When his uncle wrote to him that he was waiting for him outside the gate, Yibo hurriedly made his way there. He knows that his uncle hates nothing more than wasting time. And standing outside waiting was a waste of time. So Yibo hurried. Especially because he wanted to ask his uncle for a favor and not upset him right away.

Arriving at the gate, his uncle greeted him with a firm handshake and Yibo then joined him in the car. They drove to his uncle's house and only when the two had arrived there and they had entered the bug-proof room in the basement of his uncle's house, he wanted to know from Yibo what kind of order it was that Yibo wanted to give him.

Yibo had been thinking about what and how he wanted to tell his uncle for the past two hours. But now that he was sitting across from him and saw his stern expression, he forgot the words and just babbled away. "So my boyfriend, oh no, now ex boyfriend..."

"Wait. You're gay?" His uncle interrupted him.

"I um... yeah. I hope that's not a problem for you."

"No, it's not for me. But you'd better keep it a secret from your parents. My little brother might still be able to accept it. But knowing your mother and her beliefs, I don't think she can or will put up with it."

"Dad knows. He noticed right away when he came to visit me at university. Mom, well, since she barely survived the attack, she's been even more wacky than usual. I better not tell her. I have a hard time figuring her out right now, and I don't know how far she'd go to "cure" me of being gay."

"Okay, then that's settled. I just interrupted you. Please keep talking."

"Yeah okay. So my ex boyfriend, we were just secretly dating, and his brother seem to work for some organization in my opinion. He has a lot of secrets and had to lie to me about it all the time. I know they are after one of the students who is in my year."

"And now you want to know why?"

"I want to know who he works for and what their mission is."

"I can help you. But you should know, if he works for a government organization, I can't give you any information about it."

"Mn, I already suspected that. I'm also more interested in knowing if he works for the government or gangsters. And I want to know why they've been after this student for the past year."

"Fine, I will be happy to try to get the information for you. First, give me the names of your ex-boyfriend and his brother."

"My ex-boyfriend's name is Xiao Zhan. I assume that is his real name. His brother's name is Xiao Cheng."

"Mn, okay. And what is the student's name?"

"Her name is Alessia Milan and she is from ..."

"Italy."

"Yes. Did you guess that from the name?"

"No."

"Then how did you know?"

"Because her dad's name is Gino Milan, and he's the boss of an Italian mafia who have their fingers in everything all over the world. And I suppose she doesn't like you very much?"

"Mafia?" Yibo asked, gulping.

"Yeah. So? How do you and that Alessia Milan feel about each other now?"

"That bitch hates me and has threatened me several times."

"Wow. Then it's no wonder your boyfriend, yes I know, ex boyfriend, didn't tell you and lied to you. Because that's the only way he can protect you from her. And at the same time he can continue his investigation. If the organization he works for would find out that he is with you, they would immediately take him off the case and put him somewhere else."

"I'm really speechless uncle."

"Yibo I can only advise you to stay away from this woman. The Milan Mafia is very dangerous."

"That's easier said than done. I see her every day at the university. And I think she's watching me. She and I get into arguments all the time."

"Does she argue with others that much, too?"

"She does have fights with others. But with me she fights all the time. We have a thing for the same guy you know."

"Ah, so she sees you as a competitor. Has Xiao Zhan let on that he likes you?"

"Good question. He's always with her, pretending to like her. But for some reason, she doesn't seem to believe that 100%. Because she even has something against a simple friendship between him and me."

"So you're a thorn in her side."

"You could say that, yes."

"You know what Yibo? I think it was good that you came to me. Because you could really be in danger. I'm going to talk to some of my contacts and try to get more information. In the meantime, and I urge this of you, you will stay out of her way. No more fights! And stay out of Xiao Zhan's way, too. It's best not to even look at him. You must pretend that you don't care about him at all. Even in front of him!"

"I broke up with him and moved to another room. I think I can handle that."

"Good, I'll also get someone in your university to watch over you."

"Do you think she could really be after me?"

"Does Xiao Zhan love you?"

"Yes."

"Then the breakup will probably hurt him. And if he's not careful, she might notice something is wrong with him. She's trained to pay attention to everything."

"I see. Could he be in danger, too?"

"He has been all along. He and his brother."

"Damn it. I should warn Haikuan. He's with Cheng."

"Oh, A-Kuan is into men too?"

"Mn. They've been a couple for a little over six months."

"Okay. Um, I don't think your brother is in any danger though. You can still tell him to watch out though."

"I will. Anything else?"

"Not at the moment. It's a shame you're not an agent. I think you'd be really good at it. And if you were, you could have helped take down the Milan Mafia."

