Hey there! I posted 2 chapters so make sure to read the next one too.

While the rest of the world embraced their dreams, Shuichi was enveloped by the darkness of the night still tossing and turning. Shuichi was no stranger to insomnia, it was the companion that won't quit whenever he needed sleep, whenever his brain begged for unconsciousness. This time though, his brain didn't beg for sleep, he wanted to be awake and needed his brain to light up and think.

Shuichi couldn't forget Shiho's request for him to stop Gin earlier today. He promised that he will, but Gin was no easy villain to take down. He can't stop him by simply beating him up, the member will certainly emerge back even worse than before. The only way to conquer Gin would be if he kills him, but that's against the agent's morals, not to mention that Gin has a higher rank and killing him will get Shuichi killed by the organization. Another possibility to conquer Gin would be getting him captured by the FBI, but the agency still refuses to do so. In fact, Shuichi was ordered to investigate more, to dive deeper and uncover the boss's identity before they could actually capture members.

In the past two weeks Shuichi had spent in the US, he reported to the FBI all of his progress and intel he had gathered. The agent didn't tell them much about the drama going on between Shiho and Gin and himself. He did tell them that he's not getting along with Gin but didn't give any details as to why.

The FBI was well aware of how important Gin was and how close he was to the boss, they were certain that this member could open new doors to their investigation and provide them with precious Intel. For that reason, their instructions were strict and clear, and very reasonable too; Shuichi was directly ordered to stay on the good side of Gin, to try and get closer to him, and even if he couldn't achieve that, to stay on his neutral side and not make of him an enemy.

Shuichi always considers his mission a priority, so he had to grudgingly follow these orders. Yet he wanted to convey his promise to Shiho. But before he could do, he needed to think of a sure way that will get rid of Gin's danger forever without having to risk his mission and his connections with the organization.

Shuichi was pained to realize how scared Shiho was despite her playing the role of a fearless woman. He wanted to make her feel safe, he wanted to protect her, but with Gin and the FBI and the conflict of interest, it seemed like there was no way for him to achieve what he wanted until it suddenly struck him!

Shuichi's greens that were starting to get heavy from sleep turned wide awake as a faint smile tickled his lips. He finally got an idea, it might not be enough to stop Gin but it will make Shiho feel safe nonetheless, and that in itself is a victory.

(*)

Unable to wait any longer, Shuichi sipped his morning coffee then drove his Chevy to Shiho's apartment. It was still 8 am, probably too early but he didn't care.

When Shiho heard the door knocking, she was still in the bathroom. Her hair was all wet and her whole body steamed from the warmth of the shower. She was confused for a moment, nobody comes to her house at this hour usually, not even Gin, he never comes at mornings.

Shiho walked out of the bathroom wearing a beige bathrobe, that's when she heard the door knocking again.

"Coming!" she yelled.

The redhead finally got to the door and looked through the peephole. She was relieved to know it was Dai behind the door, but her confusion was not yet cleared.

"Good morning!" she said when she opened.

"Morning!..." Shuichi said before noting what she wore "I hope I didn't catch you at a bad time!"

"Not at all, I just finished showering. Come in"

Shuichi got inside and closed the door behind him, the twosome proceeded walking to the inside.

"So what brings you here this early?"

"Actually Shiho, I was wondering if I could borrow you for the day"

"Borrow me?" she looked him wonderingly.

"Uh-huh!"

"For what?"

"It's a surprise"

Her lips suddenly twisted into a smile "Interesting!"

"So are you in or out?" Shuichi asked, taking a seat in an armchair.

"I'm in, I just need to call the lab to inform them and put on some clothes" Shuichi nodded and Shiho took two steps before stopping again "There's fresh coffee in the coffee pot, suit yourself"

"Ah Shiho, don't wear your usual stuff, wear something comfortable, a Sport Outfit or something"

"Alright!" Shiho turned and continued walking towards her bedroom.

After ten minutes, Shiho appeared again in the living room. She was wearing a nice, elegant, dark blue jumpsuit with three quarter sleeves and a boat shoe, unlike her usual high heels.

Shuichi looked her up and down.

"Is this a Sport Outfit for you?"

"It's comfortable!" she shrugged.

"That won't work, wear a sweatsuit"

With most of her time spent in the lab, Shiho never gets a chance to hit the gym. So it was no wonder that her wardrobe only consisted of elegant clothes that are suitable for work and dinners but nothing sporty.

"You see, I actually haven't got a chance to go shopping in a long time so I'm afraid I don't have a sweatsuit" She said, wincing.

Shuichi stared at her and sighed.

"Alright then, let's go shopping"

"What?" her voice was high.

"What!" his voice was deep.

"I just, I didn't expect to hear that from you, but since you insist" she gave him a silly smile, grabbing her purse.

Shopping was one of the few joys in Shiho's life, along with Dai san, and now, she was about to get both of them together, and she felt so happy about it. The twosome headed to Beika's mall.

