~_____~

Namjoo snorted after Tao, “Loser. He could use some work on his lies.”

Then she pulled out the fork in the bag and dug at the food he’d brought her.

~_____~

“They’re trying to show you how to work and it’s a form of friendship,” Lay explained, “it’s also a form of teaching. Since you’re going to be her only team mate going along with her in the next mission, it’ll be good if you try to work hard. Lessen some of her workload.”

“That busybody,” Tao complained when he walked into the large library with rows and rows of continuous shelves stocked with books and encyclopedias. “This is so confusing.”

He read the categorized labels that had been taped onto the side of the shelves. Tao ended up travelling back and forth before he finally discovered the files he was looking for.

“Kim Dae Ho. It was Kim Dae Ho, right?” he muttered to himself before pulling out a fat blue book.

Tao flipped through the pages before he found some police records of the criminal.

“5’8, 150 pounds,” Tao muttered, “penalized for theft seven years ago…”

He skimmed through the articles in the back of numerous reports about gang cases before eventually falling asleep on the couch.

~_____~

Kris had been called back for a late dinner by his sister-in-law and only arrived at the government hall around 11. Namjoo’s car was still in the parking lot and he stared at it for a bit before heading inside.

After some pacing around from the second to the third floor he finally discovered her on the fourth floor asleep in a room. There was a box of finished food sitting beside her laptop while she slept with her face buried in her arms.

“And I thought she was working hard,” he muttered walking over.

Curious to see what she had looked up on her laptop he quietly walked over so as not to wake her and pulled the laptop toward him. There was a map of a forested area in Wonju near a camping site. He scrolled around with the mouse before discovering that she was using a satellite dish to map out the area.

Kris glanced up at the brightly lit lights overhead and mused how she could fall asleep in such a bright atmosphere. The sudden ringing of her phone made him jump in spot. Namjoo’s head shot up in surprise, her mind disoriented. She looked around as if confused about where she was before her eyes sat on him. Then her eyes landed on the laptop in front of him before she shot up from her seat to snatch her laptop back.

“What are you doing!?” she declared.

He let out a laugh exasperated, “What? Were you hiding some AV in there?”

“What!? AV!?” she repeated so loud he felt deafened by her voice.

Namjoo shot him a glare before she realized her phone was still going off. Kris took note of how her expression immediately changed into relief when she saw who it was that was calling.

However when Namjoo answered she was scolding again, “Yah! I left you how many messages and you’re only returning my call now!?”

~_____~

“I was tired from the anesthesia so I knocked out.” Suho explained.

“Anesthesia?” Namjoo repeated. “Yah, you told me you weren’t injured. What’s with this?”

“See, this is why I didn’t tell you!” he scolded.

“Where are you?” she demanded.

“At my place. Come over and bring some food with you.”

“What?” Namjoo questioned. “Am I your maid or something?”

“Hey, don’t forget you owe me a week’s worth of food.” Suho reminded. “Hurry, I can’t cook without full use of both my arms. I’m so hungry I feel like I’m going to die.”

“You’re so fake,” Namjoo muttered, “I’ll bring you my leftovers.”

Namjoo hung up and turned around to find Kris still standing there.

“What?” she asked.

“I didn’t say anything.” he shook his head.

She arched an eyebrow, “What’d you come back for?”

Namjoo closed her laptop and tossed the garbage beside her laptop into a bag before tying it up.

“I’m going to leave, so you might as well too.” And that was all she said before walking out.

Namjoo almost made it to the elevator before she recalled Tao was also there and he’d have no ride back. There was a heavy urge to roll her eyes when she realized she’d have to walk toward the library on the other side of the hallway. While muttering incomprehensible words under her breath she found her way around and pushed open the wooden door with a side window open. She spotted Tao immediately when she poked her head in. Of course she wouldn’t have expected to find him any other way.

She quietly walked toward him and felt struck by surprise when she saw the book lying across his chest. Curious about what he’d been looking at she picked the book up and glanced inside to see articles of gangs and glanced at the top of the page to see that it was under the subject of Kim Dae Ho. Had he really been doing research?

Setting the book aside she kicked at his leg. “Wake up or I’m going to leave without you.”

His eyes slowly fluttered open before he sat up with a groan.

“Have you been drooling?” she asked and laughed when he reached his hand to wipe the area around his mouth.

Tao shot a glare at her before rising to his feet, “Liar.”

“Whatever. Lets go.”

“Go where?” he asked following her out.

“To Suho’s.”

~_____~

Suho had received six stitches on the side of his head and there was a cast on his lower arm. It was luck, he decided, that hadn’t left him. Or else he would have ended up with a broken arm instead of a fractured one. If all went well he’d be able to take the nuisance of a cast off in two weeks’ time.

Because he’d been so afraid of the stitches and had caused a commotion at the hospital they’d given him a little anesthesia to help him calm down while they operated on his cuts. And then he’d only woken up two hours ago before making his way back to his apartment. All the trouble left to deal with was the garage car he’d directly totaled intentionally.

He ran to the door immediately when the doorbell rang. Like Namjoo, he lived alone in an apartment. Their apartment buildings weren’t too far away from each other so he found it convenient to call her up if anything ever came up.

There was a tiny sitting room he’d homily packed with a long couch and a TV to the left of the door. The door to the veranda was to the right of the TV, which he never had the interest to go out on. To the right was the small kitchen with a long front counter. A stool sat directly behind it. That was the area where he ate at and would regularly sit to read or complete work. Down the hallway in the kitchen was the bedroom and bathroom. It was smaller than Namjoo’s place, but he liked small places where everything tended to be in reach.

