"Holy… hahaha," I muttered, half laughing at the chaos in the comments section until a familiar hand ruffled my hair.
"Hey, hey~ you ready to go?" Sanghye's voice came from behind me, warm and teasing as always.
"Man, we're gonna miss you," he said, patting my shoulder before pulling out a giant gift box. "Got something for you before you go."
"What's this?" I asked, shaking it gently. Not too heavy, not too light.
"Open it," he grinned. "Hope you like it."
I tore off the wrapping and blinked. "...Soju?"
"You sure?" he said slyly.
I opened the box again, and there it was. A fluffy, pointy-eared creature staring up at me with glowing eyes.
"N-no way. Is this a cat or… a robot?" I picked it up.
"Meow~!" Its voice was too crisp, too digital. Sanghye scratched his head, laughing.
"Yeah… I was gonna get you a real one, but turns out every cat this month got shipped to Gim-jae[1] Island for breeding. So this one'll have to do."
"Perfect. I won't have to feed it or scoop up its crap. I used to have a dog as a kid, but I guess I've become more of a cat person. Dogs stand for loyalty and family—but cats? They're freedom. Self-reliance. That's what I like. Rely on yourself and you'll never fall—yada yada. You get the point."
"Ha! Deep. You'd make a great poet."
"Pfft—what can I say? Handsome guys drop wisdom by accident."
"Alright, call me anytime if you need anything." He raised a hand. "Come on, high five."
I smirked. "Wolves never die."
Smack!
A butterfly fluttered up from my wrist, twirling past the window. The afternoon sun glimmered over the windshield of a silver car pulling up in front of a high-rise tower. The pink butterfly swooped down and landed on the shoulder of the silver-haired man behind the wheel.
"Penthouse D8, huh? Place sure gets visitors," I muttered as I tossed my car keys to the valet in a red vest. Crowds were snapping photos of the skyscraper. When I looked up, the glowing O4 logo of OPP4 loomed above.
I slipped on my sunglasses and crossed the synthetic grass toward the glass doors. Inside, a woman with shoulder-length hair sat at the front desk, scrolling through images of D8 lingering a little too long on one particular member wearing a face mask.
"Ahem," I cleared my throat.
"Muwoh?! I'm so sorry!" She jumped slightly before flashing a wide smile. "Welcome, sir! You must be Mr. White, I suppose. I'm Bo Seung Hwan; you could call me Boa. 'Serve as the receptionist for OPP4's Sky Hotel." Her big, creepy, doll-like eyes sparkled as she spoke.
"Thanks, Boa. I'll need a keycard. Mind getting it for me?" I pressed a finger to my lips.
"For a big guest like you? Always." She bent down, rummaged through the drawer, and finally held one up. "Where~ where~ wher-ma-hah—here it is!" She brushed her hand along my arm as she handed it over. "Oops~ sorry, i'm just excited to see you face-to-face. Please, don't mind me, muhuhu~," she giggled.
"O-okay, appreciate it." I nodded stiffly and walked off toward the elevator, rubbing my arm in disgust. 'Fucking bitch. How dare you touch my precious arm?' i thought to myself
[1] Fictional island in the After Our Decade universe.