Silence.

Neither Yuki nor Minho moved a muscle.  They simply remained frozen, staring at each other.  Both minds were still trying to process the situation properly.

The pair hadn't seen each other in months.  While Yuki had been trying her absolute best to forget about Minho, the boy had spent his four months not only fulfilling his general duties but also making sure that Yuki never left his mind.

One so desparate to reconcile.

The other so desparate to get away.

It was Yuki that reacted first.

She immediately shoved Minho away from herself, making the startled boy stumble back a few steps.  The girl herself backed up against the the ledge of the balcony, trying to put as much distance between herself and Minho as possible.  "What are you doing here?" Yuki demanded harshly.  Why is he here?  What does he want from me?  WHAT KIND OF A SICK JOKE IS THIS?!

"Ice Princess. . ." Minho said, raising his arm as if to touch her.

"Don't call me that," Yuki spat, "my name is Park Kota."  And by tomorrow, it will be something completely different.  But it's not like I'm going to tell you that.

"Then mine is Choi Joon," Minho shot back with a small smile, "you just can't seem to get rid of me, can you?"

"Just shut up and get out of here.  I don't want to see your face."

"No," Minho replied, boldly taking a step forward, "I spent 4 months looking for you only to find you here tonight by complete accident.  You think I'm going to let you go just like that?  Please.  I'm pretty sure you know me better than that."

For a split second, Yuki froze.  He's. . . been looking for me too?  However, the thought disappeared as quickly as it came.  Yuki shook her head quickly.  She raised her head and sent the boy a harsh glare.  "Get outta hear before I throw your sorry over this balcony."

Minho smirked.  "You don't have the guts."

"Try me," came the bold response.

The pair stared each other down for another few seconds.

"Ice Princess. . ." Minho finally sighed, "why are you doing this to yourself?  You know that you miss us.  And don't you dare try to lie," he said when he saw Yuki open .  "Okay sure, you might hate me, for the moment at least, but let's be honest, I can read you like an open book.  I know how much you miss SHINee and S.M., I know how much it's killing you to be away from them.  You can drop the act."

Yuki kept her face void of emotion, but on the inside, she was startled by how quickly Minho caught on.  "I don't know what you're talking about," she said, standing up straighter and getting over her surprise, "I don't miss anyone at all.  And most certainly not you.  If our last encounter didn't make it clear, I'll explain it again.  I hate you."

Minho scoffed and Yuki sent him a harsh glare.  He looked back at her with an amused expression on his face.  "You really expect me to believe that, huh?"

Yuki didn't make another sound.

"This is pointless, Ice Princess."

"You're right.  It is.  Now leave.  You've wasted enough of my time.  Actually, scratch that.  I'll just go before I actually do decide to kill you.  I don't need anyone's blood on my hands right now."  Yuki tried to throw as much malice into her words as she possibly could before she tied her mask back on.  She didn't spare Minho another glance as she began walking towards the balcony doors.  The boy didn't move a muscle.  As she passed him, Yuki said, "just get out of here."  The girl had placed her hand on the door handle when Minho spoke up again.  

"I regretted it," he said, almost too quietly for Yuki to hear.  Nonetheless, the girl froze in her tracks.  "I have no right to say this, but every single moment of that mission was as torturous for me as it was for you."  Yuki's hand tightened around the door knob.  "I wasn't supposed to tell you because I had to follow orders.  It was my fault for not trusting you.  My head kept telling me that I was doing what was right, but somehow. . . I knew that my decision was the worst I could have possibly made.  I put you through too much grief.  I hurt the person I cared the most about in the world by breaking the one precious thing I worked so hard to earn:  her trust.  I feel like there are points in time where I honestly hate myself more than you hate me."

Yuki made a noise in the back of , a cross between a scoff and a sound of pain.  She shut her eyes tightly as images of that night and the following days crossed her mind's eye.  The betrayal, the pain, the torture, her parents.  "You will never know what it felt like," Yuki spat venomously, "never."  With those last words, Yuki roughly opened the door and slammed it shut behind her, leaving Minho alone on the balcony.  Quietly, the boy bent down and picked up his mask, staring at it blankly.

A small drop of clear liquid fell onto it.

Suddenly, Minho's watch started beeping.  Quickly wiping his eye, Minho tapped his watch.  Taemin appeared on his screen instantly.  "Hey Hyung," Taemin said, "did you manage to make it in?"

"Yeah," Minho said, his voice sounding as though the confrontation with Yuki never happened, "I called in a favor to make sure I got in without any trouble."

