Kim Taeyeon lived quite a monotonous life. He woke up early every morning, had breakfast, went to his office, and spent the entire day buried in work. When he returned home in the evening, he would check the latest files on his computer and then go to bed. Every day passed just like that.
If there was ever a change in his routine, he owed it to a boy ten years younger than him. The boy had appeared in his life in the most unexpected way, at the most unexpected time, three years ago. Since then, he visited Taeyeon's office nearly every day, often bringing him something to eat or drink. Even when he didn't, the boy's ever-smiling face brought a little warmth and color to Taeyeon's otherwise dull life.
One day, Taeyeon was once again following his usual routine. When he arrived at his office, he began working on a recently received murder case. But this one was different from the others he'd seen before. There was a certain pattern to it — a design, almost. The victim had been shot once in the center of the forehead, laid flat on the ground, with their arms crossed neatly over their chest, as if resting in a coffin. Like a vampire in slumber. The heart had been removed. And on the neck, a strange symbol — an emblem — was marked.
It showed the Sun and Moon intertwined, with letters inside that were hard to decipher.
Four other victims had been murdered in exactly the same way.
But Taeyeon still couldn't figure out the connection between the five cases.
There was almost no evidence.
The victims were not similar in age, occupation, or appearance. Whoever was committing these crimes clearly knew what they were doing.
The homicide division and several prosecutors, including Taeyeon, believed that these murders were committed by a specific person — or a group. But the motive remained unclear.
None of the victims had any known enemies or debts.
As Taeyeon sat at his desk, lost in thought, his colleague and fellow prosecutor, Oh Wonyoung, walked in holding a file.
"This makes it the sixth murder in the past two months," Wonyoung said flatly, placing the folder in front of Taeyeon.
It was all becoming disturbingly routine.
"Again? But it's not even been two weeks since the last body was found. I haven't even managed to connect the first five cases yet, and now I have a sixth?" Taeyeon's voice was filled with frustration. He'd been working on these cases for two months now.
"The person behind this is a complete psychopath."
"Absolutely. But even if they have a motive, why remove the hearts?"
"There must be a reason. We'll know when we catch the bastard. That symbol on their necks — it has to be some kind of organization."
"I think so too," Taeyeon agreed. "Is the sixth murder the same as the others?"
"Almost. But this one's different in one way. The victim was part of an underground gang. Also, his tongue was cut out."
Taeyeon opened the file and quickly skimmed through the victim's details.
Name: Min Hajun.
Age: 36.
Occupation: Bank employee.
Also a known member of the R.F. gang.
Unmarried. Estranged from his family.
Cause of death: identical to the previous five cases.
Difference: tongue removed.
The same strange emblem on his neck.
"Any word from the lab?"
"Not yet. The analysis is still ongoing, but they promised to update us soon."
The two of them fell silent for a moment, both trying to process everything.
They had been consumed by this chain of murders for weeks now.
But then a knock on the door broke the silence.
A young boy peeked in with a smile, then stepped inside, closing the door behind him.
"Can I come in?" he asked sweetly.
"You're already in, Jenyeong."
"What, Taeyeon hyung? Not happy to see me?"
"Overjoyed," Taeyeon replied dryly.
"I brought you coffee. Figured you must be tired."
Jenyeong handed over the coffee with a bright smile.
Taeyeon accepted it and thanked him — this kind of interaction had become routine between them.
"Sorry, Wonyoung hyung. I didn't get one for you. Didn't know you'd be here.
Well, even if I did, I probably wouldn't have brought one anyway."
Wonyoung rolled his eyes but said nothing. He was used to this. He had known Jenyeong practically since the boy was born. He was like a little brother.
"What's with the long faces?" Jenyeong asked.
"Remember the case I told you about before?"
"The one with the hearts taken out?"
"Yeah. We've got another one."
"Again?"
"Unfortunately."
"Well, that explains your mood. Why don't you just hand the case off to another prosecutor? Maybe you'd finally get a break."
"It's not that easy, Jenyeong. We can't just drop cases on a whim," Wonyoung cut in firmly. "And this one keeps getting stranger. Personally, I'm not letting it go until I find the killer — or killers."
"Okay, okay, I didn't mean anything by it. Relax."
"Anyway, I actually came here to talk about something else.
Taeyeon hyung, are you free tonight? I was thinking we could watch a movie together."
"Sorry, Jenyeong. I'm really busy. I have to work on these cases."
"Pleaaase..."
Jenyeong pouted, his eyes pleading directly into Taeyeon's.
