Doctor Demon

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Baekha was in the living room, typing away several codes on her laptop. Her recent freelancing work had taken off and she found herself swamped with requests from many companies to build their anti-hacking software. Even Yoonmin gave her a job to build their system and surprisingly, he was paying her a lot for it. With steady income, she was able to save up a lot of money in her bank.

The apartment she shared with Jiwoon was situated in a modest residential area. It was not far from the police station and the residents were mostly busy bees who mostly stayed to themselves. Jiwoon and Baekha lived on the fourth floor.

Even though the place was small, it was still homely. It had two bedrooms and a kitchen which was attached to the living room. They shared a bathroom but Jiwoon took baths at night while Baekha showered in the morning so their routines were not an issue. Moreover, Baekha was able to commute using the subway so it all worked out well for her.

The servants of the Cho mansion were dismissed and most of them went back to their hometowns. Baekha made sure that every one of them got their monthly salary and even some bonuses which were enough to last them a few months. She was especially sad to bid farewell to Chauffeur Dokyung but there was nothing else to do. He was sad too but glad that Baekha finally had a stable home.

She was slurping on ramen and working on her project when the front door opened and Jiwoon walked in.

"How was your day?" Jiwoon asked her. "Did you finish all your schoolwork?"

"Did them during my free period," Baekha groaned. "Otherwise, Soobin would have nagged me a lot. That girl is really weird about school work. She never let's me slack off!"

"Good, that'll help improve your grades," Jiwoon smiled. She was glad that a loner like Baekha was finally making friends. Soobin seemed to have taken her under her wing, making sure that Baehka stayed out of trouble.

"Want dinner?" she asked as she tied up her hair and headed to the kitchen.

"I'm full," Baekha said. "Already on my second bowl of ramen."

"You gotta eat healthy stuff!" Jiwoon said sharply.

"Yes yes," Baekha said absentmindedly. Jiwoon was about to make some salad and sticky rice when the doorbell rang. She went to answer the door.

To her surprise, it was Siwan!

"Hey!" Siwan greeted her. He was holding a basket full of food and was smiling brightly at her. Jiwoon was taken aback.

"Who is it?" Baekha asked, appearing behind Jiwoon. "Eh? Doctor Kang? What are you doing here?"

"Oh, I moved in next door!" Siwan replied. "I heard that the apartment next to yours was empty so I rented it. You see, I needed a place to crash in at times whenever I am on sporadic breaks from the hospital. Sometimes, I'm on hospital duty for days so I was looking for a place near the work. It's easier to commute during those times."

"You're moving in here?" Jiwoon echoed.

"Not permanently. I'll be going back to the main mansion when I have a long weekend."

"What about Soobin? Won't she be lonely at the mansion?" Jiwoon frowned.

"The servants are there to look after her," Siwan shrugged. 

There was an awkward silence following his remark. Jiwoon was not sure how to react to this while Siwan was thinking of what to say. Baekha, on the other hand, looked from the doctor to her sister and suppressed a smile.

"Where is Soobin now?" She asked. "I think I'll go and study with her. Is she at the mansion?"

"Uhh...yes," Siwan replied.

"Great!" Baekha exclaimed. "I think I'm gonna go there and study with her. After all, we have some tests coming up. You don't mind, do you sis?" 

"Uhh…" Jiwoon was unsure. She did not want Baekha to leave but the latter clapped her hands together and said, "Great! I'll be off then!"

Without a word, Baekha grabbed the keys to Jiwoon's car and ran off, leaving the duo alone. Jiwoon was stunned while Siwan was quite awkward. He was not sure why he rented the apartment next to Jiwoon's but he was admittedly worried about her. What if she was in danger from the remaining members of the Cho family? Or what if another demon came to attack her? 

He did not know why he was thinking that way. There was no reason for him to be so worried for her but he could not help it. Jiwoon was also confused. How was she going to deal with this? She knew that Siwan liked Jina and she was content being a bystander despite her own feelings for him.

Siwan was trying to gauge her silence which he mistook for reluctance.

"Uhh...If you don't want me to stay here, I can leave," he offered. 

"What? No!" Jiwoon quickly said. "I'm glad that you're going to live next door. I really am."

"Then, I'm assuming that you're going to welcome me as your new neighbor?" he asked. Jiwoon did not understand what he meant but soon realized that he was indicating the fact that she was making him stand outside.

"Oh! Please, come in."

