“Liam, Liam, Liam.” He chanted as he dashed back to his apartment, his mind juggling through his memories of last night.

He was the kind of drunk who could not tell who’s who but had a clear mind. With that, he was thankful. So he met up with Zy and Drew, they broke the news and also broke his heart. Then he partied, got drunk, and met someone nice, talking to him all night long. He rested his weary body against this stranger which was not recommended. But for some weird reason, Aki felt safe. He remembered that warmth. God, he was so warm.

Was that Liam? Was he the one he was pouring his heart to the whole night? His steps faltered. He didn’t… he didn’t mention names, did he?

“Frick…” He spat. He did. He so did.

But Liam could not have known Zy, right? And even if he was the same guy from last night, that did not explain how they tumbled in the same bed, half-naked. They could not have done it, could they?

Aki shut his eyes hard for a second. No, that could not be.

But why would Liam approach him? Why would he talk to Aki and act as if he’s the agony aunt? Why why why.

Aki scratched his head. There’s no point thinking about this.

“I want to go home and rest,” he murmured to no one.

When he arrived in front of his apartment, he found the landlord pacing there. His heart hammered in his chest.

“Err, good morning. Is...there something wrong?”

“Oh good, you’re here. I was wondering why you didn’t reply or why no one’s answering your door.”

Sweat rolled down the side of his face. Aki hastily took out his phone and checked it. There were texts and missed calls on his phone since yesterday. He shot an apologetic look at his landlord.

“I’m really sorry…” He flushed in embarrassment.

His landowner laughed and clapped his back.

“It’s alright. You’re a young man. It’s normal to spend your days like one.”

“So what is it that you wanted to talk about?” Aki was desperate to change topics. You could only have so much embarrassment within a day.

“Right, about that, I’d like to ask if there isn’t anything that needs to be repaired in your unit?”

Aki thought for a while and shook his head.

“You see, most of your neighbor on this floor have something that needs to be repaired in their houses. This building is pretty old.”

Aki has no answer to that. One of the reasons why the rent was cheap was because it was an old apartment.

“You see, this building needs massive renovation. So I’d like to ask you to find temporary shelter while I have the units repaired,” his landowner paused to check if he was still following. “But the thing is, once the units are repaired, the rent will be a little more expensive.”

Aki got nervous.

“...how little is that?”

“Hmm, after calculating all the finances I arrived at this figure,” the landowner showed his a list of computed expenses.

Aki’s eyes widened at the amount. It’s not just little! It’s twice the original rent!

Seeing his reaction, the landowner chuckled. “I’ll understand if you decided to look for another place. I know that my request has been so sudden. Looking for a place at this time of the year is pretty tough even for a student like you. But don’t worry, I’ll help you find a new place.”

Aki gave a small smile. “By the way, when do I need to move?”

“In a week.”