"So, the king finally decided to return to his throne."
Lack-Two lifts his eyes from his phone's screen to turn to the girl emerging from rooftop access stairs. She gives him a short glance from head to toe before resorting to her usual giggle.
The inspector simply rolls his eyes as he returns to the railings.
Lai continues to giggle as she strides towards him.
"What are you doing out here, Inspector?" she playfully asks, joining him by the railings.
"Your fans club downstairs might start missing you."
"Haha," Lack-Two scoffs. Lai's giggle evolves into laughter.
"Gets you every time, doesn't it?" The girl produces and hands him a can of cold beer.
"It's not your usual grade-A French-ass wine that you're accustomed to, but this is just about the best thing I could find in our coolers."
Lack-Two lets out a small and soft chuckle as he reaches for it.
"Thanks, Lai. Much appreciated."
Lai beams as she produces another one for herself. The two open their cans almost simultaneously, filling the silent evening with the sound of the alcohol's hiss.
"Cheers," they both greeted, letting the tip of their cans meet before taking one big gulp.
Lai was the first to ruin the mood, letting out gagging noises as she pulls the can away from her mouth. Her fellow inspector watches on.
The female inspector made a face.
"I'll never understand why you people like this stuff…" Lai momentarily lets her tongue out in disgust.
"It tastes like alcohol."
"That's because it is alcohol, Lai," Lack-Two replies, taking another swig. This time, he took a little longer, completely emptying the can of its contents. Then, with a loud sigh, he lowers his can, and starts crumpling it with his hand.
Lai watches on with curiosity.
"Besides," Lack-Two continues, placing the crushed can on the ledge in front of him. "If you didn't like drinking, then why on earth did you get one for yourself?"
"Experience," was Lai's dry response.
The brunet raises a brow and casts her a sidelong glance. Lai acknowledges the evident curiosity in the boy's eyes with a knowing smile.
"I've learned from experience that when you want to hold a conversation with someone, you should at least learn to drink what they're drinking." She takes another short swig, and then gags.
"Sadly, they don't teach you that at the Academy."
Lack-Two hums in agreement, his eyes slowly returning to the scenery.
"If that's what you're aiming for, then come back again at a later time with Jacques Selosse on hand."
"As if my paycheck can cover at least one glass of that…"
Lack-Two smiles, his eyes not escaping the scenery.
Then his phone rings.
"No, but seriously, what are you doing out here, Nate?" Lai stretches her neck to catch a glimpse of the ground, about seventeen feet below them, colorfully lit in the spirit of the occasion.
"It's been awhile since you last clambered up here." Then, she returns his gaze to him, her green eyes peering through her round, gold-rimmed glasses.
"Did something happen?"
Lack-Two shrugs.
"Nothing out of the ordinary…"
"I highly doubt that," Lai snorts.
"You are Mister Perfect after all."
"Even Mister Perfect has his down times," he returns, finally letting a smile and even a chuckle escape his system. Then his smile slowly dies as he returns to his phone.
"And frankly, he prefers those times over the lavish ones."
Lai looks at him questioningly, and when she knew she couldn't decipher anything, she lifts herself up a bit to peer at his screen, which Lack-Two immediately hides away. At that, the blonde lets out another giggle.
"Ah, Nate, predictable as always." She lifts the can up to her lips once again, and still with the same result. With a groan, Lack-Two steals the drink from his colleague's hand and finishes it in one gulp. Lai watches on with amusement.
"Dang," she breathes. "If I knew you were this much in need, I would've dragged the whole cooler up here."
Lack-Two finishes the beer with a gasp.
"Why didn't you." As he did with the one prior, he crushes the piece of aluminum and then places it next to the first one.
"Fayba of Traffic Enforcement is guarding the table," Lai replies with a sad sigh. Then she looks up at him again, this time a little more hopeful.
"So," she perks. "Are you drunk enough yet to tell me what's going on with you?"
Lack-Two only remains his gaze at the city skyline.
"Try a little harder, Lai."
Said inspector only rolls her eyes and groans in defeat. She steps forward and leans against the railing, leaving the cold metal bars as her only support to keep herself up.
"You know, you've been like this since you got back from Striaton…" she half-whines, half-grumbles. "Normally, you only get this weird when you've just broken up with one of your women…" Then her eyes light up in recognition.
"Did you meet an ex during Detective Rosa's family reunion?!" she asks, more excitedly than with worry. Lack-Two only returns with a deadpan stare.
"No," he spits before returning to his phone. Again, Lai tries to take a peek, and Lack-Two only brings the phone farther from her side. Lai pouts.
"Well, you're no fun…" she huffs, returning to her initial position. Then she straightens herself up again, discovery in her eyes.
"Is it Detective Rosa?"
Lack-Two only continues swiping against his phone. A grin of triumph washes over the female inspector's face as she gives him a knowing look.
"It is Detective Rosa, isn't it?"
The boy only blinks. Lai laughs.
"God, I'm good," she sighs, wiping a tear away.
"Really," her colleague finally replies, a small smirk forming in his face.
"Because my definition of 'good' in your ranks is being able to guess it right the first time…"
"Hey, I'm a detective, not Nostradamus," Lai argues.
"And even Nostradamus didn't get things right the first time. Enough with the impossible expectations, gosh… I'm not even under your unit."
Lack-Two only chuckles.
"...So, what about Detective Rosa?"
The boy continues to keep mum. But Lai was already convinced.
She leans against him and starts nudging him with a meaningful smile.
"Did it finally happen? Are you and Detective Rosa...?"
"No. We aren't."
Lai again pouts. But she was persistent. She wouldn't have reached where she was if she was otherwise.
"Oooh! But is she…?"
The question catches him a bit off guard, involuntarily reminding him of their recent exchange the night after he drove her all the way to Striaton to meet her family.
I'd fall in love with Inspector Lack-Two… If I'm given a chance, that is.
Lack-Two had to shake the thoughts away. He had to remind himself of what those words really meant, and how his mentee was really like when she said those words to him.
"Drop-dead tired and was off it"—that's what she called it. Normally, Lack-Two would never accept such an atrocity to be an excuse, but for that one—that particular incident that stole away sleep from underneath his nose—he'll accept anything.
"Nate…?"
"I don't know," he mumbles. "And, truthfully, it's not in my best interests to try and get inside that frivolous head of hers."
Lai shakes her head up and down, and unconvincing look of convincement on her face.
"Right," she drawls. "Okay."
Then she sighs.
"...Well, what about you?"
His answer, to both their surprises, was quick.
