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Chapter 18

"You know where to go, right?" Khaiser glances briefly at his housemate before focusing back on his steps.

"Of course I do. I know all the roads in this area and the neighbouring areas as well." Mikael claims proudly. "Well, Zeph already sent me the location actually." He spills out the truth after a brief pause. A wide grin forms on his face as a display to his friend as he gets into his car. Khaiser just stares at him in silence before shaking his head lightly with a smile and following him into the car. Mikael turns on the engine and starts driving, leaving the parking spot.

"It's so convenient to have someone who knows the areas." Khaiser monologues softly.

"What did you say?" Unfortunately for Khaiser, his monologue is not soft enough to hide his thought from Mikael.

"Nothing. Nothing at all." Khaiser shakes his head without bringing his sight away from the road. For a moment, the radio broadcasters take over the conversation in the car.

"You want to drive?" Mikael spurts a random question out of nowhere.

"We're already on the road and you just ask me that?" Khaiser brings his sight to his friend and chuckles a bit. "No thanks. I'm good. You know the road better than I do. Plus, I know you're not actually going to let me drive your car, aren't you?"

"I told you to go out more often. I've asked you many times before to join me whenever I go out, but you're so stubborn. I'm not sure what's so fun about staying at home all the time. I don't understand how you can live like that." Mikael starts nagging as he drives. Khaiser just listens to him silently in his seat. This is not the first time he has ever been in that kind of situation. He has lost count of how many times his friend has been talking about the same thing over and over again. He actually has given his friend's commentary serious thought, and he admits that what he said is actually true and reasonable. But hanging out just did not fit with his soul. For him, as long as he knows all the important places around him, that is good enough.

***

"Yeah, we're halfway there. Don't worry. Everything is fine." Mikael glares at his housemate from the corner of his eyes before focusing back on the road.

"Oh, alright then. Just asking if you and Mike are okay. This is the first time you go to my house after all." Zephan reveals his concern.

"We're fine, don't worry about us. We'll call you if we need anything." Khaiser ends the phone call and focuses back on the road.

"Who's calling?" Mikael asks as soon as Khaiser puts away his phone with his sight still glued to the road in front of him.

"Zeph. Just asking how we doing." A concise answer comes out of Khaiser's mouth as he gazes around from his seat. The scenery is unfamiliar to him as he never used the road before. There are quite a few things that grab his attention even though he acts indifferent the whole time. Their journey continues with songs from the radio filling the silence. Sometimes their voices interrupt the songs, singing along and conversating about random things.

***

Zephan chugs down the remaining drink in his glass before bringing it to the sink. He gives his glass a quick wash before wiping it dry and putting it back in its place, on the dish shelf. Feeling like there is nothing else for him to do, he opens his steps to leave the kitchen.

"Ha, Zeph. When will your friends arrive?" A voice echoes in the hallway, hitting Zephan's eardrums who is only a few steps from the kitchen. He brings his gaze in the direction of the voice, killing his steps at the same time. The figure of his brother in black denim trousers and a red checkered shirt who is just stepping out of his room and closing the door fills his sight. Youhan is already finished dressing up and ready to leave the house to meet up with his friends. While waiting for his brother to answer him, he walks to the front door to put on the finishing touches, his shoes.