“Good morning, Detective...”

My head shot up from the desk and I blinked awake, focusing on the figure in front of me. I shot up from my seat, smoothed my hair down, and made sure I didn't have dried drool anywhere on my face.

“Chief,” I greeted.

The head of the precinct looked at me quizzically. He was shorter than me, late fifties, but he could probably kick any of our asses with both hands tied behind his back.

“Detective Kim,” he answered. “Have you been here all night?”

“Yes, sir,” I answered. “I've been going over the Lee Daeho case.”

He nodded approvingly, but continued to study me closely. I probably looked like a bag of run over . “Any leads?”

“Not really,” I sighed. As the words left my mouth, something clicked. A thought switched on, moved into focus. “Excuse me,” I said and moved to the evidence board again.

Eyes scanned hungrily over the photos, looking for something that I'd missed the previous night. The body shot of Lee Daeho. I studied over the ashen, bloodied form, looking for what I'd skipped over.

His hand.

The way his hand was placed. The arm was outstretched to the side, which was possible with a fall, but his hand was unnaturally set. All his fingers were closed, except for his pointer finger which looked like it was...pointing.

I closed my eyes and tried to picture the alley, focusing on what his hand was pointing out. My inner eye tried to piece the memory together until it finally shown through. If I remembered correctly, there was dumpster. A dumpster that was perfect for hiding evidence.

Evidence that may have already been discovered, but I would have known. I would have been notified if the gun or some other piece of valuable information had been found. But what if they missed something that only I would have found?

That one doubt was enough to make me grab my coat. The drive to the scene was too long and too full of a thousand other doubts and thoughts. I rubbed at my forehead, a throbbing sensation beginning to start in my skull.

The air was freezing, the sky clouded over with the threat of snow. I zipped my jacket up to my chin, checked my phone before putting it in my pocket, and walked into the broad alley. To my relief, there was a dumpster sitting against one wall. I stepped over a puddle and approached the metal bin. I lifted the lid and peered inside, greeted with the smell of rotting food and other disgusting unidentifiable objects.

I began to rummage through the bags with gloved hands, not even sure what I would be looking for. Some sort of sign that he had been there. A sign that he was involved; he had to be.

“I was wondering when you'd figure it out.”

Those chills hit me hard as I whirled around to face who I was looking for the presence of. He was standing on the other side of the alley as if he'd been there the entire time, dressed completely in black, dark hair mussed in the front.

My hand twitched for the gun underneath my jacket. “I wouldn't do that, Detective,” he said, pushing his trench coat aside to reveal he was packing much more than I was. “I just want to talk. No guns. No...unnecessary physical persuasion...”

“Unnecessary physical persuasion?” I spat. “You assaulted an officer!”

“And I apologize for that,” he said. That response took me off guard. “But we're here now, face-to-face, no one to bother us.”

“What do you want?” I demanded.

“To talk,” he answered simply, stepping lightly towards me.

I stepped back. “Don't you dare come any closer...”

“What are you going to do?” he challenged. “You've got that gun sealed away.” His feet moved him closer to closer; my heart rate began to fly.

Back pressing against the brick wall, I took in even breathes, trying to calm the anxiety burning in my chest. I was better than that; I'd faced worse. Just get a ing hold of yourself!

UKnow stopped only a few feet from me, giving me the smallest of gaps between him and the dumpster. There was no way I'd even attempt something like that.

“Why do you keep doing this?” I asked after swallowing to keep my voice even. “Why haven't you killed me yet?”

UKnow smiled and approached me again, this time leaving nothing, but a couple inches between us. He was a head taller than me, leaving me to look defiantly at his throat. Imagining that I could strangle it with my bare hands.

“You make my life more interesting,” he started. “When you kill people for a living, it can be dull after a while, but then...some pretty woman starts chasing you around and you find something to keep you occupied.” His hand came up to my cheek and I tried to jerk my head away. “Before you, all I had was male detectives who couldn't even run a block without having a and what fun are they? Then, you came along.” His face came closer to mine and I felt his hot breathe blow against my skin. “You're amazing, Detective. I'm...infatuated by you.”

“You're too charming,” I sneered, regaining some of my composure. “Why don't you go try to assault some other woman?”

“Assault?” Confusion creased his face. “I'm not going to assault you, Detective. What kind of man do you think I am?”

“A killer,” I hissed. “Which is why you killed Lee Daeho, isn't it?”

One side of his lips upturned. “You're quick. And let me guess...you know why.”

“Jung Hyunki hired you first and you tricked Lee into coming out of hiding by agreeing to kill Jung for him.”

“You are brilliant,” he said.

“And you're a psychopath,” I growled.

UKnow smirked and his thumb moved across the corner of my lips. “What makes you so cold?” he asked. His other hand suddenly ran against the skin of my stomach, underneath my blouse . Goosebumps covered my skin. I went to push his hand away when his fingers traced the long line of rough scar tissue that was laid across my skin. “Is it this?” he asked, keeping my eyes captured with his. “I know this woke you up at night, kept you prowling your apartment until morning because you couldn't relive such a memory in your sleep...But that hasn't bothered you for some time, right? You got over it. Because you're Detective Kim, the indestructible. Nothing holds you down for long...right?”

