"-makes it the fourth suicide in two weeks. The victim had seemingly hung himself only hours before the owner of the-"

Eunhee's eyes remained firmly fixed on the colourful menu in her hands, but her attention had shifted towards the TV on the wall. They were talking about her assignment.

"-investigating the possibility that it might have been staged but so far no evidence could be found. Kim Minjung of the Seoul police department-"

She snorted. Of course they didn't find anything. It had been an actual suicide after all – well, sort of – and she wouldn't leave evidence lying around anyway. Kai would never let her live it down if she did.

The voice of the news anchor got drowned out by the chatter in the small coffee shop she was currently sitting in. Heaving a low sigh, she leaned back on the comfortable chair and brushed some stray strands out of her face.

Whatever. They weren't reporting anything new and thinking about it too much would only give her a headache. The assignment had been completed anyway; she had more important matters to worry about now. Which was exactly why she was here, of all places.

With obvious distaste, she eyed the frilly decorations on the tables surrounding her. Everything was just a tad too cute in her opinion but Chen had insisted on this particular coffee shop since – and these were his words - the cappuccino was 'the bomb'.

Eunhee flinched when a fist met her shoulder harder than necessary. A cup of coffee dangled in front of her face. Quickly, she reached for it before the hot liquid could spill and the menu tumbled to the ground at the sudden motion.

"Stop daydreaming, you look like you're about to kill someone. And your pet is running wild because you're not paying attention." Kai picked up the menu, placing it on the windowsill, out of her reach. A lopsided smirk tugged at his lips while he gracefully sat down at the other end of the small table and ran his fingers through his dark brown hair. It was obvious that he was acutely aware of the stares directed at him and Eunhee's stomach turned when he sent a charming wink towards the giggling women at the counter.

"Suho," she hissed without taking her eyes off Kai's smug face while he rummaged through his pockets and conjured several napkins with phone numbers and names scrawled on them. The energy that laced the word burned on her lips.

"That name... you're secretly a sadist, aren't you?" His smirk grew even wider while he ripped the napkins apart. Openly, without any regard for the women watching him. "I like it."

Ew. "Shut up." It wasn't like she had picked the name to humiliate it. It had protected her twice before she had caught it, therefore 'Suho', the Guardian, had seemed oddly fitting.

Goosebumps rose on Eunhee‘s skin when it approached from behind, the hatred it emanated sending shivers down her spine. As usual, she tried to ignore the unsettling feeling and forced indifference on her face.

"Stay, Suho."

The presence she felt came to an abrupt halt next to her but she didn't turn to look at it. Its killing intent made her want to run. To hide her unease, Eunhee glanced at her phone and frowned. "Where are they? We were supposed to meet ten minutes ago."

Kai leaned back, a bored expression on his face while he played with the discarded lid of her cup of coffee. "Impatient as always, aren't you, Jiho?"

Hot anger immediately pooled in her stomach but she tried to not let it show on her face. As if she would let that bastard win. He knew that she hated it when someone used her real name. "Don't call me that," she ordered calmly, her expression not betraying her emotions.

He twirled the lid between his fingers and glanced up at her, his voice a deep, seductive purr. "It's so much better than Eunhee, though." The way he said her name made it sound like an insult. "Look, even Suho agrees."

Kai smirked once again and Eunhee's grip around the plastic cup tightened. She had to force herself to let go, otherwise she would end up crushing it - or throw it in his annoying face. It wouldn't hurt him - not much at least - but it would cause a scene and draw even more attention to them which she definitely wanted to avoid.

She took a deep, calming breath but apparently Kai wasn't done yet. "I don't think I've ever asked: did you pick that name yourself? Lee Eunhee, the kind and beautiful." He snorted and she suppressed the urge to punch him. Her relaxed facade was crumbling and she could see in his gleeful expression that he had noticed. "You should've included 'merciful' as well. What a joke, Han. Ji. Ho."

Eunhee's cheeks grew hot at the sound of her full name. She was used to getting teased but he knew that she had a line which he shouldn't cross and usually he respected that. "Kai. One more word..."

