"Kim...?"

"Hey, Honey. What's up? I'm sorry for not returning your calls right away. We were up since three am and just got back here in the room."

"That's fine... Were you able to eat dinner...?"

"Pie, what's wrong? Why are you crying?"

"Kim... my dad..."

"W-what happened to him...?"

"W-we rushed him to the hospital this morning. …"

"Oh, my..." Kim slides down against the bed frame. "H-how is he...?"

"He's unstable. Half of his body is paralyzed right now. I don't know what to do, Kim..."

"Shhh... Honey, your dad's a strong man. He'll make it."

"B-but the doctors said his chances of survival are really slim. We're not even sure if he'll even wake up again..."

Kim massaged her head with her hand. All the stress from the morning is finally taking its toll on her. However, she can't show any sign of weakness or tiredness as her girlfriend is in a bad situation right now.

"Pie, Honey, you have to stay strong. Your dad wouldn't want you to see like that."

"I don't know to do if he won't make it, Kim. I... I'm not ready for this..."

"It's going to be fine, Honey. I promise you that. He's gonna make it."

---

"The man was able to make it the next morning. However, after three days, he died," said Kim sadly. She's Katrien's side with her thumb while the little girl is taking a nap on Kim's shoulder. "It was really hard for her to take. She's her dad's baby girl, you know. She asked me to file an early leave so I can be with her. She was really feeling down. However, the earliest schedule I got was three months after her dad's burial."

"In other words, you didn't make it to the burial?" asked Zee.

Kim shook her head no. "I couldn’t leave. It was a busy year for AEF that time too. We were working for like eighty hours a week. I rarely talk to her. And there were times she's not in the mood to talk. I understood. I knew she's grieving for her loss. I gave her time because I know that's what she needs."

"Then what happened?" asked Yam.

"Two days before my scheduled vacation leave, the list of SAU passers arrived."

---

"W-we passed," said Conan, trembling.

"Yeah." Kim is staring intently at the paper in front of her. "I can't believe it. The exams were crazy, especially the psychological tests."

"It says here that all SAU members who wish to continue will be deported to Brazil the day after tomorrow," said Conan, looking at the instructions. "There, the new SAU members will have intensive training for two years."

"Two years..." said Kim, stepping backward to sit on the bench. "That's a really long time."

Conan sat on the bench too beside Kim. "Yes. It's an uninterrupted training. Meaning, our families won't see us for two years."

"Will you go for it?"

"It's now or never, bud. The next exam will be after two years again."

Kim inhaled and blew air from . "Why is this happening to me?"

"You want to come, right? But you can't."

"I can't. Pie needs me. She's been far away these past few weeks because of her dad's death. I want to make it up with her by being there."

"Truly romantic." Conan nudged Kim. "So, I guess I'll see you after two years?"

Kim nodded. She offered her right hand. "Congrats, bud. What can I say? Stay alive. I heard lots of new members die even during training."

Conan shook Kim's hand. "Thanks. I wouldn't have made it without support and inspiration from you."

It was Kim's turn to nudge Conan. "I can't wait to see you in that SAU suit."

Conan smiled. "You're doing the right thing, Kim. She needs you now more than ever."

"I know. Say, why don't we start packing now?"

---

"Did you regret choosing to be with her, Cap?" asked Yam.

"I didn't," said Kim right away. "Yes, I wanted to join SAU but given that type of choices, I'd still choose her."

"So, you did take your vacation leave?" asked Zee.

"Yup, I did. But instead of staying in her house like what I usually do, I've decided to book a room in a hotel for the whole month. I don't want to stir anything with her mom that might affect ex more. Besides, she's already working in the AEF hospital that time. I don't want to take her much far away because I know she likes to help people too."

"And?"

"It felt different when she picked me up from the airport. She's still sweet. I felt that she still missed me. But something about her has changed. Our usual noisy drives turned into silent one, with her being in the phone most of the time," said Kim. "I thought it's because she's just mad at me or what. But when we finally got into my hotel room, that's when I found out why."

---

Kim was bolted back to reality when she heard a vibration on the bedside table. She reached for Pie's phone and noticed that a person by the name of Doctor Peter Denman is calling.

Kim put the phone down thinking that it's work related stuff. Besides, Pie's still in the shower room and can answer the phone herself once she's done.

However, the call didn't stop. The said doctor kept on calling Pie. Kim doesn't know why but something tells her that it's odd behavior. She stared at Pie's phone screen until the call stopped.

