"Dr. Park. We got the results from the blood test for So Yi Jeong.. I think something went wrong, have you ever seen such results?" the assistant handed over the paper and the Doctor took a closer look.
"Not with a human blood sample... Maybe it got contaminated or switched? We should call Mr. So Yi Jeong in to take the sample again." he said and was about to take some notes, as a man's face suddenly appeared in the door frame.
"Help! A woman collapsed!" he said and the assistant hurried to the waiting room.
The man stayed and closed the door behind him, and before the Doctor was able to react, he was standing in front of him, grabbing his face.
"You won't remember any of this when I'm gone. So Yi Jeong has never been here and you never saw these papers." he said and took the blood sample and papers from the Doctor, before he left as fast as he appeared.
The woman in the waiting room, who was faking a seizure, suddenly felt much better and followed the man.
"You got it? How was I? Should I become an actress?" Yu Ri asked excitedly and Yi Yeon gave her a smile for the effort. "Well.. It served the purpose." he said and showed her the blood sample, before he let it vanish in the pocket of his coat.
"Stupid Rang... I was waiting outside three days to not miss when they get the results." he complained.
"Did he never get tested as a child?" Yu Ri kept asking and Yi Yeon shrugged. "I was fully human for a while.. I assume it is the same for him." he studied the sheets and found the contact paper. "One more good thing, I finally have his phone number." he smiled.
"Can I call him? I need more practice! Please?" Yu Ri whined with a cute smile and Yi Yeon handed over the phone with a sigh.
"His name is So Yi Jeong! Yi Jeong!" he reminded her and she rolled her eyes before she pushed the button to dial the number Yi Yeon had already typed in. Yu Ri squealed out of pure excitement to be able to talk to her savior, but her face turned super serious the moment someone picked up.
"Yes, hello Mr. So Yi Jeong, this is the doctor's office. I am calling to inform you, that your blood test results are in and there is nothing unusual in your sample. No, you have nothing to worry about. Yes, have a nice day." she ended the call and looked at Yi Yeon. "I'm sorry, I tried to sound like Shin Ju but.."
"You did okay." Yi Yeon smiled. "You actually sounded a bit like him." he said, followed by an exhausted sigh.
Yi Yeon wasn't sure how to do it, yet, but he felt that they couldn't keep this up much longer.
They could try and protect Yi Rang from danger, but they couldn't protect him from himself.
He must have started to feel the change, otherwise he wouldn't go to see a doctor to check if something was wrong with him.
He looked at Yu Ri, who looked happy but upset at the same time. She tried to stay strong, but his brother meant so much to her. He saved her and became her mentor and only family for years...
Until she met Shin Ju and fell in love, but that hadn't changed that Yi Rang was important enough to her, that she would give her life for him. Her family had four members and one was missing.
"Yu Ri..." he started and she looked at him with questioning eyes.
"I think... We should tell him soon. It's the safest way for him. I think he trusts none of our faces by now, so I will think of a way how to tell him without traumatizing him all over again. Can you tell the others to just.. stay back and wait a little longer? I promise, you're the first I'll call."
Yu Ri wasn't sure if she heard right and blinked twice, a million questions written all over her face, but Yi Yeon just gave her a soft smile and she understood. She understood, that she heard right and her precious Yi Rang would become part of her life again.
Yu Ri said nothing, because she knew if she did, she would start sobbing like a baby, but she gave Yi Yeon the tightest hug possible, without breaking his bones.
-
Yi Jeong took a moment to let the information sink. His blood was okay, there was no need to worry. He was okay. There was nothing wrong with him, physically. He was...
"Burning passion and sexual desire." Woo Bin said, when he entered the room and Yi Jeong turned around, looking at his friend, who was still studying his mobile phone screen.
"What?" he asked, his voice thin.
"A fire in the woods could mean a conflict with your deepest inner female emotions so unless you don't have to tell me something, I looked up just fire. I googled, while I was on the toilet." Woo Bin grinned and held up his phone.
"Did you wash your hands before you touched that?" Yi Jeong asked, pointing to the phone.
Woo Bin's smile vanished. Yi Jeong being so quiet and pale wasn't normal and he put his phone away.
"Are you okay?" he asked carefully and Yi Jeong nodded slowly. "Yes." he said as if he still had trouble to digest the information.
"Are you sure?"