"Are you threatening me, kitten?" His dark eyes sparkled with amusement.

He knew just as much as Eunhee that she couldn't do much right now. Not while they were out in public, in the middle of a coffee shop in one of the safe zones. Suho was growing restless next to her. If she took her attention off of it for too long, it never ended well. She had to stop this.

"Silence, Kim Jongin."

The sudden tension in Kai's body was only noticeable to people who knew him well but Eunhee had been stuck with him for years; of course she saw the way his jaw clenched and how his eyes narrowed dangerously.

Suho's hatred had intensified as soon as it had felt her ability flare up and she almost buckled at the sudden pressure. She could feel it trying to close in on her but her hold on it remained tight, forcing it into place.

The silent tension broke when a melodious voice spoke next to them. "My, my. Are you two at it again? What did he do this time to get a rise out of you, Eunhee?"

With a relieved sigh, Eunhee broke eye contact with Kai to turn towards the newcomers. Chen's Cheshire cat smile greeted her while Xiumin's face remained as cold as ever.

It had been a while.

Eunhee examined them for a moment, glad that they had returned and were unharmed. Chen had changed his hair colour from rust-red to a warm honey blond which suited him surprisingly well, and Xiumin's brownish hair had grown, his dark eyes almost hidden behind his fringe. It was probably better that way.

"I'll get something to eat. Want anything?" the stoic male asked Chen before Eunhee even had the chance to reply.

"Cappuccino. Hot. If it's cold, I'll kill you."

Xiumin only nodded and turned towards the counter, leaving them behind. Chen's eyes focused back on Eunhee's face, the corners of his mouth curling slightly at her displeased expression.

"Can't you be a bit more friendly? You're partners after all." She frowned at him and he grinned while he pulled out the chair next to her. He reached out to tousle her hair - much to her displeasure - and his mischievous grin widened even further at her failed attempt to avoid his fingers.

"But you're allowed to force your partner into silence?"

Eunhee shrugged and smoothed down her dishevelled hair while she felt Kai's eyes bore into the side of her skull. There was no way to win against Chen's wit; she had learned that lesson quickly.

"Ohhh, so this is your new friend? It's certainly... different. Good thinking with the talismans; it would create quite a fuss if it was seen by Humans, wouldn't it? You should introduce us!"

Chen's eyes had wandered towards Suho and Eunhee frowned at him once again. She had absolutely no intention to introduce it to anyone - instead, she decided to switch topic by asking, "Why are you late? We were supposed to meet at five."

Fortunately, Xiumin returned at that moment, successfully distracting Chen from Suho. He reached out to touch the cup Xiumin had placed on the table and Eunhee held her breath when he remained silent for several long seconds.

"It's lukewarm," he finally hissed, a dangerous look in his stormy grey eyes. Xiumin stood motionless next to him and Eunhee's stomach clenched in concern - she knew what would happen if she couldn't diffuse the situation.

"Stop it, Chen. Here, have mine; I don't care if it's not hot anymore. Xiumin, sit down so we can start."

"Ooh isn't that like an indirect kiss?" Chen immediately returned to his usual mischievous self.

Hiding her relief, she rolled her eyes at him while Xiumin sent her a small nod and sat down to her left. "I didn't drink from it, idiot. What's with you guys today; is it full moon or something?" They all remained quiet and Eunhee heaved a low sigh. "Whatever. Kim Jongin, you may speak."

"Eternally grateful, Miss Lee." Kai's sarcasm was biting but she ignored it for the sake of her crumbling sanity. Why wasn't there anyone normal around?

"So, what's this all about? Secret meetings without the rest of the unit? Are we planning a coup d'état?" Chen looked excited at the prospect. "No, wait! It's those suicides that keep happening lately, right? Ha! I knew it was you!" he gushed, beaming brightly. "But you should probably-"

"Unrelated." Eunhee cut him off and his eyebrows furrowed at once. She knew that he hated when someone interrupted him, but she also knew that he wouldn't hurt her. Not in public, at least.