“I really need a coffee break, I think I’m about to pass out,” Solar sighed tiredly, rubbing her eyes. “I almost used a pen to make an incision in my last operation.”

“Go, I’ve got you covered,” her colleague warmly said and nudged her arm. “Can’t have you accidentally killing our patients, can we?”

“Thanks, Irene. I owe you.”

“Don’t say that. Real friends don’t keep track of that. Now get your coffee and maybe bring me a latte too?”

“Of course, it’s the least I can do.”

Solar grabbed her wallet and threw on a long trench coat over her white doctor’s coat before heading out. What she needed right now was real coffee from a decent coffee shop and not the muddy beverage they sold in the hospital canteen and tried to pass off as coffee. Solar was pretty sure that it was poisonous if consumed in large quantity. Or consumed at all.

Thankfully for her, the nearest coffee shop was just two blocks away and she didn’t mind exercising her legs for a bit as she inhaled some fresh air. Hospital air could even make the best people go crazy after a while.

Her mood was starting to brighten at the thought of a steaming cup of coffee when a taller figure suddenly joined her in her walk.

“This can’t be happening…” Solar groaned and came to a stop. “Which part of ‘I never want to see you again’ did you not understand, Miss Moon?”

“It’s not like I didn’t acknowledge your words,” Moonbyul replied with a small grin. “I just chose to ignore them.”

“Go. Away. Or I’m going to call the police, I’m not bluffing,” Solar threatened.

“With what phone?”

“My phone of course, what are you-“ Solar stopped when she couldn’t feel her phone in her pockets. “Where is my…You have it.”

“And where’s your evidence of that?” Moonbyul asked with a lopsided smirk, raising both her hands innocently.

“Probably hidden somewhere on your body that I don’t want to touch,” Solar muttered. “Fine. Keep it. I was going to buy a new one anyway.” And she started briskly walking again. She needed that coffee now more than ever.

Easily falling into the same pace with her, Moonbyul accompanied her shoulder to shoulder. “You look like you haven’t slept much.”

“And usually, I blame work. But I find the thought of knowing two psychopaths on the loose to be more upsetting.” And Solar leveled her with a glare.

“That’s not professional, Doctor Kim,” Moonbyul shook her head. “Even experts refrain from making a diagnosis based on superficial observation.” She leaned in and whispered with a smirk. “You should at least get to know me better before you call me a psychopath.”

“Urgh, get off me,” Solar hissed and pushed Moonbyul away. The latter one just slowly swayed back to her side.

“Why are you even here?” Solar asked in frustration. “What do you want from me? I told you I want nothing to do with you, I don’t want to die before I’m old and ugly. Which gives me ten more years.”

Moonbyul furrowed her brows. “Just ten years? I don’t think you would ever die if you’re waiting for you to become ugly.”

“And now I want to die instantly.”

“Come on, please don’t say that,” Moonbyul moved in front of Solar, forcing her to stop and look up at her. “I’m here to apologize. For yesterday.”

“Well, you’re doing a job because all you did was getting me angrier,” Solar said and tried to step around Moonbyul, who blocked her way once again.

“Please tell me how I can fix that,” Moonbyul said earnestly, calmly looking into Solar’s eyes.

“Well,” Solar tore her eyes away from that sincere expression as she couldn’t handle feeling sympathy for the other woman right now. “Just…stop…being you.”

“Wow,” Moonbyul let out drily. “That’s just like high school all over again.”

“What I mean is…,” Solar grasped for words. “You know, just stop being so greasy, cringe-worthy, way too cocky…Just behave in a manner where I don’t want to constantly hit you.”

“And what kind of manner is that?”

“Just be…quiet. Yes, that’s good, just don’t say anything. I would really like that for a change.”

Moonbyul knew she was being played but she didn’t mind, she was going to bite. “Good. I can do that.”

So she stayed silent as they made their way to the coffee shop and Solar enjoyed not feeling the urge to hit someone. Actually, she found it to be quite comforting to walk next to the other woman who surprisingly had a soothing aura. She was very noticeable but not overwhelmingly so.

