Wheein laid her head on Hwasa's shoulder with her eyes closed, wishing she could at least catch some sleep. They had been sitting outside the operating room for hours but her mind just would not let her rest. The scene at her brother's old apartment kept replaying over and over again. First it was Solar falling to the ground, then it was Moonbyul who suffered a stab in her stomach and another close to her heart, and finally her brother whom she shot. She killed Jung Won Il. She killed her brother. 

"Byul!" Hwasa shouted and rushed into the room as soon as she heard the gunshot. She ran over to Moonbyul who was clutching onto her stomach while the other officers went over to Solar. 

Wheein did not move from her spot. With her hands still holding on to the gun tightly, she watched as her brother fell to the ground. She was aiming for his hand but he moved and the bullet went straight to his neck. You're my brother. The words that she just said still lingered. I won't hurt you. She did not want to because he was family. He was a cold-blooded killer, but he was still family. He might not be able to remember all the things they had done together, but he was still her brother. She staggered to his side while the other officers attended to Moonbyul and Solar, laying her gun on the ground next to him. She put a hand to the side of his neck where blood was pouring out like a stream as he was gasping for air. 

"I'm sorry," she said, not holding back her tears anymore. The image of the last meal they had together on that afternoon appeared in her mind. It was their first meal together in years and she did not even stay till the end. Sorry for not being there for you when you needed someone to talk to. Sorry for being the person that took away your family. 

In his daze, Jung Won Il shifted his gaze slowly to her sister. She was crying. Was she crying for him? Someone shot him, and the image of Taeyoung disappeared while he felt his life slowly draining away. Wheein was saying something. Did she say sorry? He tried very hard to shake his head but he could not. No, she did not have to apologise. He should be the one instead. For all these years, he chased after an illusion and hurt anyone who shattered that illusion. "Wheein," he gathered whatever that was left of him to say. "Smile."

That was his last words. Wheein, smile. That was also the first thing he said to her as far as her memory could bring her. When she was young, she used to cry a lot, but one day, he carried her and walked around the house. "Wheein, smile. You're so much cuter when you smile," he said as he ruffled her soft hair. She stopped crying and stared at him with her wide sparkling eyes. She reached out a hand to touch his right cheek and broke out into a smile, and then a giggle. She knew there were times he hated her and wished that she never existed, but she could still feel the love he had for her. Maybe she was the only pure and uncorrupted person then that he felt safe to be with. Others might label him as a monster, but there was still a bit of humanity left in him. She saw it when he told her to smile. 

"They'll be okay, right?" Wheein asked, loud enough for Hwasa to hear. 

Hwasa put her arms around her friend and patted her head. "They'll be alright," she reassured. She could not imagine the pain Wheein was going through and she knew no amount of words could ease it straightaway. All she could do was to offer her a shoulder to rest on. 

-

"What's the matter right now? Gosh." Solar heard someone grumbled and she looked up from her phone. She saw someone running straight towards her with her head down and fixing her hair. Before she could step away, the woman collided into her and fell. "Jeez... That hurts," she said. 

The women mumbled a curse and looked up with an annoyed expression on her face. "Watch where you're go-" she stopped mid-sentence and Solar realised she was just staring at her, or rather... gawking. 

Solar pulled the collar of her uniform closer together. She was not sure why she did that but it was just a reflex action. "Miss?" She called out, waving her hand in front of the other woman's face. "Are you okay?"

"Huh?" The woman snapped out of her daze and blinked several times. She stood up abruptly and brushed her pants frantically. "Yes, yes. I'm fine. Uh... I'm sorry. That was... I wasn't looking." 

Her face was bright red and she kept her head down. Solar laughed as she bent down to pick up the envelope that the stranger dropped. "Here you go," she said as she handed the woman her envelope. "I hope you didn't hurt yourself?"

"Wha- Ah, no, I didn't!" The woman shook her head, messing up her long black hair in the process. She saw the envelope in Solar's hands and quickly took it with both hands. "Oh, thank you," she said. 

"Moonbyul?" Solar called out. It sounded right, saying that name. 

"Y-Yes? How do you know my name?" Moonbyul asked, her eyes wide with surprise. She did not remember introducing herself. 

Solar pointed to the envelope. "Moonbyul, inspector," she read. "It must be you right?" 

Moonbyul looked down at the envelope in her hands. Her name was right there alright. She felt like running away because she was sure she appeared really stupid to the person in front of her. A beautiful woman. She nodded and muttered her thanks before walking past with her head down. 

