CASE 25 - Hysteria Part V

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Wonshik and Hongbin decided to pay the school a visit once more but this time, in secret. They weren't exactly trespassing since there were a lot of police officers covering the grounds during the investigation period, but they decided to keep themselves in low profile. At the moment, aside from their own department, not many people knew that the use of drugs was involved in the case. They didn't want anyone to find one so quickly until everything was confirmed and especially since this case may cross over to the Narcotics Department, the two of them knew they had to be cautious.

"Got the keys?" Wonshik asks.

"Yup, right here," Hongbin takes a bunch of keys out from his pocket.

"Okay. Let's keep it down," Wonshik said as the two crept their way across the school grounds and into the school gardens.

Though the gardens were usually opened to all the staffs and students, they thought that it was strange that it'd be closed at times like this. From what they've heard, the garden was a place for the people of KW to enjoy openly, but when they found out it was locked without any reason, they knew something was up.

The two found the keys to the gardens and snuck in while everyone else was too busy to notice them. The staff was too busy with answering calls from the media and parents, the security was on guard of any unwanted visitors and students who did come to school, all stayed in the classrooms with teachers monitoring them. So, Wonshik and Hongbin was free to do their own investigation.

"Honestly, who would have thought that a perfect A student would be so smart to even know how to store drugs and use them... in bookmarks? If it wasn't for the box, I found at Oh SaRang's place, we would have never guessed," Hongbin said. "It's scary to be smart."

"We don't know but this is the only place we haven't checked and Oh SaRang must have gotten her hands on the drugs one way or another. That place could be here."

As they entered the garden, they noticed how the interior was much larger than it seems from the outside. As soon as they stepped foot forward, they saw a small courtyard with a fountain at the center, benches made from marble surrounding the fountain and plants hanging all across the glass ceiling. It was as if they went into another world from being there. They saw many plants and flowers that were unrecognizable to them. When they approached some of them, they noticed an explanation board next to it. Most of them were imported from overseas, found no where in South Korea.

"Wonder how they got all this here," Hongbin asks as he curiously looks around. "I heard that their biology program is a popular subject in this school and famous enough for universities to come visit from time to time, but I guess they weren't exaggerating. This is quite impressive."

"Stop dawdling and let's get back to the main topic," Wonshik pulled Hongbin lightly by the collar to continue with their investigation.

"But aren't you impressed? I understand why the students would like to study here a lot. It really makes you forget the outside world."

Wonshik couldn't agree more. Even he felt that way as soon as he entered the gardens. It was as if he went into another world, completely fantasy-like and far from reality. He's never been to places like this before and was never interested until now. For a second, even he forgot what his purpose was coming here.

"They've kept this place open up until now. Wonder why," Hongbin said.

"Then, our answer is here," Wonshik trusted his instincts more than ever.

The two wandered further into the garden, and the entrance was no longer in sight. The path led them deeper into the gardens than they thought like a maze. They followed the signs and the pebble path. The silence in the garden was filled with the whistles of greenery around them and finally, they reached a split road with a sign – Do not trespass. Staff Only.

"Well~ when they say don't go, it means to go, right?" Hongbin said playfully and walked pass the sign without hesitating for a second. Wonshik follows quietly from behind.

As they did, they eventually reached the end of the path to a bigger opening. But rather than a dead-end, what stood in front of them was a tree not too tall and not too short. The branches and leaves hovered above the ground, nearly touching it and what hung from the branches were flowers that the two was too familiar with at this point.

"Angel's Trumpet!" Hongbin gasped in shock, followed by Wonshik.

"So, it really was here all along. How Oh SaRang got a hold of the Brugmansia and made those bookmarks for the rest of Class 404."

"I thought the garden felt tranquilizing already, but this is... this explains everything," Hongbin said.

"It means we can't be here for too long. Long exposure to that will be bad. Let's look around."

The two went around the Brugmansia tree to look for clues.

