​“Welcome to the force, Taemin.” Chief Park smiled and reached across the desk to shake the boy’s hand. ​

"Th-thank you, sir.”

​“Now, the others may give you a hard time since it’s your first day. Don’t take it personally, alright? They do that with everyone,” the chief explained as he walked Taemin to the door. “Your office is down that way. If you have any questions, you can ask any of the others.” ​

"I will.” ​

"And oh, I almost forgot.” Chief Park picked up a thick folder, stuffed full of files and handed it to him. “Photocopy these for me, will you? Thanks.” ​He nudged the rookie out of the office and closed the door behind him. ​

Photocopier. Where was the photocopier? Taemin scrambled down the hall, glancing at every door. Office, office, office- what was this? ​

He skidded through the door and flushed as every eye turned towards him. Several of the detectives were gathered there, laughing and talking over steaming cups of coffee.

​“Uh…um…I think I’m in the wrong place…” ​

"Oh look, we got another girl!” jeered one of the detectives to a roar of laughter. “What’s your name, sweetheart?”

​“T-taemin.” ​

“She even stutters,” snickered another. “How cute.” ​

“Geez, kid, how old are you? Have you even hit puberty yet?” snorted the first detective and Taemin shrunk backwards as the man got uncomfortably close. ​

"Oh come on, Eunhyuk,” chuckled a third. “Give the boy a break.” ​

"What? I’m trying to find out how old he is! It’s a perfectly legit-” ​

“I was wondering why no one was actually working around here.” The group turned to the door at the sound of the new voice and Taemin’s eyes widened. A young woman stood in the doorway, arms crossed as she glared at the group behind him. ​

"Coffee break, Haruki,” retorted one of the men. ​

"Coffee breaks don’t take an hour, Donghae,” she snapped. “Back to work, you lot. Put those tax dollars to use.” ​

"Yes mom,” grumbled Eunhyuk. ​

"Girl cop ruins all the fun,” sighed another as the men pushed past her through the door. pressed into a line at the comment, but she didn’t retort. ​

The female detective turned to Taemin and offered him a slight smile. “I’m sorry they’re all idiots.” ​

“I-it’s okay.” ​

"You must be new here. Chief said a rookie cop was joining us today.” ​

Taemin nodded. “I’m Lee T-taemin.” ​

"Nice to meet you, Taemin,” she replied, shaking his hand. “Morita Haruki.” ​

"Nice to meet you, too…noona.” ​

Her eyes widened slightly as a warm smile touched her lips. “We don’t use titles like that around here. We’re pretty casual.” ​

"I-I know, but can I still call you that?” Taemin felt his face redden. “I-it suits you!” ​

Haruki laughed as she patted his shoulder. “Sure thing, Taemin. You can call me whatever you want. Now, what were you looking for?” ​

The rest of the day passed in a blur to him. He could still feel her hand on his shoulder long after she’d left. And even when the other men started hazing him again when she wasn’t around, he barely even noticed. ​

All he could hear was the sweet sound of her laughter.  

​“Cute tail, Morita,” smirked Jonghyun as the older detective entered the coffee room with Taemin close behind her. “Hey, rookie, what’s the matter? Still need someone to hold your hand?” ​

"Leave him alone, Jonghyun,” Haruki retorted. Taemin smiled up at her gratefully. Ever since the first day he’d joined the Forensic Investigations Division, Haruki had been there to help him every step of the way. She kept the others from hazing him and showed him the ropes, even offering to help him with some of the paperwork he was constantly being assigned to. ​

And the more he saw of her, the more Taemin realized she was hiding. Behind the stern expression and tightly pressed lips was a history that none of the others were aware of. Only when she was around him did she let her façade slip. He longed to know more. ​

"Look at you, getting all defensive over your little pet,” Heechul gushed as Haruki rolled her eyes. “How adorable.” ​

“Heechul, I-” Haruki’s cellphone shrilled for attention and she quickly pulled it out of her pocket, skimming the text she’d received. “I’ll be right back,” she told Taemin. ​

With that, she bolted out of the room and Heechul shook his head. “That girl is all work and no play.” ​

"Maybe she’s a robot,” Eunhyuk suggested. ​

"Think she’s got a screw loose?” Kangin suggested and the others laughed. ​

"D-don’t talk about noona like that,” Taemin blurted out, hands clasped tightly around his coffee cup. ​

Heechul raised an eyebrow. “Did he just suddenly grow the balls to talk to us?” ​

“Noona?” Jonghyun snorted. “Did you call her ‘noona’?” ​

"It’s respectful…” ​

“It’s weird,” Jonghyun said bluntly and Taemin shrunk backwards slightly. ​

"Did you know that Haruki hates people?” Heechul asked. “She can’t stand being around us, so I’m surprised she puts up with you so much.” He smirked. “Guess you’re special to her.” ​

Jonghyun made an obnoxious gagging sound, but Taemin barely heard it. He was replaying Heechul’s words in his mind and though they’d been mockingly said, he couldn’t help smiling slightly. Maybe, just maybe, they were true?  

