41 Meeting(Pt.1)

June 26, 2021

Jung's Residence

Yoon Hee's feet move under the table there, a sign that she is enjoying the food made by her brother. Kimchi fried rice made by her brother is really tasty. This is the first time she has eaten her brother's cooking, because usually her brother never cooks.

"The food is very good. I just found out that you can cook," Yoon Hee commented with her mouth half full.

"Where have you been all this time until you found out I can cook?" Young Dae asked.

"Me? There's just everywhere," Yoon Hee replied, ending with a chuckle. "By the way, what do you have to do until you go on vacation? Are you going on a blind date?"

Young Dae took a sip of his drink before replying, "Something related to the corpse discovery case."

"Anything related to the case?" Yoon Hee was silent while looking at her sister. "If it's related to the case, why did you have to take a leave of absence?"

"Because it's out of investigation," Young Dae replied, ending with a faint smile.

"Ah, that's how it looks." Yoon Hee nodded her head.

"By the way, how was your college? Did it go well? Is there anything interesting on campus?"

Yoon Hee chuckled at the series of questions asked by her brother. It was like he was interrogating her, not giving her the usual questions.

"There's nothing interesting on campus," Yoon Hee replied.

She fell silent for a moment as the memory of meeting Ian twisted back in her head. The girl's cheeks were tinged with red.

"Why is your face red?" Young Dae apparently noticed the discoloration on his sister's face. "Ah, you seem to have just remembered an interesting incident on campus, huh?"

"Nothing! There's nothing interesting on campus." After answering that, Yoon Hee continued to eat the breakfast that was still left.

Damn, why did the memory have to come back.

***

Ivory Joy Cafe

For the tenth time, Ian kept checking the clock on his cell phone. The young man took a sip of the drink he ordered to relieve his boredom. The young man is waiting for Moon Tae Shik, the author of articles and stories about Gumiho, who promised to meet him at eleven. But until this moment, that person had not yet arrived.

Ian took a slow breath. He then noticed the current condition of the cafe—not too crowded but also not too quiet. His eyes accidentally caught the three women sitting not far from his desk. The three women were looking at him with a smile. Even one of them dared to greet him by raising one of his hands.

Ian, realizing this, immediately threw his face away and pretended that he had never seen it. He chose to look out the window. He felt like he was in a college cafeteria; there were always women watching him.

"Hwang Ian?"

The voice of a man calling his name made Ian immediately turn his head to the source of the sound. Right in front of him stood a man in his late thirties. The man was wearing very neat clothes, and his presence apparently caused a whisper from other visitors.

"Producer Moon Tae Shik?" Ian asked doubtfully.

"Ah, that turns out to be true." Tae Shik then chose to immediately sit on the sofa in front of Ian, even though he was not asked by The Young Hwang. "Have you waited long?"

"Not yet, it's only been ten minutes," Ian replied. In fact, he had been here since half past eleven, about forty-five minutes ago. He did not want to make others wait, so he came early and ended up being the one who had to wait a long time.

"It just came as well. Do you mind if I have to wait again? Because besides you, there is one more person who wants to know the story behind the article I made."

Ian is actually upset after hearing Tae Shik's words. He had been waiting for Tae Shik for forty-five minutes, and now he had to wait again. A smile has to be real. "Yes, no problem."

"Good." Tae Shik looks relieved by Ian's answer. "While we wait, we can chat casually, okay?"

"Yes, of course."

***

Young Dae accelerates quickly because he is running out of time. He was supposed to meet Moon Tae Shik at eleven, but he's still on the road. He was stuck in traffic because of an accident, that's why, at this hour—at half past twelve—he was still on the road.

In the middle of his journey, the cell phone he had stored in the passenger seat next to him rang. Young Dae looked at her phone to see who was calling.

"Team leader? Why is he calling?"

Young Dae was about to pick up the call from the team leader, but his intention was stopped when suddenly the car he was driving was hit hard by another car from the side. The severity of the collision even made Young Dae's car end up upside down—the roof of the car was below. In his car, Young Dae is still conscious, even though blood comes out of his head and he feels sick and dizzy.

"Damn it!" Young Dae.

Even though his head hurts right now, he tries to stay awake so he can get out of the car. His hand began to try to open the door of a slightly jammed car. He kept trying to open it so quietly, until finally the door was successfully opened. After that, he took off his seat belt and got out of the car with someone's help.

"Are you all right?" inquires the person who assisted Young Dae after they pulled over to the side of the road.

"Yes, I am fine. Thank you for helping," said Young Dae.

The man paid attention to the surrounding streets, intending to look for a car that had already hit him. However, no other car was in an accident other than his at this time. There are only people watching him.

"I'm sorry, but where is the car that hit my car?"

The question asked by Young Dae actually made the person who had helped the man frown. It was obvious that the person was confused by the intent of the question that Young Dae was asking.

"Nobody hit your car, sir."

Young Dae looked surprised when he heard the answer. Obviously he saw another car speeding and crashing into his, but why would this person give such an answer?

"Your car suddenly seemed to be dragged strongly and overturned just like that," explains the person.

Young Dae's head ached even more after hearing that absurd explanation. He saw another car speeding away and hit his car. But why is this person saying such nonsense? His eye beads accidentally caught someone in a black hoodie standing in the middle of the people who were swarming around him. His gaze met each other with that person. The next second, he could see a grin rising on the person's face, making Young Dae frown.

The man then left the place. Just now, Young Dae was about to chase after him, but the man's consciousness was instantly snatched away. The man eventually passed out, causing everyone who saw him to panic.