The safehouse they were in was bigger than most regular houses, which was ironic since the entire purpose was to be incognito. 

Jaebum, Jinyoung and Mark had their own rooms and Heiran and Lucy were sharing one of their own. It was selfish of Mark to want to be in that room with them. He wanted to fall asleep with Heiran in his arms and Lucy’s cold feet pressed against his calves. But they needed to be with each other more than Mark needed to be with them. 

It wasn’t fair, so he just suffered in silence under thin blankets while staring up at the ceiling. Sometimes, if he closed his eyes really tight, he could remember the feeling of waking up to her heat and how difficult it was to pull himself away. 

The sound of his bedroom doorknob turning had him yanked from his thoughts. He sat up when Heiran tiptoed into his room, freezing when she saw him staring back at her. 

“Oh, um, hi.” 

He raised a brow and watched her inch closer to his bed, “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah. Lucy’s asleep I just thought I’d, you know, stop by.” She said, rocking on his heels. 

“For a friendly visit?” He teased as she lingered next to the bed. He shifted over to give her space to climb in next to him.

She climbed in under the blankets, her leg pressed to his, “Something like that.”

He let out a long breath when she leaned against him. He wanted to hold her, curl up with her, fall fast asleep with her. “Jinyoung told me how you looked after Lucy when I was gone.”

“Well, I’m the guy who didn’t save her mom, I think I owed it to her.” He said. Memories of Lucy’s tear-streaked face flashed in his mind. Sometimes they’d share a look, one too heavy for a 10-year-old. He couldn’t exactly decipher what the look meant if it was fear or gratitude or maybe she was just looking at him. 

Either way, he couldn’t stop feeling the same way he did whenever he saw pictures of himself as a child.

“I made you promise to always save her first.” She reminded him as she tilted her head back to get a better look.

He nodded, “And I always will. But it wasn’t easy making a decision that could’ve killed you.”

“Do you normally get this worked up over consequences?”

“No. I don’t.” He said earnestly, staring into her eyes hoping she’d see exactly why this was an exception.

“I never thought it’d be you when we first met. In a million years I would’ve never thought I’d feel like this about you.” She whispered. “I like you so much.”

He hummed, his body thrumming, “How much, duchess?”

“More than you like me.” She said it teasingly but his face shifted, his brow lifted and a secretive knowing look that he kept to himself washed over the rest of his features. 

She waited for him to deny her implication but he just reached out and laced his fingers with hers, “You should get back to Lucy before she wakes up and finds you missing.”

Heiran tried not to let his deflection hurt her, and just nodded, “Yeah, I should.”

“See you in the morning?” He asked. 

She nodded and he smiled. He was pretty when he smiled. No, he was spectacular when he smiled. Screw all the paintings she'd spend hours staring at. 

His smile was enough to hang in a gallery. 

He kissed the back of her hand before untangling his fingers away from hers. He sat silently, watching her slide off his bed and head out through his door.

He wondered if he’d ever tell her. 

That he didn’t like her as much as she liked him. 

Because he didn’t like her at all. 

He was pretty sure he was in love with her.  

-----

Working together still took some getting used to. 

Jinyoung eyed Jaebum like suspicious prey refusing to coexist with a known predator. 

Heiran danced around Jaebum, trying not to be left alone in the same room with him. 

Mark managed to speak to Jaebum without anyone drawing weapons, but his patience was short.

Mark tried his best not to stare at Heiran for too long in case the others noticed.

Jinyoung basked in Heiran’s praise like a child getting candy. 

Lucy was fluttering with energy around so many adults. 

And Jaebum looked at all of them like they were in high school and he wanted to be friends. 

But somehow, they managed to find a balance so that they could be productive. 

“What about your gang? Aren’t they wondering about you?” Heiran asked Jaebum as they sat around the kitchen table pretending to eat bowls of stale cereal. 

Jaebum flipped through a set of documents that Jinyoung had printed, “They think I’m spending my time trying to kill Mark and overthrow GOT7.”

“Oh, so an average Wednesday?” Jinyoung snorted while making a cup of coffee.

Jaebum shot him a fake smile, “Ha ha."

Mark had gone to shower while they took a break. Most of the documents Jinyoung had found weren’t important or were too vague. Strange money deposits weren’t enough proof that the CEO of Heiran’s old company was working with GOT7. 

