"Do you see him?" Came the crackling voice from the earpiece.

Min Ah casually ran a hand through her hair, bringing a few more loose strands forward so that they covered any and all traces of the small earpiece she wore.

"Blue coat, food stand besides the red car" She murmured into the miniscule microphone carefully running up her back and positioned near the collar of her shirt.

"Hoya's following from the other side of the street and we've got Myungsoo and Dongwoo in a car nearby" Woohyun informed her carefully as he monitored her carefully from the large white van parked a block away.

Min Ah simply smiled as she listened to his words intently and pretended to look at the handmade jewelry this stand was selling. She kept her body angled to that she could still get a good view of that man and carefully kept her distance. She glanced down at the jewelry, only now actually paying attention as the man bought his food and started eating it. Her fingers grazed a necklace carefully and she stared at it in wonder. The bright blue stone hanging in the middle seemed to glow as this pattern of swirls and edges had been carefully etched onto it.

"I don't suppose our target is hiding in that necklace?" Woohyun joked and she rolled her eyes, once again reminded that he was technically with her via the small camera in the topmost button on her blouse.

She gave the stand owner a smile and moved on as if she was simply searching for new things to buy. Her eyes scanned the food stand and her body jerked as she looked once again.

"Where did he go?" Woohyun asked tersely. She heard the rustle of clothes in the background and she could almost picture him sitting up straight and the look of false calmness that he used when he was getting nervous.

Min Ah didn't say anything, she didn't know where the man had gone, but in case he was around there was no point in speaking right now. There was no way he could have gone far anyways she told herself over and over again as she walked forward, her steps picking up the pace slightly.

"To your right!" Woohyun suddenly yelled into the earpiece, catching a flash of blue on the camera that her eyes had missed.

She stopped suddenly and swore under her breath as she collected herself and walked over to a nearby stand as if nothing had happened. She was getting nervous she admitted to herself as she found herself at a men's wear stand. She pretended to look amongst the ties itching to turn just a little and look to see if he had noticed her. It was the strangest thing with crowds, everything blends into the background until someone make the slightest move out of the norm. That calls attention to yourself.

That was the number one thing to not do when following someone and Min Ah was glad that Myungsoo was in the car instead of watching her mistakes. She sighed, her relief fading away fast as she realized he would go over this footage anyways.

"We need to look" Woohyun instructed and she casually picked up a plain black tie and one with a thin silver line going through the bottom of it hanging nearby and pretended to turn in that man's direction in order to hold it up to the light and inspect it.

She didn't dare move her eyes from the ties as she forced herself to focus on the feel of it and the way they looked. They were both nice, the black one was classy, it felt almost too expensive to simply be hanging in a stand like this. The one with the silver line stood out though and she was horrified by the thought that ran through her head. She didn't need to wonder what it might look like on someone with blond hair she thought sickly.

"He keeps looking over here, I think he's getting nervous. Buy something" Woohyun hissed quietly as if he would be overheard and she welcomed the reminder that she was at work.

"I'll take the black one" Min Ah said turning to the street vendor with a smile as he looked delighted.

"I'll wrap that up right away miss. Would you like to pick out some cufflinks while you're at it? I have a fine selection here that would look great on any man!" The man said encouragingly and she hesitated.

"He looks antsy" Woohyun said carefully and she bent down to look at the cufflinks as if she was so very interested in picking out the right one. That's right, let's see if that man can buy it.

She trusted Woohyun to keep an eye on him as she kept her eyes on the different cufflinks. The urge to turn and just take a peek was so strong, but she knew it would blow the whole thing over if she did. If that man caught her eye, he would run and they might lose him. Her eyes went over the small pieces and landed on a pair of round silver cufflinks. Ah, they were a lot like the ones that Myungsoo always wore she realized quietly as she examined them closer. They glimmered in the light and had a deep black color in the middle, a single stone smack in the middle. They looked nice.

"I'll take these too" She said finally pointing to the pair and waiting patiently as the man rang both the tie and the cufflinks and handed them to her in a small bag.

"Hope you have a wonderful day miss" The man said brightly and she nodded as she casually wandered around, the bag in her hands.

She headed to another stand as she got another look at the man who had seemed to lower his guard once again and was walking towards the exit.

"Get the car to the north exit and have Hoya come up from the other side" She ordered in a low and quiet voice as she gripped the bag tightly and got ready, casually closing the distance between herself and that man.

She saw the black car pull up to the street side and felt a confidence settle in. There was no way this man was getting out of this now she thought with a smirk as she closed the distance completely once the man stepped out of the market and onto the sidewalk.

"Park Jin Ho?" She asked from behind him and she watched carefully as the man suddenly froze.

It was funny really.

