Once inside the restaurant, Shiho's blues looked for her sister. It didn't take long for the brunette to spot her and wave from a table across the place where she sat with her boyfriend. The scientist walked towards them with slow, steady paces, reflecting overbearing confidence.

Deep inside, Shiho hoped to find pleasure in meeting Akemi's boyfriends; she rarely got the chance to hang out with people not related to the organization and they were the exception. But every time it happens, she gets disappointed with how things go. She didn't really know what Akemi tells the guys prior to meeting her, but they always seem too nervous in her presence. Now she might not be the sweetest talker and at times she doesn't know how to smile, but it's not like she's a monster!

It became a drive for Akemi to bring someone that meets the holy 'Shiho standards'. She definitely trusted her sister's taste and cared about her getting along with whoever she ends up with. If only her younger sister would be less sarcastic and make the mission easier.

The repeated clicking of Shiho's heels continued as she crossed her way to the table. Now is the time for the mystery of three months to be uncovered…

Looking at the boyfriend's back, she noticed his waist-length long hair. Shiho sighed. She never liked that on a man and always thought it made them look effeminate, with the exception of Gin of course, who in her opinion, was the only man that could pull it off.

Once there, Akemi stood up and took a step forward to hug her.

"I missed you!" The eldest cheered. She then pulled back and turned to look at her boyfriend who was now standing to his feet. Shiho did the same, hearing her sister proudly announce, "Shiho, this is Moroboshi Dai Kun."

Once she laid eyes on him, Shiho instantly changed her mind. His hair was thick, dark, and loose, framing a face of bold bone structure. His body was built as any man wishes his to be. There was nothing remotely feminine about him. In fact, his hair made him manlier. The dark circles under his eyes made him look sleep deprived, but not in a bad way. Those dark circles combined with his long lashes were like makeup to his eyes, making their beautiful shade pop up. It was a shade of green she had never seen like before. She could swear they were the most beautiful eyes she had ever seen!

The guy was fairly handsome.

"Nice to meet you."

"You too." Shiho replied, shaking his extended hand.

After meeting a handful of Akemi's boyfriends, Shiho mastered analyzing them. It starts before they speak a word and within minutes of conversation, she'd already make up her mind. This man, however, took her longer to figure out. He didn't talk much nor let much out about himself. His background was confusing leaving her with more questions than answers. He was calm and confident, maybe a little too confident. He had a sharp gaze, a strong intellect, and a quick wit that she really appreciated. It was the first time she could enjoy an evening with one of those boyfriends.

For once, Shiho had nothing to complain about. She will certainly congratulate her sister once they're alone!

(~)

It's only been five months since Dai Moroboshi and Shiho Miyano first met. And although they rarely got to see each other, she still managed to be his shortcut to get into the organization. He didn't start from scratch like new members who didn't even know they were part of a big thing did. Instead, he started from the middle of the ranks. He was an acquaintance of a high-ranked member after all, and his skills didn't disappoint anyway.

Shuichi was delighted and Shiho was not disappointed. All the little missions offered to him by the organization ended in success as he proved that his skills did not only stop on intelligence; he was strong, good at martial arts, and knew how to handle a gun as well. The organization wanted to make use of those skills, so they started giving him bigger missions within the fourth month of joining, the most recent included the transfer of a classified item into their lab.

The job went smoothly. Shuichi and the four members that accompanied him did not get stopped by the police or any other threat they'd need to eliminate. The item was finally safe inside the lab of the organization, nevertheless, the agent's head ached for a smoke.

Carefully, he took off the mission's glove from his left hand and pressed a button on the elevator panel. Akemi told him earlier that her sister had reached a breakthrough in her research and asked him to convey to her a gift she had bought. Shuichi didn't appreciate being the postman in this, but he didn't protest either since it made Akemi happy. He felt horrible for using her as is and didn't want another thing on his conscience, especially with Akemi having no other way of getting inside the lab. Neither did he if it weren't for this mission. Their ranks were too low to move freely throughout the organization's facilities.

Once the elevator opened on the fifth floor, it exposed what seemed like a little party. People stood with champagne glasses in their hands. They were all dressed in white lab coats, making him feel like an outcast with his black shirt and jeans. Shuichi held the wrapped box in his hand and joined them.

His target would be easy to spot with her light reddish hair, but she wasn't in there. Shuichi spotted a door that led to a balcony instead. Satisfied, he walked towards it and got into the darkness of the night. He grabbed a cigarette box from his pocket, lit one of the slim sticks up and inhaled it deeply. Now he felt complete.

(~)

Shiho sighed. She was attending a party to celebrate her latest results when deep inside, she felt like escaping the whole thing and running outside. The drug she's been working on had finally finished the Preclinical Research phase and was off to progress to clinical Research. She was a step closer to creating a poison that kills without leaving a trace, and that felt like a cause for grief rather than joy.

Feeling suffocated by the air inside, she walked towards the balcony. A polite smile appeared on her lips in courtesy for the colleague who congratulated her, but it soon disappeared when she reached there.

Shiho slid the door open. It was a beautiful starry night after several rainy ones. A cold breeze of winter air hit her fragile skin. She did not mind it as she proceeded to the glass fence, placing her forearms on it. Enjoying her first moment of peace on a long day, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. That's when she heard a sound that made her jump a little, it was the sound of a man clearing his throat. Shiho looked in its direction and saw a tip of a lit cigarette, and a man hiding behind it. He was barely recognizable under the moonlight but not for her sharp eyes.

"Morobochi Dai! What are you doing here?"

"You didn't think I'd miss your little party, did you?"

"I didn't see you inside"

"That's because I had to come here for a smoke."

