4

“Here.” Jungkook blinks up at Jimin who has placed a bowl of beef bone soup on his tray. “It’s a good health boost. You definitely need it.”

“God, you're the best, hyung.”

Jungkook ravenously dives in and inhales as much as he can. Jimin watches in amusement while he quietly chews on his rice. 

“The results arrived today, right?" he asks after a moment of silence. "Mind giving me a quick rundown?” 

Jungkook nods, mouth full of food.

“The murderer is smarter than I first anticipated. Yoongi hyung found no traces at all. Went through her belongings from school and found nothing but her fingerprints. Even the necklace was spotless save for the dent on the back."

"Did anyone find out where she got the necklace from, by the way?" Jimin asks, and Jungkook swallows a piece of meat before nodding excitedly. He had been completely right about his theory regarding the stupid accessory . 

"Jackson said she apparently received it by the local church. All the other choir members did, too, but Yoongi hyung did some more digging around and found out the necklaces were costum-made, however Jiyeon's was made out of different silver. More expensive, too, compared to the others.”

"That's nice," Jimin mutters, pushing food around on his plate, "Yoongi hyung has been working very hard lately."

Jungkook thinks back to the conversation he had with the forensic team leader a few days ago and hides a smirk behind the bowl of soup. 

Yeah, Jimin and Yoongi are way too oblivious. 

"So have I, hyung, he's not special." Jimin looks up from his plate and arches an eyebrow before breaking out into a small laugh. 

"Sure thing." Jungkook shrugs, reaching for his glass of water, and Jimin makes a sound of realization. "Oh, by the way they're gonna hold the funeral on Sunday. Mr. Kim seemed hesitant on inviting us, but Taehyung for some reason said it would only be respectful to have us there since we're the ones solving the case and all." 

Jungkook almost chokes on his water, eyes widening in surprise.

Taehyung did that?

Jungkook expected him to be mad at him for the discomfort he had put him through at the cafe.

Is this Taehyung's way of denying Jungkook's unsaid claim about his uality?

By inviting him to the house of God and making him feel guilty for accusing him of such a thing in the first place?

Jungkook wants to scoff at the boy's pettiness, but then he feels a bubble of doubt in his belly, because Taehyung just does not seem like the type to be petty. He's too good, too soft and good-hearted to cause someone harm in any way, shape or form. 

God, Jungkook needs to get it together. He sounds like a love-struck fool, for crying out loud.  

“So you’re not suspecting a classmate any longer?” 

Jungkook chugs down the entire glass of water before wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

Okay, so he has eaten enough to keep his body running for a few more hours, but he knows he’ll crash if he doesn’t ingest some form of caffeine. The most he has slept that past few days is less than four hours, and Jungkook realizes he needs coffee if he wants to get any work done today.

"I don't, actually," he says, grabbing his half-finished tray of food before moving to his feet, “I don't really know where to start digging, but this might honestly just be the most interesting case I’ve worked on, hyung.”

Jimin scoffs in disbelief. "Well, aren't you a little bit of a freak?" 

Jungkook shrugs as his lips twitch into a cocky smirk.

“Maybe, but that doesn't change the fact that I'm gonna solve this damn case. Just you watch.”

Jimin shakes his head and watches him leave, and Jungkook disposes of his tray before making a detour for the food counter. He busies himself with the coffee machine and waits for his cup to fill, impatiently tapping his foot against the tiled floor. 

“Jungkook, just the man I was looking for.” 

Jungkook jumps a little and turns around to find Jackson grinning up at him.

Jackson points to the coffee machine and Jungkook wordlessly removes his filled cup and then hits the hot chocolate button, waiting for the liquid to almost overflow Jackson’s mug before grabbing it and handing it over. 

“Thanks, kid,” Jackson says. They set out into a brisk pace, moving out of the cafeteria. “So, I finished interviewing the remaining students from the football team today.”

