━━━━༻ ♠ ༺━━━━ malware 00100000 ━━━━༻ ♠ ༺━━━━

With a few goodbyes and cotton candy sticks later, (Y/n) was walking her way home after the flirty male accompanied her on the train. That was enough to make her slight, just slightly, waver, and believe he had some gentleman in him.

It was growing dark, she saw, she was still a few blocks from home. She recognized the neighborhood as the one she had stumbled on the last time she was running away from Kieran. I seem to be doing a lot of that lately, the (h/c)-haired girl realized with a start. At least this time I know how to go home. Just go straight.

Remember her penchant for noticing weird nooks and crannies? The curse struck again, and her eyes just had to catch on a familiar shady-looking alley and a group of equally familiar shady-looking men. They noticed her and their eyes widened.

"Ah," they gasped at the same time she thought, Crap bunnies.

"It's that girl, boss man," one of the men said. On closer inspection, he was more boy than man. Just a little on the rugged side. "Y'know, the chick who caught us beating up old man Steve last week?"

Leon pulled the cigarette out from the boy's mouth. "No smoking," he growled. "It's bad for your lungs."

The male laughed. It was a low and raspy sound. "Classic big brother line, aye? How's our Connie doing anyway?"

"Don't you f*cking dare breathe his name, you bloody—"

"Chill, dude!" He held his hands up. "I'm just messing with ya. Anyway, girlie, what brings you here again?"

(Y/n) jumped at the sudden attention as she was slowly sneaking away. "M-me?" She pointed at herself.

"Who else would it be, Chuck?"

One of the men squeaked and looked around fearfully. "Scars, you bloody bastard," he hissed. "Told ya not to mention Chucky! I still get nightmares, y'know!"

"Dude, you pissed yerself watching Five Nights at Freddy's. And it wasn't even scary!"

"At least I'm not the one getting preggo watching some messed up anime porn. Wait, can dudes even get preggo?"

"That's a good question," another male nodded sagely, stroking an invisible beard. "A very good question. Wait, then where does the baby pop out?"

"The a**hole, you ret*rd."

"B-but my mom never shat me out. It came from the peepee so..."

Leon had enough. He sighed and ignored the group, stepping out from the shadows of the alley and towards the (h/c)-haired girl. "Ignore them," he said gruffly, placing himself defensively between her and his men, or whatever they were to him. "They're just a bunch of dipsh"—he caught himself before he cursed—"Idiots messing around."

"Hey!" The same boy from earlier protested. "This 'idiot' can judo flip John Cena in five seconds!"

"Wait, for real bro? I thought you were just f*cking with me when you said that."

"Bet. I even got the video and everything."

(Y/n) didn't know who they were or what their backstories were, but she knew one thing: she liked this crowd. Fellow aliens unite!

Leon didn't seem to share her sentiments. He muttered something darkly under his breath and massaged his forehead. "Nevermind them, what are you doing here? These parts are dangerous. You shouldn't come here alone—hell, you shouldn't come here at all."

"I thought 'Ashburys' and 'Ardwick' were the same thing," she said sheepishly. "So I got off the wrong top, transferred wrong, and now I'm here again. It's okay though; I can walk my way back."

"Didn't you hear me?" He frowned with concern. "It's dangerous. At least let me walk you back."

The saying "treat others the way you want to be treated" was really true after all, she realized. Before the black-haired male looked like he wanted to strangle and drown her at the same time—which was totally extra, in her opinion—but now he looked like...

I'm totally getting big brother vibes here, her eyes widened. And no, not the 1984 big brother. What am I, Conan 2.0? I guess helping his brother really meant a lot to zebra.

But then again, maybe she was wrong. She never had a sibling before so she would be the last person to know how sibling relationships felt like. "I'm really fine," (Y/n) reassured him. "You can go back to...um, whatever you're doing. Have fun, bro."

"You look like someone who caught their best friend doing weed in the closet," the male chuckled. "Relax, I'm not doing anything illegal."

Old man Steve will have something to say about that...

"Introduce us!" The boy from before yelled. "And this time, actually do it properly, boss man! Last time I asked ya to introduce me to a chick, she ran away screamin' somethin' about 'Rumplestiltskin's gonna steal my unborn fetus!'"

"Bro, that was wild," another man sniggered. "I won twenty bucks that day. It was great."

"Not great for me! I'm never gonna get a girlfriend at this rate."

Leon frowned. "But aren't you gay?"

