Yunho and Mingi sat facing each other at a café table, surrounded by papers and a laptop. Yunho leaned in, his expression earnest.

"I think we should tell Wooyoung now," Yunho suggested, breaking the focused silence.

Mingi glanced up from the file he was poring over, meeting Yunho's eyes briefly before giving a slight nod. The nod seemed almost hesitant like Mingi was silently saying, 'Go ahead if you think it's best.' Yunho noticed the hesitation immediately.

"Mingi, what's wrong? Is there something you're not telling me?" Yunho asked, concern evident in his voice.

Mingi paused, placing the file down on the table. He took a deep breath, his brow furrowing slightly. "It's just... I'm not sure if now is the right time," Mingi admitted, his voice tinged with uncertainty.

Mingi let out a sigh and leaned back in his chair, folding his arms as he spoke. "You know, five years ago when we were working on this case, someone was feeding lies to Wooyoung. There's a person who was involved back then, and I suspect they might still be involved now. Y/N and I had our doubts about the sudden killing of Ju Kyung and Wooyoung's uncanny presence at all the wrong places. There's someone out there, and they're still in the shadows. That's why I'm hesitant to share our findings with Wooyoung just yet."

"I get where you're coming from, Mingi, but he really should know about all this," Yunho reasoned, earning a nod from Mingi—this time, an accepting one. Yunho reached for his phone to call Wooyoung, but it went straight to voicemail. "Strange," Yunho muttered, trying again with the same result. "Okay, we'll try contacting him later, I guess."

"There's another reason I'm hesitant to tell him just yet," Mingi blurted out, grabbing Yunho's undivided attention. Yunho slipped his phone back into his pocket. "I... I want to do this for Wooyoung. Even though it was the situation at the time, part of me still feels like I made a mistake knowingly, and I need to make up for it."

"What mistake?"

“I let my intrusive thoughts win for once and…” Mingi started.

"Hey, Y/N, what’s wrong?” Mingi asked, spotting Y/N sitting at her desk with her hand pressed to her forehead as if she had a headache.

“Already sick of living with the chief? Come on, it’s only been two months,” Mingi teased, and Y/N playfully slapped his arm, chuckling. “By the way, where’s the chief?” he continued.

“Oh, he’s in the general’s office, talking about the Lee’s case again. This Lee guy is a real headache,” Y/N groaned, resting her head on the desk.

“Don’t worry, we’ll catch him,” Mingi reassured her. “But seriously, you look more like a cop than a linguist right now.” Mingi lightly nudged her elbow, noticing that she felt warm. He gently touched the back of his hand to Y/N’s neck, earning a disapproving groan from her.

“Y/N, you’re burning up, what the hell? Did you tell Wooyoung?” Mingi asked, concerned, and Y/N shook her head no. “I knew it.”

"Seriously, Mingi, he's already stressed about this case," Y/N said with a sigh, watching her friend hover anxiously.

"Are you kidding? Just tell him and take a break, Y/N." Mingi pressed his hand to Y/N's forehead, and she playfully batted him away. "I can't believe he hasn't noticed. You two practically live together. It's obvious you're not feeling great," Mingi remarked with concern etched on his face.

"It's not his fault. When he's locked into something, he's completely zoned in," Y/N explained, trying to defend her partner. Mingi couldn't help but scoff at that.

Mingi was adamant. "If you won't tell him, I will."

Y/N shook her head. "No, Mingi, please don't."

Just then, Wooyoung appeared in front of them, looking slightly concerned. He had caught sight of their exchange from the general's cabin, even if he hadn't heard what was said.

"What's going on?" Wooyoung asked, his brow furrowing.

Mingi didn't hesitate. "Your girlfriend is sick, and she's refusing to tell you because she doesn't want to bother you."

Y/N shot Mingi a glare, but Wooyoung wasted no time. He moved beside Y/N and gently touched her forehead, assessing her.

"And she's refusing to take any time off," Mingi added.

Y/N attempted to reassure Wooyoung. "It's nothing, Woo, really. I'm fine, I promise." Wooyoung raised an eyebrow, clearly not impressed by Y/N's attempt to downplay her illness.

"You're going home right now," Wooyoung insisted.

"No, Woo, I'm fine," Y/N protested but Wooyoung wasn't having it.

"I'm not asking Y/N, you are coming with me right now." Wooyoung declared as he picked up Y/N's bag from her desk and reached for her hand. "Mingi, make sure to look after the team and let me know if anything comes up." With that, Wooyoung headed towards the exit of the police station, Y/N in tow, after sharing instructions with Mingi, who nodded in acknowledgment.