“Weren’t you and Namjoon supposed to do it four days ago?” 

Jackson sips his drink and winces at the heat. “Only six of them responded, the rest of them weren’t in touch until earlier today. Caught two of them on the way to class.”

“That’s suspicious,” Jungkook murmurs, “why didn’t they respond?”

“No one likes us pigs.” Jackson shrugs, grinning tiredly. There are dark circles under his eyes, much like the ones Jungkook is currently sporting. “We’re detested, especially by high schoolers who have just started exploring the world of drugs and alcohol.”

They enter Jungkook’s office and Jackson closes the door behind them.

Jungkook makes himself comfortable in his chair while the older boy completely ignores the soft couch next to them and instead sighs and sits on Jungkook’s desk. Jackson’s sigh turns into a sound of surprise, however, when he looks down at the desk. 

“This thing is grey?” Jungkook rolls his eyes and turns his computer on. “This is probably the cleanest I’ve seen your office, did you pay Jimin into doing it for you? Cause I know he would. He’s too kind, that kid.” 

“You’re barely a year older than him, stop calling him a kid,” Jungkook says, logging into their department’s database. “Also, let’s focus on the more important things at hand, no?”

Jackson sighs and crosses his feet at his ankles. “Fine, okay, so none of the teammates confessed to the murder. Everyone was shocked.”

“Naturally,” Jungkook mutters, skimming through a file Hoseok has forwarded him. “Any suspects?”

“None at all, most of them were already home around that time. Jiyeon liked to stay behind for extra drills.”

“Who stayed behind with her?” Jiyeon’s father is one strict piece of , Jungkook knows for sure he wouldn’t let her stay for longer than necessary unless there was supervision. Or reliable company. 

“Three of her teammates, but they left before her. One had to babysit her neighbor’s kid, the family backed up that claim. The other two left early due to, uh, personal reasons.”

Jungkook arches an eyebrow, eyes never leaving the computer screen. “What personal reasons?”

“Menstrual cramps,” Jackson says, awkwardly, and Jungkook throws him a brief look, snorting at the red fanning the older boy’s cheeks. “Apparently their, uh, menstrual cycles are synchronized. Their words, not mine.”

“It’s actually a rather common occurrence with girls who live together over a longer period of time.” Jungkook opens his inbox and skims through the latest messages. “By eating the same food, sharing the same sleeping pattern and the same activity levels they subconsciously align their biological clock and develop similar menstrual cycles.”

Jackson stares at Jungkook in bewilderment, although he shouldn’t be surprised. Jungkook has a seemingly endless supply of the most random facts stored in that thick skull of his, and he never shies away from sharing them.

Still, Jackson feels compelled to ask. 

“Tell me why you know this?”  

“Went to school, hyung. They teach a lot of interesting when you actually pay attention.”

“Is that supposed to be an insul-”

“What about the caretaker?” Jungkook throws Jackson a curious look. “Got anything out of him?”

“No, his shift had ended at four in the afternoon,” Jackson says, deciding to drop the half-hearted insult. “Football practice started at six and ended eight.” 

Jungkook replies to Hoseok’s email and then purses his lips. “What about the coach?”

“He also has reliable alibi. Wife needs assistance with her medication, he couldn’t stay behind even if he wanted to.” 

That leaves the team out of question. 

Jungkook decides he’ll take a quick round around the neighborhood. There’s no way no one saw or heard nothing, unless the body had been dumped there after the murder. 

Jungkook perks up. 

“How long did the coroner say she had been dead for?” 

Jackson frowns. “Uh, two hours? I think, why?”

“There aren’t any security cameras there, right?” 

“None that we know of, nothing ever happens in that neighborhood. Though I feel like that’s gonna change now.” Jackson puts his cup down. “Why? What’s going on?”

Jungkook jumps to his feet and reaches for his phone. “I’ve got a feeling.”