“I’m getting coffee for myself and a latte for a friend. Do you want anything?” Solar asked Moonbyul as they entered the coffee shop.

Moonbyul just shrugged.

“Oh, the silence ban, right,” Solar remembered. “I’ll get you tea.” When Moonbyul didn’t protest, Solar went to the counter to order, the other woman following her closely behind.

“This is nice,” Solar commented as she waited for their drinks to be made, “I could get used to not hearing you. It’s almost like you are not here.”

Moonbyul rolled her eyes.

“Ma’am, the total would be-“ Before the barista could finish his sentence, Moonbyul had already shoved a credit card onto the counter.

“No, I’ve got this,” Solar protested and reached for her wallet in her trench coat pocket…except it wasn’t there. “…Oh, come on! Stop stealing my stuff!”

Moonbyul just innocently shrugged like she didn’t know what Solar was talking about. The barista shot them a weird look but didn’t say anything as he picked up the credit card.

“You won’t get away with this,” Solar lowly said, narrowing her eyes at Moonbyul, who just grinned back in mischief.

“Your order is ready, Miss.”

When the barista was taking a second too long to stare at Solar’s face, Moonbyul cleared and caught his attention with a dark expression. He quickly turned away.

Picking up the drinks, Solar pretended to be clueless, unsure what to feel. She didn’t like being gawked at but neither did she want Moonbyul to think that she needed protecting, she would have told off the guy herself if Moonbyul hadn’t beaten her to it.

Moonbyul wordlessly reached for the drinks and carried them for her, seeing that she was distracted.

“Oh, thanks,” Solar said in surprise.

Nodding, Moonbyul pulled out the coffee cup out of the cup holder and handed it to Solar, expectantly looking at her.

“Erm, thanks again.” It was getting unsettling how attentive Moonbyul could be. Solar carefully sipped at her hot coffee and released a satisfied sigh when it warmed her up from the inside.

Staying true to the promise she gave, Moonbyul remained silent as she drank her tea.

“I need to head straight back to the hospital,” Solar sighed after glancing at her watch. “I took a long enough break.”

Reluctantly, Moonbyul nodded.

The silence was starting to bother Solar. “You know, you can start talking again…I don’t want to be the only one holding a monologue here.”

Moonbyul’s nose wrinkled when she was genuinely smiling, Solar quickly noticed.

“It’s okay,” Moonbyul finally spoke up again, voice gentle. “I like listening to you talk.”

“Argh, you should have just stayed silent,” Solar pretended to be annoyed, but something about that compliment felt too sincere to reject. Whenever Moonbyul’s voice got low and deep, it lost its teasing edge and sounded honest. And Solar appreciated nothing more than honesty. She suppressed a smile. “I guess I will keep monologuing.”

And Moonbyul looked at her like she really wouldn’t mind. As if she would be content if Solar did just that. And Solar suddenly found it difficult to stare back at those intense eyes.

“I really have to go now,” she softly said. “Work never stops for a doctor.”

Moonbyul only nodded, albeit slowly as if she didn’t want to quite accept that. She reached into her pockets. “Here’s your phone and wallet.”

“Wow. They just miraculously appeared and happened to be with you?” Solar said sarcastically, but the edges of were twisting into a smile.

“Yeah,” Moonbyul breathed, eyes twinkling. “Must be a miracle.”

Solar took her phone and wallet back, her movement slow as if she was deliberately delaying the goodbye. She took a deep breath. “Goodbye, Miss Moon.”

“Bye. Take care of yourself.” Moonbyul hesitated. “See you around?”

Solar sighed, looking to the side. “I don’t know. I can’t just forget or ignore what happened yesterday…it’s scary if I let myself think about it.”

“I’m not the person you think I am,” Moonbyul stated hastily. “The people who chased us yesterday were the bad guys.”

“And what does that make you? Because you can’t possibly be the good one here.”

“If you would just let me explain-“

“My break’s over and my friend’s latte is getting cold,” Solar cut her off. “I need to go.”

And she hurriedly walked away before Moonbyul’s disappointed eyes could convince her to stay.