Mingi watched as they left the station, Wooyoung holding Y/N's hand gently yet possessively, as if declaring to the world that she was his and no one else's. As Mingi observed them, he couldn't help but imagine himself in Wooyoung's shoes, wishing he could be the one holding Y/N's hand and proudly showing everyone that she belonged to him.

Mingi found himself falling for Y/N without even realizing it. There was something about her, a magnetic confidence that drew him in. She carried herself like she owned the world, and Mingi couldn't help but admire that.

But Y/N wasn't his to love. She belonged to someone else, and it pained Mingi to know this. Fate seemed to have a cruel sense of humor.

That day, neither Y/N nor Wooyoung return to the station. Mingi's mind immediately went to the worst-case scenario—was Y/N in trouble? Was she hurt? He waited anxiously, hoping for a call or news that would ease his worries, but nothing came.

Unable to shake off his concern, Mingi's curiosity got the better of him. As soon as his shift ended, he headed towards Y/N and Wooyoung's apartment. The clock struck 8:30 pm when Mingi set out, and after navigating through some traffic, he arrived at their apartment by 9:10 pm.

Mingi's heart raced as he knocked on the door, uncertain of what he would find on the other side.

He rang the bell a few times—once, twice, three times—but there was no response. Mingi stood there, puzzled. The door wasn't locked, so he figured someone must be home. Maybe they were just caught up in something, he thought, possibly having a private moment. Deciding not to intrude, he turned to leave, but then he heard some shuffling inside.

“Y/N?” Mingi called out. He waited, hearing light footsteps approaching. The door creaked open, revealing Y/N holding a fox plushie that Wooyoung had gifted her. She looked even sicker than earlier in the day, with a cloth wrapped around her forehead.

“Oh my god, are you okay? You look worse than this morning,” Mingi blurted out, concerned.

“What are you doing here, Mingi? It's so late. I was sleeping,” Y/N replied, her voice sounding heavy, likely from sickness and sleepiness combined. Mingi quickly apologized and then held up a carry bag—it was from Y/N's favorite restaurant.

“I brought you some soup,” Mingi said, a wide smile on his face, earning a chuckle from Y/N. She opened the door wider, allowing Mingi to enter.

"Hey, Mingi, by the way, where's Wooyoung?" Mingi looked around, noticing his friend was missing. He set down the carry bag and pulled out a plastic bowl filled with chicken soup.

"He headed out to Seoul this afternoon. Remember that Kang guy who got killed?" Y/N responded, and Mingi nodded in recollection. "Well, his wife reached out. She's got some info to share about Lee's shady dealings, but she's too scared to come to Incheon, especially after what happened to her husband."

"Ah, that's tough," Mingi murmured, feeling for the woman. "She's all alone now, with her son living abroad and losing her husband like that. I heard her son's back in town now. I hope they find the strength to get through this."

Y/N noticed the soup was cooling with its lid off and mentioned she'd grab some spoons.

"Wait, I'll grab the spoons," Mingi said, rising from his seat and heading into the kitchen in search of utensils. As he rummaged through drawers, he casually asked, "When was the last time you ate?"

"This afternoon. Wooyoung made lunch and even cleaned up before he left," Y/N replied, unaware of the twinge of jealousy creeping into Mingi's thoughts. Mingi finally found the spoons and gripped them tightly. He wanted to take care of Y/N, but he couldn't help feeling like he was competing against Wooyoung, which stirred up envy within him.

"Did you find the spoons? Should I come?" Y/N called out.

"No, got 'em," Mingi replied, emerging from the kitchen and taking a seat across from Y/N. He handed her a spoon, and they began eating the soup together. Y/N let out a satisfied sound after the first spoonful, and Mingi couldn't help but smile, feeling content that he could make Y/N happy, even if just for a little while. In that moment, Mingi felt like Y/N was his, if only for a few hours.

As the hours slipped by surprisingly quickly, it was suddenly 11:00 pm, and Mingi found himself reluctant to leave Y/N's side. He wished he could stay longer, just to look after her. With a sigh, he got up from the chair, but then a thought struck him, and he reached into his back pocket.

Y/N looked up, surprised, as Mingi produced a lollipop, earning a chuckle from her. "Thank you, Mingi," she said, taking the lollipop. "Not just for this, but also for the soup and for coming over." Her gratitude was genuine.

"Are you kidding? I'll always be here for you," Mingi replied, slipping on his shoes