author's note: this chapter is huge and has two big surprises! Thank me later for the amazing ending </3

"Jiwon, can you please get me the script about that zombie film Mr Hwang was talking about," Min Sanya asked her manager, as she nursed the glass of Chartreuse once she found herself a seat on a purple coloured chaise lounge as the golden ball of sun shone directly upon her pale shoulders. With such a warm day, small mumbles of curses kept escaping her dark red lips about how she had a plane to catch just two hours after she finished a shoot. 

Passing a heavy file, Jiwon— a lady who looked like she had just entered her 20s with red hair and blue eyes, spoke, "Sure, even though I personally don't like the plot of it. Also, just to remind you, the detective pair working on Lisa Manoban's case is going to arrive soon."

Taking off her black shades, the actress sighed, "Yeah, bring both of them here. I will be resting for the time being." And with that, Jiwoo nodded before walking out of the pool area. 

Twenty minutes felt like they passed within a blink of an eye, as Taehyung and Jennie swiftly made their way in the lush green area with a pool that had shimmering crystal water. "Oh hello, Mr & Ms Kim, I hope you had a smooth journey. Also, I am sorry for choosing such a location to meet. I hope you don't mind talking in this environment. The airport is quite near to this resort, so I am staying here," Sanya said, noticing their presence. 

Jennie returned a friendly smile, "No, Ms Min, it's completely okay. We like it here, it's a beautiful place. Let's start without any delay." As the two detectives took their seats, with two glasses of grapevine kept in front of them, a light breeze passed by, enhancing the environment and cooling down the intense tension of suspicion between the three. 

That being said, Jennie proposed the first question, "Ms Min, what kind of a relationship did you have with Ms Manoban?"

Chugging down a sip of her beverage, Sanya responded, "I hated her and it was totally mutual. We never liked each other and always wished we won't run into each other ever in university hallways. I guess you can say she was my enemy."

"Why did you hate her so much?" Taehyung asked eyes on the recorder which was taping down every word heard and spoken in the investigation. 

Sanya traced a pattern on the table as she replied, "Mr Taehyung, don't you think you already know the answer? I mean, you must have investigated so many people before me, and from what I hope, they said the same thing that Lisa wasn't the best person in the world." 

When the two detectives stared at her, small smiles formed on their faces at the teasing tone. Sanya once again looked at them, "But if you insist, hear the same story you may have heard before. Lalisa was a crazy bitch. Enjoyed hurting people, making them cry and also playing their hearts around. She had strings to many people's hearts and she made sure to abuse all those strings for her benefit. She always wanted to be on top of everything, aside from studies. I don't really recall the last time she was concerned about studies."

Jennie clicked her finger against the glass, "Did you know Lisa marrying Ten was just an act to get power and control over her company ?"

A snort escaped Sanya's mouth, "Obviously. Anyone who knows her would immediately have guessed that this whole marriage drama was just her attempt to secure the CEO position in her company. She changed boyfriends every week aside from those who she kept as her minions. She isn't the type to fall in love and marry. It was obvious she is going to marry someone rich to please her family and get that CEO title."

"Our records say that you really fought with her a lot. Like on a daily basis," Taehyung spoke, reading something on his iPad. Sanya made a facial expression that said of course, and replied, "Someone had to. It was mostly about misusing her power. One of the major fights I had with her was regarding her manipulating the final test results."

Immediately once again gaining her interest in the conversation, Jennie questioned, "Wait she manipulated the final test results and she didnt got suspended? Did the professors not knew? How is that possible?"

The actress laughed once again, "You're so funny, Ms Kim. Do you think someone, whose father would give millions of donations to the university would be suspended for manipulating the final test results? The principal is just the Manoban's flunkey. Lisa went into the principal's office and came out with a smile on her face. Nothing happened, she and her friends got top ranks. The only thing principal did was put the actual toppers name on that stupid board outside which half of the university population ignores."

"Who do you think killed the victim?" Taehyung asked, slightly impressed by the sass that was being presented in front of him. 

Staring for a second at the hazy sky, Sanya said, "I don't know. Just check the whole university list of those students who weren't rich or didnt donate to the university. Anyone could have done it. Jealousy is really a deadly disease, and we cannot find the cure for it in the market."

Jennie too was amazed at the casual yet classy way of speaking. Ignoring that, she put another question ahead, "Where were you and what were you doing when Lisa was murdered?"

"She died on the thirteenth of August right?" Sanya asked as Taehyung gave her a nod of confirmation, before the actress started to mutter her response, "I was shooting for my new web series called Victorian garden. I was in Rio de Janerio, where the shooting was held. And the last time I checked the world map, which was in tenth grade, Brazil and Spain aren't so close." 

