Take-Two [ Tragictrees & Annyeong Bunny ]

Text From: Austin
Text To: Lee

i appreciate ur wisdom but medical school is a bitch so every penny i don't have 2 spend goes towards that. ill b back in like 10 minutes im catching the bus now.

Austin flicked over to a conversation with Evelyn, sending her a quick text to ask her nicely to take care of Muffin, before going to the bus and boarding. He ran a hand through his hair as he took a seat by a window, and, by the time the bus left, he was lucky to have no one sit next to him. It took him a little longer than expected to get back, but when he did, he went right to get his things. He figured there was no reason to just wait around.
 
Lee read the message and rolled his eyes. Austin did have a point, but at least he could give some advice to him. Soon enough, he was finished packing, and the other male had finally arrived. As he sat in the living room with his bags, he saw Daniel walk out, lugging his bags behind him as well. He looked just as relieved as Lee to be leaving, so at least they had that in common.

"Man, it's gonna be great going back to the courthouse. Paperwork sucks." the lawyer spoke with a light laugh, to which Lee rolled his eyes closed. At least the drive wasn't too bad, so they'd be back home in a few hours. Just as Lee opened his mouth to respond, he heard something.

A moist 'thud'.

The sound sent chills down Lee's spine and he looked over at Daniel, who had opened his mouth to continue talking. The detective jumped up in a matter of seconds and pressed a hand tightly against Daniel's mouth, giving him a serious look. The lawyer's eyes widened a bit as Lee turned his gaze away to the front door. It sounded like someone was wiping something on the door, and the detective's eyes widened a bit. It felt like forever, but the sound of something being dragged away filled his ears. After about two more minutes, Lee let his hand drop from Daniel's mouth, which brought on an onslaught of panicked questions.

"Holy shit, what the hell was that? Was it someone trying to get revenge? Oh my god, what if it was-" Daniel suddenly stopped at seeing a harsh glare sent his way.

"Be quiet. I'm about to check, so stop being a goddamn wuss." Lee snipped before walking to the front door. Daniel slowly followed, and the detective opened the door. As he stepped outside with the lawyer, he shut it, and it revealed a grotesque message. The detective pressed a hand against his nose and turned to Daniel, who had paled considerably. "Go get Austin. This is serious. And tell him to watch out for the smell."

Daniel took no time to run back inside to Austin's room to tell the other detective. 'I can still see you' was what the message read, written in decaying blood, chunks of rotting meat also flung across the door. The smell was atrocious and stung Lee's eyes. He took a step back and turned to glance away, his stomach threatening to empty itself. "So, we have a prankster." Lee spoke under his breath before looking back at the message. He was beginning to see the correlation of 'grotesque' messages left behind when he thought back to the speared victim...
 
Austin was, of course, still in the room, checking through to make sure nothing was left behind. It was a routine for him whenever he traveled; he went through the area bit by bit, until he could confidently say it was clear. He was almost finished with this process when Daniel cane in. He glanced up from where he was, confused as to why the lawyer was there.

"....Hi." he greeted, eyebrows raised "Uh, what's up? You look panicked. Shit, did something else happen?"
 
Daniel was pale faced as Austin asked what was wrong. The lawyer felt his throat tighten in panic, and he stood there for a few seconds trying to arrange his thoughts correctly. Finally, taking a breath he cleared his head and pointed a shaky finger toward the living room.

"B-Blood... a message... Lee said to get you. Something about watching out for the smell." Daniel spoke in broken phrases, but was sure he got his message across. He didn't want to repeat it again, and turned to run out of the room, back towards the living room. He pressed a hand against his nose and stood as far back as possible, watching Lee inspect the message as if nothing bothered him. Like his shock had worn off already. The detective was standing there with a calculating look in his eye, no longer worrying about the smell. "If only it were that easy." Daniel whined to himself as he kept a firm hand on his nose. He was sure that he would puke if he smelled it one more time.
 
Well, that was ominous. Austin set down what he was doing, heading out to the room where Daniel had gone, and where, supposedly, Lee was. The first thing he noticed, of course, was the smell. He'd been warned, but it didn't make it better. He pinched his nose, making a face "What died in here? Jesus christ!" He said, before noticing the mess. That explained the panic. "Ohhh. That's who died. Alright, what the fuck?" He cautiously made his way over "....That's creepy. And concerning. Who's blood is this? Did this just happen?"
 
Lee scrunched his nose lightly and looked inside the house as he heard Austin's voice. He couldn't find anything obvious about the writing, but while Daniel had went to get Austin, Lee had grabbed his small forensics kit from his car. When asked the question, the detective opened the kit to grab a swab and a vial.

