writer

bonus:

you glance down at the corridor that seems to be void of any human except you. at the far end of the hall, you spot a singular door that’s slightly ajar and you make your way towards it. as you come closer, you try to make out what’s written on the metal plate that’s starting to wear out—X-Files—but it’s crossed out and under that there’s something scribbled with a sharpie: nobody here except the FBI’s most unwanted.

you stand at the door, hesitating, because this isn’t where you ever imagined yourself to be, at least not after graduating top of your class, spending months working on forensic reports, doing autopsies, doing casework, fieldwork and being recruited straight out of med school to work at the FBI. so you’d never thought you’d ever end up here—at the dingy basement of the FBI headquarters that seemed to be abandoned and looked sketchy.

and not to mention working in a department that seemed to almost be a joke, because seriously? what was the FBI doing having a department like this open? it made no sense. 

you should have taken that as your first sign to turn around and walk away, but you don’t because you can’t. you’d been reassigned here and orders were orders, even though you’d technically defied orders to be reassigned here in the first place, so you guess karma was real and it came back to bite you in the ass, hard.

you sigh as your hand rises up and you slowly push the door open, taking in the dimly lit room and the chaotic setup of the space as you step inside slowly. you take a peek inside the room to see if anyone was even there before stepping in more. there were stacks of old case files up against the wall on the shelves, newspaper clippings were pinned up on a board all connected in a mess of photo cutouts, red string and messy scribbled notes. there was another shelf on the other side of the wall, stacked with thick files, reference books and all kinds of manuals you could imagine. your eyes trace through the room and then you see him.

his back is turned to you and he’s so absorbed in reading the case file in front of him that he hasn’t noticed you yet. you clear your throat and he sits up, turning around in his chair. his eyes sharp and unreadable as they land on you. his hair is dark and it falls over his brows and forehead. a pair of thin wireframe glasses rest at the bridge of his nose and a pen is in his hand, most likely for taking notes. he’s wearing a white button down shirt and the sleeves are rolled up to his elbows. a dark brown tie hangs loosely around the collar of his shirt. you didn’t really need an introduction to the man because you already knew who he was—he had quite the reputation at the academy and bureau.

“agent jeon?”, you ask, stepping closer and reaching out to shake his hand. he only stares at you before speaking, extending his hand forward to shake your hand, his grip firm and touch warm. “you’ve found him”, he says, his voice low and you watch as he turns back to continue reading the case file in his hand, like it was more interesting than you.

“i’m agent L/N and i’ve been reassigned here, so i’m going to working with you from today”, you fill in. "i thought you came to shut down the place”, he says, his tone a little sarcastic, but still subtle. “nope, though i think they could shut down this place”, you say, which makes agent jeon turn around again. he looks at you, expressionless. “you’d be surprised at how many times they’ve almost succeeded”, he says. “so, who did you piss off to get stuck working here?”, he asks, putting the case file down and slowly standing up. god, he was tall.  

you sigh. “the assistant director”, you say and he clicks his tongue. “assistant director kang’s a sensitive man”, he says, giving you a look and you nod. “yeah”, you say, rolling your eyes. “so, what do you even really do around here?”, you ask, curious to know what his department was like and what he was like. sure, you’d heard plenty of rumours, stories and gossip in the air about him, but you had a thing for not believing things until you actually saw it or was proven by facts. “i investigate cases that don’t really fit into boxes or that aren’t ordinary or are just unexplainable. i investigate the cases that no one is willing to believe”, he says casually and it seemed like the rumours you’d heard about this man were true after all. you’d heard things like he was the kind of maniac who was obsessed with the paranormal world, believed in aliens and that type of stuff. he was always digging into cases that the bureau had labeledas x-files because they were unexplainable and tossed aside. agent jeon wasn’t really given explicit permission to dig into these cases, they were unassigned—but that never stopped him and weirdly the FBI stop him either. they kept it open and let him, but you on the other hand were the complete opposite. you only believed in logic, science and facts and you wouldn’t mind debunking some of his crazy theories.

“if you have any questions for me i’d be happy to answer them”, you say a few seconds later and he shakes his head, turning around, picking up the case file and walking towards the other end of the table where multiple photographs were scattered. “well if you have any doubts or questions about me or my qualifications—”, you start but he cuts you off.

“you did your undergraduate in physics, you’re a medical doctor and you also used to teach at the academy”, agent jeon says in one smooth line. “it’s just that in most of my work, the laws of physics and science rarely seem to apply", he lowly, his hands sorting through the photographs and picking up the ones he wanted, putting them into another pile by the side. so he’d read your file.

“do you believe in the existence of extraterrestrials?”, he asks, glancing over at you. you give him a look, like it was obvious. “logically, no, i don’t”, you say firmly, looking at him and he nods, like he knew that was going to be your answer. “given the capabilities that would be needed to cover that amount of space, distance and time—“, you start. “that’s all conventional wisdom”, he says, cutting you off mid answer. “if science and convention offer us no plausible solutions, don’t you think we should turn to other theories or unconventional methods?”, he questions, looking right at you. “i don’t believe that you can get answers beyond the realm of science”, you say confidently. “the answers are always there, you just need to know where to look”, you finish and he looks at you, an amused smile tugging at the corners of his lips, like he knew this was exactly what you were going to say, like he’d heard this same exact speech a thousand times before. 

“you know, i’ve never really worked with anyone before, at least not on any x-files”, he says. “in that case i’ll see you tomorrow agent Y/N”, he says and you nod your head, acknowledging him before you turn around. you walk out the door and let out a deep breath. somehow that whole interaction wasn’t too bad. you walk back towards the elevator and step inside, watching the door slowly close and it takes you back up to the ground floor—back to reality. 

what you didn’t tell agent jeon is that part of your reassignment was to keep an eye on him, to keep a tab on what he was up to and keep him in line. though most of the x–files were unassigned and the bureau let him investigate them anyway, they now started to feel like he was going over the top and digging around too much, poking his nose into matters that didn’t concern him. that’s where you came in the picture by getting reassigned here, to keep an eye on him and make sure he didn’t stir up trouble. in short, they wanted you to debunk his so-called theories with your experience in science and facts through your field reports. 

the next morning, you find yourself back at the dingy basement with two cups of coffee in your hands. you weren’t sure what to get agent jeon, so you got him an iced americano, hoping he’d like it. you walk into the medium sized office in the basement and find him already there, a case file in hand. “good morning”, you say, holding out the iced americano you’d got him. he glances up at you. “good morning agent L/N”, he says, taking the coffee from you and offering a small thanks. “so, what are we solving today?”, you ask, referring to the case file that he was holding. you stand there, unprepared because you really don’t know what to expect. he turns around the file, showing you the picture that’s attached to it and it’s a middle aged man in a military uniform. 

“that’s colonel nam. four months ago he went through a psychotic episode and he isolated himself in his own home. the military police got involved because nam wasn’t being cooperative, wasn’t responsive so he was taken away and hospitalised for treatment by the military police to monitor his condition. “and what exactly was his condition?”, you ask but agent jeon only shrugs lightly. “the military refuses to comment on his condition, the cause or even the status of his treatment. in fact, they refuse to comment on colonel nam at all”, he explains and you furrow your brows, confused.

“what do you mean they won’t comment on him at all?”, you ask and wonwoo only looks at you, like he wants to know too. “mrs. nam hasn’t seen him in the last four months and all her efforts to communicate with the military have gone unanswered. it’s like they don’t want anyone to know anything. so last month, she finally contacted the FBI and filed a case, reporting that her husband was kidnapped”, wonwoo finishes and you furrow your brows even more because nothing was making sense.

“but why would the military want to kidnap one of their own pilots? maybe he’s still recovering and they don’t know what to do”, you offer but wonwoo shakes his head lightly, like he knows that’s not the reason. “since 1988, there have been six pilots that have gone missing in action from the air base, the same air base that colonel nam flies aircrafts at”, agent jeon says. “right now the only thing the military are willing to say is that these pilots accepted all the risks that came with flying the aircrafts”, he adds. you nod because it made sense. the military wasn’t obliged to comment on anything or say anything because they had their own rules and regulations, well above the jurisdiction of the FBI. “this sounds like a military case and i don’t think we have any jurisdiction over this”, you say carefully, like you were weighing the odds, because you knew how military investigations worked and they hated people poking their nose into their business—everything was always so classified and top secret with them. 

“i’ve been tracking this case ever since it came through into the FBI office when ms. nam filed a case and last week for some reason it was de-prioritised and shelved without any proper or any investigation”, wonwoo says. “so?”, you start, looking at him, trying to understand what he was trying to imply. “so, you and i are going to go investigate a kidnapping”, he quips and you look at him, unsure. “i thought you only investigated cases related to the x-files? i don’t see how thiscase have something to do with that”, you tell a little confused, because this seemed like a completely ordinary case and something you should not be poking around in. but the look in agent jeon’s eyes tell you something different. 

“let’s just say that i can smell something odd about this case”, he says before putting the file back down on the table and taking a sip of the coffee you got him. you look at him again carefully before speaking. “agent jeon, are you sure about this case? what if it’s just a false lead?”, you ask, still skeptical. “it’s not, trust me”, he says. “and it’s wonwoo”, he says a beat later, he says and you nod. “pack your bags because we’ll probably be there all weekend”, he adds and you still for a second before nodding again. “i’ll meet you back outside the parking lot in an hour”, he instructs and you nod. god you really didn’t know what you’d just gotten yourself into.

an hour later your bags are packed and you and agent jeon get in the car. he drives you both out of the city to get to the location of mrs. nam’s house. it’s about an hour into the drive and the both of you haven’t really spoken much, the low hum of the radio filling in the silence instead. you’re just looking out the window and wondering what the hell you were doing here. wonwoo stops by at a rest stop halfway to get refreshed and stretch out a little while you go searching for a snack because you needed some fuel yourself. wonwoo’s walking around outside and he spots you by the cash counter inside. he’s just about to make his way towards you when his phone rings, an unknown number lighting up his screen. he hesitates for a moment before his finger slides over the answer button and he puts the phone to his ear.

“hello?”, he says into the line “i suggest that you leave this case alone, agent jeon. it’s not something you should be poking around at”, the voice says over the phone, adamant and firm, like it was someone older, someone speaking from experience. “what?”, wonwoo asks, alert and he stands up straighter, furrowing his brows. 

“the military will not tolerate an FBI investigation so leave this case alone. you are putting agent Y/N and yourself at unnecessary risk by poking into this case”, the man repeats.

“who are you? how did you find me?, wonwoo asks in a hushed by hurried tone. “ i suggest that you don’t concern yourself with that agent jeon. i only called you to give you some valuable advice. drop the case and leave right now”, the voice insists again before he line cuts. wonwoo looks around the area, trying to locate the person, to see if anyone was watching him but he doesn’t spot anything out of the ordinary. his jaw clenches slightly and he pockets his phone, finally making his way towards you.

“you okay?”, you ask, noticing that wonwoo is a little bit frazzled. “yeah”, he says lowly, taking one last sweep of the area before coming towards you fully. you both continue the drive and 45 minutes later you’ve reached the other city. wonwoo parks the car in front of mrs nam’s house and you both get out. the whiff of fresh air is refreshing as you close the car door shut, walking up towards the house. you ring the doorbell and wait, wonwoo beside you. just then the loud boom of a fighter jet echos from the sky, making you jump and your turn around as your eyes look up at the sky to find the source of the sound but you can’t make out the fighter jet in the sky. 

mrs. nam opens the door, looking at the both of you. “mrs. nam, we’re with the FBI, special agent jeon and special agent L/N”, wonwoo introduces and she nods. “ah yes, please come in”, she says, welcoming you both inside her house. you all sit on the couch and mrs. nam starts to explain her situation. “i started noticing things a few months ago. he’d changed and he started doing really odd things”, she starts, talking about colonel nam. “this one time at dinner, he got up and spread out fish food flakes all over his food and he said that he thought it was the salt”, she says, looking upset. “did you ever try to talk to him about this odd behaviour of his?”, you ask gently and mrs. nam shrugs lightly. “i tried too, but it was difficult because he would get so upset about it and start yelling”, mrs. nam says and you nod, understanding.

“did he ever talk about his work?”, wonwoo asks and she shakes her head. “no, what he did at work was never discussed. i mean i knew his work was top secret, but beyond that i never asked or wanted to know because i knew he’d get sensitive about it”, she answers. “i just want my husband back, that’s all i ask for”, she repeats. “we’ll try to find out what we can”, wonwoo says and you both take your leave, having gathered whatever information you could. 

“any ideas?”, wonwoo asks you as you both sit in the car. “it has to be something related to extreme stress”, you offer. “he’s a test pilot Y/N and they’re trained to deal with this type of extreme stress and beyond”, wonwoo counters, glancing at you. “have you heard of the aurora project?”, you ask and wonwoo nods. “it’s an unacknowledged project that was launched by the defence department. “they did later admit that they were testing a highly classified type of sub-orbital spy craft. maybe colonel nam was flying one of those planes and it must have taken a toll on him”, you offer, but by the look on wonwoo’s face he wasn’t entirely convinced about that part, or he wasn’t convinced at all.

later you try to call up and get in touch with the military air base where colonel nam worked at, but there’s no response, the line being on hold for almost an hour now and you were starting to lose hope. “any luck?” you ask wonwoo. “someone named colonel park will meet with us but only two weeks from now”, he says. “so, why don’t we go meet him first”, wonwoo says, plucking out his phone and somehow managing to find colonel park’s number and address. you reach colonel park’s house and you both step out of the car, walking ahead and knocking on the door. a man opens the door, looking between the both of you.

“colonel park?”, wonwoo asks. “yes?”, he responds. “special agent jeon, i’m with the FBI”, wonwoo introduces, but that one line is enough to make colonel park alert, his expression changing slightly. “i don’t have anything to say to you”, he says immediately, closing the door but wonwoo stops him. “we just want to ask you some questions about colonel nam”, wonwoo asks. “i have nothing to say, get the hell out of my property”, he says, slamming the door on wonwoo’s face and you look at him, defeated. an hour later, you and wonwoo find yourself sitting at a local dinner to catch a bite. another fighter jet flies past, the sound booming and echoing in the air, nearly shaking the cutlery that was on the shelves behind the counter. “who took those photographs?”, wonwoo asks to waitress as he points to the photographs behind the counter, all capturing some kind of unknown aircraft hovering in the air—something like an UFO. “various people, but i took that picture on the left”, the waitress says, a sort of proud look on her face.

“really? where?”, wonwoo asks as the waitress offers the photograph to wonwoo so he could take a closer look. “right outside at the parking lot at the back”, she says. “i went out to take the trash and there it was just hovering and it didn’t even make a sound”, she adds. you glance at wonwoo, giving him a really sort of look. he ignores you and continues the conversation like it was completely normal. 

“do you think i could see it?”, wonwoo asks and you look at him harder this time, like you couldn’t believe he just asked that. “maybe if you camp outside the air base you might be able to spot something”, the waitress says. “but you’ll need directions because it’s not on the map”, she adds, grabbing a tissue and quickly drawing out the location and handing it over to wonwoo. “appreciate it”, he says, getting up and you follow behind him. “seriously?”, you ask and wonwoo doesn’t answer you, unbothered.

wonwoo drives you both to the location, which you weren’t even supposed to be at in the first place since it was a restricted area and under military supervision. he parks the car and gets out, and you do too. “what are you honestly hoping to see?”, you ask wonwoo, giving him a look as he grabs something from the trunk of the car. “i don’t know, but no harm in checking right?”, he says, shutting the hatch of the car, walking ahead and climbing up the small hill and you sigh. “is that what you dragged me here for? to look for UFO’s?”, you ask, calling behind wonwoo, refusing to give into what he was doing right now. “this is going to look just great on my field report”, you mumble under your breath. and with nothing else to do, you turn around and go back to the car, waiting for wonwoo because there was no way in hell you were going to be waiting around to see something that didn’t even exist.

you don’t even know when you feel asleep because the next thing you know, you’re being awoken by wonwoo who’s tapping on the glass of the car window to wake you up. you startle awake and blink open your eyes. you sit up, opening the door slowly, your mind still laced with sleep as wonwoo speaks. “Y/N you need to come see this”, he says, holding the door open for you. you blink at him. “come on”, he urges again and you grumble something under your breath, half asleep and climb up to the top of the hill, following behind wonwoo. when you reach the top that’s where you see it—two objects flying in the air at speeds that seemed impossible for a normal aircraft to do. it’s like the sleep in your system vanishes in an instant and now you’re awake and alert and…fascinated.

“what is that?”, you ask and wonwoo shakes his head, equally fascinated. “i don’t know but keep watching, this is unbelievable, i’ve never seen anything like it”, he says, his eyes fixed on the two objects in the sky. “it’s been going on for half an hour”, wonwoo adds and you watch as the two objects move fair too quickly, far too swiftly and far too quietly to be anything you could recognise—for something that could be human-made.

“that can be an regular aircraft, they can’t manoeuver like that”, you say, glancing at wonwoo before looking back up at the sky. “then what else could it be?”, wonwoo asks. “lasers maybe? it could be reflecting off the ground into the clouds”, you offer but even that explanation doesn’t seem to convince you either. you watch as the two objects fly close together and then shoot up into the sky, leaving a loud booming echo in the air and you both turn to look at each other at the same time.

“oh my god”, you mumble because there’s no way it could be something like you’d seen in the photographs earlier at the diner—something like an UFO.  the sound of another aircraft hovering fills the air and you look up, spotting the helicopter easily. there’s light that’s shining on the ground, like it was searching for something and as the sound gets closer you realise what it is.  it’s looking for us”, wonwoo says quickly. a moment later, you see two teenagers running away and trying to escape from the gap in the wired fence. “hey”, wonwoo calls out, only to alarm the teenagers and he runs down the hills after then, you following behind him. 