"Me as an agent? I have no talent for that."

"I don't see it that way. But we can talk about that another time."

"Uh okay."

"So again. From now on, you will pretend that the Xiao Zhan doesn't matter. You will pretend that Alessia Milan's provocations don't bother you. And you will pretend that you have no idea who she is."

"Sure, I will."

"And of course you should keep everything we talk about and have talked about to yourself."

"Okay uncle."

"Now tell me how your studies are going. We haven't talked in a while and I know from your dad that you're getting a lot of praise and doing really well." Said his uncle.

Yibo nodded. He told his uncle how his first year went, all the things he experienced and accomplished, and also about how he fell in love with Zhan. His uncle listened carefully and then they talked again about the time when Yibo's uncle was still working as a secret agent and what crazy things he had experienced.

The time Yibo spent with his uncle was a time in which he was distracted from his heartache and his worries by the many conversations. Knowing that his uncle now stands behind him and wants to help him, helped Yibo to relax a little. And he firmly resolved to do everything his uncle had advised him to do.

Later, when he was back at the Keno Academy and his room, he thought again about how his uncle thought he could have been a good agent. And indeed, there was once a time when Yibo could have imagined that. In fact, whenever his uncle came to visit and told him about his latest mission, Yibo wanted to be as cool as his uncle and be an agent to rid the world of bad people. But at that time Yibo thought he had no talent for it and dancing was still more important to him than anything else.

In the evening, his new roommate finally returned from his weekend trip. Yibo and he didn't have to introduce themselves to each other because he and He Peng already knew each other and had become friends during their first year. Of course, He Peng was surprised that Yibo was now his roommate, but he was also happy about it.

Yibo had told He Peng that he and Zhan had irreconcilable differences and just couldn't live together anymore. He didn't know if He Peng believed him, but it seemed that way at least. The two didn't talk much, however, as He Peng was in a hurry to get to the community center.

He Peng asked Yibo if he wanted to come along, but Yibo refused. He didn't feel like seeing Zhan or Alessia. And besides, he wants to follow his uncle's advice and avoid both of them. If that is possible, in other words. Therefore, He Peng went alone and Yibo was left alone in his room. He watched a movie on his computer and went to sleep after a quick shower.

In the morning, Yibo went to the cafeteria together with He Peng and sat down at the table with Wen Ning and his sister Wen Qing. He felt the probing looks of his friends Youn, Wooseok, and Cheng's. And he felt Zhan's gazes on him, which seemed almost to pierce him. But he didn't let on and pretended to be engrossed in a conversation with the two siblings. Or rather, as if he was interested in what the two were talking about.

He knew that he had no reason to avoid Youn and Wooseok. But since Cheng was with them and Yibo also feared to reveal himself to Youn, he thought it would be better to stay away from them for the time being. Thus he would not drag Youn into any more unpleasant or dangerous situations. But he missed his friend and he missed sitting at a table with his friends and gossiping about Alessia.

Until lunch, Yibo was at dance class and music class, ate lunch together with Wen's siblings, and then was quite surprised when he heard the principal announce over the loudspeakers that the security company had changed and that the new security staff would start work immediately. Shortly thereafter, he saw a van drive onto campus and got all wide-eyed when one of the new guards turned out to be his uncle.

Yibo waited until he could approach his uncle unnoticed and asked him, "What are you doing here?"

"Looking after my nephew. The matter is much bigger than I assumed. I can't tell you more right now. But trust me, your ex-boyfriend did nothing wrong. He was protecting you. I should thank him when this is over." Replied his uncle.

"What exactly does that mean now? If even you are here, then..."

"I came out of retirement for this one last case. Several organizations are working together from now on. That's all I can tell you yet. Now go before someone sees us together."

"Yes uncle. See you later."

"Mn. Don't worry. I'll take good care of you."

"Thank you."

"You're very welcome." Said his uncle with a smile. Yibo almost got goosebumps when he saw his smile. For he smiled extremely rarely. And he knew that his uncle had only done that now to reassure Yibo with it and to make him believe that everything was all right. But with this smile he rather caused the opposite.

As Yibo walked back to the training center, Zhan walked past him. Yibo had to pull himself together not to look at him. And he almost stopped abruptly and looked back at him when Zhan whispered to him as he passed, "That was smart, bringing your uncle out of retirement. Good job. I'm proud of you."

Yibo wondered, no sooner had he reached the training center, what else Zhan actually knew about him and his family. After all, he had never told him about his uncle. And did Zhan honestly mean it when he said he was proud of him?

A/N: In the next chapter, we will probably read Zhan's POV for the first time. So that we can also look a little more behind his facade.