Their winter break was almost over and they would be back in school in less than a week. Myungsoo and Amber were heading back to her apartment, each with a bag full of groceries in their hands. He sent her a sidelong glance before finally saying what he'd been meaning to tell her earlier. "Thanks again for helping me. Sylo and I really owe you. And I'm sorry your Christmas was ruined."

 

"Don't be ridiculous. Like I said before, you and Sylo are like family. Sylo was sick, what kind of person would I be if I didn't help him. Plus, Christmas wasn't looking too exciting anyways. No Minho, no Sylo, no you, yeah, I'll pass!" 

 

"What happened to Minho?" the immortal boy asked slightly intrigued by the mention of 'no Minho'.

 

"His whole family went on vacation and I wasn't comfortable going with them, you know being on such good terms with Min and all," Amber chuckled. 

 

He found this news quite enjoyable. But despite this feeling, he remained expressionless, "Ahh, I see." 

 

"But no worries. He's going to be back on New Years Eve and were going out. " Amber eyes arched into little crescents .

 

"Hmm," Myungsoo's response somewhat implied dissatisfication. He felt his heart sink a little seeing how happy she was. Why was it so hard to be happy for her? 

 

Amber noticed his expression, "Is something wrong?" 

 

Myungsoo quickly snapped out of his thoughts, "Oh, no. Everything is fine."

 

Everything was perfectly fine, except for the fact that he was in love with his roommate. Their living situation definitely did not make it easy on him. He was sleeping with more and more girls just so he could control himself. Although he didn't really like hurting these girls, it seemed like the lesser of two evils. Sure having their energy drained made them weak for a day or so , but it was a lot better than the horrible things he did during his power using abstention. 

 

He heaved a sigh that did not go unnoticed by Amber. She could sense the slight disdain in his behavior, contradicting his words, but chose to ignore it. If he wanted to share, he would. Instead, she decided to bring up a topic that she had been contemplating for several weeks now. She wanted to help her friend, but at the same time she somewhat felt possessive of him. And she didn't know why. 

 

Amber cleared , "This is honestly none of my business, but I'm just really curious. Why do you hate Krystal?"

 

Myungsoo was a bit thrown off by her question. He chuckled, "I don't hate her. I just find her really annoying." 

 

Actually, it was more than just annoyance. Recently, her persistence has made him feel uneasy. However, he was not about to let Amber know that. 

 

"She's really not bad. Maybe you should give her a chance."

 

"A chance?" Myungsoo raised a brow. 

 

"Yeah, a chance. Like ask her out on a date or something." 

 

"But, I don't da-," Before he could even object, the girl had already interrupted him with her sudden vivaciousness.

 

"Oh! We could go on a double date! I think you might actually like her! Do it for me?" the tomboy looked at him with pleading eyed and pursed her lips together before shooting him a hopeful smile. 

 

He hated that he couldn't resist her charms. He exhaled sharply, "Fine." 

 

Amber was overjoyed. She felt a sudden sense of relief. She didn't know why, but lately she started developing these strange feelings towards Myungsoo. It wasn't anything of too much concern, but occasionally she would find herself viewing him in a different light. She would often catch herself smiling as she gazed upon his light interactions with Sylo. He deviated so heavily from the facade he wore so explicitly around others. It was difficult to believe that this cold, mysterious man and her light-hearted, caring, and loving roommate were actually one and the same.Not wanting to ruin their relationship, she thought that getting him a girlfriend might help resolve her mind. 

 

"But! None of this is happening until after the new year. I don't want to spoil my winter break."

 

Amber nodded with a bright expression.

 

-

 

Myungsoo enterd the apartment with Sylo in his hand. He set the dog down and let him run around to his heart's content. Afterall, the pup had been couped up at the vet so he definitely could use as much running as he could get. He didn't pay much attention to Sylo as he made his way over to the living room. The boy found his roommate on the sofa reading a book, completely oblivious to his return. 

 

After a moment, the shadow belonging to the hovering figure slowly made its way onto Amber's pages. She jumped and quickly shut the book, sliding it underneath her thigh. She pulled out her headphones and smiled nervously at the boy, trying to seem as casual as possible, "Oh, hey. What's up?" 

 

Her odd behavior caused Myungsoo to raise a brow, creating a sudden desire to find out what she was hiding, "What are you reading?"

 

"Oh nothing." 

 

"Amber, I can see that you're sitting on a book," said the boy, pointing down at the corner that was sticking out from underneath her. 

 

"Oh, this?! It's just some cook book," the girl grinned cheekily at the boy, before standing up, the book still hidden behind her. "Actually, I think I'm gonna go put it away now."

 

Her suspicious behavior only added fuel to his sparked interest. "A cook book? Let me see. I've been wanting to learn a bit." 

 

"Oh, did I say cook book? I meant textbook," Amber slid pass Myungsoo. "Yeah, it's just my physics textbook. Boring stuff." 

 

When Amber thought she had made it safely pass Myungsoo, she hugged the book tight against her chest and breath a sigh of relief. 

 

He chuckled, "Seriously, Amber? What do you take me for?" 

 

With a quick wave of his hand, the book slipped out from within her grasp and onto the floor. The two immediate dove for the book.

 

TO BE CONTINUED