The Prosecutor’s Office’s Proposal Chapter 48

His large palm slowly fell away from my cheek. It was I who grabbed Prosecutor Joo this time as he turned his back, his silhouette outlined against the streetlamp light.

“Then… do I come to work tomorrow?”

His glance, thrown back over his shoulder, served as his answer.

“Don’t ask such obvious questions. Even if you’re sick, don’t take sick leave; come in and work. Chief Song lacks suspicion and his work pace is too slow. You, Officer Lee, are much faster. The reason you have to work overtime every day is because I pass too many of my assigned cases to you.”

It was fortunate that Prosecutor Joo was at least aware of that. In truth, though I couldn’t say it to Chief Song, I was already handling far more cases than he was. Furthermore, they were mostly complex ones.

I bowed my head.

“…I’m sorry about a moment ago.”

“Save the apologies for when you inform me you won’t be investigating those cases with me. For now, I’ll hold off on that answer. But do you know, Officer Lee?”

“What is it?”

“You can’t refuse my proposal.”

“…”

“Though, I’m sure you already know that.”

Prosecutor Joo did not look back this time, and I did not try to stop him either.

I stared blankly at the path where his shadow had vanished before rubbing my stinging cheek with the back of my hand. The tears had stopped, but because I had cried so much, the saltiness stung my skin as if I had been submerged in seawater. In truth, since the age of thirteen, I had never once been pulled out of the deep sea into which I had fallen.

In the apartment complex, snow that had fallen all day was piled high on either side of the tracks left by a broom. I deliberately chose to walk on the fluffy mounds of snow to avoid slipping. Tears fell with every step, so I stopped occasionally to wipe them away with my fingertips.

It took about 20 minutes to walk to the official residence. Feeling troubled, I stood for a moment on the bridge over the Danhyeon Stream, looking down at the pitch-black water below.

When I arrived in front of my villa, a car with the engine running was parked there. The door to that familiar car opened, and to my surprise, my aunt stepped out.

Today is a day of nothing but bad luck. To hide that I had been crying, I pulled a scarf from the bag slung over my shoulder and hurriedly wrapped it around my face.

“Chaeha, are you doing well?”

“Yes, Aunt. Have you been well?”

I bowed my head. I wanted to end this business in the dark, as I feared she would notice my tear-swollen face if we went into the residence together.

Just like the words of a former senior I’d run into at the police station, it was fine even if I appeared unlikable to my aunt. I could no longer afford to show kindness to those who tormented me. I had long since been exhausted by the weight of life.

“What brings you here? The house is a mess, so I would prefer it if we just talked here.”

My aunt flinched for a moment at my cold greeting. However, she soon got to the point.

“It’s because of your uncle. Between your Noona, your brother, and even you—who were the most mild-mannered—acting like this since you became a police officer, I’m going crazy in the middle.”

A feeling of nausea rose at my aunt’s behavior of mentioning my cousins as if they were my siblings. Except for my cousin Noona, my cousin brother was no different from my uncle and aunt. The purpose of my uncle pushing my aunt was obvious.

“Is the laundry business not going well lately?”

“It’s hard because the laundry commissioned by the casino is gradually decreasing.”

“I’ll just deposit your pocket money now. I haven’t been in the Prosecutor’s Office long since transferring, so I don’t have much money on hand. I can only put in about two million won.”

“That much should keep your uncle quiet for a while. Thank you.”

It was always like this, but because I was drained by Prosecutor Joo, I couldn’t put up a fight and refuse as I usually would. I had been getting quite good at saying no lately, but today, I had lost all my strength.

My only goal was to part with my aunt quickly, go into my residence, and lie down. As I took out my phone, hung my head low, and typed the amount to be transferred into the banking app, my aunt asked:

“Are you living happily these days?”

“…Yes.”

Happiness. Her question pierced my heart as cruelly as the tip of a fishhook. I didn’t know at all what kind of emotion “happiness” was.

“I’ve finished the deposit to my uncle’s account.”

“I couldn’t even protect you from your uncle, yet I come here just to ask for money. I have no face to show you.”

