Secret Agents Dictionary:

Disguise: Appearance that misrepresents the true character of something.

Half: One of two equal parts that together constitute a whole.

- One Year ago - 

If anyone entered that meeting room and didn’t know who all of them were they would think the meeting was a normal one made by a normal company, giving their workers guidelines on how to improve their work, but that wasn’t a normal meeting.

They weren’t talking about sales or potential new projects or areas to invest; they were discussing past situations where people were in danger, new missions and evaluating possible ways to fight their enemies.

It was an SM meeting, special for SHINee Team.

They often did it and yet that day was different.

All the team was around the table with Lee Sooman, Director Oh and one of the other heads of the organization, a small bald man that was an owner of a big bank in Korea and most of the times helped finance some of the missions.

Normally those meetings didn’t make Jinki anxious and yet that day Taemin, that was beside him could see how he bit his lower lip and constantly swallowed, his hand touching the pocket of his pants once in a while as if he was trying to be sure that whatever he had there didn’t disappear magically.

“I’ve been studying each other’s continues duties this past week and I think that Key can stop pursuing that mole for the pharmaceutical company selling for Dokko.”

Key moved in his seat, placing his arms on the table and leaning forward “This is ridiculous. I said that I am closer to get what I want. I cornered him two days ago. He is just scared that Dokko might hurt his family. We might get something from him if we give him the right protection.”

“Kibum is right. I was there. He wants to collaborate with us.” Minho added, his eyes on Sooman, Jonghyun by his side nodding too.

There was no way discussing that with Director Oh. She was too determined once she wanted something to be done or not.

“What do you think?” Sooman turned to Jinki that looked back at him blankly his mind elsewhere.

“About Key reassuring the mole…” Taemin whispered trying not to move his lips much and pretending to cough after.

“Ah! I agree with Key…and…” Minho titled his head amused “And Minho.”

“Good then! Key keep up with the good work.”

Jinki patted Taemin’s thigh under the table thanking him for that. He was too focused on the next subject, afraid of the outcome of it.

“Very well!” It didn’t look like very well at all though. Director Oh kept speaking. “About Song Areum…” All the team glanced at Jinki, not being able to hide it. “I think it’s time we stop protecting her. I know we promised Lee Audrey we would but there haven’t been any attacks lately, she doesn’t give us any new piece of information and basically securing her safety is not important to our organization.”

Taemin could see Jinki clench his jaw and he clearly didn’t see things like that. Areum wasn’t a mission to him, or an object like Director Oh seemed to see her. She was a living person, someone important, someone he loved.

“I suggest that Onew is dropped from the mission. He can simply “break up” with her or disappear.”

“He can’t!” Minho said rubbing his ear, his comment surprising Jinki a little. “This girl is not an object you can throw away. Who guarantees that we turn our back on her and Dokko gets her. They can use her to get Audrey.”

“We can’t protect everyone.” Director Oh said “If they truly get to her, which is very unlikely at the present moment, we simply can keep that a secret. Lee Audrey doesn’t need to know.  Many people die everyday to protect others. She will be dying for her friend.”

Jinki moved in his seat very upset and he didn’t seem to be the only one not liking that.

“SHINee was created to protect people, to make their lives better.” Jinki remarked barely hiding the indignation in his voice “I’m not going to let anyone hurt her.”

His feelings were all written on his face and that wasn’t good. No one besides SHINee and Sooman knew that that was more than a mission and it was better to keep it that way, at least for now.

Before that meeting, a few days ago after they arrived from a mission Jinki told everyone about his desire to marry Areum. All the team accepted it of course.  Any of them had the right to have a private normal life even if it was harder than any of their missions.

“I find it ridiculous to have an agent lose valuable hours of his life protecting someone that is not important in the present situation.”

That was the problem. He wasn’t losing time protecting her, and she was important. Almost everyone in that room knew how those hours Onew spent beside Areum were important. When he was with her he could be Jinki, he could be normal.

“We are not going to stop protecting Song Areum.” Taemin said, finally speaking. “She is Audrey’s only family and she might be important for the mission in the future. Besides SHINee made a promise to Audrey to protect Areum and we never break our promises or abandon our family. Isn’t Audrey part of our family now? Aren’t we responsible for protecting all the members of the family of this organization? Areum is just another one.”

“Then we can place another agent with her and take Onew out from the mission.”

That also didn’t seem to please Jinki but he casted his eyes downwards knowing that there wasn’t any argument he could use that made sense to make them let him stay with her.

Taemin once again saw Jinki touch the pocket of his pants, playing with something inside it.

“No. I suggest something else.” Taemin said once again, his eyes on Director Oh although he knew his adopted father was listening. He wasn’t afraid of that woman, he didn’t even hide the fact that he didn’t like her. “I suggest that agent Onew marries her.”

Taemin could spot Jinki’s head rising so he could look at him, probably surprised and thankful with that suggestion.

“Marry?” Director Oh released a short laugh of incredibility.

“Yes, as part of the mission. As I said I think there is more importance about Areum that Audrey lets us know. She implied things before, majorly about Aeon machine and the key. We need to keep Areum safe and under our eye. She is starting to get suspicious of agent Onew and I think a marriage would be a way to ease the suspicion and make her trust our agent more.”

“I agree!” Jonghyun added being the first member awaking up from the daze Taemin’s words let them in “I think it makes sense. We did promise Audrey that we would protect her anyway.”

“Hum…” Sooman’s eyes were on Jinki instead of Taemin and he knew exactly what his son was thinking.

That marriage idea wasn’t a sudden thought that crossed Taemin’s mind, it was probably derived from a previous conversation and he wasn’t stupid.

He knew that Jinki had feelings for that woman, he told him before and he also suggested that he pursued her. A marriage was more than he imagined but it seemed to be what Jinki wanted and the others knew.

“You can’t possible accept this madness.” Director Oh whined by his side but he wasn’t worried about her worries and the fact that she would bother him about accepting that idea for days.

He was thinking about Audrey, about how she nervously looked at him that day she entered the organization agreeing to build Aeon for them, wringing her hands, her eyes darting from the others to him, pleading that they would protect the only person she called family.

When he looked at Audrey he always felt that aching sensation inside his heart, knowing that he failed her. He failed to save her parents, he lied to her, and he didn’t protect her like he should all those years, like he promised her mother. When Audrey asked him that, he didn’t see a woman in front of him, he saw that little girl he used to see in pictures always smiling beside her family, sitting over her father’s shoulder and then the sad one at the orphanage thinking she was alone in the world when she wasn’t.

Her sad eyes weren’t that different from Jinki’s one on the morning after the day he also lost his parents, also becoming an orphan because Sooman couldn’t protect him either, he couldn’t save his parents.

In a way protecting Song Areum was a mean to redeem himself from those sins, to give back to Jinki and Audrey the family they lost in part because of him.

“I think it’s an excellent idea Taemin.” He agreed after a while. “I think Lee Jinki should marry her.”

No one noticed it, but there was a reason Sooman used Jinki’s real name and not Onew.

Not even the future husband noticed it, making a huge effort to hide his contentment to keep having a reason to stay beside her. His fingers once again played with the small black velvet box inside his pocket.