“A feeling?” Jungkook nods and turns on his heel, and Jackson quickly turns the computer off for him before scrambling to follow the younger boy out of the office and down the hallway towards the elevators. “Wanna elaborate?” 

“Nothing big, just a feeling we might’ve overlooked something.” 

Jungkook hopes he’s right. Mr. Kim does seem like the paranoid type. 

Jackson joins Jungkook out of the building, jogging to catch up with the other’s quick pace. Jungkook doesn’t slow down and holds a hand up in font of the patrol car that is pulling up in front of the building, the sound of tires skidding to a halt alerting nearby officers and citizens. 

“Sorry,” Jackson calls to an elderly couple walking on the other side of the road, earning disapproving frowns in return. Jungkook doesn’t spare them a glance, though, and grins at the officer who jumps out of the car.

“You’re gonna get yourself killed one of these days,” Jinyoung snaps, but Jungkook merely throws him a wink before entering the passenger’s side. Jackson greets Jinyoung but gets no reply in return and then begrudgingly takes the driver’s seat. 

They’re on the road in no time and Jungkook tunes out Jackson’s commentary on how Jinyoung has been acting all cold towards him lately because he had accidentally burped while eating lunch with him. 

It has to be a camera. 

Jungkook remembers the red blinking dot directly over the porch light, there’s just no way he’s wrong. The only problem right now is the prospect of Mr. Kim deleting the footage from the night of the murder. But that will only further add to the man’s suspicious behaviour, which will serve in Jungkook’s favour. 

Jungkook decides to skim through the notes from Jackson and Namjoon's hearings with the students and teammates, and he categorizes the student body in three.

Those who were friends with Jiyeon, those who were on friendly terms with her and those who just wanted to get by. So far, Jungkook wants to question only one of the girls, and he stores her name and information somewhere in the cluster of thoughts occupying his head. 

They thankfully reach the neighborhood in no time, much due to Jungkook forcing Jackson into turning on the siren, and Jungkook bites back an annoyed curse at the sight of a reporter stepping out of one of the neighbor's houses, her eyes hungry for information and her hand flying over the notebook in her hand. 

“Get her off the site,” Jungkook snaps when Jackson has followed him out of the car. “ing leeches.”

Jackson gives Jungkook an amused smirk but easily complies, jogging off to the woman who has only now noticed their presence. Her enthusiasm has been replaced by worry, and Jungkook scoffs before focusing on his task. 

He walks up the polished driveway and stops directly in front of the stairs leading up to the front porch. Every three seconds, a red dot appears directly over the unlit lamp, and Jungkook feels relieved as he moves up the stairs and rings the doorbell. 

He doesn’t really have a permit or anything granting him permission to take said footage yet, but he quickly sends Jimin a text and tells him to handle the paperwork as quickly as possible before Mr. Kim decides to report the both of them. Jimin’s reply is a series of exclamation marks. 

After ringing the doorbell five more times, Jungkook frowns and steps sideways to try and peek in through the living room window. The curtains are tightly drawn. 

Great. 

Jungkook tries his luck again and rings the doorbell, this time not really caring about manners or anything of that nature as he hits the button along to the tune of Star War’s theme. He’s midway through the second half when there’s a light cough behind him. 

“Can I help you?” 

Taehyung looks weary, his eyes a little wide, hands tightly clutching the strap of his messenger bag. He’s wearing a brown sweater over a white shirt, both of them tucked into a pair of dark brown slacks, and Jungkook finds himself admiring the boy’s sense of style for moment before he remembers his task. 

His hand drops from the doorbell and he grins. 

“Ah, just the one I was looking for,” he lies and steps forward, “need to discuss something important with you.”

“About?”

“The case,” Jungkook says, noticing how the reporter begrudgingly leaves the street and Jackson starts walking over to them, “I have a couple of questions to ask.”

