"Joohyun unnie." Seungwan's walking to her desk in the middle of her shift, a week after the bust on her parents. There's a cup of coffee in her hands, put there quite roughly by Joohyun who tried to do so without so much as a word or eye contact but Seungwan's hand is around her wrist before she can even realise it.

"Seungwan," Joohyun murmurs and the younger doesn't miss the way Joohyun slips her arm out of Seungwan's touch. It's as if she's gotten the plague or something. Her fingertips burn at the mere graze. No, her entire being buzzes just from standing in the same room as the Seungwan.

"Uh... How are you?"

"Fine." Joohyun nods briskly, looking everywhere but at her. "Hope you like the coffee."

"Well, if it's by you, I'll always like it," Seungwan's smile is weak. "I'll always love it," she adds, knowing the other won't understand what she's really trying to say, but letting herself be copacetic by the words being aired in itself. 

Joohyun of course, does understand exactly what she's saying. Contrary to her past experiences of seeing the truth in regard to Seungwan, Joohyun can read between the lines. She doesn't know what to make of it, however. 

There is no battlefield anymore.

She is not lost in no-man's land. The two sides of the war have joined forces; they're allies and they've forced Joohyun's hand and she must hide somewhere, burrow herself underground indefinitely. And yet, even here, she is stagnant in indecision and inner turmoil. 

Detective Son has always been her light. She's a breath of smiles and joy and comfort. But she is also a liar. She let Joohyun close to her, allowed her to open Joohyun's heart and love her, only for Seungwan to have been the person she hated. The person she knew she hated. She is deceptive. 

The Squirrel is a wild card. She is a flame in the dead cold. At a distance, it is warm and euphoric--like a drug you cannot resist; but too close and you'll burn yourself. Your skin will char and your bones will melt and the last thing you will feel is pain and hurt and sadness. 

Yet--

They are both good. 

They are both kind.

They are both Son Seungwan.

Joohyun loves them.

If she no longer hates the Squirrel for what she did, she'll hate herself for falling in love with her despite it. Because not only did she fall in love with Detective Son without knowing her identity, she also fell in love with the Squirrel--knowing what she did and being so adamant on getting her revenge. 

Perhaps she's not as upset with Seungwan as she is with herself. 

"So... They haven't told each other yet, have they?" Yeri mutters to Seulgi. They're inside the captain's office, peeking through the blinds as Joohyun awkwardly makes some excuse to leave the bullpen.

"Nope," Seulgi sighs. 

"How much longer are they gonna be all angsty about it?" Yeri mumbles. "Seriously, why can't they just kiss and make up already."

"Wannie doesn't even know there's something to 'make up' about, Yeri," Seulgi replies, turning from the window to slump back in the chair before the captain. "She doesn't know Joohyun's the Pink Bunny, I think she's just beating herself up about everything that's going on with her parents. Oh, also she's probably guilty because she loves both Bunny and Joohyun."

Yeri scoffs, "Well, they need to get things sorted out already. How are they supposed to be superheroes if they're this awkward around each other?"

"Ooh, have you got the contract written up?" Seulgi asks, excitedly.

"Yup, just gotta talk to them individually. Make sure they're all good about it," Yeri says. "But it might be difficult to convince them to agree at this point. So, I'm assigning them a case."

Seulgi blinks. "Together..?"

"That's right," Yeri grins. "While us and Sooyoung unnie work on the microchip investigation, I'm partnering them up for a special kind of case. It'll not only distract them from ours but also give them a way to sort things out."

"Smart," Seulgi muses. "What are you giving them?"

Yeri giggles to herself devilishly and clasps her fingers together, leaning her elbows over the desk like a supervillain, with the smirk to match. "The mysterious case of the broken streetlights."

"...What?"

"I'll give you a spoiler, unnie," Yeri says. "The culprits are the ing Squirrel and Bunny. I'm sending them on a wild goose chase. Maybe it'll help them realise how much property damage they've caused."

--

Seungwan finds herself standing outside Son Industries during her lunch break. She's not entirely sure if Joohyun's been bringing her any this past week because she's always gone out of her way to avoid the other.

"M-Ms Son," Lisa exclaims as Seungwan walks through the doors. "What--What are you doing here?"

"Hi, is Seunghee around?"

Lisa shakes her head. "I haven't seen anyone in your family come in the past week. Is... Everything okay?"

Somehow, the lawyers managed to keep her parents' arrests and all out of the media's eye. Still, Seunghee should at least be here or respond to her texts. 

Seungwan opens , just as she hears her name called down the hall.

"Ah, hello..?" Seungwan says, sharing a confused look with the receptionist as a woman approaches, wearing cook clothes and a hairnet.

"Bae Sohyun," the woman introduces herself and as she comes closer, sticking out a hand, does a fierce jolt of realisation come to her as they shake hands.

"You..." Seungwan starts with furrowed brows. "Excuse me, but did you used to own a restaurant?"

"I did," she nods. "It burnt down but you saved me."

"Wait..." but she saved this woman as a vigilante. It was the first save she had in her suit. There's no way--

"Have you had lunch, Seungwan-ssi?" Sohyun asks. 

They're on the third floor, inside a small break room for the staff right behind the cafeteria as Sohyun sets a tray of food down on the table before Seungwan.

"So," Seungwan begins, politely thanking the other and taking a bite of the kimbap. "You know?"

"I do," the older replies, smiling briefly. "I assume I was one of your firsts. You had a different suit and you weren't wearing a mask."

