XIV Emblem
Hyejoo doesn't remember the last time where she was able to sit in silence and bask in its empty noise. Where she stared aimlessly at the ceiling - or if she's somehow outside, the streets - with her mind blank of any jarring images or thoughts. Where she would be able to close her eyes in pure bliss and enjoy the occasional wind that whistled through.
It's been so long since she was able to do that.
She feels a portion of her heartache pitifully at the thought, squeezing at the bitter idea of it. Hyejoo wouldn't say she finds that change, new. In fact, she's so used to it that she hasn't made the effort to change things. Because how could she? The images, the poking what if's, the replaying memories and everything in between would never leave her mind anyway. The only way it would is if she magically lost all her memories.
But even that would be troublesome.
Hyejoo sighs, pressing her cheek against the heel of her palm. She breathes in a long one, taking in the cold smell of the winter air and thankfully it smelled of the withering flowers sitting a few feet away from her. Haseul's beautiful attempt at growing a small garden of flowers before winter only for it all to bend and wrinkle when the snowflakes had started to pour out from the sky. Luckily, the scent still lingered.
"Aren't you cold?" She hears a familiar voice, one that was expected every time she had decided to visit Haseul.
Hyejoo shrugs, "Got used to it." She stretches out her fingers, the tips a flush red. "Is Haseul inside? I need to talk to her."
"Good things I hope?"
Hyejoo hummed, wondering what it is that could be considered good. It was evident, that's for sure, but it didn't exactly mean good. If anything, it meant the exact opposite and should be alarming but Hyejoo concludes it to be somewhat of good news. It's a lead. That's something, right?
"Sure." Hyejoo groans as she sits up, her hand rushing to her lower back as she stretches. She lets out a hiss as she feels a slight numbing sensation tickle her back, one that was all too familiar for her to visibly wince. Hyejoo looks up to see Jungeun raising an eyebrow at her.
"Does your back hurt?" Jungeun moves aside to let Hyejoo in, closing the door behind her as soon as she steps foot into the house. "Are you- wow, you're old."
Hyejoo snorts, "You must be a hag then."
Jungeun rolls her eyes, "You seriously have no respect for people who are older than you." She mutters, but Hyejoo senses no serious intent in it; but rather, a playful tone.
Hyejoo turns to Jungeun, "Only to people who act older."
The older girl blinks at her as if trying to understand what she had meant; it soon clicked after Hyejoo looks away with little to no remorse on her face. Jungeun slaps the raven-haired girl hard on the shoulder, "You've got some nerve! Excuse me, I am very much mature - thank you."
Hyejoo rolls her eyes with a smile on her face, "Yeah, yeah whatever." She waves off Jungeun's noisy protests, "Anyways, where's Haseul?"
"Getting straight to the point, already?" Jungeun hums, walking towards the kitchen, but Hyejoo doesn't follow her.
Hyejoo nods, "Yeah well I came to see her right?" She smirks, "Not you." She adds - and she really had no reason to add that. Hyejoo just feels like pushing Jungeun's buttons early in the morning for the fun of it.
Jungeun peaks out of the corner, eyes narrow, "I swear, I need to tell Haseul how you act towards me." She pouts as she leaves her corner, two mugs with the handle clutched between her fingers. "She's in the basement."
Hyejoo follows close behind Jungeun and she's quick to hold the mug when the older girl offers it to her. Her tense shoulders slowly droop to level with her body as she feels the heat that burns softly through the mug. Hyejoo lets out a shiver as she feels the freezing tips of her fingers melt against the material. Maybe she was a bit cold.
"How long has she been here?" Hyejoo whispers (She's afraid Haseul might overhear considering the older girl tends to dismiss anything regarding her.)
Jungeun chuckles, "Don't worry, she only came down an hour ago."
"I'm not worried," Hyejoo mutters back.
Jungeun only hums, but she doesn't make the effort to argue back knowing Hyejoo will not at all back down. She turns on a step and her slipper slaps slightly against the basement, wooden flooring. Hyejoo sees Jungeun smile as she looks up and she assumes Haseul sees her.