She could almost see the thoughts running through his head as he hesitated on what to do. He didn't even face her as she saw the green light go off in his head and he turned to bolt out of there. She was faster than the middle aged man though as she cut him off. Car doors slammed as the man went hurtling towards the concrete, tripping over the leg Min Ah had swiftly put in his path. She only had to keep a firm grip on his forearm to turn him over mid fall so that he ended up falling on his back and simply staring up at her helplessly.

His eyes flickered to the unmistakable sound of handcuffs opening and his eyes widened in panic. He began to back up on the ground, trying to pick himself up and Min Ah reached down ready to pull him up when he clawed her arm away. She gasped in pain as his nails ran down the length of her arm and she felt the distinctive burn of skin breaking.

"HEY! I wouldn't recommend doing that if you want things to go peacefully from now on !" Dongwoo snapped as he forcefully brought the man to his feet and slamming him onto the hood of the car he searched and cuffed him.

"Are you ok?" Myungsoo asked as he pulled open the door to the back portion of the specially made police car with the tinted windows and metal bars separating the backseat from the front and Dongwoo shoved the man inside.

"I'm fine can I drive?" Min Ah asked in a calm voice, trying not to let her anger show, but the pulse of pain coming from her arm made it increasingly difficult.

Myungsoo nodded and placed the keys in her hands she went around to the driver's seat and got in.

"What are you gonna do?" Woohyun asked and she jumped in surprise at the sound of his voice. She had completely forgotten he was still there.

The man sat in the back seat and laughed mockingly, "Getting scared to drive with the big bad criminal little girl?" He asked as he continued to laugh and she gripped the steering wheel.

"Is Hoya there yet?" She asked into the microphone.

"Yeah, he's here, we're heading back too"

"Alright"

She waited until Myungsoo had come in and watched as Dongwoo reached over in the backseat to buckle in their captive.

"Don't"

"I was just reaching for the seatbelt" Dong woo explained.

"I'm a good driver, he doesn't need it" She said and Dongwoo raised an eyebrow at the ire in her voice.

He looked at Myungsoo who merely nodded and pointed at his own seatbelt. Dongwoo quickly took the hint and instead buckled himself in. The man gave them a look of disgust for letting a woman make any decisions and settled in the back of his seat.

Min Ah started the car and pulled out smoothly. She drove calmly and as they approached a red light, she picked up her speed just a fraction and slammed the brakes on at the last second. They jerked forward, the seatbelt stopping the three of them and she smirked at the dense sound of something hitting the bars behind her. She heard a few swears and glanced over at the redeeming scratches on her arm as they approached another red light.

"Maybe you guys should teach this girl to drive before handing her keys—" He began and she rolled her eyes, picking up her speed and once again slamming the breaks harshly.

"You little what the hell are you doing?!" The man screamed angrily from the back as he picked himself up with difficulty and rubbed his forehead, "Aren't you gonna stop her?! She's messing up your car too!" He screamed towards Myungsoo.