Namjoo appeared when he flung the door open and spotted Tao standing behind her.

“You brought the br…I mean kid with you?” Suho asked when he let her in.

“Came from headquarters,” Namjoo explained setting down a bag of food onto the kitchen counter.

“Headquarters? You were there this late? Why?” Suho followed her suddenly forgetting about Tao who was left to stand in front of the door awkwardly.

“Looking up some areas in Wonju,” Namjoo explained while taking out a carton of food.

“Wonju?” he repeated. “By the way, what did Cho Chin Ho say?”

“Said some things about Eunhyuk,” Namjoo replied. “Donghae went crazy.”

“That’s not good news. He didn’t do anything, did he?”

“Tried to go into the interrogation room. I blocked him, but ended up greeting the window.” she said sarcastically.

Suho stared at her, “You’re not much hurt, it seems.”

“What can’t I take?” Namjoo asked.

He shrugged before reaching for the food. “What’d you get?”

“How’s your arm?”

Suho quickly dodged his arm away from her reach. “Whoa! Hey it hurts, don’t touch it.”

She scowled at him before taking the only stool he had which left him standing.

“What did you say about Wonju?” he questioned while chewing on the food. “Ugh…this is so good. I was so hungry. You’re a life savior, Namjoo.”

“Going to stalk their home base in Wonju. You’re out from the next mission. So is Donghae.”  

“What!?”

Namjoo turned away from him disgusted when a piece of rice flew out at her. She swatted the air around her before scolding, “Yah!”

Suho almost choked on his food before swallowing it. “Sorry.” Suho cleared his throat before going on, “Does Donghae know?”

“He’ll know sooner or later,” she answered.

“Ah…ahh!” he screamed when Namjoo pulled his wrist so that she could get a look at his arm. “I told you it hurts!”

She glanced up at him with eyes that told him to shut up before he continued eating.

“So what’d you do? Have Cho Chin Ho drive into the side of your car?” she asked.

Suho jumped up and down in spot when she twisted his arm as if to see if he had written anything on his cast. They both turned when Tao cleared his throat loudly. Ignoring him they returned back to what they were doing.

“Yah!” he screamed at her when she finally let go of his arm.

“That’s what you get for being reckless,” Namjoo chided. “In any case, when we’re gone, keep an eye out for Donghae.”

“Why?” he frowned.

“In case he tries to follow us.” Namjoo reminded.

“Ah…” he lifted his head up. “Doesn’t that mean I’ll have to go in for work?”

“Sleep at work. You’re not going to have anything to do anyway,” Namjoo told.

“What do you mean? How long are you guys going to be gone for?”

“If we’re going to try to stalk them down, maybe two days.”

~_____~

“Here,” Victoria turned to them the next morning. There was a black backpack hanging off her shoulder and Kris only found out why a few seconds later. Victoria handed each of them a handgun while explaining, “They’re loaded. Don’t waste ammunition, don’t act reckless. I don’t want the police district in Wonju tailing after us.” She shot her eyes over every one of them, “Lets stay low and play discreet.” Then she turned and glanced at their cars in the lot. “Lets go in two cars. Split us up into teams evenly.”

“I can drive,” Lay offered.

Kris noticed Chorong shooting a quick glance at him.

“Tao’s staying with me,” Namjoo declared and Kris watched Tao let out a sigh of complaint.

“I’ll drive too,” Kris spoke up.

Victoria glanced at them before turning to Chorong, “You want to join me and Lay again?”

Her face beamed with obvious relief and Kris wanted to let out a laugh of exasperation.

“Alright then,” Victoria summed it up, “lets not waste any more time and head to Wonju.”

When Kris turned around Namjoo said, “Lets go in my car.”

“No, we’re going in mine.” He unlocked his car without waiting for her to say anything.  

He waited in his car for about a minute. When they didn’t get in he turned to see the two of them bickering outside.

“My goodness!” Namjoo complained when she opened the passenger’s door and forced herself into the seat.

“Was that so hard?!” Tao asked her irritated as he climbed into the back seat.

Namjoo twisted around to shoot him a glare.

“Most people would call shotgun. You’re lucky I’m not fighting with you for the seat,” Tao continued rambling.

“Then why don’t you come sit up here!?”

“I already told you, I need sleep!”

“What are you, a princess?”

While driving out of the lot Kris could only remain silent and listen to them argue on about whatever had instigated their fight in the first place.

“Yes!” Tao raised his voice so loud that Kris’ ears hurt. Namjoo snorted from beside him and she harshly pulled the seatbelt over her with so much strength it made a zipping sound effect. “If you hadn’t gone to Suho’s last night, I would have slept enough and I wouldn’t be complaining!”

Kris turned to glance at Namjoo and realized it was Suho who she’d been talking to last night.

“What are you complaining about when you knocked out at his place anyway!?” Namjoo screamed back.

“It was because you stayed for so long!”

He suddenly wondered if Namjoo’s boyfriend was alright with her visiting Suho so late at night. From the sound of it, Kris assumed she’d stayed pretty late at Suho’s. Then he found Namjoo shooting him a death glare.

“What!” she yelled.

Kris quickly shoved his attention back to the road. “I didn’t say anything.”

“You looked it.” she seemed to say through clenched teeth.

He laughed in disbelief at her and opened the window.

“It would be nice if you two would shut up,” Kris managed before he switched the radio on, “until we get to Wonju.”

And in unison Namjoo and Tao snorted annoyed.

This was going to be a long ride.