The group burst into peals of uncontrollable laughter. Even (Y/n) had to giggle at the silver-eyed male's serious face and demeanor that did not match his words. The other boy spluttered and ripped his cap off his head, throwing it to the floor.

"Boss, even you believe that?!" He shrieked. He spun around and seized a lanky boy by his collar. "F*ck ya, Dagger! I told ya not to crack jokes like that 'bout me!"

Dagger snickered and patted the hand that was bunched around his shirt. "But isn't it true? I thought things went off between you and Steve."

"That was for the job, you dumb f*ck! And how was I supposed to know he was f*cking pedo!"

"Wait, the rumor about him kidnapping a bunch of little boys was real? Damnnn, bro."

"Right?"

"Enough about him," Leon interrupted. He gestured towards (Y/n) who waved half-heartedly. "This is...my classmate. From school. Satisfied? Great, let's go—"

"You can't just do us like that, boss man!" The boy spluttered. "You still owe me for f*cking up my blind date!"

The taller male raised an unimpressed eyebrow. "It's not my fault if your date doesn't like you."

"OOOOH!" The men jeered and cackled. "GOTEEE!"

"You should be nice to your...friends," (Y/n) said in between her failed attempts to cover up her laughter with coughs.

"You tell him, girl!"

Leon looked confused. "I am nice. Isn't honesty part of being nice?"

"BOSS MAN!" The men started laughing even louder, some howling and pounding the walls as the black-haired male looked even more confused. He's probably the type to not understand memes, (Y/n) snickered. Or the guy who replies seriously to chain mail.

The black-haired male gave them an irritated look. "Ignore them. Let's go." He didn't pay the group's disappointed sighs and howling laughter any mind as he waved the (h/c)-haired girl forward. "Which way?"

"Uh, straight. You really don't have to walk me back..."

"I do," he confirmed, his tone leaving no space for protest. "It's getting dark."

"Okay..."

The two walked in silence with (Y/n) trailing just slightly behind the tall male. Their footsteps echoed soft patterns against the concrete, leaving behind little traces of shadow that disappeared with the faintest of whispers. In the serenade of the vanishing sun, velvety blues and purples began to bleed into the canvas like clouds of ink. Stars peeked out from the light like notes upon a music sheet.

It was growing dark, she saw. And with the darkness came sleep. The (h/c)-haired girl stifled a yawn with her hand and focused her gaze on the male's long shadow in front of her. She watched it distort and shift as he walked wordlessly.

His head turned back slightly, his hair rustling in soft waves at the motion. Leon glanced at her as if making sure she was still there, and then took her wrist in his hand. His eyes darkened and a strange seriousness fell over his face as he glanced up at his surroundings.

"Follow closer," he murmured in a voice only she could hear. "Don't leave my side."

Confused, (Y/n) had no choice but obey as he led them on a new course. He pulled her around a corner, his pace speeding up until she had to jog to keep up with his long legs.

"W-wait," she said through uneven gasped. "What's going on?"

He looked back. He realized she wasn't doing a good job of keeping up with him, and his eyes widened apologetically. "Sorry," he muttered, slowing doing. "It's just..." His metallic eyes flickered to the distance once more and his features hardened.

"Leon? What's wrong?"

The male's head snapped back towards her with an unreadable expression on his face. "Nothing. Don't worry about it. Just trust me."

When someone tells you to just trust them without offering any other explanation, (Y/n)'s first instinct was to flip them the bird and do the exact opposite. But through her experience with Lucinda's chick flicks and how the female lead starts complaining about a similar situation and later leads them into a worse one, she decided it was a better idea to just follow along.

And then she saw it as they ran; figures. There were shadowy silhouettes tailing them, ducking behind lamp posts and corners in their pursuit. They must've been what Leon had noticed. Impressive, she thought as she was pulled after the male. His instincts are sharp. I wouldn't have seen them.

Then, as if just realizing Leon had noticed them, the figures didn't bother hiding anymore. They ran after the duo freely. The men were dressed in suspicious-looking black suits and sunglasses. (Y/n) nearly snorted at the comical sight of them chasing after her and Leon; it looked like a scene right out of a spy movie.

"Who are they?" She sobered and asked. "Friends of yours?"

Leon made a disbelieving sound at the back of his throat. "Friends? Hardly. They're...secret agents from Narnia—"

"I'm not Conan, Leon," she huffed. "You can't use those tactics to try and fool me."