"I'm Solar, by the way!" Solar shouted. Moonbyul stopped walking for a second before running away. She laughed as the inspector disappeared from her vision. What a cutie, she thought, dragging her luggage along. "Moonbyul... Hm. I'll see you around," she said to herself with a smile.

-

"She lost a lot of blood," the doctor said. "She got lucky, she'll be fine." 

Wheein looked at the person lying on the bed, her neck bandaged, face as pale as ash. She did not need the doctor to tell her how much blood she lost because she could see it back at her brother's old apartment. It was a miracle she even made it out of that place. 

Hwasa entered the room with a cup of coffee and placed it against Wheein's cheek. She smiled and put the cup to her friend's lips. Wheein had been sitting in Solar's room for hours without eating or drinking anything. "Drink some," she said. 

Wheein took the cup with both her hands and managed a smile. She could finally smile, even though she was not sure if she should smile or not. All of this happened because of her brother.

"She'll wake up soon enough. You should get some sleep," Hwasa said, poking her cheek. "Look at you. You're becoming a panda." 

She could only laugh it off because she knew Hwasa was speaking the truth. Her eyelids felt really heavy but she just wanted to be sure. The door to Solar's room slid open and the smile on her face unknowingly widened, in relief. 

-

Solar stared at the stars as they sat on the roof. It was the last day of the year and she was glad she got to spend it with the person she loved. "Byul?" She called out softly to the person beside her. Byul. She loved her name. It was like calling out to the stars in the sky that seemed so unreachable. 

"Mm?"  Moonbyul hummed in response, looking at the person beside her. She could stare at that person and never get tired of looking at the face, and also without feeling embarrassed. 

"Do you have any new year resolutions?" She asked. 

Moonbyul chuckled at the random question but thought about it seriously. New year resolutions... She never had them, or maybe it was always the same set of resolutions that kept her going. "Be healthy, stay happy, solve cases, protect you..." She recited the list in her mind. 

"No 'marry me'?" Solar asked, and she realised what she had just said. She looked away as soon as she could feel the blush creeping up to her cheeks. "Pretend you didn't hear that." 

Moonbyul laughed and scooted closer to the person beside her. Like hell I'm going to do that, she thought. "Are you proposing to me?" She leaned into Solar's ears and asked.

Solar pushed Moonbyul away, still refusing to look at her girlfriend. "No, I'm not. I wasn't thinking," she said, mentally hitting herself.

"Are you sure?" Moonbyul asked, bringing her face closer to Solar's. "Then why are you blushing so hard?"

"Oh my goodness, I'm not! Go away!" Solar waved her hand in frustration as she tried to deny. Moonbyul just loved teasing her because her reaction was always so funny, but she was always serious about the things she said.

She reached out for Solar's hand and held it tightly. "I've thought about that, you know," Moonbyul said in all seriousness. "Marriage." 

Solar could feel that Moonbyul was no longer joking around so she sat still and listened. 

"This hand," Moonbyul held their hands up. "I'm never letting go." 

Moonbyul's hand always felt warm and that warmth reached her heart, but the next thing she knew she was falling. What was happening? Why was she falling? It was not how she remembered it to be. 

"You said you'll never let go!" She shouted as she held on to Moonbyul's hand. She looked down and saw an endless pit of darkness, but the more she shouted, the more her hand slipped away. 

"Solar!" Moonbyul shouted her name again and again when Solar's hand slipped out of hers and fell deeper and deeper into the darkness. She heard her name being called out but all she could see was darkness. Was this some kind of sick joke again? Why was she shaking? Light. She looked up and she was getting closer to the light. 

-

"Solar!" Moonbyul shouted as she shook the woman lying on the hospital bed. Something was wrong with the heart monitor. They were losing her. When she walked into her room, she was still okay. Wheein told her the doctor said that she would be fine. She shouted her name again and again but there was no response. She felt hands around her trying to pull her back and people were shouting but all she could hear was that little voice in her head that continuously called out for Solar. 

"Byul..." She heard a soft call and froze. That voice. She looked at the person on the bed. Her eyes were open, barely, but still opened, looking at her. Her eyes were not playing tricks on her, right?

"Pinch me," she said to the person behind her. She felt a shock of pain on her arm and she realised it was not a dream. Solar was awake.

"Byul..." Solar lifted her hand with all the energy she had, trying to reach for the person standing a few steps away from her bed. She was pale and bruised but very much alive. She did not want to let go ever again. 

-

A/N: Happy new year everyone! New year, new chapter and this is the last chapter before the epilogue, so I figured we all need some happiness hee. I wish you all a great year ahead and you'll find happiness out of the little things in life~