Chapter Text
By this point, the sigh of the bedroom has become familiar. Awfully so.
Kim Soleum fiddles with his hands, watching as Supervisor Park Minseong carefully put the rotary phone he confiscated from him on the pillow, the same way one would handle a live bomb. His Squad Leader is leaning by the door, making sure that nobody is listening in, while Assistant Manager Eun Haje is standing in front of him, crossing her arms with a fierce expression.
The silence presses on, hovering above their head like the sword of Damocles.
Until, finally.
"Well?"
Assistant Manager Eun Haje is the one who cuts the thread and allows the blade to fall upon their necks.
"Do you have anything to say for yourself?"
Kim Soleum swallows. For perhaps the fifth ever since the break started.
And then, he straightens, meeting his senior's sharp eyes.
It is time to muster up all the bullshitting skill he has.
"I know that you're angry, but I had no other choice."
"Roe Deer, you…"
"Let him talk."
Supervisor Park Minseong begins to speak, eyebrows pinched, but Assistant Manager Eun Haje interrupts him.
Her instinct as a reporter telling her to let the people she interview talk, perhaps?
Either way, it bolster him to continue.
"I couldn't find any other solution to escape the theme park, and I'm sure you understand that staying there throughout the night was even a worse idea?"
Assistant Manager Eun Haje sighs, running a hand through her hair.
"Roe Deer, we're not going to chastise you about that. I'm not pleased with your decision, yes, but I won't scold you about something you do for the sake of survivor."
"Then…"
"But you continued to keep it."
Her face twists into a scowl.
"You continued to keep the doll even after escaping from the theme park."
[What is this woman implying? Of course I would stay by my Friend's side!]
Kim Soleum squirms on his feet.
"Braun has helped me with a lot. Remember the exhibition? It was him who let me broadcast my voice to everyone else and help them escape!"
"It doesn't make him any less of a threat to your life. Haven't you learned not to rely on a Darkness by now? You should be smarter than this, Roe Deer."
[First she told you to throw me away, and now she is insulting my Friend! Roe Deer, someone who shines as brightly as you should have a better company than this! Here, let your Good Friend deal with this for you.]
No, wait!
Kim Soleum rushes to stop him before he can do anything terrifying. Like setting his old teammate on fire.
They're just worried, that's all. There's no need to do anything if they're only trying to act out of concern for my best interest, right?
Like Braun did.
The line goes unsaid.
But the implication of it is can be heard clearly.
A pause.
[If that's what my Friend wants, this Braun shall comply.]
Thank god.
One immediate fire dealt with, Kim Soleum turns to the other one, shifting his tactic since the last one did not work.
"Wouldn't throwing the doll away be more dangerous? All the people who have a possessed doll in ghost stories are only hurt because you mistreat it, right?"
"But you didn't mistreat him, and he still kidnapped you to his talk show anyway."
"…!"
"At this point, keeping such an entity like this will only bring more danger to yourself."
"…"
Supervisor Park Minseong steps toward him, a hand laying on his shoulder.
"Roe Deer, you're our junior. Someone we still consider important to us, even if Eun Haje and I…"
He sucks in a deep breath.
"Even if Eun Haje and I aren't in the D-Squad anymore. We never want you to get hurt. You've helped us many of times before, will you please let us help you this time?"
But they already did.
They risked their job, their sanity, their mind themselves, only to make contact with Kim Soleum and get him out of Braun's talk show.
They have done so many things for him. Things that he cannot repay. Can never repay, not when he will go home soon.
And yet.
"I'm sorry."
He bows, deeply, painfully.
Because he truly is.
"But I can't do it."
Eun Haje lets out a frustrated noise.
"Why?"
It is something Kim Soleum has suspected before.
When the TV show host came to take him inside of that bathroom.
When he was able to hear his every thought like they had been words on a screen.
When the phone rang and he could talk to Braun again, even after the Good Friend doll was destroyed, even after he became stuck in another Darkness.
And that is…
"I don't think we can be separated anymore."
They are too intertwined, too connected to each other to do so.
[But of course, the bond of our friendship is beautiful and eternal! Nothing can break it!]
Braun's voice deepens.
The static grows more prominent.
[No matter how hard you try.]
It's okay, I have no plan to.
Kim Soleum soothes.
He made a promise, after all.
[… Yes. It was presumptuous of me to think so lowly of my dear Friend.]
While he and Braun are talking, Assistant Manager Eun Haje and Supervisor Park Minseong turn to their Squad Leader.
Asking for confirmation.
"Is that true, Section Chief?"
"Yes."
"Fuck."
Assistant Manager Eun Haje groans, dropping her face into her palms.
"Fuck, this is just… Fuck."
As she continues to mutter a colorful string of curses, Supervisor Park Minseong turns back to him.
"Please, at least promise that you'll be careful."
He nods, trying to hide a smile.
"Of course."
Assistant Manager Eun Haje's head snaps back up, a finger pointing at him.
"And tell us if that damned entity try anything again! Got it?"
"Got it, Assistant Manager."
And that is that.
The conversation is over.
With one last grumble, Assistant Manager Eun Haje storms out of the room, followed by a tired Supervisor Park Minseong and the ever expressionless Lee Jaheon.
However, when she reaches the door, his old senior turns around, motioning toward the entrance.
"Well, are you coming?"
It feels like a reassurance.
I still care about you.
No longer resisting his smile, Kim Soleum wastes no time to comply.
"Yes, Assistant Manager."
"Hey, let's get BBQ after this!"
"Yes."
"Will it be your treat, Badger?"
"What? No! I no longer earn as much as I used to, you know?"
"Neither am I."
"I can…"
"Shut it, Roe Deer."
"Roe Deer, you're currently unemployed."
"Ah."
"It's okay, Squad Leader can cover it. Right, Squad Leader?"
"Yes."
"See?"
Despite the headache the entire conversation has caused, Kim Soleum cannot help but feel warm.
He is really lucky to have met such wonderful seniors.