“Yerin loves you. You know that right?”

SinB sat up frustratingly as she threw her pillow away. She sighed and slapped her forehead before closing her eyes. Then, she forcibly slumped back to the bed as she covered herself with her own blanket.

She couldn’t sleep. She had been awake for the past hours, rolling on her bed as her thoughts prevented her from having a peaceful night. Well, who can sleep after hearing those words from a stranger who introduces herself as your wife’s friend? In the middle of a complicated relationship?

Yerin never confessed her feelings and to hear that from a person you just met was something SinB never expected. She wasn’t even sure if Yerin really has feelings for her considering all these things that were happening to them. How can she believe that when it was pretty obvious that Yerin was avoiding her? That Yerin doesn’t want to talk to her?

Then another statement echoed inside her head.

“Just give her more time SinB-ssi.”

Those words were adding to SinB’s chaotic thoughts. ‘Just what did Joy mean by that? More time for what?’

Something’s happening with Yerin. SinB noticed it for the past weeks. Except for the avoiding part, Yerin also seemed to be less talkative to others and most of the time, she would just spend her day in the office doing something when it wasn’t really needed. Yerin was always preoccupied with something. Or she was doing it intentionally? Showing she was preoccupied to use as an excuse whenever SinB tried to talk to her or whenever their parents set a dinner with them?

SinB sat up once again, scratching her head that wasn’t itchy at all.

Something’s definitely not right with Yerin and they were trying to hide it from her.

---

"You're late." Yerin said as she chugged down the remaining content of the bottle she was drinking for the past hour. She then raised her hand, calling a waiter nearby. "Two more bottles please." She said and smiled before looking at her friend who sat beside her.

"I'm sorry. I had to drop by the office to deliver something. What's up?" Joy asked, looking and sounding casual as she looked around her. "You've got three men following you this time, am I right?"

"Your eyes are really something. You saw them that fast?" Yerin let out a small laugh as she thanked the waiter who surprisingly came back so fast carrying their bottles of beer.

"I had years of training for this, Yerin. What do you expect?" Joy grabbed a bottle as she moved closer to the other girl and wrapped her arm around Yerin's shoulders. "I have something to tell you." She said in a playful and flirtatious way making them both cringe internally.

"Are you sure flirting with me can cover your identity as a detective?" Yerin chuckled, trying not to roll her eyes and took a sip of her beer. "Your girlfriend won't kill me, right?"

"She knows about my mission. Don't worry." Joy let out a laugh. "It's your wife who's gonna kill me if she sees us. You don't know how y she was with me when I brought you to your house."

Upon the sudden mention about SinB, Yerin immediately looked down and unconsciously sighed. She couldn’t help but to feel a slight pang in her chest hearing that from her friend. She knew she was hurting the younger girl. She saw it every time she treats her coldly, every time she blankly stares at those hopeful orbs and she hated herself every time it happens. Honestly, putting up a facade was harder than Yerin thought. It was hurting her seeing SinB looking and sounding so hurt. She was terribly missing the latter and it was depressing her because she couldn't do anything about it.

Joy looked at her friend and sighed. Every time SinB was mentioned, Yerin would either be excited and happy about it or be suddenly depressed and sad. Lately, it was the latter. She knew how badly Yerin misses SinB and she couldn’t help but to be sad seeing her friend suffering.

"Anyways, I have to tell you something important." Joy said, intentionally changing the topic.

Yerin just weakly nodded and took another sip of her beer. "Go on."

"About the surveillance cameras you told me about… there is none installed in your house." Joy casually said as her eyes roamed around the place, making sure that the three men that were following Yerin was far enough. "Tan only installed two audio surveillance transmitters. One in your living room— I saw it in a vase last time. The other is in between your room and SinB's room." She stated while smiling at the girl who just walked by them.

"How did you know all of these when you literally only had a few minutes inside my house? Do you have a special power or something?"

Joy only chuckled at her friend’s question. "Well, I put something underneath your coffee table. It's a scanner and at the same time, a hacker. It scanned the whole house and only detected two audio surveillance transmitters." Joy explained as she chugged down her own drink. "My team is trying to hack those two. If they succeed, we can manipulate the sounds they send to Tan's database. For example, sending him a fake audio file of you watching a television instead of what is really happening inside your house. So in short, we can fool that ."

Yerin nodded in relief. "Well... That's good to hear. How about in our office? Did you scan it also?”

“I did.” Joy winked at her, proud of herself. “Remember when I gave you a pen last week? That pen contains a scanner… and this is sad to say but, your office is full of surveillance cameras and audio transmitters. Four cameras and three audio transmitters. One camera on SinB’s table and one camera on yours as well, I’m not really sure but I think they are placed in the penholders. The other two cameras are inside the private room, on the opposite corners. For the audio transmitters, there are two in your office and one in the private room.”

“He knows we always stay in the office…”

"Also, I've been collecting evidences against him. Kinda hard but somehow there is a progress... By the way, are you sure you don't know where he brought you last time? If we can track the place and collect CCTV footages around it, we can possibly find useful evidences."

"I’m sorry, but I seriously don't have any idea. I was too preoccupied when I left the place and it was so dark, I couldn't see a thing except an endless road. I was just lucky that someone offered a ride."

Joy sighed. "That's okay. We can just find other ways to trace his wrong doings."

Yerin smiled sadly and hugged her friend. "Thank you Sooyoung-ah... for everything."

“Yah. I told you not to call me by my real name when we’re in public.” She lightly smacked her friend but eventually smiled and reciprocated the hug.

