Chapter 15-

"Severe head injuries and internal bleeding... Could've suffered from extreme blood loss if wounds weren't attended to immediately." Cristina wrinkles her nose in disdain as her eyes scan through Lack-Two's medic chart.

"I'm surprised you're still alive..."

The Interpol top medic turns to the small scrawny man dancing around the small space while singing—nay, shrilling—a high-pitched song with words from a language she's never heard before.

A language that she doubts to exist.

"But then, much can be expected from a young man who has withstood the most unbearable men this world has ever seen for more than three years," Cristina mutters.

"Your endurance must be remarkable as heck, Kyouhei."

Then she cringes as Cleo's voice is overpowered by the sound of Yuan's guitar. The taller man starts singing along, his voice deep and gruff, completely contrasting Cleo's penetrating mating call.

Every single time... the medic thinks with dread, putting down the chart and arranging her supplies. Every single time one of these men gets injured, this happens...

Team 2 finishes their little piece with a high-pitched screech from Cleo whilst Yuan shreds unflatteringly with his acoustic guitar. Then the two gesture with a grand flourish.

Elya and Lack-Two exchange knowing looks, and then the commander gives a nod, to which Elya follows with an applause.

Cleo bows flamboyantly.

"Thank you, Room 302! My name is Cleo Angeles and this is my wonderful sidekick, Yuan! We'll be here until Tina Tuna kicks us out the third time!"

Cristina shoots a deadly glare at the scrawny man. Cleo continues on bowing.

"...Which, at this rate, is not that far from now!"

Yuan gives out a hearty laugh as sets his guitar aside. He and Cleo walks back to the other two seats that encircled their commander's bedside, where Elya was seated, saving himself most likely from the embarrassment.

"What do you think, Sir?" Yuan asks enthusiastically. "Would we have made it in Broadway?"

Lack-Two chuckles as he lets himself sink back to his pillow.

"Definitely," he says. "Although, I'd rather you hold a shotgun than a guitar, Yuan."

Said agent was still all smiles as he gleefully accepts Lack-Two's 'praise'.

"As for you, Cleo," the young officer continues, addressing the youngest member who was still humming and tapping onto his chair.

"Is it just my ears finally giving up on me after hearing you try to hit those high notes over the years, or are you finally getting better?"

Cleo perks up, the corners of his mouth reaching all the way to his ears. Then Yuan guffaws.

"Geez, Boss, you better get Miss Tuna check those ears as well!"

Everyone but Cristina fills the room with merry laughter.

It was Elya who settles down first, and he goes back to what he was doing the whole time they were there:

He addresses Lack-Two with a concerned gaze.

This time, Lack-Two catches him.

"Yes, Elya?" the commander raises an eyebrow.

Team 2's de facto leader blinks at him, at first warily confused, but which gradually turned into guilt.

"I-It's nothing, Sir..." he mumbles, looking down. "I'm just worried... Are you really sure you're not hurt anywhere else, Sir?"

Lack-Two gives Elya a long gaze before he tries to open his mouth to speak, but the words fail to escape his lips.

Something suddenly plays in the back of his head.

I hate you, Lack-Two!

He feels his knuckles turn white as he unconsciously curls his fingers into a fist underneath his sheets.

Even after all this time he still shudders at the thought of those wonderful set of ocean blue pearls turning into something far deadlier than anything he had ever seen. But this time, he's successful to repress it with a sigh and a weak smile.

It was worth it, that's what he had pushed to tell himself ever since he first thought of it.

This was all worth it.

"I'm feeling fine, Elya." Then he chuckles as he arranges himself carefully in his bed, discreetly loosening his clenched fingers.

His palms sting where his fingernails were buried. He could almost feel the small half-moon imprints that were left in their stead.

"You worry too much, Agent."

"Well, in all groups, we almost always have that one 'mom' friend," Cleo jeers.

Elya gives the younger a poisonous stare. But nevertheless he simply sighs, and goes back to thinking to himself.

Indeed, he is very much worried for their beloved leader's wellness—he had seen with his own very eyes how much this young body can withstand—but above all else, he is very much worried for this boy's next decision after this.

Cleo and Yuan might be too trusting of their commander's decisions—and rightly so; this boy has proven himself to be so much more than his predecessor can ever be, and at very young age too—but Elya has been under three Lack-Twos to recognize that solemn look in a leader's eyes when he sees it.

And for once, he actually wishes that he is simply imagining this premonition.

"Sir..."

Lack-Two again returns his gaze to the oldest member of Team 2. So did the rest of said team.

Suddenly, he was at loss for words again. He looks down for a moment, bites his lips, and looks up to him again. Yuan and Cleo both look at him cluelessly, obviously unaware, but Lack-Two seems to understand with the way he nods and closed his eyes.

"You know as well as I do that this will one day come, right, Elya?"

Elya was about to protest, but there was a brief passing of thought in his mind that caused him to stop—the thought of Lack-Two when he was first assigned to them and the first and only time they ever sneered at him not only because of his age but of his bad reputation. He remembers how they outwardly disobeyed him and caused him too much trouble, and he remembers how Lack-Two never minded. How he still remained a leader despite their shortcomings.

Then he remembers how Lack-Two smiled the exact same way when he once asked him why the boy even bothered with the likes of them.

You serve my purpose the same I serve yours... he answered matter-of-factly, his small smile plastered on his young face, rested on his equally young yet withered hands.

I myself believe that that is already a good enough reason in itself.

And he swore immense loyalty to him ever since. Yuan and Cleo just followed.

The other two, he believes, simply wanted to move around under a leader who will take responsibility for all their mishaps, but Elya was different.

He entrusted his life in service to him for the very sole reason that this boy—this young, talented boy—told him that he was serving for a purpose. That he was something who's worth more than a simple tool.

Lack-Two treated them like they were humans.

But together with Lack-Two's extreme reverence to these three, Elya prods to remind himself again, came the boy's constant reminder:

I can't be Team 2's leader forever.

"What's wrong, Lil Boss?" The urgency in Cleo's voice wakes Elya from his slight trance, and what greets him is Lack-Two wincing horribly in pain. The three immediately stand up and circle around him in desperate hope of helping, but all they could do was hover over him in panic.

It was Cristina who calms them down and shakes them away.

"Alright, alright," she starts, swatting them away as she makes her way to Lack-Two with a syringe. Cleo noticeably shrinks in fear at the sight of the needle.

"Out of my way, noobs. Let a professional deal with this."

She walks up to Lack-Two, calmly collects his left arm, and pierces the needle through his skin. The young man winces a bit, but as soon as the syringe is emptied, his muscles begin to relax. He starts breathing heavily but soothingly, much to the three men's reliefs.

"Wait, that actually works?" Cleo inquires, peeling his nails away from Yuan's arm after grabbing it instantly the moment he caught sight of what was in Cristina's hand.

The medic suddenly turns to him while adjusting the needle.

"You want to see for yourself?"

Cleo hides behind Yuan again.

"I think I'll pass, Ti—Cristina..."

Yuan shakes his hold away.

"I should get my own to use against you..."

Cristina rolls her eyes and returns to Lack-Two. The boy looks at her with blank eyes.

Then he nods sadly.

Cristina gives him a small, sad smile before turning to the three.

"Much as I hate kicking you three men out for the third time—believe me, I am definitely fond of your singing... Or whatever you call that barbaric ritual of yours—but I simply have to. Your commander needs to rest. Again."

Then she sets her hand on her hips.

"And honestly, team 2. You people are hogging Officer Lack-Two's visiting time. Why won't you give chance for others to visit?"

The three men are suddenly engulfed in silence, which surprises the woman. Each shares a look with the other, and Cristina watches as they silently debate as to who will tell her. Cleo was about to nudge Yuan when Lack-Two suddenly speaks.

"It's fine, Tina," he says.

"I don't have anybody else who will visit, anyway... What does it matter?"

Then he addresses the three.

"Drop by anytime you like, clowns. Your entertainment is better than no entertainment at all."

Elya and Yuan smile a bit sadly as they nod as Cristina remains her eyes on him. It was Cleo who breaks the awkward silence.

He walks up behind Cristina and clears his throat.

"As my pyromaniac brother would always say: buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurrrrrnnnnnnnnnn..."

Cristina points her syringe to him.

"Leave."

And Cleo scuttles all the way to the door at light speed.

Elya and Yuan return to their boss the second time.

"We better get going, Sir," Yuan begins, still failing to feel the tension that Elya seemed to have uncovered. He addresses his commander with the same smile he always seemed to share with everyone. But Elya was different.

Elya's face remains solemn.

"Rest well, Sir," he was able to spit out.

Lack-Two nods good-naturedly as he watches the two older men walk away, towards the door where Cleo was waiting. Cleo gives him an enthusiastic wave, and just like Elya, he smiled his usual smile. Then he reaches forward, grabs the knob, and gently pulls the door towards them as they walk out.

The sound of door being closed breaks Cristina's stoned face.

She drops her gaze in embarrassment as she listens to Lack-Two take deep, heavy breaths, blinking wearily at his bland ceiling.

"I, uh... " she begins, biting her lips. Then she stares at him again.

Lack-Two barely makes any form of movement. It was notable the nonchalance in his eyes has returned.

"Kyouhei, I'm pretty sure your brother has a really good reason why he hasn't visited you yet. I mean... I know. It's been three days since you got back, and... Well... Uhm... "

"Tina, can you fetch me that satchel by that table over there?" he cuts her off, pointing at the table near the door. Cristina turns to that direction.

There was a small, brown bag sitting idly on top of it, with a small envelope by its side. Cristina gives Lack-Two another doubtful look, but she approaches the bag either way. She picks it up too suddenly, making the small, white envelope drop gently to the ground.

Cristina eyes it for a moment.

