chapter four

Ku byeong In eyes scurried across the dance floor with a bland face shooting lasers. 

The wall, the speaker and the DJ all bloomed with excitement as the lady at the dance floor swayed their waist to loud music booming in the background while the men rock them from behind. 

Their joyful laughter filled the atmosphere.

There are people like him who were just sipping their drink quietly while staring at them, but he is sure those men and women aren't in any way close to being in his present predicament. 

What he is feeling right now none of them could understand.

On getting to the hospital and demanding to see his girlfriend. The doctor had released yet another shocking news to him: Yoo Na Young isn't dead but alive.

He had breathed in relief that Na ji had returned to her mundane existence. But that joy was shortened when the doctor told him she had slipped into a coma.

Frantical and furious he had demanded to see her but he was denied entrance on the grounds of him not being a relative.He had tried explaining to the doctor that he is her boyfriend, therefore he was also a relative to her.

But the doctor, not backing down, had told him he was merely her boyfriend, not a close relative. 

After dropping the words. The doctor had left him standing to brood over his fate. 

He didn't know how he had made it out of the hospital but he had found himself here, at the club house consoling himself with alcohol; There were empty bottles on the table and those that hadn't been open yet.

He felt empty, so empty that he couldy feel himself anymore. He feels like a wall is built against his body entrapping him in an unknown world. The pain in his heart shot up to his body like a flaming fire.

His phone boom on the table; it was a notification message. He leaned closer to take a look at it but stopped midway. 

The intense pain in his heart grew deep into him upon seeing Yoo Na Young's picture on his phone lock screen.

Tears streak his eyes and tumble down his cheek. He took his hand to clean his face but another tears made it way down before he could mop the old one away.

Sadness built inside his heart. it soon turned to physical pain and he rubbed his chest soothingly in hope of finding relief but rather he felt the last piece of his preservation broke into pieces.

He took another bottle of alcohol from the table, opening it he gulped it down straight from the bottle. 

The tinkling sounds of the drink going down his throat invade with the popping vein in his neck making his clothes drenched along the way. 

As he dropped the bottle back on the table in a loud thud his eyes turned pure red and the wet tears streaking  his eyes revealed another emotion of his. 

He was angry; those weren't angry tears but tears filled fights. 

"I won't spare the one who did this to you!" He shouted that his voice came out louder than the music playing in the background and everybody at the club's eyes drifted to him.

He couldn't miss the sympathy look people are passing to him. While Some were giving him a creepy look as if he was crazy.

Of course he is crazy. He had completely lost his mind. 

As he stood up from his seat and staggered forward his breathing rises with each step he takes forward. 

"Yoo Na Young!," he shouted again. 

It was at that moment they knew he was related to the mysterious girl. The news had been trending online and on all TV stations, therefore everybody was familiar with the name.

The gaze of the people followed him as he staggered toward the entrance of the club.

