CASE 9 - Me, Myself and I (Part I)

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Two weeks have passed since Park Hyoshin went missing. The police had no idea where he could have gone and the entire country was searching for him. His name was on every headline of the news and even those at SNU continued to talk about the infamous massacre.

Both Yoonhwa and Minsoon who killed many students at the university could no longer find themselves to return despite the fact that they were manipulated by Hyoshin. Since the massacre, the two of them have decided to take a temporary leave from school for a while in order to attend therapy sessions so that they could heal their wounds.

The police eventually had enough evidence after searching Park Hyoshin's apartment and computer history to pin him as the primary suspect behind the two massacres. Not only did they find the replica of the device that Yoonhwa was working on but also research articles on brain manipulations through sound. Hyoshin was also looking at articles for the possibility of humans with enhanced hearing such as Yoonhwa and Minsoon. Aside from the professor, no one else knew about the two students' exceptional hearing abilities. When Hyoshin discovered that they had potentials to be his test subjects, he tricked them into several trials to prove that brain control can be possible through sounds.

Although the police had all the evidence and proof to take Park Hyoshin in, his true motives were still hazy.

"Do you think it was for revenge? For his wife? His daughter?" InGuk questioned the team during one of their meetings.

"It could be any of those but why Yoonhwa and Minsoon? They had nothing to do with Hyoshin in the first place and just normal students. He ruined the lives of two people who were completely happy with their lives," Hyoshin said with a sigh.

"Sometimes, you don't need a reason to commit a crime but it could be that both of them were there at the wrong time and caught the attention of Park Hyoshin," Wonshik said as he looked through the files.

"Do we have any new findings on his possible whereabouts?" InGuk asked.

"I've looked up all of the CCTVs recently going around the places where the professor was last seen as well as where he usually frequents," Hongbin said as he pulled up the projector. "About a week ago, Park Hyoshin's car was seen driving out of Gangnam and making its way into the Jamsil district. We've already asked the dispatch units in Jamsil as well as the police department there to keep a lookout in case they see the vehicle or the suspect."

"Why Jamsil?"

"That, we're unsure of but we're looking into it right now," Wonshik briefed. "Once we get even a hint of a clue as to where he is, we'll bring him in for sure. There's no way I'll let him get away after all that he's done."

Wonshik was determined to catch Park Hyoshin as he spent the past several nights going through all the evidence and CCTVs in hopes of finding the suspect. He couldn't forgive what Hyoshin have done, the sorrows and fear that he ended up putting in innocent people, all for the sake of revenge.

Knock. Knock.

"Come in," InGuk said.

"Sorry, is the meeting over yet?" one of the police officers asked.

"Yeah, what is it?"

"There's someone here for Wonshik."

"Me?" Wonshik asked.

"Um, yeah. She said that she's an old acquaintance of yours. She doesn't seem to look so well and insisted on seeing you in person. So, I think you better take a look."

"Got it. Give me a minute."

Who is it? An old acquaintance? Wonshik could not recall anyone from the top of his head.

When Wonshik came to the front of the reception area, he saw a slim, tall young lady standing there and waiting for him. But just from her back view, there was a rush of nostalgia that hit Wonshik. He recognized who she was immediately.

"H-Hana?" Wonshik called out her name.

She turned around and smiled but her smile was faint and weak.

"Shik-ah," she said in a tired tone. "It's been a long time, hasn't it?"

"Y-yeah... what are you doing here?" Wonshik couldn't find the words to come out without stuttering as he was still trying to make sense of what she was doing here.

It's been ten years... Hana, you still look the same, he thought.

"I..." Hana looked nervous. She looked down onto the floor and started to fidget nervously. She was wary of her surroundings, seemingly uncomfortable to speak with so many people around her.

"Let's go inside and talk," Wonshik suggested and escorted her into one of the empty meeting rooms.

Wonshik placed a hot cup of tea to help her calm her nerves yet he didn't know why she was behaving so strangely.