There were signatures signed on the edge of the flap—for all the years she's been looking after Lack-Two like a brother, she'd recognize his clear and clean signature from miles away, but that wasn't what catches her attention completely.

It was the red seal that sat innocently in the middle that greatly disturbed her.

Cristina Maleki has been in the Interpol for as long as Lack-Four has been, so she knows the different kinds of seals when she sees them.

And this was no doubt a seal of resignation.

Cristina's brows furrow as she crouches over to pick it up and immediately walk to where Lack-Two was, the latter a bit oblivious to what the medic has found.

Lack-Two was near closing his eyes when the weight of his satchel comes crashing to his stomach. He jolts up in surprise and the first thing he sees is Cristina's eyes staring him down with rage.

He actually slightly shrinks back in fear.

"Explain this to me," she growls, waving that envelope to his face.

The young Interpol Officer just stares at it.

"This is a letter of resignation, is it not?" Cristina turns the envelope to show him its back where his full name was written legibly in print.

The fear in Lack-Two's eyes finally drains and transitions back into nonchalance. He lifts his gaze from the white envelope to Cristina.

"You seem fairly well-informed of what that is," he states matter-of-factly.

Cristina fumes, slight crumpling the envelope with her fury.

"I want to know why your name is on this envelope. "

Lack-Two gives Cristina a few indifferent blinks before looking away. He wraps an arm around his satchel as he uses the other to push himself up to a proper sitting position, letting a few winces escape him as he does.

Cristina's enraged eyes slowly transform into worried ones as they bear unto Lack-Two even further, hopefully but tragically waiting for a reply. Even if she knew that no matter how Lack-Two answers that question, it will all amount to the same fact:

The registration letter was of the Interpol officer for the second squad—Internal officer Lack-Two.

The young man makes a great show of not caring as he silently rummages through his satchel in search of something, his lips as sealed as the envelope in her hand.

Cristina sighs as she lowers her then trembling hand. Looking away for a moment, she thinks of what else she has to say.

Arguing with this boy was a test in itself. Except, this time, it was not the answers but the questions that were needed to be pondered upon.

For ask the wrong questions and you'd find yourself unanswered for the rest of your life.

"Does the Board know?" she finds herself asking, her words as careful as her next draw of breath. There was a tinge of hope in her tone, but Lack-Two only shrugs, never lifting his attention from his satchel.

Then Cristina's voice rise in concern and annoyance.

"What about Team 2?! The rest of the officers?! The other Interpol officials?!" Then, realization dawns on the woman. He has been lingering behind her mind all day, and this was the first time she chooses to ask.

She gives Lack-Two a look so heavy that it pulls the boy's attention back to her.

Cristina's eyes are in pain again.

"...Does Lack-Four know...?"

Lack-Two only stares. Cristina bites her lips in annoyance.

"At least tell me your brother knows!" she prods even more. "So I'd know you're not making any hasty decision. Tell me that Kyousuke knows and approves of this!"

"I find no need in consulting Officer Lack-Four regarding any of my personal decisions." Lack-Two finally speaks, returning to his satchel. His voice was still calm, still professional. But there was a small quiver that escaped his lower lip, subtle enough for anyone to notice.

"Or to anyone for that matter," he adds darkly.

But Cristina was not just anyone. If others were to notice that quiver, they would've passed it as simply repressed anger in hope of retaining a calm demeanor. But for someone like Cristina who's known the boy in the same way a family member would, it was more than that. The little things about this boy has always been more than that.

And it pains the medic somehow to know that she might be the only one who treats him that way.

She watches as Lack-Two almost turn his satchel upside down, his then calm, deliberate movements turning up in pace, almost in panic. He begins taking out a few things, raising the satchel to get a better look, and even going as far as pushing his hand a little deeper.

"Did you plan this all along?"

Again, Lack-Two returns his gaze to Cristina.

Cristina sighs resignedly as she lowers herself to a nearby chair, a forlorn look on her face.

"That was always a curious thing with you, how you suddenly decided to apply for being one of the high-rankers despite your open refusal to working with your own brother. But now that I think about it..."

She lifts her hand to her head as she looks down in deep sentiment.

Lack-Two only continues watching her.

"You went in there for a reason," she recites, almost monotonously, her eyes growing stiller as they pierce unto the boy's body, possibly reaching into every depths of him-into every corners of his soul that not even he would dare set foot. Lack-Two feels slightly conscious, pulling his satchel a little nearer to his body as if to cover himself.

"And whatever that reason was, you have either accomplished or abandoned it… And now…"

Lack-Two's shoulders jolt up slightly as he watches her stand up from the corner of his eyes. She makes her way to him until her small figure looms over him like an upcoming storm. She was close enough to look down on his then hunched figure, and the mere image of her still eyes boring into him somewhat scared the Interpol officer.

Even if she's been nothing but either sweet or nonchalant with regards to him, Lack-Two knows that there's a reason why she's one of the most feared medics in the Interpol. Even Lack-Four would never dream of being on her bad side.

He almost jumps away as reflex when she slowly raises her hand.

Would she hit him? He's heard somewhere that Cristina was never afraid of hitting her patients and getting in trouble because of it. She can make it seem like it wasn't her fault, and even if she can't, she's still spared since she's the only who can probably patch them back to health.

Not that he would've minded. Maybe one cold-hearted slap from someone like her who's been enduring him all the while is what Lack-Two needed. It was worth a shot.

The young man prepares himself, which is why the affectionate stroke she gives him on the head catches him off-guard. She was able to pull him in for an embrace, and he found himself too stunned to fight it off.

He just remains still, his face gently pressed against one of her shoulders.

"You would've deserved a slap from me," he hears her mutter. "But you deserve this more. At least this. For all the shits you've put yourself through for the sake of revenge. Of proving something to yourself. Of… Of…" Her voice cracks, and she ineffectively hides it by hugging him tighter.

"Dang it, Lack-Two! For everything you thought was worth destroying yourself a thousand times over! You deserve a wake-up call."

Lack-Two remains silent, still stunned. He slowly moves his irises to stare into her direction, watching her shoulder tremble. Feeling dizzy from the effort, he closes his eyes.

"I understand that you have your personal reasons, but… do you really think resigning and relieving yourself of your hard-earned position will be enough to atone for your sins? What do you think is that going to do?"

He slowly opens his eyes, feeling her grip slightly loosen as she uses one arm to wipe away the tears. He thought of taking the opportunity to break away, but the sound of her silently sobbing made him hesitate.

Lack-Two didn't feel like being a jerk today.

After a few sniffling sound, Cristina continues.

"Get real, Lack-Two," she says, laughing slightly yet bitterly, tightening her embrace once more, much to Lack-Two's annoyance.

"You know full well that you're only running away. And the Interpol did not raise you to be a coward…" She pauses, as if to hesitate, but she neglects the feeling immediately as she proceeds to telling him the only few words that would constantly haunt him for the rest of his life.

"Kyouhei, don't be like your brother…"

This was where Lack-Two finally decides to move. He lifts his hand, grabs her arms and gently pries them off of him. Cristina concedes, pulling herself back, and for a moment, they were just like that: her arms in both his hands, his dark irises looking straight into her blue ones. She looked at him expectantly, and it made him feel nervous somehow, but he knew what to say. He was always the kind of person who knew what to say, and he could say them effectively, with zero or minimal mistakes.

Which is why what comes out of his mouth surprises him more than it has to Cristina.

"Tina."

And that was it.

Nevertheless Cristina smiles as she gives him a kindhearted nod. She straightens herself and wipes away her tears.

"No need to tell me. You're tired. I get it." She lowers her hand from her face and smiles again.

"The painkillers' side effects finally getting to you?"

He just looks at nothing in particular.

But he nods just the same.

Tina returns the favor together with a sigh. Her eyes fall on the envelope on her hand, thinks for a moment, and with a shrug, she lays it gently next to the boy. Lack-Two does not move nor speak.

"Well, that's that," she exhales, returning to her equipment. Lack-Two watches as she rounds them all up into her kit, zips the bag close with ease, and hoists it over her left shoulder.

"You rest well now," she says with a smile as she heads to the door.

Lack-Two watches her back as she moves, and waits until she starts reaching for the doorknob before he calls her again.

"Cristina." The medic turns.

He shrinks for a moment, but nonetheless clears his throat and opens his mouth.

"You wouldn't happen to have noticed a small, black notebook among these belongings they've returned here, would you?"

Cristina thinks for a moment. Then she shakes her head.

Lack-Two's shoulders noticeably drop as he sighs.

"I see," he murmurs, finally proceeding to laying back down, his satchel lain gently over his chest.

"No matter. The board must still be using it as reference…"

He blinks at the ceiling, then slightly grimaced before closing his eyes.

Cristina watches on.

"Kyouhei?"

"You may leave," he says, his voice back in its usual, calm but superior tone. Cristina bites her lips in slight offense, but only opts to give out a resigned sigh as she turns the knob. But as she was about to step out, Lack-Two speaks again.

"For what it's worth, Tina," he says, his eyes still closed. Cristina turns back to him another time, frozen underneath the door frame. Lack-Two opens his eyes and turns to her.

"I think you'd make a great sister-in-law."

There was a short pause for Cristina to understand what the Interpol officer meant, and the moment that she understood, the medic's caramel skin flares up into a dark, crimson shade, starting from her cheekbones all the way to her ears and down to her neck.

Lack-Two notes the change with remote delight.

It reminded him of someone.

"W-W-W-W-W-W-W-W-What…?! WHAT?!" Cristina free hand clutches onto her bag's strap in agitation.

"Sister-in-law?! What?! What the heck are you saying, Officer?!"

Lack-Two smiles playfully as he faces the ceiling once more. Cristina cries for his name edgily. He closes his eyes, his smirk still in tact.

"K-Kyouhei!"

"I'm in sedatives, remember?" he mischievously replies. "I don't really know what I'm saying…"

Cristina points an accusing finger at him.

