#bok gi

Everyone has moments in their lives where they feel as if they've hit a checkpoint. It's an innocuous moment, sometimes coming as you're walking out the door of your house, or when you wait for the next bus after a late night with your friends. The moment is like leveling up in a video game, where a little chime hits and you see everything around you with more clarity. Your surroundings become sharper, you become aware of yourself and who you are in that present moment. You see everything with a little more color and you’ll muse to yourself about how fast things change. The first time it happened to prosecutor Han, no lawyer Han now, he was looking out to the 1st floor of his house.

The weekend before, he had quit his job at the prosecutor's office, despite it being everything he ever wanted it to be. After admitting wrongdoing and withdrawing the charges on his former intern, Kang Sol, based on lack of evidence, he lost everything he worked towards in a flash. Being a prosecutor was everything he had wanted in his life, following in his uncle's footsteps. As a little kid, he dreamed of wearing the black and mahogany robes, seeing his uncle wear them on the days he went to court. But now, after the whirlwind Kang Sol had brought in his life, he was left with nothing but turmoil. His lifelong dream, now crumbling bit by bit. His uncle, now murdered in cold blood.

As it turns out, Joon Hwi was wrong in indicting Kang Sol as the culprit. Kang Sol had been a mere passerby and a victim of the wrong place, wrong time. Instead, he had found out during his year delving into her case, that it was Lee Man Ho, one of the people his uncle had once put behind jail, that murdered him. But with no solid evidence or way to make him pay for his uncle's life (and Kang Sol's future) Joon Hwi swore to himself that he would keep digging, until they could capture him together.

He can still remember the day she walked in as an intern, the girl who was cheated on by her ex-boyfriend that he had swooped in to save. He remembered the way she eagerly walked into his office the next day, introducing herself as his newest intern. He remembered the shock and embarrassment on her face as she recognized him from that night. He remembered every late night they spent, her cursing behind his back, them arguing and teasing each other every time he dropped a new stack of files on her desk. He had once argued with her, to leave his life in peace. And ultimately, he did get what he wanted, he finally had peace.

Peace, he found out, was not what it cracked up to be. As his year passed by without her, so did his spirit. Originally, he wanted to blame his job, his coworkers, and his superiors. But every night, as he closed his eyes and lay in bed, he could see her, clad in the drab colors of the prison uniform. Her eyes were devoid of the life she once had, the eyes of the girl that once would curse and spar with him, now pleading with him to believe her. And taking a shot in the dark, he believed her, sacrificing everything he worked for. In return, she left him just as he asked, but with her leave, she had drawn out the colors in his life and taken it with her.

So, with an aim in mind, he sent in his resignation letter and cleared out the first floor of his house, installing dividers and desks instead. He turned the space into a quaint office, enough to house the new workers he planned to recruit to his firm. It hadn't been easy, but after weeks of pleading with his former coworkers, Seo Ji Ho, Kang Sol (B), Ye-Seul, Ye-Beom and Bok-gi, they had relented and joined his law firm, some as office managers and others as partners. But the puzzle wasn’t complete yet. Not without her.

He expected her to be working as a lawyer, opening up her own practice in the years time. But instead, he found her at the martial arts academy, instructing children on how to kick and punch and fight for their own. If there was ever a job suited for Kang sol, it was this. Yet, he knew that she belonged in the firm with him, working as a full time lawyer. As a former suspect, she had the sympathy and capacity to believe in her clients, something he’s always lacked. From her time as an intern, he knew that she wasn’t like him; she couldn’t recall the codes verbatim and she had barely passed her exams at the university. Instead, she had tenacity and passion that he hadn’t seen in any intern before. Even when he swamped her with work, she would stay every late night to call up witnesses, to talk and explain to them with a care he didn’t possess.

He had found out, from further probing, that she in fact had opened up her own firm. But who would want to have a lawyer that was only cleared of charges because of “Lack of Evidence”? All her clientele, apparently, consisted of creeps and criminals who wanted them to defend her because she had escaped the murder charge. It made fire burn under his skin, when he found out that one of them had threatened and stalked her when she refused to defend him, and his guilt only grew after he found out it resulted in her losing her apartment as well. For the months before he had found her, she lived exclusively in her office. The month before his offer came, she closed down her firm and opted to work for her friend at the academy, teaching kids martial arts out of necessity.