"I'm honestly not sure…" he sighs, putting down his phone for a moment. He glances off into the vast horizon of Nimbasa, silently tracing the silhouettes of the skyscrapers against the moonlight.
"Never really found time to give it some thought. You know what happens when I do..."
It was only then that the mocking glint in Lai's eyes completely fades.
"Nate…"
"But, I sure do hope it doesn't come to that, Lai…"
Said inspector looks up at him, a questioning look in her eyes. Lack-Two takes note of it for a moment before looking away again.
He considers for a moment, and with a sigh of resignation, he finally surrenders his phone to Lai. The girl cautiously reaches for it, surprised at how quickly the boy gave in to her.
Normally, it would take her a longer time, and usually with more alcohol.
She quickly scans through the wall of text, and soon, the expression on her face changes again, this time from confusion to sincere glee and ecstasy.
"Nate!" she cries in excitement, both hands flying to her mouth as she gushes.
"You're scheduled for an interview already?! That's so great! I'm so…"
The look on her colleague's face kills of the growing excitement within her. This time, she immediately understands.
"...Oh."
Lack-Two gives her a rueful smile.
"Realize how much of a cumbersome thing it would be for the both of us?"
A/N: Warning: Talk of blood and rotting flesh. Will not be described in thorough detail although I've been told that a warning would be nice.
Mission_6: Solo
Whi-Two once again scans her eyes around Lack-Two's empty office, and after finally convincing herself that it was, indeed, empty, she hums convincingly to herself.
"But today's a Monday…" she mutters to herself. She fishes out her phone to check her messages, in case she missed something from him—a notification, perhaps?—and what greets her was their last conversation about two nights ago, when…
...When she told him that embarrassing message.
The girl had to cringe, grasping her phone a bit tightly, trying to squeeze away the feeling of shame from her limbs.
It really wasn't in her best interest to tell her inspector those words, and on an evening when she was at her most vulnerable state. To be quite honest, she couldn't even explain herself what came of her to make her say what she had said—frankly, "tired and off it" was not really a convincing excuse.
But Lack-Two took it and accepted it—or so he said—and Whi-Two should've left it at that. Her inspector seemed to have done so.
Then again, she thinks a little sheepishly to herself. He's probably encountered those kinds of messages his entire life. He's definitely used to it by now.
So, why does she still feel like there was something still gnawing inside her stomach whenever she thinks about seeing her inspector?
Whi-Two inwardly groans.
Why are you like this, me?
"Detective Rosa?"
The girl turns abruptly, her senses still used to being called by her real name.
Lailani of the CSI-U waves enthusiastically at her, immediately setting the stack of documents on her hand on the stack held by the officer walking next to her. The poor officer struggles to balance the tall pile as the blonde inspector gave him a good-natured slap. After a few inaudible instructions thrown to the poor officer's direction, she sends him away.
Then she approaches Whi-Two with a cheerful smile.
"Hey, sweetie! Long time no see!"
"Inspector Lai," Whi-Two beams, letting the blonde pull her in for an embrace. It was always a bit more fluid and informal when it comes to their relationship, a giant contrast to hers and Lack-Two's which was more stiff and formal. As a matter of fact, in Whi-Two's whole stay in UPD-Nimbasa, she's only saluted to Lai only once: that first time, when Lai immediately reprimanded her for doing so.
Even if Whi-Two has gotten used to being around Lack-Two and his cruelty during work hours, the young detective still won't deny the fact that Lai's presence was like solace to her.
"It's good to see you again..." Whi-Two greets in her usual soft voice.
Lai nods gleefully.
"I'm hoping you've had fun during the holidays?"
"Oh, I did," Whi-Two nods. "Frankly I prefer the pastel colored celebrations back at home than the blaring holiday colors of Nimbasa."
Lai chuckles.
"I know what you mean," she laughs. "The glare can sometimes be unnerving."
Then she notices the paper bag in Whi-Two's hand.
"What's in the bag?"
"Oh…" She follows her inspector's gaze.
"Oh! Tarts. I decided on making some to give around the station. I have one specially packed for you." She fishes one box and hands it over to Lai.
"Take it as a late holidays gift…"
"Aww, sweetie, thank you!" Lai takes a moment to peer through the box's transparent lid.
"I didn't know you bake…"
The detective giggles sheepishly.
"Well, my mom helped. She insisted I bake some to give Lack-Two but I decided to make enough for everyone."
A glint of recognition passes through the female inspector upon hearing her colleague's name.
"Oh yeah! Nate went with you to your family reunion, yes? How'd that go down?"
At that, Whi-Two's expression immediately changes.
"It was... Fine.." she mumbles.
"H-How did you know about that?"
Lai beams at her reassuringly.
"Nate tells me everything."
"Oh."
Everything...?
Whi-Two abhors the thought of Lai finding out about her previous blunder. But at the same time, she considers it a bit advantageous.
Maybe Lai could help her ease herself about it…?
"Do you…" Whi-Two begins, but chickens out halfway through and immediately changes the topic in mind.
"...Also happen to know where Inspector Lack-Two is right now?"
The smile on Lai's face was exchanged for a slightly surprised look.
"He didn't tell you?"
Whi-Two looks up at her, a look of confusion in her eyes. At that, Lai scoffs.
"Ah, classic Nate," she mutters to herself. Then she faces the lost detective.
"Nate took a weeklong leave. He said he had personal matters to take care of."
"Oh." There was an evident drop in Whi-Two's voice upon hearing it. A feeling of disappointment and something else she couldn't recognize passes by her.
She slowly lifts her phone to check on it again.
As if something changed since she last did.
"I wonder why he didn't tell me…"
"Oh, that's just Nate being Nate!" Lai was quick to attempt to bring the mood back.
"He usually doesn't tell people about his personal life unless he feels like he needs to. As a matter of fact, he only tells me these things because he expects me to do his work for him while he's gone. The nerve of that guy…" She lifts her gaze up in hope that the disappointed look in Whi-Two's eyes disappeared.
It has, but it was replaced by a look of desolation.
Lai finds herself smiling softly. Whi-Two still had so much to learn.
"Don't worry," the inspector almost coos. "Your mentor will be back before you know it. So, don't miss him too much, alright?"
At that, the young detective glows. Lai had to fight off a brewing laughter from inside her.
"In the meantime, how would you like to accompany me to an assignment?"
The expression in Whi-Two's face changes again.
"Huh?"
Lai makes a face.
"To be honest, Nate's been hogging up your time over the past few months. You're also a member of the CSI-U, I'll have him know." Then she smiled enthusiastically at the forlorn girl.