Haruki was having the worst day since the man she’d arrested for murdering his girlfriend got off on a legal technicality. The defendant had hired the one defense lawyer that her unstoppable prosecution duo- Tiffany Hwang and Kim Hyoyeon- were afraid to go against. The blood evidence was supposedly tainted, although Yoona and Kyuhyun were working hard to disprove that. And to top it all off, a key witness for the prosecution was now refusing to testify. She suspected the other side of playing dirty, but there was nothing she could do about it. She buried her face in her arms and groaned out loud. ​

When she looked up again, a timid face was peeping shyly through the door at her. She sat up and forced herself to smile. Being around Taemin was like being with a sleeping baby- one wrong move and the waterworks would start to flow. ​

"Hi noona,” he whispered. ​

"Hey,” she replied. “Do you need something?” ​

Apparently, it came out harsher than she’d meant, because he flinched, head ducked as he shuffled into the room. His cheeks were red as he scratched at his right ear. He paused, blinking a few times, and his lips. ​

“Well?” Haruki said impatiently. She wanted to get out of her office, go home, and sleep everything off, hoping that tomorrow would be a better day.

​“I-I was just wondering…” ​

“Yes?” ​

“Do you want to get dinner with me?” he blurted out, face flushing as his tongue tripped over the words. ​

Haruki groaned inwardly. Of course she didn’t; she couldn't keep pretending to be happy for this kid, sweet as he was. He was like a needy puppy, always wanting her attention and she was not in the mood for this. ​

“No,” she said bluntly, forgetting to soften her words in her annoyance. “I don’t feel like it.” She shoved her papers into her bag and slung it over her shoulder. With a curt nod, she brushed past him in the doorway. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Taemin felt a pit churning in his stomach and bit his lip, willing himself not to cry. He heard someone clapping slowly behind him and turned to see Heechul smirking at him.

​“Nice try, kid.” ​

"Please leave me alone,” Taemin whispered as he turned away. ​

"Hey, I’m not kidding! That was very courageous of you. In fact, I think that’s the gutsiest thing you’ve done since you got here,” Heechul called after him, easily keeping pace with the younger man’s quick shuffle. “All I’m saying is, I think she actually likes you.” ​

Taemin stopped and turned to stare at him. “Really?” ​

"Yeah, she didn’t throw anything or punch you in the face,” Heechul replied. “I call that a success.” He patted Taemin’s head patronizingly. “Keep at it, kid. Don’t give up.” As he walked away, Taemin could hear him laughing. ​

The young man hugged his bag tighter to his chest and headed out of the office. Did Heechul really mean what he said or was he just teasing again? What if- ​

“-eave me alone,” he heard Haruki’s voice sighing. ​

“Just wondering if Taemin said something to upset you.” That was Sungmin’s voice. Taemin flattened himself against the wall to listen.

​“He didn’t upset me, I’m just not in the mood to babysit,” Haruki snapped. The words punched Taemin in the stomach, knocking the breath out of him. “Look, Sungmin, I’ve been having a bad day and so I-”

​“I know,” he replied. “I noticed. Tell me about it over ramen noodles?” ​

After a few moments, Taemin heard Haruki say, “Alright.” He could even hear the smile in her voice as their footsteps faded away down the hall. ​

He whirled around and slammed his fist into the wall, ignoring the stinging in his knuckles. Babysitting? All that time she’d spent chatting with him over coffee, teaching him the best way to get through a day without harassment, practicing with him at the firing range- she saw it all as an obligation? Had he been a dumb little kid in her eyes all along? ​

He’d seen how she treated the other men in their department, scowling at their jokes and dragging them back to their offices by their shirt collars. But she’d always had a smile for him, one that he’d never seen her give anyone else. He thought he meant something to her; her kindness towards him was one of the things that had made him fall so hard and fast for her in the first place. ​

And now he knew. He was nothing to her- worse, he was an annoyance- and now he felt stupid for thinking otherwise. No, he wasn’t stupid, she was for not seeing him as he really was. Well, he’d show her that he understood her like none of the others ever could. He’d figure out what lay beneath her cold exterior and make her see that she belonged with him.  

"So that’s why you framed Sungmin?” Haruki whispered in horror.