He bought that ring before the meeting, intending to go out after it and drive quickly to her place. It was her birthday and he was going to propose was it a part of the mission or not.

She was more than the woman he loved, she represented a safe haven away from his world, from SM and all his past and he didn’t intend to let go of her ever.

- Present day -

Jinki could hear the person approaching him.

It was funny how that person truly believed that he wouldn’t notice her, when he had so many years of practice. He wasn’t a ninja like Taemin but he clearly could hear the soft steps behind him, the leaves breaking below the feet of the person approaching him from behind.

He didn’t move, waiting for the right moment, his eyes still in the lake in front of him. His body tensed up wondering what the person would do and then her perfume invaded his space, her soft hands covered his eyes, her lips near to his ear, her breathing on his skin and all of her making his heart beat accelerate.

He enjoyed the adrenaline. He liked extreme sports and bikes and he often went out with Taemin for a ride but nothing could make him feel like she did. It was a different kind of rush…

Jinki smiled widely, caressing her hands over his eyes.

“Guess who!” Areum said with a voice more seductive than it should in such a childish game.

“Hum…” He pretended to think, picturing in his head how she probably frowned with that action and then like always he released the cringing, sweet words she liked to hear even if she didn’t admit. “The love of my life?!”

“YAY!” She took her hands away raising them in the air as celebration and sat beside him, her knees hitting his knees, almost no space between them.

“What are you doing?” She asked tucking her hair behind her ears and Jinki glanced at her, his mind still on that meeting years ago.

“Thinking about the day I asked you to marry me.”

“Liar!”

Her answer made him laugh, moreover because it was really true.

She watched him play with a broken leaf, straightening it, passing his fingers over it, ignoring the places that weren’t no longer green or the tip where it missed a little bit already.

“You said you wanted to talk with me. You asked if I had free time!”

He wasn’t even looking at her and yet he knew exactly what she was thinking.

“I was hoping it was a date but…” He smiled mischievously, turning his attention to her.

That leaf would soon die and there was no way to save it anymore, but their marriage still could be saved. He hoped it could.

“I want to ask you something important.”

He turned to her, his full attention belonging exclusively to Areum.

“I want you to teach me how to fight.”

Jinki didn’t react, blankly looking at her “No.”

“What?”

“I said no. You don’t need to learn how to fight!”

“How can you say that?! These last weeks I almost died several times. I think I really need to learn how to defend myself.”

“Remember when you said you wanted to enter the same gym I was at?” He was like a father patiently speaking to his daughter and she hated when he did that. Even though Areum didn’t answer he knew that she remembered it “Well, I said no back then also.”

“But you said no because the gym was a lie. You were actually going on missions…”

“No. The gym is real. Of course all the trips I said that I did with the gym guys were a lie. But the gym truly exists and I go there once in a while.”

“Then why…?”

“Because I don’t want you to fight. Your fights are made on paper, writing books not giving punches and hurting yourself.”

She kneeled on the ground and Jinki could see the determination in her eyes. Once Areum wanted something she could be very stubborn, like a little kid throwing a tantrum.

“That is stupid! It’s not like I’m going to go out there with your team fighting the bad guys. I just want to know some basic notions so next time a Dokko agent comes after me I can actually do something, I can actually help you and not act like a damsel in distress. I want to be prepared.”

“No.”

“Key taught Audrey.”

“Key does whatever he wants. I said no, I’m not going to teach you anything.”

She stubbornly crossed her arms pouting her lip a little, making sad eyes, knowing that he couldn’t resist her aegyo however this time he didn’t even flinch. He was serious about it.

“Should I ask Key then?”

“No.” He repeated standing up from the ground making Areum look upwards to him. He truly looked like an angry overprotective father, not the one she had though. “It’s a final no. No more discussion about it. You are not going to learn how to fight, not with me and not with anyone. I won’t allow it.”

“You are not my father!” She stood up too, wondering why he was being like that. He never prohibited her to do anything. Yes sometimes he was very protective and now she knew why, but he never tried to order her around.

“Areum, I don’t want to argue with you anymore.” His tone changed to a much softer one “But please don’t ask me this. No fighting.”

With that he left a perplexed Areum behind. She couldn’t understand his reaction. It wasn’t as if she was asking him to turn her into Rocky. She only wanted some basic self-defense techniques, to be like Audrey, more prepared for an eventual situation of danger and yet he was acting as if she was a little girl that should be in her bedroom all the time.

Areum knew damn well that she was childish sometimes, that she liked cute things, playing games or reading comics but she wasn’t a little girl at all and she wasn’t going to let Lee Jinki treat her as one.

- Two Years Ago -

“Oh I almost died!” The blonde woman said moving her legs over the red satin sheets of the bed.

Taemin was already in the middle of the love hotel bedroom, in underwear, getting dressed, buttoning his black shirt, not even looking at the woman he just had with.

He preferred to leave right after so they wouldn’t get their hopes up for something more.

The woman in her thirties sat up in the bed and watched him with an amused expression. “You are leaving already? I paid for the whole night!”

He smiled slightly and grabbed his pants from the floor quickly pulling them over his legs.

“I have to go back home. I have a lot of studying to do and my mother might worry.”

The blonde woman sent him an understanding look and Taemin grinned to himself.

That day he was a poor student, son of a single mother that worked as a ladies .

That silly disguise was enough for the woman to not suspect his skills in bed, to feel sorry for him, give him all the info he needed and also to raise his number of women he slept with so he could once again win over Minho.

“Do you need money for the bus?” The blonde asked laying over the bed and Taemin shook his head, knowing that he wouldn’t take any bus at all and his bike was a few streets away from there.

“No. I still have some from my part time job.”

He grabbed his coat that was a part of his disguise as an and leaned forward so he could kiss the blonde woman.

 He didn’t even close his eyes, not wasting his efforts to pretend anymore. She had hers closed anyway so she wouldn’t even notice.

Sometimes he stopped to think about the women he tricked to sleep with him so he could make them trust him and give him information about Dokko or other organizations, but in the end all of them deserved to be fooled, none of them deserved to sleep with him at all or the pleasure he gave them.

That was the case. That woman was the owner of one of the many bars where drug deals were made, the same one that closed her eyes to the pimp that often brought es inside her establishment.

“Can we meet again tomorrow?” The blonde asked grabbing her purse taking some money from it.

“Sure.” he lied knowing quite well that next time he saw her he probably would kill her or give her to the police.

“Here!” She offered him several bills and Taemin grabbed them. “It’s for the bus and for you to buy a new cellphone! That one is so old.”

“Thank you!” He folded the bills and placed them inside the pocket of his coat before he kissed the blonde woman's hand. “Call me tomorrow!”

Taemin left the building and threw the old cellphone he used for his disguise inside a garbage can. He walked further down the street and gave the money the blonde offered him to a beggar before he crossed the street in the direction of where his bike was parked.

A tteokbokki stall seller was taking care of his bike and in exchange Taemin was going to give him the coat he was wearing that even though it looked like a coat of a poor student it was in fact a very expensive one.

