The Prosecutor’s Office’s Proposal Chapter 57

I couldn’t think of an excuse, and I didn’t want to talk more frankly about my uncle, so I fastened my seatbelt and changed the subject.

“You haven’t been suggesting we go out for drinks after overtime lately.”

“I’ve got ice cream errand trauma.”

It was a way of speaking that hooked onto the listener’s lips.

“And you’re quite good at speaking informally to me even when we aren’t drinking.”

At the sound that followed, I felt like I wanted to jump out of the moving car. I desperately wished that he would please forget the playground incident. I prayed earnestly for a miracle that would likely never happen.

It was only a ten-minute walk; I should have just refused. Regretting it, I turned my head to the side and looked out the dark window. Prosecutor Joo is bearable when we’re working, so I keep letting my guard down.

I barely managed to wait until the car stopped in front of the residence, and I hurried to bow my head toward Prosecutor Joo.

“Thank you for the ride.”

“Be here on time tomorrow.”

“…I was at work on time today, too.”

I gathered a bit of courage to mention it, feeling wronged at being pointed out for arriving at 8:45 AM.

“It seems Officer Lee has complaints. Shall I personally go pick you up at 6:20?”

Prosecutor Joo is the type of person who would actually do it, so I stiffened in fright. My eyes were fluttering uncontrollably, and fearing I’d be scolded more for appearing like I didn’t want to work, I immediately waved my hands.

“No, that’s not it. I will arrive around 8:00 like usual.”

“Come 10 minutes earlier. I get bored because there’s no one to nag.”

“Ye-es…. Goodbye.”

“Officer Lee, you know that thing? Dragging out the end of your words when you want to talk back.”

“Ye-es….”

“That one just now.”

Honey was slathered onto my lips again. I pressed my lips tightly together to avoid dragging out my words again, and Prosecutor Joo smiled slightly. Faintly.

I suppressed the urge to rub my eyes, wondering if I’d misseen it.

“Go on in. Sleep well.”

“Yes, you too, Prosecutor.”

I watched until Prosecutor Joo’s car pulled out of the alleyway as I usually did, then lifted my head toward the night sky. Bright moonlight flowed, but it couldn’t cover the black cosmos projected across the sky. In the end, until the sun rises, the moonlight would never be able to sweep away that pitch-black darkness.

Prosecutor Joo was right. There was no way I could refuse the case regarding my father. Not when I knew that the person sitting right next to me in the same office was digging into this case.

If Prosecutor Joo’s attitude toward me had turned harsh today as retribution for the defiance that happened at the playground yesterday, I would have refused his proposal just to avoid getting any more entangled with him. Because until he proposed it, I hadn’t had a single thought of digging into the past.

But Joo Taeson hadn’t changed. He was exactly the same, making my anxiety about going to work feel pointless.

He still spat out sharp words easily, and though he assigned me a lot of work, it wasn’t because of what happened at the playground yesterday. He even took care of my dinner, just like usual.

There aren’t many superiors who can maintain such composure in front of a subordinate who stood up to them using informal language.

Moreover, his words, which I had chewed over throughout the night, were persuasive. If there was indeed a different story hidden in my father’s case, I was the only person who could cooperate with Prosecutor Joo to uncover the truth.

Climbing the stairs of the villa, which had no elevator, I sent him a text.

I will participate in the investigation of the case you suggested we work on together, Prosecutor.

After showering, I was about to dry my hair when I checked my phone to see that a reply from Prosecutor Joo had popped up in the meantime.

You were going to do it anyway.

Do you still think the culprit is Oh Jahyeon?

I can’t think of anyone but Oh Jahyeon. No need to give me another lecture on the basics of investigation. I listened to Officer Lee’s sermon very well last time.

The face of the handsome man who had come to the fine assessment department and thrown bills at me crossed my mind. While it was difficult to imagine him committing murder, at the same time, there couldn’t be a suspect who fit the role better. A unique duality felt in his expression, separate from his actions.

Prosecutor Joo must have also found it difficult to exclude the feeling that Oh Jahyeon radiated.

I will remember the results of the polygraph test of the miner grandfather, who said he didn’t know Oh Jahyeon, even if I have to.