“stop! FBI”, you say and they turn around, stopping in the tracks. “come on, this way”, wonwoo says, beckoning them to follow you both to take cover so the helicopter would go away. twenty minutes later, you and wonwoo find yourselves at the same diner with two teenagers with large appetites. “what were you guys doing there?”, wonwoo asks, looking between the two teenagers and they look between themselves as laugh. “we have a little spot up there and we like to go there, listen to some music and watch the air show”, one of them says. you give wonwoo a look but he doesn’t seem phased. “do you see it often?”, he asks and the teenager nods. “oh yeah and it’s so cool, i’ve never seen anything like that. it’s like they just fly and hover there, quiet as a owl, not making a single sound”, the other teenager adds, taking a big bite of the burger that wonwoo had bought him.

“did it look like this?”, wonwoo asks, taking out a copy of the photograph he’d taken earlier, showing it to the teenager. “yeah, it looked exactly like than man”, the teen says. afterwards in the car, you look over at wonwoo. “you really going to believe what those kids said?”, you ask. “why not”, wonwoo asks and you visibly roll your eyes. “did you see their eyes wonwoo, if i was that stoned i’d be spewing out nonsense too”, you say. “you could have shown that kid a picture of a hamburger in the sky and he’d have said it was the same thing”, you add, but wonwoo doesn’t seem to be paying attention, taking out the case file from the back seat and opening it, taking out a photo and handing it to you.

“this is a photo of an UFO that reportedly crashed in mexico in 1967 and the air base we were at right is the place where parts of the wreckage was shipped and transported to”, wonwoo says and you look at him, wondering where he was going with this. 

“okay and?’, you ask, hoping that whatever he was actually thinking of was some sort of joke. “take a wild guess”, he says, like he knew what was going through your mind too. “are you saying that the military is flying around UFO’s?”, you ask, raising a brow as you question him because saying it out loud sounded so ridiculous.

“not exactly, but they’re building and testing planes and aircrafts built using UFO technology”, wonwoo corrects and you only look at him dumbfounded before you turn your attention back to the photos in the case file and the one he just handed you. “wonwoo come on, all you’ve got to go on is two blurry photos that were taken almost 40 years apart”, you question, not believing the crap he was trying to pull on you.

“don’t you see the resemblance?”, he questions and you scoff softly. “how do you even know if these photographs are authentic?”, you counter, looking at him.“you saw what was in the sky earlier. you and i both saw the same thing, so what do you think they were? do you have an explanation for that?”, wonwoo asks, like he was challenging you. 

“they were probably military aircrafts that we don’t know about. you did say that colonel nam was a test pilot, so he was probably flying and testing what we saw”, you say, trying to offer wonwoo a logical explanation, because whatever theory he was spewing didn’t make sense and you didn’t like that. you pause and take a deep breath. “just because i can’t explain it doesn’t mean that i’m going to go on a whim and believe that they were UFOs”, you say.

“remind me what UFO stands for again agent L/N”, wonwoo inquires, his brow raised slightly. you let out a small scoff and give him a look. “unidentified flying object”, you say under your breath a beat later and he smirks. “and i think that fits the description of what we saw last night”, he finishes and you roll your eyes. “agent jeon, you’re crazy”, you say. “i know”, he says, his voice low before starting the car and driving back to the motel. you couldn’t believe you were stuck on this stupid case chasing so called UFO’s. 

the next day you get a call from mrs. nam saying her husband is back and you and wonwoo rush over there to see the miracle for yourself. you’d think that mrs. nam would be happy to have her husband back, but when you get there it’s quite the opposite. she looks upset more than anything.“mrs. nam? what happened? are you alright?”, you ask as you step inside the house and she shakes her head. “that’s not my husband”, she says, looking over to the room where mr. nam was, sitting by the table and doing something.

you look at colonel nam, confused because he looked like it was exactly him. you glance at wonwoo and then over at mrs. nam again who looked scared out of her wits, upset. “that’s not my husband”, mrs. nam repeats. “they’ve done something to him i know it, that’s not him”, mrs. nam insists. “honey who is it?”. colonel nam asks from where he was sitting and wonwoo looks over before moving closer. 

“i’m agent jeon and this is my partner”, wonwoo starts off, careful, like he didn’t want to scare colonel nam. “we’re with the FBI and we just want to ask you a few questions about your whereabouts for the last four months”, wonwoo continues, pulling out a chair and taking a seat opposite colonel nam. “can you tell us where you’ve been for the last four months?”, wonwoo asks. “i was at the hospital, recovering”, he says. “and what’s your date of birth?”, wonwoo asks next. “july 8th, 1985”, he says. “what’s the date of your wedding anniversary”, he asks again. “october 10th, 2002”, colonel nam says, looking visibly annoyed. “why do i have to answer these questions? are you’re treating me like some sort of criminal?”, he asks but wonwoo doesn’t look bothered. 

“colonel nam, you’re a pilot yes?”, wonwoo asks a moment later and the colonel nods. “i have this pilot friend who’s acts like a bit of a hotshot. he says he can do the immelmann at a sustained 8 Gs. is that actually possible?”, wonwoo asks, looking at colonel nam. the colonel thinks for a moment and then longer. silence fills the gap and confusion forms on colonel nam’s face. “i dont—i can’t seem to remember”, the colonel says and that’s everything wonwoo needs to know and mrs man looks horrified. “i told you, they did something to him”, she cries out as you try to comfort her, glancing over at wonwoo.

you and wonwoo leave and you’re both back in the car now. “would you please explain what the hell that was?”, you ask, confused. “that man was a pilot Y/N, he’s been a pilot for years, he’s trained and done it for nearly 12 years, but he couldn’t answer a simple question”, wonwoo says. “so?”, you question, not understanding where he was going with this. “i think they rewired his brain, like they selectively removed any memory that had to do with his time as a test pilot”, wonwoo finishes. you give him a look, blinking like he did not just say that. what the fuck.

“are you being serious right now? you ask, utterly baffled and confused because what the hell was he talking about? he was spewing literal nonsense and you weren’t paid enough to deal with this shit. “the brain doesn’t work like that wonwoo, you can’t just go poking in there and erase whatever you want, that’s physically impossible”, you counter. “then you explain it to me”, he says. “give me your medical opinion on what you just saw agent L/N”, wonwoo asks, looking at you. you stare at him for two seconds and take a breathe before answering him.

“it could be some type of amnesia or PTSD–”, you start but wonwoo cuts you off. “we both know that’s not the case”, he says. “you don’t know that agent jeon, you don’t know what colonel nam could have been through, but it’s highly possible. PTSD has been linked to selective memory loss”, you explain but wonwoo shakes his head, refusing whatever logic you’re trying to offer him. “no, there’s something else going on here”, wonwoo mutters under his breath. “no, there’s not. you’re just making up things that you want to believe”, you say and wonwoo looks at you, his gaze intense now.

“there’s something far more deliberate going on here to hide something”, wonwoo says firmly, his eyes never leaving yours. “the medical technology to do what you are suggesting doesn’t exist”, you say, shutting down his ridiculous claim again. “then why couldn’t he answer the question? he should have been able to, but he couldn’t”, wonwoo states. “like i said, it could be some sort of amnesia or PTSD, and even if what you are suggesting was possible, which let me tell you already that it’s highly impossible, why would they want to do something like that?”, you question. “to have control”, wonwoo says immediately. “to control information. colonel nam must have become a security risk after his psychotic episodes and the military decided they didn’t want him spilling the beans about whatever they were doing, so they erased his memory”, wonwoo says. you roll your eyes harder this time. “you have got to be fucking kidding me”, you mutter under your breath because talking to this man was like talking to a wall. “this is ridiculous, i think we’re just wasting our time here and i now understand why the FBI de-prioritised this case, because there is no case”, you say say, emphasising the last two words as you glance at wonwoo. he doesn’t say anything, only starting the car and driving in silence and you don’t say anything either.

on the way to the motel you notice two cars following you from behind through the rearview mirror. wonwoo seems to notice it too and he picks up the pace a little, his foot pressing onto the accelerator. then out of nowhere a car turns in the front, blocking your path and wonwoo hits the brakes to stop the car from crashing into it. the car stops to a sudden half and you jerk forward. “are you okay?”, he asks immediately and you nod, a little shaken. a bunch of men in suits step out and surround your car. “what the hell”, you grumble out. “please step out of the vehicle sir”, one of the man asks and wonwoo reluctantly gets out of the car and so do you. but as soon as wonwoo steps out, they push him up against the car, taking away his gun. “i’m FBI”, wonwoo says but that doesn’t do much because the men clearly don’t care. they don’t touch you, only surrounding you and keeping you in check. they start to search the car, taking whatever they find, opening the dashboard, the trunk and they find wonwoo’s camera, taking out the SD card and throwing the camera back in. 

“care to explain what this is about”, wonwoo asks, trying to fight off the guy holding him, upset. he tries to reach out for the SD card but the guy in the suit stops him. “national security”, one of the men says. “now here’s what you’re going to do. you both will get in your car and we’ll escort you back to your motel where you will pack and leave the town immediately or face the consequences of your actions”, the man says, letting you and wonwoo get back in the car and your car is sandwiched between them as they escort you back to the motel. back at the motel, you try to track the license plate number but there’s no avail because it was a fake. 

“who were those people?”, you ask, sitting down. “whoever they were, they knew where we were. they knew and they returned colonel nam as a distraction so we’d take the bait and go back home”, wonwoo says. “how do you know?”, you ask, because everything wonwoo had told you so far didn’t make any logical sense. 

“i didn’t tell you this before”, wonwoo starts, looking at you. “but at the rest stop i got a call from someone and he warned me to stay away from this case. he told me that i shouldn’t be poking around it and to drop this case”, wonwoo informs and you look at him. “what?”, you ask, it coming out a little louder than you expected. “there’s something bigger happening here Y/N, there is some sort of conspiracy going on and it’s gotta be related to whatever we saw flying that night”, wonwoo adds, standing up as he paces up and down the room and you give him a look again.

“not this UFO thing again. agent jeon, let me remind you that UFO’s do not exist”, you say. “then why are they going through all this trouble? if news like that got out imagine the chaos it would cause”, he says. “if it exists”, you correct, looking at him. “and if it were true, the government would know how to handle it”, you say.  no, if it was true, it would confirm the one and only truth—the existence of extraterrestrial life”, wonwoo says and you stand up, done with whatever bullshit that he was spewing. you pause and look at him again.

“did you ever stop to think that what we saw were simply experimental aircrafts that are possibly highly classified and that might be part of something like the aurora project”, you ask, looking right at him with your arms crossed over your chest, determined to debunk this stupid and ridiculous theory of his. “don’t you think the government has the right and responsibility to protect it’s own secrets so they don’t get in the wrong hands”, you question and wonwoo only looks down at you.

“oh yeah? is that what you think this is? is that what you want to believe?”, wonwoo asks, taking a step closer, his eyes locked onto yours as he looks at you. he stuffs his hands into the pockets of his trousers casually, looking completely unfazed at your attempts to override his theories with your so called logical explanations. “yes”, you say firmly, standing your ground. his eyes linger on you a moment longer before you speak again. “our kidnap victim is no longer missing so let’s pack up and go home alright”, you tell.

“aren’t you even curious? don’t you want to know the truth?”, he asks, looking over at you. “the truth agent jeon is that whatever we saw were just military aircrafts and we have no business poking around and digging into this anymore”, you state and there’s silence before wonwoo speaks. “fine, alright, we’ll go”, he says. “i’ll just take a quick shower, pack and then we’ll go back”, he adds. “alright”, you say, turning around and walking out, heading back to your own room and glad that he was back to his senses—somewhat. but what you don’t know is that while you were busy packing, wonwoo had taken the car and driven out, going back to the airbase to find some answers. it’s only when you knock on the door and find it open, hiding it empty that you realise what actually happened and your curse under your breath.

you try to call wonwoo, but all your calls go unanswered and go to voicemail instead. frustrated, you send him a voicemail hoping he’d hear it and get back to you, but you already had a feeling he wouldn’t. “agent jeon, where the hell are you? get back here right now or else you are going to lose your job”, you say over the phone. you sigh, throwing your phone on the bed and falling back against the pillows as you stare at the ceiling. it’s only been one day working in this department and you’re already so done. on top of that, you still had to write you field report and you had to somehow justify how you’d followed wonwoo to investigate a kidnapping, only to find that you were apparently chasing after UFOs because wouldn’t that just sound so grand on your report. you sigh again because you were sure that assistant director kang would have a grand laugh reading that. you contemplate if you should try calling agent jeon again, but you give up, because really what was the point?  

you spend the rest of the night working on your field report and hoping that agent jeon would return back by morning because god knows what you would do then. maybe you’d report him missing. meanwhile late into the night, agent jeon walks quietly in the forest, crouching down to cover under the foliage and not get caught. the entire area in the airbase is under high security and that only made him even curious. what would they want to hide so badly? 

wonwoo gets closer to the airbase buildings and as his vision adjusts to the darkness, he sees aircrafts parked and they’re none like he’s ever seen before. he fishes out his phone and quickly snaps a few photographs. wonwoo crouches down behind a truck and slowly walks into one of the closed areas that seemed to be off limits and with only restricted access. there’s commotion coming from the inside and he can hear people yelling and barking out orders, pilots walking around and engineers tweaking things or making notes. what wonwoo sees only confirms what he’s been thinking all along—that the military was indeed using UFO technology to build aircrafts. 

the aircrafts that wonwoo is looking at right now were built completely differently and nothing like what he’d ever seen before. these were like the ones he saw the other night, the one that were doing those impossible manoeuvres that no ordinary aircraft could do, flying at speeds that no ordinary aircraft was capable of. it was clear that they were testing these aircrafts and that colonel nam must have been flying one of these things before it took a toll on him. this sort of technology—UFO technology was lightyears ahead of what humans could ever be capable of and the fact that they’ve been working and developing this for almost 40 years, ever since the they got hold of the wreckage means that it’s taken them around that long to understand it in the first place. trying to implement it into something humans could even use and fly was a whole another ball game. the government and military were willing to take all the risks involved, even if it meant comprising on the lives of the pilots and losing them in the process, like colonel nam.

wonwoo takes a few more photographs and he almost slips away quietly, until a soldier from the back spots him among the bushes because he was tall and bulky and he the small bushes didn’t really help him camouflage behind them. there’s no time to think before wonwoo feels a sharp pain hit the back of his head and he’s knocked out. wonwoo is unconscious when he’s laid on a stretcher. he wills himself to wake up, but he keeps fading in and out of consciousness, trying to fight whatever was happening to him because he knows what they’re going to do, but he can’t really do anything, not with his mind slipping back and forth like that. 

when wonwoo wakes up, he shifts slightly. the room is dim and as his vision begins to clear up and he makes out that he’s actually in a holding cell. wonwoo adjusts the glasses on is face and the bed creaks as he slowly sits up and supporting himself up with his hands. his mind is still foggy and he shakes his head to clear it up, but it only seems to make him feel worse. he lets out a low groan as he tries to remember what happened. for a split second he can’t remember and he curses under his breath, thinking that they got to him. a minute later the hazy memories of what he just saw float back into his mind and he sighs, visibly relieved that his memory hadn’t been erased like the colonel’s. 

wonwoo moves again, sliding off the bed and makes a beeline to the door, trying to open it but the door doesn’t budge because he’s been locked from the outside. he curses under his breath and tries to knock on the door to possibly get someone’s attention from the outside, but there’s no response. wonwoo turns around and sits back down onto the hard mattress, running a hand through his hand, wondering what to do and still trying hard to remember fragments of what he saw, hoping it wouldn’t disappear from his memory. almost four hours later, the door to the room rattles and opens with a loud creak. light floods into the room from outside and wonwoo winces a little, adjusting his eyes to the sudden intrusion of light. he only makes out a silhouette before his eyes fully adjust to the sight of you.

“agent jeon”, you state, your voice firm and laced with someone else, like disbelief. “seriously? you fucking lie and then i don’t know…you run away alone to infiltrate or should i say trespass on a military base? do you know how this sounds?”, you say upset, unable to control your tone and the curses that come along. the sound of your voice fills your room and wonwoo seems to let out a small sigh of relief because it was you. you close the door behind you and it’s dim again, but he doesn’t mind it now since it’s you. his eyes have adjusted to the dim room now and he can see you now, making out the scowl on your face and the way your standing with your arms crossed against your chest, clearly upset. 

“how’d you find me?”, wonwoo asks and he can practically feel the burn of your gaze on him right now. “i can’t believe they sent me here to bail your dumbass out and take you back. maybe you should spend some more time here and then you’ll come back to your senses”, you complain. “dumbass?”, he repeats, a little amused. not even three days with working with him and you’re already calling him names—bold. you sigh loudly. “sorry, i mean agent”, you correct, the scowl still visible on your face.

“atleast they didn’t erase my memory”, wonwoo says, looking at you, his voice low. “very funny”, you say, taking a few steps closer. “i know what i saw Y/N and i know exactly what they are doing”, wonwoo repeats but of course, you don’t believe him. “give me a break agent jeon, you need to get a grip onto things, get a grip on yourself and get back to reality”, you say, frustrated.

“the director is very upset about this whole thing and he’s even talking about suspending you and closing the x-files department—permanently this time. is that really what you want? they’ve scheduled a meeting about this tomorrow so you need to come back with me right now and stop this nonsense because this isn’t our case anymore”, you tell firmly, hoping to knock some sense into his head, but then he never really believed in things that made sense did he?

