Bad X Bad: My Dear Hana - Chapter 32

Ahn Hana feels someone staring at her. She looks back. It’s Do Sejin. She frowns at him and walks away. He walks behind her quietly, holding back his questions. They stop between the bookcases. She looks for a title on shelves.

“Mentor, which book are you looking for?”

“At the age of 15, what kind of books did you read?”

Surprised by that question, he doesn’t think much before he answers her, “I liked reading comics. What did you read?”

“I read case files.” She tries to reach for the book on the top shelf. Her hand can’t reach. She isn’t wearing her heels either. He grabs the book, pressing her from behind to the bookcase. Instantly realizing his mistake when he feels her warm back, he looks down to apologize to his mentor unless she misunderstands his intentions. He finds her looking at the book in his hand. She hasn’t realized their proximity. He doesn’t move away either, staring down at her.

He is shocked when she wraps her arms around him and chokes on the words. He should say something. He should push her away. A familiar yet unfamiliar warmth is rapidly swelling up in his heart. The emptiness is being filled. Something heavy is disappearing, replaced by something strange and sweet. He is about to grasp it.

“Don’t move,” She whispers to him. “Wrap your arms around me. Look natural.”

“Excuse me?” A sharp voice comes from the behind. “What are you doing at the library?”

Ahn Hana pushes him away. “Sorry, we lost ourselves in the moment.”

“This is the first and last warning.” The librarian glares at them. “Behave yourself. If I see something like this again, you will be banned from here.”

“We are sorry.” Ahn Hana bows apologetically. She kicks his leg and pulls him down to bow before the angry librarian. “We are just leaving.”

What just happened? Is he drugged or something? Why would this woman hug him like this? He wants to ask her. Did she forgive him? Did she realize that she can’t live without him? He smiles to himself. She can’t live without him, can she? She pretended that she couldn’t care any less about him. She has been hiding her true feelings behind her stony mask. It makes sense now.

Ahn Hana checks out the book. She stops and looks back. Do Sejin is standing behind her with a smug look. She gives one last look at the bookcases.

Do Sejin doesn’t start the car immediately. She is checking something on her phone. He smiles again when he recalls their hug earlier. He leans in to kiss her on the lips. She smacks his face with the thick book.

“Hana, what are you doing?” His nose is bleeding. She made him bleed for the second time. “You were the one who hugged me earlier.”

“Instead of asking me why I hugged you, you are trying to use your filthy lips on me.” She scowls at him. “I am your mentor. Don’t ever call me by my first name. Use formal language or don’t come back to work tomorrow.”

“Why did you hug me, mentor?” He asks bitterly. He wants to know what was going inside her head.

“I was taking pictures, you idiot.” She throws her phone at him. It hits him right at his wounded nose. Anyone could tell that she did it intentionally. “Someone was watching us.”

He covers his nose with one hand and checks the picture with his other hand. In the pictures, there is a dark shadow in the corner of the bookcase. The sunlight is pouring in from the window behind the person. He tries to zoom in to the person’s face. But, it’s not clear. The person is wearing a baseball hat and black clothes.

He zooms into the book. The Ocean In The Sky. Noe Kyung-Hee’s favorite poetry book. This person knew that Ahn Hana was taking his pictures. “He is keeping a track on you.”

“I couldn’t fool him.” She smiles. “Drive me to the wedding.”

“We should go to the police station.” Do Sejin grabs the steering wheel. Afraid. If she is followed by a killer, she is in danger. “You have to tell them. Your life is in danger.”

“No.” She opens the book. “I don’t know all. There is something else that he wants me to figure out. Our killer is a patient one.”

“We are talking about a psychopath who killed 36 people in the past,” Do Sejin yells at her. “You are talking about patience? How are you sure that he wouldn’t get rid of you? A killer is a killer. He won’t wait around for you to catch him.”

“He won’t.” She looks at him sternly. “If you don’t want to drive, you can step out of the car. I have to attend a wedding.”

He has never been more frustrated in life. He does what she exactly wants. He drives her to the wedding without a word. He makes a silent decision to follow her everywhere until the killer is caught.

“Why are you dressed like a homeless man?” Bo Ji-Won is on the verge of breaking. The groom has been waiting at the altar for two hours. The guests are wondering if she is having cold feet. Her childhood friend is coming to her wedding like this. “Never mind. I will scold you later. Just come with me.”

Ahn Hana sighs. “You should just get married. Don’t -”

“Keep your mouth shut.” Ji-Won turns to Do Sejin. “You! Who did this to you? I don’t have time to fix your nose.”

“It’s nothing serious.” His nose has stopped bleeding. “I will get cleaned up. You go and do your thing, Doctor Bo.”

He leaves them alone to clean himself up. He does his best to look presentable. Luckily, his nose is not broken. He scratches his head. The woman is more violent than he expected her to be. She is also good at tricking him. Hugging him like that to click pictures of the killer. Does this make sense? If she knew, she should have told him. They could try to capture the killer.

She is also playing the game with the killer. What should he do about this woman who doesn’t know any fear?