Then he was going to dress up his leather jacket and get the hell away from there before the blonde realized he didn’t steal only info from her but also the list of her clients.

It was funny but Taemin never once called a woman he slept with back or he slept with the same woman twice.

was only a mean for him to reach his objectives, there were no feelings whatsoever involved and most of the times he didn’t feel much pleasure doing it so. It was carnal….a tool to reach his objectives.

That was probably because Taemin, the real Taemin of his past, the one that could feel, died with his brother. Now he was Ace, and Ace was a thief of hearts.

Taemin was dead but Ace was alive.

- Present Day - 

The worse thing was the eyes, staring at him wide open, slowly losing life while the blood splat from inside his mouth and into the floor under him.

Every time Minho thought about his first kill, he thought about those eyes.

It was only a dirty corrupted man that was involved in a fight with Jonghyun. His lip was swollen already and his nose was bleeding and yet he looked better than Jonghyun that was on the floor under him.

Minho was frozen in place watching the two man fight but quickly something inside him clicked and all his training came to his mind.

He kicked the man from over Jonghyun, and fought with him, finishing Jonghyun’s job.

Minho wasn’t sure when he grabbed the knife that he used to stab the man but he did and when he noticed the man was on the floor already, eyes stuck on his murder, the same eyes he couldn’t forget.

The deaths after that weren’t easier but with time Minho learned to block those memories and see those deaths as a necessity.

However that didn’t prevent him from once in a while dreaming with that night long ago when his agent life started.

He moved on the bed, but the eyes were still looking at him, cold, lifeless but still judging him.

Minho couldn’t understand why that image wasn’t going away since he knew that he was dreaming, since he could feel the mattress under him.

Fingers touched his forehead and for an instant he thought it was the owner of those eyes who did it, but the sweet voice that tried to calm him down didn’t belong to a man.

“Shh…Calm down!”

That voice made him open his eyes and Minho sat on the bed, eying his bedroom that was empty.

However he knew that he didn’t imagine that voice, that perfume he knew well was still inside the room.

Minho touched his forehead, mimicking what Nana did to him before she left the bedroom.

She could have stayed, he wouldn’t mind if she did.

It was true that he was avoiding her, and that he didn’t like the idea of her watching him sleep without his acknowledgment but it was also true that he followed her with his eyes from far away, that he tried to get to know if she was well, that the idea of her guarding him while he slept made him happy.

A black bike entered the small street and slowly reduced speed stopping in front of a two floor building that had a small shady bar downstairs.

Mina unwrapped her arms from around Taemin and took of the helmet giving it back to him.

She fixed his hair that was ruffled because of the wind but this time she didn’t smile and he watched her intensely trying to read her feelings and thoughts.

He was never good at reading people but he could see clearly how she didn’t want him to take her home, how she was nervous to be back there. She moved her hand away from his hair and instead placed it over his hand that was holding the helmet.

“Thank you for bringing me home and for last night. It meant more to me than you will ever know.”

He tilted his head feeling exactly the same she did.

Not once in whole his life did he take a girl home and even though she didn’t seem well with the fact that he was there in front of her house, she didn’t seem to want him to go away.

“Are you scared?” He asked his eyes moving from her to the lousy bar behind and the windows closed on the first floor.

“Yes.”

Even though Taemin made the question he didn’t expect her to answer it affirmatively.

As a sign that he didn’t intend to leave until she felt safe again, Taemin placed the helmet over the bike and grabbed her hand that she swiftly pulled away stepping back.

“You should go.”

How could she ask him that now that she sent him a plea for help?! He couldn’t leave her until he knew exactly what scared her, what made her want to run away the previous night.

“Noona!” A young boy, with the same golden eyes as Mina, came out from the bar and run to her.

She wrapped her arms around him and patted his head forcing a smile. “Kiha! What are you doing up so early?”

The boy that didn’t have more than 8 years old looked up at her “Dad was furious after Noona left, he didn’t let anyone sleep. They searched for you the whole night!”

Mina bit her lower lip nervously glancing at Taemin that watched them and she pushed her brother slowly to the door.

“He is my brother!” She explained to Taemin before she turned to Kiha “Where is he now?”

“He is inside but noona you can’t go away anymore. I was scared!”

Taemin came off from the bike and moved closer to the two siblings. Something was definitely wrong there and he couldn’t help but remember how they spoke about scars before.

“Can you go wait inside?” Mina asked her brother noticing how Taemin was already beside them “I need to speak with my friend.”

“Friend?” the little boy looked at Taemin with judging eyes. “Dad won’t like!”

“Just go!” Mina pushed the boy inside just when a man came to the door.

Taemin noticed how she froze, her scared eyes on the man, her hands wrapping protectively around her brother not pushing him anymore.

“You ing useless …” The men swear at his daughter before he noticed Taemin, staring at him from head to toes. “Oh you brought a visitor!”

Taemin evaluated the man too. He was shorter than him but bulkier. He was apparently 50-60 years old, hair almost all white and a small mustache. He didn’t look friendly at all even though he was now smiling, his voice softer since he noticed that they weren’t alone.

“He is sister’s friend!” Kiha said but Mina laughed at his comment correcting him.

“A coworker from college. We were doing a project for college ad I fell asleep…at college!” She lied glancing at Taemin as if she wanted him to back her up and he nodded his head awkwardly.

“Yes…that! About music through times.”

“Exactly!”

“Hum!” The man grunted and then turned to Taemin “Come inside. Come eat something with us!”

“No!” Mina said quickly “He needs to go, his family must be worried with him too!”

Taemin couldn’t back her up this time since Kiha started coughing violently and Mina looked worriedly at him, her panicked eyes moving from the kid in front of her while she rubbed his back  to her father “You didn’t forget to give him the medicine right?”

“I was working. You are the one in charge of it!” The man remarked not seeming worried.”

“You are his father!” She reprimanded him.

“Of a useless kid that is sick all the time! This was the best your mother gave to me, a woman and a weak boy!” The comment was ignored as if it was something that he often said and then he turned to Taemin “Come inside. I’ll be waiting!”

He disappeared inside the bar and Mina crouched in front of her brother caressing his chest trying to calm him down so he could breathe.

After a while the cough subsided and her brother took a deep breath.

“Good boy!” she said joining her forehead with his.“Now go inside and wait for me in my bedroom ok? I’ll be up in a minute.”

“Promise?”

“Yes!”

Kiha sent a last curious look at Taemin and then entered the building.

A different Mina from the one that he was used to see turned to Taemin and his heart broke when he noticed how her eyes were sparkling gold as if she was going to cry any minute.

“Go away, don’t ever come back here!”

Taemin ignored her not moving an inch. “Does he hit you?”

Now everything made so much sense to him.

“Not anymore, but my brother, he has breathing problems and my father wants a strong man in the house to inherit the family business.”

She looked away, tears falling down her eyes and Taemin stepped away from his bike and strode towards the bar. He wasn’t thinking about consequences but he was sure what he wanted to do, punch that man for hurting two innocent defenseless people. He didn’t care if he was her father; his strong sense of justice was winning over that.

However Mina grabbed his arm stopping him. “No. Please don’t… Go home.”