--

“So, any luck with Wheein?”

“Well, after she stopped hitting me for sneaking up on her in her art gallery and after I managed to calm her down enough so she would stop screaming, I got to explain myself.”

Moonbyul was busy cleaning her gun as she offered a mildly interested, “And?”

Hwasa threw a potato chip into and munched on it grumpily. “She started hitting me and screaming again.”

Chuckling, Moonbyul inspected her polished gun before nodding in satisfaction and picking up another one to clean. “Could’ve gone worse.”

“She called the police on me. I had to run. On foot.” Hwasa angrily chewed on more potato chips. “I was wearing five-inch heels and I have never run in my life. Ever.”

“Wow.” Moonbyul ceased her cleaning and looked up. “Damn, you really do like her. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you run from anything. I mean, you never skip the opportunity to beat up people.”

Hwasa just hummed tonelessly. “Can’t really beat up cops in front of her right after telling her I was harmless, right?”

“You are so into her.” Moonbyul spun the gun around her index finger. “This is so funny, I’ve never seen you like this before.”

“It sure would be a tragedy if your gun accidentally went off and shot your stupid grin off your face.”

“You know I don’t clean loaded guns,” Moonbyul scoffed, stopping the spinning. “Anymore.”

Snorting, Hwasa emptied the rest of the chips bag into .

“So, she called the police on you, big deal. At least now you know she’s staying true to her words.”

“You’re not helping,” Hwasa mumbled, opening up another bag of chips. “How come Solar didn’t obliterate you on the spot? She hated you even before all that mess happened.”

“Pfft.” Moonbyul had finished cleaning her guns and began loading them with ammunition. “And that’s where you’re wrong. She already thought the worst of me so it was easier for her to accept it. But you led Wheein on, you made her believe you were someone you’re not and I don’t blame her for reacting the way she did.”

“I wasn’t leading her on,” Hwasa angrily retorted. “I was being myself.”

“You told her you work for an environmental organization. You don’t even separate the trash.”

“I would if they didn’t make it so confusing.”

“You always take the car for any trip. You once drove to our mailbox. And let’s face it, if they told you to eat less meat, you would riot.”

“Okay, first of all, you know damn well that our driveway is unnecessarily huge. I was wearing heels and I did not feel like staggering on that weird pavement. And second of all, don’t bring meat into this. I’m getting hungry again.”

“I was trying to make a point here,” Moonbyul said with an eye roll. “You gave Wheein false expectations about you. But Solar? Solar already thought of me as someone who kicks puppies for fun, and that’s way worse than killing people.”

“How did you manage to get her to hate you so much anyway?” Hwasa asked, frowning. “You’ve only met her like two times before that double date. And it was always with either Wheein or me around.”

“Ah.” Moonbyul attached a silencer to one of her guns. “The first time we met was at Wheein’s art exhibition that you dragged me to. I didn’t know she was one of Wheein’s friends, so I did the usual thing I do when I see a pretty girl-“

“You cover her in grease till she slips and falls for your dumb ?”

“I was going to say ‘flirt’, but sure, if that makes you happy. Anyway, she shot me down. Constantly.” Moonbyul furrowed her brows. “She kept saying that I was greasy and making her cringe. But her reactions were so good, I couldn’t stop. And you know what’s funny? She never left. Just stood there and took it all, despite all the complaints.”

“She was too nice for her own good. I would’ve shot you,” Hwasa said.

“You constantly want to shoot people, so it doesn’t count. Remember how I had to stop you from killing your hairstylist?”

“What? I looked like a carrot. You know how important my hair is to me. And don’t act like your hair isn’t making up half of your personality.”

“True, I guess.”

Moonbyul tucked the silenced gun into the holster on her left side and put on her tailored grey suit to cover up the weapons strapped to her upper body. “As much as I would love to continue our sad attempt at a normal conversation about relationships, I’ve got a job to do. I’ll probably be back in two hours if there’s no traffic.”

Hwasa walked over to Moonbyul and fixed her crooked tie. “Government job?”