"Here," he said. "Did something happen? How did you find me?"

"We lost contact after you withdrew from high school and no one knew where you moved to... But to think, you really went and became a police officer. It's because of JiWon, isn't it?" Hana asked as she took a sip of tea and relaxed a little.

"Yeah..."

"But I heard her killer has been caught already and currently in jail, isn't he?"

"Yeah. But it's more than just what happened to JiWon now that I've become a police officer. There are still so many people who are victims to murders and crime. It's my duty to catch these criminals and keep everyone safe so that the same thing that happened to JiWon doesn't happen to anyone else."

"You've matured a lot, Shik-ah," Hana smiles a little more.

"So, how did you find me?" Wonshik decides to ask again.

"Your face was in one of the newspapers from the massacre at SNU a few weeks ago," Hana said. "I almost thought that I was hallucinating when I saw you on there."

Wonshik didn't know that he'd be caught by the camera so easily since he always tried to keep a low profile. After all, he's made quite a lot of enemies being in his position.

"I see, but you must have wanted something from me if you came all the way to find me," Wonshik said. Even though, I should have been the one going to find you instead...

"Yeah. You're right. I..." she took one last sip of the tea and placed it down in front of her. She held her cup tightly and nervously before she spoke again. "I think I killed someone."

"W-what?"



Wonshik first met Shin Hana when they were in middle school. They were seatmates and often got paired up for group projects and so naturally, they became friends. But Hana was very cheerful and bright compared to Wonshik who often got into fights with the other students. Hana always told Wonshik to stop fighting or getting hurt yet the young Wonshik never listened. He was stubborn but on the other hand, Hana was just the same. Despite thinking that Hana was a bit of a busybody, Wonshik liked her a lot. She was pretty and so bright that he found himself infatuated by her personality. Hana also went over to Wonshik's house a few times to work on their school projects and his parents, as well as JiWon, loved her a lot. Their family became close eventually and the two grew even closer.

"I-I like you," Wonshik became the first one to confess before they graduated middle school. He was so nervous to confess to someone for the first time and he felt like it wasn't his character at all to do something so nerve-wracking.

"Heh," Hana giggled a little seeing Wonshik's ears flush red and embarrassed. She's never seen this side of him before and thought it was adorable.

"D-do you want to be my girlfriend?" he almost bit his tongue asking that question.

"Can I?" she asked back.

"Of course!"

"Then~ I'll be in your care from now on," she said as she gave him a gentle peck on Wonshik's cheeks, making him blush even more.

The two of them went to the same high school as well and though they weren't able to be in the same class, they would often sit together for lunch and go home together as well. It was comfortable being with Hana and Wonshik really wanted to continue being with her in the future. If only it wasn't for...

JiWon's death.

When JiWon died, Wonshik lost sight of everything around him. Hana tried to cheer him up multiple times, but he wouldn't listen. He grew to hate everyone around him as if he became someone else and couldn't trust anyone until he finds JiWon's killer.

"Please, Wonshik-ah. You need to calm down," Hana said as she went over to visit him one day.

"Calm down?! How do you expect me to calm down when the person who killed my sister is still out there running freely? Mom is in shock and hospitalized while dad has been drowning himself in work just so that he could forget about JiWon. How can I calm down when my family is falling apart like this?" Wonshik yelled at her through his own frustrations.

Nothing Hana said or did was able to change Wonshik's mind about finding JiWon's killer. They were only in high school, powerless and helpless against society. Hana knew it very well and unlike Wonshik, she tried to solve her problems calmly and rationally. She was the balance in their relationship but even she couldn't do anything to change Wonshik's mind. Wonshik eventually became obsessed with catching the culprit and decided to leave school temporarily to investigate the case. Hana tried to be optimistic and waited for Wonshik's return but he never did. She even sent him several messaged, worried and sad about not being able to help him but eventually, her patience ran out.