The saddest thing was that she wasn’t protecting her father by asking him that. She was protecting Taemin.

He didn’t have the right to barge in into her life like that, without fully knowing the situation.

“I need to give my brother his medicine so please go.”

There is always a first time for everything and he did go but before he said something he never though he would say and actually mean it, to someone he slept with.

He pulled her into a hug a tight one. “I’ll call you later.”

He didn’t turn back and sat on his bike placing the helmet on.

His eyes didn’t leave hers the whole time and he opened his mouth trying to find the right words to say it. “If you feel scared again call me. I’ll come…I’ll come right away.”

She gave him the best eye smile and nodded her head and Taemin reluctantly rode away leaving a part of him behind with her.

It was always the same dream, the same burning pain inside his chest, the same tears and screams, the same words…

“Never ever let go...”

His mother said, her eyes moving from Jinki to something beside him on the cars seat, probably the bag with clothes and his documents that she prepared for him that day.

But this time the dream was slightly different, this time there were more scenes. He wasn’t sure if real memories he buried and were now becoming clearer, or fragments of his imagination that was trying to complete that puzzle from his past.

“You are brave Jinki.” His mother said with her melodious voice, the same one that he used to hear every morning while she prepared breakfast singing an old melody that he couldn’t remember the name. 

And suddenly he wasn’t in the car anymore he was in front of his father that was kneeling beside him, his big hands on his shoulders.

“You are brave Jinki.” He was the one saying it, treating Jinki as if he was an adult like him, which was something that he always liked in his father. Jinki was always a responsible kid, he liked to help around the house and he wanted to be like his father, brave and strong, once he grew up.

However that day he didn’t feel brave. He was scared.

Jinki could see his mother in the background behind his father walking from one side of the room to the other, carrying all kind of things and throwing them inside a bag as if they were in a rush, running away.

“They found out about where we live.”

“Who did?” Jinki asked glancing at his mother, at how she carried several random clothes to place inside the bag, some bags of chips and crackers, milk and bottles of water, his warm blue coat, a pink soft bunny, the black coat his father often wore and the old blue blanket that his mother used to place over him when he fell asleep on the couch.

“The bad guys Jinki, the ones I told you about.” His father smiled as if nothing was wrong, as if he wasn’t going to die a few hours later. “But my little boy is braver and he is going to help us right?”

“Help?” He swallowed hard, nervous, knowing that whatever his father was going to ask him was important.

“If for some reason today I ask you to run you must do it, ok?” His father turned his head slightly and Jinki followed his gaze. His mother was busy inside the bedroom “You will grab her hand and run away as fast you can. Promise me that!”

He wanted him to protect his family. His father was giving him the huge responsibility to protect his family.

“Are you listening Jinki? You run as fast as you can and you search for Lee Sooman. Repeat the name.”

“Lee Sooman.”

“He will protect you. He is my best friend.”

“But daddy…” Jinki grabbed his father’s hand “What about you?”

The idea of death was so very confusing to him but Jinki knew that once something dies it never comes back. It goes to a place where no one can go to visit. That happened to grandma and Jinki could still remember how his mother cried for several days saying she was now a star in the sky.

“I don’t want you to be a star!” Jinki eyes started to well with tears and his father pulled him for a hug.

“I won’t. Everything will be fine! Just do as I say…run…survive and never let go of her hand…Protect her!”

However Jinki failed he did let go of his mother’s hand. He didn’t protect her, he failed the last request his father asked of him.

The dream was different but the waking up part was the same.

Jinki jumped on the bed, sitting up, sweat soaking his chest, neck and temple, tears falling down his cheek.

He covered his eyes, his head suddenly burning, and the memories from the past being too much for him.

“Jinki?” surprisingly cold hands touched his arm and Areum pulled his hands away from his face, her concerned expression making him rub his cheek, cleaning the remaining of his tears, as a defense mechanism to pretend that he was fine and not worry her.

She stopped him, doing it for him, caressing his cheek and kissing his lips tenderly.

He almost forgot that she was beside him, like she was for the last nights.

They didn’t decide about what to do with their wedding but they were living as a married couple again, sleeping together every night, sharing the same bedroom, kissing and even having .

She wrapped her arm around his neck and pulled his head against her chest, caressing him as if he was a little kid and he stayed there, thankful that her body was colder than his, that her heart was warmer.

“I saw my dad…” he cried holding her tighter, inhaling her scent that had a calming effect ton him.

“It’s ok…” she kissed his head, caressing his neck “I’m here.”

He raised his head to her, his hands urgently cupping her face, his eyes still red and wet.

“You won’t go anywhere right? I can’t lose you too.” He seemed so desperate that she didn’t know what to do. ”I wasn’t able to do what I promised them…I failed…I let go of her hand…I can’t fail you too…”

There was only one thing to do. Areum wasn’t the best one at knowing what to say at the right time but she knew how to be honest when it was needed and that was what she was going to do.

She grabbed his hand on her, placing her fingers in the middle of his “Even if you try to let go of my hand, I’ll hold on to it. I’m never leaving you Jinki. I promise! I won’t let go of your hand!”

Her words didn’t save his parents, didn’t change the past but somehow they made him feel better.

She leaned forward caressing his wet cheek with her lips and moving them to his mouth, kissing him.

“Does this mean that… you are not upset with me anymore?”

She released a deep sigh, her hand still holding his. “I forgave you a long time ago. I would have never had with you if I didn’t. I’m an idiot, a complete idiot but I am in love. That’s why I am here sleeping beside you, acting as your wife. You still want me to be your wife right?”

He his salty lips and pulled her to him, his fingers caressing her nape.

“Yes.”

As if he needed to answer that silly question. Areum smiled and carefully climbed on top of him, sitting over his lap, pulling him for an heated kiss.

He answered back hungrily, relaxing against her body and letting her push him down on the bed allowing her to lie on top of him, her hands and kisses making him forget the nightmare, satisfying his body and soul, taking away a little of the pain he felt.

It was surprising for Areum that normally she didn’t know how to put into words how she felt when she was so good at writing, at describing feelings in her stories.

However in real life, when it came to her life she was better with actions and that night she decided to make love with him and show him how much she loved him, that she meant her promise, that their wedding was not going to end and that hand he was holding in his while they made love was never going to release his.

Kibum grabbed his black backpack from inside the closet of his bedroom and placed it over the bed.

Inside he already had a few personal objects that he carried around every time they had to travel overseas for a mission.

Earlier that day Lee Sooman and Director Oh informed the team about their next mission. They were supposed to travel to Japan and steal some valuable information about an organization that dealt with weapon traffic, the same one that worked with Dokko. They were going to pose as guests at the party of a rich heir that worked as intermediate between buyer and seller and steal his list of clients. They used to do that all the time and Kibum wasn’t that worried. He glanced at his closet remembering that he would need a suit for the party when Audrey showed up at the door that he forgot to close.

“What are you doing?”

Normally he didn’t discuss his work life with anyone outside of SM but Audrey was different and things weren’t the same anymore between them. He could trust her and sometimes he wish he could just open his heart to her and share his worries as if he was a normal man, as if they were a normal couple.

