The email came at 6:03 AM.
Subject:📎 URGENT: Ethics Committee Summons – CEO Yoon
It was formal. Cold. The kind of message that doesn't ask questions—just commands answers.
Rina was still asleep when Kira read it.
Her back tensed. Her mind started calculating possible outcomes. Risks. Damage control.
The public email hadn't gone unnoticed.
And Helena Wu wasn't done.
🏢 Syntek – Executive Boardroom
Ten people.
Nine were older men in suits.
One was Helena.
The room smelled like stale coffee and strategy.
Kira stood at the head of the table, posture flawless, eyes unreadable.
"Your relationship with an employee is a distraction," one board member said.
"Only if you're more interested in perception than performance," Kira replied, voice smooth as steel.
Helena smiled faintly. "It's not just about you, Kira. Investors are asking questions. The press wants a statement. We've had journalists snooping around the café floor."
Kira's jaw ticked.
"So ask me your real question. Do you want me to break up with her?"
Silence.
That was the answer.
📞 Rina's Café – Same Morning
The café was busy.
But Rina noticed the silence the second she looked up and saw the way people were looking at her.
Not rude.
Just… knowing.
A barista whispered. A customer took a sly photo when she wasn't looking.
And then her manager pulled her aside.
"Rina… they're asking me to transfer you to a different building."
Rina's stomach dropped.
Not a firing.
But a quiet exile.
Wrapped in politeness.
Disguised as protocol.
📱Rina's Message to Kira
Rina:They're moving me. Thought you should know.Don't come rushing in. I can handle this.
Kira:They're trying to corner me.I won't let them do the same to you.Wait for me after your shift. We need to talk.
🌧️ Rooftop Garden – That Night
It was raining when they met.
Rina's hoodie was soaked. Kira held a black umbrella, eyes fierce beneath it.
"I told you not to come," Rina said softly.
"I never listen."
Rina looked up. "They're punishing us."
"I know."
"What now?"
Kira didn't answer right away.
Then—she stepped closer, closing the umbrella.
They both got soaked.
"We fight," Kira said."We don't run. Not from them. Not from each other."
Rina blinked. "This is gonna be messy."
Kira touched her face, rain slipping down her cheek.
"So are most things worth building."
Then she kissed her.
In the rain. On the roof. While the world below prepared to make them choose.