The Western-themed diner was dying down for the night. It was just past 9 PM now, and most of the customers had finished their meals and gone home for the night. This was fine for Lea, who managed to snag the comfy booth table in the corner of the room. She was alone, sipping a milkshake and tapping her feet to the sweet sound of old-fashioned American music from the jukebox behind her.

Her partner was late, but she didn’t mind. It had given her time to change out of her uniform and slip into some civilian clothes. And enjoy a delicious milkshake she rarely allowed herself to indulge in, not with her rigorous fitness regimen.

A minute late, and a flustered Yoo Youngjae bustled through the door. The diner was so empty by then that he spotted her immediately in the corner.

“Sorry I’m late,” he said, sliding into the seat facing her.

“Don’t worry about it.”

“No, seriously. It’s rude of me. Especially since you drove all the way out here just to see me.”

“I didn’t want you to have to go all the way down to the station. I know how busy you these days. You rarely get any time off to see your family. It’s the least I can do.”

He smiled at her in gratitude. Youngjae lived only blocks away from the diner, in a cozy home he shared with his wife and young daughter. But ever since he had been placed in an undercover assignment in one of the most dangerous and notorious gangs in Seoul six months ago, it was more difficult for him to find time to see his family. And more dangerous as well.

On one of his rare days off, Lea didn’t mind driving across town just to deliver to him some files he should have retrieved himself from the station. It was the least she could do, given how much she owed him. She was paired with him as a mentor when she was just a rookie. He had shown her the ropes with incredible patience. Without his guidance, Lea was dead certain she would not have gotten this far, not as a young, single woman in the male dominated field. But he had seen potential in her and helped her cultivate her worth. Youngjae had been a godsend and she was eternally grateful.

“You should’ve come over to our place,” he said, “Seoyeon would have loved to see you.”

Lea smiled faintly at the mention of his precarious five-year-old. “Shouldn’t it be her bedtime by now? She has preschool in the morning.”

“She’s actually in kindergarten now.”

“Really?” Lea’s eyebrows raised in surprise, “Already? Wow. They grow up so quickly.”

“They really do… You should come visit us soon. Ye-eun keeps talking about how she wants to take you shopping.”

Lea laughed at that. Youngjae’s bubbly wife was always trying to give her a makeover. Somehow, she had managed her weasel her way out of that torture, though she wasn’t sure she could avoid it forever. “Maybe someday… When you’re done with your mission, of course.”

Youngjae’s bright mood dissipated at once at that, “Yes. Of course…”

Lea cleared uncomfortably, regretting the mention of his undercover assignment, but she had no choice, “Well, I don’t want to keep you from your family any longer. Here are the files Director Jang wanted you to look at on a Mr. Kim Himchan.”

“Right. Thank you, Lea,” he took the folder from her and tucked it into his bag.

Lea paused for a moment, hesitating as she looked for the right words to express herself. She looked away to idly glance at the new gaggle of young people who had noisily walked in the diner, then turned her gaze back on Youngjae asked, “How is the mission going, sunbae?” Her curiosity burned hotter than a flame, but she dared not express it.

He sighed and wearily rubbed his temples, “It’s fine, I guess. Slower than I expected but what can you—”

“Youngjae-ah?!” A loud voice called out from behind them.

Lea frowned as a young man separated from the group of people who had just entered and approached their booth.

“Youngjae, what on Earth are you doing here?”

Youngjae turned around in confusion, and Lea could clearly read the look of mixed shock and fear on her former partner’s face before he quickly covered it up, “Oh, Daehyun. What a coincidence! What are you up to?”

Lea turned to ogle at the man now standing next to their table with newfound interest. Daehyun… That could only be Jung Daehyun, one of the leaders of the infamous BAP gang, and Bang Yongguk’s right hand man. The charismatic, sweet-talking ladies’ man. Lea glanced over his shoulder and realized that the three companions he had brought with him were all women… Beautiful, scant