She stepped aside to let him enter the house. Siwan smiled and entered the tiny apartment. It was smaller than his living room in the mansion but somehow, it felt homelier. The walls were a soft blue color. The furniture was minimal and adorned with a variety of shades. From the blankets to the pillows, Jiwoon chose them with care and kept them in a neat, orderly manner. It was warm inside. There were no pictures anywhere but a small shrine was placed in a corner with the picture of a chubby baby.

"Do you want dinner?" Jiwoon offered. 

"Actually, I made some," Siwan said. He took out a couple of frozen lasagna from the basket.

"You just gotta warm them up," he said. 

"Okay."

Jiwoon took the lasagna boxes from him and went back into the kitchen. Siwan looked around her house, admiring her taste. Everything was in perfect order and cleaned well without even a speck of dust. 

She was a neat person. It was not surprising but a new fact he learned about her. 

He walked towards the shrine which had baby Yeonjoo's picture. It must have been clicked a few hours after she was born. The child was slightly smiling and looked healthy in that snap. It must be one of the few pictures of the baby Jiwoon possessed because Yeonjoo died only weeks later. 

Siwan's heart was gripped by guilt and pain at the memory of the child who had lost her life that night. If only he could have saved her…

"Um, dinner's ready." Jiwoon's voice broke him out of his reverie and he nodded at her. She led him to a small table where she had served the hot lasagna on a couple of plates. 

"Did you make this yourself?" Jiwoon asked him. "It smells good."

"I made extra and kept them in the fridge," he replied. "Since I was free tonight, I thought I'd stop by and we can have dinner together."

Jiwoon lowered her head and slightly blushed at his words but did not say anything. Siwan was unaware of her expression and took a bite from the lasagna.

"Did Baekha settle in properly?" he inquired.

"Yes, she did," Jiwoon replied. "She's also doing well in school. I think she'll be okay. I just want her to graduate and go to a good college. Now that she's not an idol, I told her to concentrate on her studies. And Soobin has been a great help too,"

"I'm glad," Siwan said. "Did you...did you hear from her parents? Are they still in remand?"

"They'll be moved to jail next week. The court already gave their verdict and they've been pronounced guilty. They haven't enquired about Baekha at all but I heard that they're being unruly in jail. Ciara refuses to eat jail food while Youngjoon gets into a fight with other inmates."

"Is that normal?"

"It is for those who go to jail for the first time," Jiwoon explained. "Once the first few days pass by, they'll shut up and learn to deal with their new life."

"What about you? Are you adjusting to your independent life?"

Jiwoon blinked at him. Siwan took another bite from the lasagna.

"What do you…" she began.

"I want to know if the girl who came to me for help that night has moved on at all," he clarified. "Or is she still suffering from nightmares?"

Jiwoon gripped her fork but she was not angry. On the contrary, she was surprised that he was able to read her so easily.

"I try not to think about them," she mumbled. Siwan hesitated before inching his chair closer to her. He reached out to pat her palm. She did not flinch under his touch but looked at him with her innocent cat-like eyes.

"They're gone, Detective Kim," he assured her. "So don't worry about them anymore."

"I want to forget them," she admitted. "But if I do, I'll also have to forget Yeonjoo. After all, she was their flesh and blood."

"She was your flesh and blood," he corrected. "They were her murderers. Nothing more. You don't have to be scared of them. They should be the ones scared to face you."

Jiwoon flashed him a small smile. His touch was warm and soothing. Siwan was momentarily dazed. He had seen her smile before but this time, it was genuine and sweet. She had a charm which was rare to find. His heart was beating fast and for a moment he thought that she looked really pretty when she smiled.

"I forgot my-"

Baekha stumbled into the kitchen to look for her wallet, startling the two of them. Jiwoon quickly moved her hand away from his and was embarrassed while Siwan cleared his throat.

"Is everything alright?" Baekha frowned.

"We're fine!" Jiwoon claimed.

"I-I should go!" Siwan said. He stood up and darted out of the door. Baekha only stared at him while Jiwoon was red in the face.

What the hell just happened? Baekha wondered.

Outside, Siwan was standing in the corridor. His heart was beating wildly against his chest and he was quite flustered. What just happened? He had no idea. Why was he so nervous around Jiwoon?

"I'm just worried," he muttered. "That's it!"

Calming himself down, he went back to his apartment.. But there was a small smile on his lips as he glanced back at Jiwoon's house, wondering when he could meet her again.

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