≿━━━━༺ ♱ ༻━━━━≾
𝕿𝐇𝐄 𝕯𝐄𝐕𝐈𝐋'𝐒 𝕸𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐒
≿━━━━༺ ♱ ༻━━━━≾
Ji Eun was leaning against Yo Han's desk as he talked to K on the phone. She ignored his pointed glare, folding her arms as she listened in to their conversation.
"She went to talk to Jang Ki Young, just like you thought."
"Kim Ga On came to see me. He said he suspected Jang Ki Young." Ji Eun snapped up to frown at him. He hadn't told her about this. In fact, he hadn't said anything about what had happened at work while she was at home. They had spent some time reading in his study, Ji Eun laying on the sofa with a book while Yo Han sat behind his desk, pretending to read through some papers but actually watching her.
"But then, he would." He continued, gesturing to Ji Eun that he'd tell her later. "Who'd think there'd be such a courageous witness in this day and age?" Both their eyes fell down to the wiretap device in Yo Han's hand. "I was very surprised too."
His gaze met Ji Eun's. She got up, placing a hand on his shoulder and squeezing lightly before walking back to her desk as he placed his phone next to the wiretap, playing a recording. "Different witnesses can have different stances. It's not a huge problem. It was Ju Il Do who threw in the towel out of fear. I must do something... in this grossly unfair game."
When Ji Eun looked up from her paperwork, he was staring dramatically out the window, hands in his pockets.
"I swear if I ever get my hands on the idiot that thought that wall window was a good touch-" she shook her head, grumbling.
"You're more than welcome to join me, you know."
Ji Eun only stuck her tongue out.
̶̶̶̶ ̶«̶ ̶̶̶ ̶ ̶ ̶̶̶ ̶«̶ ̶̶̶ ̶ ♱ ̶»̶ ̶̶̶ ̶ ̶ ̶̶̶ ̶»̶ ̶̶̶ ̶ ̶
That night, they set out to terrorise the bait once more. This time, however, they didn't take out their sleek cars, to Ji Eun's disappointment. Instead, they took one of those van like cars, she couldn't remember what they were called, but she knew that celebrities used them. Yo Han wouldn't let her drive, as usual. "You can have fun tormenting the boy for what he did the last time." He promised.
Her expression darkened as her fingers fiddled with her hair, which she had braided over her shoulders. "Trust me," she said softly, "I will. But I still don't see why you won't let me drive."
Yo Han wouldn't answer, though it was obvious he was avoiding it on purpose. He'd never admit that he liked driving Ji Eun around, watching her stare out the window. She sulked in silence for almost the entire journey until he had had enough and asked her teasingly, "Is my darling angry with me?"
"I'm not your darling," she grumbled.
"That's a yes then. You don't seem to mind me calling you darling unless you're upset with me." He chuckled.
"Whatever. Pompous prick."
"Such harsh words. Would you like me to grovel at your feet once we're back home?"
Ji Eun snorted in a very undignified manner. "Now that, I would pay to see. I know you well enough to know you'd never get on your knees for anyone. Well, maybe you would for Elijah and might have for Isaac, but never for anyone else."
Yo Han glanced at her. She hadn't spoken with jealousy or bitterness, she had said it mildly, like it was something she knew for a fact. Feeling his gaze on her, she turned to look at him with a smile. "And I'm not mad at you, Yo Han. Well, at least not now. You know I can't stay mad at you for long, least of all for something as trivial as this."
"Oh, I know." Yo Han grinned, making her chuckle. "If you were capable of holding grudges against me, you would have left a long time ago."
"We both know that's not true," she said lightly. "I- I owe you too much to leave."
Both of them knew that 'owe' was not the word she meant to use. "You don't owe me anything."
"That day-"
"I did what I did that day because I care for you, Song Ji Eun. Because you're my friend. I gave those bastards exactly what they deserved. You don't owe me for getting you out of there when I took two months to find you. I owe you for staying sane despite it all."
"It wasn't your fault."
"Wasn't it?"
"No, it wasn't," she said firmly. "It was mine for being careless and naïve."
Yo Han stopped the car with a screech. Ji Eun looked over at him with raised eyebrows. "Yo Han, now is not the time for this argument, we're going to miss him."
"Song Ji Eun," his voice was dangerously soft, effectively shutting her up. "If I ever hear those words leave your mouth again, I will drop you out of the plan immediately."
"And if I ever hear you blaming yourself for what I went through, we will find out just how strong my fingers have gotten." She said, her tone mocking his.
"You were-"
"I know very well what happened during those two years, Kang Yo Han, I was there, it was happening to me!" She finally snapped.
He knew then, that he had pushed her too far.
"Let's just get on with the job. He's gonna leave any minute now." She looked away.
He wordlessly did as she said, staying in tensed silence until he pulled up in front of the brat's car just as he was about pull out. The half drunk boy got out, slamming his car door shut and stalking up to their car. He knocked against the tinted window.