"Excellent," Taemin said, "here's Key.  He can probably give you the best place to find a nice change of clothes."

The camera on Minho's watch shifted from Taemin's face to Key's.  "Hey," Key said quickly, "so where are you, right now?"

"Balcony," Minho responded, "I was thinking of heading to the restroom."

"Perfect," Key said, "restrooms are always the best place to check."

Key wasn't stupid.  He knew that something was wrong, but he decided that given the current situation, now probably wasn't the best time to ask.

"Roger that," Minho said, tapping his watch once more.  The boy stood up straight and chanced a glance at the night sky.  The moon was full and shining brightly, casting a white light on the floor of the balcony.  Minho blinked once and sighed, turning his back on the scene and making his way back inside the mansion.

Yuki wandered around the mansion aimlessly, not really paying attention to her surroundings.  Her mind was still buzzing with all of Minho's words.

"I know how much you miss SHINee and S.M."

"I know how much it's killing you to be away from them."

"I regretted it."

This wasn't supposed to happen, Yuki thought, I wasn't supposed to see him again.  Forget that, I wasn't supposed to feel these feelings again.  None of it.  Okay, Yuki, it's okay.  It'll be fine.  Forget it ever happened.  

However, even the girl couldn't ignore the resurfacing pain.  Images flashed through her mind:  Minho's betrayal, her capture, her torture, his haunting words, her parents' final mission. . .

Yuki was so preoccupied by her thoughts that she didn't notice that she had walked into an isolated hallway of the large mansion.  She came to her senses when a waiter accidentally bumped into her.  "Pardon me, miss," the masked waiter said, bowing politely before rushing off with his tray.  Yuki blinked twice and looked around, realizing that she must have gone quite a ways away from the main room.  The girl sighed and shook her head, trying to dispel her thoughts.  She turned around, firmly deciding to put her confrontation with Minho in a box in the back of her mind and carry on with her party.

That is. . . until the sound of a gruff voice made her stop in her tracks.

"And we'll have the goods by later tonight?" a voice asked.  

Yuki cocked her head to the side.  He's not speaking Korean. . . he's speaking. . . Japanese?

The phrase was repeated again by a different voice.  This time, however, it was in Korean.

Almost reflexively, the girl started backtracking until she reached the door she thought she heard the voice come from.  She looked at it suspiciously.  It could just be another drug deal. . . the girl thought to herself, but. . . to my knowledge. . . there aren't any international gangsters in Ansan. . . I suppose times could have changed.  I'm just overthinking things.  

Yuki was so absorbed in her thoughts that she wasn't able to sense the presence behind her in time.  Her eyes widened when a hand clamped itself over and she was suddenly dragged against another body.  The man who had caught her obviously knew what he was doing.  Yuki couldn't make a sound and her hands were pinned to her sides by the man's other arm.  Instinctively, Yuki decided to use her teeth.  A soft curse escaped the man's lips as Yuki bit down on his hand.  His grip on her loosened.  The girl froze, recognizing the voice immediately.  She turned around rapidly, seeing a tall waiter standing in front of her.  She recognized the mask instantly.  Before she could shout, Minho covered with one hand while putting one finger to his own lips and giving the girl a look of warning.  The message was obvious:  Shut up or we're both ed.  Thankfully, Yuki was rational enough to listen.  She remained quiet.  

"What the are you doing here?!" she hissed, "didn't I tell you to leave?!  What are you doing, stalking me?!  And what's with the whole waiter get up?!"

Minho pressed two fingers to his temples.  "Has being away from the force for this long made you that rusty?" he asked exasperatedly.

Yuki shot him an unamused glare.

"Look," Minho said, quietly but firmly, "when I said I found you on accident, I was completely serious.  I was sent here by S.M. to complete a mission."

Yuki cocked an eyebrow.  She looked unconvinced.  This couldn't be that coincidental.  

"You're more than welcome to help me out," Minho said, "I could use the back-up."

"Are you kidding?  Never," Yuki hissed.

The boy frowned, wanting to ram his head against the wall at his girlfriend's obstinacy.  "Forget it," Minho hissed, "I have a job to do."  He walked past Yuki and picked a tray filled with drinks off of the floor.  Making sure his mask was in place, the boy walked towards the door that Yuki was standing in front of.  He gave the girl a pointed glare.  Wordlessly, Yuki stepped out of the way and made herself invisible.  

Taking a breath, Minho knocked.

