"What happened?" The older boy stood in the hallway, toothbrush in one hand and a cup in the other.

"Kris...he barged into the bathroom and pushed me out." The sound of running water drew a groan from Xiumin's toothpaste-y lips. "Oh great, he's in the shower. Couldn't he have waited until I finished?"

"Maybe he was in a rush because he had a dream," Chen sniggered as he waggled his eyebrows. "You know, that kind of dream." Lay wrinkled his nose at the thought of Kris's masculine urges (which was better left unimagined) and gave Xiumin a sympathetic pat on the back.

"Tough luck, bro. I just saw Kris with a new bottle of body moisturizer, so the bathroom probably won't be free in the next half hour. I'd use the kitchen sink if I were you."      

*****

Tao's attempted infiltration of the dragon's den was no better. It was, in fact, an absolute disaster.  

The maknae waltzed into Kris's room after lunch as was his usual habit with a bright smile and an armful of fashion magazines. Lay had positioned himself outside the door in order to track the progress of Tao's mission. The first ten minutes was promising, filled with happy chatter about the latest spring trends (leather briefcases were apparently in) but it all went to hell when Tao suddenly announced a desire to reorganize Kris's wardrobe.

"No thanks. I like having them sorted by colour."

"But wouldn't it be great having all your Alexander McQueens' in one place?" The clatter of hangers indicated that Tao had decided to take the matter into his own hands. Within seconds, the maknae was shoved unceremoniously out of the room. Kris glared at the both of them with all the ferocity of his former self before slamming the door in their faces.

"So, did you see the envelope?" Lay asked hopefully. Tao flashed him a sulky, can't you see I'm too busy being devastated look before running to the bathroom (to take self-pitying selcas, no doubt).

The renegotiation last night seemed to have loosened whatever hold the Agreement had over Kris and had effectively ruined Lay's carefully laid out plans. Frustration drove him to the K dorm which was how he found himself beating eggs with all the frenzy of a madman.

"You okay there?" D.O. asked as he expertly chopped a carrot into perfectly even slices. "The eggs were done five minutes ago but I guess you can keep going if it makes you feel better."   

Lay set down the bowl with an apologetic smile. "Sorry. I guess there's a lot on my mind."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

His words were interrupted by a sudden yelp by the stove, whose surface seemed to be engulfed in flames.

"Goddammit!" D.O.'s face became pink with rage as he pushed a dazed-looking Chanyeol aside. "It's the third time this week. I told you to never leave it on high because–oh great."

The smoke alarm began blaring at an ear-splitting volume and Chanyeol was immediately positioned below it, fanning smoke away from the device with his large hands. D.O. turned off the stove and soon, the ringing was replaced by silence.

Still slightly shocked, Lay stared dumbly at the smoke alarm. It was then that the oh-so-brilliant idea popped into his mind.

*****

"Remember, scream really loudly and make sure you get him out of the apartment," Lay whispered.

His accomplices nodded, eyes bright with anticipation. Chen steadied the chair placed below the smoke detector as Luhan, being the tallest of the three, carefully climbed on. Lay quickly handed Luhan the lighter before tiptoeing to his room. He closed the door and waited for the signal.

"Oh my god! Fire!" Chen's feigned shouts of panic were followed by the alarm. Lay could hear the opening of doors and the thump of hurried footsteps. Finally, there was a distant yell of "we're all gonna die!". That was his cue to move.

Lay silently thanked Chen for his excellent acting, for Kris had left his bedroom door wide open in his haste. He crept in and hurried to the closet. There, at the back, was the same messenger bag Kris had carried to his meeting with Suho.

He held his breath as he ped the bag and reached in. His heart leapt as his fingers found the sharp edges of the envelope. He smiled, triumphant.

The key was in his hands at last.