“i think i have the right to know the truth, don't i? we all have the right to know what the government is actually doing and what the truth is”, wonwoo asks. “no you don’t, not after the shit you just pulled. the director here is extremely upset about this whole thing”, you tell. 

“yeah right”, wonwoo scoffs. “he’s just trying to cover his ass and cover the tracks of whatever i managed to see and figure out”, wonwoo says and you sigh, getting more annoyed. this job was really testing your patience. “agent jeon, you have got to stop this madness”  you say. “i heard you were the best analyst in the violent crimes unit and you threw it all away for this? chasing things that don’t even exist?”, you question harshly, looking at wonwoo. you can make out his face now, and his expression too, your eyes having adjusted in the dim light well enough now.

you see the subtle way his jaw flexes at your question. “i get that you might not believe agent L/N, but don’t disrespect the work i do”, he says, his tone firm. you roll your eyes and turn around, pacing the room. “this is ridiculous,” you repeat, because you couldn’t believe he was still spewing all this nonsense while he was locked up and could potentially be fired. 

“let’s just go, okay, agent jeon? they’re waiting for you back at the headquarters to be questioned and if we don’t make it by then, i guess you can say goodbye to the x-files forever”, you say and wonwoo slowly stands up. “grab your things”, you say, opening the door and gesturing for wonwoo to walk out first. you follow behind wonwoo where he collects his belongings and you both are escorted out of the military holding to the exit where you’re again told to leave and not interfere with military duties. 

the car ride is silent as you drive the car to the airport. wonwoo looks tired and it’s clear that he’s upset over what happened, but you are too. you’re too tired to start another conversation with him so you sit in silence and drive, only wanting to reach home in peace. because you didn’t have the bandwidth for another argument right now. the next morning, both you and agent jeon are summoned by the FBI at headquarters for questioning by the internal review board. you answer all the questions that they ask you truthfully and you hope that somehow they pardon agent jeon because at the end of the day, he was still good at what he did. maybe they’d reassign him and maybe they’d reassign you too and this nightmare would be over soon. when wonwoo gets home, he checks his phone and like he’d predicted, the photos he’d take earlier has all been deleted. he’d been so close.

inside the room, the tension hangs in the air as wonwoo sits and waits for his verdict. he doesn’t exactly seem too bothered, but he looks like he’s not going to take any bullshit either. “agent jeon, you’re here because you trespassed on a military investigation and risked exposing the government. you are also facing charges of insubordination and misconduct. how do you want to respond to these allegations agent jeon?”, one of the members of the jury board asks.

“you and i both know exactly what was going on over there”, wonwoo starts off. “you failed to get the proper authorisation, there was a lack of professionalism and judgment on your part and you violated codes of conduct”, the jury member counters. “i knew i’d never get the authorisation anyway and there was a cover up in play”, agent jeon says. “what cover up?”, the jury member asks. “i also have further evidence, or at least i did, but i know what is going on”, he says. “that is irrelevant agent jeon and there is no evidence to prove those claims”, assistant director kang cuts in, dismissing whatever wonwoo says.

“well, now colonel nam is home now and happy”, the jury member says and wonwoo sighs, resigned as he leans back in his chair. “well, then what can i say?”, he says, getting up because there was no point in arguing about it here. “you will be dismissed and reassigned. that will be all agent jeon”, the jury member says, like he’s pleased that he gets to dismiss agent jeon and close that godforsaken x-files department.

“you can deny all the things i have seen and all the things i have discovered but not for much longer. the people have the right to know what is going on and no one, not even the government has the right or jurisdiction to hide the truth.”, he says before walking out of the room. an hour later, same the jury member walks into his office in a huff and digs out his phone from his pocket, dialling a number. “why did you overturn my decision?”, he asks as soon as the line is answered—the mystery man. 

“agent jeon’s conduct was a clear violation of the federal law and bureau protocols. our case was airtight and we finally had a excuse to kick him out and close the x-files. i don’t understand what you’ve done and you ruined the last best chance we had to get rid of him for good”, the jury member yells over the phone, clearly upset. the line is silent for moment before a voice crackles and speaks. “i can understand how you feel, but you and i both know that agent jeon’s behaviour poses a dilemma. his occasional insubordination and acting on impulse are at the end of the day far less dangerous”, the mystery man says. 

“less dangerous than what sir?”, the jury member asks, rubbing a hand to his forehead as he tries to understand the higher up’s decision—mystery man’s decision. “it’s less dangerous than having him expose what he finds to the wrong people, what he knows, or what he thinks he knows”, the mystery man says. “always keep your friends close, but keep your enemies closer”, the mystery man says before ending the call. 

two weeks later, everything is quiet and there seems to be some sense of normalcy. you really don’t understand how wonwoo didn’t get fired but you’re also glad in some way. you’re glad that wonwoo must have gotten some sense knocked into him finally. the following week you’re at home, sitting at the table and having dinner with your parents. “the dinner was amazing darling”, you mother says and you smile, getting up to gather the empty plates. “i’m glad you enjoyed it”, you say with a small smile. she steps in to help you and after dinner, you all are gathered at the living room, sipping on some tea. 

“so, how’s work going?”, you father asks, looking at you. “it’s going good”, you say and your father only nods, giving you a small smile. “how’s your new partner? is he nice?”, you mom asks. “yeah, he’s not too bad”, you say, but your mom’s clearly not satisfied with that answer. “is he cute”, she asks, nudging you lightly and you give her a look. “mom!”, you say and she chuckles. “what? you need to get a life Y/N and it helps if you can find a man. i’m just trying to keep your options open”, your mom says and your dad doesn’t say anything. “he’s just…obsessed with his work and not my type”, you grumble out to your mom who finally takes the hint and doesn’t press you for more details. 

after fifteen minutes, the empty tea glasses clutter the table and your father looks at you mother and then to you. “let’s head back, we gotta beat the traffic too”, your father says. “alright”, your mom says, turning towards to engulf you in a warm hug as your father stands up. “thanks for having us Y/N”, your mother says. “of course”, you say as she pulls away. you stand up and look at your father. “good night dad”, you say and he gives you another nod before he pulls you in for a hug.” good night captain”, you say and he smiles lightly.

that night, you wake up in the middle of the night because you hear something outside, startling you awake. you sigh softly, alert and looking around. you don’t spot anything out of the ordinary so you lie back down. you’re about to go back to sleep when your phone rings—your mother. you slide to answer the call, putting the phone to your ear. “hello? mom?”, you say but you’re only met with silence. “mom?”, you repeat again and the sound of your mother’s voice floats in—broken and shaky.

“Y/N”, your mother says softly, her tone catching you off guard and you’re immediately worried. “mom ,what’s wrong?”, you ask again, sitting up straighter. there’s another pause before she speaks. “we um—we lost your father”, she says and you furrow your brows, confused, because you’d just seen your father earlier tonight. “he suffered a massive coronary heart attack an hour ago and he’s…gone”, you mother says. you’re shocked, trying to take in what your mother just told you, still in denial but as the words slowly start to sink into you, your eyes get teary and your heart sinks a little more. 

the next morning you don’t go to work in the morning but you take a half day off. the funeral is only held with close family and friends, a quiet but tight knit group of family members that your father knew and was close to. the day is quiet too, the sun shining but few puffs of clouds spotting the blue sky. you and everyone else are standing by the shore on the bridge as you watch the man on the boat spreads your fathers ashes into the water. but as you watch, you can’t help but feel a twinge of guilt creeping up at you. 

“he was entitled to a full ceremony as a captain”, you say to your mom beside you, who’s wiping her tears and looking ahead. “this is exactly the way he would have wanted it, with just the family and his favourite song playing in the background”, you mother says, glancing at you. you’re gaze is focused ahead and you feel yourself getting emotional again. “i know that you and father were disappointed that i chose to join the FBI instead of continuing with medicine”, you start, looking at your mom. “but was he at all ever…proud of me?”, you ask, blinking back the tears that threatened to spill out. your mom only looks at you. “he was your father”, is all your mom says like that was supposed to be the answer to your question, like that was supposed to bring you some sort of comfort. you glance away, looking down before looking back up into the sea, trying to let your mom’s words comfort you, because that was all you had left now.

after the funeral, you’re too tired and in no mood to eat, so you head straight to the bureau. you could have taken a day off but you didn’t want to. you wanted to work—you needed a distraction. you walk into the bureau, a few people giving you sympathetic smiles since they must have heard the news about your father. you walk right into the elevator, pressing the button for the basement, taking a long breath. you close your eyes for a few seconds before the elevator door slides open and the silence of the basement welcomes you. you walk ahead push the door open and walk in, spotting wonwoo inside. he turns around when he hears the door open, spotting you walking in.

“you’re late”, wonwoo says matter of factly. you hadn’t told him yet and he probably didn’t hear the news either. wonwoo turns his attention back onto the photographs attached to the file that he’s holding, probably something he wanted to show you.

“yeah, i’m sorry about that”, you pause, gathering your words. “my father–um–passed away last night and it was sudden. i just came from the funeral earlier today”, you manage to say and wonwoo picks up his head immediately at your words, his eyes finding yours. he looks at you, his gaze softening for a moment as he looks at you. “i’m sorry for your loss”, he says, noticing the way you hid the exhaustion on your face, your eyes a little swollen from crying and he notices the tiredness in your posture as his eyes linger on you.

you nod, offering him a small smile at his words. “you can take the day off, i’ll handle this case”, he says but you shake your head in protest. “no, i’m fine, i’d like to work”, you say, walking ahead and putting your bag down. you didn't know how to face yourself if you were alone now. you hadn’t given yourself time to grieve over it yet, but you couldn’t face it, not right now. it was still sinking in. “what do we have today?”, you ask, turning around, trying to sound cheery, trying to sound okay, but it falls flat instead and you hope that wonwoo doesn’t notice it—but he does. he looks at you carefully before speaking. 

“we got a case for a bank robbery. the FBI got a call earlier tipping us off, saying that they’d be hitting the town bank today. we’ve been told to go in undercover and bust the operation, they could use some more manpower”, wonwoo explains, extending the file towards you so you could get a closer look at the picture of the suspects. 

“cool”, you say, as your eyes scan over the brief summary of the case and look at the photographs attached. the suspects were a couple who had been hitting banks downtown and robbing them. the FBI had been tracking them for over a 6 months and getting close. after someone called in with a tip earlier today saying they would be hitting another bank, the team decided to do a stakeout, go undercover and catch them in the act. the agent in charge of this case was agent jaehyun, a name you were familiar with. you’d trained with him at the bureau. agent jaeyhun had been tracking this case for a while and right now he was so close to catching them. you get teamed up with jaehyun to stakeout inside the bank while wonwoo would patrol outside with the other agents, though he secretly disliked the idea very much. he wanted to be inside, perhaps with you and he was a little concerned about your mental state since your father has just passed away, not less than 24 hours ago and here you were being active on the field.

it’s late now and you’re inside the bank with agent jaehyun undercover posing as customers as well as a few other FBI police officers. you notice that agent jaehyun’s been jittery all evening, pacing around, glancing at the door, thinking every other person walking into the bank is his guy. “relax, they’ll be here soon enough”, you say, glancing at jaehyun, but there’s still an uneasy look on his face. “the bank is going to close in ten minutes”, jaehyun says, his voice clipped. “well are you sure that it wasn’t a false tip?”, you question. “i’ve been on this case long enough to tell the difference. i know it’s them, i can feel it”, jaehyun says. 

two minutes later is when chaos ensues. a masked robber enters the bank with a gun, yelling and shouting. “EVERYBODY GET DOWN, GET DOWN RIGHT NOW”, the masked robber yells as he storms inside, waving his gun around, scaring the people around him. you glance at agent jaehyun, giving him a look and quietly asking what to do next. people start panicking and screaming, crouching down on the floor in fear as the robber continues to yell and wave his gun in the air. the masked robber reaches you, pointing his gun straight at you as he yells. “get down on the floor or you’re dead”, he says and you comply and slowly start to crouch down, waiting for the signal before you could ambush him. “get down on the floor or else i’ll shoot”, he repeats as he moves forward towards the cash counter and throws a bag towards the cashier behind the counter. “put the money in the bag now, do it quick”, he yells again, pointing the gun towards the cashier and she grabs the bag in a panic and quickly starts to fill the bag as the masked robber continues to yell and shout, creating panic and confusion, making sure he was in control of the situation.

agent jaehyun slowly gets up from the side and raises his gun at the masked robber. “drop the gun, FBI, drop the gun now”, agent jaehyun says firmly as he moves two steps forward, his gun pointed at the masked robber and you take it as your sign and you get up slowly, pulling out your gun and cornering the masked robber. the masked robber watches as you walk ahead, your gun pointed towards him. the masked robber looks at jaehyun and then you. realising he’s cornered, the masked robber slowly starts to lower his gun. but in that split second, something changes and he raises the gun too quickly in panic and fires a shot at agent jaehyun. the echo of gunfire fills the air loudly and agent jaehyun collapses onto the ground in an instant.

the masked robber turns towards you, but you beat him to it and fire two shots from your gun at the masked robber, your face tight and expressionless you watch him fall to the ground. a few other agents and police rush inside at the sound of the gunfire and you run towards jaehyun, signalling for the ambulance. at the hospital, it’s even more chaos. a team of doctors try to stabilise agent jaehyun, but the masked robber is pronounced dead on the scene. before you even have the time to check on agent jaehyun’s status further, you notice a bunch of men in crisp black suits hovering near agent jaehyun’s stroller. you watch as the start to take him away, guiding him elsewhere and you furrow your brows and walk ahead, your feet moving quick as you try to catch up to them.

“hey!”, you call out, walking towards agent jaehyun in a hurry, but you get stopped by one of the men who gives you a stern look. “we’re with the national intelligence and we’ve gotten orders to take agent jaehyun in”, the man says and you’re confused because why would the national intelligence want to get involved in this? “this is an FBI investigation, you don’t have any jurisdiction here”, you say, trying to move forward, but he doesn’t let you. “if you have a problem speak to your director”, the man says and you take a step back, watching as jaehyun is taken away and you can’t seem to do anything about it. you mumble something about talking to the director and turn around to go find wonwoo. maybe they had a reason to take him. an hour later, you manage to find wonwoo. you couldn’t reach him earlier because of the chaos everywhere. “agent jeon!”, you say once you spot him in the hallways of the hospital. he turns around at the call of him name and his eyes find yours. relief floods through him and he makes his way to you. 

“are you okay?”, is the first thing he asks and you nod. “i’m fine”, you say. “how’s agent jaehyun? is he stable?”, wonwoo asks and you look at him. “i-i don’t know. there were a bunch of men in suits and they took him somewhere, i don’t know where. they said that they were with national intelligence”, you explain. “what do you mean?”, he asks. “i don’t know, i told them that they had no jurisdiction here, that this was an FBI case but they didn’t listen”, you add. wonwoo simply nods and then turns around to one of the nurses by the reception on the floor. “is there any man here who came with a gunshot injury in the past two hours? jaehyun was the name”, wonwoo asks and the nurse looks at the computer for a moment and nods. “yes, he’s here and he’s in room 201. as of now his condition is stable and you can visit him if you like”, the nurse offers. what the hell.

you glance at wonwoo, confusion flickering over your face. “i swear i saw a bunch of men take him away”, you mumble out, feeling stupid now. there’s no way you’d been seeing things had you? wonwoo doesn’t say anything else. “don’t worry about it”, is all he says. “you should get some rest, it’s been a long day”, he adds, looking at you longer this time. “yeah…okay”, you say softly. “i’ll drop you home”, he says and you nod. 

the next morning you rush back to the hospital and find agent jeon already there with another agent—agent lee. you glance over at agent jayhyun’s bed but it’s empty. “what happened?”, you ask, looking at the empty bed and room. “agent jaehyun’s gone, the nurse came in to check up on him early in the morning but she only found an empty bed”, wonwoo fills in. “there was also a mutilation—two of the masked robbers fingers were cut off with surgical shears”, wonwoo adds. why would he do that?

“was there any sign of agent jaehyun that was picked up from the CCTV cameras?”, you ask and agent lee shakes his head. “the cameras caught him leaving, but he hasn’t been home or to the bureau either, so there’s no sign of him as of now”, agent lee fills in. “you said he was chasing this guy for well over six months right?”, wonwoo asks a moment later and agent lee nods. “yeah, he practically lived the case and it was all he ever thought about”, agent lee says and wonwoo looks at you. “what do you think?”, wonwoo asks, looking at you, waiting to hear your opinion on this entire situation. “i think that this might be some sort of post trauma psychosis”, you say.

back at the FBI building, wonwoo shows you the fingerprint that he pulled from the knife earlier. “it’s his left thumb print”, wonwoo says. “whoever was holding the knife, it was done with the left hand”, wonwoo adds and you raise a brow. “whoever? you mean agent jaehyun”, you correct. “jaehyun was right handed, i checked and all the CCTV footages show that the masked robber was left handed”, wonwoo continues and you can already feel that he’s about to throw an nonsense theory at you. 

“and what you’re saying is?”, you ask, not sure where he was leading you on with this. “how long was jaehyun flatlined before they revived him?”, he asks. “14 minutes, before those men took him”, you answer, saying the last part softly because you still didn’t know if that was real or if you were making things up. wonwoo doesn’t seem phased by it and he pulls out a piece of paper from the file on the table. “this is the ECG strip of jaehyun’s cardiac activity at the time”, he says, handing it to you to look at. “how’d you get this?”, you ask. “i had to ask the nurse, nicely”, he tells flatly and can’t help but give him a look.

