After Dark (Prompts)

Be With You - 25

A/N: A few chapters left for Be With You ❤️

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Dinner was quiet. Preparing for bed was quiet. For the first time in a long time, their bedroom was not filled with moans and groans.

The room was quiet.

They both lay on their sides, pretending to sleep eventhough rest was out of reach at the moment. Giving up the pretence and bothered by the guilt she felt, Ha Chae Yoon gave in first, lay on her back and asked, "Are you mad at me?"

She heard Im Cheol-Ryung sigh. Turning to face her, he replied, "No."

"Then why aren't you talking to me?" she asked, pouting at him.

"Stop being so cute," Cheol-Ryung reprimanded. Unable to help himself, a smile broke out on his face. Stroking her face with his thumb, he turned serious. "I won't stop you if you feel like you need to do this. I trust you and know that if you do this, it must be important."

He paused. Then, added, "I just don't have to like it. To me, it still feels like a date and I don't take that too well."

Holding his hand, she kissed his palm and nodded. "I understand, but just let me make it clear that this is not a date. I'm sorry this promise of mine makes you feel bad because I truly do not wish to hurt you."

"I know," Cheol-Ryung assured. Recalling some matters he needed to discuss with her, he added, "Can I send you our appointments with brokers to view houses? I don't want to mess your schedule so just let me know if one of them conflicts with your meeting with him."

Ha Chae Yoon pulled him close. "Meeting with Min Tae Gu will work around our appointments, not the reverse. You and me? That's my priority. Always."

"Okay. Thank you," he said. Kissing her nose, he closed his eyes and asked, "Let's sleep?"

Holding each other tightly, they fell into a deep sleep to finally claim the rest they both needed.

*

"Really? Is she reliable though?"

Im Cheol-Ryung was at the office behind the interrogation room where the Station Chief was. They were discussing the pickpocket who was just about to be released on probation.

"Another agency is considering her for a mission and wanted to get your opinion on the woman," the Chief explained.

The detective went over the records of Baek Jang-mi. "I only have brief interactions with her and the most I saw her was that week when we finally caught her."

To his supervisor, Im Cheol-Ryung said, "I do think she can change. She seems to have gotten tired of her life in the streets that she found jail to be a welcome respite. But to join forces with law enforcement? I don't know. The woman seems a bit stubborn."

In the interrogation room, they were staring at the woman who was making faces at them, even if she can't see the cops. "Bye!!! I hope I never see your ugly faces again!" Then, Baek Jang-mi stuck her tongue out. "Are you guys not yet done discussing?! How slow can you guys get?"

The Station Chief rolled his eyes. "Irreverent, this one is. Maybe we should keep her inside like Detective Kang suggests."

Im Cheol-Ryung chuckled. "Surely he was kidding. Detective Kang can't wait to wash his hands off Ms. Baek Jang-mi."

Sighing, the Chief signed the release papers. "The NIS wants to speak to her. I hope they don't involve us anymore on that."

"The NIS?"