"The doctor just called. There's nothing wrong with me." Yi Jeong looked at Woo Bin, who also needed a moment and when it clicked, they both fell into each other's arms. Woo Bin picked Yi Jeong up, swirled him around and they both started laughing. A weight worth a million mountains fell off their shoulders and Yi Jeong wiped away a tear of joy.
"You're okay.." Woo Bin said once more, just because it had such a pleasant ring to it. "You're okay."
They shared an intense kiss and hugged again until Chi Un's voice, calling to breakfast, caused them to part.
It was good, that they had spent the night at Yi Jeong's childhood home. It reminded them where they came from, who they were and that the crazy events were caused by something else. Or someone else...
On the way home Yi Jeong looked into the blue sky and smiled.
"It's not raining. Should we check the roof today?" he asked and Woo Bin agreed. He was ready for anything, the most important thing was Yi Jeong looking like himself again. His features relaxed, his eyes always with that certain spark that still made his heart beat faster, even after being together for such a long time.
Yi Jeong opened the window a bit, to breathe in the fresh, late September air.
"When was the last time you smelled that scent on our balcony?" Woo Bin asked.
"Hmm.. I'm not sure. Since I stopped smoking and kept the curtains closed, I haven't been outside much. It was raining all the time..."
They stopped at a traffic light and Yi Jeong opened the window a bit more while moving on slowly, because the street was overcrowded and suddenly, he startled.
"Is something wrong?" Woo Bin asked and Yi Jeong opened the window fully, leaning outside so far, another car honked him back inside. "Can you park somewhere? I need to get out!"
"Did you see someone?" Woo Bin took the next best chance to leave the road and parked at the side of the street. Yi Jeong almost stumbled over his own feet, when he hurried out of the car and Woo Bin followed him. "Hey, can you tell me what's wrong?" he kept asking and looked at his boyfriend, who was sniffing the air. "This way." Yi Jeong said and Woo Bin grabbed his wrist. "Babe. What are you doing?"
Now Yi Jeong stopped and looked at Woo Bin. "Do you trust me, even if it sounds crazy?" he smiled a bit too excitedly.
"Always. But I hate running after you, not knowing why."
"I smell it again. It's so strong, I finally want to know where it comes from. I just need to follow it and.."
"Alright, alright, track hound. You lead the way." Woo Bin said and Yi Jeong's face brightened up even more. "Really?"
"Sure. I told you, I don't care how crazy. I got your back."
"Do you know how much I love you?" Yi Jeong smiled and Woo Bin nodded, returning the smile.
"I know, keep sniffing before you lose it!" he said and Yi Jeong pulled him along.
The search ended in front of a giant building.
Yi Jeong looked up and Woo Bin looked around. It was a pretty expensive area and he wasn't sure if they would let someone just walk inside that building, but before he was able to discuss what to do next with the man he loved for whatever reason, Yi Jeong was already heading inside. Woo Bin caught up in front of the elevators and whispered. "Do you know what you're doing?" he looked around like he expected someone to come and drag them out immediately.
"The man at the reception greeted me." Yi Jeong grinned and entered the elevator. He instinctively pushed a floor number and waited for the door to close.
"And you think that is normal?"
"No? But it's an adventure, right?"
Woo Bin laughed. "Right. I'm really curious now what we will find."
The scent led Yi Jeong to an apartment and he just rang the doorbell. By know he didn't even care anymore. They still could say they got the wrong door, but no one opened.
"Nobody's home, huh.." Woo Bin said as a matter of fact and inspected the door for a way to break in.
He was not willing to just give up, yet.
"Woo Bin..." Yi Jeong mumbled and waited for his friend to look at him. "Hm?"
"Don't you smell anything?"
Woo Bin shook his head. "No... but that doesn't mean it's not there. I believe you. And I need to know what's behind that door, now." he laughed.
Without thinking, Yi Jeong typed in the door code and it buzzed open. The boys exchanged a look, equally puzzled by what just happened.
"How did you.."
"I don't know.. It just.. it was like my fingers knew but I don't.. I don't even know what code I typed in...I swear, I.."
"Whatever.. get in! Before someone sees us!"
They hurried inside the apartment and looked around.
"I love being criminals together." Woo Bin said and Yi Jeong smiled at him.
"Whoever lives here is the one from our balcony. I just know it." he said and Woo Bin nodded. "Now we just need a way to prove it.
