The air was thicker that night, saltier, heavier, full of something waiting.
Rin stood outside the hotel, arms crossed, watching the lights on the water flicker like dying stars. He didn't hear Jeff come up behind him.
"You okay?" Jeff asked.
Rin didn't look back. "I've been thinking."
"About?"
Rin exhaled slowly. "About how easy it is to lie to yourself when there's war all around you. When every feeling can be labeled as a weakness."
Jeff moved beside him, leaning against the railing. "You're not the only one lying."
They stood like that for a while, silent, side by side, as the night swallowed the city.
Rin finally turned. "We keep risking our lives for people who would throw us to the wolves if they ever saw the truth. But when I look at you… I don't feel like hiding."
Jeff looked at him. And this time—really looked.
There was no armor in Rin's eyes. No threat. Just truth.
"You feel like peace," Jeff said softly.
And then he leaned in.
Slowly.
As if asking permission.
Rin met him halfway.
Their lips touched, tentative, then certain. No heat. No hunger. Just quiet understanding. Two hearts that had held too much finally meeting in the calm between storms.
When they pulled apart, Rin whispered, "So now what?"
Jeff smiled. "Now we go back to pretending we're just partners. But not tonight."
Rin nodded. "Not tonight."
The next day brought movement.
Real movement.
A man in a white cap was spotted at the old train yard, someone Jeff's contact ID'd as a known Korean distributor. No photo of the leader. No full name. Just a whispered code: "Ghost."
Jay, Jack, Jeff, and Rin tailed the man through the maze of warehouses at the city's edge. He moved fast, looking over his shoulder, checking shadows.
They followed on foot, separated into two pairs. Jay and Jack moved silently along the right wall. Jeff and Rin looped left, ducking under broken scaffolding.
The man stopped at an old service tunnel, banged on a rusted door, and said something in Korean.
The door opened.
Jack's hand gripped Jay's arm.
Inside was a hidden bunker—dimly lit, humming with electronics, crates, weapons, papers scattered across tables.
They'd found it.
The base.
But no sign of the leader.
Just lieutenants, a few guards, and layers of code, maps, and manifests.
Rin tapped into their comm.
Rin: "This is it. But no leader. This is just one wing."
Jeff: "Let's sweep it. Quietly."
They waited until the guards rotated. Slipped inside. Moved like shadows. Took photos. Copied documents. Marked escape routes.
Jack pulled Jay into a side hall and whispered, "They've got movement patterns written here. Multiple zones. This goes way deeper than Phuket."
Jay nodded. "We need to get this intel out fast."
They rejoined Jeff and Rin at the rear exit.
Rin's face was pale. "They're protecting someone. You can feel it. Like… everything in there is to guard something else."
"Or someone," Jeff said.
Jay whispered, "The Ghost."
That night, back at the hotel, the four sat in a tight circle, papers spread across the floor. The tension was different now. Urgent.
"Bangkok," Jeff muttered. "Too many ties lead back there."
"But if we chase too fast," Jay added, "we risk walking into a trap."
"We're getting closer," Rin said.
Jack didn't respond. He was staring at Jay, who hadn't let go of his hand since they got back.
"We might not get another chance like this," Jack whispered. "Together. All of us."
Jeff looked up. "You want to stay longer."
Jay smiled softly. "Do you?"
Rin didn't hesitate. "Yes."
So they agreed.
One more week.
A few more days to hold on.
To love.
To burn.
Before the war caught up.