Shiho was a fashion freak, she was really picky when it comes to clothes but since Dai was accompanying her, she had to pick a sweatsuit fast, Dai didn't have much patience for shopping, unlike Akemi. Shiho found one that was decent for her taste, simple and practical. She tried it on.

"What do you think?" Shiho asked.

Shuichi who was sitting right outside the changing room examined the redhead. The sweatsuit fitted her perfectly just like anything else she puts on her skin, she surely had a gift of pulling off anything.

"It's good, we're getting this one"

Shiho headed back to the dressing room. It's good! did he even look at her? it seems he only examined the suit but didn't look at how it suited her, Why the bother even, he could give her his opinion while next to the mannequin instead. He could've said it looks good on 'you' at least!

Ten minutes later, they were both hitting the road. Shiho breathed in the smell of the morning, this day had a different feeling for her, the sun seemed brighter, people walking by seemed happier, everything looked better and it was as if loads of luck were following her with every step she took.

The anticipation, not knowing where she was going was a fun experience. Shiho knew that wherever they end up being and whatever the surprise turns out to be, as long as she's with Dai she'll like it and she'll be happy. She wondered if it's like this to be with Dai every day, and she envied her sister for it.

"You're gonna pass by your apartment?" she asked when they took a turn that leads to Dai's house.

"We are going to my apartment, it's the final stop"

Shiho frowned "and the surprise?"

"It's in there" he stole a look at her from the corner of his eye "I hope you didn't get your hopes high, I'm afraid you're gonna be disappointed now"

"I don't think I could be disappointed, I woke up today expecting another day in the lab but winded up shopping with you instead. You already made my day better, so whatever you still have for me will only make me happier"

Shuichi parked his car and they both got out. They headed to the elevator and got off at the highest floor.

"You don't live here" she noted.

"Yeah, just follow me"

Shuichi walked the hallway until he reached a set of stairs, they took them and finally reached the rooftop of the building. Tokyo looked so beautiful underneath them, so beautiful that Shiho thought the view was the surprise, although it would be more suitable to gift to his girlfriend.

"So is this the surprise?" she asked, looking down at the city

"Yeah, do you like it?" he smiled, it was like the sun emerging from dark thunderclouds, adding to Shiho's joy and serenity. She obliviously reciprocated his smile.

"Yeah!" (Of course, she had the same view from her apartment, but looking at it with Dai was a whole new level of beauty.)

"Actually, that's not it Shiho, I need you to hit me" his smile disappeared and his serious face took over again.

"What are you saying?" Shiho still smiled, confused.

"Come on, try it" his hands formed fists and he took a defensive position "if you want to stop Gin, then the first thing you should do is learn how to stop him yourself, you need to learn how to fight"

"And you're gonna teach me how to fight?"

"Yeah"

"I was trained by the organization actually, so no need for that"

"Then let me see what they taught you, hit me" Dai said. His greens looked filled with determination.

"Dai san, I can't"

"Come on, try it… "

Shiho threw a punch, but it was so weak and slow and got blocked by Dai with ease.

"You can pretend that I'm Gin if it makes it easier" he said.

The redhead inhaled deeply, she's always wanted to hit Gin, so maybe pretending that he was in front of her will unleash all of the frustration within her. She approached Dai and started punching him repetitively, but they all went in vain as he continued blocking them all.

"Harder, harder" Dai yelled, and she did as told, there comes a point when she was hitting him as hard as she could, she was seeing Gin instead and her strength was boosted by hate.

"harder" he yelled again. But no matter how fast or strong her punches were, Dai kept blocking them all.

"Now stop" Shuichi said, bringing his hands down from the defensive position, but Shiho continued, abruptly punching him on the jaw.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry" she gaped. She was seeing Gin in Dai and she felt frustrated that none of her attacks landed on him, just like in real life, Gin was always the winner and she never managed to get to him, she's never been able to punish him and when she got a chance she took it, only with the wrong person.

They both stood on the roof, panting.

"It's okay" he just said.

Shuichi's left hand formed a fist and he sent it swiftly to Shiho's abdomen. When he stopped, his knuckles were touching her skin, but he stopped at the right moment to not cause her pain.

Shiho's eyes were wide, staring down at Dai's fist.

"Your attacks are weak and unorganized, your defense reflexes are inexisting. Whoever had trained you didn't do it well" he gave her a cocky look.

"In their defense, its been so long since I was trained, I've been more focused on developing the drug lately"

"Despite that, a well trained person would at least know the basics which you obviously don't… Look, first, you have to learn how to defend yourself, how to block attacks, and then we can move on to attacking opponents. Now hit me again and let's study the techniques that I use for blocking, but don't pretend that I'm Gin this time"

Shiho nodded, a bit embarrassed.

(*)

Akemi made a big mistake by deciding to go to her boyfriend's apartment on foot. The weather was just fine until it suddenly turned into a typical winter day. Akemi, who did not expect this sudden change didn't have an umbrella with her, she kept walking next to walls with the hope of getting less water on her head.

