Kim Nam shin's bus arrived.She asked him if he would like to have dinner with her but he politely refused as he had prior plans and left. She was a bit sad but didn't said anything.
After,
She reaches home. She changed into her home attire and had dinner. The city never seemed to sleep. The glow of streetlamps bled into the mist, turning every shadow into a possible figure, every passing car into a heartbeat too loud. Somewhere in the distance, a cat's sharp cry cut through the air, then faded into silence. Inside her small apartment, Kim Nam Shin sat by the window far longer than she realized, watching rainwater slide down the glass. She told herself she was just tired, that the unease crawling over her skin was nothing. But when she finally closed the curtains, she could still feel it — that strange, heavy sense of being seen.
The next morning, sunlight filtered weakly through the office blinds, painting thin stripes across the desks. The tension from the police visit lingered in the air like a faint, sour odor.
Kim Nam Shin arrived early, mostly to avoid the murmured stares. She set her bag down and booted up her computer, the low hum of the CPU filling the quiet.
A soft knock on her desk startled her.
"You didn't text when you got home last night," Woo Jin-ho said, leaning against the edge of her workspace.
"I… didn't think you meant it literally."
"I always mean it literally." His tone was gentle, but his eyes held the kind of concern that made her chest warm.
Before she could answer, a voice called from across the room.
"Hey, did you guys hear? Someone from Design said they saw Mi-seo arguing with a man in the lobby last week. She was holding a gift bag."
Nam Shin's head snapped toward the speaker.
"What man?" someone asked.
"They didn't know. Tall, wearing a gray coat. They left together. The CCTV's being checked, apparently."
Woo Jin-ho's brow furrowed, but he stayed quiet, letting the gossip swirl without adding to it.
---
Later that day
They worked through lunch, side by side in a small conference room filled with paper stacks and the faint scent of stale coffee.
Nam Shin reached for a stapler at the same time Woo Jin-ho did, their hands brushing. She froze, her fingers resting lightly against his.
"Sorry," she murmured.
He didn't move his hand away immediately. "It's fine," he said, a faint smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.
They continued working, but the air between them felt different now — warmer, heavier in a way she couldn't quite name.
---
Evening
When the clock hit six, most of the office had already emptied. Woo Jin-ho appeared at her side again.
"I'll walk you," he said simply, like it was as natural as breathing.
The streets were busy with the rush-hour crowd, but the sound of his footsteps beside hers steadied her. Somewhere in the chaos of honking cars and neon signs, she felt… safe.
They reached the station, and she turned to him.
"Thank you… for everything these past few days," she said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.
He hesitated, then reached out, brushing his thumb lightly against her cheek. "You don't have to thank me, Nam Shin-ssi. Just… stay safe."
Her heart skipped, not because of fear — but because for the first time in days, she felt like someone was on her side.