"T-That isn't true, right? Officer Lack-Four never went as much as bat an eye on me! That can't be true! It isn't true! Right, Kyouhei?! Right?"

Lack-Two chuckles.

"Stop chuckling and take back whatever you said, Kyouhei!"

"You know, if you're so curious, go ask Lack-Four."

"W-Why on earth would I do that?! Officer is very busy with the reports and whatnot… H-He'd never… W-Would he…?"

"I'm sleepy…"

"Kyouhei!"

"Good night, Tina…"

"Kyouhei!"

-...-

"Dang, Tina Tuna's in a rough mood today," Cleo half-sings, half-hums. He folds his arms behind his head, leans back a bit, and moves forward with his hips lightly thrusted forward. The rest of Team 2 watches on, both slightly wondering how the hell could he keep his balance with a peculiar posture such as that.

"Sure hope she doesn't go savage on Lil' Boss this time. The poor kid's still recuperating."

"That's because you always get on her nerves," Yuan points out. "And you'd think you've learned your lesson after the last time she gave you a beating."

Cleo rolls his eyes. Yuan fumes.

Elya smiles.

Despite how things were beginning to rapidly change for all of them, some things were meant to stay just the same. But somehow, in the pit of his stomach, he still doubts for how long.

"You know what? If Lil' Boss gets picked on by Miss Tuna, I'm going to blame it all on you!" Yuan snaps accusingly.

For there was no one else out there who was fit for the position Lack-Two will most likely leave vacant. And although the latter had the choice to bequeath said position to his team member of choice, Elya doubts that the board will allow any of them three to get anywhere near such power.

Recommended by an officer or not, they were still once criminals bounded under the jurisdiction of Interpol law, and even if they've theoretically atoned for their sins a long, long time ago in their many years as Interpol agents, they can never deny the fact that the board will always look down on them.

Just like how the rest of the officials looked down on their beloved boss.

"Big Man's thinking again…" Cleo suddenly groans aloud, waking Elya from his yet another trance. He blinks a few times and notices that the other two members of his team are now looking at him, one with expectancy and the other with annoyance.

"You're acting weird, Big Man," Cleo goes on, continuing his steps forward. His posture was now straighter than earlier on, his shoulders lowered, almost as if burdened. "Ever since we got home, you've been nothing but either quiet or dazed." He suddenly halts after just a few steps, and turns to their leader with a scowl.

"You're hiding something, aren't ya'?"

Elya bites his lips as he eyes them both. For once, Yuan did not reprimand his teammate.

"Hate to admit it, but Cleo's right," he mouths. "The last time you became this quiet we lost our old boss…" Then the two are suddenly engulfed in silence as they stare Elya down with wide eyes.

"Is Lil' Boss…?"

Then Cleo begins to laugh.

"Look at you two," he jeers, returning to his earlier posture. He turns around as the other two watch on.

"So tall and burly yet so soft. They oughta strip you off of your titles as Team 2's finest…"

On cue, Yuan's face contorts into annoyance. He was about to speak and start yet another argument, but Elya stops him. He motions to Cleo's shoulders.

They were shaking.

"Cut the kid some slack," Cleo goes on. "He may be crazy strong, but he's still, above all else, just a kid. And I don't know about you, but I think having three crazy men follow you around despite your age is a bit stressful." Again, he lets out a snicker.

"Besides, Lil' Boss will always be Lil' Boss, officer or not. Just like how all the other Lack-Twos will always be our bosses of various sizes." He gives out one long, deep sigh.

"He's done babysitting us. Let's let Officer Kyouhei do what he wants from now on…"

Elya and Yuan share a look. A long look. They both wore the expression that claimed many things words can never express.

Then they smile.

"Since when did you get so smart?" Yuan chuckles, adjusting his guitar bag over his shoulder. He steps forward and gestures for Elya to do the same.

Elya finally complies, a smile brewing on his face. He looks forward to where his team was heading, still with that slight tinge of doubt in his stomach, gradually being replaced by a funny feeling of hope.

Then hope suddenly became a small figure with bunned hair.

Whi-Two blushes as she cringes back upon seeing the three.

Team 2. She already had a long list of people she had hoped she wouldn't get to see playing in her head, and these three particular people were surprisingly not yet there.

She wondered if it would be too late to turn and scamper back to Gunny's room. Though she realized it would only mean the officer convincing her to go back.

"He'd definitely want to see you, you know," he said when she first shook her head to his suggestion.

"It's the least you could do for him…"

Least I could do, she now thinks with slight dread, looking at the three men with her large, scared eyes.

She doesn't need to think too much to know that these men, too, were not very fond of her, and this time, it was not based on what she was but on what she did.

"Uhm…" she mumbles, looking down, hoping they'd just pretend they didn't see her and simply walk away.

She fears they would ask her what she planned on doing, and when they do, she doubts she could find another excuse.

And, they don't need to know. They'd probably prohibit her from proceeding should they find out.

Please start moving already, she silently pleads. Just keep walking and don't look at me like that.

After a few moments of awkward silence, Cleo suddenly speaks.

"Heya', Captain-"

"Officer Gunny asked me to go here, okay?!" she suddenly blurts. Then she looks up with wide eyes in surprise.

The three men had the same confused look in their shadowed faces.

Cleo gives Yuan a look before returning to her.

"That's… cool, I guess? Gunman's pretty awesome… "

Whi-Two darts her eyes frantically back and forth, feeling her guts sink even lower as she watches them watching her.

"N-No, I…"

Then, Elya suddenly smiles.

"He's resting in his room right now," he begins. Whi-Two returns her frightened eyes at the tall man.

"The medic in charge of him actually kicked us out so he could," Yuan continues. "Though I think she just couldn't bear our noise whenever we go there…"

Cleo sneers. "That woman just can't appreciate true, contemporary music when she hears it."

"Face it Cleo, you sound like a dying whale when you sing…"

"Li'l Boss thinks we're awesome!"

Elya sighs with a shake of his head before returning his gaze to the confused brunette.

There was a solemn look in her eyes as she listens to the other two members argue once more.

"Surprising, isn't it?" he muses aloud to gently shake her off of her own trance. She looks up at him, her expression retained.

"That someone like Lack-Two would put up with a bunch of noisy clumps of meat like us?"

Elya's smile shrinks a bit.

"Guess that's what happens when outcasts meet their fellow outcasts…"

Whi-Two is taken aback for a moment, but she immediately understands him well.

But, of course. The whole of Interpol took so many precautionary measures before they even agreed to let these men into their ranks, let alone work for them. Because they didn't believe in these three.

The same they didn't believe in Lack-Two.

The same way they didn't believe in her.

She bites her lips in deep thought. Ever since Gunny told her about Lack-Two, it was the only thing that stayed in her mind the whole time she was recuperating, and even more so the whole time she was hoarding Officer Gunny's visiting time.

Whi-Two would be lying if she says that she has forgiven that guy for all that he's done, but somehow, she still can't find it in herself to be mad anymore. She was, at first, but as the course of events progressed the whole time they were there, she gradually lost her grasp of her own emotions and focused solely on trying to make sense of everything, which, looking back now, felt like a failure.

She was not able to keep herself alive through her own means and was forced to rely on the person whom she initially tried to kill, ironically.

Again, the girl's gaze falls.

Now she feels like a jerk for even considering not seeing him. She basically owes him her life, even if, after all that's transpired, she feels like she doesn't need it anymore.

Regardless, she still needs to see him.

"I…" she begins, trying to fight away the constricting feeling in her throat. Truthfully, she doubts if Lack-Two's loyal subordinates would ever allow to go anywhere near their beloved commander after what she's done. Even she wouldn't allow herself to do so.

Her voice chokes trying to ask a question, but Elya nods like he understood.

"Third door to your left," he says, turning to his side to gesture at the hallway with his arm. Whi-Two follows his gesture with her gaze.

"I'd suggest knocking but…" he smiles and shrugs.

Whi-Two finally allows a small smile to escape her lips.

"Thank you," she whispers, looking down.

"No sweat, Miss," he says with a smile. "I mean, no matter what happens, you're still part of Team 2, right?"

Whi-Two looks up at him for the third time. But Elya has his back already turned.

"Alright, you jerks," he barks at the two. The stops with each a sneer, and faced their ex-facto leader. Elya jerks his head to the opposite direction.

"We have reports to write."

Then he faces Whi-Two.

"But before that... "

With wide eyes, Whi-Two watches the three form a line in front of her. Then, they straighten themselves up, and raise their hands to their forehead in salute.

"T-Team 2…?"

Elya inhales with a smile.

"Team 2 members Elya, Yuan, and Cleo asking permission to carry on, Captain."

Whi-Two feels her stomach drop to its lowest point.

Of course. How could she forget?

She was still their Captain.

Whi-Two gives out a soft chuckle as brushes a tear away.

"Permission granted," she says in a soft voice. "Carry on."

-...-

"Miss Whi-Two, you're here."

Whi-Two lets out a high-pitched screech, feeling a slight jolt of electricity crawl through her veins, making her stand on end. She immediately pulls away her attention from the solid oak door she was staring at for about a minute or two, and turns immediately to find herself face to face with Lack-Two.

Except he was taller.

The former Team Plasma girls immediately shakes her head, and soon she notes of how the boy seemed to have aged, and how his hair suddenly seemed so tamed.

Lack-Four blinks a few times before smiling sheepishly.

"Erm," he begins, rubbing the back of his head apologetically.

"Sorry. Did I scare you?"

Whi-Two only stares at him, her reply nothing but a frozen expression and almost lifeless blinks-an expression she's never done before. At least for as long as he's known her and seen her up close.

It makes Lack-Four smile somehow.

"Quite the jumpy one, aren't you?" he comments, burying his one hand on his pocket. "I'm fairly surprised. You appeared fairly focused and reserved when Lack-Two first introduced you to the board."