Taehyung slightly chuckled at her tone, before asking, "Do you think Lisa deserved it? According to you, did she deserve to be murdered on an important day of her life?" 

Sanya folded her arms before staring at the floor, "I am no one to decide that. I don't know if her getting killed on her most important day was deserved or not deserved but I know that hurting others back just because they did bad to you is not okay. If they killed Lisa just because she did something horrible to them, then they are just as bad as Lisa in my eyes. I never believed in taking revenge. Lisa tried to destroy me and make me feel bad. Did I go up and kill her? No, I instead took away the power she had upon me. I became as powerful as she was in just two years. Made a new name for myself, instead of taking shelter from my parents."

Jennie nodded, "I don't know if you already found out but we met Jungkook before. He said Lisa had hurt you too a lot by her actions. What did she do?"

And then the vibe changed. Sanya, who looked extremely confident and was replying with answers that screamed power and sass, now suddenly looked a bit dull. Her leaned back posture straightened, and her eyes roamed around, recalling it all in the ocean of haze. And then finally, with a sigh, she began to answer

"She ruined the life of one of my closest friends. He liked Lisa even though he knew what shit she did to others. He thought she just needed love and he would be able to change her. He wasn't so rich, yet would buy her expensive lunch boxes, helped her in exams and if someone ever said anything wrong about her he would be ready to kill that person. He did so much for her and she continued taking advantage of him. If only I could have saved him from her and confessed."

Jennie tilted her head, "You liked him?"

Nodding and passing a sad smile, "I did. Even though it hurt a lot, I still managed to hide my feelings. I saw how she treated him like shit. It hurts so fucking much because I knew I could treat him better than she could ever have. When he was sick I was there for him but he still called for Lisa. Even though I hated her, I still begged her to come and meet him. All because, if she could make him feel better, then it's okay. He only saw her. I was just a friend, having false hopes."

Taehyung made eye contact with Jennie before asking the actress about the whereabouts of the guy who had become the new interest, "What happened to him? Where is he now?" The response which came from Sanya was enough to just ruin the entire peaceful environment

"Lisa killed him."

Both the detectives darted their eyes towards her, eyes widened in intense shock, mouth felt agape and as if the solar system was no longer aligned perfectly. And at the very same time, both asked the same thing, "What?"

Once again leaning back, "I don't mean it literally. He actually suicided because of her. After doing so much for her, she never tried to show any affection back. When you do so much for someone you do expect some level of reward or just a reaction. He got frustrated and asked her if she liked him or not. She said a yes, but didnt care about him. Weeks after playing with his feelings, she insulted him. Called him names and made fun of him. To humiliate him even more she posted videos and pics of him. All his secrets were up in a group chat where all the rich students were. He was already suffering through anxiety and after weeks of tolerating the massive hate and shame, he decided to end it all. He committed suicide on the thirteenth of June when the summer break was going on. Even after he died she never once tried to show remorse or guilt."

Taehyung was just going to ask for the name, when Jiwoo entered the room, breathing heavily, "Sanya ma'am, we lost track of time. The flight leaves in fifteen minutes, we need to get going. The entire film crew would be waiting for you in Vancouver, we cannot delay or cancel the flight. Please, let's go."

Sanya stood up immediately, and Taehyung was just going to persuade her to spill the name, but then the actress had a better offer, "I really need to get going, but I promise you, when I get back, which is the day after tomorrow, I will provide you everything, the names, pictures, video clips and all. Right now, please spare me, I cannot miss this shoot at any cost."

The detectives nodded as the actress grabbed her purse, before starting to walk. That very moment, Jennie remembered a question, "Ms Min, one last thing, why did you break your contact with the Jeons?"

Turning back for a minute, before blabbering the answer at a fast pace, Sanya spoke, "I wanted to move on. Even though they are my closest friends seeing them always reminded me of the whole university incident. So I stopped talking to them slowly and gradually. I hope that answers your question. I will be going now."

The minute the actress left, Jennie sighed heavily, "That was really hectic. I cannot wait for the day after tomorrow now, we will finally get some more highly useful information. This totally explains why Lisa felt triggered whenever suicide was mentioned. Also, the number who sent those messages just wanted to remind Lisa of her past, to make her feel weak." 

Taehyung grabbed his devices, "Truly, things have started to make sense. By the way, we still have some time left. Do you perhaps want to meet Ten and tell him that the girl who he thought was Cinderella, turns out to be the actual evil stepmother?"

***

Once again standing in the company owned by Ten Lee, better known as Lee Shìzú properties, the detectives walked towards the receptionist desk, hoping for a different encounter than the first one they had. Taehyung smiled, "Good afternoon Julia, you're looking much younger than the last time we saw you."

