𝚆𝚎 𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚗'𝚝 𝚖𝚎𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚎 (𝙰 𝙼𝚒𝚗𝚆𝚘𝚗 𝚏𝚊𝚗𝚏𝚒𝚌)

Deja Vu

Wonwoo didn't know what to feel. A few weeks ago, he had been next to Mingyu for a completely different reason-trying to catch the White Mask himself. Now, here he was with Mingyu again, after dropping Jeonghan off with Cheol, trying to confirm whether Mingyu was lying or not. But when Jeonghan reassured him that he knew Cheol well enough to catch him in a lie, Wonwoo left Jeonghan with Cheol, slipping back into his old façade as a pretty, naïve teacher who gets scared by gunshots.

Now, it was just Wonwoo and Mingyu alone in the car, the awkward silence between them gnawing at Mingyu. He didn't know what to feel. A few weeks ago, he would have died to spend this kind of close time with Wonwoo. Now, it felt like he was sitting next to a stranger. The old, calm, and shy composure of Wonwoo was gone, replaced by a dominant aura.

Whether it was the silence that was bothering Wonwoo or the burning stare he knew he was getting from Mingyu, he wasn't stupid. He knew Mingyu had developed feelings during their little partnership. He knew Mingyu had a soft spot for him since he joined the FBI. Wonwoo had chosen Mingyu as his partner because he knew he was the smartest and most cunning in the whole FBI. The extroverted, funny nature hid his clever mind. That's why, instead of being the center of attention, Wonwoo decided to hide in Mingyu's blind spot, thinking Mingyu would never be able to catch him. But he was wrong.

Because he eventually figured it out, but he could have exposed Wonwoo when Wonwoo accidentally messaged him about Erica's death before it actually happened. It was Mingyu's feelings towards him that stopped that from happening. Did Wonwoo feel sorry for Mingyu? Absolutely not, because the path he had chosen didn't allow for any feelings to be formed-including remorse for anyone.

If he had to do it all over again for his goal, he would.

Wonwoo took out his cigarette, and just as he was about to light it, he heard Mingyu speak. "So, you smoke? Since when? No, don't answer. Maybe you always did... It's just I never knew." Mingyu kept his eyes on the road.

"I didn't use to... but after the incident, there was just too much going on, and it was the only way to relieve stress," Wonwoo replied, not knowing why he was even answering. He was about to light the cigarette when Mingyu flicked it from his lips.

"What the fuck?" Wonwoo snapped.

Mingyu took out a stress ball from the glove compartment and threw it into Wonwoo's lap. "Here," Mingyu said, still focused on the road. "It's much healthier to release your stress with that."

"If it were that easy to manage stress, half of the population would be clean," Wonwoo retorted as he reached for another cigarette. But Mingyu flicked that one away too.

"At least live long enough to put them all behind bars," Mingyu said, finally making eye contact.

Wonwoo rubbed his hair in frustration and threw the pack of cigarettes out the window. "I'll live long enough to put everyone six feet under," Wonwoo replied in a low, menacing voice that sent shivers down Mingyu's spine.

"Why can't you just, for once, stop thinking about killing them? Why can't we do it legally?" Mingyu asked in frustration, turning his attention back to the road.

"Like what? Collect evidence and hand them to the police, only to find out there are ten more money-leeching monsters like your fath-" Wonwoo was cut off by Mingyu.

"JEON WONWOO!" Mingyu shouted.

"What? Can't handle hearing a single word against your father?" Wonwoo scoffed. "STOP THE CAR!" he demanded.

"What?" Mingyu asked in disbelief.

"STOP THE FUCKING CAR!" Wonwoo repeated, louder and clearer this time.