“You drive really well,” said Seulgi, as the car came to a stop in front of her apartment. “Thanks for sending me home.”

Taeyeon smiled. “You’re welcome.”

Seulgi smiled as she leaned in and planted a kiss on Taeyeon’s right cheek.

“What was that for?” Taeyeon asked in surprise.

“For a great dinner. For being so charming.”

“I didn’t do anything special.”

Seulgi flipped her long blond hair over her shoulder and leaned forward. “You are something special.”

“Seulgi, I hope I didn’t do anything to cause a misunderstanding.”

“Oh, you didn’t. There’s no misunderstanding. But it’s very easy to like you.”

“I hope we can just be friends.”

Seulgi leaned back, elbow resting on the cup holder ledge of the car door. “You’re very quick to close the door. Why be like this when you’re not seeing anyone?”

“I’m focusing on my job. And it takes up a lot of my time. It wouldn’t be fair to anyone.”

Seulgi chuckled. “How many girls have you dished out these lines to?”

“Just a couple. Including you.”

“Look, I’m fine just being friends. If that’s all you want, I’m good for it too.”

Taeyeon nodded. “It’s what I want.”

“Okay, friend.” Seulgi’s smile was cheeky as she opened the car door. “See ya.”

Taeyeon smiled and waved and watched as her new friend entered the apartment building before driving away. Seulgi would be a cool friend, she thought. But what about Tiffany? Careful to give Tiffany space to recover from her trauma independently, she had kept out of the woman’s way for the past two weeks. But meeting her tonight had messed it up a little, especially when Seulgi spotted Tiffany and made her go over. From the looks of things, however, Tiffany had gotten over the trauma of the incident and was actively socialising with friends, so it was probably all good now.

On the information front, Lee had not come up with anything so far. There had been no orders for hit jobs or abduction on females of Tiffany’s age lately so Taeyeon knew Tiffany was relatively safe. As she drove around town, heading back to her home for the past couple of weeks, she took in the bustle of the city at night. Her job was a highly stressful one and night drives were like alcohol swabs on the skin—cooling and relaxing.

It was just after midnight when she finally turned into the gates of Tiffany’s massive home. She headed to the kitchen to get a glass of water and there, pouring out water from a bottle, was Tiffany. The woman looked up when she entered and for a moment, they stared at each other.

“Hey,” Taeyeon said at last.

“You’re back late.”

The chiding tone made Taeyeon smile. “I went for a drive.”

“Alone?” Tiffany sounded surprised.

“Yes.”

“Why?”

Taeyeon took the bottle from Tiffany and poured herself a glass of water. “To wind down. Relax a little. So it’s better to be alone.”

“Isn’t it easier to relax with friends?”

Putting the glass down, Taeyeon put the cap back on the bottle. “I prefer quiet. Just a drive and some music.”

“Don’t you feel lonely?”

Taeyeon considered Tiffany for a moment. The woman was looking at her with wide eyes of sincerity. “Well, sometimes.”

“So this Seulgi, you aren’t dating her or anything?”

“No, we’re just friends.”

“I see.”

Taeyeon returned the bottle to the fridge and picked up her glass of water. “Goodnight, Tiffany.”

“Wait.”

“What is it?”

“I want to know if you don’t like me.”

Taeyeon did a double take. “What?”

“I want to know if you—”

“I heard you the first time. But where did you get t