I bowed low and when I straightened again, I hoped I would look confident. In reality I was incredibly nervous and worried. Here I was standing next to Leeteuk, joining the police forces as I wished. The director introduced me as a help from the ASC institute and everyone surely understood that I was the so called chimera.

But at least I had a little security ensured by gaining a new name. Eunhyuk, just like that singer. Everyone in this special police department had a cover name. Only Heechul hyung´s was unknown since the latter refused to use it from the start. He´s also stubborn enough to call all his co-workers by their real name. I would make sure to talk this over with him. Nobody should know that I´m Lee Hyukjae.

Unconsciously I looked around the room for Heechul. It took me just about three seconds to spot the man I haven´t seen for three years. The tall detective was wearing a flamboyant red jacket, his black smooth hair parted in the middle. Our eyes immediately met and the way we stared at each other was exactly the same as always before. Intense, comfortable and honest. I quickly interrupted the eye contact and followed Leeteuk to his office.

“So, welcome, Hyukjae,” Leeteuk chuckled when the door were properly closed behind us.

“Thank you,” I answered curtly. I stopped in the middle of the spacious room full of expensive leather furniture. The director was standing by the window, his favorite place judging from the dark spot on the carpet.

“I honestly didn´t expect you would get this far and I apologize for that. I should have given you better opportunities,” Leeteuk was turned away from me but I could clearly see his face in the reflection on the window.

“There is nothing you should be apologizing for, Leeteuk hyung,” I answered but then a small selfish idea invaded my mind. Before I could help myself, I was already spilling the beans. “But if I could request something right now?”

“And that would be?” Leeteuk suddenly had this mischievous grin on his face. I guess he already predicted what I was about to say. It made me a little embarrassed and maybe I even blushed.

“W-Well,” I stuttered, suddenly losing all of my confidence. I brushed with my fingers through my dark brown sideburns out of nervousness. I couldn´t finish my sentence. “No, nothing.” I sighed in the end. It´s for the better, I shouldn´t be selfish.

“Give me a minute, please,” Leeteuk said and slowly with his hands behind his back walked around me. He passed me and continued to the door of his office while I watched him curiously. Then he put his hand on the handle of the door and quickly opened them. Just like in a slap stick comedy, a man whose ear was earlier stuck to the door, was now lying sprawled on the floor.

“Is this what you had on mind?” Leeteuk said amused and pointed to Kim Heechul, the man on the floor.

“Yah! What are you doing?!” Heechul picked himself up and yelled at Leeteuk. The latter only laughed. But I myself was too freaked out to utter a single word or even smile. Here he was, the person I wanted to see so much for the past three years. Did he miss me to? Does he even remember me? What to do, if he´s angry that I refused to contact him?

“That´s what I should be asking, you shouldn´t be eavesdropping,” Leeteuk recovered from his laugh and jabbed Heechul between his ribs. He closed the door to the office then and a tense silence enveloped the three of us. I surely wasn´t ready to speak to Heechul.

“Nonsense, I just came to greet Hyukjae,” Heechul rolled his eyes and looked at me still standing awkwardly in the middle of the room. My hair dark and a black suit on, I looked nothing like he remembered me. I wasn´t a weak teenager anymore, I was taller, my bones were sharper and I must have looked far from cute. He liked me as a child, would he like me as a man too? I hesitated and although Heechul was looking expectantly at me, I stayed frozen in my place.

“Did a cat steal your tongue?” Heechul said rudely and started walking towards me. Stay? Run? I couldn´t decide and closed my eyes tightly instead. I wouldn´t have thought that this child reflex would break the ice.

“Hahaha, I thought you would be all cold and serious just like moments ago but looks like you are still a cute brat,” the detective laughed heartily and the loudness of the voice made me open my eyes rapidly. As predicted, the man was standing right in front of me. He was still taller but he wasn´t looking down at me anymore.

“Hyung,” I snapped in the end and like a small child plastered myself against the horrible red jacket.

“My, my,” Heechul cooed and ran his hand through my hair. I remembered the sensation and gripped his sides feeling the pleasant touch. I couldn´t deny that I felt at home again.

“Seeing you like this, one would though that you knew each other since forever and not only for a few times three years ago,” Leeteuk broke our little embarrassing moment.

“How do you know we haven´t seen each other for three years?” Heechul asked the director with an evil smile adoring his lips. I understood immediately and released myself from the hug only to look at Leeteuk in pretended nervousness.

“You have?! Hyukjae you ran away again?! Why haven´t I seen any report about that?!” Leeteuk panicked and returned to his favorite spot next to the window. Maybe he could think better in that place but that didn´t seem to be the truth as he missed our amused expressions. “Do you know how dangerous that could have been?! If somebody saw you and I have no report of it, I can´t even cover for you two and-“

At that moment we couldn´t hold it back anymore. Heechul was the first one to burst out laughing and I soon added a few chuckles of my own. Only then Leeteuk realized that we were making fun of him. Luckily he didn´t seem angry, more like relieved. I was also glad for this because I´ve been tense since the morning and didn´t really know how to deal with the load I was carrying right now.

During the past three years I studied and trained harder than anyone. In that short time I passed five years of university course. When you don´t care about holidays and weekends, it´s easy to fast forward the study. It´s not like I could leave the institute just because it´s summer so why waste time by sleeping. Theoretically I was prepared well, physically it was harder but I managed. If somebody like Kim Heechul could pass the physical examination then I could too. And I passed, the written and oral exams too. In the end I even passed the entry exam to the police force and automatically I was transferred to the ASC department.

Although seemingly praiseworthy, I was at disadvantage here. I was a newbie to start with so I would be given the lowest rank and the smallest desk. I was way too young, younger than any other trainees, I was only twenty-one. I had no trust because how somebody so young could have the same knowledge as somebody two years older, twenty-three as the usual age for the greenhorns. And on top of that all I was a chimera. The monster all these people were after for years. I already had the basic knowledge about the behavior of my fellow chimeras. As opposed to what I´ve thought at first, it turned out that the sudden death by degradation of the body isn´t the only issue going on with chimeras. A whole bunch of them can turn out aggressive or an unexpected mental disease can occur all of a sudden. Thus they can become very dangerous, adding also the fact that many of us possess useful animal traits for defending or attacking. Not me, I´m harmless, I hope…

But I can´t ponder about these things, for now I´m stable. I´m intelligent, young and quick-witted. I have different point of view than all the other agents and so I can be of big help in the future for these people. But being useful isn´t the same as likeable. I´m glad that at least Heechul hyung remained the same. From pure gratefulness I turned at the taller man and gave him an honest smile. One I was saving for years only to show him.

“So do I get Hyukjae into my team?” Heechul hyung asked as an answer for my smile. I was glad, this was the question I failed to give Leeteuk hyung some minutes ago after all.

“I should be strongly against because Eunhyuk,” Leeteuk stressed that I wasn´t Hyukjae anymore, “is only a newbie and should stay in the office doing the paperwork for now. Also your team works on Hyukjae´s case too which isn´t good either. On the other hand it looks like it would be a pain in the to keep the two of you apart. So if nobody finds out that Eunhyuk is Hyukjae, you are free to join Heechul´s team. It would be a waste to not use our hidden card, wouldn´t it?”

“Thank you!” I said and politely bowed. Heechul didn´t move an inch of course.

Asa! I´m back! My legs hurt like hell but who cares :D Please enjoy and thank you for your support! - PandaHero