"Condor." He acknowledged. Like the namesake, Condor appeared in their designated meeting place not a second later than the agreed time with much stealth.

"Did you find it?" Condor asked.

"Not yet. The Director instructed me to report to you today whatever happens." He answered truthfully.

"Thank you for taking the time."

"No problem. The director sends his regards."

"Give him my regards too and tell him I'll see him soon." And Condor walked away and a second later disappeared from his sight.

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Months later...

He opened the door to his penthouse. It was Friday evening and he's not supposed to be there but after the family dinner, some unknown force was constantly telling him to go back to his pad. After giving a lame alibi that he had to finish something important, he drove back. Did he miss her already? They were just together the last five days. He blindly looked for the switch and soon after, the light flooded through the whole penthouse.

His eyes roamed around. There was something vaguely wrong about the whole atmosphere that he even thought he entered someone else's house. As if his feet had the mind of their own, its strides became bigger and it went directly to his room. Everything was in proper order. From his pillows to the matching the dark comforter to the organized clutter on top of his desk. He felt a sudden tug at his chest. He walked towards the walk-in closet and found his clothes neatly arranged in every shelf. In color coordination like they used to be. With trembling hands, he nudged his things aside looking for her belongings in the drawers, everywhere. He didn't find any. He went to the bathroom but only found his toiletries organized beside the sink. He ran towards the kitchen and opened all of the cupboards but he can't find anything that will give him a hint that she's was even there to begin with—not just a pigment of his imagination. He proceeded to the living room and sat his flaccid frame onto the couch. He wanted to hit himself to see if this was just a bad dream. He closed his eyes tightly ignoring the loud thumping of his heart.

After a long moment, he opened his eyes and his gaze fell onto a familiar object placed on the coffee table. It was a fresh white calla lily, her favorite flower. It was lying on top of a neatly folded white paper. He snatched it and read its contents.

It's time. –M

What have I done? He thought. She didn't even give him a clue. They were okay last night. At least that's what he thought. He looked around the house again and noticed all the abrupt change. Since she moved in, she bought some throws for the couch. She told him that she could hug those if he's not around. There were flowers everywhere, calla lilies of course. She bought a new set of plates, funky colored ones in contrast to his black ones. Whenever she knows he'll be spending the night in his pad, there wouldn't be any chance that he won't be able to find her on the couch, patiently waiting for him. A feast on the table, a hot bath with fresh crisp towel, and a mug of hot chocolate before he retires to bed.

When she moved in, he made a space for her in the walk-in closet. The next day, he can't find any of his clothes. She rearranged everything. She told him that he could just ask her of anything and she'll find it for him. He's supposed to get angry and order her to bring it back to its old state but her pout and her innocent eyes made him just agree on everything she said.

They were living like husband and wife for the past three months. Good thing it was not discovered by his parents yet. They would not tolerate it in any circumstances. What did she mean it's time? Did they find out about them? But Siwon would have beaten him up to a pulp if he knew. They had been extra careful about it so there would not be any chance that they would have found out.

Now, her things were gone, the funky colored plates were gone, the throws were gone, she's gone! All's left was her scent and a lily. A lily! He remembered their last conversation.

"Do you know why I love lilies?" She asked him while they were sitting side by side on the couch, cuddling.

"Hmn?" He indulged her.

"I like it because it can endure so much. I wish I am a lily." She said.

"But you are a lily. You are so fresh and pure and..." He trailed off and carried her into the bedroom,  their lips tightly locked.

She was still sleeping when he left for the office. She knew the drill. Friday nights and the rest of the weekends were spent in the Han mansion. That's a family tradition.

Where was he going to look for her? She didn't have any family in Seoul. That's what she told hi.  Come to think of it, he didn't know anything much about her. He snatched his keys from the coffee table and went back to the basement parking area. He drove like a madman around Seoul, he went to every train station, the airport, stopped in  every bus top but no sight of her. He drove back to their house feeling distraught. He didn't know if he would be able to go back to his pad ever.