[Let's give each other some time. I'm sorry about what happened with JiWon but I can't bear to see you treating yourself like this either. I hope you can find the killer and good luck.] Hana sent a message one day to Wonshik.

But it wasn't until several days later that Wonshik eventually read the message and before he could respond to it, Hana had already left Seoul.

When she left, Wonshik found himself even more alone as he tried to find JiWon's killer and even until this day, he regretted it a lot of the way he behaved towards Hana who continuously tried to stay by his side. He lost his way in the midst of his anger and ended up neglecting those who cared greatly for him. He tried to call Hana again after graduating from high school but she never picked up. There were rumors that she went to study abroad in Canada but none of her friends were sure.

But, it was probably for the best, is what Wonshik thought at the time because he didn't want to get in her way because of his own obsession.



"What do you mean you think you killed someone?" Wonshik thought that he was hearing wrong.

"I've been having these dreams lately," Hana swallowed. "They've been appearing in my dreams so often and so real that I really think it's real!"

"Hana, you're talking about a dream. They can't be real. You're scaring yourself. What happened in those dreams?"

"I-I... I was holding a knife and I started stabbing this man multiple times in the chest. I've been having this dream so much that I can just count how many times I've stabbed him with my own hands. One, two, three... at least twelve times! Everything is so vivid now... I can just see myself covered with his blood," Hana starts to break down in tears as she recalled her nightmare. "I don't know what's going on anymore. I just can't take it anymore. I think I'm going insane!"

Wonshik froze and didn't know what to say. Though Hana said it was a dream, the fact that she came to the station to turn herself in, made it impossible for Wonshik to ignore. He had to take her in for a short moment while they investigated the case. Hana didn't fight back of course, as if she was hoping to be contained before she really did go insane. They had Hana do a profile sketch of the man who appeared in her dreams and she also told the police in further details of what she could remember.

"Are you okay?" Hongbin asked Wonshik as he could see that his partner was stressing out about the matter. He has never heard Wonshik talk about any past relationships or school aside from JiWon. So, hearing that the one Wonshik had taken in was his own ex, was a huge shock for Hongbin.

"I don't know. How can she believe in a dream? It's just a dream, isn't it?" Wonshik was speechless.

"It probably is, so let's try to get to the bottom of this and prove to her that she's innocent. Okay?"

"Yeah..." Wonshik sighed.

The two of them decided to go to Hana's place to investigate the matter while the police run through the database in search for the man in the sketch. She was staying near Ehwa University while she was studying there but it seems like she wasn't able to attend class as much as she wanted due to those nightmares. She found it hard to step out of her own home at times because she couldn't differentiate the difference between what was real and what was a dream. The rumors in which Hana went to study in Canada was true. She came back to Seoul a few years ago but didn't live with her parents. While she studied at Ehwa, she was also working as a salesperson to pay for her own tuitions. She didn't rely on her parents at all and was completely independent in her decisions.

When Wonshik entered Hana's place, he felt like it was a bit strange and a little like he was intruding someone's place for the first time. He usually had no problem breaking into suspect's homes for investigations and though he was here for an investigation as well, he felt like he didn't belong. He wouldn't have wanted to search this house if it wasn't because Hana decided to turn herself in and be investigated. He understands that he might be favoring her a little too much but it was hard for him not to. He really loved her.

Wonshik went into the bedroom and started to go through old photos, diary or any kind of evidence that might tell him what Hana have been doing. Wonshik found it rather surprising as he searched through Hana's contact list though. There was almost no one in her phone aside from school and work. When they used to go to school together, Hana had a lot of connection and friends. Everyone liked her a lot and it wasn't just their classmates but both teachers and parents as well.

What happened to you over these ten years? Wonshik found himself worrying even more about Hana.

"Hey, did your ex always have a taste of rock? Is she into punk or something?" Hongbin took how a box in the closet as he was searching.

"Huh?"

"Look."

