track #01 in kunboss ryder bailey

itzy // voltage

I WAKE in the morning to Zoey's room empty and the girls on my level talking together in Cadence's room at the end of the corridor. Voices come through the gap in the door, but I decide not to eavesdrop.

Yawning loudly and stretching my arms, I decide to wander the house all over again, trying to recreate that feeling I got more than four years ago as I was exploring this house for the first time after we received it from Natalia, but I can't seem to get it back. Everything has changed so much – even if it's the same house, same people.

The days have passed so quickly as our youth has too, and as time flies (quite literally), I'm turning nineteen next year. As all of us except Cadence are in college, studying different degrees, and have an increasing amount of schoolwork to do, the house has lost its original liveliness and fun compared to its previous days when we all helped each other. Now that everyone's learning different things and very busy, the feeling's just... different. We no longer can rely on each other to help with homework or any questions we have.

Gwyneth has psych and law; Eunice performance arts; Zoey practical art and design; Aiden finance; Tristan has computer science; and I, veterinary studies. We're learning different things, which means we can't help each other or ask if we don't understand anything. Depending on each other for help is no longer what we can do, especially when we don't know a thing about what the others are studying.

Something mostly Gwyneth and Tristan do, though, is help Cadence with her homework. The rest of us don't really bother, some because our grades weren't good to begin with, the rest just don't want to. Tristan helps her with science-related subjects; Gwyneth helps with languages and humanities, sometimes giving input on science papers too. Zoey sometimes helps with arts, but since Cadence also loves drawing and doodling, she can usually handle art and designing herself.

As for Aiden, Eunice, and I – well, we just have to depend on ourselves with what we're studying. Somehow, Gwyneth and Tristan manage to help each other out too – just because of the required logic that connects both of their degrees – Gwyneth on theses; and Tristan on the structure on arguments. We sometimes joke that they are the perfect pair, good at everything, and even manage to find common ground on two completely unrelated degrees.

Jokes aside, I first came here hoping to spend every day with my best friends, happy that the Hunger Games had ended for good, but moving out of my family's house and into this one brought unnecessary fights between my friends and I – and also led my parents and I to slowly grow apart. We started talking less, and my everyday routine slowly changed to fit my new lifestyle.

But one thing that has never changed is what I felt – feel – for Zoey. Even when we were children, I knew how I felt for her. The butterflies cascaded through my veins every time I saw her. That was one thing. The other – was that till now I'm still not sure if she feels the same. But I'm going to change that. I'm going to confess before Christmas. I'm going to pour my heart out to Zoey, to tell her that I've been liking her for a decade. Like voltage burning deep in my veins, I know it for sure.

I walk up to the fourth floor (where Eunice, Aiden, and Gwyneth sleep) and find all the doors shut and soft snores audible, and decide to slowly pad my way back to the stairs and walk up one level.

This floor was originally empty (with a few guest rooms), but it is no longer, after Tristan moved in. I came up hoping to find a friend – someone I knew would never judge – to talk to and laugh with, but once I see his door open and Tristan not inside, I sigh and plan to go back to my room, already starting to descend towards the 3rd floor, but I hear pots and pans clinking in the kitchen, the smell of food coming from afar, and decide to go take a look.

Tristan sits at the kitchen island busy on his laptop, while Zoey's head is buried in a sketchbook, drawing new designs for school, and Cadence is making breakfast at the stove. Seems like they wrapped up their conversation from earlier. I wonder what they were talking about.

"Oh, you came," Cadence says, amused. "I'm making noodles. Want eggs or sausages with? Or both?"

"Both. I'll get the juice," I reply, immediately making a beeline for the refrigerator.

After fetching a carton of apple juice from the fridge, pouring myself half a cup, and returning the carton, I pull a chair out and sit next to Tristan. Cadence and Zoey make small talk while I watch Tristan program over his shoulder, but one particular topic attracts me, and I can't help but eavesdrop.

"I'm still skeptical about what we just talked about," Zoey says, scrunching her eyebrows together in a look that I know means 'I'm confused'.

"I don't think there's any other possible explanation though," Cadence answers, taking a few bowls from a shelf and scooping noodles into them before pouring soup on top.

Confused, I ask, "What are you guys talking about?"

"Oh, nothing," Zoey says, smiling. "Just about today's number one headline. Haven't you seen it yet?"

When I shake my head no, Cadence scoffs and rolls her eyes. "You guys are really not caught up on the news. Show him please, Trissy."

Tristan pulls up a page on his computer, and my eyes scan the content hungrily. It's an article about Aurore planning an attack on us? But... why would they want to do that? Were we not allies against Rochbok?

"Judging by that expression on your face, we're all equally confused. Zey and I spent the entire morning discussing about it. I'm not gonna talk about that anymore. It's going to mess with the conclusion we came to." Cadence remarks, sliding breakfast onto the kitchen island and we all sit down to eat together.

"Let's just wait for everyone to be here and talk about it later," replies Zoey, closing her notebook and picking up a fork. "I don't want to repeat anything. This can wait."

We scoop the rest of our breakfast down in silence and I retreat to my room holding the rest of my juice, when I get a text from Andy. I haven't heard from him ever since he left to get a job abroad last year after we finished high school.

In both excitement and confusion, I open the text message eagerly. Hi, Andy texts. I'm back in town. Can we meet up for afternoon tea someday?

I grin and reply with all the time slots where I'm free, which is pretty much every day now that school is out for the holidays – unless Gwyneth decides to call more meetings about her dad's kidnapping – but even then, Andy's part of us former tributes too. He could always join.

Great, thanks Kunboss. Andy wraps up our conversation swiftly after we decide on a date and time, and the green circle next to his name turns grey, signalling he's offline, and I frown.

Kunboss? When was the last time he called me only by my first name? Since we were young, he has always called me Kun or some weird nickname they had made up. Plus, Andy is never one who ends a conversation so quickly and coldly. He didn't even say goodbye...

I shake off all the uneasiness in my head. It's been almost a year since I've seen him last. Andy must've grown, just like the rest of us. He might have had something to do. I make a mental note to ask him how work's been going lately and to catch up when we meet.

Our childhood flew by so quickly. I can barely recognize each and every one of us nowadays. Even more so if we weren't living in the same house.

Gwyneth knocks on my door with a few quick raps, and I let her in, gesturing for her to sit on the bed with me.

"Hey, how you feeling? Haven't seen you at all this morning."

I smile at the care she's showing me, and reply, "You're just the sleepyhead. You didn't even come in time for Cady making breakfast. Anyways, how're you feeling? Any progress?"

She sighs and shakes her head, standing up from my bed and brushing something off her pants, and I frown that she's leaving already.

"No, but enough with the sadness. We'll find a way. I saw the headline, too. Besides, it's game day today. Be in the game room in five. The seven of us seriously need to catch up," and with that, she chuckles and disappears out the door and up the stairs to the game room.

– a/n : does andy have to do with anything? why do you think he invited kun to tea? and do you think someone's been acting weird..?