She felt cold as thick drops of rain soaked every bit of her clothes, and the wind didn't make it any easier. She even started running to get warmer, and to get to her destination faster.

After the sunny morning, people on the street weren't expecting the weather change and it's for that reason that they didn't have umbrellas too. Instead, they found shelter underneath buildings entrances and hid there in wait for the rain to stop. Akemi, on the other hand, continued running, her shelter was in Dai Kun's chest, she will hide in it soon as she gets to him.

The brunette finally got to Dai's apartment. Dai was practically living in her apartment so she never felt the need to visit his but she always enjoyed the times she visited him. She was thrilled when he invited her to hang in his place. Shuichi who was expecting her didn't take long to answer the door.

When he opened the door, he raised his eyebrows at the sight of his girlfriend who was soaking wet, her teeth were chattering but that didn't prevent her from smiling.

"Hi!" she said enthusiastically, just as she usually greets.

"Hey! What happened to you?" Dai asked, pulling her in by her shoulder and pushing the door behind her to close it.

"I decided to walk here and you can guess the rest" She said, barely able to stop her teeth from hitting one another as she spoke. Shuichi's hand that was on her shoulder felt her bones shaking, he pulled her closer to his embrace and wrapped his arms around her. His closeness felt so warm. Now, this was her shelter, this was better than any roof or umbrella.

"You're gonna catch a cold now! We better improve that immunity of yours… How about you take a hot shower? I'll get you something to wear"

"That would be great" Akemi agreed.

Within a minute, she was standing in the shower with warm water covering her pale skin. Akemi was enjoying the warmth, she was humming a happy song, feeling so excited about spending the evening with her boyfriend in his apartment.

When Akemi finished showering, her eyes drifted down to the floor to see her way out of the glass shower room, she noticed a couple of her hairs stuck in the shower drain, but what startled her were the two blonde hairs that mixed with and contrasted her dark ones.

Akemi brought a hand to her gaping mouth. So he lied, Dai lied to her!

Blond hair was very rare in Japan, the only blond person Akemi knew was vermouth. The memory of Gin warning her about Dai's affair with Vermouth resurfaced, hell every member she had called said the same thing, she should've believed them! What kind of explanation would explain having her hair in his shower? He was certainly cheating!

But what if it wasn't vermouth's hair? Akemi thought, but even if it was another woman's, the thought of him cheating was equally appalling.

Akemi's hands formed into fists, she felt so angry. Last time when she doubted Dai, he made her feel really guilty for it and even left her for two weeks. And while she was mourning his absence every day, he must've been enjoying the company of another woman in a Japan tour. She was mad at her stupidity and furious at his unfaithfulness.

Akemi walked outside the shower hastily wrapping a towel around her body, she hurried outside looking for Dai whom she found behind the kitchen counter pouring some tea.

"I made you some tea, this should do the job of keeping you healthful"

When her eyes laid on him, her formed fists disappeared, her whole body lost its tension and she felt like crying. Dai Kun was always as good as a boyfriend could be, she relies on him a lot, he was a big part of her life, he was the love of her life.

"Hey! You okay?" he asked when he noticed her staring at him without a word.

"I'm good" her voice was almost inaudible.

Akemi walked back to the bedroom where she found sweat pants and a black hoody readied for her on the bed, she got into them with her tears flowing, she was closing her mouth with her hand to not make a noise.

Akemi wanted to confront him, to yell at him, to finally corner him about his cheating. But she stopped herself because she didn't want to show that she distrusts him, not after what happened the last time with Shiho and Gin, what if she's wrong? she thought. But she knew well that there's no mistake in that, there's no explanation for him to have a lady's hair in his shower drain. she was just in a state of denial.

Akemi felt scared. Confronting Dai would signify the damnation of their relationship, she wasn't sure she could handle that at the moment. The two years that had passed with him were so perfect for her to end so easily, she loved him so much, she needed to think and calm herself first before confronting him.

Akemi felt broken, so broken. They were like a perfect painting before one act splashed it by black forever, now it's ruined and it cannot be fixed.

She wiped her tears and hoped Dai won't notice that her eyes were reddened. She left the bedroom and joined him back in the living room. She found him waiting for her with a cup of warm tea in his hand.

"Dai kun, I got a call from work, I have to go now" her tone did not contain any cheerfulness like her usual voice.

"But you were just there"

"I know, but there's an important file that got missing, we need to find it soon as possible"

"Alright... are you gonna go wearing these?" he pointed at the clothes she had on, not really suitable for a bank.

"I have no choice" she said aiming at the door.

"Wait!" Shuichi called, handing her the warm teacup and heading to his bedroom, he showed up not so long after with a coat, he took the cup from her hand and handed her the coat before putting the black hood on her head covering her wet hair

Akemi walked back home barely able to keep herself from crying. She loved him so much, he's always been too perfect for her, she should've known he was too good to be true.

Akemi decided to keep what she knew from both Dai and Shiho, she still needed time to think about life after Dai, she had to figure that out first before confronting him.