"Force of habit," he chuckled nervously. "But don't worry about them; I'll get us outta here. They won't remember you. It's me they're after."

It only sprouted more questions in her curious mind, but she didn't press the matter. "Oh...okay then." As long as they didn't bring trouble to her, she couldn't care less. But (Y/n) had to admit, she was a little concerned for her history partner. But with those men she saw twice now, she was sure he could handle himself.

"Excuse me," Leon said suddenly, stopping slightly to bend down slightly and sweep the (h/c)-haired girl off her feet. "Sorry if this is uncomfortable—it'll be over soon!"

Uncomfortable? (Y/n) stared wide-eyed over the male's shoulder at the approaching men. It's better than having to run, but being carried still feels weird!

Her head nearly snapped back with the pressure as the black-haired male sped up, his long legs easily carrying him far beyond the reach of their pursuers. (Y/n) managed to close her mouth and tame her hair. She waved at the people behind them.

See you never, spy men. It was nice meeting you.

After making sure they were far away, Leon came to a stop and set her down. Free uber's over? She thought with slight disappointment. I should buy those shoes with wheels on the bottom. Then I wouldn't have to walk.

"Are you alright?" He asked. "Sorry for all that. I'll make sure you get home safely."

"Eh, it's fine," (Y/n) waved his apology off. I didn't have to walk so it's cool. "You're really not going to tell me who they are?"

"It's not—"

"My business, yeah, but it kinda is when I ended up getting chased too. So..." Her voice trailed off and she shot him a pointed look to fill in the blanks.

He sighed and rubbed the back of his head. "Fine. They're...his men. They've been following me around a lot lately. They don't usually do anything if I'm near the school."

"By he...do you mean...your d—" Remembering the anger on his face the last time she mentioned his parents, she quickly reworded herself. "I mean, the politician Matthews?"

Thankfully, Leon didn't look enraged. Pissed, but not furious. "Yeah. He wants to know where my brother is. As if I'm going to let that son of a b—uh, bagel come anywhere near him."

Why do I feel like he's treating me as a kid now? "If you live in the dorm, is Conan living with your mom?" Not sure if that's much better than him treating me like a piece of trash on the floor. Wait, that's popsicle.

"My mom's dead," he said blandly. "Suicide when I was ten."

"Oh..." Goddammit, (Y/n)! "I'm sorry—"

"No, it's fine. Connie's staying with my grandmother on my mom's side." Then to the (h/c)-haired girl, "He likes you. He doesn't usually take to strangers."

Maybe because I'm more alien than human, she snickered. "He's a cute kid. How old is he?"

"He's turning six this year." There was an affectionate look on his face as he spoke of his brother. "Connie's been dropping hints all year about buying him a newer laptop model so he can play video games on it. Must've been my fault..."

"What a bad brother," she teased, shaking her head. "Influencing your brother to get hooked on games like you. Tsk, tsk." Ha, like I'm one to talk. I spent two hours on KsF last night.

"Sorry," he chuckled. "I swear I won't let him play PUBG anymore."

"Bruh—wha—why are you giving a six-year-old, especially one as innocent as him, PUBG?"

"It's not Fortnite," he shrugged. "I don't see the harm."

There was a whole study on how playing violent games from early childhood leads to violent and dark tendencies in the future, but she wasn't about to go into that. "Whatever floats your boat, my friend."

His phone buzzed, pulling his attention to it. (Y/n) watched as the black-haired male pulled the device out and read through the message. His face betrayed nothing as he typed something back and returned it to his pocket.

"Something important?" She asked. "I can walk the rest of the way back myself—"

"It's not important," Leon said. "It's from...my roommates."

"You mean Jay and the others?"

He nodded. "Yeah. They're...taking out the trash. Wanted to know what to not throw out."

"Ohh, I see." Reminds me of all those alarm clocks I've pulverized and thrown away. "I can't see Tristan willingly taking the trash out."

"That's because it doesn't," Leon laughed. "Why would he when he has an army of butlers at his beck and call?"

"That is freaky, I tell you! How do they come and go so fast?!"

"I'm told each of them has a black belt in all sorts of martial arts. It's probably part of the job description."

Nick would have the time of his life with them, (Y/n) thought, grinning at the memory of the self-proclaimed ninja and his ever-changing hair. I'd like to have ninja butlers. That would be cool.