"What do you say?"
"Uh…"
"Perfect!"
-...-
The two sped across Nimbasa's roads, all the way to a portion where Whi-Two had never traipsed before. She feels a weird feeling in her stomach as she looks out the window momentarily, feeling nauseous at the sight of almost empty streets.
Whi-Two's gotten used to Nimbasa's population right about now. As a matter of fact, she's gotten so used to it that even the thought of even just a portion the city being empty—and on broad daylight too—was almost unthinkable
And yet here they were on what seems like a dead community. It was almost like they were in a dead city.
The young detective faces Lai, a look of worry and reluctance in her eyes. Lai returns it with her default cheerful beam.
"I'm sorry," she almost chirps, returning her eyes back on the road. "Is my driving that bad?"
Whi-Two feels an exasperated groan attempt to escape her lips.
Why do people keep asking her that?
"N-No, it isn't that, Inspector… Your driving is fine..."
"Hmm," Lai hums, drumming on the wheel. "Okie dokie, then."
Whi-Two sighs as she returns to the window next to her once more.
"Inspector," she begins. "When you said 'assignment', what exactly did you mean…?"
Lai gives a short glance to her direction before going back.
"I meant exactly that," she says matter-of-factly. "A report came in this morning, and since most of the people under my unit have already been deployed, I had to take this one. And since Lack-Two's not here to guard you down like a hawk, I thought, might as well bring you with me." She smiles at her.
"We could use your remarkable observation skills on this one."
"But, I'm not even sure what I'm supposed to expect, Inspector…"
At that, Lai only retains her smile. Then she laughs.
"I'm guessing this is something new for you, Detective," the female inspector explains. "Though, I'm not surprised. All of my subordinates who were also assigned under the SUU gets all weirded out by how different the two units work." Then she lets out a loud gasp, making the detective jolt slightly in surprise.
"That's right…" Lai mouths. "You've never been on an assignment under my unit before!"
Whi-Two didn't know whether she should be overjoyed or even more confused with her superior's statement. Lai seemed to be more of the earlier than the latter.
"Yeah, that's probably it," Lai mumbles gleefully to herself. Then she looks up, as if in deep thought. Whi-Two had to suppress a scream.
Inspectors and their dangerous driving quirks, she thinks disdainfully to herself.
"Well, how shall I put this…? My Unit and Nate's are polar opposites, you see…"
Just like your personalities, the young detective silently added, adjusting herself to her seat. It brought her back to one of her initial qualms the moment she first stepped inside UPD-Nimbasa's station: how on earth could people like Lai and Lack-Two even get along when their personalities are more different than night and day? Perhaps, "opposites attract" is not as much of a nonsensical statement as Whi-Two would've thought.
"Unlike Nate who throws files and folders after another to his subordinates, I require my officers to rely more on reflex," Lai was saying. "Being undercover entails being ready for anything, given that we can't really control when crimes happen around the city. Much as I'd like to be like Nate and tell you what to expect and answer all your questions with the utmost skill of a Nate Alart, I just can't… So I'm just going to give you the same advice I give everyone…"
The vehicle suddenly goes into a halt, almost throwing Whi-Two and her female superior forward. She looks outside for a moment, and what greets her is the image of a tall, abandoned building by the roadside. The car windows were rolled down for the most of their trip, but Whi-Two was only able to take heed of it when the pungent odor started wafting across her nose, making her recoil slightly.
It smelled of rotting flesh. Whi-Two had to stop herself from gagging.
She looks back immediately to Lai, who still retained her default smile despite the pressing atmosphere that slowly eased towards them the longer they sat there.
"Expect anything," the blond says with a wink.
-...-
The odor grows even stronger as soon as Whi-Two steps into the vicinity, being led by the still standing-strong Lailani. She grunts, her hand flying to her nose as she faces outwards in hope of straying her senses away from the smell. An officer re-fastens the police tape across the entrance before joining them.
"What's shaking, Driftveil?" Lai greets a group of police officers flocking around on one spot. A significant number of officers from the group collectively groan as they watch the blond approach in that rhythmic and jovial way that she does.
A woman cop scorns as she fastens her gloves.
"Oh, great, Main is here," she grumbles, rolling her eyes.
"Lovely to see you too, Remmie," Lai beams before she started looking around.
"So, what are we looking at here?"
"It's Rennie," the female officer sasses, crossing her arms hotly. But still, Lai was unfazed. Rennie only groans.
"And you're looking at a case closed," she almost spits. "Honestly, I don't get why we have to wait for Main to pack up. You people take too long to get here, and it's not like you provide us with better results anyway." Rennie releases her arms from the knot she formed in front of her breasts but only to place them on each side of her hips in the form of fists.
"You don't even send the better-looking ones…"
"Aww, good job, Rexie!" Lai cheers, lightly clapping her hands together, much to the girl's annoyance. "I can always count on your troupe to get things moving! Too bad the higher-ups don't think likewise…"
Whi-Two would've laughed if the situation wasn't so inappropriate.
Lai continues scouting the scene through her round glasses.
"So… she hums, now bouncing slightly as she beamed at the fuming Rennie.
"...What are we looking at?"
The female officer grumbles, but seeing that she had nothing to say that would break the inspector's annoyingly good mood, she finally complies. Throwing her hands in the air, she gestures for one of the officers, and then faces the two.
"Follow me," she almost growls to Lai's cheerful smile. Then she takes a sharp turn on her heel and starts marching deeper into the building, with some officers tailing behind her. Whi-Two watches them form an almost single file as they went through the narrow aisle, and only breaks away when she finds Lai looking at her, possibly seeing if she was okay.
"Uhm…" the young detective begins.
"Yeah," Lai giggles sheepishly, returning her gaze to where Rennie and her team are going. They seemed to be caught on by something—the growing power of the pungent odor perhaps?—but soon, they begin treading the narrow aisle once again.
"UPD-Nimbasa isn't really a favored station among nearby cities…" She shrugs good-naturedly before starting to make her own way to the group of officers. Whi-Two meekly follows, but was stopped by an officer from behind. He was wearing a face mask.
"You might want to…" he trails off, not able to retain eye contact with Whi-Two for more than a few seconds. But Whi-Two takes note of the mask in his hand, and she immediately understands.
"Thank you," she nods shyly, taking the piece of cloth in relief. Then she remembers her inspector.
"What about…?" She refers to Lailani with her finger, but the officer only smiles.
"I think Inspector Oudir will be fine."