A group of important looking men sat in the room.  Some of them, Minho recognized.  Gang lords.  There were 3 men, however, that Minho had never seen before.  The men looked up at the sound of Minho's approach.  The boy bowed, holding out his tray of drinks.  "Ah, finally," one of the men said, "bring that over here, boy."

Minho nodded and made his way over to the man.  This one he recognized well.  Kim Sandeul.  One of Ansan's more powerful gang lords who had a suspicious knack for making reckless deals for the sake of a few million won.  You'll never learn, will you, Sandeul? Minho thought, recalling the night he and Yuki stopped him and 2 other gang lords from giving North Korea precious information regarding South Korea's weak spots, are you at it again?  The men in the room completely ignored Minho, returning to their conversation.

Yuki pressed herself against the door, straining her ears to hear the words being spoken inside.  "You're order will be here in time, don't worry.  Just make sure you have the money ready," another voice said.  Yuki scrunched her eyebrows.  The voice sounded extremely familiar to her.  The man's words were repeated in Japanese.  Translator, Yuki thought, order?  Drugs, maybe?  I mean. . . this IS a gangster's ball. . .

"Excellent," the Japanese man said, "we'll commence our operation tomorrow then.  Targeting the South Korean War Memorial Service ought to do it, right?"

Yuki's eyes widened.  Wh-what?  The South Korean War Memorial Service?  Target. . . ?  As if for an ATTACK?  What is going on?  These men sound like Japanese natives. . . But this could only mean. . . Yuki gasped silently, her mind flying back to a few months ago when Jinki and Leetuk had returned from Japan after securing peace negotiations with the country.  If. . . If these men really are from Japan. . . they're no commoners.  The treaty with Japan is void. . . They betrayed us.

Yuki's horrified realization was interrupted by another question.

"If you don't mind my asking," another Korean male started, "which organization are you three from?"

There was silence as the translator quietly relayed the message.

"We follow no one," came the response, "we work for ourselves and what we believe in."

Yuki understood immediately.  No. . . Japan hadn't gone back on their word.  Terrorists.  It's a plot, Yuki realized, the puzzle pieces suddenly falling into place, these terrorists will break the peace by attacking first.  South Korea will obviously blame Japan and retaliate.  It'll pit us against each other and distract us from the real enemy. . .  We'll destroy each other.  Oh no. . .

"That'll be all boy, thank you," someone inside said dismissively.  Yuki jumped back when she saw the handle turn.  She relaxed when Minho came out.  The boy shut the door quickly.  There are too many. . . he thought grimly, I can't do this on my own.  Without thinking, Minho grabbed Yuki's hand and dragged her a little ways down the hallway.  He grabbed her shoulders and looked her in the eye.

"Do you see what we're up against NOW?!" Minho said, shaking the girl slightly.  He made sure to keep his voice low.  Yuki said nothing.  Minho took a deep breath, shutting his eyes.  "Look," he said, "I get that you hate me and would rather die than work with me again.  Frankly, at the moment, I don't care.  I think I care more about South Korea than I do about our personal problems.  Do you really not care anymore?  Are you so lost in your own obstinacy that you won't sacrifice your pride for the sake of your country?  That's not the Ice Princess I know.  The Ice Princess I know would die for her country without being told twice.  So what's it going to be?"  

Yuki didn't say a word.  Minho sighed, his shoulders slumping.  "Nevermind," he muttered, "forget I asked."  He turned around, tapping his watch as he tried to figure out a decent plan.

Before he could move more than a few feet, however, a voice stopped him.

"Wait," Yuki said, glaring straight ahead, "don't you dare underestimate me.  Just because I hate you and I don't work S.M. anymore doesn't mean I hate my country.  I. . . I'll do it.  These guys are about to get their asses whooped.  They messed with the wrong girl's country."

Minki forced to work together again!  Yuki may have lost a good amount of sense, but at least we know she'll still do ANYTHING to protect her country!!  Even if it means working with her worst enemy!  The tension is slowly building.  

Is this alliance permanent?  Or is it only temporary? :O

Will Minki even be able to STOP these guys?  Or will their arguments end up getting them killed instead?!

Find out in the next chapter of S.M. Spies!!

Without further ado, let's welcome our new flurries!!  WHO HELPED US REACH A MILESTONE OF 100 SUBSCRIBERS WOW.  Thank you all soooooo much!!!! <3 <3

pikajoe 
 

thebestmaster100 
 

shineefangirl25 

I'll see you guys next week with another update!  Remember to COMMENT, SUBSCRIBE, AND UP-VOTE! Bye!

~Yuki ❄