Evening sunlight poured through the glass walls of the living room, painting the penthouse in shades of gold and amber. The air still carried the faint traces from Officer Park's inspection earlier that afternoon.
He had come to collect the water bottle samples himself, checking every inch of the place, the balcony corners, the air vents, the storage area. Even after assuring them that no further threat was detected, his words stayed with Hauen: Stay alert.
A constable now patrolled the penthouse's perimeter, visible from the living room window, a quiet, steady reminder that they were being watched, but this time for safety.
Now, the tension had settled into something gentler, not gone, but softened under the mundane rhythm of home.
Hauen stood in the kitchen beside Bora, rolling up her sleeves as they chopped vegetables together. The sound of knives against the cutting board, the low simmer of soup on the stove, and Bora's quiet hum responding to Hauen.
Suho was in the hallway, one hand pressed against the wall for balance. His steps were slow but determined. These days, he'd been stubbornly experimenting, trying to walk without his support stand.
"Heauna…" his voice called out, low but distinct.
She didn't look up from the counter. "Hmm?"
"I finished five hundred steps," he said, a mix of pride and exhaustion in his tone.
Hauen's lips curved into a smile. "Already? That's very good, teddy bear."
Bora tried to suppress her laugh, failing miserably.
"Yaa…" Suho whined from the hallway, sounding offended but not really. "Can you not call me that in front of everyone?"
Hauen giggled, glancing over her shoulder. "Who's everyone? It's just me, Bora, and you. Mr. Lee went to the market."
Suho appeared at the kitchen doorway, one hand against the wall, hair slightly messy, a faint smile tugging at his lips. "Bora's here, right? Why are you ruining my image in front of her?"
Hauen turned to him fully, playful mischief glinting in her eyes. "So what? Bora already knows you're a teddy bear. Isn't that right, Bora?"
"Ne…?" Bora froze, eyes darting between them like a guilty child caught in a fight between parents. "Please don't drag me into your bickering, ma'am."
Hauen burst into soft laughter, shaking her head.
Just then, Mr. Lee stepped in, arms full of grocery bags. "Ma'am, I brought everything you asked for. All fresh and double-checked."
"Thank you, Mr. Lee."
He bowed lightly, smiling before heading out again.
Suho's gaze followed him, then drifted toward the bags. "You really ordered everything fresh?"
"Of course," Hauen said, pulling out the vegetables and setting them neatly on the counter. "I don't trust anything or anyone anymore."
Suho raised a brow, a faint smile ghosting his lips. "And you trust Mr. Lee?"
"Yes," she said without hesitation. "He's worked for my dad for years. If there's anyone I can trust blindly, it's him."
Suho exhaled, some of the tension in his shoulders easing. "Good then."
She turned to him, noticing the slight tremor in his leg. "Don't stand for too long. Go sit."
He didn't move right away; he just looked at her for a moment, the sunlight catching in her hair and the quiet focus on her face. "Hauena?" He called softly, low, a little hesitant voice,
"Yes, Mr. Teddy Bear?" she replied, still rinsing the vegetables.
His lips twitched into a small smile. "Can you… Make me a bowl of ramen? Spicy. Like the one you made that night in the mansion."
She froze mid-motion, then turned to him. His expression was so sincere, soft, a little boyish, that her heart melted before her mind could respond.
"Sure," she said quietly. "Anything for my husband."
The way she said husband made him grin wider than he probably should have. "Really? Thank you so much!"
"Mm-hmm," she hummed, amused. "But you have to walk another hundred steps after eating."
He straightened, pretending to groan but failing to hide his excitement. "Done!" he said, already shuffling toward the couch, a faint bounce in his step.
Bora smiled to herself, shaking her head.
Hauen watched him for a second, then turned back to the stove with a fond smile. "You want some ramen too, Bora?"
"Just a little, ma'am," she said shyly.
Hauen smiled. "All right, then. Four bowls, one for me, one for you, one for Mr. Lee, and one for our spoiled teddy bear."
"I heard you," his voice came from the hallway.
Bora giggled softly along with Hauen.
Steam curled up from the bowls, filling the kitchen with a comforting aroma, the kind that always reminded Suho of simpler days. Hauen carefully placed each bowl on the table, arranging them with quiet precision while Bora set out the chopsticks and napkins.
"Ramen's ready," she said, glancing toward the living room.
Suho, who had been sitting with his phone, immediately looked up. "Already?" he asked, as if he hadn't been secretly watching the kitchen the whole time.
"Yes," she said, smiling faintly. "And before you ask, yes, it's extra spicy."
