[CONTENTID1]re:ignite[/CONTENTID1]

[CONTENTID2]Chapter 9[/CONTENTID2]

[CONTENTID3]

By the time the third and last week of Baekhyun’s sick leave rolled around, he had recovered well thanks to Soojin’s frequent visits. She never missed a day and always prepared a healthy dinner for him. It had become routine for both of them and as soon as Junmyeon heard of it, he gave Soojin permission to leave work earlier. He mentioned, “being proud of her for taking care of her partner”, and his knowing grin made her believe he had an ulterior motive behind his decision.

It was Wednesday evening when Soojin yet again walked into Baekhyun’s kitchen to prepare dinner. She already knew where to find the ingredients and cooking utensils she needed. Baekhyun kept her company, asking if he could help, but she refused since he tended to ruin every dish he touched. Baekhyun was a lousy cook, he just never admitted it.

“What are you making today?” he asked curiously and eyed the ingredients on the counter.

“Lasagna,” she replied.

“Oh, haven’t had that in forever!”

“I figured.”

His impatience increased when the delicious smell of food began to fill the kitchen. When the lasagna was done, Soojin put a large portion on a plate for him and a slightly smaller one on hers before sitting down. After the first bite, Baekhyun’s lips curled into a blissful smile and he sighed.

“This is amazing. It’s very kind of you to make dinner every day. I want to pay you back for all the trouble I’ve caused you. How about I invite you for dinner next week after work?”

“Okay, but it’s not a date.”

“Not a date,” he repeated with less enthusiasm.

“You look like you expected something else.”

“A man can always dream.”

She raised her eyebrow. “Not the man who broke up with me.”

He grimaced. “Okay, I get it. We’ll just have dinner as colleagues.”

“That’s better.”

They ended up sitting on his sofa, watching a random movie that she hardly paid attention to. She was busy doing something else. Soojin had made it a habit to bring her unfinished crochet projects when she visited him. Then she would work on them while they spent time together, mostly after they ate dinner. Today, she created a heart-shaped key pendant, made entirely out of yarn.

However, Soojin’s eyes kept drifting to the photo frame he kept on the TV stand right next to the screen. Even though she wanted to focus on her crochet work, she just couldn’t. Their old selfie was more interesting, reminding her of their first date together. The sweet memories made her heart flutter.

“What’s up? You seem restless tonight,” Baekhyun asked suddenly.

“It’s nothing,” she answered and directed her gaze somewhere else before he noticed.

“You can’t fool me, Soo. Something’s wrong,” he persisted, inclining his head. “Tell me.”

She sighed, deciding to just get it over with so he would stop pestering her. “The photo… I’ve been looking at it,” she whispered.

“I see… Do you miss it?”

“Miss what?”

“Being in a relationship,” he answered. The yearning flaring up in his eyes was overwhelming, taking her by surprise.

Her breath hitched when he leaned closer to her, his gaze entrancing her. She didn’t know what to answer him. The truth wasn’t an option, but she didn’t want to lie either, so she stayed silent. Anticipation built in her stomach as the distance between them gradually diminished. She leaned in as his hand moved to her cheek, fingers touching her tenderly. Pushing him away didn’t cross her mind even though she should have. She was too caught up in the moment. Her mind was on autopilot, and her body acted on its own.

His warm breath fanned over her lips, hooded eyes capturing hers—there was no going back. She lost control, letting herself fall over the edge without hesitation. Their lips met, and suddenly, she was back in the past. They were a couple again, were kissing as if nothing had ever happened, sharing touches with such burning familiarity. He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer until she fell on his lap. Soojin was overwhelmed by her emotions and his intoxicating proximity. Her fingers tugged at his shirt, eager to be closer to him as their lips hungrily moved against each other. Three years was a long time to be apart, and it felt like he wanted to make up for the time they had lost, kissing her until she was breathless.

She was swallowed by a wave of pure longing and pulled into dangerous waters, but when she surfaced and realized what she was doing, she stiffened. Her desire was drowned out by sadness and bitterness. Why did Baekhyun kiss her after pushing her away, after discarding her like trash? What right did he have to touch her so intimately after he had ended their engagement? The tears that had been pricking at her eyes flowed over, running down her cheeks and over his hands. She stopped responding to his kiss and he reluctantly opened his eyes, releasing her. They parted, and the warmth they had shared evaporated, cold regret taking its place.

“What’s wrong, Soojin?”

A frown pulled at her lips. She hit his chest with her palm, warning him to back off. “Why did you kiss me?”

As he saw the deep pain simmering in her eyes, realization set in. He had made a mistake, and it was too late to undo it. Baekhyun’s brows furrowed—he had lost control and gone too far. “I’m sorry, I thought you wouldn’t mind,” he muttered.

“There’s too much between us; too much has happened,” she said, curling her hands into fists. “If you didn’t keep so many secrets, it would be easier for me to give our relationship another try, but like this, I just can’t do it. What if you just end up hurting me again?”

Sadness clouded his features, blending with deep regret. His lips tilted down. “You must have many questions. Ask and maybe I can answer.”

She was surprised by his offer but didn’t hesitate to pose the one question that had been bugging her for years. It had brought her many sleepless nights and headaches as she had tried to understand his motive. “Why did you leave me three years ago? I already know you didn’t fall in love with someone else, so what was the true reason?”

“I know it’s hard to believe, but I did it to protect you. I needed to keep you safe and this was the only way,” he revealed and swallowed, “So I lied to you.”

“W-What?” Her glossy eyes widened, and she held in another sob, wiping her eyes with her sleeves.

