"We found the picture in professor Arindam's study. It fell out of his lap while he put away the book he was reading to greet us." Soham's enthusiastic smile is dazzlingly bright. Mira nods. "Yep."

Soham goes on, "It was Mira. She cleverly led the conversation, bringing up another case that needed his help while I snapped the photographs we needed."

"Soham!" Mira latches on to Soham's arms with a bright grin. "So humble! It happened because you were quick."

Soham and Mira are a formidable team in more ways than one. This demonstration of their bond warms Thiya's heart. Seyon smiles at the duo. "Good teamwork, guys. Now we can corner professor Arindam with this. Wait! If you were with Professor Arindam and are here... Who is watching Aryan and Kavya?"

"Ulla and Ramya." Soham says as he and Mira look apologetic. "Sorry, Seyon. We were too desperate to find a clue. Couldn't inform you in advance."

Seyon shakes his head. "No, it's just we owe those guys a lot. Sometimes I feel SIT could use more hands. But of course, they couldn't add more personal to this bizarre case, could they?"

"Right. Here's the pic." Soham forwards the picture to Thiya's phone via NFC.

Seyon enlists Thiya's help in processing the images. "Show me the best quality image you could, Thiya. Call it a detective intuition. These images hold a clue to solving this case."

Thiya settles down at her desk to work. Soham, Mira, walk out of hall 57. "We'll relieve Ramya and Ulla from their watch. We owe them a lot."

Seyon raises his hand in a parting gesture. "Go ahead. We'll throw them a party when the case is solved."

Thiya raises a brow and smiles at him. As he sits at his desk, he acknowledges its brilliance.

"What?"

She shakes her head and focuses on her computer. "Nothing. It's nice to see you give credit to my friends and agree to Soham, Mira's independent investigating ways."

"Come on. I'm not controlling as a leader. I give credit where it's due."

Seyon says this grumpily. Thiya lets out a low laugh, finding it adorable. "Right..."

Seyon catches the tenderness in Thiya's voice. Earlier, too, it didn't sound like a rebuke. He isn't sure. Where's the woman who threw countless jabs at him? Gone with the wind? Her bitterness and resentment seem to have gone and what remains is love. Oh no, you should have gone with Soham and Mira, Seyon. What work do you have while Thiya processes these images? You cannot have these personal thoughts at work. Control, hm? You cannot ogle her while she works.

He turns on his computer. But the self-discipline is short-lived. His computer doesn't turn on right away; so he glances at Thiya. Her desk is right next to her his again. Wait. When did Soham make these changes again? Tacky guy.

Uh-oh. Grave mistake, Seyon. Now that you have looked at your glorious ex-lover again... you can't tear your eyes off of her, hm? She looks beautiful when she's concentrating. Bangs falling over her brow which she occasionally pushes off with a shake of her head, the little pinch between her shapely brows, her lips pressed together in a thin line, sometimes pouting adorably... Those are the lips that you kissed countless times but it's been ages since they last... ahem! Control, Seyon!

Ugh, she's working! While you're having these atrocious personal thoughts? But, hey? Aren't you allowed a break? You can certainly look at your beloved during your break. A minor distraction can't hurt. Seyon observes Thiya working with a smile on his face, counting down 120 seconds he set to dedicate to admiring her. Once he's had his little fill and the time's up, he asks,

"Are you done, Thiya?"

Thiya sighs exasperatedly. Surprisingly, Seyon showed 10% more restraint than he usually does. She was expecting him to pose the question sooner. He seemed lost in thoughts until a moment ago, his eyes entirely on her, making it hard to concentrate. She feigned normalcy, unsure if those eyes were probing her very soul or merely analysing her work.

Balancing work and personal life becomes challenging when dealing with an ex. But she and Seyon have been doing fine so far. Even when they were together, they'd overcome so many such obstacles working together; their current predicament shouldn't be an issue. But what was Seyon thinking? When did Soham juxtapose all of their desks again, forming a square in the centre?

Now to answer Seyon's query,

"Seyon, image processing takes time."

Her voice turns quaint because he's leaning over her shoulder, peering at her computer screen from behind. He is practically breathing next to her ear. It is... distracting!

"Seyon!" she shrieks irritably, "personal space!"

Seyon steps back with a cough and refocuses on the image on her desktop screen. Thiya thinks he's being professional. How quickly can he switch between professional and personal modes?

Seyon has similar thoughts except that he considers himself having the upper hand. Though she is quite the villainess, Thiya is bashful and easy to read sometimes.

"Seyon, you're still in my personal space!"

He hears her mutter with a slightly flushed face, and steps further away. Her anger could be to blame, but...

"I'm in your personal space? I'm behind your chair! There's space."

Thiya throws him a dubious look. He retreats even farther.

"I'll keep a six-foot distance. How long will you take to finish, Thiya?"

Thiya sighs before responding, "who can say?"

Yet she works meticulously and is almost done with her task. Seyon notices she's still working beyond the tea break. He can't sit around and observe Thiya anymore, as rewarding as it may seem. They need a break. Seated in his chair, Seyon fiddles with the keyboard on his desk.