Shiho wondered when he'd quit that thing. She knew it's ripping his lungs apart but did not care to warn him. Instead, she gave him a fierce look of suspicion.

"How did you know about the celebration? I didn't tell Akemi."

"She knew about the progress in your research and was kind enough to get you this."

Shuichi brought out the little box from his pocket and held it in front of her. His green eyes were flickering under the moonlight. Sherry took the box while staring into them before looking down to the box now in her hand.

"You didn't have to bother coming here, I could've-"

"It's okay. I had a job here anyway. And you two won't be meeting soon." He interrupted.

A job! Sherry felt a chill down her spine. She hoped that the kind of jobs her sister's boyfriend does were different from Gin's. She didn't like for her sister to be seeing a murderer, yet it was nothing to rule out. What else to expect from a criminal organization?

The balcony door slid open again. It exposed a man with a tall figure and hair as long as Dai's, one who fell into the same trap as the previous; not noticing Dai standing at the corner.

"Sherry, why are you here? Let's go inside."

"Ah... No Gin, I'm fine here."

"This is your party. You should be inside." He added as he stepped closer to her.

Upon examining her for a second, Gin noticed her stiffening a little. How he hated it when she does that. Why can't she be normal around him? At least when he's trying to be nice. Only God knows how much it costs him to be nice to her yet she keeps on fidgeting in his presence. There was something attractive about it though, for a man who loved power like himself, to know that an overbearing woman like Sherry was like wax in his hand felt satisfying to him. But then Sherry stiffens only when she has done something wrong, did she do something wrong?... Gin fixed his burning gaze on her.

"Is something wrong?"

"It's nothing, I'm just a little tired I needed some fresh air."

"How about you come over to my flat then?" He asked, taking a step closer to her and putting a hand around her hip. His voice was a mere whisper as he went on, "I'll make you relax."

"Gin," Shiho called, looking uncharacterasically anxious. She gently pushed his hand away from her hip, but it soon traveled to hold her wrist.

"It'll be like the last night. And maybe later we-"

Gin's face was getting closer to Shiho with every word he said. By the time he got interrupted, their noses were brushing. But that voice that he had heard, that loud, deep, clearing of a throat, made him stop in his tracks immediately. He looked in its direction and saw the tip of the lit cigarette. From what he could've distinguished under the poor lighting, it was coming from a well built tall man. Gin soon turned and faced him fully.

"Who the fuck are you?" His voice, despite being low, was scarier than a shout.

"He's, he's Morobochi Dai! A new member." Shiho quickly answered.

It was the first time Shuichi meets Gin, and hearing a woman as sure of herself as Shiho stutter in his presence made him know what to expect.

"And what the fuck are you doing here?"

Gin started walking towards Shuichi, his cold eyes piercing through the other man's greens. Shuichi opened his mouth to answer but Shiho beat him to it again.

"He's here on a job."

"Let me elaborate," Gin started calmly, but his voice turned louder with every word. "What are you doing here on the balcony, with her?" By the end, his voice sounded almost like a shout. Gin's questions were still addressed to Dai, ignoring the fact that Shiho was the one answering. He continued without breaking eye contact, which was countered by Dai's calm stare.

"I'm here for a smoke." Shuichi simply answered before tucking the cigarette between his lips again and breathing deeply into it.

By that time, Gin was standing right in front of him with a look that sends shivers down the spine. His hand reached for the cigarette, stealing it from Shuichi's lips. He threw it on the floor and pressed on it with his shoe.

"Your break is over, now leave." He ordered.

Shuichi continued gazing back at Gin. He felt that if he were to break eye contact, he'd lose something important. He brought out the pack of cigarettes from his pocket and started lighting himself a new one.

"I told you I'm here for a smoke. I'll leave when I'm done."

"Gin, let's just go." Shiho muttered from behind her boyfriend, but the two men kept staring at each other as though she didn't exist.

Gin took the second cigarette from Dai's lips and placed it between his lips. He examined Dai's face for a second before swinging his hand and sending a fist right to his stomach.

Shuichi felt the fist plow into him, smashing his guts and knocking out his breath. It was the kind of punch that would send people to the ground on their backs, but he didn't fall, he bent. The agent saw it coming, he could've blocked it or attacked back but he preferred not to because Gin was his superior, and getting into a fistfight with your superior on a first meeting was not a wise idea to climb up the ladder. Making him angry on the other hand, seemed so appealing.

The agent's chest gently rose and sank with each shallow breath he drew in. He straightened up and daringly looked at Gin with a grin that took away his satisfaction.

"Gin stop!" Shiho yelled, holding Gin's formed fist. "Please! Let's go to your apartment now, I'm done with this party."

Giving in to the pressure Sherry's hands were exerting, the silver haired man took a step backward. "Moroboshi Dai you said? I'll make sure to remember that name."

With both of her hands wrapped around his arm, Shiho walked Gin out. She looked over her shoulder one last time to examine Dai before leaving the balcony. Shuichi saw her face at that moment, it was one of the few times it exposes her emotions; her skin was as pale as a sheet and her eyes were wide and glassy. She looked terrified!

The black haired man took a deep breath to compensate for what he'd lost. He grabbed the little box from the ground and left the balcony. Shiho was so scared she'd left her gift laying on the floor! On his way out, he was lucky to find an office door with her name written on it. Shuichi placed the box on her desk and left the building.


Hello there! I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter! I just wanted to point out that all chapters are related and need to be read in their original order for the story to make sense and the relationships to develop properly.

Next Chapter: Shiho is so angry at Shuichi. His nonchalant personality doesn't make things easier for her.