Mina pleasantly grinned at Sungkyu's sleeping face, "I guess the trip really tired him out."
 

She dimmed the lights and laid him down, placed a pillow underneath his head and covered him with a thick blanket.

 "He's just as handsome as I remember him," she said with longing eyes and a tightening of her chest. 
 

The thought of a life that could've been lived by his side magnified the sense of forlornness. 

 She was sitting beside him with her knees huddled, "I never stopped loving you, Sungkyu."
 

Mina felt the intense heat overcome her as her eyes stayed on him. Her hand gently caressed his cheek: she then softly kissed him before brushing away some of the hair that covered his eyes. 

She took a final glance at him before she left to shower and afterward go to bed.

Sungkyu woke up at the sound of his phone ringing. "What time is it?"

 He gasped when he saw it was already 8:05 am, "Oh no! I must've fallen asleep here."

 Mina came out of her room to the sound of the ringtone, "Is it your phone?" she asked.

 Sungkyu apologized and answered. It was Woohyun, who sounded deeply apologetic.

 "I'm sorry for not picking you up yesterday! The in-laws to be came and- I couldn't just leave them- she would've killed me, you know."

 "It's fine...traitor."

 The two continued their conversation for 10 minutes or so, ending with the decision to meet up later that morning.

Mina turned the tv on and asked, "I can fry some eggs, would you like that? "

Sungkyu was embarrassed, "Uhm- I'm sorry to have fallen asleep here. I intended to find a hotel, honest- it's just not right to stay at a single girl's house-"

 "It's okay, don't worry. Think about it as though it was a sleepover with an old friend," she said with a smile.

 She left with a wide grin after Sungkyu bowed with his forehead to the floor, "~You're one in a million! Thank you!"

 Sungkyu, bored by the morning news, searched for something fun to watch. That's when an airing of Super Sentai caught his eyes. He let himself be absorbed by the outrageous action and thought back to the days he used to watch Power Rangers as a kid in Korea.

Mina came out and set the dishes on the kotatsu, wondering what kept Sungkyu in a trance.

 "Oh, it's that one show!"

 "Yeah," said Sungkyu, not really paying attention to her.

 "I worked on one them," she casually remarked, hoping she would impress him.

Sungkyu turned to look at her, "Really?!"

 "Yes," she replied with a coyish tone, "I have pictures, you want to see?"

 Mina left for her room before coming out with a toy and photo album in hand.

 "Oh! Can I see that?!" Sungkyu asked with his eyes on the toy, a Red Power Ranger.

 Mina extended it out to him, amused by his childlike excitement.

Sungkyu fiddled around with it as Mina sat next to him and opened up the album.

 "That's me!" she said as she pointed at a picture.

 She was wearing a very outlandish outfit that embarrassed Mina as Sungkyu kept looking at the picture and then at her. "You look stunning!"

 "Thanks, I worked on it over a decade ago. I was the villain's sidekick..."

Sungkyu was awed by her illustrious career, "What didn't you do?"

 "I didn't find love," she said under her breath.

 "Huh?"

 "Oh! I said we should eat before the food gets cold."

 "You're right," Sungkyu answered before he squirted some ketchup on his eggs.

Mina took a sip of her coffee, "I was offered to reprise my role in a reunion movie..." she said with the intention of garnering his interest .

Sungkyu's eyes widened, "You should totally take it! It'll be awesome to see you on-screen!"

Mina was coy, "but I don't think I'll look good in that outfit anymore..."

 "Are you kidding? You haven't changed at all from high school. You look just as beautiful- you've always looked beautiful."

 Her eyes brightened, "You really think so?"

 "Yeah! Do it! for me?"

  "I'll think about it." she mused aloud.

 Sungkyu gulped his coffee down and looked at the time on his phone. 

 "Listen," he pointed at his phone, "Can you take me here?"

 Mina ducked her head to take a better look at his phone's screen. The close proximity, mingled with her scent, caused his heart to beat strongly.

He was awkard, "Can you?" he asked as he made some space.

 "Yeah, I know where it is."