---

The next few days, SinB tried to be more understanding and just let it be for the time being thinking that whatever Yerin was doing, it was for the best. However, she couldn’t help but to be more hopeless and frustrated as each day passed by. Yerin was becoming more distant to the point that she would leave the office without any notice and would just come back whenever she wants to. Also, whenever Yerin receives a call, she would make sure that no one's with her or she would leave the place to answer it. With all these, SinB’s curiosity was becoming worse. It was extremely bothering her and the fact that she couldn’t do anything about it was making her feel worse.

“Do I have any appointment this afternoon?”

SinB’s eyes automatically darted to the person seated a few meters away in front of her. Seeing Yerin talking to her phone, she sighed in disappointment as she tried to refocus on the papers she was reading.

She thought Yerin was directing that question to her, that Yerin had finally acknowledged her presence in their office. But it seemed that she was still nonexistent to the other girl because even just a glance, she got nothing.

“Okay that’s good. Thank you.” Yerin added and SinB couldn’t help but to steal a glance before sighing once more. ‘Is she leaving again?’ She asked inside her head after seeing Yerin going inside the other room, probably to change her clothes.

As she shrugged her growing frustrations off, she felt her phone vibrating inside her pants’ pocket. She lazily took it out and read the notifications she just received. There were two: one from Umji and the other was from an unknown number.

SinB’s brows furrowed.

She first opened the message from her best friend and smiled upon seeing the content. Umji sent her a video of herself enjoying her vacation in Disneyland. SinB knew how much the latter wanted to visit that specific place but they just couldn’t find time before considering their works. She was happy that finally the girl had the time to enjoy herself.

Eunbi-yah~~ I’m finally here.. I’m so happy but you and the girls aren’t here with me to enjoy the place. Seddd. Anyways, are you fully recovered now? I’m sorry I wasn’t able to visit you but I promise to come back there once I got the chance. I miss y’all. Call me later, okay?

SinB’s smiled widened after reading the text below the video. She took a selca and typed her own message before sending them together. She sure missed the younger girl but she doesn’t want Umji to go back to Korea just yet. Not when her relationship with Yerin is still complicated. She hadn’t told the former about that yet since she doesn’t want to worry the girl about her own issues. She knew that Umji would make her problem her own problem as well so she decided not to disclose anything yet. She doesn’t want to bother her best friend anymore.

SinB just weakly sighed as she opened the other message, which was from an unknown number.

Upon seeing the content, SinB became motionless. She froze on her chair as she stared at her phone. The message contains photos— photos of Yerin… with Joy. The latter’s arm were wrapped around Yerin’s shoulders and it was obvious that they were enjoying each other’s company. There was even one where Joy was whispering something to Yerin and it seemed meaningful because of how Joy flirtatiously smiled.

SinB felt her chest being squeezed tightly. Her heart was getting heavier and her breathing seemed to quicken as her eyes slowly formed tears. However, she controlled herself and tried hard not to let her tears escape her eyes. She gulped hard and scoffed. “Just friends huh.” She sarcastically muttered.

Then, in that exact moment, the door of the other room opened, revealing Yerin, completely dressed up and ready to go.

“Where are you going?” The words had left before she knew it. It wasn’t the first time she asked Yerin that question but it was the first time she used that tone. It was demanding and cold.

SinB had enough. She couldn’t stay still without doing something anymore. This whole thing was torturing her and she needed to stop it before pain completely consumes her.

On the other hand, Yerin was taken aback with that. She looked at SinB and was about to open to answer the latter’s question but words were suddenly stuck inside when she saw the younger girl’s eyes. They were teary and pain was evident in those orbs.

Yerin felt a twinge in her chest. ‘What happened?’ She asked inside her head, hands slowly forming into fists. She wanted to ask SinB. She wanted to hug her and give her comfort through her embrace. But she couldn’t, with the surveillance gadgets Tan installed in their office, Yerin knew that it was the last thing she should do. And she hated herself for that.

“I’m going to meet a friend.” Yerin replied flatly as she looked away, not daring to stare at those teary eyes longer.

SinB scoffed once again. "Friend?" She looked up and stood up. "You can't go. Mom just called, she said we are having lunch in thirty minutes." She bitterly said. Actually, that was a white lie. It was the only thing that came up inside her head to have a reasonable excuse for her to not let Yerin leave. She was just hoping Yerin wouldn't notice.

"Just tell her I can't make it." Yerin said as she went to her office table and took her things.

"Why? Is your 'friend' that important? More important than a family lunch?" SinB asked, tone full of suspicion.

She was jealous. It was pretty obvious. She never used that tone on Yerin until that day and to tell that those words that came out of and the way she delivered those was out of impulse would be a complete lie. SinB knew what she was doing. She was hurt and she was thinking that, it was the perfect time to confront Yerin. She had enough and she couldn’t bear the pain and loneliness inside her anymore.

Yerin looked back at her. "I need to talk to her and she's waiting right now. I need to go." She said as she tried to avoid the eye contact by looking for her phone inside her bag. She couldn’t look at SinB’s eyes for too long. It was extremely affecting her. She knew that she might end up ruining her act if she let her emotions control her.

"You're not going anywhere." SinB sternly said.

Completely surprised by the demanding statement, Yerin met SinB’s eyes once again. "What?"

"You heard me right. You're not going anywhere."

SinB wouldn’t budge, Yerin knew it. She sighed and looked away. "I'm just going to meet Joy." She calmly said.

SinB scoffed again, louder this time.

The gesture immediately caught Yerin’s attention. "What's the matter with you?" Yerin asked, pretending to sound annoyed at SinB. "I told you, I just need to talk to her."

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