My head is killing me. Maybe I shouldn't have had that last drink. Or the one before that. Or the one before that. Yeah, good job, me.
Whatever. I reach my apartment door, jam the key in, and push it open.
I'm fully expecting Jiang to come running like usual. You know, full speed, glowing antenna, puppy eyes, the whole drama.
But—
Nothing.
No crash hug. No weird "Yunhuaaa~" voice.
I step in and close the door behind me, frowning.
He's not on the couch.
Wait.
TV's off.
Weird. He always leaves the TV on. He doesn't even know how to turn it off properly.
"Jiang?" I call out, still standing by the door.
No answer.
Okay… weird.
I kick off my shoes, still squinting suspiciously.
Where the heck did he go?
If he's not in front of the TV, then he's probably sitting on the toilet. His favorite spot after the couch. Guy has a whole routine.
I rush straight to the toilet and swing the door open—
Empty.
"What the hell, Jiang? Jiang!" I yell, louder this time. "Don't fool around, idiot!"
Okay, maybe he's in the kitchen messing things up again.
I stomp into the kitchen—
No mess. No noodles on the counter. No open bottles. This isn't normal
"Jiang!!" I shout, more panicked now.
I throw open the bathroom door—nothing.
Bedroom? Empty.
Balcony? Nope, just wind.
Where the hell did he go?!
I check under the table. Nothing. I open the fridge just in case—don't ask why. I even pull back the shower curtain like I'm in a horror movie. Still nothing. The whole place feels too quiet.
"I hateit. It's creeping me out."
Where the hell did he go? Please don't tell me he went outside. Please don't tell me he got lost or kidnapped or... worse, talked to a neighbor.
I spin around and rush to the entrance door, open it. The hallway is quiet, dead quiet.
Okay. Breathe. Calm down.
I knock on Mrs. Liu's door, rapid and panicked.
She opens after a few seconds, rubbing her eyes and wearing a floral nightie. Oh right. It's past midnight. Great.
"Oh my my, Yunhua? You here this late? You okay? Did something happen?"
"Uh—um—Mrs. Liu, is Jiang here? I mean… he's not at home. I can't find him anywhere."
"Oh, he isn't home?" Mrs. Liu tilts her head, frowning. "Well, that boy never leaves home, does he?"
No shit, Sherl*ck. That's why I'm freaking out. I smile too hard. My left eye twitches.
"Oh! Right. Mrs. Wei's daughter took him to play," she adds casually, like she just said she lent me sugar. "Maybe he's still at their place."
Play? What is he, five years old?
I'm already halfway speed-walking down the hallway before she even closes her door.
That lil brat! Still trying to steal my fake boyfriend?
I walk straight to Mrs. Wei's door and bang on it like I'm about to break it down. "Mrs. Wei! Mrs. Wei!"
Open up already, you slowass!
The door finally opens, and there she is in her nightdress, looking all calm like she didn't just kidnap an alien meanwhile, I'm two steps away from a panic attack.
"Oh, Yunhua, you're back?" she says. "Jiang is with us."
My eye twitches.
Of course. The one time he steps outside, he ends up in this house. Just my luck.
"Haha, is he???" I squeeze out a laugh, but my eyes are twitching. "Just let me take him home and I'll show him hell."
Mrs. Wei chuckles like this is all normal. "Yeah, my daughter Xin wanted to play with him, and since he never leaves home, I thought inviting him over would be nice."
Yeah, super nice. Let's all just borrow my alien roommate like he is a damn rice cooker.
"Right… super nice," I say, forcing a smile. "But now that I'm here—and it's already past midnight—I think I'll take him home."
"Oh yes, please come in. Xin and Jiang fell asleep while playing."
Huh? What? Did she just say—
"Jiang is sleeping?" I blink at her. "Did I hear you right? Did you just say sleeping?"
Mrs. Wei nods, like this is the most normal thing ever. "Yes, dear. They played all day and fell asleep."
"Jiang… is sleeping inside your house?"
"Yes, why? Is something wrong?"
No. Nothing. Except EVERYTHING.
"No. No, nothing," I say, shaking my head too fast. "Can I… come in?"
"Of course."
I follow her inside, heartbeat racing, and she leads me to her daughter's room and there he is.
Jiang peacefully sleeping right next to Xin.
It's like he's... pretending to be human. And doing it too well.
For a second, I just stand there, staring like an idiot. His chest moves up and down, slow and calm. Like a human. Like someone who needs sleep.
It's not right. He's not supposed to do that.
He told me his kind doesn't sleep. Ever.
So why does he look so… peaceful? So normal?
My stomach twists. Something's wrong. Really wrong.
There is no way.
I rush over, kneel down, and touch his cheek. "Jiang?"
His skin's warm. He looks normal but—
No. No way. He's faking this. He has to be.
"Jiang," I whisper, nudging him. "You awake? Jiang?"
"Jiang, you can wake up now. Jiang!" I shake his shoulder gently, then a little harder. Still nothing. His eyelids don't even twitch.
My hand hovers over his face. I stare.
No freaking way.
Is he… actually sleeping?
But how?! His kind left sleep behind thousands of years ago during evolution—he told me that himself. Said it was "a waste of active processing time" or something smug like that. Said they don't need it. They evolved past it.
So why is he lying here, passed out like this?
Tell me he's just acting again. Maybe copying some stupid scene from a TV drama, pretending to sleep so I'll fuss over him or something.
Please let this be one of his dumb drama stunts.
Because if it's not… something is seriously wrong.