“No, private client for a change. Some billionaire who wants to get rid of her husband because he’s mooching off of her wealth and she suspects him of trying to take over her assets. Double pay if I find proof.”

“You need help? People like them basically live in high security fortresses.”

“No, I’m not killing him in his own home, the wife doesn’t want to sell the villa with any losses.”

Hwasa smirked. “Smart thinking.”

“She’s terrifying, to be honest. Hot, but terrifying.”

“Sounds like just your type.”

Moonbyul shrugged. “I don’t mix pleasure with business.”

Hwasa barked out a laugh. “Since when?”

Ignoring her, Moonbyul grabbed her car keys and jingled them on her way out.

“You know,” Hwasa teasingly called after her, “at least I don’t deny it when I like someone enough to want to change for them.”

------

“No. No, no, no. Nope. Go away.”

“A simple ‘hello’ would have sufficed.”

Huffing, Solar raised her chin and walked past Moonbyul, picking up her pace as she hurried towards the closest metro station. She wanted nothing more than to go home as fast as possible and soak in a hot bath to leave her stressful day behind. But a certain person seemed to be hellbent on making this day end on an even more stressful note.

“You look like you’ve been on your feet for more than twelve hours,” Moonbyul said as she effortlessly caught up with Solar, matching her quick pace, “I could give you a ride home.”

Solar barked out an empty laugh. “Hell, no. I am never going to set foot in any vehicle you drive ever again. I almost died last time.”

“Fair enough,” Moonbyul muttered. “We could hail a cab?”

“We are not going to do anything together.” Solar shot Moonbyul a side glance. “Just because I didn’t call the cops on you last time doesn’t mean that I have somehow accepted you.”

Moonbyul stuck out her bottom lip. “And here I thought we’ve become best friends.”

Solar couldn’t suppress the amused snort escaping her nose, immediately regretting her own reaction because she could see a satisfied smile forming on the other woman’s face.

“Okay, I’ll bite,” Solar sighed, coming to a stop and facing Moonbyul. “What do you really want? Do you have nothing better to do than stalking me?”

Moonbyul tilted her head and seemed to give it a thought. “Nope. Or I wouldn’t be here, would I?”

“And what is it that you hope to achieve by bothering me?”

“I just want to talk to you?”

“Why?”

Moonbyul scratched the back of her neck. “Because you’re pretty?”

“Urgh.” Solar started walking again, albeit in a slower pace as she knew that she couldn’t shake off the other woman anyway. “Go away. I’m sure there are tons of prettier women than me who could entertain you.”

“Objectively speaking, probably yes,” Moonbyul said with a shrug. “But personally speaking? I haven’t seen one yet.”

And Solar hated that answer. Hated how easily those words came over Moonbyul’s lips as if they weren’t a big deal, as if she had said those exact words a thousand times before.

“I’m not interested in whatever you think you have a chance at,” Solar growled, annoyance growing with every second.

“No, no, you misunderstood me,” Moonbyul quickly said, raising her hands defensively. “I know how it looks like and I’m not going to deny that usually, this is exactly what I would go for. But this time it's different. You got mixed up in some bad stuff because of me and I honestly feel ty about it because you’re a good person…I might be an about a lot of things, but I don’t ever want to hurt innocent people.”

Solar slowed down her pace. She raised a questioning brow at Moonbyul. “So…is this your way of apologizing? By stalking me for two days?”

Chuckling awkwardly, Moonbyul avoided Solar’s intense gaze. “Actually, if you had just let me explain myself yesterday, there would be no day two.”

“You can explain yourself in a courtroom because I’m not going to listen to a murderer’s reasoning. Goodbye, Moonbyul.” Solar took a step back, wondering when her feet had gotten so heavy to lift.

“Wait,” Moonbyul pressed out between gritted teeth, reaching out for Solar’s wrist before retracting her hand. “I wasn’t completely honest.”

“No surprise there,” Solar muttered, but she still found herself listening intently.

“You want to know why I go out of my way to seek you?” Moonbyul took a deep breath and met Solar’s eyes with sincerity. “It’s because I can’t stand the idea of you hating me. I wouldn’t care if the world thought of me as a demon but I couldn’t accept it if it was you. And do you know why?”