Then his eyes trail to the side, to Lack-Two's door that was slightly ajar. He could make the image of the edge of his younger brother's bed, but other than that piece of wood that served as the footboard and a small part of his bedsheets, he couldn't see a thing.

And he actually doubts if he wanted to.

"Is he sleeping?" he asks, returning his gaze to her. Again, Whi-Two tenses up.

"I-I…" she begins softly, looking down. "I haven't gone in yet."

Lack-Four's face slightly falls. "Oh."

Whi-Two swallows as she looks up at him.

"I'm still a bit…" Her voice trails off, finally allowing herself to remember the outbreak of emotions she had felt the moment she was back to her senses and was watching the Interpol medics try their best to revive Lack-Two. When she was with Gunny just moments ago, she barely allowed these thoughts to come to mind, but now that she's getting nearer and nearer to seeing Lack-Two whom she hasn't laid eyes or thought on since, she couldn't help but stop herself again.

She was still confused. And afraid. And conflicted.

Lack-Four nods kindly, a rueful smile on his face.

"I understand." He sighs pensively. "Even I as his older brother don't feel it appropriate to go in there… I know how much stress my presence causes him."

Whi-Two looks up at him. To that, Lack-Four's shoulders jerk slightly.

"Y-You know about that, right?" he asks a little restlessly. "About Lack-Two being my brother?"

The girl looks at him uncertainly but nonetheless nods.

Lack-Four's face eases up a bit.

"He told you?"

Whi-Two shakes her head. The older chuckles softly.

"Thought so," he smiles. A good-natured smile-nothing like she's ever seen him do before.

It was like watching him grow younger before her very eyes.

"Kyouhei was never the type who explains or says anything." He moves his auburn eyes towards the girl.

"Even to those who deserves to know…"

Whi-Two presses her lips together firmly as she looks down in agreement.

Hear, hear.

Lack-Four watches her for a moment, as if he was pondering. Then he blinks abruptly, sighs, and reaches for something behind him.

"But it's a good thing I met up with you," he begins, fishing out a piece of folded paper. He stares at it for a moment before returning his gaze to Whi-Two.

"I'm… supposed to give this to you," he says, handing it to her. "I honestly wanted Lack-Two to personally give it to you, but…" He shrugs as he lets Whi-Two take it off his hand. She unravels it carefully and scans through the contents.

Then she looks back at Lack-Four with disbelieving eyes.

"Sir, this is…"

"A release clearance," Lack-Four nods. "All people under Interpol surveillance require this before they are allowed to be fully freed from our custody. It indicates that whoever is granted with this document is officially no longer subjected to the Interpol's strict surveillance system. They're basically free."

Whi-Two's face does not change.

Lack-Four awkwardly clears his throat.

"It's for you and your mother," he clears.

Whi-Two's brows furrowed slightly as she shakes her head.

"I don't quite understand, Sir…"

Lack-Four blinks for a moment before biting his lips as he watches his feet, again seeming to ponder on something. Whi-Two notes the sudden glint of doubt and fear running through his auburn eyes, and somehow, it gave her an illusion of a younger man's eyes.

When he was but young and eager though scared and nervous.

Gunny had too much pictures of Interpol Officials when they were younger.

After a few moments, Lack-Four raises his eyes again, sighing as a form of compliance. Whi-Two feels her lungs constrict as she involuntarily holds her breath.

"Do you remember that time when your mother was suddenly called for an interrogation under me?" he asks.

She nods. Begrudgingly.

"That was actually part of the clearance process. If anyone under Interpol surveillance is deemed clear of all suspicions under the discretion of an internal officer, then that internal officer is given the rights to collect all evidences that prove as such, and submit them to the board." He sees Whi-Two's still confused expression, so he adds:

"I didn't bother putting you through the process because you're technically a member of the Interpol, just on probationary status. You can be easily relieved of it as long as your form is signed."

Whi-Two only blinks. She drops her eyes onto the document, tries to skim through it again, this time in a more relaxed manner, hoping that she didn't miss anything substantial on her first run-through.

She didn't.

"But why…?"

Lack-Four smiles.

"Kyouhei asked me to."

At that, Whi-Two snaps out of her timidity and goes back to being loud and on edge.

"What?!"

Lack-Four chuckles again.

"You see," he explains. "Lack-Two is stripped off of his rights to validate release clearances because of his tendency to do things his own way. The board is quite terrified of what he can do with such power. He could free a dangerous criminal and make it look as convincing as possible, and none of us would be able to do anything. That's how sick and manipulative he is to the board's eyes, and to most Interpol members."

Whi-Two takes a moment to look elsewhere. That was actually something she never thought to be true. Lack-Two always seemed like the Interpol board's favorite, seeing that he was being allowed to handle so much essential and confidential information.

The girl actually shakes thinking about how the hell Lack-Two was able to convince the board to even let her, a former criminal, on board.

"But Lack-Two came to me one time and made a deal… He said that if I interrogate Miss Cecilia and prove of her closed relations with Team Plasma—without the need to hurt her—he'll answer a question of my choice. When I refused, he countered with yet another deal: He'll finally provide me the intel he has been hiding from the Interpol that will finally answer all the unanswered questions regarding our first encounter with Team Plasma. And when he does, I must sign both your and your mother's clearances with no questions asked. Then he asked me which of the deals I'd gladly agree to, and I chose the one that will have dealt the least damage…"

Lack-Four shrugs as he fixes his gaze on the clearances, though his mind, evidently, was elsewhere.

"Your mother is surprisingly knowledgeable of Interpol protocol…" he mumbles.

Whi-Two's eyebrows furrowed. She raises the piece of paper at the internal officer.

"Then, why did you…?"

Lack-Four shifts a little where he stood, looking more and more like an uncomfortable child in a social function than a high-ranking Interpol officer conversing with of the field agents.

"Because Lack-Two kept his end of the other deal as well," he finally pushes himself to say.

"He sent me the entire report he's been writing for the last five years, complete with all the detailed evidences he's collated from his undercover missions the night before we went back to N's castle." Lack-Four crosses his arms over his chest and sighs with a small smile on his face.

"I only got to see everything after everything was said and done. And… I don't know. It felt only fair that I keep my end. Besides…"

He looks down at Whi-Two with kind eyes.

"I've been for the notion of letting you and your mother go after my last interrogation with her. So, it's not really much of a bother on my part."

It was then that Whi-Two finally eradicates her look of shock, replacing it with a dark grim expression. She looks down with sad eyes, finally realizing just how far Lack-Two's manipulative powers can go, and just how efficiently he had thought everything through.

"He's planned everything," she mumbles to herself. Lack-Four looks at her.

She immediately begins flailing awkwardly.

"N-Nothing! Nothing…" She holds the paper with both her hands and bows abruptly in gratefulness.

"Thank you so much, Officer! My mother will be thrilled to hear the news!"

Lack-Four nods, gesturing for her to straighten herself.

"You're very welcome, Miss."

Then, his eyes float towards Lack-Two's door. Whi-Two follows.

"Just make sure you don't just thank me."

To Whi-Two's surprise, a flash of brown blur passes through her vision as she watches Lack-Four abruptly bow in front of her. The earlier backs away in shock.

"For what it's worth, Miss Whi-Two," Lack-Four says in his loud, formal voice. "I apologize profusely for whatever trouble and other forms of damage my brother has caused you!"

"U-Uh…! S-Sir, please…!"

Lack-Four straightens himself as he gives out an apologetic sigh.

"He may be a troublesome kid, but he means well…" He raises his head a little, and Whi-Two could see the pained look in his eyes as he did. "I just wish I found that out earlier on…"

Then he fully straightens himself as he lets his gaze fall on Lack-Two's door the umpteenth time. There was indeed longing, Whi-Two could note, but there was something else.

An expression she's never seen anyone make before

"Do you still plan on going in?" he suddenly asks her. Whi-Two looks confused for a moment.

But she nods weakly nonetheless.

"Good," Lack-Four smiles, fishing something from his pocket. "I was hoping you could give him something for me…"

He puts it into view, and Whi-Two recognizes the deck with inner disdain and slight fear.

Of course, it had to make an appearance to the scene…

Lack-Four gently takes her sudden limp arm and hands her the deck. Whi-Two only stares at it glumly as her fingers wrap around it. Lack-Four paid her expression no heed.

"I've had one of my subordinates pick these up and collate them for me. Even if I don't understand what these are and why would Kyouhei have them made this way…"

Whi-Two only halfheartedly nods as she goes through the cards right side up, her eyes unmoving as she sees that the deck was comprised of nothing but hearts and spades.

Lack-Four gives a sad smile.

"I know how much these cards mean to him. I saw how careful he was never to leave them behind while he could. And although Lack-Two may appear to be the most eccentric of our bunch, I know that he's not the kind to do things simply because. There must be a story hidden in those cards that he still refuses to tell, and I, in respect of all the other peculiar things I find our officers handle, will not pry."

Another remorseful sigh escapes his lips as he traces the unruffled pile in Whi-Two's hands with his eyes.

"I really want to do something nice for him, for once…" he slowly whispers.

The girl notes the solemn look in the officer's eyes as he goes on. There was a distant tone in his voice, almost like his words were addressed not to her but something beyond her.

He sounded like he was explaining things to himself.

"I've been… unconsciously pushing down the burden of four lost lives on his shoulders all these years. And now that I finally understand the weight of my mistakes, I…"

Lack-Four smiles bitterly with a shrug of his shoulders.

"I still can't find the courage to face him. Not before. Not right now. And frankly, not in the years to come."

Lack-Four winces.

"I'm still scared."

Before Whi-Two's eyes, Lack-Four's domineering façade comes crumbling down, all to reveal a pair of broken eyes that belonged to a young man who's just as lost and confused as she was.

No. Scratch that.

As lost and confused as she still is.