"No. Maybe another time, alright?"
Jenyeong lowered his gaze and fell silent.
It was obvious he was upset. Seeing him like that, Taeyeon had no choice but to give in.
"Alright, alright… but it can't be too long, okay?"
"Of course! Leave it to me. See you tonight, then!"
He flashed a bright smile and bounced out of the room.
"You really shouldn't spoil him like that," Wonyoung muttered.
"I can't help it. I just don't want to hurt him."
"Sometimes I wish I'd never introduced the two of you."
"Why?"
"He's constantly interrupting your work."
"You know… it doesn't actually bother me.
Weirdly enough, spending time with Jenyeong helps me shake off the fatigue a little.
It lets me disconnect from all this horror — even if just for a moment."
"So you enjoy being with him, is that it?"
"You could say that."
"I don't get how you can spend so much time with a kid. I barely see my own younger brother."
"Well, you know Jenyeong's more mature than most kids his age."
"Oh, don't I know it," Wonyoung said with a smirk. "But that's only when he's with you.
When he's around Wooyeong, they act like five-year-olds."
"True, I won't deny that. Jenyeong can be childish sometimes.
He wants to see me all the time, he's stubborn, and he gets easily annoyed.
But that's natural — he's still a teenager, just seventeen.
And honestly, most of the time he acts more like an adult.
He's one of the few people who actually understands me.
I also used to tutor him for a long time, so it's no surprise he's this attached to me.
And because of that… I don't want to hurt him.
He's important to me."
"If you say so…
But I'm telling you — he's distracting you from your work.
You need to learn to keep some distance.
Especially knowing he still has feelings for you…
I don't understand how you can act like nothing's changed."
Taeyeon didn't respond to that.
He knew Wonyoung was right.
But something deep inside him — something he couldn't explain — made him feel responsible for Jenyeong.
When they first met, Jenyeong had only been fourteen. Taeyeon had cared for him like a little brother. Jenyeong was the kind of boy anyone would adore — smart, hardworking, kind, and incredibly beautiful. And as he grew older, he only became more striking. He had an angelic voice, jet-black hair, and eyes that contrasted sharply with his pale white skin. He was tall too — the type that anyone would fall for.
It would be absurd for someone not to like him.
A few months ago, Jenyeong had confessed his feelings.
But because of their age difference, and the closeness of their sibling-like bond,
Taeyeon had firmly rejected him, making it clear that nothing could ever happen between them.
Yet… Jenyeong's behavior hadn't changed.
If anything, he had only become more affectionate — almost as if he were doing it on purpose.
Taeyeon, despite knowing all of this, did nothing to stop it.
He didn't want to break the boy's heart.
Seeing Jenyeong sad was the last thing he ever wanted.
That day, Taeyeon attended several hearings.
Then he spent the rest of the evening trying — and failing — to find any link between the six murder cases.
After leaving the courthouse, he went straight home. He was far too tired to cook.
Completely drained. So he ordered some food and ate alone in silence. He tried to distract himself with other things afterward, but no matter what he did, his thoughts kept circling back to the murders.
The clock was nearing nine when someone knocked at the door.Taeyeon didn't even have to check who it was.
He knew.
He had been waiting for this visitor since he got home.
When he opened the door, there stood Jenyeong
smiling brightly, holding bags in both hands.
His eyes sparkled just like his face.
"Took you long enough. I've been waiting for hours," Taeyeon said.
"Really? If I had known you missed me that much, I would've come earlier.
But you looked tired earlier, and you weren't exactly eager to spend time with me."
"Well… I must've been talking nonsense," Taeyeon replied with a light smirk.
"Anyway, now that I'm here, we can finally watch our movie.
Looks like you got snacks too — I'll go put them on a plate."
That night, for the first time in a while,
Taeyeon felt genuinely at peace. After such a draining day, being around Jenyeong calmed something inside him. They sat in front of the TV, shoulders touching, watching their movie.
Taeyeon's arm rested gently on the younger boy's shoulder —he knew Jenyeong liked that kind of closeness.They spent the entire evening together.
After the movie ended, they talked for a while — just soft, comfortable chatter. By the time Jenyeong left for home, it was already past midnight. At one point, Taeyeon found himself thinking back to what Wonyoung had said.
Maybe he was right.
Maybe he should keep some distance.
But it was impossible.
Yes, he had rejected Jenyeong once.
But somewhere — deep in the corners of his heart, in a place he hadn't dared explore yet—there were feelings.
Something quiet, something unknown.
And maybe…
Just maybe…
They were already starting to wake up.