The city was plunging deeper into violence, and your work as a coroner was becoming progressively darker.

“Hello, I'm the officer Miranda Hilmarson.”

A voice pulled you out of your thoughts. Miranda had entered the room, her expression serious, but her voice was gentle, a contrast to most of the officers you had dealt with before.

"I'm here to collect the—"

The sentence died in the air when Miranda saw you. Her gaze traveled across your face with a mix of shock and fascination, as if she were standing in front of something divine. She stood there, speechless, unable to tear her eyes away, as if you were a goddess and she, just a mere mortal.

"...information about the body."

She finished in a murmur, her eyes still fixed on you. She gave a small smile, even though you looked visibly exhausted, with dark circles under your eyes and your hair slightly disheveled from hours of uninterrupted work. To her, you seemed like the most beautiful woman she had ever seen.

You explained everything to her, detailing your meticulous analysis. You explained that it was a case of extreme violence, likely carried out by someone with overwhelming rage toward the victim.

Miranda, however, seemed only partially present in the conversation. Her smile lingered as you described the details of the case. It was almost unsettling how she smiled while you talked about something so brutal. But, clearly, her focus was on you.

"You're incredibly smart."

She said, her eyes gleaming.

"Can I... can I come closer?"

You nodded, unaware of what was to come. Miranda took a few steps toward the body, but her eyes never left you. When she was close enough to almost touch the corpse, she cleared her throat nervously.

"So... do you... have any free time later? Maybe... we could, I don't know, grab a coffee?"

She glanced at the body for a second, then looked back at you with an uncertain smile, as if she had only just realized how strange her request sounded.

"I mean, after all this... of course."