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Kyungsoo placed the mango cream pie inside the pastry display rack before putting on her chef's uniform. She was securing the black apron on her waist when a guy caught her attention. He just entered the café and since it was past the lunchtime chaos, there were a few people scattered among the tables. The guy was gorgeous, she noticed. Or was that an understatement? His slightly long hair was cut in a very stylish manner, parted on the side and his fringes almost covering half of his face. She nudged Bianca, the service crew, and told her that she's going to take care of the new customer. Bianca just smiled knowingly and took her place at the cash register.

"Good afternoon, Sir. Welcome to Nancy's! What would you like to have?" She said, holding a large white plate and food tong. She was gaping at him from the glass warmer. My, he's more gorgeous up close!

"I would like to try the tuna tekkamaki sushi, yasai itame and green mango juice please." Mr. Gorgeous said and walked to the cashier to pay while she was still arranging the food on his plate. She placed the food on a tray and went outside the counter to put it on his table. "Where would you like to sit, Sir?" She asked. Her aunt’s place was an affordable self-service restaurant but she felt like being customer oriented at the moment. She smiled to herself. He pointed to a table on the side, far from other customers. She placed the food on the table in a flash and once he was seated, "My name is Kyungsoo and in case you need anything, I'll just be at the counter. Enjoy your meal!" She sashayed flirtatiously towards the counter and winked at Bianca after she heard the gruff "Thank you."

Kyungsoo took the Pyrex dish out of the display rack and took a slice of the mango cream pie she made herself. She placed it in a tray and walked back to Mr. Gorgeous's table. "Hello again." She beamed at him when he looked up. He looked quite annoyed that his meal was interrupted. Hmn. Snob. She thought. "I don't believe you eat here often. This is your first time at Nancy's, correct?" She saw him nod. "Because of that, we would like to keep you as a regular customer. Please have a taste of our special mango cream pie for free." She smiled again.

"Thank you." He said simply and went back to his unfinished food.

Did he just ignore me?! Well, you can't win 'em all Do Kyungsoo.

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After finishing his food, which was surprisingly good, Jongin eyed the dessert in front of him. He was not really a fan of sweets but it sure looked tempting at the moment. He was inside a cafeteria located inside their building. There were a few of its kind renting a space inside Seoul Trade Tower. After two months of rest, he was finally back to work and he had to finish reading a ton of documents and before he knew it, it's almost 2pm. He was starving and he wanted to eat something fast and filling. He asked his secretary where she usually spends her lunch and she recommended Nancy's.

He picked the dessert fork and took a forkful of the pie. His eyes closed involuntarily after tasting it. It tasted heavenly. Not too sweet and he can still taste the fresh ripe mangoes used. He finished all of it in no time.

He looked at his watch and remembered he had a scheduled meeting at 3:30pm. He went up to his office and thanked Corinne for her recommendation.

"No problem, Sir." She said.

"By the way Corinne, have you tasted their mango cream pie?" He asked.

"I haven't, Sir. Why?" She looked confused for a moment.

"You've got to try it. It's delectable." He said and went inside the anteroom to review the documents needed for the meeting.

Corinne picked the phone up. "Hello?--Yes. This is Corrine Yang from  President Choi’s office. He just left your restaurant.--He mentioned about eating a mango cream pie.--Really?--I would like to place an order then.--A whole please. Thank you.--How much would that be?” She smiled to herself. Appraisal was near and she wanted to make a good impression. She would give the cake to her boss. She had a son due to enter college and she needed a considerable raise. And she was quite happy that she did not have to break the bank for a gift. Pastries at Nancy's were really cheap.

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A lady in a blue scrub suit walked dreadfully into the semi-dark hallway focusing her eyes forward while pushing a stainless cart. She ignored every pleading sound she heard from the patients. Each of them was locked into separate padded cells. They were the worst cases the Moscow Asylum had. She directed her steps into a cell at the end of the hallway. The girl had been confined a year ago and the doctors didn't see any progress in her condition. She just stared at nothing, refusing to neither speak nor eat. Most of the time, the doctors would have to sedate her for days and put her into an intravenous diet so she wouldn't die of starvation.

"Olivia..." She called. No response. She's there again, staring at the sickening white walls. "Olivia." She called again, this time, unlocking the metal sliding doors. She didn't budge when she let her stand from the chair she was sitting and sat her on the bed. She just stared at her and when she turned her back to pull the stainless cart that she left outside, she felt a hard object hit her head and everything went black.

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