The keys were already in her hand when the tired waitress neared the front porch of her rental. The house itself was pretty old; she supposed it had been a loving family home once, now divided up between six people. They had to share a living room, kitchen and a single bathroom, but as far as privacy goes, their individual rooms had sturdy locks at least. Her own room – the attic – leaks with every other rainfall and without any insulation, that place was pretty drafty and moldy. Winters were never particularly fun. Yet at the same time, Rin was convinced she had the very best room in the house. Not only did she pay less rent, but the roof window gave her a clear view of the sky. Ever-shifting and ever-changing; she watched the clouds during the day and the stars during the night. It rarely failed to comfort her, even during her worst days.

So she was quite looking forward to kick off her shoes and dive straight into bed on this exhausting one. There, she could peacefully watch the bright colors of the sunset disappear behind the horizon… before shutting her eyes herself.

"Rin, thank heavens you're here!" a panicked voice called out when she had just shut the front door behind her. Wearing a dirtied apron and carrying a wooden spoon in her hand, a girl with long wavy blonde hair jumped up and down in impatience. Rin's heart dropped at the burning smell that entered her nostrils. "Please help! I think I've been doing something wrong?"

"Wait, are you-?" The question barely formed on her lips when her housemate disappeared out of sight. Rin threw her knitted poncho at the coat rack and followed along. There was smoke trailing through the hallway and a crackling sound that honestly scared the death out of her. When the blonde turned into the kitchen, she expected to see it up in flames. Instead, she was met with a wall of black smoke. Rin's hand shot forward at the source of it – a pot hissing violently – turning off the stove. Thankfully, there had been no fire, so it was safe to open the window and allow oxygen back into the kitchen. It took the longest time to clear the air and breathe that sigh of relief. The sun had already set when she finally shut the kitchen window.

"Siyu…" she turned towards to the girl. "What happened the last time you were cooking?" Rin imposed.

The girl's small frame tensed and she seemed to hesitate in replying. "I made toast?" she tried, fluttering her curled eyelashes. Rin's indifferent expression and stern gaze made Siyu bite her lip, pouting. It would have surely swayed her fans, yet a simple waitress was unaffected by its cuteness.

"Okay, I burned the toast," the girl admitted. "…And those ugly curtains. But I learned that baking sheets don't need to be baked at least?" She folded her fingers into each other, her fresh manicure sparkling as she raised her hands as in a prayer. "Oh c'mon Rin, please don't tell Yuuma about this!" she pleaded. "He said he'd kick me out the next time the fire department is called… and he looked so serious about it too."

The waitress risked a glance at the contains of the pot; raw chicken, black vegetables and no oil stared back at her from the abyss. She frowned, sighing in defeat. "There's no way to save that pan. If you don't want him to find out, throw it out tonight and replace it first thing tomorrow."

The young girl nodded vigorously in agreement, spluttering out her words of gratitude.

"But why were you cooking by yourself?" Rin wondered out loud as she cooled the pan in a bath of cold water, so that they could toss it in a garbage bag before anyone would see it. "Anon has been teaching you how to use the stove and oven, right? You two are always prepping your meals together."

Her long, wavy hair fell over her shoulder as the girl leaned her cheek against her hand. "You know the twins start their new show tomorrow, right? They're practicing long hours and don't have time to cook their own meals, so they're mostly living off bread. And they do like their bread, but I want them to eat a warm… well, microwaved… homemade meal before their show tomorrow. To do something back for all the cooking lessons Anon gave me. And wish them luck." Her housemate then paused and a small breath fell from her lips. "But I guess I ruined it."

Siyu's gaze roamed across the kitchen and Rin's followed; from the wrappings of packages that were lying on the floor, to the dirtied spoons, stacked plates and cutting boards spread across the counter, its cut up ingredients everywhere…

The girl seemed so deflated in that moment, Rin felt the need to lightly pinch her cheek. Large eyes looked up to her and she answered her with a kind smile. "Come now, let's start over."

"…What?" Siyu blinked at her. "You'll help me?"