Entranced in the taller woman’s gaze, Solar couldn’t offer a verbal answer, only a weak shake of her head.

“Because I care about you.” Moonbyul’s voice was soft. Light and honest. “I care about what you think of me. And I do have ulterior motives when I seek you out. But I’m well aware that I don’t deserve whatever it is that I’m hoping to have with you.” She let out a long breath. “So if you would give me a chance to explain myself, I can finally have some closure and I swear I’ll never bother you again.”

Solar opened and closed , feeling overwhelmed by the surge of emotions rushing through her body. Why did she feel thrilled at the confession when it might be another lie to get her to lower her walls? Why did she feel disappointed when Moonbyul promised to never seek her out again once she got closure?

“You don’t have to believe me. But I just want you to at least hear me out, okay?” Moonbyul gave her a weak smile. “If it’s okay with you, I’ll come visit you tomorrow during your lunch break. Last time, I promise.”

Still not trusting to form coherent sentences, Solar only nodded.

Moonbyul’s smile widened slightly but it didn’t lose its wistfulness. “Perfect. See you tomorrow. Oh, and take care, will you?”

And as Moonbyul left, Solar didn’t know why she had nodded again even though the other woman couldn’t see her reaction anymore.

--

“Don’t tell me you’re actually thinking about hearing her out.”

“It’s not that simple, Wheein.”

“Oh god, you have caught feelings for her…”

Solar let out an indignant noise, crossing her arms defensively. “I don’t have any feelings for her whatsoever, I’m just curious about what she has to say! I mean, you said it yourself, she and Hwasa seem so normal, so I want to know what their motives are.”

Wheein rubbed her tired eyes. “Are you sure it’s not because you actually want to see her again?”

“Shut up,” Solar huffed. “As if you wouldn’t give Hwasa another chance if she came begging again.”

“I called the police when she came to see me,” Wheein said with a heavy sigh, “something you said you would do if Moonbyul showed up, but guess who went on a date with her instead.”

“She stole my phone!” Solar exclaimed defensively. “And it wasn’t a date, I was getting coffee and she wouldn’t stop bothering me.”

“You’re so bad at lying, it’s funny again,” Wheein said, snorting in amusement. “How is it possible that you’re now even more into her after finding out who she really is?”

“I’m not – I wasn’t – who said – what?” Solar spluttered, wildly gesturing. “Wheein! You were supposed to help me!”

Wheein furrowed her brows. “What do you even want me to say? That it’s a good idea to meet up with her again when you know she’s into you? ‘Go get her’?”

“No,” Solar whined, “you should have helped me making a list of pros and cons of meeting her.”

“Okay, fine,” Wheein decided to entertain her friend, “pros: Your curiosity is stilled. She might leave you alone after that which I highly doubt. Cons: She’s a murderer. You’ll end up sleeping with a murderer.”

“Wheein, you’re not helping.”

“I’m just listing the facts.”

Solar had enough of being constantly on the defense. “What about you and Hwasa?”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Wheein said sulkily, expression falling.

“Unlike that greasy idiot, I could tell that Hwasa was very genuine about you,” Solar said, her tone softening. “She really liked you.”

“I know that,” Wheein exasperatedly said, covering her eyes, “but it’s not even about that anymore. She lied to me, Solar. She kills people for a living. I don’t think I can handle that.”

Solar quietly observed her friend, feeling her own heart getting heavy at the sight of slumped shoulders and hunched back. Wheein had just begun to deeply care for Hwasa, which now only added weight to the feeling of betrayal that was threatening to suffocate her.

“You’re right.” Solar sat down next to Wheein and gently her hair. “There’s only going to be more trouble if we keep seeing them. Tomorrow, I’ll listen to what Moonbyul has to say and then I’ll never meet her again. Let’s finally put this behind us, okay?”

Wheein turned her head to gaze at Solar with an insecure expression. “But don’t you like her, too?”

