Wheein alighted from the taxi and stood in front of the mansion. Her mother called her, telling her to come home. “It’s urgent,” she said. Her parents never called her during work, so it must be a pressing matter.

She pressed the button on the intercom and a few seconds later, her mother’s face appeared on the tiny screen.

“Ah, Wheein! You’re home, come in quickly!” Her mother said cheerfully. Her tone was totally different from what she heard in the phone just now. It was too cheerful.

The metal gate inched open and she squeezed past it before it was fully open. The front door was left open and the smell of lunch greeted her. Wheein sighed and closed the door behind her. She knew it was nothing urgent. Her mother just wanted her to be home for lunch.

“Hey baby, lunch will be ready soon!” Her mother popped her head out of the kitchen.

“What’s so urgent?” She asked, though she already knew the reason.

“Your mother just wants you to be home for lunch,” a deep voice from behind her said. “When was the last time you’re home for a meal?”

Her father rolled up his sleeves and sat down at the table.

“Dad, I’m busy.” She sat down at the table, beside her father who looked at her disapprovingly.

“Wheein.” Her head jerked up when she heard her name being called out by an unfamiliar voice. A man in sweater walked towards the table, and she felt every muscle in her body tensed up.

Her mother walked out with a bowl of soup and set it on the table. She could tell her mother was genuinely happy. “And your brother is finally back, so we should have a meal together.”

Jung Won Il sat down across Wheein with a smile. His hair was dripping wet, and he smelled of cologne, maybe just a bit too overpowering. The scar on his cheek caught her attention. She did not recall him having any scar on his face, but that was years ago.

“How have you been, my baby sister?” Her stepbrother reached out to ruffle her hair just like how he always did. For a moment, she felt like nothing had changed. He had always been good to her as long as she could recall, and very protective of her even though they did not come from the same mother. However, things went downhill suddenly and she still did not know what happen. She could still remember the hatred in his eyes when he left home, and that was when they lost contact. The hatred in his eyes disappeared, but she found it hard to understand what he was feeling. He used to be an open book to her.

She managed a small smile in return and mumbled, “I’m fine,thank you for asking. How have you been doing?”

Jung Won Il placed a slice of meat on their father’s bowl of rice, all the while with a smile. “I’m good. It’s good to back.”

Her mother sat down beside her and gave her a side hug before digging in, but all she could see was the discomfort on her father’s face. Maybe he was just tired, she reasoned to herself. Shrugging the thought off, she started eating. She had to admit though, she missed her mother’s cooking. If only it was not so stifling at home, she would come back everyday.

They ate in silence, with occasional remarks about work passed in between. Wheein listened and realised her brother was indeed working at the same airline as Solar.

Just as she was about to comment, her phone rang. It was from the station, and she had to answer, despite disapproving looks from her parents.

“Wheein, come back to the station now,” Moonbyul ordered. The seriousness in her tone told her something was amiss. “No excuses. Now.”

She frowned, confused at the situation. Moonbyul rarely gave her any demand. The last time she did was because she messed up the evidence, but that was when she first joined the team. Knowing how serious Moonbyul was when it came to business, she could only comply. “I’ll go back now.”

“Sorry, I have to go back to the station now,” she excused herself.

“It can’t wait?” Her mother was obviously disappointed. She even made dessert.

“Sorry mom, it’s urgent,” she said. She did not mean to sound sarcastic, but judging from Moonbyul’s tone, it really was something urgent. There was no doubt about it.

“You’re an officer?” Her brother asked, looking at her curiously.

She nodded. The last time they saw each other, she was still a college student in her final year.

“Cool,” he said, standing up. “Aunty, Father, I’ll send Whee out.”

After promising she would come back home often, her mother let her go. The stepsiblings walked out together to the gate, which felt painfully long.

When they reached the gate, Wheein turned to face her brother. He looked so much older, though he still remained his charms. His eyes focused on her, seemingly searching for something.

“Can I ask you something?” Wheein asked.

She saw a smile on his face as he nodded, like he knew she had questions for him.

“Are you still together with Taeyoung? I never saw her again.” She saw him frown for a second, raw pain in his eyes.

He shook his head. “We broke up, five years ago.”

Five years ago… That was the year he left. Maybe that was the reason why he left.

There was another question in her mind bugging her from the moment she saw him. She remembered Hwasa mentioning him when they talked about Solar.

“Can I ask you another question?” She asked, a bit cautiously.

“Anything for my baby sis,” he said, and somehow she felt bad.

“Do you happen to know Solar?” Wheein asked. “Kim, Solar.”

For a moment, she could not see any emotion on him so she decided to move on from the question, but he answered, “Yes, I do know her.”

He had a smile on his face, the same smile he had when he spoke of Taeyoung.

“I like her,” he confessed.

-

Moonbyul stared at the doorbell, hesitating if she should press it, or not. She had been standing in front of the apartment for the past 15 minutes but she could not make up her mind. She stepped away from the door and took one last look. She just wanted to make sure she was alright, how difficult could that be? She took a deep breath and raised her hand to the doorbell, but the door opened right at the moment her finger touched the bell.

“Byul?" The surprise in her voice was clearly heard.