Whi-Two looks down on the cards again, and as well as the document that she held in both her trembling hands, taking in the eerie image that these have formed the longer they stayed in her care. It has only been a few minutes of them talking, but now Whi-Two feels like she's holding onto something that grows heavier the longer she stood there.

Like these were more than just things she needed to deliver. They carried unspoken words: unuttered apologies and unexpressed wishes, all floating in the stream of consciousness that has made the building's atmosphere far heavier than it should be, all too frightened to materialize themselves to finally be understood.

Whi-Two internally scoffs.

These brothers are so alike.

The hopeful look in the Officer's face pulls Whi-Two from her trance.

"Can I trust them with you for now, Miss Whi-Two?"

Whi-Two straightens up the unfurled pile in her hands, a grim look in her eyes. But she nods nonetheless.

"Of course, Officer."

Lack-Four smiles as he buries the hand he's held out back to his pocket, a look of slight relief in his smile. He watches as Whi-Two tries to hold all the items he's given her in her two comically small hands, and tries to say something else.

But he was stopped by the sound of the doorknob rattling beside him. The two turns as the oak door opens and out comes a relatively tall, blonde woman dressed in all white.

A medic, Whi-Two surmises as she watches the woman shakily walk through the door frame, unabashedly ignoring the shocked look in Lack-Four's face.

The officer blinks warily at her.

"T-Tina?" he queries in a soft, gentle voice, as a ranger would address a wounded, hostile animal in hope of not apprehending them.

But nonetheless, the medic reacts to the negative.

"Dear God, why do you people even call me that?!" she cries, inching at from the confused officer. "It's just plain weird."

"E-Er…" Lack-Four looks to his side uncertainly for a moment, obviously affected by the question. The medic notices the high-ranking officer's evident flinch, making her feel slightly conscious. She makes an effort to straighten herself, and as she feels the embarrassment slide down her system, she clears her throat.

"With all due respect, Officer," she begins, trying her best not to open her eyes to his direction. "Please talk some sense to Officer Lack-Two… He's saying too much peculiar things! Calling me his 'sister-in-law', I swear to God!"

Whi-Two notes the sudden change in Lack-Four's expression.

The officer flusters openly, to both the ladies' surprise.

"W-What…?" he mumbles, his brows creasing as if in confusion. But the look in his face was undoubtedly the look of comprehension. "Kyouhei said what?!"

The medic makes a mistake of looking the other in the eye, making her blush all over. She flinches as well, grasping onto her bag as she tries to take a few steps back.

"Dear me," she mumbles, clearing her throat for the second time. "This isn't the time for this… I've somewhere else to be." She makes a point to straighten herself out of respect, but her left brow still twitched evidently that she herself found it futile. With a sigh, she gestures at Lack-Four-and to some extent, Whi-Two, then starts for the other direction.

"Excuse me, Officer."

Whi-Two watches as the woman disappears into the hallway, listening to her heels hitting the solid floors, the click, click, click filling the silence that has engulfed the remaining two. Then she hears a crack and immediately turns back to Lack-Four's direction.

The Interpol Officer was fuming.

"O-Officer…?"

Lack-Four cracks his knuckle again.

"I'm going to murder that boy…"

-...-

Whi-Two steps into the room and quietly closes the door behind her, immediately feeling a sense of heaviness on her shoulders as she takes in the atmosphere of the small, square space.

The atmosphere from outside was already something she could barely handle, what with the different faces she's encountered in just one hallway, each with their own heaviness to give. And now that she was inside this room—his room, of all places—the arduous aura from before seemed like child's play for her.

She looks around for a moment, taking in the images—or lack thereof—that constituted Lack-Two's room, feeling a small pang of sourness somewhere in her throat, mostly from the rather repulsive idea that, technically, she was all alone with Lack-Two in his own room.

Being alone with him in his office was already bad enough.

After taking it all in, she finally gathers up the courage to look forward, to the small oak bed at the other end of the room, right next to the window draped with a pale shade of green, that protected that small space from the sun, though not fully. Whi-Two could still detect weak rays of sunshine dotting the white sheets that covered the shaded figure that lay unconscious in his bed.

Whi-Two swallows hard.

This is it.

With a deep breath, she starts treading the almost impossibly short distance between his bed and where she stood, all while trying to rack her brain for all the things she has told herself that she wanted to say to him—all the thoughts that ran through her mind as she was making her way to his room.

But now that she was but a few steps away from him, and now that his slumbering face was already in full view, Whi-Two's head was empty. Her lips were empty.

Her heart was empty.

All she could process was how inconveniently small his room was, how young he looked like when he slept, and how cumbersome it was to hold the pile and the documents in her small, shaky hands. Lack-Two's bedside desk comes to view, almost empty save for a small lamp and an envelope. She takes no second thoughts and robotically slams the items onto the wooden surface, feeling her fingers slowly grow numb as she pulls them away.

Whi-Two wipes her sweaty hands into her blouse, absentmindedly eyeing the peculiar pattern of the red seal that was embossed onto the center flap of the white envelope. (She wonders where she first saw this pattern.) Then she averts her gaze, and finds a chair.

Carefully and with the least amount of noise, she pulls it near Lack-Two's bedside, sits on it, and tries to recollect her thoughts again.

But it was all for naught.

She couldn't think of anything anymore.

Whi-Two groans as she hunches forward and covers her face with her hands, and then roughly pulling them down in frustration. As soon as she opens her eyes, she notices that Lack-Two's arms slowly moves, re-adjusting his hold onto the bag that sat on his chest, which she only noticed now. The front pocket was slightly opened, and a small, black notebook was peering out. Whi-Two only eyes it for a good minute or two, until Lack-Two moves again, causing the notebook to finally break free, and fall into the ground.

The girl bends over and picks it up.

It was a small leathery notebook, only slightly bigger than her palm. She examines its exterior for a bit, trying to remember where she had first seen it, and at the same time if she really had. Then she opens it to the first page, and immediately remembers:

This was the same notebook that Lack-Two held so religiously back when they first met at the university. The same notebook she would catch him scribbling on every now and then. The same notebook he almost killed someone for when one of his classmates tried to steal it from him.

Whi-Two swallows hard once again, trying to focus entirely at the blotches of ink that lay innocently on the first page.

"Property of Kyouhei," it said, written in Lack-Two's clear and crisp handwriting. And underneath it were almost undecipherable scribbles, all of which were probably still Lack-Two's doing.

Whi-Two looks up to see if he was still asleep, or if he's heard all the noises she's kept making despite herself and was already giving her a scowl.

Thankfully, he was still in deep slumber. At least, he looked like he was.

Whi-Two turns to the second page, and she almost drops it upon reading the first word. She had to lift her gaze for a moment, blinking into the pale green curtains, focusing her mind on how it ripples gently from the outside breeze.

Then she looks down again.

Mei.

There was no denying it. The first thing she's read in the notebook was her own name.

Mei.

Mei. Mei. Mei.

Mei…

Whi-Two leafs through the next four or five leaves, and they were all filled with her name. Her real name.

The name she swore only her mother and her Lord N knew and used to address her.

The name she never thought Lack-Two knew.

Whi-Two bites her lips in fear and nervousness as she looks back at the sleeping boy. The latter barely makes another move and finally lies perfectly still. She hesitatingly returns to the notebook, leafing through the small pages filled with ink blotches, skimming through each one as quickly as she could.

About two more were filled with scribbles of her name, others with random notes about her, while the rest contained long sentences, all of which Lack-Two tried to erase away by angrily crossing them out repeatedly. Whi-Two's eyes journeyed through the writings, occasionally running her fingers through the individual pages, feeling the embossed letters left by Lack-Two's somewhat angry way of scribbling things down.

Despite the feeling of fear and uncertainty, she still kept on leafing through the notebook, until she began noticing that more and more of the latter pages were torn away neatly from the spine. There was a page where Lack-Two was writing about his assumptions regarding "Mei's inclination to sit by the cliff just behind their campus to look up at the stars", and at some point, it was cut abruptly, the next parts probably written in said torn pages.

She kept going even further. Several paraphernalia were stuck between pages: candy wrappers, small notes, a wilted flower petal… And soon, her movements gradually get rougher, until one piece fell out. The brunette watches it gently sink onto the floor before deciding to allow herself to bend over and pick it up.

It was a photo of Whi-Two and Lack-Two during the end of their first and only term together. The same one he asked to be taken the day before he declared arrest.

Whi-Two grimaces.

The memory of Lack-Two revealing his true identity left such a bitter impression on her that she's forgotten about this day—the day when she actually considered warming up to that disturbing young playboy who began and never ceased setting his eyes on her ever since she entered the university as a transferee.

She traces with her fingers Lack-Two's frozen smile and her own look of shock—she remembers how Lack-Two caught her by surprise when he suddenly wrapped his arm around her shoulder and told her to smile for the camera—trying her best to remember how she regarded Lack-Two before. As in, way before.

Before Interpol. Before Lord N. Before everything else.

And the harder she tries, the more she is reminded that it will all be for naught because this boy—this rather dashing boy with the equally dashing smile—is nothing but one of the many, many personas that this Interpol agent uses to get what he wants.

Yet here she was, still falling for every single one of them hook, line, and sinker, despite all that she's seen and been through with him.

Whi-Two finds herself chuckling bitterly all of a sudden.

Without thinking, she flips the photo around, and finds more of Lack-Two's handwriting donning its glossy surface. The words were smudged—obviously a few seconds after the words were written—and it gave her a hard time reading.

Nonetheless, she still tries.

"To Whi-Two/Mei…" she mumbles, nearing the image to her face.

"O… On… One…"

"One day you'll realize why 'spades' are drawn as 'inverted hearts'."

Whi-Two almost drops the photo and the notebook at the sight of the familiar pair of russet eyes staring menacingly at her.