-...-
Painful—that's what Whi-Two first thinks when she sees the body dangle over their heads, a piece of sharp wood that seems to be a broken beam pierced through the body's chest. At first glance, the wood appears to have been the only thing suspending it in place, but Whi-Two soon notes the rope that was tied around its neck. The other end was tied to a bar by the ceiling.
Whi-Two had to look down for a moment to contain herself.
"...Summary Execution," Rennie was explaining to Lai. "Not really something new around these areas. Although we can't really identify much from the victim given that he's halfway through decomposition, we can confirm that this man—at least, we think he's a man—belonged to one of the gangs around here, and either he was caught red-handed by their boss or by some drunk policeman or another. Regardless, he turned into that." The female officer grimaced.
"What a way to leave this world…" she mutters. Then she returns to Lai, who was taking down notes on her notebook. Whi-Two thinks to herself whether she should be doing the same thing.
"Anything else you want to know, Oudir?"
"Yups," Lai quips, tapping the tip of her pen to the dotted page.
"Why on earth is the poor lady still up there?" She looks up again, and her smile grows slightly softer. Whi-Two decides it was out of pity.
"You can't really identify how she died exactly if she's way up there and we're way down here…"
"Why else would she?!" Rennie retorts defensively. "It's because of you and your stupid Unit's protocol that we don't touch the body unless people from main arrives!" Then she fumes.
"And excuse me?! Lady?! Were you even listening, Lai?!"
Lai only nods, pointing her pencil upwards at the corpse.
"That's Hubris," she points out, gesturing at the fading blue top worn by the victim. "I'm thinking size 10, given the victim's height, but I may be wrong. Regardless, Hubris has a certain design to their clothings that would make sure it fits only women. And not just any women…" Lai lowers her pencil and starts tapping it lightly on her cheek.
"I wrote to Hubris dozens of times and still they won't release blouses my size... " She sneers to Whi-Two's direction.
"Talk about inequality, am I right?"
Whi-Two felt a giggle escape her.
Rennie only looks at her with disbelief.
"It could be a man with feminine physique," she claims dryly. "Someone incredibly slim, for that matter."
Lai's eyebrows rise.
"Maybe," she hums. "But given how she's—and I use your words for this one, sweetie—'halfway through decomposition'... How would you say that assumption would play out?"
Rennie shakes her head at her.
"What?"
Lai faces one of the officers, the one standing near Whi-Two.
"Somualde," she calls. Said officer jolts.
"Based on appearance alone, giving what you learned from the Academy, how long would you say our victim over here has been… 'hanging out'?"
Somualde is taken aback, and shifts his gaze between Lai and Rennie. Then he swallows hard as he tries to voice out his answer.
"I would say... " He looks up momentarily.
"Six weeks, at least, I-Inspector…"
Lai looks up as if to make calculations as well. Then she nods, seemingly satisfied.
"Yeah, I can buy that," she mumbles gleefully. Then she faces Rennie.
"So six weeks, and we play with your assumption that the victim was a man with… 'feminine' physique. Give or take… body mass of about fifty…" She looks up again.
"Is that was a fifty-kilogram man would look like after six weeks of being a corpse…?"
Rennie does not reply, and only looks at her with contempt.
"Thought so," Lai grins sincerely.
"And how does your assumption play in this whole affair, Oudir?"
"If a grown man were to have a body to fit in that size of a blouse, he's malnourished, and as a dead body, he'd rot easily." Lai takes away her notebook and pencil, and fishes out her phone.
"But say it was a woman, there's a higher chance she was a healthy fellow and could have survived those six weeks and still look human enough for us to find." Whi-Two and the rest of the officers flinch as they listen to Lai's phone make a click sound as she starts taking photos.
"Of course, that's only my premature observations… Pretty sure we can make better results when we get that body down here…"
Rennie glares at Lai for a moment, but slowly follows the inspector's direction of sight, and looks up as well.
Then she groans in defeat.
"Gener, Yoani," she barks, looking away.
"Start getting the victim down."
-...-
The officers lay the lifeless body down gently by Lai's feet, careful not to touch any part that are in danger of coming off. Lai only nods at them politely as they begin to step away.
"Much appreciated," she beams, throwing the two officers off-guard.
Then she regards Whi-Two.
"Your turn, Detective."
Whi-Two's, and several other officers including Rennie's, head shot up in surprise.
"Ma'am?" she squeaks.
"Oh, what now?" Rennie growls, stepping forward, directing her almost permanent glare towards Whi-Two. The latter immediately shrinks back in fear.
Rennie faces Lai again.
"Can't we leave the rest of the observations to the medical examiners?! You've already made your point…"
"I'm flattered," Lai breathes, her hand flying to her chest as if she was touched.
"But sadly we're not here to make a point… We're here to solve a case." Then she faces Whi-Two again.
"Go right ahead, Detective."
With doubt in her eyes, Whi-Two steps forward carefully, and after eyeing Rennie and the rest of her team cautiously, she starts putting her own gloves on and crouches down next to the corpse.
She was about to lift the victim's blouse up when she feels the heat of someone's gaze burning against her nape. The young detective had to look up again.
Rennie's stare could set a human on fire.
"Oh!" Lai suddenly cries, hitting the bottom of her closed fist lightly against her open palm—a gesture of realization. "You guys haven't met detective yet!" She bends over and grabs Whi-Two by the shoulder and pulls her as she stood back up.
"This is Detective Whi-Two!" she cheers, not heeding the look of surprise and disgust coming from the other party. "She's one of our newest recruits back at Nimbasa, a recently-promoted trooper all the way from Aspertia! Say hi, Detective…"
Whi-Two only eyes the group in cautious fear.
"H-Hello…"
Rennie eyes her down with disdain.
"That's Third-Grade Detective Renegarde Bustamante of UPD-Driftveil," Lai points out. "One of the best there is in their division. I should know because Rebbie and most of her team here used to be my cute little junior back at the Academy!"
"If I was such a treasured junior, then why the hell can't you even get my name right?!" Then, Rennie returns her look of disgust back at Whi-Two. Again, Whi-Two could only back away.
"You're Detective Whi-Two of Nimbasa?" she spits darkly. "As in the 'Reliable Rookie' from Aspertia?" She looks up at Lai and almost screamed at her beaming face.
"That's Inspector Alart's mentee?!"
Lai's smile grow wider and happier.
"Yupsies, that's her!"
Rennie, and for Whi-Two, the rest of the female populace in the group save for her and Lai, all shot a glance of shock to her direction. Whi-Two could feel herself shrinking smaller and smaller the longer her inspector kept her in the spotlight.
