bad chemistry

forty - two

Minhyung realizes that Jeno is surely not going to respond as Jisung announces that Minju is on break as Jeno called Jaemin earlier for him to buy tickets for One Castle. Donghyuck laughs with a tease as he nudges Minhyung on the arm as he says, "Wow, Jeno is taking her on a date?!" 

John stares silently at the two as Minhyung is telling him to shush down as Jaemin walks inside the office with a flirtatious grin on his face. He has his hand stretched out as he points to Donghyuck teasingly, "My lovely person, would you want to go on a date?" 

Donghyuck flips his non-existent long hair as Jisung watches in pure disgust at their little skit from the side. Jaemin stops as he starts to laugh evilly to tease the nonexistent Jeno, "I'm sure that they would have been doing something more than that." 

Minhyung shuts the two up as he isn't really in the mood to mess around. He realizes that it's been actually four days since the letter is given from Taemin as he wishes to figure out the puzzle. Chenle and John are working on a different case so they're busily occupied on Chenle's computer as Minhyung walks by the pair. Something catches the attention of Minhyung's keen sense as he realizes that John has a tattoo on the back of his neck which can barely be seen. 

He points it out as he walks by, "Oh Minsoo, you had a tattoo?" 

This catches everyone's attention as John looks up with a perplexed expression as he places his hand over the back of his neck to try and not get panicked. Chenle gasps in awe as he adds in excitingly, "Oh I want to see!" 

John stops him from doing so as Minhyung crosses his arms in response as he finds his attitude very confusing as the other male replies by clearing his throat, "I had one since middle school. Yeah, it isn't that great because I am trying to get it removed." 

"What's the design of?"

Minhyung further asks with an intriguing tone as Donghyuck approaches the pair as he teases loudly to aggravate the conversation between them, "Wow, you sound like you're interrogating him." 

John laughs gently to retort the other as he removes his hand from his back before he closes his hands together as a sign of resignation, "It's a stupid tattoo of a little dragon I got back in middle school. In America, you can do these things illegally I suppose. But, I'm not too sure on why you're so interested." 

"Just curious since I know someone with a similar tattoo?" 

"Who?" 

Jisung widens his eyes from the side as he refills the water container in the corner before Minhyung realizes that the tattoo resembles to the one person he suspects the most right now. "A little friend I know from a while back." 

Minhyung turns around suddenly before facing Jaemin, who seems to catch on to what the other was implying. Donghyuck and the rest confusingly stare at the two making quick eye contact with one another before Jaemin intervenes into the conversation, "We have to go since the investigating team wants us." 

John raises an eyebrow as he seems to catch on that the two are suspecting him closely as he knows that it will be difficult to get rid of the suspicions. Chenle raises his hand in protest as he whines continuously, "Why only you two? And I wanna know things too." 

Jisung pats the other's shoulders as Minhyung and Jaemin basically ignore the rest of the crew members before leaving the office with their attempts to not look even more ridiculously stupid than they are. John has an uneasy feeling as he focuses his attention back on the computer before he slowly realizes that the pair seems to catch on that the person they're suspecting him with would be Taemin as he knows well that Jaemin is not a huge fan of Jeno's cousin.

Minhyung hurries into the driver's seat as Jaemin tries to locate where Jeno is currently at. He knows well that the captain is enjoying his date but he seems to realize that John is much more dangerous than they actually think. Minhyung turns on the engine as he speaks up nervously, "Did you suspect the same thing that I did?" 

Jaemin nods in response as he replies with a worried tone, "Not everyone has the same tattoo in the exact same location. I already realized that a lot of the things that Minsoo told us seemed to not match up with one another. But how can we connect this back to Jeno's case?" 

Minhyung pulls out his phone before tossing it into Jaemin's lap, in which the other confusingly glances at the older. Minhyung opens the lock screen before pulling out of the driveway of the parking lot, "A few days ago, Taemin came by to place that note on Jeno's desk. It seems like a stretch since that's barely when John was there. But every time when he's alone in the office, he seems to make his way over to Jeno's office from time to time." 

"You added new security cameras without the other officers' notice? You know that's against the rules." 

"I have no other choice. Something about him is really off, and you agreed that he seems off yet we shouldn't be judgemental about things." 

Jaemin scoffs loudly as he rolls his eyes annoyingly as he knows that the older cannot be stopped. The car hurriedly arrives towards the busy street as Minhyung cusses under breathe because they're caught right on traffic. Jaemin continues to reach for Jeno on his own phone but the other seems to have turned off his cell phone since he would rather focus on his date. Minhyung groans angrily a few times as he finds that super annoying that Jeno is slowly not focusing on his own work which he can't really complain about since he got permission for. 

Minju and Jeno both finish their dinner as they both head out towards the balcony of the ice rink. The ice rink has an outside patio where one can see the whole city view from afar. The night sky is now darkening with the stars brightly shining to contrast it. He finds this super beautiful as Jeno wraps his arms around Minju in excitement as he backhugs her tightly. Minju laughs softly as she blushes, protesting a little of how she seems to be ticklish. This didn't really stop Jeno from pulling away though as Minju's fingers make their way over to play with Jeno's. He really didn't want to this to finish as Minju rests her head against Jeno's shoulder as they both quietly stare out towards the bright view. 

"I'm glad that we came out today. I really wanted some fresh air after just shooting all the time. And getting to know you a little better makes me glad." 

Jeno ruffles the other's hair after she speaks, in which Minju protests with a whine since she doesn't enjoy it when the other does that. But Jeno doesn't really seem to care since he finds all her expressions quite adorable. He agrees with her statement as he replies calmly, "I agree."

"Is that all?" 

Jeno nods as he gently kisses her cheek in response so that she wouldn't further complain. Minju didn't as she shrugs her shoulders with a tease as she ends up being turned around by Jeno and pulled into a tight, warm hug. She nuzzles her face against his shoulder as the two just bask in each other's warmth and comfort as she can hear his breathing above her head. They both enjoy this moment without any interruption before Jeno's phone continues to buzz nonstop. He's been ignoring it for quite some time now, and Minju knows well that it must be one of the officers that need to get ahold of him." 

"Answer it." 

"Nah, I don't need it." 

"It seems pretty urgent." 

"Donghyuck and Jaemin call me nonstop on a basic need. I don't think it's that urgent."