"How did they get this in the school? I thought it's illegal in South Korea," Hongbin said as he looked through the bushes and sculptures around the area.

"You remember the medal emblem we found at both Park HaeJin and Kim HeeChan's place, right? The flower on the old school logo are most likely to be Angel's Trumpets," Wonshik pointed at the flowers that was exactly the same.

"So, the founders brought this here?"

"Most likely. Remember Park WuKyung, Park HaeJin's grandfather? He was interested by foreign affairs and the outside world. I heard he's been bringing back things from other countries during his travels. This is most likely from one of those travels."

"But shouldn't he know that this can be quite addictive and deadly?" Hongbin asks back.

"Not sure whether he knows it or not but the fact that this is here explains a lot about what we've been looking for and..."

Wonshik hesitated for a second.

"The Apostles?" Hongbin knew exactly what his partner was thinking about. "do you think this is where they got their hands on the drug too, though? Because if this is... isn't this like some sort of gathering grounds for the organization? It'll be big if this is the case."

"I'm not sure but we can't rid of that possibility now that this is in front of us. I've asked Taekwoon before to look into the records of imported plants and shipments of Brugmansia in the past but there weren't many places that had this. In fact, because it's considered a harmful substance and categorized under the list of illegal drugs in our country, it's nearly impossible for this to be here."

"Wait, if that's how it is, how'd KW get away with bringing this in and keeping it such a secret?"

"They probably got away with the law back then. I believe that when WuKyung brought this here was long before the laws of this plant were established and before import restrictions were implemented. And as long as you got the money and influence, it really didn't matter what you bring back from the outside. I assume that's how this slipped from our data," Wonshik said.

"But what are we going to do about this? It's not like we can just assume that the school have anything to do with the kids dosing themselves with drugs and killing themselves in the end because this is here, right? That's all just assumptions, we can't use it as evidence," Hongbin was making a point and not forgetting their roles.

"You're right."

As they looked around the garden a bit more, the two continued to discuss the many scenarios around the case and of all the possibilities that might be true. As if they could imagine the story play out, the two was completely invested.

"Don't breathe into that too much," Wonshik warns Hongbin as he noticed the latter scurrying around the tree for awhile.

"Roger."

Hongbin walks around in circle, not being able to take his eyes off the tree because everything around it was a mystery to him. And at first, the tree did look like any normal plant out there with flowers that bloomed beautifully enough to be enchanted by it but to think, something so beautiful was also something so deadly at the same time... it was unsettling.

"Huh?" that's when Hongbin finally notices a dent carved in the trunk of the tree. The small slit seemed intentional as if someone cut the trunk open on purpose and it was hard to notice it first because it was small and blended in well with the rest. He bends over to look at what it was and noticed that something was hidden inside of it.

"What is it?" Wonshik hurries over to see what Hongbin had found.

"One second. I think there's something inside," Hongbin reaches his hand inside and felt a small object placed tightly within the slit. "Almost there..."

"What are you two doing here?" a voice suddenly shouted at them from a distance.

It was Park HaeJin.

Shit, Wonshik and Hongbin both thought.

"How did you two get here?" he asked the two officers in a stern voice. His eyes were definitely not smiling, and an intimidating aura surrounded him.

Not good, Wonshik knew right away.

"We're just looking around," Wonshik walks in front of his partner to cover him up so that Park HaeJin didn't notice what Hongbin was up to.

This area is strictly forbidden. Didn't you see the signs?" Park HaeJin approaches them, causing Hongbin to flinch immediately and retreat. He took his hands out as soon as he could and put on the best poker face he could.

"It's the only place we haven't looked at. There's no harm in that, right? The sooner we finish the investigation, the better it will be for you as well, don't you think?" Wonshik said.

Park HaeJin stopped in his tracks, looked at the two for a second and sighed deeply.

"Don't you know what that's behind you?" he asks the two officers.

"Brugmansia, I presume," Wonshik knew there was no meaning to pretending.