"Ah, thanks Jungeun-" Haseul looks up and her eyes widen at the sight of Hyejoo stepping down from the stairs. The latter taking heavy and tired steps as she puts her foot in front of the other. "Well, what brings you here so early in the morning?"
"I swear, you're the second person to emphasize early in the morning, with my name." Hyejoo huffs, taking a sip out of the mug Jungeun had given her.
It's hot chocolate, which was oddly satisfying yet childish in some way. Hyejoo paid it no mind; she liked the sweet taste that scattered on her taste buds, enjoying it more than the bitter taste of coffee.
Haseul giggles, "Oh c'mon, Hyejoo. Even you know it's too early for you." She takes a sip from Jungeun's drink, her eyes closing - most likely entertaining the warmth that spread throughout her body. "Did Hyunjin say it too?"
"Of course she did." Hyejoo mumbles, "She says that yet she isn't much of a morning person either - the audacity."
Haseul chuckles at the younger girl's tiny rant, but there was a surge of subtle melancholy that pricked her heart; a feeling that often rested well in her mind in envy of seeing two siblings enjoy the company of one another. The majority of said enjoyment came from teasing and oftentimes playful mockery, but still, Haseul missed those small moments. She worries she took advantage of all those times, ignoring the chances of losing it all in a day.
"I'll be upstairs if you guys need me." Jungeun's voice sent an array of warmth through her thoughts, making her instinctively smile when she meets the younger girl's irises. Something about the way Jungeun looks at her always makes her heart melt into the pit of her chest.
Hyejoo nods and waves a lazy hand in acknowledgement; Haseul chuckles at it and sends in her own, affectionate farewell. It wasn't really a farewell anyway, she just felt like sending in the extra love that her partner deserved by blowing a cheesy kiss. Hyejoo visibly cringes and looks away while Jungeun flushes a light pink and sends one back, albeit sheepishly.
"You guys are so sweet it might just give me diabetes." Hyejoo groans, placing her mug on the table, just beside Haseul's.
"Please, if you find someone, you'll probably be the same." Haseul rolls her eyes, turning her chair as she typed away at her keyboard, fingers swiftly brushing against the keys with high toned thuds as she padded against it. "Which I think, would be a sight to see. You all soft with someone."
Hyejoo snorts, "Like you'll ever see me like that."
"I'll be waiting for that day." Haseul shoots her a mocking wink, to which Hyejoo only groaned at. "So, why are you here so early? Don't you have projects to finish?"
"It's the weekend. I don't have school on week-"
Haseul rolls her eyes, "I know that - I'm not stupid. But aren't you busy? Wouldn't you be helping your sister out right now? You know, with the bakery." She turns around, twisting the chair to face Hyejoo, "Or any school work? I swear, I barely see you do school work."
"That's because I don't do school work." Hyejoo chuckles, though she deliberately ignores the motherly glare from Haseul, "And I came here because it's urgent."
Haseul's face softens in a way that's no longer similar to when she's outside as a normal citizen but into an expression that she often uses when discussing anything remotely dangerous or somewhat of a not-so-civilian-friendly conversation. Her eyebrows slightly twitch to the middle of her forehead, almost furrowing but barely visible. Haseul's eyes were sharp and it was obvious she was ready to listen.
"About?" She pushes.
Hyejoo takes her phone out, taking a few slow seconds to unlock it and search for the photo she had taken just a night ago. A little late, she knows, but helping out Hyunjin's bakery had been a little bit heavy so she had to push back this meeting into the weekend; which was fine since it meant more time to discuss.
"While on patrol, we had to.." Hyejoo sighs, "Kind of - chase a trespasser who went into this jewelry store for some kind of game."
Haseul raises an eyebrow, "Game?"
Hyejoo nods, "Yeah. Apparently, if you do what the instructor says, you have the chance of winning money - that's what the guy said. It's like... a test of courage." Haseul shoots her a look, one that was filled with doubt and, probably, judgement. Hyejoo nods, "Yeah, I know, it's stupid, but he said he needed the money."
Haseul leans back on her chair, "So he was asked to walk around a jewelry store?"
"No stealing either," Hyejoo adds.
