The screen of the phone in the hands of a girl passing by flickered a moment, but he didn't notice, and she just cursed softly at the malfunction which prevented her from watching short videos for a second while she walked.

  Suddenly, a hand appeared from behind and grabbed his shoulder, making him jump softly. But as he turned, he saw it was his probably only friend... acquaintance? Okay, a fellow student who did notice him and probably thought they were friends while he himself was deeply confused about the dynamics. He’d always forget the guy’s name, but thankfully the latter had a stylized bracelet with it. Like a dog tag, but he probably considered it cool.

  Ji?i.

  “Jesus, are you deaf? I've been calling you since the end of the class.”

  He blinked at the guy a little bit owlishly before finally grounding himself in the moment.

  “Yeah? Sorry, didn't hear.”

  “What, you walking already?” Ji?i smirked at him.

  For a moment it hit him, and he felt the note in his notebook burning his hand through the layers of pages and worn-out fake leather. "You'll be walking soon."

  “What?” His voice came out hoarse.

  Ji?i paused, a little sheepish. “Sorry. My sister had been watching those damn "Spiralá trends" non-stop. They call going delulu "walking" now. I might have picked up on it.”

  “Why?”

  Ji?i shrugged casually. “Ty vole, how do I know? I mean, do you expect any normalcy from the bunch of teens romanticizing Spiralá and fantasizing about their boss-man?” He looked at him for a moment, noticing a slightly haunted gaze. “What? You look like I've just cursed you.”

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  He sighed and looked away, rubbing his eyes. “No, it's not you. I just slept like shit, again.”

  Ji?i smirked sympathetically as they both finally started walking down the hall, silently agreeing on the need to go grab a bite before the next lecture.

  This guy was the first to notice when he started having sleep problems during the first year, and was there a couple of times to poke him awake when he was about to drop his head onto the desk during lecture. He always made an excuse of his apartment being less than soundproof, and having mice which roamed the walls at night. Ji?i didn't exactly believe it all, but never pressured for the details.

  “You should really think about moving places.” He nodded casually.

  He nodded as they walked out of the university to drop by to the ?abka store which was across the road.

  “I guess I will soon.” He didn't know why but he suddenly had the urge to tell at

  least someone. Maybe so that they knew where to look for him if he went silent for too long. “I mean, I am not sure. I was at an interview for a job yesterday, and there's a chance they offer an accommodation…”

  Ji?i looked at him like he just said he was going to space. “Wait, what job offers free accommodation?” He then laughed suddenly. “What, you became someone's house cleaner?”

  He winced softly from the friendly punch to the shoulder, and shook his head. Pausing by the display with sandwiches in ?abka, he thought for a moment. Either about sandwiches or whether to tell all story... Or if he had salt at home.

  "Told you'd forget the salt".

  He turned abruptly, looking at Ji?i. “What did you say?”

  Ji?i blinked softly, surprised by such reaction even if he knew him for a while now. “If you became someone's house cleaner since there's a chance for you to live at work.”

  “Ah. No, not that.” He turned back to the display and finally stopped his choice on the tuna sandwich. “In the hotel. Detective's assistant.”

  Ji?i snorted.

  “So, you'll be solving murder cases now and wear a cool hat?”

  Despite himself, he laughed quietly.

  “You know this job has nothing to do with that, dumbass. It's just a hotel's security basically.”

  “With a fancy name?”

  “Yeah. Just that.”