The following months were just shutting herself in her dorm as much as she could and avoiding any places she would run into Chaeyoung. Tan was working overtime, poor boy, but Jihyo was grateful for him. It wasn’t that difficult to disappear, really, she just decided to get ahead with whatever course work was left and maybe take a few more hours working. She had come across a flier about joining the police academy, and she knew she wanted to help people but being a lawyer wasn’t for her. And with her formation, she could aim to get a bit higher in the law enforcement career, so she decided to look into that.

Turns out, Jihyo would need some more money to actually get into the police academy and keep her utilities paid. So Jihyo took more hours, her decision to get ahead with her coursework was also a wise one, as it allowed her more time to study despite the extra hours at her job. She found another small apartment, this time closer to the academy, and with a separate bedroom within her budget. It was the first time Jihyo would have a living room, and she was very happy with her new place. She also managed to move a couple of weeks before finals were done, training would begin a few days before her last final and she would need to be moved out before then. 

The first day at the academy was mostly introductions, each recruit said their name and something interesting about themselves to the class. The officer responsible for the dynamics explained that the fact about themselves was supposed to be a conversation starter more than anything, whenever the recruits wanted to talk to each other. Jihyo’s interesting thing was that she finished law school and had already passed her bar exam, which earned her some impressed whispers that died down as soon as the officer cleared their throat. Then they were given their schedules for the next four months and told about meal times and attendance, as well as where to go and pick up their uniforms that they weren’t allowed to wear them outside and all that.

Afternoon rolled around and Jihyo found herself at the training field, one of the officers assisting was quite familiar, but she was busy running the obstacle course and doing her best to get a lower time and not be forced to do it again because her time had been too high. A few recruits had already been told to get back in line and run it again. Jihyo ended up being among the fastest ones, earning herself a few interested colleagues and another few resentful ones. All in all, it was going well until it was time to leave, that was. Jihyo had showered and changed with the first group, the ones who hadn’t been told to run the course again, and were allowed to go home just as the last group was entering the shower area.

Our girl should have known, or expected, that things were never that tranquil for long. As she was leaving the building, there stood Chaeyoung and an officer, a tall(er) woman with a baby face and big hands that framed Chaeyoung’s face gently as they kissed. She did try to will herself to go unnoticed, but the younger woman did see her. There was an exchange of awkward smiles and a nod from Jihyo, the unknown woman looked at her with a confused frown and Chaeyoung muttered something that looked like ‘I’ll tell you later’. Jihyo gave the woman a curt nod which was reciprocated and left, she didn’t have time for this and still had to walk Tan before going to bed.

The next day was only a morning training and afternoon lecture, it looked like it was alternated, so Jihyo stopped by a bakery on the way to get something in her system before she was made to go through hell training, especially targeted by Chaeyoung’s new love, who she was certain wouldn’t take her presence too kindly. But it is what it is, and she had to get through this if she wanted to actually progress enough to be able to make a difference. There was a very good looking woman at the cashier, the woman winked at her and was very smiley, but Jihyo figures it was mostly because she took the woman’s suggestion on what to get and everyone gets happy when their suggestions are chosen.

As predicted, Jihyo was analyzed rather harshly during training. Officer Im, as the tag said, was clearly nitpicking each and every movement she made and Jihyo knew she was exaggerating and that the other officers were also questioning the behavior, but she also knew the woman wasn’t going to be stopped, much less reprimanded, in front of the recruits, so she just grit her teeth and got through it. Mostly because it was easier said than done as far as nitpicking on Jihyo for physical training goes. Along with Tan, Jihyo was told to hit the gym as often as she could, and had kept her body very much in shape. With how long Jihyo spent at the gym, basic training would be quite alright for her.

Also, recruits just basically ran a lot, did sit ups, push ups and pull ups, then called it a day. This was to weed out those who lacked the physical capability and/or the will to get themselves into shape. Lunch was great, though, they got more food than the day before as training had already happened and the recruits were hungrier too. Despite officer Im’s efforts, Jihyo remained in the first group and was not made to repeat anything as she did it all exactly as instructed. The decision to redo something was either unquestionable as the recruit had clearly done something wrong, or annulled by the commanding officer when the recruit followed instructions correctly, Jihyo had learned that the day before.