The assistant, or as she was called, Julia looked at the detectives before getting instant flashbacks of the time when the male threatened her about jail when they first met. She immediately grabbed a file, "I know you want to meet Mr Lee. He is free at the moment, and you can grab twenty minutes. I hope that will be enough."

The furniture in Ten's office was changed, completely, the aura was changed, much brighter than the last time. Taehyung knocked at the door before getting permission as he and his partner walked in. Ten stood in a corner, having a cup of green tea, before he spoke with astonishment, "Oh, Jennie and Taehyung. What brings you here today?"

Jennie placed her purse on the table, "We wanted to meet you, so here we are." Placing his cup on the table, Ten looked confused yet ready, "Well, the only time you want to meet me is either if you want to interrogate me or just tell me something shocking."

"It's the latter this time, Ten," Taehyung told him before taking a seat on the couch. Ten chuckled, "Should I keep water next to me or maybe call the ambulance beforehand?" 

Jennie laughed a bit, somehow relieved to her a joke after the intense interrogation they had at the resort with Sanya. She took a seat next to Taehyung before saying, "Ten, you seem happy. It is good to that see you have moved on."

Ten shook his head, "You can never forget the one you love Jennie. I have decided to cherish the lovely moments I had with Lisa. I know she is still looking at me with those loving eyes. I know she loved me a lot and me being sad all the time wouldn't be any good."

That was the moment when Taehyung decided to poke the little bubble of a world which Ten was having around him, as he said, "What if we tell you that Lisa never cared, nor loved you?" The expression on the CEO's face once again changed to confusion, "What is that even supposed to mean?"

Jennie looked more serious this time, "What if we tell you that her love for you was fake. Would you believe us"

It didn't take more than five seconds for Ten to deny that, "Obviously not. I know her love for me was always there. Actually, it still is there. Many people tried to label our love as fake but I know what I felt and I felt pure love. That's the truth. Do you even know what you're saying?"

"Well, you have to believe us. It was all fake Ten, just as fake as her personality. All the love she showed, those words she said, the dates you had, everything. All were fake," Jennie responded, regret boiling in her stomach for ruining the finally-attained happiness of the CEO but wanting to keep him in the dark forever wasn't a good choice either. 

Ten sat down, trying to make intense eye contact, but all that could be visible to Jennie was a tear in the corner of his eyes, which he was trying to hold because once he lets that one fall down, the others won't stop either. Ten asked, "Why would she fake it huh? Why would she?"

Once again joining the conversation, Taehyung spoke, "Aren't you Thai? And also from the HISO family? Must have heard of the manai system. That's exactly what happened. To secure her position as the CEO of the business, she just used you."

Truth is always bitter, isn't it? Sometimes so much, that you just want to deny it. Like it never happened. Living in a false world sometimes can give you happiness, and you want to make that happiness eternal. Wanting to deny the reality is a daily task, and today, Ten Lee just didn't want to accept what was the actual truth behind the smile and affection he thought of as love. 

Ten shook his head, on a verge of breaking out, wanting to convince himself this all was false, "Don't lie to me. You all are fucking lying. We both loved each other. Tell me, it's April Fools today, and this is a joke. She would never use my love like that."

Taehyung stood up and kept a hand on Ten's shoulder, "Well she did, Ten. I don't know if you know this but your lover was the reason one man committed suicide. She was the reason many people have trauma till now. She destroyed people's lives and hurt so many people."

This was when Ten could feel everything shatter down. It was much similar to the situation when you are dreaming of a land where everything is amazing, and your life is as perfect as it can be, but then a few minutes later, the alarm clock rings, pulling you back into this world, and then you realize that you have an exam you barely studied for. That moment, you wonder why you are still alive, and that was exactly what Ten was thinking too. 

A tear then slipped from the eyes of the Thai, "She promised me that she would never hurt me. This is just too painful. How could she? Even calling her heartless seems like an understatement now." 

"We all know Ten, promises are meant to be broken. Anyways, I am really sorry you have to go through this. Although, we still promise you that we will find the murderer as soon as possible. I think you should take a break now, we will also take your leave," Jennie said, grabbing her purse, before once again sympathizing. 

The walk downstairs was silent, but when the detectives finally saw the glass doors open, all they could see was harsh rain pouring down. Taehyung looked shocked, "It was so sunny twenty minutes back. What the hell is happening?" 

Jennie too seemed perplexed, but with a low voice, she just muttered "Let's get out of here before the rain gets even worse."

***

The very evening, the rain didn't bother to stop, the darkness continued to invade the atmosphere, and somehow it complimented Jennie's mood. The duo had stopped by at her house for the evening, in hopes for the rain to stop within a few hours and in the meantime, they could probably just think about the case which had been messing up with their minds for almost an entire month. 