Moonbyul looked at the woman in front of her. She was dressed really nicely in a yellow one piece dress, prepared to leave the house. Unknowingly,  she panicked.

"Are you going out?" She asked, sounding a bit desperate.

Solar nodded. It was her company's social night and she agreed to go months ago. Moonbyul looked worried and she knew exactly why. "Byul, I'll be fine."

Moonbyul sighed and looked away. She knew it already. Well, of course she did. The news was always quick to report. There was a breakthrough and there was no reason for them not to report it. 

“Solar..." Moonbyul started but then stopped abruptly. She realised she could not say anything, though there were so many things for her to say. Where should she start? “I..."

The door to the lift slid open, and out came a man calling for Solar. It was Jung Won Il, dressed very smartly in his suit and tie, still looking as pale as ever, though Moonbyul had to admit that his skin was perfect. 

"Oh, inspector, I didn't expect to see you here," Jung Won Il said as he stood beside Solar. She could smell his cologne the moment he exited the lift, and when he stood close, she felt like she was choking. 

"I need to talk to her," Moonbyul said, pointing to Solar. She raised an eyebrow slightly, and he took the hint.

"I'll leave you two to talk. I'll wait for you in the car," he said softly to Solar. His hand lingering on her shoulder. 

Moonbyul waited until he disappeared into the lift before turning back to Solar. "Is he interested in you?"

"Is that what you want to talk to me about?" Solar asked, resting her chin on her hand. 

Moonbyul rubbed the back of her neck, flustered. Everytime she saw Jung Won Il or Ahn Hun Sang, or any other person in general going near Solar, jealousy brew within her. "Are you... interested as well?"

Solar moved a step closer to Moonbyul, who took a step back. "Why do you care?"

"Because..." Again, she could not put her thoughts into words. Because I still love you. 

Solar took another step forward and hummed, still wanting to know her reason. All this while, it was just her guessing what was going on in the other person's mind. She never knew exactly how she felt. 

Moonbyul did not avoid eye contact; she looked straight into the eyes of Solar. She was searching for answers, and answers she would give. She clenched her fists and took a deep breath before releasing the tension in her body. "Because I still love you, and I don't like it when I see you with other people."

Clearly, Solar was not expecting that. was dry and she struggled to find a response. Though she already knew Moonbyul still had feelings for her, she did not expect her to admit it. She was not the kind to leave the case unresolved. Admitting that she still loved her would mean opening their case up again and leaving it hanging. 

"But I..." Moonbyul closed her eyes and placed her right hand against the side of her face, thumb gently brushing her cheek and the other fingers against the back of her head. "I don't want to see you hurt. Being with me means you'll get hurt."

That was the other reason why she broke up with the person who she loved dearly. 

Solar frowned. It did not make sense to her. "How? You'll protect me, won't you? You said you will! Why are yo-"

"What if I can't?" She shouted, both hands grabbing Solar's shoulders. When she saw the other person winced, she released her grip and looked down in defeat. Her voice softened to a whisper, "What if I can't?"

Solar looked at the person in front of her. Suddenly, it felt like she never knew how Moonbyul was like. She was always that confident inspector, firm and dependable, but that was it. She almost never saw her fear, but within a few days, she saw her fear and insecurities. She finally saw how much she actually meant to her. She did not know what made her think that way, that she could not protect her, but at least it was clear to her that they were always in love. Their love did not fade because of the time they did not spend together. She took Moonbyul into her arms, and rested her head against the slumped shoulder. "You can, Byul. You always did. I don't know what caused you to think this way, but don't worry, I'll be okay."

She was broken until Solar came along and mended her. The thought of losing her, because of the same reason that broke her, destroyed her. 

They stood in the corridor for a good few minutes before the ring of Solar's phone broke the quiet moment. 

"Sorry, yes, I'll be going down now," Solar said to the person on the other end of the phone, and Moonbyul knew it was Jung Won Il. 

"I'll walk you to the car," Moonbyul offered. 

Solar nodded with a smile. They stood side by side in the lift, silence around them. They reached the first level but Moonbyul held her back. 

"Don't go," Moonbyul said, her eyes pleading. 

"Byul, I've already agreed to go," Solar placed a hand on Moonbyul's. "And I'll be fine. Won Il will be there."

Moonbyul pursed her lips. How could she tell her that she did not trust Jung Won Il? Actually, she trust no one at all. She reluctantly loosened her grip on Solar's wrist. 

A Volkswagen was waiting just outside the building, nicely polished and shining. Jung Won Il was leaning against the car and as soon as he saw Solar, he opened the door for her. Moonbyul sulked to herself but the woman beside her noticed it and touched her arm lightly in reassurance before stepping into the car.

"Don't worry inspector," Jung Won Il said as he closed the door behind Solar. He flashed his most charming smile and patted her arm. "I'll take care of her."

He slid into the driver's seat and shortly after, the car sped off. Solar was waving to her but all she could see was how similar Jung Won Il looked like Wheein. 

-

A/N: I just had to take time off my work a bit before I go crazy, so here it is, the next chapter. Hope you enjoy it. Thank you everyone for the comments, I love reading them and they make me smile after or during a long tiring day.