"Roll down your window." When the window didn't roll down, he knocked louder. "Yah!"
Yo Han rolled the window down, not looking at the now terrified looking chaebol boy. "Where is your public transport card?"
"You- Are you following me around?" Yo Han turned to look at him, smiling.
"Kirsae,"* he said mildly.
"You must think I'm your prey. I'm not that easy to catch," the boy stuttered out. "Touch me and I will fight back. So let's not meet again, okay?
Ji Eun looked over from the passenger's side, raising her eyebrow. "I noticed it last time as well," she spoke softly, flexing her fingers, making the boy wince at the memory of them being wrapped around his throat. "Why do you keep speaking informally? When we're obviously older than you?" She cracked her knuckles, smiling when he winced again. "I wonder if I should teach you some proper manners?"
"Let's not meet again," he repeated. "-yo," he added when Ji Eun's eyebrow raised higher, staggering away, cursing as he got back into his car and drove away.
Yo Han and Ji Eun watched, a small smirk on their faces.
"Prey?" Yo Han chuckled.
"You're just the bait," Ji Eun finished. "Fresh bait."
̶̶̶̶ ̶«̶ ̶̶̶ ̶ ̶ ̶̶̶ ̶«̶ ̶̶̶ ̶ ♱ ̶»̶ ̶̶̶ ̶ ̶ ̶̶̶ ̶»̶ ̶̶̶ ̶ ̶
"Ji Eun-ah," Yo Han called, knocking on her door. "Come on, we need to talk."
"No, I want to shut myself off and fester in my emotional wounds while pissing off the people closest to me. Sound familiar to you?" Ji Eun called back snarkily.
"Ji Eun," Yo Han growled.
"Go away, you're probably not feeling well. The Yo Han I know hates talking about feelings. Just make sure you wake me up when I start screaming, and do it before I wake up Elijah."
"Song Ji Eun, let me in."
"No."
"Well, I'm coming in anyways." He opened the door with unnecessary force, stumbling through when it opened readily. He didn't expect it to be unlocked.
"What if I had been naked?" Ji Eun asked drily, maintaining an impressive poker face.
"Well, you're obviously not, so it's no matter. Do you always leave your door unlocked? Even when you're mad at me?"
Ji Eun grinned a little at that. "I don't like locking the door, it's always amusing to see you give up and walk away thinking it's locked."
"Why do you leave it unlocked? Anyone could come in. Is the window locked at least?" He demanded, ignoring her smile.
"Yes, the window is locked, you worrywart." She rolled her eyes, not answering his previous question. His eyes narrowed.
"Ji Eun..." he warned.
She gave a long suffering sigh. "I leave it unlocked for you." She admitted.
"There's a common door between our rooms." He reminded her, sitting beside her on the bed.
"I know."
"Then why?" He pressed. When she stayed quiet, he took her chin in his fingers gently, tilting her head up so her eyes met his. "Will you ever tell me?" He asked instead. Relief filled her eyes when she realised he wasn't going to press her. She knew that he would never be this gentle, this considerate to anyone else. This was a side of him reserved only for her, for now. He always pissed off Elijah, to the point where neither can stay in the same room for five minutes without Elijah wanting to kill him.
Ji Eun nodded to his question. "One day. I'll tell you. One day, hopefully, when you don't have barge into my room to stop me screaming."
She wanted to help him desperately, to fix his relationship with Elijah. But none her efforts worked and sometimes she wondered if she was of any use at all. Little did she know, that there was a certain colleague who wore a face all too familiar, who was going to meddle as much as possible and, quite possibly, fix this dysfunctional and well... strange family.
̶̶̶̶ ̶«̶ ̶̶̶ ̶ ̶ ̶̶̶ ̶«̶ ̶̶̶ ̶ ♱ ̶»̶ ̶̶̶ ̶ ̶ ̶̶̶ ̶»̶ ̶̶̶ ̶ ̶
The next day, Ji Eun and Yo Han called their associate judges to their offices. Jin Joo greeted the PD cheerfully as she came in.
"It's a total commotion after the broadcast!" The PD exclaimed.
"Why?" She seemed surprised.
"Our Chief Judges Kang and Song were famous already, but the two of you are gaining a lot of attention."
"Us two?" She gestured to herself and Ga On with a smile. Ga On was clearly not paying attention to their conversation, too busy observing Ji Eun and Yo Han, who were looking over the details of their next case behind his desk. Ji Eun wore her usual gentle smile as she muttered something to Yo Han, who gave her a mock glare, lips twitching.
She looked nothing like the woman he had seen the night before, none of the ruthlessness and anger he had witnessed seemed to be something she was capable of. But he couldn't forget the smirk on her face as she had watched Yo Han destroy that car, the way she had seemed hell bent on choking the boy to death until Yo Han had called her name. He knew now, what she was capable of.
He finally turned to the producer, asking politely, "what brings you here?"