“I…I don’t-” Solar swallowed her words of denial before they could make it past . There was no point in it anymore, Wheein knew her well enough to ignore her lies and just keep prodding for the truth. “It’s okay.” She mustered up a small smile. “I’m only going to be disappointed for a few days. But if I don’t end it now, I’m not so sure about my future reaction.”

“I’m sorry,” Wheein whispered, lowering her gaze.

“Why?” Solar frowned in confusion.

“Because I pulled you into this mess…if I didn’t force you into that double date-”

“Then I would have felt worse about you going through hell alone.” Solar slung an arm around Wheein’s shoulder and squeezed her. “I’m just glad we’re okay. And besides, Moonbyul was ruining my life way before that double date.”

“What? Why? Haven’t you only met like twice before?”

“Twice too many times. You know what? I think it’s a good thing I’m not seeing her again. I couldn’t stand her greasiness anyway.”

“You mean you enjoyed it too much.”

“Wheein, I love you like my sister and sometimes I treat you like my daughter, so if I could, I would disown you right now.”

-----

“Solar, I think there’s someone who wants to see you? Silver hair, blue suit and…kinda cute…” One of the nurses told Solar with a giggle. “Is she your girlfriend or something?”

“What!” Solar almost choked on her saliva. “No. No, no, not a girlfriend. She’s nothing. A nobody. Well, not a nobody, but nobody important to me.”

“Sure…” the nurse drawled with a knowing smirk. “Anyway, your unimportant crush said she would wait for you in the hospital cafeteria.”

“She’s not my –“ Solar didn’t bother to finish the sentence as the nurse had already disappeared.

Something in Solar’s chest tightened at the thought of this being the last time she saw Moonbyul. While she did look forward to getting back to her standard days of working all day without being distracted by daydreams about silver hair, she couldn’t deny that she would miss the thrill of seeing Moonbyul again. Even if that thrill came with a very dangerous price.

She quickly marched towards the cafeteria and immediately spotted Moonbyul by the shiny reflection of her long hair. The other woman was sitting by herself at a table for two, looking out of the windows with an expressionless face. She looked calm, dignified but also unattainable.

As Solar approached the table, her footsteps slowed down and her legs suddenly felt too heavy to lift. This was their last meeting.

“I feel like there’s got to be something ironic about a killer visiting a place that tries to prevent death,” Solar said as she sat down opposite of Moonbyul.

A pair of amused eyes twinkled back at her. “First of all, I’m an assassin, not a killer. Second of all, I wouldn’t describe it as ironic, more like…a beautiful contrast. You save lives, I take lives. It’s like we’re day and night, don’t you think so?”

Solar snorted, raising a sharp eyebrow. “First of all, lame. Second of all, cheesy, and third of all - what’s the difference between a killer and an assassin?”

“First of all, not lame, second of all, you liked that, you can admit it,” Moonbyul countered with a playful smirk. “And the third point is why I’m here. I needed you to understand that I’m not a ruthless killer who randomly picks people off the streets.”

Solar swallowed. “That much I could gather. You are too expertly trained to do this without any goals.”

Obviously pleased about the statement, Moonbyul’s chest swelled with pride before she cleared and continued in a more serious tone, “Hwasa and I…we are freelancers right now. We accept any contract if the price is right and once we have made sure that the target is no one innocent. There’s always a thorough background check on both target and client.”

“Is that so?” Solar said in a skeptical tone, eyes piercing into Moonbyul’s. “And what kind of low-life people would hire other people to kill?”

Moonbyul didn’t break the eye contact. “Mostly our government.”

Solar blinked once. “My statement still stands.”

Chuckling, Moonbyul leaned back in her seat. “Sometimes, let’s say, there’s a foreign diplomat or business man staying in our country and they’re pulling some…questionable things in the background. But there’s no official proof. Nothing to show for without admitting that you’ve been illegally spying on them.”

Intrigued, Solar leaned in.

“Now, let’s say you’re trying to eliminate a Japanese diplomat who has ties to the Yakuza living in this country. But you don’t want to start a political war. What do you do?”

“You hire an outsider to do the job,” Solar slowly concluded.