"The hell?!" Rennie cries, her voice evidently rising. It reminded Whi-Two of one of the girls from her old high school.
"You don't even look the part…" she almost screams. Several nods of agreement came from the group.
"How could you be paired up with someone as great and as amazing as Inspector Alart?!"
Whi-Two was slightly thrown aback by the statement. She watches as Rennie, seemingly having had enough of Lai—and to some extent, her—walk out, fuming. Two or three officers scurry on after her.
Lai finally lets her go, and gives her a pat on the back before assuming a place on the other side of the corpse. She squats down while she puts on rubber gloves, and Whi-Two immediately follows suit.
"Uhm," she begins, watching as Lai fingers through the victim's face.
"Inspector, did I do something wrong...?"
"Oh, it's not a matter of what you did," Lai replies cheerfully. "It's a matter of who you are…"
The look of confusion does not leave Whi-Two's eyes.
"Girls from all over UPD will go neck and neck just to be assigned on the same station as Nate… Now that you're his mentee and is essentially at the highest spot every female officer could possibly hope and would probably kill for…"
She raises her hand up, and something white and slimy stretches from the victim's mouth, much to Whi-Two's chagrin.
"...You're basically Female Populace Enemy Number One. Congrats!"
-...-
The people in uniform started wheeling the victim, now peacefully and tenderly wrapped in white cloth so as to give it a more respectable deliverance, into the vehicle. Whi-Two watches the scene with a forlorn look in her eyes, seemingly in a trance, and was only awaken by the sound of the vehicle door's loud thud as it closes before her.
She blinks for a moment, and then goes back to her initial business of picking at her rubber gloves, now filled with blood and other questionable slimes and mucus. Then she feels a presence creep up behind her.
Whi-Two raises her deep blue eyes, and what meets her is the ever-comfortingly cheerful countenance of her female superior, contrasted almost too immediately by Rennie's frown of disapproval, and disgust. The latter lets out a snort of derision before crossing her arms defiantly and addressing her with contempt.
"So, you think the victim died of gunshots, is that it?" she almost spits at her. Whi-Two again shrinks back before nodding. Rennie again rolls her eyes, a little more frustratingly now.
"Then what the hell was the rope around her neck and the broken beam stuck through her chest all about? A show?!"
Whi-Two swallows hard. She once thought being around Lack-Two had prepared her for people shouting at her for no apparent reason, but somehow, she's only grown accustomed of her mentor's voice and no one else.
"P-Probably initial attempts," she almost whispers, her voice jittery in fear.
"I-It could be that her assailants tried to kill her slowly as a form of torture, but were interrupted by something, forcing them to quicken the pace...?" Whi-Two fidgets with her fingers as she looks down.
"I-I can't really say much without input from the medical examiner's office…"
Rennie glares at her and was about to say something more when Lai grabs her shoulder gently, as if to stop her. Then she gives Whi-Two a reassuring smile.
"You've already said plenty, Detective," she grins. "Good job!"
Then she turns to Rennie.
"I take it you can take it from here, Ritchie?"
"Okay, now you're just doing this on purpose…"
To that, Lai only laughs, hitting her irritated former junior playfully on the back. Rennie rolls her eyes, but nonetheless mutters an affirmative response. Then she returns her gaze one last time to Whi-Two.
"Soft-voiced weaklings like you don't even deserve to be near Inspector Alart…" Then she takes a quick turn in that military-like pace of hers, and marches towards the vehicle, barking orders to the rest of the policemen as she clambers up its passenger seat. Whi-Two only looks on.
"God, everytime I see her, she acts more and more like Nate when in the office," Lai sighs, joining Whi-Two's side. "Talk about 'boy crazy'..."
"Where are they taking the body, Ma'am?" Whi-Two suddenly asks. Lai casts her an innocent glance.
Then she smiles.
"Where else? Nimbasa's morgue, of course!" Lai disposes of her gloves.
"Now, for secondary area search…"
The young detective blinks, a question preparing to brew within her. But it immediately died away when she sees Lailani suddenly turning on her heel. She starts marching back towards the abandoned building.
"I-Inspector?"
Whi-Two's eyes darted towards the rest of the police vehicles that were beginning to leave the area one by one. Then she returns to Lai who was already by the entrance, bending over to pass through the police tape that blocked it from the outside world.
"Inspector Lai…?"
The girl starts jogging to where her inspector was, again looking around to see if some officers still stayed and were doing the same.
But no one else was left but the two of them.
Whi-Two thinks against it, but she nonetheless follows after Lailani, crawling underneath the yellow tape to enter. As soon as she straightens up and dusts herself off, she finds Lai looking at her sadly. Then she returns to her usual beam, and gestures with her head to the direction of the narrow aisle they had passed through not too long ago, signalling for Whi-Two to follow her.
Then she was off again.
Whi-Two could feel tremors of uneasiness pass through her, making her wrap herself in her long, slender arms out of instinct. But again, she nonetheless follows.
Lai didn't seem to show signs of stopping anyway. Not even to see if she was tailing behind her.
Soon, the two reach the post where the victim was perched. The wood that struck through her was still stained with dry blood. The odor, much to Whi-Two's chagrin, still lingered around. She looks up to see if Lai was still walking, but the female inspector only stood just below the broken beam, frozen.
Whi-Two carefully walks to her side. Then she looks up to note the expression on the blonde's face.
It was undecipherable.
"Inspector…?"
"You know my mentee was a victim of a summary execution," Lai suddenly quips, wistfully. Whi-Two was taken aback.
Mentee…?
Lai good-naturedly shugs.
"Yeah…" she says, almost too sheepishly, like it was nothing but an embarrassing experience from her past and nothing else. But the way her eyes softened told a different story.
"His name was Yuri, a young detective originally from Driftveil Division who was reassigned to Nimbasa because of 'massive potential'." She pronounced the last two words with slight mockery, almost like disgust. Whi-Two felt something inside her fall.
That was how they referred to her.
"Since he was part of Driftveil's CSI-U, it was inevitable that he was assigned under me. I was only a newly-appointed inspector for the unit at that time, but Chief Aldin thought it was genius that he also assign me as a mentor for that bright-eyed and ambitious detective. He said it was 'learning experience' for both the kid and I. It was the first time in my whole life that I was directly responsible for someone else aside from me, and of course I was more than willing to be there for him..." She heaves a weary sigh, her smile growing slightly bitter as she looked down and shook her head.
"Then he learned about the SUU, and he was head over heels convinced it was what he wanted. So he immediately signed up for the position, and it doesn't take long for him to be assigned his first mission—the one that will decide if he really was fit to be part of the unit." She walks forward, and runs her hand against the wooden post, feeling its ragged surface with her calloused fingers.
