“Lee Hyukjae!!”

Hyukjae shot up from his desk, accidentally banging his knee against the drawers and spilling a container of stationery on the floor. The pens scattered everywhere and made a huge noise in the quiet office, bringing everyone’s attention to him.

“Uhh, present?” Hyukjae winced, rubbing on his sore knee. “Who called?”

“I did,” said a voice, and the owner stepped into sight. He shifted his glance between Hyukjae and the spilt stationery before continuing. “In my office. Now.”

Hyukjae winced again, bending down to pick up the things on the floor. “Yes, Inspector Lee.”

“What’s this I’m hearing about fart cushions and coffee shoes in my office, Hyukjae?” Donghae asked, his arms folded over his chest. Hyukjae’s face beamed at the memory of the jokes he’d already played in less than a 48-hour timeframe he’d been at Donghae’s department.

“Exactly that,” the elder forced himself to hold in a chuckle when he saw how dead-serious Donghae looked.

“I thought I told you no practical jokes in my office, Hyukjae.”

“I don’t actually remember agreeing to that rule, Donghae.”

Donghae raised an eyebrow.

“Sorry, Inspector Lee,” Hyukjae quickly corrected himself. It was rather a nuisance remembering to call him ‘Inspector’ since he’d been so used to calling him Donghae all the time.

“You haven’t even been here for a week and already there’d been two complaints about you and your pranks,” Donghae huffed, taking one step closer to the sheepish-looking man. His features softened, however. “Don’t you ever get tired of playing the fool?”

“No,” Hyukjae answered truthfully. “It’s fun watching other people’s reactions. You should know the thrill too; after all we’d been through so much mischief and mayhem together. What happened to the old Donghae I knew?”

“He grew up, Hyukjae,” the inspector said quietly, staring straight into Hyukjae’s eyes. “He grew up seven years ago. I wonder when would be your turn to grow up a bit. The Donghae you knew is gone. This is the new Donghae now, whether you like it or not.”

“Well, I don’t,” said Hyukjae. “I don’t understand what happened to you, Inspector Lee. You’re missing out on the fun part of life. I’m sorry that you don’t like that part of me anymore but I will never change.”

“Fine,” the younger said, straightening up. His expression reverted back to a cold, piercing gaze. “If you insist, I only have to keep you here for another one year and half more, then I won’t ever see you again. Don’t worry, I’ll personally write a letter to HQ so you won’t get transferred to Timbuktu. Perhaps just somewhere far, far away from here, like Busan. You like that, don’t you?”

Hyukjae was silent for a while. “Why do you hate me so much? You used to like the playful part of me back then. Now whenever I’m around you I feel like suffocating, you know? I get the feeling that you absolutely, positively, one-hundred-and-one percent hate my guts until you’d probably rip them out and feed me to your dog. Ugh, okay that was rather graphic, but you get my point.”

Donghae’s was still wearing the pokerface.

The elder stood up. “I’m outta here.” He began walking towards the door.

“Just eighteen months, Hyukkie.”

Hyukjae froze when he heard his nickname roll off Donghae’s lips. He hadn’t heard that in such a long time and he couldn’t believe how much he missed hearing it being said by that too familiar voice he used to love, and still loves. He paused at the door, waiting for the younger to continue.

“Please don’t make me regret this.”

The elder felt a pang of pain in his left chest but he chose to ignore it. He scoffed. “Don’t make me regret this, Inspector Lee.”

* * *

Hyukjae grinned in delight hearing the shrieks echoing in the women’s restroom. He chuckled away to himself just as another loud scream pierced through his ears. He quickly turned to run back to his cubicle, dying with laughter. Sungmin threw him a dirty look across the office, still hearing the screams all the wa