Taehyung hanged his blazer, turning around to only see Jennie lost deep in the ocean of her own thoughts. "What's wrong? Why are you looking so down?" he asked, slumping on the couch heavily. 

Jennie completely laid down on her stomach, "I feel like dying, this is too much. When we're interrogating, I feel like finally, we have clues, and we would be able to solve it all. But then, another thing comes up and ruins the previous theory. When we're investigating, it seems all fine, but the minute I breathe, I realized how fucked up this is."

"I understand y-" Taehyung tried to speak but only got interrupted by Jennie as she continued to vent out, "No, hear me out. I don't remember the last time I had sleep for more than five hours or had a day with three proper meals. I am losing touch with my other friends. This shit never happened during the previous cases. Either they were too easy, or we're losing our minds as we age. The conclusion of this rant is that I don't want to spend another evening wondering about how much of a disgusting case we're stuck in. Leave that for the morning now, or else am fainting."

Not able to help but laugh at some of the things she said, Taehyung immediately removed the case files and devices from the table in the drawing-room, "What do you want to do then? The night is still young."

Jennie smiled, "Let's recreate the memories. Today it is Monday, tell me you're thinking exactly what I am thinking." 

It took Taehyung a minute, or even more but when it hit him, a huge smile had enveloped his face, "Goodness, that time we had just met, and five months later, we both resigned from that stupid company about criminal justice. We both didn't get a job for another two months and thought we were going to be unemployed for the rest of our lives."

Sitting on her knees, Jennie continued the story, "And so, every Monday, we used to pick an angsty movie and cried to it together, until you got an idea to be a duo of private investigators, and ever since, we have never watched an emotional movie." 

"That is a call to recreate them, I guess, and so with that good note, we're going to watch five feet apart together, an emotional film, after one whole damn year," Taehyung proclaimed before setting up the mood. Maybe for some time, removing Lisa's case from the mind and centre of attention won't hurt. 

For the next one hour and thirty minutes, everything went smoothly. The grandfather clock in the drawing-room had struck eight, the rain decided to not bid its goodbye and just kept pouring harshly and the movie had turned out to be amazing so far. But then out of the blue, everything went black. The television's huge screen shut down, the lights went off and from the relaxed mood, the duo flinched in astonishment. 

Taehyung grabbed the armchair, "What happened?" Jennie slowly got off the couch, trying to feel her surroundings to not trip or break anything, "I think there is a power cut due to the heavy rain. I don't even remember where I kept my flashlight. I will just grab a candle from the kitchen." 

Feeling the furniture and trying to trace a map of her own house in her mind, Jennie slowly walked downstairs, the stairs creaking a bit and nothing visible. Maybe she regretted this, she should have just sent Taehyung into this mess. When she finally got herself on the floor, her toe tripped on a small bag kept down, as she almost fell down, but then the balance was an art, and Jennie had a degree in it. 

Cursing at the bag for no reason, being extra cautious and then again starting to walk towards the kitchen, when she finally made it, her hands opened each and every drawer, trying to grab hold of a single candle. 

Turns out, luck wasn't really in Jennie's favour. 

"Taehyung, bring the fucking matchstick box own. It is in the first drawer of the second cabinet, I think," she shouted loud enough for him to hear. Getting hold of a candle was easy, but what would be the damn use of it without the matchsticks. Unlike Jennie, Taehyung had no problem coming downstairs. Able to trace each other's location after bumping once, Jennie held the candle as he lit a matchstick. 

Once the candle was lit, suddenly it became hazy. The orange flame was there, and it reflected its light splendidly on Jennie's face, and that one moment was just stunning in Taehyung's eyes. Maybe a bit too stunning, you could say. The way her straight brown hair fell on her shoulders, the light brown eyes that twinkled and appeared orange at the moment, or the cherry lips that gave her the look of a complete Goddess. Jennie Kim was indeed perfect. She slowly broke the eye contact, before keeping the candle on the counterpart. 

But that wasn't the end of this scene

The next thing Jennie knew was that she was pushed against that very same counterpart, her arms wrapped around Taehyung's neck, as they moulded into each other when they finally kissed. In the tiny corner of her imagination, Jennie had expected a kiss between them, at least once in a lifetime, but not today. Not even in the slightest bit. One of his hands held her waist, the one gliding towards her thigh, as he leads the sensual moment. The sensation of whimpers escaping her mouth and melting into the atmosphere. The distance between their bodies was long gone, holding each other as the only still things in the world with dizziness and when they finally pulled back for air, they both thought the same thing. 

Maybe this day wasn't as bad as they thought. 

author's note: smile while you can, you never know when a thunderstorm comes :) 

also, this chapter has 4.2k words, worth the delay and wait, you can say </3