Sweat dripped from his forehead while his biceps glistened under the golden rays of the sun. Light shone through the glass windows, falling on his shirtless torso as he gripped the metal rod and pulled his body up and down in a rapid motion. His tanned body was sweaty, highlighting his abs while his jet black hair was stuck to his forehead, wet and shining.
His heart rate was fast but he was focused on his workout while his mind replayed the events which had taken place. The only thing he did was push the first piece of the domino and was waiting until all the chips had fallen.
In the background, the television was showing a news report.
"The Finance Minister, Shin Hyun, has been arrested from his party on suspicions of abetting the suicide of Dr. Lim Byungsoo," the reporter stated. "Lim Byungsoo, a disgraced doctor accused of gaslighting his patients into naming him their successor and murdering them, was found dead in his cell. He had apparently committed suicide but the police think he was supplied the knife by an outsider. Upon further investigation, it was found that Byungsoo and the minister were, in fact, lovers and Lim Byungsoo found out about Shin Hyun's plans to supply illegal drugs in the local market. To hide his crime, Hyun had Byungsoo commit suicide. The drugs, which were supposedly on board the ship, went missing and the police are on the hunt for the Yakuza members who had collaborated with the minister. The public are outraged and the Prime Minister is expected to give an official announcement on this issue tonight…"
SD finished his exercise and picked up a towel to wipe his hair dry. Taking a deep breath, he casually strolled out of his personal gym and headed for his bedroom. He went into the bathroom for a quick shower.
Turning on the shower, the cold water hit his body. The glass was fogged up by the mist and he was lost in his own thoughts.
Shin Hyun was merely jailed but it was not enough. He needed Sunye to win the case so that he could be sent to the central jail. If there was one person who knew the dirty secrets the Company was hiding, then it was Hyun. He would not give them up easily unless he found out that the Company had betrayed him.
"I guess I'll let him sit in there for a while," he sighed. Turning off the water, he stepped out of the shower and walked towards the mirror. His blue eyes were looking back at him. The person in the mirror looked like him. They had the same nose, the same eyes, the same features.
But his reflection and he were two different entities. At least to him.
"Sometimes, I can't even recognize myself," he muttered. The memories of his childhood felt as if they belonged to someone else. The palace, the gardens, the Emperor and the Empress. Everyone was alien to him. There was not a shred of his old self left and even though he had killed the boy within him, he still wondered what would have happened if the coup had not taken place.
Would he still be with Sunye?
"I guess I'm the spare," he smirked in a cryptic way. He reflected on the irony. One Kim San was the light and the other was the dark. One lived with people, interacting with everyone while the other lived in the shadows, away from everyone. It was always like this.
To come out of the shadows, one Kim San had to die.
He dimly heard his phone ring but he ignored it and kept on staring at his blue eyes. He closed his eyelids, trying to ignore the pain he felt in them but it was a recurring one. Finally, heaving a sigh, he dried his hair and wore a t-shirt and dark pants.
SD came out of the bathroom and picked up his phone which was lying on the bed. There were 8 missed calls from Orea and 2 from Jonghyun.
Ignoring Orea's calls, he dialed Jonghyun's number.
"Haein!" Jonghyun exclaimed upon picking up the phone. "Where are you?"
"I'm at home sir," SD replied. "How may I assist you?"
"I am about to ruin your weekend," Jonghyun sighed. "You have heard about the Shin Hyun case right?"
"I've seen it on the TV," SD stated.
"I need you to go to the police station and record Sunye's meeting with him," Jonghyun instructed. "She's going to interrogate him today and someone from the firm should also be present. Prepare the meeting minutes and send me every detail."
"Yes sir," SD said in a cool tone. "I will send it to you."
"Good, I'm relying on you."
With that Jonghyun hung up the phone. SD was calculating his next step. Shin Hyun was not going to confess as easily as Byungsoo had done and SD was counting on it.
Just then, his phone rang up again. To his annoyance, it was Orea. Reluctantly, he answered the call.
"Kid, this better be an emergency," he said.
"It is an emergency," Orea whispered. She was scanning at someone in front of her and bit her lip, feeling very nervous. Her hands were clammy and her heart was beating fast. She was debating what to do and it was beginning to kill her from within.
A boy sat across her, chatting with his friends. Her eyes were on him and she was too worried to talk.
"He is sitting in front of me!" she whispered.
"Who?"
"Lee Myung!"
SD gritted his teeth. "Kid," he began. "Where are you?"
"At cram school of course!" she exclaimed. "My grades fell last semester so the school forced me to take up the weekend cram school."
Orea was sitting in a classroom where the kids were chattering around her. She wore large, round rimmed glasses and her straight hair was let loose while her bangs almost covered her eyes. She lowered her head, poring over a book while her hair hid the earpiece in her ear. Her eyes kept on glancing at the handsome blonde boy who was chatting with his friends. He was her age and was quite tall. His fair skin shone like pearls while there was a tattoo of a dragon on his neck.
The boy's one ear was pierced while he wore his uniform in an unkempt way. He kept on messing his silky hair.
"Oi!" SD's angry voice came from her earpiece. "Stop ogling at guys and focus on your studies! The old man will be furious if he finds out that you're failing your classes."
"I can catch up easily if I hack the school computer and steal the question papers!" Orea shrugged. "I just wish there was a way to hack Myung's heart!"
"You're seventeen," SD pointed out.
"About to be eighteen in a week!" she said indignantly. "Now tell me! Should I ask him out?"
One of Myung's friends noticed Orea staring at them and whispered into his ears. Myung turned around to find the strange nerd looking away from him. He frowned and headed over towards her table.
Orea stiffened upon finding him towering over her. He merely studied her and his eyes fell on her nametag.
"Heo Orea," he read out her real name. He leaned closer, making Orea slightly inch back.
"W-what are you doing?" she stammered.
"If you have any feelings for me then forget about it!" he scoffed. "I prefer feisty girls. Not a timid one like you."
From the other end, SD heard his words and stifled at snicker.
"Timid? You?" he laughed. Orea ignored him and kept her eyes on her prize. Myung gave her a scathing look and walked away. But that did not deter Orea and she kept on staring at him in a dreamy manner.
"Have some pride girl!" SD scolded her. "The guy hates you."
"Sunye hates you too and yet you run after her like a lost puppy!" Orea snapped in a hushed tone. "The heart wants what the heart wants. And I want all the handsome men!"
"Idiot," SD muttered and hung up. How the hell he ended up with a teenage fangirl as his partner, he would never know. But the world he lived in, there was no limit on a person's age. As long as they had the skills to become useful in completing the mission, nothing else mattered. And Orea was their best hacker. There was not a single system in the world she could not hack into.
He checked the clock. It was nearly time for him to meet Sunye at the station. Putting his phone away, he began to get dressed.
….
Myung was walking down the hall. The classes had already started but he was not interested in attending. He had received a text on his phone and he was more interested in dealing with the person first.
A tall figure stood at the end of the corridor, staring at the garden outside. Myung stopped behind the man.
"You wanted to meet me," he said in a cool tone.
The man turned around, his dark eyes scrutinizing the blonde boy. A smile played on his lips.
"Long time no see," Jonghyun greeted. "Little brother."
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