Taeyeon had just finished showering and was drying her blonde hair when the doorbell rang.

I don't remember ordering anything....?

She had nearly slammed the door shut when the person in a black mask and sunglasses stopped the door with her foot and flashed her identity card.

"You are from the National Intelligence Agency?"

"...Yes miss. I am here to protect you under certain circumstances which I am not allowed to reveal." The crisp, business-like voice from the petite woman suddenly sparked a memory from a year ago and Taeyeon recoiled in shock.

Sunny...? But that card stated that her name is Lee Jinri...?

"How do I know whether this is real or-"

"I have my phone here which you can use to contact my superior, otherwise known as the director of the National Intelligence Agency. He can give you further details to answer your questions which you are probably dying to ask right now."

Hesitant, Taeyeon took the phone from the stranger and cannot help but notice her freezing fingers.

"What is going on here? Why am I suddenly being protected by someone I do not know?"

"Taeyeon. I cannot reveal anything right now but you are in a very dangerous situation right now. The agent who I have tasked to protect you has guaranteed to secure your safety with her own life so please appreciate her efforts. Lastly, please be careful wherever you go and make sure that you are with my agent at all times so that your safety is maximized. Please do not hesitate to call the agency when you feel that your life is at stake. Good night."

Life is at stake...? Taeyeon suddenly recalled the night before when a man with a knife had threatened to kill her.

"So are you going to let me enter your house or let me freeze outside?" The woman was clearly shivering.

"Your superior did not say anything about letting you stay in my house."

"I am to keep an eye on you at all times, so how else am I going to do that if I don't live in your house? Can you please hurry up so I can enter?"

*********
Sunny had lost all sleep that night when she found out that the very person she had to protect was the exact same woman who had slipped out of her fingers as she bade farewell to Sunny after escaping from the hospital, leaving Sunny to deal with days and days of unfamiliar emotions. No matter how ridiculous it might seem, Sunny knew that she had felt something for Taeyeon to the extent of not being able to let her go willingly. Then, it had took a couple more weeks to completely get over her absence. 

Funny how a woman who had just stayed over for one night had Sunny wrapped around her little finger.

Now as Sunny had finally forgotten Taeyeon, she came skyrocketting back into Sunny's peaceful life again, this time with her life in Sunny's hands.

Even if she wanted to reject this job, Sunny knew that her mind would not be at peace if she knew Taeyeon was in danger at the moment. With that, Sunny made up her mind. 

********
Now that Sunny had made her choice, she started to worrying about the smaller details. Concealing her identity.

What should I do so that she does not recognise me? I obviously do not want to go for plastic surgery.

Ha, you are thinking that your face is way too pretty to be changed, Sunny subconscious spoke up again.

And I cannot just wear sunglasses because Taeyeon would recognise the lower part of my face.

Quit thinking that she would recognise you, she even rejected your help. What were you thinking when you thought that she would remember how you look like, when she probably considers you as one of those strangers who lend a helping hand to everyone? Stop being delusional.

Sunny stopped in her tracks.  

What was she thinking? Taeyeon would remember a mere stranger? Even if she walks up to Taeyeon with her bare face, Taeyeon would not recognise her. Heck, she only met Taeyeon for a day. Scratch that, a night. Just one measly night. One night was enough for a stranger to get forgotten. And that stranger was her. 

Be professional.

Even so, Sunny decided that she should make an effort to disguise herself, to the point that any recognition of her face, no matter how little, is completely shrugged off. 

With that, Sunny drove up to Taeyeon's residence in tinted contact lenses, newly dyed brown hair, a fake alias, and a mask to cover most of her face. And the most important of all to protect both herself and Taeyeon-- the unbreakable walls that she had built around her heart, so that not even Taeyeon would be able to pierce through it. Sunny was going to accomplish her mission. Like she had always done. With no feelings involved. Professionally.