​“He was in the way,” Taemin replied coolly. He ran a hand along her arm; she flinched. ​

"You chose girls you knew I’d relate to,” Haruki continued. “People who were lonely, like me. You knew I’d take this personally.” ​

"I did.” ​

"So what did you want with Jessica?” Haruki demanded. She had to keep him talking and prevent him from noticing the hand that was working its way out of the leather restraints. ​

Taemin’s face contorted slightly before he managed to get it back under control. “She was a bad influence on you.” ​

"What?” Haruki couldn’t help snorting in disbelief. “A bad influence? She was just my roommate!” ​

Taemin turned towards her so quickly, the ice pick in his hand swung a little too close to her face. “She took you out drinking and clubbing! She changed you. And I didn’t like it. I knew you, noona, and I didn’t like the stranger you were turning into. I didn’t want to hurt her, though.” At this, his eyes became very round and innocent. “I just wanted to scare her away.” ​

"And Daesung?” ​

"It’s like I said, noona.” He stretched out his arms and smiled at her. “He knew too much. I had to keep him quiet. He was really helpful, though. He’s the one who found out where you moved from.” ​

Haruki stopped moving, her jaw falling slack. “What?”

​“I went to your hometown. Talked to your parents- they’re really nice, by the way. Your mom makes really good fried lobster.” Taemin smiled. “They told me about your sister, Rina, and her boyfriend. So I tracked him down in prison and he told me everything.” ​

The detective gasped. “You killed him.” ​

Taemin nodded. “Yeah. That was the first time. It made you happy, didn’t it? You were glad he was dead. It gave you this sick satisfaction, am I right?” He chuckled at the way Haruki was shaking her head in horror. “See, I’m right. We’re more alike than you think, noona.” ​

"Taecyeon,” she said desperately. “Victoria, that…that guard at the hospital. Why did you kill all of them?” ​

“That’s an easy one,” Taemin replied. “I already gave you the answer, noona, you’re disappointing me.” ​

“Don’t interfere,” she whispered. ​

"That’s right,” Taemin beamed. “All of this was a puzzle for you. It got you to chase after me, and I didn’t want anyone else playing the game or disturbing you while you played. But I am glad your partner’s car didn’t crash because then you might have gotten hurt.” The smile slipped from his face and his knuckles turned white around the ice pick. “I didn’t think you’d be with him.” ​

He looked genuinely sorry, but Haruki was still reeling with the newest revelation. “That car accident…you sabotaged his car? Were you trying to kill him?” Taemin just looked at her, shrugging slightly. ​

"You had every step of this planned,” Haruki whispered. ​

"There’s no point in a chase if you manage to get ahead of me,” Taemin replied. ​

Oh god, he was a monster. As if reading her thoughts, he smiled at her, his sweet smile not at all compatible with the ugliness lying beneath his exterior. How was this possible? How could the rookie who came crying to her at being bullied be capable of these horrific acts of violence?

​She shook her head again. “This…this isn’t you, Taemin. It can’t be-” ​

His eyes flashed and he slammed his hand on the tray by her chair, sending clamps and scalpels and scissors flying into the air and scattering on the ground. “You never knew me!” he hollered. “You never tried to! I was that little kid you had to babysit, right?” ​

Something hot prickled behind her eyes as she clenched her hands together. Taemin gave a hollow laugh and shook his head. “You never knew me,” he repeated more quietly. “And people change. But I know you, noona. Very well.”

​A tear escaped Haruki’s eye and trickled down her cheek. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I’m so sorry. I-” ​

"Too late now,” he said sadly, the tip of the ice pick again.

​“Taemin, please-” ​

He swiftly clamped a hand over , though his eyes were soft as they roamed over her face. “No more lectures from you, noona,” he whispered. “I’m done listening to you. It’s your turn to listen to me for a change.” ​

"No…” No, damn it, she was not going to die or turn into a zombie at the hands of this psychopath. Her eyes narrowed and she tore her face away from his hand, the motion causing the chair to tip over. Her hand landed near a pile of scalpels and she stretched her fingers to snag one, shoving it up her sleeve. ​

“Oops,” he chuckled, bending down and tilting the chair back into its upright position. “I’m sorry you don’t want to listen to me. It’s a good thing I’ve been practicing.” Belatedly, Haruki realized that the hand that wasn’t playing with the ice pick was holding some sort of metal clamp…her eyes widened. ​

"Perfect,” he beamed. “Just like that.”

​“Taemin, don’t! Please!” She struggled harder against her straps to hide the fact that she was shaking the scalpel from her sleeve. Oh god, if she could just get her hands on it, if she could just stall for a few more minutes- ​

“It hurts a lot less if you don’t fight,” Taemin said calmly as he held her head steady with one hand and began to insert the clamp under her eyelids. ​

Haruki nearly lost whatever self-control she had left. “Taemin, don’t do this! Please!” Damn it, the scalpel was stuck, she couldn't get it out. Damn it, damn it, damn it- ​

“Get away from her, Taemin,” a cold voice rang out from the doorway. Taemin turned to see who it was, but Haruki already knew. ​

“Donghae!”