“…What power did you have, Aunt? Even now. I don’t blame you.”

Knowing how desperate she must have been to come all the way to my residence, and how much she must have been pressured, I answered quickly. In the meantime, I pulled my scarf up.

“I’m sorry. I can’t invite you in.”

“No, it’s fine. Go in and get some rest.”

“And I’m sorry, Aunt, but from now on, I’d appreciate it if you only talked to my Noona or brother about money issues. If that’s too difficult, you can have me talk directly to my uncle instead.”

“No. If you do that, that man will only make a bigger scene. Go on in.”

“I’ll watch you leave before I go in.”

What a truly unlucky day.

Worrying that my aunt might have noticed I’d been crying—and fearing she might tell my uncle that Chaeha seemed to have been scolded at work and cried, which would hurt my pride—I stood in a shadow where the streetlamp light barely reached.

My aunt backed her car out. It was a Mercedes, the same make as Prosecutor Joo’s, but one class lower. At the far end of the alleyway where my aunt drove off, I saw another Mercedes.

“A Mercedes, except for me.”

Knowing full well that many more people didn’t have a Mercedes, and having no desire to own a car either, I said it just for the sake of it. A meaningless mutter, trying to ignore the chill seeping into my heart.

I shook the snow off my dress shoes and stepped into the residence entrance. I turned back around, feeling something was off, but no other Mercedes was visible at the end of the alley.

“Hello.”

I greeted them awkwardly as I entered the investigation office, where only Prosecutor Joo was sitting. I had deliberately arrived at 8:45 AM, much later than usual.

Since being assigned as an investigator for the prosecution, I usually arrived and started work by 8 AM, but today, feeling uncomfortable being alone with Prosecutor Joo, I purposefully arrived around the time Officer No and Chief Song would be getting in. Yet, Prosecutor Joo was still the only one there. It was a disaster.

Prosecutor Joo, who had been turning pages with a rubber thimble on his finger, irritably slammed the documents down and looked at me.

“Why are you so late?”

“…The start time is 9 AM.”

“That’s exactly what I’m asking. Why are you late?”

The phrase “the start time is 9 AM” rose to my throat again, but I held it back, remembering my insubordinate behavior from yesterday. When I remained silent and pressed my lips together, his expression turned fierce.

“I suppose this is a protest, claiming you don’t want to see my face.”

“Does the 9 AM start time not apply to me?”

“Yes.”

It seemed I was even more in his bad books because of yesterday. Conversations had followed this pattern before, but the atmosphere hadn’t been bad; today, however, Prosecutor Joo’s expression looked extremely sour.

“Your eyes are swollen. You look like a goldfish just scooped out of a fishbowl.”

“I tend to get swollen when I cry.”

“Why don’t you go around telling everyone that I made you cry?”

“…Wouldn’t people usually just think I cried while watching a movie or drama? Or that I didn’t sleep well?”

Prosecutor Joo seemed to agree with my words but stubbornly refused to admit it, turning his arrows at me.

“Fortunately, your mouth is still sharp. Who was that woman yesterday?”

“…Pardon?”

“I saw you talking to some woman in the alleyway. Your mother passed away, didn’t she? Your aunt?”

He was sharp-witted, too.

“Was the Mercedes parked at the end of the alley yours, Prosecutor? You said you were going alone, so why on earth…”

“I was worried you might do something foolish.”

Prosecutor Joo added, picking up the documents again, with his characteristic languid and indifferent tone.

“There’s the Danhyeon Stream on the way to the residence where you live, Officer Lee. Many people die at that bridge. You were standing there staring down for quite a while yesterday, too.”

I hadn’t known he was worried about that. Being in a profession that frequently encounters incidents and accidents, I could understand the process by which his thoughts had reached that conclusion, but I was someone who had already missed my chance to die. To make such a decision now—I had already endured too long in solitude.

“I won’t die.”

“People are unpredictable. Someone who looks fine might jump on a sudden impulse. Chief Lee Chaeha, weren’t you in an impulsive enough state yesterday to use informal language with me?”

“…I apologize for that.”