Midnight Date (3)
Midnight Date (3)
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"So what's the big surprise?" Gayoon giggled. Minho had dragged her far away from the crowd. They were strolling along the small lake with the park which was completely frozen due to the cold. Snow crunched under their feet as they walked towards the place when Minho was taking her. They were approaching the mini woods where the trees were thicker and the area was darker. Other than them, there was no one else there.
"How come this place is so empty?" Gayoon wondered. She recalled that the park was almost alway crowded with people, especially the part where they were standing. But now, it was just them.
"I pulled some strings to have this place to ourselves," Minho shrugged. He stopped at the edge of the lake and suddenly pulled Gayoon towards him. She yelped and landed on his chest as he firmly held her.
"What are you doing?" she laughed.
"It's cold," he said, snuggling her into his arms. "I need my comforter."
"You brought me here to keep yourself warm?" she frowned.
To her embarrassment, he nodded as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"But that's not all," Minho sighed. Gayoon blinked and looked up. He held her by the arms and positioned her to stand in front of him, hugging her from the back. Gayoon was a little perplexed as he held her chin up.
"3…" he counted. "2...1…"
A series of explosions thundered through the night and several colorful firecrackers burst up in the darkness. Gayoon's eyes widened in wonder as the colors merged together to form tiny orbs which were floating in the sky, contrasting against the black curtain which shrouded the world.
The orbs were swirling around to make the shapes of a beautiful woman and a man who were on a peacock shaped boat, holding each other's hands while lost in love. The blue moon shone on the figures, adding a majestic touch to their journey as the boat floated through the sky, circling all over them.
She was so mesmerized by the sight that she could not describe her feelings in words. Her heart was beating rapidly at the heavenly figures whose story she had just heard. Even if it was just a fairy tale, there was something about the light figures which were oozing the feelings of love.
Or maybe it was…
She leaned on to Minho's chest and smiled. Minho, who was more focused on the woman in his arms than the flying orbs, held her tightly. He had seen these presentations before but there was something about them today. The presence of Gayoon only made it more special to him and the years of emptiness he had felt was slowly beginning to fill in. They had touched a part within themselves which they were unaware of but now that their feelings were overflowing, it was impossible to stop.
"Thank you," he whispered.
Gayoon smiled and replied, "You too."
She turned around and pulled him into a deep kiss. Minho stooped down to kiss her back while the orbs continued to float in the sky above them. The couple were lost in each other, uncaring of anything else. There were several more fireworks exploding in the sky but they continued to kiss each other, with only the blue moon above them witnessing their passion.
Somewhere else in the city, Junho was also watching the blue moon from his windowsill. His eyes were fixed on it, his mind reminiscing the last time he had seen it with his pregnant wife and son. It was the last date they had gone on and one of the last moments when they were truly happy as a family.
"I miss you...Suna," he sighed, his voice choking with sadness.
….
"Why am I here again?" Chief Junwan sighed. No matter how many times he visited the old mansion of the Hwang's he found no clue. Yet, his investigation kept on bringing him back here. The house was abandoned but Junwan could not fight off the nagging feeling that he had missed some vital clue.
Entering the mansion, he was met with only dust and cobwebs. Hwang Minho still owned the place but did not bother to keep it clean. Perhaps he did not want to revisit this place and the memories associated with it.
Junwan walked further into the house, venturing towards the crime scene again. Kim Suna was found dead in her bedroom. She was stabbed only once but there were several cut and scratch marks on her which implied that she was tortured before she died. But the shocking thing was that all of those were self-inflicted and not done by Junho. He only struck the final kill.
The Chief glanced around, going through the old drawers which were creaking loudly. All the documents had been removed when the Hwang's moved out but he still hoped that something would pop up. There was no bed and the walk-in closet's door was broken. Junwan entered the closet but even that place was empty.
"There's nothing of value here," he sighed. "I should just leave."
He turned to leave when something hit his back. Startled, he turned around to find a pebble on the ground.
"What the hell?" he murmured. He looked around to see if anyone was there but the windows were tightly shut and there was no one in sight. Junwan took out his gun and stooped down to pick up the stone when something sparkled from beneath one of the shelves to his right.
Frowning, he took out his phone to turn on the torch and flashed it underneath the shelf. Something was shining at the back of the shelf so Junwan flattened on the ground and reached out for the object. It took him several tries but finally, he managed to reach it.
Taking it out, he studied the object in his hand. It was a tiny golden ring. To his slight surprise, the ring looked brand new. It was dusty but even after years of being abandoned there, the color had not faded nor did it rust.
There was something written inside the ring. Junwan held his torch to see the word engraved.
"Patentibus," he murmured. What does it mean? He wondered.
Putting the ring in his pocket he hurried out of the house. Was this the clue he was waiting for?
I must find out the truth, he decided.
Unbeknownst to him, two invisible figures were watching him leave. One was a chubby dwarf with wiry hair and flat nose. He was floating in the air, watching the human leave with great interest.
"He finally found it," the chubby ghost sighed. "He's so slow! How did he even become a detective."
He turned to his partner. She was a porcelain like beauty in her mid thirties with long dark hair and brown eyes. Her skin was slightly glowing while her hair swayed in the air. The woman had a kind demeanor and she seemed a little relieved.
"That ring is the key to close the gates, Poltergeist," the woman said. "As long as it reaches the right hand, we still have hope."
"But the detective is stupid and Mr. A is still out there," the Poltergeist warned. "Shouldn't we keep an eye on him? Staying here isn't gonna help at all."
"We have to find the Seer," the woman stated. "There isn't much time. Yeeun's daughter is a Seer. She might be able to locate Mr. A before he reaches the gatekeeper!"
"But what if she lost the ability?" the Poltergeist pointed out.
"If she lost it while giving birth to a daughter," the woman began. "Then we still have hope. But if it's a son, then we'll be too late! Hurry! You must go and find the Seer before Mr. A reaches Minho!"
"Aye!" the Poltergeist said at once. "As you wish...Kim Suna!"