"Surprise!!!"

I anticipated a quiet, short visit to meet Appa and introduce him to Jung Mok, and also a little catching up with my few close ex-colleagues from the call center. I did not expect a surprise party with exploding confettis and popping balloons.

"Yah, what's with all this? Don't you all have work to do?"

Truthfully, my heart was still beating rapidly, at the little surprise.

"Center Leader Kang, please don't be angry at us. We just want to welcome you."

I could feel my left eyebrow raised at the unexpected aegyo.

"Uhm, Hyunho ssi, in case you forgot, your Center Leader now is Leader Park."

Eunsoo beamed shyly from her place but she was busy attending to a call that didn't seem too serious from the look on her face, perhaps just an inquiry from a foreigner, since she seemed to be talking in a language I couldn't really tell from my faint hearing. She really seems to be handling her role really well, and she looked so cool from here, I wonder if I ever looked as cool, back then when I was the Center Leader.

"Kang Center, we need to talk."

Before waiting for me to even react, he had dragged me out of the center.

"There's really no need to drag me like that, Team Leader Moo."

"Just now...you were surprised."

"Yeah, so?"

I didn't understand why he looked so shocked and horrified.

"You...didn't hear?"

Suddenly it all clicked, the reason he dragged me out and had that look on his face, that hadn't changed much since the last time I saw him, except that, he might have put some weight on.

"Yeah, I...wasn't concentrating."

"Really?! Aren't you able to hear things even without having to concentrate, that you even had that soundproofed wall at your house."

A flash of my old rented studio passed me. It didn't exactly bring pleasant memory. But why is he so interested in my hearing?

"Is there anything wrong, Team Leader Moo?"

"I should be the one asking you that."

"Hmm? Nothing's wrong with me."

Nothing's wrong. Except that, my hearing ability had tremendously decreased ever since an incident where I was shot during a robbery case, where I happened to be nearby and tried to do my duty. I didn't remember what happened afterwards but when I woke up, I was told that I went into coma for two days, that was all. But then, eversince that incident, my hearing had been fading, my eyesight sometimes turn blurry too. Doctor said, it's just temporary side effect of surgery because one bullet barely escaped my head and instead of scar, I was lucky it only left a scratch that took months to fade a little, and enough to be concealed with makeups, and the other bullet injured my shoulder, I didn't understand why I'm still not recovering completely, it's been over a year since that happened. But still, I did all I could to train my hearing to be at least as acute as possible even if not as good as before.

Well, afterall, the super hearing was a gift to me, and I've made use of it as well as I could while I had it, I guess, I shouldn't feel bad if I'm really losing it for good. It used to be the one thing I really wanted to get rid from myself afterall. I'm not sure if I'm regretting it.

"Hey, Kang Center, are you listening now or daydreaming?"

"Huh...listening. Of course. What is it?"

"Seriously...you spooked by ghost or something? You really aren't behaving like yourself."

I'm not?

"Kwonjoo ssi. You forgot this...oh, sorry to interrupt. I'm just passing this jacket since the weather's cold."

Moo Jin Hyuk raised his eyebrows and made dramatic questioning face at me.

"It's okay oppa, thank you. By the way, this is Moo Jin Hyuk, Head Detective here. And this is Jung Mok, my... fiancee."

"Hahahah, your...what??!"

"Fiancee, oh...you're Team Leader Moo Jin Hyuk? I've heard so much about you...it's great to see you. Thank you for taking care of our Kwonjoo before this."

"Huh...what did she tell you about me, that I bullied her and dragged her around?"

"No, she only had praises for you."

"Oppa, you wait in the car first, I'll just go say goodbye to them and I'll be right there."

"What...you just met your friends, we can go visit your Dad tomorrow."

"It's okay. I want to meet him today anyway. I've missed him"

He nodded with his usual soft, comforting sm