Bzzzzz bzzzzz. Bzzzzz bzzzzz. I woke with a start, disoriented and fuzzy. What an awful dream. I'd fallen asleep right in the armchair, cup of tea cold and forgotten on the nightstand next to my phone – my phone! Who was calling at this – Jumin? "Hello?" I mumbled, sleep still heavy on my eyelids.

"My love. I seem to have woken you up… I'm sorry." He paused, apologetic. "I have some bad news – nothing serious, but I have to leave on a business trip in a couple of hours, so I won't be able to see you for awhile."

The nightmare I'd just woken up from coupled with the irrationality of being half-asleep were to blame, I think, that at this point tears sprang into my eyes. "Oh. W-when will you be back?" Embarrassingly, my voice cracked as I tried to rein in the excess emotions.

"I'll have to be gone for three days. Oh… Are you alright? You sounded… I should cancel the trip." Concern edged in his tone, and I backpedaled quickly.

"No, Jumin, don't, that's not necessary. I just… Woke up from a bad dream." I cursed myself as more tears crept in the corner of my eyes. Stop being ridiculous.

There was a lengthy pause on the line before he asked, "A dream… What happened?"

"It's silly." I hedged, but received only patient silence. "I was lost. All around me was just fields and no matter how far I ran I couldn't find my way. I kept crying out but no one could hear me."

The phone crackled at Jumin breathing too close on the other end. "I will always find you, my love. Don't be afraid."

Tears started to come in earnest now, but my voice was almost steady. "Jumin… I love you. I want only to be yours."

"I wish you wouldn't cry. I don't know how to describe what it does to me. I want to wipe the tears from your cheek and hold you so that you know you are not lost." His words comforted me more than I thought possible.

I smiled as I imagined the scene – and wanted nothing more than for it to be real. "I'm sorry. I'm just being silly. Jumin, please get some sleep before your business trip. I'll see you in a few days."

"Ah – alright. I hope you fall back asleep now too. And don't have any more bad dreams until I'm there to wake you up from them. Good night, my love."

As he hung up I stood and shivered in the dark living room. I breathed a heavy sigh, wondering what I could possibly have done to deserve Jumin Han. Moments later as I curled into bed, images of his strong frame and beautiful dark eyes haunted my vision, and I dreamt of his touch.

...

I carefully measured flour the next morning to make batter for pancakes. Ever since Jumin had made them for me at his home I had been practicing making them here to return the favor one day. I kept getting the batter mixture wrong – or maybe it was the oven temperature – but they just weren't quite right. I knew how to cook, but these weren't my specialty. Yet.

I'd slept late today, after my phone call with Jumin, and it was past eleven now as I poured batter into the skillet in an almost-round puddle. Humming, I flipped over the first pancake too early, and it folded in half in sad defeat. "Damn." A knock on the door startled me, and I moved the pan with its failed pancake to the other burner. No one had ever knocked on the door before – the location of the apartment was supposed to be a secret, after all.

Still, Seven always kept an eye out through the CCTV, and against a mild apprehension, I went to answer the door as a second light knock fell. I cracked the door, cautious, and saw sunglasses and a teal mop of hair. "V!" I said, shocked. "Um, come in!" He thanked me and stepped inside, thoughts racing through my mind as I shut the door behind him.

"Were you cooking? I smell… pancakes." He smiled. "I'm sorry to have taken you by surprise – I tried to call first but it seems your phone is off."

Oops. "Oh, I must have forgotten to charge it overnight. I am making pancakes, would you like some?" I asked, slightly glad he couldn't see the sad attempt at a pancake that sat on the stove now.

"You know… I haven't had a meal cooked for me in a while. I don't want to impose—"

I interjected, feeling slightly awkward and wanting to keep my hands busy. "No imposing, I made more batter than I needed! You can sit anywhere – Oh! I'm sorry for the mess, I woke up so late today."

"Thank you," he offered, taking a seat at the dining room table as I turned to make a second attempt at a pancake. "I'm sure you're wondering why I'm here. I…talked with Seven last night, and I have to go away for awhile. As a member of the RFA and especially as Jumin's fiancée, I wanted to talk with you in person before I leave."

"Sure, V. I'm glad to see you again." I told him, silently cheering as I finished a perfectly golden brown pancake and slid it onto a plate.

"Jumin is my oldest friend, and I am so glad that he has someone like you at his side. He was always so opposed to meeting women, so it took me by surprise when he fell for you so quickly and so devotedly. But meeting you at the party and even now, I think I understand. You are a good match for him." V's words brought a deep blush that stained my cheeks. "I wish you nothing but the best, of course, but I also want to make clear that there are some details to be ironed out."

I turned a half-step toward him, confused. "Details?"

"Specifically, this apartment." He clarified, his tone even and calm. "I can only assume that Jumin will be impatient with the engagement, as he was hasty enough in proposing. So in case I am still away on my trip when you leave this apartment, I needed to speak with you about it. You are safe here. Luciel and I made sure of that. And I can't explain everything, but I had him disable the CCTV for your privacy from last night – you are not in any more danger."