“now, what does that look like? give me your medical opinion on it agent L/N”, wonwoo asks looking at you. your eyes fall down to the ECG strip and your eyes scan over it, taking a few seconds to understand it before speaking. the activity was…unusual. 

“it could be anything honestly, an instrument malfunction or even possibly an electrical overload to the heart”, you start because you don’t know how to say it without it sounding stupid or quite impossible. “but what does it look like”, wonwoo asks again, like he’s so sure that he’s right, a sense of quiet confidence in his tone, and he needs to hear it from you. you sigh softly, looking at the ECG strip again before picking your head back up to look at wonwoo. “it looks like two heartbeats”, you finally say, even though you don’t want to believe it or give wonwoo the satisfaction of being right. 

“exactly”, wonwoo says. “you mentioned that jaehyun and the robber went into cardiac arrest at the same time right?”, wonwoo asks and you nod. “yes, from whatever i observed during those first twenty minutes”, you tell. “so that means for a few minutes both the men were technically dead”, wonwoo states. “yes, technically, but agent jaehyun was somehow miraculously resuscitated”, you correct. “they managed to resuscitate his body”, wonwoo counters and now you’re confused as to where the hell he was even going with this conversation. “what are you trying to say agent jeon?”, you ask, giving him a knowing look. 

“two men died in that room, but one came back, so the question is which one”, wonwoo concludes. “don’t be ridiculous”, you tell, shutting whatever he was trying to say down. “well you’re the one who told me right now that this ECG strip has two heart beats recorded on it”, wonwoo says, like he’s challenging your own opinion. “that’s—it could be an instrument malfunction or an error due to the electrical overload from the defibrillator”, you counter. you’re just about to open your mouth to say something else when wonwoo beats you to it.

“do you believe in the afterlife Y/N? or can you tell me about what you know about near-death experiences?”, wonwoo asks. you look at him like you couldn’t believe he’d just asked you that. wonwoo only gives you an encouraging look to answer the question and you glare at him a moment longer before you answer. “well you know, there's the usual stuff like tunnels or light or people rising up and being able to see their own bodies”, you say. “and as a doctor yourself, how you justify this type of experience?”, he questions further. “i would say it is some sort of dissociative hallucinatory activity", you answer.

“people are also prone to exhibit different behaviour and shifts in their personality, they might get perceived psychic abilities or have a sudden enthusiasm about life. sometimes during the process of dying when the body is vulnerable, unexplainable things can happen”, wonwoo adds onto your point. “come on wonwoo, you really want me to believe that?”, you question. “okay agreed, i’m not going to discount near death experiences, but it can still be explained with science and facts. i believe agent jaehyun’s disappearance can still be explained by psychological terms”, you add confidently.

“oh yeah? how so?”, wonwoo asks in that smug tone again that seems to tick you off in a way. you cross your arms across your chest, like you’re trying to prove a point. “the stress of this entire case, the trauma to his body after being shot”, you say. “he was always so stressed, always on the edge, it was like it was impossible for him to relax”, you say, looking at wonwoo. so his personality might have played a part too”, you finish. “so what you’re saying is that agent jayhyun was predisposed to this sort of psychotic episode?”, wonwoo asks.

“well i sure as hell don’t believe that the soul of the masked robber has inhabited agent jaehyun’s body”, you say, because that was a wild statement and obviously impossible. you couldn’t take that seriously. wonwoo only nods. “we’ll see about that”, he tells, saying something about some going through the evidence again and he disappears upstairs. 

it’s late now at the bureau and past your working hours, but you’re sitting in the basement as you try to figure out where agent jaehyun could have gone. what if he died somewhere all alone? you shake the thought out of your head and continue to read whatever notes he had made on the bank robber’s case file for the past six months, trying to connect this with anything that might have to do with his disappearance. somewhere along the lines you forget what you’re reading and the thought of your father enters your mind. a twinge of guilt pinches at your heart and you don’t even realise that a few tears have rolled down your cheeks. 

wonwoo steps into the room again and he notices you instantly. tonight you look tired. your movements are slow and careful, like you’re holding yourself together even though you need rest. the event’s of what happened to agent jaehyun and you still processing your father passing away must be exhausting for you to process wonwoo thinks. you didn’t even take a break and you came straight to work, like you didn’t give yourself the permission to grieve your father’s passing properly. your jacket hangs open and your hair is loosely pulled back, a few loose strands of your hair falling out and framing your face. wonwoo’s gaze on you lingers from the door and you haven’t noticed him yet. wonwoo watches the way you sit quietly and sees the way you lift your hands up to wipe away the tears that roll down your cheeks quietly, like you didn’t want anyone to see you like this and that does something to wonwoo. he straightens and pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose, walking in slowly, pretending like he didn’t see you cry. you notice him when you sense movement in your peripheral vision and you look up. 

“you can call it a day, i’m sure we’ll find jaehyun soon”, wonwoo’s voice cuts through the air. it’s not harsh, but soft. he walks towards you and you snap out of your thoughts, wiping away your tears quickly, hoping he wouldn’t notice—but of course he does. 

he walks forward slowly and you look up at him, your eyes still a little wet. “are you okay?”, he asks and you nod. wonwoo takes a seat at the opposite end of the cluttered table. “yeah, sorry, i didn’t even realise”, you say quickly as you try to play it off and you’re quiet for a moment before speaking again. “i was just thinking of my father”, you say softly. “i mean he wasn’t really supportive of me joining the FBI. he wanted me to continue my path in medicine and become a doctor”, you tell softly as you dwell on the feeling. “i just guess i’ll never know if he was ever really proud of me”, you add quietly as wonwoo listens to you. he’s quiet for a moment before speaking. “i’m sure he would have been very proud”, wonwoo answers gently and you only manage to give him a small smile. “yeah, i guess”.

“anyway, i guess i’ll call it a night”, you say, getting up and gathering your things and wonwoo stands up too. “i’ll drop you home, it’s late”, he offers. “oh, no it’s fine, i can take a cab or walk”, you say. “i’ll drop you, it’s on the way anyway”, he repeats and with that, you really have no room to argue with him anymore. “okay”. you’re sitting in wonwoo’s car and he’s driving, the car is quiet. wonwoo reaches out to turn on the radio and the tune of an all too familiar song fills the car, making your let out a small defeated sigh. wonwoo glances over to see if you’re okay. “this was my dad’s favourite song”, you say softly. “maybe it’s a sign, he’s telling you that he’s proud of you”, wonwoo says. 

“who knows”, you say, defeated, looking out the window. 

the next day you get called in to investigate a lead at a small abandoned warehouse. it had been a hideout for the masked robber and maybe it would help you find some clues to the robber’s partner’s whereabouts. the warehouse is small and dark, like there’s been no electricity inside here for a while and the lightbulbs are all either fused or not working. you can tell that someone hadn’t been here in over a week, but there were sure signs of life—like coffee stains on the table, piles of mugs by the sink and a small bed that hadn’t been made yet. you squint your eyes to adjust to the dimly lit room, relying on whatever natural light was entering to be able to make out your surroundings. you pluck your phone out of your pocket and turn on the flashlight so you’d get a better look at things. as you look around more and you spot a door on the right side of the room that looks like it leads somewhere else. curiosity gets the better of you as you slowly reach out your hand to turn the handle and open the door. 

the room seems tiny and unused, expect for a few bags that are in the corner, like sacks filled with something. curious, you walk inside, but you don’t realise how small the space is until you actually walk in because it’s tiny, the darkness only giving the illusion that it was bigger than it seemed. you’re about to turn around when wonwoo walks in and somehow his big broad frame takes up all the space in the room and there’s a sudden gush of wind from the window outside and it slams the door shut, trapping you both in the tiny space in the dark. 

“what the hell”, you curse out, trying to move but you can’t—because wonwoo’s hogging all the space. your finger presses a button on your phone and your flashlight turns off, leaving you both in the dark now. “dammit wonwoo why did you come in here, two people can barely fit in here”, you complain. wonwoo tries to move, but he almost ends up elbowing your face in the process. “ouch, you’re gonna elbow me”, you say, trying to push wonwoo back, but there wasn’t space to go anywhere. you hear the clack of something falling to the ground and you take a step, immediately hearing something crunch loudly under your feet.  “what was that?”, you ask, confused.

“that was the sound of my glasses being crushed”, wonwoo says, his voice low and right by your ear. “oh shit”, you mutter, also caught off guard by how close he was. you can feel the warmth radiating off of him. “can you move!”, you whisper yell and wonwoo lets out a low grunt. “i didn’t realise this was going to be so small”, he defends. “why did you have to be so tall, you’re taking all the space”, you complain again putting your hands on his arms and trying to push him to the side, which manages to work a little. you nearly trip from the lack of space but wonwoo’s hand steadies you. “careful”, he says again, his voice still beside your ear and you swear it sends a jolt of something through you. you try to kick the door open but it doesn’t budge and you try again, almost losing your balance and falling on wonwo again, who catches you, his hand comes up to your waist this time, his grip from but gentle, holding you in place. your eyes have adjusted to the dark a little and you can make out his silhouette in the dark. “be careful”, he mutters again, his voice seeming to echo and bounce off the walls of the small space. 

“this would have been easier if you didn’t get us locked in here”, you tell, pushing him to the side again and he lets out a low grunt at your attempt to shove him to the side. you try to kick the door open again and on the fourth kick, the door finally goes flying open and you stumble out along with it due to the force, but you’re grateful to be out. you sigh and take a few deep breaths to get some air back into your lungs and wonwoo emerges from the room a few seconds after you. he then turns back around to pick up his glasses, the ones that you stepped on.

“i’m really sorry about that, i’ll buy you new ones i promise”, you say. “or i’ll pay you back, how much were those?”, you add, feeling bad. “$4000”, wonwoo says without missing a beat and your eyes widen when you hear the price. “what? $4000 for one pair of glasses?”, you ask, shell shocked. “they were limited edition one”, he says and you shake your head. “you’re crazy”, you mutter, walking out with wonwoo behind you. you both roam the building more, but don’t find any good leads so you decide to head back to the bureau. 

you walk over to the car, heading towards the drivers seat and wonwoo does too, both of you reaching for the door handle at the same time. “what are you doing?”, wonwoo asks, looking at you. “what are you doing??”, you ask him, looking at him. “there’s no way i’m going to let you drive us back when you can’t see shit”, you say and wonwoo looks at you for a moment. he attempts to put the broken glasses back on him, the glasses resting on the bridge of his nose, barely hanging on and crooked and you have to stifle the laughter the threatens to leave your mouth, smiling at the sight before you compose yourself. 

“no, nope, that’s not happening agent, you can be the passenger princess today, i’ll drive”, you add as you shoo wonwoo to the other side. he reluctantly walks towards the passenger side and sits down, you taking the driver’s seat. you take a moment, adjusting the car seat and the mirrors before you slide on your seatbelt, telling wonwoo to put his on too. you start the car and reverse back out, driving ahead.

the next day you and agent jeon get called in because there’s been a murder. the person you both were looking for, the robber’s partner had been killed. “was the television turned on when he was killed?”, wonwoo asks, referring to the position of the victim, who had most probably been watching TV. “no, it wasn’t”, agent lee says. “well, judging from the position of the body, the victim could have most probably been watching the television. we should check for prints”, wonwoo says. “there’s a print kit here, so feel free to look around”, agent lee fills in. just then, there seems to be some sort of commotion by the entrance and you turn around to see what was going on—only to be greeted by the face of agent jaehyun, arguing with the police officer on standby at the crime scene. 

your eyes widen immediately and you walk towards agent jaehyun in a rush. “this is a crime scene sir, you need to show me some valid ID to enter”, the police officer at the front says. “jaehyun”, you say, looking at him, like you couldn’t believe that he was in front of you right now. “what seems to be the problem here?”, you ask, looking between agent jaehyun and the police officer. “i just don’t have any ID on me, would you please tell him who i am”, agent jaehyun says, looking at you. 

“officer, this is agent kim jaehyun, he’s with the violent crimes section at the bureau”, you say and the officer finally seems to let him through, but you pull him to the side. “what’s going on? where were you? the bureau’s got half of their agents looking for you”, you say in a rush, looking at jaehyun. “i–i don’t know. i just wasn’t feeling like myself when i woke up at the hospital and then the next thing i know i woke up on the street”, jaehyun says, half truth, half lie. “I’m taking you back to the hospital”, you say and jaehyun immediately protests.” no, i’m staying right here, i’m fine”, he insists, but you don’t buy it. “you’re not ready to be here”, you say and he scoffs lightly. “you’re recovering from a major trauma and it’s a miracle that you’re even able to walk and stand up right now”, you say. “i recommend that you undergo a full physical and physiological medical evaluation”, you say a moment later, looking at him. “alright, fair enough”, he says, before he turns around and walks further into the crime scene.

agent jaehyun walks up beside agent wonwoo, who greets him with a handshake. “jaehyun, it’s good to see you back amongst the living”, wonwoo says and jaehyun nods, acknowledging him. “it’s good to be back”, jaehyun says before greeting agent lee. “so, what have we got so far?”, agent jaehyun asks. “agent wonwoo here found some fingerprints on the TV and it’s not the victims, so maybe it could be whoever shot his partner”, agent lee fills in and agent jaehyun looks a little distressed at that, but maintains a calm expression, nodding at the information. “good work agent jeon”, jaehyun says but the look wonwoo gives him, like he’s trying to take a deeper look into him, like he was still skeptical about agent jaehyun.

back at the bureau, agent jeon finds agent jaehyun down at the firing range at the bureau academy. the loud echo of the gunshot echo’s in the air and the smell of gunpowder lingers as agent jaehyun finishes firing his shots, taking off his headphones and turning around to see agent jeon, offering him a friendly smile. 

“i have to get re-certified before they give me my gun back”, agent jaehyun fills in. “by the looks of it, i wouldn’t worry too much about that re-certification”, wonwoo says, since jayhyun had well passed the shooting test, hitting the shots bullseyes at the target, not missing the body cutout that was outlined on the cardboard sheet. “did you want anything?”, agent jaehyun asks, looking at wonwoo. “oh yeah, it’s Y/N’s birthday, so i was just wondering if you’d sign this card for me”, wonwoo asks, pulling out a birthday card from his blazer pocket and handing it to jaehyun. “sure”, jaehyun says as he then takes the pen wonwoo holds out and signs the card. “there you go”, jaehyun says after he finished signing the card and wonwoo gives him an appreciative nod and takes the card, before dismissing himself.

back at the department in the basement, wonwoo walks in, but you don’t pay much attention, busy reading up on something when he places the card in front of you. “happy birthday Y/N”, he says and you snap your head up, looking at him, confused. “my birthday isn’t till april”, you say, looking back down at the card and then at wonwoo.“well that seems like news to jaehyun. i asked him to sign the card and he did it without even questioning it”, wonwoo adds. “and the best part? he signed it with his left hand”, wonwoo finishes, as he walks back to his desk and you put the card down, giving him a look.

“you tested him”, you say, your tone carrying that hint of upset with his unorthodox methods. “yes, i tested him. do want to know why?”, wonwoo asks and you nod, waiting. “i found out that the evidence i found at the crime scene, the fingerprint that i lifted off from the television is missing”, wonwoo informs. “someone stole it before the lab had a chance to look at it”. “and you think jaehyun is somehow responsible?”, you ask, standing up. “he was carrying the evidence box back”, wonwoo says. “and i don’t think that jaehyun is actually jaehyun”, wonwoo adds and you give him a don’t be ridiculous look. “can you maybe accept the possibility that during jaeyhyun’s near death experience, some sort of psychic transfer occurred”, wonwoo states. “i swear to god”, you start, frustrated. “why can’t you accept the possibility that this isn’t an x-file and that this is just about a man who is still recovering from the trauma of a gunshot wound? agent jaehyun already passed both the physical and psychological medical tests”, you tell wonwoo. “and anyway, just because someone forgets a birthday doesn't automatically mean they’ve become possessed or anything. when i was studying for my medical boards i forgot about my birthday too”, you add.

“well, did you forget how to sign your name?”, wonwoo questions as he opens a file and passes it over to you to look at. “this receipt was signed the day before he was shot”, wonwoo adds then you look over to the one that jaehyun signed earlier today—both completely different. you sigh again because he really wasn’t backing down from this ‘possession’ theory was he. “it’s stress wonwoo, it can significantly affect someone’s cursive standard, so this really doesn’t prove anything”, you say, walking back over to your desk and sitting back down. “can stress make someone left handed overnight?”, he questions and you roll your eyes. 

“you said the national intelligence interfered right? they took jaehyun’s unconscious body and then he was miraculously was brought to life and revived?’, wonwoo questions and you nod. “yeah, i don’t know how they did it, it’s a miracle really, considering jaehyun had flatlined for almost 14 minutes”, you say. “so what if they did something to him?”, wonwoo asks, leaning forward in his seat. “what if they somehow got the robber’s consciousness into agent jaehyun’s body”, wonwoo suggests. “not this ridiculous theory again wonwoo”, you say. “but that would explain why he’s acting so weirdly and the fact that he forgot your birthday or even the fact that he signed the card with his left hand—the masked robber was left handed, jaehyun was right handed”, wonwoo explains.