Officer Im had given wrong instructions on purpose, but the commanding officer had assistants following everything, despite the lower officers who were there to help as well. When officer Im tried to make Jihyo repeat everything, claiming she had made a mistake, one of the high rank assistants called her out and confirmed she was the one who had given out the wrong instructions and the recruit had followed perfectly. With that, Jihyo knew officer Im would be very angry and probably would want to clarify things with her at some point, but now she was supposed to be focusing on classes.

The funny thing Jihyo found about the police academy, was that she already knew the law, on the theoretical side, that was, and now she was learning how to apply the law and how far it could be stretched to ensure ‘the greater good’ was served. That means they were taught how to get rough without leaving evidence in case the suspects are feeling smart and decide to sue, or how to pressure people into telling them their secrets. Frankly, Jihyo didn’t think she would need  these techniques, but learned them diligently regardless. While Jihyo was in the middle of afternoon classes, Nayeon was chewed by her superiors and released from her services for the rest of the week as part of the recruit training team, being petty did come with consequences when your superiors saw it.

Chaeyoung was waiting for her by the door, and started laughing when she saw her girlfriend’s face. It was a great mix of frustration, anger and shame, the last one mostly because she was just told off by her superior and punished with three days of desk work for the stunt she tried to pull. But seeing her small girlfriend looking so amused at her misfortune, Nayeon felt a bit better about herself. Plus, Chaeyoung’s smile was always worth it for her.

“What got you looking like that?” The younger one asked, amusement still evident.

“Well, I tried to get your ex in trouble but got in trouble myself.” Nayeon mumbles.

“And why would you go after Jihyo like that? I told you that you should just leave her alone and not try to be a to the new girl.”

“I couldn’t help it! She looks great and is really smart. I wanted to teach her to stay away from my woman.”

“And who would this ‘your woman’ be?”

They had talked numerous times about this, Chaeyoung had been very clear about not accepting Nayeon’s ridiculous bouts of jealousy and possessiveness. She made sure the older woman understood she wasn’t an object Nayeon had just bought and now was hers, but the later still hadn’t made a single move to work through that.

“I- We-”

“Thought so.” Chaeyoung scoffs. “Look, you probably already got punished, if your face is anything to go by. But work through that problem of yours and back the off. I don’t want you after Jihyo at all, she’s already been through enough and you are just a jealous .”

With that, Chaeyoung starts walking away, Nayeon is quick to follow but she knew she was on thin ice. It was too much for her to handle, Jihyo was someone she thought was in the way of her and Chaeyoung getting together in the beginning. Her own ghost of girlfriends past, and the woman looked stunning, not only that, she was very intelligent, was athletically fit and held the top score for the entrance exams, the former title belonged to Nayeon, and the woman had surpassed hers by twenty points. Everything about Jihyo was grinding Nayeon’s gears in a very wrong way, so when she was able to do something to make herself less pressed, she did…. And then got in trouble for it.

That day, Jihyo got a message from someone she hoped to never hear from again. Momo had texted her asking to meet up, and saying she knew Jihyo’s address so she and Sana could just head there directly whenever Jihyo said she would be available. It wasn’t a meeting Jihyo wanted to happen, but she also knew Momo wasn’t the type to be told ‘no’ and just accept it, so she said they could meet on saturday and sent them the address to a cafe far enough from her place. Jihyo doubted Momo actually knew where she lived, but she also knew the woman was the type to follow her to find out.

Jihyo arrived earlier and settled herself towards the back, Tan curled around her feet with his little jacket and remained alert. He was a good and hard working boy, Jihyo couldn’t count how many times he had saved her. About half an hour later, two women Jihyo hoped she had left in the past walked through the door. Well, might as well get this over with and get back to her life. Momo looked excited, and Sana slightly apologetic, it had been a while since they last saw each other, Momo and Jihyo I mean, Sana hadn’t actually seen the woman, but she did force the truth out of her girlfriend back then.

“Jihyo!” Momo chirps happily. “It’s good to see you again.”

“Momo.” Jihyo answers solemnly. “You must be Sana, it’s good to meet you properly.”

“Likewise.” Sana says and looks around. “I’ll just get us something and be right back.”

And she was off before anyone could say anything.

“I thought you might have ordered for us already.” The oldest japanese observes, seeing that there was only a half drunk coffee on the table.

“And why would I do that?” Jihyo is honestly asking.

“Because you are in love with me and wanted to make a good impression?”