Taehyung looks away from Jungkook and turns towards Jackson who comes to a stop next to him, and the officer holds out a hand in greeting. “Hey, there! I’m Wang Jackson, junior officer from Seoul Metropolitan Police Department.”

“Kim Taehyung,” Taehyung says, hand trembling slightly as he accepts Jackson’s.

The police officer’s smile is wide and boyish, but his eyes are stern, as always. He kind of reminds Jungkook of Jimin, but Jungkook would never say that out loud. His two hyungs are in a very serious fight regarding their heights, no one really wants to get in their way. 

Taehyung looks awfully uncomfortable, and Jackson looks like he’s gonna say something stupid to ease the tension that Jungkook knows from experience will do the exact opposite, so he claps his hands and gains their attention. 

“Now that we’ve gotten all formality out of the way, I have a couple of questions to ask you, Taehyung.”

The relief on Taehyung’s face when Jackson steps away instantly evaporates, and his throat bobs as he swallows, shoulders tense.

“I’m not sure if right now is the ti-”

“Great, would you mind allowing us inside? It’s kinda chilly right now.” 

It’s not cold, at all, the weather the past few days has in fact been surprisingly warm for the september month, but Taehyung is once more covered from head to toe, the only skin visible being that of his face and hands. 

Jungkook’s smile comes off as a cocky smirk, and despite it being three days since Jungkook and Taehyung spoke at the cafe, the taller male seems to remember exactly how cunning the private investigator can be. 

He yields, a crease forming between his brows. “Sure.” 

Jungkook steps aside and waits for Taehyung to open the door before they enter the foyer. Naturally, it’s just as clean and spotless as Jungkook had expected. They take off their shoes and then follow Taehyung into the huge living room. Jackson claims a spot on the big, beige couch while Jungkook remains standing. 

Taehyung looks from one to the other, hands tightly wrung around the strap of his bag, and Jungkook decides to ease some of the tension in the room by laughing. 

“I’m kind of thirsty,” he says.

Taehyung blinks a couple of times and then quickly nods, “of course, do you-do you guys want anything to drink?”

Jungkook arches a hopeful brow, “do you happen to have some soda?”

“Oh,” Taehyung frowns, “I’m not sure if we-”

“Let me help you check then.” 

Jungkook doesn’t leave room for argument and moves past Taehyung, as if he already knows where the kitchen and every other room in the house is located. Which he kind of does, Yugyeom sent him a blueprint of the building a couple of nights ago, along with all the other information on the Kims available online and offline. 

Taehyung quickly follows Jungkook, expression distressed, but Jungkook ignores him in favour of taking in as much of his surroundings as possible. 

Minimalism. 

There are no decorations or pictures hung up on the walls in the hallways save for a cross at the far end of it. Jungkook, however, notices a tiny dent in the wall next to the entrance of the kitchen. A frame must have hung there, but of what?

“We don’t usually have soda,” Taehyung says when Jungkook enters the kitchen. “It isn’t exactly good for the teeth.” 

Taehyung walks past him and moves up to the rather modern looking fridge, quickly checking the contents in search of beverages.

“Really?” Jungkook moves further inside the big room and takes in the clean countertops, save for a small decorative bowl of fruit. It’s untouched. “I basically lived off of pepsi throughout college.”

Taehyung turns around with a bottle of ice tea in hand, expression somewhat clouded. “Is ice tea fine?”

“Ice tea’s cool.” Jungkook notices how the boy is still tense, shoulders seemingly locked in a rigid setting. “I expected you to have a stash of some kind of caffeinated ty drink, you know, since you’re currently in your last year.”

Jungkook walks up to Taehyung and accepts the bottle, taking notice of how it hasn’t been opened yet. He looks up at Taehyung, arching an eyebrow. 

“So, what’s your juice? Coffee?” 

Taehyung’s eyes widen a little at the sudden proximity. Jungkook takes notice of how soft his usual sharp features look this close up, lips plush and a dark pink colour, eyes big and inviting. Even his hair looks soft, almost velvet-like, and if that isn’t enough, he smells absolutely heavenly. Vanilla. Jungkook his lips.