 "Thanks again... I'm indebted to you." He looked up and met her eyes, "I'm glad to have you as my friend."

Those words shook her, she thought it was now or never, so she asked with a clearing of her voice, "Listen," she pulled on his thigh, "maybe... we can be more?"

 He softly removed her hand, "than friends?"

 "Will you think about it? For me?" she asked with a tender voice.

 Sungkyu forced out a smile. He paused, unsure of how to answer, "I'll! think about it..." he answered with an almost listless tone.

 She was disappointed, questioning whether she was too forceful.
But she mananged a cheerful look, "Please think about it!"

Sungkyu slowly nodded, "Alright..."

 Mina kept surfing the channels since Sungkyu's show finished, but was quickly bored; nothing caught her attention, so she turned it off.

 "When did you have to go?"

 "Around 10?"

 "It's, 8:35, so we can take the train that leaves at 9:10. It'll get us there in half an hour," Mina answered after thinking carefully.

 "That's great!" Sungkyu's mind drifted to how he should take a shower and change clothes.

Mina, seeing him distracted, asked as though with a sixth sense, "I don't think you smell, but you're welcome to use my shower," she checked herself, thinking he might get the wrong idea of sharing the same shower she uses, " Or not-" she waved her hands, "You smell nice."

 Sungkyu held an odd look.

Mina was embarrassed, so she abruptly got up and left for her room.

Sungkyu stopped her, "Uhm- thanks for the compliment; I'll find a hotel later and shower there. Woohyun won't mind if there is any smell though; he's smelt worst," he said the last part with a semi-guilty tone, recalling how bad he smelled of alcohol and urine when they first met in L.A.

 Mina nodded, her head still turned away, "I need to do something in my room."

Sungkyu let go of her shoulder and sat back down, fiddling with the Red Ranger Mina had seemingly gifted him. Sungkyu wandered off in his imagination and took hold of the remote, pretending it was a monster. He used it to fight his Ranger. He made these, "toh!" "ha-ya!" and exploding noises as he kept playing with them. Then he sat them down after several minutes and let out a deep breath, grateful for the moment's peace.

 "You're cute!"

 Sungkyu turned around, his soul almost leaving his body, "...! How long have you?"

 "Since the moment you went," Mina clashed her hands together, " Phwa!"

Sungkyu calculated the minutes,  "Wait, the whole time?!" He buried his face in his hand, "I'm dead..." 

 "It's fine," she said with a laugh, "I won't tell anyone."

  Sungkyu was still hiding his face, "Did you forget something?"

 "I was going to tell you to get ready so we can go."

 "Oh! Are you ready? I though you needed a while to do your make-up... "

Mina playfully stomped her foot, "So you're saying I need make-up?"

 "No, I just," Sungkyu caught whiff of her kidding, he laughed, "I see..."

 He got up, and threw his backpack over his shoulder, holding onto the strap with his fingers, "I'm ready then."

 The two walked side by side to the station he came from yesterday, and there awaited the train. 

Once on, the two stood next to each other in the midst of the crowd. The cross that hung around Sungkyu's neck sparkled, seizing Mina's attention.

Her eyes were fixed on it, "was that a gift from Nayeon, too?"

 "Huh?"

 "The cross."

 Sungkyu clutched it, "Not exactly, it was something Woohyun made for me, although the cord is actually from the same scarf I showed you yesterday. It means a lot to me. You can say, " Sungkyu held a subtle smile, "It saves me... "

Mina was curious, she stretched out her hand and touched the cross, Sungkyu instinctively swatted her hand away, "I'm sorry," he told her.

Mina smiled and apologized, "I'm sorry, it just- I guess, I wanted to touch it without noticing." 

He kept looking at her innocent smile, "here you go," he said with a sigh as he took it off and handed it to her, "be careful with it though~."

Mina was surprised she got what she wanted, her eyes brightened up as they focused on the cross. "It's very beautiful."

 "Yeah. It is. It brings me peace."