But he knew that Kang Sol was meant to be a lawyer, so he decided that just for the day, he could leave all his dignity behind and plead with her to come back. He offered her the spare room in his house until everything was cleared up for her, just so she could come back as a lawyer. It took her all of 7 seconds to join him, dragging her bag behind her as she joined him in his car.

(Later, he would cringe at himself asking why did i care so much, why did i do that and then stifle the annoying voice that responded with words he did not want to accept.)

The second time he hit a checkpoint, was in his former kitchen, now a meeting room. Prosecutor Lawyer Han Joon Hwi was sitting at the helm of the table, looking out to his former, well-respected coworkers, silent in the chaos around him.

So this was his life now he thought, surrounded by former prosecutors and lawyers and suspects, who were arguing like toddlers, the chaos of who should do the chores this week, and what does everyone want for lunch and why ji-ho and sol B should be the ones to scout the apartment. Rather than clarity, his vision only got muddled at this checkpoint. Oh, how fast the dream of his firm crumbled before him. He should have known that having all his friends in a room like this, working together to cause him unending headaches, would come back to bite him in the ass. He loved them, but on days like this, it was a little harder to remember.

"YAH!" he yelled abruptly, pushing his chair away from the table, both hands running through his hair as the room fell quiet. He was standing then, frustration plain in his voice and his mind as his outburst cut through the room.

"There's no need to yell," Kang sol’s (A, his voice reminded him) disdainful voice rang out, narrowing her eyes at him, as if she was mentally cursing him out.

"Are you guys twelve years old? Why can we never have one peaceful meeting?" he begged them, ignoring her.  On days like these, he felt that he should be changing his title from lawyer to school headmaster.

"We have the chores ladder for a reason," he stated, and then spinning towards Ye-beom, "and no rigging it this time, everyone gets a fair shot." Ye-beom pouted, then schooled his expression into an innocent look.

Turning towards his best friend and former roommate Ji-ho, he continued "And you. Why would you and and Sol B go to check out Lee Man Ho's listing?"

"But, the landlord listed the apartment for-" Ji ho interjected, his eyebrows drawn in confusion.

"Kang sol and I will go. She needs to look through the files to see if she can recognize the handwriting of the note he had left at the scene," he said, ending the argument once and for all.

Ji ho nodded hesitantly, his eyebrows still furrowed, before looking down to his laptop. The meeting had continued smoothly from then on, Bok-gi distributing new cases among the lawyers and discussing any new developments in their clientele.

Joon Hwi leaned back in his chair and let out a long sigh, as his fellow lawyers filed out of the room as the meeting ended. If he had known that being a lawyer was this exhausting, he would have never started. But before Kang Sol could file out with them,  he struck out his hand, capturing her wrist with his hand, causing her to pause in her tracks.

"You. We have a place to visit, today." he told her, looking up to meet her gaze. He stood up, not breaking their gaze, before walking out of the meeting room and back to his desk.

It was a great day out in Seoul, as Joon Hwi looked up at the apartment complex, the sun almost blindingly bright. He was still dressed in his office wear, both Sol and him not having the time to change before they headed out. Sol followed right behind him, panting as she tried to keep up with his brisk walk from the car.

"Why'd you wear heels, we're here to scout the apartment," he asked her, not taking his eyes off the building. He scanned the exterior of the building, looking for anything that could indicate that Lee Man Ho tried to break back into the apartment.

Lee Man Ho, the suspected culprit behind his uncle's murder, had disappeared a couple days ago, with no trace left behind. Well, visible trace anyways. Ye-seul and Bok-gi had kept their ears to the ground for any hint of the man, and up on some further digging, it turned out he lived in another apartment across town. If everything was still intact, this could be their best shot at finding him and whoever orchestrated this. It was still a long shot, but it could be more than enough for them to keep pursuing the case. Not to mention that he owed it to Sol to find the real culprit, and clear her name.