Haseul's eyebrows furrow in confusion, "He was asked to trespass but not to steal anything? What's the point of that? Wouldn't that be the perfect chance to get some products, without having to dirty your hands or something?" She meets Hyejoo's gaze and could instantly tell what she was possibly thinking, "Which I know from watching tv shows. I don't steal things, Hyejoo." She huffs.
Hyejoo shrugs, "Yeah well, you seemed to know your stuff." She chuckles softly but it was quick to revert back to their conversation, "Anyways, we caught him in the alleyway and he led us to this."
The younger girl makes the effort to lean forward from her chair and push her arm towards Haseul, grip tight around her phone to prevent it from slipping out of her hands. Hyejoo figures she can stand up and walk a few very short strides to show Haseul, but her legs were nothing but uncooperative limbs and she really wasn't in the mood to do any more walking.
"Is that graffiti?" Haseul dawns closer over Hyejoo's phone, her eyes narrowing on the picture; Hyejoo lets out a soft sigh and grabs the older girl's glasses, offering it to her in a quick gesture. Haseul mutters a thank you and slips it on, her eyes slowly widening as she finally makes clear of the image in front of her. "...the emblem?"
"We found it in the alleyway. And the guy said that if this emblem was found, the money would be there." Hyejoo mumbles, "Whoever instructed this knows the emblem well enough to draw it on the walls. It can seem like a reach since this emblem is slowly reaching other outsiders, but Haseul, this is-"
"Jungeun and Chaewon saw the same thing, the same day you saw yours," Haseul intervenes, sighing heavily as she opens a document. In a matter of seconds, the said document opens and fills the monitor with its low saturation and dimly lit surroundings. However, no matter how dark the corners seem to be, the blood-red emblem seems to shine against the moonlight, calling its grey rays and making itself known in the presence of its visitor.
Hyejoo doesn't mind the aching sensation that filled her feet as she stood up, leaning forward to get herself closer to the monitor. She doesn't have bad eyesight, in fact, she has excellent sight, but the need to make sure of what she's seeing makes her draw closer.
"That's two." Hyejoo mumbles. "This can't be a coincidence - at the same time?"
"Jiwoo found one too." Haseul drags another file, clicking it twice and there opened the same image. Different angles yet the surroundings were similar to the past 2 images. All emblems are engulfed by darkness, except the spot where the symbols had the moon shining so bright against it. As if they were conveniently placed there for attention; attention that was easy yet so hard to gain.
Hyejoo mutters, "If this is common around the city then surely someone has to be putting these things there."
"I asked Yeji if there were any other sightings or maybe even cases that are similar to the girl in the hospital but - nothing." Haseul breathes in sharply, "It's been quiet in their city. So quiet that even the crime rate has decreased by a little bit in the past few days."
Hyejoo pushes herself off the table, "Almost the same day we started our patrols?"
Haseul nods, "Almost." She glances back at the two images displayed on the monitor, her eyes narrowing solely on the drawn graffiti. She keeps her silence - and slowly, Hyejoo realizes it.
"Are-" Hyejoo snaps her head towards Haseul, eyes wide and pressing, "Are you saying they're here?"
Haseul slightly winces at Hyejoo's unconscious hiss that left her lips after muttering such words, "I'm not sure. But something tells me this silence isn't going to last any longer. If anything, it's a gateway to the next spree they'll go on."
"So what's the plan?"
Haseul grunts, throwing her head back as she punches the bridge of her nose, "I already have one set in stone, and I've talked to ITZY about it already. Just waiting for Yeji to give us more updates or info we might need to know."
"She didn't answer yet?" Hyejoo held her tone, hoping she didn't sound insistent or desperate.
Albeit it being slightly bad news, considering it meant more unknown grounds slowly spread around them, it was still a lead they could cling onto. Rather than relying on a case like the hospital girl, at least they had a solid path to follow along for now.
Haseul shakes her head, "Yeah she hasn't answered yet. I wanted to ask the other members but they're busy with school, work and other stuff. Yeji, too, so I won't insist on calling her."
Hyejoo's fists clench - it's not like she can call Yeji up and press her for information. They're not even close, and besides, she understands the two-sided lifestyle a hero has. It's a worthy lifestyle but sometimes, a really busy one.
Rather than asking for Haseul to continue calling her colleague, Hyejoo opts to ask about other things, "Now that we have some kind of a trace here, what are we gonna do?"