"It was the first assignment where I couldn't accompany him, given I wasn't part of SUU, but I still wanted to be… useful to him. I became a supportive mentor. I kept telling him to go for it, and even had Nate to give him pointers when he did."
Lai's gentle stroking slowly turned into clawing, her nails digging against the lumber, feeling the small splinters digging back underneath her nails. Whi-Two could only look on.
"But even with all that preparation, his first mission still ended up turning into a disaster…" Her lower lip quivers. Whi-Two could see it from where she stood. She considered approaching the older, but something from within her stopped the girl before she could.
It was only then that she realized that Lai, despite her common disposition, was the least approachable of all the people she's encountered in UPD; she was welcoming, but she was almost unapproachable.
"Yuri disappeared from UPD's radar for such a long time that being compromised and killed for it was the only plausible explanation we were able to give. No corpse was shown. No message. Nothing." She turns her head, and looks at the direction of the aisle they just passed through. In her head, she pictured the vehicle that contained the victim from a while ago, now being peacefully driven to where she would hopefully find her eternal repose after being abandoned for so long.
"...That woman was lucky enough to even be discovered," she says with remorse, but the smile was slowly going back to her face. Whi-Two was feeling slightly relieved.
Then she notices Lai now looking at her.
"You know, I'm envious of Nate sometimes," she suddenly claims in her singsong voice. "He gets a cute little you for a mentee, and he's able to keep you by his side for a longer time than I was able to, with Yuri. Plus, you're both part of the SUU, so he has the opportunityto be with you through every mission. He can always keep an eye out for you." Another sigh—Whi-Two thinks that this was the last one—and as she takes that deep breath very, very slowly, the look of sadness and regret gradually leaves her system.
She was cheerful Lai again.
"I never had that opportunity with Yuri," she mouths with her signature cheerful smile. Whi-Two was about to react—she's been itching to do so the moment her inspector started talking about her and hermentor, but could not find an opportunity to do so. She opens her mouth in an attempt to comfort her inspector and tell her that she could always treat the young detective like her mentee as well, but her voice was replaced by an unprecedented shriek when she notes a figure move behind Lai, its form about to strike the latter.
Before the full sound of Whi-Two's scream was able to escape her throat, Lai falls unceremoniously into the ground, unconscious.
-...-
"Detective Whi-Two to Dispatch! Repeat: 'Detective Whi-Two to Dispatch!' We have a 10-33! I'm at Zone D-54 and Inspector Oudir is down! I need back-up!" Whi-Two barks helplessly at her radio, and just as it has the first time she tried to ask for help, the little machine only returns static.
No reception. Whi-Two was crestfallen.
"Oh, sweet mother of God," she cusses under her breath, pushing the refilled magazine back to her handgun. Then she looks over the large crates she and the unconscious Lai was hiding behind.
There was silence and darkness waiting for her.
After the third or fourth shot, the young detective was able to conclude that she was facing only one assailant, and given what she has in her arsenal, she was confident that she could take them down if she plays her cards right, or at least, escape the place unscathed. However, she was chased into a dark and foreign space, and to top it all off, she was alone with an unconscious officer that she can't drag around for too long without slowing herself down in the process. All she had as a chance to survive was to defeat the assailant, or at least make them go away.
Although the latter seemed unlikely, as the lone figure seemed to be armed, and she was the target.
Whi-Two clutches onto her radio in contempt.
The only way to go was chase after the predator.
She looks to her side, and eyes her limp inspector. Aside from the gnashing wound on her right temple which the girl had already tended to, Lailani seemed to be in good shape. Which means that she could leave her there for a moment without having to worry of possibly losing her in her slumber.
Whi-Two sure hoped it wouldn't come to that.
"I'll be right back, Inspector…" she whispers, before looking back to the dark and silent world beyond her crates. With a deep breath and a small, silent prayer, she stands up, and attempts to run as fast she could to the other end of what she thinks is a hallway. Still, despite the speed her legs could muster, several bullets were still able to land a few inches from where her feet had landed. With her heart travelling towards her throat, she leaps the last few feet of her journey and lands on another set of wooden boxes, shooting a few of her own bullets to the source's direction.
The sound of metal against metal was heard.
Whi-Two withdraws her gun for a moment and looks around, listening for any form of movement, regardless of how faint.
There was a scuttling from behind her. She snappily turns around and shoots.
Sounds of what seemed like falling boxes fill the scene.
Whi-Two retains her position, letting only her eyes move, waiting for the next sound.
More scuttling. Her body automatically veers to the source and she shoots.
The young detective repeats this dance for the next six or seven rounds before she hears the sound she was hoping for:
The exact same sound she'd heard the first time she let bullets out. It meant that she's able to journey the entire space with her bullets, and, now, she had more or less registered in her head a good enough image of what the whole place looked like.
On top of that, she can safely conclude that the assailant was only moving in circles, and seemed to run around in a yet unidentified pattern. Why on earth this person was moving a bit predictably was still unknown however.
Not that Whi-Two thinks it's significant information. She's heard what she needed to hear.
The girl cocks her gun calmly and deliberately, letting her current breath harmonize the click that came when she released the barrel. After waiting for her fingers to comfortably melt into the handles of her weapon, she proceeds to closing her eyes. With a short, silent prayer, she gradually straightens herself, allowing herself in full view of her assailant, but with her blind to anything but her own darkness. Then, she waits.
And as she had expected, the sound of a gunshot was heard before she could lock her knees into place. Moving quickly, she faces the source of the sound and unhesitatingly shoots. The bullet shot to her direction grazes against her upper arm, just before she attempts to crouch back down into safety. She could feel the nagging pain beginning to sprout from where she was hit, but it does not kill the brewing smile on her face.
There was no sound of a bullet hitting the wall, and the scuttle that was supposed to follow it came a little later, and the movement was slower.
Whi-Two was able to land a hit.
She absentmindedly raises her hand to her upper arm and almost screamed in pain, making her almost throw her own hand away. There was no blood, she was certain, but there was definitely something else.
Looks like she and her assailant are tied to one hit each. Although, not that it matters.
The young detective was able to slow the assailant down. And she's more or less memorized the place enough to know where the assailant can and cannot go. That is, of course, if they have no plan on escaping.
She hears the sound of footsteps coming from behind her. The girl takes a deep breath.
Now to finish this…
Preparing her gun again, she listens as the footsteps gradually grow louder. Then, when she was sure that the person was behind her, and she hears the sound of barrel clicking, she immediately turns around and points. However, just as she was about to pull the trigger, the lights suddenly turned on.