"How would it make sense—" she paused to catch her breath, panting with her hands on her knees, before continuing, "How would it make sense if i wore sneakers to come look at an apartment listing. We're supposed to make a good impression on the landlord, not look like we're here sleuthing for clues. Not to mention we rushed out before we had the chance to change," Sol looked up, towards the window he was looking at. "Do you think he came back here before running off?"

"It's our best bet for now," Joon Hwi sighed then, looking across to her, his eyes contemplative. She was dressed in her light blue suit, the shade making her look brighter and her spirits higher. Her hair was down, wispy and loose in the slight breeze rather than her signature bun that would get messy every time she had to work too hard on a case. She looked rather beautiful then, the bright sun shining and he could almost imagine what it would be like if they were here on a date.

Whoa. Where did that come from? He blinked then, trying to clear his mind off of whatever his brain was doing, and looked back at the building.

"Are you the newlywed couple here for the listing?" an older woman questioned suddenly. The voice startled them, their heads whipping towards the source of the voice as she approached them, shielding her eyes from the sun. “You two are the newlyweds, correct? Looking for an apartment in that complex?” she asked, looking between the both of them.  Joon Hwi whipped his head towards Sol, her eyes just as wide as his, as if they were both deers frozen in headlights.

"Actually, we—" Sol began.

"Yes, we are," Joon Hwi interjected, grabbing her hand in a tight clasp and slightly squeezing as if to say go along with it. "Is it possible for us to look around right now?"

"Hm, well, it is a little early but I'm sure I can make an excuse for an adorable couple such as you two," the woman smiled, as she beckoned them to follow her.

Joon Hwi sent his coworker, no now his fake wife, an apologetic glance as he dragged her along. She glared at him and grumbled something under her breath as she held onto his hand, following the woman.

Despite his mind having been on the case just a minute ago, he can't help the contented feeling in his chest as her hand rested in his. Her hands were smaller and much more lithe, his hand engulfing hers. Her palms were soft and as his arm brushed against hers, he could feel her warmth. It was as if Kang Sol’s brightness was bursting through her skin, and reaching out to touch him every single time he got close. For a girl who made his once peaceful life absolute chaos, her hand molded perfectly to his, almost as if her chaos meshed well with his peace.

Shaking it off, he focused on following the landlady leading up to the entrance of the apartment. Shifting his head, he scanned down the halls trying to catch any possible witnesses or a way that Lee Man Ho could have sneaked in. Despite the rows and rows of doors, none of them looked occupied, nor leaving any blatant clues or signs of break ins.

The woman opened the door with some struggle, the key not turning the lock properly but after a couple adjustments the door opened. They walked through the door of the apartment, still hand in hand, taking in their surroundings.

The apartment was pristine, not a speck of dust coated the walls nor the furniture. It looked vastly different to the other, which was covered head to toe in posters and newspaper clippings. The only thing that had indicated a presence in the apartment was the stacks of files on the desk across.

"The current resident said I could show it to couples that came by, whenever he's on vacation or taken off," the landlady continued on, opening the curtains so the light filtered through. She continued on talking, informing the two of the amenities and such, as the two lawyers scanned the apartment. Joon Hwi mentally catalogued everything that was in the apartment. Why was this apartment so devoid when the other one was so cluttered and filthy? Did he even live here?

"So, how long have the two of you been together?" she questioned them, interrupting his train of thought, a kind smile as she turned to face the two of them, who were still hand in hand.

"Five years," he replied, just as Sol said "Two years." The landlady's face scrunched in confusion, and the two lawyers looked at each other, their smiles as fake as can be with panicked eyes. Joon Hwi let out a forced laugh as took his hand out of her grasp and placed it over her shoulder, drawing her in close, hoping that the show of affection would make up for the screw up. Sol clenched her jaw in response, her shoulders stiffened up, as she sent out a reluctant smile at the kind lady as his fingers squeezed her shoulder a little too tight.

"We had met five years ago, but we only started dating two years ago," he said, smiling a little too much as he dragged her even closer, trying to signal her to relax. "She was very obviously head over heels for me back then, but I took a little longer to come around," he informed her, as he took the opportunity to tease her, trying to get her at ease.