Inside of the box were clothes that Wonshik could not picture Hana wearing at all. They were leather jackets, studs, and chained accessories. The Hana who Wonshik remembers loved feminine clothes with a lot of soft floral prints on them. Yet, the clothes in the box felt like it was for someone else. There were even mini skirts inside of it which Wonshik remembered clearly that Hana was rather conservative about showing too much skin. They took the clothes out to inspect it but based on the size, it definitely fitted Hana's size as well. Did her style change over the years?

The two of them continued to go through the apartment to look for more clues and eventually, as he searched through the closet a little more, he found another box that was rather surprising for him. It was a box full of memories.

"This..." Wonshik recognized it right away.

"Hmm? What is it?" Hongbin asked curiously.

"These were the gifts I gave her when we were going out," Wonshik held up one of the stuff animals inside of the box. "She loved stuff animals a lot like a child even after going into high school."

"And she still has it? It must be precious to her. Why did you two break up in the first place, if you don't mind me asking?"

"I was an idiot. I was so caught up with finding JiWon's killer back then that I ended up neglecting everything and everyone around me. I knew Hana cared a lot about me but I wasn't ready to accept her kindness through my own anger. I thought that if I did, I would forget about JiWon's killer and just let him roam freely."

"And you regret it now, don't you? Seriously, if she never came to find you, I would have never known you even had a girlfriend. You never talk about yourself and I thought that all you had in that head of yours is your sister," Hongbin said.

"You're not wrong about that... all I really did think about was JiWon."

I'm such an idiot, Wonshik regretted.

"Yeah and now it's the White Rose Killer too," Hongbin tried to tease the other a little to lighten up the mood. "Anyways, we'll get to the bottom of this whole thing and help Hana out."

"Thanks."



Jaehwan stared at his laptop for a while and looked at all of the research papers he has been able to gather from the library as well as the internet. All of them was based on serial killers and criminal profiling, in order to help him understand why the White Rose Killer was killing. The more he could understand this killer, the more it will help him be able to complete his thesis.

A white rose...

Looking at the single white rose, Jaehwan could only conclude that the rose must have meant something to the killer. Possibly something to do with the killer's past or history where the rose came in as a significance in his life. Jaehwan continues to look through the newspaper clippings that he was able to get and though there were no actual images of the victims, it was clear to everyone who had read the newspapers that the victims' mouths had a single white rose stuffed inside.

"Hmm... is the rose suppose to prevent his victims from yelling or screaming for help? But that doesn't really make sense, I mean, a tiny rose won't be able to stop someone from talking at all. If it was me, I'd probably chew that rose down like food," Jaehwan chuckled to himself a little as he tried to relax during his fact-finding. "Is it possible that he stuffed the rose after he killed them? Like a decoration or something?"

Jaehwan skimmed through the profiles of all the victims that were released on the news and yet, aside from the way they were killed, each one of them had a different background nor did any of them have a connection with one another. They were all complete strangers and while some of them were bad, others were not. There seems to be a conflict in whether or not the White Rose Killer can really be seen as a 'hero'.

"Hmm?" Jaehwan finally noticed something and rummaged through the papers while putting the dates in chronological orders. "His methods have changed... or should I say, more defined?"

Song Yejin, Jaehwan pulls out the news article.

"He used her medical milestone as a way to kill her? And since then... he's been using the exact same method to kill his victims too. So, this is why the internet was calling him Dracula?" Jaehwan continues to talk to himself as he tried to make sense of the White Rose's murder history.

Since Song Yejin's death, all of the following victims of the White Rose Killer have died due to their blood being drained completely from their body until nothing was left of them. They were cleaned up so well that not a single drop could be detected from within. Most of the victims would be kidnapped and gone missing for a least seven days and when they were found, they would have nothing left. Each time the victims were found as well, it seemed as if the White Rose Killer wanted the police to discover his doings as he made sure that his significant rose would remain in his victims' mouths. On average, if a normal human being were to lose more than forty percent of their blood, they would

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