“then what are you suggesting? that the national intelligence someone swapped their souls or something?”, you ask and words sound ridiculous as they come out of your mouth. “maybe”, wonwoo says and you scoff lightly. “that’s the most absurd thing i’ve ever heard, that’s physically or even scientifically impossible”, you say, shooting the idea down. “you saw what they did to colonel park”, wonwoo mentions and you click your tongue, getting a little annoyed. “wonwoo seriously, we’ve been over that case already and the conclusion was the extreme stress that colonel park went through, end of the story”, you say, but obviously wonwoo still isn’t convinced—not after what he saw, which he still hadn’t told you yet. until he figured everything out, he’d keep it to himself and tell you once the time came.

when you walk into the x-files department later that evening with two cups of coffee in your hands, you stop right in your tracks at the sight of wonwoo. he’s standing near the table, his body turned slightly, engrossed in some report in front of him. his jacket is draped over a chair and his tie is missing, buried in his jacket pocket that he removed earlier. the dark button up shirt he’s wearing has two of the top buttons undone and the sleeves are rolled to his elbows, exposing his forearms like he’s letting himself breathe. the fabric is firm against his shoulders and flexes with his weight when he shifts. god, he has really broad shoulders you think. wonwoo’s leaning over the desk now, his glasses sitting low on his nose as he leans over, flipping through a file and his other hand braced against the edge of the table. his watch catches the overhead light when he moves and it glints for a second. you pause at the doorway longer than you mean too before you snap out of your thoughts and walk inside. “long day huh”, you say and wonwoo glances up, startled for a split second then his posture relaxes when he realises it’s you. you place the cup of coffee down next to him. 

“i was just going through agent jaehyun’s files on the suspect he was chasing”, wonwoo informs. you nod, but your gaze drifts to his forearms and you see the way it flexes when he flips the pages of the file, reading something and your heart does something stupid. wonwoo clears his throat, but he doesn’t glance at you. “you’re staring”, he says lightly, pushing his glasses back up. heat rushes to your face and you blink, looking away. “i’m not! i was just reading the file”, you say too quickly. the corner of wonwoo’s mouth lifts slightly and you take a sip of your coffee, your heart beating faster than it should. 

the next day, you get tipped off about where the robber’s third crime partner might be hiding and you go in with agent jaehyun to investigate it. as you’re in the car with agent jaehyun, you can’t help but recall what wonwoo had told you yesterday—that the fingerprints that he’d lifted off were missing—and the person carrying the evidence box back was agent jaehyun. you’re not sure if you should bring it up, but it bothers you for some reason, so you decide to ask him. “the fingerprint that agent jeon lifted from the crime scene yesterday is missing”, you start, trying to tread carefully as you glance at jaehyun who’s driving. “and you were the one carrying the evidence box back”, you add and jaehyun glances at you, his grip on the steering wheel tightening as he looks away, avoiding your gaze. “what are you implying agent?”, he asks and you catch the hint of upset in his voice. “nothing, i was just asking”, you say, brushing it off because it seemed weird to ask, accusing jaehyun of doing something you didn’t even have any proof for. 

“we’ve reached”, agent jaehyun says ten minutes and he gets out of the car too quickly. “where’s the backup? you called them right?”, you ask as you step out of the car, looking at jaehyun. “i called them, i’m sure they’ll be here”, jaehyun says, walking ahead. you follow behind him as you both walk towards the apartment building. 

you walk inside slowly, clutching your gun in your hand as you look around, your eyes scanning your surroundings and you find door that leads to the basement. “i’ll check down here”, you say, walking down the creaky stairs, clutching your gun tightly. the basement floor is littered with broken pieces of wood, old cement bags and other debris that was probably left over from the construction. as you walk ahead there are machines set up and pipelines all over the wall and room, for the laundry and water supply of the building. you stealthy walk ahead a little more and jaehyun follows behind you. “agent L/N”, he calls out from behind you and you turn around, the grip on your gun relaxing and in the next second the gun is knocked out of your hands by a piece of broken wood that jaehyun aims and swats at you. you stumble backwards and try to look for your gun, but it’s slid a long way.

“what the hell?”, you question, moving to retrieve your gun but stop when you see jaehyun raise his gun at you and you freeze immediately. with his free hand, he pulls out his handcuffs and tosses them towards you. you look at him, confused. “they’re for you, put them on”, he says. “what are you talking about”, you start but jaehyun cuts you off harshly. “i said put them on, or else i’ll blow your head off”, jaehyun says, raising his gun more and pointing it at you. you let out a shaky breath as you slowly reach out for the handcuffs and put them on, trying to stay calm but inside you were scared. what the heck was happening?

the next thing you know is that he’s pushing you towards the pipes and takes the other cuff and hooks it onto the steel pipe so that you can’t escape. “jaehyun what are you doing?”, you ask and he gives you a creepy look. “you really don’t remember?”, he asks, almost snapping at you. “you shot me twice and you’re asking me?”, he says though gritted teeth. “i’m going to get my revenge, i’m going to get back at you for that”, jaehyun says. “shoot you? when did i ever shoot you jaehyun?”, you ask confused. 

meanwhile at the bureau wonwoo tries to call you for the fifth time, only for him to reach your voicemail again. it had been 12 hours without any word from you, or agent jaehyun and he was starting to sense that something was very wrong. the next moment, wonwoo’s phone rings—an unknown number and he picks it up. “guess who”, the voice on the other ends says and he recognises it immediately. “jaehyun?”, wonwoo asks. “that depends on who you’re asking isn’t it”, jaehyun says, his tone amused and wonwoo becomes alert. “where’s Y/N?”, wonwoo asks. “hm i’m not sure”, jaehyun says, trying to have some fun with wonwoo because right now it wasn’t agent jaehyun talking it him—it was the robber. 

“let me talk to Y/N”, wonwoo repeats as calmly as he could. jaehyun—no the masked robber navigates the phone, putting it against your ear so you could speak to wonwoo. “Y/N are you okay?”, you hear wonwoo ask but before you can respond, he pulls the phone away, leaving you hanging. “that’s all you’re going to get”, jaehyun—the robber says and cuts the call. 

“whatever this is, it’s not going to work jaehyun”, you say. “shut up you stupid bitch and stop calling me that, my name’s kim not jaehyun”, he snaps. “and don’t think i’ve forgotten what you did, leaving me to die while you tried to save your friend”, jaehyun says, visibly upset. “no jaehyun, we brought you back”, you say, trying to stay calm, but that only seems to trigger him more. “NO! you shot me and then left me to die”, he yells, digging his gun into your cheek and you close your eyes, gulping in fear before you force yourself to open your eyes and look at him again. “you won’t kill me jaehyun”, you say and he digs the gun deeper into the hollow of your cheek. “you call me that one more time, i’ll show you what i can really do”, jaehyun—the masked robber says, before he stands up and walks to the other side of the room. 

“what do you want?”, you ask a moment later, not willing to give into the situation so easily and whatever jaehyun was trying to pull on you right now. you couldn’t understand what was happening and why he was acting this way. “i want my justice”, jaehyun—the masked robber says through gritted teeth.  “do you really think they’re going to negotiate with you?”, you ask, because even with everything you’ve seen so far, with all the evidence pointing to something else—you wanted to believe that this was just agent jaehyun acting delusional. 

“jaehyun please, let me go, we can talk it out, just tell me what’s wrong”, you try to ask again, trying to coax him into letting you free but he doesn’t listen. “i said shut the hell up and stop calling me that”, jaehyun—the masked robber says. you swallow whatever you were going to say and stay quiet. jaehyun disappears upstairs and you’re left alone in the basement now. you recall what he said earlier—you shot me twice and left me to die. you never shot jaehyun, you’d shot the masked robber twice. and then it hits you. “no way”, you mumble. there’s no way that the consciousness of the masked robber was actually in agent jaehyun…right? you shake that thought out of your head and tell yourself that it’s the psychological stress and trauma that jaehyun’s been through that’s got him acting like this—not like himself. that made more sense and that was a more plausible reason. it was easier to believe. 

meanwhile wonwoo’s already working to get you out safely. the thought that something might happen to you tugs at his heart and you linger in his mind. the only problem was he didn’t know where you were—but he was going to find you, no matter what. an hour later the bureau has put together a team to solve the situation. another hour later, wonwoo gets a phone call from jaehyun—the masked robber again and he signals to the team to start tracing the call before he picks it up a second later. 

“agent jeon speaking”, he says. “you listen carefully agent”, jaehyun—the masked robber starts but wonwoo is impatient and cuts him off. “let me talk to Y/N”, wonwoo asks again before starting any sort of negotiation. “not this time agent”, jaehyun—the masked robber says. “we’re not going to make any sort of deals with you unless we know Y/N is alive”, wonwoo says. “oh don’t worry, she’s alive”, jaeyhyun—the masked robber repeats. “you listen to me very carefully, you touch or even lay one finger on Y/N and you’ll be very sorry”. wonwoo says, threatening him but jaehyun—the masked robber isn’t phased at all. “if i were you i’d stop talking and start figuring out ways to collect a large sum of money”, jaehyun—the masked robber starts.

“in exchange for agent Y/N, i want a million won and a safe passage out of here, no catches or else your lovergirl here here will be stone cold”, jaehyun—the masked robber demands and wonwoo clenches his jaw at the last line. “get it ready by tomorrow and i’ll tell you when and where”, jaeyhyun—the masked robber says before cutting the call, but it’s enough to trace and extract the location. 

“we’ve got it”, someone from the team yells out. “the address is coming through”, someone else adds, waiting for the address to show up on the screen. wonwoo comes up to look at the screen, hopeful as he watches the address show up on the screen. “get a backup team ready and the money”, wonwoo says. “but agent, getting that amount of money is nearly impossible right now”, another agent says, only to be met with a cold look by wonwoo. “do it, i don’t care how, just get it ready”, wonwoo demands.

that evening wonwoo paces across the room, waiting for the phone call from jaehyun—the masked robber. he’s starting to get impatient but his main concern was you. if you were safe and okay and most importantly unharmed. when the phone rings again, he picks it up immediately. “let me talk to Y/N”, he says. “easy there agent, quite in a rush are we?”, jaehyun—the rmasked robber taunts. “we don’t deal until i talk to her”, wonwoo adds and jaehyun—the masked robber sighs. the sound of static and shuffling feet fills wonwoo’s ear as he waits and listens. “wonwoo don’t—“, you start but jaehyun—the masked robber snatches away the phone before you can finish. “that’s it, she’s alive. now about the money, meet me at the warehouse by the lake pier”, jaehyun—the robber instructs. “the abandoned warehouse?”, wonwoo asks just to confirm. “meet me at 7pm come alone and don’t be late, i hate waiting”, jaehyun—the masked robber says before cutting the call.

jaehyun—the masked robber comes back to the basement a few hours later and the sound of his feet echo against the floor and air. it’s cold in the basement. you look up and he’s there, standing over you with a sly smile on his face. “jaehyun please, stop this. i can get you help—“, you start but he shouts back at you. “i told you to stop calling me that, my name’s kim”, he says. you flinch a little but stay calm and watch as he reaches down and uncuffs the cuff that was on the pipe and snaps it back onto your hands. “come on, i have a little surprise for you”, jaehyun—the masked robber says. he tugs you up and you stare at him. you walk forward a few steps and then you pull your hands away from him and run in the opposite direction. “stupid bitch”, he yells, chasing after you. you try to hurry up and climb up one flight of stairs, but your coat gets stuck in the loose nail and holds you back.

you grunt in pain as the nail scratches through the fabric of your coat and cuts you and digs into your skin just below the rib. jaehyun—the masked robber catches up and his arm grabs your arm harshly, his grip tightening, his nails digging into your arm as you try to squirm free. “let me go”, you say, your eyes wide and blown out—scared. you push him and you feet slips. you take jaehyun down with you as you roll down the flight of stairs and you wince as you land down on the floor with a thud, dizzy and disoriented. jaehyun lets out a string of curses and yanks your arm so you’re sitting up. he raises his hand and smacks your cheek, his ring leaving a cut across your cheek and a gasp as the sting. 

“behave or else i’ll put a bullet through your head right now”, jaehyun—the masked robber threatens. you gulp, swallowing back your tears and still. “come on”, he says, tugging you upstairs harshly. 

the night is cold, a little chilly, but that doesn’t bother wonwoo at all. he carefully walks towards the abandoned warehouse like instructed, holding the bag of money, alone, his gun carefully tucked in his holster. the mud and small stones crunch under his boots and he walks towards the dark entrance. backup was close by and wonwoo was connected to the team through an earpiece in case things took a wild turn. wonwoo steps inside the warehouse and looks around. there’s a singular dim light bulb that illuminates the entire warehouse and it’s wet and cold inside. he stalks forward carefully, the sound of his boots crunching on the ground echoing in the air. 

“kim”, wonwoo calls out, the masked robber’s name as he walks further inside spotting some light leaking through a small door by the corner. it looked like a tiny room and wonwoo makes his way over there. “drop the bag and walk away”, jaehyun—the masked robber’s voice fills the air and wonwoo stops in his tracks. he looks around, but he can’t make out where jaehyun—the masked robber is. “release Y/N”, wonwoo demands. “i will once i get the money and get out of here”, jaehyun—the masked robber says, his voice echoing through the dark and empty warehouse, carrying over. wonwoo tries to look around but he can’t make out where jaehyun—the masked robber is standing. he takes a careful step forward, and the another. “i said drop the bag or else your girl is going to get hurt. she’s feisty little bitch, i had to knock some sense into her”, jaehyun—the masked robber says with a sly grin and wonwoo’s jaw clenches. this time wonwoo can make out where the voice is coming from, turning in that direction. wonwoo needed to buy some time so he’d be able to stall this entire thing until the backup crew arrived—and their ETA was a minute away. “hold on for another minute agent wonwoo our men are walking in”, wonwoo’s comms hums in his ear. 

“where’s Y/N dammit”, wonwoo asks again. “let me see her and i’ll give you the bag”, wonwoo says. a moment later jaehyun—the masked robber comes in and grabs you by the arm harshly, pulling you up and yanking you along with him. you can feel the tip of his gun poking into your back to remind you not to try anything funny. he pushes you forward and you nearly stumble and fall, but manage to catch your balance, letting out a soft groan at the effort. “she’s here loverboy, now give me the bag, now”, jaehyun—the masked robber demands. 

wonwoo looks at you, his eyes immediately softening at the sight of you and his sharp eyes immediately catch the handcuffs, the way your lips is slightly busted, the way your fingers are trembling lightly and the gun that jaehyun—the masked robber has pressed up against your back. he clenches his jaw tighter at the sight. “let her go and the money’s all yours, alright?”, wonwoo says. “you don’t want to do this agent jaehyun, you’re confused and you don’t know what you’re doing”, wonwoo adds, trying to deescalate the situation as jaehyun presses the gun harder into your back, the cold metal digging into your back deeper.

“she shot me twice and killed me”, jaehyun—the masked robber yells but then he grimaces, like he’s fighting the other consciousness—jaeyhun’s consciousness against the masked robber’s consciousness, like it was finally awakening.  “what am i doing?”, jaehyun speaks a moment later—the real jaehyun. “agent, put the gun down okay, let Y/N go and we’ll speak”, wonwoo coaxes. agent jaehyun slowly starts to put the gun down, his consciousness at the front now and he looks confused, disoriented. the gun is almost down and he lets go of you and you stumble forward. backup comes bursting in and waste no time as they corner agent jaehyun, grabbing him and putting him in cuffs. jaeeyun’s still confused but he complies, unsure what’s going on and too disoriented to try and fight back at the moment.

wonwoo comes towards you immediately, his eyes searching yours and your body to see if you’re okay. “are you okay?”, he asks as he nears you and you nod. “just get this off me”, you say quickly, your voice nearly betraying you as you hold your hands out and wonwoo’s hand immediately works to unlock the cuffs on your wrists. his fingers brush against your hands and his eyes lock in on the way your fingers tremble. he unlocks the cuffs and discards them on the floor.

he looks back up pat you. “Y/N, do you want to sit down and get someone to take a look at you?”, wonwoo asks, his voice gentle and grounding as he bends down little to look at you. his hands are still around your wrists and he can feel the way they shake in his hold. you shake your head. “i’m fine wonwoo”, you say through a shaky breathe but wonwoo isn’t convinced. his gaze is sharp and observant as his eyes flicker over the bruise on your temple and cheekbone from falling down the steps, the cut on your cheek and the scrape on your chin. he sees the way your lip trembles and the way you don’t meet his eyes. you don’t look at him because if you do, you know you’re going to cry and you don’t want to cry, not in front of him. you had to stay strong. his hand slowly comes up and he gently tilts your chin up to get a closer look on the wound on your cheek and your meet his eyes once. 

wonwoo slowly, carefully reaches for the cut on your cheek, his thumb hovering over it. you go still. “you’re bleeding,” he says, his touch gentle. his thumb brushes against your skin below the cut and it’s barely there but you can feel the warmth of it, even if it’s just for a second. wonwoo’s gaze drops to your chin and then back up to your eyes. the look in his eyes—like you were the only thing that mattered to him right now shattered something in you. you look away but it’s too late because hot tears already fill your eyes and your face crumples. you lean forward, leaning your head in his chest and you let out a small sob. wonwoo stands there frozen for moment. his hand immediately comes up a second later to to hold you, lightly resting on your back. you let out another soft sob, crying, because you were scared, so scared. your arms wrap around him and you cry into his chest, shaking. wonwoo pulls you into him tighter. “it’s alright, you’re safe now. i got you”, he says lowly, running a hand up and down your back in an attempt to soothe you as you cry in his arms. your fingers grip onto his blazer and curl around the fabric, like you didn’t want to let go. 

in the next moment, things happen too fast and you don’t even know what’s happened until it’s too late. a flashlight beam shines inside the room, deliberate and careless, shining it right into the jaehyun’s eyes and the two officer’s next to him, blinding them both. agent jaehyun gets free and the robber’s consciousness takes over in a panic. “i told you to come alone, you’re going to kill me again”, jaehyun—the masked robber shouts, grabbing the gun from the officer next to him and shoving him to the side, hard. jaehyun—the robber is pointing his gun at you, angry. wonwoo’s eyes widen and lock onto the movement since your back is turned to everything that was unfolding right now. before he can even think any more, jaeeyun’s moving forward, the gun pointed in the air while everyone around is shouting out orders and commands. wonwoo grabs you, pulling you sideways in an attempt to shield you and the echo of the loud bang echo’s in the air, loud. you startle and still, shaken at the sudden movement and sound and your heart drops.

