There's a drumming noise inside my head
That starts when you're around.
I swear that you could hear it;
It makes such an all mighty sound.
Louder than sirens, louder than bells.
Sweeter than heaven, and hotter than hell.
There was nothing but ash there; ash and dust and the faint smell of smoke still lingering in the air, like a memory clinging to its roots. The building had burned down almost entirely, leaving just a husk of a foundation and a few remaining logs and boards that made the place look similar to a graveyard; the blackened boards serving as bones protruding grotesquely from their coffins, akin to something out of a horror film.
And there, amidst the ash and dust with his way lit only by the faint starlight in the night sky above, stood Baekhyun, frowning. He knew that these fires were not just mere happenstance. Everyone had accepted that they were gas leaks and left it at that, but this was the sixth abandoned building in nearly two months that had burned down, and Baekhyun just didn't believe in coincidences.
But now that he was there he wasn't sure what he was looking for.
Anxious to be on his way - for he felt as if he wasn't the only one there - he pulled his flashlight out of his coat pocket, setting it on the lowest beam possible before flicking it on and casting its illumination around the smoking remains of the most recent burnt-down building. At first glance he saw nothing of interest, but his curiosity prompted him to look closer, and so he did. He shuffled through the pool of ash mixed with dirt at his feet, anxious and somehow excited all at once as he peered around at whatever had been left in the fire's wake, looking for something - anything.
And then he found it.
There, on the ground and hidden beneath the ash, something had been carved into the foundation with something small and sharp; most likely a pocketknife. It was faint, and hard to make out, but Baekhyun recognized it instantly for he'd seen it many, many times before.
The Phoenix.
Baekhyun smiled, triumphant. I was right! He thought. I knew this had to be his work!
Even more excited than before, Baekhyun quickly took a picture of the mark with his phone and then flicked off his flashlight, feeling his way out of the burnt remains of the old building and resisting the urge to leap for joy as he headed back to his car. He was cold, and covered in ash, and exhausted, and he had to drive a whole half hour back to his apartment, but honestly he didn't care.
The Phoenix was still out there, and now Baekhyun was one step closer to finding him.
Upon getting home he quickly stripped off his clothes and threw them in the wash, stepping into the shower soon after. He wanted any trace of him being at that crime scene to be gone, for the last thing he wanted now was his co-workers to find out about his plans, because - unlike him - they didn't understand the Phoenix. They thought he was evil; a murderer, they said. But Baekhyun knew the truth.
He was a hero.
Checking the picture on his phone one last time before he went to bed, Baekhyun smiled and glanced up at the wall just above his desk. It was littered with papers; news clippings of the Phoenix, rumored sightings, possible alibis, and - Baekhyun's own work - possible addresses. That was what he hoped to find, in the end, an address or perhaps even a name. Just something better to go on than a sketch from a frightened (and possibly unreliable) witness and a few scorch marks etched into wood and stone.
He needed more.
Much more.
But it was not the time for that now. Right now he needed to get some sleep, because the next day he was going to try his last resort. The next day, hopefully, he would finally find the Phoenix.
He fell asleep easily and dreamt of fire.
"Hello?"
No answer.
"Is anyone there?"
Suddenly Baekhyun felt arms wrap around his waist, and then he was smiling, leaning back into the touch easily. Hands grabbed his, entangling their fingers, and Baekhyun felt his smile widen as he realized how small his own hands were in comparison.
"I hear you've been looking for me?" A deep, warm voice whispered in his ear, sending electricity running up and down his spine.
Baekhyun sighed. "I have, but with few results. Can you give me a hint?"
"What kind of hint?"
"Your name."
"That would be too easy."
Baekhyun huffed. "I thought you wanted me to find you."
"I do." Warm breath ghosted across his neck and he sighed happily, closing his eyes and wishing that the moment would last forever. Yet at the same time he desperately wanted to wake up. He wanted to wake up and find that his dream was a reality. He wished with all his heart that it would be so, but he knew it was impossible.
So terribly impossible.
"I only wish this wasn't a dream." He murmured softly.
The man abruptly began to laugh, his amusement sounding wicked amidst the darkness of the bedroom. "You think you're dreaming, Baekhyun?"
Baekhyun jerked awake, eyes wide and heart pounding in his chest as he stared around the room, tense. But there was nothing there. He was alone.
He was alone.
"There are dark circles under your eyes," Tao said slowly, looking worried. "Have you not been sleeping well?"
Baekhyun resisted the urge to glare at the younger man and instead set about stirring an extra packet of sweetener in his coffee. He usually only had two sweeteners, but today he was opting for three. He needed the extra boost. "There are dark circles under your eyes too."
"Yeah, but I'm a chronic insomniac. You, however, enjoy your sleep. And I would know seeing as how you stayed at my place for nearly a month during the Phoenix's case and slept in my bed every night, remember?"
Of course he remembered. Was that a rhetorical question? But out loud, he said, "I'm fine, Tao. I just stayed up a bit too late."
"Oh." Tao shrugged, "If you say so." He sighed and shoved his hands in his dark skinny jeans, suddenly looking nervous. "By the way, Kris wants to see you."
"Oh?"