"I didn't want to disturb you, Thiya, but I'm out of patience! My computer won't turn on. I should look at the old SIT reports again, you see."

Thiya doesn't look at him. Not even as he mentions a few cases they'd worked on together and what he recently heard from the first division.

"The suspect they arrested turned out to be a fake. He was not the slasher but a random guy eager to catch the paparazzi's eye, though in a wrong way. His misdeeds led to a jail sentence."

None of that got a response out of her! At the mention of his computer, she looks at him. Seyon smiles a bit awkwardly and points to his blank computer screen.

"See, I cannot turn it on."

Thiya heaves a hefty sigh. "I will look at it for you. I needed a break from my work, anyway. Yes, I kept pushing and pushing."

Seyon feels gleeful that he could provide her with a brief respite. She needs a screen break. Every cop deserves a brief respite. Now, he cannot admit he mentally exhausted himself thinking about the case and scrolling through the old SIT files on his phone. (He's a great multitasker. Did you think he was slacking off completely? He was looking at Thiya but also working!)

He watches Thiya dismantle his computer CPU. She appears nerdy around computers, despite her usual classiness. He has always admired this geeky, otaku side of her as well. It is like the obsession they share, their obsession with Sherry Maran's books. How's Thiya beautiful even working on a computer parts? This is not sleazy, is it? A guy can hit on the woman he loves, even after 8 years.

"Motherboard ICs are fine. Hmm, connections are in place... the only thing that is out of place is," Thiya murmurs, reaching out for the power cord going to the switchboard affixed under Seyon's desk. "The power cord? It's disconnected! Ahh, Seyon!!!"

She looks at Seyon in disbelief. Her eyes accuse him, couldn't you perform this basic check? Seyon laughs.

He doesn't need to admit, but he's sure Thiya caught him in the act. Yep, the entire thing was set up so they could take a break. So Thiya could take a break. He didn't admit this even to himself, afraid of his intentions being palpable.

"Oops..."

He makes a dramatic show of sighing in agony. "My bad! So sorry, Thiya. Now that this happened, let us take a break. A much needed coffee break, huh?"

Thiya suppresses her grin. Whatever reasons Seyon had, she can't be mad at him. To think she was mad at him for even breathing next to her when they began working in the SIT, they surely came far.

"I have to fix your PC. Put everything back together, you know?" She points to the spare parts. "It will take me at least 30 minutes to put everything back together. "

"My bad..." Seyon, for the first time, looks genuinely let down, pressing a palm to his lips and to his temple. Then a mischievous smile appears on his lips.

"How about you do that later?"

"No."

Thiya chuckles as she works on reassembling the CPU, conscious of his eyes fixed on her. Despite feeling giddy and bashful, she maintains her professionalism and completes the task in 20 minutes.

Seyon is back at it once she's done. "We should have that coffee now."

Typical, Seyon. She thinks, always laying it thick. "I have an appointment with Dr Shah. I will discuss professor Arindam with him. They went to the same college, right?"

"Hmm."

Crestfallen, Seyon encourages her to visit the lab. When she finishes her quick meeting with the doctor and exits the lab, he is there again, leaning against the side wall. She chuckles for a moment and recalls her simple conversation with Dr Shah. The old Dr shaking his head, saying, Arindam is a weirdo but not a mean guy. He will likely corporate as his sense of justice is high. Question him directly.

"Hey." Seyon takes a step towards Thiya. "How about that coffee now?"

"You won't ask what Dr Shah said?"

"I can listen to it at the end of our coffee break."
Thiya laughs, knowing Seyon won't have it until he hears her yes as an answer. She gets a teensy bit prideful and walks down the corridor, leaving her answer in pending.

"Hmm, well..."

"What? It's just coffee."

Seyon is following her, almost pleading. She finds joy in that. Guilty pleasure. Will he ever give up? His persistence turns a few heads, and a few oohs and ahhs to ring in the air.

As thrilling it is to have him chase after her, it is embarrassing and unprofessional. Unacceptable even during their break. Thiya hurries towards the least used, abandoned staircase of the south corner with a spring in her step, Seyon hot on her heels.

"It's only coffee! Wait, Thiya!"

Seyon said the same on the night of Mira's birthday. How circumstances different now. Thiya is about to say okay when she trips on a step. Seyon holds her in a perfect drama/dance style dip before she straightens up and catches her footing. His smile is up close, his eyes captivating her. His hand remains on her waist as she catches his arm, both equally entranced. Before either of them can speak, they hear voices from above them.

ACP and Professor Arindam! What are they talking about? Seyon pulls Thiya closer, his grip on her tightening as they both strain to hear.

***
💫tbc💫

💫AN: phew finally! a delayed update. Couldn't finish this by Sunday.🤦‍♀️

how was it?😁

This was all Seyon Thiya.😍💓 expect more of their sweetness plus them solving the mystery in the coming chapters.🥰💓💫

What are Arindam and acp talking about?🙆‍♀️ I will try to post a short chapter by Sunday. stay tuned 🥰 TY for reading