"Exactly and if you know what that is, you wouldn't be hanging around it like this. Unless you want to die," Park HaeJin was also being truthful in knowing exactly what the tree was. After all, this is his school.

"And if you know what that is, why do you have it here?" Wonshik challenged him back.

"It was my grandfather's keepsake. He adored it as a present during his travel and didn't allow us from taking it down even when we knew it was not right to have it here. We've kept it a secret and hidden here for a long time. We know it's harmful and deadly that's why we have this part of the garden closed down. No one is allow to enter – not the students and not the teachers."

"Then, how do you explain the fact that in the body of the students from Class 404, we found traces of this plant in them. Long exposure to this plant is the same as overdosing. That much you should know," Wonshik decided to be more direct with his approach toward Park HaeJin since he knows the man would probably not fall for his lies.

He definitely knows more than he's leading us on.

"I didn't know they were taking drugs and if that's true, then the students must've snuck inside or got the drug elsewhere. What makes you so certain that they got it here in school?" Park HaeJin stood firm.

"You're right, but we also can't deny the possibility that they did get it here. Though the incident is deemed to be suicide at this point, we can't erase the fact that there were motives behind their choices. If all twenty-two students of Class 404 were influenced by this drug and killed themselves, I think your school will be responsibility either way as we found this plant here," Wonshik warns him.

"That's quite bold of you to put all the blame in our school. Those kids' grades are still at the top and all of them are well-respected role models for their junior classmates as well. That's more than enough, don't you think? What they do outside of studying is beyond our control," Park HaeJin said, as if he was placing the blame now towards the deceased.

"And that's quite irresponsible for you to stay that," Hongbin finally steps in. "You're not only the principal of KW, but the students here also respect you. You were once a student here at KW and your grandfather is the main founder of this school as well. If Class 404 are the role models for the student body, then you're the same to Class 404. Not to mention, didn't you sympathize with the death of your students not too long ago? What was it again? They killed themselves because of a demanding system and controlling parents?"

Park HaeJin had no come back. He didn't seem too happy with the two's meddling and biting remarks. Finally, they were able to shake off the man's calm façade.

"We're done here, so we'll be leaving first," Wonshik signals Hongbin for the two to leave before they get caught. Wonshik turns to Park HaeJin who seemed to be quite shaken up still, "if you happen to remember anything else about the case, feel free to drop by the station. We're always open to welcome you."

The two left the garden without a sign of Park HaeJin following them from behind. They paused for a second and let out a sigh of relief.

"Did you get it?" Wonshik asks his partner.

"Yup!" Hongbin takes out something from his pocket and what have been hidden inside the Brugmansia tree was a USB.

"Great. Let's take this back to Sungjae and see what's on it," Wonshik said.





Back at the station.

"Taekwoon-hyung asked me to look up the medical records of one of the suspects for your case. Kim HeeChan?" Sanghyuk came in to ask as soon as Hongbin and Wonshik returned. "He said he was dying from cancer, right?"

"Yeah. That's what he told us," Hongbin said.

"Well, he's lying," Sanghyuk said. "He's not dying from cancer. He's dying from drug exposure – Angel's Trumpet, to be exact."

"What? Then does that mean the one who taught Oh SaRang about how to use the drug is Kim HeeChan?" Hongbin couldn't believe it. "How's that possible? He's been sick at home for a while now, right? Looking at his condition in person, I don't think he has anywhere to go or anything to do except just staying alive at the moment."

"It's not Kim HeeChan," Wonshik induced. "The one from the journals, is much smarter than to get caught by a drug like that. Especially if he knows the harm of the drug. Also, in SaRang's journal, she never once wrote this person's name, but she's mentioned Kim HeeChan as her homeroom teacher before. Remember?"

"I looked over his records and it seems that he's been intoxicated for awhile now but in very slow dosages or exposure more so. His symptoms are similar to Oh SaRang and the rest of Class 404 but those kids are just at the initial stage whereas Kim HeeChan seems to have taken this drug for awhile," Sanghyuk commented.