They moved through the apartment slowly, careful not to leave any traces and in the living room, they finally found a bunch of family photos.
"Yi Jeong! Look!" Woo Bin showed him a picture and a satisfied laugh escaped his throat. "I knew it."
The picture showed the woman from the pottery class, little Yong Gi and the guy from the restaurant.
"This is amazing. I can't believe you were right about this. He's really the father of the kid."
"They're all connected. The woman in the park, the other weirdos from the restaurant...Mrs Nam Ji Ah and her son. She lives here. She filled in a fake address in case I would look after her.. I remember that it was a place somewhere outside, not in a rich area like this. Why? What is wrong with those people?"
"I think I know what.." Woo Bin said and he was suddenly very pale, when he handed over the framed picture he just found. Yi Jeong had to sit down. The guy on the picture looked exactly like him. Not just like someone who looked a little similar, no. It was like looking into a mirror.
"I guess that's Yi Rang-Nim?" Woo Bin said and sat down next to him. "It says there are about 7 people who look like you, around the world.. I once watched a documentary.." Yi Jeong mumbled.
"Or maybe it's your twin? You should ask your mom about this, seriously.."
"My mom would never do this to me.. keeping me from my twin brother. Look, the frame looks like he's someone who died... He's not on the other family pics..." Yi Jeong started to fumble the frame open to check the date of the photograph. "2020! This picture is over fifteen years old..."
"So no secret twin.. But it explains the reaction of the woman in the park and why everyone was staring at you in the restaurant." Woo Bin said and Yi Jeong bit his lip, lost in thoughts for a moment.
"Yes.. but it doesn't explain why they follow me, why I can smell them on our balcony and all the other weird things."
Woo Bin spotted an old mobile phone on the table, next to an empty box of choco-mint ice-cream.
He picked it up and flipped it around in his hand. Woo Bin often researched old phone models and other things, depending on the time his stories were taking place in.
„This is at least 15 years old..." he swiped over the screen, „It's unlocked. Look."
He showed Yi Jeong the screen. It showed a group picture of the woman from the park, the guy who ran after her in the restaurant, a child and the guy who looked like Yi Jeong.
„You know what's weird.... They all look the same. Only the kid is new. But how can they be with the guy who looked like me 15 years ago and still look the same?"
„Plastic surgery?" Woo Bin guessed and Yi Jeong shrugged and nodded. That explanation was as good as any other. „What else is on there.."
„A bunch of photos and... a video message..."
Suddenly, Yi Jeong got nervous. He swiped the phone, put it into his bag and grabbed Woo Bin's wrist. „Let's go.." he whispered. „I think I heard something."
Woo Bin didn't even hesitate and jumped up. He trusted his boyfriend's weird instincts and shoved him out of the apartment.
Yi Jeong pushed the elevator button over and over, as if it would quicken the progress in any way.
When they were finally in the elevator and the door closed, he leaned back and exhaled.
"You know.. we could push that button and stop the elevator.. I feel a burning passion right now." Woo Bin teased, but one look from his boyfriend told him, he wasn't in the mood and he cleared his throat.
„You took the phone?" he asked to change the topic quickly and Yi Jeong nodded.
„Yeah...I need to hear that message. What if I am connected to that person in some way? I need to know. And if they want the phone back, they know where to find me, I guess?"
„You want him to come and get the phone, right? We just could have waited for them to come home."
„No. I want to see what's on the phone first. Who knows what lies they come up with. The guy on the video is most likely dead. I can't ask him, right?"
„Right." Woo Bin agreed and squeezed Yi Jeong's shoulder. His concerned face made him sad and he just wanted the answers as much as Yi Jeong did.
While their elevator went down, another was going up at the same time, stopping on the same level.
Yi Yeon rushed out and right to his apartment. Ji Ah was carrying their son and following him as fast as she could. They found the apartment empty.
„Are you sure?" she asked out of breath and he nodded. „Yeah. He was here." Yi Yeon was running through the apartment, obviously looking for something.
„He took the phone."
„How did he find this place, how did he get in and how could he possibly know what to look for?"
„Mommy, what's wrong?" Yong Gi asked and Ji Ah gave him a peck on the cheek.
„Nothing sweetheart.. How about you go into your room and I'll be there in two minutes and we play whatever you like, hm?" Ji Ah smiled at her son and put him back on his feet. Yong Gi grinned and hurried to his room.