“I was sent on a risky undercover mission at that time. My task was to infiltrate an influential criminal organization in order to bring it down. Have you heard of the Red Force?”

She shuddered. “Yes, of course I have. They’re infamous and no different from the mafia or the yakuza. Nobody has ever been able to stop them.”

“The police are powerless against them and their methods; there’s too much corruption and bribery happening behind the scenes. That’s why the Secret Service had to intervene. Since my superiors deemed me the most suited agent for the operation, they wanted me to handle it. So I assumed a new identity and slowly became a part of the Red Force, gaining the members’ trust over time. It was a difficult task because I had to put up an act constantly. I could never be myself and had to keep my guard up at all times, which was exhausting,” he explained and looked down. “The Red Force is merciless. The stories you hear about them aren’t exaggerated. The more I learned about their ruthless methods and the way they treat traitors, the more I worried about you. If my true identity had been discovered, they would not only have killed me but everyone involved with me—so I had to stay away from you. I had to hide our connection from them. It was a difficult step for me, but I had no other choice than to break off our engagement. I had to ensure the Red Force would never find you, no matter the outcome of my mission.” He fell silent for a moment, heaving a sigh, his shoulders slumping. “I’m so sorry for the trouble I caused you, Soojin… I just wanted to keep you safe.”

“You should have told me about this, then it wouldn’t have hurt so much,” she whispered, still processing what he had revealed to her. It was a lot to swallow. Baekhyun being involved with the most dangerous criminal organization in South Korea made her see his actions in a very different light—because she knew how cruel they were. This was not a small matter.

“I’m sorry,” he repeated and this time, his voice broke. He didn’t look at her anymore. “But you weren’t the only one who had a hard time after our breakup. I missed you so, so much. The three years I spent on the mission were difficult to endure, but the things I witnessed in the organization showed me that it was safer to keep my distance from you. The people working for the Red Force are ing insane.”

He curled his lips, staring into space as he recalled a memory he would rather forget. The pain she read in his face caused Soojin to falter. She couldn’t stay angry at him, not when things were so complicated.

“While it’s admirable you were trying to protect me, you still should have been honest with me,” she reasoned with a surprisingly calm voice and met his distraught gaze. “If we hadn’t reunited thanks to my promotion, I would have never found out the truth. I would have never seen you again.”

“I assumed you would move on and find someone better than me,” he mumbled and grimaced. “You’re an attractive woman, so I was convinced it would only be a matter of time.”

She tensed and raised her voice. “But our relationship meant the world to me! How could I just move on and pretend nothing happened?”

He looked downright shocked to hear those words from her and stared at her. “Are you serious?”

“Yes! I… I miss being with you.” She bit her lip—that last part wasn’t supposed to slip out, it was meant to be a secret, but now it was too late to take it back.

Eyes narrowing in determination, he leaned in. “I miss our relationship too. What we had was special…” He hesitated before he continued. “Would you give it another try?”

She took a breath. “I don’t know if that’s a good idea, Baekhyun.” The young agent was torn on this—on one hand, she still held feelings for him in her heart, but on the other, there was a lot of frustration as well. Maybe she needed more time. What she had learned just now was quite shocking, so she needed to process it before she could think of the future.

“What I don’t understand is, if I’m really still important to you, then why did you treat me so badly in the first few weeks at work?” she whispered. “That hurt a lot, too.”

He cringed and ran his hand through his hair, agony twisting his features. “It was stupid of me. I thought… if I treated you like that, you wouldn’t want to work for EXO anymore. I thought you might look for a safer job.”

“So you did it because you were concerned about me?” She was baffled. “What the hell, Baekhyun, you might have good intentions, but the way you execute them is terrible!”

“Yeah, I realized that. You don’t deserve to be treated in such a way and I’m sorry about all of this. I really messed up. You’re a capable agent, Soojin. The things I told you were lies and I hope you can forgive me,” he frowned and gazed at his hands. “It’s a lot to ask for after what I did, but please give me a second chance,” he pleaded, his anguished brown eyes glistening with unshed tears. It was rare for him to show his emotions so openly, and maybe that was the reason why she agreed so fast.

“I’ll give you time to prove yourself, but if it doesn’t work out, you need to accept it.”

Her answer was more than enough for him, so he slowly wrapped his arms around her and embraced her. “Thank you,” he whispered.

Soojin was reluctant to return the hug at first, but when he pressed a grateful kiss on the crown of her hair, she relaxed and melted in his arms. She nestled her head against his chest and buried her face in the soft fabric of his oversized sweater, closing her eyes. It felt good to be with him like this. Now that his biggest secret had been revealed, she could allow herself to be close to him. Finally, she knew what his motive had been all this time, and she no longer had to wrack her head about it. They could take small steps—there was no need to rush things. A simple hug was enough for now.

“Thank you,” he repeated softly, planting a kiss on her temple. She didn’t move, didn’t show a reaction, but the touch of his lips made the fire in her heart burn brighter. She couldn’t contain it anymore. This was it—she was still in love with him and she couldn’t deny it any longer. However, while her body was more than ready to accept it, her mind was not. He had to show her that he was serious before she would allow things to go any further.

The warmth surrounding her made her sleepy, and when Baekhyun didn’t speak anymore, it was more than easy to drift off. She forgot everything around her and fell asleep right where she was, not caring that she should have gone home instead.

When she woke up the next morning, she was disoriented and confused, staring up at a ceiling that was familiar and at the same time wasn’t. Scrunching her brows, she looked around until her tired mind finall