•The persistence of memory• [ Taekook ]

Chapter 1: Wanderer above the sea of fog

Instead of the dozen people he reluctantly met in his dreams, now there were only two standing before him.

At first glance he couldn't understand if this was still a dream. Whether from that dungeon he was now drawn into another that resembled his apartment.

Because before his eyes he saw a familiar and yet unknown face. Dark eyes full of some compassion that Jungkook couldn't understand were looking straight ahead. Those eyes which he only saw in his dreams.

That tall dark haired man was watching Jungkook's face which was almost lifeless and which seemed so empty and desolate. His eyes lit up and when their eyes met again, his tongue became entangled, his consciousness became disturbed and confused and every thought came to an abrupt end, almost stopped.

"Detective Kim?"

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When he looked back at the archive of cases that police officer and later detective Kim Taehyung had dealt with over the past fifteen years, many were remembered as brutal.

Some of them were unusual and some were too easy that it only took him a couple of hours to complete it and catch the criminal.

Some cases remained unsolved, which was enough for vultures to drag them out in the newspapers for years. Their solutions were based more on the speculations of other press and the assumptions of the nation than on evidence which was lacking or being destroyed by time. However, there was one case that changed the detective's life.

The case of a little Moon, who was remembered as one of those who will certainly never be solved.

Taehyung knew he had to come to that door again.

He knew he had to enter that house again.

However, even though he had his colleague Yoongi by his side now, that didn't change his decision to break the news live.

Youngi's eyes flew over the high shelves that stretched to the ceiling and on which were over a hundred pasted and worn handwritten notebooks. Rather improvised evidence, which he assumed Jungkook himself had done in the past years. Those notebooks were tucked in narrow spaces between thick books that hadn't been read in years, giving the impression of neglect.

Even the detective's hand hesitantly went after one notebook that seemed the most shabby. He took it slowly as he watched out of the corner of his eye as his colleague fiddled with some tapes and a cassette player.

There were a dozen pasted pictures and newspaper clippings. Taehyung was quickly flipping and turning page after page.

Newspapers published articles about that unfortunate event for days. Detectives, and the entire Seoul's police were looking for the identity of the unknown man. Although they had a not-so-convincing sketch of the accused, it didn't help. It was like looking for a needle in a haystack.

But Jungkook was obviously kept it everything. Every piece of evidence, every journalist's guess and every sentence that the younger man obviously knew by heart, it was all there. Every possible picture was there, he even saw several new sketches that Jungkook himself was probably trying to complete or change something on that 'wanted' face.

"Mom! Kookie! Please..."

"Fuck!"

The angry eyes of the detective were immediately focused on Yoongi who was trying to stop the tape in a panic. He clicked the button several times, but the cries of the small and thin voice were still heard. Even though Taehyung's heart was beating in an unfamiliar rhythm, his eyes filled with some anger and sadness when he heard that voice again.