My throat constricted, leaving me lost for words. Thoughts stumbled around clumsily in my head and my tongue was stuck. Muted. How did he know? He could know what happened to me through the news or my record, but how the did that bastard know about the effects after what happened? Another finger slid across the other scar, a thin almost invisible one going along the side of my neck. “I know all about that night. It still bothers you sometimes.”

“You know nothing about me!” I shrieked, shoving him away.

He took a step back, only to come back and slam me into the wall. The back of my head smacked hard against the concrete and I grimaced. “That temper's going to get you in serious trouble one of these days,” he told me, lips twitching into a smile as his voice shook with some emotion I'd rather not think about. “Then, what makes you such a...difficult individual?” he continued. “Some boy broke your heart? Tough school days? Family problems?” He caught the slightest tension of my muscles and smiled. “Family problems...I know a lot more about you than you know,” he purred.

My eyes narrowed dangerously, hiding the fear that bubbled in my stomach. I was lost for words, unable to shoot back anything that could prove him wrong. Maybe he knew more about me than I thought, more than would ever be healthy or comfortable for me. Those thoughts abandoned me in terrified silence.

UKnow's lips turned in a smile and crashed down on mine. I let out a scream and pushed him away again, which he finally gave in to. I heard his cackle as he ran out of the alley. Fury replaced the fear long enough for me to grab my gun and aim. But he was out of my sight. I ran forward, into the street, but he had vanished.



I stomped up the stairs to my office floor, trying to control my breathing as I fumed. Changmin looked up at the sound of my approach and he scooted his chair back in fear.

“Jin Ae...” he said. “Whatever it is, I didn't do it, I swear.”

I came to a stop at his desk, breathing shallow as I dropped my phone on his desk and tapped the screen. The conversation between UKnow and me began to play from the tiny speaker. Changmin's eyes widened more and more until I thought they'd fall out by the end of the audio.

My partner looked up at me, lips trying to form words. “Did he kiss you?”

I growled and smacked him on the arm, earning a yelp from him. “Out of that whole convo, you got that?” I shouted in his face. “He admitted to killing Lee, saying exactly what I theorized!”

“Okay!” Changmin said, grabbing my shoulder and pushing me away to give him some air. “I get it. You were right...But what the hell, Jin Ae?” he suddenly exclaimed, getting up from his seat. “You went against this guy without me? He could have killed you!”

“You and I both know he wouldn't kill me!” I reasoned. “He's too...infatuated with me.” I spat out the repeated word and gritted my teeth.

“It was still a stupid move,” Changmin argued and sat back in his chair. “But whatever. You've solved another case. Congrats.”

I snatched my phone back up from his desk. Shooting him a glare over my shoulder, I said, "I'll be staying in my own apartment again." And with that, I approached the Chief's desk with the hard-won confession in my hands.



I let out a scream that was cut short by the breathe hitched in my throat. I coughed and gulped in a lungful of oxygen. The burning in my abdomen hung in reality and I grabbed one of my pillows, hugging it to my body. My body quaked, damp with a dream-induced sweat. Pushing the hair back from my face and trying to inhale normally again, I grabbed my phone from the bedside table.

“Hello?” came a groggy answer.

“Junsu...” My voice cracked on the word and I cleared my quenched throat.

“Jin Ae?” His voice became clearer at the recognition of my voice. “Are you okay? What's wrong?”

I took in a shaky breathe and my lips. “I had a nightmare.”

“Do you want me to come over?” he offered, knowing exactly what I meant.

I looked up at the clock sitting on the bedside table. 2:47. “N—no...No, you don't have to.”

“But I will.”

“You don't have to,” I repeated. “I just...I needed to know I was awake.”

Junsu inhaled on the other end. “I'll come over.”

“Okay,” I answered quietly. “Thank you.”

He said goodbye and I hung up, placing the phone back on the table. One arm still clutched the pillow to my stomach. I moved my hand under the thin shirt and felt the scar that lay embedded in the skin.

It was UKnow's fault. The very mention of it brought back the troubles and worries. The nightmares. I'd escaped with a few simple scars, but the dark dreams ended differently. More gruesome and bloody. I buried my face in the other pillow and bit my lip until I tasted blood. No. I would not shed a tear over something so stupid. Something I couldn't have helped, they told me.

Fingers clenched the sheets and I pried my eyes open. UKnow thought he could get to me. He anticipated that I was some weak, little girl who couldn't take care of a few memories. That I could be thrown off by him digging around in my private life. That he owned me because he knew more about me than most people.

Well, he was ing wrong.

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Two updates in a day because I've been writing this on Mibba and completely forgot that I hadn't updated this for a while. Oops.

Honest feedback is always appreciated!