Haseul hums, "At first, I was planning to assist ITZY in their sector. You know, hand in some help if they needed it?" She tears her eyes away from the monitor and looks up at Hyejoo, "That's actually why I placed you and Yerim north of downtown. You're a least an hour or 2 away from ITZY's sector, so if they need help, you could be there."
Hyejoo nods knowingly. She didn't know beforehand considering their placement reasonings never crossed her mind, but she's mindful of the way Haseul had thought of that.
Haseul continues, "But because of what we have now, we need to focus on our city. I told Yeji beforehand and she was perfectly fine with it, so you and Yerim will be placed deeper downtown." Haseul smiles softly, "If that's ok with you?"
Hyejoo's gaze lingers on Haseul's smile. It seemed strong and perfectly trained to stay wide and up, but the corners of her lips trembled ever so slightly.
The younger girl lets out a sigh, "Fine with me."
"And Yerim?"
Hyejoo shrugs, "Eh, probably. She'll go with the flow."
Haseul arches an eyebrow at her but laughs it off, "Alright then. I'll lay out the plan for everyone tonight so we can start getting to the plan."
"We're changing tonight?"
"We need to." Haseul takes in a deep breath, "Better safe than sorry, right?"
Hyejoo nods, "Right."
~
Yerim traces her finger against the balcony railing, slightly wincing when the skin of her finger skimmed against the cold metal surface. It sent a surge of shivers down her spine, making her tremble as she lets out a shaky breath.
"And a line.." She muttered mindlessly to herself, running her finger amidst the flimsy circle she drew on the metal bar.
It was nowhere near perfect - really, it was just a failed attempt of a circle and a jagged line drawn across. But it was enough to send uncertainty through Yerim, making the hair on her arms stand from the sheer sight of an emblem. Malevolent deeds hidden just beneath a drawing.
Yerim huffs, brushing away her illustration, letting the remnants of snow flutter off the balcony. She makes no effort of apologizing to whom ever may have received the said snow from below as Yerim decides it's best for her to stay inside rather than in the freezing cold.
Being so high up didn't really help during the winter. The wind that flew across their window always roared, hitting against the glass as if it was angry at having an obstacle in its way. It also didn't help that it was cold, making the temperature worst than it already was.
Yerim takes a quick step into the living room, her flushed cheeks rejoicing at the warmth that fanned her face. She kicks away her slippers, closing the door behind her and flying right into the middle of the couch, basking in the furry blanket that Kahei had gifted her just a few days ago.
Ah, Kahei.
She feels her heart drop. Yerim slowly sits up, pushing the heels of her palms against the couch, as she stares blankly at the tv. Flashing images of this movie were plastered across the screen but Yerim paid it no attention.
She hasn't told Kahei about what she did yet.
And Yerim feels anxiety bubble at the pit of her stomach when the thought of telling Kahei the news crossed her mind. Or maybe, it already has, but she's been ignoring it this whole time. Putting aside those problems in hopes of just letting it pass.
Yerim ponders on the idea. Maybe she should. Maybe she should keep her mouth shut. Maybe, rather than giving Kahei a mere heart attack, she'll keep her new career to a whisper, pushing it to the dark corners of her mind whenever Kahei happens to be around.
"Would Jungeun.." Yerim mutters, leaning forward, placing her chin against the palm of her hand.
No, knowing Jungeun, she was probably keeping it under covers as well. If anything Jungeun had most likely been keeping her mouth shut since all of this started.
Yerim chuckled lightly to herself, realizing that they were both equally terrified of Kahei. Well, it's not like she's anything horrifying to begin with. Kahei was far from it actually, she was soft spoken. Always well mannered and thinking of others, is what Yerim knows most about Kahei.
Even without words, Kahei finds a way to keep caring for the people around her, wordlessly shouldering the weight on theirs and putting even just a little bit onto hers. Kahei was nowhere near frightening. She was the exact opposite.
But Yerim knows that's not the reason she doesn't want Kahei to know. She isn't afraid of hearing an earful of lectures or a rare scene of an angry Kahei.
Yerim's afraid of hurting her. Of making her go through the same thing she had went through two years ago