"Only ten thousand likes in one hour? Seriously?" 

In the backseat of a sleek black car, a girl refreshed her Instagram post again.

She let out a sharp breath and scrunched her face.

Her phone was wrapped in a purple pouch with a diamond pattern.

Her slim fingers rested on the back of it, nails painted black with tiny purple stars near the tips.

She had soft, round cheeks and sharp, cat-like eyes. A small purple star-shaped nose ring sat neatly on her pointed nose.

Black eyeliner framed her amber eyes, and her heart-shaped lips, glossed in pink, were pressed into a pout.

Her long, dark curls fell over her shoulders, bouncing slightly as the car moved.

The car slowed and came to a stop. Without looking up, she asked, "Are we there?"

The driver leaned forward slightly, squinting through the windshield at a large, modern duplex.

"Um... Young miss, could this be the house?" he asked carefully.

"It's Nyssa. Not young miss. I've told you that" she replied, finally lifting her head.

The driver pressed his lips together and nodded.

Nyssa rolled down the window and poked her head out. Her eyes scanned the house until she spotted the name carved into the stone in front of the house.

"Ochid House," she read aloud, then leaned back in. 

"Yeah. This is it"

The driver nodded.

Nyssa opened the door and stepped out. A soft breeze brushed past her, lifting a few strands of her hair. 

She took a quick look around. Every house on the street looked expensive.

Meanwhile, the driver was already at the trunk, pulling out her luggage. There were six suitcases. He had only managed to get three out.

Nyssa leaned into the backseat and grabbed her handbag. She shut the door with one hand and walked to the back of the car. Without waiting, she grabbed two suitcases and dragged them toward the house.

The driver followed with two more.

A few minutes later, they reached the entrance. Nyssa reached for the handle and gave it a push. The door opened with ease.

"They don't lock doors around here?" she said, raising an eyebrow as she stepped inside.

The foyer was bright and stylish. They moved into the living room. It was big, well-furnished and completely empty.

Nyssa's face stayed blank as her eyes wandered around the space.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps came from upstairs. Nyssa turned toward the staircase.

A girl walked down slowly. She wore a small black bra and a tight miniskirt. A cat-face tattoo inked her left arm, and her blonde hair was tied in a messy bun.

She paused midway down the stairs, her eyes drifting from Nyssa to the driver.

"Who are you?" she asked in a calm and firm voice.

"I'm Nyssa," she said, walking a little closer.

The girl crossed her arms. 

"I'm not hungry for your name. I asked...who are you?" She said, locking eyes with her.

Nyssa took a slow breath, steadying her voice.

"I rented a room here. I'm a freshman at Quenrose University. Is that what you want to hear?"

The girl studied her for a second, then shrugged.

"Cool. Welcome" she said casually.

She turned and walked towards the open kitchen across from the living room.

Nyssa headed toward the stairs.

"Third door down the hallway is your room" the girl called out.

Nyssa paused and glanced back. "Okay. What's your name?" she asked.

"Zara. Full name is Lazara" she answered.

"Okay" Nyssa said and continued upstairs, the driver following behind.

EVENING 

In her room, Nyssa sat at the desk with her glasses on, flipping through a textbook titled Principles of Information Technology.

Her eyelids drooped from sleep, but she kept reading. She promised herself she'd finish five pages before bed.

She was still stuck on page two.

A knock came at the door. Her brows pinched together and turned her head toward the door.

"Hey, neighbour!" A voice called. 

"Dinner's ready. Come eat and meet the others"

Nyssa recognised the familiar voice.

She cleared her throat. 

"Okay, I'm coming!" she called back, though she could already hear Zara walking away.

She looked down at the open book again, sighed and closed it.

Downstairs, two girls were already seated at the dining table when Zara joined them. The smell of spicy chicken filled the air.

One of the girls took a big bite of a drumstick. 

"Is she coming?" she asked.

Zara sat down. "Maybe"

Moments later, footsteps echoed from the stairs. No one looked up until Nyssa appeared in the dining room.

She glanced around the table, then took the empty seat beside Zara.

There were clean plates in front of her.

"Serve yourself" Zara said without turning her head.

Nyssa hesitated, then reached for the food. She added enough to fill her plate, maybe more than she needed.

She picked up her spoon and started eating quietly.

"Not even a hi?" the girl with the drumstick said, raising an eyebrow at Nyssa.

Nyssa looked up, cheeks puffed with food, about to speak.

The girl held up a finger. 

"Uh-uh. Don't! I can't stand people talking with their mouths full," she muttered.

Zara chuckled from her seat 

"Asshole" she murmured.

Nyssa quickly chewed and swallowed. She reached for the jug in the middle of the table, filled her glass and drank the water in one gulp.

She set the cup down and looked up.

"Hi" she said, raising a hand awkwardly.

Then she turned to the quiet girl across the table, who was still focused on her food.

"And hi to you too" she added.

The first girl grinned. 

"Heard your name's Nyssa. I'm Sunniva but just call me Sun"

Nyssa smiled politely, then glanced at the quiet girl again. She hadn't said a word or even looked up.

Still, something about her calm presence made Nyssa feel a little more at ease. Maybe she just liked the quiet ones.

"That's Nyomi. She doesn't really talk unless you're close to her" Sun said, leaning back in her chair with a small shrug. 

"Second year at Quenrose. She's got the same major and shares classes with the hottest guys in school. For real, she's lucky"

"Nice to meet you" Nyssa said with a smile.

Nyomi just hummed, barely glancing her way.

"So, Nyssa, what course are you studying" Sun continued.

"Cybersecurity"

"Oh, cool! That's Zara's course too. Mine's Biochemistry and Nyomi's in Software Engineering. We're all second-years. You're the only freshman here, so that makes you the baby of the house," Sun said with a grin, throwing Nyssa a playful wink.

Nyssa gave a small smile, still adjusting to the new people or maybe friends.

They seem nice, she thought.

"Ready for your first day at Quenrose?" Zara asked, seated beside her.

Nyssa set her spoon down and took a breath.

"Kind of. But I'm nervous"

"Quenrose is fun, honestly. You'll love it," Zara reassured her.

"I know. Still nervous though" Nyssa mumbled. 

Sun chuckled awkwardly. "Right, yeahhh"

"Can we pause the chit-chat and eat now?" Zara asked, picking up her spoon again.

"Sure, let's eat," Sun said, waving her hand dramatically before digging in.

The table fell quiet for a while until Sun suddenly spoke again.

"I swear, my dream right now is to be in Unit 9… getting kissed by Fred on his bed," she muttered with a dreamy look.

Then she smirked. "Or maybe Tavian"

Nyomi turned her head slowly, eyebrow raised. "Tavian?"

Sun blinked. "Wh—"

"Never mind" Nyomi cut in.

Sun smirked knowingly but didn't say anything else.

"What's Unit 9?" Nyssa asked, looking between them.

Sun leaned forward slightly, her eyes bright.

"It's a duplex house like this and not far away from here. Three of the hottest guys at Quenrose live there. Getting inside Unit 9 is almost like winning a lottery"

"Is it really that special? The house... or the guys?" Nyssa asked.

Everyone exchanged glances.

Zara cleared her throat. "Let's just eat"

Nyssa nodded slowly, but was still curious.

Who are they? She thought.

Author's Note 💚