk almost started to laugh but Ran muted him with a carrot she tossed him.
“That is nice, I am sure I will buy your album when you record it,” she said and smiled. Minsuk again was taken back with the sweetness of his girlfriend. And again he was surprised that such a great girl had chosen to be with him.
“Thank you,” Changjo thanked her from his heart and smiled happily.
“And you are practising?!” Minsuk wanted to know as he continued picking up the orange vegetable.
“Yeah, I used to every Friday I went to Soeul to meet my brother, he helped me to get to the agency,” Changjo answered and apparently saddened a little.
“And now you are not going there anymore?” Ran was surprised with the fact that this boy was already in agency.
Changjo tossed another carrot to the truck and sighed “ No, I couldn’t go there for almost three weeks, because something really strange happened. I don’t know if you know my family,”
Minsuk nodded “ I know you, you got here five years ago with your family. And you took over the animal farm that Parks had, right?”
Changjo was pretty surprised with the fact that he knew that much. But it was because Minsuk was so curious and had to know almost everything that was happening in the city. But he had never met this boy or saw him.
“Yeah, that is true. And what happened was, that three weeks ago, control of hygiene came and some kind on animal barged into our animal house and one chicken was killed. We had to do preparations and call him back, because died animal is a real trespass of the rules. But the thing is that the chicken was killed was very extraordinary,” Changjo said and Minsuk frowned.
Three different places, three chickens and three interesting circumstances? That wasn’t a coincidence at all.
“And do you think you can go this Friday?”
“Yeah, my brother is coming home on Thursday so I will go with him,”
They finally finished picking up the carrots and went to the kitchen to continue with their work. Minsuk was still frowning and his bad feeling grew even more.
Minhee went again to kindergarten angry with herself because she had left there her notes. Although she was already free from college for this year she had to study, because another year she had to write her final work to get one half of her degree.
As she walked and enjoyed the evening breeze which showed that the summer was really there she stumbled on the pasteboard box that was wrongly littered and then someone caught her fall.
She looked behind her and told him “ Thank you”
The guy standing in front of her brought her old memories back. She hadn’t seen him for over two years she hugged him instantly “ Euntae!”
“Minhee, it’s good to see you,” man said and hugged her back. “How have you been this two years?”
“ I am studying and traveling back and forth to university, trying to take care of Minsuk and other stuff,” she smiled at him and remembered all the years they spent together.
Shin Eun-tae was her old classmate, and something like her best friend. Sumi, Euntae and she were the combo of friends, that every single free day spent together.
“And what about you? I tried to contact you but you were nowhere to found,” she bumped his shoulder and he chuckled.
“Sorry, I was little taken back when I realized that the school was not for me at all. So I went to USA and worked there, that’s why,” Euntae said and held her hand.
“Really and do you know what to do now?”
Euntae smiled “Yeah, I am already working as a manager of one pop star, you don’t believe it, right?”
“And it is he or she?” Minhee asked very curious.
“Jealous?” he asked and when he saw how she raised his eyebrow he said “ Ok, still not interested right? It’s a guy, I met him at New York, and somehow we had a agreement,”
“How long are you going to stay here? Maybe you should come to my house,”
“I am already here for three weeks already? And maybe next month. He is in hiatus right now, and he starts again after one-two months, I am not sure,”
They stopped in front of kindergarten and Minhee smiled” I am going, see you,” she waved at him and entered the building.
Euntae smiled and slowly walked away.
Someone nocked on the door again and Himchan stood up from his chair and opened it. Minsuk stood there with smile on his face and said “ Hyung, I am sorry I am late but…”
“I know Minhee was here, come in,” he backed off so he was able to come in “ Today, because you are later than I thought you be, we are going to work on your stamina indoors,”
“Wait, what?” Minsuk was surprised, he originally thought that Himchan would be teaching him something like Youngjae, but he was wrong.
“Yeah, we need to work on your stamina so you are going to survive other training, that’s mine speciality,”
Minsuk frowned and tried to look for excuses “ But I don’t have another clothes to change into,”
Himchan eyed him up from head to toe and cried “ Zelo, come here you are going to borrow this guy your things,”
Minsuk had to admit that he started being lazy again.