"True. Then how? Who is it in her journal?" Hongbin was dying to know the answer but deep down, he could kind of guess who it was since the beginning.

"A person manipulative enough to plan ahead and cause his students to delude with his words. Who else do you think it is?" Wonshik asks back.

"Park HaeJin," Taekwoon comes in to join them.

"You think so too?" Hongbin asks Taekwoon.

"No doubt."

"But then, how did even Kim HeeChan get exposed to the drug?"

"Probably out of guilt," Sungjae popped his head over Taekwoon, carrying a laptop and a USB with him.

"You finished decoding 'em?" Hongbin asks.

"Yup. I cracked the password you found from Oh SaRang's room as well as the USB you gave me earlier. Wasn't hard. Anyways, I took a look ahead but you guys will probably want to see this for yourself..."

Sungjae opens a file on the laptop which had a video clip secretly recorded by Oh SaRang.





"SaRang-sunbae!" a junior classmate came running to her. "Did you see your score for the exam? It's been posted."

"Not yet," she smiled at her.

"You're number one again! But that's to be expected, right? Congratulations!" she said happily as if she was the one who ranked top.

"Thanks."

Getting number one on the ranks of one of the most prestigious and sought-out high schools in the country is supposed to be a happy thing, right? But she was far from feeling happy about it because even if she brought her report back home, her parents would only nag her about how she's still not perfect enough. What exactly is perfect? She can never be that perfect daughter they want so much.

Such a waste of time... she thought as she walked down the hallway with students greeting her left and right. Despite what was going on in her mind, she still had to put on a smile and fake her image. She was tired and worn out.

"SaRang-ah, the principal wants to see you," one of the teachers told her.

"Yes! I'll go right away," she immediately perks up and picked up her pace as she walked towards the principal's office. He'll praise me again, right?

The only person who she cares now to see her for what she's worth. The only person to make her heart beat out of excitement, expecting more.

Knock. Knock.

She takes a deep breath as she stood before the door. She brushed her fingers through her hair, made sure her uniform had no wrinkles on it and took a second look at herself with the window behind her.

"Yes?" he said inside. Even his voice made her jump.

"Um, this is Oh SaRang. You wanted to see me?" she opened the door shyly and peeked in.

"Congratulations on getting number one again. Come in," the principal, Park HaeJin said.

She sat down on the sofa in his office nervously, she tried hard not to look like her heart was going to jump out at any minute, but it was hard. She was excited, expecting and not knowing what to expect.

"Your teacher showed me your answers for the essay portion, and it seems like you even added your opinion to the answers."

"Was I not supposed to?" she gulped. I hope I didn't do something wrong...

"Of course not," he told her and walked up to her. He bent down a little to meet her height and patted her gently on the head. "Well done."

His soft voice and gentle smile, those words that he said to her, almost made her cry. It was as if all the stress she's gotten from her family was suddenly washed away by his praises and reassurance.

As long as he recognizes me for who I am, continue smiling at me like he is now, I don't need anything else. She was sure of it.

After several times, visiting Park HaeJin's office as both the top ranked student and the class representative of Class 404, she found herself falling for the much older man even more. So, she began to confess to him. First out of outburst and eventually turning it to more desperations. But as many times as he rejected her, he never said anything to hurt her feelings or even tell her that her feelings were irrelevant. Instead, he smiled and thanked her.

There really was no way of stopping these feelings, is there?





Cough. Cough.

SaRang walked past the teacher's lounge and saw her homeroom teacher alone marking the papers but looking rather unwell.

"Mr. Kim? Are you okay?" she couldn't help but ask out of concern. She noticed that he's been looking paler and sicklier as day went by. She was worried and so did the rest of the class who noticed it as well.

"I'm alright. It's nothing, don't worry," he told her with a smile before walking away to the infirmary alone.

That weak but gentle smile that her homeroom

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