Kim doesn't really like checking Pie's phone. However, curiosity kicked in when a text message from the doctor came in. She opened it and felt more nervous.

"Hey. Why aren't you answering my calls? I'm worried."

With the way the guy approached Pie, Kim knew that something is going on between the two. There was no message history from that guy, which means that Pie might've deleted it. Apparently, the guy doesn't seem to have any idea that Pie has a girlfriend and thought that he could call her anytime he wants to.

Kim felt her face heating up and felt angry when Pie stepped out of the bathroom in with a towel wrapped around her body.

"Hey, Honey, I'm hungry. Can you please order room service?" said Pie, looking into the mirror, not having a single idea of what's happening.

"Who's Doctor Peter Denman?"

Pie's body jerked a little. Her mood changed. "He's a doctor in the hospital I'm working. Why?" she asked, still looking at the mirror.

"I just noticed that he's called you for like 5 times now," said Kim, showing the phone. "And he sent you this message."

Pie finally turned to Kim, straight-faced. She read the message and swallowed something in .

"Who's he?"

"I've told you, he's a doctor in the hospital. I work with him."

"Then why is he calling you even if you're not at work?"

Pie couldn't answer. She looked on the floor. Kim felt more nervous.

"Why is he calling you like he's expecting you to answer his calls?"

"Kim --"

"Why the is he calling you like he knows your schedule!" Kim finally raised her tone, her voice trembling.

"Kim I --"

"What! Tell me! Are you cheating on me!"

"I'm not cheating on you!" Pie raised her voice as well.

"Then why is he ing calling you and telling you he's ing worried about you!" Kim threw the phone on the bed.

"Because we talk all the time!"

Kim was shocked to hear that but that didn’t stop her from asking further. "Talk all the time? W-what are you talking about?"

Pie closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. "It started when dad was rushed into the hospital. He, Peter, is one of his interns. We just... talked... and he was there with my mom and me even after dad died..."

Kim opened , but no words came out. She had finally connected the dots. "So... he's the one who's on your side..."

"K-Kim..."

"...just because I wasn't there, right?"

"It's not like that, Kim..." Pie climbed the bed and tried to hug Kim.

"Please don't touch me for now," said Kim, raising her palms up, climbing down the bed. "I don't want to hurt you, Pie..."

Pie started sobbing. "Kim... please... I..."

"What do you feel towards him?"

"Kim... don't do this please..."

"What. Do. You. Feel. Towards. Him."

Pie just looked down the bed, her tears keep on flowing.

"What the do you feel towards him! Answer me! Be honest with me, Pie! That bastard wouldn't act like that if you didn't give any motives!"

"I like him, okay? I like him! Happy now?"

Kim saw that Pie is mad. However, with the way Pie told her that, it was too much for her to take. Kim didn't notice that a tear started rolling down her face.

"I was lonely..." said Pie, sobbing. "I needed someone to be there... I needed you..."

"Well, I am here, Pie... I'm right here... see?"

"Yes, you're here now... but until when...?"

Kim bit her lower lip, still trying to stay in one piece. She shook her head. "This is over." She picked her duffel bag from the floor and walked towards the door.

"Kim, please don't leave me like this..." said Pie, climbing down the bed. "Let's talk about this, please..." She reached for Kim's arm but the latter pushed her away.

"I said don't touch me!"

"I just want to talk, Kim..."

"What else is there to talk about?" asked Kim, mad. "Seven years, Pie. You have never entertained any guy who tried to woo you for seven years. You never even bothered to look at them even if I wasn't by your side. But this one --" Kim couldn't continue her sentence as her voice is breaking.

"I'm sorry, Kim... I'm so sorry... please don't leave me..."

"There's nothing to be sorry about, Pie," said Kim calmly. "You deserve to be happy with someone who can always be there for you. Sadly, it's not me…"

Pie is slowly stepping towards Kim again, hesitant to touch the latter. "No... don't... Kim... please..."

Kim swallowed a lump in before finally saying, "I'm setting you free now, Pie."

And with that, she stormed out of the room right away and shut the door close. She kept walking, not knowing where to go. Pie keeps on calling but she's just ignoring the call. When senses finally came back, she called Conan.

"Hey, pal, how's the vacation?"

"Conan, what time is the flight tomorrow for SAU training in Brazil?"

"Uh... it's 04:00 am. What's up?"

"Cool. Please make sure my name is enlisted in there too."

"Uh. Sure. I'll submit the form for you. But I thought you're on vacation? How are you going to attend the training?"

"Thanks. I'm going back there now." After that, Kim threw her phone to the sea.