Himchan took him to the big room that was changed into the training place, almost like a gym.
“So for first thing, you are going to do this,” Himchan stood up straight and raised his arms “ You are going to stand like this for ten minutes, I am going to count it for you,”
Minsuk frowned “ That is all? That is work out?”
The captain just smiled, he knew that although it looked like if it was easy to do it wasn’t.
Minsuk stood as Himchan said and his hyung did the same, only that he hanged seconds counter on his neck and turned it to ten minutes.
After one minute Minsuk started breathing hardly and Himchan just smirked.
There was threat that they would be ten minute in absolute silence, but Minsuk had to tell him something “ Hyung, you know there is something strange going on, or at least I think,”
Himchan with closed eyes asked “ And what is that?”
“I mean you would take it maybe too lightly but on three places an animal died in really strange circumstances,”
Himchan quickly opened his eyes “ What kind of animal?”
“Chicken,” Minsuk said being very cautious and waited for laugh from older man.
On his big surprise nothing like that happened and Himchan just sighed “ I don’t know how important chicken is for people around here and also I am not sure about how it goes with their lives so I probably can’t help you,”
Minsuk was already panting, his forehead was wet with sweat and when he glanced on the time he hissed. Just three minutes passed and his hyung looked absolutely ok.
“ But If you want to, you can tell me,” said Himchan and smiled at him. He knew before they started that Minsuk wasn’t going to stand there for ten minutes. Maximum five.
“ Hyung. Chicken is important for people here. It gives eggs and normal stuff. But also when you are in country and you are old, people are taking care of chicken because they have no other things to do. But it can happen that some of those animals die. Usually it doesn’t happen. People are taking care of them too well. But sometimes a fox or another wild animal gets in and kills one or two,” Minsuk said and when he ended he placed his hands down.
“ I can’t sorry,” Minsuk apologised and Himchan stopped the clock.
“ Don’t worry, you last more than I thought, six minutes, tomorrow repeat this and try it for six and half and every day put more time, fine?” Himchan asked.
“OK, and next?”
“Push ups, how many can you do?”
“I don’t know? Twenty at one go?” said Minsuk and Himchan chuckled “ We go with thirty, and to continue with what you were saying, do you have something to show us?”
“ I have a photo, I can show you that,”
“ Fine, you can go to Zelo, and he is going to take care of it, now do it!”
Minsuk sat on the floor and started doing push-ups. When he did the 15th he was already covered in mote sweat and Himchan said “ Enough, I knew it, don’t worry. I can look at you and say how good are your muscles and I know that your upper part is not in good shape. You run a lot, but you don’t exercise on your arms, so we are going to do that, now go to Zelo, I’ll be there in minute,”
Minsuk nodded and went to find the youngest of the policemen.
“Come here, I heard your conversation,” Zelo said and sat down.
Minsuk looked at the tall guy and smiled. He seemed to be without too many muscles and it was only natural that he felt good with a guy almost his height.
When he tried to send the photo, computer wrote that you have to refresh the memory and start again. Zelo glanced at teenager sitting next to him and pronounced “ Go and change, till this works out,”
Boy nodded and left.
Zelo smiled and glanced at the phone in his hand. Somehow his thoughts travelled to his past.
Zelo 11 years old
“ Choi Junhong, go to director’s office now!” my teacher screamed at me and I chuckled. It was not going to have any effect anyway, so why would I be scared of director? My parents were always there and helped me.
So what?
I opened the director’s office and without any offer I sat down on the chair right in front of the surprised guy.
“You again did it? How could you, we already told you many times that you are not allowed to go on the computers and do such things. Tell me what did you do today?”
“I opened some locked documents of Mr. Kim and he had there ,”
That was what I always did. From the moment I had got my first computer, when I was eight I could do anything. I unlocked every code, and my parents were really happy that I have found something that was interesting for me.
My teachers on the other hand were not.
The office door opened and my parents walked in. Both my parents were wealthy people with lot of money stocks and cars from personal designers.