"Hasn't anyone ever taught you never to meddle with other people's belongings?"

Whi-Two was speechless; feeling his gaze burning through her body the longer it takes for her to withhold speaking. She forcefully parts her lips in hope of saying something.

"I, uh… Erm…"

But Lack-Two's eyes have already averted themselves and looked elsewhere, the earlier look of threat now dissolved into nothing but a look of languor.

"…This is a dream, right?" he whispers.

Whi-Two's look of shock was replaced with confusion, watching as Lack-Two tries to set his bag aside, wincing a bit from using his heavily bruised left arm.

"S-Sorry?" she asks. Carefully.

"I know that you won't really show up if it weren't a dream," he continues, trying to return his bruised arm to its original position. Pangs of pain raced across his body as he did.

"You should be away from this place by now," he says. "I would've, if I were you."

Whi-Two could only watch him try to hold his ground despite his doleful form, still at a loss for words.

His voice was hoarse, his body was trembling, his face was almost pale, possibly from trying to endure the pain…

She didn't know how to deal with this Lack-Two just yet.

"They…" she finally mumbles, looking away from him and trying to focus on whatever it was that she plans to say.

"They're still interrogating me regarding what happened." Lie.

"I… They need the Intel, and I'm the only one who can give it to them." Another lie.

"…After all, I was there the whole time." Not entirely a lie.

Lack-Two succeeds in landing his injured arm gently to his side, exhaling a sigh of relief. He watches the ceiling for a moment, and then speaks again.

"Don't bother yourself," he softly snaps, the look of annoyance and threat slowly returning to his face.

"I was there too, so my words are just as valuable as yours. There's no need for you to stay any longer. Just take your mother and go."

Again, he winces, and this time, his relatively good arm flies to his head. He spends another few good seconds of waiting for the pain to subside by itself before returning his gaze back to her for the second time.

"…Or are you waiting for me to ask for forgiveness first?"

Whi-Two bites her lips in mild disbelief. The brief yet sheer repulsion from a while ago somehow finds its way back to her heart.

"You're going to ask for forgiveness, but you barely regret a thing," she points out darkly.

Lack-Two only shrugs.

"I've lost the ability to feel regret. A long, long time ago…" He scowls again, possibly from the pain returning once again, but he still finds the strength to speak.

"Honestly, you're only wasting your time. Just go."

But Whi-Two didn't plan on leaving without a fight.

"So, after using me, you're just going to dispose of me? Is that it?"

Lack-Two sighs once more, his voice sounding more and more aggravated at every word that costed too great of an effort for him to even utter.

"Despite being who I am, I at least know that anything borrowed must be returned. Keeping them by your side longer—no matter how much you want to—will only break them further. And you don't want that…" He finally lifts his arm to reveal his solemn look, now focused directly on her.

"I don't want that…"

Whi-Two could only watch him as his glare gradually melts back into drowsiness, his eyes returning their focus to the bland, white-painted ceiling. She was too confused to speak.

Lack-Two was saying things—things she should be used to by now. Things that are supposed to raise an alarm within her that tells her to raise her defenses for whatever hurtful thing that will come out of his mouth next. It has always been that pattern for the both of them. He'd say something that will catch her off guard and cause her to mellow up to him, and right when her defenses are all down and she's wide open and vulnerable, he'd prey on her and strip her bare of whatever dignity she still had left in her system, and before she knows it, she finds herself trapped in a version of her she never knew existed.

Again and again, he did this to her.

That was always Lack-Two's specialty, she observed: making her become something she would never expect herself to be at any point in her life.

And yet I still fall for it…

She didn't know if it was pure talent on his part or pure idiosyncrasy on hers. All she knows is that it has never changed since and she doubts it will ever change now nor in the future.

So she takes a deep breath and readies herself for what comes next.

But what comes next was simply Lack-Two wincing again as he presses his right palm to his eyes, his other hand clenching to his sheets.

"God, they don't make strong painkillers like they used to anymore," he mumbles, much to the girl's surprise. Then he lets out one deep breath as his muscles begin to gradually relax. He lifts his hand for a moment to reveal his face, but his eyes were still tightly shut.

"But the kickback it brings with it, damn it…" His left eye springs open, and he looks back at her with a small smile.

"Hey, want to know something?" he says in a hoarse but unmistakably playful voice. Whi-Two looks at him with uncertainty, but nonetheless leans forward to show her curiosity out of habit.

Lack-Two seems delighted.

"I am only about sixty percent sure you're really there and not some drug-induced hallucination…"

Out of sheer shock and confusion, a lighthearted giggle escapes her defenses. Her hand immediately flies up to her mouth.

"Knew you'd laugh," he chuckles with a smile. Then he sighs wistfully.

"Three days," he says with a distant look in his eyes. "Took you long enough…"

The smile disappears. Whi-Two raises a brow.

"Excuse me?"

Lack-Two looks back at her knowingly.

"Hey, you may be awkward and a bit lightheaded, but you're a good agent." Then he returns his gaze to the ceiling again.

"And a good agent never leaves a job unfinished…"

Whi-Two looks at him for a good second or two before realizing what he meant.

Three days…

Of course. Just three days ago she had the solid intent of killing him.

The girl swallows hard.

She had completely forgotten about that relatively small yet surprisingly relevant matter up until this point. It's astonishing how he still remembers it clearly.

Or better yet, it's astonishing how that's the only thing he decides to remember, or at the very least, bring up as a topic for conversation.

"You know, if I were you, I'd finish it now, while no one's looking," he continues matter-of-factly, like this was something he faces on a regular basis. Whi-Two was appalled.

"No cameras are installed here. My men—which I hope you weren't able to meet on the way here because one of them, I think, still wants you dead—are not here. The medic just left… And if you're worried about me fighting back…" He gestures at his almost pathetic state, and then nods approvingly at her.

"Do whatever you want…"

Whi-Two's eyebrows furrow in bewilderment and frustration.

"I'm confused," she whispers, warily shaking her head. "Why are you suddenly…?"

The Interpol Officer shrugs.

"I'm serious about how you and your mom should have left and never looked back—that's still one other option—but if you're that desperate enough for this that you'd risk being alone in a room with me, then I don't blame you."

He goes back to closing his eyes.

"Just be quick about it." And without stopping, he adds: "I take it they returned your small knife back to you?"

Whi-Two, still trapped with trying to process his previous words, gives it not much thought, and nods, mindlessly patting the back of her belt and feeling for the small weapon. Lack-Two nods in approval.

"Make sure you get it at first strike. I don't want my blood all over the place the second time. And make sure you don't hit my face in any way possible." He gives her a peek for one single moment, and after making sure she was looking at him, he winks.

"I kinda want to die handsome."

Whi-Two only watches him as he tries to recreate his peaceful position from before, his lips noticeably quivering up into a smile. Her expression does not change—she still looked as confused as when he first opened his eyes. Lack-Two senses her reaction—or lack thereof—and he opens his eyes for the second time. The pair of russet eyes falls on the astounded girl, and then he makes a face.

"What?" he claims with a chuckle. "That all the reaction you can make?"

Whi-Two responds with a blink. And one more.

Lack-Two chuckles the second time.

"My, my…" he whispers. He tries to support himself up with his one good arm to a sitting position, his eyes not moving away from the dumbfounded girl. When he's done so, he tries to reach for her, his hand stopping midway, in front of her face, and then he starts shaking it.

"Are we not a little out of it, my cute little Whi-Two?"

Again, Whi-Two blinks in response, only focusing on his face.

She has officially lagged.

Though her eyes have already acknowledged that this man—this slightly pale man waving his god forsakenly large hand in front of his face—was, indeed, her most loathed Interpol Officer, Lack-Two, her mind was only able to process up until what she has found in that black notebook. Unconsciously, her eyes falls onto the said notebook in her hand along with the photo, unaware that Lack-Two has followed her gaze and has acknowledged for himself what she's still having trouble understanding.

Absent-mindedly, she traces its leather cover with her thumb, desperately searching for the first thing that will come to her mind that she can put into words.

And what came out surprises them both.

"It's Mei."

Lack-Two raises his brow, but he fails to hide his smile.

"Hm?" he hums.

"My real name," she absent-mindedly confirms. "It's Mei."

To that, Lack-Two's smile turns into a chuckle.

"Good to know," he says, looking down on the black notebook in Whi-Two's lap. "Although, I'd prefer calling you 'Whi-Two' more…" He leans forward to reach for it, pausing for a moment to make sure that her eyes were directly on his, and then he speaks again.

"My cute little, Whi-Two…"

The feeling of his breath on her face triggers an involuntarily alarm from within her. Without needing to think, her face lights up and she raises both her hands to push him away.

"You idiot!" she cries, much to Lack-Two's delight. He backs away with a low chortle, watching as Whi-Two gives him a cautious look, her two hands still in place in case he had a second form of attack. But as Lack-Two showed no signs of doing nothing else but smiling at her, she convinces her body to loosen up.

He's injured, she tries to convince herself. He can't do much in this state.

…Can he?

As if reading her mind, Lack-Two raises both his hands in front of her.

"Relax," he says. "I won't do anything stupid, if that's what you're worried about. This isn't the place nor the time for me to do so." He tries to read her expression, bites his lips, and then adds, softly:

"Frankly, I find no need to anymore…"

The look in Whi-Two's eyes reverts into the same confused one from before. Lack-Two is quick to retain her wavering attention by continuing.

"What I meant is… I'm assuming you've met Officer Lack-Four upon coming here, yes?"

The girl looks at him for a moment with mild disbelief, but ends up nodding nonetheless. Lack-Two absent-mindedly does so as well.

"Make no mistake," he says, finally acknowledging the sheets of paper resting on the desk just beside the girl. Whi-Two follows his gaze for a moment but returns to him quickly, enough to catch the momentary dimming of his expression.

