What’s that noise? His eyes roamed around the living room sharply.
    It’s the clock, just the clock, Baekhyun convinced himself.
    Are those books always in that position? He stared at the pile of books on the coffee table carefully.
    Minseok messed up his system after he told him about the bug he found in his apartment. He couldn’t focus in his classes all day, thinking what other motives his father could have to have him followed or bugged.
    Baekhyun closed his eyes firmly and took a deep breath. “This won’t do,” he stiffly said before standing up. He walked to his book shelves and started looking for any wiretaps in his apartment.
    He looked in every corner of the house. After a few hours, almost all the furniture had fallen to the floor. The ones displayed in the living room were disordered. Baekhyun has totally turned his place upside down.
    Catching his breath, Baekhyun lied down the floor tiredly. He heard his phone ring somewhere but chose to ignore it. He doesn’t know how long he’s been lying there, he snapped out if it when he heard Jongdae by the door.
    “What the hell happened here?” Jongdae asked in horror as he looked around the place.
    Minseok, who stayed silent beside him, set his eyes on his friend who’s lying on the floor. The apartment is a total mess. Baekhyun’s stuffs are scattered all over the place.
    “None,” Baekhyun answered in dreary manner.
     “What?” Jongdae woolly asked.
    Baekhyun let out a sigh. “I found none.”
    “None what?”
    Minseok tried to step a foot on the apartment. “Is this about the bug I told you?”
    Jongdae turned to Minseok and then to Baekhyun. “You turned your apartment upside down to look for hidden wiretaps?”
    “Or he’s been robbed,” Minseok added.
    “And they, what, took his brain?”
    Both Minseok and Jongdae have been trying to reach Baekhyun since yesterday but to no avail. They didn’t even see him at the university. It dawned to them that it was all too much for Baekhyun to take in and might do something stupid again.
    And here they are.
    “Why would they do that?” Baekhyun quietly asked, eyes still on the ceiling.
    “Right? You don’t even have a brain!” Jongdae furiously responded.
    “I’ve been up all night trying to come up with a reason on why would they do that to their own blood,” Baekhyun continued as if he didn’t hear Jongdae.
    “Oh, we’re getting serious now?” Jongdae turned to Minseok to see him throwing a glare at him. “Okay…” he whispered before shutting up.
    “What did I even do to them?” Baekhyun rhetorically asked.
    Minseok sighed and moved forward. He started to tidy up the things on the floor. “I don’t think I can give you an answer to that, Baek.”
    “Maybe hierarchy?” Jongdae butted in.
    His two friends turned their heads to him and gave him query looks.
    “What do you mean?” Minseok curiously asked.
    Jongdae blinked twice, not used to having a serious conversation with these two. He let out a breath before replying. “Well, the Byuns are always being looked up to if not feared for so many generations. And Baekhyun’s been doing the exact opposite of that. Like, you’re trying to be with the masses rather than staying above them. So, your family might find that—” he shrugged his shoulders, “I don’t know… threatening? You’re breaking the hierarchy.”
    The whole apartment was wrapped in silence for a minute.
    Baekhyun scoffed at that. “That’s ed-up.”
    “Are you new here?” Jongdae smirked at him.
    Baekhyun retorted a hollow laugh. For people, like them, who grew up in politics, this is not new to them, indeed. But for Baekhyun who had glimpsed of life on both sides, hierarchy is a ed-up system.
    “Get up,” Minseok offered a hand to him. “I’m not gonna clean this dump for you.”
    Baekhyun grabbed his hand. “I can live with this.”
 

This was supposed to be like a normal day for Haru.
    Wake up, brush her teeth, eat breakfast, then run to the bus stop because she took so much time to finish her breakfast again. It was supposed to be like that.
    Except when she stepped out of their house, she started to sense that she’s being followed. A guy in a grey hoodie with cap on has been trailing her until she reached the university. Haru hasten her pace and tried to lose him in the crowd at the hallway. When she can no longer see the grey hoodie, she took a deep breath and slowed her steps.
    “Noona!”
    Haru stiffened when she felt someone grab her shoulder. She stopped walking.
    “You okay?” Sehun stepped in front of her worriedly.
    Haru let out a sigh when she saw the young man’s face. She thought it was the grey-hooded guy who’s been following her. She looked around wearily before turning to Sehun. “Yeah… hi, Sehun,” she said, shakily.
    It’s only been days since Sehun entered their class, but she seemed feel safe around him, especially today.
    Sehun tried to follow her gaze. “Class is about to start.”
    “Oh, yeah. Let’s go,” Haru tried to sound chirpy. She glanced behind her again before walking to their class.
    Sehun lagged behind her, looking around for someone suspicious.
    When they got to their class, they found Baekhyun alone in their row, staring at nowhere like he’s in a deep thought. Haru sat in her usual seat, while Sehun sat beside her. The latter couldn’t get his eyes off her.
    “Noona.” Haru jumped when Sehun tried to tap her arm. The young man furrowed his eyebrows at her reaction. “Is something wrong?” he pumped her for answers.
    “No, I’m fine, Sehun,” she breathily responded.
    Sehun raised a brow at her, because it’s obvious that something’s up. “Really? You seem jumpy.”
    Baekhyun, who’s been quiet since they came in class, turned his head at Haru when he hinted a worry in Sehun’s tone.
    “What happened?” he asked her.
    “Nothing. Just… nothing.”
    Baekhyun’s too tired to force an answer from her. Instead, he grabbed his bag and moved to Chanyeol’s seat beside Haru.
    Haru watched him as he took a seat on the empty chair. “Are you okay?” she asked.
    Baekhyun turned to her and raised a brow at her. “Are you?”
    Baekhyun has been trying to look for an apartment for days now. Not that he cannot afford a new one, but his problem is he does not want his name on the lease—which seems impossible to own an apartment that is not named after him. Getting a stranger as a roommate is also not on his list. Neither putting