“And what gave you that idea? I was never in love with you, Momo.” Jihyo answers and lowers herself to assure Tan she was fine, he had gotten up with the angered response.

“Well, you were going out with me and all.”

Sana returned then, already looking like she wanted to be anywhere but there and sat down silently.

“We weren’t ‘going out’ as specified by yourself. We were ‘hanging out and seeing where it went’.” The youngest corrects simply. “And it went to you not being interested at all and me walking away from you.”

“Now, c’mon. We all know you want me, that’s why you agreed to meet today, right?”

Sana could only sigh in frustration, but remained quiet, she knew this was between the two. Jihyo, however, was boiling but trying her best to not have a screaming match there, she liked the cafe and wanted to come back again.

“Look, Momo, I never felt like you think I did. Also, who are you to say anything like that?!” Jihyo seethes. “I agreed to meet you because I wanted to give you a chance to apologize, at least. Now I see it was a mistake.”

Jihyo gets up and leaves before anyone has time to react, she had enough and also had better things to do, rather than listening to this bull. Sana just buried her face in her hands, she really hoped Momo was here to make things right, but this was absolutely not it. When Jihyo stepped outside, she took a moment to take a deep breath and looked down to see Tan was dutifully trailing her, before she started walking away. But of course, Momo was quick to follow, she was never one to back down when she thought she was right.

“Wait a minute! You aren’t going to just walk away like this!”

“Yes I am, actually. You can just go away now.”

“I came all the way to Seoul to propose to you a night with me and Sana, and you are acting like a brat. I get that you are all angry because I didn’t choose you or whatever, but just getting up and leaving is just rude.”

“Momo, shut the hell up!” Sana snapped.

“Wha-”

“You are just too much. All of this is just wrong, and should you have told me what you were planning beforehand, I wouldn’t have allowed you to come!” 

By then, Jihyo had already made her way past the cafe windows and was leaving. She knew if she kept entertaining Momo this would never end. Sana noticed it, but said nothing, she was also out of patience as well. Once the older japanese did notice, she  started walking after the smaller one, as Jihyo didn’t want to run with Tan on work mode, the little guy would get too excited. It was easy for Momo to reach them, Sana following behind and visibly irritated, the younger stops walking, not willing to risk them actually knowing where her place was. 

“Hey, stop being so rude!” Momo complained when she got closer. “I came all the way here and you are just being awful for no reason.”

Now that was it, Jihyo was past her limit and Sana looked furious as well.

“Momo, go yourself! I don’t want to see you again, I never wanted to be contacted by you ever since the day you asked me out and forgot, so I got there to see you kissing Sana.” Jihyo hissed. “Yeah, I saw it all. And I was gracious enough to not walk up to you and smack your nose in.”

“Now, why would you even do that?”

“Because you are an , Hirai Momo!” Alright, screaming Jihyo was loud Jihyo. “You are a huge and I should have beat you up when I had the chance!”

“Jihyo, please control yourself, the officers are looking over here.” Sana asks politely.

Seeing that the other woman was right, Jihyo takes a moment to gather herself. She didn’t need this as she was just starting her career, so she stopped herself. Momo was looking smug, but that wouldn’t last long anyway. Sana was also taking the moment to gather herself, she was beyond pissed too and knew she would actually smack Momo if she wasn’t careful. Now, having calmed down, Jihyo scratched Tan’s head a little and the dog backed down, still on full alert.

“Alright, how about we just take the alley behind you and I’ll show you something that could change your mind.” The oldest proposes, smiling crookedly.

“Do not step into that alleyway!” Jihyo warns worriedly. “This isn’t a ‘good’ area and you shouldn’t risk yourself just because you are an idiot.”

Momo, of course, didn’t listen. She shot both women a sultry look and headed towards the alley. As expected, there were some unsavory people there, who promptly jumped out of the shadows. One of them was a lanky man with a knife, headed straight to Momo, it seemed this group was the ‘attack first and rob later’ type of people. Everything happened in a blink, Jihyo shouted for Tan to protect, the dog ran and bit the man’s hand. Jihyo ran behind her companion and pulled Momo back, Sana screamed for the cops, who were still watching them and already heading their way. There was a cry from the dog, Jihyo scrambled to her feet and went on a blind rage, she managed to break the lanky guy’s knee, dislocate a girl’s jaw and punch in the nose of a second girl before the officers got to her. 