Because they were a couple, weren’t they?! Even if he didn’t say it out loud they acted like one most of the time.

“A new mission right?” She asked entering the bedroom, her cheerfulness dying almost completely. She was used to see him pack like that all the time and it was never a good sign. It meant they were going to disappear, sometimes for days.

“Yes. Me, Minho, Ace and Onew are going. It’s just for a few days. We will be back soon!”

“When are you leaving?”

“Tomorrow.” He grabbed a black suit from inside the closet and placed it over the bed.

“Waiting again…”

He didn’t look at her knowing exactly what she meant. Waiting without knowing where he was, if he was well, when he would come back and how.

Sometimes he truly wished he never entered SM. They were their second family and without their help he would never got closer to find out about what happened to Gi but there were bittersweet moments like this. He raised his eyes from his bag to the woman beside him.

If he didn’t enter SM he would have never heard about Lee Audrey, he wouldn’t get inside that mess that was her life. And he thought he had a complicated life!

“Are you busy lately?”

She shook her head “No. Director Oh doesn’t want me around the lab anymore. She says I distract the other agents. She sees me and Areum as if we are mermaids seducing sailors!”

Kibum's grin made Audrey nervous since she knew that he was ready to with some witty remarks of his.

However he placed his index finger on her lower lip making her widen her eyes.

“With lips like these I can’t blame the sailors. I’ve never heard you sing but I bet they only need to look at them to want to throw themselves into the sea!” He turned around opening a drawer of his closet and Audrey followed after him complaining.

“What is that supposed to mean? That I have beautiful lips and they can’t resist me or just that they want to die when they see me?!”

Her words faded when she saw what was inside the drawer, his underwear.

He acted as if it was normal and grabbed his underwear in front of her. Audrey stepped back immediately looking away and he chuckled amused, placing the undergarments over his bed.

“Since you are not busy, let’s do our date once I come back.” That was his way to compensate her for the next days.

“Really?”

“Yes! But this time you don’t have to wear heels. Your ankle is still not good.”

“Should I dress up then?”

“If you want!”

“I DO!”

He tried not to look at her, pretending to be focused on the packing but he couldn’t miss her beautiful smile and the way she walked back to the door of his bedroom as if she was dancing.

“Will you come see me before you go?”

The request didn’t surprise him and he always visited her in her bedroom before a big mission “Yes.”

“See you later!” She almost sang looking back at him and Kibum smiled to himself, turning around to face his closet so she couldn’t see it.

 “WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?” Minho screamed like a little girl, sitting on his bed and covering his body with a blanket.

He was trying to nap since he spent the whole night up helping Jonghyun with some details for their mission and he got the scare of his life when he woke up and beautiful familiar eyes were looking at him, a woman sitting beside him on the bed…Nana.

“I told you I would come to your bedroom if you didn’t come to talk with me! I’m a secret agent too. I have my skills!” She smiled cockily like she used to, every time Minho said she was a good cook. However this time they weren’t talking about food and that wasn’t a trivial moment in their life of a normal couple.

“Still, it’s my bedroom! I’m almost and you are after all a seducer! I’m not going to you!” He complained pulling the blanket to cover his chest and s.

She pursed her lips, her eyes falling on his body and then looked away “I didn’t come here to seduce you or…. you.”

The word was something hurtful for her to say since it always came with awful memories and Minho released the blanket slowly, knowing that he was overreacting and giving her reasons to feel hurt.

“Also I’m used to see men .” She crossed her legs, using that mask of indifference that she used all those years to protect her fragile heart. However she was sure Minho could see under it. “Does it make you feel better?” She asked placing her hands on the bed so she could lean closer to him. “When you hurt me? When you call me a e or insinuate that the only thing I know how to do is ?”

“I didn’t say that…” Yes there was a time he wanted to find her, to even kill her as if she was at fault for the hell he fell into but Taemin was right. He would never kill her or hurt her. “No, it doesn’t make me feel better at all.”

“What is your problem Choi Minho? I didn’t leave you because I wanted to work for The Union, or because I wanted that life. I left you to protect your , to save your life. Can’t you see that? It ripped me inside to leave you like that, bleeding on the floor and yet I had to, or the only thing they would find of you would have been a pool of blood!”

He didn’t answer but she saw how stiff he became, how he clenched his jaw.

“I even called an SM agent to pick you up. Do you know how much I risked for you? I could be dead by now!”

“You didn’t have to do all that if you trusted me. You are like everyone else in my life. You think I’m weak! That I’m not good enough, that I couldn’t protect you!”

“NO! I THINK YOU ARE TOO PRECIOUS TO LOSE YOUR LIFE BECAUSE OF A STUPID E LIKE ME!” She screamed, tears falling down her eyes, her reaction making him hit his back against the wall of his bed.

There was a moment of truce because she was crying; trying not to look at him and Minho looked at her helpless, a mess of feelings making him unable to react.

“Forget it…” She said after a while, sniffing “This is stupid. Leaving The Union, coming here with you, joining SM, nothing will change my past; nothing will make you look at me like you did when you didn’t know who I truly was.”

Minho felt his heart break when she looked at him, her cheeks wet, eyes a blue pool of tears.

“You will never get over the fact that I was a e. That’s how you will always see me and I want to be someone else, I want to be a new Nana. So there is no point discussing it, there is no point…” She lost her voice and turned away.

“It’s not that…” When he looked at her he didn’t see her as e, not at all, he saw his Nana, the one he loved and still did.

“It is Minho! It is because I’m here alive in front of you finally free like we wanted, like you said you wanted and the only thing you keep thinking about is how I used to sleep with other men. Yes I did the most disgusting things ever, things I don’t even want to remember, that hunt my dreams at night but I did them to survive and that’s why I am here back to you. I hold on to that goal, as if once I was free I could be back with you and actually…dare to be happy. But clearly you don’t want me and I was stupid for thinking you did, that you could forgive me!”

“Nana…”

She stood up from the bed and sent him a fierce look, cleaning her eyes with the back of her hand. “You are not weak Choi Minho; you are an idiot, the idiot I love!”

She sniffed again and Minho moved down the bed placing his bare feet on the floor, completely forgetting that he was only in his underwear. He needed to talk with her, he wasn’t sure what he wanted to say but he wanted to grab her and make her wait until he knew what he wanted to tell her.

“Wait...”

“No. I won’t wait anymore. I waited years for the day I would find hope again until I met you and some more for the day I would see you again. I’m not waiting anymore. Goodbye!”

Minho rose from the bed cursing and he run after her but when he opened the door of his bedroom he couldn’t see her anymore. He walked to the end of the corridor but stopped remembering how he was almost and went back to his bedroom.

Inside he sat on his bed again with his head between his hands as if he was trying to steady all the thoughts inside his head so he could know what to do next.

“Where did she put it?!” Jonghyun mumbled searching for his glasses around the balcony.

Bora decided to play as a doctor and apparently his glasses were perfect for her to use during her play time.

He kneeled on the floor of the balcony and smiled once he saw the glasses under the bench.

“Got it!” He said triumphally after he pulled it to him.