"That," Lee began to wipe the swab against a more wet spot of blood, "is what we'll have to find out when we get back." and to the second question, he sighed and stood up, capping the vial and putting it into the kit. With his phone, he snapped a quick picture for evidence and turned to Austin. "It happened about five minutes ago when Daniel and I were waiting to leave. I didn't run outside to see who it was, which I probably should have done. I just didn't have a way of knowing what it was, so I took the gamble on staying quiet instead." the detective closed an eye, wincing at the putrid smell. "We should hurry and get back so we can try and find a match for this DNA. Whoever it was is probably long gone by now, though..." Lee grimaced and turned to the message, noting how the blood and flesh pieces had already begun their decaying process.
 
"Horrifying. Should we clean this? I feel like we should clean this. It's a neighborhood, kids live here." Austin said, looking over the mess with a frown. He really didn't feel comfortable with this, and had a feeling that sleeping in the office wouldn't be possible for him any time soon. Not with whoever this was wondering around "You know, I really, truly thought things were looking up, but I guess not. Though, I don't blame you for keeping quiet. I wouldn't be surprised if whoever did....this had a weapon."
 
"I agree that we should clean this, as long as we leave right afterward. This guy knew where we were, and I have a feeling some things are starting to link." Lee sighed as he stepped inside to grab a bottle of cleaner and quite a few rags. Walking back to Austin, he tossed a rag to the other and started to spray down the door heavily, the lemon smell starting to drown out the putrid decay. Once the door was drenched in the cleanser, Lee began to wipe at the door, thankful that the blood was giving easily.

"So what are you going to do after this threat? If he knows where you are here, then he'll definitely know where you live." Lee commented, keeping his eyes on the task of cleaning. At this point, he was sure the creep was out for Austin, since there were items and messages linking back to the detective. So, Lee had no choice to ask the cautionary question. This person was more dangerous than he had first thought. "Whoever this guy is seems to know who you are. That raises some concerns, which is why I'm asking."
 
Austin began to help, scrubbing at the door vigorously. He was eager to get out of there, now more so than before. Not that it would make him rest any easier; it would at least get him away from the smell, though. When asked about what he planned to do, he grimaced. He wasn't even sure yet. "Uh, I'll probably not sleep ever again. I don't know. It's not like moving could make a difference. I was found here, right? So it doesn't really matter."
 
"Just let me know when you figure it out. Psychopaths are hard to deal with..." Lee trailed off as he wiped the last bit of blood from the door. He sighed and closed his eyes, taking a moment to calm his brain. He then turned to look at Austin and looked over the other male. Pressing his lips together, Lee then felt the corner of his mouth twitch a bit as he grimaced.

"We have to leave. I have a bad feeling that something's about to happen in Detroit soon."

~

It had been a few days since everyone had gotten back to Detroit. Lee laid on his bed as he eyed his ceiling, feeling his stomach flip anxiously. Something was bound to happen soon, and he knew it. Not only that, but the forensics team got back to him on the small knitted bunny doll. It had traces of Lee's DNA...

The fact that the murderer had something of his made his skin crawl, but he was still confused about the doll. He had never seen it before, or at least, he couldn't remember. Deciding to go off on a limb, he pulled out his phone and found his mother's contact. Something he had never imagined using again.

Text From: Lee
Text To: Kang Lan Suk

I just have one question. Where did the rabbit doll come from?

And with that, Lee sighed and tossed his phone to the side. So many things were happening. He was pulled into the murder case now, like Austin, but he didn't know why, he was anxious as hell, and he had to text the hell spawn that was his mother. The detective placed his head in his hands, trying not to let everything overwhelm him in the moment. If he took a few deep breaths, he would be fine. After a few more moments, Lee grabbed his phone once more, finding himself opening to Austin's contact. He glanced at the other's name in his phone for a few seconds before hesitantly texting him.

Text From: Lee
Text To: Austin

Anything new? Also, news for the murder case. My DNA was found on the rabbit doll, but I'm not sure why, so at least that might give us another clue. Should we meet up at some point to look over any new leads?
 
Austin hadn't slept since he'd arrived 'home'. Between his medication woes, which he hadn't been able to get to the doctor for yet, and the paranoia, sleep was impossible. He eventually stopped trying sometime during night one, figuring that if he was going to sleep, it'd find him without him searching.

It hadn't yet. He was still awake, and had bags under his eyes.

When he got a text, he nearly fell out of his office chair. For one thing, people didn't text him often. For another, he'd left his volume just a bit too high. He picked it up from the side of his desk, fumbling a moment before unlocking it. He was surprised to find it was Lee that texted him; he had expected, if anyone, that it'd be Evelyn. He scanned the message, frowning, before beginning to type back.

Text From: Austin
Text To: Lee

i can practically feel ur anxiety thru my phone screen

Text From: Austin
Text To: Lee

nothing new on my end, and the rabbit thing is weird. want me 2 come over?
 
