Midnight had long since passed. It was probably three or four in the morning, yet Taeyeon was still awake. His thoughts simply wouldn't let him sleep. He had been tossing and turning in bed all night, thinking only of the faint, bittersweet smile Jenyeong had given him before leaving. Seeing Jenyeong upset was the very last thing Taeyeon would ever want in this life. The more he recalled that expression, the tighter the knot in his stomach grew, and the further sleep drifted from him. His inner voice refused to quiet down.
What if I really hurt him? He truly looked so sad… I have to find a way to make it right.
On the small table beside his bed sat a vase holding the white lilies Jenyeong had given him. Taeyeon glanced at them, rubbed his face with both hands, and rose from the bed. Maybe some warm milk would calm him down. He stepped into the kitchen, opened the fridge, and took out the milk to heat it. While it warmed, he opened one of the cupboards and grabbed a random mug. It was only as he poured the milk that he realized—it was the mug Jenyeong had given him last month. It was as if the universe was deliberately placing things tied to Jenyeong right in front of him.
Letting out a deep breath, he finished his milk and returned to bed. He had to be up early for work the next morning, and if he wanted to get through the day in one piece, he needed sleep. Somehow, he managed to drift off without even realizing it.
But when morning came, it wasn't the sound of his alarm that woke him—it was something else entirely. A weight pressed down on him. His eyes were still closed, but a steadily growing wave of heat across his body forced them open.
What he saw made him freeze.
Jenyeong was there, gazing at him with a faint smile. He was straddling Taeyeon's hips, his pale legs on either side, glowing even brighter in the sunlight.
"Jenyeong…?" Instinctively, Taeyeon's hands slid to Jenyeong's thighs. "What… what are you doing?"
"Does it matter what I'm doing? Don't you like it?"
"I-I…" Taeyeon's eyes lingered on his body—especially his lips. He looked more beautiful than he ever had before.
"…I don't know… I just—"
Before he could finish, Jenyeong leaned down and pressed his lips to Taeyeon's, cutting him off. Stunned, Taeyeon unconsciously tightened his grip on Jenyeong's thighs. As he returned the kiss, he could feel his body steadily heating up.
Jenyeong's hands began to wander—trailing slowly over Taeyeon's chest and neck. His slender, elegant fingers moved deliberately slow, as though teasing him on purpose. The soft, breathy sounds that escaped Jenyeong's lips made Taeyeon's head spin and stole his breath away.
Finally, Jenyeong pulled back, licking his lower lip before smiling down at him.
"I think it's about time you woke up… don't you, Mr. Prosecutor?"
Taeyeon woke up, breathless. There were less than ten minutes until his alarm was set to go off, but he no longer needed it. He was wide awake now—and drenched. Wiping the sweat from his forehead with his arm, he drew in a deep breath. The dream he had just seen had left him stunned. Almost without thinking, his fingers rose to his lips. He could still feel Jenyeong's warmth lingering there. His heart was racing, his body still hot—especially lower down.
In an effort to pull himself together, he got out of bed and headed to the bathroom, splashing his face with cold water. Gripping the edges of the sink tightly, he stared at himself in the mirror. How could he have dreamed something like that? Before his hands wandered anywhere else, he quickly dried his face, stepped out of the bathroom, changed his clothes, and left the house.
There was no time for breakfast. All he wanted was to get to his office as soon as possible. Luckily, there was no traffic in the early morning, so he made it there quickly. When he walked in, Wonyoung was already buried in the files in front of him.
"You're early."
"So are you… Don't get too comfortable. We're heading out in a bit," he replied as Taeyeon took off his jacket.
"Why? What happened this time?"
"They found a body in a field a few kilometers away."
"Don't tell me—"
"It's marked with the Eclipse killer's signature on the neck."
"Shit… seriously?"
"Unfortunately. Forensics is already on-site. We should get going too."
"All right, let's move."
…
After about an hour's drive, they arrived at the field. The forensics team was still at work. Even at first glance, it was clear the victim had been moved here from somewhere else—there wasn't much blood on the ground. Just like the other murders, the heart had been removed. But what shocked Wonyoung and Taeyeon the most were the needles driven into the man's eyes.
"God… It just keeps getting worse each time." Wonyoung looked at the body with clear disgust.
"Have you been able to identify him yet?" Taeyeon asked one of the team members.
"Not yet, sir. But we'll find out as soon as possible."
There wasn't a single piece of evidence at the scene, so the teams had begun searching a wider area. But even if they searched for years, they would likely never find the hidden storage deep within the forest.
By the time Taeyeon and Wonyoung returned to the office, there was still more than an hour left before their lunch break. They pulled out every document that could be considered evidence in the Eclipse case and began reviewing it all from the beginning. Lost in the photographs and files, they didn't even notice the time passing.