"Yah, as expected, our Judge Kim. Haughty, chic. The very example of a cool, handsome man. The girls are just-"
"What brings you here?" Ga On repeated, ruthlessly cutting him off, prompting a small snort of laughter from Ji Eun.
"He wants to invite us," Yo Han answered the boy's question.
"Invite us? Invite us where?" Jin Joo frowned.
The producer rushed forward to take the paper from Yo Han. "It's a fashion show that's being co-organised with our program by a charity called Social Responsibility Foundation." He explained, giving the form to Jin Joo.
"Fashion show?"
"You know what I mean. It's a gathering for people who hand over big bucks for donations."
Ga On and Yo Han's eyes temporarily met but Ga On faced away from him to focus back on the excited producer. Yo Han tilted his head slightly, wondering what was wrong. Ji Eun, having observed this exchange with amusement, realised that Yo Han hadn't noticed Ga On witnessing their stunt the previous night. Either that, or he had forgotten.
"I decline. Why would a judge attend such an event?" Ga On refused, looking at Yo Han directly, as if expecting him to answer.
Ji Eun raised her eyebrows, but immediately lowered them with a smile as Ga On's gaze moved to her. She knew she was the one who unnerved him the most, with her complete change in demeanour.
"You are aware of the current mood of our society, aren't you?" The producer asked hesitantly. "There should be some events that provide hope, somehow."
When he saw Ga On remain, unmoved, he insisted, "If you judges participate, the viewers will be so encouraged."
Ji Eun scoffed, then winced as her head started pounding. She had had a headache since morning, but she hadn't told Yo Han, knowing he'll either wave it off as the small problem that it is, or make an unnecessary fuss, there was no in between.
But despite the pills she had taken, it hadn't gone away, instead increasing in intensity. Maybe it was the sleepless nights, or maybe it was the heat. She couldn't bring herself to focus on the conversation, barely registering Jin Joo's sad exclamation of having no appropriate clothes.
"You can have one of mine," Ji Eun spoke, pushing down her pain. "I ordered this really gorgeous one online, but it was a size too big, I'm sure it'll fit you. I'll let you have it."
Jin Joo turned to her with wide eyes. "You will?"
"If it's all right with you."
"I'd really appreciate it, thank you." She smiled happily.
"What about you, Judge Kim?" Yo Han asked Ga On.
"Let's go," Jin Joo pleaded.
"I'm fine. I have some things to take care of," he declined.
"Sure, do as you please." Yo Han smiled.
̶̶̶̶ ̶«̶ ̶̶̶ ̶ ̶ ̶̶̶ ̶«̶ ̶̶̶ ̶ ♱ ̶»̶ ̶̶̶ ̶ ̶ ̶̶̶ ̶»̶ ̶̶̶ ̶ ̶
Yo Han finally let Ji Eun drive, after extracting a promise from her to not, under any circumstances, drive at an unnecessarily high speed.
Though Ji Eun hadn't told Jin Joo, she had lied about the dress, and had actually gone out and gotten one in her size. She herself wore a beautiful, modest sapphire blue dress that shimmered with every step she took.
"By the way, Judge Song-" Jin Joo had started once Ji Eun had finished inspecting her.
"Please, just call me Ji Eun when we're not at work, I'm not Yo Han, you know."
"Nae." The younger girl smiled bashfully. "Are you very close with Judge Kang?"
"I guess you could say that. He and I have known each other for a long time."
"How long?" She asked hesitant, afraid of stepping out of line.
"Hmmm, over twenty years? We lived near each other, so I guess you could say we were neighbourhood friends." She smiled.
"Whoa, no wonder you two are so close. No one else stands a chance."
Ji Eun frowned. "What do you mean?"
"Well, it's obvious there's something between you. And you've got everything, the looks, the charm, everything and you know him better than anyone to boot. I wish I had something like that, someone who looks at me like he looks at you."
Ji Eun started. "What do you mean, the way he looks at me?"
"Like you're the only woman he sees. I mean, most of the time he seems so cool and collected and aloof, but when he looks at you, it's not his face so much as his eyes that changes expression."
Ji Eun knew all this already, but she'd never heard anyone else describe it to her that way, much less notice it. Her cheeks grew slightly pink, a small smile pulling at her lips despite herself.
"Are you sure you two aren't dating? To be honest, I was convinced you were at first, what with all the flirting-"
"We don't flirt. At least, not at work," Ji Eun protested.
"-and the possessiveness, I did notice the way you glare at the women who gossip and fangirl about Judge Kang, you know." She finished, fixing the older woman with a knowing stare.
"I suppose I am a bit possessive," she admitted with a laugh. "But we're not dating. What we are is... complicated. And it's not one we have discussed."
She smiled at the girl before beckoning her to follow her outside. And when Yo Han smiled at her in greeting, dark eyes drinking her in, she found herself noticing that Jin Joo was right. And when she smiled back, it was one of her brightest smiles yet.