"Yeah. He says it's urgent." When Baekhyun gave him a 'look' Tao had the gall to appear affronted, even going far enough to slip his hands free of his pockets and hold them up as if in surrender. "Hey, I don't know why, okay? He just seemed really on-edge."
Sighing, Baekhyun took a quick sip of his coffee, decided it was shit - they really needed to get a knew coffee maker, because the old one always let too many grains slip through the filter - and tossed it into the trash can before trudging off to his boss's office. Kris always seemed on-edge lately, and Baekhyun wondered vaguely if it had something to do with dropping the Phoenix's case. Jungsu had to have given him a lot of shit about that, and Baekhyun kind of felt bad for him. But at the same time he was glad, because if Kris had to suffer a little bit in order for the Phoenix to keep on living then that was fine with him.
Perhaps that made him a bad person.
He was still contemplating this when he knocked on Kris's door, entering after he heard a muffled "come in" from beyond. The door automatically swung shut behind him, and Baekhyun paused in front of Kris's desk, confused and a bit concerned as Kris stared up at him through dark eyes that looked heavy with sleepless nights.
"Kris?" He frowned. Sure, Kris had seemed on-edge lately, but right now he looked positively depressed. "Are you okay?"
"No." Kris handed him a thin folder, his shoulders slumping as if the weight of the world rested on them. "Another abandoned building was burned down this morning, and this was found there."
Heart in his throat, Baekhyun took the folder and opened it, dread settling low in his stomach as he saw that only one thing rested inside; a photo of the Phoenix's symbol, surrounded by ash and dust. "This is ..."
"You were right," Kris said slowly, "Those fires were the work of the Phoenix. He's not done yet, Baekhyun. He's still out there."
"So what does that mean?" Baekhyun asked, almost afraid of the answer.
Kris shook his head, sighing heavily. "We're re-opening the case. We have to."
Baekhyun's hands felt sweaty and he could hear his heartbeat rushing in his ears, but outwardly he kept a straight face because he couldn't let Kris see his anxiety. He couldn't let Kris interpret it as fear for himself and his friends when it was really fear for the Phoenix, because that would make him feel even more guilty than he had before.
It was then that he suddenly realized this didn't bode well; not for him, his friends, or the Phoenix. And when he stared down at the folder in his hands and the damning piece of evidence the Phoenix had left behind, he felt a sickening sense of nausea stir his gut as a terrible premonition suddenly struck him.
They weren't going to survive this.
Not all of them, at least.
"I'm heading home." Baekhyun announced, grabbing his coat and his laptop bag. He couldn't stay there any longer, not when he had more important work to do.
"Already?" Tao stood, "Are you sure that's a good idea -"
"I'll be fine, Tao!" Baekhyun snapped. "I've been fine on my own for the past month so I'll be fine now."
Tao recoiled, looking hurt, but Baekhyun didn't have the time to care. He had other things to do.
He caught a cab home, not wanting to bother with the noise and the crowds of the subway, and didn't bother waiting for change after paying the driver. He was in too much of a hurry as he practically threw himself from the cab and bolted up the steps to his apartment. He fumbled with his keys, dropping them a few times before he finally got the door open, and stumbled inside to an empty apartment with only one thought in mind.
He didn't even bother to change before he sat down in front of his laptop and got to work.
An hour later he sat back, satisfied. His last resort, the final ace he'd had up his sleeve, was the sketch of the Phoenix that Joonmyun had provided them with. Using that, Baekhyun had posted the picture on a few nondescript websites with a fake name, claiming that the person in the picture was a family member of his who had run away. Then he left his e-mail (a new one he'd created specifically for this) below it with the words 'contact immediately if you have any information that could be useful.'
Now all he had to do was wait.
Of course he wasn't expecting to get any results right away, so he shut his computer down and got ready to settle down for the night. But his thoughts were too preoccupied, and as he finally climbed into bed and turned off the light on his bedside table he was left with nothing but a lingering sense of worry.
Abruptly he realized that he was more worried for the Phoenix than his friends, and again he wondered if that made him a bad person.
He fell asleep not long after that and dreamt of death.
You've got mail.
Baekhyun jolted awake violently, clenching the sheets of his bed in his hands, only to realize that what had awoken him was merely his phone. He had it set on the annoying ringtone that told him verbally when he'd gotten an e-mail, and he vaguely wondered why he hadn't changed that yet as he picked up his phone from its place on the nightstand and clicked on his mailbox.
Inside was an e-mail from an anonymous sender, and Baekhyun frowned, suddenly suspicious. It was titled with nothing but 'information', and for a moment Baekhyun considered the repercussions of opening it, because what if it was a virus, or something? But in the end he opened it anyway, because that's just how he was; curious to the point that it was almost suicidal.
However, the e-mail held nothing but an address.
For a few moments Baekhyun stared at it blankly, then he remembered what he'd done the night before and how he'd posted the sketch of the Phoenix online posing as a worried family member. Was this possibly a response to that? He hardly dared to hope.
But what else could it be?
Excited, Baekhyun slipped out of bed and got ready as fast as he could, wanting to make it to the office ASAP so he could get a head start and perhaps get off earlier than usual and follow this unexpected lead. As he'd said before, he hadn't expected to get results right away, so this was more than he could've ever asked for.
I'm coming for you, he thought, grabbing his laptop case and wallet as he stepped out of his apartment. I'm going to keep my promise.