The chaos of hearts to be in a calm peace; yet not

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9:01 am 

The darkness had engulfed the sky; a hunch of drizzle, and a hue of darkness had hovered over a particular place of Seoul where the particular batch had wore the graduation gown and caps in the huge hall; claps for the ones being presented, and worn gold medals for giving the enormous performance in their field. 

And standing on the stage with pride was twenty-three year old Baekhyun. 

A gold medal being worn around his neck and his eyes glimmered a shine; pride and happiness for doing better and making his parents proud who weren't even in his world anymore to join him on his big day but a particular person had made a place in his world where he had shut everyone to enter. 

Yet she did, and with a quick nod at the Dean, he had averted his gaze behind him to find her standing there with the same prideful gold medal hanging around her neck; Iseul, but the minute he met her eyes, the shine of his own eyes turned into a confusion to find her eyes blank. 

A glint of hurt emotion; glassy and anger directed towards him. 

He couldn't help but get confused, a frown on his face as he looked around again to the professors and ahead to find the students seated but their eyes directed to her, and whispering among themselves that he was perplexed about, and before he could do something else, he found her leaving the stage in a haste. 

But he knew it was her way of telling him to follow her. 

The next thing he was exiting the hall; his steps following her retreating figure underneath the black gown as the cap was on her hand like he had been holding his one as the sound of their steps had echoed in the silent hallway. 

"Can you stop and talk to me already?" 

Iseul halted her steps and turned around with a clenched jaw as if trying to hold back her threatening tears from her eyes; sharp towards him and his confused yet concerned expression had her feel more pain to the point of thinking herself to be an idiot to trust this guy. 

Yet her heart wanted to believe him somehow. 

Her trembling lips parted after a harsh gulp with a frown. "How does everyone know about this, Baekhyun?" 

Baekhyun's forehead creased; his heart sinking at her tearing up eyes. "Know about what, Iseul?" 

Iseul flicked her nose while looking away for a moment to find a familiar girl roaming around but looking at her with a look of pity and mock that had angered more to look back at him while scrolling through her phone before pushing in infront of his eyes. 

"That my dad cheated on my mom." 

"What?" 

Baekhyun blinked a couple of times in surprise; not at the words because he knew the actual reason known by her but the way it had got into a rumor. 

"You were the only one who knows about this so why has everyone been talking about it?" 

Iseul questioned, her heart in a tightness of the words coming out from her own mouth but furious and hurt because he was the only one who knew about it and now everyone around knows and she couldn't help but question the only one who was aware while Baekhyun stared into her teary eyes with disbelief as his lips parted. "You don't actually think that it's me, right?" 

Iseul huffed. "And that's why I'm asking right now." 

He let out a chuckle; more like an incredulous scoff to the point of feeling bitter as he looked away before meeting her eyes. "I'm not," He trailed off, tilting his head. "Do you believe me?" 

Iseul was silent; her chest heaving up. "You were the only one who knew about this!" 

And Baekhyun's jaw clenched, as he his lips while shaking his head. "You don't believe me, Iseul." 

"How can I believe you right now?!" 

"Then why question it?!" 

"Because I want to hear the reason behind this!" 

"None because I didn't do anything!" 

“You must have told someone.” 

“Or you could have.”

“You think I will go around telling this to everyone?!” 

“But you believe that it's me?” 

“If not you, then who?!” 

“I don't know.” 

Iseul shook her head; her lips trembling as she looked down to glance at her shoes through blurry vision. "People said right about staying away from you," Her voice cracked, and she met his eyes again; hurt, and in disbelief and her eyes teared up more for getting her trust broken by the one she thought could be her safe. "I should have stayed away from you, I thought you were different from every rumor and people's words but you proved me so wrong, Baekhyun!" 

And his heart sank; a throbbing pain of her bitter words hurt right there as he nodded slowly while boring his eyes into hers; pain and hurt, and anger that his grip tightened on his cap by his side as he smiled his painful smile. "And you turned out to be just like those people, Iseul." 

“Why defend me if you were going to blame me just like those people?” His eyes tearing up behind his cracked voice, “You really gave me the reason why I shouldn't let people in my life again.” 

The moment Iseul understood his words, she was quick to push him away by his chest in a rage that his back leaned against the wall and she was standing in front of him clutching the material of his gown; her furiously hurt eyes bored into his exact hurt, and angered ones but in tears. 

"I hate you, Byun Baekhyun." 

He had grabbed her hand, "Feelings are not mutual," He trailed off, retreating her grip off from his gown without averting his eyes from hers to utter out his most hurtful words to her that he had ever imagined. "Because I hate you more than you can imagine, Jeon Iseul." 