"Yeah," Seungwan chuckles. "The swimming goggles made my face hurt too much. Also seemed a little stupid."

"Well, they weren't when you saved my life," the other quips. "I'm glad I bumped into you, I did tell you that I'd offer you a free meal anytime, didn't I?"

"I came back once," Seungwan says. "You weren't there."

Sohyun shakes her head sadly. "Insurance didn't cover enough, I had to sell the shop and come here instead."

"How much?" Seungwan asks and Sohyun creases a brow. "How much to buy back the shop and quit working here?"

Sohyun sighs. "She told me you were like this," she mumbles.

"Hm? Who did?" Seungwan asks. "My sister? Seunghee?"

"No, my daughter," Sohyun replies and waits for a moment as Seungwan chews on a bite of her food. "Joohyun."

"W-What?" Seungwan utters, trying not to choke on the piece of seaweed going down the wrong hole. "Bae Joohyun? Detective at Gangnam police station, Bae Joohyun?!"

What a coincidence. The first person Seungwan saved as the Squirrel just happens to be Joohyun's mother? Well that's ironic considering what she did to her best friend and father...

"That's her," Sohyun grins. "She talks about you a lot."

"S-She does?"

Sohyun lets out a delightful hum. "She helps me cook your lunch. You know, the one she's been bringing for you?"

"Oh."

"She's a walking hazard in the kitchen so I just have her talking about you so she's too giddy and preoccupied to cause any accidents," Sohyun chuckles. "Wouldn't want that happening to me again, right?"

"Oh."

"Listen, I know she's really obsessed with getting back at you, the Squirrel you, but I don't think you should worry about that anymore, Seungwan. Past couple months, Joohyun seems a lot happier. I think that's because of you. Seems like she's properly grieved and healed from everything by now."

"And you..?" Seungwan asks quietly. "Your husband..."

"I forgive you, Seungwan," Sohyun says firmly. "Not just because of all the good you do, but because of how much joy you've provided my daughter. You might have caused her pain unintentionally, but you brought her out of it and gave her a smile I've never seen her wear before in my entire life. You made a mistake and while you can't undo it, you've more than redeemed yourself."

Seungwan doesn't know what to say.

"You have my approval," Sohyun adds. "Keep her happy and safe, okay?"

"I will," Seungwan promises. "Whatever it takes."

Meanwhile, Joohyun spends her lunch break at the hospital. It's been a while since she's visited here and with everything that's happened, she feels extremely guilty that she hasn't made time to see him--hasn't even thought of visiting. Damn Son Seungwan and her knack of taking up too much space in Joohyun's mind. Microchip or not.

"Hey, Dad," she whispers as she takes the seat beside the patient's bed. 

There are tubes and wires connected to him; Joohyun's quickly reminded of Seungwan's grandmother being in a not-so-different state as him. If cryostasis and expensive, advanced technology couldn't keep her alive... Would she ever have hope of her father waking up?

Joohyun understands Seungwan more than ever. She understands her motives for everything and she thinks that if she were in the same scenario, she wouldn't do anything different. It scares her to think that if she were Son Seungwan, she might have agreed to being microchipped if it allowed her to have revenge on the person who hurt her family. 

That's right. She's not as moral as the younger. Joohyun would've joined them out of greed and grief.

"I'm feeling really lost right now," Joohyun mumbles. "I'm sorry I haven't visited you in a while. Things have... Things have changed. A lot."

The monotonous beep of his heart rate in the machine beside her seems like a response from him, urging her softly to continue and she does: "I love someone. I...I really do and I don't know what you'd say if you knew who she was." She takes a sharp inhale and blinks to clear her eyes of the stinging pain that comes too quickly. "I want to avenge you, Dad. That's the only thing that's been on my mind ever since... But, I also want... I want her but I don't want to want her because of what she did. Dad--" a wet gasp leaves and she leans over on her knees, digging her palms into her eye sockets in a futile attempt to stop the tears from coming out "--what do I do? Will you just please wake up and tell me what to do?"

The beeps don't change their steady rhythm. He doesn't have a response for her.

"I could..." she begins, swallowing dryly. "There's a microchip. It--It's supposed to be able to allow someone to regenerate themselves completely and I--"

Suddenly, the door opens and Joohyun snaps her head up, wiping her face furiously as she spies shocked eyes peeking in.

"S-Seungwan?"

"Unnie," Seungwan says nervously and hovers half-outside. "I'm sorry, I didn't know you were here."

"Why are you here?" Joohyun asks--upset. She's not sure if it's because Seungwan dares to show her face here or if it's because she interrupted what Joohyun was going to say.

"I've um," Seungwan starts and enters the room with evading eyes. "I've just been visiting your father every now and then..."

"Why?" Joohyun knows why. Seungwan must feel guilty. She wonders what kind of lie the younger will come up with to justify that though, because Seungwan has yet to know that she knows.

Seungwan shrugs. "I heard about his condition a while ago," she explains, "I'm sorry I never asked you if I could see him, I just..."

"Just what?"

The room is silent; the patient's heartrate doesn't waver, but the machine's noises seem to only grow louder and more ear-piercing the longer the tense atmosphere draws out between them.

Joohyun sighs and shakes her head. She feels sort of guilty for testing her like that. "Would you like to sit?" Seungwan nods, flashing a small smile and taking the seat on the other side of the bed. "Do you talk to him too?"

"I do," S