Text From: Lee
Text To: Austin

Sure, sounds good to me. The key pad number is 6733, so you can let yourself in.

Lee didn't comment on the anxiety part, but he knew that he needed to calm down a bit if he wanted to focus on the case. Standing up, he traced his midnight colored eyes across the kitchen, tracing a finger slowly along the marble counter. He knew he should eat, but he hadn't been able to stomach anything or sleep too well. His nightmares were back ever since they returned to Detroit, and he knew this from the fact that he would wake up in a dead cold sweat, his heart feeling like it would burst.

The detective was thankful for the chance to distract his mind, as he was also curious about how Austin had been doing since he'd last seen him. They both had a shock with the whole 'door' experience, and whoever it was had directed it toward the other male for sure. It seemed that the more days that passed, the harder it was to find a safe place. Lee sighed and forced himself to put together a small salad so that he could say he digested something.
 
It didn't take long for Austin to make his way to the apartment. He threw on an old, size-too-big grey Harvard sweatshirt, just to have something on that wasn't a tank-top, and headed out to the car, not bothering to make himself not look like shit. When he got there, he got to the door and punched in the code, letting himself into the room. He didn't see Lee, so he shut the door gently, before addressing the home at large.

"Hey, I'm here. Let myself in with the code." He paused, before adding "Well, obviously. But, anyway, here now. What's up? You doing alright?" He was concerned, since the door thing had happened, as well as the rabbit now, apparently. He himself had been doing awful, but that was a given, with the circumstances. He doubted it would be surprising or worrying that he looked like he'd been hit by a train and had decided to not go to the hospital because 'fuck it'.
 
At hearing the key code being punched in, Lee felt his stomach jump before walking to the doorway of the kitchen, watching as Austin stepped in, announcing his arrival. The detective breathed a sigh of relief as he made his way toward the other male. To say the least, he was relieved. His partner seemed to be okay, even if he looked like he went through hell and back. When asked how he was doing, Lee simply gave a short nod before crossing his arms.

"I'm fine for the most part. I just feel like something's watching us, so I'm a bit on edge. You don't look the best either... I take it you haven't been able to sleep either?" Lee asked, raising an eyebrow as he motioned for Austin to follow him to his study. The past few days had been filled with constant reading and calculations. Theories littered the two whiteboards in the study, red marker marking out some and circling others. As he walked into the room, he looked at the disaster of strewn books and notes. "Fortunately I've been able to keep myself busy, but I also haven't been able to come to any conclusions so far. This murderer is a total mystery, and I can't pinpoint him." Lee added as he took a few moments to straighten the notes. Pulling some books from the desk, he placed them back into their designated spots, sighing as his small OCD tendencies calmed at the cleaning.
 
Austin followed after him, looking around. Well, Lee had certainly gotten a lot done. Austin hadn't, that was for sure. All he had gotten done was staring at his ceiling, really. Not that he didn't want to do stuff, he did, he just couldn't find the energy to. He was completely drained. He blamed it on all the things that had happened recently.

"Yea...no. I haven't slept at all. I feel like shit, but that's not really new. I'll survive. I just need to get more 5-hour energy." He replied, folding his arms and yawning a little "Nothing that those can't fix. I can see you got a lot done, though, so kudos. Though, like, maybe find something that can get you to sleep, man, I don't think you can function off of this forever. Might be what's keeping you from a key connection or whatever."
 
"You say that now, but your liver's gonna pay the price for it later on." Lee commented, and he pressed his lips together. He hadn't really thought of taking medication for sleep, only because he had seen first-hand how medication made people. He figured he could always find times to doze off and such, so he never thought too much about it. He didn't want to admit it, but the other was right. His brain was probably dying by the day.

"Coming from you, that's a bit ironic. After all, we're all just waiting to die." Lee spoke dryly, a bit of his humor coloring his usual monotone, though his face stayed the same. Putting the last book onto the shelf, he turned to Austin and looked over the said male, his gaze lingering a bit as a sudden thought popped into his head. He cocked his head slightly in thought as he pressed a fist to his mouth, furrowing his brow.

The detective took a few small steps toward Austin and bit at the inside of his bottom lip, contemplating. Finally, he decided to just be blunt with it. "Why don't you just move here and pay rent. That way the murderer can't pinpoint one of us. He knows where you live after all, and so far, from what I can tell, he has no clue about me." Lee proposed nonchalantly, his eyes blank as he dropped his fist, looking down to adjust one of his cuffs. "I can understand why you wouldn't want to, but I've been thinking about it, and it seems like the best strategy so far. Also, we're both technically killing ourselves with this whole situation." Lee brought his gaze back to Austin and locked his eyes onto the other's, watching him carefully.
 