"To the extent of not wanting to see your face again." 

Iseul nodded, "Glad that this one feeling is mutual," She paused, "And whatever it was," her forefinger to him then her, feeling a throbbing pain through her chest. "It never happened." 

His jaw clenched like the pain of hearing those words again as he nodded. "Gladly done." 

And the next minute he was walking away with a lift of his hand that had wiped his rolling lone tear; without turning around even for a second to be far away from her sight, and this place. 

The moment she watched his figure in a disappearance, her figure crouched down against the wall like the hide of her face that cried thousands of cries. 

A cry was loud, and a cry was silent but both had a pain of betrayal and broken trust like the gloom of darkness. 

And the engulf of the darkened sky had also cried along with them; a painful cry of broken souls broke yet again. 

____________________________________

8:15 pm

The building of the police station beamed with enormous lightning for the outsiders to show that the doors of justice, and help was opened to them but was it really? The question was asked numerous times from the ones who weren't given the so-called justice and help because the power of greed, and money was too enormous for justice to prevail against it. 

And the two people who agreed to this statement were the ones who disagree with everything they come across to each other; a lost but unforgettable reason for their disagreement and a despise for one and another. 

Byun Baekhyun and Jeon Iseul; the two known strangers who had sworn not to face each other ever again had found themselves seated in the main office of the station, beside each other, and an eerie silence had engulfed them. 

A face off after nine years wasn't expected, nor predicted but one thing was sure that it was going to be despicable. 

Just like right now. 

"Why do I have to clean up your mess right now?" 

A manly deep voice had echoed after the door opened, and the owner of it had occupied his chair behind the table; Park Se-Ju, in his fitted white half-sleeve shirt, and pants while his black hair in a mess indication of his daily duty session but one call from his cousin, Ji-eun had him drive to the road to find his friend, currently seated in front of him with a car clash against the man beside her. 

And he had asked his senior to let him handle this mess even though it wasn't even his department to solve; all fault goes to his cousin's threats and his friend's safety. 

"I didn't create a mess," Iseul uttered, her leg over the other one with her blazer still on her lap as she leaned back; a beckoning gesture with her head towards the man beside her whom she didn't want to make an eye contact with, "This man created the mess and I happen to be the victim." 

An amused scoff left Baekhyun's lips; his posture same as hers, and his hands joined on his lap as he looked down with a smirk of amusement. "This woman surely loves to be victimized." 

"And you sure love to give reasons to be criticized." 

Her one sentence had Baekhyun tilt his head towards her and his lethal gazing eyes had met her blazing glare directed to him, and a silence of their own flashback hit right for their current actions of glares unaware of the man seated in front of them had been watching them silently that gave him an assumption of another clash; he couldn't let it happen on his watch right now. 

"This is a police station." 

Baekhyun and Iseul were quick to spare a glance at the man who had warned them for their almost misbehavior but they couldn't help it; the feeling of meeting someone who gave a feeling of betrayal, and hatred, becomes out of control to do anything and making peace with them is far from their heads. 

"Could you tell me your name?" 

Se-Ju asked, meeting the man's eyes and the latter gave him a nod. "Byun Baekhyun." 

He nodded, noting it down with other details before looking at Iseul with her ever scowl on her face that he wasn't surprised at to give her a tired look. "We were supposed to meet later and you had to make a mess, Jeon Iseul?" 

"How about you question him about the mess, Officer. Park?" She tilted her head, indicating that he should be professional right now. "Clearly, I didn't crash my car with my own car." 

Baekhyun was silently watching the interaction of one known stranger and the other unknown stranger with a serious expression; a curiosity, and his elbow leaned on the armchair to bring his forefinger to his lips as his eyes averted to the woman beside him; he couldn't help but notice her unchanged, yet change appearance yet somehow she appeared to be worth looking at; always. 

A sight unable to turn away and he cursed himself internally for staring at her; the one who had given him the good reason for not giving in to his emotions again; never mistakenly. 

"Alright, so you were driving at high speed, Mr. Byun?" 

Baekhyun frowned, and met Se-Ju's eyes for a moment, "I don't think so, Officer. Park," He trailed off, turning to Iseul, "Mrs. Jeon Iseul-"

"Ms. Jeon Iseul." 

He met her sharp gaze and a smirk curled his lips; his eyes never leaving hers. "Ms. Jeon Iseul was driving like she owns the road without caring about the citizens so, obviously," He trailed off, looking back at Se-Ju, "I wouldn't wait for her entire night to give me a space." 

