the pin is 940210

you fiddle with your phone at the latest text message she sent you, mulling over what the number means, clueless. that is until you step up to your apartment's door, blinking at the lack of lock to your door, or at least the type where you would... physically place a key in and turn the lock open. what greets you is a modern lock with an intercom and a lock that requires a numerical passcode.

"i was gone shopping for just an hour... when did she even find the time to get this installed?" you say to yourself, resigning to your fate quickly and knowing full well she would actually do something like this for your own safety. you insert the numbers that you received from your lover, sighing when the door clicks open with an audible beep coming from the number pad.

you gingerly enter your home, appreciating the warmth it provides from the floor heater quickly. that alone alerts you that someone is in your apartment, because you are sure you have already switched off the heater when you left, so you hopefully call out. "seulgi?"

"in the kitchen!"

you trudge to the kitchen, and there you find her, sitting on top of the counter, a pencil in and she seems to be studying something on the paper she is holding. "hey."

"hi," she waves at you, and you can spot pictures of the lock on the paper, so you think it is a user manual. the paper makes a slight flapping sound as she waves. "sorry for not telling you that i'll be here."

you set your woven shopping bags beside her on the counter before you point your thumb behind you, towards the general direction of the front door. "you installed a smart... key... thing... up front?"

seulgi nods repeatedly. "a digital lock, just... you know, it's safer. i guess it works perfectly?"

"yes, but... why?"

"it's what everyone uses. this building is so old, juhyun. i was so surprised when i saw that you still use a physical key. and i told you before that i would have it changed."

you lean further on the counter, closing your distance with her after throwing your jacket on a dining chair. "but why now?"

she puts up her hands, surrendering. "fine, it's because i'm scared that guy would have made a copy of your key or something like that."

"that guy? dr. han jungwoo?"

"yeah."

you lean back, letting an eyebrow rise up. "how could he have a key to my apartment?"

"according to the investigators, he has been caught trying to get access to your locker several times," seulgi taps the paper with her pencil several times before she sighs. "but that's not enough yet to put any charges on him. might get him suspended, at most. that won't be sufficient, i want him gone."

"he snooped around my locker?"

"as well as your on-call room where you sleep, and your office," seulgi recounts, her lips getting tighter. "odd how they all went unreported. yerim was quick to end the contract of the company currently responsible with the hospital's security and surveillance. i think they're going to get investigated too."

"huh? you don't work with that company?"

"no, it's another company entirely," she answers, putting away her pencil and paper before she finds your hand, caressing it gently. "i work security details for yerim and my boss alike, but i am not exactly tied with a security company. if i had worked with the hospital's security, i would not have allowed this adversity to continue for such a long time."

you place your free hand over hers too, brushing it just as gently. "what is like working for the kim group?"

"technically, you work for them too in the hospital."

you give her a small smile. "yes, but not so closely."

"well, i just chauffeur them to places, ensure their lives are not in danger."

"do they... get in danger often?"

she laughs. "oh, don't start. you don't even want to hear the number of attempted kidnappings that have happened this year alone. especially when it involves the young ones. the amount of ransom that my boss could actually pay should they succeed is... well, that surely attract a lot of idiots."

you spread her legs slightly, positioning yourself between her thighs. this move seems to surprise her a little, but she quickly recovers. "juhyun?"

placing your hands on the side of her head, you play with her soft tresses. "should i be worried?"

"no, but you must worry about jungwoo. seriously."

you let out a small sigh. "he doesn't strike me as the dangerous type."

"you just heard me tell you that he tried to pry your locker open by force and that's the conclusion you arrive to?"

"it's just... it doesn't seem like i'm in real danger. i just can't afford not going to work, seulgi..."

"you're on paid leave, don't you worry about your salary being deducted or anything."

your arms fall lifelessly to your sides. "that's not it."

"uhh, so then, you worry about your patients?" she makes another guess.

"yes, of course."

"well, their cases have been transferred to other capable doctors, so..."

"seulgi..." you whine, shaking your shoulders too for good measure.

"wait, don't do that!" she shrieks as she holds onto your shoulder to stop you. "please, juhyun! geez, don't you know that thing could kill me?"

and now you pout.

she gulps audibly. "oh no, you're too cute..."

"i just want to get back to work."

"uhhhhh, no, that's not my decision to make."

