---xxix;;;

Hm…what’s there to eat?

Yawning, Shiyeon slowly traipsed into the kitchen and searched the premise for her third dinner of the night. Spotting a bowl of soup from earlier, she grinned and quickly heated it up along with a bowl of rice. She took the meal with her as she lazily walked back to her room, settling herself into her bed again with her laptop. Her small puppy, Gogi, was already curled comfortably at one of the pillows.

A loud crack pulled her out of her reverie and forced her to pull her eyes away from the drama that was currently playing, her food already finished. Gogi jumped, glancing around sleepily before returning to his slumber. Shiyeon frowned, opening the curtains. When she spotted nothing, she cautiously opened the window to get a better look.

Almost immediately, another rock flew toward her. If it hadn’t been for her reflexes, it would have hit her forehead straight on. Instead, Shiyeon wrenched her head back with wide eyes as the rather large stone crashed into her room and fell on the ground near her bed. Quickly, she shut the window and scrambled to close the curtains. After she had calmed herself down, her solemn gaze darted to the stone. A small white slip was attached to it.

Breath easy, the little bird isn’t who we’re after.

In contrast to the vague message, her breath hitched in . Shiyeon’s forehead creased, tilting her head to the side as she contemplated the message.

Little…bird? Who…

Suddenly, the brunette shot up and sprinted to her window, opening it again regardless of the risk of being struck with another rock. The attacker undoubtedly had flawless aim.

Bird. Sae. Saebyul.

She cursed, finding nothing in the darkness of the night. The note was crumpled in her clenched fist, mocking her with the carefully typed words. Shiyeon groaned, collapsing onto her bed as a throbbing hit her head full force. She held onto her temples, curling sideways.

If it’s not Saebyul…then who?

“…what?!” Saebyul grumbled irritably, stumbling like a drunkard while she stormed into Shiyeon’s cozy apartment. Said woman chuckled, shaking her head at the older’s sleepy appearance. The blonde was completely decked out in a large sweater and comfortable athletic shorts, shoelaces untied and hair unkempt. She hadn’t bothered to put on a proper outfit nor a jacket and merely threw on a beanie, no contacts or glasses whatsoever. In short, she looked ready to knock out right on the living room floor.

“Sorry, Byul, but this is important.”

Saebyul sneered, crashing into the couch as she kicked off her shoes and wrenched the blanket from Shiyeon. Wrapping herself into a cocoon, her mood improved greatly, “It’s 3 in the morning, what’s so important that you made me run all the way over?”

The brunette blinked, “Couldn’t you drive?”

“In this state?”

“Take the bus?”

“At this hour?”

“…call Taewoo?”

“Again, at this hour?” Saebyul sighed at the mention of their gay, ahem, biual male friend. Flamboyant and cheery as the man was, he had such a strict schedule of beauty sleep that he was willing to maim anyone who dared disturb it.

Grinning sheepishly, Shiyeon shrugged, “Sorry.”

Her friend rolled her eyes, watching the younger warily, “Just so you know, I’m sleeping here. Gogi will be my pillow. What happened anyway?”

“Oh, right,” Shiyeon glanced around, finding the small slip of paper at her side. Saebyul took it gingerly, brows furrowing when she read it, “The hell does this mean? So it wasn’t me the whole time?”

Nodding, the brunette puffed her cheeks in exhaustion, “You should tell your parents. I want you to be careful either ways, who can’t trust whoever it is.”

“You’re missing the point, Yeon,” Saebyul sighed, slightly unwrapping herself as she sobered up. She studied the slip again, shaking her head, “Even if it’s not me, it has to be someone we are related to. Plus, why did you get the message? That means you’re more involved in this than I am, than anyone. You’re going to have to watch after yourself more than ever,”

Shiyeon shrank, “Well, someone else could have gotten it.”

Raising a brow as if questioning her friend’s sanity, Saebyul clucked her tongue, “You said it was thrown through the window?”

“Mhm,”

“Yeah, they’re probably not going to be going around the whole town, possibly country just to deliver it to everyone who knows me. I’m pretty famous as the older heir of the Ryu family bloodline, you know? My parents have branches everywhere. The world is watching my every move, and as much as I hate the responsibility that comes with my blood, I’m safer than you are.”

Shiyeon ruffled her hair in exasperation, “What am I supposed to do?”

Saebyul pursed her lips.

“Wait. I’ll sort it out. Meanwhile, just stay safe.”