“Oh, I don’t really like coffee that much,” Taehyung finally mumbles as he breaks the silence, taking a step backwards when Jungkook doesn’t budge from his spot. He clears his throat and shrugs, hands moving back to clutch the strap of his bag. “And energy drinks give me headaches.”

“Right.” Jungkook takes a swig and then screws the lid shut. “Did your sister like ice tea?”

His hunch is correct. Surprise and then pain flit across Taehyung’s face before he clenches his jaw and looks away. 

“I guess she was planning on drinking this that night, after football practice. Maybe a routine of hers?” 

Taehyung doesn’t reply and keeps staring at the counter across from him. Jungkook puts the bottle away and releases a long sigh, looking around for a quick moment. 

“Feels very empty,” he murmurs, “the house. From what her classmates have shared, Jiyeon used to be loud, in a good way.”

Jungkook notices how Taehyung’s gaze gradually becomes more and more distant, and he feels his heartbeat accelerate a little, because he’s getting there. There’s only so long a person can keep their emotions bottled up, and Taehyung must have a cracking point - he is only human after all.  

“She used to be in the school choir, too, right?”

Taehyung’s lips quirk a little at that, probably because he’s reliving the memories. Jungkook knows he’s there soon.

Only one, small push. 

“She participated every sunday during Mass, right? I heard her voice was preferred by most because of how it brought them to tears. A direct link between God and his children. Some of her friends said her nickname used to be Songbird.” Jungkook’s voice turns into a gentle murmur. “I haven’t heard her sing, but something in me just tells me it would be heavenly.”

A heavy silence settles in the room, thick and palpable.

Jungkook’s eyes are trained on Taehyung’s hunched form, and for a second he wonders if maybe he should dig some more. Maybe he needs to prod further to get a reaction out of the seemingly frozen boy.  

“She liked music.” It’s very quiet, but it’s there, and Jungkook has to fight down his excitement because Taehyung took the bait. “Loved it. Sang every single day of her life, not a second you wouldn’t find her humming.” Taehyung’s lips quirk into a bittersweet smile and he huffs. “Recently she took a liking to a band. Some stupid k-pop band. Said their songs made her feel good, happy even.”

Taehyung’s eyes are still locked on the marble countertop, his gaze lost and far away, and Jungkook holds his breath, not wanting to break the moment. 

“I actually liked a few bands myself, she taught me the dance to this one girl group song.” Taehyung’s laugh is wet and constricted, and his eyes are b with tears. “It was the most ridiculous song I’ve ever heard but we would laugh for hours afterwards and that was worth it. Mom didn’t mind the songs, said it was nice of us to share such a deep and innocent bond, but father didn’t like how loud-.”

Taehyung suddenly freezes, as if shot. 

Jungkook’s eyebrows arch in surprise at the abrupt change and he watches as the boy quickly wipes away his tears, eyes wide in disbelief at his own slip-up. Taehyung looks at Jungkook for a quick second and offers him a tight lipped smile in apology before averting his gaze. 

“Sorry about that, I didn’t mean to vent.”

Jungkook grabs his ice tea and tries to remain cool about it. “No worries, Jackson’s probably waiting.”

Taehyung’s eyebrows furrow briefly but he doesn’t say anything and quickly follows Jungkook out of the kitchen, the tension in the air twice as strong and palpable when they return to the living room. Jackson has most likely taken a quick sweep of the room, but he sits there, innocently grinning up at them from the same spot on the couch.

“Did you two get lost on the way to the kitchen?” 

“Want some ice tea?” 

Jungkook throws the bottle at him, ignoring the loud “hey!” and then takes a seat on the couch, closest to the unoccupied one-seater. He motions for Taehyung to claim the empty spot and the tall boy hesitantly obliges. 