Whi-Two freezes in shock at the sight of how her assailant was near her, the tip of his gun almost touching the tip of her nose. She was off by a few milliseconds, but she was able to react quickly enough so as not to get herself killed.
With trained reflexes, she was able to grab the assailant's outstretched hand, and pull him in to knee him on the gut. A gagging noise came from the other's mouth. Not giving him enough time to recover, she grips on his wrist with one hand while letting the other remain on his shoulder. Then, she pulls in opposite direction, twists, and locks the arm behind him.
Her force made him let go of his gun. It slides a few feet away from where they stood.
The assailant was struggling to free himself. Whi-Two had to grab his other arm and let it join the other, locked painfully against his back. Still, he thrashes to break himself free, his force strong enough to make Whi-Two move around as he did. But the girl's grip was too strong, even as he tries elbowing her gut to break himself free. After a few more futile attempts, he finally calms down, and drops to his knees, taking slow and deep breaths.
Still, Whi-Two does not let go, even to retrieve her handcuffs.
There was something about the man that scared her.
"So, the new recruit really is good…"
He elbows the girl to gut one last time, and as Whi-Two was momentarily distracted by his words, she was not able to keep her hold, and he escapes. He starts running towards his gun, but before he could reach for it, a bullet grazes against his hand and hits the gun squarely, making it slide away even farther. The man looks back to her direction with disdain, and Whi-Two only returns with her best version of a glare, her hands already performing the automatic dance of readying her gun for the next shot.
They lock eyes for a brief moment before the man runs again, strangely, not to the direction where his gun flew off. Whi-Two opted to hit him from where she stood—she was certain she could make the shot—but the man swayed so erratically as he did that she was afraid that she might hit him somewhere vital, killing him instantly.
And Whi-Two didn't need him dead. She didn't need anyone dead.
But she sure needed to stop that man from moving if she wants to survive this.
Quickly, she scanned her surroundings, and found crates stacked in levels—almost like ladders. She followed the stacks, and found that they reached all the way to the end of the hallway, where incidentally, the man was also heading to. Without giving herself the time to think, she starts for the stacks, and as soon as she reached them, she began climbing.
The man looked behind to see if the female detective was still in pursuit, and was slightly surprised to see that she was nowhere to be found. But still, he does not slow down, afraid that the girl might suddenly surprise her. There was no way of knowing what she'll do.
She was as dangerous as they had said.
He takes a sharp turn, and feels relieved at the sight of an open window. He was about to pull up his hoodie over his head to cover his face, but was stopped when he suddenly felt something drop towards him from somewhere above.
Its weight was enough to throw him to side, making him land on his face, and when he tries to turn and see what it was, he finds the tip of a gun pointing in between his eyes.
The girl's blue eyes glowed with an icy glint.
"Who are you…" she growls, maintaining her position. Both arms were outstretched to rest the gun properly, and her two legs straight but not stiff—an image of a calm that would bring but her to their knees in fear. At least that's how Whi-Two like to think she was.
She takes a good look at her assailant, and was slightly surprised that he only stared back, his obsidian eyes smeared with a look of contempt. She then takes note of his hair, and his form, and was able to conclude that she has never in her whole life encountered this man before.
Yet here he was knowing a thing or two about her.
"Who are you," she tries again, this time a little louder, but still she was met by the same silence. Feeling that starting a conversation with him is futile, she shakes her own qualms away, and starts to fiddle with her belt for her handcuffs. As soon as she frees the tool, she cautiously tries to proceed closer.
It was only then that the man speaks up.
"For someone with such a remarkable set of skills, you sure let your guard down too easily."
Whi-Two was about to react, but she hears the sound a gun being cocked, and though she was fast enough to turn while preparing her own gun, she was still beaten by a millisecond.
"How unbecoming of an SUU officer…"
Almost as if it was in slow motion, she felt the bullet pierce through the right side of her chest, the force enough to push her backwards. She loses her footing out of shock, and she could see her world flip as she falls to her back.
Soon, the view of a silhouette aiming a gun at her was replaced by the image of a ceiling.
A few footsteps, and soon, she could see the assailant's face peering down on her, a look of disappointment in his face. Then he points a gun to her face. Whi-Two could only watch helplessly.
"Good night, Rookie…"
It was the last words she hears before another gunshot was fired.
-...-
When Whi-Two came to, the first thing that greeted her senses was the strong and pungent smell of arsenic.
The kind that she knew she couldn't take, but also the kind that she knew she could be relieved about.
The smell of rotting flesh and fresh blood had completely left her system that the former felt only like a dream.
Except that the brewing pain on her shoulder told her otherwise.
"...Detective Rosa?" A soft gasp to the positive. "Detective Rosa!"
The image of one of her inspectors' faces swayed viciously as soon as she opened her eyes. It takes her a number of blinks to refocus herself, and when she did, what greeted her was the horror-stricken look in Lailani's face. A joyous albeit impish grin was somehow added to the mix, but Whi-Two could still note the remnants of terror in the blond's eyes.
"Thank goodness, you're okay…"
Whi-Two takes a moment to let her own words out.
"...Inspector Lai…" she acknowledges. Then, with a heavy grunt, she struggles to prop herself up to a sitting position, applying pressure where pressure wasn't wanted.
The young detective had to suppress a scream at the burning pangs of pain that danced around her right shoulder. And thankfully, she was successful.
"...Where are we?"
"Nimbasa hospital," Lailani replies. "We're at the ward reserved for UPD officers…"
"What…?" was Whi-Two's weary reply. Then her body jolts involuntarily, and before she could control her own movements, her left hand suddenly flew to her right shoulder, then throbbing insurmountably.
"Careful…" Lai's voice was low and warm, almost accommodating, but she was physically distant, retaining her position, staying still. "I think the anaesthesia is starting to wear off."
She barely moved a muscle to approach the girl, let alone help her, and for that, Whi-Two was also thankful.
The last thing she needed today was pity. She already had a surplus of that, all directed towards her own pathetic self.
Despite the pain, Whi-Two was still able to find her words, and that, for her, is a good thing.
"...What happened, Inspector?"
Lai stares at her for a brief moment, as if she was trying to read something, then she looks down sadly, the look of terror now being replaced with uneasiness.
"I'm not sure… Details are still a bit hazy for me too. All I remember is that we were talking and something hit me and I lost consciousness. Next thing I knew, I was watching you being mounted into a stretcher. Bleeding. Profusely. I…"
There was an evident hitch in her voice, and Whi-Two had opted to pretend to have not heard it. (She knew from experience that when people are trying to be strong, the last thing they would need was for someone to point out the cracks in their armor).