The waitress lifted her sleeves and grabbed a cloth, rinsing it with warm water and squeezing the excess out. "Do you have anymore ingredients left?"

That startled the girl out of her timid state. "Just a handful of mushrooms, some leftover chicken, a couple of carrots and a bunch of potatoes," Siyu replied, turning to the fridge to grab them.

"That would be perfect," Rin cleared and started cleaning the counter so that they'd have space to work with. "Don't worry about the dishes and floor for now; we'll clean those up later. Wash the vegetables for now and we'll start cutting them up into bite-size bits. Do you know how to hold your fingers while cutting something?" she asked.

"Yes," her housemate replied with newfound enthusiasm. "Like claws!"

"Great!" Rin smiled, reaching into her own stash where she had an instant curry package and a small amount of rice left. It would be enough, but she'd have to figure out what to eat the rest of the week. Nothing to be done about that change in her meal plan.

Together, they started over from scratch. Siyu had prepared the vegetables – she was surprisingly good with a knife – and Rin started to explain in which order the ingredients needed to be cooked. It wasn't long before the kitchen started smelling delicious and she hoped it would mask the lingering scent of smoke. When they only needed the occasional stir within the boiling water, they took turns cleaning up the mess in the kitchen. While mopping, Siyu started humming and Rin couldn't help but smile at that, taking it as a sign that the girl regained her confidence.

"That's your new song, isn't it? 'Dream 'n Big?'" the waitress asked, grabbing the next pile of dishes to place in the soapy water.

"You listened to it?!" she gasped excitedly.

Perhaps her talent didn't extend to the kitchen, but there was no denying that 'SEEU' is a great singer and song-writer. While the road to fame is always bulky, Rin was convinced that her housemate has what it takes to break through one day. And wishing for her success along with her was a growing following of dedicated fans.

"I'm so happy to hear that!" Siyu's smile was bright and warm, reaching all the way to her eyes. Not long after, her humming turned into lyrics, singing her song loudly in the stage that was their small kitchen. Even without instrumentals to back her up, it was breathtaking to listen to such raw talent. Rin couldn't stop smiling up till the song's end. And as if it hadn't wanted to interrupt, the rice cooker started beeping after that final note.

"Alright!" Siyu announced, all energized and bouncy. "We're almost done, so I'll throw this out now," she said as she grabbed a garbage bag to cover the ruined pan with. "Can you do me one last favour and reach for my backpack? I bought a couple of lunch boxes today," the girl grinned.

"Not a problem!" Rin responded right away, her housemate's clear enthusiasm rubbing off on her. Siyu left the kitchen first and Rin finished placing the sparkly-clean dishes back in the cabinets. She found the green backpack in the living room, on top of the dining table. Just when she opened the zipper, the front door opened. Rin couldn't help but chuckle at the tiny elephants and lions splattered across the see-through lunch boxes. A perfect match to Siyu's bright personality. So when she caught a silhouette from out the corner of her eye, it was the perfect opportunity tease the girl.

"You sure know how to pick out cute things," Rin said as she rezipped the bag. Her housemate seemed to pause for a moment there.

"Oh? Are you complimenting yourself now?"

Rin tensed at the unexpectedly low voice that answered her; one she recognized without needing to look up. She felt eyes watching her as she kept hers low. The tall figure unzipped his hooded vest, throwing the piece of fabric carelessly at the couch, instead of the very functional clothing rack they had stored in the hallway… that he'd just passed. She almost frowned when he approached the dining table in a long stride, eyeing the piece of silver around his neck that shimmered against his contrasting black tank top.

"How lucky I am," he announced. "It seems the princess isn't hiding away in her tower tonight."

Rin subconsciously placed the backpack in front of her. "Yuuma, good evening… How are you doing?" she exchanged the pleasantries with a smile.

"Well, let's see… I've been trying to get a hold of you for a couple of days now, but you manage to slip past me every time." When he placed his hands against the table that separated them and leaned in, that key had the freedom to twirl freely between them. "Almost seems intentional, y'know?"

"Haha, no way that's true," her tone was light as she said this, but she kept her eyes down. "Rent isn't due until next week."