Soon, they were in front of her apartment. The lobby shone brightly under the cover of the darkness. She could see it was empty, save for the lone security guard reading a newspaper behind his desk. "This is my stop," she said to the black-haired male. "Thanks for walking me back."

"Don't mention it."

"Okay...see you tomorrow!" She turned to leave.

"Wait!" A sudden shout made her stop in her tracks. (Y/n) blinked in confusion. Did those spy men follow us here or something?

Leon lowered his hand that had subconsciously reached out towards her. "Tomorrow..." he said slowly. "Be careful."

And with those three haunting words, he was gone.

WHITE:RESIDENCE ━━━━━༻ ❀ ༺━━━━━ ηιgнt

tracer404: Vanilla, you go to Fortuna, right?

~ ❀ ~

That was the first message that popped up as soon as the (h/c)-haired girl logged into the game. She blinked in surprise. Oh yeah, Keller and the others told her. She fired back a reply in response.

~ ❀ ~

vanillabits3: yup. why?

tracer404: Omg, you didn't hear? Turn on the news!

vanillabits3: you're making me go allll the way to my living room to turn on a tv i never use?

tracer404: Ok boomer. I'll just tell you.

tracer404: It actually happened just a few hours ago. A student from your school found a dead body!

vanillabits3: wut

tracer404: You didn't know?

vanillabits3: is it april fools today?

tracer404: No, I'm being serious. Someone found a body behind the school building. School officials tried to cover it up but that student called their parents immediately.

tracer404: Now the news' blowing up.

vanillabits3: no freaking way

vanillabits3: did they say who it was???

vanillabits3: oh god

tracer404: I don't know if you know her, but her name is Yvonne. Ring any bells?

vanillabits3: oh whew

vanillabits3: uh i mean it's terrible she died, but im kinda glad it's not one of my friends

tracer404: I get you.

vanillabits3: and no, i don't know her personally. seen her around though. how was she killed?

tracer404: She was stabbed from the front. The police say judging from the look on her face, it's someone she knew.

vanillabits3: freaky

tracer404: Yeah, so her friend group's being questioned right now.

tracer404: They say the group's ringleader or whatever you call the head b*tch got away after like two questions due to her family's influence.

tracer404: Totally the killer, if you ask me.

vanillabits3: oh...thanks for telling me june

tracer404: No problem. Be careful, okay?

vanillabits3: i mean, who'd want to kill me?

tracer404: Haha, good night!

vanillabits3: zzz

~ ❀ ~

(Y/n) closed her laptop and sucked in a sharp breath between her teeth. The reality of the situation has yet to sink in for her. In such a prestigious school famed for their security and such, how could a murder happen? Perhaps it was a prank, she consoled herself. Or an accident. She refused to think of the worst-case scenario where it turns out to be a serial killer of all things.

Thinking too hard about it won't do any good, she thought. Better look into it. She puller up her website and clicked on the forums tab. Sure enough, there were countless new messages, some still coming in, regarding the incident. Reactions ranged from fear, pity, sorrow, and hostility. Some were glad Yvonne was dead. Others were afraid they were going to be next.

Yvonne was killed behind the school, huh? The (h/c)-haired girl read. What was she doing there? There's nothing there besides trees, trees, and more plant stuff. Unless she came from the old school building or the P4's dorm, but I don't see why she'd be there. Actually, I can. Snowman might've brought her to his dorm to do the unholy. But popsicle said he wouldn't allow that kind of thing to happen again, so I can't think of any other reason.

She sent a message to the thread. When did this happen?

Rapid-fire replies came in just a few seconds after she posted it. In the afternoon, an anonymous user said. Around seventh period.

So it happened around when snowman and I left, she mused. Freaky. She tapped her fingers against her keyboard and sent another question.

~ ❀ ~

YOU: when was she discovered?

idleraccoon227: i think it was after school

redredboom: i thought it was eight period

donkeykong: some dude was going there to take a piss and he shat himself when he saw her lolol

giraffe0192: i say that b*tch deserves it

redredboom: poor guy

idleraccoon227: yvonne's a b*tch but that doesn't mean she deserves to die!

giraffe0192: are you saying you prefer her alive?

giraffe0192: remember last week when she fried that poor freshie's hair and sent another to the er with serious burns?

donkeykong: that's what i call a girl on FIRE 🔥🔥🔥

redredboom: bam BOOm baM

idleraccoon227: okay but still

silveeeesti: omg what if its a serial killer

donkeykong: FIUH

giraffe0192: still what? she's a b*tch and im glad she's gone

silveeeesti: ugh im so not going to school tomorrow

idleraccoon227: i don't like her either but still!!!

silveeeesti: press f if you're with me

redredboom: f

donkeykong: f

giraffe0192: bish you're not mother f*cking theresa so don't try to act like her

okboomer: f

~ ❀ ~

A knife wound to her front by someone she knew, (Y/n) frowned as she exited the site before the sheer number of replies made her laptop lag. Well, I'm not a detective but I'm pretty sure this isn't an accident or a serial killer then. That's both a good and bad thing. We should be fine. Oh right, almost forgot.