“What were you doing on the night of the incident?”

“I was sleeping,” Taehyung murmurs, looking down at his fingers fiddling with the bag strap. 

“What about your parents?”

“Mom was getting ready for bed, father was on the way back from a late day at the office.”

The answers sound very practiced, but Jungkook doesn’t comment on that. Jackson is dutifully writing everything down in a small notebook he has conjured up from his pocket. 

“Did you notice anything weird that day?” he asks, “was your sister acting different in any way?” 

Taehyung frowns at Jackson’s question. “What do you mean? No, nothing was different.”

Jungkook watches his face the whole time. He’s lying. 

“We know from her friends that she was very social.”

“Yeah, she was,” Taehyung mumbles. Jackson nods.

“Was she in any relationships?” 

Taehyung is doing a good job at masking his emotions, but Jungkook is paid a ton of money for a reason and he easily notices the way Taehyung’s brow twitches for the fraction of a second. 

“No. She wasn’t in a relationship.”

Jackson makes a sound of realization and then chuckles sheepishly. “Catholics, you’re right. Sorry about that.”

Taehyung shakes his head in a “no worries” motion but doesn’t look up again after that. 

Jungkook feels a little annoyed at how many clues he has received so far, at this rate he might just solve the case before the month is over. 

Where’s the fun in that?

“Hey, Taehyung. Where’s the toilet?” 

Taehyung looks up and blinks. “Oh, uh, it’s right down that hall over there, to the left.”

Jungkook offers him a grin and then leaves the living room. 

He can hear Jackson pick up the conversation and hopes the officer can keep Taehyung occupied, because instead of taking a left, he takes a right and as gently as he can moves up the stairs leading to the bedrooms. 

The door to Taehyung’s room is opened, the interior minimalistic save for a couple of books thrown haphazardly onto the black sheets of the bed. Jungkook takes a quick peek but decides not to linger and moves on to find the room he’s looking for. 

The door is closed, but Jungkook easily twists the handle and slips inside without a sound. The walls are covered in posters of different bands, fairy lights hanging over them to highlight the ones Jiyeon must have liked the most, and Jungkook feels a little pity for the girl. She must’ve had so many plans for her future. 

He walks over to the work desk lined against the window and carefully checks each drawer for clues. There are a bunch of homework related papers, a small collection of cosmetic products and a few polaroid pictures from previous family vacation. After snapping photos of them, Jungkook puts it all away and frowns. 

What kind of seventeen year old teenage girl doesn’t keep a diary? 

It’s supposed to be a rhetoric question, but Jungkook’s brain has already supplied him with an answer.

The kind who has secrets too dangerous to write down. 

Jungkook checks the rest of the room as quickly as he can and groans in annoyance when he still can’t find anything valuable to the case. Her hangers are untouched, clothes lined up perfectly. There is nothing out of the ordinary, not even underneath the bed where Jungkook has a hard time finding the normal thin layer of dust that beds cover up.  

Sighing in defeat, Jungkook gets up and decides Taehyung’s anxiety has probably soared through the roof by now. He exits the room and closes the door after him before turning towards the staircase.

But he stops.

Something tells him Taehyung won’t be helpful in providing information regarding the security camera. His fear of his own father far outweighs any willingness to help two police officers view private footage of the property. Jungkook grimaces and decides it’s worth a shot. 

He turns back on his heel and quickly crosses the space to the Kim couple’s bedroom. 

The interior is similar to Taehyung’s, minimalistic and with a focus on darker colours. There’s a cross hanging next to the vanity mirror lined alongside a tall cabinet. But other than that, there’s nothing else in the room, besides the king sized bed. 

Jungkook frowns and quickly goes through the bedside cabinet, surely there must be something, anything, that can make the case a little more intere-.

The sound of a car pulling up into the driveway of the house snaps Jungkook out if his thoughts and he freezes, eyes widening.

“Oh, .”