Austin's tired smile dropped rather quickly, and he adjusted his glasses "That's, uh, that's a hard no. Like, a really hard no. He might not have a clue now, but if I move in? I have a feeling he will." He said anxiously, his now-folded arms tightening a bit around himself as he frowned "And I'm not really keen on getting you killed or stalked or whatever. Like, any other criminal situation, I'd be fine with it, and maybe I would've even been cool with it before now, but after the rabbit thing? No way. I'd prefer getting killed on my own. Not that I think he could kill me; I haven't been able to kill me, so I'm pretty sure only God is able to strike me dead."
 
Lee blinked as he watched Austin, eyeing the male cautiously as he looked at his body movements. The detective moved his jaw side to side and huffed a bit in irritation. He had more or less expected the offer to be turned down, so he pulled out his backup argument, which he would have used nonetheless.

"Look." Lee paused as his gaze hardened, his eyes narrowing slightly before continuing. "I already know what the risks are, and I've been doing this for years. I don't like when people try to put their lives out on the line just to keep someone else safe. Especially when they're already in the thick of it." Lee spoke in a more icy tone, one he hadn't particularly spoken with in some time. It was one of his pet peeves though, so he couldn't help it. Turning his gaze from Austin, he took a cleansing breath and bit at his bottom lip a bit. "I understand the reason why you're refusing, but I think it's a bit selfish for you to just toss your life around like that when it can still be solved. Jesus. I need some tea." Lee snapped, pinching the bridge of his nose before taking long strides toward the kitchen.

The detective was fuming a bit and he had to walk from the conversation before it escalated more than it needed to. He didn't know why he was upset by what Austin said, but he knew that he wouldn't say anything else about the matter whether the other followed him or not. "Do you want a glass or not?" Lee called, still irritated, cursing his manners in that moment.
 
Austin really hated when Lee got that tone. Usually, he'd let it slide; it wasn't worth getting all up in arms about it. But, in that moment, he couldn't help it; between the door, the medicine, and the lack of sleep, he was feeling particularly irritable and emotional. He'd hate himself later for it, he was sure, but he was having trouble with filtering himself. He walked behind Lee after a moment, but then took a turn towards the door.

"I'll pass. Actually, I'm just gonna go kill my liver some more." He said, tugging his shoes on "Because I can't fucking-- I can't do this right now. You're right. I'm a selfish person. It's not a big secret. But here's the thing, okay? You don't have to like it. You don't have to like me. I'm not going to be apologetic about caring about what the fuck happens to you, because I've already had someone important to me die because of this exact same shithead, and my bad for not wanting to repeat history. So, yea, Lee, I'm selfish. But in this case? I'll take it, because I don't want to find your sorry ass gutted because of my stupidity. You've been working this job for years, and that's cool and all, but knowing the risks is a lot different than taking precautions against them. This is me, taking precautions, because you're the only person I've been paired with this long that I've liked."

His voice, at that point, was shaking, and he cursed mentally at his inability to hold himself together. He straightened himself out "And now, I'm gonna leave, because I'm done pissing you off for the night. I didn't want to in the first place, and I don't have shit for the case right now. I just came by to make sure you were fine. Mission accomplished." He opened the door, fishing his keys from his pocket "....Have a good night. At least try to get some sleep. I'm a hypocrite, too."

With that, he walked out, shutting the door behind him. The last word wasn't nearly as satisfying as he thought it'd be.
 
Lee only stood and watched as Austin suddenly exploded. He felt his gut wrench in anger as he snarled, forcing himself to keep his mouth closed. At that point, he refused anything just so the other male could hurry and leave. When the other did leave, Lee shouted in annoyance and kicked at a nearby box, running his hands through his hair. However, he still had plenty that he felt like he needed to say. Setting his jaw so tight that his neck was strained, Lee stormed back to his front door and threw it open, letting it slam back against the wall. He stepped out into the hall to look toward Austin's retreating figure, his eyes fixed into a hard glare as he inhaled, feeling his mouth begin to open before he could hesitate or stop himself.

"I've already risked everything so far!" Lee shouted, his voice raspy as his voice filled the hall, echoing. "Don't talk to me about taking precautions when I risked everything just to get this goddamn partnership back together, asshole!" Lee's voice only grew louder, and he felt his anger start to melt away as it was replaced with slight hurt. He didn't want people throwing their lives away for a monster like him. Lee's chest rose and fell and he felt his throat tighten a bit as he turned his eyes away, not wanting to reveal his thoughts through his gaze. He wasn't even sure if Austin had stopped or was gone by that point, but he kept his eyes to the side. In his mind, he felt too unworthy to be held to that level by someone. The detective had always been a sour and moody person, and for good reason. He wanted to avoid situations like these because it only weighed down his conscience. Lee then pressed his lips together, knowing he already said too much at that point...
 
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