"And Mr. Byun Baekhyun thinks that public road was his theme park to let a citizen pass by," Iseul paused, tearing her sharp gaze away from him to Se-Ju with a tilt of her head. "So, I wouldn't wait for him to end his little tour to get home." 

"And I wasn't the only one driving at high speed." 

"But you crashed my headlights." 

"And you couldn't seem to find any other space to crash into mine." 

Iseul scoffed, "Yours?" She turned to him with a tilt of her head; a sass emerged with a hard glint in her eyes, "Since when the public road has been yours, Mr. Byun Baekhyun?" 

"And if you worry so much about the public road citizens," Baekhyun tilted his head, a hint of sarcasm in his tone, and a smirk of smugness on the corner of his lips as his eyes bored into hers, "Why did you rush to chase my car enough to crash, Ms. Jeon Iseul?" 

Her jaw clenched. "You started it." 

And he arched his one eyebrow. "I ended it too." 

"By breaking my headlights?!" 

Her voice almost raised, yet the man sat like he didn't occur with a shrug of nonchalance by looking into her eyes; bloody scum. 

"Stop it." 

Se-Ju slammed the table softly but enough for two grown up adults to come back to their senses of being an actual adult; both of them looked back at him where Iseul had her palm in a tight fist as if controlling her anger while Baekhyun had left a deep breath with a quick brush to his hair and that's when Se-Ju had noticed the color of his hair. 

Not something to be surprised at; nowadays it was normal for a hair color but it was definitely a questionable curiosity towards him. 

"Look here, Officer Park," Baekhyun started, letting loose his posture so he was leaning forward with his forearm on the table, "We both were driving at high speed, so we are equally at fault and for crashing her car," He paused, to spare a glance at the woman beside him who was suddenly and surprisingly silent beside him; he couldn't even look at her properly because of her hair to realize how it had grown until it hit him again. 

He was letting his curiosity take over; it was good but not good in a particular cases and this woman came into it. 

He his lips and met Se-Ju's eyes who had his eyes on him in a much curiosity and judging manner that had Baekhyun complete his sentence. "I will pay whatever the amount of damages has been made, and this case should be shut down here but if you have other thoughts considering you have got a friend here, so whatever it is, I'll cooperate if it is fair enough." 

Se-Ju had to frown at his words; his tone, a kind of offencive one. "Do you think I will have an unfair progress with you, Mr. Byun?" 

Baekhyun shrugged, "Don't be offended," He trailed off, leaning back, "I just don't believe in law and cops' progress." 

Se-Ju had his forehead creased; an amusement that he directed towards Iseul but her expression of a gloom, and controlling emotion had him sit straight to end the process of the crash case because of the known reason behind her condition. 

"How do you think about this process, Ms. Jeon?" 

Iseul gave a slight nod. "Alright." 

She wanted this to end as quickly as possible so she could leave this place; today marks the day that had brought a lot of unforgettable and unpleasant moments in her life that had followed with a continuation; the man beside her was included in that memory and right now, seeing him had brought those memories again that she had been trying to distract herself from the morning, from the visit to the graveyard but he had to be here. 

And on the same date again; why? 

Her hold on the blazer tightened, and her nails on her palm had dug her skin like a sharp sting to hurt but that was her control on her slipping emotions from her hold and she couldn't let loose her emotions at this moment. 

Not in front of the man who was the reason for the only betrayal she never saw it coming yet it proved her wrong. 

A knock on the door and within an allowance of the person, Se-Ju found a man walking in; unfamiliar until he found Baekhyun looking over his shoulder to him. 

"Couldn't you have gotten more late, Lee?" 

Kang-min gave him a look. "I was sleeping." 

"I should definitely fire you." 

"You should definitely listen to me more." 

The familiar voice of a male had jolted Iseul enough to look upwards to her side only to frown in an astonishment to find the known man; Lee Kang-min, a classmate of their batch and Kang-min who was still giving Baekhyun a little earful of being careful after getting his call of having a car crash on the first day of his arrival that had him shook the knock out of his peaceful sleep. 

Yet a strong gaze had him turn to find the least woman he expected to be here; Jeon Iseul, and his eyes rounded in surprise. 

"Jeon Iseul?" 

Iseul blinked; neutral and gave him a slight nod of acknowledgement before turning away her gaze to lock with Baekhyun's; the same brown eyes staring into hers intensely like before but soft and right now his eyes were far from soft, and it pierced her soul like a jolt of a flashback with a tightness engulfing her to glare back until she teared her gaze away with his scoff into her ears. 