“Morning.”  Areum’s voice from behind him made Jonghyun stand up from the floor, cleaning the dust from his expensive suit pants.

Areum looked at him appreciatively since Kim Jonghyun, her favorite author ever, looked like a prince, all dressed up, wearing a black suit. Hair combed upwards.

“Morning!” He answered back just when Mi Jung came out holding Bora’s hand, both looking extremely well dressed too. Areum wasn’t an expert like Audrey but she knew that Mi Jung’s blue dress was probably extremely expensive, and Bora’s pink one was for sure from a very famous brand.

“I-I didn’t want to bother.”

“Not at all.” Mi Jung answered quickly “We were just going out. Jonghyun is going to receive an award.” And his wife was exploding with pride.

“Really?” Areum beamed at her favorite writer.

“My last book won an award.” He explained and Areum touched her chest feeling happy for him.

“I loved your last book!”

“I know. I signed it for you.”

Of course. How could she forget that special moment even though it was surrounded with lies?!

“But did you need anything?” Mi Jung asked releasing her daughter hand that was now running around the balcony almost bumping against Areum that surprisingly barely reacted to it.

“I needed to talk with you.”

“Me?” Mi Jung glanced at Jonghyun that quickly got the message.

“Come on Bora, let’s go to the car, mommy will come later.”

“NO!” She screamed grabbing Areum’s sweater. “I wanna stay here with aunt Areum!”

That comment seemed to surprise everyone including Areum. Didn’t the little girl hate her?

Bora raised her head to look at Areum and showed her her tongue.

“Ok enough!” Jonghyun grabbed Bora by the back of her dress as if she was a naughty little puppy and Areum watched him walk away with an upset Bora on his arms that soon was giggling since he was tickling her.

She waited until he was far away and couldn’t hear and then turned to Mi Jung.

“Did something happen?”

Areum didn’t know how to tell her since she never ever had to ask for something like that, but Audrey couldn’t leave the house and Mi Jung was the only woman with whom she could speak. Besides she seemed sweet and hopefully she would keep a secret about it.

“I-I need something but I can’t go out to buy it myself. Also it is supposed to be a secret!”

“I can keep secrets and whatever it is I’ll help you get it.”

“I need a pregnancy test!”

“Oh…” Mi Jung wasn’t expecting that. “Does Jinki know that you might…?”

“No. But he will soon….as long as it is true. I’m just finding the right time to tell him and since I’m not certain yet too…”

Mi Jung didn’t hesitate and hugged Areum that widened her eyes surprised with that gesture.

No wonder Jinki felt at home there; no wonder he saw her as a real sister. She warmed his heart when he was alone in the world.

“Thank you. He will be so happy. He is dreaming with this since he met you.” She pulled away, her hands on Areum’s arms. “Jinki may seem very gentle and strong but he suffered so much. Inside he is just scared, he is fragile, and there is a darkness that he tries really hard to fight. I’m sure you can help him Areum. I’ll buy you the test as soon as I can, ok?”

Areum nodded her head thankful and Mi Jung walked down the steps before she stopped, eying the entrance of the main building where director Oh was with a red haired woman, wearing  jeans and a black sweater.

“Oh she is back again!” Mi Jung’s voice tone was what called Areum’s attention that walked down the stairs and stopped beside her.

“Who?”

“That woman. Her name is Seul Hee. She works for my father too. She used to be a spy.”

“She is really beautiful.” Areum remarked admired with the fact that such a petite beautiful woman that looked more like an actress or singer was in fact a spy.

“Hum…” Mi Jung didn’t even try to hide her disdain. “I hate her!”

“Why?”

“I’ve always been a flirt. I confess that I liked the attention man gave me but I was always loyal also. I’ve never once cheated on Jonghyun. And once I realized my true feelings for him I stopped flirting. Also I never went too far with the flirting. It was an innocent game for me.”

As if Seul Hee felt that someone was talking about her she looked in the women's direction, letting Areum finally see her perfect features, her beautiful big green eyes. She probably wore contact lenses and dyed her hair. It made total sense since she was a spy, she probably needed to change her appearance very often.

“However some women play to win, they don’t play for fun.” Mi Jung said not impressed with that woman looks.

“What do you mean?” Areum asked, diverting her attention from the woman back to her sister in law.

“I mean that…just keep your man under eye while she is here.”

Areum raised her eyebrows and turned to Mi Jung. “I trust Jinki.” It was probably incredible that after so many lies she still trusted him.

“Oh I trust my brother too and my husband…still you shouldn’t trust her.”

Mi Jung left then and Areum watched her walk to the car parked in front of the house where Jonghyun was struggling to sit Bora on the back seat,  and then back to the main house.

The red haired spy wasn’t in sight anymore, now probably inside the building with Director Oh.

Areum wondered why Mi Jung seemed to hate that woman so much.

- Two years ago - 

It was Audrey’s birthday.

She never expected too much on her birthday since she spent it alone most of her childhood. There were some years that she spent with foster families that tried to give her a party and everything that came with it but before meeting Areum, that made the most curious and cutest cakes, Audrey never had happy birthdays.

This year it was different. Audrey was officially dead and Areum wasn’t beside her.

That’s the reason she didn’t tell anyone besides Kibum about her birthday. She wasn’t sure why she felt the need to tell him; maybe because he was the person she talked the most inside the mansion, maybe because he was special to her.

What surprised her was that before he left for a mission, that she knew nothing about, he promised her that he would come back in time for her birthday.

That’s why that day she left her birthday lunch earlier – apparently Mi Jung found  out about her birthday and planned a simple lunch with Bora, her father, Jinki and Jonghyun – and  sat by the road, near the main gate waiting for Kibum to come back.

Audrey was used to broken promises since all her life was made of broken promises and dreams as if it was the main title of a song; however she wanted to believe him, she wanted that time to be real.

She covered herself with a heavy coat and waited, observing the wind blow the blanket of brown leaves that were falling around her, as if it was the perfect autumn painting.

She didn’t know for how long she waited but at a certain time she fell asleep, head against the tree behind her. Once she opened her eyes again someone was in front of her, his eyes focused on her. For a short time Audrey had a dejavu, a feeling that that happened before and she smiled feeling safe.

“Are you feeling ok?” A cold hand touched her forehead and Audrey her dry lips, realizing that that person wasn’t Kibum.

“Jinki?”

“You have a fever.” He said smiling gently at her like he always did “You should come inside.”

“I’m waiting for Kibum.” She probably should feel more embarrassed to say it but she didn’t, her mind was too focused on the gate in front of her and the idea of him coming back like he promised.

Jinki frowned glancing at the gate “It might take one hour for him to arrive…maybe days. When we go on a mission we never know when we will be able to come back.”

She knew he was right. They might never come back at all. Audrey often saw Minho leave voice mail messages to his parents that wouldn’t get answered before he left for a mission, Jonghyun would spend hours with Mi Jung and Bora, Jinki would stay with Areum and Taemin would walk with his two dogs and play the piano for hours. Kibum….he probably called his parents and in her heart she wanted to believe he reserved some time for her too.

“Let’s go back home.” Jinki said grabbing her by one arm and pulling her up.