"seulgi, you must let me go, it's been a full week and i'm starting to get really restless," you wave your hand to the bags of grocery you brought home. "i even went out shopping! and you know i never keep my fridge and shelves stocked up like this."

"hang on just a bit more, please?" she begs, hands clasped together under her jaw. she looks quite like a puppy begging for a treat. "the investigation is getting really close to find something major. please, juhyun, i just want you to be safe."

"i..." you bite your lip lightly, conflicted. "where is the investigation at now?"

"well, we've had looked into cameras and what not, so that's all wrapped up. i think the current phase is studying all of the cases he has worked on with you."

"and how is that coming along?"

"i'm waiting for an update right now."

"were you bored too? you came and installed the new lock and everything."

"oh dear, there goes my secret," she grins, pushing you a bit away from the counter and jumping down. "but mostly it is because i missed you. installing that lock is just an excuse to come here and see you."

"i think you're the one who is more dangerous here, not jungwoo. how very attached." you tease, grinning.

she laughs, holding onto your hands before she leaves a soft peck on your cheek. "yes, ma'am, you make it very hard to be away from you for so long."

try as you might, you cannot help but allow your blood to flow to your face, and she seems to be proud to be the cause of your reddened cheeks. "have you eaten?"

she turns to the grocery bags on the counter with a grin. "what's on the menu?"

"something that's hopefully not too hard to cook." you answer.

she laughs at that, opening one of the bags and peering in. "that's too honest of you. let me help you with the cooking, juhyun. one bad cook might not be able to whip up anything decent, but two bad cooks? hey, i'll take that chance."

"i'll have the fire department on quick dial number one."

"huh? no! that's where my number is!"

"hmm, so confident, how can you be so sure that you're at my first quick dial?"

the speed the two of you have when you rush to be the first to get your hands on your phone is quite phenomenal.

(and of course you have her on your first quick dial)

---

"careful with those onions." she says as she is preparing the fish fillets.

"i think i can manage." you reply, already chopping away.

something is off though because she is quick to stop you. "woah, d-do you... always chop your vegetables like that?"

"what am i doing wrong?" you ask, your eyebrow is up again, as if challenging her.

she takes the challenge with a smile. "show me how you hold the onion."

you do as she ask, surprised when she goes to your back and envelops you with a hug from behind, her jaw is placed on your shoulder, overlooking the cutting board. "um..."

"here, you have to make like, a paw shape with your hand, so that you won't get cut by the knife accidentally," she fixes your hand that is holding the onion, folding it a bit. she then corrects your hold on the knife, moving your grip closer to the blade on the knife's grip, you had been holding it close to the hilt before. "with this, you can control your knife better as you cut. let's give a try, okay?"

"okay," you say, and allows her to lead you, feeling her gentle warmth on your back. just as she says, it is easier for you to cut the onions with your hands fixed like a paw. "ooh."

she chuckles softly before she parts away from you. "keep at it, love."

"okay." you say, a lot more determined now.

she grins as she watch you, probably thinking about how she has never met a woman who stares at an onion so menacingly like you.

---

the hearty spread of rice, pan fried fish, kimchi stew and omelette is ready faster than you expected, and so you aptly glare at her when she sits down in front of you, grinning as wide as ever. "you're such a liar, seulgi, you're not a bad cook in the slightest."

"i think i just follow instructions easily, even the digital lock takes little time to install when i can read the instructions well," she shrugs, trying to undermine her own skills. "shall we dig in? thank you for the food."

"i'll eat well." you start by eating the rice, happy that it turns out soft and chewy.

she lets out a small noise, a happy tune once she tastes a spoonful of the stew, the dish you gave your best to prepare. "it's good."

"thank goodness." you say, tearing up a small piece of the fish.

"thank goodness, indeed. i was afraid i'd find parts of your finger's skin or something in here with how you cut the onions."

"that's... kind of morbid."

"i would still eat it deliciously."

"i don't think i would taste delicious." you add, playing along with her jokes.

"i'm sure you are, i just haven't gotten the chance to... taste you yet."

those words are spoken as she shoots you a erted look, and once again, you feel your blood rushing up to your head. "seulgi!"

she puts down her spoon at your outburst. "was that too much? i'm sorry."

before you could say anything more, her phone starts to ring, and when she sees the caller's id, she quickly excuses herself from the dining table to answer it. "go on."

she listens to the caller for a bit, before she turns to look at you, going back to sit down at the table. you cannot quite tell what she is feeling at that moment. you have never seen that expression on her. like she is... suppressing some sort of... rage. it is subtle, but it still scares you a little.