This was just one in a long line of dead ends. 

“What are we going to do?” Heiran asked as she set down another page. “There’s nothing useful here.”

Jinyoung shook his head, he was someone who worked with numbers and codes, he believed that there had to be something in these files, “Just keep looking. There has to be something here.”

“But would he be so stupid to leave a paper trail?” Jaebum asked skeptically. 

Jinyoung was firm, “We can’t give up.”

“We at least need a hint. Some sort of direction so we know what to look for. Otherwise, we’re just blindly searching.” Heiran said, exasperated at how it seemed they hit a dead end.

“Maybe one of us could meet with your Boss or something.” Jaebum suggested.

Jinyoung narrowed his eyes unsurely, “Secretly recording isn’t going to work.”

“No, but maybe we can get him to slip up or something.” Jaebum offered. 

Heiran was incredulous and how foolish the plan sounded, “That’s too risky. He’ll figure it out and try to hurt you guys. If he figures out you’re helping us then we’ll lose the upper hand of having you on our side. And there’s no way he’ll trust Jinyoung when he’s just ditched them and is best friends with Mark.”

“I guess that’s true.” Jinyoung relented.  

 She heard the shower cut off and stood up, “Maybe Mark has a better idea.”

The boys grunted in acknowledgement before delving back into their ridiculous plans as she knocked on Mark’s door, “Mark?”

She turned the knob and peeked inside before wandering inside, waiting for him to come out. Her nose scrunched up when a strange chemical smell wafted into the room. She pursed her lips as she knocked on the bathroom door, “Mark? Are you done yet?”

A sharp gasp escaped her lips as she stumbled back when Mark stepped out of the bathroom. Her eyes widened at the mop of damp black hair slicked off his forehead. dried at the change, suddenly the intimidating chill that his face would give him with his silver hair had melted in a more warm, human look. 

God, he was so attractive it made her insides clench painfully that she nearly doubled over. She wanted to sink her fingers into his inky hair like it was a black hole. 

“Hey.” Mark murmured while running a towel through his hair. “Were you looking for me?”

She gulped, her eyes pinned on his hair that she didn’t even notice that he was still shirtless, skin warm from the shower. “Your hair.”

He ran his fingers through the wet strands, “Oh yeah, I thought it might help me blend in better when I go out. What do you think?”

Heiran was speechless as she continued to stare at his hair.

He smirked teasingly, “I’ll take that as a good sign.”

She couldn’t bother reacting to him and instead felt her hand drift up to his hair on its own. Mark’s smirk morphed into a silent gasp when her fingers curled around some strands and tugged. His eyes glazed over, nearly rolling back into his head as he stepped close enough that his feet nudged against hers. Her nails scraped the sides of his scalp as she slid her fingers through over and over. She pinched some of the strands, rubbing them between her fingers as if she expected the colour to come off.

He let her hands explore his freshly coloured hair, curiously tugging and pulling. His eyes slipped close at how soothing it felt and an appreciative groan escaped his throat.

“Guys, let’s—oh, ew. Am I interrupting something?”

Mark’s eyes snapped open and Heiran stepped back, pulling her hand out of his hair before looking over at the door where Jinyoung stood. 

“No.” Heiran cleared . 

Jinyoung smirked at the deadpanned look on Mark’s face, “We still have a bunch of papers to get through. Come out when you’re done doing…whatever.”

Mark narrowed his eyes until Jinyoung shut the door behind him, then he turned to Heiran and leaned in close, “10 more minutes.”

“Of what?” She asked with a laugh, her finger trailing across the compass on his chest. 

He touched her waist, contemplating the idea of pressing himself against her. Seeing her in the basement had changed his brain chemistry, it was like his self-restraint had worn down to the stubs. 

“Mmm, of staring at each other? Of touching my hair? Of whatever you want?” He offered quietly. 

She shivered under his balmy stare, “Not exactly whatever I want though, right?”

“Right.” He sighed bitterly. “Right.”

Heiran grinned, “You’re so soft for me.”

He glared and to anyone else, they’d be shaking but she just gripped his chin and tilted his head down to her, “I’m going to help the others. Hurry up or Jinyoung’s going to get fussy.”