“wonwoo!”, you shout, looking up at him and he looks down, blood soaking his shirt in seconds. a moment later, the door gets crushed down and an entire team of agents rush in, not FBI but the national intelligence and the military. they come rushing inside with guns in their hands, rushing in to take down agent jaehyun. it’s commotion and chaos but you’re only focus is on wonwoo right now.

wonwoo kneels to the ground bleeding and you sink to your knees along with him. you try your best to put some pressure on the wound. “oh god”, you say as you call out for medical help. a moment later, a stretcher is brought and wonwoo is lifted and taken into the ambulance. the trip to the hospital is a blur because you don’t get to ride with wonwoo, they don’t let you. you’re waiting outside the ER now and your hands are free, but you can still feel the weight of the handcuffs around them and your hands are still stained with blood—wonwoo’s blood. god, you hope he was okay. you hope he was alive.

the doctor finally emerges from the trauma surgery room, walking up to you and you get up instantly. “is he okay?”, you ask, barely able to hold it together. “he’s stable”, the doctor informs and your knees almost give out from relief. “the bullet missed his lung by just an inch. if he hadn’t turned the way he had, it would have been fatal”, the doctor adds and you let out a shaky breath at his information. he almost died. he could have died. 

the distinct smell of the hospital antiseptic, stale air and the just the smell of medicine that hangs in the air is suffocating. it’s ironic since you were sure you’d have gotten used to it by now after spending nearly five years in med school. half an hour later you’re allowed to visit wonwoo in his room where he was recovering. he’s lying down, half sitting up with his eyes closed and there’s an IV drip hanging by the side connected to his arm and a bunch of monitors beeping behind him. you can make out the thick bandage that’s wrapped around his abdomen and peeking out from his hospital gown that was unbuttoned slightly. you slowly walk forward and sit on the chair beside his bed, a frown already forming on your face as you look at wonwoo’s state, because it happened because of you.

“wonwoo?”, you call out too softly, unsure if he was asleep or whether you should disturb him. your eyes are puffy and red from crying outside in the waiting room earlier and before this incident and you’re still sniffling. wonwoo groans lowly as he shifts a little, blinking his eyes open, turning his head to look at you. “you’re alive, thank god”, you say, letting out a shaky exhale. “i’m alive,”, wonwoo says, like getting shot wasn’t such a big deal, like he didn’t almost just die. 

“you’re an absolute idiot you know that. why would you do that, why would you come in between like that? why would you step right into the line of fire and take a bullet”, you ask,  scolding him almost, feeling guilty. you watch as wonwoo tries to sit up a little more, grimacing a little before he answers your question. wonwoo blinks at you, like the answer was so obvious—because of you. instead he shrugs lightly. “well what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger”, wonwoo says instead, half joking but it hits a chord in your chest. maybe it was the stress of the case, or the fact that you had a gun pressed up against your back and you thought that you were going to die, or even the lingering emotions and the loss of your father a week back that had you vulnerable, or the fact that it was wonwoo who got shot—maybe it was everything all at once—emotions running high and the fact that you couldn’t bear to deal with losing someone who you knew again. 

“stop that, don’t joke about it”, you say, your voice shaking and before you know it, your eyes are filling with tears. wonwoo notices and panics. “whoa, hey, hey—don’t cry, shit don’t cry”, he says, trying to console you, but it’s no use because you let out a another soft sob and tears run down your cheek. “you almost died, the doctor said you’re lucky to be alive and that if the bullet was even an inch to the left, it would have pierced your lung”, you tell through sobs and sniffles. 

“i’m sorry, i didn’t mean to scare you like that”, wonwoo says, his voice low, his expression shifting into something softer, gentler as he looks at you. “don’t you dare do that ever again”, you say, wiping away your tears. “roger that agent”, wonwoo says, trying to lighten the mood but it only earns a glare from your end. you wipe your tears and sniffle even more. wonwoo gazes softens more, if that was even possible as he looks at you. “are you okay?”, he asks again and you nod. but if you were being honest, you weren’t really sure. “i was scared”, you admit softly. sure, you’d seen plenty of dead bodies before. you’ve stood in labs under florescent lights as you performed countless autopsy’s. you’ve seen death and you’ve seen worse. you’ve seen inhumane crimes been committed and seen the way some bodies come in nearly unidentifiable with the amount of damage done. you’ve learned to detach and just observe and analyse. you’ve been trained in combat to stay calm and never lean into fear at the bureau. but none of that really prepares you for a gun. not when it’s against you. not when the barrel of the cold metal digs into your skin and you’re thinking about whether you should comply, escape or just accept your fate. you shiver at the thought and tear up again, looking down as you blink the tears back. blinking them back. “i’ll always find you”, wonwoo says and you pick up your eyes, looking at him, another tear rolling down your cheek before you wipe it away. 

“what happened to jaehyun, did they catch him?”, wonwoo asks a moment later and you look at him, quiet because you’re not quite sure how he’d take the news. “agent jaehyun didn’t make it, he died”, you say, breaking the news to wonwoo and he furrows his brows. “what? what happened?”, he asks. “after you got shot, the medical team took you and then for some weird reason, the national intelligence and military was present again, and they took jaehyun away without a word, not letting me see him. when i questioned them later and asked to meet jaehyun, they told me he suffered from an cardiac arrest and didn’t make it”, you explain. 

“why would the national intelligence and military be present or even be remotely interested in this”, wonwoo questions and you shrug lightly. but wonwoo maybe had an inkling as to why. “maybe they didn’t want news of one of their own agents going rouge to be spreading around”, you say. “what about the body? do you think we can do a post-mortem examination to determine what really happened?”, wonwoo asks and you shake your head. “they won’t let me see the body, saying it’s government property and that the case is closed now”, you inform.

“what if we break in and examine the body?”, wonwoo suggests and you blink at him, like you couldn’t really believe he just said that, in a hospital of all places. “are you out of your mind wonwoo? you’re delusional and high on pain killers right now, so i’m going to pretend that i didn’t hear that”, you say. “i’m being serious”, he says. “come on”, he adds, like he’s trying to convince you to commit the most illegal crime right now. “yeah, i bet it’ll be fun when we’re sitting in a cold jail cell”, you say deadpan. “i already got you out once, i’m not going to bail you out again”, you tell. “i took a bullet for you and you won’t even bail me out?”, he asks, sarcasm dripping from his tone and you roll your eyes. dumbass, you mumble under your breath.

that night you can’t help but think about what happened and how agent jaehyun behaved. that was so unlike him. the fact that he kept saying you’re the one who shot him, talking like he knew the masked robber’s memories, like he was the masked robber—that unsettled something in you. there’s no way right?

over the next week, wonwoo is resting and recovering in the hospital—or he should be. when you walk into the basement on a wednesday morning, wonwoo is already there. he turns around when he hears you enter.  you stop in your tracks at the sight of him, putting your hands on your hip. “agent jeon, what are you doing here?”, you ask, looking at him. “you know me, i can’t still still”, he says like it was not a big deal. you narrow your eyes at him and walk forward. “did the doctor clear you fit to be back on the field again?”, you ask, raising an eyebrow at him, because you already knew the answer. “mostly”, wonwoo says. “that means no”, you conclude, giving him a look. “it means mostly”, he repeats and you sigh because you don’t know even know why you’re bothering about arguing with him over this. “i swear to god if you collapse all of a sudden, i’m not going to drag you to the hospital”, you say. “you know, you really shouldn’t swear at god so much, he might end up having a grudge on you”, wonwoo says and you roll your eyes. “very funny”, you say, unimpressed.

“you need to rest wonwoo. go home and i’ll do whatever you want me to do”, you tell and wonwoo picks up his eyes to look at you. “you’d break in a military facility for me then?”, wonwoo asks. “don’t even think about doing anything remotely close to that”, you warn. “so are you going to come with me or not?”, wonwoo asks instead, ignoring your warning. god, he really did a good job at getting on your nerves.

“i was able to find out where they’re keeping his body, it’d be great if you could take a look”, wonwoo adds, like breaking into facilities was something he did everyday. “are you joking”, you ask. “no”, he says, his expression serious. “there’s something going on here, Y/N. something bigger and deeper that they don’t want us to know about”, wonwoo tells. “now are you going to come along or stay back and cover for me?”, wonwoo asks you again. every single cell in your brain and body is telling you to say no and stay back, but the other part of your brain couldn’t let him go wherever he was planning to with a fresh bullet wound that still hadn’t fully healed yet. “fine, i’ll come”, you finally say though tight lips. “i better get a promotion after this”, you mutter under your breath. 

“how did you even find this place?”, you ask wonwoo in the car as you drive, because you refused to let him drive. “i have my sources”, wonwoo simply says, which doesn’t really answer your question. the source that wonwoo was talking about is the mystery man. someone who’s been following him and keeping up with his work and what he does. last night, there was an envelope that was addressed to wonwoo. it was slid under his door and it had a single address printed out on it with a small message and a picture of agent jaehyun’s body. ‘you know what you’re looking for’ it said and wonwoo knew exactly what it meant. wonwoo didn’t know how or why, but the mystery man was helping him. he was the person who first called wonwoo during colonel nam’s case, warning wonwoo to back off for some reason, but he was also on wonwoo’s side.

“that’s really encouraging”, you tell, your tone dripping with sarcasm and you have half a mind to just turn around and drive back, but you don’t, because for some silly, weird, unexplainable reason you believe wonwoo—even if he’s a little crazy and delusional. when you reach the location, it’s in the middle of a forest almost, a secluded place, like it had been placed here so no one would find it. it’s super tight and high in security and you don’t even know how you’re going to pass through all of this without a doubt of suspicion. “just follow my lead”, wonwoo says quietly as you you drive up to the gate of the facility. “we’re federal agents”, wonwoo says as he digs something out from his pocket and produces two guest passes. the security guard looks at wonwoo, down at the passes and back up at wonwoo.

“alright sir, you can enter, but keep the passes on at all times”, the security instructs. you let out a shallow breath at not getting caught and continue to drive ahead. you park the car and the other of you walk in. you’re tense as you clip and adjust the pass to your blazer jacket. “relax”, wonwoo says, glancing over at you. “i am relaxed”, you say, but you were anything but relaxed. you enter the building and there’s a few guards standing by the hallway, keeping guard, looking out. wonwoo walks ahead calmly and you follow behind him. wonwoo walks up to the elevator and you both get in. he presses the button to the B3 basement and you both go down. the elevator dings open and you follow wonwoo to a door, which required a pass to enter. wonwoo slides his access pass in the door and for a moment you’re convinced it’ll decline and you both will get caught but thankfully it doesn’t. it beeps with a green light, unlocking and letting you both inside.

you step inside and the room is cold, quiet and almost eerie. a shiver runs down your spine as you look at the row of steel cabinets that line the room, mostly likely holding dead bodies. wonwoo walks up to the cabinets, reading the names until he finds jaehyun’s name and pulls it open without hesitation. you look at him as the body of agent jaehyun stares back at you, still preserved and neatly kept for some reason. “what are we looking for? they already said he died from a cardiac arrest”, you say as wonwoo opens and rummages through some drawers behind him to see if he can find anything else. he hands you a pair of gloves, looking at you because you were the doctor here. “come on”, he says and you hesitate for a moment before you give in and take the gloves from his hands. you put on the latex gloves with a practiced ease and start to examine his chest area. “are you able to confirm the cause of death and if it really was a cardiac arrest?”, wonwoo asks.

“i honestly can’t say wonwoo, not without doing a proper autopsy”, you tell.  wonwoo turns around and shuffles through the drawers again before his eyes land on a file with jaehyun’s name on it. you on the other hand are still busy examining the body and you find a cut under his left ear, indicating something must have been underneath, but you don’t know what. wonwoo stalks forward and his eyes flick to a name he recognises—the robber’s name and he pulls the cabinet open. “what the hell”, you say when you look down at the robber’s body, because for being more than two weeks since he had died, the body was too well preserved and kept, like it hadn’t started to decompose yet. you walk over and look behind the robber’s left ear immediately, finding the same incision mark below his ear that you found under jaehyun’s ear. “both bodies have this weird incision under the left ear”, you state, looking at wonwoo. he quickly grabs his phone and snaps a picture of the incisions on both the bodies and pockets his phone before he moves to the other side. 

he rummages through the drawers again and his eyes land on a file with jaehyun’s name on it. he grabs it and flips it open, finding more EKG strips, x-rays and a fully detailed report about jaehyun. there’s an x-ray of jaehyun’s face and right below the left ear, where the incision was, there’s an object that shows up on the x-ray. “what’s that?”, you ask as you take a closer look. “it looks like some kind of foreign object”, you add a moment later. wonwoo continues to look into the file and comes across a document titled the lazarus project. the only problem? more than half of it was redacted. wonwoo only manages to skim through the first two pages before the sound of sirens started ringing through the air.  you look at wonwoo hoping he’d know what to do. he quickly takes a video of the entire file to look back onto later and you push back the bodies in the cabinets as quietly and quickly as possible. you discard the gloves and hide it inside a old trash bag so no one would suspect anything, thinking it’s an old trash bag that’s been lying there for days. wonwoo dumps the file back into the cabinets and shuts them close. he rushes to open the door, signalling for you to step out and he follows behind you. you both walk back to the elevator, pressing the button and you’re starting to panic because it’s like time slowed down and it’s taking forever for the elevator to come back down. just then the door from the other end of the hallways opens and four armed guards storm inside, spotting you both at the end of the hall. “hold it!”, one of them calls and you freeze, terrified that this was the moment that you were going to be suspended, lose your license and go to jail. you look at wonwoo, hoping, praying that he’d know what to do.

wonwoo’s jaw is tight and and you feel the blood drain from your face. wonwoo’s hand slowly brushes against your wrist, his fingers slowly wrapping around your wrist, tight and determined. “run”, he whispers and your feet move before you have time to think. you both run, wonwoo ahead, you behind him, trying to keep pace with him and his hand never leaves your, holding onto yours. you both bolt past the elevator and turn down the corridor to the right and run right into the emergency staircase. the echo of your footsteps is all what you hear as you both sprint down the cement steps. you nearly trip and fall, but wonwoo’s hand steadies you in time. wonwoo throws open the door at the end of the staircase and it leads you to the ground floor hallway. you don’t stop running and dart behind a a few supply cards, crouching down, your breathing comes out heavy and your chest heaves from the effort of running. two of the guards run right past you while the other two seemed to have split up to look for you. 

wonwoo quietly signals to the maintenance door that’s behind hidden by an rusty old vending machine. you both crawl forward towards the door and wonwoo manages to turn the doorknob open and you both stumble inside, wonwoo shutting the door with a quiet click. none of you both speak as the two of you squeeze into the tiny, dusty space that smells like a mix of stale air and old paint. after nearly ten minutes of hiding, you hear the voices outside start to fade and wonwoo slowly cracks open the door to check if the coast is clear. you both slip outside quietly and head out through the back corridor meant for housekeeping, staff and maintenance until you find the door that leads you both to the underground parking lot. you slowly walk, crouching and hiding behind cars as you slowly creep closer to wonwoo’s car. you don’t know how wonwoo ended up in the driver’s seat this time, but you don’t have time to complain. you get in the car and shut the door. 

wonwoo quickly starts the car and he navigates the car to the backside exit, which thankfully wasn’t being monitored like the front gate. you let out a sigh of relief once you manage to escape without getting caught and you turn over to look at wonwoo, curses already ready to spill past your lips but you pause when you catch the small grimace on his face. you think that he’s just tired from the effort of running and you quickly glance at the rearview mirror to make sure your car wasn’t being followed. you watch as the view of the facility shrinks as you drive ahead, the coast clear. wonwoo finally takes a turn and the car navigates itself back onto the main road. he drives, his grip on the steering wheel tight.  wonwoo slows down a bit and you glance at him again, catching him wincing again like he’s in pain, and then you remember. “wonwoo are you okay?” you ask, looking at him before your eyes drop to his side and your heart sinks. 

“wonwoo, you’re bleeding”, you say and wonwoo glances down, like he just notices it when you told him. “oh my god”, you repeat. “i’m fine Y/N”, he says, trying to brush it off, which only seems to piss you off even more. “no, you’re not fine wonwoo, you’re bleeding for godsake”, you repeat. “stop the car”, you add a second later but wonwoo hesitates, not listening to you, before wincing in pain again. “agent jeon, i said pull over”, you repeat and he finally manoeuvres the car to the side of the road carefully. he lets out a sigh and leans back in the seat, taking a sharp inhale.

thankfully there’s a small convenience store right ahead and you snap your seatbelt off without a second thought, getting out of the car and telling wonwoo to wait here and that’d you be back. he tries to call out for you but you ignore him, walking ahead with a stride. you don’t waste any time and quickly grab whatever medical supplies you can find—gauze, antiseptic, bandages, wipes, medical tape, cotton, a cheap pair of craft scissors and a water bottle. you rush back to the car, the paper bag rustling in your hands as you walk. you take a seat, shifting forward so you’re closer to wonwoo and can reach over to the driver’s side more easily. 

