not a t/w but there is a very small part of whore shaming

MEANWHILE, JENNIE WAS CONVERSING
WITH GRACE MANOBAN

IN THE UNIVERSITY

Once in the storage room, the duo looked all around the room which was full of boxes, papers, shelves and computers and smelled like rotten eggs. The boy who had escorted them seemed frightened because of the earlier threat, as he slowly followed them. Taehyung turned back, his hands shoved in the pocket of his jeans, "Do you know anything about Lalisa Manoban?" 

The lanky boy slowly replied, "I have never seen her but from what I have heard, she is a hot topic all the time even when after her leaving the university three years back, and almost every student talks bad about her. A few students even joked about her death when it took place."

"Did Lisa have any major fights? You know like those mean girls fight where one girl tries to make fun of the other?" Chaeryeon asked, her finger twisting the curl of her locks. The boy nodded, "From what I have heard in the hallways, she did have small fights with the other rich kids but mostly she had fought with Sanya, who is the daughter of the famous actress, Yoona. And Lisa also had major fights with Jungkook, who is now the CEO of another company."

Before either of them could comment on that, Taehyung who was climbing a small ladder to grab some boxes from a counter, spoke, "Shit...these boxes are so heavy. Boy, help me, will you?" As the female wrote something on her tab, the two males started to take down boxes that were imprinted in the dust. After passing down three boxes, Taehyung finally got hold of a box that had Lalisa Manoban's name taped on it. 

Opening the box, Taehyung took a minute to comprehend what he was saying, as he muttered, "We're done."

All the files were ripped with another black bracelet kept on top of them. 

***

Anxious and worried, Jennie had been nagging the driver constantly to drive as fast as possible because of how panicked her partner sounded on call and droved her by concern. The visibility of the Seoul tower from afar indicated that the city of Seoul was near, as the tension inside the lady continued to grow because of continuously thinking about the possibilities that could have taken place. 

When she finally arrived, the door was already open, and without wasting another minute, Jennie rushed in. On the lilac sofa, sat Taehyung as his eyes were glued to his laptop's screen. "Hey, are you okay?" the brunette asked, averting all his attention towards her. 

"Frustrated, how about you?" he asked, laying back on the couch. Sitting next to him, she responded, " I just went to Lisa's grandmother house. I am okay, what do u expect? Now, do you mind explaining  what went terribly wrong?" 

Sighing loudly, as if wanting to make the environment dramatic, "They got us again. I am so irritated with this. First of all that shady principal and now this," he replied, pointing to the ripped files and papers, "I am going to die young because of this." 

Jennie kneeled on the ground, picking up the papers, looking amazed and terrified at the same time, "Wait, how did this happen?" 

"Don't know. We were told that due to the new database system there isn't much information about Lisa but there were some extra files kept that may contain some information. We got in with the help of a dude and guess what? All the files were ripped. Also, the person who did this shit left this black bracelet to trigger my whole living existence," the male narrated the dilemma. 

Reading another file, she replied, "Okay fine, the files are gone but what about the freaking students? Lisa was popular they must know something." Shaking his head in immediate denial, Taehyung interrupted, "The whole university is filled with shady people. No one wants to stop and help. I feel like I entered a rabbit hole."

"Be calm Taehyung, we will get through this," she responded calmly but he sarcastically remarked, "Sure will." 

Continuing to sort the papers, Jennie asked, "Wait did you check these papers. There is something written on it." Not bothered by what she spoke, and not believing it either, he closed his eyes before slowly mumbling, "I checked a million times. There is nothing on them." 

"Well, I guess we need to get you another pair of contacts and glasses. There is something written on the paper, Tae," the brunette said, pointing to a small corner with a bit smudged ink as she once again sat on the couch, showing it to him. 

"Lisa was a whore, and got what whores deserved." 

Immediately shrugging it off, Taehyung sighed deeply, "I do not get why people can't just mind their business. If she roamed with a lot of guys that's her choice. If she slept with a lot of guys that is also her choice. Why do people need to put labels on somebody just because they choose a different path for themselves."

"Well, the ted talk started out of nowhere," Jennie commented, "It looks like the people with who Lisa had light relationships were pissed with her. She just used them for physical relations and show off and used their love for fun. People value love more than physical relation."

And then, the conversation's topic changed without realizing that. From the murder of a bride to the topic of what love exactly is, both the detectives actually felt elated for a minute that they finally were discussing something, other than blood and wounds. 

"Well, what the hell is love about? You find someone attractive. You start talking to them and you sleep with them. Physical relation is a part of the love cycle," he argued, not understanding the entire concept since it was never something he explored himself. 

Scoffing, the brunette clearly didn't agree, "Yes exactly but if you are not in love with a person what is the point of sleeping with them. When the earlier steps of the love cycle haven't been taken how can you just have physical relation with someone."

"Well, maybe some people want to have a physical relationship before love. What is wrong with that. Love is love, in any way or form," he said, resting a hand on the armrest. 

We have to talk about the murder investigation, not love, that's what Jennie thought, trying to not exceed the conversation but not able to lie to herself, that for a second, a break from it felt nice, she chuckled, and asked, "Oh really? well, what is love to you mister Tae?"

Taehyung scrunched his nose for a moment, trying to frame the response, "Well, when we feel a powerful sense of empathy toward our beloved people, feeling the other person's pain as our own and being willing to sacrifice anything for the other person, that is what I call love."

"For me, love is about 3 powerful words. Trust, understanding and bond. If you love somebody you have to trust them all along the way. You don't have to be behind or in front of them. Holding their hand and standing next to them giving them all the support they want. That is love," she murmured quietly, fidgeting her fingers. 

She looked at him for a moment, as he leaned closer, changing the scene slowly, as he asked her, "Well... if love is about trust, understanding and bond, don't you think that we fit all the categories nicely? I understand you, you understand me. I trust you, you trust me. Also, so many years of working together we have some bond. So are we in love miss Kim?"

Feeling intoxicated for a second, as not able to think of a response. Frankly, she should have said no, at least, that's what she thought but she was unsure about her own thought. And then, to rescue her from the dangerous situation, once again, her phone started ringing, as Taehyung pulled back, chuckling at her flushed face. Mangling with the phone, Jennie mumbled, "I should get the call. It may be important."

Sarcastically chuckling, he replied, "Yeah, sure."

Looking at the caller screen, Jennie immediately felt delighted, as the hopes inside her started to rise. It was a call from Roseanne, and without wasting another minute, Jennie picked up. Without a greeting, Roseanne's voice ringed from the other side

"Jennie! I hacked it and I found out the number who was messaging your client all the time. I don't want to look inside what the messages were, so I am just going to send you all details, and sorry, but it's freaking impossible to track who hacked into your system because the traffic in your system at that time was too much." 

Slowly processing the information, Jennie replied, "Uh... Okay? but wait, you got the number who was messaging Lisa all the time?" 

"Of course, and the location of the number is actually not in South Korea... It's in Thailand." 

author's note: 

First of all, I would like to apologize for the lack of updates in the past week. Exams have finally ended and I am back to writing. Thank you so much for your patience and for not giving up on the book. 

Second, after a long time, I have finally felt happy about my writing because this time I didn't force myself to write this. It came naturally and it may not be metaphoric or anything special, but it is giving me the happiness and satisfaction I actually wanted. I am so happy about this. 

Third, I hope all of you are doing good and healthy and your families are safe. This chapter was surprisingly not filled with a lot of drama, but I once again left you all with a cliffhanger. We're not surprised at this point. 

That's all, stay healthy and stay happy. Once again, thanks for waiting for me to update!