When the lunch break finally came, Taeyeon felt a pang of disappointment—Jenyeong, who came by almost every day, hadn't shown up that day. Then again… even if he had, would Taeyeon have been able to look him in the eye? He wasn't sure. Especially after the dream he'd had.
He and Wonyoung decided to have lunch at a nearby restaurant. The place was crowded—most people were spending their breaks there. Once they sat at a table by the window, Wonyoung quickly noticed his friend's silence. When their food arrived, he finally spoke up.
"What's wrong? You've barely said a word. Is it because Jenyeong didn't come today?"
"I don't know… Everything's just piling up lately."
"Why? What happened?"
"The other day I went to my parents'. They pushed me to meet a girl. They think it's about time I got married—especially my mother. Now I have to meet this girl. And that night… I might have… hurt Jenyeong."
"What?! Wait—A girl? Or did you tell Jenyeong about it?"
"No! I could never tell him. Who knows how much it would hurt him."
"Then where did this girl thing come from?"
"Like I said—my mother. And when my father insisted too, I had no choice but to agree."
"I see… When are you meeting her?"
"I don't know. Probably sometime this week."
"So how did you hurt Jenyeong's feelings?"
"He brought up the fact that he likes me again. And I told him it could never happen—nothing more. But… I don't know… he looked really upset. I should probably make it up to him."
"Classic Jenyeong. Don't overthink it too much—"
"Hyung?" Someone calling out to Wonyoung cut their conversation short. It was his younger brother, Wooyeong—and standing right beside him… was Jenyeong.
"What are you doing here?" his brother asked.
"We came to grab something to eat."
"What a coincidence! So did we." He turned toward Taeyeon and scowled. "Oh great… he's here too?"
Taeyeon didn't answer. His eyes were fixed on Jenyeong. His heartbeat quickened, and when their eyes met, Jenyeong gave him a faint smile. It instantly brought the dream back to Taeyeon's mind. Realizing his cheeks were growing warm, he quickly averted his gaze. Still, that smile told him one thing—at least Jenyeong wasn't that angry anymore. But deep down, in the depths of his eyes, Taeyeon could still see the lingering sadness.
"What's wrong, Taeyeon hyung? Ignoring me now?"
"No, of course not. Have a seat."
"Nah, let's not sit," Wooyeong cut in, tugging at Jenyeong's arm. "We decided to eat somewhere else."
"And why am I only hearing about this now?" Jenyeong asked.
"Well, now you know. Let's go." Wooyeong leaned toward his friend and whispered, "I don't want to sit at the same table as these two. They both get on my nerves," he added playfully.
"All right, all right. Anyway, see you later, Taeyeon hyung, Wonyoung hyung."
With Wooyeong tugging him along, Jenyeong left the restaurant, and the prosecutors were left watching them go.
"You've got a pretty interesting brother."
"Yeah… you don't say."
Just then, Taeyeon's phone buzzed with a message. It was from his mother. She wrote that she had spoken with Minjae's mother and gotten Minjae's phone number. She told him to save it and meet the girl as soon as possible.
The moment he read the message, his face fell. He didn't want to meet Minjae—or even get to know her. All he wanted was to mend Jenyeong's heart. Turning off the screen, he let out a deep breath.
"Who? Your mother?"
"Yeah. Unfortunately."
"I'm not even asking what she wrote. I can tell from your face."
"I just want this whole thing over with. I don't have the energy for it."
"For God's sake, Taeyeon, you're not a kid anymore. You don't have to do everything your mother says. If you don't want to meet the girl, then don't."
"I'm doing it so my mother won't be disappointed. I'll just meet her once and be done with it."
"So you've got time to meet someone you don't even want to?"
"Not really, but… I'll try to make the time."
"Well, if you can make time for her, then you can take Jenyeong out for a meal too."
"What?"
"You're the one who said you wanted to make things right with him. I'm just saying—if you can spare the time for that girl, you can spare some for Jenyeong."
"And since when did you start thinking about Jenyeong?"
"Guess you forgot—I've known him since the day he was born. We grew up together. Like it or not, I see him as my brother. To me, he's no different from Wooyeong."
"You're right… Once this is over, I should do something with him. Thanks for reminding me."
Wonyoung's words had snapped Taeyeon back to his senses. He really should make time for Jenyeong, just like Wonyoung said. After they finished their meal, they returned to the office and went back to their usual routine, handling the other cases on their desks.
That evening, on his way home, Taeyeon spotted a florist and pulled over. He stepped out of the car, letting his feet lead him inside. He ordered a bouquet of white lilies, daisies, and white roses, then brought them home and set them gently on his desk. He already knew exactly who the flowers were for—the one who smelled as sweet and looked as delicate as those white blooms. The one who made his heart race like nothing else… his Jenyeong.