Unexpectedly Meeting You Again

fourteen

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14 years later.
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"Ni-ki, hurry up! The students' lives are in danger!" Areum shouted angrily, keeping her eyes fixed to the front. Her colleague, Ni-ki tightened his grip around the steering wheel, "I'm trying!"

Sirens were creating fearful noises as the police cars followed their SUV from behind. The car arrived at the gates of a private school in the middle of the city.

Areum jumped out of the car before running to the school. The school principal greeted her, "You must be Detective Jung! Please! The shooter is still inside!"

Ni-ki chased after her with a bulletproof vest, "Areum-ah! You have to wear–" his eyes widened when he saw her sprint into the building without backup.

"Jung Areum!" He shouted before taking out his gun from his pocket.

‧̍̊·̊‧̥°̩̥˚̩̩̥͙°̩̥‧̥·̊‧̍̊ ♡ °̩̥˚̩̩̥͙°̩̥ ·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙·̩̩̥͙*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ °̩̥˚̩̩̥͙°̩̥ ♡ ‧̍̊·̊‧̥°̩̥˚̩̩̥͙°̩̥‧̥·̊‧̍̊

Areum took a deep breath as she fixed the way she was holding her gun. She took quiet steps as she checked every room for any signs of injured students.

The school hallway was empty and silent, creating an eerie atmosphere. She slammed the teachers' office open, earning screams from the students that were hiding.

The female students cried, asking her to not kill them.

"Hey, hey. I'm here to help you," Areum scurried towards them, "Are you hurt?"

"Hyerin injured her head," a student said before showing her friend's open wound. Areum helped them get up before leading them out of the office.

"Don't make any sounds. I'm here to get you out of there safely."

They were about to run until a gunshot was heard. Areum immediately turned around, seeing a male teenager pointing his gun at her.

"So you're the shooter?" She scoffed. "Don't be so cocky. I can just shoot you right here," the male answered back.

Areum smirked and pointed her gun at him, "Try me, you bastard."

The female students screamed in fear, closing their eyes. Their hands trembled as they cupped their ears.

"Put the gun down," Areum ordered. The male teenager laughed, "You really think I'm going to listen to you?"

A group of policemen arrived in their safety suits, "Put the gun down, student!"

Ni-ki shot the ceiling of the building before aiming at the male, "Put the gun down. It's my final order."

"Give up, kid. You're surrounded already. Shoot someone and you're dead," Areum warned. The kid was about to shoot Ni-ki but it was too late.

She immediately shot his arm and leg, making him scream in pain. The police started handcuffing him before bringing him out of the building.

Ni-ki quickly rushed to the students to help them get out. "Bring them to the nearest hospital. Now! Team B search for other students."

‧̍̊·̊‧̥°̩̥˚̩̩̥͙°̩̥‧̥·̊‧̍̊ ♡ °̩̥˚̩̩̥͙°̩̥ ·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙·̩̩̥͙*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ °̩̥˚̩̩̥͙°̩̥ ♡ ‧̍̊·̊‧̥°̩̥˚̩̩̥͙°̩̥‧̥·̊‧̍̊

Areum walked back and forth in the hospital hallway. She was assigned to wait in front of the shooter's room for questioning. She flinched in surprise when a hand gave her a cup of coffee.

She looked at Ni-ki who was already sipping his drink. He gave her a death glare before sitting on the bench, "I told you to wear your bulletproof vest and wait for the backup team to protect you. You'll die if the kid shoots you."

"I can't. The students' lives are in danger if we wait longer."

He sighed and gave her a few documents, "Meet the doctor assigned to treat the shooter. You have to get it signed for the questioning process to go smooth."

"Dr Lee?" Areum read before giving her partner a confused look. Ni-ki elbowed her arm, "His office is on the second floor. Just ask one of the staff."

‧̍̊·̊‧̥°̩̥˚̩̩̥͙°̩̥‧̥·̊‧̍̊ ♡ °̩̥˚̩̩̥͙°̩̥ ·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙·̩̩̥͙*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ °̩̥˚̩̩̥͙°̩̥ ♡ ‧̍̊·̊‧̥°̩̥˚̩̩̥͙°̩̥‧̥·̊‧̍̊

Areum walked around the second floor like a lost little duckling. She held the documents close to her chest, searching for the assigned doctor's office. She fixed her leather jacket as she looked at the office doors carefully, searching for "Dr Lee".

She was too focused on the doors until she didn't notice a female figure walking in front of her. They both bumped into each other.

She bowed and apologised. "Are you Dr Lee?" She asked, feeling awkward and nervous.

The female doctor smiled, "Oh, I'm Director Kang. Dr Lee's office is there. Just walk straight and his office is the last one on the left," she explained as she pointed at the hallway behind Areum.

The detective was too stunned and embarrassed that she bumped into the hospital director. "Sorry, again. I didn't mean to bump into you."

"It's alright," Director Kang gave an assuring smile. Suddenly, a male doctor called the director, making them both turned around to see the source of the manly voice.

"Daera-yah. I'm done with the surgery. We can go have dinner now," he said as he intertwined his hand with hers.

Areum eyed their hands before looking at the director again, acknowledging that her name was Daera.

"Well then, I'll excuse myself first," Daera said before leaving with the man that seemed to be her spouse.

When she finally reached the said office, she took a deep breath. She knocked on the door before opening it, "Dr Lee? I am Detective Jung. I was assigned to question the student Joo Minhyuk for the school shooting that–"

"Jung Areum?" A familiar voice called. Her heart dropped when she heard the voice. A voice that she hadn't heard for fourteen years.

"Lee Heeseung?" She breathed out, eyes widened at his sight in front of her.