★★★★★   ━━   ❪  @CH_TWENTY_ONE  ❫

eonni's noodle shop...

" did MUN say his parents died in a car accident? "

MOTAK mindlessly questions, his head full of millions of thoughts but not being able to connect all of it.

" that's what he said, and that's when he hurt his leg "

MRS. CHU tells him, still focusing on the numbers in front of her.

" and that was seven years ago, right? "

" why? "

" it might not have been an accident "

HANA drops the information on the older counters.

" what? "

MOTAK rises up from the little sleeping area, turning his full attention to her.

" i saw JUNWON's memory and she read MUN's... "

she says, recalling the vision she had seen through JUNWON.

a young boy.

a truck colliding into two cars.

" if it wasn't... "

" a fabricated accident. homicide "

HANA's statement makes MS. CHU gasp, MOTAK immediately stands up from his position and sits down at the table the two ladies were in.

" elaborate "

" he was barely concious, so it's not for sure "

" they're dead. all taken care of. "

the man says on the phone

" that's what he said "

HANA recalls to the older counters.

" are you sure? "

MOTAK questions, he knew that she most likely wasn't wrong, which is why he didn't want to believe it.

" yes, i heard it clearly. that man who hit them did it to take MUN's parents' lives "

the psychometric counter reinforces, confirming their speculations.

" it wasn't just 'that man' it's 'those men'. there's the guy who said 'all taken care of' and the other one who heard that "

the strong counter realizes, in which the other two quickly connected the dots.

a man moving away from MUN's family car, suspect number one.

" he's gone "

another man steps down from the truck, suspect number two.

" you'll leave traces "

" you're right. there were two men "

HANA tells him after remembering another memory.

" did you see their faces? "

" no, MUN lost his conciousness, so nothing after that. but... "

hearing the hesitation in HANA's voice, the older ones tilt their heads at her.

" but? "

" i saw another memory, i'm not sure if it was MUN or JUNWON's "

MS. CHU and MOTAK's faces displayed confusion at the mention of the short-haired girl.

a car on the road and another one near it.

" eomma... appa... wake up... "

a man walks up to the car, his face not visible due to the lack of light

" oh? this one's alive, i'll just- "

" ya! we need to go, i think there's some cars coming "

the other man interrupts him before he could finish

" you're lucky. the next time i see you, i'll certainly won't spare you again "

the man lets out a sinister smirk before walking away, leaving the person in the car ruined

" please help... "

" man, what's happening here? "

MS. CHU says in disbelief, her face showing how unsettled she felt about the new information.

" do you know the date? was there a clock or something? "

MOTAK desperately asks HANA, hoping to find out more.

" so, what if she does? "

the leader questions, her protective instinct activating.

" i wanted to look into it... "

he looks down, avoiding the fierce gaze of the woman beside him.

the youngest in the room tries her best to remember.

" SHIN MYEONGHWI won the election for mayor of jungjin "

the woman on the radio states before the person in the car turns it off

" the mayoral election. i heard an update for the count on the radio "

MOTAK hurriedly pulls out his phone to search the exact date.

mayoral election. wednesday, october 24th, 2O13.

the counter's eyes widen, realizing that it was the same date that he was hospitalized.

" MS. CHU, that kid and i both fell into a coma on the same day... "

" what? "

the two women both say.

" MUN's parents and i got into an accident on the same day. october 24th, 2O13. "

" what did you say? "

MS. CHU displays a bewildered expression on her face.

" hold on- then what about the other memory? JUNWON's? "

she adds on, but the younger woman responds.

" we're not sure if it's JUNWON's or MUN's memory though "

the whole room suddenly felt cold and disturbing.

" it's a bit too uncanny to call this... "

" a coincidence "

MOTAK finishes HANA's sentence.

there was something missing, they all knew. the memories were too similar, something must have happened.

" i need to go out. don't share what we just said with MUN or JUNWON. both of you. "

he strongly tells the MS. CHU and HANA as he puts on his jacket.

in the background, a loud, expensive-looking, white car drives down the road and parks right in front of the noodle shop.

" wah... the old man got a new car again "

MOTAK says with an unimpressed tone.

the owner of the car gets out from the driver's seat, his sunglasses and his stylish outfit showing off his class without the need for words.

" man.. the sky is stunningly blue "

he admires the beautiful clear sky before walking into the shop.

" your new car has a scary engine sound. dying to get to the afterlife? "

MS. CHU teases the man, who just laughs.

" i can't bring my money when i pass on to the afterlife, i need to use it up. may i have coffee? "

the man, CHOI JANGMUL, asks HANA with a playful and raspy voice.

" we live in the year 2O2O, how dare you make her do that? forget it. "

MS. CHU scolds the rich man, waving her hand to the younger counter dismissingly.