“undo your shirt”, you say as wonwoo looks at you. “wonwoo, come on, unless bleeding to death was part of your stupid plan”, you snap lightly because now was not the time ask questions or get shy. wonwoo slowly moves his hands, lifting them up as his fingers slowly try slip the buttons of his shirt off. you catch him wincing and groaning in pain from the effort, his face slightly pale and beads of sweat at his forehead. your hands move before you know it, hovering near his chest. “here, let me help”, you ask, hesitating for a second, looking at him and asking permission with your eyes. he nods lightly and your hands reach out and start to undo the rest of the buttons, pushing the fabric aside as the shirt parts. 

your eyes flick over him before you can stop yourself and your eyes gaze over his broad shoulders, muscular chest and the way his skin pulled tight with tension. his chest rises and falls carefully, like he’s controlling his breath. your eyes then hover to the wound—it’s red and bleeding, the stitches torn off because they didn’t have enough time to heal and got ripped from the effort of running. you suck in a breath at the sight before you dump the contents of the paper bag onto your lap, you grab the cotton and antiseptic first, soaking the balls of cotton in the antiseptic to clean the wound first. 

you dab the cotton soaked antiseptic to the wound and wonwoo winces from the burn. “you’re such an idiot”, you say, upset. “i told you that you needed to be on bed rest”, you snap lightly as wonwoo looks at you, like he was trying to silently apologise to you with his eyes. “i didn’t really have a choice, it was either do or die today”, wonwoo says and you wipe around the wound a little harder than intended and he sucks in a sharp breathe. you glare at him. “i think we should get you checked out at a hospital”, you say and wonwoo immediately is against the idea. “no, not today, not after what we just did”, he tells. even after all this he was still going to be stubborn and call the shots. you decide not to say anything more and focus on cleaning the wound. you finally manage to wipe all the blood and stop the bleeding, the heap of cotton balls beside you all red and soaked from you wiping all the blood down and cleaning the area. you grab the bandages and medical gauze, carefully dressing his wound and securing it neatly. 

“you don’t have to worry about me so much”, he murmurs lowly, his gaze fixed on you. “yeah i do, you’re my partner”, you say without looking at him and something unreadable flickers across his gaze as he watches you. you finish wrapping the bandage around him and secure it with a small knot. your fingers linger there once you finish before you pull your hands away. you wipe your hands clean with the remaining cotton and antiseptic. “i’ll drive”, you say, getting out of the passenger’s side and walking over to the driver’s side to help wonwoo. he steps out, gripping the car door as he walks. you grab onto his arm without thinking and help him walk to the other side. once he’s sat, you walk back over the to drivers side and take a seat. you turn around and reach for your handbag from the backseat. you dig into your bag and fish out a small bottle of orange juice and a protein bar, handing it to wonwoo. “here, eat something, it’ll help with your blood sugar in case you start feeling dizzy”, you say, since he had lost some blood and was in pain. “i’m fine Y/N but—“, you don’t let him finish, giving him a stern look and he takes the bottle of juice and protein bar.

you drive back to the city, but you’re still worried about wonwoo, occasionally glancing at him. “are you okay? you sure you don’t need to get checked out at the hospital?”, you ask again and he shakes his head. “i’ll be fine”, he says and you really don’t understand why he’s so stubborn. “well, it if doesn’t heal properly or gets infected, it’s better to get it checked out, alright”, you add, because you seemed to care about him for reasons unknown, even though you’d known the guy for barely two weeks. “yes doctor”, wonwoo tells, looking at you. “i’m being serious agent jeon, a gunshot wound isn’t a joke”, you say, as you take a turn on the road and stop at the red light. “i’ll make sure to take care of it and i appreciate the concern, i’ll be careful”, he says, looking at you, his eyes maybe a little apologetic and his tone more sincere. “good”, you tell, glancing away and driving ahead at the green light. 

you don’t drive at to the bureau, but instead you drive to wonwoo’s apartment. when you make the familiar turn into wonwoo’s neighbourhood you can tell he recognises the area from the way he sits up and he looks at you. “agent jeon, i’m putting you on bedrest right of this moment, doctors orders”, you say as you drive a little ahead and park the car in front of his building. “i’m really—“, he stops mid sentence with the glare you give him. “alright”, he says in defeat, putting his hands up in surrender. “yeah that’s what i thought”, you mumble as you undo the seatbelt and get out of the car. 

you help wonwoo get out and he is a little more stable this time around and can walk on his own without limping or wincing too much because the patching up you’d done helped. you follow wonwoo as he walks up the stairs to the first floor. he fishes out his keys from his pockets and it unlocks with a click. he steps inside and you hover around the door, watching him, suddenly unsure if you were welcome inside—because you didn’t want to intrude. what if he wanted to be alone?

wonwoo turns around, watching you stand awkwardly by the door, unsure. you’re about to turn around and walk away when the sound of his voice stops you. “you can come in you know”, he says. you hesitate for a second longer before you step inside and close the door behind you. you slip out of your shoes and into the extra pair of house slippers by the side. you’re still unsure as you walk inside to the living room. the space is neat, organised and well lit and you notice the pile of files on the coffee table, clippings of newspapers scattered by the side and a stack of old newspapers on the floor. there’s a small notebook by the side that’s open and you recognise wonwoo’s handwriting inside it. you turn around, only to realise you’re alone and wonwoo isn’t to be seen. you quietly settle on the couch and wait for wonwoo, who probably went to change out of his bloody shirt. 

when wonwoo comes back, he’s wearing a new loose, oversized t-shirt so his wound can breathe. he adjusts the glasses on his face as looks at you and then at the mess on the coffee table. wonwoo swiftly bends down to clear up the pieces of scattered paper before the sharp pain shoots up his abdomen and he grimaces. “forget it, just rest, don’t exert yourself”, you say as you stand up to help him. “seriously, don’t do any strenuous activity, otherwise i’ll be checking you into the hospital myself”, you threaten lightly as you make him sit down.

“so, from whatever you saw today, was it even useful?”, you ask a moment later as you take a seat next to him on the couch. “plenty useful”, wonwoo say as he get’s out his phone to refer to the video he took earlier of the files. he reaches out slowly this time and grabs the notebook that lays open. “don’t you think it’s weird that the military is holding jaehyun’s body? he was a mere FBI agent”, wonwoo says. it is weird you think. 

“don’t you what to know what they’re hiding?”, he asks, looking at you. “from these case files, i captured whatever i could, but most parts of these reports are redacted, which makes you wonder what they’re trying to hide, because why would they try to hide information if this wasn’t part of something bigger or sinister”, wonwoo explains. you look at him, quiet as you take the information he’s just offered you. whatever he just said did make sense because it was odd, weird and unusual—unsettling almost. why would they do that? you really didn’t want to believe it but part of you did find it weird that the government and military got involved and took away jaehyun’s body, without ever releasing the proper cause of death. why were they interested in this case?

that night, you go home and write your final field report on the case and turn it in, officially closing the case.

another week passes by and wonwoo’s healed better now. he sits on his couch, going over his notes for the nth time. he’s spent the past week scribbling down notes from the video of the files he took and tried his best to read between the lines and join the dots wherever he could. he’s scribbled down all the notes, information and possible scenarios or outcomes, but he’s still not satisfied because he’s not gotten the bigger picture just yet. there’s something right there, staring right back at him, but he’s just not making the connection yet. wonwoo hasn’t told you that he’s still digging into this case even though you told him you’d submitted the field reports and closed the case. there was still something bothering him about it—something peculiar about this case that he couldn’t quite put his finger on yet and he didn’t want to let it go just yet. 

wonwoo’s phone rings and it’s an unknown number, one he recognises instantly—the mystery man. wonwoo slides to answer the call and puts the phone to his ear. “turn on the news, channel 13”, the voice says and cuts the line, leaving wonwoo confused for a moment. nonetheless, the grabs the television remote that’s beside on on the couch and turns on the tv to channel 13. 

at the port today there was a high speed car chase that ended in disaster today. the suspect who was on the run for a parking evasion eluded capture from police officers by jumping into the port harbour and has not been located since. it has been reported that the suspect severely injured several police officers during the chase and before he jumped. into the water. we have the captain of the police form standing by right now. “captain, how was the man able to escape and how serious are the injuries of the officers?”, the report asks. “those details are still unclear and we’re working to figure out what exactly went down–“, the captain starts before getting cut off. “we need you captain”, someone says, interrupting them and the captain excuses himself and moves away to the side in a hurry.

wonwoo rewinds the footage and looks at it again, his eyes scanning the scene and trying to figure out what was going on. why had the mystery man tipped him about his? what was this about? to wonwoo, this seemed like an ordinary case. 

meanwhile, you’re getting ready to head to the bureau because you had a meeting scheduled with assistant director kang. as of today, it’s been three months since you’d been reassigned to work with agent jeon at the x-files department and you can only imagine that this meeting had something to do with that. you step inside the bureau and greet a few people as you make your way to the fourth floor, where assistant director kang’s office is. your heels click against the tiled floor as you walk, echoing in the quiet hallway and suddenly you’re too aware of your own heartbeat and you can feel it beating in your chest. you take a deep breath, swallowing down the nerves and tell yourself that everything was going to be okay. you knock twice before you enter, greeted by assistant director kang, who’s been waiting for you. he indicates for you to take a seat and you do, looking at him and waiting for him to speak. “thank you for coming in today agent Y/N”, kang starts. 

“we’ve reviewed your field reports so far and frankly i’m quite disappointed. this isn’t what i expected from you”, kang says, his voice clipped. you furrow your brows lightly. “what do you mean?”, you ask as kang looks down at the file that was in front of him.  “irregular procedures of investigation, untenable evidence, anonymous witnesses, inconclusive findings and vague opinions. do you care to explain all this agent L/N?”, kang questions, looking at you.

you look at assistant director kang, trying to get the right words to explain yourself. “with all due respect sir, i’ve tried my best to stay unbiased and report my findings to the best possible standards. the cases that i’ve dealt with so far have been vague and unusual at best. while i agree that agent jeon does have unorthodox methods of investigation, there’s nothing i can to do stop him”, you start, pausing before you try to explain yourself. “but i’ve noticed that maybe sometimes these cases do need a different approach because of their unusual nature”, you finish, hoping kang could understand where you’re coming from.

“what are you suggesting Y/N? that the bureau adopt special standards for you and agent jeon when investigating cases? there are standard procedures and methods here at the bureau that need to be followed by everyone, including you and agent jeon”, kang explains. 

“that’s not what i’m suggesting sir”, you counter. “then why is the happening? is agent jeon stopping you from following the proper procedure and protocol when investigating these cases?”, kang asks, closing the file and resting his hands on top of it as he waits for you to answer him. “no”, you repeat. “if anything, all i’d like to suggest is that these cases be reviewed with an open mind. these are peculiar and odd cases to begin with and these methods may be the only ones to solve these cases”, you say, recalling what you’d witnessed on both the cases so far, especially about agent jaehyun—you just couldn’t explain it and you didn’t want to believe wonwoo’s theory, but still the question lingered in your mind—what if? what if agent jeon was actually right?

kang sighs, clearly unhappy with your answer. “maybe your mind has become too open”, he remarks. “on the cases that we have investigated so far, we have had a conviction and case solution of 75%, which is well above the bureau’s standards”, you inform. “and that is your only saving grace agent”, kang tells. “what i want you to do going forward is an increased frequency of field reports, which you will report to me thrice a week. you and agent jeon will follow the bureau standards and protocols for investigation and it is your responsibly to oversee that these cases are investigated by the book agent L/N. if agent jeon stops you or hinders the investigation in any form that makes it go out of protocol, you will inform me immediately”, kang informs. you purse your lips together and agree, because you were in no position to argue or go against what the assistant director was saying. you getting reinstated to your previous department and field of work depended on this.

“i trust that you’ll listen to me and keep agent jeon in your reins”, kang says, looking at you with a raised eyebrow, like what he was saying wasn’t a request, it was an order. you nod. “yes sir”, you say. “good, you can carry on now”, kang says lastly, dismissing you and you get up and walk out of his office, letting out a bigger sigh. 

jeon wonwoo. you repeat the name in your head and sigh. over the last three months that you’d spent with him, you got thrown into unexpected situations, almost-well actually committed a crime, broke protocol and chased after aliens—or so called aliens, got held hostage and witnessed things you couldn’t quite explain or rationalise yourself. but through all this you learned one thing—that agent jeon wonwoo was passionate. he was so passionate about his beliefs and his work and you admired that. in the academy you were taught to write field reports, to follow protocol, to find justifiable evidence and verifiable facts, but over the last three months it's like everything you've learned had suddenly been rendered useless, testing your discipline and testing what you believe.

you've watched him stand at the crime scene and notice patterns when there should be none. you've watched him argue with your plausible and scientific explanations because they don't account for the almost unexplainable or impossible details. you’ve watched him pull out old x-files cases that he’s collected with similar cases or evidence like it’s completely normal and you’ve seen him constantly argue with you and your theories grounded in science and facts. in the process, you’ve slowly started to learn not to dismiss his questions as ridiculous or impossible and found yourself sitting with them overnight, thinking. you still don't believe in the things he does and he’s sort of grown on your now. and to now be told to reel him in and keep him from straying, from digging to deep, from breaking protocol, you don’t know how you were going to do that. this is jeon wonwoo and he’s never followed protocol when it came to this.

you walk down back to the basement to the x-files department and find wonwoo there, bent over at the desk, a laptop open in front of him. “good morning”, you say as you walk inside, making your way towards him. “take a look at this”, wonwoo says, without offering you any context, but at this point you’ve started getting used to it, especially with all the out of pocket things he does and says. you walk over to the desk and stand as he plays the video for you. it’s about a hit and run chase that took place yesterday evening. you watch the video, unsure why wonwoo was showing it to you because it seemed like an completely ordinary interview. 

the video finishes and you look at wonwoo confused. “you’re showing me this because?”, you ask. “he told me to turn on this news and this is what was playing”, wonwoo adds, again not offering you any sort of context again, making you even more confused. “the mystery man, my informant”, wonwoo adds, finally giving you something. “he told you to watch this?”, you ask and wonwoo answers you with a low hum. “and? did you find out anything?”, you ask. “not yet”, he says and you sigh. 

“there’s gotta be something here that i’m not seeing”, wonwoo mumbles to himself. “do you really trust this mystery man character? what if he’s just pulling your leg? throwing you a bone to lead you somewhere else?”, you question. wonwoo turns in his chair around to look at you. “why would he do that? he’s helped me before”, he says. “i don’t think he’d call me unless there was something here that he wanted me to see”, wonwoo adds a moment later. “and you’re just going to blindly trust this guy?”, you ask. wonwoo only shrugs lightly. “whatever information he’s given me before has been valid”, wonwoo says. “come one, lets go do some digging”, wonwoo says, getting up from his chair and gathering his blazer. you hesitate and sigh softly. “dig around what wonwoo? you have nothing to do on, this is a goose chase. this isn’t even a proper case”, you say. 

the conversation you just had with assistant director kang rings in your head. reel him in. keep him in your reins. those words echo in your ears and you stand there. you swallow your thoughts and go with wonwoo. when you reach the site, it’s chaos. there’s men diving in the water to look for the man who jumped and there are cars scattered all around, police in uniform guarding the crime scene like this was something more than just an ordinary hit and run case. wonwoo walks up to an officer in uniform, the local police, fishing out his ID from his pocket. 

“we’re with the FBI, special agent jeon, his is special agent L/N.  we’d like to ask you some questions about this incident”, wonwoo says. he puts away his ID once the man’s eyes skim over it. “i’ve already answered questions, there were three different law enforcement agencies here last night”, the man says, clearly not interested in wanting to stand and answer agent jean’s questions. “so much attention for someone who was running for a parking violation?”, wonwoo asks and the officer just shrugs, like it’s no big deal to him and he couldn’t care less. “we’ll it’s what we do”, he simply states.

“i heard the suspect was shot. has the body been recovered yet?”, wonwoo questions. “i don’t know agent, we’re trying out best here. the search is still ongoing so hopefully we find the suspect’s body soon”, the officer says. “it’s been over 18 hours officer? if’d you’d have found the body by now, you would have”, wonwoo says, like a fact. “like i said, we’re quite certain it’ll be found”, the officer states again, not liking wonwoo’s tone. “why would the FBI be so interested in this case be?”, the officer adds, looking wonwoo up and down. wonwoo is quiet for a moment. “just checking”, wonwoo states lowly. “i’d like to take a look at the car if possible please”, wonwoo adds. the officer sighs, looking at him. “the car’s been seized, you can find it at the impound”.

at the impound, wonwoo inspects the car with careful attention, his eyes sharp, focused and attentive, like he’s trying to find something that might be amiss. he looks at the photograph of the car that was captured on the file again and signs as he walks forward to the front of the car. “i can’t make out the license plate number in this photograph”, he says, like he’d hit another brick wall in his investigation. his eyes linger on the photograph for a second longer and his eyes sharpen on instinct, his eyes flicking towards the photograph and the car in front of him. “this isn’t the same car”, he mutters to himself. you turn around and look around him. “what?”, you ask, your feet moving as you walk towards him. “look at the car in the photo and this car”, wonwoo says, turning the photograph towards you. you look at the photograph hard, your eyes flicking over every inch of the car and then you see it. “it’s not the same car”, you repeat. you look at wonwoo and then at the photograph. 