"i'll be right there." with that, she ends the call, and rushes to you. "juhyun, you might want to come with me for this. get your jacket."

"what's happening? what about lunch?" you look helplessly at the dishes on the dining table, still piping hot.

"they're going to make arrest now. i need you to be there."

"a-arrest?"

"let's hurry!" she urges you, and you do not have any other option but to follow.

---

she meets someone clad in a suit at the main entrance of the hospital, and the two of them got to talking immediately. you hang back, but soon enough she is calling for you. the investigator quickly addresses you before he briefs you on his finding. "we have found dr. han jungwoo guilty of homicide."

"h-homicide?"

"dr. bae, i must warn you, this is quite tricky," the investigator pauses, thinking it over. "i fear that dr. han jungwoo has a deep grudge against you. he has plotted most of his murders to bring you down, and only you. no other doctors in this hospital are affected by his work"

"i'm sorry, i don't think i'm following you..."

the investigator is patient with you, so he continues, trying to get you up to speed as easily as possible. "most of the patients you failed to save, i am afraid, are actually victims of his murders. he administered a lethal amount of anaesthetic to these patients without your knowledge or anyone else involved in your surgeries."

"but... surely that would show in the case files afterward. that would..."

"yes, but it seems like he tampered with these results, and so his illegal actions are not shown. as far as everyone knows, these numbers are normal, but that is not what happened in your operation rooms."

"how is it possible for him to change these results? no one has access to them but the system administrators."

"it seems like he got the access somehow, we will investigate the it department later and see if anyone is related to these murders."

your throat is extremely dry. "h-how many..."

"could you please repeat that, dr. bae?"

"how many did he murder?"

"as of now, we have collected about twenty seven cases. i fear there are still more," the investigator hands you a file. "for now, these are the ones that we have determined he is involved. i'm sorry, dr. bae."

you look at the folder, and it feels heavy. so heavy. "all these people... i could have..."

"it seems like his motive is to get you fired for making mistakes that would be taken as a cause of your patient's death," the investigator mutters, slow but urgent. "but your patient's next of kin... none of them ever did report you for medical malpractice or anything as such, which in itself, is odd, so i took a look at how you handle your patients..."

"...yes?" you ask, nervous at his sudden pause.

"dr. bae juhyun, do you know that you are the doctor who spends the most time with your patients in this hospital? statistically, you spend at least twenty more minutes with a patient than an average doctor would in their visits. the way you treat these people are the most humane. the care and love you give to every single patient is amazing. none of your patients' families want to complain when they know you have already given your best. it is most astounding."

"i..." you try, but you just can't seem to find the right words.

the investigator does not need any words, though. "we're taking him in."

as if on cue, there is a huge commotion coming from the hallway connected to the main entrance, and soon enough, dr. han jungwoo emerges from the corner, held back by two more men in crisp suits. you will never forget his face when he sees you. it is full of hatred, deep and unbound, and you wonder just how is it possible for someone to detest you this much.

"you !" he screams when he gets closer, struglling still against the hold the two hulking men have on him. "this is all your fault! all of it!! you had no right to be saving people when all you do is kill!"

you are still clueless over his resentment, but then, your lover steps in front of you, back turned and protective. "the investigation team found out that the accident that killed your mother... killed his too."

"my mother...?"

"yes," she nods sadly. "he thinks it is your fault that his mother died."

"but... it was an accident. if anyone had to be at fault, it was the truck driver whose brakes failed at the traffic light. for causing the accident... i think he got jailed for negligence."

"you can't change how he saw it, i'm afraid. that's how mad people could get. just stand back."

"you..." dr. jungwoo is still enraged as he passes by you, pushed by the investigators. "i'll kill you!! just wait, i will kill you, and then i will kill everyone you love!"

"get this man out of my sight." she orders, and with a few more hard shoves into a car waiting outside, dr. han jungwoo is gone.

you feel the weight and warmth of the one you love as she envelops you in an embrace, but you could also feel the weight of the numerous deaths that you could have prevented. you can no longer hold back your tears. even though you know there is no use spilling your tears, and that you think it is already too late for crying, you still cry. "i could have saved them..."

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