They just smiled at me and asked me to go out.
Still I think that it was ok, to play with my teachers. It was just their fault that they had such thing on their computers, not mine.
I was eavesdropping and heard the conversation.
“What do you think he is going to do next? What if he gets to the personal things of other people,” director said.
“You have to do something with him, sent him somewhere, because we are going to suspend him if he does it again! If you don’t want to be in shame, sent him away where he is going to learn what he wants!”
My father giggled and my mother said “Zelo is young and that is just what guys in his years do. You can’t punish him for that,”
Director stood up and I knew it because his chair did the well-known sound “I am telling you, you have just this opportunity, do something with that boy, or you are not going to be embarrassed. I am not going to stand here and do nothing and let some small boy jump on my head,”
When my parents got home that day. They had a long discussion and another day pronounced “You are going to your uncle,”
I cried and screamed, my uncle was a soldier.
Zelo 18 years old
I studied to work for informatics companies. My talent was evident and every institution wanted to get me in.
But it was too ordinary for me and I knew the start and the end. No adventure.
That day I went home and my uncle was reading some notes.
I looked at it and read “BAP? What’s that?”
Uncle glanced at me surprised with my question “New unit, but I have the feeling that it’s missing something, maybe one person. I am going to do an audition for the sixth place. They should be more effective,”
When my uncle went to sleep I borrowed those notes and read it. It was pretty interesting. Next day, without anyone knowing I made for myself new identity, but with the same information I had and went to this audition.
Without anyone knowing I was chosen.
When I realised that I was going to work for government as a special force member and I told them the truth everyone was impressed. And I was happy.
I was content until I met the Yonguk, Himchan, Daehyun, Youngjae and Jongup.
They thought that I got to their unit just because I was the nephew of famous captain. And the truth that they already were together for two years didn’t help me at all.
I couldn’t take it as a wrong thing because when you look at it, it wasn’t. I was like an intruder, and all they knew was that some kind of guy came to their unit and they had to take him in.
And the worst of all was that I wasn’t a soldier. I had some basic training but not normal one as others had.
They had to teach me.
Luckily Jongup the guy that was almost in the same age as me became my friend pretty soon. Maybe because I was learning his thing the best and the quickest way.
And the turning point came after we had our first mission. Then they became more and more sure that I wasn’t just playing around.
Minsuk returned fully dressed and looked at his watch. It was almost seven o’clock.
“Sit down, it’s in,” said Zelo and got him the chair to sit beside him.
He opened the small window on the screen and stared at the photo. Not knowing that it was the place were chicken slept and the blood was from chicken he would be disguised.
On the photo was the small stall. Or inside of it. From one side to another the blood line was taken and crossed in the centre by another blood line.
Feathers were everywhere. And other living birds were just eating the remaining parts of their sisters body.
“This is really strange,” Himchan said and Youngjae nodded. Minsuk turned around only to find all of them inside. Questioning how they got in so quickly and without being noticed he nodded.
“This wasn’t an animal for sure, I am not the specialist on the animals behaviour but I don’t think that 90°angle can be done by animal,” Youngjae remarked and Daehyun agreed.
“Where is Yonguk hyung?”asked Zelo when he realized that the eldest of them all wasn’t present at the room.
“He went for run, several moments ago, you still can’t notice him?” asked Jongup shaking his head on his friend.
Three years ago when Zelo joined their team, that guy was oblivious to do the easiest things. He had some skill in fighting, but couldn’t use what he had.
His height.
Himchan and Yonguk were really angry that they couldn’t choose the last one on their own. They had their reasons why they asked to select the members of their unit by themselves.
But when Zelo came, everything changed. The puzzle, the one they pictured in their mind was severely shattered and it took them one year to restore it.
But after the first action they had together, they realized that Zelo was important. He was the centre of the puzzle. The one that could manage others.
Although his skills improved he had to study and learn more.
Minsuk bowed and left the house with his own thoughts. Daehyun asked him to come next day and start training with him and Himchan gave him the week plan of his exercises.
“Right now I am just waiting to get home and het the food,” he said as he slowly approached door of his house.
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