As I've been informed, Mikayla was supposed to be taken into custody last night but since that would mean overnight questioning, her parents paid her way out of it. That means she's being questioned now instead. Lorraine and I slept much better knowing she had been apprehended. Plus, we had the added comfort of knowing Woojin was nearby should anything have gone wrong. I'm back at work since the school couldn't arrange cover in time and I haven't been called in for questioning yet. I expect the police will likely want to hear from Doyeon too. Therefore, it comes as no surprise when two policemen enter my classroom mid-lesson.
"Good morning officers, how may we help you?" I say, pausing the class to address them.
"Mr Bang?" One of them asks.
"Yes" I confirm.
"You're under arrest for suspicion of inappropriate relations with a minor" The other begins as they both approach me with handcuffs in hand. "You do not have to say anything but anything you do say may be held against you in a court of law" My jaw drops as I look between them in the class. What on earth has Mikayla accused me of doing to her? I hold my wrists out and allow them to handcuff me. Whispers and mutters begin to spread through the students as I continue to attempt to comprehend the situation. Then it suddenly occurs to me, maybe Mikayla knows about Lorraine. Maybe she didn't accuse me of doing anything with her but exposed how Lorraine and I got together. Either way, my career could be over. I follow the officers to the door, pausing as they do.
"Is there a Song Doyeon in this class?" One of them asks.
"That's me" She says quietly, obviously knowing what this is about.
"We need you to come to the station for questioning" Great, now the whole class is going to think that I've been sleeping with Doyeon. Nothing spreads as fast a rumour, so pretty soon that will be the word across the whole school.
The officers take my phone and other personal belonging and place me in the back of the car. They allow me a moment to say something to the head. I insist that I'm innocent and I'll have that proved in no time but it's hard to know if he believes me. I guess he knows that Mikayla is problematic but it's too early to take sides. He knows she's been causing me problems but as far as he knows, that could be an affair gone wrong. But I know I'm innocent, even concerning Lorraine. Sure, our relationship didn't start out as the most appropriate, but she was always of legal age. I just hope the police see it the same way.
I'm escorted to a private room and seated at a table for questioning.
"Is there anyone you'd like us to call to inform them that you're here?" One of the policemen asks as he is about to leave.
"My girlfriend, Lorraine Gibson" I request. I know she'll freak out when she hears why I'm here but I'm freaked out too.
"So, Bang Chan" The interrogator begins, leaning forward across the table. "Do you know why you're here?"
"My girlfriend and her family have been harassed by who I believe to be one of my students. But I'm not sure how that has lead to my arrest" I say, trying to stay calm. I'm innocent so I've nothing to fear, right?
"Mikayla, who I assume is the student you are referring to, has confessed to sending the harassing and threatening messages to your girlfriend, Lorraine Gibson." He informs me. I exhale in relief, at least she's not trying to fight it. "However, she has informed us that she did so under your order. She claimed that you have been inappropriately messaging her for months and she has evidence to support such an accusation. What do you have to say on the matter?" I wait a moment before answering as I'm so stunned. I can't believe that she hasn't given up yet.
"That certainly isn't true. I was informally assigned to help Mikayla in her transition to Korea from overseas. I'll admit that I did spend more one on one time with her than other students but that was only because she asked for tutoring and came to me for support. I've never texted her before, only emails which have been strictly professional." I explain.
"Is it true that the two of you took a trip to Indonesia?" He asks with a blank expression.
"Yes, it was a school trip. There were around 30 students and 4 staff present"
"During this trip, Mikayla hurt her leg and required hospital treatment. Correct?"
"Correct"
"You and Mikayla travelled to and from the hospital alone, correct?"
"Correct. I was the designated first aider so it was my job to deal with injuries"
"When the two of you returned from the hospital to the vehicle, you kissed Mikayla. Correct?"
"No?!" I exclaim in confusion. "We got into the van and drove back to the hotel. Why on earth would I have kissed her?"
"According to Mikayla's account of the event, you kissed her then proceeded to inform her of how you wished to be with her instead of your current girlfriend, Lorraine. Subsequently, the plan to push Lorraine away through threatening messages was created."
"That's not true. I only found out that Mikayla was behind any of this when Doyeon came to my office yesterday. I love my girlfriend and she's the only person I want to be. Plus I worked hard to get this job and I wouldn't throw it away for something so ridiculous. Whatever evidence Mikayla claims to have, it must be faked" I say confidently.
"I can show you" He says as he hands me an Ipad. It displays texts from Mikayla's phone, received from a number saved at Mr Bang but that obviously isn't mine. Some of them depict how I apparently want to leave Lorraine whilst others go into detail about the things I supposedly desire to do to Mikayla.
"This is fake. You can check my phone. I don't have Mikayla's number" I defend.
"The officers are checking it as we speak"