"I didn't have that made because I wanted to dispose of you. To be quite frank, I would've wanted for nothing more but to keep you." He sneaks in a small, playful grin through Whi-Two's gradually depleting defenses. The latter lags, but otherwise reacts accordingly, letting the other's smile grow even wider and more playful.

"Like I said, you amuse me. And you amuse me well."

Then his eyes soften as he looks the other way.

"But I think the Interpol can do away with two ghosts who are too clung on to the past from here on end."

This attracts Whi-Two's attention completely.

Two…?

Lack-Two bites his lips momentarily before letting them part again.

"There are other, more substantial things for them to attend to. Dormant entities like Team Plasma should be given least priority from now on…" He steals Whi-Two another look. Again, the girl is left with her guard down.

"Team Plasma won't be making any more trouble from now on, will they?" he asks, his voice a rising intonation, signaling that he means something else when he says 'Team Plasma'.

You won't be making anymore trouble from now on, will you?

As if she wanted the trouble in the first place.

"You said 'them'," Whi-Two whispers. Lack-Two's face falls for a slight moment before going back to its default expression.

But the girl was unfazed.

"The Interpol," she continues, louder this time. "You said they should prioritize something else…" It was Whi-Two's turn to give a suspicious look.

"And what about you? Does that not apply to you, too, Lack-Two?"

Lack-Two only scoffs.

"I was never one of them, Whi-Two."

There was a sudden shift in the atmosphere. A pang of pain passes through Lack-Two's solid façade. He doubles over suddenly, his right hand immediately grabbing his now trembling left arm.

Without thinking, Whi-Two springs forward and wraps her arms around his shoulders, albeit a little awkwardly. Lack-Two's body nonetheless gives in, and with a hint of hesitance, he allows the girl to help him sink back to his bed.

She lands him gently, listening to him as he starts drawing deep and heavy breaths.

"S-Should I call somebody?" the girl volunteers in a panicked voice.

It took Lack-Two a few moments before he was able to respond. Shakily, he raises his right hand, and with a slow, gentle wave, he dismisses her suggestion.

No need.

"B-But…"

"I'm fine," he says, landing his right hand over his eyes. Then after a few short breaths, he lifts it again—this time with more control—and he lands it on his left shoulder where Whi-Two's hand was perched. The sudden feeling of warmth surprises the girl, enough for her to jolt slightly. But what surprises her more was how she chooses instead, to welcome it. Welcome him.

The girl marvels at how fine she was with his touch.

Lack-Two takes another deep breath before speaking again.

"It takes a lot more than that to get rid of me…" Then he makes a point to turn to her.

"Unfortunately for you…"

Whi-Two only looks at him, her hand still aware of his touch.

Unfortunately for you…

No words could somehow describe it, the way her tongue would seem to retreat everytime he jokes on that matter.

Unfortunately for you…

The truth is that Whi-Two was still plagued: plagued with the smell of blood that surrounded the whole area as she comes to her senses being carried away from the scene by two people dressed in white, with the sound of desperate cries from the people around her, trying their best to tend to every agent conscious enough to cry in pain…

But mostly, Whi-Two was plagued with his name. The very thought of him consumed her back then in the same way it had consumed her as soon as she was back on her feet and was dragged here and there by the very same people in white. She remembers vaguely the supposedly comforting words that came out of their mouths, but she can recall, crisp and clear, the haunting memory of his limp and almost lifeless body as they try to desperately revive him. She remembers the frantic tick in Officer Lack-Four's voice as he tries to direct the team in shambles back into line, his eyes unable to hide the fear of what might become of his brother. Whi-Two had cried for his name repeatedly since then, even in her sleep. She would cry from him to wake up, stand up, and smile at her in the same conniving way that he always does. Or anything. Anything that tells her he was still alive.

She wanted him to die so desperately at one moment in her life, yet now she can't even take the thought of him not opening those eyes anymore.

Whi-Two feels her knees buckle underneath her, and she ends up kneeling before his bed, her forehead gently touching his bruised arm.

Once more since she woke up this morning, Whi-Two felt nauseous.

Unfortunately for you… It played in her head like a broken record.

I won't die just yet, unfortunately for you…

A sour feeling boils in the pit of her stomach, making her want to vomit.

How unfortunate, exactly?

Lack-Two looks at her solemnly for a moment, taking in the image of the girl's seemingly peaceful image: From her long brown hair, her withered shoulders gently rising and falling as she takes her own share of deep breaths, her hidden eyes, possibly closed as she presses them even more to his arm.

He may never admit this to himself out loud, but in the depths of his own convoluted heart—if he could still call it that—he'll always acknowledge the fact that, of all the things he was able to plan out, it was Whi-Two that he could never pin down. In all his calculations, he predicted that, as soon as everything dies down, this girl would've escaped. He even went through all that trouble just so his brother could give her an out should she have trouble doing it on her own.

And yet here you still are…

The boy heaves a sigh.

Now that he's thought about it, Whi-Two never really played well with any of his plans. Despite his pride, he still considers it pure luck that he was able to lure her in on this particular one, and even pull her around as he had pleased. But even then, he still ended up gaining more damage than he had intended.

Stealthily, he lifts his right hand off of hers. (In retrospect, he wonders how long he's been holding her hand, and why on earth was she not reacting.) He hovers it over her head, but he stops midway, and pulls it back to himself.

"I wonder," he instead sighs. "If, by some miracle, I wasn't able to survive that skirmish, would you be able to find someone like me?"

Whi-Two lightly chuckles despite herself.

"I sure hope not…"

Lack-Two finds himself smiling underneath a chuckle.

"…Now that I think about it: I'm pretty sure you can't. I'm kinda unique…"

"Yeah, they don't make assholes like you anymore."

Then Lack-Two clears his throat as he awkwardly moves his left arm from beneath Whi-Two.

"You're hurting me, Agent."

The girl's head shoots up, and with a low murmur of apology, she backs away and returns to her seat. She tries and fails to discretely wipe away the tears from her eyes.

"So, what now?" she asks. "What's going to happen to you now?"

Lack-Two thinks for a moment, and then faces her.

"…Frankly, I'm not so sure anymore. This is beyond the timeline I've planned so far." He clicks his tongue.

"But I've inferred some possibilities."

Whi-Two looks on. Lack-Two inwardly snorts.

"Of course, the best case scenario is that they suspend me for at least a month. After all, those were pretty crucial information I've been withholding for so long…"

Whi-Two finds herself shifting uncomfortably on her seat. Lack-Two goes on, speaking what Whi-Two had been loathing to hear since she's entered this room.

"And then there's the worst case…"

"Termination?" Whi-Two suggests almost too suddenly. Too desperately. Lack-Two could hear the slight desperation in his voice, and it makes him chuckle.

Then, he closes his eyes for a moment and sighs.

"Execution."

At once, all the colors remaining upon Whi-Two's face drains out as her pupils contract in fear.

"What?!" she cries.

"…But that's worst case, of course," he tells her quickly, feeling slightly amused at her reaction.

"And really far from happening. The board loves me."

Whi-Two just looks at him with the same expression.

"I'd gladly disagree with that," she mumbles.

Lack-Two's shoulders shake slightly. As always, he doesn't seem to care.

"Honestly, Lack-Two…" she finds herself beginning. Then she realizes immediately where she had intended to go with this and opted to hold herself back. But Lack-Two was already looking at her expectantly.

The girl sighs resignedly.

"I don't know if I'm in the place to say this, but…" She bites her lips for a moment before continuing.

"I think you went a little too far with things and even cost the safety of others, all for the sake of revenge. I mean, look at you…"

Lack-Two only looks at her.

"What about me?"

Whi-Two gives him a deadpan look.

"What? Was my cute, little Whi-Two worried about me?"

"Of course!" she hisses. "You may be a jerk and probably the most deserving to die among all of us, but I still owe you my life! And…" Whi-Two's voice dies down upon remembering why she was even there in the first place.

"…And, you still kept your end of the deal despite how hard it must've been for you…"

Everything once again comes back to Whi-Two in that moment. Those gray eyes, that green hair, that pleading voice that begged her to escape while she could…

"I mean…" she continues, her voice noticeably shaking, though the look in her eyes told anyone who would stare that she was fighting away a gruesome image from within her head.

"It all seemed futile since Lord N escaped by the end of it, but…" She gives him a look. Lack-Two's expression was undecipherable.

"At least I saw him, and… All those questions that I never knew were brewing within me were answered, and… Well…"

Whi-Two bites her lips, closing her eyes in hope of drowning those memories into the abyss of the forgotten.

"That was actually more than I ever bargained for…"

Lack-Two forces a smile.

"Hey," he mutters. "No blank spaces, right?"

Again, Whi-Two wipes another set of tears from her eyes. She steals a few sniffs before giggling.

"Well, I guess we should be happy that you're finally done with that painstakingly long puzzle you've been working on. Maybe now you can finally lay low on puzzles…"

Lack-Two good-naturedly shrugs.

"I wouldn't know," he says, averting his gaze toward the ceiling, a wistful look in his face.

"I mean… I still have you to solve."

Whi-Two freezes, and stares back at him. Lack-Two softly chuckles.

"…And so far, you're the trickiest one I've ever had my hands on yet."

"W-What…?"

"Can I just say something?" he suddenly asks, not giving Whi-Two a chance to react accordingly. His face changes yet again as he gives the girl a slightly disapproving look, though his eyes still lit with a slight playful tint.

"You have a very abysmal taste in men."

Whi-Two glows. He laughs.

A low yet lighthearted laugh.

The kind of laugh she'd only seen once. Back at the university.

It was the kind of laugh that could make anyone laugh along, even if they didn't know what the heck was happening.

And soon enough, she catches herself sneaking in an involuntary giggle.

"What can I say?" she whispers with a sigh. Lack-Two catches her smile slowly fade.

His smile fades as well.

"You can't really… choose in those aspects."