“they switched cars on us”, wonwoo says. “who’s they?”, you question because you had no idea where wonwoo was going with this. “whoever wanted to hide something”, he tells. you look at the sticker that’s stuck on the windshield on the car in the photograph, but not on the one in front of you. “that sticker”, you say, looking at wonwoo. “it’s a symbol used in the medical profession. “so the car most likely belongs to a doctor”, wonwoo finishes. he calls someone, asking them to run a a partial plate for them and see if they’re able to get a match after trying to enhance the image of the car.

later in the day, wonwoo gets a call that the car’s been traced and it belongs to dr.shin. you and wonwoo make your way to meet him and you both walk into dr.shin’s lab. the lab is well lit. there’s cages lined up by one by one at end of the room, most likely for animals and on the table in the middle there’s countless beakers and test-tubes, like he was running multiple experiments at once. the air is stale almost. it smells faintly of something you can’t seem to out your finger on, but it’s eerie in a way. 

 “dr.shin?”, wonwoo calls out and he turns around. “we’re with the FBI and we’d like to ask you a few questions if you could give us a minute of your time”, wonwoo says. dr.shin look at wonwoo, then looks back at the beaker in his hand, putting it down carefully. “i’m sorry but i’m in the middle of something important right now”, dr.shin says. wonwoo continues with his questions anyway. 

“are you aware that a car registered to your name was involved in a high speed chase last night?”, wonwoo asks. dr. shin looks clueless. “what? no i had no idea? did something happen?”, dr, shin asks. “do you own a silver honda?”, wonwoo asks and he nods. “yes, what is this about?”, dr.shin asks again, still busy, his tone a little irritated now and he moves to the other side of the table, like he wasn’t able to keep still. “are you aware that is was missing?”, wonwoo asks and he shakes his head again. “no. did something happen to it?”, dr.shin questions, turning around to look at wonwoo. “it was used in a crime”, wonwoo says. “what?”, dr.shin exclaims, surprised. 

while wonwoo questions dr.shin more now that he seems to have his full attention, you wander around the room, slowly walking towards the cages by the side of the room. you take a look closer and spot animals inside—mostly monkeys. you step forward to take a closer look, but your presence seems to agitate them and they start making noises, screeching almost and trying to attack the cage. you step back immediately and turn over to see dr.shin rushing over to them. “what did you do?”, he asks and you shake you head. “i didn’t do anything, i was just looking at them, i thought they were friendly”, you say as you take another step back.

“they should not be excited, they’re part of an experiment”, dr.shin says looking at you. “sorry”, you say softly. “what sort of experiment?”, wonwoo asks, his interest piqued. “am i under any kind of suspicion?”, dr.shin asks, turning to face wonwoo. “no”, he answers, quick and short. “then i think i’ve answered all your questions”, dr.shin says, like he was basically kicking you both out of his lab. “thank you for you time”, wonwoo says a second later and he moves towards the door, walking out and you follow beside him.

“you okay?”, he asks and you nod. “yeah”, you say. “so what do you think?”, wonwoo asks as you both walk down the corridor of the building. ‘i don’t see anything odd about his behaviour”, you say as you both turn the corner. “maybe we should ask the housekeeping if they know anything about dr.shin”, wonwoo suggests and you stop in your tracks.

“no”, you say, crossing your arms over your chest as you look up at wonwoo. “no? what do you mean no”, he asks, confused. “this has reached the point of absurdity wonwoo. we’re out here, chasing god knows. we’re wasting our time on something that isn’t even our case. all you’ve gotten is a stupid hunch an a cryptic phone call, chasing down a clue that’s based purely on speculation. we don’t even know what we’re looking for here and this is just ridiculous and a complete waste of time”, you say. 

“that’s all we’ve got to work with ,that’s all he’s given us”, wonwoo says. “this mystery man, who even is he? we don’t know anything about him, if he’s even legit and—”, you start but wonwoo cuts you off. “he’s in a delicate position but he has access to information that is highly valuable and any sort of indiscretion could expose or put him in danger”, wonwoo explains. “but you don’t know that, what if he’s just toying with you, playing with you”, you question and wonwoo looks a little offended. “you think he’s just leaving me false bait”, wonwoo questions, a brow raised at you. “how do you he isn’t?”, you question back and walk ahead. “i’m going back to the bureau”, you call out. wonwoo lets out a resigned sigh and follows behind you. 

back at the bureau, wonwoo is searching through a file because he swears he’s seen a similar x-file before. “i think we should be check the impound again”, wonwoo asks. you look glance at the time on your watch—5:00pm.  “i have to be back by 6:30 pm”, you say as you watch wonwoo skim through the pages of the file in his hand, trying to find exactly what he wanted. “another party to go to?”, he asks causally, not looking at you. you pause before answering. “nope, i have a date”, you say and wonwoo’s hands falter for a moment and he snaps his head up. he looks at you, like he’s trying to figure out if you really meant that. “can you cancel?”, he asks and you consider it, almost, but you don’t. “unlike you agent jeon, i would like to have a life”, you say and wonwoo only looks at you. “i do have a life”, he says and you nod. “yeah right”, you mumble under your breathe and he catches his, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

when wonwoo get’s home that night, he get’s another phone call from the same unknown number—the mystery man. “i’m disappointed in you agent jeon”, the voice says immediately. “disappointed?”, wonwoo repeats, unsure where he was going with this. “i expected you to stay up all night trying to put all the pieces together, i expected better from you”, the mystery man says. “maybe if you’d given me more to work with, it would be easier”, wonwoo says, his voice low. “i’ve given you all i can agent jeon”, the mystery man says and wonwoo almost laughs. “a news report is all you’ve given me”, wonwoo counters. “and that’s exactly where everything lies”, the mystery man repeats. 

“how about you save me the trouble and just tell me what i’m supposed to be looking for”, wonwoo asks, a little impatience carrying over through his tone now. the mystery man clicks his tongue. “you’re becoming too dependant on me agent jeon”, he taunts lightly and wonwoo clenches his jaw. “you know, from day one everything has always been on your terms. you’ve offered me vague clues, left me crumbs to find and stitch together. i’ve only gone along with it because i wanted to. i have plenty of my own things to do without having to chase down your vague leads that you’re giving me”, wonwoo says. the mystery man sighs in the background on the other side of the line. “agent jeon, take my advice and don’t give up on this one”, the mystery man says. “or what?”, wonwoo snaps. “you’ve never been closer to the truth”, the mystery man says before he the line cuts. wonwoo lets out sigh and runs a hand over his face, throwing his phone on the couch beside him. 

that night, wonwoo goes over the clip again, trying to put together what he saw, trying to figure out if the doctor was a threat or not, the words of the mystery man replaying in his mind over and over again. you’ve never been closer to the truth.

wonwoo picks up his notebook from the table, flipping it open to the notes he’s scribbled. he opens his phone and looks at the brief video he took of agent jaehyun’s file. he stares at it again, like it’s some cryptic message—because it almost was since more than half the information was redacted. wonwoo’s eyes linger on the file name again—project lazarus. and right under that is a block of text that only confirms whatever he’s been thinking—aviation/defence research. under that is the incident file number, but it’s different, it doesn’t match the one the FBI filed, so this file technically should’t exist. wonwoo stares at the screenshots he’s taken of each page which says otherwise. he notices the binding on the file, it’s different. he zooms in more into the image and it’s stamped differently too—not the way FBI documents are stamped. he flips through the screenshots he’s taken and printed out of each page, but he can’t make sense of it because they’re all medical documents—ECG strips, neurological mapping, blood test reports, x-rays and more. the hospital logo is present on each page, but it’s overridden by another stamp—the military stamp. technically wonwoo should’t even be seeing this, but here he is because he’s stubborn as hell. wonwoo continues to read between whatever’s written and hasn’t been redacted. 

subject exhibits non-native speech pattern. behavior not consistent with baseline.

wonwoo swallows. what was that supposed to mean? wonwoo shifts to another screenshot and this time there’s timestamps. one particular timestamp catches his eye—23:41. that’s when jaehyun disappeared. so the missing hours weren’t random. they took him. they did something to him. he puts the papers down on the table and buries his head in his palms, letting out a shaky breath. wonwoo contemplates calling you, because he’s read though the file and gathered whatever he could understand, but there’s things that don’t seem to add up, medical reports and documents he doesn’t fully understand and he needs you to help him. so he picks up his phone and calls you, hoping you’d be done with your date by now.

it’s a little late now and you’re just heading home when your phone rings. you fish it out of your bag and your stare at the name—agent jeon. now what did he want. you hope he wasn’t calling you to go investigate whatever stupid vague lead he had. you stare at your phone, take a deep breath and answer the phone.

“hello?”, you speak. “agent L/N”, wonwoo says, his voice filling your ear. “yes agent jeon? to what do i owe this pleasure”, you say sarcastically. the line is silent for a second before he speaks. “are you still on your date? i wanted you to come have a look at something”, he says carefully, like he’s already convinced that you’d say no. “is this about the vague lead that your so called source gave you?”, you ask as you walk slowly down the road to your apartment building. “no”, he says, his voice low. “okay then what is it about?”, you ask. “it’s better if i tell you in person”, wonwoo says. he wasn’t sure if his or your phone was being tapped or they were keeping tabs on him and he didn’t want to take any risks. 

“alright”, you say and there’s a pause on the other end of the line and it’s like you can almost hear him thinking. “what about your date?”, he asks and you shift your weight from one foot to another, standing outside the restaurant. “it’s over, i was just heading home”, you say and there’s another pause before he speaks. “he didn’t offer to drop you home?”, wonwoo asks, like that was a non-negotiable, like it was something obvious. “it’s fine”, you say, waving him off and saying you’d reach his place soon, cutting the call. you take a cab and 20 minutes later you’re standing in front of his building. you climb up to his floor and ring the doorbell. you hear the shuffle of feet from inside. the lock clicks open and he pulls the door open slightly, like he was making sure it was you before he opens it fully. “you came”, he says. “of course i came, you asked me to”, you say, but wonwoo barely listening to you as he takes you in fully now, his eyes moving over you unintentionally, like he can’t quite stop himself.  

you’re wearing simple dress and your hair is loose now, falling over your shoulders instead of being tied back like it usually was when you’re working and arguing with him about theories and cases. wonwoo notices the makeup too. it’s subtle but it’s enough that wonwoo catches the difference. you look like someone who had somewhere else to be tonight and someone who dressed up for someone else and that thought sits somewhere unpleasant in his chest. he didn’t like that very much.

you tilt your head to the side slightly, looking at him. “are you going to invite me in or not?”, you ask, giving him a look and he nods. “yeah, come in”, he says, moving aside, his mind still held distracted with the way you looked. you walk inside and he gestures towards the couch. “coffee? tea? anything i can get you?”, he asks immediately. “maybe some tea”, you say as you take a seat and he hums in response, moving to the kitchen to prepare it for you. wonwoo stands by the kettle, waiting for the water to boil. you look pretty he thinks, too pretty, and the thought annoys him more than it should. five minutes later wonwoo returns with two cups of hot tea. he’s about to set them down when he notice the mess on the coffee table—papers scattered all over, books stacked haphazardly and pens lying around. he carefully places the cups on the edge of the table and his hands move to clean it up. 

“sorry, i was working”, he says as you watch him stack the papers neatly and pile them on top of the books carefully. you hum softly in response, not really minding it. “you always say that”, you say a beat later and wonwoo looks up. “what?”, he asks as he moves the cups towards the centre of the table now, pushing your cup closer to you. “that you’re working”, you say. he only shrugs lightly. “i usually am”, he says and finally takes a seat next to you. he’s close enough that your shoulders almost touch, but neither of you move. you slowly pick up the cup of tea and blow over it, taking a careful sip. wonwoo watches you, even though he tries not to. 

“how was the date?”, he asks and your eyes flicker to his as you take a slow sip of the tea. “it was fine”, you say and he nods, though he doesn’t really look convinced. “you called me here to interrogate me about my date?”, you ask and he looks away for a moment before looking back up at you. “no, i wanted you to take a look at something”, he says. “so, what did you want me to take a look at?”, you ask.

“don’t get mad”, wonwoo says first and you give him a look. “what is it?”, you ask and he reaches to to the notebook and hands you the notes of whatever he’s scribbled down and print outs of screenshots of the video—different stills of pages, medical reports, x-rays, more medical reports, incident reports and more. “i want you to take a look at these and tell me what it means”, wonwoo asks. you reach out and take the notebook and bunch of papers from his hand. “what’s this?”, you ask. “that’s what i’m trying to figure out”, he says, leaning back into the couch. you recognise the screenshots from jaehyun’s file from the place you broke into. you look at wonwoo. 

“wonwoo, we closed this case”, you say looking at him. “i know, but there’s something that’s been bothering me about this. just, please, take a look at it”, wonwoo pleads. you don’t have the energy to argue back so you look down and take a look at what he’s handed you. your eyes skim over the printouts, scanning the numbers, the timestamps and the reports. your fingers trace the lines of the ECG and your finger stops. wonwoo notices immediately. “what?”, he asks, sitting up. you blink and trace the ECG line again, sure that there must be some kind of mistake. “this isn’t right, this shouldn’t be right”, you say. wonwoo leans forward to get a closer look at what you were seeing. “what do you mean it isn’t right?”, he asks again. you turn to another page and there’s another chart and another strip followed by more redacted text. you swallow. “they don’t match the vitals, it’s inconsistent”, you say. 

you flip to the next sheet, the page rustling in your hands and you continue to read. “it says he was left handed…he wasn’t”, you say. “i know”, wonwoo says. your gaze sharpens and you see the timestamp, noticing the gap. “wonwoo”, you say. “the missing hours, it’s here—23:41. that’s when he went missing and the hospital has no records of it”, you tell, looking at him. you suddenly felt sick. what the fuck was happening. you continue to flip through whatever wonwoo’s printed out and collected and terms like identity refusal, neural compatibility, post-mortem cognition stand out. the sentence of ‘transfer event was observed’ sends goosebumps all over your skin. what the hell was that supposed to mean?

you put the the bunch of papers on the table and turn to face wonwoo. “what the hell is this?”, you ask. “it’s the truth”, wonwoo says, perfectly still. “why are you still digging into this, the case is closed”, you repeat, because you couldn’t understand what compelled him so much. why couldn’t he just leave this alone and move on. “i think there’s a connection here. all these cases—colonel nam’s, agent jaehyun’s and this lead i’m after now”, wonwoo explains. “what? the cryptic lead that your source gave you on a stupid phone call?, you question, letting out a frustrated sign. “seriously why are you so determined to believe everything. why can’t you just let it be”, you insist. “why don’t you just admit it yn, you’re determined not to believe that he’s trying other help us and that you’re not willing to believe the truth even when the hard evidence is right in front of us”, wonwoo says, raising his voice a bit.

“what evidence?”, you retort sharply. “maybe you’re too determined to believe him and believe all this crap”, you counter. “i am determined to follow a lead that may result in proving what the government is hiding for all these years, the proof of extraterrestrial beings and proof that’s something more sinister happening behind the scenes”, wonwoo defends. you let out a big sigh. “you really need to stop with this”, you say gesturing to the table that was overflowing with the notes, papers and countless other things related to the case. "you need to stop with these unorthodox investigation methods and chasing leads that don’t exist. you’re wasting your time wonwoo”, you say and he’s quiet for a moment before he speaks.

“if you're resistant because you don’t believe, i’ll respect that. but if you’re resistant because of bureaucratic pressure then that means they’ve gotten to you too.”, wonwoo says. you roll your eyes, tired of his bullshit.

“wonwoo will you just listen to me, please”, you ask, looking at him. he meets your gaze. “i have never met anyone as passionate and dedicated to a belief as you are and sometimes it’s so…overwhelming. it’s so intense that it can be blinding. you need to remember that there are others who are watching you, that they know things about you and are willing to use that against you. whereas i can respect and admire you passion, there are others who try to use it against you. the truth is out there wonwoo, but so are lies”, you say looking at him, because you need him to understand this. god knows what was actually out there and he was caught right in the middle of it all—it was cruel.

“and all this”, you say, referring to the mess on his coffee table again. “this is–this is insane”, you say. wonwoo doesn’t move. “it’s all written there”, wonwoo offers. you scoff lightly. “no. no it’s not. more than half of these pages has the information is redacted. you can’t just read between the lines and make up whatever truth you want wonwoo”, you say. “you read the files Y/N, you read what they did”, wonwoo says, his gaze not wavering from you. “i read whatever was available, you still don’t know what’s actually in the file or what actually happened”, you counter. “and it could mean anything, there are perfectly sane explanations for whatever’s in that file”, you add, standing up hurriedly, like you wanted nothing to do with this anymore. 

wonwoo purses his lips together. “like what? acute stress? PTSD? hypoxia?”, wonwoo asks and you nod. “yes, exactly”, you say. “i’m not question your passion agent jeon, i’m only questioning your methods and if you’re digging into is really worth it”, you say, glancing at him.

wonwoo stands up slowly, deliberately, like he doesn’t want to spook you anymore than you already are. “agent jaehyun went missing from the hospital Y/N and he came back left handed overnight. how do you explain that?”, wonwoo questions. you open your mouth to answer but close it because there’s nothing for you to explain—you don’t know.

“stop it”, you say sharply. “stop turning this into something it’s not. you’re just trying to find reasons to link this to whatever you have in your mind, twisting the truth”, you say, the words landing harshly on wonwoo. you watch the way his jaw clenches slightly, like he’s frustrated but doesn’t want to show it, not on you. “i’m not twisting the truth Y/N, i’m uncovering it”, he says as calmly as possible, his voice dangerously low. “why can’t you see it? why can’t you just accept the truth and accept the fact that—“, he says, raising his voice but you cut him off. “enough”, you yell over him. “i’m going, i can’t do this right now”, you say, picking up your coat that you’d draped on the side of the couch and your bag, walking out of wonwoo’s apartment. you don’t look back. 

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