The other two guys were both terrified and torn between attacking this little girl or running, the officers had radioed the unit on the other side of the alley and surrounded them. This was a steak out, they had been meaning to arrest this group for a while now, and had finally managed enough proof to take them in. The officers caught Jihyo and slammed her down, it was clear she wasn’t herself at that moment. With an officer’s knee on her back, Jihyo knew it would be useless to struggle, unless she wanted to hurt herself, so she started on her exercises as her therapist instructed and managed herself. The officer noticed the girl was alright now and allowed her to sit up.

Once Jihyo looked around, she saw it. Tan, her buddy, her savior, her companion during her darkest times, laying down on a pool of blood, looking at her with pain and worry. She dragged herself to him, she knew it was probably a bad idea to move him, but being rational wasn’t something she was able to right then. Jihyo sat there, holding her dying dog in her arms and not knowing what to do. Momo was complaining about her dirty clothes and something about Jihyo being rough, she was being ignored by everyone around. Sana, well, she also didn’t know what to do, regardless of Momo being a complete idiot, Jihyo just saved her, put herself in danger, had sacrificed her service dog to protect them and was now in something close to shock.

Everything went fast and dragged on at the same time. Jihyo remembers being guided here and there, she knows someone pried Tan out of her hands, but she couldn’t react to that, not at the moment. The paramedics were checking her out, the people she beat up had already been sent off, the others had been taken to the station, and Jihyo was about to be taken to the hospital as well, she had broken her hand and the paramedics were worried about the shock she was clearly in. Sana talked quietly to the officers, saying they were trying to mend relationships but Momo was too stubborn and decided to go in the alley, then the guy jumped out with a knife and Jihyo moved to get the older woman out of the way.

It was clear that Jihyo acted in self defense and to save someone, so they just needed her statement, which was clear they wouldn’t get anytime soon, but she was free to go. Both Sana and Momo were alright, so they were guided to the station to give their full statements. This whole ‘meetup’, if Sana could call it that, was a complete disaster, and now Momo was still speaking as if she was the biggest victim. Maybe it was time to rethink this relationship, they were already out of college and both landed jobs in Seoul, this could be a chance for them to work on things that should have been worked on long ago. 

While all that was happening, Jihyo was taken to the hospital, where she had her hand treated and was checked for any other injuries, there were just a few scratches but nothing as serious. Tan, being a service dog as his jacket said, was taken to a veterinary clinic, they would prepare him and preserve him until Jihyo was well enough to decide what to do. Jihyo’s file listed everything, the doctor responsible for her contacted her therapist and the doctor headed there immediately. Jihyo’s file also showed she was enrolled in the police academy, the doctor also contacted them and explained the situation, as she was already a lawyer the course director wouldn’t hold her back if she would only miss the next few days, but he would have to re-evaluate after that.

All in all, it wasn’t that bad, if we weren’t talking about Jihyo’s mental health. It took two days for Jihyo to be able to move again, it was one thing a nurse told her that did the trick. The nurse commented that her dog was in a veterinary clinic waiting for her to recover and give him a proper goodbye. Jihyo snapped to attention and from there, she made herself move and get back to her life, sure her therapist would have a lot of work to do with her, but she was moving forward and that would have to count for something. Jihyo asked for the information on the clinic her dog had been taken to, and headed there the moment she was released. 

It would only come to her years later, but this was the event that triggered Jihyo’s life to change. She became detached and sought to preserve herself more, her observational skills started growing once she sought to see any and every sign of what was to come, she learned to not expect anything anymore, and wore her grief as a shield. That was also when her “friend group” started to form, Nayeon saw that Jihyo had been on medical leave, as she had been stuck with desk work, she was the one told to handle the recruit’s temporary leave. With the knowledge that Jihyo had been hospitalized after an attempted robbery, she went after the casefile, learned that the gang was supposed to have been arrested hours before, but the officers had stopped to eat first.

Now, you’d think something like wasting time purposefully wouldn’t be on the file, but since things went sideways, the detective responsible for the case made a note that he had sent the officers to make the arrest early morning, attached were some exchanged text messages and the time for the vehicle check out for the arrest team. Once Nayeon got out of work, Chaeyoung knew immediately that something had happened and questioned, to which the older woman said they’d talk at home. While all of that was happening, Sana was trying her hardest to get in contact with Jihyo again, mainly because she was worried, but also because she knew Momo had her head too far up her to actually care about the girl.