Chapter 2

Encounter

Hyoyeon walked the long dimmed corridor, four floors below the ground. Her footsteps echoed along the walls, creating an eerie ambience. She cracked her neck and inhaled. The smell of fungus and humid air made her regret that human can't live without breathing. She hated this place. The dirty floor,the dim lights and the steel door that lined up along the corridor.

Hyoyeon stopped in front of a steel double door at the end of the corridor. She checked her handkerchief down in her suit's pocket, just in case.

Slowly, she raised her hand and knocked at the door. She wasn't knocking as hard but the echo made the knocking sound so loud. Not a second later, the steel door opened with an even louder sound. A skinny guy, fairly young, far younger than Hyoyeon, smiled at her, holding the door open.

"Good day, Ma'am," he grinned.

Hyoyeon disregarded the greeting and walked right in to the room, a square room, spacious and brighter than the corridor outside. At the end of the
room, there were shelves, huge shelves, lined up. Hyoyeon felt her breakfast pushing up her stomach. Inside those shelves were dead bodies.

"Where?" she asked.

"It's right here?," the young man walked to Hyoyeon's left, where a gourney lied, covered with white sheets.

Bleh, it looks like fresh.

Hyoyeon swallowed her saliva.

"He? came in last night," the man pulled the sheet and a head showed up. The head of a person who has been burnt down, so bad, Hyoyeon couldn't
even tell that it was a face.

Hyoyeon closed her eyes and clenched her teeth. She can't throw up here. She had an image to maintain. She was far more superior to the boy.

"What caused it?"

The boy smiled, "that is an interesting inquiry," he flicked his fingers, "I, can't find any flammable material on this guy. Not gasoline, not alcohol,
nothing. This guy just bursted into flame."

This is my case.

"Close it," she said and the boy obeyed, he covered the body again.

"They said that they found two victims," said the boy. He walked to his desk which filled with foods. A computer was hidden behind a large box of cereal
and a milk carton. The boy rummaged through the messy foods on his desk before he found his computer keyboard.

How the hell could he eats in this place?

"One was a girl? but the girl didn't torch up like that man," the boy pointed the charred body on the gourney, "the girl was stabbed and brought to?
Seoul Central Hospital. While this guy, brought straight in here."

"What's her name?"

"Jessica, Jung Jessica."

Hyoyeon quickly turned around and went for the door, "great. Thanks."

"Anytime, Ma'am."


Hyoyeon walked quickly out of the long dampen corridor, reached the elevator and went up. The elevator stopped and opened at a small room with only
a desk in it. A man with beard was reading a newspaper behind the desk. He smiled when he saw Hyoyeon walked past him.

Hyoyeon hurried to the door and slammed it open.

She took a deep breath. How wonderful to be in the outdoor. Hyoyeon was standing in a pavement, near the busiest street in Seoul. The sound of the
irritating car horns and road constructions suddenly became so relaxing.

Hyoyeon's phone rang.

"Yes?"

"Hyo?"

"Sunny."

"I can't reach you before?where were you?" Sunny asked.

"That place."

"That place?"

"Yes, and for the record, I won't be coming back there for a long time."

"Okay. You called me this morning?"

"Yeah, we have a case. Pick me up, we're going to meet Jung Jessica."

"Who?"

"Jung Jessica."
 

**
 

Jessica and Seohyun jumped down from a taxi in front of an outdoor basketball court. It was an ordinary basketball court but this one was bordered with
yellow police lines.

Jessica knew this basketball court. She always passed it by every time she comes home from her college.

"This is where they said they found you, along with a guy who was burn to death," said Seohyun.

"Burned down to death?" Jessica asked.

"Yes. The police brought you to the hospital."

"I was stab here?"

"You really don't remember anything, Unnie?"

Jessica curled her lips, "no," actually, she remembered hearing screams and blue lights but that's about it, so she chose to stay silent.

"Hurry up, Padlock!" a girl shouted.

Jessica and Seohyun turned to the voice. A girl, dark-skinned and long haired, was yelling at her friend.

"Hold up, I'm on the phone!" her friend, a petite girl with pale skin shorter than the other, shouted back. A unique necklace dangled on her neck, a
padlock necklace. Maybe that's where she got her name from.

"Just call later! Aish, we're on a job here! Who are you talking to anyway?"

"The Seoul Lottery committee."

"You what?" the dark skinned girl snapped, "hang up the phone right now!"

The petite girl, covered her phone and hid it behind her back before shouting back, "shut up! I should've won the lottery!"

"No, you're not! You have the wrong lottery number!"

"But I bought so many of the lottery tickets! I should've won at least one and get my money back!" the stubborn petite girl talked to her phone again, "I
bought most of your tickets so I should win one, right?"

"Kim Taeyeon! Hang up, now!"

The petite girl looked so surprised and then cut the phone call, "sush! Now they will know it was me!"

"Aish? let's just finish what we came here to do?," the taller girl walked towards Jessica and Seohyun.

"Maybe we should leave, Unnie?," said Seohyun, pulling Jessica on her sleeve.

Jessica didn't budge. Her eyes were locked to the dark skinned girl.

She and her friend stepped to the front of the basketball court and searched it with their eyes.

Seohyun tugged Jessica again, "Unnie? come on."

Jessica still didn't move.

"Yuri-ah, are you thinking what I'm thinking?" asked Taeyeon, half whispering.

"I'm?," Yuri's eyes landed on Jessica and she stopped her sentence.

Jessica felt her breath was stolen away. The girl's eyes felt like they pierce right to her soul.

Yuri....

Yuri averted her eyes and pulled Taeyeon farther away from the basketball court. Just then, Jessica felt the air came rushing in her lungs. She gasped
for air.

"Unnie?" Seohyun's voice woke her.

"I'm? I'm fine? let's go home."

Yuri heard the taxi door closed and the engine roared into the distance.

"What is wrong with you?" asked Taeyeon.

"That girl?," Yuri whispered.

"What's wrong?"

Yuri didn't answer.

Her eyes are as cold as ice.



In the taxi, Jessica was still catching her breath.

Her name is? Yuri.

Somehow, Jessica couldn't forget the name. Yuri.

TBC