Then she scoffs. Bitterly.

"…And to think that I actually let you corrupt me for that guy. Honestly…" She bites away what's left of that smile she had carelessly let through her defenses, her eyes focused nowhere in particular.

"The things you do for love, huh?" she says in a soft voice, the words directed obviously not to the boy, but to something else.

Lack-Two watches her again, this time taking advantage of her trance to be able to stare at her a little longer.

Then he looks away.

"…And the price you pay for loving too much," he whispers.

This attracts the girl back to reality, just in time to see him attempt to sit up again. It was a long and rather awkward scene, but Whi-Two knew better than to spring forward and try to assist him. She knew Lack-Two still had his pride no matter how injured he ends up being, and supposedly that's not the case, she still had her pride to consider.

Attempting to touch Lack-Two the second time was already against the boundaries she had initially failed to follow, so, despite that innate desire to be nice, she chose to keep her hands to herself.

Fortunately, Lack-Two didn't seem like he needed them.

He adjusts himself accordingly, trying to suppress a wince or two as he does, and when he's done so, he reaches for the notebook that rested on his lap.

Whi-Two watches him flip through the pages with a look of indifference in his eyes, but she's heard him, and she's heard him well.

"And I'm guessing Miss Herdevory also said that?" she suspects.

Lack-Two absent-mindedly raises his eyebrow in response.

"Who?"

Whi-Two snorts.

"And where is that Mister Perfect Interpol bravado you always use in front of everyone, huh?"

The Interpol officer closes the notebook shut.

"I'm off-duty," he says good-naturedly. Then his voice drops.

"Possibly for a really long time…"

Whi-Two's head shoots him a worried look, and Lack-Two returns with the same kind of smile.

"Much as I'd want to get back out there, I don't think my body's going to bear with me for the latter days to come. And in case you haven't learned so yourself, this line of work waits for no one."

They stare at each other in silence for a good minute or two, until Whi-Two regains the ability to speak again.

"For how long?" she almost squeaks, her eyes now grim and dark.

Lack-Two shrugs good-naturedly.

"That really depends," he says. "Even I'm not sure how long it takes for my body to recover from something as bad as this. I mean…" He paused for effect, though it was clear that Whi-Two's mind is elsewhere yet again.

Still, he chose to continue it.

"...It's not like I've been this injured before."

Then he smiles.

"And even if I do reach a point where I'm fully recovered, I doubt that I'll be of any use to Interpol. And likewise, I doubt they'll be of any use to me…"

Whi-Two gives him a long, sad look.

It hurts how half of that statement may just be as true the other.

Somehow, somewhere inside her, she knew she'd hear him say this. But it still came as a blow.

"Hey," she says, almost inaudible enough to not let even herself hear. Lack-Two leans a little to her direction.

"For what it's worth—even if you're most of the time condescending and weird, and is probably better off locked away somewhere far from all of us good people…" Lack-Two just chuckled. Whi-Two shakes her head disapprovingly at him.

But either way, she still continued.

"I think you make an amazing commander…"

The amused look in Lack-Two's face doesn't waver. Whi-Two quickly finds herself wanting to eat her last words.

"W-What I meant is… Well… You're really… good. A-At what you do! That's all!"

Lack-Two only raises a brow at her.

"…That doesn't really mean anything to me."

Whi-Two's face blushes furiously.

Lack-Two's smile fades once more as he looks away.

"…But thank you."

Then he looks back at her.

"You're not half bad yourself. If it weren't for the fact that you cry a lot and give up too easily, I would've considered taking you up as my successor…"

Whi-Two looks at him with extreme disbelief.

"As a matter of fact, I do vaguely remember Team 2 mentioning that they've grown quite fond of you as their captain…"

"What…"

"…Or was it mentioned with a sense of killing intent? I'm not quite sure anymore…"

Whi-Two's face retained her incredulous expression.

"Although, wouldn't that be grand? Team 2 will finally start being an official band of ex-criminals!"

"S-Shut up!"

Lack-Two just smiles as Whi-Two continues.

"I can't believe you'd even consider such a thought! I-I don't want to be a lapdog like you people!"

Instead of saying anything, Lack-Two just nods in agreement.

"Of course, you don't..." he says softly. "You never belonged here. You're too soft. Too kind-hearted… And trusting… And pure… The Interpol has no use for people like you."

Lack-Two's eyes drop to the notebook in his lap, and so did Whi-Two's. She watches as he gently opens it once more, to that certain section where the image from a while ago was stuck between its pages. He pulls it out and gives it a good look.

"And I prefer it that way…"

He looks at her, and slowly, almost too carefully, hands the image back to her.

Whi-Two hesitantly reaches for it.

"Promise me that you'll never find yourself back in here for any intent or purpose, Whi-Two."

The girl just stares at the image. All of sudden, she felt like she didn't know any of those two people in the image even if it were nobody else but the two of them.

Never find yourself back in here…

Then where should she go?

"You never did tell me," she suddenly mumbles. Lack-Two looks at her. She puts the image down.

"Tell you what?"

"Why you placed so much trust and faith on me. I mean… I get that I was a crucial part of this so-called grand scheme of yours, but if you think about it, you would've done well—albeit, even better—without my help. And supposed that you really did need me, I don't understand why you'd give me enough freedom to let me do anything I want, even if you knew that there was a great chance that my decisions are likely to endanger everyone in the process…"

Lack-Two just smiles, prodding her silently to continue. Although Whi-Two doesn't seem like she had anything else to say.

But still, she did.

"You called me a 'criminal'," she mumbles, smiling a little bitterly. "More than I would've allowed you to. More than I would've allowed anyone to. And yet you entrusted your most beloved team to me, and even your own life, and the success of this mission and your plans."

She returns his gaze to him.

"Why'd you do it, Lack-Two?"

Lack-Two smiles. "I believe I've already answered that question the first time you've asked it from me."

Whi-Two looks at him, confused.

"No, you didn't! You just…"

But Lack-Two cuts her off.

"Believe me, Whi-Two. I did."

Then he chuckles as he sinks into the softness of his pillows, leaving Whi-Two in bewilderment at the vagueness of the other's response. Although, despite her confusion, she notes the boy's face.

For once, a sincere smile was plastered on his face instead of a knowing smirk or an amused gaze.

He wasn't playing with her anymore.

"I still find it hard to believe that," she says, despite herself. "I feel like it's not enough as a reason for just one you to pull so many strings…"

"What can I say?" he sighs. "I am a man of convoluted ways."

His smile, though the mockery, held no hint of fraudulence, but Whi-Two was never the one to believe so easily when it comes to things that had to do with him, and that's something the two of them would both have to live with should they find themselves in the same stage again.

Somehow, there something inside her that told her that it might take too long before she could see Lack-Two again.

She might never see him at all, even.

Truthfully, this shouldn't be something Whi-Two would have to worry about for the time being—there was still so much to be fixed, and even if it was Lack-Four himself who had told her that she's free to go, she knew that she wasn't going anywhere that easily.

And she wasn't supposed to be sentimental with the likes of him. They were Spades after all.

Spades…

The girl was reminded of the deck of cards by the bedside table. She steals it a short glance, and thought for a moment. Then she twists her body, retrieves the cards with a smooth movement, and adjusts herself back to her seat.

And despite Lack-Two's wondering glance, she starts shuffling it.

She did it a bit shakily and messily, far from Lack-Two's smooth and fluid ways. But still she continued, putting every doubt and every prayer into the spaces that broke each card apart from the other. Customized decks were usually difficult to shuffle, but surprisingly, this one followed her movement so obediently, she wondered if ever they were really made for such a chore.

When she's finally had her fill, she arranges it into a neat pile on her hand, and presents it to Lack-Two.

"I lost the card I took from your deck during the whole commotion, but I'm pretty sure you and I both know what it was…" She bites her lips and as she pressed her fingers into the rough side of the deck.

"An ace of spades," Lack-Two tells her. Softly.

Like he didn't want to say it himself.

Whi-Two looks him straight in the eyes.

"Pick a card," she says.

Lack-Two looks at her uncertainly, but he does so anyway, and he does it the only way he knew how. His index and middle finger taps the top of the deck and slides it away from Whi-Two, dragging the top card with it. He picks it up quickly, but he doesn't look at it. Instead, it remains faced down as he hands it to her.

It was Whi-Two's turn to look uncertainly.

"Like I've always said: I don't pick—I draw."

Whi-Two takes the card from his hand and gives it a peek.

"…And I've already drawn my card long before you've picked yours."

Whi-Two smiles as she nods.

She gives one last deep breath before raising it for him to see.

Lack-Two wasn't surprised at all.

It was a King of Hearts.

-FIN-

And that concludes Hearts and Spades! It was a long journey, and I'm happy that you guys stuck with me in the process. I'm sorry for my really slow updates-life does that to you. But I'm happy that despite all that has happened, this story never left me. And that was all thanks to the people who never stopped believing that I will finish each chapter.

Thank you, Yuna and Miss Vivid, for listening to me when I was first conjuring up this story some years ago. And thanks, too, for telling me it was good enough.

Thank you, Yami, for your neverending support and amazing ideas that has made this story more than what I planned it to be. I owe you all the glory I feel whenever people tell me this story was going somewhere, and that they loved it.

Thank you saveg1 and LovelyAndDull (yes, you too!), and all my other readers who message me here in FF and in tumblr, for making me feel like I'm doing this for other people aside from myself. Thanks for your support, and all your sweet comments. I really hope this ending is enough to appease your expectations because I made it extra special just for you guys!

Welp, I'm not sure how to give closure, but I want you all to know that I have many more Corruptedshipping ideas (and for other pairings from pokespe, as well), so I hope you guys tune in next time!

This story is officially closed, although I might add in another chapter to introduce to you guys a preview of my next major Corruptedshipping fic ;)

LoveLots~!