HANA smiles at them before sitting down beside MOTAK.

meanwhile...

JUNWON observes an amazed and curious MUN with a wide smile on her face.

she thought she probably looked like an idiot, but she couldn't stop herself nor did she care.

MUN let out a gasp at everything that he saw.

the exterior of the car, the interior of the car, shock and excitement was visible on his face.

" yah, JUNWON-ah! it's an expensive car, what's this here for?! i've never seen an english gentleman's car in person, this is crazy! "

JUNWON simply laughs at his cuteness, the stars in his eyes sparkled even more.

" i think i know what this is doing here, let's go in "

the two high schoolers enter the noodle shop, the short haired girl leading the way.

" we're here~ "

" whose car is that out there? "

MUN and JUNWON spoke simultaneously, both spotting the new face in the room.

" annyeonghaseyo "

the teenagers greet and bow at the same time.

" JUNWON! and you must be MUN! "

JANGMUL walks up to them with a smile, putting a friendly hand on MUN's shoulder.

" why? does it not seem right for me? "

" no, what do you mean? that's an english gentleman's car! you've all seen the OO7 franchise. the main character gets in that car in a sharp suit! wow! "

if MUN had dog ears and a tail, they would excitedly wag and move around.

the smile on JUNWON's face never faltered, instead it became embarrassingly wider as she sat down beside HANA.

JANGMUL jumps at the newest counter's enthusiasm, he couldn't help but smile at the young boy's contagious happiness, which the other counters could agree on ( HANA and MOTAK tried their best to resist their smiles ).

" do you study cars? i like this kid's personality. take a seat over there "

all the counters now sat at the table, their attention focused on JANGMUL.

" you've now joined our team, take this. it's a counter's card "

the man slips the black card towards MUN.

" counter's card? "

JANGMUL eagerly explains to the young counter its purpose, the said counter carefully listens to every word the older man spoke.

JUNWON shakes her head with a smile as she watches the two interact.

" i bet he has a device that can kill security cameras "

and just like she predicted, the older man pulls out the exact device from his blazer and gives it to the curious puppy-looking teenager.

MUN turns it on and looks around to test it, MS. CHU pats his back and points toward the monitor.

as soon as he presses the button, it starts glitching, which amazes him, making JANGMUL laugh.

" but only use it in an emergency. it disturbs this world's rules, it's considered cheating "

" oh, i see "

" and there's no credit limit on this card. you can use 1O million won or even 1OO! "

" what?! "

" MR. CHOI, you might make his brain explode "

JUNWON teases her star-strucked classmate with a playful smile.

" MUN, have you heard of JANGMUL retail? "

MS. CHU asks the high schooler beside her who tries his best to remember where he heard the familiar name.

" kids don't know anything about business "

JANGMUL says, laughing as he knew where it was going.

" a man among the top 5O richest koreans, the chairman of JANGMUL retail. a counter who's in chargr of finances, our financier. "

MOTAK drops a huge hint, which the boy caught onto.

" oh! he's... "

" yes. in a word, i'm the team's sugar daddy "

" ayy... it sounds weird if you put it like that! "

JUNWON complains, but she knew that it really was an accurate description.

the rich man rises from his seat, most likely leaving.

" are you leaving? "

" you're leaving? "

" you should stay for dinner "

" no, i have to go. oh! and you have to prove your spending at the end of the year. i'll cut off your hands if i catch you stealing my money, i'll seriously do it "

JANGMUL warns ( threatens ) MUN, who nods in slight fear.

they bid farewell to the eldest counter as he walks out the door.

JUNWON notices MOTAK asking MUN for his i.d., she heard him say it was for a bank account, but she could feel something was off.

the young boy looks at MS. CHU, not knowing if he should comply.

" give it to him, he's making you a bank account "

the elder woman lies to him, knowing what MOTAK was really using it for.

" oh, okay. thank you "

MUN hands his identification card to the elder counter.

" no training today. get some rest "

MOTAK tells him before leaving.

" yes! "

MUN cheers, a bright smile on his face.

" you want to hang out with me then? i just have a few things to do then we can leave "

JUNWON asks her classmate, mirroring his expression.

" sure, i'd be happy to! "

MUN replies, his face and ears turning pink and hot.

their eye contact and smiles lasted for a few minutes before MS. CHU interrupted their brief moment.

of course, HANA did not fail to notice the whole thing.

from JAE.

finally a long awaited update. the next chapter will be a cute one about our favorite puppies hanging out 😚

i don't quite like this chapter, but hopefully you do ^_^

thanks for being patient and waiting 🫶

i'll try to publish the next chapter tomorrow or on monday!

have a good rest of your day or night <33

© 𝗝𝗝𝟬𝗡𝗚-𝗢𝗦𝗧 , 𝟤𝖮𝟤𝟥