 As the two got off the train at 9:42 am, a girl standing in wait for her train caught Sungkyu's attention. She looked exactly like Nayeon. He rubbed his eyes and took a second glance, but no one was there.

 "What is it?" Mina asked, curious at what Sungkyu was staring at.

"Oh! Just thought I saw someone I know..." He then followed up by asking Mina if she could take him to a gift shop, "Or a florist, whatever place I could buy a gift for a couple."

 Mina took him to a florist that was a block away.  After some deliberation, Mina chose the flowers for him.

 With the bouquet in hand, Mina led him to the address he had shown her, Woohyun's apartment.

As soon as Woohyun opened the door to the loud knocks, Sungkyu smiled and shoved the bouquet in his face, "Congratulations!"

His face was as bright as the sun during midday, "Sungkyu!" He moved to hug him, but Sungkyu sidestepped, he laughed at this.

At the same time Mina timidly waved, "Hi."

 Woohyun was stumped, "You got a girlfriend?!"

She couldn't hold in her smile.

 "She's a friend. "

 "She's a nice catch, Sungkyu!"

Sungkyu felt awkward, his face was turning red, "You talk too much," he said as he gave him a slight shove, "You haven't changed, huh?"

 Woohyun let the two in and they were greeted by his fiancee, who served them a cup of coffee along with a plate of macaroons.

Mina recognized her, "Aren't you-"

 "Yup!" she replied, "I think we met at the Red and White Festival," She counted the years with her fingers, "7? 8? 6 years ago?"

 "I feel old now!"

 The girls continued talking, Sungkyu was rather quiet- pensive because of the girl's striking resemblance to Nayeon. The similarities stirred up a sense of sorrow in him, "I miss her," was the resounding thought. Woohyun set down his mug and came near to his love's ear and whispered for her to take Mina out so he can talk with Sungkyu alone.

 She nodded, and turned to look at Mina. "Hey, we have a lot to catch up on, but I think we ran out of treats, can you go with me to this one bakery?"

 Mina had open, slightly confused by the sudden request, "Alright..."

 She pulled on Mina's arm with a wide smile, "Come on, I'll buy you something there!"

 "Ok~" she replied with an amused tone as they left out the door.

 "They'll make great friends," Sungkyu remarked with a subtle smile.

 "Alright, I'm all ears for you!"

 Sungkyu furled his brows, "Huh?"

 He sighed, "Got any problems?"

 "I'm fine."

 "Really?" Woohyun asked with an upraised brow.

 "Yeah..."
 Woohyun drank some of his coffee, "Well, make yourself at home, I guess... You still got those hallucinations under control?"

 "Yeah, I can go an hour without being in contact with the scarf or cross. The training was harsh, but worth it."

 "That's great!"

 "How about you- no cold feet, right? I'm surprised you're actually marrying her," this he added with an almost mocking tone.

 Woohyun lifted his nose at him, "I told you I'd marry her!"

 "Still a shocker!"

 "We just naturally fell in love after I was assigned to be her bodyguard by the local police."

 "I know, you've told me at least several dozen times."

 "It was a Friday morning," Woohyun said proudly, "And the chief went, 'Woohyun! You've been assigned to this idol as long as the stalker-crimes continue!'" He said the last part with a gruff smoker voice.

 "I know!"

 Woohyun stood up and played the parts, "'Why~ how handsome is my bodyguard!'" he continued in falsetto tone, "'I'm so lucky to have a strong-' and she patted my muscles," he added as he flexed his biceps, "'A strong guy like you by me~'"

 "Okay-"

 He spoke with a haughty air, "'No, the pleasure's mine, Miss Park!' and then I asked for her autograph and the rest was automatic."

 "Fine~ still a shocker! You and Joy! You must really be grateful to that one stalker, right?" Sungkyu joked.

Woohyun crossed his arms and stopped to look at Sungkyu with concerned eyes, "How about you? You still go on solo missions? You should quit, like me! Best thing that happened, besides meeting Joy."