*********
She was still as hauntingly pretty as the last time Sunny met her. Those dark ombre eyes that one could get lost in have grown even more mysterious and had a touch of curiousness and longingness that Sunny felt a wanting to find out the cause of it and wrap all of her longingness away.

Stop it. You must not feel feelings for someone like her. She is your responsibility. You are to protect her. If you fail at keeping away from her, she will be killed. You must not get associated with her.

Sunny felt a clench in her heart as she tried to shut the image of Taeyeon standing in front of her but soon found herself in the helplessness of getting lost in those eyes.

No Lee Sunkyu. You are just a mere stranger in her eyes. There is no chance of her recognising you. Stop being pathetic and just focus on the mission professionally.

Taeyeon looked healthier and not as bone-thin compared to the first time Sunny had picked her up from the streets. She looked even more matured but there was still a childlike innocence in the features of her face. It made Sunny feel even more protective and at that moment, Sunny felt the need to ensure the safety of Taeyeon even if it meant taking her own life to protect hers. Even if Taeyeon was unable to recognise her. 

No no no Lee Sunkyu. You are doing this all wrong. You must not bring your life into this mess.

"Your superior did not say anything about letting you stay in my house."

That voice. Sunny could listen to it all day long without ever getting tired of it.

Stop acting like a lovesick fool and get into the house. You are shivering like crazy and yet you are still thinking of her?!

It was then Sunny snapped out of it and realized that she was indeed shivering from wearing a thin layer of clothes in the cold weather. Blame it on her for forgetting to consider the weather before coming over here.

Of course, you are only thinking about Kim Taeyeon.

"I am to keep an eye on you at all times, so how else am I going to do that if I don't live in your house? Can you please hurry up so I can enter?"

*******
Taeyeon owned a luxurious 3-room guesthouse. Not too big. Not too small. Just big enough for a person living alone.
It also made Sunny wonder what Taeyeon was working as.

"Jinri-ssi."

"..."

"Jinri-ssi?"

"...huh?"

That's your new name, you stupid.

Sunny had totally forgotten that she was to be called as Jinri.

"You can sleep in the room beside mine." Taeyeon pointed to a room in the hallway before disappearing into hers.

The room had a musty and stale feel to it, as if no one had slept in there at all. There was also a bathroom, complete with a spacious jaccuzzi.

After her first encounter with Taeyeon, Sunny felt both physically and mentally drained.

"How did I even get into this mess..?" Sunny wondered as she laid back on the comfortable sheets, placing one hand over her palpitating heart.

It was only the first day, but Sunny was already drowning.

"What did you do to me, Kim Taeyeon? I am supposed to protect you professionally, but why are you making me feel confused?"

There was one thing that Sunny was curious about and Sunny reached for the files that were safely tucked inside her bag.

The files had stated that Taeyeon did not have any job at the moment, and she was not registered under any company.

So how earth did she afford this house with all the luxurious furniture and items?

Where did she get the money from? Did she have rich parents? 

But the files have stated that Taeyeon's dad was unemployed. And her mother was a CEO of some bank. Taeyeon must have gotten money from her or something. However it did not seem possible when her mother had divorced her father long ago.

Sunny felt herself sympathizing with Taeyeon when she first read her file. But then again, since when was the world a perfect place? Sunny had been in her place once.

You could be like me, Sunny thought. Making changes so that the world would have a chance to become a better place.

If the opportunity presents itself....Walk away. No, run away, Taeyeon-ah.

Sunny closed the files and the details of Taeyeon's life disappeared.

But not really. It was still there. Burned right into Sunny's brain.

In some ways, when Sunny looked at Taeyeon, it seemed like Sunny was just staring at herself.

A/N: I am so out of ideas and I seriously feel like discontinuing the story cuz I am so discouraged by the crappiness and immaturity of my writing style argh. I had so much motivation when I first started writing this story but I do not know where it went. But nevertheless I'm gonna see how far my ideas can go cuz theres bound to be loopholes somewhere in the story. Anyways I hope you enjoy this chap cuz I squeezed all of the juies in my brain for it haha:))