She opened up the app store and downloaded an app. I nearly forgot to get this. What was June's ID again? I think it was just June or something. She opened up the LINE app after it finished downloading and set up her new account under the alias "vanillabits3." Internet safety, kids. Even though both she and June knew each other's names, a lingering sense in the back of (Y/n)'s head was still a little reluctant to let the other girl know more.

A silly thought. We've played enough games together to be friends now, she scoffed. I even heard her voice before. It was a notably feminine voice that had came from the voice chat. June had explained she wasn't quite comfortable using the voice chat with Keller and the others but if it was just (Y/n), she'd be fine.

As she added the other girl on the messaging app and then threw the device onto her bed, she remembered the ominous words Leon had left her with before he left. "Be careful," he had said in a quiet voice unusual for him.

Be careful? That was so vague! What was there to be careful of, fangirls with inch-long plastic nails and high stilettos that go stabby stabby? Okay, maybe that was a little intimidating, but still. Or did he mean the murder?

Did zebra know Yvonne was killed? She frowned. Makes sense, but then why didn't he tell me? Oh yeah, he got all that I-think-it's-a-good-idea-to-treat-(Y/n)-like-a-kid going on. Am not a kid.

Her blinds clattered against each other as a strong gust of wind blew in through her window, causing her to shiver. Did I open my window? Huh. Shrugging, the (h/c)-haired girl pulled the glass shut and drew down her shades.

(Y/n) stretched her arms out in front of her. People are complicated, she sighed. I give up on them for today. Time to sleep! She took a shower, brushed her teeth, slipped on her pajamas before padding back to her room, leaving behind little drops of water on the wooden hallways.

As she turned off the light and turned on the lamp on her nightstand, she began replaying the day's activities in her head like she always did. (Y/n) pulled her comforter up to her chin as she stared up at the ceiling

It was strange, the new sides she saw of the P4. It didn't match what the rumors told her at all, nor her first impressions of them. It was a lie when she said she never heard of the P4 before Wei Wei told her about them; she's heard of them plenty of times while she slept or pretended to sleep. And she made it a mental reminder to keep away from them. All the trouble, bullying, and problems that followed with associating with them—it was something that could potentially bring down her perfect little world.

She didn't want that. But Fortuna didn't seem to agree with her, and she ended up in project groups with not one, but three of them. And for some reason, she just had to get Tristan as a tutor despite the hundreds of others she could've gotten.

Did her thinking change now? Perhaps it did. Perhaps she saw them as friends now. At least Jaehyun, for that matter. (Y/n) initially hated Tristan and couldn't stand Kieran, she remembered. The former was too cynical, too arrogant, and the latter was, using one word to sum it all up, a scummy sexist playboy who saw himself as superior to the rest. She had thought the two related.

But maybe they aren't all that, the (h/c)-haired girl thought just before sleep consumed her. Maybe they're good people. Maybe it's not their fault they've become this P4 whatnot. She thought of Leon's gentle smile despite the violent rumors about him, Jaehyun's bright but shy grin when others say he preferred solitude, Kieran's lonely face even though he's said to always be surrounded by girls, and Tristan's warm laugh that contrasted with his robotic demeanor.

It only taught her one thing: humans are confusing. It was why she liked computers so much.

Be careful. Leon's words rang once more in her head. Tomorrow.

Of course, why wouldn't I be?

Perfection is a must.

You promise?

There was a faint flicker, before one light out of the thousands of red, blue, and yellow pinpoints in the city went out.

Whatever came tomorrow, it could wait. Right now, her dreamless sleep was all the (h/c)-haired girl cared about.

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A/N: I have 100 followers now! \(^O^)/ 🎉 And this book reached 30K reads and 2K likes! Thank youuu 🙏 Therefore I'll be releasing two chapters today, double updates!