Bad idea
Hwang Soon-Bum switched on the light.
His eyes opened wide, doctor Jo had on his face an expression oscillating between strong-scientist-interest and condolence-for-a-friend.
Frowning, Tae-yeon looked more humiliated than worried.
Hwang switched off the light before they could see his own reaction.
In the dark appeared the vampire's body, bathed in ethereal bluish light.
Soon-Bum switched on the light again.
Switched off.
On.
Switched off.
On.
Swit-
- "Are you done yet?" asked the voice of the doctor, annoyed.
Switched on.
He met the blazing look of Tae-yeon who held his hands in front of him as if they were greasy.
- "What-a-at t-the he-e-eck is t-t-this?" stuttered the detective, spooked.
- "I'd like to know as well", said the prosecutor with the same icy voice he used with the suspects.
The doctor searched his bag.
- "I'm gonna take a sample of blood and get it to the lab."
- "Why blood?" protested Soon-Bum. "It's his skin that flashes like a glow-worm!"
- "I am NO glow-worm", Tae-yeon corrected fiercely.
- "You're not turning blue, and neither I am, when the light goes out. And the only difference between prosecutor Min and ourselves, is his drinking of the victim's blood. Ergo: I'll run some blood tests."
- "Argo?" the detective repeated weakly.
Tae-yeon sighed.
- "Doctor, I …"
He was cut off by the ringing of his mobile phone.
- "Yes, Dongman?"
The two others listened, holding their breath.
- "Huh. Huh… Huh-um."
It was frustrating.
The young man ended the call, rested the receiver on the sheet after he locked the screen.
- "Choi Dongman found an impressive concentration of drugs made of luminol in the body of the victim."
- "Oh, I see", said the doctor, shaking his head. "I get everything, now."
- "Well I don't !" Hwang exclaimed. "Who this guy thought he was? A walking mosquito-repulsive lantern?"
Tae-yeon suppressed a sneeze which sounded like an involuntary laughter.
- "That makes you laugh?" stammered his best friend. "What are you gonna do if this is permanent? Tell the rest of the team you were afraid of dark so you thought absorbing luminol was a good idea?"
The doctor let go of an amused cough.
- "I've heard vampires cannot expose to light, but I have never heard about a vampire who had to avoid dark corners in order to protect his identity!"
The eyes of the big detective went unbelievingly from the old man who smiled of his own joke to the prosecutor who did not seem to find this tasteless humor.
Did not any of them realize how big of a mess this was?
Keeping Min Tae-yeon's secret had shown itself hard, but feasible, so far – but Hwang Soon-Bum knew better than anyone how easy it was to let it slip out. He had bitten his tongue more than once, almost letting go of the truth.
- Hyung.
He winked, panicked and frustrated.
- Hyung, look at me.
He turned to Tae-yeon.
The vampires clear blue eyes were staring at him.
- "It will be fine."
This was his friend's smile, but the fangs lurking in between his lips made him look foreign, terrible.
- "I'd like to believe you, but…"
The doctor tidied up the blood tube carefully. He got up, closed his bag, collected it.
- "I'm off. I'll keep in touch, so tel me if there're any changes. I'll come back tomorrow morning."
The prosecutor greeted him with a nod. Hwang Soon-Bum stumbled behind the old man to the door.
- "Doctor…"
A smile - sincere and indulgent.
- "Don't worry, detective. I'm sure this is only temporary."
Doctor Jo put his hand on the detective's arm, pressed briefly his sleeve.
- "Stay close to him, okay? See you tomorrow."
Soon-Bum shook his head, his throat tight.
His eyes were once again misted and he had difficulty closing the door. He thought he had picked the bolt, but the small chain was not put right and it slid off behind his back.
Tae-yeon had got rid of the pillows which supported him, when the detective came back in the bedroom. The prosecutor was laying on his side, his cheek pushed in the pillow.
- "Feeling sleepy again?" asked the detective, settling down in the now free armchair.
- "Uh…"
- "Pain - anywhere? Feeling like throwing up?"
- "No, I'm okay…"
A silence.
Hwang Soon-Bum was fascinated by the the prosecutor's half-opened mouth, and the brightness of his white fangs on which reflected the bedside lamp.
Blue irises were resigned.
- "If you'd bite me, do you think you'd go back to normal?" asked suddenly the detective.