Fire & Silk

14. Mistake 2

Thanks to the Copy Cat case being made public, or maybe not thanks to it, there was still no movement from his side. President Park, his team, and the authorities were starting to become impatient and the more time passed, the more Sana felt unsafe even leaving her apartment to go to work. The security detail was still posted with her but it only did so much to calm her already out of control nerves. Now, Jihyo was at her apartment 6 out of the 7 days in the week.

"Jihyo, are you sure you're okay being over at Sana's almost every single day?" Jeongyeon was sitting down at their kitchen table, finishing a late lunch and working on a small case that President Park had given her and Nayeon. It was Saturday but since the Copy Cat case came into the picture, Jeongyeon found herself working from home more and more each day.

Jihyo took her time answering, moving around the kitchen to finish cleaning from the night before. She ended up staying at their apartment for a change and made dinner for both of them. "I promise it's okay, Jeong." Jihyo turned around and wiped her hands on one of the kitchen towels, hanging it back up before she sat down beside Jeongyeon. "I just..."

"Just what?" Jeongyeon noticed that since Jihyo had been spending more time at Sana's, the girl had become quieter around her. Normally, she'd be singing and doing weird things all day in their apartment. "Is there something wrong between you two right now?"

Jihyo shook her head and sighed. "I don't know. I just feel like every time I'm with her, she just sees me as a friend. I know it's weird to say, but ever since I started staying at her place more, it feels like something normal. It's not like I'm just there for extra protection. We have a routine down and I'm getting used to it, but I have no idea how she feels."

Jeongyeon took a second to process all her friend had said before busting out laughing. She set her spoon down and laid her head down on the table she was laughing so hard. "Wait. So you mean to tell me that you're worried because you don't think Sana likes you the way you like her and just wants you for protection?" Jihyo rolled her eyes and nodded, slightly annoyed that Jeongyeon didn't seem to be taking her situation seriously. "Jihyo, you know I love you, but I think that's the stupidest thing you've said to me. She obviously likes you!"

Jihyo blushed and looked down at the table, still shaking her head in firm denial. How did Jeongyeon know, though? It's not like she saw them when they were together 24/7 and it's not like she could see inside the blonde woman's mind.

"Look." Jeongyeon had finally stopped laughing and put a comforting hand over Jihyo's. "I know because of the way she looks at you. She looks at you like you are her entire world. She's one of the happiest people I've met even despite the shitty situation she's in but nothing compares to when she looks at you. I remember when I went over to check on you two after work one day and she got home from something. When she opened that door, it looked like every single worry in the world faded from her mind once she saw you. If you're so worried about it, just talk to her. I'm pretty sure I know what she'll say, but I think it would be worth it to hear it from her."

Jihyo sat there silently for a moment, looking down at the table. She knew that Jeongyeon was right, but she didn't know when the right time to ask was. She didn't want to make the poor woman's life any scarier or harder than it already was. "Thank you, Jeong. I'll try to ask her, but I don't want to put any pressure on her."

The two finished chatting and Jeongyeon excused herself for a little while since she wanted to get the case that she was working on back to the office so Nayeon could work on it when she came in the next day. She'd never understand why the woman would want to work on a Sunday, but she assumed it was because she missed work on Tuesday to take care of a sick Chaeyoung.

Jeongyeon was casually dressed, as opposed to her usual business attire, so she was hoping she didn't see too many of her coworkers during the short time she was going to be in. She stepped into the elevator and leaned against one of the walls, checking her emails for the millionth time. When she got off, she walked to her and Nayeon's shared office and set the file down. She was going to make a quick exit before she saw that one of the door of the lead prosecutor of that floor's office was open. She walked over to it to shut it but stopped a foot away, hearing hushed voices.

"I don't understand why we have to involve her. She won't want to be involved." It was President Park. But why was he at work today?

"I know what you're thinking, sir but I just want to see if she would maybe want to discuss it. It wouldn't hurt to at least ask and it would push us at least an inch some kind of direction. We're losing a lot of time and the police chief agrees that this could be a good move." Jeongyeon peeked through the crack of the door and saw Mina leaning against the desk in the office, talking to President Park across from her.

"I just don't think she would get why we would be doing something like this. She's not really the brightest and it's not worth risking this entire case just because we have a hunch that she could do something." Jeongyeon was confused and more than irritated at this point. There was no way they could have been talking about anyone except her. She leaned in a little closer to hear better and as they continued speaking, she got more and more upset. Jeongyeon huffed in frustration and rolled her eyes. Of course Mina would be talking to President Park about this. Why did she ever trust that she was actually starting to let this woman back into her life?

Before Jeongyeon could stew in her anger any more, she leaned a little too far into the door, opening it all the way. She realized what she did almost immediately but didn't bother to run before they turned to look at her. She stood there in the doorway, arms crossed over her chest. "I see that you really value the case and you really value our friendship."

Mina recognized the condescending tone in Jeongyeon's voice and shook her head quickly, reaching a hand out to try and explain herself. "Jeongyeon it's not what you think. We just wanted to-" Mina had no time to explain before Jeongyeon gave a small laugh and turned around, walking back to the elevators. Mina groaned and put her hands in her head. Of course she was being too stubborn to hear her out. But she didn't blame the woman after what she had done to her years ago. It just seemed like it was happening all again to her, but now she had less of a chance to explain the mistake.

Oh Jeong. Why couldn't you have just waited to hear what Mina was actually talking about? Anyway though, I hope you all have a good weekend! It's my birthday today so I'll be celebrating with friends and doing a special upload!

Stay safe, happy, and healthy!

- krn