Come to think of it, Jun never said anything about the owner and Aki never asked either. He was over the moon when he heard about the rent that nothing else seemed to matter.

What if the owner was a serial killer? Or someone wanted by the police? Or had a weird fetish? Or just weird?

Aki shook his head. How could such person own a place like this? There was just no way… right?

He wandered around some more, taking in as much of the view as possible. Save for a few joggers and cars passing him, Aki was alone which suited him. The more time he spent on this place, the lovelier it became to his eyes, the more he was convinced that the offer was too good to be true.

Surely, a good place like this with a ridiculously cheap room came with a catch. He had asked the owner about the price and the other replied that they would talk about it once they meet.

Aki sighed. There was no point in prolonging his agony. If he would be disappointed with the owner, then so be it. Still… he could not help but glance as though he was committing to his memory every nook and cranny of the place.

He arrived at the entrance of the building when his phone pinged. It seemed like the owner texted him.

‘Good morning’

‘Did you find the place?’

‘Did you get lost?’

‘Let me know if you have trouble finding the place. :)’

The barrage of texts made Aki smile. See! How could this be a bad person?

The moment the idea slipped his mind, he wanted to smack his head. Of course, no one would bare their dark side right away. And also, he wanted to smack himself for not asking the owner’s name!

He had rushed to this place after class and as soon as the owner gave the go signal for a visit. They did not need an agent so that lessened the procedures they had to undertake. With all the excitement, it never crossed his mind to ask for a name. Knowing it was another guy in the same university was enough for him.

He read the message again. The other person always sounded polite and caring in his messages that Aki grew comfortable right away. That, and the fact that the owner did not insist on calling him as their means of communication. Phone calls never failed to make Aki anxious. So he’s really grateful for the owner.

But what did that say about his judgment of people? He shook his head despite himself.

He tapped a curt reply, saying that he was at the building already.

‘Alright, see you soon then. :)’

Besides, his worries did not matter now that he arrived at the door of the apartment. He stared at the door for a few minutes and took a deep breath. The expanse of the area was beyond his expectations. He was starting to feel small and out-of-place, his doubts multiplying every second.

With a shaky finger, he rang the bell. He waited, all the while, taking deep breaths, in an attempt to placate his wildly beating heart.

He did not have to wait long.

No sooner when he rang the bell, the door swung open. And there stood Aki’s rumored boyfriend, Liam Figueroa.