Do as you please.

Messages flew in one after another.

Are the sleep aids working well?

They’re inconsistent, but they haven’t been working at all lately.

It’s an illness that will only be cured once the case is solved.

For me, it was a chronic, long-standing illness, so I had never thought it could be cured.

You think so?

You have to. I can’t sleep either.

Prosecutor Joo, unable to sleep at night. It was something I couldn’t even imagine.

Joo Taeson was the type of person who seemed like he could sleep for as long as he wanted if he decided to. Someone who seemed like he could control anything. It seems even he has several areas that are beyond his control.

Please sleep well today.

You sleep well too, Officer Lee.

I stared at the brief text for a moment, then finally grabbed the hairdryer to dry my wet hair.

I welcomed the weekend with the anticipation of having both days off for the first time in a while. It would have been nice to sleep soundly, but I woke up at dawn out of habit. As soon as I checked the time, 6:30 AM, on my phone, a sigh escaped me. I hadn’t even been able to stay asleep for five hours again.

“I’m tired to death.”

I sat on the bed, let my head drop, and yawned so wide that tears welled up in circles. I got up, washed, cleaned, and since I wasn’t hungry, I just drank a glass of water and lay back in bed on an empty stomach. I picked up my phone and entered my messenger for no reason, but recently, I hadn’t received any messages from anyone other than work-related ones. Except for the conversation I had with my cousin noona about my aunt-in-law’s issue a while ago.

I decided to do some online shopping, which I hadn’t even dared to think about during the weekdays because I was so busy. I can’t do anything else at the prosecutor’s office because there’s too much work. I picked out a few plain mugs to order in case Prosecutor Joo came to the residence again, and pondered what I should do today. But suddenly, a message came from Chief Song.

I thought maybe something had come up that required me to go to work, but it was an unexpected request.

Officer Lee, would you like to eat lunch together and go see the movie ‘Stowaway’? I heard it’s fun these days, but I have no one to go with.

Chief Song had a good personality and many friends, so I didn’t really think he had no one to go with. It was probably a message sent out of consideration for me. I had been to a movie theater alone, but I had never gone with someone else, so I was just grateful and happy at my colleague’s suggestion.

I would love to. What would you like to eat for lunch?

Shall we have gopchang?

I’m sorry. I don’t know how to eat gopchang ㅠㅠ

No, it’s fine. There are many people who can’t eat gopchang, you know. Since it’s cold, how about shabu-shabu or gukbap?

It was a much warmer response than Prosecutor Joo, who had mentioned intestine soup.

Shabu-shabu sounds good.

I was certain that if I ate gukbap at Chief Song’s pace, the roof of my mouth would be completely peeled off, so I chose shabu-shabu, which I could just eat a little of. Come to think of it, the first food I ate with Prosecutor Joo was bean sprout gukbap. I had struggled with a peeled roof of my mouth back then, too, but these days, Prosecutor Joo eats slowly, so it hasn’t been burdensome to eat together.

Don’t tell me… Prosecutor Joo isn’t being considerate of me, is he?

Surprised by the sudden thought, I frantically shook my head.

“You’ve lost your mind, Lee Chaeha.”

There’s no way the great Prosecutor Joo would care about me that much.

It was a big problem that Prosecutor Joo’s face wouldn’t leave my head even while talking to Chief Song. His profile as he moved my thimble from finger to finger and the sensation of his intense grip when he held onto my arm at the playground came back vividly.

As I chewed over Prosecutor Joo’s face and actions, I unnecessarily wanted to bite into a long, white cigarette. Even though I never think of it usually.

Chief Song, who lived on the 5th floor, knocked on my 3rd-floor door right on time. I answered loudly and happily and went out. I had to try hard to act composed because I was excited that I’d be in contact with a co-worker outside of work and sharing some leisure time.

Of course, I didn’t harbor excessive expectations because something disappointing could happen if rumors spread incorrectly or cause misunderstandings again. If I rely on others, the hurt I receive later will only be greater. In my life, Prosecutor Joo Taeson was the only person I had ever met who kept me by his side without spreading rumors to those around me after finding out I was Lee Gilyoung’s son.

Thinking about that, I really was grateful.