Kijuro and Rei idled at the entrance of the bar, still gazing at the haphazard made by the long-gone Reoni, both of them dazed in different ways. Kijuro’s face was tight with thoughts, and his eyes darted around as if he was mapping out a plan, while Rei’s cheeks were elevated up to his stare, which was filled with anticipation of some sort. 

“He seems like he has a lot of enthusiasm. He didn’t even wait for you,” he said.

“I wouldn’t call it that.” Kijuro parted ways with his mind map and fixed his confusion with Rei’s gleeful expression, and instantly, his confusion dwindled as he connected the dots. Rei continued.

“Did he realize there was something in the back?” 

“He must have remembered he had planned to meet with someone this morning.” Then, he uttered low, “You’ve already scouted this whole place, haven’t you?”

“I have. You’re not going in with him?”

Kijuro tilted back on his feet, adjusting one of his rolled cuffs. “I would.” His glare fell on Rei as he turned. “But I simply don’t trust you being alone.”

“Then I’ll follow him, too,” he said.

The hallway to the back rooms widened with the addition of darkness. Reoni still prevailed forward, clumsily falling into the wall when his legs were released by the last table. He sprinted through the hallway, but lost the little traction from his heels from the broken vases, catching himself on the door to the office. The doorknob jiggled loosely, the screws separated from the door and the wheel barely holding in place. Once the door flew open, a horrific scent stronger than the acidity of wine took hold of him, luring him to come closer, until the source of the stench from behind the desk was shown.

His boss was limp underneath the cave of the desk. Two gaping holes carved out his chest. He immediately felt a tingling sensation, and the worst lightheadedness he ever experienced, his legs giving out under him to save him from unconsciousness a second time. He didn’t know it at the time, but tears cracked through his eyes. But they also smiled. What was this? His boss was dead. He was the first person to see his dead body. Why wasn’t he running away?

His face flushed with heat all of a sudden, his hands catching the redness and the cool touch of his tears at the same time. He knew he was sad, angry, but these feelings weren’t for his boss. The gang who carried out the raid wanted to kidnap him, then went through the means of destroying his job. What did they want? Were they really after Sailand Lagoon or was it him who was the problem? The questions continued through his head, making laps. But so were thoughts, louder ones, that he refused to acknowledge. This was his way to freedom. He couldn’t have enemies when his business was utterly destroyed.

His breath steeped as a brisk sensation caressed his shoulders. A weight sank into his chest, and a protracted hand behind his head brought with it his paranoias come to life. This was a trap. His stalkers never gave up on pursuing him. Why did he decide to walk in alone?

The fingers fell on his right side, and proceeded to rest there. “Was your first instinct fear, or happiness?” the voice called into his ear. 

It had now occurred to Reoni that the feeling on his shoulders was Rei’s jacket. It swelled with warmth over the heavy atmosphere. He recited Rei’s question in his head over and over while eyeing his boss again. It was never his boss’s name that came out of his mouth. Not even when he saw his corpse did he recognize him as anything other than a boss. 

He inhaled his runny nose and smeared his tears away with the base of  palms, but there was so much that his face remained soaking in his cries. “I can’t say it,” he said under his gentle sobs. 

“You’re in no place to talk to him. Get away,” Kijuro demanded. Reoni couldn’t see where he was. All he felt was Rei’s presence dropping from his side. Before he left through the back door, he heard his voice being directed to him one last time:

“Any other person would have ran. I hope I won’t see you here again next time.”

 Kijuro replaced Rei’s presence, helping Reoni up and guiding him back through the entrance. Although Reoni complied, his mind had been sent to somewhere else and their movements were a blank to him. He ended up in the passenger seat of Kijuro’s car again without remembering their trip back. And while Kijuro kept disgracefully mouthing Rei’s name on the ride home, Reoni kept wondering how Rei knew his. 

In the alleyway of Sailand Lagoon, Rei stood over Thiha, who was pressing buttons away on an old fashioned phone. It didn’t take any turning around for him to say, “Did you find anything?”

“Yes, a spider in your hair,” he responded as he swiftly pulled out the hair tie that was keeping Thiha’s hair to the side.

He jerked his head, but it was too late. “You’re a pain in the ass,” he grumbled. “Seriously. Who did you see?”

The revamped engine of Kijuro’s model sputtered and nearly instantly fell silent as it grew far. Rei loosely combed his fingers through Thiha’s crimson long hair to gather it all on his back, dividing it into sections to braid. “Kijuro… and the victim.”

Thiha whipped his head over to stare at him with a half-confused, half-pissed off expression. “And you didn’t tell me?!” he growled. Rei shot more red from his half-lidded eyes. He had to start his braid all over again.

“I wasn’t sure until just now. Relax.” He straightened Thiha’s head manually using his fingertips.

“How did you find out it was him?”

“His shoes got all muddied from the broken plant pots inside. The soles look like they match the ones out here. He had some adorable chunky boots that made him look even tinier than he already is,” he fawned as he braided.

“So you were checking him out.”

“Out of suspicion. On top of that, nobody but an employee would come here in the morning, and he found out his boss was inside—but his shoes really soled it for me.” He laughed at his own joke. “Did you catch that?”

Thiha sighed, but he still cracked a grin that he wouldn’t let Rei see. “Shut up. If the cops have any reason to hurry up now, it’s for that joke.” He hopped back onto his feet. Rei secured a hair tie in his hair just in time. “Let’s get going. I sent the report to Banlue.”