Yi Yeon was on the balcony now, looking down. The apartment was pretty high, so what happened on the ground was hard to see for the human eye, but his sharp eyes witnessed something on the nearby parking lot.
He saw Yi Jeong and his boyfriend and someone else. The stranger attacked them and the boyfriend, Yi Yeon knew by now, that his name was Woo Bin, jumped in front of Yi Jeong and the stranger's attack hit him with full force.
„Damn... Ji Ah! Watch Yong Gi, I got to take care of something..." he said on the way to get his umbrella. Then he just jumped out of the window.
-
„Woo Bin-Ah!" Yi Jeong screamed and hurried to his boyfriend, who just took a punch so strong, it made him fly through the air a good 5 meters and hit the ground hard. He was unconscious and Yi Jeong not able to do anything but touching his face with shaky hands. Everything had happened so fast, that stranger just appeared out of nowhere, saying something like he finally found him and he attacked and Woo Bin just jumped in front of him and now he was bleeding and not reacting and Yi Jeong was so scared, he wasn't able to move at all.
He saw the stranger attack again and covered Woo Bin's body with his own, to protect him from more harm.
Yi Jeong squeezed his eyes shut and prepared himself for the impact, but nothing happened.
He blinked against the sun and saw a silhouette that slowly turned into the guy from the restaurant.
He was carrying an umbrella that suddenly turned into a sword. When he turned around, he smiled.
„Go. I got this." His eyes were glowing bright yellow for a second and Yi Jeong's head turned blank.
He picked up Woo Bin's lifeless body and carried him to the car so fast, he didn't even feel the weight or knew how he got there. „Navi, lead me to the closest hospital.." he stuttered and the navigation system answered. „Closest hospital, 10 minutes."
Yi Jeong started driving like a maniac, but before they arrived the hospital, Woo Bin woke up.
„What..." he mumbled and looked around, not knowing where he was at first.
Yi Jeong squeezed his leg and tried to smile, but he was in a state of shock. „Hey... How do you feel.." his voice still felt too shaky.
„I'm okay... I think.. My head hurts..a bit."
„I'm taking you to a hospital. Just... hold on, okay.."
„Nah..I'm okay. But.. What the hell just happened?" Woo Bin touched the wound on the back of his head and felt the blood, but it didn't feel too bad. He was pretty tough due to his training and he would know a concerning wound.
„I have no idea.. We got attacked and then the restaurant guy appeared and he had a sword and he said go and his eyes flashed yellow and all I thought about was getting you to a hospital... I thought you.." Yi Jeong's voice broke and a tear rolled down his cheek.
„Hey... I'm okay... but.. you're shaking... come on, let me drive.."
„You're bleeding from a head injury, I'm driving." Yi Jeong yelled and Woo Bin leaned back, closing his eyes, because he felt a bit dizzy. "But home, okay...?" he mumbled and Yi Jeong took a deep, shaky breath. „Okay.. but you tell me, when you feel worse, okay? Don't be a hero if you don't have to."
„I won't." Woo Bin assured and Yi Jeong headed straight back home. He got out first and wanted to help Woo Bin out of the car, but when he opened the door and looked at him, Woo Bin's eyes widened. He turned pale as a ghost and instead of letting himself help, he flinched and tried to get to the other side of the car.
„Woo Bin... what..." Yi Jeong felt his heart drop in his chest. Never ever had Woo Bin looked at him like that.. like.. he was afraid...
„Your..eye.." Woo Bin stuttered and Yi Jeong looked into the side mirror. He touched his own face, checking if it felt real and it did. His left eye was staring back at him in bright yellow, with a pupil, vertical like those of a cat. He suddenly felt sick to the bones and stumbled backwards.
The first shock faded fast and Woo Bin hurried out of the car, but Yi Jeong was gone. He looked around, panic rushing through his veins. „Yi Jeong?" he yelled, but he was just gone. It wasn't even possible to be gone so fast.
Woo Bin took their bags and locked the car before he walked to their apartment building on shaky legs, still looking around, hoping to find his boyfriend. When he reached the door, he froze.
„You..." he whispered and stared at the guy from the restaurant, his arms wrapped around the bags, clinging to something real while everything felt like falling apart. „What do you want from us.."
„I came to explain." Yi Yeon said and looked around. „Where's Yi Jeong?"