I glanced at the hallway out of habit and felt a bit of relief. I hadn't liked the feeling of being watched in my own home. "V… Is he going to be alright?"

"Luciel just needs time. I hope you understand when I say I can't tell you any more than that. Please cheer for him, though, when you are able. Anyway, I think you should know about this apartment. This is the first time I've ever been here, but when Rika lived here I made a lot of the arrangements." His voice caught when he said his former lover's name, and I glanced carefully at his expression.

"Okay, pancakes are ready." I took advantage of the small pause to set a plate in front of him. "I hope they're alright – I've been practicing." I watched nervously as he silently took a bite. Anxious, I started making coffee.

"They're good. Thank you." V said in his simple way, and my heart warmed. I liked seeing him without his sunglasses – he seemed softer, somehow. "When you leave this apartment, Luciel and I will remove all of the classified information, take the computer, and I will sell it. There's no longer any reason for me to hold on to it."

I flinched a bit at this. "V…"

"Don't worry. It's time I come to terms with it. I couldn't have come here if I hadn't begun to do that. Anyway… Before I leave I need to take some materials with me from the desk. And I hope that you don't find it too rude of me to ask you to step into another room while I collect them." V turned toward me at this, and I wondered momentarily how much he could see of my face.

Pouring us each a cup of coffee, I finally sat down to eat. "I don't mind. Oh, and do be careful – the coffee's very hot."

"Do you have any questions for me?" V asked unexpectedly, his long-fingered hands wrapped around the mug of coffee as if to gain its warmth.

I let out a small laugh. "Well I… I'm not sure if this is what you meant, but I did want to ask… It's just – I know hardly anything about Jumin's past." I paused as a subtle smile formed on V's lips. "We both have a lot to share with each other yet, but I want to understand him better."

V finished the remaining bit of pancake before responding with a knowing expression on his face. "I would say you understand him better than most people ever will, but I understand your curiosity. He wouldn't be too pleased if I tell you too many stories, I think, but I suppose one won't hurt." My cheeks filled with color, anticipating. I still couldn't control my emotions talking about him.

"Since we grew up in the same neighborhood, and our parents knew each other, it was only natural that we became friends. We didn't form a real bond until we were about nine years old. We were sitting in church with our parents, and the pastor was speaking about the days leading up to Jesus' death. I don't know how much you know of Christianity, but the general idea is that Jesus arrived in Jerusalem and protested against the elites – turning over tables in the marketplace, saying that you cannot serve both God and wealth.

"Jumin was very diligent, even about the Bible, and so the pastor's speech troubled him. He made his father make a donation to the church that day, and later went to every house in the neighborhood to try and convince people to help the poor. He came to my parent's house, and I answered the door. When he presented his case, I argued with him. I told him that Jesus had also said that 'prosperity rewards the righteous.' He would leave, come up with a new argument, and come back and knock on the door until I answered and listened to what he had to say. Eventually he would just come over to spend time. He liked that I didn't agree with him on things; he liked the challenge."

I smiled, listening carefully. "That does seem like him. But I didn't realize he was so religious when he was younger."

V nodded, sipping coffee. "Yes, well, I think it gave him comfort when he was unhappy. He was always too smart for his own good, and would end up thinking too deeply about what his life meant, what our actions meant, how he fit in this world. Rika reminded me of him in that way." At this he actually smiled.

"Thank you for sharing this with me." I told him, picking up the empty plates and stacking them in the sink. "Jumin is very lucky to have you as his closest friend."

V stood slowly, head tilted to the side as if listening intently to something I couldn't hear. "Jumin is a very lucky man, though I think that has more to do with you… If you don't mind, I will take the documents now from the desk." He pulled a set of small keys from his jacket pocket.

"The desk is just past that counter on your left." I said, trying to be helpful before ducking into the hallway. I couldn't deny that I was endlessly curious about exactly what it was V was retrieving, but I didn't want to harm this tenuous new friendship by trying to find out. I heard a short shuffling of papers, then the jingling of keys in the lock.

"You can come back, now." V said calmly, and he stood with a manila folder under his arm with a sizable stack of documents inside. "Thank you for breakfast – I hope to be back in time for your wedding, but if I'm not, I will tell you now: I know that you and Jumin will make each other very happy, and I will always be grateful to you for giving meaning to my closest friend. Give Jumin my best regards when you see him."

I hurried forward to take V's hand in gratitude. "Thank you, V. I hope to see you again soon – I know Jumin will want you to be at the wedding, and I do, too."

"I will do what I can." With that, V left as abruptly as he had come, and I stepped back into the kitchen to start the dishes.

Just as I turned the water on, I noticed out of the corner of my eye that the desk drawer was slightly ajar – the lock turned ineffectively to closed but against the outer lip of the wood. Curiosity overwhelming, I peeked inside, just for a moment. There lay a single sheet of paper with some kind of logo on it, the same color as the hair of the person who had just left.