Not aware of his surroundings and under the influence of the alcohol Ku Byeon In collapsed heavily on the ground in a loud thud before making it out of the club, passing out there.

~~~

At Seoul Art High school. It was the aftermath of a rainy day, drizzle moisturized the slippery ground and washed clean the roadway accompanied with a refreshing earthy smell in the atmosphere.

A nineteen year old girl was on her way to the school director's office. She dressed austerely but it didn't hide the fact that she was beautiful.

However, her emotionless eyes made her look sullen, distorted and unapproachable.

"Mrs cheon, here come jihye" class teacher Mr Ban du hong, led the way for jihye.

Seol jihye looked at him with disdain and scoffed at his fake enthusiasm, wondering why he is suddenly nice to her and seemed afraid at the same time.

Mr Ban du Hong is the head of the Art department in Seoul Art High school. It wasn't a secret that he had a pure hatred toward Yoo Na Young and her best friend Seol ji hye for a reason known to all students.

Mr Ban du Hong, ashamed that his daughter couldn't beat Yoo Na Young during the school festival or competition despite being the Seoul Art head of department daughter, had not for once missed the opportunity to taunt Yoo Na Young of her poor family background.

Yoo Na Young and Seol jihye have always been an object of ridicule in Mr Ban du hong and his daughter Ban Im Sung hand.

"Let her in" The school director was equally afraid, it was clear in her voice that tremble lightly.

Jihye huffed as soon as she stepped into the director 's office. It turned out the reason for their frightened expression was because of him.

On the VIP couch in the director's office sat Lee Yiwon, dressed in a white T-shirt, topped with chocolate mint brown pants and coupled with leather brown shoes. He looks like a gentleman but his facial expressions were like hers, looking gloomy.

Jihye was studying the man just as the man was studying her.

Lee Yiwon had come to Seoul Art High school that morning to inquire more about Yoo Na Young and perhaps learn if there's anybody holding a grudge against the girl.

Upon arrival he had been told by the school director that Yoo Na Young was more of an introvert in the school, so no one knows much about her except her best friend. And as a result Seol jihye was ordered to come to the director's office.

Seeing him staring intently at her, Jihye frowned and asked. "Who are you?."

A hint of frustration flashed in Lee Yiwon deep dark brown eyes and he said. "I am detective Lee Yiwon from Gangnam police Station. I want to ask you some questions regarding your friend Ms Yoo Na Young"

"Jihye, Please tell him what he wanted to know. It seemed like he is suspecting the school to have hand in Na Young attempted murder" Mr Ban du hong couldn't help but say.

Seol jihye rolls her eyes secretly; if that's the truth, then he and his daughter are the number one culprit, aware of how much hatred they harbor for Na Young.

During the six years she had known Yoo Na Young, she was aware that she had been receiving a death threat from an unknown source.

She and Na Young had kept quiet about it in fear of causing problems for themselves and if at the end of the day it turned out to not be something grave but a prank.

But now with the Yoo Na Young accident she realized how wrong they were then. They should have reported the situation to the police station and perhaps if they had done that Yoo Na Young would have got the police protection on her and she wouldn't have fallen in this accident.

She can't just shake the feeling that her accident had something to do with the death threat.

"What is it that you want to ask me?."

"Is there anyone here that hold grudges against the victim probably as a result of a fight"

Jihye looked up at Lee Yiwon doubtedly. She knew it was time to reveal everything Na Young had been going through. She wasn't going to make the same mistake twice but she was afraid that it was going to cause more commotion.

Seeing that Jihye was deep in thought, Mrs Cheon said to Lee Yiwon politely. " Jihye is more of an introvert as well. She needs time to adjust and give you an answer to your question. Hope you don't mind?."

"Ofcourse, I won't mind," Lee Yiwon replied and got up from the couch. He went to stand next to jihye.

Mr Ban du Hong also moved closer and tried to butter jihye up. "Come on jihye. Tell him all you know and save this school of the allegations of suspicious murder"

Hearing Mr Ban du hong's words again, Lee Yiwon's face turned Stony and he glanced sideways at Mr Ban du hong then said indifferently. "Mr Ban du hong we aren't accusing Seoul Art High school of the murder. We just want to get some information that might help us with our investigation. I don't understand why you keep twisting the situation. Please your cooperation is highly needed"

Mr Ban du hong eyes dim light and he looks down in defeat.

Lee Yiwon couldn't help but notice that the man is acting suspicious, as if he is guilty of a crime toward the victims. He took out a small note pad from his pocket and wrote down his thoughts.

Mr Ban du Hong gulped convulsively on seeing Lee Yiwon writing something on his note and he quickly said. "We will do our best to cooperate"

The tactics the detective implores to handle Mr Ban du hong immaturity  talk impressed Seol jihye who at last decided to open up to him.

"Actually for the past two years now, Na Young had been receiving a threat note from an unidentified person"

Mrs. Cheon's face changed drastically. She couldn't believe that Na Young was initially going through such an awful thing and what surprised her is the fact that she never let it affect her academic performance.

Even Mr Ban du Hong suddenly lit up again and listened to Jihye's statement with widened eyes and petted lips.

At the moment of Jihye's testament Lee Yiwon listened to her words attentively and jotted down on his note pad.

"Why didn't you report this to the police"

Jihye looked down in disappointment. 

Yes exactly, that was her regret. if only they have reported it to the police. She at least should have taken a step to make a report to the police. She felt her heart squeezed in pain at her foolishness.

Lee Yiwon backed down with the question on noticing the girl's sullen face. He understands that her mind of thinking might not have taken her to that level of reporting the situation.

She is a little girl who cries out loud to be rescued. She can't possibly take such a drastic step without the victim's approval.

"Did you know where the threat note that the victim received were kept"

"Probably at her house," Jihye replied.

Lee Yiwon decided to go and get the threat note at Yoo Na Young house, and the director begged Jihye to go with him.

Mr Ban du hong gave some more of his guilty speech but he wasn't given any listening ear and later he and the director saw Lee Yiwon and ji hye out to the school compound.

There was a Roll-Royce parked up in front of the school, together with a police van which had long attracted the attention of the students.

Ban Im Sung was stopped by one of her minior Kim So Young, as soon as she stepped out from a classroom. "Im Young, here you are!"

She rolled her eyes at Kim So Young yet her attention was on the Roll-Royce and police van. "What's a police van doing in our school"

As the daughter of the head of the Art department which is Mr Banduong, she got all the attention she ever needed. She was the school bully who threatened everybody with her father's power. 

All heads must bow to her unless you want to get eliminated from the singing class and competition which is the major study in Seoul Art High school as she always threatened the students with.

"I heard that a detective from Gangnam police station came to our school"

Gangnam police station. Im Young looks confused as she thinks.

' It's Seoul's biggest force agency. What could a detective from Gangnam Station be doing here?. There isn't a crime case report against the school.'

"I heard he came to find some information from a student about Yoo Na Young attempted murder"

Attempted murder. Im Sung laughed hysterically. "Are you sure?. Why would a detective came to our school without any formal protocol and accused us of such thing and Who the hell is the student planning on giving the information"

While the two were talking, behind the director and heads of each department were accompanying a tall man and Jihye toward the cars.

"Im Sung, the tall man is the detective from Gangnam Station '' Kim So Young called Ban Im Sung attention to Lee Yiwon with a trembling voice.

Im Sung was stunned as she turned around. If that man was the detective from Gangnam Station, then the girl next to him should be the student in question.

But that girl turned out to be Jihye, best friend of the bumpkin she hated and despised the most.

Shock crept into Im Sung's face. She couldn't believe Jihye had the guts to bring a detective to the school to conduct an investigation.