He moved back at her statement, his fingertips alone retaining contact with the dining table. "Which is four days, actually," he was keen to remind her. His fingers trailed the grains of the wood as he took slow steps around the oval table. "But if you want to settle it right away…" he opted, slowly approaching her. "I'll make it worth your time."

Rin took her own deliberate steps in the opposite direction and carefully picked up the lunch boxes to justify this game of ring-around-the-rosey. "No thank you," she politely declined.

The youth laughed and combed his hand through his pale red hair, messing up the wild strands.

"Ah well, there will always be a next time." He stated it so casually, Rin almost missed how loaded those words were. She unwillingly glanced up and instantly regretted it. The gleam in his amber eyes almost made them appear golden, piercing through her composure like any bullet would. She could see his thoughts clearly and feared he could do the same.

"Oh, look at that! Has our handsome landlord graced us with his presence?" The moment Siyu returned with a bright smile on her face, the atmosphere seemed to change accordingly. Tension disappeared from the very air Rin breathed. Yuuma's attention was drawn away and there was a change in his expression – his smile seemed more youthful now. Rin wasn't focused on their conversation, taking a moment to rub her arm to ease the goosebumps that had scattered their way across her skin. Then suddenly, a squeak of pure delight filled the air.

"No way!" Siyu gasped. "I thought the opening night was exclusive to premium members!" She held a strip of red paper above her head and celebrated with a happy twirl on her tippy-toes. "I can't believe this!" She flung her arms around his neck. "You're seriously the best, Yuuma!"

"Anything for you two," he laughed as he patted her head.

This made Rin, who had been making a slow exit towards the kitchen, pause in her tracks.

"Expect a late night," he said as he directed Siyu's hand towards his chest. "But at least we don't have to wake up bright and early the next morning," the charming smile he sent in Rin's direction was so bright, it was glaring.

That was when Siyu glanced over to Rin as well. "Oh, you found the lunch boxes!" she clapped her hands together happily. When she reached for them, Rin reluctantly handed over her exit strategy.

"Great. I'm going to fill these up now. Thank you so much for everything, Rin! And Yuuma, don't go anywhere now! I want to know everything about our plans tomorrow!" the girl exclaimed.

"You know the way to my room," their landlord waved her off.

Siyu giggled shyly. Her golden locks bounced lightly with every skip in her step, moving towards the kitchen. She seemed so exhilarated that Rin was conscious of her own lukewarm response.

"Here's yours, princess."

He placed the red ticket, face-up, on the table. "Thank you," she reached for it with a stretch of her lips. "I'm surprised we actually get to see Anon and Kanon's first performance."

"They'll be just as surprised, I'm sure," Yuuma told her. "Now, head on up to bed, it's getting late. You need your energy for tomorrow, so I'll bother Siyu with the boring details. Just go straight home after work and she'll fill you in." He surprised her by backing off completely, heading back to the couch to lift up his hooded vest. He rummaged through its pockets, before pulling out a pack of cigarettes. "And maybe don't avoid me next time. You'd get enough time to ask for a day off."

As he opened the pack to count the left-over cigarettes, Rin couldn't help but have this prickling feeling that she was the one in the wrong. That, even now, she couldn't acknowledge this act of consideration without digging her heels into the sand, because she's been busy looking for faults.

"Besides… rent is almost due, right?" Seemingly satisfied, he leaned against the backside of the couch. "Just in case something changes, I wouldn't want to have you on the brink of exhaustion."

In all honesty, Rin didn't know how the lead in her shoes carried her all the way up to the attic. And while she didn't remember responding, she remembered to set her padlock in place before collapsing in front of the windowsill. There, her shaking hands grabbed hold of the flimsy curtains that kept no daylight away. But as blue eyes looked hopefully at the sky, there was nothing there to comfort her. No stars were in sight and it was too dark to see any clouds. And she pressed her head against the glass when she remembered this exact pitch-black sight. Just like the shimmer of starlight absent from the sky, so had been the silver shine of that key, missing from his neck.