However it was as if her legs had a life of their own and she couldn’t walk away from there.

Eventually she started to lose consciousness and the last thing she remembered was Jinki picking her up on his arms.

When she woke up she was back in her bedroom wearing her pajamas.

It was supposed to be a special day and yet she was in her bed, medicated, rereading a book, Areum’s book, wondering if her friend remembered her.

Jinki left a few hours ago saying he was going back to Areum, that she was a mess the previous night thinking about her friend that died.

She knew that Jinki didn’t want to tell her but Audrey insisted anyway.

The thought of Areum also alone on Audrey’s birthday, a day they spent together, made Audrey extremely sad. At least she had Jinki with her, that probably took her out to eat delicious food, buy soft toys or comics, probably to the game arcade like he normally did.

Audrey, however was alone.

Someone knocked on the door and she straightened herself on the bed placing the book on her lap.

Some hours passed so maybe Kibum was back.

However the person who entered the room wasn’t Kibum, it wasn’t even a male. It was Director Oh, as always looking like a robot, wearing her hair perfectly caught on a bun, black skirt matching her black coat and white shirt. She looked like an executive.

“Audrey-ssi.” She greeted Audrey forcing a smile that the younger woman knew that was fake. “I came to check on you. Are you feeling better?”

That was new and surprising since Audrey was sure that that woman hated her and probably would celebrate if she died while writing the location of Aeon’s key with her blood.

“I’m feeling better, thank you.”

“Agent Onew told me that you were waiting by the gate for agent Key.”

So that was what that visit was about. Audrey sighed, hiding further under the covers of her bed expecting the scolding that would come from the lips of the woman in front of her.

“Shall I remind you of your duties here?”

“No need. I know exactly why I am here.”

“To work. To help on the mission, not to be nonsense and make things more difficult for our agents.”

Was it that wrong to want to love Kibum?!

“I’m not making things difficult for Kibum.” Audrey said tentatively but the glare Director Oh sent her was enough to make Audrey feel sick again.

“I brought you more medicine. Take it, sleep and stop thinking nonsense about agent Key!”

Sometimes Audrey felt sorry for Director Oh and she was sure that if Areum was there she would have tried to correct that woman’s way of thinking.

Her problem was that she didn’t saw anyone inside the mansion as people, she saw everyone as agents, as weapons, a way to reach an objective.

Key wasn’t only agent Key. He was also Kibum, a man, a person with feelings.

If Areum was there Audrey was sure that she would agree with her, that both would spend their time badmouthing Director Oh.

Director Oh had already left the room when Audrey closed her eyes imaging Areum mimicking Director Oh’s way of speaking and the way she walked.

Even if she wasn’t there with her, Areum was always beside Audrey.

Someone knocked on the door again and Audrey opened her eyes and grabbed the pills Director Oh left for her taking them with a glass of water.

The person who entered this time almost made her spit the water and she had to clean her chin.

“Audrey…”

Kibum was there in front of her, with a paper bag in his hand and she stepped closer to the bed, his expression different from the usual indifferent one.

Was he worried?!

He was worried with her!

Audrey shouldn’t be happy with his reaction since Director Oh was right, she was troubling him and yet the way his worried eyes didn’t leave hers made her heart overflow with feelings.

It was like a dream and Audrey had to pinch herself to be sure that she wasn’t sleeping and that was a delusion dream of hers motivated by the fever.

“What are you doing?” He asked pulling her fingers away from her arm so she wouldn’t hurt herself.

“Are you really here? It’s not my fever?”

He frowned, his eyes moving from her humid eyes to her pale lips. He hated it. He always loved how reddish her lips were even when she wasn’t wearing lipstick. It was the color of cherries and delicious as the fruit.

When he was on his way to the property he received a call from Jinki telling him that she was sick.

He pretended to not care but Jinki knew him well and knew that that piece of information would make him fly back home. 

Kibum placed his hand on Audrey’s forehead, brushing her fringe away, not being able to hide the love in his eyes.

He knew it was only a fever, she wasn’t going to die and yet ever since what happened to him in the past he couldn’t see anyone he loved suffering again. It didn’t matter if it was a big wound or a small paper cut, if he could he would do everything to avoid it.

“It’s not your fever.” He said gently taking his hand away, happy that she didn’t seem to have a fever anymore and making her sad that he wasn’t touching her again.

 Kibum sat on the bed carefully to not hurt her.”I’m sorry.”

The words made her blink her eyes surprised. He rarely apologized to her before, not even when he was being mean to her.

“I’m sorry I came late.” He raised the paper bag and placed it on her lap and Audrey grabbed it uncertain.

“It’s a present not a bomb!” he chuckled, small dimples showing up on his cheeks and Audrey's heart skipped a beat and for a few seconds she couldn’t react still looking at him.

Kibum tilted his head watching her amused and she struggled to open the bag, avoiding his eyes.

She took a small pink box from inside the bag and opened it, her eyes moving from the box to him and back to the box.

“Open it.”

She opened the small box and inside was a simple silver bracelet. Audrey placed the box in her lap and took the bracelet from inside it.

It had two charms hanging from it, a small key and a small Eiffel Tower.

“You went to Paris?” She asked wondering if they sold that kind of souvenirs there.

“No. I just thought that it would make sense since I promised you take to Paris someday…also…”He touched the Eiffel Tower “Paris…is you…and” He touched the key “Key is me…”

Audrey widened her eyes and raised them to him but Kibum cleared his throat and looked away embarrassed.

That made her smile and she giggled happily raising the bracelet to look carefully at it.

Kibum was romantic after all and that had a special meaning.

“Want me to put it on you?” She nodded her head immediately happy with his offer and he carefully grabbed her wrist, raising her arm so he could place the bracelet around it.

She watched him, how he carefully hooked the bracelet and how it looked good on her.

“It’s perfect! Thank you!” She grabbed the Eiffel tower and brushed her finger on the two charms making them touch each other.

“I go to Paris pretty often.” He informed her “I have an old friend there, the person who thought me how to fight. Maybe in one of those trips, after all this is over…maybe…”

He didn’t finish what he wanted to say but Audrey knew what he meant. That was Kibum’s way to invite her to go with him and the way he embarrassedly did, not wanting to be too obvious about his feelings made tears come to her eyes.

She was becoming more and more like Areum, letting feelings take control of her.

“Yes.” Audrey raised the hand with the bracelet to her heart as if to seal that promise.

Kibum stood up from the bed not missing the disappointed look she gave him when he did “I should go now. You should rest.”

“No.” She shook her head and grabbed his hand, her hands firmly grasping his. “Can I ask you for another gift?”

Maybe it was selfish of her since his gift was the best birthday present she ever received.

“Another one?” He rolled his eyes as if he was upset with her but Audrey knew that that was all part of his plan to hide his feelings. After so many years hiding them, that kind of behavior becomes natural to you, like a second skin. She knew because she was like him before she met Areum who showed her that you should never be ashamed or afraid of sharing what you feel.

“You are being too demanding!” Kibum complained but he never pulled his hand away from hers.

“I would trade everything I have for this gift.”

