He was still sitting on the floor, his back and his head against the iron bars of the cell. He kept replaying the events of that night in his head. His heart felt heavy with guilt, and he was desperately looking for a way to relieve himself of the weight of the guilt crushing him.

Was it still possible for him to redeem himself ?

The detective’s words rang in his ears. He hadn’t hurt anyone and he had given back the stolen money. He was cooperating, and he hoped it would be enough for the guilt to go away.

There was still something bothering him though. He had been caught, and no longer had the money he needed.

What am I gonna do now ? Where can I find enough money ?

There was no other way for him to get enough money. He had tried to find a job, but he had no qualifications and when he had managed to find a decent job, the pay was not enough. He needed a great amount of money and stealing was the only way.

He grabbed his hair in his hands.

“What am I gonna do ?” He whispered.

I’m sorry Taesun… I’m so sorry…

“Lee Taemin.” He raised his head at the voice and saw an officer staring at him on the other side of the cell. “You have to come with me.”

Taemin just nodded and stood up, waiting for the other to open the door of the cell. He kept his head low, lost in his thoughts. How could he possibly find the amount of money he owed ? There was barely any time left, if he didn’t pay by friday evening…

He felt someone grab his arm and jumped.

“Hey, relax, it’s just me.” The officer said softly. “You okay ?”

He raised his head to look into the other’s big dark eyes and nodded, lowering his gaze. He could feel the man’s eyes on him but he kept quiet. He wouldn’t be surprised if the other knew he was lying, he was a cop. Knowing when people lied was in their job description.

He took him in one of those interrogating rooms that he had already seen in movies and they both sat in front of each other at a small black table. He noticed that the officer hadn’t cuffed him but he remained silent. He didn’t really like to be cuffed so he wasn’t going to complain. The officer suddenly stood up and walked to the door.

“Wait here, I’ll be right back.” He nodded and watched him leave the room, closing the door behind him. He had been waiting for barely five minutes when the man came back, a small plastic bag hanging from his wrist and two cups of steaming liquid in his hands. He put one on the table in front of Taemin and the latter frowned. The smell of hot chocolate invaded his nostrils and his stomach growled. He hadn’t eaten or drunk anything in what seemed like an eternity. The man then pulled a white box from the bag and opened it to reveal delicious-looking donuts with colored icing.

“Take one, don’t be shy.” The cop said, amused by the other’s confusion.

“Why are you being so nice to me ?”

“Jinki told me to take it easy on you, and Jjong said he would kick my if I were mean.”

Jinki ? Was he the detective who arrested him ? Taemin remembered he had said his name was Lee Jinki. But who was the other one ?

“Who’s Jjong ?” He asked, frowning.

“Oh. Right. Jonghyun works at the diner you robbed, he’s the one you threatened with a gun, from what I’ve heard.”

The man at the diner… had told the cops to be nice to him ? Why ?

“Why would he tell you to be nice to me ?”

The officer rolled his eyes, a fond expression on his face.

“Who knows what’s on his mind… Anyway, he’s a er for pretty faces, and you caught his eye.” Taemin frowned. “He even talked to the owner of the diner. Convinced him not to press charges against you. And since you didn’t hurt anyone and returned what had been stolen, he accepted. You’re getting off lightly this time, but don’t ever do something like that again, understood ?”

Taemin was still too dumbfounded to register all the information. The cop took a gulp of his coffee and winced. Taemin couldn’t help but smile at the other’s face.

“God, this coffee tastes terrible…” He mumbled before putting the cup down. “Anyway, I wanted us to talk a bit.”

Taemin raised an eyebrow.

“Talk ? Talk about what ?”

Everything had been said, anyway.

“About why you did it.” Taemin froze and the other seemed to notice. “Listen, you seem like a nice kid… Whatever it is you need the money for, it’s not worth it. You don’t need to do this.”

But he did… It was the only way.

He looked up to meet the other’s eyes. The officer had big brown eyes and a small face. He had handsome features and his black hair was tousled in an oddly organized way that made him look really good. His big eyes softened when they met Taemin’s. The younger quickly lowered his gaze and stared at his hands, fiddling with the cup of hot chocolate he was holding. He saw two big hands cover his own and he looked up with wide eyes.

“Whatever it is… You can tell me.”

And strangely… Taemin believed him.

He opened his mouth to talk but the words wouldn’t come out. He felt his eyes welling up and the officer’s hands took his own. He felt a weird sense of comfort while the man was holding his hands, and it was as if the weight crushing his heart lifted a little.

“I…” He started, his voice unsteady. “I need the money because…”

He paused, and the officer stayed silent, patiently waiting for him to tell him everything at his own pace.

“My brother…” He said weakly. “H-he is sick, and he needs daily treatment from the hospital. Ours parents are dead and he’s my only family left. If I don’t pay the bills they won’t treat him anymore and I owe so much money to the hospital that even if I get a job it won’t be enough-”

“Breathe.” The man said, his deep voice soothing Taemin a little.

He took a deep breath and he started to feel calmer.

“It… It was the only way.”

He had tried everything else. Finding a job was not enough, and no banks would ever give him a loan. Robbing small shops and diner was the only way for him to get that much money quickly. He never targeted big places or banks because he would have had bigger chances to get caught, and getting caught meant ending up in jail… And he would never be able to pay for his brother’s hospital bills if he was imprisoned.

But he had been caught anyway.

It’s over now… I’m so sorry, Taesun…

“Hey.” He raised his head to look at the officer. “There’s always hope. You’ll find something… We’ll find something. I promise.”

The man smiled and squeezed his hands. Taemin felt something in his heart then, something that looked a lot like hope.