Kang-min watched the little interaction of an intense staring battle; the silence of eerie had him tensed enough while being unknown of the reason behind their behaviors unlike the times he had seen it before; it was different but right now it felt like a rage. 

"This is my secretary, Lee Kang-min," 

Baekhyun introduced Kang-min with a hidden pride as Se-Ju seemed to be curious before nodding at him and the latter came forward with a polite smile. "And his guardian too." 

"What?"

Baekhyun gave him a grimacing look while Iseul had sighed; a hidden curiosity about their relationship, but somewhere it was known where Se-Ju frowned, and Kang-min had begun to sort out the issue like he usually does for him that Baekhyun had nothing to be worried about though he was managing it fine alone till now. 

"Alright, so it's settled, Mr. Byun is opt to pay for the damages of Ms. Jeon's crash and a fine for breaking the road rules." 

Kang-min nodded. "Thank you, Officer. Park." 

"Can I leave now?" 

Iseul asked, and as soon as Se-Ju nodded, she was quick to grab her purse before standing up with a tight hold onto her blazer; her figure walked past the seated figure of Baekhyun who didn't spare any glance at her but felt a gush of air around him until the door was closed, and the next moment, he had walked out with a quick bid to Se-Ju with Kang-min behind him. 

And Se-Ju was seated there for a moment to process the situation; the amount of tension in the room had him blank out but another assumption had taken over his head; the two beings in the room a moment ago have been known to each other yet not pleasantly. 

"Of course, the matter is sorted out, Ji-eun." 

Iseul's feet walked down the floor leading to the exit with her phone pressed against her ear unaware of a presence behind her walking down the same path; Baekhyun had his hands in his pockets as his steps emerged with the same pace as hers while his eyes couldn't help but stare at her back; her grown hair to her full back to have his gaze scroll down to her heels that had him confused enough to frown. 

A particular moment beamed in his head like a memory but enough to jolt him with a hardened jawline for the remembrance of that woman's related things; he didn't want to yet it was in an automatic play in his mind. 

Damn his curiosity for unrelated things. 

The next moment, Iseul had hang up but a gush of air brushed through her shoulder to find Baekhyun walking past her figure exiting the station descending the three steps to the ground of parked cars; her eyes sharp followed his figure yet the particular color of his hair had gotten her focus more; the same silver shine that had taken her attention the first time she had laid her eyes on him years ago and it was happening right now but difference was there was no curiosity but just a question in her mind. 

Why did he come back? 

The moment she had descended the steps almost paced to her car until a voice had stopped her. 

"Iseul, is that you?" 

She turned to the direction to find the familiar man in his mid 50s; Ji-eun's father, and her late father's colleague, Hwang Oh-Seong, and she found him strolling to her with a fatherly smile until he was standing in front of her enough for Iseul to greet him. "Good evening, Uncle." 

He nodded. "What are you doing here?" 

"Nothing, just some commotion happened but it's been taken care of." 

"What about Se-Ju?" 

"He helped me out." 

"That's good," He smiled, "How are you doing today?"

Iseul was aware of his sudden question; her father's memorial day it was that included him being his friend, and her being his friend's daughter for a concern but Iseul had gotten a habit of keeping things to herself throughout the years to let anyone hint of her insights where she gave him another nod; neutral glint in her eyes. "I'm alright, uncle."

And far from the conversation was standing Baekhyun who had his back leaned against the car with his folded arms while his eyes watched the scene happening in front of him with a glint of sharpness; studying as he tilted his head, a conversation so faintly low that he couldn't listen to but he could recognize the man being one of the high positions cop. 

It was his part of searching around but the question was how does Iseul know him? To the extent of having a long conversation with? Where was her father, Jeon Tae-ha? And he had his curiosity yet again. 

"Alright, go home safely, child." 

Oh-Seong bid Iseul a night as he almost passed her figure while looking around to have his eyes stop at a leaned figure; a man whose eyes locked with him but somehow so intense to frown over it until he had tore it off with a blink to pace inside. 

An unknown anxiety in his system had evoked. 

Iseul had placed the purse on the bonnet of her car along with her phone as she slid her arms into the sleeves of her blazer before her eyes met the pair of familiar and intense ones again; his sharp stare was piercing her soul as he watched her doing her thing while she didn't tear it off as if couldn't let him win against it since she continued to tuck her hair out of the blazer underneath yet a gush of heat had crawled through them. 

A gush of infuriate towards him; another one because there was a curiosity of his arrival here after nine years but she hated how infuriatingly he appeared hard to tear her eyes off; the rage was there but his sudden change yet unchanged appearance had done its work too. 

And she h