? Will you ride this sinking ship with me?


    ? Will you climb aboard


    ? Knowing that we’ll drown


    ? In the middle of the deep deep blue


    ? We’ll be Romeo & Juliet


    ? Down in the big unknown


    ? Will you ride this sinking ship with me?


    My alarm rang, blasting out pH’s Sinking Ship. I laid there, in bed with my crimpled up clothes that I didn’t bother changing out of. I felt my mouth sink of morning breath and built up grim from not brushing my teeth. My hair was greasy and my skin, oily. Some say stubbles make a man look hotter but mine makes me look like a teenager in the middle of puberty. Feeling gross and filthy, I just listened to my alarm play.


    I had these few days off but I had forgotten to turn off my alarm. However, I had gone to sleep fairly early so waking up now didn’t seem so bad.


    In my cracked morning voice, I sang with the chorus of the song. It’s one of the OST songs for How To Lie, a book turned movie that''s currently promoting even though they''re still in post production. The bestselling book was about a girl’s double life as an underground assassin. There was action, there was romance, and there was comedy. However, the reason why I fell in love with the novel was because I felt that I could relate to her. A girl with a big heart, but unfortunately, that heart held nothing inside it.


    ?D-?D-?D-?D-?D-?D-?


    ?D-?D-?D-?D-?D-?D-?


    My phone rang, interrupting my thoughts. It was Eric, my manager.


    “Hello?”


    “How was your first day of break?”


    “I almost died.”


    “I know, I know, you’ve been working a lot lately. Take a break. I’ve got a new project for Dawn Front for when you come back.” And with that, Eric hung up.


    Eric probably thought I meant the incident where an overhead lamp almost fell on me. Sadly he didn’t know that that brush of death made me want to pursue it.Stolen novel; please report.


    I suddenly sat up on my bed, frantic as I realized I had forgotten to get her number! While as I was wallowing in despair, my phone once again rang out. It was one of the other band members, Shil.


    “Hello?”


    “SEPH!!! We’re going out for a drink later tonight. Are you coming?”


    I swear his name should just be Shrill since that’s what his voice sounds like all the time. It’s a mystery how his singing voice is so touchingly deep.


    “No. I need to be in my tip top shape tomorrow.”


    “OH LA LA. Someone got a date?” Shil teased.


    “Yes. Don’t get in my way. Tell the others not to call me unless it’s an emergency.” With that, I hung up. Soon, a text came my way.


    『 Name, pic, and we better get the details on how you met, how the date went, and if you’re official when you get back from break! 』


    I chuckled but my mood turned down. How we met… I sighed again. I decided to put that problem away for some other time.


    Ding. Another text came in.


    『 Lanjin Tower, Noon.


    Lavender rose tea with crystal pearls.


    no sweetness. no milk. 』


    Confused, I looked at the name of the sender – Vivian Oang. Who? I couldn’t place a face to the name even though I’m usually so good at it. It was quite obvious I had met this person before otherwise, how else would I have their name saved in my contacts list. As I was trying to put a face to the name, another text came.


    『 Wear dog ears. 』


    My eyes widen in shock as I realized SHE was called Vivian. Excited, I texted back.


    『 I’m Seph Young. 』


    Immediately, my phone rang out and what I saw shocked my heart.


    『I know.


    Seph Young


    Heir to NIN Inc


    Born to Ru Young and Tes Pan


    Oldest of 3 children.


    Lead vocal of Dawn Front


    Struggling with depression 』


    I… didn’t know what to feel when I read all that. She knew me? But how much did she know? All she said were information that was already released online. A range of emotions flooded within me. Disappointment, anger, fear, hope, and happiness.


    Disappointed. Because now I know she already had an impression of me.


    Anger. If she knew that much about me, she must either be a fan or cared enough some way or somehow to do research on me. Is that why her eyes always seems like they knew everything? Because she thought she did?


    Fear. I had begun to like her. But how we met…


    Hope. She’s still talking to me.


    Happiness. She still gave me a chance. To be her pet but still, I’ll be close to her.


    Ding. Another text interrupted my emotional tornado.


    『 Even if you google me, you won’t find anything. 』


    I let out a sigh again. I wonder if she knew all the things running through my head right now.


    『 How did you get my number? 』


    『 While you were having your moment yesterday, I took your phone and entered my number. Knew you were too out of it to remember to ask for it. Still didn’t even notice I changed your wallpaper huh. 』


    I hurriedly went to my home screen. Sure enough, there was a selfie of her with the brightly lit city behind her. The candle light gave her a soft glow while the city light gave her a cheerful vibe. I ran my thumb over her cheek. With a smile that even I knew looked silly, I replied.


    『 You’re beautiful. 』


    『 I know. 』


    Laughing at her self-confidence, I got out of bed to groom myself into a squeaky clean pet for tomorrow’s “walk”.