He grinned, pushing himself up carefully, steadying his steps as he made his way to the dining area. Hauen instinctively moved a chair slightly back for him.
"I can manage," he said softly, sitting down.
"I know you can," she replied, handing him the chopsticks. "Still, doesn't hurt to help."
Bora sat at the far end of the counter, quietly taking small bites. After serving, Mr. Lee.
Suho took his first bite, and the moment the spice hit his tongue, he let out a small hiss. "Yaa, this is really spicy," he said, eyes watering a little.
Hauen tried not to laugh. "You asked for the same as the mansion night, didn't you?"
He sniffled, "I didn't think you'd take it this seriously."
She passed him a glass of water, trying not to smile. "Here. Drink."
He looked at the glass, then at her, and couldn't stop the chuckle that escaped his lips. "You're enjoying this, aren't you?"
"Maybe," she said, shrugging.
"Definitely," he muttered under his breath, but his eyes lingered on her a bit too long, the way her nose little pink due to spice, the warmth on her face from the steam, that small pout on her lips while chewing the ramen, the easy way she smiled even when teasing him. It made his chest feel tight, like he was breathing something too sweet.
When their eyes met for a moment, something unspoken lingered there, a quiet current that neither dared name.
After a while, he smiled faintly, as if catching himself. "Guess I should thank my nurse for this one too."
"Guess you should," she said, teasing lightly, but her voice came out gentler than usual.
He leaned back in his chair, the exhaustion in his body softened by the warmth in his chest. "You know…" he said, his voice quieter now, "if someone saw us like this, they'd think we're just a normal couple having dinner after a long day."
She froze for a second, her chopsticks pausing mid-air.
He realized what he'd said and laughed under his breath. "Sorry. That sounded weird, didn't it?"
She blinked, then shook her head, smiling faintly. "No… it didn't."
For a long second, neither of them spoke. The only sound in the room was the faint clink of chopsticks and the hum of the city outside.
Then Hauen stood up, clearing the table quietly. "You should rest, teddy bear," she said, trying to ease the moment.
He smiled at her retreating figure, that small, involuntary smile he couldn't suppress anymore.
And as she turned to wash the last bowl, Suho caught himself thinking, maybe this wasn't just gratitude anymore. Maybe it was something deeper. Something that felt dangerously close to love.
Somewhere in the dark alley
The night crawled thick and heavy through the narrow alley, a suffocating darkness where even the streetlights dared not shine. Water dripped from a rusted pipe somewhere, echoing in the distance. The air smelled of damp metal and cigarette smoke.
A man stood under the flickering light of a lamppost, his hands shaking as he held the phone to his ear. His breath came out uneven, forming small clouds in the cold air.
"Hello…" a low voice finally echoed from the other end, calm, but sharp enough to cut through bone.
"B–Boss," the man stammered, swallowing hard. "The… the guy we hired for the Suho attack, he's dead. Died last night while escaping the police."
There was a long, deafening silence. Then the voice snapped like a whip.
"What?"
The man flinched, gripping the phone tighter. "H-he… he crashed into a truck while trying to run. Officer Park was chasing him."
"I told you to keep him underground," the voice hissed, the tone calm but carrying an undercurrent of pure menace. "You couldn't even handle a single order?"
"I... I... I'm sorry, Boss! It happened too fast, the police..,"
"Do you even understand what this means?" the voice interrupted, cold fury lacing each word. "One loose thread, and everything we've worked for burns to ash."
The man's knees felt weak. His breath caught in his throat. "Boss, please… there's more,"
The voice went eerily quiet. "More?"
"The plan… the delivery plan…" the man stammered. "It failed, too. Officer Park found out before it reached them. He warned Suho."
Silence.
Only the faint sound of the wind howling through the alley.
The man hesitated. "B–Boss? Are you there?"
The voice finally spoke again, slow, deliberate, and dark as sin. "You listen to me carefully."
"Y–Yes, Boss."
"Disappear. Leave the country tonight. For the next two months, I don't want to see your face, hear your name, or even smell your presence anywhere near Seoul."
The man's throat went dry. "B–Boss, I—"
"And if I do," the voice cut through, colder than death itself, "you won't live long enough to regret it."
The man swallowed hard, trembling. "Y–yes, Boss. I'll leave right away."
A faint sound, the soft drag of a cigarette, the crackle of its burn, came from the other end.
"Good," the voice murmured. "You better."
The line went dead.
The man lowered the phone with a shaking hand, his heart hammering against his ribs. The streetlight flickered again, once, twice, before it went out completely, leaving him in pitch darkness.
And in that darkness, only one thought rang inside his head, He had just escaped death, but only for now.