"Not my car, it belongs to the department" He said with over his shoulder as he settled in for the rough ride.

~~~~~~

"She's useless, just a dimwitted woman" He said, adding extra emphasis on the word woman as if that was the worst insult he could come up with when they finally got downtown. There was an ugly red welt on his forehead and probably one more hidden by his hair Min Ah noted with a smile.

"Shut up already. You whine worse than a little girl" Dongwoo snapped finally getting sick of him as he dragged the man out and pulled him inside of the building.

"I have no doubt we caught the right man. With the way he thinks about women do you honestly think he wouldn't be involved in trade?" Min Ah said as Myungsoo hung back and she reached in and grabbed her bag.

"How's your arm?" He asked grabbing it carefully and frowning at the reddening lines, "What kind of man scratches on top of all things?" He asked in disbelief.

"One with confidence issues" Min Ah answered with a grin as they went upstairs.

"Probably"

"Aren't we going to the interview room?" Min Ah asked in surprise as he led her back to his office.

"After we clean up your arm. I don't even want to think about the bacteria that kind of man has deep in his fingernails" Myungsoo said and Min Ah felt a shudder of disgust run through her spine. In this case, she wouldn't fight it she decided as she glanced worriedly at her arm and made a face.

She followed him and took a seat as he grabbed the first aid kit they had and carefully grabbed her arm and inspected the deep scratches. She looked at him with a small smile as she wondered when he had gained the ability to be gentle of all things.

"What's in the bag?" He asked as he grabbed the small bottle of disinfectant and prepared to put it on.

"It's—" She began cutting off as he dripped some onto the first scratch and the pain seared and travelled through her nerves, "I uh... had to buy it because he was starting to get suspicious. It's a tie and cufflinks. Of all places to end up, I couldn't even end up at the purse stand" She lamented, gritting her teeth from the burn of the disinfectant.

"What are you gonna do with them?" He asked as he steadied the bottle in his hand and got ready to pour it onto the other scratch.

"Give it to my boyfriend probably" She answered so honestly that his hand tightened on the bottle so suddenly and liquid came washing over her arm including all four scratches.

He shook himself as she let out a small scream of sudden pain and shut her eyes tightly trying not to make any more sounds.

"Sorry" He muttered as a million thoughts ran through his mind. He quickly grabbed the gauze he had set out and cleaned up the mess he had made. Boyfriend though... she had barely been back for a 3 weeks. Was that enough time to get a new boyfriend he asked himself quickly. He shouldn't have backed off so completely he yelled in his mind, who was he?

"I was joking" She said with another wince as he pressed the gauze on too firmly and he seemed to gain some focus.

"....What?"

"I was joking. It was a joke. I don't have a boyfriend. I've only really been at work and then I just kind of go home and sleep. Geez, way to freak out" She said with a shake of her head and he frowned.

"That wasn't funny" He shot back quickly, his motions calm again and she watched on as he bandaged her arm up.

"It was up until you doused my arm in disinfectant" She joked back and he gave her a serious look.

"Let's just go" He said firmly and a bit annoyed, but mostly relieved as he stood up and she followed him out to interrogate the man.

They got there only to find Dongwoo stepping out with a look of frustration on his face.

"He says he's not talking at all" He said annoyed.

Myungsoo sighed, he suddenly felt tired today and he just waved Dongwoo over.

"Let the officers put him in jail overnight. That should put some things into perspective and let's end the day here" He said instantly seeing the look of happiness that crossed their faces at the news.

"Alright well I'll head out first boss!" Dongwoo said leaving before Myungsoo had a chance to change his mind.

"Are you going to sign for him?" Min Ah asked nodding in the direction of the interrogation room.

"Yeah"

"Alright, then I guess I'll see you tomorrow" She said and giving him a small smile she left.

Myungsoo had a headache as he dragged the man full of complaints out of the room and towards the holding cells. The officer in charge nodded in acknowledgement as Myungsoo signed the correct paperwork and finally got to shove the obnoxious man into the cell.

"....and another thing why isn't she getting some sort of reprimand?!" He bellowed from behind the bars and Myungsoo leveled him with a deadly stare that stopped the man mid sentence.

"I'm interrogating you tomorrow so you probably want to shut up so I don't end up coming in tomorrow in a very bad mood" He snapped and left the man in silence.

By the time he got back to his office their desks were empty and he scoffed at their eagerness to get out of here. He reached his desk and grabbed his briefcase only stopping when he spotted a familiar plastic bag on his desk. He plucked the sticky note from it and held it up as he read her small and simple note.

'You can have it if you like it. I have no one else to give it to and I don't want to throw it away so don't misunderstand!'

He laughed, the sound clear and crisp as he could almost hear her voice and see her expression as he read her words. He put his briefcase down and carefully took the tie out of the bag, it was plain, but something about it felt different, it felt special. He held it between fingers and figured it could be the material. He pulled out a small case from the bag and studied the cufflinks inside. He chuckled as he noticed that they were in the same shape and style as the ones he usually wore. Had she always noticed that? He asked himself as he carefully put them back into the bag and placed the bag into his briefcase. He suddenly felt a lot less tired as he thought about her gifts. Getting into his car, he realized this was the first time that either of them had given the other anything. He frowned, suddenly feeling a lot less happy. No wonder she had been unhappy with him and broke things off. She had been right after all, what did they really have at the end of the day before she left?

He felt like an idiot. He had wasted so much time.

~~~~~~

Min Ah stepped into her house and let her bag drop to the ground as she a light and went inside. She undressed and changed into her pajamas before collapsing onto her bed.

23 days.

She had made it 23 days she thought silently as she her back and stared at her blank ceiling. As if the answers and relief she wanted would suddenly drop from the ceiling. She hated this part. She absolutely hated coming back from work and being at her house all alone. Where thoughts about things and people she didn't want to think about crept up from the shadows. At work she was fine, she was distracted. Her friends were there, she was always busy, Myungsoo helped keep those thoughts away. His presence kept her from thinking about that man and she was grateful for it.

But when she got home.... when she closed her door and sank into the bed... when there were no more distractions those thoughts crawled back out. She closed her eyes and bit her lip, holding the urge to cry at bay. This week she hadn't cried at all and the week was almost over. So she could make it she knew. She was much better she thought proudly and that helped stifle the pain. Compared to the first week... yeah she was a lot better. She laughed softly as she tried to think about something and wondered if Myungsoo liked the cufflinks.

She shook her head and reached for the bottle of sleeping pills on her night stand. After taking two she realized that she would have to refill her prescription soon. As she turned off her lights and an artificial sleep came over her, she wondered if she would dream about him again. She was moving forward so she refused to even think about his name. Baby steps right? First came his name, then his words, their memories and finally there would be nothing left to remember she thought positively.

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This... was a really long chapter. Sorry about that I just kind of kept writing and there seemed to be no good place to really break it up into two chapters so here you go!

Thanks for reading! :)