Lai turns away for a second to wipe a tear away. Whi-Two had to look down in embarrassment.
"...Sorry, I was just…" Lai sighs, finally deciding to walk a little nearer to her.
"I promised myself I won't be like this in front of anyone ever again. But just seeing you… All bloodied and unconscious…" She takes a deep breath, once again finding her composure.
Lai finally gives her usual, cheerful smile.
"I'm just glad you're okay…"
Whi-two finds herself smiling back.
"I'm glad you're okay, too…"
Lai nods, taking another effort to come nearer. She perches gingerly at the corner of her bed.
"How about you, sweetie? Do you remember anything? About what happened to you?"
Whi-Two looks elsewhere for a moment, thinking hard. Although there are vivid images in her head—images she hopes she can erase but know she can never do—but she cannot weave them into one coherent narrative. All she could see was darkness, and even she knew that what she saw won't amount to anything.
Added to that is that fact that she has trouble deciding which of her memories are fake or not.
The young detective feels the pressure of her Inspector's gaze pull her back, and after a few seconds of contemplating, she slowly, and sadly shook her head.
"No," she whispers.
It was faint, but Whi-Two caught it: the sudden drop in Lailani's disposition, which she quickly masks with a rueful smile.
"I see," the older whispers back. "Okay. That's fine, I guess. I'm not going to force you to remember. But given the blow you took…"
The blonde's green eyes landed squarely on Whi-Two's arm. The latter finds herself following, a sad, forlorn look in her eyes.
"...How bad is it?"
Whi-Two does not reply. She simply looks away, absentmindedly holding the wounded shoulder with her other, free hand.
Lailani sighs.
"The doctor said that it might leave a mark… at the very least. But he could only make sure once he gets to talk to you…" A short chuckle. "I was hoping maybe I could… you know… In case you don't feel comfortable talking about it with strangers. I figured maybe you'd want to.."
The two lock eyes for a moment—each with an undecipherable look in their respective gazes. Lai was the first to drop hers to the ground, the rueful smile finding itself back on her face.
"...Yeah… Well… I hope it's not as bad as we think..."
"I'm sorry."
The sudden quip coming from the brunette's lips surprises the blonde, making her look back. Whi-Two has completely turned her head to the other direction. Away from her.
Lai had to pause for a minute before saying something again.
"W-What's there for you to apologize about? If anything, I'm the one who's supposed to say sorry. I was such an incompetent inspector that you…" Lai once again pauses, taking a deep breath. The pause was so abrupt that Whi-Two had to look back.
"I'll make it up to you somehow, Detective… I'll find the person who did this to you. Make sure he never comes for anyone again…"
"Inspector…"
Whi-Two was cut off by the sound of a phone beeping. She watches as the other fumble around her jacket to fish for the device. Lai gives it one short glance before grimacing.
"It's about time…" she mumbles with disdain. Whi-Two blinks in confusion.
Lai had to smile apologetically.
"I've been… trying to call Nate all day." Then she returns to the phone with a snide expression.
"...And he only chose to reply now…" Lailani starts typing furiously, muttering what seemed like her response under her breath.
"Sending strongly-worded message of disappointment… now."
Whi-Two all of a sudden felt her mouth go dry at the thought.
Her inspector.
Lack-Two.
She almost forgot about Lack-Two.
If Lack-Two finds out…
Whi-Two struggled to get words out of her lips.
"I-Inspector Lai…?"
The female inspector turns her head to the young detective.
"C-Can you please… N-Not tell Inspector Lack-Two about what happened…? At least to me…"
Lai looks at her with confusion and slight disbelief.
"...Why not? Honey, Nate's your mentor. He—"
"I'm always… messing up, Inspector… And I think I've developed this unhealthy habit of relying on him to fix everything for me… This was… This was supposed to be my first mission without him… If he finds out that I…" Her voice trails off, her tears getting the best of her. She feared her message didn't come across, but fortunately, Lai anticipated what was to come next.
Thought it did not mean she understood.
"Detective… If you're scared that Nate will be mad at you for 'messing up', I assure you that…"
"That's not the point!" Whi-Two's voice was soft but sharp, if ever that was possible. This was certainly Lai's first time hearing of it.
"Whether or not that's true is not the problem… It's this. The fact that the first thing he hears about my first mission without him is… this… I…" She swallows. Hard. Lai feared for her.
"I can't bear him knowing that I'm still a failure, and that I'm as good as dead without him…" Whi-Two struggles to look up at Lai, taking in the sea of concern drowning away her emerald irises.
"Please, Inspector Lai… Don't…"
Lai was about to reply, but she was cut off by the sound her phone's ringing.
Lack-Two was calling.
"...I-I think he's getting worried for my lack of reply…" Lai absentmindedly announces. "I-I think he's getting the sense that something's wrong. Nate has always been good at this…"
"Please, Inspector…"
"You know, Nate and I tell each other everything, Detective… No holds barred."
Whi-Two watches her sadly. Lai had to take a deep breath, averting her gaze to someplace else.
"...But I basically owe you my life, so…"
Though it was faint, there was a glint in Whi-Two's eyes. Lai returns her gaze to her just in time to watch the glint fade away.
"For the record: I still don't approve of this… And if anything, I'd still want you to tell him eventually…"
There was a dubious look in the girl's eyes, but she nods nonetheless.
Lai takes yet another deep breath. The longer she stayed in that room, the harder it was for her to breathe.
It didn't help that her phone was vibrating furiously from goodness-knows-how-many-times Nate had been calling. She stares at the screen shortly before returning her gaze to Whi-Two, whose sad, pleading gaze from before was slowly transitioning to drowsiness.
Lai felt another lock of her short blonde hair turn grey.
They are seriously not paying her enough for this.
"I better go and take this in the hallway," she says out loud, almost to herself, as Whi-Two was already halfway past gone.
"Or else, we'll both be in trouble…"
-FIN-
"Apart from the SUU, a unit exclusive only to the main division, all units from all divisions are interconnected, and answer to their respective counterparts from main division. This is to ensure that all cases within the Unovan area of responsibility are centralized and properly circulated among all divisions." - Excerpt from the UPD Trooper's Manual, Chapter 4: Units
Well, I certainly owe everyone an apology, but hey. I may be a late-ass uploader, but at least I'm a late-ass uploader wHO JUST GRADUATED FROM UNI
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...But seriously, though. Sorry.