“And make it look like an accident,” Moonbyul added with a nod. “We take out the target as quietly as possible and the authorities help us cover up the rest.”

“So,” Solar felt getting dry, “is that why the news didn’t even report the shooting that day? When Hwasa…when those cars…”

“Yes.” Moonbyul calmly watched Solar’s reaction as if to see how much more she should tell. “They were part of a foreign mafia. Or what was left of it because Hwasa and I had already eliminated most of them. In times like these, the government automatically covers us up. They owe us at least that much after doing all the dirty work for them.”

Solar let out a shaky breath and she gripped the edge of the table for support. “That’s…you…” She swallowed before looking up at Moonbyul again. “How long have you been doing this?”

Moonbyul’s smile turned wistful. “Long enough. I think I’m starting to regret my choice.”

“And why is that?” Solar’s eyes kept flickering between Moonbyul’s eyes and lips, trying desperately to read her. “You never seemed that conflicted to me.”

“It’s more of a recent development,” Moonbyul quietly said, her gaze subtly roaming Solar’s face before it came to a stop on her lips. “It’s the first time I felt like this.”

The ambiguity was driving Solar crazy because while she was certain that Moonbyul was talking about her feelings for her, she couldn’t bring herself to speak up about it first. What if she was wrong? She would look like a fool if she just assumed that everything Moonbyul said was about her and it didn’t turn out to be that way.

“Maybe it’s not too late to change,” Solar whispered, wondering since when her voice had gotten this raspy. “You could leave that life behind and start anew.” With me, she didn’t dare to add.

And Moonbyul looked at her like she had heard her non-verbal addition anyway. The knowing glint in her eyes made Solar blush, had she been too obvious about it?

“I’ve actually been considering that,” Moonbyul softly said. She put her hands on the table, fiddling with her fingers. “But I’m not sure about what to do. And I haven’t talked about it with Hwasa yet.”

“I’m sure she would understand,” Solar replied even though she knew nothing about Hwasa’s true character. The only thing she knew for certain was that the other woman adored Wheein. And this was enough for her to base her assumption on. “You know you can’t do this forever.”

Moonbyul quietly stared at her for a long time before she replied, “I wasn’t someone who cared about a forever. In anything.” One corner of curled up into a smile. “But I think I can see the appeal of it in some aspects of life.”

She had done it again, Solar thought, feeling her mind blank out, unable to interpret anything Moonbyul said without her brain going on overdrive.

“Dr. Kim!” A resident called out, running towards their table. “Excuse me for intruding, but a patient’s condition has suddenly gotten worse and you weren’t responding, so…”

Solar had completely forgotten about her duties at work and now that she looked at her watch, she realized that she had overstretched her short break. But the sinking feeling in her stomach had nothing to do with guilt over neglecting her work, it was more likely induced by the sight of Moonbyul standing up before her.

“Thank you for agreeing to meet me today,” she said with a small smile. “I think I’ve said everything I’ve wanted to. And you were a far better listener than I imagined.” She slightly bowed. “Thank you for everything. I wish we had met under different circumstances.” Standing straight again, Moonbyul smoothed out her suit and smiled at Solar. “Goodbye. Take care of yourself.”

She turned around and left before Solar could reply with a farewell of her own. Before Solar was ready to even formulate one.

“Dr. Kim?”

Realizing that she hadn’t moved at all yet, she quickly stood up, almost knocking over her stool.

“Can you please get Dr. Bae to check up on that patient’s condition? I have an emergency of my own right now.”

Without waiting for a reply from the bewildered resident, Solar ran after the direction she last saw Moonbyul walk, storming out of the canteen and almost crashing into another doctor. After muttering a hurried apology, she ran towards the main entrance of the hospital where all visitors would have to go through. But once she rushed through the automatic doors, her feet came to a sudden stop.

She was gone.

There was no person in sight. Just a large, empty driveway. Either Moonbyul had been running as well or she had sneaked out using a different exit. 

But to Solar, it didn’t matter which alternative was true. Because both scenarios were hurting her more than she would ever care to admit and in this moment, she decided that she hated Moonbyul again.