 "I'm fine, I got Mr. Borden-'

Woohyun scoffed, "I forgot he often partners up with you. I still feel this anger whenever I hear his name. I can't believe he lied to me about Jaejoong dying," he spoke with a mocking voice, 'he's resting,'  he told me, yeah," he clicked his tongue, "resting in peace..."

 Sungkyu sighed and stood to place his hand on Woohyun's shoulder, "He knew what was best for the time."

 "Yeah, well, I still wouldn't be so trusting if I were you." Woohyun became solemn with his air seemingly stolen as he debated whether to share his secret.

Several years ago, Woohyun met up with Borden so they can discuss a series of murders that resembled that of the Devilchildren. They suspected these cases were simple copycat murders (they were), but Woohyun was called up to give his 2 cents. It was at that time that Woohyun stole the "Top Secret" file that Borden kept peering into. In it was every known detail in regards to the Devilchildren. Woohyun was shocked when he discovered Sungkyu was the origin point of everything, everything was his fault.

 "Woohyun, you okay? You seem dazed"

Woohyun snapped out of his trance, "Just nostalgic... You heard they finally demolished the church we stayed at?"

 Sungkyu kept a muted look, "Yeah... To be honest, I first doubted whether I should join the fray I was swallowed into, but then I felt compelled to, as if it were my duty."

 "Yeah?" Woohyun replied with a heavy sigh.

"We made some good memories there, though." he spoke with a wistful voice, "First and Amistad... Good thing you moved Jaejoong to a proper burial place."

Woohyun forced out a small smile. 

Sungkyu squeezed Woohyun's shoulder, "I'm sure he takes care of you from up there."

 "I'm sure Nayeon takes care of you, too." Woohyun said this with a tension in his heart, being privy of a dark secret in regards to Nayeon. 

 "Yeah, I'm sure."

Woohyun shook off his anxiousnes as he noticed a rather empty look in Sungkyu.  "You sure you alright, Sungkyu? I'm here for you..." he said as he sat down.

Sungkyu moved to stand by the window at his left. "I'm fine." He pulled on the blinds slightly and peered outside to look at the sky.

 He smiled at Woohyun.

Woohyun stared through his smile.  He chuckled, "You seem fine, but are you? Because I heard that people who keep saying 'I'm good' or 'I'm fine' are usually the ones with the problems..."

 "Well," Sungkyu ran his hand through his hair, "It's like there's a loneliness inside me that doesn't want to go away." He sighed as the memory of Nayeon popped up in his mind, "I can't help it. I still miss her..."

Woohyun groaned at Sungkyu's words. "I knew you were lonely," he paused before answering, "But maybe it's time you find a nice girl. How about Mina? I saw a ring on her finger, though..."

 "Oh, I gave her that!" He waved his hands, hoping Woohyun wouldn't misunderstand, "it's just a friendship ring! "

 "You should go out with her."

Sungkyu replied with a doubtful tone, "I don't know."

 "Go out with her. She loves you, I could tell. "

 "Should I? I always thought I'd be alone for the rest of my life to tell you the truth. I was fine with that."

 "Just do it! If it helps, I read that chicks over 25 get desperate-"

 "Wow!" Sungkyu cut in, " what would Joy say? "

 "I'm just saying!"

 "I'll think about it," Sungkyu replied with a half smile.

 At this time, Joy and Mina returned. First thing Sungkyu did was lock eyes with Mina. He felt his breath stolen and his cheeks flush with a pleasant heat. Mina grinned at his reaction. It was then that Sungkyu decided to give love another shot.

Sungkyu returned with Mina to her apartment an hour or so later.

 As she opened her door she remarked, "It'd be nice if you could move here, " she pointed to the room directly across hers, "it's vacant, but I guess you have to return back to your own country, right?"

 "Is it expensive?"

 Mina felt hopeful, as though she knew his intention, "Yeah... what are you thinking?"

 "I could apply for a visa and get it rather quickly. I have connections because of my job. Maybe I'll take it."

 "Really?" Mina asked with beaming eyes.

 "If you promise to work in that Power Rangers movie for me. Then I can show off to Woohyun!"

Mina was coy again,  "I'll think about it..."