-----

Heiran left Mark’s room and wandered out to the living room where Jinyoung was sitting with Lucy trying to decipher a stack of documents. 

“Hey, do you have a minute?” Jaebum asked as he poked his head out of the kitchen. 

She went to the kitchen reluctantly, on edge, “What is it?”

“Here.”

She flipped through the papers Jaebum handed her, “Divorce papers?”

“Annulment papers.” Jaebum said quietly, his eyes refusing to meet hers. 

Even though the marriage was a sham and part of a grander ploy to get her back together with Jaebum, it felt a little bittersweet and a little nostalgic. Like they were breaking up for a second time even if they had never gotten back together. 

“Pen?” She asked awkwardly. 

He pulled the silver thin tip and handed it to her. She paused, glancing at the gift before setting the papers on the counter and signing on the dotted line. 

“I’m sorry for doing all of this to you. I got carried away. I stopped thinking about us and kept thinking about me.” He wanted to say more, to apologize individually for every single thing he had done wrong, but he wasn’t sure it would do anything at this point. 

Heiran didn’t want to hear apologies from him anymore. 

She handed the pages over and tried to give him a smile, “I think this door is closed.”

“Did I ever stand a chance?” He blurted.

She looked at her feet and frowned, “Maybe if things were different and you went about it differently but it probably wouldn’t have been a good idea.”

“I’ll always love you.” He said under his breath.

"I think a part of me will always love you too." She meant it. Jaebum was someone who she didn't think she could ever forgive but he was also someone who had once made her happiest when she felt her lowest. He gave her the confidence she didn't realize she lacked to face the world. And although he also gave her a truckload of insecurity after he left her, she'd be grateful for the good in their relationship. 

"Just not the part that wants to love me now." He didn't say it accusingly or to guilt-trip her, he instead meant it as understanding that their relationship was properly coming to a close now. And that he was speaking the truth of what she felt and that their relationship wouldn't ever be anything more. 

Before she could reply, Jinyoung’s gleeful voice cut her off, “Thank god you dyed your hair. Your roots were becoming hard to look at.”

They turned to Mark who shuffled out of his room, fully dressed and rolling his eyes. He glanced over at Jaebum and Heiran when Lucy ran up to him in awe of his new hair. “We have the same hair!”

Mark grinned down at her before letting her lead him to the couch so she could compare their hair colour. She draped her long hair over his skull, giggling when it blended with his, giving him the appearance of having long locks. 

Heiran felt her own lips curving up at the sound of Lucy’s laughter before automatically gravitating towards the couch, abandoning the conversation with Jaebum. He watched longingly as she sat next to Mark, her fingers grazing down the length of his spine.

This was his punishment, to watch her fall in love with another man, one that he had wronged. 

But he would make it up to her by making sure she’d live a happy life from here on out. 

It was the only thing he could offer her.

-----

“This is a bad idea. This is such a bad, someone say something!” Heiran chanted as she watched Mark lace his shoes up. She had begun pacing which was stressing everyone out.

“It’s a bad idea.” Jinyoung affirmed. 

Her shoulders sagged in relief, “Thank you!”

“But it’s our only option.” 

Heiran shoved Jinyoung’s arm with a glare, “How? He literally has an entire gang wanting him dead.”

“We were worried about losing our advantage, Mark meeting with him won’t lose anything.” Jaebum reasoned. 

Her face was burning red in anger, “Um, he could lose his life.”

“I’ll be fine.” Mark finally spoke up, his eyes following Heiran carefully.

“Shut up.” Heiran barked, her hands trembling, “He could have all of GOT7 waiting for you. You think you’ll be fine against those odds? Why are you doing this?”

“We need something to go on because right now it’s looking bleak.” Mark said. They were scrambling and without direction, they’d end up making a mistake. 

“B—“

He reached out and touched her shoulder, staring hard into her eyes, “Heiran, I know what I’m doing. Don’t worry.”

Her lips turned down but she finally nodded weakly seeing how set he was. She wasn’t used to the feeling that whenever someone she cared about walked out the door with no guarantee that they’d come back alive. 

He turned to leave but she pulled him back, his collar and pulling him close so that they were nose to nose. His eyes widened at the proximity, his gaze flitting around ever