Sol let out a bark of laughter at that, sending a saccharine smile towards him. "Oh really, honey?" her voice sang the last note as she dug her heel into his foot, a small yelp leaving his throat before a forced smile settled on his face. "I remember you outside my window, quite desperate to take me on a date." Joon Hwi laughed as he looked at her, but Sol could see the barely constrained frustration in his eyes as she smirked back.

"Aw, you two are adorable together," the old woman responded, her eyes a little too soft for Joon Hwi's liking. "I remember being young and head over heels for each other," she let out a wistful sigh, not noticing the lawyer's mirrored looks of alarm. "Well, I'll let you two look around," she finally said to them, heading towards the entrance, informing them to just holler if they need her.

The two of them stayed frozen, Sol firmly pressed into his arm as they watched her leave, making sure she's finally gone. Her warmth truly bled into him now, her body fitting just right in his arm. Before long they jumped back from each other as if they were shocked into reality.

Joon Hwi swallowed then, his breathing had sped up a lot more than he'd like to admit with her proximity. The two avoided each other's eyes, a silence stretching between them, as they quietly looked around the room. Sol coughed just then, trying to break the silence

"Ha, uh I wonder why Ji Ho and Sol B wanted to see this apartment so badly if it was for couples," she mused, her voice a little too breathy. She walked forward, towards the desk, flitting through the piles of books and papers before looking up at him. Joon Hwi shot her a look then, as if to say you don't know?, forgetting all about the predicament they were in a moment earlier.

"Did you not notice them coming in for the past week?" he furrowed his eyebrows. How could she not have noticed?

"What do you mean?" she squinted at him, tilting her head in confusion.

"Sol. They've been coming in at the exact same time, every single day," he paused then, trying to send hints to her about what was between their coworkers. She squinted even more, biting her lip slightly. Cute. The thought echoed in his head before he could stop himself, as he watched her connect the pieces.

"Oh my god, you mean to tell me..." she trailed off, her eyes widened in surprise over their news.

"Yeah, it's been going on for a while," he continued, looking away from her while he knelt and searched the drawers for anything that could work as a lead. "I didn't know that this listing was for couples but after the landlady mentioned it, it clicked for me."

He continued rummaging through the drawers as she turned her back to him, presumably searching for any leads here. It was only a matter of time with those two. Ji ho and Kang Sol B had met each other in middle school, being avid rivals that settled into some sort of friendship and they went through high school and university together. Just from his time living with Ji ho, he could tell there was something more than just rivals or just friends between them. So it came as no surprise to him, it was only a matter of time before they started dating.

While he mindlessly rummaged, his mind drifted to the woman sitting next him, how easily she fit into the crook of his arm. Just like her hand, it was as if her body was meant to fit there. He didn’t know if it was infatuation or just out of proximity but he found a certain comfort in her chaos. His life was deafeningly quiet before her, and he found himself hating the peace more and more.

Suddenly, Kang Sol turned to him, slapping a hand on his shoulder as she leaned in with something in her hand. She smelled like lavender and cedarwood and his mind went blank at her proximity, the warmth of her hand bleeding through his clothes.

“Take a look at this,” she shoved a picture in his direction, and he took it, trying to gain a closer look. It pictured a group of men in his early 20s, smiling at the camera. He flipped it over, the inscription reading Min-seok, Chan-woo and I, last spring of University. “Could this be James?” she asked, biting her lip. Through Ye-Seul and Bok-gi’s sleuthing they had found that Lee Man Ho had a son, but he hadn’t had contact with him since he had gone to jail.

“But why would this picture be here? I thought he hadn't had any contact with him since he was in middle school?” He bit his lip. He tossed the picture aside, digging back through the drawer, only to find a stack of letters, all addressed to James. If everything here has his son’s name on it, why is the money paid under Lee Man Ho’s name even before he was out of jail?

“I don’t think Lee Man ho lives here,” he continued, his expression growing severe as he carded through the letters. “I think this apartment belongs to his son, which means he’s back in the country.” Sol bit her lip then, meeting Joon Hwi’s gaze.

"This means—"