“You don’t have many possessions.” Kibum joked but her serious expression intrigued him. “That bracelet was a little expensive…”

His cute frown almost made her hesitate but still she made her request “Kiss me.”

Maybe it was stupid of her to change a bracelet with such a deep meaning for a kiss, but there wasn’t anything else she wanted the most than an act of love on his part.

Kibum looked at her speechless, her requested erased the grin from his face and his lack of reaction was frightening her.

“It’s just a kiss.” It wasn’t just a kiss and both knew “Just kiss me like you really want to kiss me, as if you really missed me, as if you really want to and not because of a stupid whim like before.” Her voice failed her and Audrey’s hold on his hand faltered “But because you love me…”

“If you are asking me to do it then how are you sure that I really want do it?” He asked hitting the bullseye. In the end it will be only a request and she will never be sure that he meant it. It will always be a lie.

“You are right.” She released his hand but he grabbed hers instead making Audrey freeze.

“You are not as smart as you think!” He said with a low voice, smiling softly, his eyes locked on hers.

He could feel it, the loneliness she felt that was not much different from his.

Areum was the only one that used to be with her, to celebrate her birthday with her. She would tell Audrey stories about how someday her parents would come back, about how she was actually the daughter of an important person, maybe the secret daughter of a spy, that she would have in reality a big family waiting for her, siblings, cousins, etc. It was stories that weren’t real but often gave hope to Audrey, that made her dream of a day that she wouldn’t be alone anymore, that she would live in a house filled with noise and laughter.

That used to be the best gift Areum would give her year after year. To leave that reality that was her life and fly away inside her stories.

Audrey tried not to blink her eyes because she knew that if she did, he would notice that she was near tears, that she would truly start crying and she couldn’t.

Kibum didn’t seem to notice it or if he did he didn’t say anything, instead he grabbed her reading glasses and took them out from her face, placing them on the bedside table carefully.

Audrey held her breath when he leaned forward placing a hand on the headboard of the bed, his face stopping inches from hers, his eyes at the same level of hers.

He smiled like the tease he was and then she closed her eyes when his lips touched her forehead. She swallowed hard, not daring to open her eyes, only feeling his hot breathing on her face, his nose touching hers.

She couldn’t wait anymore, her chest was aching and she needed to see him, to be sure that that was real and not only a story that Areum wrote to her again.

She opened her eyes and there he was looking back at her. He wasn’t smiling anymore and there was so many unreadable feeling in his eyes that she wished to have a power to decipher.

He knelled on the bed beside her, placing his hands on each side of her, closer and closer…

So closer that she only closed her eyes once his lips touched hers.

They kissed before and yet this time it felt different, much different.

Maybe it was because of her request, or maybe he was feeling the same she was feeling, a huge desire to end with that loneliness inside their hearts, the knowledge that they didn’t need to be alone anymore as long as they had each other.

It wasn’t only a kiss. After that came another one and another one and when Audrey realized her hands were on his shoulders.

When she thought that her heart couldn’t handle it anymore he sat back on the bed, holding her hand in his, smiling at her.

That couldn’t be real. It had to be a dream.

“Now your lips gained some color.” He said touching them “You can keep your present by the way. You can keep both.”

Audrey didn’t know what to say so she watched him instead, letting him take the lead. Whatever he asked of her she would do, that was how pathetic she felt at that moment, how her feelings were making her weak.

He grabbed the box and the paper bag from her lap, which were now a little crumpled because of his body over it and placed it on the floor beside the bed.

Audrey watched him curiously wondering what he would do until he took off his jacket and carefully placed it at the end of the bed. She thought he was feeling hot but he didn’t stop there, he also pulled the red t-shirt he was wearing making her gasp when he was shirtless in front of her.

Her reaction made him laugh but not for long since he turned to her, kissing her passionately, his hands moving down her body over her pajama.

“You don’t have a fever anymore, right? Are you feeling ok?”

“I’m not sure what I am feeling anymore.” She mumbled against his lips.

He smiled brushing his nose on her neck kissing her skin, his fingers ing the buttons of her pajama.

Audrey closed her eyes and laid back on the bed, lost in the sensations.

He was kissing every inch of her body, the vale between her s, her stomach, and her skin just above the waist of her pants.

He helped her take off her pajamas, kissing her all the time as if he was thirsty of her, taking her request seriously.

It was supposed to be only a kiss but something else happened while he was kissing her. It wasn’t enough for him. He needed more and more of her.

Audrey smelled divine, she tasted divine, and she felt divine.

He knew that was madness, that that was against his conduct as an agent but he wasn’t an agent at that moment. He was just Kim Kibum, born and raised in Daegu, the one who studied photography, that wanted to travel the world, liked fashion and his pets, the one who loved Gi, the one who lost her and now the same one that wanted to make love with Audrey.

They completely forgot about the outside world and soon he was , under the covers over her, pulling her down her legs.

If any of them wanted to stop that was the moment. However none did, and Audrey raised her hips against his, feeling his hard , wanting him desperately inside her.

However now that he was finally able to unleash his passion he was taking his time, kissing her s, exploring her body with his fingers, discovering hidden beauty spots, the places she was ticklish, the ones that made her smile or cry with pleasure. Sometimes too loud!

He had to cover when he touched her between her legs, insistently, stimulating her oris and making her cry of pleasure while he hungrily kissed her chest.

Hungry…he was hungry for her.

It had nothing to do with her request. He was selfish since he was doing that for himself even though it was her birthday, even though she asked for that as her present.

He was the luckiest one.

Kibum felt that way when he sunk deep inside her, muffling her cries of pleasure with his lips, moving rhythmically against her, grabbing her hands in his, bed shaking.

He was used to be in danger, but nothing felt more dangerous than that moment when he was inside Audrey, kissing her, feeling all of her, feelings threatening to explode his heart.

It was Perfectly Dangerous and he wasn’t sure if he wanted it to end.

He wanted to reach release fast and yet he didn’t want to let her go. It felt perfect to have her under him, her hips moving against his, her lips kissing everywhere she could reach, crying begging for release, her legs wrapped firmly around him as if she was a koala.

The thought would be funny if he wasn’t near the edge, if he couldn’t feel that she was close to an .

Kibum wasn’t mistaken and soon she came, pulling him with her into ecstasy.

Areum’s story made her escape to another reality, to dare to dream. They were special and Audrey would always be thankful to her for that.

However Kibum’s gift, his weight over hers, his dark deep gaze on her, the way he caressed her cheek tenderly, kissing the corner of her lips, legs tangled in each other as if he never wanted to let her go…that was more than a dream. That was a reality that she never wanted to end.

Nothing would beat that birthday gift ever and Audrey was afraid that something so special like that couldn’t be destined to her.

Life taught her that every time she dared to think that things would get easier and better something bad always happened.

She already had the luck of finding Areum. Having Kibum in her life was a double miracle.

Was she allowed to be that happy?

END OF PART I

So this chapter was huge as hell and i cut it in half. You get second half very very very soon.

hum comments...

well lots of sweet cute moments, more clues about some still hidden secrets...

Also Key and Audrey scene you wanted for a long time! ^^

I hope you liked it ~

See you soon...

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